Tumgik
#this is the highlight of my entire life just btw
banana-nut-crunch · 1 year
Text
So I started a Redbubble a little while ago. I make fanart and lil pictures and as much as I love to draw I never thought it would really reach anyone, especially with how much amazing work there is out there. A couple of weeks ago, i was really excited that I actually made a sale for a shirt to someone in the UK. Today I saw this picture:
Tumblr media
This is my artwork. My one sale was to Jodie Whittaker. And she wore it to awesome con?!! My brain can’t process this information?!
2K notes · View notes
runningwithscizzorz · 1 month
Note
Oh my god I’m so stupid invested in Narinder and Nour’s arc. I have so many questions. What was making Nour lose themselves, was it just new god things? How did both of them change over the 10 years apart? After the initial reaction of Narinder being back, did the two or them go back to normal or was it tense? What were his siblings’ reactions? Your art is gorgeous btw, always a highlight of my day when I see you posted. Much love!
WHEEEWWW where do I even start🤣🤣 Nour’s desire for complete control over their life is what the crown fed on in the time they were Narinder’s vessel, so they were already having to fight the urge to give in and completely lose it for 600 years.
Tumblr media
Once Narinder was freed, they put that entire need for control into HIM, making them extremely possessive and using him as a sort of eldritch anger scapegoat. He reciprocated with his anger at their betrayal, so they fought a LOT the first ten years of freedom. Doesn’t mean they weren’t “getting along” between trying to tear out the others eyes though hehe. As for the other questions, I shall answer them when I actually draw their reunion!✨👏
360 notes · View notes
poraphia · 9 months
Text
"The Battle of His Teal Hoodie."
➵ PAIRING! cc!wilbur x student!reader
➵ CREATING! 10.5.23 | 751 words
➵ CONTAINING! oversized hoodie, facetime calls, reader is a university student
➵ SAYING! literally so self-indulgent. ive been studying for like an hour straight in the library and im still THINKING ABOUT THAT HOODIE BRO IM GONNA GET IT ONE DAY WATCH BARKABRKARK btw if u wanna be in my taglist feel free to message me okay mwa mwa enjoy
——————•°•✿•°•——————•
When your boyfriend is over six foot and has an entire collection of merch where his name is plastered over cozy polyester hoodies,
you bet your sweet ass I was going to steal at least five of them.
College life wasn’t as romanticized as I thought it would be. Sure, the warmth of a coffee during a chilly morning while endlessly typing on my laptop sounded good on paper, but I guess I forgot to mention the endless due dates and upcoming exams I had to study for. I found myself buried in the corner of the university’s library on the quietest floor. I looked through my schedule, crossing out any assignments I already completed and also checking back on my classes to see if I needed to make any event adjustments.
My eyes felt heavy as I took another gulp of my caffeinated drink. My headphones shielded my ears comfortably as gentle sounds of a guitar strumming and a buttery voice filled my senses. A deep sigh escaped my nostrils before I sat back in my seat, slightly rolling away from the desk I was sitting at.
Bzzz! Bzzz!
I looked over to my phone on my desk before picking it up. I was welcomed by a picture of Wil with lipstick marks all over his face. Smiling, I swiped open the call to see my beautiful boyfriend walking around the busy streets of Brighton. I propped my phone up against my laptop to give him a full angle of me and the bookshelves behind me.
“Hey, darling, I missed you!” He smiled brightly.
“I missed you too, Wil. How was studio recording?” I asked. I pushed my laptop a little further back to make space in between me and my notebook. I took a colorful highlighter and started to go over my notes as he spoke.
“Studio was fine. We’re almost done recording a whole song for the new EP, so that should be exciting.” He chuckled. “I’m just heading over to Tom’s until you get out of school. Do you wanna get some lunch together after I pick you up?”
“Yeah, I could go for a sandwich and pretzel honestly.” I smiled, imagining the salty and buttery taste of the pretzel in my mouth already.
“Sounds good,” he confirmed. He took a glance of me briefly before doing a double take. “Hey, what are you wearing?” He asked. He held his phone closer to his face, only giving me an angle of his mess of curly hair and forehead.
“Hmm?” I hummed. “I’m just wearing my usual clothes.” I answered, oblivious.
“Now you’re just lying to me!” He laughed. “I see you smiling! Go on, stand up and let me that hoodie.”
With a defeated sigh, I stood up with my back nearly against the bookshelves so he could get a full angle of my outfit. I was wearing white tennis shoes, black shorts, but most distinctly of all, I was wearing Wil’s teal hoodie from his “Wilbur Soot ‘96” collection. The hoodie was nearly two sizes bigger than me with the sleeves going past my fingertips and my shorts just barely showing from how long the article of clothing was.
“Mhm,” he hummed. “So you decided to steal my merch, huh?”
“It’s comfy!” I exclaimed, hugging myself with the long sleeves wrapped around my waist. “Plus it smells like you, and it has your name on it! Wearing this is like screaming I’m the best partner Mr. Soot could ever ask for!” I went over and picked up my phone before holding it above my head.
“Yeah, I guess so.” He chuckled. “I’m going to steal that back once I pick you up.” He threatened, waving his finger into the camera.
“Over my dead body.” I stuck my tongue out at him. Wil scoffs, holding his hand to his chest as if offended.
“Oh, we’re going to brawl, just you wait.” He held his camera close to his eyes before bringing his lips to the camera. “Love you though!” Before I could say anything else, he hung on me.
I stared down at my phone. I smiled, tilting my head a little as I fiddled with the strings of my— or rather— Wil’s hoodie.
Maybe I should run to the gym a bit after class as a warmup.
——————•°•✿•°•——————•
a / n ~ hiii hope u enjoyed! reblogs, replies, and likes are super appreciated! im almost at 200 followers and im so excited!! seriously, i wanna get to know my followers better so if anyone wants to be an anon or just drop a hello please feel free :)
292 notes · View notes
Note
Wibta if I told my friend, upfront, I do not want his toxic partners in my campaign party without specifying why?
Everyone in this is 22+
So I (22NB) have been working on a campaign for at least 3 years now. I used dnd as a base and built off it to make my own world, races, mechanics, massive maps, religions, languages etc. This will be a massive campaign with highlights on religion and dealing with gods as a mortal etc and I've put so many hours into it it isn't even funny. I mean shit, I picked music for different areas depending on if it's day or night.
I made a discord server to house most of the basic info my players would need from table rules to the races and beyond. I mainly had the idea that the party would consist of my dmnpc guide (he doesn't fight or break the game, his only action during fighting is the help action and guide the party. Im not an asshole dm who makes my guide the protagonist. If its important, death doesn't really exist in my campaign due to demi-god race stuff, the party just gets sent back to its last save point with my grumpy man guide saying I told you so.), my partner's character (24f)(she dosent get preferential treatment. We've been together for 8 yrs) and my best bud's character (22tm. Been friends for 8 yrs). I never said I specifically only wanted my partner and friend to be party members but it was implied due to the fact I never invited my friends partners to the discord. I just don't really have many friends and this is the first time I've ever dm-ed period, let alone dming my own homebrew. We're all pretty novice newbie players and I think it'll be fun for us to stumble through the game together in a much less complicated form of DND without seasoned players "um actually-"ing us the whole time.
My partner is excited to try and my friend is ecstatic and about 2 years into development (last November) he asked if I could let his partners join the campaign. There're a few issues with this beyond me not really knowing them and not wanting to run a large party (it's hard for seasoned dms to run a 4+ party, let alone I, a fresh infant of a dm). My friend has 3 partners of his (he has 4 total) he wants to introduce to my campaign, this includes (fake names): Mel(24nb), Sandy (mid 20s f) and Rue (23 tw). I have issues with each individual present and it all stems from me sitting in on a different campaign for a single session. See, my friend has his own campaign (much smaller, follows one story in one town on an island instead of my entire continent) and he tried to run it by those three partners (and 2 friends. Names and genders unnecessary, they were our age) while I quietly sat in the session (it was over a discord call, were all in differnet states except for me and my partner) and watched it run just to see how my friend dmed and how the groups chemistry was. They had a 3 hour session.
It was the most socially awkward, intense and passive aggressive 3 hours of my life. Mel barely paid attention and as a result, had to have things explained to them when they weren't listening. They would then would talk over the person explaining things, pick apart their language and get irritated to the point of telling them (mostly rue) to shut up. Mel was quite litterally looking for a fight constantly. Sandy was relatively quiet but also not paying attention and talking over other players actions. She also would come up with random "icks " and one minute was telling everyone to keep all sexual jokes and comments to themselves because it made her uncomfortable then the next said her character was literally blowing a guy in the back of tavern.(btw this is not a fetish campaign or anything, it was out of left field for everyone and my friend shut it down because of that) Rue was the "uhm actually" type who pointed out inaccuracies, broken rules and lack of realism (it's a pirate fantasy magic campaign. There isn't much to focus on realism). Rue was clearly the most seasoned player but the nicest all things considered. She was mostly just condescending and treated my friend like he was stupid for not having every single detail mapped out. The party also had 2 of his friends but they were just as quiet as me and also either not paying attention or listening to the shit show. The session litterally ended with Sandy and Mel having the tiniest argument, mel pulling a crying running away anime protagonist "I'm sorry for being just a fucking terrible person! Ill leave so you all can have fun!!" Then hanging up all dramatically. Safe to say, their party was literally every red flag I was warned about by dm guide content.
My friend then came to me and said they broke up with Sandy that night but were still friends and I was still in shock from the sheer toxicity. Did I mention I had only met Sandy and the two other friends that night? And had only spoken over the phone to Mel once in a group call and met rue in person 2 times? Safe to say, I do not want litterally any of his partners in my party for various reasons and I feel as if just one of them at my table would make my patience end on sight. I consider myself to be very flexible and want to do my very best to be a fair but strong dm who doesn't get their story absolutely trampled by players intentionally trying to ruin my story and watch me scramble (mel and sandy openly did that). These players would disrespect my table rules for fun. Even my friend said they never respect him and his story as a DM and he won't run a game with them again and he thinks they'll respect my rule? As a baby dm? Nah fam.
He wants to bring rue and Mel into my campaign and I haven't answered him yet. I've mostly dodged the question with "I'm not sure how big of a party I feel comfortable dming for, I'll know later down the line." And he's asked again, still curious. I don't wanna judge my friends relationships because he and Mel have been together for 5 years and rue has been with him for 2 (they were together previously before rue came out and rue tried to control and physically abuse him. Thats another reason I don't want her in my campaign. Fuck abusers) but the toxicity they would bring would probably poison me. If I bring these things up, idk how my friend would react and he can be a bit... Extreme when he gets defensive. Cutting people off permanently at a moments notice then coming back crying or confused. He has BPD which explains it but I don't obviously wanna say " your partners are low-key toxic and abit abusive and I don't want them at my table or in my life for the most part and although I love you bro(/platonic) I do not want living blowfish at my table that you might not even speak to tomorrow.".
