#Lol some of these things I wasn't born early enough to do

[nativehueofresolution]

thinking about connor and shiv as the two kids 'out' of the company (or at least as out as they can be when their finances are tied up in it and the family is the brand), because they both came to it in different ways and have such different attitudes to it?

connor says in 3x05 he was always steered away from entering the company, and i think that's probably true but the context for him is quite different. from what we can piece together of the timeline, waystay was not quite a media empire during his childhood, and logan hadn't yet become obsessed with his legacy (it's kendall, after all, not connor, who is named after logan - which i take to mean he probably was not thinking about having a capital-h Heir yet). by the time that changed, connor's mother was likely already institutionalized and connor was old enough logan may have already decided he didn't have an aptitude for business (alan ruck has suggested in interviews connor probably flunked out of multiple schools). so it was better to start over, and connor had to watch kendall replace him as the eldest son and be groomed for the role instead. but it wasn't pre-ordained from his birth. it was a gradual fall in status until he'd accepted his place as the "first pancake" and was content to stay out of the bloodbaths and settle for scraps of attention to avoid being pushed out even further.

meanwhile, by the time shiv was born, logan already had an heir and a spare, and girls didn't count anyways. she always knew she wasn't going to get the keys to the kingdom no matter how good she was. so she builds her life in the opposite direction, tries to act like she's out because of defiance, because she's a black sheep who doesn't agree with waystar's conservatism. staying out on principle gives herself some agency, rather than waiting in the wings for an offer that will never come.

in one of the early s1 scripts, there's a line where connor tells shiv 'i've always said you and i are the only sane ones'. and it's a joke (the punchline is connor says this while wandering around on a horse lol), but i also wonder if maybe connor did feel a certain kinship with shiv - the ones too smart to get involved in the family mess, who could tell logan would never give them his approval - and if he was sad to see her throw her entire political career away at the first hint logan would give her the keys, when he thought they both had accepted their lot and were doing their own things.

on the other hand, i think shiv would maybe have been a little bit afraid of being a connor by staying out. of being reduced to an irrelevant joke, and that's why she can't fully keep her nose out of waystar business and likes the idea of having tom to puppet master in waystar, all while she is so determined to be a winner in the political arena. she's not out to be a professional rich person and follow daddy's orders, she's out because she has better things to do and maybe she has a guy keeping an eye on things but that's just being responsible.

#shiv roy #connor roy #succession #kaitlin speaks

[munchkinmarauder]

My review of Scarlet Witch and Quicksilver

Overall I'll give it a generous 4/5 stars and I'm excited to see where this series takes up but I do have some gripes with it

Also lots of stuff from Orlando's AITP X-Men Monday interview pops up so check it out as we may have some hidden clues on what's next

Spoilers below

Overall a good set up issue with some fun moments. Some of my fears were exaggerated but some of those expected fears did mean I didn't enjoy the issue as much as I hoped. However I'm fault happy overall and keen for the rest of the series

The good-

- a series with the twins as coleads has been long overdue. I'm so happy to see it finally happen. Fun fact this is the first marvel series to be headlines by a sibling duo.- for the most part the twins dynamic and fight felt like a proper sibling fight. You could feel the weight of their long history and the multitude of things left unsaid and resentments.

- it's nice to see Wanda being the one clearly at fault for a fight between them for a change

- while the twins are little orange I appriciate the commitment to showcasing the twins as visible people of colour. It was long needed. I do think they (and Luna and Tommy should be more visibly brown). I also am enjoying the art and the use of the vibrant colours in general.

- I like the mystery being set up with why the twins are being targeted and the twist that while Magneto did write the letter he wasn't the one who sent it. I'm not as curious at the letter contents as I thought I would be. It seems he's being cruel because he's a dick to Pietro but let's see. I also really am excited to know why it's both twins and the combination of them together that has the giver upset. Lore and power upgrade for born twins? I hope so. Wanda being a universal threat is a given so I am way more curious about what they'll do with Pietro

- I think it was a good move to make a joke about is or isn't Magneto the bio dad at the start and shoot it down. I would love for the retcon to be undone I just don't think it has a place in this story about the bond between the twins. Magneto doesn't need to overshadow the series more than he has already for what it's worth I do think the comics are leading up to a Magnet fam reunion with most of its members appearing in major comics this year.

- it being acknowledged that Magneto was cruel to Pietro, killed him and treated the twins unequally. I have gripes with this I'll set out below but given how biased Orlando is towards Magneto this was good to see.

- the Luna, Tommy and Monet cameos made me so happy! I'm glad Orlando seems fond of Luna and I hope she and Monet join Tommy in helping Pietro. Even if the ladies are just cameos it's still a nice touch.- I liked the contrast where the fuming twins lash out with their powers. Wanda destroys her shop and Pietro is ranting but checking up on loved ones while he does so. They are each others ying and Yang.

- we're lucky the Wizard is a drama queen cause his snipers seem pretty competent and if they'd used regular bullets this series would be automatically over lol. I do also think the Wizards team called Pietro to upset him. Futher and not Wanda to ensure the twins wouldn't be able to contact each other.

The bad

- the writing for Wanda was better than Pietro. This feels more like a Wanda series so far but it's early days so let's see. Even though Wanda is the one initially in the wrong she seems to be treated more sympathetic by the narrative and of course she has more page time than her brother.

- Pietro's past appearances in SW made me a bit unsure about how Orlando will write Pietro, his takes in the comic themselves are quite superficially though he talks about Pietro very passionately in Interviews. Nothing really changed that opinion here.

- we didn't get enough of the twins interacting and this is supposed to be a series about their relationship. It would have been nice to have a little more of them getting along so the fight felt more impactful. An infinity comic with the two might have been a good idea.- I hate the Pietro fears Wanda thing Orlando introduced as well as the Pietro manipulated Wanda for HoM. I don't think Steve actually read that comic because Wanda herself in that comic said all her brother was doing was protecting her cause the X-Men and Avengers wanted to kill her and Magneto was willing to let them. Having Wanda say this was off-putting. Had it been purely in angry it would be somewhat forgivable but Orlando has expressed this sentiment in his other SW books

- Orlando's insistence on the adopted family angle and portraying Magneto as a complicated but good man who took the twins in with Wanda as the worshipful daddies girl and the victim blaming as Pietro was cold to him. That man was abusive to both his children. He would let them die for his cause and had abandoned them multiple times. Wanda pre retcon had many an issue and gripe with him. The twins are justified in their issues with him and no one should have to forgive their abusers. Magneto is a fascinating character and I loved the pre retcon dynamic with the twins as it was so tragic and full of irony and it only really works if theyre blood related. This painting of them as a happy chosen family is detrimental to all characters involved.

#pietro maximoff #wanda maximoff #quicksilver #maximoff twins #magnet family #monet st croix #tommy shepherd #Luna Maximoff #Darcy Lewis #scarlet witch & quicksilver (2024) #scarlet witch and quicksilver #quicksilver and the scarlet witch #Quicksilver #scarlet witch #magneto #erik lensherr

[polyhexian]

wait i think i might be a bit stupid but which one was the worst timeline again?? sorry i just mix them up sometimes—-

Noooo omg you're not stupid

Worst timeline is when jasper begs Belos to let Hunter live and he says he'll stay and never try to leave him again, he'll make sure Hunter stays loyal so that Belos doesn't have to kill him, only this time Belos takes him up on it. So Jasper doesn't get to RAISE him, he's his mentor and training him to replace him as the golden guard when he turns 18. He's particularly harsh because, again, he needs to make sure he stays loyal and never considers leaving because if Belos thinks he's questioning him, he'll kill him. He also needs to make sure Hunter is strong enough to survive so he pushes him hard training. Hunter only knows jasper as the golden guard and as his imposing, frightening mentor he's spent years desperately trying to earn the approval of.

Also after the night hunter was born he abruptly stopped speaking to Darius who was obviously quite flabbergasted by this development, but when he saw jasper suddenly being like this ruthless trainer to this sad little kid, he's like fuck you, what happened to you?? I thought I knew you. Cuz here he wasn't like, grieving, so he's actually paying attention. So Darius ends up becoming close with hunter really early on, being nice to him, helping him get to the healers coven after training, checking in on him, etc etc. so by the time we reach canon timeline Darius is basically already his dad, Darius hates jasper, jasper is miserable, and hunter is terrified of him.

After hollow mind hunter runs away and jasper is basically in full blown panic mode like he knows the day of unity is coming and he knows hunter has a sigil and he believes Belos has some way to save him and hunter the same way he does for the other coven heads, right, so he's hunting hunter (lol) down to drag him back and make SURE he never ever ever thinks about running away again and make SURE he is groveling enough that Belos will believe that and save him. Jasper shows up toward the end of labyrinth runners to snag him, but Darius has also shown up there and manages to keep jasper busy long enough with a huge super witch battle for him to get away.

