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brucewaynehater101 · 1 month

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i'm gonna be real idk if your the right person to go for young justice core four headcanons but you give the best replies by far so heres my own idea idea

I was listening to the Roblox Soundfont remix and now the og Gone Angels and now I'm thinking . . .

Tim became Robin to prevent Batman from ceasing to be the symbol of heroism and good he started off as

The symbol that spiraled into destruction of even the self with Jason Todd's death

imagine a world where Red Robin becomes the very thing he swore to destroy with his own death

he dies along with Bart and Kon. Cassie due to this and maybe other factors fucking looses it, Batman post-Jason's death but pre-Tim becoming Robin style

or maybe instead he dies but the rest of the core four lives. either way Cassie still looses it, by herself or with her other teammates

And maybe, just maybe, they get nobody to be the Third Robin to their Batman, no Third Robin to Tim's Second Robin

likely improbably in canon but the idea of Cassie and maybe even Bart and Kon having a villain arc (maybe Black Silence style) is too good of an idea not to share

(Side note; imagine a Gone Angels cover where the survivor(s) sing and for the itallian lyrics in the midway point the deceased sing)

((extra side note: imagine this is what gets Batman and maybe the other Bats to reflect on the time before and after Tim become robin, post Jason's death; seeing their history repeat with Young Justice))

((hell maybe the Justice League realizes as wells))

"you give the best replies by far." Thank you. Sometimes, it takes a bit to reply to asks cause I'm taking a few hours to really answer the prompts/ideas/questions people pose. I also sleep at random times, so apologizes in advance to any asks that take a while!

My image of YJ is a codependent platonic polycule. They are Young Just Us because they didn't receive proper support from their mentors. This is part of why Cassie and Tim fell apart after Kon and Bart died. This is why, in their own weird ways, both of them tried to get a form of Kon back. Tim tried the scientist cloning avenue, and Cassie tried the cult.

If you want Tim's death to inspire Cassie and YJ to go evil, might I suggest Tim sending proof of Bruce being alive in the timestream and then succumbing to his spleen injury (perhaps an infection)? This would create a delicious amount of angst, anger, and mental breakdowns.

Cassie, the only nonretired YJ member alive at the time, didn't believe Tim about Bruce being alive. This was in part due to the cloning stuff but also in part to trusting Nightwing (or Batman at the time). If Tim didn't make it out of that alive, Cassie may be desperate to find anyone to blame but herself for that. She was a kid, she was lost in her own grief, and Tim should have had the support of literally any other hero.

The entire hero community turned against a teenager in his time of need that he resorted to conspiring with the LoA and ended up losing his life. Whether she chooses to be mad about nobody believing him (Tim's possibly a better detective than Bruce and people have revived before, but his evidence at the time was flimsy), she can be very pissed that not a single hero offered to help him. They didn't even need to trust in Tim's decision. They could have just accompanied Tim until the teen gave up or proved himself right. They could have treated it as a grief road trip while Tim found himself.

Anyways, losing the last nonretired YJ member that way may cause her to just snap. The JL was already on thin ice with the YJ for their lack of support to her generation of heroes. Them failing YJ enough that two children died in the field and one died as a direct result of their actions? She would, rightfully, loathe the JL. On top of that, she does already not trust the government for what they did to Secret. If she can't prosecute the JL, she'll become their enemy.

Cassie lost all of her main polycule. She wants revenge.

After Bart and Kon come back, they see how JL left Cassie and what they did to Tim. Cassie is part of their ride or die, and she has been treated so horribly. Tim has died. They obviously join her.

Now, with Bart there to give evil ideas (Bart is the scariest member of YJ and you can't convince me otherwise), YJ is a force to be reckoned with. Maybe some of the other members come out of retirement, maybe not. They would be unstoppable with Tim helping them, but that's the problem. They don't have Tim. Tim isn't there to help them nor hold them back. That's why they became "evil" anyway.

I like to imagine someone, probably Nightwing, screaming at them from across the battlefield. "This isn't what he would have wanted! He became Robin to stop Batman from destroying everything. This is the antithesis of why he became a hero!"

For a split second, YJ would pause. There's merit in those words, after all. Cassie would recover first as she shakes her head. "He became a hero to be the leash to Batman's rage. He's not here now. He's not here to temper our rage, and you did that. You abandoned a child." She plants her feet more firmly and points her sword at Nightwing. "We won't let you do that again."

It's dealers choice on whether YJ win the battle or not. Also, I do believe YJ would be obsessed with trying to bring Tim back. Perhaps some of their evil deeds truly stem from them trying to find ways to bring back Tim. They are incomplete without him just as they were incomplete without Kon or Bart and would be without Cassie.

Now, is Tim actually alive or does he stay dead? Did Ra's revive him using the Pit? Did Ra's lie or misguide the Bats while keeping Tim hostage? Will Tim come back, either after being brainwashed by Ra's or escaping, to find his platonic polycule has officially lost it and turned evil?

#cassie sandsmark #dc comics #dc universe #young justice #young just us #let yj be evil #tim drake #bart allen #kon el superboy #thank you for the ask!!!!#yj can and should take over the world for the greater good

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wandixx · 6 months

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About Amity black out, movie style

It's a great idea, I like it as a way to explain why JL never came to checki it out/why Amity Park never asked for help if we go with two way route.

But.

There is no wall that's perfect. And whoever had put up a black out (probably before JL was formed or else older people would probably try to contact them after bigger attack) had to know this. Some info would slip and if it was truly iron curtain, no info in or out, people would realize something was of.

So they did they best to filter out stuff that people shouldn't know, i.e. heroes and later, ghosts.

And if some article or message somehow slipped through anyway?

It's about movie. It's a way to sell a new superhero/supernatural movie.

I remember few years ago I watched YouTube video about movie from late 90' or early 00' that was announced like this. I'm, like, 70% sure it was "Blair Witch Project' but I have no idea. Point is, instead of trailers or anything like that, marketing team or whoever got this idea started making articles and stuff around the internet about things that happened in the movie/were clearly connected, framing it as a truth. A lot of people bought it. Actors weren't well known at the time so before premiere they went missing for like two weeks or so.

Whoever put a black out around Amity does the same but in reverse. If some smallest bit of truth gets past their defences, they put all their efforts into making it look like innovative marketing idea though with not as great execution since it's obviously a marketing trick.

Unless someone who shouldn't met hero/ghost on their vacation out/in the city, they could assume that this place is milking this upcoming movie like a golden cow or something. In some circumstances, even meeting the hero/ghost could not break their belief.

I'm not sure how to go about when ghosts affected world outside, like Ember or Undergrowth thing (though, in YJ cartoon was this thing about Poison Ivy getting some boost and sending some weird plants all around the world maybe it happened at the similar time and they never realized there were two plant villains at that time, idk, I know norhing more about these fights other than that these two things happened xD). I'm sure someone with actual knowledge about both universes would manage to find something

But yeah, that's the idea. Every info about JL and hero/villain bullshit looks like movie trailers in Amity while ghost mess when it happens, looks the same to the rest of the world.

Up to you is how the containment is breached (though, how about it's not Bats or Constantine? I like them lot but maybe let's give others time to shine)

#dpxdc #dc x dp #dp x dc #dcxdp #though this way it wouldn't be GIW to install black out #they would be to late for the game #it would probably only work with the 'Amity is social experiment' idea i saw somewhere but of course won't find again because #tumblr searh is a nightmare and a half #who knows maybe evil organization ™ makes movie or two out of footage from different fights to prove their point #it would be funny #i think #alright I'm rambling it's clearly a time when i should finish #have a nice day dear stranger who got to this part

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inked-spirit · 2 years

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So continuation of this post ->

Jason adopts Danny as his own.

At first he has no idea what he's doing and does extensive research on how to care for his new son. He fumbles a bit at when actually buying baby products as he's not sure exactly what he'll need, intill a mother of two spots him and helps him out.

In order for the batfamily not to find out about his kid he just puts Danny to sleep before patrols and locks his whole apartment down, leaving a camera to watch over Danny and check on him when ever he gets the chance.

Sometimes making a quick pit stop back to feed or put him back to sleep if he woke up.

Eventually he gets the hang of parenting and hiding his son. Intill hes just relaxing, reading a book at the end of patrol before bed. And gets an unexpected visit from one of the bat fam (I'm thinking nightwing but could be any). They look between Jason and the sleeping baby in a cot before they evidently become incredibly concerned and confused.

Where did this baby even come from?

Why is there a baby? WHY DOES JASON HAVE A BABY??

Jason has to finally Reluctantly reveal his sons existence and the whole family goes wild.

Bruce: I have a grandson? :0

Dick: I have a Nephew! :D

Tim: Should we be concerned?

Duke: Oh God, the Bird adoption tendency has passed onto Jason..

Damian: ... What

Cass: Nephew :D

Stephanie: I'm gonna be an awesome aunt! >:D

They all immediately try and meet the little guy but have a hard time when a very protective Jason practically hisses at them when they try to get close without his invitation. Especially Bruce. Telling them all that he'll let them met him eventually over time under his choosing.

First is Alfred and Barbara (obviously) who is absolutely in love with little Danny on sight. His little great grandson. And Barbara's technical Nephew.

Bab's absolutely melts when she gets to hold his little self bundled in fabric. And tears up when reaches for her face and gently munches on her hair.

When Alfred got to hold him and he had to wipe his eyes then well, he just has to do some dusting later that's all.

Next is the overwhelmed with excitement Richard. Dick is absolutely overjoyed to meet his little Nephew and immediately crys when Jason allows him to hold the little guy and Danny grabs one of his fingers. The little guy was holding his finger! With his whole fist!

Cass and Steph were after Dick, Cass absolutely loved him and even had a gift lined up for him (that others were jealous of since they hadn't even thought about that!)

