#to expand beyond the cynicism

[rosesradio]

You're the only person i follow who posts about thomas sanders

And i only watch him for sanders sides, i'm not really in the fsndom online, so i guess you are the best person to ask this

Why does thomas take so long to upload new sander sides?

ten questions scientists still can't answer, anon

[fem-lit]

Ryan, Barbara. “BEYOND EMBARRASSMENT: FEMINISM AND ADULT HETEROSEXUAL LOVE.” The Centennial Review, vol. 37, no. 3, 1993, pp. 471–86.

JSTOR, http://www.jstor.org/stable/23739489.

[bratzkoo]

Merging Arrangments | wonwoo pt. 1

Author: bratzkoo Pairing: chaebol heir! wonwoo x chaebol heiress!/ nurse! reader Genre: angst, fluff, eventual smut Rating: PG-15 to NC-17 Word count: 4k~ Warnings/note: for my Anna, my beautiful nurse. Happy birthday!

Everything marked with [M] have mature scenes and should not be read by minors.

summary: Jeon Wonwoo's been smitten with you for years, as the two of you enter an arranged marriage, he hopes you'll feel the same.

Arrange marriage! au

taglist (hit me up if you wanna be added): @escoupseu , @yanabaaaaaaarysheva , @spnyin , @sousydive , @gyuguys , @gyubakeries , @tokitosun , @gaslysainz , @armycarat2612

requests are open, but you can just say hi! | masterlist

The Grand Hyatt Seoul stood majestically against the backdrop of Namsan Mountain, its glass facade reflecting the late afternoon sun. Today, the luxurious hotel buzzed with an energy beyond its usual five-star opulence. It was playing host to the wedding of the year—the union of Jeon Group and Kit Medical Group through their heirs, Jeon Wonwoo and Y/N Kit.

In the grand ballroom, staff members scurried about like well-dressed ants, making last-minute adjustments to flower arrangements and place settings. Crystal chandeliers cast a warm glow over tables draped in silk, each centerpiece a small fortune of exotic blooms. The air hummed with anticipation and barely concealed gossip.

"I heard it was arranged just two months ago," a waiter whispered to his colleague as they adjusted the champagne flutes at the head table.

The other waiter nodded knowingly. "Chaebol marriages," he replied with a hint of cynicism. "Always about business, never about love."

"Shh!" hissed a nearby supervisor. "Less talking, more working. The guests will be arriving soon."

Outside, a fleet of black luxury cars began to arrive, disgorging a who's who of Korean high society. Cameras flashed as celebrities, business tycoons, and politicians made their way into the hotel, their designer outfits and dazzling jewelry a clear display of wealth and status.

---

In a luxurious suite upstairs, Y/N Kit sat before a gilded mirror, her reflection a picture of bridal perfection—and internal turmoil. Her raven hair was swept up in an intricate updo, adorned with tiny diamond-encrusted pins that caught the light with every slight movement. The wedding dress, a custom Vera Wang creation, hugged her figure before flowing out in a cascade of delicate lace and silk. Yet, her eyes, usually bright and determined, now held a hint of uncertainty, a stark contrast to the flawless makeup that adorned her face.

"Miss Y/N, you look absolutely stunning," her makeup artist gushed, stepping back to admire her work. "Like a princess from a fairy tale."

Y/N managed a weak smile, the effort evident. "Thank you," she murmured, her gaze fixed on her reflection, as if trying to recognize the woman staring back at her.

As the artist packed up her supplies, Y/N's mind drifted to two months ago, the day that had set this all in motion...

Y/N had just finished a grueling shift at the hospital, her scrubs rumpled and her hair in a messy ponytail. She'd been looking forward to a quiet evening at home, maybe catching up on some medical journals. Instead, she found her parents waiting in the living room, their faces a mix of excitement and stern determination."An arranged marriage?" Y/N had exclaimed, staring at her parents in disbelief. The words felt foreign on her tongue, like something out of a historical drama rather than her real life. "But I barely know Jeon Wonwoo!"

Her father's eyes had been steely, unyielding. "This union will secure the future of both our companies. It's your duty, Y/N. The merger with Jeon Group will allow us to expand our medical services, to help more people."

"But my nursing career—" Y/N had started, her voice trailing off as she saw the dismissive look in her mother's eyes.

"You can do charity work as a chaebol wife," her mother had interjected smoothly, reaching out to pat Y/N's hand. "It's time you left this nurse phase behind. Think of all the good you can do with the resources of both families at your disposal."

Y/N had felt the walls closing in, her carefully laid plans crumbling around her. "Don't I get a say in this?" she had asked, hating how small her voice sounded.

Her father's expression had softened slightly. "Sometimes, Y/N, we must put aside our personal desires for the greater good. This is one of those times."

A knock at the door jolted Y/N back to the present. She blinked rapidly, banishing the memory and the tears that threatened to form. The door opened to reveal her parents, her father resplendent in a bespoke tuxedo, her mother glittering with diamonds that probably cost more than most people's houses.

"Oh, darling," her mother cooed, gliding into the room with practiced grace. "You look perfect. Like a true Kit heiress."

Her father nodded approvingly, his eyes sweeping over Y/N with a businessman's attention to detail. "Remember, Y/N," he said, his voice gentle but firm, "smile for the cameras. This wedding is about more than just you and Wonwoo. It's about the future of both our families, and the thousands of people who rely on our companies."

Y/N felt her chest tighten at his words, the weight of expectation settling on her shoulders like a heavy cloak. She managed a nod, not trusting her voice to remain steady if she spoke.

As her parents left, murmuring about greeting guests, Y/N allowed herself a moment of vulnerability. She closed her eyes, taking a deep breath to center herself. The quiet was short-lived, however, as the door burst open again, admitting her best friends, Alexys and Ela.

"Wow, unnie!" Ela exclaimed, her eyes wide with admiration. "You look like a princess from a manhwa!"

Alexys whistled low, circling Y/N with an exaggerated appraising look. "A very expensive princess. I think your veil costs more than my apartment. Actually, probably more than my entire apartment building."

Despite herself, Y/N felt a laugh bubble up. "Alexys, behave!" she admonished, but there was no heat in her words.

"What?" Alexys grinned, striking a pose that was likely meant to be model-esque but came off more comical. "I'm just saying, if you need someone to carry that train, I volunteer as tribute. I could use a workout, and that dress looks heavy enough to count as weightlifting."

As they laughed, Y/N felt some of her tension ease. These were her people, the ones who knew her as just Y/N, not the Kit heiress or the future Mrs. Jeon. But as quickly as it had come, the moment of levity passed, and doubt crept back in, darkening her expression.

"I don't know if I can do this," Y/N confessed quietly, sinking onto a nearby chaise lounge. "It's all happening so fast. Two months ago, I was focused on my nursing career, on making a difference. And now..."

Ela sat beside her, squeezing her hand supportively. "You're the strongest person I know, Y/N. You'll get through this, and you'll find a way to make a difference, no matter what."

Alexys nodded, her face uncharacteristically serious as she knelt in front of Y/N. "And we'll be right here with you, every step of the way. Although," she added, a mischievous glint returning to her eye, "if you want to make a run for it, I've got a getaway car and a foolproof plan involving two wigs, a llama, and a hot air balloon."

Despite herself, Y/N giggled, the absurd image lightening her mood. "I think I'll pass on the llama plan. But thank you, both of you. I don't know what I'd do without you."

"Probably be a lot more stressed and a lot less entertained," Alexys quipped, standing up and smoothing out her bridesmaid dress. "Now, let's get you married, shall we? I've got a bet going with one of the groomsmen on whether I can catch the bouquet while doing a backflip."

As they prepared to leave the room, Y/N took one last look in the mirror. The woman looking back at her was a bride, yes, but she was also still Y/N. With her friends by her side, maybe she could face whatever came next.

---

In another suite, Jeon Wonwoo adjusted his bowtie for the thousandth time, his normally steady hands betraying his nerves. The sleek lines of his custom-tailored tuxedo accentuated his tall, lean frame, but it was his eyes that drew attention—dark, intelligent, and currently filled with a mix of anticipation and anxiety.

"You'll wear it out if you keep fiddling," Mingyu, his best friend and best man, commented from where he lounged on a nearby chair. Despite his relaxed posture, Mingyu cut an impressive figure in his own tuxedo, his easy smile a stark contrast to Wonwoo's tense expression.

