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#「 promo. 」 ⇀  save this selfish world .
fuubutsushi · 2 years
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awellreadmannequin · 7 months
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Some thoughts on Arlecchino
Since the Fontaine siblings received their new promo materials, I’ve seen people speculating on whether or not Arlecchino is sincere in the affection they seem to believe she holds for them. I tend to suspect that she is, in part because of her association with Harlequin, the commedia dell’arte character from which she gets her name. Thus far, the Harbingers we’ve met tend to map their personalities fairly cleanly onto the stock characters they’re named for. Il Dottorre is an arrogant know it all, La Signora is a beautiful woman who thinks over much of herself, and Scaramouche is quick to pick fights. Tartaglia is of lower class origins and knows his way around a sword. If this pattern holds, then we can possibly learn somethings about Arlecchino from studying the Harlequin. Harlequin is a trickster and an acrobat. As a servant character, he serves to create a comedic tone through his physicality. Over time, his association with Columbina turned him into a romantic hero, whose wit was employed to win her over from her husband, Pierrot.
From what we’ve seen of her thus far, Arlecchino seems to fit a good number of these traits. She is a servant of the Tsaritsa, but one who pursues her own agendas. Given her actions in the trailers and her association with the siblings, it seems as though she has a flair for the theatric. This is fitting considering that the Harlequin’s role is, in part, to keep the audience engaged. Both Scaramouche and Tartaglia suggest that she is dishonest and manipulative, traits fitting for a trickster. Now, if we want to judge the sincerity of her motives, we have to decide whether she fits the bill of the earlier, comedic relief Harlequin or the later romantic hero Harlequin. I’m inclined to believe her depiction will likely hew closer to the latter than the former. Arlecchino seems too self serious and to politically motivated to be a simple minded trickster. She strikes me as a romantic.
It’s worth noting that romantic here does not mean ‘relating to love and courtship.’ Rather, it refers to the movement towards sentimental art that explored emotions and depicted characters as being motivated by and often in thrall to their passions. More so than any other Harbinger we’ve thus far met, I would describe Arlecchino as having romantic sentiments. At Singora’s funeral, she chastises the dispassionate way in which her colleague is being morned. Her actions and words suggest a preoccupation with the past and the future, both viewed through a sentimental lens. Her apparent insistence that the children be their own people harkens to the romantic ideal of individualism while her desire to save Fontaine from disaster speaks to another romantic preoccupation: nation building. I would go so far as to suggest that she sees herself as a romantic hero. In her mind, she is a savior of lost children and a patriot forced to fall in with a treacherous enemy to save a people blinded to impending disaster by their own decadence. And, like any good romantic hero, Arlecchino is preoccupied with her own mortality. Why would she need to hand pick a successor if she did not believe that there was a chance her actions would lead to her own demise.
Now, none of this is to say that I think Arlecchino is in the running for Teyvat’s number 1 dad. Rather, I think that her actions really are motivated by genuine sincerity rather than pure self-interest. However, that sincerity falls prey to the trap of sentiment, which can cause us to become absorbed in our own emotions. The romantic hero is ultimately a selfish character who views the world through the lens of how it makes them feel. All of this is to say, that I suspect that Arlecchino is neither just a manipulative monster nor a pure soul trapped in an impure world. No, I suspect that her motivations and her sentiments will be complex and difficult to untangle.
I’m adding this as a post script, because it’s a half formed thought, but Arlecchino as a romantic hero is also fitting for the thematic importance of French Opera. Like, she would fit right in with the trashiest, overwrought operas that 19th century France has to offer. I cannot wait to see how her story plays out!
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Cyberpunk TTRPG Ascendancy is out in full on itch.io!
5 years ago, the empire ruling the world fell - and now everyone is trying to pick up the pieces. You were created to be the empire’s perfect weapons, but your masters are dead. You’re free. Free to find yourself, free to fight for the cause you believe in, and free to discover what you’re truly capable of.
Ascendancy is a Sparked by Resistance TTRPG for 3-5 players, set in a cyberpunk city in a distant future, after the empire that ruled the world for centuries has fallen. You play as Ascended, psychic cyborgs given extraordinary powers by the empire, and forced to act as their weapons. But now that they’re gone, the Ascended are scattered - scared, confused, and lost. Some of them are right back to being used as weapons again, but not you - you’re there to help them. Your team of Ascended will try to save the others who are being controlled, try to stop factions that have only their own selfish aims in mind, and try to find who you actually are during all this chaos.
All the art you see in the book was done by me, and most of it has never been shown anywhere else so I'm very excited for it to be out 👀 but beyond the self-promo it's also just an incredibly cool world and fascinating game structure so you should go buy it. Right now.
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peregrintook · 1 year
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would you recommend trop now? 👀
Listen.... LISTEN ANON!!!!! 😭
Do you want the short or the long answer?
The short one is yes.
The long one is .... under the cut. 😂
The long one I think is still basically yes but it depends so strongly on what you want from it!
Do you want a faithful to canon lore accurate Silmarillion (first/second age) adaption? And is that the only thing you want and will you be upset fi it is anything different? Then probably don't watch it.
But. BUT!
If you're open to some changes and some creativity then give it a CHANCE.
Because I was so sceptical and so critical and pretty much convinced I wasn't going to like it and I'd only watch the first episode just so I'd be able to complain about it later.
And don't get me wrong there are still a bunch of things in there that I'm not really happy with but.. honestly the things they did right make up for it.
First of all it's absolutely visually stunning. The costumes, the locations, it's GORGEOUS. Lindon especially, and Khazad Dum, and Numenor, and if middle-earth means as much to you as it does to me then you will WEEP seeing these locations on screen.
And then the characters!! Sure, I can't say I'm a big fan of rop Galadriel (yet) but - listen, this is only season 1, she may yet get a whole lot of character development. BUT THERE ARE SO MANY OTHERS.
You all know I'm absolutely obsessed with rop Elrond. Even though when they released the promo pictures of the cast first I was like ??? Who this ??? This not Elrond ??? BUT YES HE IS. This Elrond is so wise and so good and so noble and so calm and just so COMFORTING. KIND AS SUMMER INDEED!!! Seriously, give Robert Aramayo one minute of your time to convince you of his acting skills and you'll never doubt him again. This man knows what he's doing.
But moving on to less obvious opinions - Durin!!! He has a huge heart like. Pats him on the head this short man can fit so much love. He's just so GENUINE and soft and good and loyal and brave and mischievous and WONDERFUL. and so is Disa! Am I still annoyed that she doesn't have a beard? Yes, a bit, but look she has a LITTLE bit of a beard, and anyway she doesn't need one. She's amazing. She's wonderful and lovely and wise and kind and good and fiery and passionate and supportive and accepting and she's a mother and a princess and a resonator and a friend and a mediator and I just love her SO MUCH.
And Arondir is wonderful too, I'm SO annoyed that his character (and actor!) are getting so much hate just for his skin color and because he's an original character, like ??? It doesn't MATTER, he's LOVELY. Sure he doesn't look like your generic white skinned long haired PJ movies elf but he doesn't have to! He's BEAUTIFUL and he's an elf and he's a wonderful character with so much love and compassion and goodness in his heart, he just wants to save as much of the world as he possibly can, he just wants to do GOOD.
Which reminds me - Nori!!! Nori is very similar to Arondir actually, I think, just more innocent and naive - understandably because she is MUCH younger, but still - all she wants to do it do something good, something that matters.
If you haven't noticed a theme by now, let me point it out to you: there is so much goodness in this show. And I find that so fucking refreshing. Because after GoT and all the "ThE nExT GoT" we got over the last few years I have been getting seriously tired of grimdark pessimistic "blabla this is realistic because everything sucks and nobody is actually good everybody is ultimately selfish" bullcrap. No offense to GoT fans, I know that's not ALL got is and I'm sure the books are better about it (I haven't read past the first one because I don't do well with too many POVs!), but there's just been this increase of demand or expectation for violence and cynicism and bitterness (and also lots and lots of sex for some reason) in high fantasy lately - and ROP doesn't do that. ROP says we're here to be good to each other. We're here to treat each other kindly. We don't want to give the darkness even a chance, not out there, and not in ourselves. We care about each other and we work together and that is how we win, ultimately.
I think this theme is strongest in the arcs of Durin and Elrond, and Nori, and Arondir so far - which is why they're my favorites - it's less apparent in Galadriel and Halbrand and Miriel's part of the story yet, but I have a feeling it will be eventually. Galadriel is already learning, she's already changed from episode 1. She'll get there. And look at the Harfoots - going from "you're going to the end of the caravan and if you can't keep up that's goodbye then i guess" to "what's the point of living if we can't live good"?? FUCK, MAN. SHE'S RIGHT. What WOULD be the point??
GOD I could go on but I have to get something to eat so I'll stop here but feel free to comment because I'd LOVE to discuss rop with you all!! <33
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seventeenlovesthree · 2 years
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Digimon Relationship/Character Analysis Masterpost (tbc)
I really plan on doing more “Digimon Character/Relationship Analysis” posts, with Jyoumato, Jyoumi, Jyoura, Taiora and Taijyou being pretty much on top of the list, but for now... Let’s summarize everything I already have:
Relationships:
Taishirou: [General] [02] [Kizuna first impression] [Kizuna complete] [OG vs Reboot Comparison] [Fights and Forgiveness] [Male/Female characters shipping ratio] [Koushirou’s Dark Cave] [Stageplay I, II, III, IV] [Why I love them so much] [Connected through worlds] [Ship Analysis] [Byler Comparison] [Taikouvember - Loyalty] [Visual Parallels] [Why I love them - once more]
Koura: [General I, II, III] [Kizuna]
Somi: [General]
Yamashirou: [General]
Jyoumato: [Stageplay]
Koukari: [General] [Analysis]
Koumi: [General I, II]
Kounoa: [OWG Connection Headcanon]
Taito: [Punching and Fighting I] [Punching and Fighting II] [Ship Analysis]
Taikoura: [General I, II, III] [Headcanons] [Shipping Chart] [Our War Game Fights & Apologies]
Taikoukari: [General I, II, III]
Taiorato: [Sorato’s love for Taichi]
Others: [Miori Analysis] [Takari Analysis] [Iora Analysis] [Kendaiyako/Miwasuke Analysis] [Ioshirou Analysis] [Takori Analysis] [Misuke Analysis] [Daiora Analysis] [Taikari Analysis] [Kenkari Analysis] [Jyoumi Analysis] [Michi Analysis] [Taijyou Analysis] [Sokari Analysis] [Koumi + Mimato Analysis] [Daiyako Analysis] [Koukeru Analysis] [Koumei Analysis] [Jyou Kidou’s OG Chosen Children relationships] [Outside Shipping] [Taichi/Daisuke, Sora/Miyako, Koushirou/Iori Parallels] [Takari/Daiken 02 Parallels] [Daiken’s Romantic Jogress] [Kouken Bonding Moment] [Daiken Character Development] [Taisuke Positivity] [Daikari Positivity] [Ioshirou Positivity] [Takari/Meichi Positivity] [Daisuke/Wallace Positivity]
Poll Analysis Posts: [Main] [Taichi Yagami] [Yamato Ishida] [Sora Takenouchi] [Koushirou Izumi] [Mimi Tachikawa] [Jyou Kidou] [Takeru Takaishi] [Hikari Yagami] [Daisuke Motomiya] [Ken Ichijouji] [Miyako Inoue] [Iori Hida] [Meiko Mochizuki] [Ship Poll Analysis 2023-2024 tbc]
Characters:
All/General: [Signature Colours vs. Associated Colours] [Love Languages] [Plot Drivers] [Trauma] [Digimon Partners as Soul Mirrors] [Main Characters] [02 vs. Tri] [Conflict dramaturgy in 01] [Reboot Reincarnation Theory] [Sexual orientation headcanons] [Reboot vs. Sailor Moon I, II, III, IV] [OG vs. Sailor Moon] [English Capabilities] [Digital World Wish Fulfilment] [Missed Opportunities to show Diversity in 01/02] [Child Warriors] [The Meaning of Life] [Pros/Cons Kizuna] [The Digital World: parallel worlds & wishes] [The Beginning SPOILERS Meta] [The Beginning Audio Drama Analysis] [Future Portrayal Wishes] [Episode 31 Analysis] [Reboot Sequel Hopes]
Team Light/Team Hope: [OWG framing] [Final/promo framings] [Casual reboot] [Fateful Team Light] [Team Light Reboot final I, II] [Team Hope Reboot final I, II]
Koushirou Izumi: [Breaking male stereotypes] [On his own] [Selfishness vs. Selflessness] [Reboot] [Physical Touch] [Boyfriend] [Appreciation Hours] [Magical Boy] [Stageplay] [Personality]
Sora Takenouchi: [General I, II, III] [OWG vs. Kizuna] [02] [”Why can’t you understand?!”]
