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the monthly authunity propaganda post
#they're both drunk btw#centricide#jreg#art tag#centricide commie#centricide blueman#centricide ancom#authunity#im sorry that my head is full of nothing but gay people and mediocre anime gags from 2012#this originally had more dialogue but it was very cringe
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Ask box is still closed but they commented on the deleted scene. First activity from them in days.
Technically I'm still on blog sabbatical but that deleted clip was a wild choice. There's a lot to unpack in that very short scene and none of it is very flattering for Tommy. The medal comment when Hen and Karen asked about his intentions was immature and blatant deflection. It was also cringe, the wtf facial pout he added didn't help. What I don't know though is if the lines are meant to come across as cringey or if his delivery is what's off. And that was just the first cringe moment. He only made it worse after that. Saying they're going slow, and he's letting Buck set the pace was good, he should be following Buck's lead, but then he immediately made a sexual innuendo joke, and yet another wtf facial expression choice. I know the rule tends to be that since it was deleted we can't count it as canon, but knowing that he saw the way Hen and Karen reacted to that conversation, and still followed it up by turning another meaningful conversation attempt, this time by Buck, into another sex joke, an even more immature and gross one, is certainly a writing choice. And clearly a deliberate one.
That wasn't even the most alarming part of that scene though. The diet comment about Buck is a warning siren if ever there was one. That line was concerning because it is absolutely a call back to Buck 1.0 who believed the only thing he could offer anyone was his physical appeal and he was obsessed with keeping his body to a certain standard. The fact that we now have Tommy making multiple comments about their physical relationship, and Buck's appearance, is not good. Especially when you couple those comments with the other scenes of him dismissing Buck's excitement and overzealous personality. None of that spells a healthy relationship for Buck, the character the show cares about. It continues to show Buck's very unhealthy dating pattern of settling for people who are physically attracted to him but don't seem to genuinely like the person he actually is. It's actually kind of fascinating.
I genuinely liked the Tommy of episodes 1-4, probably not coincidentally the length of his originally planned arc. He was written well in those episodes, he worked. I'm also now pretty convinced that those first 4 scripts were kept pretty much intact to when Eddie was the plan. They clearly put effort into him originally. Everything that came after 7x4 went increasingly downhill, and that's because they hadn't actually planned anything for him after that episode. If they had been able to stick with the original Eddie plan he would have been gone after episode 4 because the kiss would have been all that was required to initiate Eddie's spiral. Once they had to swap Eddie for Buck they had to change their plan because Buck was already searching for something so the kiss wasn't going to be enough to make Buck spiral. Which means they still need to get Buck to whatever the plan for him was but now they have to do it through Tommy. They're not going to put effort into Tommy because after 7x4 he became a textbook plot device. His scenes and dialogue are now strictly to move the story forward, and nothing more. It's why he seems so different now. What's interesting is if Buck's spiral is now going to result from him back sliding from all the personel growth he has had since Buck 1.0. All the work Buck has put into growing himself as a person and working on himself. That's why the diet comment was so concerning. It's the old Buck. If he thought figuring out he was bi was the last piece of the puzzle and he should feel 'fixed' now, but Tommy and their relationship still feels mostly physical he may revert back to believing he really doesn't have anything else to offer. A return of Buck 1.0, and a version of himself that Buck has referenced frequently he believes Eddie wouldn't have liked. I'm probably giving the show way too much credit but this would work and it would be fascinating to watch.
Thank you so much for sending this and the next one to me Nonny! :)
A day after the first one, the anonymous OP made another post about the deleted scene. I will paste it here as well, so these two posts can be read together.
I put it under a cut to save all your dashboards from clogging up. :)
All right, so first of all, I agree on so many things in these two posts. In the beginning Tommy was 'okay'. I didn't love him, but he was an okay character and love interest for Buck. But as the show went on he just became worse and worse as a character. To the point where a lot of people who liked him in the beginning actively started disliking and hating him. And most of it is tied in with the way he treats Buck and talks about Buck.
And ultimately I do think this is the whole goal of the show. They are doing their absolute best to show us that Tommy is NOT a good guy and definitely not a good match for Buck. By posting this deleted scene they are once again trying to make that point.
Unfortunately this message just flies over some people's heads and all they see is a this fantasy headcanon Lou told them about. They aren't watching the show as it is, they are actively trying to mold the show and BT into something it isn't.
I can't possibly explain any of this better than the OP, especially the part about Buck's body image. So I'll let them speak, but I agree so much with what they say.
One last thing I personally want to add is this:
Whenever Tommy opens his mouth, everything gets reduced to sexual innuendo and/or a dumb sex joke. And when it isn't about sex, it's him being extremely dismissive and negative in anything he says to Buck or some of the other characters.
This is also a thing that got transferred to the BT fandom in general. Everything Tommy does or says is over sexualised by a lot of the fans, in posts, messages, pictures and fics it quite often boils down to sex.
Now, I have nothing against sex. I realise sex is a part of the human experience, even for fictional characters, but to make it so that all that ties this couple together is sex? That is not what Buck is about. We know that about him. He has canonically been established as someone who is looking for love, a connection, a family...
So, why don't they talk more about the real deep canon love connection BT have on screen? I'll tell you why. It's because there is no canon love connection between them whatsoever. Tommy has no depth as a character. He is there for a specific purpose, a plot device to help Buck navigate his way through a new phase in life. That's it. The only emotional connection Buck and Tommy have is fabricated in, yet again, a Lou cameo headcanon that probably cost 200 dollars.
In the deleted scene between Tommy and Henren we see him at his worst and it's clear that Henren do not like or trust him. And yes, I kinda get why the OP would have wanted that scene in the episode, because it would have shown us -once again- that Tommy's intentions for Buck are mostly just about sex. This isn't anything serious. This is about sex. He tried with Eddie, realised it didn't work so he moved on to Buck when he saw how confused Buck was about whose attention he was trying to get.
I have no doubt he probably likes Buck, but he has no deeper intention beyond the sexual aspect of the relationship.
I said what I said. Don't come at me. This is my blog and I can respectfully blog about my opinion here. No ship hate here. Just common sense.
Remember, no hate in comments or reblogs. Let's keep it civil and respectful. Thank you.
If you are interested in more of the anonymous OP’s posts, you can find all of their posts so far under the tag: anonymous blog I love.
#anonymous blog I love#buddie#eddie diaz#evan buckley#season 8 speculation#buddie speculation#insight into 911 fandom & season 7 and 8#911 abc#nonnies galore#yes I'm tagging this buddie because ultimately this is tied in with the BT of it all
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Any doodles of bill or unrelated drawings you wanna share? I like your blog a ton, I'd eat your art like a four course meal, man!
Hi!!!! I'm not gonna lie, this made me cry a little hahaha, it makes me very happy to see that people enjoy the little thingies I create, I appreciate your kind words, really!!
As for doodles and other stuff apart from what I post, I'm not very active right now, since I'm more focused on the requests I get (it helps me a lot to get out of my comfort zone) so what you see on my blog is pretty much what there is.
If we're talking about blog related stuff, I've got some scrapped material, like for example:
That one request I got of Dipper watching with Stan "The Duchess Approves" was originally supposed to be a comic, but I considered it excessive:
(There is no dialogue because I changed plans before I had started to write them, haha)
This one I couldn't find the inspiration to finish:
And this one is from a short comic I didn't have time to finish:
The funny thing about it is that I got a request of a drawing about literally the same topic, but with Bill in it instead of Mabel. (If you can guess the context of this panel, I'll have no choice but to finish the original version).