Wonwoo sighed, dropping his hands and turning to face his friend. "I just want everything to be perfect. This day... it means more than anyone realizes."

Mingyu's expression softened, understanding dawning in his eyes. "You've been in love with her for years, haven't you? Y/N, I mean."

Wonwoo's silence was answer enough. His mind drifted to a charity gala five years ago, the first time he had truly seen Y/N Kit...

The ballroom had been crowded, full of Seoul's elite in expensive gowns and tuxedos. Wonwoo, then a university student being groomed to take over Jeon Group, had been making the rounds with his father, shaking hands and making small talk. That's when he had spotted her—Y/N Kit, still in high school, her eyes alight with passion as she spoke to a group of doctors.

"I want to be a nurse," she had been saying, her voice clear and determined. "Not just to follow in my family's footsteps, but to make a real difference. To be there for people when they're at their most vulnerable, to help them heal."

Wonwoo had found himself drawing closer, captivated by her enthusiasm, her compassion, her determination. In a room full of people discussing profit margins and market shares, she had been a breath of fresh air, talking about saving lives and making a difference.

That was the moment Wonwoo had fallen in love, though it had taken him some time to realize it.

"She doesn't know," Wonwoo said quietly, coming back to the present. "About my feelings, I mean. How could she? We've barely interacted outside of formal events."

Mingyu stood, clapping a hand on Wonwoo's shoulder. "Maybe this is your chance to show her, then. You're not just the Jeon heir, Wonwoo. You're a good man, with a lot to offer. Let her see that side of you."

A sharp knock interrupted them, causing both men to straighten instinctively. Wonwoo's parents entered, his father's eyes immediately zeroing in on Wonwoo's slightly askew bowtie.

"Fix that," he said brusquely, his tone leaving no room for argument. "The merger papers will be signed right after the ceremony. Everything must be perfect. The future of Jeon Group depends on this union."

Wonwoo nodded stiffly, adjusting his bowtie with practiced ease. "Yes, father. I understand the importance of today."

His mother, softer but no less focused on appearances, stepped forward to smooth an invisible wrinkle from his lapel. "You look handsome, Wonwoo-ya. Y/N Kit is a lucky girl."

As his parents left, likely to check on some other aspect of the wedding preparations, Mingyu let out a low whistle. "And I thought my parents were intense. Is it always like this?"

Wonwoo managed a weak smile, a hint of his usual dry humor showing through. "Welcome to the chaebol life, Mingyu-ya. All glamour and no pressure, right?"

Mingyu chuckled, shaking his head. "Well, if anyone can handle it, it's you. Just remember, behind all this..." he gestured vaguely at the opulent room and their formal attire, "you're still Wonwoo. The guy who stays up too late reading, who can't function without his morning coffee, and who once tried to adopt every stray cat in the neighborhood."

Wonwoo felt some of his tension ease at Mingyu's words. "Thanks, Mingyu. I don't know what I'd do without you."

"Probably be a lot more stressed and a lot less handsome," Mingyu quipped, echoing Wonwoo's earlier smile. "Now, let's get you married, shall we? I've got a best man speech to deliver, and I promise only minimal embarrassment."

As they prepared to leave the room, Wonwoo took one last look in the mirror. The man looking back at him was the Jeon heir, yes, but he was also still Wonwoo. With his best friend by his side and hope in his heart, maybe he could make this arranged marriage into something real.

---

The wedding ceremony was a blur of camera flashes and murmured vows. The hotel's grand ballroom had been transformed into a floral wonderland, with thousands of white roses and lilies creating an enchanted atmosphere. Soft classical music played as guests took their seats, a mix of Korea's business elite, celebrities, and politicians all eager to witness the union of two powerful families.

A hush fell over the crowd as the wedding march began. All eyes turned to the back of the room, where Y/N appeared, a vision in white. She walked down the aisle with measured steps, her arm linked with her father's. Her eyes were fixed straight ahead, her expression a carefully composed mask of bridal serenity.

In the front row, Alexys gave Y/N a subtle thumbs up, while Ela dabbed at her eyes with a delicate handkerchief. A few rows back, Choi Seung-cheol watched, his hands clenched tightly in his lap, his heart breaking with each step Y/N took towards another man.

At the altar, Wonwoo's breath caught as he saw Y/N. She was breathtakingly beautiful, the embodiment of grace and elegance. But it was the flash of vulnerability in her eyes, visible only for a moment as she took her place beside him, that made his heart ache. He wanted nothing more than to take her hand and tell her everything would be alright, that they could face this new chapter together.

The officiant began the ceremony, his words about love and commitment ringing with a hint of irony given the arranged nature of the marriage. As they exchanged rings, Y/N's hand trembled slightly. Wonwoo gave her fingers a gentle, reassuring squeeze. For a moment, their eyes met, and something passed between them—a flicker of understanding, perhaps even a spark of connection.

"I, Jeon Wonwoo, take you, Y/N Kit, to be my lawfully wedded wife," Wonwoo said, his voice steady and clear, infused with a warmth that surprised even him.

"I, Y/N Kit, take you, Jeon Wonwoo, to be my lawfully wedded husband," Y/N replied, her voice softer but no less resolute.

Then the officiant pronounced them husband and wife, and the moment was gone, swept away in a tide of applause and camera flashes.

---

The reception was a whirlwind of congratulations, speeches, and thinly veiled business discussions. Y/N and Wonwoo moved through it all in a daze, playing their parts perfectly—the blushing bride and the proud groom, the perfect chaebol couple.

During their first dance, Wonwoo leaned in close, the scent of Y/N's perfume filling his senses. "Are you okay?" he murmured, genuine concern in his voice.

Y/N plastered on a smile for the cameras, her eyes scanning the room even as she replied. "I'm fine," she said, her voice barely audible over the swelling music. "This is what's expected of us, isn't it? To play our parts."

Before Wonwoo could respond, to tell her that it didn't have to be just an act, the dance ended and they were once again swept into the crowd of well-wishers and business associates.

As Y/N made her rounds, graciously accepting congratulations and deflecting questions about future heirs with practiced ease, she found herself face to face with Seung-cheol. For a moment, neither spoke, the air between them thick with unspoken words and missed opportunities.

"You look beautiful," Seung-cheol finally said, his voice rough with emotion. He looked dashing in his suit, a far cry from the casual attire she was used to seeing him in at the hospital.

"Seung-cheol, I—" Y/N began, not sure what she wanted to say but feeling the need to say something.

"Congratulations," he cut her off, unable to meet her eyes. "I hope you'll be very happy." The words sounded hollow, a social nicety that did nothing to bridge the chasm that had opened between them.

He walked away before Y/N could respond, leaving her staring after him, a mix of regret and longing on her face. For a moment, she allowed herself to imagine a different world, one where she had followed her heart instead of her duty. But the moment passed, reality reasserting itself in the form of another well-wisher approaching to offer congratulations.

From across the room, Wonwoo watched the interaction between Y/N and Seung-cheol, his heart sinking. The look on Y/N's face as she watched Seung-cheol walk away spoke volumes. Wonwoo turned away, trying to quell the surge of jealousy and disappointment, only to nearly collide with Alexys.

"Whoa there, Mr. Chaebol," she said, steadying herself with a hand on his arm. "No need to sweep me off my feet. Save that for your bride." Her eyes twinkled with mischief, a stark contrast to the formal atmosphere around them.

Wonwoo blinked, taken aback by her casual tone. In his world of rigid formality, Alexys was like a breath of fresh air. "I'm sorry, I—"

Alexys waved him off. "No worries. I'm Alexys, by the way. Y/N's friend and designated baby girl." She leaned in conspiratorially, lowering her voice. "Between you and me, I think this party could use a little livening up. What do you say we spike the punch? I've got a flask of soju in my purse."

Despite himself, Wonwoo found a smile tugging at his lips. "I don't think that would be appropriate," he said, but there was a hint of amusement in his voice.

Alexys sighed dramatically. "You're right, of course. Guess I'll have to settle for embarrassing Y/N with my dance moves instead. Fair warning: I've been practicing my 'Gangnam Style'. It's not pretty, but it's enthusiastic."

As she sashayed away, hips swaying exaggeratedly, Wonwoo felt some of his tension ease. If these were Y/N's friends, maybe there was hope for them yet. Maybe, just maybe, he could find a place in this vibrant, genuine world so different from the one he'd grown up in.