It's only finally during that confrontation with Belos in the finale that Belos reveals he was never going to save anyone and he was never going to let Hunter live, so Jasper realizes everything he's done was meaningless and never for the greater good and he was always the bad guy, so he has his immediate heel turn and attacks belos, saving hunter from a big attack, and then like Belos shoots hunter off the cliff into the graveyard and jasper just straight up jumps after him, and they do the thing like the end of how to train your dragon so hunter survived the fall mostly uninjured but jasper is not so lucky. He has just enough strength left to tell hunter he's sorry for everything, including that he's never going to get any closure about this, then teleports him back upstairs just in time to make it through the portal with the others. Then he dies, alone, in the graveyard and Darius and Hunter never actually know what was going on with jasper, what his motivations were, why he did anything he did, why he heel turned at the end, what the fuck he was talking about with "I'm sorry and I love you." He just dies and it sucks and it's utterly miserable and it's the worst timeline

[gggoldfinch]

Genuine questions I have about my dear Swedes, and I think you're the best with the headcanons about them.

• How were they recruited?

(I wondered about that.)

• What era are they from?

(They look old-fashioned for even the 60s, they seem to have come from a much older time considering the family photo and also the outfits and the "strangeness" they have with the 60s and America.)

MY FRIEND YOU CAME TO THE RIGHT PLACE for I am the keeper of the Elder Knowledge and the Mind-Vault of Fanon (aka I've been rotting about these guys since the ikea fam was live and kicking circa 2020 and haven't let go). I am TICKLED to finally be asked about them because they are My Guys and i love writing exorbitant amounts of information about them!!!! Especially their clothes!!! Needless to say I will not be brief, so strap in 😁

(PS Tumblr ate my first draft of this after hours of research and paragraphs of writing so I had to rewrite all of the content here from memory 🥲) (PPS I used this as an excuse to talk about their clothing for 3 hours. this is the most deranged I've been in ages ! )

First off: there is no canon information regarding either of your questions. So let's just put that out there. They are tragically underdeveloped for being potentially some of the most interesting characters on the show (or maybe i'm just biased because I prefer the Commission characters lol). Basically everything we know about them is based off inferences and vague canon implications, and everything aside from that is widely-accepted fanon that we discussed way back when + my own personal headcanons (which are basically canon to me). I might have to do some deep-diving into the tumblr archives of my old blog or my mutuals for the information I'll get into here, but all of it will be stuff I either came up with myself or bore witness to the research of & agree with.

1. How were they recruited?

Generally, the accepted theory is that the brothers were recruited young, likely after some sort of event which resulted in their first kill. From what I recall, several fandom authors (myself included) have incorporated this storyline into our own work, roughly following the same theme of capable woodsmen Axel & Otto protecting Oscar and killing someone as a result, hence inviting attention from Commission recruiters who trawl the timeline for skilled individuals.

Also, I believe it is fairly accepted within the fandom that the Commission seeks out and hires people who are down on their luck or in otherwise bad circumstances, then organizes them into employment statuses from there (office workers, hitmen, etc.). I tend to think Axel & Otto were recruited first, then Oscar was roped in later on, playing into my theory that they are triplets, just separated by large periods of time-travel.

2. What era are they from?

YIPPEEE you came to the right ! person ! because actually lowkey I kinda perpetuated the headcanon that the Swedes are Victorian-Edwardian back in the day (on a prev blog). I personally hc they were born ca. 1880-ish, with their “natural” timeline falling somewhere around 1901-1910 (Edwardian period), and picked things up from different decades along the way, as is the way of time-travel. However, I know others preferred the idea that they were from ca. 1930-1950, which is also fairy plausible.

Now, time for me to be insane:

I have a copious amount of proof that they are from the early 1900's ! based on their clothing + the photograph Axel carries. It’s also worth nothing that their clothing is visibly that of working class men, which makes it slightly more difficult to research (because the working class always gets the short end of the stick). I base most of my research & beliefs on cross-examining Edwardian photographs of workmen, as well as my own knowledge of historical fashion. I won't delve that much into their culture as Swedes and the fashion implications of that, since it honestly wasn't taken seriously enough in canon to be visible past Otto's haircut.

Proof in their regular clothing:

Trousers: Otto’s high-waisted trousers & suspenders are Edwardian, down to the very patterning. Oscar’s too, to a less obvious extent. It’s also worth noting that according to bts images, Axel also wears suspenders. His pants with the laces at the shins are baffling though...

Shirts: Oscar's turtleneck isn't not Edwardian; men have been wearing collared knit shirts like that as winter wear for a long time. Otto's green shirt, though it has those odd clasps, is somewhat reminiscent of arrow collar shirts worn in the Edwardian period. I have also found proof of three-button wool undershirts similar in style to Axel's henley, though these were more popular towards the 20's

Shoes: While Otto and Oscar's steel-toed boots weren't invented until the 1930's, Axel's boots are at least somewhat more reminiscent of those worn by workmen in the 10's. Though, the side zip and weird flap are… not.

Outerwear: Axel's blue vest is more akin to a double-breasted waistcoat, though it doesn't have lapels and the buttons are too large; it is... an outlier. Likewise, his canvas duster has a zipper and no lapels, and the pattern cut of it makes me think it's fairly modern, just like Oscar's canvas/corduroy jacket which is practically a Carhartt. Oscar's vest is baffling bc it looks different in every shot of it I analyze. Otto's trench coat is the oldest style. (Fun fact, the modern zipper was invented by a Swede in 1913)

Misc: The union suit was popularized in the 1860's (as women's wear, actually!), so Otto's wearing of it would be believable for the period. All their clothes are patched up, implying years of wear and tear.

Misc Pt 2; Weaponry: Though ofc I'm a gun girl, I have already spent 3 hours writing about clothes and cannot make myself research weird weapons. So if you're interested in their guns, PLEASE read this post by my old fandom pal!!! It's much a more intelligent and in-depth analysis than I can manage rn, and also discusses the context of weaponry within the Commission.

Proof in the photograph:

They're really a ragtag crew, which makes it hard to date any of their garments. Here's some things I've noted though:

Headwear: Newsboy caps (which are what Oscar and Axel are wearing) were at their peak around the late 1910s, especially with working class men. Otto's hat looks like it could be an oilskin fisherman's hat, which were popular in 1880s America, though his looks more like the later 1950's design of the hat. Additionally, workmen in the Edwardian period often wore neckerchiefs, not unlike what Oscar wears around his neck in the photo.

Shirts: Oscar appears to be wearing another knit sweater. Axel's blue shirt appears to me to have a band collar, which was a style popular in the 10's (from what I can tell one of Otto's shirts also has a band collar). Beneath that, his undershirt (likely linen) has a string closure, which was popular even earlier than the Victorian era

The Woman (mother? grandmother?): Historically, older women tended to wear headscarves/ head coverings. The style of her dress/smock/apron is hard to determine because of its concealment beneath her cardigan. She's got a sick rifle tho

Misc: Oscar's workman's gloves aren't inaccurate; leather gloves like that were worn in the Victorian era. So have leather belts. Like I said earlier, from what I can tell from my cursory search (after sifting thru dubious "Viking" hairstyles), Otto is sporting a fairly historically/culturally accurate he-man haircut from the Nordic area. Oscar's hair is the second-most historically relevant, as most men in the Victorian/Edwardian era had short, groomed hairstyles (though perhaps his is a little messier than usual). Axel is the outlier here with a modern slick-back.

ANYWAYYYYYYYYY

yeah. yeah. if you couldn't tell I am. fucking insane ? about them ?

since you're still here, you survived this long, have some bts stuff I dragged from the trenches:

#goldfinch reveals terminal brainrot for dumb hitmen on main #not exaggerating. this took 3 hours of research #tua the swedes #tua axel #tua oscar #tua otto #ikea mafia #ask

[gothcowboy-sso]

Hey, idk if you are still going to answer any of this, buuuut 🛩 [PLANE], 📚 [BOOK STACK], 🛸 [U.F.O] Have a nice day ^^

Hey thank you so much for the ask!

🛩 [PLANE] -> Was your Original Character born on Jorvik or did they come here from somewhere else? If so, what was their reason to come to Jorvik?

Andrew was born in Canada. It's his great-grandparents that were both born and lived in Jorvik (and surrounding Swedish areas). It wasn't until his great-grandparents decided to move to Canada and live there during the first big waves of immigration back in the early 1900s. Down to a couple more lines of the family tree, his mum was born. Eventually she'd grow up and meet and marry Andrew's father, and sub sequentially, have Andrew. It wasn't until the economy forced them to move to Jorvik (since Andrew's mom had ties to Jorvik due to family) and settle in Valedale. He was around 17 when they immigrated to Jorvik.

📚 [BOOK STACK] -> What is your Original Character's story? Not just in SSO's canon main story - what is your Character's deal in general?

Andrew was born in Canada; his parents migrated back to Jorvik and decided to settle in the quiet town of Valedale, following his mother's ancient roots. His father pursued scaffolding jobs here and there (mostly GED) while his mother stayed at home to care for her son. The young man fell in love with horses at a young age, and pursued an equestrian career ever since. He longed to learn dressage, but would constantly be halted by his father, as this sport wasn't particularly "masculine" in his words. When he came of age, he moved out and found solace in Starshine Ranch. He learned the ropes of Western riding and horsemanship, earning coin as a ranch hand, saving up enough to get his own horse: a beautiful black coated Dutch Warmblood named Chaos. Self taught, he continued pursuing dressage in a Western world. His love for dressage only amplified when he met the legendary Anne Von Blyssen; their friendship blossomed shortly after, finding comfort and trust in each other, and their passion for the discipline only made them grow closer.