Taichi Yagami: [Tri VA analysis] [Who can hurt him] [Reboot ships] [How he got into politics] [Taichi vs. Daisuke] [Struggling with isolation] [Trauma response] [Who would approach him in his bad mental state?] [Idealization I] [Idealization II] [Death Symbolism]
Jyou Kidou: [General I, II] [Stageplay MVP] [Stageplay Comic Relief]
Honarary PSP game section:
Taiora: [”One day, a bird that Sora saved came back to return the favour”] [Tell me about it] [Reassuring] [EVERYONE loves Sora] [Self doubt] [Everything to save Sora] [Your crest will glow one day] [Cheering her up] [Obligations] [Football] [Since elementary school]
Taishirou: [Making choices I, II] [Research] [Don’t push yourself] [Sacrifice] [Bonding over Hikari] [Taichi actually has two boyfriends and a girlfriend] [Comrades]
Yamashirou: [Agreement] [Cooking] [Worried] [Expedition] [Theorizing]
Koura: [Maternal instincts] [Bonding over Taichi I, II, III] [Do you like computers?]
Koukari: [Attachments] [Teaching] [Flowers]
Koumi: [Praise]
Jyoushirou: [Attitude]
Somi: [Together]
tbc.
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rebelliousties · 3 years
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boop-le-snoot · 3 years
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BUTT-DIAL? NO, BOOTY CALL | tony stark
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explicit, 5,4k words. wrong number text, family shame & wedding drama that isn't even his and a ruined first date. despite the implications of the situation, both reader and tony are very entertained. meet-ugly series, part three.
[no y/n, no "you", no name, no reader description - race/age/body type neutral, she/her pronouns]
💚 masterlist ☀️ taglist & faq 💚
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Another sunny day spent wasted in a conference room full of boring, old, conceited chairmen. Tony Stark vehemently refused to commiserate with them, their boring speeches and blunt, straightforward thinking. Sitting through a meeting was like walking on nails barefoot: painful, pointless. Mind-numbing.
His phone beeped loudly and he reached into his pocket, pretending to not see Pepper's disapproving look. Both of them knew he was hoping for a sudden Assemble call - that would surely get him out of the meeting - but as much as he hoped, they never struck at the right time.
Except, this time it wasn't a call for assistance, and neither it was an automated spam message with Pizza Hut promo codes. Tony's eyebrows drew close and his lips upturned as he read and re-read the obvious rant written on his screen, typing up his answer before he managed to resist the morbid curiosity that was fueled by his boredom.
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Whoever it was, they were justifiably angry and the whole situation was almost too comical to be true, except he'd known people exactly like the runaway bride, selfish, greedy and stupid. He totally understood the woman's desire to just go and load up on tequila shots somewhere - so he bid her a haste farewell, all the while snickering to himself.
"It's Rogers," Tony offered in the way of explanation to a glaring Pepper, locking his phone away and settling in to continue pretending he was listening as another old, crusty white man offered his input on topics he was too much of a dinosaur to even really know about.
He couldn't stop thinking about the incident over the days, the story making him snort more times than he could count as the memory randomly crossed his mind in the lab, at the coffee pot or during dinner. So when a message came through from that very same number, the smirk snuck up onto his face before he even read its contents.
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A brief crash course in memes from Parker had turned out to be more useful than ever. Irritating Rogers with pictures got old very fast, however, in moments Tony got rendered speechless they proved to be the perfect substitute for trying to articulate all his thoughts on the matter.
Celebrity appearance, she said? More likely than one would think. The engineer had nearly doubled over in a fit of laughter when she'd texted him that; obviously, the woman had no clue who she was texting with and he decided to further indulge in his curiosity by asking for her name: Friday did the rest.
A phone number and a name, ten minutes, and all her social media were free for him to stalk. Investigate- uh, observe. With little effort, Tony found both her and her brother, the unlucky groom, and the runaway bride and even her step-dad. On paper, they all looked like average middle-class families. Nothing seemed amiss.
It didn't mean anything, but Tony caught himself thinking about the woman. Perhaps it might have been the mischievous gleem in her eyes that was easily spotted in every picture or perhaps the raunchy sense of humour not much different from his own. Pretty, witty and smart - what's there not to like?
"So that's why you've been going around, smiling like a middle-schooler with a crush," Natasha's voice whisper-shouted in Tony's ear as the spy discreetly peered over his shoulder into his phone. He had the chat pulled up, debating on starting a casual conversation-
"Jesus Christ, Romanoff, somebody needs to put a bell on you," Tony snapped, startled, pressing the button to lock his phone immediately.
"Uhuh," The redhead replied, side-eyeing a snickering Barnes. "Who is she?"
Tony rubbed his face, feeling the beginnings of a blush starting to creep in. He felt like he was caught doing something he wasn't supposed to and the rest of the team acting like children wasn't helping the matter. "I got a butt-dial text about some wedding drama. Some chick's brother's fiance was fucking her own stepdad and ditched the wedding for her old man."
Stunned silence settled briefly into the room as Romanoff's eyes widened and Barnes choked on his orange juice. Serves him right, Tony thought, and continued his coffee-making process in quiet irritation.
"Wait, wait, hold on," Wilson half-laughed half-yelled. "You gotta spill the tea, man, this sounds too good to be true. Stories like that just don't fall into your hands."
With a sigh, he recounted the woman's story and read the texts aloud, silencing his snickering enough to be able to keep a straight face - but not for long, Rogers decided it was the time for another one of his Captain America Is Disappointed In You speeches and Tony himself couldn't even disagree.
Now that he thought about it, he came off as a kind of asshole. She and her family was going through something traumatic and he went and treated it like free entertainment. Which, to be fair, it was, but she didn't deserve to be treated like a circus clown. She actually seemed like a good sister and friend.
"Just text her," Natasha rolled her eyes at him, grabbing the coffee pot out of his frozen hand. "You're not Steve, you can keep a decent conversation via text."
Being compared to Steve and his pre-historic messaging habits really did a number on Tony's ego; the eyeroll he gave Romanoff was truly out of this world, all but teleporting him to his lab where he tried to find a way to approach the woman without coming off as incredibly creepy, as if the fact that he'd stalked her on social media didn't already put him firmly into the weirdo category.
Most likely, Tony would have spent many many days on overthinking before just grabbing one of his suits to make a truly impressive landing on her small balcony downtown; thankfully, fate had intervened and saved him from making another epic mistake. He'd made a note to ask Thor about it sometime, settling down with his tablet and popcorn bowl to watch TV on the team's movie night.
Or, more precisely, Tony settled in to watch the drama unfold as the various members of the team fought tooth and nail for the film that they wanted to watch. He never cared about it much, dozing off halfway through most of them - his teammates had the worst taste in movies - so he didn't bother joining the scuffle except when it was Peter's turn to pick. For obvious reasons.
"If you can't decide I'm gonna have someone else pick a movie," Natasha rolled her eyes, equally fed up with fully grown adults acting like spoiled toddlers.
With a stutter of his breath, Tony's hand reached for his phone as he had an Idea.
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Seconds tickled as the "typing..." bubble appeared and disappeared multiple times. She must think he's just a thirsty frat boy; Tony's brow furrowed, but the curiosity was far too strong in him. Something about her vibe, her feisty nature captivated him and kept him thinking about her.
The agreement came as a surprise. In the two minutes the woman had spent thinking up her answer, Tony prepared himself to be rebuffed gently, or, worst case, be called a creep. But no - she agreed, but not before vehemently insisting that if he would end up being a creepy serial killer, she would haunt his ass for the remainder of his life.
Friday couldn't come soon enough. Tony spent most of the day loitering between his lab and the penthouse, glancing at his phone every now and then to make sure she wouldn't cancel on him last minute. The engineer wanted to see the witty, no-filter-having woman in the flesh.
And see her, he did. He'd pulled up in front of the hole-in-the wall Ramen&Bar place Clint had been raving about weeks prior - contrary to popular belief, Tony was perfectly fine with going to places that didn't have Michelin stars - and leaned against the door of his Audi R8, eyes immediately taking note of the figure calmly walking down the street, head tilted down where she was typing up a reply to him.
Tony smirked as she lifted her face up to see him, mouth immediately falling open. The shock was obvious; it lasted mere seconds until her shoulders dropped and she sighed almost... In disappointment. He frowned.
"I jinxed it, didn't I? Here's my celebrity appearance," The laugh was a little nervous and quite sardonic. "Hi, Tony, nice to finally see you."
He smiled, unsure, quipping back easily. "Let's face it, I'm not the worst famous Tony out there." Opening the door of the building for the woman, she stepped in eagerly enough, eyes immediately falling on the bartender and the few dimly lit tables in the back.
"Not by any means," She turned towards him, walking backwards. Tony met her stare; it was just like he'd imagined it to be, curious, mischievous and a little daring. She didn't even attempt to play subtle, raking over him from head to toe. "Not at all, I think," She gave another teasing smile, finally turning around, addressing the bartender and rattling off her order without as much as looking at the menu.
Tony couldn't stop staring. He was aware it was creepy, she was aware of his clever brown eyes barely paying attention to their surroundings or the beer or the food. The woman just quirked an eyebrow every time she caught him. His curiosity couldn't wait any more. "Why aren't you freaking out?" He blurted out, cursing himself out almost immediately after the words left his mouth.
"My almost-sister-in-law was fucking her own stepdad," The woman deadpanned. "I ran out of fucks to give, sorry." She thoughtfully chewed her food, briefly looking to the side. "Not to sound like an asshole, but don't you have enough people fawning over you? Doesn't it get old?"
Tony nodded, choosing to stay silent on the matter besides offering an amicable, "That's valid."
The mischief lit up again in her eyes. "You look taller on TV," She snorted, immediately falling into a fit of laughter at his face full of outrage. He sputtered, muttering something about audacity of some people, which made her only laugh harder. "Here's a pro tip from my 4'11 bestie: when someone calls you short, you snarl at them and say you're fun-sized. She swears by it," The woman remarked conversationally, grinning a two hundred watt smile.
Tony was glad at least someone was enjoying their little... Date. "And you know all about fun, don't you?" He aimed for grumpy; it came out as teasing. His famous smirk made a return appearance as he watched her throat bob.
The atmosphere between them had changed at some point; the same old routine of teasing and dancing around each other, but this time, Tony all but purred in satisfaction, finally meeting someone who was an even match to his wit and charm.
"I do," She replied with that cocky confidence, her devil eyes lighting up, lingering on his face. "Got a problem with that?"
The plate was pushed away, napkin falling into the food carelessly as he gestured for the waiter to bring the check. "As a scientist, I cannot confirm whether a theory is true until I have direct evidence," The bullshit flowed easily from his mouth, but the woman appeared to be amused by it - for a change. "M'fraid I'm gonna need that evidence," His fingers drummed on the table, impatiently, inches away from her hand.
"Of course, Mr. Stark," Her voice dropped, she was fully aware of what she was doing by calling him that. That, and those deep, magnetic eyes made Tony's trousers feel a little too tight for comfort.
His phone rang loudly, dissipating the atmosphere they had created with a shrill noise. Captain Cockblock struck again.
Fumbling fingers, Tony tapped the green icon, shooting an apologetic look to the woman. "Rogers, there better be another alien invasion or I'm revoking your phone privileges," The woman chortled, taking a sip of her beer, trying hard not to seem like she was listening in and failing spectacularly at it. "Today, out of all days? Can't Strange fill in for me?" The engineer palmed his face, running a hand through his neatly done-up hair. It would be covered in soot and sweat in an hour anyways. "Fine, I'll be there in twenty minutes. Romanoff better be hauling Barton's lazy ass out of Bed-Stuy." With a frown, Tony poked the red icon and stuffed the phone back in his pocket, looking for all and all, like an angry adolescent.
The woman, however, didn't indicate any signs of displeasure. Her hand timidly reached out for his, giving it a brief squeeze. "Go, save the world, Mr. Stark," Her smile was sympathetic. They both stood up at the same time, Tony watching her incredulously as the woman untied a scrap of red fabric from around her neck and placed it around his wrist, tying the fabric with a loose but, frankly, pretty knot. "I like that bandanna, would be a shame if you didn't return it," She explained, shrugging her shoulders.
Tony snorted, fondly rolling his eyes, before beelining for the door, activating his Iron Man suit on the way out. Turning around before take off, he noticed her throw a couple of crumpled bills to the server who was too busy ogling him.
He forgot to pay for dinner, Tony realized as he made his way to the other part of the city. Well, fuck, he would definitely have to see her again.
---
An alien invasion during her first good date in ages - scribble, scribble, sigh. She couldn't do much more than that - just as she thought her string of bad luck had ended, the world turned around and flipped her a juicy bird, all but laughing straight in her face. Like that already wasn't enough, oh no, she groused as she spied the debris and random abandoned cars on her way home - it looked like some portion of the battle had been close to her home and only the sheer mental exhaustion that resulted from her life being turned upside down during the last month prevented her from having a full-on freak-out in the middle of the eerily quiet street.
Truly, the fucks she had to give had been expired.
The gloomy mood was interrupted by a cry - for help or of outrage, she didn't know, but the kindness in her, the very values she'd been raised with didn't allow her just to walk by, and with another resigned sigh, she tucked the nice blouse she'd put on for the date under her warm sweater and set off in the direction of the sound, finding the culprit in little under a couple of minutes.
Freeing the trapped civilian wasn't easy but, thankfully, neither it required super-strength or any kind of heavy machinery. The man thanked her and with him in tow, both of them set off to inspect nearby nooks and crannies. Logic won that day - if there's was one person, there could be more.