The rest of the reception passed in a blur of faces and formalities. Mingyu gave a heartfelt best man speech, carefully skirting around any mention of his own secret marriage while still managing to both embarrass and honor Wonwoo. 

"I've known Wonwoo since we were kids," Mingyu said, his voice carrying across the hushed ballroom. "And I can say without a doubt that he's the most loyal, caring, and intelligent person I know. Y/N," he turned to address the bride directly, "you're not just gaining a husband today. You're gaining a partner who will stand by you, support your dreams, and probably bore you with random historical facts."

A ripple of laughter went through the crowd, and Wonwoo felt a surge of gratitude for his friend. Beside him, he felt Y/N relax slightly, a small, genuine smile playing on her lips.

As the evening wore on, business associates cornered both sets of parents, eager to discuss the implications of this new alliance. Talks of mergers, stock prices, and market expansions filled the air, a constant reminder of the true nature of this union.

Ela and Mingyu exchanged secret glances across the room, their own hidden marriage a sharp contrast to the spectacle around them. At one point, they managed to steal a moment together near the dessert table.

"How are you holding up?" Ela asked, her voice low.

Mingyu sighed, running a hand through his hair. "It's harder than I thought, watching my best friend go through this. Knowing what we have..." he trailed off, his eyes conveying what he couldn't say aloud.

Ela squeezed his hand briefly. "I know. But we have to trust that they'll find their way, just like we did."

Their moment was interrupted by Alexys, who appeared with a plate piled high with desserts. "Don't mind me," she said, noticing their startled expressions. "Just here for the cake. Carry on with your secret rendezvous."

Ela rolled her eyes fondly. "Very subtle, Alexys."

"Subtlety is overrated," Alexys replied around a mouthful of cake. "Unlike this dessert. Seriously, you two should try this before the chaebol vultures descend and devour everything."

Finally, as the evening wound down, Y/N and Wonwoo found themselves alone for a moment on a balcony overlooking the Seoul skyline. The city stretched out before them, a glittering tapestry of lights and possibilities.

"It's beautiful," Y/N murmured, gazing out at the city lights. For a moment, she allowed herself to drop the perfect bride facade, her shoulders sagging slightly with exhaustion.

Wonwoo looked at her, illuminated by the soft glow of the lanterns. The fatigue evident in the line of her shoulders, the wistfulness in her eyes as she looked out at the city – it all made her seem more real, more human than the porcelain doll she'd appeared as all day. "Yes, it is," he agreed softly, though his eyes never left her face.

Y/N turned to him, and for a moment, the masks slipped away entirely. They were just two people, thrust into an impossible situation, trying to make the best of it. The vulnerability in Y/N's eyes matched the uncertainty Wonwoo felt.

"Wonwoo, I—" Y/N began, her voice hesitant.

"Y/N, dear!" her mother's voice cut through the moment like a knife. "It's time to leave for your honeymoon. The car is waiting."

The spell broken, Y/N and Wonwoo shared a rueful look before making their way back inside. They said their goodbyes, accepted final congratulations, and made their way to the waiting car.

As they settled into the backseat of the luxury vehicle, a heavy silence fell between them. The partition between them and the driver offered a semblance of privacy, but neither seemed to know what to say now that they were truly alone.

From the steps of the hotel, Seung-cheol watched the car pull away, his heart heavy. He'd come to the wedding hoping for... what? A last-minute confession? A dramatic objection? Now, watching the taillights disappear into the Seoul traffic, he felt the finality of the situation settle over him like a weight.

Ela and Mingyu stood together, their hands brushing but not quite holding in deference to the watchful eyes around them. Their own secret weighed on them as they watched their friends drive off into an uncertain future.

Alexys stood with her arm around Ela, for once without a quip. "They'll be okay, right?" she asked, her usual bravado absent.

Ela leaned into her friend's embrace. "I hope so," she said softly. "I really hope so."

The parents watched with satisfaction, already planning their next moves. Mergers to finalize, press releases to craft, the future of their empires to secure.

As the car merged into the Seoul traffic, Y/N and Wonwoo sat side by side, not touching, each lost in their own thoughts. The future stretched out before them, uncertain and daunting. The weight of expectations, of duty, of their own conflicted feelings – it all seemed overwhelming in the quiet of the car.

But as the city lights blurred past the windows, something shifted. Almost imperceptibly, Y/N's hand moved closer to Wonwoo's on the leather seat between them. And after a moment's hesitation, he took it, giving it a gentle squeeze.

They didn't look at each other. They didn't speak. But in that small gesture lay the tiniest seed of hope for Wonwoo – a hope that maybe, just maybe, they could face this uncertain future together. That perhaps, in time, duty could become desire, and an arranged marriage could become something real.

As the car wound its way through the streets of Seoul, taking them towards their honeymoon and the beginning of their life together, that small point of contact between them seemed to hold all the possibility in the world.

[ahsoka-its-all-of-us]

Zeb & Kallus vs. the future headcanons

Zeb had never been too big on long-term future plans during his time at the High Honour Guard. Where his sister had actively been looking to settle down with someone, he relished the fact that he was still young, enjoying the attention that came with his position and looks but never looking to pursue anything more serious than a fling.

This attitude persisted after the Purge of Lasan, though for different reasons: his focus had shifted entirely to taking revenge on the Empire, and later to restoring peace and balance to the galaxy, which left little room in his mind for any other plans. Of course, having your entire way of life burned to ashes would ruin even any subconscious future plans. With the Purge Zeb also lost his perspective, and the examples of his parents or more senior Guard members.

For a long time, he turned into a bitter, cynical man, but joining up with Hera and Kanan and seeing the beautiful bond the two of them had helped thaw him a little again. He still couldn't find it in himself to be interested in building a future with someone in a romantic sense, never going beyond one night stands or short flings, but joining Hera and Kanan's fight at least helped him see light at the end of the tunnel again.

He still had difficulty envisioning a future for himself, but now he at least found himself fighting not just for revenge or bloodlust, but to ensure that Sabine and Ezra, children of the war, would live to see peace again. To give Kanan and Hera the opportunity to settle down, perhaps even start a family, without constantly having to be on the run.

Meanwhile, Kallus, despite being a smart man who spent most of his adult life at the front, held a completely different view on the war: hailing from the core of the galaxy, to him the war ended when the Empire took over, and everything he did after that was to keep the peace, or expand it to new regions. An utterly unselfish man by any means, contrary to how he might appear, any future plans he ever made were always in service of this peace. His quick ascent through Imperial ranks wasn't a planned march to power, but the result of his relentless fighting to ensure that peace, misguided though he was about its nature.

Anything personal always had to make way for this goal, which meant that he also never made any plans for settling down or any real attachments. Even though he liked Jovan -- loved him, even, in a way -- he would always prioritise his work, and he wouldn't have sacrificed even an aspect of it for their... friendship, relationship, whatever it was. By the time their involvement ended he wasn't even very saddened, identifying it as something that would only have held him back in his fight for the cause.

Only when Zeb falls in love with Kallus does he start considering a future for himself again. He realises this when he realises that he has started imagining things he would want to show to or do with Kallus once the Empire has been defeated. And just like he wants a better future for his new Ghost family, he also wants to help create a world where Kallus doesn't have feel like he has to work himself to the bone to take down the Empire, but could actually rest and relax.

In a sense, even joining the Rebellion doesn't make Kallus realise that there is a war going on. The reason for this is that he doesn't really believe that the Rebellion could actually win, and therefore their fight doesn't register as an actual war to him, but more as, well, a rebellion. Doing whatever they can to keep the Empire at bay and keep the entire galaxy from succumbing to evil. He is one of the few in the Rebellion who isn't filled with hope after the destruction of the first Death Star; not believing that the Empire would not have kept some sort of backup of Project Stardust, to him it just serves as proof of the overwhelming and unconquerable power of the Empire.

Similarly, he is unable to envision a future with Zeb, even though he eventually falls in love with him. Zeb becomes the only real home he has ever really known to him, a place of comfort, a safe haven, and as such he wants to be with him, but he is afraid to look any further than the present on that regard.

Only after the decisive victory above Endor, with the death of the Emperor and the ensuing chaos in the Empire, does he realise that the Rebel Alliance could actually win this war. It comes as a shock to him, especially the fact that the Emperor could be killed; somehow, none of the Imperial plans and documentation had included anything on succession or any other scenario for if the Emperor would die. He rejoices with the rest of the Rebellion, of course, but beyond that he finds himself lost in this uncertain future, unsure how to move on now that all his plans and everything he has ever been is being rendered unnecessary.