🛸 [U.F.O] -> What is your Original Character's opinion on Pandoria and the 'travel' through time and space taking place across some places in Jorvik?What about other legends and myths of Jorvik that they got to meet in person (e.g. Jon Jarl)?

It's a little hard to comprehend for him. Not because he doesn't understand the innings and workings of Pandorian magic, but it's quite the concept to grasp for a human. Being there physically, helping Soul Riders, experiencing all these "magical" things in real time, when merely a couple years ago he was just a guy that happened to like horses. There's multiple legends and myths in Jorvik, and he has lots of differing opinions on all of them. We'd have to be specific if I was to type that out lol. He's a firm believer that time travel should be done for information and nothing else; you shouldn't tamper with events, needless to say that Concorde quest left a sour taste in his mouth and it was a massive conflict for him. He wanted his (best) friend Anne to have her beloved Concorde back, but the means of doing this were a little too dire and dangerous. With how the quest unfolds later, and chaotic magic being involved, it all falls into place and they both rebuild that friendship that was a little dented over that conflict.

As for Pandoria, he's taken aback at the fact that such a place exists, but is not surprised. Logically, he knows we're not alone in this universe, and the idea of multiverses does cross his mind every now and then. HC: he knows a couple of half-Pandorians and Pandorians besides Ydris, and is actually dating one (Daine). He's cautious with Pandorians, but not in an extreme and distrustful way. He knows what powers they possess, what they're capable of, but understands that they too are living beings that deserve a chance to be understood.

Cheers! Hope this answers your questions.

#ask #ask memes #ask me #ask me stuff

[ohbutwheresyourheart]

dante and/or the whole dmc 5 crew for the blorbo meme? :)

oh ho HO thank you for this, I love the DMC gang and don't talk about them enough

disclaimer/note to begin with: they all have pretty privelege and they all need to stop being put in situations, because that's just who they all are as people/chew toys of fate

second disclaimer: I made this post while drinking a big old bottle of beer so if this commentary goes off the rails the further you go down the post then that's why

also I'm putting these under a cut bc this got really long

first up: dante!!!

fewer boxes crossed off than I was expecting but when I sat down and thought about it there were some I couldn't justify, e.g. in my heart I want to believe I can fix him and he needs me but let's be real the only thing that ever had the power to fix Dante is getting his bro back </3

also I say most fandom takes are incorrect bc my main contact with the DMC fandom was back in the day where it was very common to portray Dante as this LOL SO RANDOM horndog (i.e. as if his projected persona was his... actual deep-seated personality) and I am a depression Dante truther. not sure what the current fandom mentality on Dante is, if things have moved on then disregard

next up: nero!!!

gonna be honest, I wasn't too fussed about Nero until DMC 5 and then he quickly leapfrogged into my heart because oh my god this poor, poor, POOR kid. born to be the straight man in a universe of wackos. trying SO HARD to keep this mess of a family on track but if you push him so help him sparda he WILL turn this car around.

I need more Nero. I need more Nero and Kyrie, specifically. I need to see them just living their average everyday lives where Nero slops his way home covered in demon guts and sluices off then puts a load of laundry on and helps Kyrie with dinner.

also hahahahahaa definitely nothing in there about growing up feeling like an outcast so thoroughly one might as well have had a fucked up demon appendage, nope, nothing like that!!!

V aka DOUBLE BINGO

I have a thing for pasty ass dark haired skinny twink vaguely feeble romantic poet creatures okay even though I would get so frustrated the tenth time I asked him a simple question and he replied with a blake quote

but also HE WAS HIS OWN PERSON he was REAL he was ALIVE and now he's NOT because he WASN'T VERGIL, he was HIMSELF, he was HUMAN, and now he's GONE but also he lives on but also V as an individual is GONE but they'll still see glimmers and hints of him in Vergil and be reminded of him but but but (bites fingers and screeches)

THE ALPHA AND THE OMEGA

okay so all of my years of fangirling aside I have to be upfront that if I ever met Vergil I would want to tear his smug disdainful face apart with my bare hands in a matter of minutes

HOWEVER in the realm of fandom, the only reason he ranks lower than V is because V exudes that high fructose twink timothee chalamet energy

I cannot fix him. he does not need me. and yet. whomst among the ranks of Vergil fancreatures has not sat up late at night in their early/mid-teens frantically typing barely-disguised self-insert fanfic where we DO fix him, where we are the ONLY ones who can fix him, where we are the Eva to his Sparda, washing away the sins of his past and anointing him with love?

Vergil is the most anti-hero of all time. he has it all. he's a genocidal maniac, except maybe he isn't because maybe the qliphoth was going to grow there anyway and he just got in on the demonic gentrification scheme at the right moment. he literally has an unspeakably tormented and tortured past.

he has mommy issues. he has daddy issues. he has brother issues. he has son issues. he's a weeaboo. he loves poetry. he hates you, both generally and specifically. he has the hauteur and arrogance of christian fifty shades. underneath it all he just wants desperately to be loved and protected. his idea of bonding is a no-holes-barred beatdown.

he has an extremely weird obsession with his brother, whom he hates, but loves, but hates, but loves, but hates, but wants to spend forever with, but hates, but would kill anyone if they tried to hurt him. literally every bad thing he's ever done originally stemmed from the need to be strong enough to protect what he cares about (DANTE) because he can't go through losing his family again.

i love him <3

#devil may cry #dante #vergil #nero #ask meme

[olderthannetfic]

To be honest I think that “gatekeeping” fandom is okay sometimes. I’m saying this as I am bombarded with shitty news articles about the new Amazon prime LotR show and anticipating a major fandom clash… As someone who will never support Amazon and fucking hates how they’re using their new show to make all their detractors seem like racists/sexists (despite how incredibly racist and abusive to PoC Amazon as a company is) and drum up good press to draw attention away from their recent human rights abuses and controversies… I reserve the right to not wholeheartedly welcome fans of the Rings of Power adaptation into my fandom.

I know other Tolkien fans who’ve watched (pirated) it and they’ve all told me it’s just not great in an adaptation sense. From what I’ve seen of the plot and casting it looks like it was made by someone who’s never read even a chapter of Tolkien, and the designs/costuming look uninspired. I’m usually someone who adores adaptations, even shitty superhero films from the early 2000s, but the general inaccuracy of this one did it in for me, and it being picked up by Amazon is the final nail in the coffin for me. No thank you, I’m not going to let this soul-sucking company capitalize on my nostalgia.

A slightly pettier point, but if anyone’s first and only interacting with second and first age Tolkien characters comes from RoP I do actually think they should pick up a book and read. Like no Celebrimbor isn’t some fucking ugly ass crusty old white man. He was a HOTTIE and he lived and served cunt and then he got crucified by his dark lord boyfriend. Fuck Jeff Bezos, if anyone tries that shit in our god-honoring ao3 tag I’m gonna kill someone. It’s gonna be like when someone thinks they’re an expert on a video game and you’re like “have you ever played it?” And they say “no I just watched a YouTube video”.

I’m normally a much, much kinder person and maybe I’m overreacting but holy shit I hate how people are acting like this show is a GOOD THING when it’s clearly a marketing ploy by Amazon to associate LotR with their company and therefore give them a never ending stream of income.

--

Well, I think there are a few different things going on here, but yes.

When a new adaptation comes out that's going to have a massive audience, it's important to be able to defend some little spaces for the existing fandom. AO3 book fandom tags are going to get misused and stuck on fic for the live action version (in the usual way adaptations play out anyway). Tumblr tags will be a freeforall. So it's down to recs lists, mailing lists, discord servers, DW communities, and the like to maintain a space for the quiet-but-long-lived version of the fandom while the storm of a new adaptation thunders by overhead.

That's true even if the adaptation isn't a travesty, and it doesn't preclude being nice to the n00bs and welcoming them in if they are interested in the pre-existing fandom. But being "nice" doesn't mean erasing all distinctions between versions of the fandom and canon or turning every space into a 101 For N00bs space.

I mean, I enjoyed movie LOTR fandom and thought most aspects of those movies were a decent adaptation (except for Helm's Deep, Faramir wanting the ring, and everyfuckingthing about Gimli, GRRRRRRR). But it was still the case that we movie fans overran Tolkien-themed spaces with our Legolas/Aragorn fic, and that this was not always great. LOL. Same deal with the many iterations of Sherlock Holmes, even aside from the OOC horror that is Sherlock.

There's gatekeeping like quizzing everyone on whether they're enough of a Real Fan™ and being an ass just because someone wasn't born early enough to get into fandom in whatever decade...

And then there's gatekeeping like declaring that not every space is for every thing.

We need the latter in order for little subcultures to thrive.

[acircusfullofdemons]

Questions: 1,, 4,, 18,, 19,, 20 for the Para Motivation Ask Meme please !! (ෆ ᴗ͈ ω ᴗ͈ ෆ) I’’d like to request Neil and Ozzie,, but you can do the paras you’’ve most recently been daydreaming about if you’’d like !! ( ◉ ω ◉ )

[ ASK GAME ] || (I'm pretty sure you meant the para relationship ask game lol) Funnily enough Neil & Ozzie WERE the last paras I daydreamed about!! They were doing kinky sex while I was working and uhm I think Neil might be ace?? We'll get back to that at some point. But I'm also gonna do Alice from @fractured-fables since I drew her earlier & also Emory bc there's now a sign at work that looks SO MUCH LIKE HIM it makes me loose my mind.