Hours later, sweaty, sore and bruised, the woman greedily chugged the water bottle someone had passed onto her as the amount of medics and firefighters had finally reached the threshold of when her help wasn't needed anymore. While her date and his colleagues fought whatever nasty that thought NYC was a sandbox battleground for their amusement, the woman found herself helping out with retrieval & evacuation of the civilians that didn't make it out of the neighborhood before the heat of the fight reached it. There were no deaths registered as of then and deep inside, she felt proud, knowing that she had contributed to the statistic at least a little.
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Her phone was dying, her body was covered in dirt and scratches from head to toe and the bruises were beginning to ache. Tony's worry-worting was cute but the tiredness overcame her, making her brain sluggish and her demeanor short, so she hastily pocketed the phone, trailing over to the closest man in uniform she could spot.
"Sir?" She addressed him, eyeing the unfamiliar logo on his jacket. "Can I go, please?" She pointed to the yellow tape surrounding the makeshift medical station.
"I'm going to have to see your ID first," He replied apologetically, tapping away on his tablet.
With a sigh, she dug through her purse, giving it to him and using the brief moment of respite to smooth back her hair and dust off her clothing. There was a cloud of concrete and dirt surrounding her.
"I'm afraid I can't let you go just yet, Mr. Stark left strict instructions for you to be picked up by him personally," The agent gave the ID back with a suspicious glint in his eye.
"Oh c'mon," The annoyed whine escaped her lips before she registered it. "It was our first date," She offered to the puzzled agent, only succeeding in making him lean back and inspect her with a raised eyebrow. "Bye," She replied none too kindly, walking off to find a place to sit down.
The time passed in a strange way. The aches and pains and exhaustion made it stop, and if someone would have asked her, she wouldn't know how much of it has passed until her eyes reluctantly cracked open at the sound of a familiar voice, coming to see a pair of expensive shoes covered in dust. At least she wasn't the only one that looked like she'd taken a roll through someone's gritty attic.
"Morning, you Tasmanian Devil," Tony sounded jovial, all things considered.
"Hello to you too, Tin Can," The woman greeted him on par, without missing a beat.
"Now, now," He offered her his hand, which she took gratefully, before pulling her to her feet. "I come with peace offerings. Your building is under quarantine and I've got a perfectly good bed and a shower with thirty settings on it at my place. Whatcha say?"
She only pretended to think about it. Her reply was haste. "I don't make a habit of going into strange dudes' towers but I'll make an exception this once." A shower and a bed sounded heavenly.
Finally getting the chance to look at him, Tony appeared to be unhurt but equally exhausted and dirty. A few scrapes on his face and arms, he was missing his blazer, and had a weary tone to his face. Some parts of his Iron Suit were still on him - like the chest plate - but besides that, he was whole. The red of the bandanna she gave him was equally dirty but still neatly tied around his wrist, just like she left it.
"How's your relationship with heights?" He asked her and all she could do was blink, watching curiously as his body was enveloped by the red and gold, crawling over his skin like a swarm of shiny termites. That was all the warning she got before the metal arms - quite literally - sweeped her off her feet. "Faster this way," She could hear the nonchalant shrug in the metallic voice coming from the helmet. "Now hold on."
Awe and fear culminated inside the woman but the weariness had long since surpassed comfortable levels and all she did was give a weak nod and close her eyes as Tony lifted off, gusts of wind making her skin break out in goosebumps and her hair stand up wildly on her head. During the short trip her eyes fluttered open only once just to close back up immediately - all she saw were clouds, white and fluffy, like marshmallows, and the shining beacons of NYC skyscrapers somewhere far away.
The paralyzing anxiety fully dissipated only when her feet found purchase on the tiled floors, Tony's arms never ceasing to support her swaying frame until the breaths she took were her own and not the result of her fluttering heart and muted panic. "You with me, Wonder Woman?"
"Yes, Weird Science," She mumbled. "Thanks for the heads up," The annoyance had to find a way out and that it did.
"You're welcome," The cocky smirk returned to Tony's face as his suit receded, leaving him barefoot, dirty jeans and a torn tee. He stretched with a sweet groan, gesturing towards the door. "Friday will direct you towards the showers. Feel free to grab a t-shirt from the closet."
The woman nodded, too awestruck by the man and his hospitality, eyes darting all over the tastefully decorated room, the expensive knick-knacks scattered everywhere, the absolutely enormous sloppily made bed. Tony Stark liked to live luxuriously - even the shower was a state of the art technological wonder.
Dirty pants and dusty blouse went flying somewhere in the back of the bathroom as the woman stood up on her tippy toes, reaching for the sky, stretching her sore muscles. The glass wall of the shower had began to fog up from the hot water. The knock went barely noticed by the woman who jumped as Tony's voice startled her out of her daydream.
"Forgot I ran out of towels here..." He trailed off, voice dropping as he spotted her only in her underwear. She turned, responding with a lopsided grin, spying the stack of fluffy grey in his arms, the arc reactor in the middle of his bare chest. He smirked, "Damn. Can I join you?" Giving her what only could be described as a respectful once-over.
Tired as she was, her sense of humour and wit didn't go down for a much needed nap just yet. "I don't know, you tell me. Can you?" Turning back around, the woman made a short show of unclasping her bra and tossing it in the general vicinity of her dirty clothing pile. She'd worn a cute matching set of undies that day and the fact didn't go over Tony's head, she was sure.
The door clicked shut just as she raised her face to the stream of water, feeling calmer with each second, muscles relaxing themselves as the hot stream washed away the dirt and the dust off her body.
"And I thought this evening was ruined," Tony's voice insinuated from behind her. A hand reached for the soap, his body heat scorching compared to the steaming water. He stayed just a few inches away, enough to feel him, enough for her body to respond and crave more. "It's nice to be wrong for a change. Refreshing."
The woman hummed, reaching up to run her fingers through her wet, knotted hair. "First decent evening in ages. I wasn't gonna let some uninvited Predator knock-offs ruin it for me," She was more than a little peeved at the space invaders interrupting her nice date. Tony was a great conversationalist, it was easy to talk to him and he had a brilliant sense of humour. Not to mention the obvious, he was easy on the eyes.
"That's the spirit," The voice was closer now, almost in her ear. Even though her eyes were closed, the woman was aware he was reaching for something, letting him butt her hands out of the way to lather her hair, scrubbing at her scalp meticulously, until the sounds that left her mouth bordered on embarrassing. Once that was done, Tony moved onto her body, running his hands over her back, the outside of her hips. "M'not stepping over, am I?" He asked quietly, touch faltering every time he brushed over a scrape or a bruise.
"No, you're doing great, Tony," It wasn't exactly conventional - sharing a very intimate shower after an interrupted first date, but then again, nothing about this man was conventional and her life had already been turned upside down no less than twice recently. The woman didn't lie, the gentle, caring touch felt soothing.
Arching her back, she lifted her arms to repay him with the same, raking her fingers through his hair, leaning into the shudder that ran throughout his body. It was nice to bask in whatever they had going on, so the motion to face him was almost reluctant. Water droplets stuck to his eyelashes and his eyes were tired but not in a way that suggested he'd kick her out first chance.
Their kiss was sweet, slow, like they already were familiar with each other in a special way. The woman tugged on his lip with her teeth - such was her character - and he pressed closer to her, raising a hand to hold the side of her face. In muted curiosity, she couldn't help but wonder if there ever had been someone that waited for him once his battles were over.
Tony's eyelashes, the very same that had no business being this long on a man, fluttered against her cheek as they stood under the shower, letting water wash away the day.
"I've always wanted to kiss in the rain, like they do in the movies. This is the closest I've gotten," She whispered, gently kneading the arch of his shoulders. "Feels better than it looks, to be honest."
Tony snorted, reaching for the knob to turn it off. "Cheesy," He teased her, wrapping a warm, fluffy towel around her body. Both people made quick work of drying themselves, exiting the fogged up bathroom, making way into the bedroom, padding soft on the carpet and falling down on the bed carelessly.
"I'm the queen of cheesy one-liners," The woman raised her eyebrows, scooting under the sheets next to Tony who opened his arms wide, a smirk on his face. She didn't give him the chance to reply, slotting her lips over his instead and groaning as their heated bodies once again rested against each other.
She ran her hands over Tony's defined pecs, glossing over the arc reactor, raked nails over his tummy, eating up the sighs leaving his mouth at the gesture. He was a beautiful man, she wasn't going to lie to herself. The warmth that settled low in her belly grew, spreading throughout her limbs and temporarily overshadowing the exhaustion.
The engineer, too, was quite excited - his erection poked her hip - and content to be steered to her wishes by the hand in his hair. Groans and sighs left his moist, parted lips as his eagerness bled into his hands, grip firm and steady on the panting woman's hips.
Adrenaline did something to her body, caused it to ache sweetly, a hunger to be satisfied only by a lover's touch. And touch she did; her mouth tasted him, alternating sucking gentle marks onto his throat and nibbling on the skin stretched thinly over his collarbones. Tony's sighs grew in depth and volume with every silent action of worship.
No inch of his body was left untouched, the woman was an all-hands-on-deck kind of lover, happily making her way down until soft lips wrapped around the crown of his cock, making his hips arch into it, hands fisted in the soft white sheets. "You devil," Tony gasped out, limbs turning to jelly, watching the woman all but devour his cock.
She popped off minutely, a trail of sticky saliva running down her chin, sticking to his glistening cock. "The power of Christ compels me?" With a smirk, her tongue trailed from his balls to the very tip, paying extra attention to the frenulum, making Tony shudder and gasp out an embarrassed laugh.
"Uh-uh," Stripped of his usual snark, he was but a man at her mercy.
"It's not very compelling," The predatory stretch of her lips widened as she took mercy on him, giving his cock a few slow tugs with her hand. Her mouth, her hand and his cock were dripping. "Gonna let me do all the legwork, Mr. Stark?" She sat up straighter, inadvertently drawing his eyes to the apex of her thighs where the woman's sex glistened in the dim light, lips swollen and inviting.
It sounded like she was mocking him, teasing him, egging him into a lustful frenzy none of them had the energy for but craved anyway. Tony Stark wasn't the one to back down from a fair challenge so he relented, flipping them over with ease, landing between her spread legs, eyes drawn to the momentary bounce of her breasts. Tony wasted no time in suckling a hard nipple into his mouth, humming in response to her choked-off moan of surprise.
"Tony," Her body arched into his touch, tender skin hot under the callouses on his fingertips.
"Yes, demon, dear?" A lopsided grin and laughter in his eyes preceded the wet stripe Tony licked down to her navel. "Wasn't there something about not telling demons your name? Guess you have power over me now," He trailed off cheekily, soft breaths puffing over her mound.
The woman bit her lip, peering down to rake a hand through Tony's hair, snagging a fistful to gently steer him towards her pussy. Tony's smile was one of satisfaction as he obediently followed her silent order, nosing along the line of her cunt, dipping his tongue to run slow, sloppy lines through the soaked folds.
"Fuck," She mumbled, spreading her legs without shame. "Yeah, right there," Her fingers turned white at the agility of Tony's tongue on her clit. He was swift and relentless in pursuit of the spots that made her moan and clench around nothing. The moisture of her sex soaked his goatee but he couldn't care less.
He growled when she attempted to withdraw, wrapping his muscular arms around her thighs to keep her still for his pleasure, wringing noises that increased in volume with every stroke of his tongue on her sex.
"Tony- please, Tony, I'm gonna-" The warning was brief; her back arched as a broken moan found its way past her moist, parted lips, her pussy spasmed, dripping all over his face and the sheets.
The engineer hid his smile against her thigh, discreetly wiping the obscene amounts of moisture she produced. It wasn't very long until her hands, slightly shaky, were tugging him upwards to meet his face in a rushed, graceless kiss. There was an equal lack of finesse in the glide of his erection along her sex.
"Okay?" He mumbled into her ear, lining himself up with her fluttering cunt.
"Please," She gasped, her hands pushing his hips onto her, eagerly lifting up to accept the sweet intrusion.
There was a quiet stutter in both of their breathing, hearts thudding against their ribs as he finally bottomed out, the thickness of him nestled snugly inside the rippling muscle. The pace he started out was agonizingly slow and inexplicably sweet, neither of them wanting to end their coupling prematurely but not being able to hold back the need that consumed them both.
"Fuck, you're so good to me," Tony's mumbling was overshadowed by the slick sounds coming from the place they were joined. "Gonna fill up this pretty pussy."
The woman keened at the idea, digging her nails into his ass, pulling him further into her.
"You'd like that?" He picked up the pace, blunt tip of his cock catching up with the tail end of her previous orgasm and re-lighting the fire in her belly anew.
"Yeah, Tony, please," No trace of the previous coyness in her voice, the woman was more than ready to beg, murder and steal to feel the man come undone in her arms.
It didn't take long, not with the adrenaline making their blood sing and the chemistry they shared. The brutal pace of Tony's hips quickly grew sloppy and erratic, the tightening of her inner muscles egging him on. He chased his release with deep, powerful thrusts that had the bedsheets rustle pitifully and beads of clear swear drip down his forehead.
As soon as her body arched once more, Tony let go of his control, slotting himself deeply into her spasming heat, cock throbbing as he painted her insides white with his seed, groaning incomprehensible compliments and profanities through his teeth. Chest heaving, the engineer couldn't do much more but let himself carefully fall onto her chest, aftershocks making him twitch when the woman began running a gentle hand through his hair.
"We're doing this again," He decided, still breathless but already a step ahead. She laughed.