Because Zeb by that time is a lot further in the healing process, he is able to think of the future again, to make plans or leap excitedly in the unknown. And even though it is occassionally a point of tension between them, he does manage to take Kallus along that path.

[azure-trash]

Okay, y’know what, yeah. Roleswap Royalblue ideas:

Daryl, formerly the Original, his student was Frederick. I imagine that Swap!Daryl is a lot more calm and calculated than Happy Chaos. Swap!Chaos is more chilled out of course, but he’s still fairly erratic and unpredictable.

He definitely gets excited when Swap!Daryl crashes G4 and is happily playing along with a smile. That man loves to excitement and the thrill of things. Swap!Daryl is kinda weirded out like “Why is this guy excited, I am holding him hostage?” But also… Oh, this is fun. He likes this guy.

Axl swaps with I-No in this case, obviously, and Swap!Axl is very much pleased with Daryl thoroughness, but Axl is still Axl. He’s still kinda playful about everything, he’s just more cynical about it and with Swap!Daryl being more serious, it’s almost a reverse of the I-No and Happy Chaos dynamic. Swap!Daryl is still all over the place like Chaos, but he’s less manic and more methodical and careful.

Okay actually, I’m getting a bunch of ideas for this now. Like a bunch of ideas for other characters. Hm. Mayhaps this idea needs to expand beyond just being about Royalblue……

[liquid-bonhomme]

It's so embarassing watching lily be so wrong about her own country's politics. I am admittedly ignorant about Canadian politics, as I am terminally american (je suis desolé). But like, girl, you live there? Are you not embarrassed to get such basic information wrong?

It's frustrating how not super uncommon it is that Canadians like . . . Forget what fucking country they're living in? The constant bombardment of American politics does very much seem to get people . . . Confused. To put it generously.

Being totally honest, I've accidentally called the The House of Commons the "House of Representatives" myself a few times. Especially when I was younger, I had a lot of cynicism with politics and with our system I realized now was more founded in well-poisoning runoff from the states. Even other political commentators I'd consider very politically literate in Canadian politics have opinions very clearly flavored by, up until recently obviously, America being presumed this big brother state that will inform our politics as much, if not more than their own.

When the Cons were leading, functionally off of just importing Trump's popularism here, and then seemingly overnight the polls flipped-- all of us, including myself, seemed to remember all at once how not American we actually are. The sheer aggressive exposure to American culture drowns that out sometimes.

But Lily is above and beyond the typical brainlet Canadian ignorance, I'd say. With that said though, I don't think last night's screed was really motivated by ignorance. Feel free to challenge me on this, I guess, I am thoroughly of the impression now Lily does not actually LIKE democracy. I don't think the reasons are particularly deep. I think Lily is selfish and stupid. I think she likes to be in control, has taken on the Liberal Party as a proxy (because she's not actually fucking paying attention to what they're doing) and she wants her "team" to win and everyone to do what she wants.

Lily wants democracy for Lily, and no one else. And she's just not smart enough to recognize why that's not going to work out for her.

Ironically enough, despite constantly making it clear otherwise, this is something I get accused of a lot. As a socialist and a supporter of the NDP. Mostly by people who DO actively want to undermine the democratic process and are projecting.

While I scrutineered the vote at my assigned polling station for my riding, I argued to protect the votes of both the conservative and the liberal incumbent. There were no potential spoiled ballots for the NDP incumbent. If the intent of the voter was clear and obvious, I advocated for them regardless of who it was for. There was even a missing vote I advocated for us to find. It was for the conservative incumbent. I did not compromise any of my fellows right to a political voice.

The conservative scrutineer was treating me with suspicion. He likely accurately identified that I was EXACTLY the kind of person the conservative incumbent was trying to quietly take away the rights of. That Pierre Poilievre was OPENLY wanting to take away the rights of. I am kind of a . . . Distinct looking individual. He may have recognized me as the person who had a minor verbal confrontation with the conservative incumbent at their debate.

But I am of the opinion that the democratic process in Canada isn't compromised enough to undermine the political rights of my fellows-- even when they are, knowingly or not (likely not) voting in a way that puts my person at potential risk.

And maybe the Conservatives shouldn't be playing stupid games with people's civil liberties if they're this paranoid they're going to give someone like me incentive to screw with their votes-- you shiteating fucks.

I believe in representational democracy. I believe in FIGHTING for representational democracy. I think diverse parliaments with a healthy amount of seats to multiple parties. Infact, I think Parliament should be expanded to include seats FIRST NATIONS ELDERS chosen by their communities in their own way aswell.

I believe the Conservatives are a categorically negative force in Canadian government, economically and socially, and that the Liberals are drifting in that same direction, but that undermining the democratic process to take that power away from them is a last resort.

And one that comes with serious consequences.

That's a bell you can't unring. So it's gotta be worth it.

But as I've argued over and over again, Lily is not a leftist. She is middlingly center-right, advocating only for the middlingly center-left, drifting right Liberal Party to the capacity she believes they serve her. And is too stupid to realize they kinda don't. Not wholly.

[wherevenusholdssomeofficespace]

Stress Brawl was such a fantastic episode. Really elaborating on Hiromi's character. Hamster and Gretel at the very least is pretty good on building on previously established lore. It's satisfying when a typical joke gets referenced in a new context.

Seeing how Hiromi's reputation as a nice person, and her involvement in several activities actually stresses her out really added a layer of depth to her character. Hiromi was also established to have a more subtle cynical side that was annoyed by people's dependence on her. So it was good to see that expanded upon more as something that she represses.

Hiromi could very easily have been Kevin's "Nice but quirky" love interest but she's more than that and it's good to see. Not that Hiromi was ever that, but as she was quickly established as a character who existed beyond being Kevin's love interest. But seeing her continued development as a full fledged character raises the show's quality all around.

I think Hiromi serves a rather important anchoring role to the story as a well developed character who isn't involved in the superhero stuff or the Grant-Gomez family. She informs a lot of the high school setting and the stuff that goes on there. When it comes to saving the world type shows I find a well developed civilian cast is critical to giving the stakes weight. Her relationships with both Kevin and Fred also helps round out both characters by giving them someone who isn't each other to bounce off of.

Seeing Fred of course simply being Hiromi's friend and trying to support her is good to see. Not to mention how the fallout from her and Kevin's failed date was handled. Kevin has already been established to be a very stressed out person. Just he has a superhero little sister to deal with rather than a heap of extracurriculars. So it's interesting to see how they both had sort of similar reactions to their disaster date. Maybe one day they'll get together and be stressed about stuff together.

But for now Hiromi and Kevin is doomed by their inability to get on the same page. It's not Kevin's fault. It's not his fault he's got a part time job as a superhero coach and that his identity was revealed to an evil villain trying to take over the world thus making it impossible for him to commit to things or be honest about himself. It's not that Kevin didn't do anything wrong per se. Because a fake date was not the way to go. But he didn't have bad intentions. Usually fake dates are terrible because they're done out of an intent to manipulate the other person's feelings. But it was consensual on both members of the fake couple. And Kevin was doing it not to make Hiromi jealous in hopes of getting together with her, but to help them move on from the incident... which wasn't what she actually wanted. But Kevin genuinely had Hiromi's best interests in mind.

I don't think Hiromi is completely blameless in this either. Her refusal to talk to Kevin, instead just letting it go without any sort of catharsis left him unsure on how to actually proceed with their relationship in the way she wanted. But it's not her fault her crush stood her up with an empty explanation. Hiromi showed that she feels underappreciated, and she does deserve to have a boyfriend who actually makes her a priority. How could she know Kevin was literally kidnapped from their date.

But their relationship simply cannot proceed unless Hiromi finds out about Gretel's secret. And honestly, I suspect it's only a matter of time. This show isn't exactly stingy on the reveals. Though, even if the reveal happens, it won't necessarily fix everything. It's very possible Hiromi could still be hurt by Kevin (and Fred!!!) keeping a secret from her despite them being friends (I mean, Bailey knows). But only time will tell with how this plays out I suppose.

