#also i KNOW the lecture and shes very cool and hot which is a bonus lol

[grgie]

oh no they just dropped a new horror media module for third year and now im stressed about what to choose

#i have such a weird relationship w horror bc on one hand its such a cool genre and so interesting but on the other hand ... scawy #also i KNOW the lecture and shes very cool and hot which is a bonus lol #i KNOW my friend will be taking it purely for that reason lmao #helena goes to uni #like in theory: resident evil - v coll love watching re2 playthroughs #in reality: re8 is way too scary for me to even consider

[recurring-polynya]

For Rukia's bday another prompt/request. Ik i have been sending quite a few.

As you said you could think about continuation of some of the AUs. I just wanted to ask if its possible to continue my prev request of "Dear Wormwood". Like how Renji here decided to save her from execution or how did they reconcile?

I don't mind if you show another oneshot of the Tattoo AU☺️🤭. Like how both get together and all.

Happy New years Eve 🥳

You know, I got a request for a continuation of the Tattoo Artist AU in August, when I was doing Renji requests, and I wanted to do it, except that I had the next bit planned out in my head, and Renji wasn’t actually in it. But Rukia is.

| ao3 | ff.net |

 💻     💀 🛹     🥗

“In conclusion,” Rukia announced, flipping to the last slide of her PowerPoint deck, “I have no idea which design to pick.”

The final slide featured her own personal re-draws of the three tattoo concepts her tattoo artist had presented her with when she had met with him the previous weekend. Obviously, his renditions of grim reapers-on-skateboards were much better than hers, because he drew skeletons on people professionally, and Rukia oversaw market risk mitigation for a large financial services firm. A little thrill still went through Rukia’s nerves every time she thought of Renji Abarai as her tattoo artist. She had followed him on Instagram for years before getting up the nerve to book an appointment with him. Rukia kept telling herself that the giddiness she was feeling was due to the fact that she was finally doing it-- she was getting that tattoo she had wanted since college put on her actual body by an artist whose work she loved. The fact that the artist in question had turned out to be extremely nice and friendly and also impossibly hot was just a bonus.

Orihime pressed her fingers to her lips. “Hmm,” she hmmed. “I like the one with the sunglasses.”

“I can’t believe you made a PowerPoint,” Ichigo declared, stuffing a kale chip in his mouth. “I can’t believe you brought your laptop to the Lettuce Feed You. Also, I feel like the sunglasses raise more questions than they answer. Why would a grim reaper wear sunglasses? They don’t even have eyes.”

“To look cool,” Rukia said at the same time Orihime replied “Maybe they’re prescription?”

Ichigo shook his head. “Well, my opinion is, do not get the one where the grim reaper is flipping the bird. Byakuya is gonna be pissed no matter which one you pick, but that one is gonna get you a very specific lecture.”

“Yeah, I’d already sort of eliminated that one,” Rukia admitted glumly. She screwed up her face. “And Byakuya’s opinions don’t matter. That is the whole point.”

“I think you’re having a hard time because you like them all,” Orihime chirped with her trademark optimism. “Which means that you’ll probably be happy with whichever one you pick!”

“Do you think it would be weird,” Rukia said slowly, “if I emailed Renji back and asked which one he liked best?”

“Renji’s the tattoo guy?” Ichigo asked.

Orihime chewed her salad. “He’ll just tell you that you’re the client, it’s up to you. I can tell you which one he likes best, though. When you’re drawing samples, you always try to draw the first one as close to what you think the customer wants as possible. The second one is where you draw what you, the artist, think is best. Then, on the third one, you go a little wild, just in case you hit on something cool.”

“Oh!” Rukia replied. “Thanks for the insider knowledge.”

Orihime tapped her chin with one finger. “Also, Renji loves sunglasses, he has, like, fifty pairs of them and he had an entire sketchbook full of skeletons wearing sunglasses. I’m not exactly sure he should get an opinion here, to be honest. You’re the one paying him.”

“Well, I really like his art,” Rukia excused. “He’s… you know… the expert.”

Ichigo scratched his nose and squinted at Orihime. “This was the goth guy from your watercolors class, right? Who always drew sad anime girls in the rain and gave you a poem once?”

“No, no, you’re thinking of Ulquiorra!” Orihime wagged a finger. “Oh, jeez, Ichigo, like I would let that guy give Rukia a tattoo! No, Renji! You met Renji!”

“I did?”

“Yes! You remember the time I tripped on the stairs and twisted my ankle? He was the one who waited with me until you could pick me up and take me to the Urgent Care.”

Ichigo had been taking a sip of his kombucha and he had to swallow hard so that he didn’t spit it out across the table. “The guy who showed you pictures of his bearded dragon on his phone to cheer you up? The guy with The Hair? And the tattoos? Oh, I guess that would make sense, huh?”

“Yeah, that was him!”

Rukia felt her cheeks going pink, not just because she’d started thinking about Renji’s very good hair. She’d known that Orihime and Renji had been in the same MFA program, but she hadn’t expected Ichigo to know him; he and Orihime hadn’t actually started dating until her last year. There were many things Rukia liked about being best friends with Ichigo. She liked being co-workers and going to lunch all the time, and she liked that they had the same weird sense of humor, and most of the time, she liked having nearly identical taste in Hot People. Now was not one of those times.

Ichigo shook his head frantically. “I was confused! I did not realize we were talking about Super Hot Bearded Dragon guy!”

“He has a bearded dragon?” Rukia said blankly. He loved animals? Was it possible for the man to get any more adorable?