1.) What’s their relationship with their parents like? Is there one parent they’re closer too than the other? If your was raised by a different caretaker, what is their relationship like, and how does your para feel about the absence of their parents in their life?

Neil: Technically doesn't have parents as he was treated as an experiment since the minute he was born. However, his father was a scientist at Arcaynis (the organization that's experimenting on people). He willingly subjected his own son to horrific experiments, but thankfully(??) Neil didn't know this. He doesn't really have any parental figures, and kinda wished he did. Maybe he wouldn't be so fucked up if someone held him a little bit as a kid.

Ozzie: His father was very abusive, but thankfully his momma was always ready to defend him. He is a very big momma's boy and yknow, I think they still talk sometimes. He probably sent her some of the money he stole when he was a villain.

Alice: Does not get along with her parents. Well. Its complicated. She loves them, they love her, but they don't really "get" her, if you catch my drift?? Objectively speaking, they're fine parents, just probably not the best for Alice. HOWEVER, Phineas becomes like her second dad/uncle/older brother figure in Wonderland, and those two understand each other SO WELL. Funnily enough, they actually hated each other when they first met! Both for good reasons but nowadays you'd never know. Also did you know some people ship Alice & Hatter romantically??? They are Wrong. So very wrong thats her dad!!!

Emory: His "backstory" gives him parents, but they're also dead and desperately need to be buried bc they're rotting corpses are stinking up the house. He doesn't really consider them his "parents", anyway. Technically, he doesn't have any, and he's perfectly fine with that. Still, Theia likes to call him her son sometimes which is kinda funny so he allows it and humors her by occasionally referring to her as his mother.

4.) Who was your para’s childhood best friend? When and how did they meet? Are they still friends?

Neil: Dahlia!! She was the daughter of another scientist at Arcaynis, but not an experiment. Neil loved her, she was quite literally the ONLY good thing in his life. Dahlia wasn't supposed to sneak into wherever Neil was being kept, but she was curious. And stubborn, because she kept coming back almost every day! Eventually, she was encouraged to interact with Neil to observe how he reacted to certain stimuli. Unfortunately, he accidentally killed her while he was escaping Arcaynis. He often wonders what it'd be like if she lived — would she be proud? He almost idolizes and romanticizes her/her existence. It's kinda creepy.

Ozzie: Ozzie was a very shy, soft spoken, and introverted kid. He was bullied a lot for being a teachers pet / being smart. It was rough, but Nora Osborn took pity on him and helped Ozzie gain some confidence during high school! I have not introduced her yet (bc I. keep forgetting to) but Nora is Ozzie's wife! Canonically she had roughly 8 minutes of screen time and died but I haven't fully decided on what I wanna do with her in MaaC yet. But she does exist, and Ozzie loves her dearly.

Alice: Her best friends are Dorothy and Wendy!!! They've been bffs for varying years, but all met during early childhood. I think they all just met on the playground one day, yknow how little kids are lol. And yes, they're still friends today! I call them the "iskeai girls" bc they all get transported to other worlds lol.

Emory: OK so technically Emory never had a "childhood", he's an ageless being that sort of just...exists. but uhm I guess we can say Ketrill?? Ketrill was created by Theia so they spent a lot of time together. They're kinda like brothers.

18.) How important are your para’s various relationships to them? Do they cherish the people closest to them? Does their support system keep them going? How about strangers? What are their feelings about humanity as a whole? Is it easier for them to live those closest to them vs humanity as a whole?

Neil: EXTREMELY IMPORTANT. He has never had friends/family/ANYTHING before escaping Arcaynis, so he'll cling to anything he can stick his claws in. He learns to balance different relationships (as well as the types of relationships) as time goes on with the help of those around him, but by GOD was he, uh, a bit of an obsessive stalker towards practically anyone he met the first few years of living in society. As for humanity? It sucks. Shut that shit down.

Ozzie: Oohh, he's a sappy mother motherfucker that loves his friends and probably believed in the power of friendship when he was younger (he still kinda does sshhh). He has mixed views on humanity but like, he's human too so he doesn't want it totally gone.

Alice: Depends on the person tbh. Earth? Forget them tbh. Wonderland? THAT'S HER FAMILY!!! Yes all of Wonderland is her family now lol that's her HOME. She loves it there and genuinely considers it her home, she'd live there always if given the option. She thinks humanity on earth sucks but Wonderlandians got smth going on trust her on that.

Emory: So looking at it now I think Emory is only close to like, 5 people total. That's it. I don't know if he'd consider them a "friend group" or a "support system" but he does care for them, which is saying something, as he doesn't really get close to people. I don't think he really has an opinion on humanity. Like it exists. That's it. He doesn't really...care??

19.) How does your para realize they care about someone? Is it instantaneous, or a slow realization? Are they dense, or maybe realize once it’s too late that there was something there?

Neil: He's...a little dense. To everyone else, it's so fucking obviously because he's trailing after the person like a lost puppy and is borderline obsessed with them. But he probably won't realize how much they mean until someone either points it out or he looses that person.

Ozzie: It creeps up on him. He knows he cares about someone, its the level/extent of it that surprises him! Like he thought Neil was just a good ally/coworker until something innocuous happened, like maybe he saw the other sleeping and then BAM! Head over heels in love. Incredible, really.

Alice: I feel like Alice is similar to Ozzie, she knows she cares about those around her, I guess sometimes she just forgets HOW much she cares. Or sometimes its hard to care, with all the shit they've been through/have going on. She tries her best to make sure those she loves feel appreciated, though.

Emory: Imma be honest...he doesn't get "close" to people. He's an Interdimensional Demonic Cat, The Librarian. He records everything, narrates all of it. So getting close to those he is observing...he doesn't like it. He was close to Delilah, and she died. He was a little too involved with False Moon, and they're pretty traumatized. By FF/LIW he's kinda keeping his distance. Anyway! He knows pretty quickly when he genuinely cares about someone and not solely because he wants the "story" to continue. And he will deny it until the end of time, because God forbid a kitty experience love!!

20.) How does your para expresses their feelings of care/love to others? What’s their love language (giving and receiving!)

Neil: Gift giving!! He gives very weird gifts, though. Honestly he's kinda like a cat bringing its owner dead animals?? Like uh thanks buddy but what am I supposed to do with this exactly. He very much likes receiving physical contact. Hold him. Please.

Ozzie: Quality time!! He likes taking people out to museums and aquariums, those type of places, and seeing what they point out. He also likes receiving quality time. Literally all you gotta do is exist in the same room as him he is so easy to please.

Alice: Acts of service!! She'll get your groceries! She'll paint your roses! She'll die for you! Literally!! She likes receiving words of affirmation. Tell her she's doing good. Please. Don't actually she'll break down and sob.

Emory: Physical contact. I feel like that's a typical/standard cat answer. Yes he does express love like an actual cat would. He likes receiving quality time. Just spend some time in his library, he'll appreciate it a lot.

#paraportal #player: blue bubonic #luka answers #console: mad as a crow #game: a plague of octopuses #neil o'brian #oswald osborne #oswald octavius #console: fractured fables #game: lost in wonderland #alice glazier #console: phantasmagoria #game: as the world falls down #emory warwick

[captawesomesauce]

@faerieorgremlin tagged me to answer some questions

Are you named after anyone? Yeah, I had to ask W who asked my mom. My middle name and my hebrew name is for my maternal grandfather's mother. (Fun fact, her hebrew name was Chashka which is common in yiddish/jewish families, but means small bowl or cup in russian!). My first name is for my maternal grandfathers grandfather.

Do you have kids? Nope. Never had a want for any.

Do you use sarcasm a lot? Well I sure as heck don't use it a little!

When was the last time you cried? Hell if I know

What's the first thing you notice about people? Always their hands. It tells you a lot about what a persons motivations and intentions are. After that, their hair.

Eye color? Brown

What sports have you/do you play? In High School I lettered in baseball, basketball, football, and volleyball. I've tried playing rugby a few times but only proceeded to make a fool of myself lol. I also used to race open wheel and stock cars at a small dirt track near where I worked in the early 90s. I wasn't that great, but I wasn't that bad either!

Any special talent? I can make W smile and that's the best talent ever.

Where were you born? In the hospital.

Scary movies or happy endings? I don't do scary movies.

Do you have any pets? Not since Mystic passed away. He was the best and I still miss him every day.

How tall are you? I can reach the top shelf in the kitchen.

What are your hobbies? I don't really even know anymore. Still reading of course, but beyond that… there's not enough time in a day for hobbies lol

Favorite subject in school? I'm a physical geographer at heart… as much as I love history, when it came to school - I wanted to learn about spatial and temporal connections between various sciences, people, and the interconnectedness of everything.

Dream job? W's Musband is working out pretty good so far!

I'm supposed to tag people so @celestialmomma , @smolwrathfulpanda , @killsandthrills and, @littleblondesoprano

[megaherbs]

So when I was a teenager in the late 90s & early 2000s I was very into exploring gender identity. I didn't have the words for it exactly because I was growing up in Nebraska and things were very grim for queer youth, but I grew my hair long, painted my nails, played with makeup and wore skirts, dresses etc. Maybe just as often I would dress in more standard boy clothes but accessories and other aspects of my style and appearance were always very feminine. I don't know that I was ever moving towards transitioning, but I think I would have settled into a non binary identity.