[hplovecraftmuseum]

As I've suggested here before there is plentiful evidence to declare that hidden within almost every story of horror Lovecraft wrote there is a commentary on his personal views of the human condition. That view became more cynical and hopeless as he grew older. It was projected with a bit of mirthful sardonic joyousness in his early works but became deadly serious as he entered the last decades of his life. At The Mountains Of Madness, presents us with a narrator and protagonist who is a cold and serious man of science. He enters a desolate and uncharted region of Antarctica seeking knowledge of the past and is of course hopeful that he will make minor discoveries that will expand our understanding of the earth and prehistory. Certainly he is unprepared for the mind-twisting revelations that the discovery of a vast and ruined city, millions of years old would bring. This city he must grudging accept, was built and once inhabited by a species of alien creatures utterly non-human. These entities, not even remotely mammalian and at least partly vegetable as much as animal must have been intellectually our superiors. Despite their extraordinary cultural achievements the records they leave behind attesting to their skills in architecture, art, goverment, and social order, they fall into a decadence and eventual extinction as a species. At one point our human explorer and narrator proclaims, "They were men!" Well, perhaps only a scientist would say that of a race of barrel- bodied, starfish headed, multi- winged monsters with 5 eyes, 5 mouths, five wriggling starfish feet and fern corals for hands! The moral of the story: If creatures who survived for millions of years on our earth, whose cultural achievements were so much greater than our own will ever be, whose bodies were so robust beyond any other life-form known to science, If these incredible entities could not survive natural law or escape the destiny that all things must decline and die, how could we? For Lovecraft there was Cosmic Law, unavoidable destiny and ultimately hopelessness. Before Lovecraft humankind still dared to hope, dared to dream that a better world was possible. Though Lovecraft did not live to see World War ll, that titanic conflict, the threat of nuclear annihilation, and the mushroom cloud of depression which has hung over our collective psyches ever since was something Lovecraft saw coming. For all his intellectual gifts and despite his occasional proclamations of arrogance Lovecraft was in his own mind a failure and his life was for nothing. Can we be certain that his fate will not be ours? (Exhibit 541)

?

,

[roguephenon]

Omg can please expand on Nigel and Alessandra being parallels ? I definitely got “leader vibes” from Alessandra in the fic

Sure!

Beyond being leaders of their respective sectors, I tried to make parallels between them in their values: Both have an intense mistrust of adults and fear of growing up. They’ve both experienced the failings of the oppressive society they live in, and are painfully aware of what they risk losing or having to let go of as they get older.

It also comes back to their love of the KND and its cause and the love of their friends. Them being close with their respective Supreme Leaders was 100% intentional and in a sense to address the question of what comes first: everyone else or those you hold closest to you?

And in the end, they both took a route where, at first glance, seems to be the only option left: leaving for the GKND in hopes of being a kid forever and choosing “lesser” of two evils because it seems better just to lose some things instead of everything.

They end up where they are because they were terrified of the unknown and having to let go of things you can’t hold on to forever. You can’t blame them for that either. They’re just kids.

And it’s why, despite me intending them to be parallels, they never directly interact.

They can’t.

Nigel was forever scarred and traumatized by what the Delightful Children did to him. Thus his answer when they ask why he never bothered to save them. How can you reconciling trying to ease the pain of someone who hurt you so terribly? How can you forgive that? Sometimes you can’t. And you don’t have to.

Alessandra is the leader of sector Z, yet she’s off to the side and back in the Delightful Children’s formation. It’s a subconscious choice because the last act she made as leader is what led her and her team to their current situation. She’s the one who made the bad call. She’s not the leader or Numbuh 0.3. Not anymore.

So in being so similar, it’s neigh impossible for them to face each other. It’s hard to reconcile with that ugly reflection you see in the mirror.

But it’s another reason why I had Kuki and Alessandra confront each other as much as they did. Alessandra is Nigel, and I’ve already did the groundwork for Kuki and Nigel’s relationship and how she can get through his inner cynic.

[petruchio]

personally i’m excited for a new thg book, especially since i’m in the middle of rereading the original trilogy! i love suzanne’s writing and while i agree that a new addition to thg is not really necessary i trust that it will be good:)

oh i think it’ll be good!! and i think ill be eating it tf up!! i think my feeling rn is driven by 1) my general distaste for prequels/sequels in existing universes as a fan (i think it’s just more fun as a fan when things are left alone for the fans) 2) flashbacks to my pjo fandom days and my absolute hatred for an ever-expanding set of novels about one world and set of characters and 3) my wish that suzanne would create a beautiful NEW world for her political commentaries instead of returning to panem

but that’s all just me being a cynical hater. again we know ill be rabid for this book when it arrives. im trying to frame it in my head like anne of green gables; there’s a lot of novels in that series and they expand far beyond just anne but none of them diminish or change the original novel it its genuine perfection :)

[jbaileyfansite]

Jonathan Bailey's interview with The Standard (2023)

(TW: this interview contains a story of Jonny being threatened by an homophobe in DC the day after the Human Campain Rights Gala)

Queer as Folk, Will & Grace, It’s a Sin: it’s not as if TV hasn’t tackled the gay male experience – and well – before. But I can’t think of a gay, straight (as it were) drama that matches the sweep and sheer mainstream gloss of Ron Nyswaner’s new eight-part Paramount+ series Fellow Travelers. 

Nor can I think of one that does sex quite as brilliantly – frequent, searingly hot, sometimes tender, sometimes perfunctory, sometimes borderline brutal (one of the writers’ rules, Nyswaner has said, was “that we would never repeat the same act. When we got to episode eight, we were really kind of flummoxed”) and always articulate in a way that the necessarily secretive characters can’t be.  

It’s certainly the first series I’ve seen that explores gay relationships in such an unapologetic yet nuanced and, frankly, expensive way, I tell Bailey, when I meet him at the Corinthia hotel in London. 

“Totally,” he says. “And you can see it on the screen; the respect. In the early 90s, you needed a straight superstar like Tom Hanks [in Philadelphia, also written by Nyswaner] to bring a queer story and commission it. Cut to thirty years later, and it's the story itself that is the commissionable thing.”

I think the heartthrob star of Bridgerton is underselling his own clout a bit. The series follows the love affair between Tim Laughlin, an idealistic young congressional staffer (Bailey), and the vastly more experienced, cynical and outrageously handsome State Department official Hawkins ‘Hawk’ Fuller (Matt Bomer, whose all-American jawline could open a can of luncheon meat) that begins at the height of McCarthyism.

It jumps around a thirty-year timeline, expanded beyond the mid-century scope of Thomas Mallon’s original novel, to explore the relationship’s far-reaching repercussions, and the way that legislated oppression shapes people.

The other thing that stands out about the series, which begins in 1953 at the start of the Lavender Scare – the government crackdown on homosexual federal employees that resulted in upwards of 5,000 losing their jobs, and an alarming number taking their own lives – is that all the gay leads are played by out gay actors.

Bailey has said before that the important thing is gay stories being told, rather than slavishly ‘appropriate’ casting, and “I still 100 per cent stand by the fact that I think all actors should be able to do everything,” he says. “But to have gay actors chronicling the oppression and the trauma of it, I think it only adds to the experience. It's exciting that people welcome it.”

It’s encouraging too, that an out gay man was trusted to anchor a heteromantic behemoth like Bridgerton, to the point that having been snapped at Wimbledon with Ariana Grande (with whom he stars next year in the movie of Wicked), a newspaper was calling his agent threatening to out him as straight (“I'm in two minds about whether that's a really good sign of progression”). But all this progress is set against a sobering backdrop.

Rights for women and LGBTQ+ people are being rolled back across the world. Hate crimes based on sexuality have risen by 112 per cent in the last five years in England and Wales alone. How does he feel, right now, I ask him. After a moment’s consideration, he tells me a story that shocks me to my core.

He’d been to Washington DC, he tells me, at an annual event for the LGBTQ+ organisation The Human Rights Campaign. 

“It was an incredible experience,” he says, sitting one leg tucked under on a tasteful beige chaise longue. “I met President Biden. I was there with Shonda Rhimes, she was being given an award, Matt Bomer was given another one; I was introducing him. My first political gala. I had the most amazing night; had a drink; couldn't sleep; buzzing.

“I woke up the next morning, it was like a montage. Sunshine, I was like, this is brilliant. I went into a coffee shop, and I was wearing a Human Rights Campaign cap from the night before. And the young lady who I was ordering from recognised me from Bridgerton, we were just chatting.