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Tony Stark taglist: @pilloclock @mikariell95 @letsby @sleep-i-ness @toomanyrobins @mostly-marvel-musings @persephonehemingway @downeyreads @schemefrenzy @lillsxd @slothspaghettiwrites @bluecrazedandbeautiful
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sheriff-caitlyn · 3 years
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//I was on the fence about whether or not I would watch Arcane but the depiction of Viktor in the promos has helped me make up my mind.
The original Viktor was a man who was driven for worker safety and innovation. He was a man of hope and passion, but in his naivete he was used and abused by the system he lived in. His hope turns to despair... but he believes his work has such merit that he’s willing to prove it, turning himself into a living example that he is a talented doctor and engineer. But cutting off perfectly healthy limbs to replace with mechanical prosthesis is unnerving, disturbing, especially to a world that looks for only the easy way out/onwards. He’s called a mad scientist, when his only madness is what happens when hope is deferred.
His new lore has Viktor being weirdly cold, calculating, detached from the humanity he was originally bent on saving. Now, it’s all about making things more efficient, even to the point of removing free will in order to have a more focused workforce. The fact that we have a calculating individual lacking in empathy who is also disabled reeks of eugenics. There is no emotional struggle or mental anguish, there is just the inevitable slide into ‘humanity deserves to be eradicated because it is weak’. 
Making Viktor weak and physically disabled undercuts his motivations and character entirely. To offer the ‘excuse’ for his madness being ‘he tried so hard to fix himself’ makes him selfish, not to mention being entirely tone-deaf in regards to what makes someone human. The shorthand of villains being disabled is utterly abhorrent; there’s no ‘tragedy’ here, there’s just this sense of ‘well he was bound to fail because he’s not even able to walk without a cane’.  He has become a representation of failure and helplessness... and shorthanded visually as the inevitable villain. They’re even lobbing a molotov at him, because clearly we as the audience need to understand that this man is the focus of scorn and deserves to be attacked; we should also pity him because he’s bound to fail from the beginning.
We could have been given a man who was equal to Jayce in every way - mentally and physically - and looked at how differences in society, friendships, financial circumstances and so on all affected them. How a pair of idealists could become bitterly focused or radically patriotic (respectively). We could have been shown inequality between Viktor and Jayce in terms of circumstances: Viktor being smarter but having no opportunity, and Jayce having plenty of opportunity but no interest (or even coasting on reputation rather than excelling at his field). Instead, Viktor in Arcane has been turned into a foil for the Big Strong Handsome Hero Who Has No Flaws, someone Jayce can pity or try to protect, rather than a colleague or friend.
Viktor being disabled removes the fact that his original story was all about the emotional and mental struggle, about hope in a selfish world, about how far someone will go to save the lives of others at their own expense. This new depiction is tone-deaf, shallow, and undercuts all depth and value that Viktor as a character brought to the storyline of Piltover and Zaun.
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badedramay · 2 years
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What is your theory for why Imlie and Aryan will get married? Do you think as per promos Aryan’s going to pressure Imlie? There would be no logical reason other than Aryan wanting to protect Imlie from something if he initiates it.. but what would he need to protect her from?
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I do think the promo is misleading. Aryan and forcing Imlie is literally the most uncharacteristic thing for him to do. He's not the one to force. He just isn't! And I know it's ITV and why look at other shows when Imlie the show itself is full of character flips with the writing either completely changing the characters' personality or changing their past behaviors as per convenience of the present. so, a part of me is kind of ready to just....take a deep breathe and accept the possibility that Aryan might just force Imlie to marry him.
It's the "marry me if you want to save Aditya Kumar Tripathi" that is completely incomprehensible to me.
Aryan gets triggered if he sees Aditya around Imlie. The fear of him losing Imlie to Aditya gets stronger with each passing today. In today's epi...Aryan was already mad at Aditya but what pushed him towards violence was Aditya putting his hand on Imlie. Will Aryan, even in his own selfishness, demand Imlie that she ties herself to him for the sake of Nalla?
All of Aryan's actions related to Imlie have either been to protect Imlie or empower her. He isn't the one to take away her choice and this is something that we keep being shown again and again through his words and actions. Last time he said it was after the Malini PF. So now SUDDENLY for him to be all "buss ab meri marzi chalegi!" is a bit...eh?
the current facts at hand that we have are - Nalla is in trouble with police + Aryan's personal vendetta against Aditya is out in the open + Imlie is shocked at the reveal. how Imlie reacts to Aryan's motives is yet to be seen. will she drop him completely is yet to be seen. earlier I had said to a friend that Imlie is done™ with Nalla but that might not be the case as before the accident, Imlie was distraught thinking about Nalla's proposal. she was stuck between a Yes or No choice. that could come into play again.
with Aryan's reveal as being not-as-noble as Imlie had thought him to be...in a way him and Nalla are on the same-ish level in front of Imlie's eyes (gawddd I hope that's not the case but for the sake of presenting a conflict let's say that has happened) and honestly that has upped the stakes of this being a intriguing track. what will be Imlie's choice now? her past connection with Aditya or the new connection she formed with Aryan? the show has made it clear that a part of Imlie is still with her BS which is NORMAL considering their history. despite her tall claims of trusting only her Boss Babu now...we know that Imlie has had a history of doubting Aryan when he acts just a little bit out the character she has established of his in her mind i.e. unconditional friend.
I guess what I want to say is that no, I have no concrete theory about how this marriage will come to be. but the writers have planted a couple of seeds already so whatever the path they will take...that will make sense and when that will happen, I most probably will not have major complains. sure the show is devoid of any real world logic but in the show's universe...every track has done justice to the main characters. progress happens, relationships change and develop with time. stagnancy nahin rehti yahan. AryLie's relationship has gone though many ups and downs...this is yet another road they'll have to take to reach to the next stage of their relationship.
dekhte hain kya hota hai.
though I must say the promo has already delivered what it promised - hooking the audience. look at ALL of us raking our brains about how the marriage will take place based on just one promo when the entire WEEK has been about everything but the promise of any shaadi. kuch bhi kaho...shaane hain Imlie ke CVs xD
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marjansmarwani · 3 years
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hold you ‘til the morning comes
1.6k || ao3
Carlos has known nothing but fear since he first got the report that a firefighter had died in the line of duty. After hours of wondering, here TK was: very much alive, but far from okay. But Carlos is not going to let him suffer alone.
Inspired by the scene in the promo of Carlos comforting TK --- Carlos Reyes Week Day 7: Anything goes
This idea came to me while I was watching the promo and @officereyes, being the wonderful enabler she is, encouraged me to write it. I carefully avoided any mention of who dies so I could be right either way, but I have my theories. Anyways, enjoy some Carlos introspection as he worries about TK 💕
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When Carlos and Mya returned to the precinct, there was a tension hanging in the air. 
At first, he ignores it, choosing instead to focus on the path to his desk and the prospect of sitting down. A volcano erupting in the center of the city had left everyone a little crazier than usual, and after a full shift on patrol, he wanted nothing more than to collapse at his desk and bury himself in paperwork for the remaining hour. 
But as he and Mya headed to their adjoined desks, he could feel eyes on him. 
“Am I imagining things, or are people staring?” he asked his partner under his breath. 
Mya looked around and frowned. She paused in front of the desk diagonal to their own and stared down at its occupant, “What the hell is going on, Johnson?
Johnson, a young, quiet officer nearly jumped out of his skin at the mere prospect of being directly addressed by Mya. He swallowed nervously, glancing around the room before he responded as if hoping someone else would step in and save him. When no takers arose he swallowed again before speaking, “A report just came in. It...said that a firefighter died.” 
Carlos froze mid stride, a cold dread seeping through his chest. He turned and faced Johnson, catching the worried gaze of his partner as he turned. He kept his voice as calm and steady as possible as he asked the question he desperately needed to know, “did it say which station?”
Johnson shook his head frantically, nearly vibrating out of his seat with anxiety in the weight of Carlos’s gaze, “no, sir.” 
He felt Mya’s hand, warm and steady on his arm as she leaned closer, “there’s no saying it’s him, Carlos.” 
He nodded, jaw tight, but didn’t voice what he was thinking: but there’s no saying it isn’t either. 
Somehow his feet find their way to his desk where he sits, hyper aware of all the surreptitious glances thrown his way. It wasn’t just that it could be TK. It was that it could be Mateo or Judd, Paul or Marjan. It could be Owen, for all he knew. It could be any number of the members of the little family they had built for themselves in the midst of all the chaos and uncertainty, and Carlos didn’t want to lose any of them. 
But it could be TK, and Carlos didn’t know how he was supposed to live with that. 
The room was quiet and Carlos could feel more than one pair of eyes on him. He did his best to ignore them. He didn’t need their pity, and he had more than enough fear all on his own. He couldn’t really blame them though; in the months that he and TK had been together, his boyfriend had become known around the station. At first by virtue of being a fellow first responder himself, then later because he would stop by on days he was off to meet Carlos for lunch, or just to say hi. TK got on well with his coworkers, so he understood the heightened fear. They weren’t just worried for Carlos’s boyfriend, they were worried for their friend. 
He ignored the whispers and Mya’s concerned gaze and pulled out his phone, hands trembling ever so slightly as he accessed his recent calls. He tapped on TK’s name and waited, each ring another spike of fear being driven into his soul. All too soon the automated voice of the voicemail sounded and Carlos ended the call, placing the phone on his desk without a word or a comment to anyone. 
Not answering didn’t mean anything. TK often didn’t answer when he was on shift: it was hard to answer your phone when you’re scaling a building or doing whatever else the day might require. 
Or that’s what Carlos told himself, at least. 
He turned back to his paperwork, trying to bury himself in the routine, resisting the urge to check his phone every other second. The minutes tick by and soon his shift is over, but he can’t bring himself to leave. If he leaves and goes home to his empty condo, he might actually go crazy. So instead he stays, willing to trade off the unpaid overtime for the comforting monotony of paperwork. 
At some point, he realizes that the desk in front of him is still occupied too. He looks up to find his partner sitting resolutely at her desk, shuffling through her own paperwork. 
“Mya,” he began but she shook her head, effectively interrupting him. 
“I go home when you go home,” she declared firmly. “I’m going to be here for you no matter what, so just get over it.” 
Despite everything, he had to smile. “Okay,” he agreed, knowing when to admit defeat. He turned back to his paperwork, but not before checking his phone one more time. There were still no new messages, and he tried to ignore just how much further his heart sank each time. 
He had just turned back to his paperwork when the sound of loud voices outside the room filter to his desk. 
“They’re saying that fireman just ate it,” someone was saying, “he was dead before they could even get to him.” 
Eyes all over the room turned to Carlos, some more subtly than others, and clenched his jaw, determined to keep his expression neutral. 
“Carlos,” Mya began, already halfway out of her seat with the likely goal of telling whoever was talking to kindly shut the fuck up, but he shook his head. 
“It’s fine Mya, I’m just going to step outside and try calling him again.” 
She nodded and gave him a tight smile as he grabbed his phone and headed towards the back door. He opened it and stepped out onto the stairs, taking a deep breath of the crisp night air. It doesn’t fortify him as it usually does, but there is only one thing in the world that could make him feel better tonight. 
The fear that he has been burying inside his chest all night is ready to burst but he pushes it down one more time. There’s still no saying it’s him, there’s still no saying that he has anything to fear at all. He pulls out his phone with shaking hands, ready to try again and already dreading the sound of his voicemail. He’s just about to dial when he sees someone at the bottom of the staircase. He frowns, pocketing his phone. This isn’t the public entrance to the precinct. Most people didn’t even know it existed. He was about to call down, to see what the strange figure wanted when they stepped into the yellow light of the floodlight and their features came into focus and suddenly Carlos couldn’t breathe. 
He took the stairs two at a time, rushing down to TK, because it was TK. He was here, he was standing, and he was alive. He might just be the most beautiful thing Carlos had ever seen. 
He called TK’s name as he rushed down and when his boyfriend looked up at him Carlos was struck by the sadness in his eyes even from a distance. 
He slowed as he approached, taking in his appearance. He seemed to be unhurt, as far as Carlos could tell, but he looked smaller than Carlos had ever seen him. 
He stopped short of pulling TK into his arms, though he wants to so desperately. He studies him up close first, before speaking, “There were reports saying a firefighter had died and you weren’t answering your phone. I...” he trailed off, not sure how to explain what he had spent the past few hours feeling and not wanting to burden TK any more with his own feelings when the other man was clearly drowning in the weight of his own. 
“I didn’t mean to scare you.” 
TK’s voice is too small and Carlos’s heart aches, “It’s fine,” he assures him, “I’m just happy you’re safe.” 
He wants to ask what happened, he wants to ask all the questions echoing through his mind but TK is shaking and Carlos feels fear start to climb up his spine again, “Are you hurt?”
“No,” TK assures him, “I’m not hurt. I’m okay.” 
As they stand on the stairwell and look at each other Carlos reflects that in all their time together, that might just be the biggest lie TK has ever told him. He steps forward, hesitantly at first but when TK makes no move to stop him he pulls him into his arms, sheltering his shaking body with his own. He can feel TK’s body sag into his, losing some of the tension. It’s only a moment before he can feel his shoulder getting wet as TK’s body quakes with silent sobs. He pulls them down so they are sitting on the stairs and gently rests his chin on the top of TK’s head, running a hand in soothing circles on his back. 