This is a very rough initial sketch of a little thing I thought would come out as funny but have never polished it:
I have also explored some older Dipper and Mabel desings (these are super rough, they make me cringe when I see 'em), for a super secret project that I don't know if it'll ever come to light:
And that's all the Gravity Falls related stuff that I've got! For now, of course...
And to finish, these are two of my favorite non-fandom related drawings that I've made:
I hope these tidbits of my work are good enough to serve you a good meal!
Thank you again for your words, you made my day!!
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Finally got around to watching some post-embargo vids and I have some now updated Veilguard thoughts.
Stuff I liked:
Character creator is a standout as always. This has consistently been the strong point of Bioware's games in the last 10 years so no surprises there. The pronoun and other gender-related options are a welcome addition.
Companions all seem great. I'm sad we haven't got more Davrin or Bellara content yet, since those are the two I'm most interested in learning about. Their initial introduction in that terrible cinematic trailer didn't do these guys any favours, but seeing them in gameplay footage gives a much better impression of them. It's also exciting to see more companion-on-companion interactions and relationships.
I was put off by the voice acting in the 10 minute gameplay reveal months ago, but what I've heard so far has been much better.
Main menu looks pretty.
As an ME fan, I'm pro dialogue wheel; it's unfortunate that Inquisition turned that whole mechanic into a massive drip. This is less a thing I notice but something I hope, that this game's dialogue wheel will have a more DA2 or ME1 vibe.
Hngnggn vfjddjgfnbhn oooowowo o cloaks.
Stuff I didn't like:
The art style is not redeeming itself. Wolfheart made a very insightful point that it might be a holdover from when Veilguard was going to be a live service multiplayer game, and it definitely does give that impression. Everything is still incredibly smooth and it's clear there was a lot of effort put into making things "nice" looking. It's giving very "everyone's beautiful but no one is horny" to me. I'm on the haters' side with the Qunari; where are their textures?
On that note, oh my god. The UI and the VFX. This must have also been a result of live service elements. As someone who hates playing late-game mages in Origins because all of the VFX gives me a headache this game looks actively hostile. Does literally every single ability require flashing neon lights? Why does the UI look like a World of Warcraft meme? Why does every single interactive object glow? Wolfheart noted that even after turning everything off, a bunch of VFX elements were still present, which is tremendously disappointing. Bioware can miss me with this cocomelon for adults visual style; I just do not need all of these annoying tricks to try and keep my attention.
Also on the UI - idk man. Remember when fantasy games weren't embarrassed about looking fantasy? Remember when all of Origins menus opened up in a little book with parchment pages? Character selection took place in a little castle? I just don't get this Thing Bioware has had since 2 to make DA's game UI look cool and slick by taking all the fun out of its visual elements. I've heard it before but I've got to agree, Veilguard's UI looks like a mobile game. And again, it's so busy it's 100% gonna give me headaches.
The combat is.... I won't call it "bad". I just hate it. See above for one of the reasons why. I think I could write a whole essay on how discomfiting it is. The very very clear push (likely from EA) to have the game resemble big name titles like Breath of the Wild and God of War has taken the game in the direction of just kind of a generic hack and slash; at least DA2 married its action elements with its party mechanics and has its own unique voice. There's something in particular that sets my teeth on edge tbh. I'm watching gameplay of warriors and rogues in combat and they're pretty much indistinguishable from mages. Teleporting, fire and lightning flying about in basic attacks, just a ton of stuff that makes me cringe to look at. There's a complete lack of class fantasy there for me - why would I want to play a warrior that isn't just a big guy with a big sword? Is this a result of story elements? Why is my low level rogue demolishing entire groups of enemies ala Dynasty Warriors? In a world where the distinction between a magic person and a non-magic person is incredibly important, could cost you your life, watching a rogue shoot lightning out of their knives makes me groan. Are Bioware's efforts to make the player feel like the coolest specialist person that ever lived going to be addressed in-game? We'll have to see.
Lack of control over your own companions ala Mass Effect. I don't wanna talk about it it's too depressing.
I've noted this in the past but obviously the tonal departure from low/dark fantasy to classic high fantasy. The character backgrounds for the Rooks pretty much lock you into playing a good guy, which is a huge shame. Even if you want to pick a faction that is canonically shady or morally neutral AT BEST like the Crows, they make sure to tell you that the other Crows don't like you because you're just that good-hearted. In a faction like the Grey Wardens, notorious for taking in criminals of all stripes, you spend your background saving helpless villagers. What are the options going to be like for people who want to play morally grey or potentially evil Rooks? It's starting to look like Bioware isn't going to give you a much wiggle room to define your character out of what they need you to be.
Lip flap looks like a very mixed bag. Maybe it's just the footage but voices and mouths look out of sync.
Can't make a post without reminding everyone that Bioware isn't our friend; they've fired half the people who worked on this game and greedy producers like EA don't deserve our money.
Update: Only just came across this but phasing out inventory management? Yeah welcome back Mass Effect trilogy :/
Neutral opinions:
Other shit like the Darkspawn and overall mob designs have been a problem since DA2 so I don't see the point in rehashing it here, other than to say that I can't wait for the "DLC with the good Darkspawn designs in it" this time around.
Opening scene gives me huge Mass Effect vibes; the bar fight and the music in that scene felt very "Lair of the Shadow Broker", which I guess is a compliment.
Varric still not dead yet. Kill that old man!
Ultimately, I'm putting in prediction now that Veilguard is going to go the DA2 route of having a decent and well-loved story, but with massive issues regarding its gameplay and aesthetic that players will just have to get over in order to enjoy the game.
I'm not gonna be buying on release - first time that's been the case for a Dragon Age game since Origins; the current plan is to wait until the Christmas sales, which gives plenty of time for the fandom to either assuage my fears or implode cos the game is shit. Either that or the Solavellan content is so crisp and juicy I'll have to learn to pirate.
