#vermi my love

[bucknastysbabe]

VERMI HAS MOVED INTO HIS FOREVER PALACE🥰 also a cute pic in da coconut before he was moved. It’s so wonderful to watch him explore!!! He is a curious fellow for sure. Wondering where the new poop spot will be. Hopefully on the back on the rock again that’s easy cleaning🤣after a horrible day this has lifted me spirits

[spacegoathours]

@1nvad3rz1m @verm1c1de

hello it is I, the ✨other✨ lard nar person

we’re besties by default sorry I don’t make the rules >:)

[verm1c1de]

@u-tx3

[chemicallywrit]

Happy Audio Drama Sunday! I was busy doing many things this week, but luckily they were the kind of things that facilitate a lot of audio drama listening. Shall we?

👹 G.O.B.L.I.N.S. is amazing. I love an office sitcom in any case, but an office sitcom with two goblins, an elf prince, and an overly enthusiastic government pencil pusher is an inspired idea. I really want this show to exist more, so if you can, consider helping them on their crowdfund!

💋 Josie’s Lonely Hearts Club this week was HILARIOUS. The presidential puns were so delightful, and I also ended the episode wanting to fight a veterinarian. Can’t wait to see where this season is going.

🌚 @hellofromthehallowoods is always so good at creating these gorgeous soft character moments, and I adore middle-aged Buck. Watching this man gracefully age into a husband and father who likes himself, who knows he is loved, is such a far cry from the poor little guy he used to be. I really don’t want him to get eaten by a vampire. Are you hearing me, Mx Wellman?

📻 Breaker Whiskey ended for now and ohhhhhhh. Oh man. I cried. The experience of listening to this story feels very early audio drama, and that’s definitely by design. Lauren Shippen let the story wander and discover itself, and we got to discover it too. Was it a flawless story? No story is, but getting to revel in the wandering just made it better. Whatever’s next for the story, I have enjoyed the ride.

🥛 The Silt Verses. That’s it. I found this episode entrancing. How’s this going to end?

🥃 Breathing Space this week was hilarious. In a rare voice acting appearance by Pacific Obadiah and some familiar voices from Melissa Lusk and Katrina Pecina as well as the ol' Breathing Space standbys, this heartfelt, witty, and above all very silly episode felt really good. I just loved it.

🐟 In Travelling Light this week, VERMI'S BACK. My favorite guy! And it seems we won't be seeing the last of this guy, either. Thank you Hero for my life. Friendship is gonna solve all the traveller's problems and I couldn't be happier.

🧟‍♀️ In Hannah News, The Dead started a new series called Turas that I really think you should check out. It’s set on a Scottish isle with Scottish Gaelic, and zombies, and sister dynamics, and it’s so good guys. Our main actors, Michelle Kelly and Bonnie Calderwood Aspinwall, are absolutely killing it, alongside an amazing cast. Please tune in, you won't regret it.

🧛🏻‍♀️ Also this week, I got the chance to hop on Re: Dracula's July Q&A for our patrons! You gotta check out our patreon, y'all, creating gothic fiction has been so much fun. We're hard at work on Carmilla while Re: Drac is having its second go-round. Join usssssss.

That's all for me this week! It's long enough as it is. See you next week!

[agentgrange]

I had a pretty rad experience adapting Plastiboo's Vermis into a TTRPG but using a modified version of Chorogaiden's ruleset. My players were absolutely smitten, completely in love with the environment and world building. It was more than enough to carry the game and inspire my players to stay engaged. Adapting characters like the Frog Knight into NPCs was extremely easy and telling the story was as fun for me as it was for my players to interact with.

I got about halfway through the first book, just past the Silver Swamps. They're already haunted by what they've experienced, so I'm m pretty eager to finish it and see how the players handle it. Then I'd love to find some way to adapt Vermis 2: Mists and Mirrors with some greater artistic liberties.

If you haven't, I really really recommend checking out the Hollow Press page for each book. Even if you never adapt them they're easily the most beautiful and some of the best written visual novels I've ever owned.

[3xtrat3rrr3strial]

HI!!!! HELLO!1!!! Welcome to my Funglr. Please, call me T3rri! This a sorta little “get to know me” intro type post!

• I make digital and traditional art, mostly of my friends’ and i’s ocs, or funny little character designs bc i like making silly creatures! hehes.. occasionally, i make fan art for my fave media! Trying to do that more often :3

• some of the music artists i enjoy include jack stauber, femtanyl, kitty craft, chappell roan, and stomach book, just to name a few!

• erm im chicano but i never learned proper spanish and its rlly embarrassing erm um

• As for the horror media i enjoy, i love the silent hill franchise (SH3 my beloved), analogue/ digital horror such as dog nightmares or vermis malum, and creepy pasta!

• you cannot kill me in a way that matters.

• While i mostly post some pretty tame stuff, some of my content may be suggestive or contain mature themes! But that’s just like. drugs(smoking or alcohol), blood, horror, maybe a little cleavage. Please view at your own discretion.