His boyfriend is safe and he is beyond grateful. He wants to bask in the feeling of TK in his arms and the knowledge that he is safe, that he hadn’t lost him, but it feels selfish in the face of TK’s grief. He had lost someone today, and though Carlos doesn’t know the details, he understands. Whether or not it was someone from his station, whether or not it was someone from his team, the loss of any firefighter could feel like the loss of a family member. It could also serve as a reminder of what he stood to lose every day; that when the ones closest to you are the ones running into the fire beside you, there is so much more to risk.
Carlos would ask those questions later, he would help him through it, whatever it was. For now, they would just sit here, curled together in the stairway, savoring the warmth and existence of each other. 
Everything else could wait, for now. 
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ohblackdiamond · 2 years
Text
life and life only (paul/victoria) (pg-13) (part 12 of ?)
part 1 | part 2 |  part 3  | part 4 | part 5 | part 6 | part 7 | part 8 | part 9 | part 10 | part 11 | part 12 | part 13 | part 14
Mermaid AU. Paul lives in isolation in a sunken ship with his sister, until a new mer comes by to see his ship, and he starts to reassess the human world. In this chapter: Paul and Ace bond over their shared heritage (sort of), and KISS puts on their makeup and hits the road, despite Paul's mixed feelings.
Life seemed to turn on the smallest of cogs. Ace had a handful of songs he gave to Gene and Peter (“I can’t sing worth a shit, not up here,” he’d said, almost mournfully), though he didn’t offer any to Paul. Combining Ace’s songs with Paul and Gene’s gave them just enough material for an hour’s entertainment at any Queens bar or ballroom. They practiced daily; they got a handful of gigs; they got a name-- KISS--  and Gene promoted them like– well, he was like those strange people who handed out religious tracts, only he was handing out promo kits instead.
The four-piece gigs were the start of it all. Peter was most experienced, and they’d all just let him be frontman, there from his drumkit, introducing every song, trying to perk up the crowd. It took about three weeks before Paul got brave enough to ask him.
“Peter?”
“Yeah, man?”
“I wanna do the intros.” His mouth was dry. “Would you let me?”
Peter looked wary.
“There something wrong with mine?”
“No, just--” There was. They weren’t big enough. Peter would acknowledge his buddies that’d come out to see them at the dive bars. That mentality was too homegrown. It wasn’t what a big star had.
But it was more than that. There was a selfish aspect to it. The crowd paid them almost no mind during the songs. He couldn’t even get a sample of what Victoria had once had on Broadway. No, the only one in the band who stood a chance of claiming the audience’s attention for even a moment was the frontman.
“I got an idea for how to do it, Peter. I wanna try.”
“I know you and Gene go see all those other shows.”
“Yeah.” They were trying to learn how the big acts handled a real crowd. They’d seen Skynyrd a week or two back, opening for the Who. Gene had hated Skynyrd, found them lifeless onstage (“all sound, no look, Paul”); Paul had pretended to hate them, but found their drawls intriguing. It was like what Meat Loaf had had. He had never heard a single New Yorker that sounded that way. It’d give them some of the distinction they needed. “You ever known any Southerners?”
“Paulie, I only ever got out of New York for my honeymoon.”
“Oh.”
“What do you wanna do? Get up there and talk like the Clampetts?”
“No, not exactly. I thought, a little… a little like a Southern preacher, maybe. Mix that with glam, hell, I don’t know--”
“You couldn’t talk like them to save your life,” Peter said.
“Let me try, okay? You can do it after if it doesn’t work.”
Peter let him try the next night. Paul was scared enough to down a beer and half of whatever Ace had in a paper cup before they went on. He had practiced what he’d say in the antique mirror, the only remnant he had left from the Lord Stanley. He’d pitched his voice just slightly higher, and, combined with the put-on accent, it made his lisp a little less noticeable, maybe. He’d tried to add a flounce to the words and even to the way he moved, something he’d borrowed from the Dolls and the write-ups he’d read and specials he’d seen about Bowie and Mick Jagger and all of them. It was hard, but it seemed to have kept the audience’s interest for a little while, and Peter had let him front the band from then on. He knew he was still too stiff onstage, but maybe being too stiff was better than being like poor Ace, who seemed to fall over at least once every three shows. It was pathetic.
“’S just the gravity,” he’d say when Gene or Paul or both would help him up. “I’m not from this planet, y’know.”
“What planet are you from?” Gene had asked once.
“Same one as him,” and Ace waggled his finger at Paul. “He just won’t own up to it.”
That was one of the odder things about Ace, one he’d talked to him about once or twice after practice, when Gene and Peter weren’t around. Ace had been brought up with all the same mer stories as Paul. The difference was, he didn’t believe in most of them.
“It doesn’t make sense, Paulie.”
“What doesn’t?”
“The Atlantis shit.”
“Atlantis?”
Ace waved his hand.
“That’s what the humans called our island. I looked it up a long time ago. Well, Jeanette did. They know about us, sorta. They just don’t think it’s real.”
“They don’t know about the mer--”
“Nah, they don’t-- well, there’s that Donovan song…” Ace trailed, putting his guitar back in its case.
“So what doesn’t make sense?”
“That we were ever human.” Ace took a seat in a rusty foldout chair, a sure sign that he wasn’t planning on leaving soon. “The gods transform us, force us in the water…”
“Yeah, it’s a punishment.”
“What kind of gods would do that? Nah. We always had tails. We’re not from Earth, man. We might’ve ended up on Atlantis or wherever the hell you wanna call it, but we didn’t start out there.”
 “You’re saying we’re from space? Oh, come on. Then why would we have left?”
“Well, ain’t it obvious? We got caught in a bind. So we moved to Atlantis, we transformed ourselves so we could mate with the humans. Then we got in another bind with the humans, so we turned back into what we were, went back under the sea to stay. And we forgot how to ever get back to where we came from. ’S like the humans back in the Dark Ages. Paul, if we could get into space again… if we could go back to whatever planet we left… it’d be unbelievable.”
Ace wasn’t looking at him. He was looking at the ceiling of their crappy little loft. His dark brown eyes were a little glazed, a little dreamy. It occurred to Paul that this was something special, something private, that maybe he hadn’t shared with anyone before.
“That’s what I really want, Paul. To get back up there. To come home.”
“You think you could?”
“Oh, yeah. Interplanetary travel’s gonna be common in another ten years or so. You could come with me, if you wanted.”
“That’s nice of you, Ace.”
“It’s not nice of me. I dunno many other mer up here besides you. Just my brother and sister.”
That reminded Paul.
“Hey. You know how to drive, right?”
“I got a license.”
“I’ll get you with my cousin Steve. He’s a mer, too. You can start driving cabs with me, if you want.” Paul wasn’t really sure how Ace was getting along-- he’d never said anything about money-- but he thought he’d offer. “Just until we make it big.”
“You and Geno are getting tired of renting those ballrooms by yourselves,” Ace said with a wry grin. “Okay, Paulie.”
--
One evening after a show, they ended up with a manager. In two weeks, they had a record deal, and then they were recording– really recording, not just a demo reel for someone else– someone brought a camera into the studio, and every time the light flashed, Paul was smiling. It was amazing. Beyond amazing. When he saw their album– saw it at Peaches, right there in the new arrivals stack– he could’ve cried.
Things didn’t just fall into people’s laps like this. He kept trying to remind himself that they hadn’t fallen into his lap, that he’d been ashore for nearly four years, and vying towards stardom that whole time, before anything had come of it, but there still seemed to be a falseness to it, a sense that he hadn’t earned it, that the rug was just about to be pulled out from under him. He tried to ignore it as much as possible.
He hadn’t really made it yet, but he wanted to feel like he had. The only trouble was everything else.
They’d been on the road before, but the road was really only whatever place in New York City would have them. Now they were really on tour. Different cities every night, and often different states. Paul got hold of Omar Medlin again, who procured passports for him and Ace so that they could do a show or two in Canada (Gene and Peter, world travelers that they were, had them already). It was exhausting. Dirty. Paul had to give up on ever reverting to mer in the tub again as long as he was sharing hotel rooms with Peter-- Gene was too slobby for Paul to room with, and for all that they had a species in common, he rarely roomed with Ace. They had a suitcase and a duffel bag each of clothes and personal items; the rest was their gear and makeup– simultaneously the least and most uncomfortable bit of Paul’s new life.
They’d worn makeup from the start. Just the glam bit. Eyeliner, mascara, blush. He hadn’t minded that; mer were naturally vain creatures. But it hadn’t really worked for them as an ensemble. They weren’t androgynous enough. The all-important look wasn’t there.
So they’d dug their heels in. Made things more extreme. One afternoon, they’d bought white greasepaint and baby powder, caking their faces in it. That alone was bizarre enough, but then Paul had watched the rest of the guys silently take it even further, grabbing tubes of eyeliner and paintbrushes and filling in what the paint had removed. Replacing those features with something else. Something new.
  In twenty minutes, Gene had a pair of weird, wild curly swathes of black going from the top of his forehead down nearly to his ears, there on either side of his nose. Peter had drawn the splotches and whiskers of a cat; Ace had mixed up some kind of glitter eyeshadow together with the paint and drawn a pair of angular, silver starbursts on his eyes.
Paul hadn’t known what to do. Everyone else’s looks suited them. Drew on some part of them. Some part of themselves they wanted to show to the world. But he’d just sat there and watched them paint. He kept dipping his fingers back into the greasepaint over and over, thickening up the white layers on his face. He only stopped when he felt Gene look at him, and then he grabbed one of the paintbrushes, dabbing a blotchy black oval around one eye, hoping that might suffice. It didn’t.
“You look like a cartoon character,” Peter said. The cat makeup amplified the too-small features of his face, giving them definition. Highlighted his eyes, his cheekbones. God, there was something eerie about it that Paul couldn’t put his finger on. Something eerie about all three of them in that moment. Gene looked– arresting, horribly wicked, his whole face unrecognizably swallowed up in those black wings. The silver on Ace’s face reminded Paul of glittering ocean waves, instead of the swirls of space Ace probably meant for it to represent. But it still fit. Everyone fit, except for him.
“I don’t know what to paint.”
“Paint what you’re feeling.” It was such hippie advice that Paul was surprised it came from Gene’s mouth. “Take that and amplify it. That’s what’ll get us noticed.”
Paul didn’t know what he was feeling, how he could translate it to his face. Blotting away the only canvas he was a little happy with, apart from his ear. He knew human girls thought he was pretty, even though he hadn’t had the guts or the lack of morals to fool around with any of them yet. Adding more paint would rob him of that, at least onstage.
More than that, it felt like he was only adding on another layer to hide behind, instead of exposing something real, like they were. Another crutch. He wouldn’t even just be a mer pretending to be human anymore. He’d be insincere all the way. Not even showing his face to the crowd he wanted to look at him.
“I don’t know.”
He was bracing himself for Peter’s grumbling before Peter said a word. Ace interjected with a shrug.
“Just draw a star.”
“I can’t. You drew stars already.”
Ace shook his head.
“Not like mine. Like this.” Ace traced a five-pointed star in the air with his finger. “Put it over your eye where you put the circle.”
Paul hesitated, glancing at Gene. He hated himself for glancing Gene’s way, as if Gene’s approval meant much of anything. Gene just nodded.
“It’d work.”
“It wouldn’t be too… I don’t know, on the nose?”
“Part of it’s gonna be on your nose,” Ace said, then exploded in high, sharp giggles. Peter elbowed him.
“Try it. A star for a star. You can’t get any more on the nose than a fucking cat, anyway.”
Peter had a point. Paul hesitated, then nodded. He grabbed the hand mirror they’d been passing around, and a comb. He could feel the other three staring at him as he used the comb to outline the star, smearing the white greasepaint back over the lines each time his hand wobbled. It was hard to decide on the size-- the star kept getting larger the more he fooled with the lines, until it spread over about a quarter of his face, from his hairline to nearly the end of his nose. Then he took what little was left of the eyeliner, dipped a paintbrush into the tube, and filled the star in with black.
The guys had started talking among themselves as Paul worked on his makeup. They only stopped when he set the brush down and pushed away the mirror.
“Well?” He was antsy, suddenly, irritation edging into his tone. “It’s okay, right?”
(a star for a star)
“Yeah.” It was Gene. “I like it. It works.”
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popculturebuffet · 3 years
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Final Space: And Into The Fire Review or Now with 110% More Homoerotic Telepathy
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Welcome  new and old to my first Final Space review! If you’ve never seen the blog before, and given this is the first “new” series i’ve covered as it come out in some time that’s probably quite a few of you, welcome. I’m Jake, I do recaps and reviews of various animated shows and comics, mostly just stuff I want to do, often on comission (5 dollars an episode if theres any episode of the first two seasons of this show or any episode of any other show you’d like tos ee me cover), or for my patreon patreon.com/popculturebuffet. And it is my utmost honor to add this show to my rotating roster of shows I cover as they come out. 
I friggin love Final Space. I was intrigued by it back when TBS released the animatics alongside Close Enough (Wth the two shows ironically finally together on HBO max as of earlier this month), for their doomed block. I heard a lot of good things about season 1.. and let it get away from me, not watching it till Season 2. But both seasons had more than enough to pull me in with intriguging characters, even greater jokes and a truly unique idea for a premise involving giant monsters, an edltrich god and lots of cookies. 