I was attracted to girls and boys but naturally gravitated towards girls because I felt safer being myself around them, and while I often thought I wanted to be with all these cute girls I knew, it later dawned on me that I kind of wanted to simply be one of them.

When I was 17, I was hanging out with some classmates, drinking vodka, and I did way too much too fast and I blacked out then passed out. While I was out everybody took off except for one classmate who sexually assaulted me. I think I kissed him before passing out, so for a long time I thought it was my fault for initiating something that got out of hand, ugh. I won't go into deep detail but it was somewhat violent while I was passed out, and my neck, stomach and ass were covered in bruises and severe bite marks.

In the weeks/months afterwards, I stopped wearing feminine clothes, cut my hair short, got new glasses, abandoned makeup and nail polish. I wore gray slacks and black t shirts only, and eventually stopped shaving too. I didn't realize at the time what the incident had done to me, how thoroughly I had shut off the part of myself that I blamed for the assault.

It was entirely unconscious action to put myself back into a cut and dry "boy" mold and to try and blend in or even disappear completely. It took me over 20 years to understand this. In part because it was such an awful experience and I tried to shut it out entirely, but things always come back to the surface somehow.

I don't know why exactly I'm choosing to share this now besides the fact that some memories had come to the surface again and I was seeing another dimension to them. It's really hard to grow up, especially without a support system that can offer you the tools, vocabulary etc that you need. My family has always been good to me but my parents were born in the late 1940s in rural Nebraska & Minnesota, they did their best but didn't understand and I wasn't sure enough of anything to help them.

I will do my damndest to always provide support, clarity, love and safety to my children, and if they start exploring stuff that goes over my head, I will learn, I will find them community that can help if I can't.

I'm happy with who I am now but it's good to always explore who you are, it can be ever changing, fluid. I can't help but wonder who I might have been with better knowledge and community as a teenager. I was part of the "gay/ straight" alliance group as it was called when I was in high school, lol, but there was hardly even any gay kids in the group and I wasn't sure I was gay OR straight.

In summation, I'm glad I'm not still living in the early 2000s Nebraska, but mid 2020s Nebraska still sucks and all my friends moved away. Be good to each other.

#nebraska #trans #nonbinary #memories #gay #growing up #teenagers #tw sex assault #tw abuse #lgbtqia+ #2000s

[alexawwr1tes]

So like.... my heads been stuck in this thing of "why has no one made a good fantasy/ABO fan fiction of ZB1 yet?". Like I'm not abt to be the one to do it but I can give yall like a whole plot line and shit, it's just someone else gotta fucking write it lol.

With that, here's a prompt for the haobin writers. Cuz ik yall on AO3 are running out of ideas 🙏

(I had a panic attack the other day when AO3 was down)

Plot line:

ABO, they are actual wolves and do transform. It's just rare as it's not taught anymore. They do have fluffy ears and tails constantly tho so it's kinda like a hybrid thing.

Imagine this land. In the middle there is a massive mountain covered in royal village houses and a massive castle on top. It's about an hour horse carriage ride to get to the beginning of the mountain. Theres roads upon roads getting to the top, so the journey can be long.

Surrounding the areas there are what they call sides (kinda like districts in in the hunger games except theres only 4 of them.) North side, East side, South side, West side. North side is the most proper side, East side is well off yet forgotten about, South side is poor and constantly undergoing attention struggles, and west side though always constantly in war is the most well off you can get.

Hanbin, is a prince and upcoming king of an entire Alpha family. No one born by blood has ever been an Omega or Beta, enter Sung Hanbin. At age 18 he presents "early" (normal presenting age for an Omega). When his family finds out he's an Omega, they dont live him down. They give him these proper Omega etiquette lessons and such but where he was raised Alpha he is doing absolutely horribly. Wants to get out. Wants to run away. It's not entirely impossible. In this world, royalty can't show their face to the public until they are mated and crowned the next queen or king. And so, if Hanbin just left. No one would know where to look for him.

Hanbins main guard is Jiwoong. Jiwoong is 2nd Alpha in command, and originally was the pack leader of the North side was promoted as he was the most trustworthy guard back when he was a palace guard (before Hanbin was born). Jiwoong will be in his early early 30s in this book. Maybe between ages 31-33.

Seok matthew, is Hanbins only friend. Seok Matthew is one of the cleaning ladies of the castles only Son. When the boy was younger, she would take Matthew to the castle and lock him in a play room because she never had a proper babysitter for them. One day, Matthew was curious and accidentally stumbled upon Hanbin. Since you cant just erase what soneones face looks like from your head, and they couldn't possibly punish a young child for being adventurous, they decided that it would be okay for Hanbin to have a friend.

After the age of 15 matthew wasn't allowed in the castle anymore as his mother got promoted and he was old enough to take care of himself by kingdom laws. He still snuck in, and very often at that. Sometimes he wouldn't even leave the elders room. Hiding in the princes closet all day and night; skipping school becoming a regular thing.

But since Jiwoong came around, matthew hasn't caught a break. He had been caught about 5 times in the past month trying to just get in to Hanbins room, so it was extremely difficult with the male. His senses were on fire for the young pup apparently.

The one night Matthew successfully sneaks in, he proposes to Hanbin that he can run away, and come live with him. No one knows what he looks like, no one would suspect Hanbin living with Matthew, and he could finally go and start a life of his own, even if it was only for a small bit.

Hanbin didn't need to be told twice. 3 days later it was the middle of the night, and Jiwoong was on his bathroom break. Hanbin jumped out his window, climbed down some vines, and very carefully snuck passed the guards. Knowing he didn't have long he had to basically book it as fast as he could down the mountain.

He didn't transform. Even though he wanted to it was near impossible because he had only just presented and had horrible contact with his Omega.

He met up with Matthew at the bottom of the very large mountain, it was starting to get light outside and both of them looked like a wreck. Matthew had smartly brought empty bottles of alcohol to make it look like they were just wasted as they walked to Matthew's house.

Skip skip skip let's skippy

Hanbins now starting high school, he had been introduced to the most trustworthy people in the entire school (that's what matthew said anyways) through a dumb back story Matthew just magically hauled out of his ass. Ricky, Taerae, Yujin, Gyuvin, and Zhang Hao. He was also supposed to be introduced to a boy named Gunwook. Hanbin knew that name.

He was a guard in training, he was Jiwoongs 2nd in command. He knew Hanbins name. Not his face, but he knew his name. And he knee it well. That scared Hanbin a little bit. Maybe he would just try to ignore Gunwook as much as possible.

Now. Enter Hao, and his younger brothers Yujin, Gyuvin, and Ricky. Him and Ricky were biologically siblings. Yujin and Gyuvin were biological siblings to each other that Hao's parents had adopted about 4 years ago.

Hanbins impressions of the boys weren't much. Hao is "cold". That's what Hanbin decides. Except hes not.

After getting lost many times just going around the south side, he keeps bumping in to Hao. He learns the older is just naturally quiet, but Hanbin gets to learn a side of him no one else had quiet ever cracked. The silly, adorable, light hearted side of him.

As Hanbin is basically falling head over heels for the amazingly adorable Alpha; Zhang Hao, Yujin, who is only 14, doesn't know much. But hes attentive. He can read people like a book. He reads Hanbin like a book. He sees straight through Hanbin. Especially when the princes first name is finally announced to the public as the search party has went on too long; the kingdom getting desperate. Yujin just watches. He has nothing to do with sung Hanbins life.

Yujin also watches it all fall apart. Or start to. Gunwook finally catches on, after meeting Hanbin for the 5th time. Yujin can tell Gunwook has caught on. Who wouldn't? Everyone was delusional.

Gunwook rats out sung Hanbin to the whole school after finally breaking. Jealousy getting to him. Saying something along the lines of "telling Hao to stop running away from his problems when you are the one who's actually done it!! Why would you run away from a caring family. Why would you run away when you had everything you ever wanted in that castle. Sung. Han. Bin. You had everything going for you. I've worked my butt off but because of this search I got demoted and ITS ALL BECAUSE OF YOU! Jiwoong doesnt trust me anymore because of you! Go back to your dumb castle. It would make everyone much happier."

Chaos erupts, the whole cafeteria gasps. Hanbin and Matthew are absolutely shocked, Yujins eyes home terror, and Hao... Hao has no reaction. It's like he was numb.

Hanbin wishes everyone could see his side of things. Sadly, they didnt even bother. He was dragged back to the castle, Matthew was banned from ever touching royal grounds, and his mother was now fired from her job at the castle due to it.

Worst of all... hanbin and Hao 2 days before had made the realization that they were fated mates. And that they were meant to be together. People had stopped believing in fated mates so long ago, that Hanbins mother didnt believe him when he said he found his mate.

Hanbin thought he had lost. His mother had planning on getting him mated to a very nice prince from far away, a distant land.

Hanbin hated it. He thought he was stuck. Until the kingdom had an open night. The open night where Hanbin would make his first public appearance since he was caught in the act of being a runaway.

The night was painful, he had to act happy, act cheerful, act like he had smartened up. On the inside, he was screaming. His omega was screaming.

Hanbin went to get some fresh air outside on one of the many balconies. He thought he was alone. But then, he smelt a very familiar scent. And then, came arms around his waist, and then a kiss to his scent gland situated on his neck, and then a "hi hanbinnie". It was a fit of happiness.