Obviously I wouldn't word it like that but mainly I just plan on saying "Ive never dmed before and I'm nervous about the functionality of my campaign so I want to keep my party nice, small and intimate and only between you, me and my partner for now. Maybe we can incorporate them later." Without mentioning all the... Other stuff and side stepping if he's like "but what if just mel/rue?". Me, my partner and him have been friends awhile so it's not like he'll feel like he's third wheeling or anything and I get he wants his partners to take in his interest, I just do not want them at my table and I wanna know if I'm a dick if I dont specify why and avoid the question. I dont wanna rock the boat and hurt my friends feelings but I'm not gonna ruin the first full run of my pet project so a passive aggressive asshole and a know it all almost abuser can participate. He deserves to know why his partners can't join and I'm not technically lieing, even if they were cool, I don't know if I'd want them there. But they definitely aren't cool and that just seals the coffin for me.
(obviously I'm wording this in a comedic way but everything here actually happened and I mostly just wanna focus on supporting my friend despite his choices. I do not have to like his partners to tolerate them but it's my table and my years of work, if i dont want them there, they dont get to be there. I'm just wondering if I'm a dick for kinda lieing kinda not if I don't give the actual reasons for why I don't want them at my table and never plan on allowing them there. I would happily accommodate 1 or 2 more people at my table in this case if they were close to me like my sister or older brother but I dont know his partners well at all and even though they are passive to me, I dont feel safe around people like that. Wibta?)
What are these acronyms?
87 notes · View notes
dayseedrawz2 · 2 months
Text
This is gonna be a Looooooong post.
I wrote so much-
This is practically a retelling of the entire episode so...
IF YOU STILL HAVENT SEEN EPISODE 2, PLEASE WATCH IT FIRST. UNLESS YOU ARE FINE WITH SPOILERS THAT IS.
Well, now that that's outta the way...
This was a CRAAAAAAAAAAAZY EPISODE!!!
I can't express ENOUGH how much I enjoyed this!!
Here are some highlights/thoughts I had during my first watch:
The new GLITCH intro looked pretty cool!!
The dream sequence at the beginning was really good!
We kinda get to see how Pomni really felt through the first day in her dream. And her fist impression on the others...
#PoorPomni
I wasn't expecting this to take place the day right after episode 1, but it makes a whole lotta sense.
We already saw this in the trailer, but the part where Pomni glitches through that block lol
Ragatha tried to comfort Pomni even when she was abandoned by her <33 ALSO-
#RaggapomREAL🤨
I got so hyped when Caine came on screen
I am so normal about him
Caine ominously stands for a few frames before starting the explanation of the adventure... hmm...
The maple syrup thing got me thinking (forgive me if I'm incorrect, but-) Isn't Caine's VA Canadian? If so it makes sense to have Caine and Maple syrup in the same room. (That was the first thing I thought of BEFORE the episode, btw)
"Sounds like alot of [BLEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEP]."
"..."
"Bubble, you can't say that..."
Mmm, very good delivery 👌
Caine seemed kinda in a rush to get them out also...
"Hmm?" "No thanks, I'm trying to quit."
Oh.
Also another great line delivery
WAIT HOLD THE FUCKING PHONE-
CAINE IS THEIR GOD!?!?!?
"Look!! The princess is already friends with us, Pomni!!"
"Im not a child. You don't have to hype me up."
THE UNDER THE MAP SCENE.
MMMM ANOTHER VERY GOOD LINE-
Jax needs a life sentence for Gangle abuse >:(
Auzzie gators go brrr
"Do it, or I'll tell Ragatha about the figurine thing."
I'm sorry, WHAT-
GANGLE WHAT DID YOU DO-
(Fast forward a teensy bit)
HOLY FUCK.
Gummigoo coming across his own model...
Realizing that he never actually had a mom...
It was all just elaborate programming to give him a backstory...
ANYWAY
Fudge monster go brr
Wait-
He did what-
Aww, pomni trying to comfort Gummi was so cute...
She offered to take him back to the circus...
I'm sure he'll have a great time :)
Pomni, knowing how to break the game to get them out, was not what I was expecting.
But this whole episode is not what I expected, so here we are-
(One cool truck flying scene later...)
Blah blah blah, they end the adventure, Jax causes some chaos, and they finally take Gummigoo to his new home!
I'm sure he's gonna love it here in the c-
...
...
CAINE WHAT THE FUCK WE TRUSTED YOU-
*Sreams at my computer for 5 minutes*
*highlights this as if I wasn't screaming the entire episode*
#PoorPomni
...again
Oh wow, Zooble didn't abstract yippee :D
And then, the end scene...
HOLY FUCK, THE END SCENE...
The little funeral for Kaufmo oh my word-
And Pomni realizing that the others actually care...
They all got her back...
Daww...
I-I'M NOT CRYING YOU'RE CRYING-
*The end card begins*
...
THAT'S IT!?!?
No, you can't just leave us with this!! Wh-
Aaaaaand that was my experience! :>
I... am not okay rn...
What are yall's thoughts???
52 notes · View notes
iwtvdramacd18 · 8 months
Note
top 5 claudia moments...
YES LETS FUCKINGGG GOOOOO
this will be in no order btw and also I gave up on just 5.
Tumblr media
"HE WHO CALLED YOU HIM" the whole fucking. Claudia taking down Lestat scene the ENTIRE thing but also Bailey does not get enough credit for that lil eye twitch she did on "always the petty slights with you" like we saw her triumphant we saw her enraged we saw her getting a lil petty with it I LOVE HER
Tumblr media
Her and Louis hugging before she goes to leave on the train.... SO MUCH TO SAY about how they interact here like oh my god I need to take take to just dissect the scene
Tumblr media
Claudia Kart
Tumblr media
Honestly like a solid fifteen minutes of scenes but I do wanna highlight the fact that Claudia in the show has actively tried to make fledglings and that's talked about the same time that she starts getting more intense with her kills and not cleaning up as often. I feel like we haven't mentioned the Nicki connection enough I feel we need to address the Nicki shaped Elephant in the room
Tumblr media
CLAUDIA COMING TO THE CONCLUSION THAT SHE WAS MADE "TO BE LOUIS' SISTER" AFTER SEEING HIM SOBBING AT HIS OWN GRAVE AND TALKING ABOUT HOW TIME DOESN'T FEEL RIGHT WITHOUT THE TWO OF THEM IN HER LIFE? WHAT IF I JUST DIED RIGHT NOW. Can somebody (me) write the fucking essay about Claudia and vampirism and self-identity/ the lack of ability to properly have one
Tumblr media
"...and you will enjoy doing it" LITERALLY ONE OF THE BEST IF NOT THE BEST ALTERING OF THE BOOK TEXT SO FAR LIKE???????????? I'm too excited now I can't string my thoughts together I'll get back to it thanks for asking
67 notes · View notes
eueuphoriaz · 2 months
Text
Not very familiar with Tumblr but saw a lot of AOT stuff here. So thought I would try it out to share some of my ideas and thoughts.
I am not an anime and manga person. I have only watched 2 animes in my entire life (AOT is my first and only Jap anime). I cant figure out the complex universe of AOT when the anime first aired, so I disconnected with it for about 10 years. But then I watched a clip of Hange's death on Youtube, got curious and decided to understand the universe again. This time, with a lot of analysis and articles from dedicated fans, the whole story made so much sense now.
So much so I also read the manga and just finished it. So, for my first Tumblr post, I am going to post this observation, which I am not sure if this had been discussed before. If it has been, please let me know where I can find them.
Btw, Hange and Levi are my favourite and I ship them. So, please, I dont like negativity. If our views do not click, just leave. 🙏
So, I cant help but to notice someone who looks like Levi on this page, which supposedly tried to explained the status of people on Paradise under the new Yeagerist rule.
Tumblr media
It shows Flegel, the news paper guys and a dark-hair person (which resembles a lot like Levi), looking on the soldiers with an uninterested expression. Then Hitch and Rico. And then Sasha's family and Niccolo who were also looking on with an uninterested expression.
Now, I tried to understand the intention of what is illustrated here. If the panels were to show people associated to some main characters, it makes sense that Sasha's significant people are highlighted because they represent Sasha, who has died. Then my conclusion is that the people at the top panel probably represents Hange who has died and these are the people that we can associate with Hange.
Flegel and the news paper guys had the most interactions with her (excluding military people) throughout the whole story in earlier chapters. In a way, they have seen the resolute and struggles Hange went through and can be considered "closest" to her. And if that dark-hair guy is just some other random peasant, why is he having that same uninterested expressions? So likely he knew the whole thing too.
Tumblr media
So, is that Levi?
22 notes · View notes
adracat · 1 year
Text
GWitch 23 thoughts
Sorry for the wait on this, I had to rewatch a few times to really drink in everything that was going on. I didn't have the best knee-jerk reaction initially ( I enjoyed it ofc but was a bit ambivalent about some things) and wanted to give it a fair shake.
Tumblr media
First up, seeing Suletta zip around like the ace pilot she is was quite rewarding and fun! Now all those auto-pilot rumors can be laid to rest. However, the circumstances weren't the best and it broke my heart she was gasping for air the entire time. I had no doubt she'd live but it's still miserable to witness that
Tumblr media
Ah Lauda. Your tomfoolery knows no bounds. We knew this was coming after the last ep, but it's still a bit frustrating. On a technical narrative level, it works since we're seeing two sets of siblings confront their simmering tension with one another. On a personal level, I wasn't very amused. I first saw this at 4 in the morning and had no patience for Lauda lmao. But rewatching it a few times gave me a deeper appreciation for what's going on. He's really intent on scapegoating Mio for everything wrong in his life. Fitting for her role as the Rose Bride and Lauda's demonized witch
Tumblr media
This little aside from Chuchu is so suspicious tbh. Considering Mio's failure at piloting, this seems to imply either she does not have a permet implant of any sort or a flat intolerance. I have a sneaking suspicion it'll become a factor in the next episode.
Tumblr media
Mio staring wistfully at Cool-san/etc memento of Suletta will always grab me by the throat. Girl wants to wife up Suletta so bad. And really, who could blame her?
Tumblr media Tumblr media
Schwarzette is so pretty and cool. Unfairly so. Like, why did you make that thing so unique and cool? For dipstick Lauda?? Who is that pink permet for and why does it look like Utena??? ANSWER ME OKOUCHI
Tumblr media
That's nice of Delling to rise from his sickbed to try and negotiate with the SAL. Unfortunately, this would be for naught because they're here to purge and replace. Not make nice. It was the thought that counts, I suppose.