DNI/BOUNDARIES:

Basic DNI criteria applies! There’s just so much crap to list that it’s hard to cover everything, but like. JUST to be clear-

1.) i do NOT fw ppl who are: into ddlg, racist, xenophobic, zionists, antisemitic, homophobes/transphobes/terfs/exclusionists, zoophiles, pedos, proship/whatever tf they call it now, just any of that awful nasty bs.

2.) Please don’t say anything sexual toward my characters or me even if it’s a joke. I don’t consent to that sh!t. You shouldn’t be saying stuff like that toward people you don’t know anyways.

3.) If you are someone who makes or consumes sexual content involving children’s media (Mlp, bluey, etc.) please stay the hell away from me. Thanks.

All that being said, ik i don’t control anybody, these lists and boundaries are only here so nobody gets the wrong ideas. I block liberally for reasons like this.

[amphibiousdestroyer]

Commission for my buddy vermis!!! I always love drawing these two 💚

[canmom]

What is the book for? - part 3

Here we go, the next part of the investigation.

[here's an intro where I talk about the three hour video essay that inspired me to do this]

[here's the first part where I argue that there's a big difference between the actual thing you do in an RPG and the book that tells you how you're allegedly supposed to be doing it]

[here's the second part where I describe some of the purposes that RPG books claim to serve in the creation of the game, and make some comments on the storygames milieu]

First up a comment! @zendoe writes...

One thing I've only seen in Jenna Moran's books, though I'm sure exists elsewhere, is that the book itself is a piece of art that is entertaining or interesting or moving in its own right. Chuubo is very funny, I read Glitch basically cover to cover and cried when I got to the end, and Wisher Theurge Fatalist is arguably meant to be read much more than it is to be played. You might even include games that are basically proofs-of-concept, hacks to prove you can put x setting into y system, etc. I'm sure a lot of games made in the heyday of /tg/ have never actually been played, and were basically just made on a lark Tangentially, this is something that often gets to me when people moralize against strong "you must/cannot do x" language in a given rulebook. I would never deny that many designers have a gross "saving the players from themselves" mentality, but at the end of the day, the only part of play a designer actually has power over is the book itself. So (assuming they're not ABA freaks) why shouldn't they use strong language if that makes the book a more interesting product?

Love this comment. You're absolutely right, one of the purposes of an RPG-book can be to just be an objet d'art in itself (I say with maximum pretentiousness), using the format of 'RPG book' to guide you to imagine a game that might exist even if it's not practical to play.

For example @xrafstar and @ramheadedgirl made a great little zine-sized book called Blood Sugar: Sweet Ambition. I doubt I'll ever actually get to play this (but never say never...), and as written it's kind of a nebulous state where it suggests stats for a D&D-like game but leaves the details vague... but it's using the format of an RPG book with its stat blocks and illustrations to tell a compelling story and provide a frame for Alco's gorgeous illustrations.

A similar example (which @lapinaraofperdition told me about) exists in Vermis I, an OSR-milieu artbook which assumes the format of a manual for an old CRPG. There is no such CRPG but it's all about the vibes. The book's on to its eighth printing now so people are well into this kinda thing.

This leads me on to one other function of RPG books worth discussing. This tends to be less of an explicitly advertised thing, but I think it's a huge part of things - amateur-anthropologist hat on...

An excuse to make up a story together - RPG book as seal of permission

Suppose I got a group of people together who had never played a TTRPG, and asked them to come to my house every week to make up stories about vikings. I think most people would find this a rather strange idea, and it would be quite a hard sell.

Suppose I got a group of people together who have at least heard of the TTRPG subculture. I have a book which says Sagas of the Icelanders on it, which looks like someone has put a lot of effort into putting it together, and costs some money. I tell them it's a cool new indie game I heard about that I want to try. Even easier if it's a game they've heard about like D&D.

This sort of overlaps with the 'auteur experience' category in the previous post, but it's sort of aimed on a different level.

When I was a child, I would make up stories on every long car journey - before that, my parents would do the same. It's normal to tell stories to children, and for children to play and make up stories through that. Now, adult life still revolves around fictional storytelling to a huge degree: in just about every society on Earth, we put tremendous resources into making and displaying films, distributing books, putting on plays.

But in modern adult life in the countries I know about, making up a fictional story is a very individual activity, and very much tied to the dynamics of publishing. If you're writing a novel, it's expected that you might think of trying to sell it one day. It is something that you specialise in. If you're good enough, it can be your job.

Playing games also gets codified and locked down: you go and join a basketball club, say, in which you are expected to learn the rules of basketball. Or play a computer game, where the rules are set by the game binary, which packages it up with other elements like music and images.

Only a few contexts give you permission to just tell a story. For example, if you're sitting around a campfire telling ghost stories. Or if the story is framed as something that really happened (whether or not it did). A joke is the major one, relying on the promise of a punchline.

If you want to tell a longer, collaborative story... well, it's lucky that someone invented a hobby called 'tabletop roleplaying', with its attendant books, magazines, forums and other subcultural trappings. You can point to that and say, hey don't worry guys! It's a done thing!