#dragon age#dragon age: the veilguard#da:tv#dragon age spoilers#veilguard spoilers#dragon age: the veilguard spoilers#bioware#pillowfort crosspost
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Why Sonic sucked in the first half of the 2010s
One thing I constantly see brought up in the constant Sonic discourse is the concept of the "Meta Era": the period of time in the 2010s when Sonic stories and the series presentation was the lightest and most shallow it had ever been. This era starts with Sonic Colors and ends with Sonic Forces, but doesn't count the failed Sonic BOOM sub-franchise experiment since that was done by entirely different teams compared to those who usually work on Sonic games. The "Meta Era" term seems to have been coined by J's Reviews on YouTube, and is characterized by fourth-wall-breaking, Marvel movie esque English scripts written by Ken Pontac and Warren Graff of Happy Tree Friends and MadWorld fame, along with strange characterization of the Sonic cast. But no one ever tries to look at WHY this happened. I'm splitting this post into two parts because 2010-2015 is very different from 2015-2020 in terms of why the games' stories and then the game[s] themselves sucked. So, the year is 2009. Sonic and the Black Knight has just released following last year's console entry of Sonic World Adventure [titled Sonic Unleashed outside of Japan], and both are torn to shreds by millennial games journalists who grew up with the SEGA Mega Drive/Genesis games, for having stories that are "too dark/edgy". That aspect paired with these games' mostly mediocre gameplay caused them to be branded as "shitty Sonic games" by journos and the general public for years, until they were re-examined by the Sonic community as a whole, who found the good in Unleashed and Black Knight's stories and stage design in the mid-late 2010s. But, SEGA had just recently financially recovered from the failure of the Saturn outside of Japan and the worldwide failure of the Dreamcast, having to be bought out by pachinko manufacturer Sammy Corporation in the early 2000s to avoid going bankrupt. And despite Sonic historically being the company's best-seller worldwide [with the exception of Japan, ironically], SEGA Sammy Holdings [referred to as SEGA] wanted Sonic to be as beloved as much as it could and to sell as much as it could. The series' lack of popularity in Japan has always caused it to be seen as a mascot cash cow by SEGA Japan, just a source of income. Meanwhile, the same publications who cringed at Sonic LAUDED SEGA's recently published PlatinumGames release, MadWorld, for its presentation and its comedy dialogue, and with this positive reception, SEGA had an idea; marry the praised daytime Sonic Unleashed gameplay, with the tone and comedy writing of MadWorld- complete with giving the English script those same writers. There's just one problem- MadWorld is an ultraviolent M-rated comic book style comedy, sharing similarities with the original The Mask comic series. So you can probably imagine what happened when these writers were tasked with creating English localized dialogue for kids' games.
It wasn't very good.
But, sales were up. REVIEW SCORES were up. And this lead to Sonic Generations, which refined the daytime boost gameplay of Unleashed and even used it's same game engine, while introducing the world to "Classic Sonic", a modern re-interpretation of what Sonic played and acted like in the Mega Drive games from the 90's. Gens went on to become one of the most beloved Sonic games of all time- and thankfully, since the game had nearly zero story, there wasn't much script there for Pontac and Graff to... alter.
But, seeing the praise Colors' tone was getting from the professional journalists who bashed the 2000s games, SEGA decided the next course of action was to reach out and work with more Western studios. End part 1.
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As much as I didn't like Generations' original scene with Amy getting an eye full of Sonic's hand, you have to admit having Sonic outright ignore Amy as she's trying to handing him cupcakes feels ten times worse than if she got the eye full of hand again. Least the eye full of hand showcased Sonic acknowledged what she was doing, unlike the newest scene where he just flat out ignores her to talk to Tails.
Let's not forget how Knuckles' change in words implies Classic Sonic somehow ate the rest of Sky Sanctuary, even though that's dumb and nonsensical when the original simply had Knuckles ask if Sonic 'gained weight'. You know, because it makes more sense for Classic to rub his belly from a jab like that.
Pretty much. I don't like the OG scene either, but this is no improvement. The joke is the same: Sonic finds Amy annoying and not worth his time. Just because he doesn't literally smear chili all over her eyes it doesn't make him look nicer. As you said, it looks like he's purposefully ignoring her shoving her cupcakes right under his nose.
A similar scene changed sloppily is Amy pushing Knuckles into a tree: now she makes him slightly stumble, but the cartoony sound effect is still there and loud. Before one could say that the joke wasn't funny, now there's no joke in the first place.
also yeah you're right why did they change Knuckles' joke about Classic being more rotund than Modern? What, is that fatphobia? Really? We're doing this now? Again, same issue with Amy saying "I'll make up to you next time!" instead of "I was worried I'll never be able to flirt with you again!", you know because it was so cool when Amy said she's no longer a damsel in distress in Frontiers... but Sonic still facepalms to her like she's just so cringe, which made sense when Amy was being pushy but not now that she said a perfectly admirable thing. Why is Sonic such a dick to her?? Even better, in case someone thinks I'm only speaking from a Sonamy perspective, why did you rewrite these lines when they were perfectly fine??? Where is the improvement!
And I know that people will come to me and say "but Beev, you joyless bitch, it's a joke! It's slapstick! It ain't that deep!", well I am allowed to be annoyed by these pointless changes that contribute nothing except generating confusion! Sonic is much meaner than usual! They are putting their hands all over Amy (irony intended) and only Amy! The flow of the dialogue, which was very simple dialogue mind you, is being mangled!
Now I can't even trust them to re-release, for example, Sonic Adventure in case they shit all over the script for no reason other than to "modernize" it!
I don't think I can put into words why this bothers me so much, so this will be perceived as me being annoying over a game. Well, maybe I liked Generations. Maybe I wanted it to be as it was, flaws and all, since this is a re-release and not a remake. Maybe I don't think the current writing is that much better than what we had before. Maybe I don't want older products to be sandpapered for the sake of sandpapering.
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Gyaku Shaun Sai Hanri / Ace Arftorney ENGLISH PATCH (VER. 1.0)
PLEASE NOTE THIS IS VERSION 1.0. THE EXTRA BONUS CASE HAS NOT BEEN TRANSLATED YET. THIS POST WILL BE UPDATED WITH A VERSION 2.0 DOWNLOAD ONCE THE BONUS CASE HAS BEEN TRANSLATED.
Thank you all who have waited patiently for me to translate this game! It was a lot of fun. Please support Cheshire, who now goes by Oota Manta, for creating this game! (here is his pixiv - MAJOR R-18 WARNING)
For this game to run properly, you MUST either set your computer's locale to Japanese or use a locale emulator.
EDIT: SPRITE PAGE.
DOWNLOAD LINK (INTERNET ARCHIVE)
Below are some translation notes (spoiler warning)
This was my first ever major translation project. Since it spanned the time of almost two years, the quality of the translations may increase as you play through the game. Nonetheless I have gone back and redone a lot of the earlier dialogue with the help of a friend to make it sound more natural in English. If you find any errors or typos, you may leave an ask and I will correct it in a patch update.
In order to keep the spirit of an actual Ace Attorney game, several things were changed. Most notably, the characters names.
Names:
稲刈たんぼ (Inekari Tanbo) is Phoenix Wruff. People familiar with the Japanese Ace Attorney names may recognize that this name is nowhere near Naruhodou Ryuuichi. That's simply because this character, as with Edgewurrth, were not actually named after the main characters of the original series. I decided to change this given their clear homage. Inekari Tanbo literally means "harvesting (a) rice paddy".
条框蓮司(レンジ) (Jyoukamachi Renji) is Miles Edgewurrth. To be honest, I don't think there is a pun in his name. At the very least, I had trouble thinking of what it could be. If somebody knows, let me know. The most I can figure is the first kanji in his name can mean "streak", and according to Cheshire, Edgewurrth was supposed to get the white streak of hair, not Abe, but he didn't like how it looked on the former.
萬舞 (Man Mau) is Krystal "Kris" Balle. Her name means "10,000 dances", hence her English name.
濡沼 ウキモ (Nuranuma Ukimo) is Ashley Goodhead. Ukimo doesn't seem to have much significance as a word, although it could be related to 浮き which means to float, as in like, floating in water. I say this because the other parts of Ukimo's name, 濡(Nura)沼(Numa) refer to being wet and to swamps.
If this is true, why the name choice? Well, it's very complicated...