Apparently Gunwook had felt so bad after hearing what Hanbin had told Hao, he helped sneak Hao into the royal open house so he could find his mate.

From there you can end the book however you want. I suggest a chaste and tender love making scene, and then a fast forward into the future where Hanbin and Hao are telling the story of how they fell in love to their three kids, two sons and one daughter. But you can fill in the gaps <3

Also a spinoff where Matthew romances Jiwoong?? Sureeee. Age gaps are fine when it's way in the future and not when Matthew is 17. Maybe when hes like 23 lol

I apologize if this was messy but it was just a rough idea.

Other small details:

Matthew, Yujin, Gunwook, Ricky, and Taerae are unpresented but Gunwook knows his sub gender because of a blood test he had taken. When matthew does present he is an Omega, Taerae is a Beta, Yujin is a Beta, Ricky is an Alpha, and Gyuvin is an Alpha. Gunwook is also... an alpha.

Also haos scent is like cinnamon, and Hanbins is a mixture of vanilla bean and blueberry, making them smell like blueberry waffles when together.

#haobin #hanbin imagine #zhang hao imagines #zb1 imagines #zb1 taerae #zb1 zhang hao #zb1 gunwook #zb1 jiwoong #zb1 matthew #zb1 ricky #zb1 gyuvin #zb1 yujin #zb1 hanbin

[nono-bunny]

Genuinely impressed by how realistic Barbie and Her Sisters in a Pony Tale (God that's an unnecessarily long title) is when it comes to horse etiquette, especially when it comes to Stacie

I rode for a good couple of years, so this is probably the first hobby~ movie I've seen from Barbie so far where I actually like,,, know a thing or two about the main subject (pretty much all of the others before it are ballet ones I think, and I never got very far when it came to my dancing lessons lol)

It's really cool watching Stacie fumble her mounting, brushing, and riding (mostly due to poor communication with her horse) and being able to actually SEE what she's doing wrong rather than just being told by the story she is, like! Sure, it's all pretty basic stuff, but it's also clear because of it that the people working on this movie were passionate enough about it to learn how to portray all of that in such a clear way, and that makes it really fun to watch!

Stacie getting up on her horse again after a bad, scary fall is a relatively minor plot-point, but it's still one I personally appreciated a lot- falling from a beast that can crush you in a second is REALLY scary, and getting back up again isn't to be taken for granted! She's shown to be really scared and a bit traumatized by the jump that she fell during, and I like that! It's more than understandable, and I admire her for giving it another shot and learning how to make it work together with her horse! It can be very easy to start to resent your horse after something like that, and she definitely starts off down that route where fear is about to get the better of her, so I'm genuinely happy for her that Barbie helped her past that hurdle. Your first big fall is the scariest and it can very easily cause people to quit altogether, but it's definitely a fear that can be conquered and overcome! I had a real big fall pretty early after I started riding, and it's to date probably one of the most surreal experiences I've ever had in my life, but I had the instructors and other kids there with me in the aftermath, so I got back on and kept riding for years after that! And I still for sure fell again after that, and eventually I did stop riding because for some reason I became scared over time, which honestly, is probably had a lot to do with the fact that I didn't have my own horse and had to switch horses a lot, and it's exhausting when you're constantly having to learn how to handle a new horse... And also that one horse I was paired with for A WHILE that was honestly probably way too small for me because I kept falling forward on her mane (which was highly unpleasant for both of us). Like, fr, horseriding truly is a rich person sport lol, it's so much easier when you just have your own horse that you can form a proper connection with!!! Anywayyy

I love that you can really feel both the stable camaraderie AND the underlying animosity born out of jealousy that, in my experience, at least, was a staple of my horseriding days, like! Everyone is there to have a good time with horses, but at the same time there's a lot of envy towards "the good riders", the ones who participate in all the competitions and are treated a bit like celebrities (and sometimes act like ones because of it), like!! Yeah this Barbie movie 100% nailed the vibe it was going for!! Financial troubles? Horses running away? Those are the sort of things that make everyone band together because ultimately, most everyone just wants these horses to be as safe and comfortable as possible!

I was also really scared they were going to make Etienne the villain so I'm glad he wasn't, even though his fat, scheming, ALSO french brother being the villain is not a much better look, but like... Good for Etienne, I like him, he seems like a good coach who has to deal with a lot of shit and takes it all with grace because he loves his job! I was really happy with the way they showed that Philippe was the outlier in terms of poor sportsmanship and desire to just profit off of horses, and that even his coworkers and family disapprove of his behavior. Like! You can win all the races, but that won't matter to anyone if you're also a nasty person to be around... Those kinds of people are very much still present in the horseriding circuits, but they suck and that kind of behavior is really not acceptable

This movie just?? Really brought me back to those days in the best way possible, it's so much fun and genuinely a good film, and like! For something with that kind of name I was expecting it to be either really boring or really lame (Perfect Christmas is the perfect example, god that one sucked), so it was a really nice treat for it to be especially good! All the sisters got their own neat plots that worked well too, I feel like I was about equally invested in all of them which was great! God, please let the other Barbie&co films be just as good!!

#barbie #barbie and her sisters in a pony tale #barbie movies

[ben-the-hyena]

Now that I am back in the Haunted Mansion fandom with fresher set of mind and headcanons, here is finally a good non exhaustive HC info dump for my favorite character the Hatbox Ghost himself for new stuff I've made up or never told before in the tag !

I've been hesitating but in the end I've been influenced by @it-be-sid and accepted it : Hattie is autistic. It fits my take on him of hyperfixating on specific things (my old silly headcanon he is a huge fan of TLK Scar, and canon that he collects hatboxes and is passionate about it) and being great at them, of being an introverted asocial grump who avoids the ballroom and graveyard party because it makes him uncomfortable and requires efforts from him and is more at ease woth the brides in the calm attic, has a hard time making friends and Emily is his big exception and why he has been single and alone for decades prior, hates change and has a hard time adapting to new things and prefers how it was back in his day, and why he enjoys being a scary ghost so much since it allows him to not interact with society anymore and just boo them away. IT ALL MAKES SENSE WHY DIDN'T I EVER THINK OF IT OR ACCEPT IT EARLIER !?

He needs the tiniest spectacles to read, which makes him look nerdy to some and cute to others

As you guys know I HC his name is Randall Pace, from the SLG comics (just the name, not the mentality or origin story though) and that he and most recognizable characters died in 1877 (I DON'T CARE WHAT THE CURRENT CANON SAYS LORE CHANGES ALL THE TIME IN THAT FRANCHISE). He was born in Khansas countryside in 1820. His parents were not dirt poor but they certainly struggled, but were loving and supportive to him and each other, and worked hard at the grocery store to make sure he would have a good life despite his disability (born limping needing a cane and hunchbacked) and could afford his training in hat making which he had found himself to be loving quite early often fixing his parents' hats with glee. Either from the hard work or how life wasn't easy in general, it isn't certain, they died when he was a young man. Grieving and recently new hatter, he didn't feel like staying but starting a whole new life in Louisiana (gonna accept the Mansion is around New Orleans since it's recurring in a lot of canons) far away to make sure they didn't die for nothing and that he would make them proud starting from 0 with his knowledge, his qualification and all the money left

Force of hardworking mixed in with smart working not to die of exhaustion like they did, he little by little became a renowed hatter at the one shop he started at for how efficiently and quickly he fixed hats and quickly learned to make pretty designs popular with ladies. And keeping up with fashion always helped. He was a brilliant employee who workef assiduously and saved a lot until he could open his own business, Pace & Co. He worked alone for a while until he finally could afford himself some employees and teach them how to do it. Good with money anf quality business, by the time he was in his 50's it took him long enough but he had made himself a great fortune. But a mysterious one not very popular among the elited since he never attended society parties lol

He never approved the slavery existing in the south, his humble family having worked and known POC neighbors and treating each other as equals. He always glared with intense disgust at slave owners when they still existed and made them pay much more than needee, and was very glad the war was lost where he was. In fact one of his first employee was a free young black man he had hired, taught and paid very well after he had been freed. When Hattie got married, he was his right wing man and when he died suddenly the very same night, Pace and Co went to him since there was no other heir to the company but him. It still exists to tgis day with a new name (his name is Zeke Holloway. Yeah I know usually I am the first to be annoyed when a character is raceswapped since to me it is obviously unnecessary and to get brownie points BUT I see HM as the same logic as the superhero genre : a ton of continuities where everybody is different from one reality to another, heck the Beating Heart Bride is black in the 2003 movie and Japanese in Tokyo DL lore and Constance is black in the recent Muppets movie so why not !)