“And a man arrived behind me and he said, ‘Are you famous?’ And I said something like, 'I'm really famous for ordering coffee,' which is actually quite an annoying thing to say,” he laughs. “And then he got my cap, and he pulled it off my head and he threw it across the room and he said, ‘get out of this f***ing coffee shop, you queer.”

The room went still, Bailey remembers. But he walked over, picked up his hat, and put it back on his head. “If you don't take that cap off, I'm gonna f***ing shoot you,” it came again. “Where I'm from, people like me kill people like you.”

It was, of course, terrifying. But “in the moment, everything slows down,” he says. “No one knew what to do, apart from one girl, she was amazing. Angela, she came up, and she got her phone out and she said, ‘I'm recording this message, I think you are welcome in this country. And what you're saying, I think, is appalling.’ That happened sort of five minutes in, and he left.”

The man was from Pennsylvania (yes, Bailey did ask), and what Bailey took from the experience, he says, is that “potentially, there is a kid who – that's his father. That's his uncle. That's his teacher.” 

He pauses. “My life was threatened. My body believed it; my brain didn't and it took me a while to really catch up with it. But I've got friends and security. There are so many people that don't. They are surrounded by that every day, and the torment of what that must be like, the amount of fear that was generated... If that's what children are surrounded by, they're not going to be able to grow in any way.

“And of course, that's not just an American story,” he continues. “It's international. And it's terrifying, that [here in the UK] we're not looking after queer people, in terms of allowing them into the country. Because that is the reality; people’s lives are literally at risk.”

He says the messages he’s been getting in response to the show bear this out. “People are still living in the closet. Or they’ve had a moment where they're watching and they realise, that was their father's story, or their mother's story; or it’s people who have been affected by this, but for the first time are understanding the trauma.

“People are so shocked that this is such recent history, but the majority of people in the world are living under that sort of belief system. And people on Instagram message from areas in the world where just getting through the day without being outed is survival.”

Bailey, 35, grew up in rural Oxfordshire as the youngest of four and the only boy to an audiologist mother and a father who worked for Rowse Honey. He had nothing but support and love within his family, but even he internalised shame from the way gay people were represented in the media when he was growing up. 

“The majority of gay people were either the butt of jokes, or being caught in sexual acts and considered deviants, or they were committing suicide, or they're dying of AIDS,” he says. 

He’s spoken before about an episode of Casualty he saw, aged 11, with exactly the latter storyline, “and I do remember that episode, viscerally, and crying and being like, that's what I'm [going to be]. And that isn't Casualty’s fault. It's brilliant to have that story out there. But it was the lack of variety, of access to being allowed to feel that you're going to be okay.”

Having said that, he says, “every five years is a different gay generation. It was nowhere near as tough as if I'd have been born 15 years earlier. Me and my friends, two in four, if not three in four, would not be here.” 

His relationship status is off-limits. There’s “a lovely man”, but that’s all he’ll say. “It's not secret, but it's private,” he says. “Having a private life is, for me, completely critical. I don't know if I would be able to be as confident to speak out on other things if I felt that my whole life was up for grabs.”

Bailey’s next big screen project is Wicked, playing Fiyero alongside Grande as Glinda and Cynthia Erivo as Elphaba. At one point though, he was doing that, Fellow Travelers and Bridgerton at the same time, which sounds insane.

“On World AIDS Day last year, I was in Canada playing Tim on the AIDS ward,” he says (you know this from the start, no spoilers here). “And then I wrapped, went straight to the airport, slept on the plane, got up and went straight to a Regency ball, slept in a hotel in London overnight and then went and danced with Ariana Grande for a day, my first day of rehearsal. Then I came back and burnt some conscription papers for the Vietnam War on the Monday.”

He’s got big plans of his own too – galvanised by the gala in Washington, he’s been working with the charity Just Like Us, which brings queer speakers into schools. "You're twice as likely to be bullied if you're gay, or queer," he says. "And yet if there's positive LGBTQ+ messaging within the school system, 100 per cent of people's mental health and happiness increases. It's a no brainer." He is planning to establish a foundation next year, to consolidate his charitable work.

But for now he’s glad to be home for a bit. Bailey moved out of London to be closer to his Nana during lockdown, and stayed (“I was watching Strictly with her the other day”). She’s 93, born in 1930, so “we worked out she's the same age as Tim. So we charted everything that Tim experiences with where she was, and it was amazing,” he says.

“I knew that she had known one gay man at work in her life, because that obviously came up when I was having conversations about who I am, and I knew he had taken his own life. She's watching Fellow Travelers, and it's really emotional for her because she's, I think for the first time, really being allowed to understand what might have been going on.”

She's “blown away” by the show, he says. They haven’t talked about “specific scenes”, but “she said to my sister – ‘I didn't know he had it in him.’ I actually want that on a T-shirt.”

Source

[brown-little-robin]

9 and 22 for mob psycho :]

hi Jay <333 :]

9: give the most UNHELPFUL and/or SILLY summary possible.

HMMMMM ok let's go:

polite and unassuming psychic teenager dismayed to learn that repressing his personality into a small obedient blank blob does not solve The Problem of his earth-shatteringly powerful existence, nor is his existence actually A Problem to begin with; he's just traumatized. meanwhile, two mentors, equally terrible, compete over custody the right to take advantage of the heart and dreams of said teenager: his Fake-Exorcist Part-Time Boss, who likes the blank blob version of the kid, and Evil Green Ghost, who likes the lashing-out earth-shattering version. Both mentors are surprised and alarmed to find the kid creating an identity on his own, beyond the binary of Blob and Earth-Shatterer. Oops!

22: FREE SPACE: say anything you want about the story!! <3

I DONT KNOW I JUST LOVE MP100 SO MUCH. um. OH OKAY let me expand for a minute on an idea I had while writing that summary:

Dimple and Mob have a unique relationship in mp100 because they both see each other at their worst immediately and they both look each other fully in the face and go "sure, I'll stick around". Reigen never saw the worst version of Mob directly, not until [redacted], whereas Dimple bullied Shigeo into a rage explosion immediately upon meeting him. And Dimple didn't just see Mob angry and violent; he saw him utterly failing to integrate with society, and he struck Mob right where it hurt him most: his inability to connect with Tsubomi (and, kind of by extension, with Ritsu). So Dimple has seen the worst of BOTH SIDES OF MOB immediately: the seemingly emotionless, socially impaired Mob and meltdown-mode, self-hating, lashing-out Mob who doesn't argue with being called a monster. 僕は最低だ. I'm the worst.

And Dimple comes back.

Meanwhile, Shigeo has seen Dimple at his worst, too. He saw Dimple as a hideous monster trying to literally cut him apart limb from limb. He saw Dimple as a pointless cult leader who used group hypnosis to make people emotionally reliant on him. AND. AND. Dimple got so irrationally threatened by Mob's inability to "get a clue" that Dimple lashed out with all the power of his cynical observation skills and his sharp tongue. Dimple called him a corpse and recommend he go hikikomori himself away in his room forever. Dimple is someone who analyzes people's psyches and then twists the knives in them to try to make himself feel powerful, and Shigeo knows that.

And he still lets Dimple hang around.

!!!!!

[robbyrobinson]

(Smiling Friends Theory): Mr. Boss is the Second Coming of Christ

So, this is not a new idea, but I'd like to expand on it. Smiling Friends is a popular series on [adult swim] about a nonprofit organization that professes to make people smile. Of particular note is the mysterious Mr. Boss, the founder of the company. It is my belief that Mr. Boss is a corrupted form of Christ who is trying to atone for his misdeeds.

To start with, Mr. Boss has supernatural powers. He can shapeshift, like growing a dog nose. He is omnipresent as shown in the Halloween special in season 1 when he appears in a tree to remind Pim to not go beyond the rickety bridge.

But as for why I think he is a god or messianic figure? In the Gwimbly episode where we learn that the smiling friends cannot help people if they do not ask: the Boss is depicted in a holy-esque fashion. And Christianity (or the least Hell) is real.

So, my idea: Mr. Boss is a Christ figure if not the J-Man himself in a Second Coming. However... something went wrong. If you ever watched Last Temptation of Christ where Jesus is depicted as a fully human man who almost falls for the Devil's temptations, this is what happened to Mr. Boss.

It could be that trying to save the people in this world resulted in him becoming cynical. This would result in him taking on more human vices and actions. He owns guns which to me speaks of him being a former militaristic sniper. Whatever terrible things he had done, it nearly plunged him into the depths of depravity.