A stuffed toy Bat that Danny immediately took and held close. Steph followed up with Cass's idea and bought clothes for Danny, JL themed because it was funny.

Both got to hold him and both got to take turns bottle feeding him. He went to sleep in Cass's arms and had to be taken back by Jason.

Next up had been Duke and Tim. Both were very intrigued to meet him and Tim even made the comment that he looked identical to Jason.

Black hair, blue eyes, white streak. He was honestly suprised to hear from Jason that no, he was not biologically Danny's father. And that it was just incredible coincidence.

Duke makes fun of Jason with the Bruce adoption trait the entire time.

When they got to hold him they fell for his little chubby face and adorable sky blue eyes. This was the're Nephew, and they would absolutely protect the little guy from harm.

Finally it was Bruce and Damians turn,

Bruce was holding in all of his questions and all of his excitement. In order not to scare away his second son who had finally given the okay for him to meet his grandson.

Damian wasn't as enthusiastic as all the others but Bruce could tell he was curious.

As soon as Bruce laid eyes on the little bundled form in Jasons arms. He felt himself smile and his heart skip a beat.

That was the newest addition to his family. His little grandson.

His sons first and foremost rule was that Danny was his adopted son and not up for Bruce to take. Bruce readily agreed.

And that Danny was not to ever become a robin. Jason didn't want that for his son.

Damian looked at the little baby that in turn, turned to face Damian with wide eyes.

Damian blinked owlishly as the little one smiled widely and reached for him cooing.

Jason was also suprised.

"He likes the demon brat?"

Damian gave his hand to Danny experimentally and Danny happily took it and did not want to let go for a while.

Damian wondered if Danny would like animals?

Would Todd even let him show Danny all his animals?

Bruce would not not lie and say he wasnt jealous at the little ones quick effection to his youngest.

When Jason asked if Bruce would like to hold Danny he jumped at the opportunity. A rare show of trust, a sign of repair to there broken relationship.

When Danny was laid in Bruce's waiting arms it took all he had not to cry then and there. He was just so perfect. Danny curled up a bit and with an adorable little yawn, and drifted of to sleep in Bryce's arms.

I have all these random cute and funny sernarios in my head of Danny interacting with the family as he grows up.

Thinking that the whole family actively try and keep the vigilantism a secret from Danny intill hes a bit older.

Also thinking of either Danny still has his ghost powers and they just awaken incredibly slow over time from toddler age (floating toddler would be incredibly funny) or when he's just starting primary school and he's just absolutely terrified with no idea whats going on and Jasons freaking out on what to do. (Adding a how to care for your Meta child book in his library.)

I'm this 🤏 close to turning this into a fanfic>°>

With like a whole story line and everything. This au's begging to stick.

Also I have some art for this lined up that I'll post next.

Also @starkcravingmad tag as requested:)

#long post #danny phantom #danny fenton #dp x dc crossover #dp x dc au #jason todd #batfamily members #jason adopts danny au #what should i even name this au🤔#i dont know how to tag #baby danny #EDIT IVE SHORTENED IT:D

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silver-bunny6958 · 11 months

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Quick idea about danny

Thinking about the idea of him being an engineer at the watchtower(DCxDP [JL specifically]) and thinking about the idea that the Engineering team hires interns, but don’t tell them that they’ll be working for the JL

So Danny, half way through college and a fresh adult, does what his peers are doing and sign up for the program at the college that has them finding you an internship for you. The JL Engineering team decided to take him on, he’s told to go to the city w/ the nearest JL member and that some one will meet him there.

For the sake of it all we’ll say Danny is going to college at the Illinois state school and that the nearest is Martian Manhunter(who is in Chicago) and when he gets that he runs into Martian Manhunter twice. Once when he was acting as John Johnes(I think that’s his name, probably wrong) and the second time as Manhunter

So John starts to question shit, and ends up following him for a bit, sees him meet a JL Engineer and then decide it wasn’t a problem.

So Danny’s having a wild day, he ran into a guy who was deff not human (he knows!!just not what non-human entity…) and then he ran into the only superhero he had to avoid today! immediately after that he felt like he was being followed! And when Danny met the guy he told him that he would be working for the JL and that this would be the fist of about a Dozen screenings before he could be fully brought onboard, so kinda bummer that he came all the way out here for jack-shit and then he’ll have to go through that traffic again!!

Then again, that guy he ran into on the way here was kinda cute- no! Bad Danny!No dating pple right as you get a new job!!! The Jazz-like voice in his head was scolding him about the last time he did that. And it wasn’t like it would be easy to “ just quit” like it was with his last job.

Danny ended up going home w/out that date.

The next time he went back and ended up running into The Same Guy! And he actually got his name!!!

So Danny was feeling pretty good about himself!

He even aced, as well as one can, the quiz thingy they gave him as well! it was apparently made by some hero named Batman, or smth

(This is kinda just about a month after the JL was formed and established. Danny honestly only kinda knows about heroes and only know the minutia about the one closest to him. John is pretty sure the guy he ran into is flirting with him, and honestly, he doesn’t really mind.)

#danny phantom #danny fenton #fanfiction #crossovers #idk what im doing #dp x dc #dc x dp #martian manhunter #the justice league

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npcemi · 1 year

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The long road of how starting a fight with superman over clone parenting eventually lead to Danny Phantom become God Part 2:Danny's happy talk with Superman that definitely starts everyone off on the right foot

https://archiveofourown.org/works/47818321/chapters/120907324

“It's not right, Dad. Conner shouldn’t be treated like that,” Dani insisted, her eyes glowing fiercely.

“I couldn’t agree more, Dani but I’m not supposed to ‘interfere’ with the matters of ‘mortals’.” Danny responded remembering the latest lecturer he got from the observants. An intro into being one of the most powerful beings in the universe. All it really summed down to was hands-off until absolutely necessary. Being the King was way more boring than he expected.

Danny looked at Clockwork hoping they would side with him. Not wanting to draw attention to himself. He was almost ready to begin his senior year. He didn’t want to go near the JL, they could cause a lot of problems for Amity Park and him personally.

“I think a conversation could be good for both Conner and Kal-El.” Clockwork shifted into their young adult form with a grin. Danny narrowed his eyes, he knew when the Ancient was planning something.

“I guess I can have a talk with him,” Danny sighed as Danielle jumped up thanking him with a big hug.

The main members of the Justice League were called to a meeting by John Constantine. He wanted to discuss a potential threat to the supernatural from the US government. The members were hesitant to come to the meeting, however, after some convincing from Bruce that Constantine’s issue was legitimate they all agreed to come. John started his slideshow.

The topic was an intro to the supernatural and how we should leave it alone. There was a collective mirth among the attendees because anyone who knew the man knew that he could not leave well enough alone. It could be said that Constantine preferred to poke at the supernatural with a stick until something interesting happened.

“As you all know, after a ghost single-handedly took out hundreds of US government facilities and went with The Pandora to the US Congress to get them to not nuke the Infinite realms. A measure which only barely passed and still left corrupt laws and the government organization that was going to Nuke the realms intact.”

“And then they learned not to start dimensional warfare and ideally leave those threats to us, no big.” The flash interjected. Constantine pinched the bridge of his nose. They had a long way to go.

“Mate, it’s a big deal. Out of all the special entities they could piss off, they pissed off the one who should not under any circumstances even risk irritating the tiniest bit.” Before anyone could respond a new unfamiliar voice sounded from the other side of the room.

“Hi, sorry to interrupt your meeting, but I need to talk to Superman.” Everyone turned to look at the source of the voice. They saw a teen whose age was hard to place. He looked like he could be as young as fourteen yet somehow at the same time as old as nineteen. He had a soft glow to him. He had fluffy white hair and Lazarus green eyes. On his left arm, he had Lichtenberg figures racing up his left arm that were eventually covered by a black T-shirt with a green NASA logo, blue jeans, and Converse-style shoes where the canvas was green like the boy’s eyes and the rubber parts were black. Everyone was too focused on the boy to notice Constantine drop the cigarette from his mouth. His eyes were wide, his jaw slack, and his hands shaking. Superman got up to greet the boy and walked up to him.

“How did you get in here?”

“Portal, but that’s not important. We need to talk.” Superman grossly misinterpreted the Boy’s reasoning for needing to talk.

“I see, well I’m Superman, but you can call me Clark.” The man of steel shook the boy’s hand.

“I'm Danny Fenton, Phantom, Danny Phantom.” Danny was pissed at himself for that mistake. He never let the secret identity slip, of course, it had to happen in front of his heroes. Unfortunately, that slip-up confirmed Superman’s misconception.

“It’s always good to meet a new hero, I would be happy to help mentor you, there’s even a team of young heroes around your age I can introduce you to,” Danny held his hand up in a full stop motion.

“I don’t need a mentor, look Clark we need to talk.”

“Look kid, I know it doesn’t seem like it…” Danny pursed his lips and Constantine let out a desperate sound somewhere between a groan and a croak.

“Not a Kid…”

“Look, I know you think you’re mature at this age, but a new meta like you….”

“I’m not a meta, I’m a ghost, ya know dead and everything.” As Danny explained, Superman once again misinterpreted Danny’s intentions, also thinking this was some grand test Constantine organized.

“I see, so how did you die, who killed you and how can we help?” Superman said with undeserved confidence. Constantine finally out of his shock muttered a small desperate “Aww fuck.”

Danny’s reaction was almost unnoticeable except for a small flash of green in his eyes. Internally he had a flashback. The feeling of the electricity burning its way through his body tearing it apart. The pain of all his muscles being forced to contract. The smell of his flesh burning, the echo of his scream, the feeling of the wave of ectoplasm that tore him apart and reconstructed him cell by cell. The memories and emotions. How betrayed he felt that his parents left the lab unguarded and basically allowed him to die. His anger at them for having the on switch on the inside of the portal. The worry about if the portal out right exploded and hurt his friends and sister. The despair he felt that his life was cut short, how he would never become an astronaut. Never see Space. He relived all of this in an instant.