Tumblr media
Speaking of, the debut of a solar ray blindsided me. I mean, yeah it's Gundam, but I kinda thought we were skipping the big death ray lmao. After sitting on it, I think I know where it's headed. Totally on brand for SAL too in hindsight. They like to act removed, but they're just as entrenched as Benerit in the skeevy corpo politics. Allying with Ochs and now Peil cements it
Tumblr media
Check the link above to see my Utena related thoughts on this moment btw. It might be the highlight of the episode beyond the Prospera confrontation. Stunned they finally stopped playing coy and seemingly confirm Notrette is indeed a GUND entity residing in pseudo hell, and likely a GWitch newtype like Eri
Tumblr media Tumblr media
This was very sweet and I enjoy it more on a rewatch but I also understand why I and so many people had a gut-deep aversion to this subplot. The issue is entirely investment based imo, and tbh I just don't care that much about the Jeturk family dynamics. At best, I don't mind them. Guel is a bro but Lauda is SO exhausting on multiple levels. His misogyny and gross negligence of Petra in favor of revenge doesn't help.
If something came of this other than Lauda/Guel sibling closure, I'd consider it fulfilling. But if you lack investment in the conflict, it's going to feel limp or frustrating in comparison to the siblings you want to see. So while I appreciate the parallel with Suletta/Eri and the continuing subtext of witch coded Mio, that's it for me. But hey, it serves a purpose. A tragic cycle was broken after all, thanks to love and MVP Felsi!
Tumblr media
The one big gripe I have after consideration is this man's continued existence. Kenanji doesn't deserve to play buddy buddy with the cast. He's a dirty space cop who bullies children and murdered Nadim, now he's joking with 5lan? The hell. I get the theme of the show is forgiveness and not perpetuating the cycle of revenge but... really? KENANJI gets to be happy but Norea/Sophie don't? Sigh
Tumblr media
It was so dirty of Eri to use Suletta's love for Mio against her. She knows Suletta would panic over their mother possibly 'gaining two'. It's crafty and unrepentant, but Suletta holds fast. Her faith in Mio is greater than her idle fears
Tumblr media Tumblr media
Mio scolding Prospera over her favoritism was great. We love a fiancé willing to take a stand against her shit in-laws. Speaking of, looks like Mio has fully embraced becoming a Mercury one day. 'All of us will be family' YEAH YOU WILL so suck it up Prospera. The holidays are gonna be so awkward
Tumblr media
Btw love Mio was shouting at her while having an emotional breakthrough deciphering her mother's QZ riddle. This moment was excellent and easily superceded my minor gripes. UGH when will you reveal Notrette's whole deal GWitch? We're waiting
Tumblr media
Such a bittersweet moment. We know from the Blessing and Cradle Planet that Eri loves her sister but it may not have been until this moment that Suletta understands her feelings. Now, I don't think she's 'dead' tbh. Or deader anyway. I suspect it's a false flag to hook you until the finale. It would be quite anti-climactic if she passed without a proper goodbye. I'm still holding out on a Tempest end where Prospera voluntarily sets her free.
The next Sunday will be our last. Hard to believe tbh. Feels like just yesterday we set out on this spectacular journey. Que sera sera! I'll see y'all in the finale~
131 notes · View notes
bunbunbillion · 2 months
Text
THE BUNBUNBILLION Q1 2024 MEDIA THREAD EXTRAVAGANZA
Tumblr media
i've been recording everything i consume for the past few months to do a media thread at the end of every quarter. and now april is over... so its time to talk about stuff!! forever!!!!!!
01/13 - Homestuck (Re-Read)
I finished re-reading Homestuck for the... 4th? 5th time? I've lost count. It's a good way to start the year though. This time around I read it with my girlfriend, who you should give all of your money too (@yinkybaginky), and it was very fun to see someones reaction to it for the first time. She knew literally nothing about Homestuck, not even what a Vriska Serket was. A truly great experience, especially thanks in part to the Unofficial Homestuck Collection. I'll probably have more to see about Homestuck in depth on a later date, so I won't bog down this post with that. It's my favorite piece of media ever, and that's all there is really to say on the matter.
Tumblr media
01/24-01/25 - The Trolls Movies
I've been surrounded by gay people who love Trolls for the past like 5 years so I finally decided to give them a watch on a whim with my girlfriend, after catching some of the first movie in a streamers server.
They were fun! I really don't think I have much to say on them. They're kids movies, sure, but they're also just very visually great and made me go "yeah you know what some of those old pop songs WERE pretty good". I think when it came to stories I liked the first one the most just because I liked the Bergen's a lot, I thought their whole world was very well designed and all that. Don't have the most care for Branch, and Poppy is OK as a protagonist, but otherwise I had more fun with the other characters. Creature design is absolutely excellent and is what stood out to me the most of anything, though. The animation in the 3rd movie is also top notch, I really do want to see the series continue. If they do, I like the third movies approach of finding a niche to make "the thing" for the whole movie, it's a fun way of doing stuff.
Tumblr media
We thought this shot was really funny.
1/20 - Guillermo Del Toro's Pinocchio
I was gonna watch this when it came out awhiiile ago, but just put it off forever. I saw Jacob Geller had uploaded a new video about Pinocchio, which talked about the movie and was like. Man. I wanna watch that video. Guess I'll go watch this entire movie. So I hopped into VC with Netflix on and just watched it.
It was Fucking Good!!!!!!!!!!! Every good thing you've heard about the movie is absolutely true. Do yourself a favor and just watch it. That being said, I also don't have too much to say about it! It's been a few months and it hasn't totally stuck around in my head, but that just means I get to rewatch it sometime, and I can look forward to that. It mostly made me want to watch more stop motion movies.
If I were to highlight anything, its that I love to make the movie all about death. Pinocchio as a story seems to constantly get turned into this thing all about freedom and living and how great life is and all that, but this movie completely nailed that yea. Pinocchio works so much better as a movie about death. A puppet living on a blessing against the laws of nature being used as a vessel to explore acceptance of death. It's really great.
Tumblr media
the demons are such baddies btw
01/29 - Earthbound USA
Not the game, but the documentary put together by Jazzy Benson through Fangamer. It was absolutely fantastic. Easily my favorite game documentary I've ever watched... Because it's not really about the game.
To put into words, because I imagine 90% of people reading (not including the people I watched it with) haven't seen it or even heard of it, Earthbound USA is a documentary about specifically starmen.net and Earthbounds western fanbase.
The doc highlights basically every aspect of Earthbound in the west. They talk to the people who translated the game, who made the marketing campaign, the fans who bought the game day one, the translator of the MOTHER 3 fan translation, they talk about Earthbound Zero, about the virtual console releases, the quest to get MOTHER 3 officially localized and every single defeat that came with it, I mean Shigesato Itoi is just here too. It's everything you could ask for all combined with home videos from the early 2000s, an outstanding soundtrack that gives me goosebumps from Robbie Benson, it's just... So good.
I bought the DVD for the movie and streamed that to my friends, which you can get here on Fangamer, whenever they plan on restocking it at least. Or, you can watch it on streaming services listed on their website! If your a MOTHER fan, I'd say this is like, essential viewing. It may as well be official with how good it is.
Tumblr media
01/29 - A Brief Retrospective of The Simpsons' Golden Age
I finished this the same day. I recorded this mostly as a joke, but hey if your insane and have watched every single Simpsons episode like me and want whats basically a Simpsons Summary Podcast, I recommend this 11-hour video.
youtube
02/06 - MOTHER
A week later I couldn't get Earthbound USA out of my head, so I decided to finally sit down and go where no MOTHER fan has gone before. To the first game in the series.
It was really really good. Like, man, I don't know why I slept on it so long just because it was an NES RPG. Ok, I mean, I know why I did, it's because it's a NES RPG, but still.
This game really highlights everything that went into its two sequels to make them so good, and has so many little unique novelties about it that make it just so so memorable. The music, the writing, the places you go, it's just... So, so good. I still think the best way to get into MOTHER is to start with Earthbound, just due to how approachable it is, but if you like it and/or MOTHER 3, do not sleep on MOTHER/Earthbound Beginnings. It's just so good.
Probably use an emulator with rewind or save-states though.
Tumblr media
i'll be fine with not hearing magicants music anymore though
02/17 - Yakuza Kiwami 2
I started this game probably years ago, and never got that far. Yakuza 0 is definitely one of my favorite games ever, and I was kind of mixed on Yakuza Kiwami, but I was enjoying the start of Kiwami 2 for sure.
How did I feel by the end?
Tumblr media
I mean it's not BAD, per say, it's just... Not very good, either. The gameplay never really felt like it evolved much, the writing really felt like it never picked up and just kept ADDING stuff, but at least the side quests were probably the absolute best the series has given me so far. That definitely saved it for me, but man the story. It just wasn't very good.
I had a lot more thoughts after playing it, but I think think in the end it just comes down to;
Ryuji did not get nearly enough time to shine to be an impactful villian
The bastard cop was a character I was given no reason to care for, and the focus put on him did not feel earned in any way
Kiryu really did not feel that involved with everything going on
Sayama did not get nearly enough agency in this story
As for the twists, I didn't like how many there were at first, but I think by the end there were just so many twists I was like. Yeah nvm this is so fucking stupid it owns. So good on them for that!
I don't think I'll ever replay the main story for this game, but I will absolutely come back to those side quests, they're so good I don't want to spoil a single one. I am also really enjoying Yakuza 3 so far, so that's a we might just be back regardless.
Tumblr media
the selfie feature is really funny. you really feel like your some 40 year old dad.
02/22 - Pokemon Scarlet and Violet: The Hidden Treasures of Area Zero - Epilogue
I have a lot of thoughts on Pokemon Scarlet & Violet. I am a HUGE Pokemon freak, like omega huge freak levels of such. I will claw and bite tooth and nail defending Sword and Shield any fucking day of the week. I think Scarlet and Violet are like, painfully mid games in such a disheartening way. I still enjoyed a lot of it, but man it's so held back by... everything, really.
And the DLC fixed I'd say about none of it. In fact, I'd go as far to say the 2 DLC stories only highlight and strengthen every single problem scarvi has as a game and it disheartens me, so, so so much. Unlike the Sword and Shield epilogues, which expanded upon the best parts of the game and experimented with brand new formats as prep for the next generation, scarvi kinda just does. Nothing. It's more Scarlet and Violet, slime grease and all.
Kitakami is... Ok, I guess? It's an exceptionally uninteresting region with absolutely no landmarks that stand out in my mind. The story in it is pretty subpar, it's a really annoying kind of "player has no control over a misunderstanding" narrative in a really obnoxious way and by god I'll say it I never really get a reason to care about Kieran. He's not bad by any means, I mean he's just a kid, but really I don't feel like I'd ever call him a friend. The story with the Loyal Three and Ogrepon is really cute though, I do love that they completely flipped the story of Momotaro on its head in such a fun and unique way.