So while it took an extra year given Covid, I’m super friggin pumped to get into season 3 at long last after the hell of a cliffhanger, especially since ironically last night I saw Steven Yeun’s oscar nominated performance in “Minari”. Now i get to watch him play a cat teenager again too.. and in a few days Mark friggin Grayson. It’s a good week to be a fan of his is what i’m saying and a good week in general. 
Previously on Final Space Yo!: Since it’s been a year and while the series provides  a recap , I’m going to be doing these anyway so:
Our heroes finally got all 5 dimensional keys and freed Bolo, and in the process also freed Avacato from Invictus, the horrifying entity controlling final space. Meanwhile Tribore got Sheryl to stop being a selfish prick and she joined the team trying to be a better mother from now on. But freeing Bolo came at a high cost as Nightfall sacrified herself as the sixth key (KVN was natrually both Gary and Bolo’s first choice, but was inllegible. ) So we ended the season with our heroes entering Final Space and Gary reuniting with Quinn.... while Invictus loomed. So over a year later we finally get some answers so join me under the cut for spoilers, recaps, and homoerotic text ahoy. 
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Something i’m doing since both the roster keeps changing.. and as I correctly guessed from the trailer, and the general tone of the promos for this season, that everyone won’t be all together all season.. or even in one piece.. i’ll be doing a silver age style roll call to let us know who all we have on the Team Squad for the episode Roll Call: Gary, Quinn, Avacato, Little Cato, Ash, Fox, KVN, HUE, AVA, Sheryl, Bolo, and Tribore
So we pick up right where we left off, Gary tearfully reuniting with Quinn, with Quinn wishing he hadn’t come for her, and Gary being Gary naturally having ignored that, and actually been more determined since that made it forbidden which made it extra tempting and him want to extra do it. God I missed this glorious idiot let me tell you. 
So things are quickly interrupted by invictus, who turns out to be a giant flaming head.. thing... and chases them and the crimson light, which has to start speeding with our heroes tethered to the outside, Quinn holding onto Gary. 
So we get one hell of a thrilling chase as the Crimson Light outspeeds the demon head and runs into two titans, but Bolo shows up to take out one, with Mooncake trying his dimension shattering blast thingy on Invictus.. and naturlaly g ven this is the big bad we need to show off how horrying they are, and it does NOTHING. But Gary catches his little buddy so we’re alright. 
Sheryl also shows off her badass bonafieds by LIGHTFOLDING THROUGH A TITAN... granted she still has some parenting skills to learn as “lightfolding while your son is hanging out the back through an edltrich god” really isn’t a motherly thing to do.. but neither is trying to murder your child several times or blaming him for how shitty your life turned out so ANYTHING is a step up for her. 
But.. it’s not enough. While she does manage to kill ONE the Crimson Light is too badly damaged to go on and we get two tragic deaths in one go... The Team Squad is forced to abandon the Crimson Light.. and AVA is too damaged to Upload into HUE. “I’m Sad” “For who?” “For you.. and for us. “ God damn Tom Kenny is amazing. You don’t need me telling you that, but sometimes you need a reminder. 
So our heroes end up on a desolate mystery world, stranded in final space with no ship, no suplies and no hope. The only thing to do now is survivie and hope they can continue the mission at some point. 
ONE MONTH LATER
Things have not gotten any better, as naturally , our heroes have only found weird cartoon eyed worms that regrow their heads when you bite them off. So while this means unlimited food, it’s also disgusting and Garry hates it. “This may be a head but it tastes like a butt”. Quinn and Tribore are with him and Quinn hasn’t been ready to talk about her experiences trapped in this hellscape and still isn’t but being a good dude, Gary dosen’t push her on it. Though the weird red veiny thing on her arm tells me maybe one of you should speed that up before she explodes or gets cronnenburgy. Just saying. I’ll also say i’m not huge on the one month time skip, as while I feel they probably have a reason for being that specific i’ts a bit TOO long and I question why have that long a period of a jump, not the longest but still long enough for things to happen with nothing changingin that time? Still it’s a minor nitpick in an otherwise fantastic episode so I can let it go, I just don’t get it. 
What we do get is some Gary Corpses dropping and Invictius puppeting them... i’m with gary that is bowel openingly scary. I also do like how despite the FAR more dire circumstances, they still get in the requisite shenanigans this series requires. I’ts not to the network mandated subplot levels where it distracts, but it’s enough to help ease the terror of the situation and isn’t around for situations like the opening where it really SHOULDN’T be. As the series always has when something big happens, the bollocks goes away. Once we’re in between we can get back to literal pissing contests, KVN leading a crowd to their deaths and HUE in a pimp hat like god intended. 
So yeah our heroes have to outrun the horrible horde of Gary’s, though Little Cato catches on something’s wrong as Tribore makes gary cary him as foreshadowing for later and Sends mooncake down to asssit. Our heroes escape.. but a cave in happens.
After the break, Gary wakes up confused with the party now split in two: Gary, Quinn, KVN, Tribore and HUE on one side and Avacato, Ash, Fox, Little Cato and Sheryl on the other. So Gary does the logical thing... and take his shirt off telling Avacato to feel him. 
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I mean I didn’t even ship them before this scene but... Gary claims because of their bond he can telepahtically connect with Avacato. That’s normal Gary shenanigans.. except not only does he shrug off his girlfriend asking why they can’t do that.. but it WORKS. We have a scene of the two telepahtically talking in a wheatfield that is so homerotic I guarantee there only wasn’t the Careless Whisper sax because they couldn’t afford it.. or their saving it for later this season. Look sometimes you don’t ship a ship because you just.. dont’ care that strongly one way or another and sometimes you just need an incredibly gay scene to see the light. Same thing happened with Weblena same thing here. 
Fox also says “that was glorious to watch” same man. That was freaking art. So our heroes split up into three plots. As usual for me
Team Gary: So yeah... Triobore’s pregnant. No way to really softball into that. He’s been pregnant this whole time. So we get a stupid and mildly horrifying gross out sequence with Gary having to look Triobore in teh eyes and Quinn having to “uncork him”. Which is code for ... you know what i’m not going to say it. If you’ve seen the episode you know and if not your better off not visualizing it trust me. Point is this whole sequence is dumb and the worst part of the episode by far. And the series CAN do good gross out. While Olan Rodgers regrets it, the pissing contest was one of the funniest scenes of season 2, and managed to make a gross idea on paper actually pretty damn funny. This.. this is just “Haha males giving birth and tribore’s an asshole”. There’s no joke here just a .. plug. .. gah.. the vomit is rising let me tell you. 
We do get something good out of this nightmare, Tribore’s son who hatches as the army of gary’s dig their way in, Quanstranstro, who rapidly ages into a stylsih spanish speaking adult badass. He is fucking awesome and a great addition to the team and the sheer.. oddity of his birth is wonderful even if the actual birthing was not. Then the climax happens so before that. 
Team Avacato:
Avacato and Co come across a sleeping giant robot cyborg .. thingy. Naturally Fox wakes him up. Little Cato remains not suprised. It occelates between panicking over it’s legs being gone and amenisa and is pretty damn funny. It’s voiced by John Dimagio. But it gets serious as we find out nothing has ever made it out of final space, and things.. change the longer there there. And Quinn’s been there several months if not a year. Whuh oh. This part is much better both due to better jokes and plot advancment.. though again Quanstrano is still fucking amazing. 
Team Bolo: Bolo meanwhile returns and fights a titan, and has mooncake help him rather htan join the others, but looses, hitting the planet with his body.. I mean he might not get back up.. but the impact shatters the caverns and causes an explosion. Everyone but Gary, Quinn, KVN and HUE are MIA, as our remaining party find earth floating overhead. 
TO BE CONTINUED> 
Final Thoughts: A decent start to the season. Like I said the whole birthing sequence can die in a fire and reminds me of the terrible comedy subplots adult swim wanted grafted onto two episodes.. but otherwise it’s a tense stark opener that sets up the bleak tone while still keeping the series rediciulous shenanigans in tact. It’s the perfect welcome back after so long. I mean the gay telepathy alone would make it a winner. 
Next Time on This Blog: We dive into a little history with HIsteria. See you at the next rainbow. 
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araingirl · 3 years
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Be a tigress: Promo
“Hil....” Heaving a sigh, he entered the chamber with a plate of sliced apples and guavas, “You haven’t eaten anything for the last two days. Please, have this. Otherwise, you’ll fall ill.” 
Stopping for a while, the dragoon-wielder whispered, eyeing the brunette whose head was still buried amidst her folded knees and hands wrapped around them, “You know, Kai would never like it if he saw it.” 
When the name of her no-more crush was mentioned, she raised her head with a jolt and glared at her best friend. Though there were no tears in her ruby eyes, they were bloodshot-just like a pair of flames. Messy chocolate locks were splayed on her back, ruffled on her forehead and cheeks. Gritting her teeth, she got down from the bed. Tyson screwed his brows. Was she recovering from the trauma? 
“Clung!” 
However, before he could conclude anything, the brunette snatched the plate from his hand and threw it away. Before the widened eyes of the world-champ, it got shattered in quite a few pieces after colliding with the tiled ground of the room, the silced fruits scattered everywhere on the floor. Tyson was shocked, not understanding what happened to her all of a sudden. He assumed that Hilary couldn’t come out from her depression which was caused by Kai’s death. He was trying to approach her but stopped, seeing a stretched palm of her before his eyes. 
“Never dare utter his name with your tongue!” Hilary’s eyes roared, “Don’t come near me, Tyson Granger! I cannot bear the sight of the killer of Kai Hiwatari before my eyes!” 
Tyson froze, stepping back. What...what did she just tell? Tyson Granger, the killer of Kai Hiwatari? How? When did he kill him? Rather, he’d tried to save the phoenix-prince when the latter had been hanging from the cliff, hadn’t he? 
“What the hell are you saying, Hils?” The navy-haired blader yelled, “It’s not the truth! Why will I kill Kai? It...it was just a mistake...I...I admit that I...failed to save Kai but....” 
“Enough!” The brunette scowled, “No need to make excuses! I-I know it far well that it was only you who conspired Kai’s murder and arranged everything so that nobody could see your true face. What? What was your problem with Kai, Tyson? Only because he kept leaving you? But he returned to you whenever and wherever you needed him, didn’t he? Why did you only remember his faults, not his contributions, Tyson? How could you be so selfish?!” 
“I-didn’t-murder-him!” The blunette gritted his jaw, “Listen to me carefully, Hilary Tachibana, I am not the murderer of Kai Hiwatari!” 
“You know, the voice of the criminal is always high,” The chcolate-haired girl chewed air in her mouth, “No need to justify yourself. If you don’t want to bathe in your own blood, just leave the room!” 
“You cannot blame me only because I failed to save Kai....” Tyson bit his lips helplessly. 
“But I can surely blame you that these all things were conspired only by you!” Hilary pointed a finger at him, “To the rest of the world, only Kai Hiwatari, the captain of Bladebreakers is dead. But in the eyes of Hilary Tachibana, there are two people who are no more. One is....Kai Hiwatari....” 
Her tone shivered to utter the name, eyes welled but in the next second, voice got acidic, “Another is Tyson Granger!” 
“Shut up, Hilary, shut up!!!” Tyson pressed his ears, shutting his eyes and almost kneeling down on the floor. 
“Why? Now my voice hurts your ears, doesn’t it?” Hilary aimed at the open door, “Just leave my room, Tyson. I don’t want to see your face right there!” 
Lifting his lowered head, Tyson blankly looked at the eyes of the brunette. No, not a single bit of mercy was present there. Quickly standing up and turning back, wiping his tears furiously with his elbow, he strode out of the room, unable to digest the words of his best friend. 
...................
What? Is Hilary speaking the truth? Or Tyson is innocent here? What happened to Kai by the way? 
“Be a tigress”, a Hilary-centered five-shot. Coming....I don’t know when. 
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imaginethathaikyuu · 3 years
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How did I find your blog? I was looking for soft Kuroo content on google. And your soft birthday hc’s for him came up. And that’s also how I found tumblr
What was the first story of yours that I read? That Kuroo piece ^
Roughly, how long have I been following this blog? Well I found that piece shortly after it was posted so…. Around the beginning of December 2019 I think. Got a tumblr a few months later and you were the first person I followed (had you in my bookmarks bar before that! (still have you in my bookmarks bar and when I share my screen in classes there are occasionally questions. I ignore them))
What’s something I’ve noticed about you personality wise? You’re really clever and funny. But you’re also sweet. But because you’re clever you have no hesitation in setting up and enforcing your boundaries, and I really admire that strength and confidence.
Have we ever interacted, either by PM, ask, or in the comments? What was my perception of you? YES!!! PM, SOOOOO many asks, comments, and you sent me an ask. And reblogged it. And I cried. A lot. My perception: you’re lovely and I want to h*ld your h*nd ….please.
What’s my favorite story of yours? Oh how to choose. Firstly, I’m a nb, biracial, bisexual. Honey, I’ve never made a choice in my life. But let’s try here. Anything you’ve written for Tsukki. Literally all of it is gold. Fight me. I was going to write “especially [piece title]” but I LITERALLY CANNOT CHOOSE ONE. Your Bokuto nightmare piece. Your Kuroo angsty fight. Your Tendou dealing with S/O with parents who yell piece. Your Kinktobers. Your Futakuchi and Mattsun pieces. And your Terushima pieces. Ugh. I CANNOT CHOOSE. OH AND YOUR STREAMER KENMA!!!!!! OKay just… all of it. I can’t choose. I tried, and I failed, and I’m willing to admit failure.