Danny grabbed Superman and threw him through the nearest wall in frustration. He took a second to look at the damage he caused. Glad it was only one wall that he threw the man through. He had finally gotten the hang of his power level, thankful for this new base form that limited his power.

“Ope, sorry about that, but Clark we really need to talk about your son Conner.” Superman picked himself up angry that this untrained meta kid lost his temper over something so stupid as a question as to how they could help him. Now the kid wants to talk about that thing Lex created.

“You mean the clone, that thing?” Superman asked, wondering when Conner had time to even talk to this new kid he never heard of before.

“Excuse you?” Danny said with a wave of sharp anger. He called a clone a thing. He called someone like his daughter, the most important person in the world to him. He called them a thing. Bruce was perceptive enough to see Danny’s rising anger. He attempted to tell Danny he had been working with Clark on how to work with Conner. The dark knight’s attempt to placate Danny failed.

“What do you mean excuse me, look I was violated and that clone is nothing but an imperfect reminder of that violation!”

“And your feelings are perfectly valid, but that doesn’t excuse you for treating Conner like shit.” Danny ground out.

“But watch yourself when speaking about the Mirror Born in my presence,” Danny warned as his voice now carried an unnatural echo. The Man of Steel scoffed at the term Mirror Born, did this kid really celebrate, perhaps even honor such violations of genetic autonomy? Clark was about to speak up before being interrupted by Constantine.

“Supes, please just shut the fuck…”

“Mind your own business, Constantine.” Superman ordered before turning to Danny.

“Look, kid, you don’t need to use some fancy new term to placate the feelings of those things, none of them are here. I need you to understand, I do tolerate Conner.” Danny’s mind boiled with rage. It was clear that he wasn’t going to get through to the man. He couldn’t even start the conversation properly. No wonder his daughter seemed so out of sorts. He only had two words to use to respond to the supposed hero.

“Fright Knight!” His order echoed through the realms as the massive black armored knight appeared behind Superman and sent the soul shredder through his chest sending him to the nightmare dimension before disappearing.

The justice league didn’t know what happened. All they knew Danny did was something to Superman, so they all attacked. Well, everyone except Dr. Fate, Shazam, Constantine, and Zatanna. Danny casually evaded all of their attacks, not even the Flash using his speed could touch Danny despite the Flash feeling like he was still faster than the boy. Danny kept this up for ten minutes before ordering the Fright Knight once again.

Superman popped back into existence. Danny slammed Superman to the ground and released an ectoplasmic wave of energy that knocked all the other heroes back. With a foot on Superman's chest, he spoke his voice loudly echoing through the room. If anyone was paying attention they would have heard a second almost feminine voice layering in over Danny’s.

“Listen to me closely Kal-El, you need to realize that the mirror born have their own life. Their own hopes, and fears. They could even be progressively aged faster, however, they still seek the same things any of us do. Love, acceptance, guidance, a sense of belonging are all they ask for from us.

I suggest getting a therapist to work through your issues, however, I will give you one month to begin to repair your relationship with Conner.” Danny then pulled a bunch of various pamphlets on top of Superman. They ranged from, ‘so you’ve been cloned’, ‘how to forgive a clone who tried to kill you’, all the way to ‘how to raise your clone as your own child’.

Danny then turned to look at Constantine, “It looks like you just started your lessons on dealing with ghosts.” There was a distinctive change in Danny, his eyes were the biggest change. The sclera was bright green and his pupils were the darkest black that Constantine had ever seen. It was like they had absorbed all light leaving nothing behind. Like endless black holes.

“John Thomas Constantine, ̸̢̪̉t̵͉̩͊̌é̴͚a̴͔̥͆̂c̸̪̳̔͝h̷̖̞̃̎ ̶̢͔̅͐ę̸̘̈́̕v̸̝͙̈̊e̷̗͚͋ṙ̴̞̜y̸͕̤̒ǫ̸͕̉̔n̸̯̄e̵̥̠̓͗ ̷̢̧̄h̸̟͗o̴̺̩̅w̷̝͌ ̵͚̈́́t̷̖̍̀o̵̠͝ ̴͖̍͠ͅp̸̡̞̎̌r̸̞̝͋͘o̶̎̎͜p̵̰̉ͅę̶̛̔r̸̦̻̂ļ̷̳̏ÿ̷̭̺́ ̵͚̗̅͘ŕ̶͎̇e̷̛̯͊s̸͔̃̄p̸͘ͅe̵̢̘̍ĉ̷̺̜̄ţ̷͗̕ͅ ̷̩͉͆t̸̥͔̔̐h̸̻̊e̴̝͘̕ ̸͉́͂ ̸͓̱͌́a̴̢̓n̶̺̺͂̋c̸̗͋͜ị̶̀̀ḛ̷̭̀͊n̷̳͍̾t̸͓̭͠s̷̩͆͛.

I suggest you start with etiquette.”

There was definitely another voice layered with Phantom’s, it was a feminine voice that was exactly a perfect fifth above Phantom’s own. Danny tilted his head and looked at the occultist with a grin that looked like a feral saber-toothed cat before disappearing. Constantine turned to look at Superman who was being helped to his feet by Wonder Woman and Batman.

“Clark how the absolute fuck did you manage to piss off the King of the Infinite Realms before we even sent a delegation to smooth things over with him, you absolute wanker!”

#dpxdc #dpxdc au #dp x dc fanfic #dp #danny fenton #Danny Phantom #Superman is a dick #Constantine wants a new job

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im-totally-not-an-alien-2 · 2 years

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Danny always wondered what the strings on his finger meant. He had asked Jazz about it when he was younger and she had no idea what he was talking about. She couldn't even see the strings even though he could see them plain as day.

He made the mistake of asking his mother exactly once and never made that mistake again. Jazz eventually found something about it online, stating that there was a legend about the red string of fate connecting the pinky fingers of destined loves. Danny wondered what it meant if he had three.

Being Phantom changed things. For one, the stings would react oddly whenever he had gone ghost. He could feel what he could only guess were the emotions of the people on the other end of the string. They seemed to be reacting to his "death(s)" every time he changed forms and presumably had similar reactions when he "revived".

One seemed to be very worried about him, another frantic in a search for answers and the third was just deeply intrigued and almost...eager? Huh.

/////

Nightwing hated dealing with Klarion, a sentiment the rest of the JL and YJ teams agreed on.

It was even worse since they were in Gotham and the bats were working together to fight him off. No one was sure what he wanted but he seemed to be having a little too much fun battling them.

It was only after they entered the basement this old dilapidated church that he took note of the chanting. -he blamed the concussion for his lack of awareness- As it turns out, Klarion was attracted to Gotham by this one cult preforming ancient magics from this weirdly glowing spellbook they had found. No idea why he was so interested in it but It couldn't be for anything good.

Red Robin came bursting into the room -late to the party but forgiven considering the circumstances- followed closely behind by a shock of blond hair, and for a moment he thought it was Steph, -stupid concussion- but quickly realized it was Bernard, one of Tim's soulmates and the only one he had found so far. His still very CIVILIAN soulmate. "Ugh. Can today get any worse?" Appearently he should have kept quiet because Klarion turned to him wearing a grin like razorwire and said, "I'm glad you asked!" Before sending a burst of red magic from his hand down to where the cultists were fearfully chanting. The explosion was deafening and where the people once stood was now a green and red portal...

/////////

By the time he turned sixteen Danny had gotten pretty good at this ghost thing. Making allies out of some of his old Rouges, making pacts with ghost countries and negotiating treaties between others, many have declared him the new Ghost Prince, regardless of what he had to say on the matter.

Of course the moment he starts to have any self confidence his faith is shaken by some odd supernatural occurrence coming completely out of left field. In this case it was an odd red and green portal opening up right in front of him. He knows he shouldn't, but the strings were leading right into it and he just couldn't resist.

He popped though.

Danny knew he had made some kind of mistake when he saw what he swore was an actual devil, complete with suit, tie and horns. And one of his strings lead directly to him. "You know, being put in a casket is actually looking pretty good right about now."

Devil guy seemed delighted and actually laughed at his humor instead of giving a sarcastic "ha-ha" or concerned sideways glances. Maybe this guy was alright after all.

/////////

Tim was freaking out. One of his soulmates was freaking Klarion! Klarion! Oh God, why??? And who, or with his current luck- what was that glowy guy supposed to be??? Oh no he was also his soulmate??? Wtf?!

Bernard was of no help whatsoever as he introduced himself to both of them using his real name. GFDI Bernard! One of us has to have survival instincts, he was sure of it.

Aka: Au where Tim Drake, Bernard Dowd, Klarion Bleak and Daniel Fenton all meet on the battlefield and discover they're soulmates. Klarion then kidnaps everyone, leaving Nightwing alone and injured with backup on the way.

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mutable-manifestation · 1 year

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Family at the Core

So I decided to continue the rogues-as-family-with-Danny once they realize he's a baby & flee to the DC universe/Gotham fic.

Parts 1 & 2

Info: AU where you gotta fight ecto with ecto - it’s the only thing that has any effect on them, and it’s part of the reason why the ghosts love Amity so much - aside from the whole “thinking danny was old ghost pretending at being human and openly challenging pretty much everyone by claiming a Living Realm haunt and then opening a stable portal in it” (from their perspective pre-’holy shit he’s baby’ realization) - Danny? Sam & Tucker with ecto weapons? Humans who can and will put up a challenge but won’t try to seriously harm them ala bastards like Pariah & the Guys In White? It’s practically the ideal ghostly vacation spot.