Blueberry Academy I was looking forward to much more, thinking that while Kitakami was really rushed and pretty bad, it must mean more resources were just put towards the second DLC. I was pretty wrong, it was basically just as under baked... But also still better, regardless. They introduce a lot of characters you won't really remember with this DLC, and it feels weird because it feels like there SHOULD be more to these characters, but it's all confined to a pretty short campaign.
The story is pretty ok, and I like what they did with Kieran here, but the second you beat him in the champion fight the story like, immediately halts the breaks and everything stops mattering. I really thought Drayton might've been set up as an interesting antagonist, someone subtly bullying Kieran and egging on how he is, but in the end he's just a well meaning friend who's just eccentric. All the other trainers basically disappear as well, and Kieran reverts back to how he was before all this for the most part. Then the story with Terapagos has to happen, and you get the return to Area Zero, except with your new friends you've barely built bonds with and Briar instead.
Similar to Drayton, I thought Briar might've been getting set up to be a bit fucked up. She's pretty obsessed with Area Zero and proving that Heath was right, and that feels like obvious easy set up for a villain right? Obsession is kind of the text book villain motive, especially in a series like Pokemon. But, no, like Drayton, Briar is actually exactly as she seems, and there's nothing underneath.
Unfortunetly, Area Zero itself was also not as interesting on revisit. I imagine it was the far lower budget, but it ends up mostly just being a very basic crystal-cave environment, without that really fascinating hollow-earth vibe Area Zero has in the base game. You're also mostly just traveling alone going on fetch quests to beat mini-boss Pokemon to open up gates, so that feeling of traveling an unknown place with friends is also completely lost. In the end, Terapagos isn't much of a character at all, like Ogrepon (or Miraidon/Koraidon) are, and is just kinda There. I'm sure the anime is doing a lot more with them, given they're a main character, but man they are NOTHING in this game and it's really disappointing with how incredibly hyped up they are.
In the end though, the thing I really came out loving with the second DLC was something I didn't actually know about until after finishing the epilogue, which was the brief interaction with the Professor in Kitakami once you have Terapagos. I won't spoil it, I'd recommend going to the crystal lake in Kitakami with Terapagos in your party to see it, but it was a moment where I was really like... Damn. This story really could've been something special.
NOW WITH ALL THAT OUT OF THE WAY, it was the Epilogue that I beat this year, which acts both as a bonus to the DLC, and a Mythical Pokemon event similar to ones from the DS games. And, I gotta say.
It's easily the best thing in the entire DLC, bar none.
Despite just being a revisit to Kitakami, the Epilogue is not only better written then both of the DLC chapters, but actually shows that promise for future games like the SWSH DLC did years ago. I had a smile on my face basically the entire time.
First off, hanging out with the three friends again after they basically disappear once you beat the game is so incredibly refreshing. Just having them over to your house is the first time in a Pokemon game I've actually felt that like... Oh, I'm a kid hanging out with my friends, kind of feeling. That original inspiration the Pokemon series had was just completely captured with that, and I love it, and it continues through the entire DLC. On top of that, the DLC does a lot of very small things with its cutscenes that I felt were really missing from the main game that actually completely caught me off guard. Seamless transition between overworld cutscenes, cinematic cutscenes, and battles mainly. It feels like Pokemon games have always struggled with taking you out of the story for loading screens or transitions or letting the player wander off or something. It's hard to immerse, but with this DLC just through the most simple methods they really catch you off guard with the cutscene framing and battle starts in a way I absolutely adore, especially since your with your friends who can actually Talk for you too. Helps that all of the writing is just really funny too, I had such a good time.
Overall, I think this is where I want the Pokemon series to go. The segment of Area Zero where you travel with all your friends already stood out to a lot of people, but didn't have the most writing to back it up. Similarly, this DLC has all of the writing, but it can feel like you aren't actually traveling with your friends, as they don't follow you. I think having a Pokemon game where you travel directly with other people in a bit of a party is the way to go with expanding on Pokemon as a series, and this DLC combined with base scarvi really proves How it can work. It makes me so excited to see where we can go from here, and I can only hope they learned from all these mistakes.
Tumblr media
wow i had a fucking lot to say about scarlet and violet dlc and i didnt even mention this thing. whatever.
02/26 - Splatoon 3: Side Order
Funny story, I actually beat Splatoon 3 on a friends copy, but on my own switch, so when this DLC came out I ended up buying an entire new copy of Splatoon 3, with DLC, and an already completed save file. So was the DLC worth 80 bucks? I mean, no, not at all, but it was extremely good!!
It came out while I was out of town with my girlfriend, so we had a lot of fun playing it together, and I think it's just overall a genius idea for a Splatoon mode. It makes me like, viscerally crave an even bigger Splatoon roguelike, but I'm also like an extreme roguelike freak. The story was super cute (my big "I <3 PEARLINA" shirt notwithstanding) and basically everything it introduces is great. I haven't actually beaten the Agent 8 locker yet, because I'm Bad At Splatoon </3, but I everything else was just so good.
Tumblr media
im actually extremely biased, btw
02/27 - Ponyo (Rewatch)
I rewatched Ponyo with my girlfriend while I was over for the first time since I was a wee little amoeba. It was so fucking cute!!!! I really do love Ghibli movies a lot. I don't think there's a lot I can say about Ponyo, per say, at least not as much as other Ghibli movies I love like Spirited Away (my fave movie evarr), but I think this movie combined with like. Finding Nemo, Animal Jam, and going to the Houston Aquarium combined are probably why I love marine biology so much now.
Tumblr media
02/29 - Death Note
The anime, to be specific, for the first time. Yeah, I can see why this became such a big thing with fujoshis. I get it, I understand now. I'm sorry L, I didn't know your game.
Death Note is overall both an anime of its time, and an absolute classic you should be watching. It's engaging, it's dramatic, it's funny, and there's so many points where your just like "damn are they gonna bone" about the two characters the authors 100% had no intention to be seen in that way.
It's only real problems come from the authors also having no fucking clue what to do with women in the story, and making pretty annoyingly shallow characters that get sidelined really hard. The final arc is also a bit head scratching, but it makes for good drama, so I can't really complain, even if I remember a lot less of it. Great show, great ending. Where's my Misa & Rem yuri manga series.
Tumblr media
he really is just fucking jeff the killer huh
02/29 - Promare
Watched this with my girlfriend on a whim, cus we wanted to watch a movie together. I've been a very lowkey TRIGGER studios fan since I was a kid, watching Kill la Kill when I was way too young to be watching shows that crazy boobed, but it did definitely contribute to my transgender-ness, so you can't fault it there (you can fault it for a lot of other things though). No matter what though, when TRIGGER just randomly came out with a full feature length movie released in theaters, I was pretty interested. Which is why I didn't watch it for years.
After watching it though? Yea, that was really fun. It's not much in the way of story, very basic Minority Allegory story I think, but it's all to make way for extremely crazy action scenes and homages to all their favorite mecha anime, which like, yea props they did a great job. Character design is extremely fun, environments are super colorful, animation is what you'd expect from TRIGGER (good), and there's a lot of man tits this time around. I recommend it!
Tumblr media
03/04 - 2001: A Space Odyssey
I'll be so fucking honest I watched this on my phone on a plane ride and I don't fucking know anything that happened. I think it was good?? I think it made sense??? I really wanted to fall asleep but I really wanted to watch the movie. It felt like it was simultaneously 4 hours long and 30 minutes. I think I should probably watch it again. I don't know why I chose to watch it on a plane. But hey, I did!
Tumblr media
watching this shit while half awake on a dark plane felt like i was in another fucking dimension. what the hell happened
03/08 - Fortnite Chapter 5: Season 1
Hey Fortnite, I play that game! Sometimes.
I've been pretty consistently "playing" Fortnite since Chapter 2: Season 5, and I do really like the game. I love the gameplay, I love all the stupid crossovers, I loved the story, it was just a really fun time!
Well, up until like half way through Chapter 3 at least. The problem with Fortnite is that, no matter what, in the end of the day, it's still owned by Epic Games, and that means at some point, shits gonna get sloppy. I won't go over my whole history with how I feel Fortnites been on a decline since Chapter 3, but I can at least say i was pretty fucking checked out most of Chapter 4. I really didn't like it.
So, coming back on for Chapter 5? Oh shit this game is actually fun I forgot. Played a shit ton that season, actually finished the main battle pass for once, had so much fun with all the new things they added, it really feels like Fortnites back.
Oh... and there's that LEGO mode... and that rockband mode... and there's racing I guess... I didn't really touch them much but they're neat... They were pushing those modes pretty hard, I hope this isn't a sign of something to come... I'm sure they'll keep up the momentum for the next season right? Battle Royale is totally back, right?
Tumblr media
i ended up staying up till like the last day grinding in creative to get this emote. im so glad i can make perfect cell do the bird is the word dance now.
03/12 - King of Crusher
I beat this game over on my twitch, you can catch me live playing obscure games every so often each month!! Check it out and give me money! I said mostly everything I wanted to say about it on stream, but this game was just a really fascinating little art project that was both really frustrating and really funny to play. I really wanna find more little gems like this to play, it's so ODD but fun.
Tumblr media
03/15 - Animal Crossing (Movie)
Watched this movie as apart of a movie night with my groupchat and it was adorables so cutes! I don't think there's really anything I COULD say about this movie, but it does really make me wish Nintendo was more willing to make more stuff like it. Just a really well animated fun anime movie that's not trying to be this big thing.
Tumblr media
the ending caught me completely off fucking guard though
03/17 - Unpacking
Similar to Animal Crossing, I don't really have a lot to say about this game besides so cutes! The story told through the environment was super adorable and I really do think back to this game a lot in a very emotional way.
That being said, I wish it was a tad longer for how expensive it was, as great as the art was lol
If you can find it on sale though, go play it!!
Tumblr media
i was playing with my girlfriend and we ended up interpreting the main character as really hating her boyfriend. my fucking Pig of a husband wont let me put my posters on the wall. my Pigly husband. i need to Kill my Meat Pig of a Husband.
03/17 - Pizza Tower (The Noise Update)
In complete tonal contrast to Unpacking, I beat the Noise Update in Pizza Tower right after. It was, like Pizza Tower, really good, but not without its flaws.
In the time since I've played Pizza Tower, I've reflected a lot on what I love about the game and what I honestly don't care much for. I've been playing demos since the very first public one, and I've loved watching it evolve, but if there's one bit of context I've gotten that shapes how I look at the game, it's that the games creator has a really big issue with having a lot of ideas for stuff, and not really thinking about how they fit in together.
Pizza Tower is like, a REALLY good game, don't get me wrong. The movement is borderline perfect, the level design is consistently fun and flows well, the graphics are unmatched in how expressive they are, the music is some of my fave from the entire medium, but if there's one thing really holding back Pizza Tower it's that lack of focus, and I think you can boil that down to the core game design of levels.