What’s a story I’d love to see you write? I don’t want to say this… because it hurts me… but I just KNOW you’d write brilliant angst. Some of my fav pieces of yours are pained beginnings with happy endings. That fight with Tsukki after a bad day at work. The pieces I mentioned above (nightmare pieces and fighting pieces and angsty home life ha.. ha.ha.ha.). That Oikawa one where the reader wakes up in bed without him and thinks he left. You write these gorgeous atmospheres and descriptive, visceral feelings, and if you chose to use it for evil…. You could get evil shit done. You’re SO powerful. So I want to read it… but also…. I don’t. I’d love to see you write ABO like you mentioned a while back or just see you explore a cutesy soulmate AU or something. I think you’d be really good at writing an AU where you hear what the other person’s listening too. I feel like you’d be so good at making me feel something for someone who was in another city. (think this would be cute with Tsukki cos he’s headphones boy, OR terushima because I like the dynamic of someone flirty, who clearly cares about looks, falling for someone he can’t see) ANYWAY….
Favorite pairing you write for?/fav reader insert? Tsukishima x reader. It’s my fav self-ship. (but also Mattsun, Bokuto, Oikawa, Tanaka, and Akaashi because you write them SO WELL!!!!)
Have any of your stories helped me through a hard time? Of course. Your self-harm piece came at a time I needed it. Iwaizumi’s in particular saved my life. But also your Tendou dealing with S/O parents who fight… came right when I needed it. Also starting college… was hard.. And reading and rereading your fluff really pulled me through it.
Have any of your stories hit closer to home? YES (see above).
Do I genuinely like your blog, it’s aesthetic or posts? It’s overall feel? It’s content? Yes. The aesthetic is, ngl, a wee bit basic. But I kinda love that. And the feel? It feels like home. I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again. Your blog is my safe space. So, yes, I love. It’s content? YES. OF COURSE. Your personality probably could have kept me here even if your content was kinda shit, but I follow you RELIGIOUSLY because of your content. So yes. I adore.
Is English my first language? Kinda??? I grew up in a trilingual household so I kinda learned three languages at the same time while growing up. But no, I don’t need to translate it in my head. Because English was one of the three.
Anything I want to share? Yes. Please keep being kind to yourself, caring for your mental health, enforcing your boundaries, loving Akaashi, and just generally being you. You’re so lovely as you are, and I hope you continue grow, but never change. Also I’m sorry about all your work stuff…. It literally makes me feel sick. And I hope you find a job where that’s not tolerated, or that your work finds a better way of protecting it’s employees. I know you know this, but none of it is your fault. I just hope things improve. AND I love you… a lot. And I’m so proud of you hitting 9K and you deserve so many more followers because your pieces are just... GORGEOUS. I can’t wait until I’m at Barnes and Noble in a few years and I can pick up a hardback copy of your debut novel. I’m so excited to say “I knew Em Akaashi (which is your legal name as far as I’m concerned) before she was so popular among the masses.”
so ive been trying to figure out the correct and worthy way to reply to this ask since the moment i got it......because its so fucking sweet and kind and amazing and pure and perfect and i just dont know how to use WORDS to explain the way it makes me feel so.......i will just reply in bullet points in regards to every question u answered to make it a lil easier :D
- the fact that u found my blog on google ....... like this may be odd and a very specific thing but before i made this blog i always hoped that 1 day my fanfic would pop up in google searches bc thats ALWAYS how i found fics when i was reading them religiously and i felt so much ENVY!!!!! LIKE I WANTED TO BE THERE I WANTED MY FICS TO B POPULAR ENOUGH TO POP UP ON GOOGLE.....that may sound very selfish but its true......so thats just very cool to me... :]
- u’ve been here for so long omg 🥺🥺🥺🥺 if anyone in ur classes ever asks jus promo my blog like its nbd 
- thats so sweet what 🥺🥺🥺 i try my best to advocate for myself and be confident for myself.....ive spent far too much of my time being silently uncomfortable because i was afraid of pushing someone’s buttons seeming rude.....but NO MORE!!!! i know what upsets me, i know my triggers, i know what i dislike experiencing, and im never gonna let myself be anxious or uncomfortable for someone else’s sake, esp if theyre being rude 2 me. i would say its less strength and confidence and moreso me attempting to take control of my anxiety in the places i can (aka on the Internet) bc i am SICK OF ANXIETY ATTACKS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! 
- BBY no dont CRY!!!! im racking my brain trying to think of who u are i wanna know so bad so i can thank u personally for being the kindest person in the world n so i can send u more asks >:(........MY HAND IS URS TO HOLD!!!!! dont tell akaashi tho 
- OMG my TSUKKI pieces.....hes so hard to write why ;-; thank u so much im so glad u enjoy my works<3333
- NOT ANGST NOT LIKE THIS!!!!!!!!! pained beginnings to happy endings are my specialty.....IMAGINE me writing a sad ending like i CANT!!!!!!!!! ive only done it a few times and it is so Difficult.....YALL ARE SO LUCKY IM NOT EVIL!!!!!! ive had this idea for an angsty akaashi fic that i think about and write in my head every night before falling asleep and it Hurts and i wanna write it but i also can’t make myself :D ABO would be very fun but i genuinely do not know how to explore the concept while making it feel like it’s Written By Me.....u know what i mean? same with soulmate aus, i really dislike writing them because theyre just boring to me like they all feel the same everything’s been done for them.....which is FINE!!! but i write enough cliche stuff as it is HAHA, a long distance type soulmate au could be fun and interesting but ldr’s trigger me bc of a past relationship so </3 but hey maybe someone else could use the idea!!!!!
- gotta love tsukishima <3
- im rlly glad my writing could be there for you friend, one of the biggest reasons i write fanfic (and write the kind of fics i write) is bc i know firsthand how much reading sweet stories abt ur comfort characters can help u through the shittiest times - i just wanna offer ppl some support and happy feelings and love cuz sometimes fanfic is the only time we can find those things (and theres nothing shameful abt that either if anyone bullies u for reading fanfic i will fight them)
- I KNOW MY LAYOUT IS LAZY AND BASIC AS FUCK AND THAT IS BECAUSE I DO NOT GIVE A SHIT LMAOOOO so im glad u think its ok...... like i dont have the patience to create a fancy ass layout that actually works are u KIDDING ME??????? I COULD LITERALLY NEVER plus i kinda like that its just the basic kinda ugly boring default layout like it makes it simple and easy and i feel like it brings focus to the only thing on this blog that i care about which is my writing, i rlly only care about the content here and not aesthetics jdbljdabsdk that blue background will be there til i Die......i adore u more btw 
- WHOA trilingual what the hell ur so cool tell me more 
- you have my word, friend, that i will continue to do all of that so long as you do the same. take care of yourself, be kind to yourself - i know u can do it, ur so kind to others and u deserve to be kind to urself, too so this is the part that genuinely brought me to tears because *sappy dumb shit ahead* ok look ever since i can remember the one and only thing ive wanted to do with my life is become an author ...... dreams of book covers with my name written on them and words in pages written by me and fanart of my characters and going into my local bookstore n seeing my book there....these thoughts all haunt my fucking brain because i want it SO BAD!!!!!!!! so bad that it makes me CRY!!!!!!!! ive never wanted something more and just!!!!!!!!!!!! idk how much u meant that part but holy fuck!!!!!! i hope so bad that one day i can send u a free copy of my book as a thank u for being the person u are. u have all my love friend, every last bit of it <333333333
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tomorrowsdrama · 4 years
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Hyena Ep. 16
I’m baaack!  Kind of.  I think I hit that point in my quarantine life where I kind of lost my mind so I went on an unexpected hiatus that lasted longer than intended.  I know it’s been over a month after the finale of Hyena but here are my ramblings.  This post is super long so I’ll save my thoughts on the series as a whole for another post.
Objectively, it was a pretty good finale that was entertaining and wrapped up the important plot lines.  We even got some sweet otp moments (more on that later) and satisfying smackdown of the bad guy.  But subjectively?  Personally?  Purely based on my selfish expectations?  I wanted more romance!  More sexiness!  I wasn’t expecting a wedding or anything like that but, not even one kiss?  Or a long embrace?  Why????
I mean, how can you give me all this sexy chemistry in the promos:
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And then not make use of it in the finale?  That’s just not fair I say!  I feel bamboozled!
Ep. 16
Anyway, let’s talk about the parts I enjoyed of the finale.  This is mainly (99%) going to be about the moments between Geum Ja and Hee Jae.  So on the morning of episode 16, way back when, I woke up so excited for the finale.  Since this was the last episode, surely there will be a kiss!  And surely it would be epic given the chemistry between JJH and KHS.  I mean did you see that kiss in episode 8?  So when we started off the episode with the scene of Hee Jae telling Geum Ja he didn’t want to see her hurt anymore, I was amped.  Yes, we’re starting off strong with the romantic scenes I thought.
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How can you not fall for him?
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Geum Ja, you are not a gangster, you do not need to show your story through the scars on your body.  Joking aside, it’s sad that she’s been through so much in life that she has the scars to prove it. 
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I love that Hee Jae says this half-sarcastically but you can tell that he truly does not want Geum Ja to go through any more pain/suffering.  And it’s his sincerity that makes Geum Ja smile so softly.  And this is where they kiss right?
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Nope, he gets a hearty bro punch in the shoulder.
Cut for lots of caps and ramblings.  It’s a bit of a mini novel, you’ve been warned!
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Mmm I loved how many scenes of concerned Hee Jae we got in this episode.  
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Geum Ja screams from a nightmare and Hee Jae immediately runs into the office to check on her.  The only way he could have reacted so quickly is if he was sitting outside the office guarding Geum Ja which...AHHH I think I’ve just died and gone to hurt/comfort heaven.  Just look at JJH’s face.
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EEE!  I audibly squealed when Geum Ja said this.  Ok, now I’ve truly died.  Geum Ja?  Asking to be comforted?  By Hee Jae?  What?  This is major.  She’s finally letting down her walls a little bit around Hee Jae and allowing herself to be vulnerable.  Keep on leaning I say!  Lean all the way into bed.
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Omg and then she showed concern over Hee Jae’s own emotional state despite her own trauma.  His dad totally betrayed him just a few hours ago so Hee Jae’s having a pretty shitty day too.  But of course, Hee Jae is only concerned about Geum Ja.  Ahh, how many times is he going to make me swoon in this episode?  
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Feet piled on top of each other?!  Are they finally in bed together?
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Of course not.  Unfortunately, this isn’t that type of drama.  SIGH.  But this is still very sweet and squeal-inducing.
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Have I talked about how much I love JJH’s little sly smirks?
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I love that these two fools can’t stop worrying about the other.  Geum Ja knows better than anyone how deep emotional scars caused by a parent can be.  On top of that, Hee Jae’s father was someone he respected and loved, so the blow is even bigger.  I just really like it when my otp show how much they care about each other, ok?
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Look at that smile on Hee Jae’s face.  It’s like there’s no other place he would rather be than next to Geum Ja. 
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No, please don’t.  Y’all are not 12.  Please get at least a queen size bed with plenty of room for two adults to move around in and do...adult things lol.
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And then.  AND THEN!  Geum Ja takes the initiative and turns over towards Hee Jae.  She’s finally the one taking the first step towards him without any prodding.  And Hee Jae smiles to himself and follows her lead to turn over also.  And then the two fools smile lovingly at each other as they fall asleep.  Omg, excuse me, I need a moment.  I’ve temporarily passed on to the other side from sheer otp happiness.
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This moment was just too good.  I literally raised both my arms up into the air and cheered when I first watched this episode.  I thought, wow the writers are feeding us so well.  They’re showering us with so many romantic scenes.  The otp caring for each other?  Being tender with each other?  Sharing a “bed?”  I don’t want to ever get off this love train, keep it coming!  This is only the first third of the episode so surely it can only go up from here.
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And then it ended on a comedic note.  I guess I should have seen that coming.  This is SBS, not TVN (or JTBC from the looks of The World of the Married).  Hah, well I suppose they both had a pretty tiring day so it’s understandable that they would not have much energy to do anything else.
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It’s the little everyday things like asking if she’s ok that get me.
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(JJH I thirst for you.)
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Suuuuure you are.
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Lol, he wouldn’t be Hee Jae if he didn’t pull something childish/petty.  At least Geum Ja is amused by it and finds it cute now.  Get you a man who can be both your emotional support and amusing bratty boyfriend.
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Geum Ja does end up meeting Hee Jae for dinner and he can’t help but smile a little.  Gosh, it takes so little from Geum Ja to make him happy.
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(damn, look at that profile!)
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So some time during this episode, Geum Ja’s adoptive father died off-screen from the stab wound he sustained while stopping her assailant.  At first, I went “Huh, that’s it?”  But then the more I thought about it, the more I liked how matter-of-factly it was treated.  It’s certainly consistent with how Geum Ja deals with things.  Also, she faced her demons/him in a previous episode so you could say that she already resolved that chapter of her life.  