The Fenton fam are the first to discover how to fight ghosts in their dimension, but DC didn’t have blood blossoms and made the deal w/Pariah before they figured out the ecto v ecto option

This is pre-ID reveals among the JL because it’s funnier.

Disclaimer: idk how the police work I’m just rolling with what sounds probably like it’d be right.

***

Kitty and Johnny disappear before they can discuss a time for the police sweep, but Kitty <i>had</i> asked for Bruce’s number earlier in the conversation - “To set up that playdate once we’re more settled in” - after Bruce had mentioned the benefits of peer contact for children.

(The complete and utter disconnect from information about humans certainly lent credence to their claim of being ghosts - or at least not humans)

She’d promised to give him a call once they got their phones set up. Hopefully that would be soon - they really needed to talk about the Lazarus Pit in the building before the kid fell in and died - assuming they truly weren’t aware of it prior to selecting the location.

Perhaps Bruce could convince them to block it off? If they truly weren’t after the pit, he could ask about setting them up with a better place; make up some excuse about wanting the building for the company.

He makes contact with them and is left with more questions than answers; at least they know where they are now, despite the in-costume team's inability to track them as they left.

Constantine and Deadman arrive together <i>less</i> than an hour later, managing to arrive at the Batcave at the same time as Bruce’s group.

Constantine twirls an unlit cigarette between his fingers as the footage of the Joker incident plays.

It stops twirling when the lunch lady appears on the screen.

His lips form a grim line as he watches.

“Anyone ever told you you’re the unluckiest bastard this side ‘a the pond?” Constantine asks, turning to Batman once the first video concludes.

“No.” Is Batman’s humorless reply.

“Don’t leave us in suspense here, Conny,” Nightwing slides closer to lightly elbow him in the side. “Is Damian Wayne’s doppelganger the most haunted kid in America or what?”

Robin, for his part, crossed his arms and continued sulking - as he had been since Batman had read them in on the existence of JL Dark and verified that ghosts were indeed real.

“Most haunted kid this damn dimension, Bird boy,” Constantine answered, stowing his cigarette. “Those-” he gestures to the now-blank screen “-are Infinite Realms Ghosts. They aren’t like Deadman here, they’re about a million times worse.”

“Hey!” Deadman protests.

“They come from a place they call ‘The Infinite Realms’ - big shock there. Their kind haven’t been seen in this dimension for tens of thousands of years now; most people just think they’re myths by this point. I only even know about it because my thrice-damned house wouldn’t stop throwing a book on the subject at me until I read it a few years back.”

He puts the cigarette away in favor of crossing his arms.

“The Realms are said to be connected to every dimension there is, and legend has it that way back when we got a lot of visitors from their side. Had a lot of names - the era of chaos, the age of disaster, whatever you wanna call it. They treated this dimension like a plaything, and there was nothing anyone could do to stop them.

Nothing worked - salt, holy symbols, the magics of the time, etc. Supposedly, someone even tried summoning a demon and watched the thing get hunted. Realms ghosts were leagues more powerful than any of the other known beings at the time and no one could find a way to fight them. The only reason they left was because some group made a deal with their king - no details on what the deal involved other than getting them to get lost.”

“So we are simply supposed to hope that their king isn’t too busy dealing with the infinitely many other dimensions they are apparently hooked up to to come get a few strays out of ours?” Robin questions icily.

“It means you’re simply supposed to give me a chance to do some more research - I only skimmed the one book to get the house off my back. What I read wasn’t promising, but that doesn’t mean there isn’t more useful information buried somewhere.” Constantine replies with an eyeroll. “For now, if they want to play house with some poor bastard? Wayne’s got enough kids to know how to give good enough advice they don’t accidentally kill him in the meantime. Infiltrate their playdates if you’re that worried. And look on the bright side! They took care of your clown problem. Now, you said you had two videos?”

“Yes,” Batman answers tightly, bringing up said second video. “We managed to get footage of their meeting with the Waynes.”

The second watching was far less eventful.

Until the very end, when Kitty and Bruce shake hands and Constantine lets loose a stream of curses.

“What? What’s wrong?” Red Robin demands.

“What’s wrong is that Brucie Wayne is dumber than a sack of damn bricks.”

The batclan members make various coughing/strangled noises at this, save for Batman, who remains stoic.

“Who the fuck meets a self-declared non-human entity and shakes on a deal.” Constantine drags an exasperated hand down his face. “Make sure Wayne knows his ass needs to buy them that building asap or Ghost Girl gets to make him dance to whatever tune she wants; break a deal with a dealmaker and they get controlling shares in your soul.”

“I see,” Batman says, “We’ll get in touch with him again after this; we need to discuss the police sweep of the Yuyan building anyway. If direct observation will help, he should be willing to bring you along as a civilian friend.”

Constantine looked at him like he had three heads.

“Not a chance in hell, Bats.”

He backs away from the table toward the cave’s Zeta tube.

“Oh! Oh, me! Pick me! I wanna meet the new ghosts!” Deadman shook his arms wildly, doing loops in the air.

“The visibility spell won’t last that long and we don’t know if their kind of ghost can see you without it. Also, we were in the middle of something. We already detoured. Let’s finish the job and then we can come back and play ghost party 2: yet another pain in my ass edition, yeah?”

“Awwwwww,” Deadman slouched sadly before zipping into the tube with him.

“Great. Have fun, try to get along with the new neighbors, don’t shake any hands, don’t do anything I wouldn’t do, yadda yadda, aaaaaand bye.”

And with that, they were gone.

“Well that’s not ideal,” Nightwing mutters.

The meeting had at least answered one question.

Now for the other two dozen.

---------------------

Kitty wants to get this cop sweep over with as soon as possible.

The others are hesitant at first - or territorial, in Walker’s case - but a little fast-talking has him all for the idea.

The chronic rule-follower had only taken to making his own rules because of the zone’s inherent chaos and lack of real, broader government. In Gotham there are rules pre-made to follow, to enforce. He eats it up.

He’ll be obsessed with being law-abiding once he’s done studying up, but Kitty had been headed towards a future in law before her own death. She was well aware that it would take him - even with the aid of an eidetic memory - a minimum of months to read enough to actually start enforcing anything.

And until he’d read it all? Kitty was free to make him paranoid about missing a later subsection to create her own Walker-loopholes.

Once he’s on-side, he practically carries the argument for her. She only pipes up again to mention how “the baby would probably be a lot more comfortable with a stable, uncontested home.”

Walker does his own sweep of the building, opening cabinets and hidden passages and drawing attention to weapons and other hints of crimes-past and Kitty hovers over Technus’ shoulder as they hash out the details of how best to lure in the police.

The Box Ghost leads the others - except Ember, who ‘s on baby-watch at the pool - in packaging up everything they want to keep to be phased into the ground under the building.

Arguing took most of the time and it’s only the work of another two hours to have the entire building ready for the cops to peruse.

In the end, they decide setting off a small bomb by the entrance is the easiest way to draw police attention - they’ll come investigate, when no one responds they’ll have to check it out, they’ll find the weapons and cult-like documents and murder records Walker had located sitting out in the open, et voila: wanted owners and building up for grabs.

They, of course, will be invisibly watching the whole thing.

Danny hasn’t left the pool since their arrival and they don’t want him to, so he stays there with Johnny on watch to make them both invisible if and when anyone enters that room.

It goes off without a hitch, and by 11 o’clock Kitty is flying to a nearby roof to call Bruce and remind him of his end of the bargain.

***

@yjfk @fisticuffsatapplebees @little-pondhead @avery-isastupid-name @queenofdiscord @samgirl98 @inkyunicorn @mimilikey @aconitewolfsbane @miraculousandmore @someonebored0100 @wildbacon-blog @fleshybeing @vala-dreams @ironicvixen @blurblurbblurrrr @ectoplasmic-knife

#dpxdc #finding family with the rogues that fought you #dp recovery vacation in Gotham #Bruce slowly loosing his mind #Constantine calls Bruce a dumbass to his face (unaware)#ex-pre-law Kitty #Danny in the background #*is traumatized*#Constantine hates everything that is happening in Gotham #Constantine *hopes the King will show up to get them b4 he has to deal with this bullshit #*#King Baby: *Floating in an ecto-pool under the Yuyan Building & being Part Of John's Headache*

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ninjakk · 1 month

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I've been thinking of how JC attempts to sacrifice himself for WWX when they first run from the Wens after the fall of LP and his reasons/feelings for doing that and reconciling them with this person who acts so shamefully and is full of such hatred that he kills all 'demonic cultivators' after wwx's death. Even as WWX thinks of whether JC and JL are okay, I notice he calls JC "Sect Leader" out loud to others. I don't know how they could reconcile. Sorry lots of feelings.

Hi again anon 👋🏻

I've answered your two asks separately as they were addressing different aspects of the novel and my original response was getting rather long 😆

It certainly was an unexpected revelation when we found out that JC lured the searching Wen cultivators away from an unsuspecting WWX. Of course, I don't think it was his intention to get caught in the process, but he definitely thought about someone else other than himself for once - which was interesting. Although it was one of the very few selfless acts he did during the course of the novel, it still doesn't retract any of the awful things he has done, nor the way he treated WWX or his homophobic outburst.

Even after WWX has died, JC's bitterness remains very strong and he does indeed hunt down those that use the ghost path in hope of capturing WWX, should he return. Which I always find quite telling of just how little JCs actually knows and understands WWX - who would never actually do such a thing.

In all honesty, JC actually redeemed himself ever so slightly at the very end of the novel, when he decides not to tell WWX about how he really lost his golden core. Instead, he finally let him go, severing the very last thread of "debt" and "obligation" between them. It was actually a fitting character arc for him and it showed a glimmer of possible growth.