Pizza Tower is easy to compare to Wario Land, given that's its primary inspiration, but I think it's much more akin to Sonic, which is also a major inspiration for it. The problem is, it definitely tries to apply Wario Lands brand of "wario can be anything" to sonics "levels can be anything". Sonic levels are all about super quick flashy levels you can blast through, each one having a gimmick unique to the level that you learn, master, and then use throughout the multiple zones. On the other end, Wario Land presents you with these large winding interior-like levels that you slowly (or somewhat quickly in the case of entries like WL4), navigate and solve puzzles throughout for treasure, with your main solution typically landing on how Wario himself can be controlled using various gimmicks unique to him. Your presented a gimmick, and then you remember that gimmick for the future so you can use it to solve a future puzzle. In many ways, these two games can almost feel like the opposite kind of game, only linked by being sidescrolling platformers where you can bust through walls. Pizza Tower, despite that, tries to be both, and in many ways succeeds, but cant avoid the problems that inherently comes with trying to be these two very polar ends.
Basically, I just feel theres a lot of really forgettable levels and an overall problem with gimmicks getting absolutely no chance to be explored so you can never really be rewarded in basic play for mastering a gimmick, other then replaying a level multiple times. I think less gimmicks but more places to use the same ones would be really great.
Talking about the Noise update specifically, it was just a fun retake on the main game, and made for a fun replay after not playing Pizza Tower for about a year since release. I find it really fascinating how even after changing how the entire game controls, the levels still work with minimal changes. I'm looking forward to see if they decide to change it any more in the future, and I hope whatever comes after Pizza Tower can be a much more focused experience.
Tumblr media
03/17 - Hiveswap Act 1 (Replay)
See; Homestuck Reread. Been here a billion times, here to show my girl this time. I'll probably scream about this one later. <3
Tumblr media
03/20 - Rescue Shot
See; King of Crusher. Another stream game! This one I liked even more, though I Really wish I had a lightgun (or could fix the mouse controls on my emulator). Incredibly adorable game with insanely good music, check out the VOD if your interested!
Tumblr media
03/25 - Super Mario Bros. (1993)
I feel like in recent time, people have been hyping up this movie as like, secretly a really good film that people only hate because it's not a Mario movie. I'll be real, after watching it for the first time, I don't see it at all, I think this is just an incredibly funny bad movie.
Beyond not being Mario, which really doesn't matter at all, it kind of just felt like a fever dream of a script. Things kept HAPPENING there wasn't a single second to break I felt like I was in a nightmare hell dimension being blasted with insane plot beats and I couldn't keep track of anything. Without the Mario branding this would be like 10x LESS comprehensible, but good lord.
Maybe this is like, an arthouse film, and I need to watch it 12 more times and be high at least half those times, but idk I think it might actually be bad guys. Big Bertha a baddie though.
Tumblr media
03/29 - The Croods
Another movie night with friends, we got the PRIVILEGE of watching The Croods. I saw it once when I was a kid, but I didn't really remember anything about it other then there was a character named Grug.
I now realize that the reason I remember this character is because this movie literally lied and he's the main character. It really tries to set up that the conventionally attractive main teenage girl is the protagonist but no this movie is 100% about Grug and it's so fucking Particular. Why pretend it's not about him when he becomes our sole point of view for half the film? Why pretend its about the teenage girl when she basically doesn't have any dialogue for the last 25% of the movie? What is this movie trying to say, politically? This movies a thinker. I think its a bigger thinker then 2001, honestly.
Tumblr media
04/12 - Police Story
The first Jackie Chan movie I've ever seen and damn what a fucking good one to start with. Insanely entertaining, incredibly funny, and just a really great film! I don't think I have much else to say about it other then gush about each and every scene and how well made it is, but it really makes me wish we could get movies like this more. Just a practical effect wonderland where the main guy is just having fun with people on set. It's great.
Tumblr media
hes kind of a babygirl
04/13 - Con Air
Actually the first time I've seen this movie, surprisingly, given my attachment to the media that has essentially co-opted this film. It wasn't good, like at all, but it was very very entertaining with friends. I didn't expect it to get so much into like, weird racism stuff?? Characters just keep appearing and getting named it's so fucking weird. What was the deal with Steve Buscemi's character, I feel like scenes were cut or something. Nick Cage was incredibly funny as the lead. It's the thing you watch with friends on 4/13, what else can I say.
Tumblr media
why did he do this
04/19 - The Princess Bride
Honestly, I thought this one was a rewatch when we put it on in the GC, but I think I just remembered watching clips of it or seeing half of it on TV as a kid, so I'll just consider this a first time watch. It's really good! Just a fun simple movie full of extremely witty jokes. It's kind of like watching a Simpsons episode for the first time and getting to a part where they say something and you go "oh i've heard this quoted like a fucking million times, i get it now". If you haven't seen this movie, whattarya doin, go watch it!
Tumblr media
i feel like were it not for andre being basically irreplaceable we would have a netflix reboot about these three right now. maybe that does exist already.
04/21 - PokeRogue
Half this thread is Pokemon and as I already said, I'm a roguelike freak. This game is like crack for me. That being said it's just alright. I think I'll be willing to judge it more once it's more finished and not just Pokemon in the most barebones form imaginable, coding wise. It's the basis for an extremely addicting game, and I plan on sinking even more hours into it soon. Extra points for using PMD music as well <3
Tumblr media
im only just now finding out the rival is gendered. hey cunts let me play as a girl and get the girl rival or you hate me ok?
04/22 - The Mask (2023)
Now you may be wondering, The Mask? The movie from ten TRILLION years ago staring the homunculi known only as Jim Carrey? You'd be a fool to assume this. I am talking instead about Connor O' Malley's current best work, THAT The Mask.
There's not much I want to say about it, because I just think it's good, but if there's one thing I can say it's that Joker (2019) should be fucking embarrassed in how hard it was stood up by this short film.
Content warning for pretty heavy themes and a lot of crass jokes.
youtube
04/23 - Sonic the Hedgehog (2020) & Sonic the Hedgehog 2 (2022) (Rewatch)
In preparation for the Knuckles show (which I still haven't finished), I decided it'd be nice to rewatch these two films for the first time. I haven't seen the first one since I watched it for the first time before Sonic 2, and I haven't seen Sonic 2 since I saw it at an early screening. What do I think of them now in retrospect?
Yeah, not very good films. Very fun! But damn, yea wow, I think with enough time to look back on them, there's a lot I really don't care for in them, and I'm not just talking about the human scenes.
I've been having a lot of conversations about adaptations lately, so I'll mostly summarize my thoughts here. In making an adaptation, your one mission in my eyes is maintaining what made the original loved. Not good, because that's not really a quantifiable thing. Not faithfully, because I feel you can make a good adaptation without being faithful. All you need to truly keep is the Reason people came to that piece of media originally, in my eyes. Whether that means going as hard as you can with something like The Last of Us, which essentially 1 to 1 recreates an entire video game, or be much more out there like with One Piece (Netflix), which essentially tells the same story but with wildly different circumstance and aesthetic.
The Sonic movies, in my eyes, simply don't capture that. In the first movie alone, Sonic and Eggman are essentially our only ties to the games, which is fine as long as they can nail them right, right? And, as many before me have really pointed out, no they don't really at all. Sonic isn't really like Sonic at all, he's a much younger, innocent, and hyperactive "version" of the character, and I say version in quotations because I don't really feel like with those adjectives removed he'd be all that similar to Sonic still. This is basically a new character, and that's fine, but I'd be hard pressed to say it captures what brought people to Sonic. Similarly, Eggman is very much not really similar to any iteration to Eggman at all (except maybe AoSTH?) A lot of people love Jim Carrey Eggman, and I totally get why, but man he really has never clicked with me. I think I like canon Eggman too much to let go, it's over for me.
But I'm sure anyone who's been around Sonic long enough has heard a trillion complaints about the first movie. In rewatching the second movie, I found that it moved way faster then I remembered, and just had way less.. character? Tails is so incredibly shoehorned in, which is a common complaint, but it really felt like at times Sonic was too?
In Sonic games, Sonic isn't exactly a character we put ourselves in the shoes of. Sonic is like this cool older brother we're just along with for the ride. If anything we insert ourselves (as kids) in Tails' shoes. Sonic doesn't really have an internal monologue, nor does he really tend to need a big shonen arc to overcome in his games. He's very much this vessel to explore other characters, to see how people respond to his brash and cocky personality. In that way, Sonic works really well, but can struggle really hard when he's placed all alone. He needs people to not only bounce off of, but to do the emotional side of the story in his stead. With the Sonic movies, we get this very very diffrent form of Sonic being put into this scenarios the canon Sonic wouldn't typiclaly find himself in, and see how he acts. It can work for original stories, because it's basically an original character, but that's the struggle with Sonic 2, and I worry Sonic 3 as well. They aren't fully original stories. Sonic 2 is a loose adaptation of Sonic 3 in most ways, with Knuckles being the true second character, and Tails being mostly to the side. Knuckles acts basically perfectly, like yea that's Knuckles, no notes there outside of maybe not taking his heritage seriously enough, but that's him. So how do you write this movie sonic into this adaptation with a Knuckles whos playing it basically straight like the games? Well... I mean, you kind of just... You, don't, really? Sonic is really just There sometimes, to say quips and to move the story forward. With exception to the scene where he's having a feeling jam with Knux, which I like, Sonic is very much Just There, and it feels really odd. In the games, this works because of his aforementioned status as this guy your along with for the ride, a dude whos too cool to even be the protagonist, but Sonic Movie Sonic IS the protagonist. He's meek and still learning and is far from the asshole we know in the games and comics, but implanted into a games storyline, he just doesn't have much he can do. He can't be that too cool guy that let's his friends do the talking, because he's already been set up as this superhero esque main guy who needs to learn a lesson by the end of the film, or overcome some kind of arc. It's just all odd in retrospect, and I really wonder how they're gonna tackle it in Sonic 3, especially without all the characters that make Sonic Adventure 2s gears go.
Tumblr media
i also couldnt stop staring at his teeth in the movie. i really dont like the teeth idk why im just now noticing them.
04/25 - Pseudoregalia
Knocked this game off my backlog and I'm really happy I did! Beat the game with all the time trials done and I really do love it. I want to call it the perfect length, but really I think it was just a bit too short and I hope we can get more content in the future, I'm definitely itching for more levels and maybe even more time trials.
I can't think of much else to say about the game. I don't think I picked up on the story much at all, I'll probably have to ask my girlfriend about it sometime, but it's not exactly a big part of the game. The music was absolutely fantastic, and I adore all of the costumes for the main character. I like her design, for many obvious reasons.
For further criticism besides length though, combat feels pretty useless. There's really no point in the game where I ever feel like I have to or even SHOULD fight, and the final boss ends up losing a lot of impact because of it. Enemies just become a hazard in navigating the world in a way that isn't particularly fun. Similarly, there were a few upgrades that had maybe one use ever and I don't even know why they're there. I think this game could benefit a lot from playing even harder into it's all too obvious inspirations and just getting a bunch of RPG mechanics and more RPG inspired elements in here. Give me Symphony of the Bunny-Cat-Goatgirl, full on.