濡 Means a little more than just being wet. It also can mean being wet in the sexual sense. There's also the word 濡れ衣 (Nuraginu) which means to be falsely accused of a crime (literally and archaically "wet clothes"). Both these I would say fit Ukimo, not only because of her story position of being falsely accused, but also, well... just look at her design. It would be naive to claim there's nothing sexual about it.
沼 has some connotations among gaming, interestingly. It can mean being addicted to something (that something being a piece of media, typically) or being "swamped" in a game, i.e being stuck and unable to progress.
Now, this meaning of the word has only come into play somewhat recently. Like, 2015-ish. Which makes it sort of inapplicable, since Gyaku San was created around 2003.
A different slang use of 沼 that was used around this time was 池沼 which means, basically, the r slur... in a way? It's used to make fun of "weird" or "cringe" behavior, typically present in those with mental disability. It's a homophone of 知障, which does mean "mental disability".
With all this in mind, I had a very hard time piecing together a name for Ukimo that would feel at home in Ace Attorney. Especially because I don't know the full extent of what Cheshire had in mind when naming her.
Ashley was chosen given that, to me, it is a very "popular teenage girl" name. "Ash" would also make her closely related to "Phoenix". (Get it? LOL). I almost debated on making any use of ウキモちゃん (Ukimo-chan) be "Ash", but decided it would be kind of weird...
Goodhead was chosen for several reasons. It, of course, is a clear sexual pun, but it is also a reference to James Bond, something I feel could encapsulate some of the slang meanings of 沼 (media obsession) while serving to imitate Ace Attorney's love of pop culture references. "Goodhead" could also be taken literally, as in meaning she has a good head on her shoulders, which would refer to her being innocent; the "false accusation" meaning in her name.
It was the best I could do. Orz.
阿部伊知郎 (Abe Ichirou) is Abe Founder. He kept the first part, although his last name became his first name, and his original first name means "The one wise son". However, without the kanji, "ichirou" can mean to fail your college entrance exam. Considering that he lies about going to a prestigious college when he actually went to a average one reminded me of this, so his last name was chosen to hold similar meaning. "Founder", as a noun, can mean someone who establishes something, and typically this is used with positive connotation. However, as a verb, it can mean "failure", which I think is apt and captures this stark contrast meaning.
Many things in the game were changed to better be understood by a Western audience, such as obscure Japanese pop culture references and suchlike. The backwards poster bit was the hardest, but I managed to pull it off. In short, Ashley's - or Ukimo's - poster originally was a reference to an old Japanese song (likely) that had さんさん(san san) written. When read from the back, さ looks like ち(chi). The "look dood" poster said 犬さんぽ in the original, which means "dog stroll". But when read from the back, it looks like 犬ちんぽ which means "dog penis". I did my best with this, haha.
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Honestly I think hsmtmts s1 started with very typical idea of Ricky and nini being the boy/girl next door, Childhood friends that date kind of thing. With Gina and ej being the mean, scheming counterparts. It was so obvious from the posters and their costumes. But I guess none of the writers anticipated what a force sofia Wylie would turn out to be. She has a presence that just demands attention. She's the best actress of them all, best Dancer and her chemistry with Joshua is on another level. Plus the character of Gina turned out to have fascinating layers. All this combination outshined nini. Nini and Ricky were originally supposed to be main characters and though Ricky stayed a main character throughout the show, nini, never felt like a main character to me, even in season 1. She was sweet and good and had a straightforward arc that wasn't nearly as interesting as other characters. Plus she had no flaws. Ricky had issues, he had flaws that made him interesting. Same with Gina and ej.
And I feel the same with rini. They were sweet but kinda bland. Portwell were much better, interesting and deserved better treatment from the writers. And rina is rina. Sizzling chemistry. Best ship.
This is no hate to olivia, my problem is with nini. Honestly I completely forgot she was part of this show in season 3 until she showed up in last episode.
I had this in my drafts and I remember responding to it but forgot to post it.
I think the show marketed themselves as very typical Disney in the way that you could kind of tell what narrative archetypes the original core 4 were supposed to be, especially if you relate it to the movies. Nini as the girl next door with so much talent but didn’t believe in herself until she’s suddenly the star of the show. Very girl underdog narrative. Ricky as being her first love and the cute dorky guy that doesn’t put effort but somehow is magically talented, plus the network promoted them as their “Troy and Gabriella” so the audience was supposed to believe they were their rightful successors. Even some of the posters promised that “love triangle” between EJ/Nini/Ricky as a relevant plot and we know that wasn’t the case. And just by the posters and trailer you could’ve guessed Gina and EJ were the “antagonists”. But as I said, it was a marketing tactic because tropes and love triangles sell, and I was also a bit too skeptical but ended up genuinely surprised.
I definitely agree Ricky and Nini’s romance was very bland and I was not rooting for them at all even on Season 1. I found them so cringy, very Disney cooking cutter and they were clearly not right for each other. I was attracted to Gina’s arc from the start so imagine my surprise when she went the opposite direction of what she was marketed as and then developed a way more interesting character arc. However, I do think the show failed Nini because she could’ve been more interesting. I liked her but I agree her arc was too straightforward and a bit too boring at times only saved by Olivia’s voice but there’s a lot of people that still don’t get her arc at all, which is why they still ship her with Ricky even if it was literally against Nini’s character growth.
Funny enough, when I watched 105 I ended up feeling like Ricky and Gina had so much potential and their chemistry was interesting but I wasn’t sure if the show was going to follow that up because it wasn’t very Disney like. Very rare do Disney shows follow the second lead romance pipeline. And I am so glad I was wrong because Ricky and Gina elevated the show by having them develop a very tension filled arc and it did felt very much 00’s coded so I ended Season 1 feeling like they had to go there at one point because it would be a wasted potential. By Season 2, I was sure they were endgame. No questions or doubts. The narrative made it very known and I never doubted that for a moment.
So, PW was just as bland to me, the narrative was forcing them badly with obvious and cringe dialogue. It lacked subtlety, it was very much in your face. As if they wanted you to ship them so hard and were overdoing it. But not even in a good way – there was not care or thought put into their scenes. The music, the implications. It was not done in a way that screamed endgame. And them also being a thing when Ricky and Gina were not speaking was a plot device to keep the endgame in the won’t they/will they situation-ship. I still believe it was a mistake to put them together because it was clear it wasn't going to last and their dynamic worked best as platonic. EJ worked better when he wasn’t put into a situation to be Gina’s plot device. PW was a mid-game ship and was treated as such. The narrative wasn’t hiding it. It was there for Gina to experience her first relationship before she gets with Ricky since their build in narrative has always been about second chances, the right timing and opportunities. I think they deserved a better closure on Season 3, but I am glad they eventually got it on Season 4. However, they were always meant to be a plot device and I didn’t expect anything else from it. The people convinced they were endgame clearly didn't want to see the show for what it was saying.
Rina just had the it factor to me. It was very reminiscent of the old ships in which their story line wasn’t too straightforward and it was told by the parallels and foreshadowing which is a huge factor as to why Ricky and Gina had such compelling arcs individually and together. Ricky being the stability Gina needs and Gina being the person that pushes Ricky forward by taking him out of his comfort zone. They give each other what the other needs and wants. That’s what their storyline has been about since Season 1 and nothing compares to their chemistry. It was undeniable since the start even when some people wanted to deny it.