I mentioned earlier the 'conceptual inertia' of D&D. All these trappings are part of that inertia, continually performing and reinforcing the idea that 'D&D is real'.

In this case, the function of the RPG book with its glossy cover and brand name and slightly corny introduction to roleplaying at the front - and notably, its price tag - is mostly a tool to unlock this special social context where you're allowed to pretend to be an elf without it being, like, weird.

You don't need a book for that, not remotely - roleplaying has taken place on forums, in chatrooms, in MUDs, in MMOs, etc. etc. for nearly as long as we've had TTRPGs - but it is a useful tool to help you unlock the door, as it were.

In this it seems (thanks @play-now-my-lord!) that I am following in the footsteps of Roger Callilois, who offered the following definition of 'play':

it is free, or not obligatory

it is separate from the routine of life, occupying its own time and space

it is uncertain, so that the results of play cannot be pre-determined and the player's initiative is involved

it is unproductive in that it creates no wealth, and ends as it begins economically speaking

it is governed by rules that suspend ordinary laws and behaviours and that must be followed by players

it involves imagined realities that may be set against 'real life'.

Nothing about that implies that it needs a book to define its special 'circle', but elements like a subculture and book do help to bring it into existence.

On that front, let's also mention...

A way to unify the subculture - RPG book as common reference

Let's go back to reproducibility. It's not just about having something to sell.

A friend mentions playing in 'a Curse of Strahd campaign'. Curse of Strahd is an official 'adventure' for first AD&D 2e and later D&D 5e. Like most 'adventures', the book acts as a reference for a series of places and characters, and instructions for how to use them, advice on how to create a horror atmosphere, and so on. Some areas are mapped in detail, others have brief prose descriptions.

If your group has played Curse of Strahd, it probably hasn't had the exact same experience as another group. Much of the book is open to interpretation in all the ways we discussed. But, there's a good chance that you have had some experiences in common. Much like you can talk about the different areas you encounter in a computer game, or the memorable scenes in a film, you can talk to someone else who played the same adventure. 'How did your group handle the mimic door?' 'Oh it ate the rogue and we all had to form a chain and pull her out.' (This didn't happen, I've never played this adventure.)

The same also goes for more general setting elements and the game itself. An RPG lore book is something you can become an expert in. RPG rules are something you can get skilled in manipulating. And even if two D&D games take place in totally different settings, you have enough shared context to be able to know what it means for a Beholder to show up.

This is just as true of story games as it is for trad games and OSR, just with different emphases. Wanna be an expert in something? Perhaps you know the Apocalypse World principles like the back of your hand so you can give advice on how to MC it, or always know the perfect indie game for anyone's taste. And since indie games are often quite specific, two people who played the same indie game are likely to have something to talk about. Or maybe you just like to have long theoretical discussions about game design principles (*sheepishly raises hand*).

You don't remotely have to strictly follow what's in the book to take advantage of this feature. Players will constantly be recommending house rules, arguing about balance, criticising and modifying the game. That's part of the fun.

As the first post discussed, the process of defining the subculture takes place outside of the books too. In conversations, blogs, webcomics, forums, we continually hash out what this hobby that brings us together actually is. But, given that everyone's group is different, 'we probably looked at the same book' is one of the few guarantees you can make when you meet someone and learn they're into a TTRPG. Small as it is, it's a powerful starting point.

So what do we do with all this?

Well, it kinda depends which hat we're wearing, right?

For a designer, the important point to bear in mind is that an RPG book is only a prompt. You're not a computer game dev - you can't really be an engineer of a precisely tuned system where all the moving parts work together in precise harmony. You're writing a message to someone else through a noisy channel, and to my mind, they get the larger creative role anyway.

And it's not just that they'll take what they like and discard what they don't - they'll probably forget things that you put in the book, or read things in a way you didn't intend, or get caught up in the moment and fall back on familiar habits. For their part, though, they're probably not even looking for you to tell them exactly what to do and how to do it, in detail.

I tend to find many of the best moments in RPGs don't involve any looking at rulebooks. You're caught up in the story you're telling! You're feeling that feedback loop of mutual inspiration! That's what I'm personally looking for - the thing in the book is just a runway to get us towards that point.

So what are they looking for?

One view is that your job is to give them what they can't easily provide themselves 'in the moment'. There's a good article from 2016 on an OSR blog Against The Wicked City that describes it this way: if you improvise, you will likely come up with something that is either painfully generic or overly wacky. An RPG book, by contrast, ought to give you something novel, which someone has taken the time to flesh out properly. For this reason, it must avoid cliché, because it's easy to spin clichés and you don't need a book for that.

In Vi Huntsman's video, they criticise Root: The RPG for acting rather like a dictionary, attempting to clarify the trigger condition for each 'move' (a rules-construct from Apocalypse World, more on that soon) with exhaustive, repetitive elaborations. This is a fascinating corruption to me, since it seems rather opposite the ethos of earlier story games, which would much rather give you something vague and cryptic and refuse to explain. (...OK, I'm having trouble finding really good examples of that, but I definitely recall one-page games that consisted mostly of lists of evocative names and phrases). The players can be relied on to provide interpretations of whatever a Frost Shepherd might be.