He never had been in love with anyone before Emily. Whom he met at age 55. Ever. She had been his first love and kiss just like he was to her. His autism/lack of need for socializing and love for being left alone mixed in with his dedication to his work and focus on his hobbies and passions with a touch of him not being attractive at all (not ugly per say, but... yeah, not attractive) not helped by his disformities, golden tooth and how he balded like all men in his family from his mid 30's didn't make him know anyone before. Not the time to meet, nor anyone into him making the first step anyway. He would be lying if he said back then he didn't feel regret as he got old he would never have a family or know that feeling, but had ended up accepted it and embracing his bachelor status, even rejecting offers from important families who saw profit if their daughters could be with that rich old man with a nice inheritance at key. He did intend to reject Miss Emily Gracey and was not interested at all and it was mutual, they agreed not to play along with her family who insisted for them to get to know each other so it should have stopped there. And yet, force of speaking and learning about each other during these forced meetings... you know how my headcanons go <3

Yes I also imply there he also was a 57 years old virgin and Emily wasn't the only one to pop her cherry that night when they couldn't hold themselves anymore after 2 years of courting and got jiggy the very night he proposed. It was very awkward for both of them, but they are so in love it remains a very pleasant memory for both. Ironically now he is dead he is less tired and feels no more back pain, now after 156 years of marriage he is VERY experimented and knows jist what shr loves so he rocks her world to the other brides' dismay. Or anyone passing by when it happens, really

As you know I have been drawing him and his wife with silvery wedding bands for years as an excuse/justificatiin about why we don't see them on their animatronics like it would if it were golden, him being grey and she being in the dark. Now I even made an origin : they were his parents'. They were not rich but like their son would later had a love marriage and had made sure to have the luxury to have silver rings, not gold but still precious. When they died, he took them with the intent to maybe use them one day if he were to find his half (not that he looked very much) and keep them as family heirlooms in the meantime for how much they symbolized their love and how much he shipped it. So when decades later he proposed to Emily and the wedding was being organized, he sweetly suggested her to use those with the story going behind them, for how much they meant to him and how it could make their marriage as strong as theirs was. Emily found it so romantic and sweet she accepted, and to this day their skeletons in their graves have them and themselves wear ghostly versions of them all the time

Ghosts don't need to eat or sleep obviously, they just do out of gluttony and sloth, comfort and rest, and recretional purpose. He is one of those who eat and drink the least (he already skipped meals when alive so imagine now), but he is a slut for gumbo, beignets and poboys. Gosh does he love Louisiana food. For it he is that clip with Homer in New Orleans. However he loves to sleep. He can cuddle with his wife that way, but also he just always loved to sleep. It helped as a mortal with his back pain, and even now he doesn't feel pain anymore it comforts him to do so

He had broken his tooth when falling from the ladder when clearing up shelves in his shop once. He wasn't that mad, he saw it as the opportunity to show off his well-earned wealth by making the new one out of gold

Indeed Hattie loves to look good, as a mortal he had multiple hats, attires and shoes for any occasion. An extravagance he had loved to afford ever since he got the money for it. The fact he died pantless in his most humble attire and cloak is a source of frustration if pointed out. Whenever he can leave his ghost gig for a moment he swaps for MUCH better ones

He still fixes hats and even makes new ones for any ghost who asks. For free now since ghost money isn't earned from work (I still have to figure out how), but his ego is flattered they still come to him even in death for that. He is now as scary as talented, Hell yeah. He also is a good fashion adviser for men and women alike when they want to wear something over their usual ghostly versions of the attires they died in

He and Emily did suffer for years to be childless, but he is in a way essentially the Little Blue Bride and the Corpse Bride's (who I remind are sisters and minors on my take) father figure, scolding them when needed and comforting them or giving the best advice he can

He calls Constance a hag or an old hag no matter how she is even younger than he is. It is to enrage her but also how he perceives her since she is his beloathed aunt in law who now lives in HIS attic since 2006. Ironically he calls nothing the Spinster Bride like that, as much as she freaks him out with his extravagant and extroverted she is he does respect and like her. Unlike Constance lol

He can't stand the Hitchhiking Ghosts. When he was banished for 46 years away from the Mansion but not the Graveyard for having accidentally killed Yale Gracey aka the last living Gracey he had to endure them as annoying grave neighbors who kept trying too much to socialize with him or troll him as a mean to "bond". Didn't work at all. Now he nearly hates them as much as his in laws

Being a Gracey by extension, being married to one, he is invited to the annual Gracey-only ballroom, he was even when he was still banished. Sure he came not to embarrass his wife nor cause a scandal, and during his banishment to have an excuse to be in for a night, but he sure is bored and hates being in the same room as Master Gracey (father in law), the Ghost Host (uncle in law) and Constance and be polite to them. It goes as far as them starting to passive aggressively insult and mock each other everytime

He has never been the same again after he watched The Lion King. He isn't a fan of a lot of modern things, but this one, and SCAR... he could make you 1 312932 pages essay to explain how he is a perfect Shakespearean villain in a perfect complex snd deep movie. It kind of bores everyone friends and wife included but at least he is happy, the latter thinks

He and Emily are the annoying TOO lovey dovey and sometimes TOO openly horny couple you would love in fiction but hate in real life, often dancing or being mushy or being super romantic both in gestures and in words. He adorzs her and still can't believe he was sure for years love wasn't for him, she enabled the romantic in him and he SPOILS her whenever he can. They have a new honeymoon in a luxury haunted place for every 5th anniversary and it will never stop. He'd die-die for her and it's mutual

He has managed to tame bats when he was bored during his banishment. He got attached and since then keeps having pet bats. He always call them Batty because he sucks at names. Batty 1, Batty 2, Batty 3... (yes it is based on that cute plush of him, canon)

He is scared of tornados. There were a lot in Khansas. Fortunately none in Louisiana so far, and he is dead already anyway, but he is quite paranoid about the fact it could come one day. One day. ONE DAY...

He also is very scared of the Phantom. I had already mentionned that during his banishment he once tried to find another haunted house and found Phantom Manor which would result in a "GET OUT" type of scenario. As soon as he realized he was very dangerous even to other ghosts as well as a psycho and a tyrant to all the other ghosts who intended to do the same to hil, the Phantom he until then saw as an elegant chap with a cool hat now gives him the same goosebumps the Wolf gives Puss in Boots whenever he thinks he is near. The fact he befriended Mélanie and became friend with her but couldn't help her out still haunts him with guilt

He is of a good nature and kind (as I said he is a great friend, helps with hats and fashion for free, is an amazing husband and was a good boss who hated racism), he is still very bombastic, dramatic, eloquent about anything he is passionate about at the moment (both negatively and positively), a sarcastic grump, the epitome of the meme with the guy who closes the widow to blog in the dark, a deadpan snarker as well as a show off who doesn't really know modesty and loves to habe his ego stroked whether be it by compliments or by being aknowledged as a scary haunt. Nouveau riche syndrome probably

When post-fanon time he and Emily finally gets to find out she had been pregnant the whole time as a ghost (she had died pregnant), and a spell allowed it to come to terms and their daughter Belle to be born, he has been a great father so hard. Sometimes strict, but usually very playful, proud, happy, conniving, silly... she makes him cry with joy often. He is so happy to finally get to experience parenthood with the love of his afterlifr after having craved for it for centuries thinking it would never happen. The light og his death, a miracle who makes the attic even more bearable

#moi #hatbox ghost #fandom #gif #lol #haunted mansion #it-be-sad

[grapecaseschoices]

I would love to hear some insight on what your oc creation process looks like. They're so detailed. I love all of the ones I've read about so far and they're all so fleshed out! I just use the same three ocs and slightly change their backstory lmao. You're so good at coming up with the character designs, theyre all chefs kiss. 🤩🤌

Ten days later and I still don't have a response for you anon. After I got over the SHOCK of this wonderfully beautiful compliment, I have been fluctuated between being stuck at work and pondering an answer to this. And I don't think I have a good enough answer for you. Nothing wise or cohesive.

However, leaving that at that doesn't suffice. So, I'm going to try.

I think I've mentioned on here that in the past, I used to use things like zodiac, MBTI, and Enneagram as a baseline. Especially when I first started (actually when I first started, I created self-inserts and let them run wild but that was there early on), I would look at the traits of their Sun Sign (then I discovered moon and rising signs too and added those as well) then apply them to my OC. But it wasn't just from one website, I'd scourge different sites and read the summaries too. I started with the stereotypes and then began reading forums for the people who believed in zodiac but didn't fit fully what they were born under. I researched characters that were born under the sign as my own, and compared and contrasted. (I did the same when I was into MBTI and Enneagram, which allowed for more variation from the norm.)

I complied docs and lists. I took quizzes, etc. I was way too serious about it. But certainly opened me to a lot of adjectives for descriptors as well as the perspective of how people viewed themselves/viewed others, I think.

Another thing I did is I would take bits and pieces of my favorite (and not so favorite) characters and just .... cannabilize them. LOL. For a lack of better word. Make my Frankenstein. This tends to help me a lot when I struggle with 'voice'. Particularly if the character is one from a show or film or podcast. Because for me, at least, it helps me visualize cadence.

Once you have character traits, interests, etc knocked out, I also feel it's important to consider background and desire. Where are they from? Where is their family from? Where have they been? Where are they going? And, of course, what do they want? That last isn't always easy but even the most vague idea or simpliest of goals as well as themes can be helpful.

Kendis: To go to X-TOWN to find out what their brother is up to; to be independent, to become a doctor.

Mason: To head back home.

Andy: To protect and observe.

These are three (of a few) characters that I played in an RP. The details of the goal both specifically to them and the game helped in guiding which character I focused more on (lmao Kendis), but each character's desires gained them plot and gave me something something to fall back on when I felt stuck on what to do with them.

I'm sure there is more stuff but I'm tired. lol. The brain wanes.