#i know this is such an old ask#but better late than never#hsmtmts#hsmtmts season 4#gina porter#rina#ricky bowen#hsmtmts rina#ricky x gina#asks
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Varney the Vampire: A Preface
I want you to think back to what it’s like to reread your old work from years ago—your old stories or poetry, your old school papers, or even your old tumblr posts. Sometimes you’re actually kind of pleased, sure, but I want you to really go back and locate yourself in the heady cringe of that feeling.
In related news, I'm going to pick back up with the Varney the Vampire recaps I started in late 2010 CE. I got about nine chapters in, and then something, who knows what, derailed my life, as things tend to. Like, I'm used to this, it happens with the regularity of a lunar cycle. But I like writing about vampires (clearly), and since I feel like Dracula has been tread pretty thoroughly in recent times, I figured I might go back to something different; we had some lively discussions about Varney back then.
But 2010 was a time before A Lot of Things happened. I was in my early 30s at that point, so I won't say, "Oh, I was so young," but I had a very different energy as a blogger 12-13 years ago. So I've decided to rewrite the recaps a little—some more than others, some not much at all. I just feel like I have a really different perspective on the first chapter in particular, in 2023.
As before, I'm using the full, unabridged text. It is hideously long, something like 230+ chapters, but go big or go home, I figure. The thing is, I was using the files hosted at the University of Virginia, and now you can only get those through the Wayback Machine, but they are still usable for now. I have various backups saved, but I do want you to be able to see that I am, as ever, Not Making It Up.
I'm also not going to quibble anymore as to whether James Malcolm Rymer or Thomas Peckett Prest wrote this behemoth. Per Wikipedia sources, scholars seem to agree that it was all or mostly Rymer. When it's mentioned that they figured this out based on his dialogue style, I went... yeah, that checks out. Because it sure is A Style, and I'll be honest, the repetitive filler dialogue in chapter 10 was such a speedbump for me that I just threw up my hands and said, "I don't know how to recap this. Something I can't remember now is going on in my life and I Cannot. I no longer Can."
Well, it's the 2020s and we're gonna. Like I can't tell you how much stress I do not have about this. I've had covid three times and also spinal surgery. Varney the Vampire can no longer hurt me.
To start, this ordeal has a preface—apparently written upon the occasion of collecting the serial into book form—wherein The Author expresses his gratitude for "unprecedented success of the romance of Varney the Vampyre." First off, Rymer uses "vampire" and "vampyre" interchangeably, because fuck me for caring about consistency, I guess. Second, as Wikipedia notes,
It first appeared in 1845–1847 as a series of weekly cheap pamphlets of the kind then known as "penny dreadfuls." The author was paid by the typeset line [YEAH, I NOTICED], so when the story was published in book form in 1847, it was of epic length: the original edition ran to 876 double-columned pages and 232 chapters. Altogether it totals nearly 667,000 words.
For comparison, all of Lord of the Rings plus The Hobbit is 576,459 words. I sure do blanch every time I see those numbers! It's fine. We're gonna be fine. Back to the preface:
The following romance is collected from seemingly the most authentic sources, and the Author must leave the question of credibility entirely to his readers, not even thinking that he is peculiarly called upon to express his own opinion upon the subject.
"Seemingly" is doing a lot of work here.
Nothing has been omitted [for real, nothing down to the tiniest fly-swat has been omitted] in the life of the unhappy Varney, which could tend to throw a light upon his most extraordinary career, and the fact of his death just as it is here related, made a great noise at the time through Europe, and is to be found in the public prints for the year 1713.
I've seen more than one Dracula multimedia art project where people recreated the letters and diaries and recordings in the book (have you heard my whole thing about how Dracula actually was a cutting-edge techno-thriller back in 1897?), but I've never heard of anyone creating ARG-style media for the Totally for Actual-Fact Real tale of Sir Francis Varney the Vampire, and I think it would be hilarious if someone did.
I won't belabor the entire preface, but what I do want to touch on is Rymer's mention of "unprecedented success." Varney is actually standing on the shoulders of a vampire giant, and it's not the one we would think of. Nowadays, our big touchstone—the influence so great that most works either evoke it or take the trouble to say "Our vampires are different"—is Dracula, obviously. Which was published exactly 50 years after Varney, in 1897. But Varney's touchstone is Polidori's short story "The Vampyre" (1819). And for most of the 1800s, this was everyone's touchstone. Per Wikipedia (which I'm going to lean on for how concise it is, but I concur with this from my own research as well):
An adaptation appeared in 1820 with Cyprien Bérard's novel Lord Ruthwen ou les Vampires, falsely attributed to Charles Nodier, who himself then wrote his own dramatic version, Le Vampire, a play which had enormous success and sparked a "vampire craze" across Europe. This includes operatic adaptations by Heinrich Marschner (see Der Vampyr) and Peter Josef von Lindpaintner (see Der Vampyr), both published in the same year. Nikolai Gogol, Alexandre Dumas [note: I have the Ruthven play he wrote around here somewhere] and Aleksey Tolstoy all produced vampire tales, and themes in Polidori's tale would continue to influence Bram Stoker's Dracula and eventually the whole vampire genre. Dumas makes explicit reference to Lord Ruthven in The Count of Monte Cristo, going so far as to state that his character "The Comtesse G..." had been personally acquainted with Lord Ruthven. [...]
In England, James Planché's play The Vampire, or The Bride of the Isles was first performed in London in 1820 at the Lyceum Theatre based on Charles Nodier's Le Vampire, which in turn was based on Polidori. Such melodramas were satirised in Ruddigore, by Gilbert and Sullivan (1887); a character called Sir Ruthven must abduct a maiden, or he will die.
Back when no one gave a shit about copyright, Polidori's work was spun out into a cottage industry of knock-off stories and plays, an entire horror zeitgeist. Lord Ruthven was, for 78 years, who you copied, who you riffed on, who you parodied, what Count Dracula is to us now: the archetypal vampire. The Big Guy. And Varney is clearly cut from his cloth—the ostensible gentleman who worms his way into the lives of respectable, unwitting people. Unlike Dracula, there's no foreigner Othering, no "historical basis," no undercurrents of contagion and infection, no ambition to make the world his wine-press, none of that; Ruthven is a simpler figure, but the dominant one of this time no less. He is a stranger who shows up in the middle of London high society, icy and distant, his eyes “dead grey”—stern, yet somehow compelling when he cares to be. And when he cares to be, you're in trouble.
And this is the cultural consciousness when Francis Varney shows up.
[Chapter one will go up sometime this week, March 8-10 or so.]
#varney the vampire#vampires#vampire studies#honestly I am nervous about what I want to say about the first chapter#not sure it's gonna go over very well#long post#welcome to hell it's my blog#tv tropes warning. here is your rope to climb back out
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I couldn't agree more with you. I'm not entirely hating their fight, I was so excited to see it, but in the end, it dragged on, and it was filled with cumbersome elements (pointless shapeshifting and swinging swords with no damage inflicted), and there was no emotional payoff.
I was waiting to see their "cosmic connection" being acknowledged by both characters, but it's like the writers categorically refused to make Galadriel admit for one second that what they had was real, which would make their bond even more horrifying knowing who Sauron is and what he has done and will do.
Sauron torturing and killing Celebrimbor was devastating, it was beyond traumatizing, and yet Celebrimbor pierced Sauron so thoroughly he made him lose control, and they both cried. It was a gut punch, but it was emotionally satisfying.