Tumblr media
I also watched madagascar 2 with friends, but i don't even feel like counting it. watch this fucked up compressed video instead.
THAT'S IT FOR Q1 2024!! I'm really trying to look at a lot this year, and I hope to have EVEN MORE TO TALK ABOUT in 4 months! maybe ill do it even earlier because damn this was a fucking lot to write. If you read this far thank you, I'll be sending you a giant mettalic muscular butler sir in the mail as thanks.
11 notes · View notes
hezuart · 10 months
Note
Small question, if it was answered before then I must have missed it: What inspired giving RNK any powers? Not that it's a bad thing, especially not in the channel change story (which is great, btw! If there's more to come then I'll be excited to read it!) but I personally always liked how normal, so to speak, he was in comparison to the rest of the cast so far. So like, don't take this as critisism, more like, wondering what the thought process was? I'm trying to word what I mean right, sorry if it just comes off as if I'm repeating myself.
Glad you asked! So I explain his powers and a little bit of why I chose them in the description here and here.
I totally get where you are coming from, so here is where my thought process lies: (color coding my paragraphs to sort them by topic)
Absolutely no one in Little Nightmares is normal. The story seems like it's a supernatural post-apocalyptic meta-commentary on corruption that comes with adulthood. Nearly every highlighted character in this series has some sort of deformity or power. The Janitor has long stretchable arms. The Butler from the mobile game has telekinesis. The Doctor, despite his size and weight, can crawl along the ceiling like a bug(wall sticker?) and has successfully reanimated the dead. The Lady is a soul sucker. The Teacher has a neck that can extend indefinitely. The Granny can breathe underwater. The city folk have some kind of screaming power that can kill Mono or render him unconscious.
There are a few exceptions, like the Hunter and the Twin Chefs, but we don't see enough of them to truly determine whether they're completely powerless or not.
It's hinted that the deformities are caused by the tower. Whether or not powers come from that as well, or if people are simply born with them in this world is entirely up for debate. The Pretender was the first confirmation that some children are merely born with these powers and are unable to control them, whereas Six is portrayed as someone who gained powers from an adult later on, whereas Mono might be somewhere in between. The fact that porcelain fake children are running around like they are alive is also a highly questionable supernatural occurrence.
Most of the children we encounter are "normal" at first. But we have seen very few kids in this series before their untimely early deaths to figure out if they had powers. But most of our main characters that typically survive have major influence in the story on top of having great supernatural powers. That's one reason I gave RK the fandom's "Seven" name and powers. Because he is a main focus, no longer on death row.
In this post, I describe Seven's many connections to water before his death, and why, if he had canon powers, these would work best. Seven having powers isn't something common in the fandom. I wanted to contribute to that.
The main bigger reason, however, is that giving Seven powers balances his friendship with Mono. I didn't show it in my comic properly at all, but at the very least, you can tell Seven is nervous whenever Mono uses his powers. Seven witnesses him create a shockwave scream at the fearsome Lady. He witnesses Mono travel through television. He sees him open a metal can without touching it. I'd imagine some other things happened offscreen that Seven picked up on. Regardless, he was aware of Mono's powers. He didn't know exactly how powerful, but he had a feeling. Seven felt... weak? In comparison. He felt vulnerable. He still wouldn't give up on trying to help, nor was he willing to give up his trust in a friend who saved his life, but it still made him very uneasy and unequal. Mono is oblivious to this.
Seven gaining powers, powers that Mono can't wield, is important to their friendship and their dynamic in the future. Mono's powers are frightening and intense, but can only be used on land, otherwise, he'll short-circuit and burn his hands with water. Mono controls the land, while Seven controls the sea. There are many dangers in the water that surrounds them, so even though they escaped to this "Island" they're still, in many ways, trapped. For Seven to gain control over the sea, means they are also finally, truly free. (Well... not completely, just yet, but still more free than they were before.)
I wanted them to feel like they were on top of the world, that they could do anything. That no one could stop them. A calm before the storm. A win before sadness.
I will be doing one final edition of my comic, but I'm stuck on it at the moment because it involves the time loop. (Which is really difficult to solve) I plan to take this comic in a controversial direction of a popular, highly debated, and unconfirmed theory. There's a possibility people may be unsatisfied and confused with this ending, and I worry about that. I want to make it in a way that would feel like a good send-off to this AU. I don't know if I will succeed or not, but I'd like to try. I'm used to Little Nightmares typically ending badly. In a way, for the threequel finale, that will still ring true, but also may be a good ending. But I want it to be more significant and I just haven't figured it out yet. It may be a long while before I can even start drawing it.
37 notes · View notes
chubs-deuce · 1 month
Note
Hi, fellow writer/artist here! This is about your recent post about struggling with your writing, and I found that I had a lot to say and I didn’t want to clog up the comment section, I hope it’s alright that I sent it this way, and if its too long or not helpful, my apologies XD
My number one tip: there are no rules! Writing is fun time! It’s kids finger painting with words! Its emotions! It’s characters we love, and stories our hearts or brains or some other parts of us wanna tell! Always lean into what sounds the most fun when you’re stuck! Even if you never use it! <3
In my experience, some writing is better than no writing when you feel like it's not good. Sometimes to get out of being stuck I find it best to just keep typing, even if it stops making sense, or i hit enter twice and start rattling off a new scene or a different story entirely! Sometimes I will literally just type ‘why does writing feel so hard. This feeelsss dumb blah blah blahblahblah fuuuuuck fuuuuuuuuuuuck why do I feel so stuck -’ And so on until eventually my brain thinks of something else haha – literally just a brain dump. Type any random word that comes to mind. Sometimes I just open a clean document and go at it with this, you can always copy paste anything remotely relevant that may come out of it somewhere else later.
The rewrite loop is a hard one, I find that when I'm stuck in that space, sometimes taking a step back and just literally making a bullet point list of the scenes and/or what I want to accomplish really helps! Recently I also started going through and highlighting certain passages or concepts in the document that are poignant to the themes or vibes of the story/ that I wanna circle back around to in some way. Its been helping me keep things a bit more consistent in terms of emotion, and has helped a lot with ‘scene-block’. Bc instead of being like ‘uhhhh okay what now?’ I can always look back through the highlights and see what needs to be carried through more – or it can spark a new idea from thinking over how to get to that specific point you want to reach!
Sometimes when writing feels too daunting to me I’ll literally just tell myself “that’s okay. You don’t have to write. You can do literally anything else.” And sometimes just that, the verbal removal of the pressure, can loosen things up – especially if I do want to be writing. But sometimes, you really just do need a break from it. Picking up another hobby to fill writing time when I’m burnt out really helps me out!
I’ve taken months away from all sorts of writing projects before (both fan work and personal) bc there was just a block. And it sucks. I’m really sorry you’ve been dealing with this, it’s such a frustrating experience.
Honestly, sometimes writing can help you work through something IRL, but other times I find that sometimes the writing has to wait until I’ve hit a certain milestone personally. There’s a project of mine I pick up maybe once a year. Maybe. Because it just can’t have what I need it to until I sort some of those personal things out in my own life.
I’ve also noticed how much your Charlastor Fankid AU has taken off (Love Dawn btw), and you expressed recently how you’ve been feeling overwhelmed by the amount of asks/etc with the executive dysfunction of it all (same btw) (I’m also the person from the comment on that - hi lol). I wouldn’t be surprised if some of those pressure-feelings you’ve expressed have bled over into your other WIPs, pls be kind to yourself <3
Think how long people waited for Hazbin content from Viv, or any other number of indie-origin fandoms. When people love an idea or a style or any other number of things, the people it resonates with are happy to give the person or people behind it time. You can tell when someone enjoys making things. When something is made with that passionate spark. I want you to know that your posts really do have that. I can tell how much love you have to give through your work. People who like your stuff aren’t going to disappear if you need to take a minute to breathe, you know? I know the world we live in, and the faux-perfection of the internet can make us creatives feel like we need to be machines, but it’s not true. We’re people. And other decent folks will be happy to respect that!
Creativity and how we express it is very personal, and everyone’s process is different, so I can only really speak from my own perspective here, but you’re doing great. Your work is amazing, and I hope your writer’s block clears up soon!
I hope this message doesn’t come off weird in any way, with this massive message out of ‘nowhere’, my heart just really went out to you on this from one writer and artist to another. I also sent this as an ask bc for some reason sending a DM this long felt weird given that we haven't really spoken before.
Good luck with everything! Always here if you need another creative person to complain to or chat with LOL
- Lizzie
Tumblr media
sobbing, this actually made me so (positively) emotional man-
Thank you so so so much for taking the time to type all this out and reach out like this, it honestly means the world from me, especially since your ask here really is oozing with empathy and care in ways that surprisingly hit me in the feels pretty good???
I'm sorry I didn't respond to this sooner but I kind of couldn't muster the energy to give it the kind of response it deserves that wasn't just senseless keysmashing sdkjhsdkjfh
what's wack about my particular kind of writer's block is that I'm more than happy to ramble on and on about Dawn and my ideas for her story in asks etc, but to make a coherent story of it feels like an undoable feat somehow?
I've always had a knack for piecing together a plot out of thin air or based on next to nothing to go off of, but it's actually putting it into a consumable format that I always, ALWAYS get hung up on, and it bothers me to no end :'3
Your reassuring words genuinely really help a lot in soothing my fears of, well, I guess irrelevancy?
I do ultimately write for myself, but I can't help but feel like there's a ticking clock in the back of my brain that tells me I need to make something consumable before the "fad" around Dawn especially passes and most people that would've cared about a fic about her have already moved on, if that makes sense?
It's a stupid amount of pressure to put on myself and maybe even sounds kind of arrogant, but I do thrive off of seeing people react to and think out loud about things I'm passionate about - it's a connection, a communication of sorts, something I'll never not desperately crave.