The challenge to me here is to create something that gives your player enough that it's there when you need it, but still doesn't feel closed-off and is amenable to putting their own spin on it. This is rather a matter of taste.

Prose goes

On another, more abstract level, the aim of an RPG book is the same as any art: to make people feel shit and see things in a new way. This is getting back to the territory of Zendoe's comment above.

So let's get into it: why is Apocalypse World memorable, when so many derivative games borrow most of its mechanics and yet end up forgettable? Why would I love to play Chuubo's Marvellous Wish-Granting Engine even though I don't really understand how it works at all? Why do I still think about what Unknown Armies has to say about fighting? Why do I find most of Avery Alder's games offputting even if the design is novel and interesting? (y'know, beyond personal reasons that she was a cunt to my friends.)

If a TTRPG book is a device to conjure up a usable idea of 'the game' in your mind, the experience of reading it becomes really important. A huge part of what makes those games come alive in your head is that their authors can really write.

But it's not enough to just make a book that reads well, is it? The player needs the confidence to extemporise in the vein indicated by the book.

Jenna Moran's games fascinate me - but they're also rather intimidating. Her books are full of quirky asides and little jokes and stylistic flourishes. How do you play a game in a Jenna Moran way? I think if I got a suitable on-ramp like an existing group I could get up to speed, but it's definitely the kind of game which really highlights the complicated relationship between book and game to me. Which is to say I have the book but I don't feel like I could run this thing, and while I could closely read it cover to cover and rotate its ideas in my head, it would be way more helpful to join someone else's game and see how they do it.

On the other hand, Apocalypse World adopts a very conversational style of prose. It asks you to 'barf forth apocalyptica', it titles chapters things like 'advanced fuckery' and suggests you motivate NPCs with their 'clits and dicks'. It rather obtusely introduces the idea of 'moves' with 'to do it, do it' - meaning that you invoke the rules text iff a condition is met in the fiction of the game. It's stupid but in a really fun way. Apocalypse World the book has the feeling of someone sitting down with you and enthusiastically explaining the game.

Nobody taught me to play Apocalypse World - I read about it online (on the story games forums maybe?), which instilled an idea of 'what Apocalypse World looks like', got the book, liked what I saw; I ran it based on my interpretation of the book and what I'd seen online. On some level the whole process 'worked': a game was, perhaps imperfectly, reproduced in another group of people.

Something about Apocalypse World, then, got me feeling 'yeah I could do this!'. But did that have to be a game with a name and such? Could Vincent and Meguey had written the MC chapter of Apocalypse World as a series of blog posts giving system-agnostic GM advice? Perhaps, but I doubt it would have led to a whole breakout movement in the same way. It's useful to have a name to anchor things to. (Of course, there's more to Apocalypse World than that, like the whole 'moves' system which dovetails with its specified approach to GMing.)

I once ran a different PbtA game called Night Witches, about a real all-female unit of Soviet aeroplane pilots who fought in the second world war. It was a great premise for a game and was solidly designed as PbtA games go. Where I stumbled was the ability to improvise - usually something I enjoy a lot, but here I felt an urge to try and achieve historical fidelity on questions like 'what does a Soviet airwoman eat' and 'what's a plausible name for a nearby airfield' (I fucking looked at maps! such a fool). I don't speak Russian, so I would draw a blank when coming up with a name.

Clearly I should have dispensed with being historical here - it's not expected, not like my players knew better. But equally, this is where a longer list of concrete bits of random 'life in the USSR air force' flavour info would have been quite useful. The game gives you a reasonable amount of historical info, but I still felt out of my depth. Fantasy is much easier!

Running a game requires you to project a lot of confidence. You don't have to say you know all the answers, indeed I quite like to make my reasoning at least a little explicit - 'oh! what if we have this happen..?' - but you are setting the tone for the game. Confidence and enthusiasm will vary with each player to encounter the book and the experiences they bring, and it's often beyond the designer's control, but you can definitely frame your game in a way that's more or less amenable to picking up and running with it.

In the next post... a few options, hmm. We could examine the idea of 'moves' in Apocalypse World more closely - they're a bundle of a few different things, and perhaps we should evaluate how well that works, and what makes for a good move-based system. Or maybe we could revisit some of my previous game design efforts, like the RPG duels post - did I go astray?

[fght-ff-yr-dmns]

My copy of Vermis has finally arrived and boy was it worth the wait.

It's so creepy, but also calming and pensive, if that makes sense.

It's a guidebook for a game that doesn't exist...

I just absolutely love the art, takes me right back to those dungeon crawler NES games.

I'd really like to take part in a Vermis themed D&D session.

Definitely one for fans of retro gaming, horror art, pixel art and general work similar to that of Berserk and Bloodbourne, Elden Ring, Dark Souls etc.