I didn't feel that with Sauron and Galadriel, and I don't care that Charlotte Brandström said that Galadriel and Sauron 'love' each other, and I say that as someone who enjoys haladriel (doomed lady of light/dark lord dynamic). Show, don't tell.
I understand my take is very unpopular, but the "heal yourself" line really sounded like a "go fuck yourself", and I don't think it was earned at that point, not truly. It's cliché, but I think even the "over my dead body you shall have my ring" would have worked better than that line. :/
Hello there, Nonnie! Thanks for sharing your thoughts, I love this kind of insightful exchange. If you're the same Anon from the previous ask then thanks for coming back!
"No emotional payoff" yeah, I couldn't have said it better, my friend. But that's not exclusive to the Saurondriel reunion: most character arcs and storylines were concluded the same way (notable exception being Celebrimbor and Annatar). After rewatching the last two episodes and picking scenes apart I'm mostly certain that:
There were reshoots;
They filmed a LOT more content than what was aired, and that missing content left clear gaps in the narrative;
Many scenes that made it to the finale were done in a hurry, including most of Galadriel x Sauron fight and, I believe, the Stranger confrontation with the Dark Wizard;
The good points of the Saurondriel reunion are drowning in a sea of uninspired action gimmicks and stale dialogue;
Either they genuinely didn't know what to do with the Saurondriel confrontation (hence the uninspired and recycled dialogue) or they decided (or were pressured) to tone down from what they originally intended to do, leave things as ambiguous as possible and not commit to a clear path (hence all the narrative mixed signals and tentative hints of elrondriel);
The Galadriel we got in the finale was, for the most part, Young Adult Action Franchise Protagonist Galadriel. She stood out from the emotional backdrop like an incredibly 2D sore thumb made from witty remarks and don't f*ck with me attitude;
All of the above leads me to believe that the showrunners and writers are having real trouble with all the different storylines. They might know what story they want to tell, but they surely are struggling with pacing, development and execution within the screentime they have available. Some external factors might be weighing down on the narrative decisions as well.
P.S.: I hate the 'heal yourself' as well. It's not about the idea in itself, it's all about setting and delivery. There are better ways to convey the message than with that 'Pwned! Galadriel out! *mic drop*' cringe approach they went for.
#the rings of power#the rings of power season 2#trop season 2#trop analysis#galadriel#sauron#saurondriel#celebrimbor#the stranger aka gandalf#the dark wizard#anon ask
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hi hi!! so, a while ago I was randomly watching an osc tiktok compilation on youtube. the video was pretty good, lots of cool funny stuff in there, but near the end there was a video of someone voicing over a bunch of cringey osc content. it was your typical badly drawn comics and weird questionable art; I wasn't really expecting to see anything absurd in there and was just passively watching while chuckling.
I watched the video change to the next image and it was my own freaking art. a single panel of a comic I drew a few years ago when I was 14 and posted in an art book on wattpad. I have no idea why or how it was taken from there and posted to tiktok, but there it was. I had totally forgotten I made it, but here it was now in a random youtube video right before my very eyes.
the panel was out of context but that made it worse. I watched, utterly horrified, as the equally horrified person voicing over read the dialogue: "Grassy thinks Basketball looks sexy!"
I swear, I promise there's a good explanation for that cursed sentence. It was something about a word Grassy overheard and he didn't really know the meaning of, it was supposed to be a funny joke. I don't even really remember how it fully went but I PROMISE I wasn't a weirdo and I probably wouldn't have made it like that today, or maybe at all.
that doesn't change anything though. I just watched someone react to that drawing inside of a cringe comp. I have never wanted to quit the OSC before but oh my gosh did I consider it after seeing that. and, and the video. it has over 100k views. one hundred thousand people saw the horribly out-of-context thing I made. there might be even more views on that video now and who knows how many on the original tiktok video.
for the rest of my days spent in this community I will forever be haunted by this. it was the very first time I've ever seen any of my art "in the wild" and it was in the worst way possible. I'm still astounded by it even while writing this. I was going to post this on anon but I realize there's no point, the video is easily findable and so is the art. I apologize to every person who had to see that singular image.
.
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🩸✨Writing Interview Tag Game✨🩸
Thank you for the tag @marlowethebard and @snowfolly ^_^ This was fun.
When did you start writing?
The very first time I remember getting a kick out of writing was, I think, in 6th grade. I was writing little stories, I think with me and my friends as characters, and passing them around, and we were losing our shit laughing in class.
Then I wrote some fics for Final Fantasy 8 in my early teens. Then a whole lot of nothing. Then suddenly I was in my 30's and BG3 happened.
Are there different themes or genres you enjoy reading more than what you write?
It's hard to say - I love, love, reading horror, but I haven't even tried writing any myself. Sci-fi as well.
And, on the flipside, I don't read [non-fanfic] erotica at all, despite all the smut I've written.
Is there a writer you want to emulate or get compared to often?
I haven't thought of that... I haven't been compared to anyone, to my knowledge, and I certainly haven't been consciously trying to emulate anyone either, but on giving my Goodreads history a scroll, I did pause at Martha Wells (author of Murderbot Diaries, which I adore), and thought 'hah!'. I guess if I had to pick someone who might have a similar style, that may be a good example. Un-purple, irreverent, deadpan and sarcastic.
Can you tell me a bit about your writing space?
A desktop computer in our home study. Soft, comfy computer chair big enough for me to sit cross-legged. Two large screens, one for writing, one for haphazard googling and looking up synonyms. Scrivener. A cat that's constantly trying to get my attention. A partner sitting across from me, who won't stop fkn coughing gods-fucking-damnit let me make you some nice hot fucking tea, my love, fuck!
What’s your most effective way to muster up a muse?
Maladaptive daydreaming, preferably combined with a walk or a jog. Lying down and trying to fall asleep usually also does the trick.
Are there any recurring themes in your writing? Do they surprise you?
Can't say, I've been writing the same series this whole time, and I don't know whether anything might count as a recurring theme if it's all part of one whole.
What is your reason for writing?
I don't know how to stop.
Is there any specific comment or type of comment you find particularly motivating?
Being told that someone likes my OC, that I get origin characters' voices right, and, especially, that I made someone laugh or brightened someone's day.
How do you want to be thought about by your readers?
Hmm. I think I just want to be thought about, period, lol. As in, stand out and not be forgettable.
What do you feel is your greatest strength as a writer?
I think I'm good at realistic-sounding dialogue.
I mean, I mumble so much of it back to myself as I write, I fkn better be.
How do you feel about your own writing?
Well, I cringe at my early fics, so I guess it's improving, which is a good thing.
When you write, are you influenced by what others enjoy or might enjoy reading, or do you write purely for yourself, or a mix of both?
My series has been for myself, although I'll occasionally sprinkle in something that I'm neither hot nor cold about, just to try to do something a little different / give myself a challenge, knowing that someone else will like it.
Tagging: @ineadhyn @spacebarbarianweird @brabblesblog @tragedybunny @grandmother-goblin
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20 Questions For Fic Writers
Awww. Thank you for tagging me @toffeelemon! 🫶🏼
How many works do you have on Ao3?
52 works. There are a few orphaned ones floating around out there though.
What's your total Ao3 word count?
545,518
What fandoms do you write for?