I've been having so much fun with Dawn and the story surrounding her and I couldn't be happier that people are so engaging with what I put out in turn! So much so that a part of me dreads seeing when that will come to an end ^^"
I'll keep trying though, and keep doing what I love <3
Again, thank you so much for taking the time to reach out like this, a lot of this is something I definitely needed to hear and words can't express how much I sincerely appreciate it ;w;
16 notes · View notes
muzzleroars · 10 months
Note
out of curiosity, how do you think an encounter between Micheal and Gabriel would go after Micheal's botched fall? not only did Gabriel fall, but he's with a machine? surely that's gonna do a number on Micheal's mental state. (btw, i'm utterly enamoured with your archangels and gabv1el content! seeing you post about them is always a highlight of my day)
i talked about how i think gabriel would react here, so i want to go in a little more on michael's perspective as well as the WHOLE v1 issue. because the thing is....his rallying against gabriel lacks context at first, knowing only that he fell and that, as hell's warden, he is determined to restore full order beginning with gabriel. he is grieved at his loss, he feels wholly responsible for it as he has long feared that gabriel's questioning would lead to his fall, and the only way he can manage that terrible guilt is to see him bond to his proper punishment. just the same way he always handled lucifer. however, the situation becomes much more complicated upon actually meeting with gabriel and fully understanding his fall. as well as meeting v1.
michael, importantly, takes no joy in the work he forces himself to carry out - this is about his repentance, this is about maintaining god's order no matter the consequences, this is about proving that something of saint michael is left in him. he condemns gabriel, he proclaims his own righteousness, yet his voice reflects none of it in spite of how he tries to feel the rapture at carrying out god's will - no, all of his words are flat with a barely concealed grief and anger behind them. he wants detachment from this awful task, to bind gabriel and let him haunt him the way he always has been. yet this is all that can save him, it's the only action he can take in his desperation to not leave such a hideous stain on his own memory. and when gabriel begs to know what's become of him, he offers the simple, automatic response: my light was severed. nothing more needs to be said of his heinous actions.
yet a dam breaks in gabriel at the words, the frozen shock melting away into a furious indignation that demands to know who did this. who stole michael's light, who dared touch the prince of heaven and tear him away from god's people - he vows to find them and rend their heads from their shoulders just as he did the council. that admission resounds in michael's skull - is this why he fell? damned to treachery for the assassination of the council? michael laughs, the first welling of emotion he can't contain. gabriel had done what he would have - in michael's mind, the council was nothing more than a self-selected group of heretics who laid claim to god's throne and his authority. they deserved their deaths, yet he knows no exception can be made because any exception means to stray. gabriel has taken life eternal and michael's adherence to god's law is biblical - a sin is a sin, even if the sinner was right. his whole body cries out against the action as he draws his chains, telling gabriel there is no need. he tore out his own light. and seeing gabriel stricken still again, he rushes in to complete his work and be done with it. he hopes gabriel will make it easy on them both.
but while ice roots gabriel to the floor, v1 enters to fend off michael with a few solid hits that seem to do less than it hoped in deterring him (though it quickly determines the underwhelming response seems to be due to an inability in michael to feel pain) and THIS is when the encounter goes entirely off the rails because michael hadn't really registered v1's presence, let alone that it might be related to gabriel. and before he can reach any conclusion, gabriel snaps back to attention as he calls out to it and the small machine signs back to him, gestures quick, a bit irritated, and unreadable to an outsider. michael would voice his disdain for it, a low alliance that proves gabriel's deterioration, yet i think gabriel would counter it with the truth of what v1 means to him. he is far beyond caring, especially with how disoriented this encounter has already left him - and hearing v1 disparaged incenses him besides (v1 has never understood it, but gabriel is adamant about maintaining its honor).
michael is flooded with relief, the ache in his open chest releasing him as his thoughts narrow into a single objective. this is gabriel's true treachery, to love what wasn't made by god. this is so much easier, this rids him of his guilt at punishing the sin he would have committed himself, extinguishes the pride he felt in gabriel's rebellion against unlawful kings. he is a demon, like any other, and gabriel is dead. he smothers any other emotion before it can drown him, refusing to show anything to the unnatural pair before him - the assault is immediate, singular in focus as the vessel of god's holy wrath and shut down to anything else. gabriel has seen it before, michael's uncanny ability to throw a killswitch in his head and drain himself of any semblance of a personality. even with god dead, it seems he's retained that talent - gabriel had never been on the receiving end of it but thankfully v1's reflexes are as fast as ever and gabriel had always been the only one that was able to talk michael down when he couldn't seem to come back to himself. this feels just off though - gabriel thinks little of the difference given michael's state, but it's obvious he's targeting v1 specifically for dismemberment. if this is what gabriel fell for, it better prove itself worthy.
34 notes · View notes
kirarinlovesidols · 2 years
Text
I'm brainrotting a little bit about a genshin x twst crossover x reader fic. Y'know those ones where the reader has the same personality and appearance of a genshin character and might as well be them? Yeah smth like that...
I've seen some Raiden ones(they're kinda...they look like they're written by 12yo's tho, as much as the premise itself is interesting the person who writes it never seems to grasp the personalities or know what to do after chapter 1 and 2) and it srsly made me think.
What if there was a fic where reader is Nahida? More specifically Greater Lord Rukkahdevata.
Tumblr media Tumblr media
Reader would look like this^
However things would be kinda different. Kusanali would be the "greater lord" while reader would be the lesser.
I wanted to invert things cause i wanted the reader to have a personality. I know reader fics more often than not are only supposed to be self indulgent and the reader is a blank slate but that never rlly sat well with me. So in a way as the story goes Rukkha!Reader would have the same traumas and motivations as Nahida.
Same inferiority complex, same fear of loneliness, always comparing herself to others etc.
But still would be very kind and motherly.
Lmao i can already imagine reader slowly but surely becoming the god mother of Night Raven.
Rukkha!Reader would also be very anxious due to being isekai'd into twisted wonderland. She's worried about her people and wants to go back. Never in her life would she thought the first time she ever experienced life outside the "cage" would be in another universe entirely.
She retains her archon powers though! Everything we know Nahida can do, reader can as well :))
(such as mind reading, flying, control over plants, basically dendro in general + her skill and ult)
Plus! Rukkha!Reader can be considered overpowered so if i were ever to write it(which i won't, I'm not rlly good enough to do so) i would keep her as some kind of "observer" since she loves watching humans in order to understand emotions better. I think she would only help during overblots and even then what she can do would be limited, canonically Nahida isn't very good at fighting.
I think people would probably mistake Rukkha!Reader by a fae(long ears and great magical power) and she just doesn't bother to correct anyone cause it's easier to obtain information that way. Malleus and Lillia know she isn't one tho, they can prolly feel it.
I also like the idea of highlighting the importance of platonic relationships, not only romantic ones!!
A thing that happens a lot in x readers fics when the reader is conventionally pretty is how every character falls for them. I never really liked that, it's not realistic and EVEN if reader would be to have a harem i think there's a need to show the person who's reading the fic WHY so many characters love them in the first place.
Slow burn and etc, y'know?
Yeah so that was my brainrot! Thanks to anyone who read it. Feel free to take this idea away from me btw, i absolutely cannot write it, it's way beyond my capabilities and i have ADHD so i can't update things regularly lmaoooo.
So if there's anyone who does consider taking the idea please @ me so i can read your work!! I would love to :)))
155 notes · View notes
comicaurora · 2 years
Note
I've recently finished Leverage and Leverage redemption and am in the process of casually rewatching it. (Thanks for introducing me to FMAB and ATLA too btw) I just want to ask you a few questions about it, like: What are your favorite things about each character? What are your favorite things about each relationship. What are your favorite things about the group? How do you feel about the sequel? How do feel about the romance in the show? What are your favorite running jokes? Thank you
hoohoohoo, it's like an essay prompt but about something I actually like
What are your favorite things about each character?
Nate: to be honest, kind of a hard sell - definitely the protagonist I like the least, intentionally so. That said, when they're dealing with a really hateful bad guy it's always fun to see Nate turn all his asshole powers against them and get really smug about it
Sophie: extremely insightful! fun to see it weaponized, extra fun to see her very gently use it to try and help the rest of the team live their best lives, especially Parker
Parker: oh how easily Parker could have been an Obliviously Sexy Unhinged Harley Quinn type, and instead we got the first thoughtfully written explicitly neurodivergent female character I've ever seen. Never infantilized despite it being a frequent plot point that the others help her through her difficulty in social settings and with processing loss. Full-fledged character in her own right, grows and becomes more comfortable without ever having her neurodivergence "fixed". she's a great character and I find her writing refreshingly free of red flags or "oof" moments. love that she's good with kids and teaches them Crime in the first ten minutes of hanging out
Hardison: literally the only normal person in this group and I say this as a compliment. everyone else is at least kind of a james-bond-style superspy with borderline preternatural abilities but hardison is the only character I trust to order a coffee without making a scene. unconditionally the emotional heart of the group and the only character able to openly admit that he likes the other characters, which is vital in a group of Edgy Loner Crime-Boys.
Eliot: joke answer, the hair. real answer, I love any character who turns themself into a weapon and stoically accepts that they'll never be anything else again. "Incredibly simple, but in the same way that a sword is simple." Adds a beautiful substrate of angst to all of his funny or lighthearted moments, as underlying it is a character who concluded long ago that he's irredeemable, and because he thus considers himself entirely disposable and even irrelevant is now determined to spend the rest of his life making the world a better place. Also, one of the only Edgy Badass Lancer types who is incredibly overt about how much he likes and cares about his teammates and never even jokes about "bah I'm better off on my own I was just passing through etc etc."
Harry: just an absolute wet noodle of a man. Love that he's taken Hardison's role of "only normal human being"
Breanna: absolutely love how bad she is at the social grifting side of things, because that is 100% accurate to every tech person I know
What are your favorite things about each relationship?
There's a lot of relationships and I'm not about to highlight all 10 OG pairings plus the 9 new pairings added by Harry and Breanna, so instead I'll just highlight my absolute favorite underrated one, which is Parker and Eliot. They have this odd synergy where they're both by far the most physically dangerous people in the group and also the most scarred by a country mile, and they have this kind of unspoken camraderie about it that only gets overtly highlighted in Season 4 Episode 1, "The Long Way Down Job." Everyone else in the group is a person, they seem to think; people they want to protect. But the two of them are tools and weapons, and that means they can do the things that people can't. Also within this synergy there's a good foiling dynamic where Eliot has basically seen it all and come to terms with everything under the sun, while Parker is comparatively extremely hyperfocused and rather sheltered and is constantly grappling with new situations. Underrated dynamic.
What are your favorite things about the group?
They just hang out sometimes! It feels like they keep existing when the camera's off them. Valuable screentime is spent on them just chilling and chatting, getting dinner together and bringing up more wacky offscreen hijinks. A story that's relentlessly All Action And Disrupted Status Quo All The Time starts tuning you out after a while, but it's the slow, peaceful moments that make us invested in their success and in them being able to help the innocent-victims-of-the-week.
How do you feel about the sequel?
Loved the first season, tentatively optimistic about the rest of it - I've been burned before so I'm taking it slow.
How do you feel about the romance in the show?
Parker and Hardison's thing is cute and compelling! Big fan of how it doesn't override the other dynamics and isn't treated as intrinsically more important than the rest of the gang's relationships. Nate and Sophie's thing feels a little more plot-mandated and tbh Nate is kind of an unlikable fuckhead so I'm not sure why Sophie was so hung up, but it wasn't too disruptive and it was always very funny seeing them play a dysfunctional couple on a grift
What are your favorite running jokes?