Even if JC had selfishly told WWX that particular fact, I don't think it would have changed much at all. WWX has already paid back his "debt" and "obligations" to the Jiang sect far beyond what was required or reasonable. There is nothing left to say between them and WWX literally has nothing left to give. Too much water has gone under the bridge. All of that is in the past and WWX always focuses on the present. So either way, nothing would have changed. I also think WWX would not want to associate with someone he thought his love for LWJ was disgusting and shameful regardless of anything else at play. He chooses love, happiness and freedom as his parents did before him.

JC and WWX are too different, in both personality and virtue. They would not have been friends or hung out in any other scenario bar the circumstance they found themselves in during the course of the novel. They both literally embody the traits that the other actually cannot stand! Their relationship was that of a master and subordinate, it was toxic and they are both better off giving each other a wide berth and moving on.

A reconciliation would never happen and it doesn't need to. WWX is entitled to a happy life for all his efforts in his previous life and JC needs to live with the consequences of his actions and learn from them in his own way.

I know it's probably not the response you were hoping for. But if you consider the above, they both got some form of a happy ending. JC is finally learning to let go of things that little bit more and WWX is free to move on and live his life how he always wanted. I honestly couldn't think of a more suitable and realistic ending.

#mdzs #mo dao zu shi #mdzs novel #wei wuxian #canon jiang cheng #anon ask #answered ask

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ecandjamesvpjournal · 6 months

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DP x DC x GB Story Idea

Gotham has had its fair share of crime in the city, but few know of its troubles with supernatural forces… except for the Bat Family. While they usually handle the League of Assassins and others who dabble in magic, it’s not long before Bruce hears word that a new paranormal group pops up called the Ghostbusters. At first, it appears that the Ghostbusters are a bunch of con artists, before the BatFam and League of Assassins find themselves facing the Ghostbusters. It’s only when Red Hood notices the Ghostbuster in black, with white trimming. On it, is the name tag “Fenton”. Something about Danny makes his soul stir.

“Members of the League of Assassins, I hearby demand by the powers vested in me by the Gotham City Police Department, the Gotham City Historical Society, the EPA, and even both the Justice League and JL Dark, to depart from this or any other reality, at once.” the grey-ish tan jumpsuit wearing Ghostbuster said. He re-adjusted his glasses before looking at the Head of the League of Assassins, Ra’s Al Guul. “Fools, all of you are fools. First the Bats, now these hacks.” The one with glasses looked offended. As the assassins started to surround them, the five of them moved back to each other, forming a tight circle, facing them.

“Alright guys, Alpha 47-B!” he said, as they all powered up. The female briefly glanced at the one with glasses, “I thought we were gonna name it something clever.” “Sure, but you try coming up with a name that doesn’t telegraph to the villains.” he replied. As they surrounded them, Ra’s smiled at them, no sneered at them. “I don’t know what you were expecting, but this’ll be the-“

“THROW EM’!” glasses exclaimed. The five of them threw the energy from the strange gun-like devices. While it wouldn’t exactly do damage to normal people. Those within the League were affected enough to quickly retreat, including Ra’s Al Guul, who didn’t expect this. “You should’ve listened,” the one known as Fenton said, “We did warn you.”

Ra’s disappeared before it got worse. After all of that, they deactivated the device before they looked around. “So what do we do?” Fenton asked, as glasses re-adjusted his glasses again. With a smile, he brushed something off his name tag that had the word “Smith” on it. “Simple Fenton,” he started looking around, “We need to find the source of their ectoplasm and deactivate it.” “But where is it?” the female with the short haircut said, whose name tag was “Bazaar”. Smith shrugged, “Unless someone knows what the League uses to re-animate their assassins. Like the Batman!” he exclaimed, quickly looking around for them, only to be met with silence, and slight bouts of darkness.

The young man who looked Winston, but younger, had the name tag “Zeddimore”. “Hey man,” he said patting Smith on the back, “the Batman is just a myth, nothing more.” “Oh yeah, then who has defeated the League of Assassins?” Before Zeddimore could answer, there was a cough, like someone clearing their throat. The five of them turned towards the now visible Batfamily.

Smith was the first to speak, “Ok, um hi. Sorry to bother you sir, but you wouldn’t happen to notice a place where there is tainted ectoplasm?” Batman just raised an eyebrow at them, to which Smith continued, “Well, while it does have re-animation properties, most tainted ectoplasm tends to cause bouts of anger, a inhuman savagery, and other weird side effects.” Immediately, all of the BatFam turned towards the Red Hood. Smith looked at him, then pulled out an unusual device. Smith got close, the pointed the device at him, which whirred and blinked, and the arms raised to the full position.

“Well, that’s different.” Smith said, looking at the PKE Meter.

#danny phantom #batman #batfam #batfamily #danny fenton #danny is a ghostbuster #ghostbusters #dp x dc x gb #paranormal #ghostbusters gotham #gotham #dc crossover #ghostbusters crossover #danny phantom crossover #fan fiction #story idea

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cerealboxlore · 1 year

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very small idea but for billy who thinks ebenezer killed mary what if as captain marvel he saw mary for a split second while doing something with the league and wasn’t able to check it out but he knows he saw her

i can’t really put together my thoughts in this properly right now but yeah i think that ought to be fun (not for billy)

Oh!

Oh we are going to haveso much FUN with this, my friend!

(TW: slight mind fuckery and mentions of corpses)

I absolutely go feral at Billy Batson angst, even more so when it involves him being Captain Marvel and letting his mortal emotions slip through is magical adult front. The aching and deep sadness that he tries desperately to hide is impossible to unsee, and it concerns his teammates if/when they see it appear on his face. The JL know Captain Marvel as a super happy, fun, immature and yet mysterious man, they're accustomed to seeing Captain Marvel smiling with a bright grin most of the time. That boy scout attitude of his is a trademark and one they never imagined seeing fade, an impossibility.

They should have known by now that impossibilities were more than possible nowadays. Especially when magic was involved.

What I'm thinking is, and maybe something I'll include in a longer post one day, is a team up between the Scarecrow and Mr. Mind. I did a poll before and y'all said this would mentally scar Billy the most, and I fully believe in the psychological horror potential of them. In the event that they team up, Mr. Mind would want Captain Marvel taken down first, as he's a risk and threat to Mr. Mind's plans the most. He knows who he is. He knows that Captain Marvel is secretly Billy Batson, homeless orphan who is desperately running away from his abusive past that haunts him.

I'm thinking that if Mr. Mind somehow finds a way to infect Billy with a magically enchanted fear toxin that slowly chips away at his sanity through a period of time, he could take advantage of his mind and therefore control the Champion of magic completely without any worry of losing control.

This could factor into your idea about Billy catching a glimpse of Mary while he's out as Captain Marvel with the league. The first time it'd just a passing glimpse. A blink. It's Mary's face in the reflection of a glass mirror he flies past by. He shakes it off, thinking it's just nothing. Then it happens again, but this time Mary's face in the mirror shows signs of rotting. The next time it happens it's not in a mirror, but on the street while he's helping citizens flee the scene of a fight, and he thinks he sees Mary running past him.

Was it actually her this time? Or was it his mind playing tricks on him? Was he going crazy? No, no that's impossible. As Captain Marvel he couldn't go crazy, right? Then...Was something wrong with Billy? If his foundation/vessel had something wrong, then functioning as Captain Marvel was going to get a lot harder for him.

The thoughts about his (supposed) dead sister haunt him more frequently, to the point where he can't go a single day without mistaking someone as the beaten and decaying form of Mary. He feels himself losing his mind, losing control of his fears and self, enough to the point that Mr. Mind can easily swoop in and take control of the Champion of Magic. A really fun plot to have a mind controlled Captain Marvel fight the Justice League, even more so if he's not the only one experiencing this.

Maybe after this fight the JL has a talk with Captain Marvel and in his emotional exhaustion that he's recovering from, he speaks about Mary at last and how he's been hallucinating her all this time, but still unsure if she's actually dead. CM finally opening up about his personal life and the guilt he feels for not helping his sister back then as a little kid. Whether or not they find out Captain Marvel is really just a kid falls onto you, I'm still trying to figure out how the Scarecrow would have a bigger part in this. Maybe Mr. Mind is mind controlling him, too??

#This was such a lovely ask #Tysm #I really loved answering this ask #You always have such creative ideas!#And we do love torturing Billy in this tumblr home 🏡 ❤️#billy batson #dc captain marvel #Shazam #Mr. Mind #Scarecrow #justice leage of america #Writing idea #Fanfic idea #If there's spelling errors #*runs away*

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phantomskeep · 1 year

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Editing to add (again): This is using the bastardized wendigo from popculture. It's not using the wendigo in the context of the spirit, more in the context of the Hannibal "Ravenstag" or even Antlers' wendigo. Check the Anon link near the end of the post for more information regarding my thoughts on the subject :) I didn't mention the deer-like qualities until the tags, which I understand some people don't fully read. That's my bad, so here I am with the full context ahead of time. This is not the Algonquian version of the wendigo spirit. i really want to write a DCxDP fic where Danny gets trapped in a different form (like either true form or just gets cursed, something like that) and can't get out of it. That form? A wendigo. Somehow he ends up in the DC universe - either through already living there or Ghost Zone shenanigans.

Being a wendigo, Danny feels the need to eat flesh. Preferably human, but even in his screwed-up state he knows that's wrong of him to do. So he takes to killing the bare minimum amount of wildlife he can to sustain himself. Eventually he realizes that "oh wait, what if I just raided a store?" So he stumbles out of the woods and into the nearest grocery store after they had closed. He ends up eating enough to settle his stomach before going off to hide to wait for this whatever to wear off.