[fidenciothecryptidgent]

I love that there's shipping on every fandom so you do get to go over to other places and it's like

"Ahh yea this here's Sparkleleaf and Jazzcake. Jazzcake is a multicolored tie dye donkey and Sparkleleaf is a lime green alpaca." Fandom ships them in incredibly indepth queer angst scenes but they also will put them in wonderous cute scenarios. Don't mention season 4 episode 30 though, it's a divisive topic for these shippers. They haven't recovered from the scene in Granny's orchard with the death of the apple dragon, Pieton.

And then you pop over to another fandom and is like

"Yep these are my two cutie guys <3 this is Vermilicus, lord of worms and decay, and his malewife Aowyirre, the tangled serpent. He's just a cute silly guy and is so devoted to Vermi <3" and you look at the characters and the lore and it's like the god of rot and decay plus his snake ball abberation bodyguard man. But man can these shippers make that shit so cute and you read the lines and the analysis they have for why you should feel for this couple and it's like "y'know what, i do see how these two are just tired ceo husband and his malewife danger noodle and their pet curse-worm beasts. It's incredibly cute to see how well Vermilicus tends to his worm beasts and Aowyirre is very kind for finding fresh things so Vermi can keep up with his rot needs. Yes they both look lovely drenched in blood"

You get the same type of analysis about Sparkleleaf and Jazzcake as well but it's the opposite direction. At the end I'm usually like "Y'know what, I DO see your point. Multicolor Donkey and their toxic off again on again alpaca do have a lot to work through. Very terrible of Jazzcake to do that on Sparkleleaf's special day and Sparkleleaf should know better considering Jazzcake's history with brownies"

I love it so much it's great genuinely

[bucknastysbabe]

Here comes my sappy post about my Babygirl. Of course I made Picsart edits bc Picsart is my soul. Vermi was out of pain as of today. Crazy how things happen the bottom pic was her 3 days ago, alive and boolin when we went to dollar general. My sassy girl will hold a place in my heart.

To all the mooties that loved on my scaly child and are supporting me tysm

Og aunties Vermi loved you too

[hobiebrownismygod]

Researching Characters so you don't have to Part 8: Who is Jess Drew/Spider-Woman?

Origins:

Jessica Drew was originally born in England. Her father was a renowned genetic researcher and sort of a mad scientist, who focused specifically on arachnids (spiders). As a result of exposure to Uranium something her father often used, Jess developed a deadly illness which her father attempted to cure by creating a spider serum.

Although the serum did heal her, it also gave her spider powers, although she was not welcomed with open arms. She ran away to a nearby village where she fell in love with a young man, who she ended up accidentally killing. She was accused of being a witch and she was forced to run away again, eventually falling into the arms of Otto Vermis, a H.Y.D.R.A official.

She trained hard and became one of their top trainees, however she refused to kill Director Nick Fury during her first mission and rebelled against them, leaving H.Y.D.R.A.

After that, she became known as the vigilante, Spider-Woman, and also became a private investigator, patrolling the streets at night while being a detective during the day.

She ends up losing her powers then gaining them back and a lot more, but I can't fit her entire comic series into one post, so this is just her very basic origins.

She does however join the Avengers and SWORD, unlike a lot of the other Spider-people.

Fun Facts:

She's multi-lingual cuz of training with H.Y.D.R.A, and speaks Russian, Japanese, Portuguese, Korean, Spanish, German and French

She's a super spy - she's really really skilled in espionage

She has the ability to glide through the air - not to be confused with flying, which she can't do

She was a S.H.I.E.L.D agent

My Spider-Sona takes some inspiration from her!!

Sources:

[godblessyoublackemperor]

had a really lovely birthday, as well the amazing label maker cham got me some fancy tinned fish, some tinned fish themed socks (we've been interested in tinned fish reviews on tiktok lately) and some mochi. ana got me a nice strap for my new bass and went halvsies on a fancy temperature setting kettle with clare who also got me some nice smoky tea and @plastiboo 's book VERMIS which is awesome, i can already feel the inspiration sparking >:)

me and cham went to the carwash in the day (see this post), it was really nice seeing cham so happy, and tbh i found it kind of cool too. clare came over in the evening and we all had cake & i opened pressies then we went for a really nice dinner at a local country pub.

on the whole a lovely day, love my wife & friends, feel v lucky <3

[verm1c1de]

hi this is dj crazytimes and mewre watching me be autistic about pradr again 🕺

[chemicallywrit]

Happy Audio Drama Sunday! It was podcast girls week and i loved seeing everyone’s art and fic and memes. Gorls. ❤️ Let’s get to the shows!

🎤 Childish! Childish: The Podcast Musical finally got the chance to post their finale! And it did not disappoint. I had forgotten exactly how good the music was in this show, and how funny and clever it was. Guys, if you care about college comedies with a side of the best dang music I've heard out of a podcast, please listen to Childish. I'm so happy for them. This is really proof though, that it's worth it not to give up on a podcast (I'll wait for you forever Althaar).