Still, you could tell that she’s not completely unaffected by it.  KHS’s acting in this scene is so good. You can tell there’s more to it than what she’s saying just by the little subtle changes in her expression.  I can only imagine the many complicated feelings she must be experiencing.  
On the one hand, he’s the worst part of her past life and surely deserved to die.  But on the other hand, unintentional or not, he died saving her.  Geum Ja does not state this with any affection or sentimentality in her voice.  It is merely something that happened.  Thank goodness the writers did not try to redeem him in the last minute.  One good deed does not make up for all the violence and abuse inflicted on her and her mother.  
Anyway, all that muddled history and emotions would make anybody conflicted.  They really handled it the best way they could - simply state what happened and move on.  No hate, no praise, no sadness.  He was a terrible man who paid the ultimate price and died.  I like that Hee Jae understands not to push the matter any further and changes the subject.
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Bro, you’re delusional if you think you still have a chance with her.  
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And then we get to the ubiquitous Big Shareholder Meeting that we see so often in dramas.  I love how Geum Ja is so ballsy in everything she does and she does it all in her comfy tracksuits. Of course the Big Shareholder Meeting does not go as planned and Song Pil Jung gets arrested.
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God I love the look on Geum Ja’s face.  It screams “is this guy still talking to me?”
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Can I just say, I love how utterly brutal Geum Ja is in her rejection of Kevin Jung.  Woof, ouch.  If I ever heard that from someone I liked, I would be so devastated and embarrassed, I’d find a dark hole to bury myself in and lick my wounds.  But of course, Kevin, like all the other men who fall for Geum Ja, seems to be into it.  It takes a certain type of man to go for Geum Ja and apparently that type is a total masochist who likes getting rejected and their heart ripped out.  I mean, to each their own.
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I like whenever they do their power couple strut.
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A bro fist bump?  Really?  Hm, I never really fist bumped the guys I dated but that’s cool I guess.  They’re going in to destroy Song Pil Jung so I guess a fist bump is appropriate.
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Hm, I don’t know.  It seems like you’re the one who got arrested.
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Bro.  Mister.  Are you for real?  Did you forget all the shitty things you did to her?
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Yeah, that’s kind of a big deal I think.
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SO. SATISFYING.  Whew honey, this exchange gave me life.  My skin has cleared, my bank account is full, and I’ve lost 5 pounds.
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Yessss I am all for this nerdy JJH in glasses and turtleneck sipping on expensive instant coffee aesthetic. 
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The couple that taunts together, stays together?
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Hahahahaha, Hee Jae talking about being professional at work? Hahahahha.
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I live for jealous Hee Jae because he’s extra ridiculous whenever he’s jealous.  In this scene he’s getting jealous over Ju-Ho calling Geuma Ja “noona” and it’s like come on, they’re foster siblings.  Let him call her noona.  Side note, Netflix translates “noona” into Eun-Young, Geum Ja’s real name, and it irks me.  Couldn’t they have just translated it into “sis” instead?
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Now we’re around the 55 minute mark and I’m thinking, okay this is probably where it’s going to end.  This is when it’s going to happen.  They don’t have that much time left in the episode.  All right, give me us all that we’ve been waiting for.
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(Good looking main stays looking good.)
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You can’t ever accuse Hee Jae of not being committed to Geum Ja.
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We finally get an explanation for why Geum Ja always stared at that huge building
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Haha, can you expect anything less from her character?  At this point, I’m looking at the remaining time and thinking, ok then, when’s that kiss gonna happen?
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SHRIEKS WHAT ARE THOSE HIDEOUS THINGS ON HIS FEET?!  On another note, I’m sure Kim Hye Soo must be so glad she doesn’t have to wear those gigantic heels anymore.
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Omg, ok, this is it.  We’re getting shots of beautiful sexy people strutting and being playful with each other.  They’re setting up for a romantic ending kiss.  Ok, time to prepare myself.
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Yes, put your arms around each other.  We’re getting closer now.
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Oh, ok.  I guess this will be a far away in the distance kind of kiss.  That’s ok, too I guess.
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Oh, wait.  Never mind.  Looks like we’re going to get a frontal view of the ending kiss after all.  Even better!
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What?  That’s it?  What?  Did I miss something?  This can’t be.
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Oh whew.  An epilogue.  Ok, this is when it’s going to happen.
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Hahaha, they’re totally using the vloggers to advertise for their law firm.  I love how Hee Jae has loosened up on what he thinks a proper lawyer should act like and it’s reflected in his more flamboyant wardrobe choices.
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These damn fist bumps again.  All the time spent fist bumping could have been spent hugging and kissing.  Priorities, people!
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Hah, like hell Hee Jae would ever leave Geum Ja.
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Haha knew it.  Boy is more whipped than whipped cream.
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This pretty much sums up their dynamic.  SIGH I’m not going to get my kiss am I.
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Oh no.  That caption can only mean one thing.
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Yeeep.  That’s it.  This is the end.  Finito.  
Well.  All right then.  You know, the first time I watched this episode, I felt very disappointed that there was no final kiss.  I mean the last time we saw them kissing was in episode 8 at the midpoint of the drama.  This drama was clearly a rom com/screwball comedy so it only seemed fitting that there would be one last kiss scene.  That’s how you end a romantic drama!  But alas.
Actually, upon re-watching and re-capping this episode, I realized that even though we did not get any kiss scene, the writers still gave us plenty of sweet moments between Hee Jae and Geum Ja.  We got to see their lovely progression into becoming partners who supported and trusted each other so that was nice.  Even though they’re clearly together now, it’s nice to see that they still have their playful bickering dynamic.  So objectively, it was a nice ending.  I just personally wanted more smooches.
If you made it through this entire post, thank you for expending so much time reading my ramblings and congratultaions on having so much patience!
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Ashes of Love Ep 40 Impressions
It’s a very standard mythology/fantasy romance drama where the male lead is a brooding, high ranking war god who falls hard for a bubbly, vulnerable, and naive spirit/fairy who barely ranks as an angel (but who is really of noble birth). 
Deng Lun and Yang Zi have easy chemistry, though you don’t really feel the full effects of their acting until the episodes when they’re in the mortal realm. They’re great actors, but they don’t really bring anything new to the table until their characters are given more depth when they’re out of the heavenly realm.
DL plays Xufeng, a near-perfect love interest in both the immortal and mortal realms. It’s easy to see the appeal of the drama because his character is essentially a wish fulfillment fantasy. He’s romantic, protective, reasonable, willing to love Jin Mi unconditionally, and just all around a flawless character (this is problematic though, as I’ll explain below). 
On the other hand, while Xufeng is the ultimate hero, Jin Mi is the repressed victim who isn’t even allowed to have romantic feelings for anyone (literally) since her heart is sealed off by her mother’s spell (read: pill). 
This is where is gets frustrating. The angst in this drama comes from the fact that Jin Mi isn’t able to fully reciprocate Xufeng’s feelings, even though deep down she wants to. She’s emotionally stunted because apparently people are able to enter her heart and re-seal it, as if her feelings are a switch that can be turned on and off. 
She has no agency in the immortal/heavenly realm. Everyone makes decisions for her, trying to decide what’s best for her, and keeps her in the dark. In the mortal realm, where she’s uninhibited, she’s able to love and make her own decisions, and live on her own terms. She breaks the rules and follows her heart. Despite being veiled by a mask, mortal Jin Mi is more of a free spirit than the immortal Jin Mi who feels that she needs to consult her elders and afraid of offending them. The scene where mortal Jin Mi confesses that she loves the king was hella cathartic because she finally expresses what she feels freely and loudly. We’re 40 episodes into the drama, and Jin Mi still can’t freely think, or even feel, for herself. When she returned to the heavenly realm, it was like having taken 10 steps forward then 20 steps back. 
Jin Mi doesn’t make things happen, but instead things happen to her. Everyone’s fighting over her and she doesn’t even know it. 
This drama is also filled with cliche tropes:
-The false sibling trope (like in the Mortal Instruments) -The unwanted arranged marriage trope -Instead of a “memory loss” trope, you have a “feeling loss” trope where she loses her ability to love -There’s a revenge plot passed down from a previous generation (the whole your-mother-killed-my-mother) -The father/son mirror trope where the sons falls for the daughter of their father’s past lover -The reincarnation trope (which tbh was probably the highlight of the drama)
I feel like all that’s missing is some sort of love potion trope and a stolen identity trope. 
With less than half way to go, there are still 3 things that need to happen based on the promos, so I’m guessing that the “angst” has only just gotten started. 
-we see that Jin Mi goes ahead with the wedding to Runyu, but Xufeng crashes the wedding. -Xufeng becomes the demon king somehow -There’s more crying from Jin Mi, and a scene where we see Xufeng walk away from her, which is out of character for him since he’s never turned his back on her. He’s always the one chasing after her, so it’ll be interesting to see what prompts this scene. 
The problem with this drama is that the angst comes from external sources. Everyone is trying to get between XF and JM to keep them apart. The time in the mortal realm showed us that XF and JM have no problem being together. The plot is just trying to create problems by cramming people between them. 
There’s a Zeus-like emperor. An evil Hera-like empress. An evil, jealous princess.  An evil, jealous prince (with a tragic backstory). 
As the comments say, the heavenly realm seems to have the most evil people. The only non-stereotypical, non-caricature character is probably the demon princess who’s main goal isn’t to try and sabotage the relationship between the main leads. 
The problem with all these external obstacles and with Xufeng’s near perfect characterization is that the drama isn’t so much as angsty as it is frustrating and intellectually condescending. When I think of angsty stories, I think of stories in which characters cause their own downfall. Stories in which characters make decisions that come back to haunt them later down the line. 
For instance:
Love and Destiny Probably the closest comparison to Ashes of Love yet also the least angsty and frustrating. The obstacles that Ling Xi and Jiu Chen face only bring them closer together instead of tearing them apart. They have a few misunderstandings that are quickly resolved. The biggest angsty plot point was when (spoiler) JC has to kill moral LingXi pre-maturately to ensure that she keeps her immortality. We sympathize with Jiu Chen because we know it’s the only way to save Ling Xi, and we can’t say he didn’t try to be honest with her. He literally told her that she’s not a mortal and who she really is, but of course as a mortal, she can’t bring herself to believe that. Still, the angst here is that the characters are trying their best to reach out to each other, and yet they are also the very ones blocking each other out. Ah Mo feels like she’s just Ling Xi’s replacement, because she can’t understand that she’s both Ling Xi and Ah Mo. 
Journey of Flower The angst that started the fantasy angst trend in the mid-2010s. BZH’s flaw is that he puts his responsibility and his morals above everything else, even himself. He’d rather repress his feelings than betray the world he’s tasked with protecting. This means that he’d sacrifice everything in order to uphold his morals, including HQG. He thinks that he can betray her because he’d make it up to her by killing himself (until she prevents him from doing so in order to punish him, much to his dismay). His flaw is that he’s too righteous. HQG’s flaw is that she trusts in him too much. 
Goodbye My Princess LCY isn’t just flawed, but he’s a straight up villain who’s willing to kill innocent people (even his own family) if he feels desperate, jealous, or betrayed. He’s selfish and malicious, and ultimately his punishment is to live out the rest of his days in regret and loneliness. Even during the episodes where he thought he was protecting XF, he pushed it way overboard. There was really no reason to go as far as he did in the name of trying to “protect” her. GMP is a good example of a plot where there are characters who make choices with unexpected consequences, and other characters who make choices in spite of the consequences. But overall, the hate that the characters felt for others (and themselves) were driven by their own choices and actions. They were the cause of their own downfall. 
Eternal Love Again, the angst stemmed from Ye Hua’s flawed thinking that he can keep everything under control. His mistaken assumption that he can protect Su Su by hurting her. His flawed logic that he can destroy her livelihood (by taking away her eyes) but justifies it by thinking that he’d be able to keep her alive with him, which is all that matters to him. 
Comparisons In all these dramas, the male character thinks that the best way of protecting the female character is to pretend to be indifferent about her. They think that pretending not to love her is the best way to protect her, despite the consequence of hurting her in the process. They’re always making decisions for her, thinking for her.
The female character wants to hate the male character but can’t bring herself to do so because she still loves him, so she ends up hating herself for not being strong enough to hate him. She then kills herself and is “reborn” as someone with more agency and courage to not only hate him, but to also protect herself so that she no longer needs him. 
Ashes of Love is the opposite. Jin Mi wants to love Xufeng, but is prevented from doing so because everyone else seems to have access and control to her heart except herself. Xufeng is different from these other male characters because he doesn’t hide his love. In fact, he’s desperate to try to show Jin Mi how much he loves her. It’s a completely different dynamic. It makes Xufeng an easy character to like, but it prevents any kind of character growth in either Xufeng or Jin Mi. It doesn’t look like Jin Mi is going to “grow” insomuch as be liberated. It’s just annoying how she isn’t allowed to grow and how everyone keeps running circles around her.
It’s also exhausting. It feels like the drama can drag on and on because the plot can just keep throwing obstacles at them, which it looks like it’s going to do. In other dramas, you usually know what to look forward to: it’s usually when the moment of truth is revealed and when the main characters redeem themselves. There’s no redemption plot to look forward in this (maybe for the 2nd male lead). Instead, you’re waiting for all the secondary characters who are obstacles to be eliminated so that the leads finally have an unobstructed path to each other. It would say this is much more of a plot-driven drama than a character-driven drama. 
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