However, this catches the attention of [insert local hero]. [Insert local hero] goes to the Justice League about this - maybe this creature is a new villain's scheme? Or just a new villain? Members of the JL + Justice League Dark then go out to [insert town Danny was spotted in] to do some investigating. Batman being one of these people, plus Robin because Damian would not let Bruce go without him. A wendigo could be like a shark after all, just a big ol' puppy.

They get to [insert town here] and start cracking down. They compare the old footage to the location, tracking where the wendigo went. Finally Batman, Robin and [insert characters here] are able to get to the wendigo's den... only to find out the wendigo is a lot more ghost-like than they thought it would be.

There's a big fight because Wendigo-Brain!Danny thought these random dudes were the GIW coming for his undead ass that ends with Danny taking off. Unknowingly to Danny, Damian has grabbed onto him and is basically riding his soon-to-be pet into the sunset.

... I just want to 1) see Danny suffer and being confused 2) Damian trying to get a new dangerous pet and 3) get Damian trying to tame a feral Wendigo!Danny like any normal person would try to befriend that feral orange cat living in the dumpster.

Adding this just to cover my own butt about this haha, here's a link that contains a post which covers the research I have done on the topic of the wendigo: Anon Ask Post Here. I am not trying to culturally appropriate, offend, or harm anyone with a prompt post about Danny taking the form of a wendigo. It's a cool concept to me as I believe it is a bit ironic. The wendigo, as seen in the culture it originates from, is a symbol of greed and a harsh winter and are often a sign of cannibalism. They have hearts of ice and an "unseasonable chill might precede its approach".

I think this is ironic because 1 - Danny is a sweet little bean and being stuck with cannibalistic cravings is a Hannibal Fic trope that will forever rot in my brain + Ghost King!Danny having to eat Pariah Dark's core is a headcanon I adore, 2 - the chill preceding a wendigo's approach reminds me of Danny's ghost sense, 3 - Danny is the LEAST greedy person I can think of in the entirety of DP (even if he does have his selfish moments at the worst times ever), and 4 - wendigos possess human beings. In Native legend a wendigo is a "malevolent spirit" which possesses humans - technically if you are going to stick with the general wendigo legends then it does not have antlers, horns, or is even a beast. It's just a giant human. Which, if using the correct/original version of a wendigo, makes this 10x funnier to me, because Damian that is clearly a giant person what the fUCK ARE YOU DOING--

Anyways, long story short if you have issues with me using a wendigo for a "haha funny" prompt please DM me with any sort of articles, legends, documentaries, ect. on why using a wendigo is a Bad Thing. Like I said in the linked post, I'm always willing to learn and adjust my behavior. I just want proof that the changes I'm going to make are the correct ones to be making, as my years on the internet have ALWAYS told me to fact check anything :)

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meimei-bunnie · 1 year

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Was thinking about Jiang Cheng last night, and what I understood of his character– and especially of his relationship with Wei Wuxian, because obviously, every aspect of his character is shown through the lens of their relationship owing to the fact that Wei Wuxian is the main character.

I don't think it's a bad thing, but I do wish that we could have got some serious in-depth of a lot of characters from their own perspectives, but it works for me and my overactive brain to fill in the gaps.

I genuinely feel heartbroken over their relationship because I know that the love is there, and always will be. Even if it's now tainted with too many harsh words and spilt blood, the love is still there. The problem lies in how Jiang Cheng was raised.

At first, I used to think that Jiang Fengmian and Yu Ziyuan are not that bad of parents but after thinking over it, I have realised that they are not good either. In fact, when it comes to Jiang Cheng, they did a terrible job. JFM essentially neglected JC because of his similarity to his mother, leaving him craving for love. YZY on the other hand, constantly put him down by comparing him to WWX.

Both of these things became a core part of how JC thinks and feels. He never received unconditional love from his parents, and his relationship was strained with WWX, but he still loves them all. He is a classic Slytherin, in my opinion. He is definitely ambitious and loves his cultivation but another thing that I characterize Slytherins by is the difference in which they treat those inside their circle and outside their circle.

So, for JC, the people inside this circle are: JFM, YZY, WWX & JYL (and afterwards JL, but that's inconsequential to this post since I'm focusing more on the JC before WWX's resurrection). Even if they treat him badly, he loves them to death. He would go to the world's end for them, and all he wants in return is for them to be by his side.

Which is what WWX fails to do after the Wen situation. (I'm not blaming him, I totally support WWX's decision; I'm just painting it from JC's pov.) At a time when he had lost his parents and JYL was getting married and going away, the only tether for him was WWX– so when he chose the Wens (outsiders, for JC) and demonic cultivation over him, it was betrayal for him.

I believe there are 3 feelings that ruined their relationship, from JC's side: ① betrayal ② jealousy ③ loneliness.

The feeling of betrayal ties in to the loneliness heavily. At the root of everything is the fact that JC struggles with love; he loves deeply, but doesn't quite know how to express it at times because his own parents were lousy at doing that. (I wanna give him a tight hug so bad ugh.)

The jealousy... Well, that's the factor that ruined it the most. And I believe that if only JFM had looked past the fact that JC's mother is YZY, and had loved him as freely as he did WWX, and if YZY had not constantly compared them, then JC could have grown up without the compulsive need to constantly compare himself to WWX. It's not that he does it on purpose, but something that's wired in him because of the glaring difference in them that his parents keep pointing out, whether it's with his actions or her words.

The thing is... WWX was literally the worst person to compare himself to. He was literally a genius, a prodigy, a once-in-a-generation kind of cultivator. And also a classic Gryffindor example. Brave, reckless and strong sense of justice. That's what marks the main difference between them.

JC would choose his family/inner circle over justice. WWX would choose justice over his family/inner circle.

Those feelings of betrayal, jealousy and loneliness come out in the form of misplaced anger and hatred in the 13 years WWX is gone on every person who does demonic cultivation. I feel like JC was trying to find him too, but it was in equal parts love and equal parts hatred.

The point in the climax when he gets angry at WWX and mocks him about how good he is, and constantly better than JC that he even gives away his golden core– that scene hurt me so much. I was really upset with him, but well, his words struck me. Even now, he is still comparing himself to WWX. He has always tried to catch up to the image of WWX, in hopes of gaining his mother's pride and his father's love and even long after they are gone, he feels the need to prove himself to the rest of the world that he is Jiang Cheng. He is Jiang Wanyin, heir to the Yunmeng Jiang clan and worthy of leading them.

It's literally no secret how much he despises that everyone sees him as someone 'not Jiang like'. Their motto doesn't match him. But WWX does. WWX gets his father's love freely. WWX is the talented cultivator that everyone praises and sees, and it's never him. Never JC.

He spent his entire life trying to catch up to WWX, then chasing him in hatred, only to realise that he never could. No matter what he did, he would never measure up to WWX. And he is grateful, he is thankful for what WWX did, but it came out in the usual way all his feelings do: anger and derision. That scene hurts, but it made me finally understand JC.

Honestly, my biggest takeaway from all this was that JC deserved better parents. I love him and I love WWX and I want their relationship to be better desperately but knowing that with all that has happened, I also know it's going to be really really hard. I still want to believe in my own hc that post-canon, they sit down and talk like mature adults and get all this out of the way.

Be the brothers they always should have been, even if they can't be the Twin Heroes of Yunmeng anymore.

(Sorry this got a little long hahaha~)

Edit: And I just want to add that JC never needed to compare himself or 'catch up' to WWX. That's where his parents failed him. Nobody telling him that he is enough and wonderful and loved as he is. I would love to jump in and just, give him a tight hug and say all these things to the younger JC. That I'm proud of him. That's he's enough.

#meimei rants #jiang cheng #jiang wanyin #wei wuxian #character study #mdzs #mo dao zu shi #yunmeng bros #my thoughts on their relationship #disc: this is my interpretation and opinion #feel free to disagree I'm not forcing or insisting anything #would love to know your thoughts if they differ!

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hey-its-jacob-lol · 2 years

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JacobLOL & Kirb Presents: The Wild Ride of a Dream!: Part 3 (Ver.3)

(This'll probably be the last go. But take that with a giant pinch of salt.)

*After returning to the castle, after a mysterious figure sent them there. The team looked to regroup the best way they can. Frisk and Asriel were having a little chat, when Frisk brought up an interesting point about Chara.*

Asriel: "That's tricky to say, we both know she wasn't really the most behaved person back in the day... Plus, there's your history with her and you know how I feel about this... Not to mention, we haven't heard from her since she disappeared-"

JL: "Yeah and you nearly sabotaged our mission almost making another family member disappear..."

Asriel: "We can discuss that later. Plus she's home now, it doesn't matter..."

JL: "You still shouldn't have done it! Nadine could've gotten hurt, or you could've been hurt and I don't really want to face your father's wrath over something that wasn't my fault. You needed to have faith in me... But because I team up with people, you personally don't like that means you need to use your 'royal authority' and get involved... And I know it was you who wrangled up that team, seeing you're the prince and sure your dad isn't the smartest king in the world. But I think even he wouldn't send a troop after a team trying to save someone!"

*Asriel sighed, before turning his back to JL, arms crossed.*

JL: "Asriel. Look at me. You sent that army after us, didn't you? I mean, it's pretty obvious you did... You were there!"

*Asriel looked back towards JL.*

Asriel: "Yes fine, I did okay?! I formed that team! But it wasn't to sabotage the mission... I wanted those Phantom dingbats out of the mission! It's none of their business! They should go back to wherever they came from and stay there!"

JL: "I called them, Asriel. We needed their help. We were stretched thin and we needed to act quickly."

Asriel: "Doesn't make me feel any less comfortable about it..."

*Asriel looked at the floor for a split second, before back up at Frisk.*

Asriel: "Suppose you're gonna choke me out too, aren't you?"