🥩 Oh man, this episode of Mayfair Watcher's Society was incredible. The story would be good even without the incredible performances of Ashlee Jones and Brandon Nguyen, but CAN we talk about them actors??? What an incredible exploration of your worst nightmares coming true. Mind the content warnings for this one, folks. Meg Tuten is, as always, a genius.

🦾 Breathing Space consistently hits notes of working class struggle and desperation with care and thoughtfulness, but this past episode's rendition of "Sixteen Tons" was absolutely gorgeous. I loved the lo-fi singing together. It was perfect.

🐟 @monstrousproductions’ Travelling Light has once again introduced me to an absolutely delightful character. Vermi is my favorite guy. I love him and his fish face and his translation innovation. This show is a constant gift.

🤖 Ohhhhh man, oh man, Ask Your Father ended in the only possible way it could, which I should have seen coming. Oh my gosh. Mikeyyyyyyyy...I won't spoil it, but it was maybe perfect. I cried a little. Season two when.

🌊 I started Waterlogged this week! What a good anthology—it’s creepy AND wet! I think some horror anthologies suffer from a lack of theme that can make them fall into a rhythm, but I don’t foresee this being a problem for Waterlogged. The first three episodes are all so different, and I love it. Go check it out!

🪱 I want to give a shoutout to Earworm! Earworm is an upcoming musical about ghosts and haunting by the folks behind Shadows At the Door! I know a lot of the cast (David Ault, Michelle Kelly, Erika Sanderson, and so many others) and I'm so thrilled to hear this--assuming they can finish out their crowdfund! If you can throw them a little cash, please do!

That’s all for now! 😘

[this-machine-runs-on-coffee]

"THE BALLAD OF JANE DOE" 2015 SONG CYCLE VERSION THIS IS NOT AN EXACT TRANSLATION, THIS IS AN ADAPTATION (AND ONE THAT STILL NEEDS TONS OF FIXING AT THAT)

I got obsessed with the old versions. "Play To Win" might be done one day and Noel's Lament with the added verse will surely be done one day. I've changed a few thing I have wanted to change for a while on the official "TBOJD"'s adaptation for a while but don't feel like it's in time to do so anymore.

ASK ME FOR PERMISSION BEFORE USING THIS, DO CREDIT ME IF YOU EVER USE THIS (I doubt you will it’s impractical and still needs so much fixing it’s unbelievable) AND TELL ME/LINK WHATEVER YOU USED IT FOR USING REBLOGS (because for some reason Tumblr doesn’t like comments with links and while I do think I understand why I don’t always like it)

(the apostrophes [or however ’ is called] are used to shorten the number of syllables often in poetry so I’m obviously abusing that power.)

JANE: ALCUNI DIRAN CHE NE SIAM FUORI MUOVENDO MARGHERITE, DOPO CHE MUORI MA IN FIN DEI CONTI, SIAM SOLO MORTI ALDILà, PARADISIACO DOV'è LA MIA ANIMA? IDILLIACO AVERE TESTE ATTACCATE AI LORO CORPI NON PER ME NON PER ME NON PER ME NON PER ME NON HA SENSO TEMER LA MORTE MENTRE ARRIVA LA NOSTRA SORTE POICHé I VERMI NECESSITAN DEI NOSTRI CUORI C'è SOLO UNA PAURA RICORRENTE QUI L'ANIMA MIA, è PRESENTE? O STA MARCENDO IN TRAPPOLA TRA I MIEI PORI? ANIMA MIA ANIMA MIA ANIMA MIA ANIMA MIA OOH-OOH-OOH-OOH OOH-OOH-OOH-OOH AH-AHH! SENZ'ANIMA, CORP'INNOMINATO NIENTE STORIA, CHE PECCATO CRUDEL'ESISTENZA FU SOLO UNA FARSA OH SAN PIETRO, FAMM'ENTRARE CHI IO SON STATA DOVRAI SAPERE NON MI DIRAI INFINE CHI SON IO? CHI SON IO CHI SON IO CHI SON IO CHI SON IO CHI SON IO CHI SON IO CHI SON IO CHI SON IO OOH-OOH-OOH-OOH OOH-OOH-OOH-OOH AH-AHH! E DAL TERRENO SOTTO DI ME SENTO L'ANGOSCIA DI CHI PIù NON C'è CORO: 'N COR CHE COMPLETO MAI è JANE: COME UNA VECCHIA DIMENTICATA MELODIA UNA CANZONE CHE NESSUNO SA DIMENTICATO COME FA SOLO JOHN E ME SEMPR'E PER SEMPRE UNA JANE DOE NESSUNO A PIANGERE O A FRIGNAR NIENTE ASCENSIONE NEL CIELO DA FAR CORO: NESSUN'A CANTAR, NESSUN'A SOSPIRAR JANE: TUTTI NATI PER FATICARE E INTRAPPOLATI'N BARE ORA NESSUNO VIVO SA ED ECCO COME VA SOLO JOHN E ME SEMPR'E PER SEMPRE UNA JANE DOE E MI CHIEDO PERCHé, DIO? SE QUEST'è COME MUOIO, DIO? PERCHé RIMANER SENZA FAMIGLIA E AMICI?