"Dammit Hardison." Parker pushing people off of things. Someone asking Eliot if he knows about some niche thing or random bad guy and then it flashes back to him getting waterboarded in Area 51 or whatever and it cuts back to him mildly going "yea". Wil Wheaton is in this show and everybody hates him. "It's a very distinctive [thing]." Harry, walking befuddled sunshine man, being like "yes I know all the inner workings of this specific niche evil lawyer thing, I was a bad guy remember?" to this group of expert crime boys and somehow surprising them every time
139 notes · View notes
btr-rewatch · 5 months
Text
Big Time Rush Season 1, Episode 9: “Big Time Demos”
After skipping reviews of the previous two episodes (though I did have fun making gifs of them), I'm back to do a post on this episode that I honestly don't remember much of aside from it including a monkey that makes fart noises??
Highlights: the guys share some weird things they've learned since coming to L.A., Mercedes Griffin is a nightmare girlfriend, and the band is at risk of falling apart for the third (??) time so far this season.
We begin with the boys hanging by the pool and talking about how they've been in L.A. for three months now. Logan suggests they go into a flashback montage, and we get a series of silly clips that showcase all the ridiculous shenanigans they've been involved in. We see them racing tricycles by the pool, pushing Carlos through the lobby in a bathtub (this is an homage to The Monkees, btw! The opening sequence to their show has them pushing Peter through the streets in a bathtub), and fighting off a bear. Very exciting stuff.
Kelly comes by with plane tickets because apparently, if Big Time Rush's demo doesn't get picked, they all have to go home. The boys are shocked, which means they were either never told this information or were told but not one of them was paying attention any of the times it was mentioned. Which sounds believable to me, tbh.
After learning about some of the competition they're up against, Logan says they're toast. Kendall disagrees and tries to lead them into a pep talk, which then results in one of my favorite exchanges of the entire series.
Tumblr media Tumblr media Tumblr media Tumblr media
Love James's confidence
What on EARTH led Logan to this conclusion?
I love Carlos. So much. He must be protected from all the bad in the world. Also, keep in mind that Kendall asked what they had learned since being in L.A. This means that something happened in the last three months that made Carlos believe toys come alive when you leave the house. I desperately want to know what series of events led to this.
Obviously, these are not the responses Kendall was looking for, but they sure did try, didn't they? Kendall clearly woke up in charge of the brain cell that morning.
A few moments after some words of encouragement, Mercedes Griffin walks into Gustavo's office to pick up the demo cd. And it's at this exact moment that I realize I always thought Griffin was his first name. Looked it up, and it turns out his first name is Arthur, which I might have known deep in the back of my brain. Anyway! Mercedes is spoiled, manipulative, and used to getting every little thing her heart desires. She thinks the guys are cute, and when Carlos assumes that she's the one in charge of picking the winning demos, she doesn't correct him.
Quickly realizing that she can use this to her advantage, she promptly picks Kendall as her new boyfriend and drags him from the room while he pleads for help like a victim in a horror movie being captured by a terrifying monster.
Tumblr media Tumblr media
Poor guy.
We go to the Palm Woods then, where Mrs. Knight is preparing for the possibility that they'll have to return home. Katie doesn't want to leave, but they can't afford to stay in the apartment. Bitters shows up (intent on taking apartment 2J for his own) and says that the only way Mrs. Knight could afford to renew is if she had a job working at the Palm Woods. Unfortunately, there are no jobs available.
...Until 2 seconds later, that is.
Tumblr media
And just like that, there's an assistant manager position open.
Meanwhile, Kendall is having the worst day of his life being Mercedes's boyfriend. The rest of the guys stop by to encourage Kendall to stick with the act so Mercedes will pick their demo. Well, Logan and Carlos encourage him. James is too busy being self-absorbed and insulting Kendall's looks.
Tumblr media
Mercedes and Kendall's poolside date doesn't go too well. Kendall is pretty much disgusted at the whole thing and can't bring himself to fawn over Mercedes in the way she expects. The boy has STANDARDS and isn't about to drop them for some stuck-up girl, even if it means the band is at risk.
Mad respect for my boy Kendall Knight.
Mercedes breaks up with Kendall and makes Carlos her new boyfriend. We'll see how that goes.
Returning to the Mrs. Knight storyline, Katie forges a fake resume and ends up getting her mom the job as assistant manager. Her first assignment is to unclog a toilet. Gonna be honest, the Mama Knight and Katie plot isn't all that interesting.
After being pelted with cookies during his date with Mercedes, Carlos runs to hide in the bathroom, where we get another one of my favorite moments.
Tumblr media Tumblr media Tumblr media Tumblr media
Absurdity. Why is Kelly holding a loofah?? Why is Logan holding a toothbrush??
"Are you talking behind my back with shower people?!" Mercedes asks. Maybe I have a simple sense of humor, but this line is SO FUNNY to me.
Mercedes breaks up with Carlos and picks an absolutely terrified Logan to be her next victim boyfriend. She announces she's going to dye Logan's hair green to match her purse, and it's at this point that Kendall puts his foot down. He storms out into the living room and tells Mercedes: "He's dumping you. Because you're spoiled, pushy, mean, and he, and me, and we would all rather go back to Minnesota than spend one more second pretending to be your boyfriend."
I love Kendall. And I especially love that it's this moment that makes him give Mercedes a piece of his mind. He endured being her boyfriend, watched Carlos go through the experience, but he draws the line at Logan. And while Kendall is protective of all his friends, I think he's noticeably more so of Logan because Logan NEEDS that kind of protection. He'll step back at certain times to let Carlos and James fend for themselves, but Logan needs his guidance. It's sweet.
Mercedes says that she's definitely not picking BTR now and leaves the apartment. Everyone is less than thrilled with Kendall.
Tumblr media
Later on, the guys all sit around sadly packing their bags. Gustavo manages to tell them that he's proud of them without looking like the words cause him physical pain! So sweet.
Mercedes returns to apologize, but she also comes bearing the news that she isn't actually the one in charge of picking the demos. A chimpanzee is. Gustavo and the boys kidnap Lolo in an attempt to train him to pick BTR. We don't get to see the plan in action, just the aftermath, which is this...
Tumblr media
Unfortunately, their attempt to Pavlov Lolo into liking their music ends with the chimp hurling bananas at them, then running from the studio. Griffin later comes to the studio with Lolo in tow, telling them that he found him hitchhiking on the freeway.
Mercedes, the boys, and Kelly offer up their explanations for why they did what they did, and Griffin replies with, "Those were a lot of sentences, containing words, containing letters."
Griffin is honestly a top-tier character. Deranged man.
When asked what he thinks of the band, Lolo makes a fart noise. Mercedes then jumps in to tell her father that the chimp is wrong, and he should pick BTR's demo. Griffin is quickly swayed and declares Big Time Rush the winner. We then go to the boys singing "Halfway There" (which is one of my favorites. it slaps to this day)
Once back at the Palm Woods, Kelly renews their lease, Mrs. Knight quits her assistant manager job, and we get this sweet exchange.
Tumblr media Tumblr media Tumblr media
Yay, the guys get to stay!! They're home!! FOUND FAMILYYYYY!!!!
This was never one of my favorite episodes, but I enjoyed revisiting it. It has some very funny lines and scenes, and it's an important one because the series really feel "solidified" after this episode. Yeah, the band will still have moments where it's at risk, but the guys are putting their roots down in this one. L.A. is home now. Logan, James, and Carlos are seemingly content to leave behind their families and just live in California and be raised by Mrs. Knight from here on out. Interesting.
Catch ya next time.
12 notes · View notes
a-slut-for-smut · 7 months
Note
I just read your mei mei meta. 100% spot on. And I honestly I think the Shonen genre for all its violence... does a disservice automatically to women. It collapses characters into black and white cararitures sometimes..... so everyone sees a person who isn't 100% altruistic as bad. We go looking for the badness and that's even more enforced with women. Also I too am horny for mei mei. I wish jjk was more sexy. I wanna see characters be outwardly horny for each other. Up the stakes!
Tumblr media
YAAAAAS preach it sister!!! Everything you said absolutely passes the vibe check- so much so i gotta break it down and expand on it 😁 (and heres to link to said mei mei meta jic)
And I honestly I think the Shonen genre for all its violence... does a disservice automatically to women. It collapses characters into black and white cararitures sometimes..... so everyone sees a person who isn't 100% altruistic as bad.
You wont find any argument here, in fact i would go as far to say most media nowadays suffer from this exact issue. But the real crux of the problem seems to lie in the lack of reader discernment. I dont know if its a subconscious or willful failure to understand "nuance", but its apparently lost to an audience that is obsessed with labeling/compartmentalizing everyone and everything to the point where they're essentially reducing characters (even actual people) to a single trope and judging them entirely on that when there are so many parts to a whole...feels bad man.
We go looking for the badness and that's even more enforced with women.
this is one of my biggest gripes- like i said on my meta, there are DEF some puritanical vibes behind the Mei Mei hate- its starting to feel insidiously sexist with the way the fandom is deadset on villainizing her because she doesnt "conform" within the norms of whats "good", and to a larger extent "good woman".
She isnt that maternal, nurturing, self sacrificial woman that reeks of patriarchal ideals therefore she must be bad.
She prioritizes money and considers a persons worth based on what benefit they bring to her as if this is the most unnatural way to be (thats the sad truth!) therefore she is greedy and selfish.
She has a "weird" relationship with her brother because their level of closeness makes them uncomfortable and therefore predatory.
And whats so funny to me is Mei Mei is- for all intents and purposes, a MERCENARY. She's not a teacher, shes not an instructor- she is a contract sorcerer for hire so money being a priority for her would be painfully obvious?? Shes not responsible for the students nor aligns herself with the politics of the jujutsu world- shes looks out for herself/get paid and this makes her evil?? Also cant help think that theres a certain type of person who feels threatened by a overly confident and shameless woman as a personal attack on themselves/their ideals and feels compelled to tear them down by any means possible, but maybe thats just me.
Idk, maybe it cant be helped when they see Nanami (whom are essentially foils of each other) willing forgo money and put his life on the line for the students but this still doesnt make her "evil" and so reductionist btw 🙄.
And to highlight the hyprocrisy of it all- if she was a man, the fandom would be slobbering all over her and if you need proof see: Toji, Geto/Kenjaku, Sukuna, even Gojo to an extent but the list goes on and on. Somehow these men get the pass and the fandom go to great lengths to humanize/emphasize with them, but the women? LOL
Also I too am horny for mei mei. I wish jjk was more sexy. I wanna see characters be outwardly horny for each other. Up the stakes!
oh honey, i am WITH you 100%!!! im not even trying to be petty, but the more the fandom hates on her the more i love her lol she is so HNGHHH, together we can make jjk sexy and outwardly horny for each other 🙌
12 notes · View notes