*Asriel sighed, before burying his face into his hands.*

Asriel: "M-Maybe I do sorta deserve it..."

*Suddenly, Asriel started to cry.*

Asriel: "I-I'm sorry..."

*As the tears poured down Asriel's face, he turned to run up to the stairs and bolted into his room. After that, all everyone could hear was the sounds of crying.*

JL: "Hey Frisk, I may need your help with this... Can you go give Asriel a hug, while I try and talk to him?"

@somedude111111

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deadcactuswalking · 1 month

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REVIEWING THE CHARTS: 20/04/2024 (Sabrina Carpenter, Dua Lipa, Perrie Edwards)

Hozier sticks to a second week at #1 on the UK Singles Chart with “Too Sweet” and welcome back to REVIEWING THE CHARTS!

Rundown

As always, we start with our notable dropouts, songs exiting the UK Top 75 - which is what I cover - after five weeks in the region or a peak in the top 40. This week, we actually have a bit of a massacre so we must bid adieu to: “7 Minute Drill” by J. Cole (that one we literally say farewell to, it’s been deleted), “Cinderella” by Future and Metro Boomin featuring Travis Scott, “Make You Mine” by Madison Beer, “CARNIVAL” by Hitler and Goebbels featuring Rich the Kid and Playboi Carti, “Made for Me” by Muni Long, “bye” and “yes, and?” by Ariana Grande, “Would You (go to bed with me?)” by Campbell and Alcemist, assisted by a remix with Caity Baser, “Baby Shark” by Pinkfong, yes, really, “Anti-Hero” by Taylor Swift and finally, even though we all know it’ll be back, “Mr. Brightside” by The Killers.

It actually turns out that the most interesting stories here outside of the top 10 and new tracks… are the returning entries, because there are quite a few, they’re quite high and also quite - at least tangentially - related to a cultural event. Firstly, we have the release of a biopic revolving around the late singer Amy Winehouse who has captivated audiences long after death and the recent release of Back to Black, as well as its soundtrack, mostly a compilation of Winehouse’s songs and her influences, has propelled the studio album of the same name to #22 on the album chart whilst giving some of her legacy catalogue a solid boost. The song of the same name, “Back to Black”, had several initial runs from 2007 to 2008, peaking at “only” #25, but returned with stride after her passing to find a new peak of #8 in 2011. At #1 that week was “She Makes Me Wanna” by JLS featuring Dev. The charts don’t always reflect what music actually stands the test of time, let’s just say that. Today, it’s at #51. An even more storied chart run comes in at #44 with “Valerie” by Mark Ronson featuring Amy Winehouse. Ronson’s version largely eclipsed the original Zutons version released the year before. The Liverpool indie rock outfit peaked at #9 with their version, whilst Nelly Furtado’s “Maneater” topped the charts, but by the time Ronson and Winehouse came along, the chart was instead reigned by Sugababes with “About You Now”, which halted “Valerie” from hitting #1. Similarly to “Back to Black”, it did return to the chart after her passing though not very high, so I assume that it must have some degree of prominence in the biopic, I’ve yet to see it.

As for our two other re-entries, they somehow have even more chart history dragged into them, so bear with me. Paul Simon wrote “The Sound of Silence” and recorded the track as a member of Simon & Garfunkel in 1964, and despite this being the most prominent and successful version, hitting #1 Stateside, it somehow never once appeared on the UK Singles Chart in any form until long after, specifically in 1966 when an Irish pop group The Bachelors covered it, basically taking any steam off of the original by peaking at #3. The Spencer Davis Group’s “Somebody Help Me” was #1 at the time. It wouldn’t appear on the charts again until damn near half a century later in 2012, when viral acoustic singer Kina Grannis took it to #93. However, and I really wish I couldn’t say this, the most successful cover may be from nu metal band Disturbed, who reached mainstream success worldwide by covering the track in 2016, by then it had been thoroughly memed to death as well as being a long-term pop staple, yet it still worked. Their mediocre version peaked at #29 and now it’s back at #47 because of an inexplicable, practically unlistenable house remix by Australian DJ CYRIL that Paul Simon could probably sue for murder. I didn’t like the Disturbed version, but this is a new level of groanworthy.

As for our final re-entry, we should look towards the album charts, wherein Oasis’ 1994 debut Definitely Maybe is actually down a full positions, lower than other Oasis albums. The irony in that is that it’s the iconic Britpop band’s 20th anniversary this past week, with them releasing special physical editions of their debut single “Supersonic” to mark the occasion. It never really peaked that high to begin with, only at #31, but it did stick around and return for several runs for basically most of the 1990s, only to return once again this week as our highest re-entry at #42.

The gains are a lot less interesting but there are still a handful of notable boosts, namely “Jump” by Tyla, Gunna and Skillibeng up to #38, “Good Luck, Babe!” by Chappell Roan at #33, “I Don’t Wanna Wait” by David Guetta and OneRepublic at #25 (Jesus Christ), and finally, “Hell n Back” by Bakar nearing its old peak at #21.

This week, our top five on the UK Singles Chart consists of: “TEXAS HOLD ‘EM” by Beyoncé holding at #5, “Lose Control” by Teddy Swims floating at #4, “i like the way you kiss me” by Artemas smooching its way up to #3, Benjamin of Boontown is at #2 with “Beautiful Things” and of course, Hozier still at #1. Now, there’s actually quite a lot to discuss in our new entries, despite the fact that Taylor is still a week away yet, in fact this might end up the more interesting week because no-one is dropping the same day as her. So let’s review them, shall we?

New Entries

#49 - “We Still Don’t Trust You” - Future and Metro Boomin featuring The Weeknd

Produced by Metro Boomin, Peter Lee Johnson and MIKE DEAN

Yup, all of our new entries are within the top 50 this week, and most of them well into the highest reaches of the chart. Given Taylor only has three songs coming next week, I’m pretty excited for a from-the-top shake-up that won’t be immediately torn down… at least until the temporary Eurovision blockade, but we’ll deal with that when it comes to it. For now, I had only heard one of the songs debuting this week before today, and it was this one, the intro and title track to the second of the Future-Metro collaboration tapes, which debuted at #11 on the albums chart this week. Not every track hits on this second album, but if you remember what I thought about the first album, you’d recall I preferred the hazier, more melodically-focused pop-trap that was prevalent through the middle section, and this new record is essentially an extended version of just that with a triumphant victory lap full of bangers on the back-half bonus disc to balance things out. Future is a lot more emotive, Metro is delivering beautiful cloudy soundscapes, and the hooks are catchier than ever, though it’s not nearly as immediate so I understand that it performed less successfully even if it is a damn shame. It also means we only have the first track here, which is barely even a song ultimately, more so an extended, hallucinatory introduction blending punchy synthpop drums with garbled psuedo-hooks about freaky girls from Future, a looming falsetto from The Weeknd over a borderline nu-disco groove and semi-verses that don’t really form into a complete song. In the album context, this is a brilliant introduction to where the album will take you: a late-night drive taking your mind off “the hoes” so to speak. As a charting single by itself, it’s honestly just weird. Other than being the intro to an album most people I imagine didn’t finish all the way through, I don’t understand why “All to Myself” didn’t take this one’s place. I guess it didn’t have the video treatment but regardless, weird single to push, even if it’s a great moment.

#46 - “KiKi (What Would Drizzy Say?)” - D-Block Europe

Produced by Eight8, Harry Beech and Ari Beats

Well, Drake’s in the news thanks to all the dissing back and forth so being the young brilliant entrepreneurs they are, DBE pushed out a song with him in the title, in a vague reference to Drake’s own “What Would Pluto Do” but a much less vague, openly cheap interpolation of Drake’s “In My Feelings”, and the chart history did not stop with our re-entries as if there’s a coherent theme with some of these new tracks, it’s egregious referencing. “In My Feelings” samples a plethora of tracks in the first place, but none as explicitly as DBE have riffed from it here. The original spent four weeks at #1, but I don’t see Young Adz’s nasal auto-croon rendition getting any higher than #46. I actually feel kind of relieved with this because this is back to the stupid, barely functioning DBE of old (and by old, I mean the late 2010s), with a terrible bass mastering job, overly loud flutes that nearly drown out Adz himself attempting to sing his way out of his lack of content, in the same melody as Drake’s chorus until he just starts talking instead midway through. Some of the 2020s improvements are actually present here though; Youthful Advertisements has much tighter rhyme schemes once he actually starts rapping, and they aren’t as audibly out of tune or beat with everything else as they probably would be if they tried this out when the original was big. He also puts a shell in his back like he’s a turtle, tells the girl to close her mouth and leads into Dirtbike Lb’s small contribution, a brief, half-dead and wordy verse that still washes Adz: this is what I’ve come to expect from the duo. There’s not much of an attempt at wordplay but cool turns of phrase that kind of imply he thinks Hermés is the name of the crocodile they killed to make the bag and not just the brand name… they’re good enough. This is good fun.