I just wanted to say your characters are probably more fleshed out than you give yourself credit. Goodness knows I don't see my babies as "detailed" (so thanks again for continously making my day with that). But I think one of the best ways to make them grow - outside of tinkering on their personality - is to PUT THEM IN SITUATIONS! Whether it's in rp, an if, or headcanons. Challenge them -- see how they are when they're at ease, see how they when they're angry, see how the are when there are stakes, etc.

I bet you'll surprise yourself with what you come up with and what comes out on the other side! Hope this helps <3

#grapecase metas #grapecase answers #character building #anon #another thing outside of pondering your fave characters is ponder yourself and people you know #see how they contrast with how they view themselves and how they react. what makes them waver. etc #like dont freud your family up. just observe #also another thing i like to do is to push myself to try characters and traits outside of my comfort zone #tho i do fall back -- and i try to remind myself thats okay too #grapes chars #long post

[celestemagnoliathewriter]

Just wanted to say that I love the artwork of Teddy and Hope. Also, how did you come up with Teddy’s sister?

I haven’t read your story yet but once I get some free time I’ll definitely check it out. I know that I’ll love it, I’m glad to have discovered your writing 😍😍

Also, if I may add my name is Hope and it got me excited to see that name as a character that you are writing about. 🥹🥹

Well, thank you, Hope and I hope that if/when you read Cariad, which features Hope more prominently, you'll enjoy it! I'm also glad you liked the art :)

I'd love to tell you about Miss Hope Lupin (the second). Per Remus's bio page on wizarding world, his mother was called Hope Howell (get it? HOWL? As if Werewolf McWerewolf wasn't enough for Remus, lol). As a lot of the characters in the HP universe seem to name their kids after dead people, Hope's name was easy, but I do like that name for the Lupins' daughter, because like Bill and Fleur's Victoire, it shows something brighter for the future.

This is an AU story, and below I've got some mild spoilers, but nothing that should give away the whole story:

In Collide and Cariad, I gave the Lupins four children. I like giving Remus a whole brood of kiddos whenever I can. Dad!Remus is one of the best things. To tell you about Hope, I will also tell you about Teddy.

In Cariad, I wanted the Lupins to have a daughter after Teddy. She comes 3 years later, and when she does arrive, she's inherited some of her dad's lycanthropic tendencies. In chapter 25, Daughter, I explain how this works. She's not a werewolf, but she's like Bill, where she's got some symptoms and it's chronic. I liken it to a mild form of anemia and chronic fatigue. As a result, Hope is born smaller than expected and will always be small for her age. Physically she's not as big or strong, but she's bright and determined.

I have her look a lot like Tonks, without the morphing. I intentionally made Hope an 'average' witch, in that she's not a Metamorphmagus. This creates an interesting dynamic for her in the family, as she doesn't have anything especially unique about her; Tonks and Teddy are Metamorphmagi and Remus is a werewolf. Not that Hope wants to be a werewolf, but she's the second child in a family where there are many expectations. Tonks is a celebrated, talented Auror. Remus is a decorated war hero. Teddy gets the brunt of this because he's the firstborn, the oldest, and he deals with prejudices very early in his childhood, which later impact his view of the world. He understands, from an early age, that he's got a lot to live up to, and even worse, with his dad as a werewolf, he's very aware he's got to be on his best behavior to avoid any scandal.

Hope doesn't quite get that message. She instead sees a near-perfect older brother, two incredibly talented parents, and then she's just...her. She's a little sickly, a bit small, but clever and stubborn. She gets the feeling early in life that she's going to be just as talented as the rest of her family, even if it's hard.

She later becomes an older sister to twins. That makes her a middle child, and in doing so, she begins shouldering some of the same 'older sibling' responsibilities that Teddy has, but she's now a middle child who longs to stand out. Her younger brother, Alex, will suffer a similar feeling, as the other twin, Minnie, is also a Metamorphmagus and will easily stand out for that trait.

Hope is motivated by love of her family, desire to prove herself worthy and strong, and dismay that the world isn't as cheerful as she once believed. Teddy learned early on that the world wasn't fair and he was a good brother, hiding Hope from it as much as he could. But Hope does learn, accidentally and purposefully, that werewolves aren't always welcomed, her parents are flawed, and she's just one small witch in a bigger world.

She's stubborn, determined, and while she takes after her mother in looks, she's an extraverted version of Remus. Meanwhile, Teddy is an more reserved, introverted version of Tonks. Hope gets the extraversion from her mother, Teddy gets the introversion from his father. As a result, Hope will be a Gryffindor, because while Teddy is brave, he is above all loyal to his family, extremely hardworking, and perfectionistic. Hope is all these things, but with the distinction that she is more daring and willing to take risks that Teddy wouldn't.

In Collide, I gave her the pairing of Frank Longbottom, the son of Neville, but I've been thinking of changing that in Cariad. I haven't decided yet. Either way, I do plan on having her become an Auror, because like her mother, she wants to make the world a better place. Teddy will be a Healer.

#cariad #remadora #remus lupin #nymphadora tonks #hope lupin #hope lupin the second #teddy lupin #the lupin family #my ocs #my writing #ask me about my ocs #ask me about my fics #ask me about my wips #thank you for the ask

[nolongerdaily-pussinboots]

One last thing!!! i had a dp x pib crossover idea (honestly, it's less a crossover and more a pib au that borrows lore from dp fanon lol) it turned into this whole fic accidentally so ill put it under read more

Basically, long ago there was a small child who was saved by a cat, this child later becomes one of the Ruler of Ghosts. their gratitude to the cat was monumental, and their power even more so. Therefore, they made all cats liminal (half-dead half-living), claiming them early while extending their time in the living world. This power held strong even after the child Faded.

This led to some famous rumors. Cats staring into the shadows (looking at ghosts), cats always lands on their feet (their liminality allows them to float for half a second if they panic), cats only care about themselves (due to their liminality, cats get a minor ghostly Obsession. It doesnt effect their personality, it simply makes them more passionate about certain things) and lastly, cats have nine lives.

This last one is technically NOT true, it's not that they die then get revived. In reality, they just inch closer and closer to death. Their fur inverts in colors where their death mark was, with each 'death' they grow closer and closer to becoming full ghosts. They can see more ghosts, obsessions become more distracting, and their power grows. Until finally, when they lose their last 'life', they become a ghost for good.

While cats who still own all nine of their lives aren't as liminal as cats who own only one, they are still liminal enough to have ghostly powers. Only it takes A LOT of concentration for them to appear. And even if they do, it's weaker than a more liminal cat's.

During his childhood, Puss in Boots was the only cat in the orphanage. He never knew his parents nor his name, and he never met any other cat. So, he never got a proper explanation for his weirder abilities. To the other kids, the small cat always gave off a creepy vibe that (whether they knew it or not) set off their 'fight or flight' instincs. This led them to either avoid him or to bully him.

The only two people who shook off those feelings where his Mama and his brother Humpty. They were the only people the small cat trusted to talk about his weird feelings. And Humpty, excited after reading books about fantastical lands and magical creatures, was the one who urged the cat to try and explore it more (to take vengence against the bullies. The small cat wasn't the only kid who got bullied in the orphanage. Their Mama tries her best, but she is only one person)

It was when he saw someone in danger that he finally managed to use his powers for the first time. And when his Mama gave him his boots (inspired by his favorite book, of a brave young cat in sturdy boots who goes against the odds to protect the people he cares about) that he finally finds his spark, his Obsession.

Become Puss in Boots, be as brave as him, as noble, kind, and heroic as him. And thus, the legend was born.

With each death, his passion towards his act becomes more. He defies greater odds, he gains stronger enemies, and he grows stronger with each death. It isn't until he crosses the one rule all ghosts and liminals follow that he finally meets his match.

Puss in boots may be a noble and kind cat, but he is also an arrogant (and dumb) one. By the time he meets another cat, he assumes that he already has all the knowledge he needs. It isn't until he and Kitty are together that he learns more, and what he learns... scares him. This fear, coupled with his already existing fear of betrayel (his brother's actions have effected him greatly. He misses and forgives him, but the scars his two betrayels left run too deep) causes him to run.

Puss in Boots is never afraid! Puss in Boots cannot be afraid! Ghosts, the afterlife, Death cannot scare him. And so he shouts where ever he goes. Puss in Boots challenges death! And so, a line is crossed, and a cat pays the price.

The Ancient master of Death has many names. The living have multiple stories of him, and their feelings only extend hos strength.

Death is not cruel. He understands the fear of the unknown and the desperation for the living. But despite his patience, an Ancient can be challenged so many times before he finally takes matters into his own hand. And for the challenger to be a cat, one of the only to continuasly evade him- well, he is a ghost, and ghosts crave to be feared.

This then leads to the events of the wishing star.

Jack horner's obsession with magic means that he is aware of ghosts. One of his artifacts has the power to mind-control them, and that's what he uses to go after the two liminal cats and their little dog.

Perrito is not a cat, nor is he dead. But he did go through a near-death expirence. So while he can't see ghosts the same way kitty and puss can or even touch them, he can sorta feel their presence. It's that and dumb luck is what saved him from the constant ghosts trying to attack them.

#i had like a basic idea and it suddenly turned into a fic whoops #not sure what to do with goldie #but i thought this would be kinda cool #anyways if u read this ty!! #moon speaks