Primarily Young Royals, but there are a few others like Stranger Things and Shadow & Bone
Top five fics by kudos
1. In Another Life 2. I hate the way I don't hate you 3. summer of love 4. Hotel Suites and Twisted Sheets 5. After the (visible) kiss -- Part of the Missing Moments series
Do you respond to comments?
YESSS! Always!!!! I'm so thankful to people who pause to comment on my fics. I wanna show how much I appreciate them.
What is the fic you wrote with the angstiest ending?
Technically In Another Life was supposed to be a one shot where they didn't end up together at the end. But people convinced me to write them a happy ending. So probably that, haha.
What's the fic you wrote with the happiest ending?
Hmmmmm, probably In Another Life??? Maybe? Because like, no one else is hurt by wilmon being end game.
Do you get hate on fics?
I have gotten hate before. One time it was to the point where I just took the fic down cause people thought it was horribly OOC, and I mean, they were correct, lol. More recently, though, I've seen some rumblings around Hotel Suites and Twisted Sheets because of the character Adam. Some people have said there's potential for it to be romanticizing abusive relationships or a character "saving" another character from that type of situation. I don't see the story that way, but to each their own I suppose.
Do you write smut?
Oh so much of it.
Craziest crossover:
I've never actually written a crossover fic.
Have you ever had a fic stolen?
Not to my knowledge! Thankfully.
Have you ever had a fic translated?
Sadly no. I wish I was talented enough to speak more than one language so I could translate some of my fics.
Have you ever co-written a fic before?
Yes! I have!
All time favourite ship?
Of course it's gotta be wilmon. But I'll always have a space in my heart from Joey and Pacey from Dawsons Creek, lol.
What's a WIP you want to finish but doubt you ever will?
Dancing With Our Hands Tied. That poor fic. She'll never get finished.
What are your writing strengths?
Oooft. Uh, I think more recently I've been surprising myself with writing original characters. People seem to connect to them a lot. So for now I'll say that.
What are your writing weaknesses?
Remembering to slow down and set the scene. I always ALWAYS have to go back and add a bit more detail to create atmosphere and environment. And even then, it's usually very poorly done, lol.
Thoughts on dialogue in another language?
I don't mind ittt, but I do find it kinda cringe when it's strictly used during intimate scenes. If it feels natural for the character, then yes, fly at it. But idk, it gives me the ick in some fanfics.
First fandom you wrote in?
I think it might have been Once Upon a Time fanfic about Captain Swan.
Favourite fic you've written?
I think it's gotta be summer of love because it was the first fic I properly plotted out by myself (with some help from my betas), and motivated myself to write all the way through. Plus, with the time jumps, I'm constantly surprised at myself for being able to make it make sense.
I'm tagging @lollygirlpops and @lovelierbitsoflife 💜
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In lieu of a long weekend
sunday, may 19, 2024 ~ 11:30pm
technically tomorrow is a day off but the nice thing about grad school is that means essentially nothing for me, and tonight still feels like a sunday night—but it was a beautiful, mostly work-free weekend up until now
reading i forget now whether i mentioned this in my last ilcb, but last month i listened to the audiobook of jenn lyons’ the ruin of kings, which means that now it’s time for the sequel! started these huge fantasy epics on the recommendation of @booksmithereens, who has yet to steer me wrong—but i will say that upon first getting started, I didn’t especially follow (or care) all that much about most of the world building, especially since trok starts in with a lot of slavery and physical / sexual violence. upon second read-through, because i did go back with the ebook as soon as i finished listening to trok the first time, i think i was able to take more pleasure from the characters’ dialogue—there are very funny moments—and from the originality of certain features of the series’ take on deities and magic. i’m 28% through the audio book of the second novel, the name of all things, and i adore that we’ve got a new snarky editor leaving footnotes and editorializing comments, and that we have a new female pov character who really adds to the (intentionally) one-dimensional view of her we were given in the first one. these are good companion books for when i’m toiling in the hollow knight mines (have i explained how i have hacked boss fights for myself by turning off the game sound and instead relaxing, listening to an audiobook, and just getting to focus on the visuals—the flow state this induces can last for. hours. and has yet to get old), and they are another worthy entry in the dragons/magic/demons/swords/prophecy type fantasy canon.
watching finally finished (screaming, cringing, laughing, etc) season one of the white lotus with g and @hematiterings. all things considered, an easier ending than i feared, weirdly? i lost count of full-body cringe reactions (from sheer gut-churning dialogue, not the way kids use ‘cringe’ these days) at like 10, and then we started season two (which we’ve all seen the first few episodes of) and the counter had to start over at the beginning. still fun though. still fun.
also watched the first three-four episodes of dungeon meshi! which i thought were excellent, but i now have just enough context to be really actually affected by casual spoilers, so i may have to blacklist it here on the blue hellsite for now, and watched episode 4 of house of the dragon this evening whilst folding my laundry. i am holding out for when this show introduces the new lead actresses because I have seen their interview in gifs going around and i would like to see it. so far though, i’m distressed by the politics and bored by the action, as is to be expected from a game of thrones show.
listening hmmm chappelle roan Hot to Go has been stuck in my head for a while now so let’s go with that. initially I thought the lyrics to most of her new album really didn’t live up to pink ping club (see my 2021?2? Ilcb where i went on at *length* about how good that song is) but you know what, we’re capable of admitting when we’re wrong and this is one of those times. H! O! T! T! O! G-O!
playing i got the sharp shadow charm in hollow knight today! Nosk and the enraged guardian have been kicking my ass by turns. i had so much geo I had been carefully carrying around and reclaiming every time i died because millibelle had her career pivot and closed my account 😝 and i finally lost it today. Alas. but since there was nothing i could buy at any of the three vendors i visited, it was all going to end up in the fountain anyway.
making this was a little while ago now, but i finally did it, i made a recipe following a b. dylan hollis video! the coffee loaf from 1959– surprisingly, i had all of the ingredients on hand (including powdered milk?!) and i was so excited by this that I didn’t stop to ask whether i *should* make this caffeinated baked good. recipe worked well, the consistency was great and all, but a single square inch of it and i feel like i’ve single-handedly drunk a pot of strong coffee. this is a me problem, i’ll grant you, but it is amusing to me that i’ve made a cake I physically cannot eat too much of in a single sitting. it is drying out in the fridge as we speak. heart palpitations aside, i am proud of it though.
working on it occurred to me today to look back at the timeline i made for myself at the beginning of the month, and i’m four days past the first deadline on it without having even really touched the chapter itself. blargh. sent two emails yesterday, and two that had been worrying me the day before, and worked a bit on the newsletter today. chipping away at things.
#in lieu of a commonplace book#on my phone so there are fewer links and pics this time#may add some later on a reblog!#weekly roundup#ilcb
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🍁 November Outlaw Streams 🍂
Instead of doing a full media rec list this time I’m just going to be streaming double features throughout the month! 💛 We are going to be doing these streams on Zoom. Since I had to pay a subscription fee to make this available to more people I wouldn’t *mind* if a few of ya tossed me a dollar if you attend (not at all required or expected tho!)
All double features will start at 8PM EST, with a pre-show starting about half an hour beforehand.