#41 - “A Bar Song (Tipsy)” - Shaboozey

Produced by Nevin and Sean Cook

Okay, if we’re going to sample egregiously, this is how we do it: not trying to play it off as a completely new song but not serving in the exact same lane and purpose as the original. Instead, let’s make unabashed re-recordings and reimaginings that don’t necessarily modernise or improve the song, and don’t set out to, instead crafting a different experience from the same fundamentals. Now I don’t like the original 2004 track “Tipsy” by J-Kwon mostly because of, well, J-Kwon being useless, but there’s a great hook to it, especially the radio edit, and the beat making up nearly entirely of weird sound effects over a distorted clap sample is pretty clever. The original “Tipsy” peaked at #4 for two weeks, whilst “Lola’s Theme” by the Shapeshifters was #1, and later The Streets’ “Dry Your Eyes”. Shaboozey, a singer featured on Beyoncé’s latest pivot, has taken advantage of that extra traction to completely reimagine the chorus of “Tipsy” and its general conceit of having fun at a gathering to take your mind off problems, especially with girls… but there’s a lot of depth added through the extra populist twist thanks to the financial troubles referenced in the verses, and some particularly really smart intricacies like turning the counting gimmick into counting the rounds of drinks at the bar. He recontextualises a basically meaningless gimmick into something that is a lot more resonant, and that’s really special. Sonically, it feels like a bit more organic stomp-clap soarer, and isn’t really all that special, but the inspired interpolation of “Tipsy”, alongside some great strings in the post-chorus, makes this what it is, and it doesn’t run out of tricks. The shift to a rap flow in the second verse to continue the momentum is brilliant, the spoken backing vocals amidst the multi-tracked crowd hook, which I almost wish was even louder, is a fun idea… and that’s before that final chorus where it breaks down and becomes a true drink-a-long. Sure, this may be a reimagined version of a song I don’t like really at all, but it goes far beyond just that and creates a new experience not just as a cover but as a separate entity entirely that embraces and benefits from its referencing. This is how you do sampling in pop, it’s excellent. I hope this is a smash.

#35 - “These Words” - Badger and Natasha Bedingfield

Produced by Badger

Alright, once again, we have a sample, this time with Natasha Bedingfield’s “These Words”, that other song you might remember from the album that parents “Unwritten”. What you may not remember is that whilst this hasn’t had nearly as much longevity as the title track, it actually peaked much higher, debuting at #1 and topping the charts for two weeks in 2004. This is in spite of it being complete garbage. I like meta narratives in pop music when done well and outside of its camp, it can be genuinely difficult to get through the jerky, dated production and somewhat embarrassing performance, especially lyrically, from Bedingfield. I understand the appeal, and the writing isn’t really a deal-breaker usually, but it’s especially striking to me when the actual music behind her quest to find the best words for her love song… just plainly sucks. Come 2024 and enter UK garage producer Badger, who remixes the track, crediting Bedingfield on streaming but for whatever reason not on the Official Charts page, and I have to say, completely stripping this catchy hook outside of its tedious context is another inspired reimagining, mostly because it turns the “I love you, I love you” refrain into a muffled, glitchy funfest over some of the most detailed, hyperactive 2-step drums I’ve heard on the charts in a while, alongside a hazier synthscape that really shines against the rawer vocal from Bedingfield. Once again, modern artists turn a song from the 2000s I never really liked into a completely different experience, in this case completely removing you from Bedingfield’s narrative to fully envelop you in the euphoric end goal she hints towards in the original. Hope this takes off too.

#31 - “Tell Ur Girlfriend” - Lay Bankz

Produced by Johnny Goldstein

Speaking of taking off, it seems we finally have the inevitable breakout single for Lay Bankz. I’ve been paying attention to her casual flexing and dismissal of pretty much anything else over firy, fast-paced Philly club bangers for a while now, probably since I discovered “Na Na Na”, and it did seem like TikTok would grant her an easy hit any moment now. She finally got it with “Tell Ur Girlfriend” and here, if you don’t remember the specific production elements of its original material, you might not recognise this has yet another interpolation. I wasn’t a fan of Ginuwine’s 1996 track “Pony” for a long time because I felt its dissonance harmed its ability to be a sex jam but… let’s be real, rarely do sex jams actually succeed without being in some way disruptive due to awkward lyrics or stagnant beats. Once I learned to shut up and appreciate Timbaland’s vocoder burping that calls itself a bassline, all was right in my world. It peaked at #16 over here in 1997 and did have a shelf life extending to an EDM remix peaking at #39 in 2015. Bankz and Goldstein don’t really make much use of “Pony”’s fundamentals rhythm or melody-wise, outside of that out of place vocoder burp that is repurposed as a measure-demarcating stab over a comically jerky, sing-songy synth that slows down the pace enough for a 2-step-influenced 2000s throwback, Destiny’s Child-esque, not to rap but closer to R&B. Bankz surprises me to a degree with just how effortlessly she swaps between faster jabs to the smooth choruses, and it almost makes me forget that this is a song about mutual cheating. Does it justify that? No. And who cares? They’re having toxic fun over the Ginuwine “Pony” vocal burp and some of the ugliest synths to hit the top 40 in years, this is not morally righteous in any regard. It’s just pure, sweaty, regretful fun and does not waste any of its two-minute runtime trying to justify itself, and given this whole song is a sarcastic power move about how they should probably tell their partners they’re sleeping with each other, I don’t think she cares in the slightest.

#10 - “Forget About Us” - Perrie

Produced by Steve Solomon and Andrew Goldstein

Okay, the samplefest ended up going pretty fantastically, so I have some hopes for the trio of pop girlies we have lined up all debuting in the top 10, starting with the solo debut from Perrie Edwards of the former girl group Little Mix. She’s always been one of the most prominent vocal talents in the group, so regardless of if the song actually works, there’s going to be power here, and that’s guaranteed, even with an Ed Sheeran writing credit and a compressed to Hell and back mix. In this soarer, Perrie’s ex has become a successful singer after the breakup and Perrie is begging for them to never forget about what they lost in the relationship, especially given how neither seem all that over this relationship and its fallout. There’s a propelling pop rock drive to this, even if the lack of electric grit may harm it a tad, not letting it get into truly bitter territory… which might actually be for the best. Ms. Edwards sounds great belting here but there is a level of restraint in all the acoustic swell that might sing closer to the desperate content, acknowledging the flaws in the relationship and that it is over, but that it should, please, stick to them as a memory. A less kind approach may have flattened its overall sincerity, so even if sonically, I’m not over the Moon about this, I can recognise that this is a tightly-written, excellently performed little pop rock jam that will serve as a good introduction to the solo career. I just want to hear where it goes next.

#9 - “Illusion” - Dua Lipa

Produced by Kevin Parker and Danny L Harle

Okay, Dua, let’s be straightforward. Mixing PC Music’s wildcard Danny L Harle with Tame Impala should lead to much more interesting music than what we’ve heard from Radical Optimism - a disgraceful album title - so far, and I won’t lie and say what has been put out post-”Houdini” hasn’t been somewhat disappointing. I was hoping that “Illusion” could take a bit of a different step, tap into some less recognisable territory for Dua, and whilst it may not have done that exactly, it’s definitely much more interesting. Harle and Parker go for a much tighter house groove here, with elevated pianos, chips of percussion that end up much more minimal under the looming vocal loops and progressive electronic synth beeping, maybe much less impactful than you’d expect. So where’s that in the content? Well, Dua sings about disappointment, playing off a façade placed up by this guy who’s just not impressing her at all, as she’s growing up from just being reckless with her lovers. It’s in the same vein as “Training Season” but with a more unique and honestly more fitting soundscape for that kind of romantic disillusionment, especially given a major conceit of the bridge is that she’s still going to dance all night with that illusion, she still gives in despite her best interests. It also has a ridiculous synth solo slabbed right in for no reason. Genius. Inspiring.

#6 - “Espresso” - Sabrina Carpenter

Produced by Julian Bunetta

I really have not been going into Sabrina Carpenter singles that chart with high expectations or really any expectation that I’ll enjoy it, and she keeps proving me wrong, but not in the way that say Dua just did. No, Ms. Carpenter shares more in common with D-Block Europe in that the appeal, at least for me, comes in the lack of subtlety and disregard for functioning outside of existing pop tropes, whilst still thoroughly embarrassing her public image, cycling around enough for me to be unironically on board. Like “Nonsense” was a plain rip-off that ended up surviving beyond the genuine article on comedy alone, and “Feather” is as light as possible, no pun intended, yet still pinches at you with its infestation of hooks, “Espresso” is emphatically stupid. “Switch it up like Nintendo”? “My give-a-fucks are on vacation”? “I know I Mountain Dew it for ya”? “MOUNTAIN DEW IT FOR YA”? It reminds me all too much of Selena Gomez’s nu-disco embarrassment “Love On”, but instead of selling the cringe with sheer forcefulness, which did surprisingly work for the incredibly limited vocalist Selena is, Sabrina plays the guitar licks and downright invasive pre-chorus synths off with utter, robotic dismissal. Sure, there’s vocal riffing and harmonising, but the main vocal line in the chorus is a multi-tracked, reverb-drenched, Melodyne-controlled nursery rhyme, and it doesn’t escape that lane for nearly all of its three minutes. There are spoken word interludes where she acknowledges the stupidity of the song and its content, but it’s always breezy and lacking in the cringe that would come with it if she cared much at all. The deadpan “Yes” ad-libs in the pre-chorus, and the detail put into the production, are what really sell this to me though. It’s orchestrated to make it seem like she doesn’t care, but there is an entire team twisting the knobs to turn that faux carelessness to a seamless radio edit… and well, they need a raise. She’s done it again. This is ridiculous.

Conclusion

She doesn’t get the Best of the Week though because that, far and above, goes to Shaboozey for “A Bar Song (Tipsy)”, and the Honourable Mention… well, I can’t give out a Worst of the Week at all here. Or even a Dishonourable Mention. Sure, Perrie’s song is a bit generic and maybe my enjoyment of the DBE track is purely for the comedy factor, but I still thoroughly enjoyed my time with them, so I’m just going to tie the Honourable Mention between “These Words” by Badger and well, “Espresso” by Sabrina Carpenter, which is shaping up to thankfully be huge. As for what’s on the horizon… Taylor Swift and Drake. It’s back to the big leagues in the next episode but for now, thank you for reading, long live Cola Boyy, and I’ll see you next week!

#uk singles chart #pop music #song review #future #metro boomin #the weeknd #sabrina carpenter #dua lipa #natasha bedingfield #badger #shaboozey #perrie edwards #lay bankz #d-block europe

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