However, Mr. Boss had a realization which drove him to try to atone for his crimes. But instead of taking on the sins of the world since in another life he already did, he instead creates Smiling Friends to save souls that way.

Even then... his vices never left him. They dwell within him in the form of a demonic split personality who sometimes gets the upper hand like in the Frowning Friends episode. And he is still impacted by demonic forces.

In "Erm, the Boss Finds Love," Mr. Boss marries Satan's daughter and is nearly sucked dry by her. Going with the idea that Mr. Boss is the messiah, it makes perfect sense why he was chosen aside from being a powerful businessman.

So, in summary, the Boss is Jesus who returns to Earth to lead man (and critter) down the righteous path. However, the world was so drenched in hate and evil, he became corrupted and acted on his human side and almost forsaken his divine nature. As such, he made Smiling Friends as a means of redeeming himself.

[neon-jackal]

Why The Twist In CoC is umm uhhh umm

Each underland chronicles book gets it's own big twist, all with varying levels of quality, but today I want to focus on the twist in Code of Claw, and why (in my humble opinion) it doesn't really work. I actually really like Code of Claw, it's my second favorite in the series behind MoS, but this is by far my least favorite part of it, and probably my least favorite part of the whole series. So why is it so... not good?

First, let's talk about what makes a twist work. I think this really comes down to 4 main factors

Does it make in-universe sense? Pretty self explanatory. It's always good to keep writing consistent with the world building & lore of the series.

Does it fit with the characterization? Beyond it making logical sense, does it fit with the writing of the story? Is it foreshadowed at all? Does it feel like something the character(s) would do? Essentially, does the audience buy it?

Does it further/change the story? Also pretty self explanatory. A twist should have impacts on future event in the series, or re-frame previous events in a new way.

Does it work with the stories' themes? This is especially important for a series like TUC. This is a series with some strong messages, so it's important not to undercut them.

Now let's look at the big twist in CoC. For any who've forgotten, the reveal in this book is that Sandwiches' prophecies are fake. Ripred tells Gregor he doesn't believe in them 5 seconds before the final battle, and Gregor decides he's probably right. So how does this do as a twist?

Does it make in-universe sense? Hard no. Sure, the prophecies can be vague, and a lot of things can be left up to interpretation, but they describe way too many things way too accurately to just be coincidence. You're telling me that a super rare plague starts going around, and they need the help of the one guy that does all the stuff, and the cure for the plague is developed in it's place of origin, and Sandwich just got a lucky guess predicting all of that to a tee? Fuck off. This just feels like such a bizarre and rushed thing to throw into the series, and it feels like something that was thought of well after most of the other books had been written.

Does it fit with the characterization? Not really. CoC establishes that Sandwich isn't a great dude, so him faking a bunch of prophecies does feel believable for him, but like I said before, all the other books treat their prophecies as legit, so this feels kinda out of place. It also feels weirdly cynical? Gregor makes tangible progress on his quests, and sees really sacrifice too, and CoC is essentially saying "all of that was for nothing". Again, this ties into my personal belief that the other 4 books weren't written with this in mind.

Does it further/change the story? Again, no, not really. Even if you do buy the twist, all of the other quests were successful, so like, what's the point? It does set up Gregor surviving the final battle, but I feel like there just would've been much better ways of doing that.

Does it work with the stories' themes? Actually, kinda, yeah. It ties into Regalia's shady government and the ways they keep order, and fits the 'forced into a destiny you don't want' thing Gregor and Bane have going on. The whole "Sandwich can't be a prophet, he's evil!" thing the book tries to do is pretty dumb though, and I feel like there were so many more interesting ideas the book could've done with this.

Now let's compare this to arguably the best twist in the series, in CotW. Does it make in-universe sense? Absolutely. It fits into the prophecy perfectly. Does if fit with the characterization? Fuck yeah! The Regalians are evil bitches, so this is 100% in character for them. Solovet especially works so well as an evil-CIA type figure. It expands really well on her talk of wanting to 'punish' the rats in PoB. Does it further/change the story? Yes on both counts! Not only does it completely re-frame the entirety of CotW, it also sets up the humans' general shittyness, which we already kinda see in PoB, but really kicks into high gear in CoC. Does it work with the stories' themes? My guy. It IS the stories' themes! It so perfectly encapsulates the gray morality and overall pointlessness of war, the shady actions of government behind the scenes, and everything else these books are trying to say, and it gets expanded on even more in the next 2 books.

Wow this post post kinda got out of hand uhh if you're still reading this thank you for listening to my ramblings and point out anything I missed in the notes. If you think I'm wrong about anything, feel free to start a giant argument in the comments.

TL;DR: CoC is very good but the twist in it is not great and CotW does it much better.

[mask131]

Max Ernst's "One Week of Kindness"

Which could also be called "A Week of Benevolence" - the original French being "Une semaine de bonté".

This post is a follow-up to a reblog I made, right here. Please go read this reblog first, because this post continues from all the info I placed there. If you don't go check it out first, you'll be slightly or massively confused.

I wanted to expand a bit on this fascinating piece of art, and to do so I'll use the info the Musée d'Orsay shared and put on their website when they organized an exposition of Une semaine de bonté.

An expo that deserves its own mention due to how exceptional it was. It was a 2008-2009 exposition of the original collages of Max Ernst the booklets were reproductions of. It was a grand world-tour that started in the Albertina palace of Vienna and ended in the Musée d'Orsay of Paris, passing by Brühl, Hamburg and Madrid. Why was it such a big deal? Because this was the second exposition of Ernst' work - the only other exposition of Une semaine de bonté's collages was in 1936, in the Museo de Arte Moderno of Madrid, just before the Spanish Civil War. It had been organized by Paul Eluard, who loved Ernst' work, but five of the illustrations couldn't be part of the exposition - due to being deemed too "indecent" or "blasphemous". And since this date, the works had never seen the light of day anymore, being preserved in private collections... It explains why the second exposition was such a big deal.

A few more sources for this collage-work I forgot to talk about: Beyond the general category of covers and illustrations of investigation stories/crime novels/polar tales, we also know that Ernst used illustrations of Sade's novels, the caricatures of Grandville, and the illustrations of Fantomas.

As with typical surrealist work, Une semaine de bonté offers a work of onirism that transcends the limits and categorizations imposed by society, by science, by our very conception of reality, and rather offers nonsensical visions and extraordinary wonders. It was the third "roman-collage" of Ernst, after "La femme 100 têtes" of 1929 and "Rêve d'une petite fille qui voulut entrer au Carmel" (1930). Throughout the illustrations, we find many references to the Bible, to famed legends, to fairy tales, to Greco-Roman mythology, but mixed with Ernst' recurring and favorite themes. More precisely, his strong rejections and dislikes: his rejection of the Church, his hatred of the bourgeoisie, his dislike of the traditional family, his refusal of patriotism...

Because Une semaine de bonté is actually a denunciation work, a great critique, a satirical caricature of the French society of the 1930s. Ernst superposes, subverts and reverses all sorts of stereotypical and cliches depictions, of either the "good society", or of the evil, the crime, the monster. Now, of course, there is no actual "real" or "good" story for this work. It is open to interpretation and everybody has to and must find their own meaning in it - as with all proper surrealist work... But there is still strong themes that form recurring motifs, and a message Ernst wasn't so subtle about.

The satirical, ironical, cynical, biting nature of the work can be read in the very title, which plays on two levels. One, on a Christian level: "Seven capital elements" is, as I said, a parody of the "seven deadly sins/seven capital sins" ; the motif of a work centered around a week alerts that there will be numerous references to the Biblical genesis, but most importantly "One week of kindness" is a reference to "La semaine de bonté", The Week of Kindness, a 1927 association creating for social help. Tied to this subversion of typical Christan morals, ideas and values, is the second level of irony in the title: this collage-novel is called "One week of kindness"... And yet it depicts all sorts of violences and abuses. Its pages are filled with murders, tortures and natural disasters - and Ernst doesn't hesitate to subtly denounce the sensationalism of a society obsessed with depictions and illustrations of the most horrible and criminal sides of humanity.