NESSUNA CELEBRAZIONE SOLO 'STA CONSOLAZIONE CRONO MANGIA TUTT'I SUOI FIGLI ALLA FINE

'NA MELODIA L'ARIA ATTRAVERSA QUANDO CALA'L SILENZIO, NESSUNO S'INTERESSA? CORO: CHI S'INTERESSA? JANE: 'N'ALTRA TRISTE, DIMENTICATA MELODIA 'N'ALTRA CANZONE CHE NESSUNO SA ED ECCO COME VA SOLO JOHN E ME SEMPR'E PER SEMPRE UNA JANE DOE CORO: (E MI CHIEDO) E SI CHIEDE PERCHé, DIO? JANE: PERCHé, PERCHé, PERCHé, PERCHé CORO: NON è MODO DI MORIR, DIO JANE: NESSUN'A CANTAR, NESSUN'A SOSPIRAR ORA CHE TUTT'è DETTO E FATTO NON C'è NESSUNO A DIRMI CHI SON IO? NIENTE CANZONI DI CELEBRAZIONE AH-AH-AH-AHH CORO: SOLO STA TRISTE SPECULAZIONE JANE: AH-AHH COME JOHN SARò ETERNAMENTE UN NOME DIMENTICATO DA QUALCUN'ABBANDONATO SOLO JANE JANE DOE

CORO: 'NA MELODIA L'ARIA ATTRAVERSA QUANDO CALA'L SILENZIO, NESSUNO S'INTERESSA? CORO + JANE: JANE DOE

So, direct translation! (used in this [and in this sometimes!] to specify the meanings and explain certain word choices)

JANE: SOME MIGHT SAY WE’RE OUT MOVING DAISIES, AFTER YOU'RE DEAD BUT AT THE END OF THE DAY (quite literally at the end of the count but figuratively and just as a set phrase it works), WE’RE JUST DEAD AFTERLIFE (it did give me that as a translation for kingdom come in Italian [wordreference I love you]), PARADISIACAL(/heavenly) WHERE’S MY SOUL? IDYLLIC TO HAVE HEADS ATTACHED TO THEIR BODIES (I needed to do that for a badly done rhyme) NOT FOR ME NOT FOR ME NOT FOR ME NOT FOR ME MAKES NO SENSE TO FEAR DEATH WHILE OUR FATE(/destiny) IS ARRIVING SINCE(/seeing as how [wordreference my beloved]) WORMS NEED OUR HEARTS THERE’S JUST ONE REOCCURRING FEAR HERE MY SOUL, IS IT PRESENT? OR IS IT ROTTING TRAPPED WITHIN MY PORES? MY SOUL MY SOUL MY SOUL MY SOUL OOH-OOH-OOH-OOH OOH-OOH-OOH-OOH AH-AHH! WITHOUT SOUL, UNNAMED BODY NO STORY, WHAT A SHAME CRUEL EXISTENCE WAS ONLY A SHAM OH SAINT PETER, LET ME IN YOU MUST KNOW WHO I’VE BEEN (I've really put Who I've been you must know but it's the same thing for the meaning even though in English saying that would get me thrown off of a building probably) WON’T YOU TELL ME AT LAST WHO I AM? WHO I AM WHO I AM WHO I AM WHO I AM WHO I AM WHO I AM WHO I AM WHO I AM OOH-OOH-OOH-OOH OOH-OOH-OOH-OOH AH-AHH! AND FROM THE GROUND UNDER ME I HEAR THE ANGUISH OF WHO ISN'T (here) ANYMORE CHOIR: A CHOIR (that) NEVER COMPLETE (is) JANE: LIKE AN OLD FORGOTTEN TUNE A SONG THAT NO ONE KNOWS FORGOT HOW IT GOES JUST JOHN AND ME FOREVER ETERNALLY A JANE DOE NO-ONE AROUND TO CRY OR WHINE NO ASCENT TO DO IN THE SKY (more literally in the sky to do) CHOIR: NO-ONE TO SING, NO ONE TO SIGH JANE: ALL BORN TO STRUGGLE(/work hard/have a hard time) AND STUCK IN COFFINS(/caskets) NOW NO ONE LIVING KNOWS AND THAT’S HOW IT GOES JUST JOHN AND ME FOREVER ETERNALLY A JANE DOE AND I’M ASKING WHY, LORD? IF THIS IS HOW I DIE, LORD? WHY REMAIN WITH NO FAMILY AND NO FRIENDS?