November 6th - Hitchcock Homos
We will be streaming Rope (1948) and Psycho (1960) - two Hitchcock films featuring queer (coded) villains
Rope is an adaption of a 1929 stage play written by Patrick Hamilton, better known for his work Gaslight, and based upon the real life killing of Bobby Franks by two students in 1924 — though I’ve found nothing about a known relationship between the actual killers. The play explicitly features both main characters as gay, while the film remains a bit more subtextual. The homosexuality is still strikingly present for a film of it’s time, perhaps due in part to the story and screenplay being developed by two gay men, Hume Cronyn and Arthur Laurents, and Brandon being portrayed by gay actor John Dall in the film — perhaps due to it’s adherence to the Motion Picture Production Code, where queer themes remain tragic or villainous. I can’t go without saying how visually stunning this film is. Filmed to mimic the style of the original stage production, we are on one set for the entire duration, viewing the story in real time, with only four visible cuts in the entire runtime. It’s an absolute treat of gay-and-homophobic cinema. /// SUBTITLED
Psycho is the first of many films very loosely based on the crimes of real life grave-robber and killer Ed Gein, who was discovered to crossdress with the victims’ body parts. (Most films based on the events take extensive creative liberties.) While horror had been playing with queer themes for some time, Psycho launched a wave of Geinian gender transgression based horror films, indulging in public fears of transvestites and transsexual women as lurking manipulators and body snatchers in a long enduring conservative moral panic. This paired well with its depiction of dissociative behavior in the killer, capitalizing on transphobic and sanist stereotypes that entwined gender transgression and a fractured sense of self and/or reality. Just as complicated and problematic as Rope, and a classic cinematic delight all the same. /// SUBTITLED
November 13th - Leather Is Everything!
We will be streaming Cruising (1980) and Bloodsisters (1995) — fantasy and reality in the leather community
Cruising my contentious favorite! This film is about a kinky gay murderer picking off other kinky gay men, and an innocent heterosexual Al Pacino going undercover in the leather scene to solve the case. It’s camp. It’s cringe. It’s actually pretty decent. It was picketed by gay activists at the time, so extensively that the dialogue was largely dubbed over due to loud protesting drowning out the production’s audio. It also features gay people in the leather scene, many of them regulars of Mineshaft, who happily joined the cast as extras and background performers. But only the white, muscular ones allowed on screen. It’s a strange erotic fantasy in some ways and - perhaps accidentally - a surprisingly poignant reflection on gay life in others. /// SUBTITLED
Bloodsisters is a documentary surrounding the SM / Leather community in the San Francisco area during the 1990s. It features interviews with a variety of leatherdykes interspersed with footage of needleplay scenes, tit torture, fundraisers, leather titleholder contests, and impactplay demonstrations. It expounds on alternating sides of intra community debate, the reality of death and holding a life in your hands, isolation from the greater lesbian feminist community, roles, love, lust, fisting. And it is so fucking 90’s. /// NO SUBS :(
November 27th - #JustGirlyThings
We’ll be streaming Jawbreaker (1999) and Bodies Bodies Bodies (2022) — two modern horror comedies with sapphic overtones
I haven’t seen either of these yet and honestly know very little! I’ve heard the girlies are gay and murderous though and that’s enough for me. /// SUBTITLED
I’m so excited to watch these with y’all :o)
UPDATE : I am sadly going to have to cancel the last stream this month bc I really need to pick up another shift n make me some more money 😭 Im sorry guys I promise we’ll stream jawbreaker and bodies bodies bodies some time in the future ! </3
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My thoughts on Lore Olympus after a 2 day binge of the whole story
Very new to this fandom and obviously I don’t know the full history of it or of the author, so if you disagree with me feel free to share why, I’m welcome to hearing dif povs. Idk I was a little surprised to see so many antis after going online and seeing what different people thought of the series, majority positive but a lot of dedicated hate pages. This is just some of my thoughts in an unorganized shit post at 1 am so you can like or not like the series at the end of the day it’s rlly not that deep
I just finished Lore Olympus after binging it non stop for two days and I quite honestly loved it, ig what I didn’t know is that there was so many antis lmao. As always with any work there are valid critics. But I’m mainly going to talk abt what are arguments I disagree with. Obviously, everyone is entitled to their own opinions and I agree with the comments about better size inclusivity and the occasional sloppy / cringe dialogue and the lack of LBTQ+ characters/ poor writing of them.
One main argument I’ve seen people be pressed about that I honestly don’t get is that people are mad that Rachel didn’t follow the exact stories or characterizations of the god based on their original stories in mythology. Honestly I thought it was pretty clear that myths are the main source of inspiration for the characters, Greek mythology and the Greek pantheon as a whole is more a vessel or inspiration from which is used to tell the story through a modernish lens that can resonate more with the audience of today. For example Thor in marvel isn’t Thor in mythology. Same goes for the character Apollo. He SUCKS in LO, but the character of Apollo in PJO is great. You can hate one and love the other because they are separate entities and characters, you can also love Apollo from mythology because guess what he isn’t Apollo from LO. They’re all separate and different characters and you’re welcome to think differently about all of them..
Another argument I’ve seen is cultural appropriation. Quite honestly, and I am not Greek or from Greece, but a. I think that argument is kinda ludicrous and b. Greek culture is no longer defined by myths told over a millennia ago. That’s like saying the culture in Egypt is defined by the pantheon they had over a millennia ago, it’s no all mummies and Pharohs. I get the story has a more western lense and doesn’t use much Greek culture. But idk take PJO as an example of using Greek myths and putting them in a western perspective, like Olympus is on top of the fucking Empire State Building and everything most of the time takes place in the US. Would usage of more Greek culture be enriching in both LO and PHO? Yes. But there are many instance of people taking stories from different cultures, stories that have been around for centuries, and adapting them to tell their own stories and putting their own creative spin to address what ever they want. Because at the end of the fucking day LO is just a webcomic inspired by Greek mythology and its pantheon.
Lastly and I won’t dedicate too much time to this argument because I’m just writing this as my brain goes with it but like why the fuck are people Minthe apologists. Like she’s complex and Hades was not perfect in that relationship either but y’all she verbally berated that man bringing up every insecurity and slapped him, both of them in general brought out the worst in each other, BUT IMAGINE if the roles were reversed. There’s a bunch of context prior to that event where it’s valid for her to be pressed at Hades but that the actions she took are not ok in any circumstances. I get that she was suffering herself and needed help but it’s still not ok to use other people as an outlet for your pain and to then try and Sabotage and destroy their lives post breakup.
At then end of the day you are all entitled to your opinions, I don’t have the inherently “right” one and reminder I read this series in two days so I’m new to the discussions and critics and am open to hearing others thoughts on why they disagree. This is a comic that to my understanding started as Rachel’s passion project and spiraled into something bigger and I honestly think that’s very impressive. There are plenty of critics of it and there always will be of not just LO but any body of work. I think the themes of sexual agency, mental health, navigating new, complicated and changing relationships with yourself, a partner, and your parents were honestly executed well, again nothing is perfect but from an amateur story teller I found it Ernest, human, and relatable.
But yeah this is just my 1 am brain rot thoughts bc LO is all I’ve been thinking about for the past 2-3 days lol. Sound off share your opinions I’m welcome hearing a different perspective as I just joined this fandom.
#writing#lo#lore olympus#Persephone#pjo#lore Olympus critic#lo critic#lo anti#anti lo#hades#Persephone x Hades
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