It also is no wonder that this work was created during the 1930s. The ghosts of the World Wars are haunting this piece. On one side, Ernst was seeing with an anxious and angry eye the rise of violent nationalist movements and of brutal, discriminatory dictatorships - the very ones that would cause World War II. On the other side, Ernst was of this generation that inherited the trauma and memories of World War I, had to live with the broken and disfigured survivors of the "Great War". Ernst himself had served in the German army during the Great War (if you don't know, while Ernst was born and raised in Germany, he ended up having a triple-nationality, German, American and French). One can almost read in this book Ernst' vitriolic take on a society that distracts itself with materialism, excessive pleasures and sensationalism, in an attempt to bury the wraiths of its past, and to stay blind to the dangers ahead...

It is only by the last day of the week that the atrocities fade away, and that we return to pure oniric poetry, in a set of illustrations focusing on voluptuousness and fantasy, inviting to or glorifying freedom and dreams... Now let's take a look at the structure of the Week in more details.

Day 1: Sunday. Element: Mud. Example: The Lion of Belfort

(The Lion of Belfort is a commemorative statue of the Alsacian town of Belfort in France, in homage to how the city had been assieged by the Prussians during the Franco-Prussian war of 1870)

Another Christian subversion: the week doesn't begin here on a Monday, but on a Sunday. We also see some of the games Ernst has with the Biblical Genesis not just by waking the "last" day of Genesis the first day of the week, but also by associating to Sunday (the day of rest for a God that created everything already) the day of the "mud" (understand, the primordial mud from before the world was created, the "chaos", the "primordial soup" from which the universe had to be sculpted). Not only that, but Sunday, the holiest day of the week for Christians, is filled with brutal deaths, sadistic violence and blasphemous imagery.

More precisely, this booklet/day explores the relationships between men and women, male and females. And... let's just say Ernst has a bad view of it, since all the interactions between male and female characters in this booklet can be summarized by: persecution, seduction, theft, punishment, torture, death. Since the Lion of Belfort is the recurring theme, there is a recurring character throughout the illustrations of a lion-faced man. He is always in a position of power and domination, and it is no surprise: we often see him wear military decorations, political medals or even religious symbols such as the Sacred Heart. As a result, the lion-man clearly embodies all the dominating, oppressive and violent male-dominated organizations of the time: the political world, the military and the Church.

(If you are curious, the Musée d'Orsay offered the original picture on which the one above was based. It was taken from the Mémoire de Monsieur Claude:

Day two: Monday. Element: Water. Example: Water.

Unlike the male-dominated first booklet, this one is filled with female figures, making it the most "feminine" of all the days. There is still a lot of violence in it - but it is not a man-made violence anymore. Rather Ernst presents the violence of nature, the brutality of natural disasters - through water, a water that is seen flooding bedrooms, destroying bridges, or drowning entire streets of Paris.

Day three: Tuesday. Element: Fire. Example: The dragon's courtyard/The court of the dragon.

La Cour du Dragon, The Dragon's Courtyard is actually - or rather was - a famous street of Paris. It doesn't exist anymore, but it was in the 6th arrondissement, between today's Rue du Dragon and Rue de Rennes. This street was called as such because of a famous dragon-sculpture located at the top of one of its entrances - the dragon can still be seen at the Louvres I believe. And it is within illustrations of this "Dragon's courtyard" that the booklet begins.

The dragon is one of the recurring symbols of the booklet, with variations: dragons and snakes of all shapes and size that follow the characters around ; humans with various dragon or snake-like features ; or simply the presence of bat wings reminding of demons, sometimes counterbalanced by angelic characters with bird wings. Here, the caricature, in terms of setting and characters, clearly is of the bourgeoisie. Not only is Ernst making the world of the bourgeoisie "Hellish" by filling it with snakes, dragons, demons and flames, but he also seems to use the symbolism of the fire as a way to denote the cliche of the "passion bourgeoisie", the violence of passions, emotions and desires within the bourgeois world, leading to tragedies. (Opposing the "natural forces" of the water, here fire seems to be the human forces) It is no wonder that this booklet has a great emphasis on walls and doors, often decorated by surrealist symbols: they are here to evoke a cloistered, walled-up, compartimented world where walls and doors hide and try to restrain things such as fears, desires or dreams...

Day four: Wednesday. Element: Blood. Example: Oedipus.

This booklet is entirely driven by the myth of Oedipus (that we know to have been one of the surrealists' favorite Greek myth). All the illustrations have one element or another of the legend, and keep retelling specific episodes of Oedipus' adventures. Oedipus killing his own father, the riddle of the Sphinx, or baby-Oedipus being abandoned at birth... Oedipus himself is symbolized in the collages as a bird-headed man.

One of the most famous collages of this booklet is the one that retranscribes the part of the legend that gave Oedipus his name, "swollen feet" or "swollen ankles", due to receiving a wound there as a baby. In Ernst's work, the bird-headed man (Oedipus) rather stabs in the foot a woman:

Day five: Thursday. Element: Black. Example: The laughter of the rooster ; followed by "Easter Island".

This is where we reach the last three days placed in one same booklet. It is also only in this last booklet that Ernst placed text, in the form of quotes or poems from other authors. This day has three quotes. In the "Laughter of the Rooster" segment, two. One from Marcel Shwob's L'Anarchie: "Those of them that are joyful sometimes rise their behind up to the sky and thow their feces at the face of other men ; than they lightly hit their bellies." Another from Schwob's Le Rire: "Laughter is probably fated to disappear." The third quote comes from the Easter Island segment, and is from Arp: "Stones are filled with entrails. Bravo. Bravo."

Here the symbols seem to again represent men or organizations of power. On one side, you have the recurring rooster - which is of course the symbol of France, and thus can be seen as a representation of the French government or French state. On the other side you have cruel and brutal men with the head or faces of the Easter Island statues, reflecting them not just being humans made of stone - but being literal "stones idols" (in the religious sense of the term, the sin of idolatry, again a Christian subversion).

Day 6: Friday. Element: Sight. Example: The inside of the sight / The interior of the view.

Again, three quotes here. One from Professors O. Decroly and R. Buyse's "Les tests mentaux": "If three is greater than six, make a circle around the cross, and if water extinguishes fire, draw a line from the sceal to the candle, passing above the knife, then make a cross on the ladder." One from Paul Eluard's "Comme deux gouttes d'eau": "And to love I oppose / Already-made images / Instead of images to be made" (The text is much more poetic and punny in the original French). The final quote is from André Breton's "Le revolver aux cheveux blancs": "A man and a woman absolutely white."

Unlike the previous booklets which presented dynamic, violent, active, interactive scenes, here we are in more still, contemplative images. Symbols, visions and settings to be looked at and gazed at, as the title of the section indicates.

Final day: Saturday. Element: Unknown. Example: The key of songs (again, a pun on "The key of fields", a French expression)

Only one quote: "........ / ........ / ........ / ......" from Pétrus Borel's "Was-ist-das".

For this part, the Musée d'Orsay used a quote by André Breton to explain Ernst's intentions: from the Surrealism Manifesto, "Glory to hysteria and its cohort of young, naked women sliding down the roofs. The problem of womankind is, to the world, everything there is of wonderful and troubled/murky." In this final day, we see women, always leaving a bed or bedroom or resting place, and either flying away or entering landscapes where gravity does not work. There is clearly here a work on the "clinal hysteria", and Ernst' own take on the surealists great obsession with hysteria, that they deemed to be disease, yes, but an illness that brought both freedom and inspiration. This idea of being set free is within the section's very title: "Prendre la clé des champs", "To take the key of the fields" is an expression meaning to go away (especially to go away from an oppressing or suffocating, unpleasant situation), to flee, escape, disappear (with the connotation of the fields as a vast, open space of great possibilities and endless horizon).

[lastparty]

Still, the novel remained [Said]'s subject, one that he loved. He held the complications of its heritage in his sight. He chose to read the so-called canon 'contrapuntally' – a helpful Saidian term – rather than disavowing texts written in previous eras out of retrospective feelings of disgust, based on what he saw as their implication in systems of oppression and domination. Of course, later on, he himself saw this literary tradition less and less as a sole privilege of the West but rather as something shared by everyone, complexly; a tradition interpenetrated by cultures of the East and the South, and also inherited by them. In what often feels like a cynical age, I have found Said's engagement with fiction as an heir to a particular kind of humanism encouraging and even consoling: a humanism that can evolve and expand beyond its exclusionary, bourgeois European and largely male origins, and that commits itself to crossing boundaries between cultures and disciplines - a humanism that holds the practice of criticism close to heart.

Isabella Hammad, Recognising the Sttanger: On Palestine and Narrative