NO CELEBRATION JUST THIS (shortened form of "This" once again) CONSOLATION CHRONO EATS ALL HIS CHILDREN IN THE END

A MELODY FLOATS THROUGH THE AIR WHEN SILENCE LOWERS (itself) (I have wanted to change this for a long time and finally can), IS NO ONE INTERESTED? CHOIR: WHO'S INTERESTED? JANE: ANOTHER SAD, FORGOTTEN MELODY ANOTHER SONG THAT NO-ONE KNOWS AND THAT’S HOW IT GOES JUST JOHN AND ME FOREVER ETERNALLY A JANE DOE CHOIR: (AND I’M ASKING [myself]) AND SHE’S ASKING (herself) WHY, LORD? JANE: WHY, WHY, WHY, WHY CHOIR: THIS IS NO WAY TO DIE, LORD JANE: NO ONE TO SING, NO ONE TO SIGH NOW THAT ALL IS SAID AND DONE ISN’T THERE ANYONE TO TELL ME WHO I AM? NO SONGS OF CELEBRATION AH-AH-AH-AHH CHOIR: JUST THIS SAD SPECULATION JANE: AH-AHH LIKE JOHN I’LL BE ETERNALLY A FORGOTTEN NAME ABANDONED BY SOMEONE JUST JANE JANE DOE

CHOIR: A MELODY FLOATS THROUGH THE AIR WHEN SILENCE LOWERS (itself), IS NO ONE INTERESTED? CHOIR + JANE: JANE DOE

OG LYRICS (I don't know them either honestly but they are good. They are the result of @jup1ter-moon's transcription and my hearing and changing them where I thought they were different + the ones written under the YouTube video by @LYD7ADE3TZ):

JANE: SOME MIGHT SAY WE’RE RELEASED PUSHING DAISIES, DECEASED BUT AT THE END OF THE DAY, WE’RE JUST DEAD KINGDOM COME, PARADISE WHERE’S MY SOUL? MUST BE NICE TO HAVE A BODY ATTACHED TO THEIR HEAD NOT FOR ME NOT FOR ME NOT FOR ME NOT FOR ME MAKES NO SENSE TO FEAR DEATH BREATHING OUT THAT LAST BREATH FOR WE ALL KNOW THE WORMS MUST FED THERE’S JUST ONE LINGERING FEAR OH MY SOUL, IS IT HERE? OR IS IT ROTTING SOMEWHERE WITH MY HEAD? OH MY SOUL OH MY SOUL OH MY SOUL OH MY SOUL OOH-OOH-OOH-OOH OOH-OOH-OOH-OOH AH-AHH! OH, NO SOUL, AND NO NAME AND NO STORY, WHAT A SHAME CRUEL EXISTENCE WAS ONLY A SHAM OH SAINT PETER, LET ME IN YOU MUST KNOW WHO I’VE BEEN WON’T YOU TELL ME AT LAST WHO I AM? WHO I AM

WHO I AM WHO I AM WHO I AM WHO I AM WHO I AM WHO I AM WHO I AM OOH-OOH-OOH-OOH OOH-OOH-OOH-OOH AH-AHH! AND FROM THE GROUND BENEATH MY FEET I HEAR THE ANGUISH OF THE STREET CHOIR: A CHOIR NEVER COMPLETE JANE: AND LIKE AN OLD FORGOTTEN TUNE A SONG THAT NO-ONE KNOWS FORGOT HOW IT GOES JUST JOHN AND ME FOREVER ETERNALLY JANE DOE NO-ONE AROUND TO MOURN OR CRY NO GREAT ASCENT UP TO THE SKY CHOIR: NO-ONE TO SING, NO ONE TO SIGH JANE: ALL SPRUNG FROM WOMBS AND STUCK IN TOMBS NOW NO-ONE LIVING KNOWS AND THAT’S HOW IT GOES JUST JOHN AND ME FOREVER ETERNALLY JANE DOE AND I’M ASKING WHY, LORD? IF THIS IS HOW I DIE, LORD? WHY BE LEFT WITH NO FAMILY AND NO FRIENDS?

GOT NO CELEBRATION JUST THIS CONSOLATION TIME EATS ALL HIS CHILDREN IN THE END

A MELODY FLOATS THROUGH THE AIR WHEN SILENCE FALLS, DOES NO-ONE CARE? CHOIR: DOES ANYONE CARE? JANE: ANOTHER SAD, FORGOTTEN TUNE ANOTHER SONG THAT NO-ONE KNOWS AND THAT’S HOW IT GOES JUST JOHN AND ME FOREVER ETERNALLY JANE DOE CHOIR: (AND I’M) AND SHE’S ASKING WHY, LORD? JANE: OH WHY, OH WHY, OH WHY, OH WHY CHOIR: THIS IS NO WAY TO DIE, LORD JANE: NO-ONE TO SING, NO-ONE TO SIGH NOW THAT ALL IS SAID AND DONE ISN’T THERE ANYONE TO TELL ME WHO I AM? NO SINGING SONGS OF CELEBRATION AH-AH-AH-AHH CHOIR: JUST THIS SORRY SPECULATION JANE: AH-AHH LIKE JOHN I’LL BE ETERNALLY A FORGOTTEN NAME SOME LOST REFRAIN JUST JANE JANE DOE

CHOIR: A MELODY FLOATS THROUGH THE AIR WHEN SILENCE FALLS, DOES NO-ONE CARE? CHOIR + JANE: JANE DOE