“It’s name is Zabimaru, and it’s super cute. I bet Renji would show you a picture if you asked,” Orihime nodded.

“You are glossing over the fact that this dude is a certified smokeshow,” Ichigo butted back in.

“I just don’t see what that has to do with anything!” Rukia huffed. “I didn’t know what he looked like before I made the appointment. He is a very talented artist.”

“And now you’ve seen him and you’re looking for excuses to email him.” Ichigo leaned forward, putting his elbows on the table and narrowly avoiding getting hummus on his jacket. “What I find suspicious is that you completely failed to mention his hotness. You had a slide with excerpts from his portfolio and assorted Yelp reviews, and yet nothing, not a single bullet point about how he is over six feet tall and has supermodel hair?”

“Your girlfriend is sitting right there.”

“She knows she has this locked down,” Ichigo replied, gesturing to himself. Orihime nodded cheerfully. Ichigo picked up a carrot stick and twirled it in his hummus dramatically. “You know what I think? I think there was--” he bit into the carrot dramatically, “chemistry.”

Orihime gave a delighted little gasp.

Rukia blew out her cheeks full of air. She made shrug arms. She blew the air out again. “Maybe there was. I don’t know. You know me. I’m not really into dating.”

“I do know you!” Ichigo exclaimed. “I know you work twelve-hour days and once a year, you go on an awful date with some hedge fund twerp you met through your brother. I honestly think it would be really good for you to go out with someone who can name a band!”

Rukia waved her hand dismissively. “I know I work too hard and I haven’t really been good at relationships since college, but that’s why I’m getting a tattoo! I’m doing a thing for me!”

“Yeah, a thing you can make an Outlook reminder for and list on your yearly personal accomplishment retrospective,” Ichigo pointed out. “I mean, I’m all for the tattoo! I’m just thinking it wouldn’t hurt to go for the tattoo guy, too!”

“You know…” Orihime added. “Renji really is awfully nice. I don’t think it would hurt to ask him out for a coffee.”

Oh, no. It was very easy to dismiss Ichigo’s advice, even when Rukia knew he was correct. Orihime was another story.

“Didn’t you tell me he drove a motorcycle?” Ichigo asked Orihime, in the tone of voice of someone who already knows the answer to what he is asking.

“He does, actually!” Orihime piped up. “That’s why he couldn’t take me to the Urgent Care himself.”

Rukia scrunched up her face. Dammit, she loved a motorcycle. “Look, he’s a professional! I’m paying him to do a service! It would be really rude to ask him out.”

Ichigo and Orihime turned matching skeptical expressions on her.

“Also…he’s way too cool for me,” Rukia muttered.

“Aw, come on!” Ichigo protested.

“Rukia, you are so pretty and smart!” Orihime added, waving her fork for emphasis. “You have an amazing job and you’ve traveled all over and you met Lorde once.”

“We were just in an elevator together! That could have happened to anyone!”

“Also, you drive a car that people put on their phone lockscreens,” Ichigo added.

Rukia rested her cheek on the heel of her hand. “Yeah, but Renji is counter-culture cool. He’s covered in tatts, and he was wearing a Dinosaur Jr. t-shirt, and he’s really involved in his neighborhood and he draws skeletons on people for a living. I’m just…rich.”

“What the hell is Dinosaur Jr?” Ichigo wondered.

“He’s an artist, Rukia,” Orihime pointed out. “People always think artists are cool, but we’re not. We’re just weird and awkward.”

Rukia sighed. “To be honest, I tried to flirt with him a little and…he didn’t seem interested.”

“He probably just didn’t notice,” Orihime said. Her eyes darted over to Ichigo, and she lowered her voice as though this would somehow make him not hear her. “Artists are also kinda oblivious. Don’t you remember when you had to tell me that Ichigo had a crush on me?”

“And I am good at flirting,” Ichigo put in, unoffended by any of this. He jabbed a finger at Rukia. “You are bad at flirting. Very bad.”

“Shut up!” Rukia howled.

“You shut up, you’re gonna get us kicked out, and then where are we going to go for Vegan Wednesdays?”

“Where, indeed?” sighed Rukia, who only celebrated Vegan Wednesday because she loved Orihime very, very much, and would rather enjoy being banned from the Lettuce Feed You. “Look, I am just trying to pick a tattoo, here. I know you mean well, but I don’t have time for a boyfriend and even if I did, he’s not exactly the kind of guy I can bring home to meet Grandfather, you know?”

Ichigo shook his head. “Rukia, you can sniff out a weak balance sheet from a thousand paces, but you can’t recognize an actual opportunity when it’s staring you in the face. You didn’t even ask Lorde if she wanted to get onion rings.”

“Lorde loves onion rings and you are adorable,” Orihime nodded solemnly. “She would have said yes.”

“Will you drop the Lorde thing already? It was two years ago and I had a meeting to go to!”

“There’s always a meeting! That’s exactly our point! Look, you’re closing up the Los Noches audit next week, right?”

“Yeah? So?”

“So I really think you should take a little time off! And by time off, I mean, work eight-hour days for a few weeks, like a human. You could catch up on your kdramas and cook yourself a meal and maybe-- just maybe-- you could ask a guy out? I’m not saying you gotta subject him to the Kuchiki Gauntlet of Approval, just buy the guy a beer and ask him if he wants to make out. I tell you, it will restore your soul.”

Rukia sucked her teeth. It was no joke that she had been working herself pretty hard lately. In fact, Brother, (Brother! of all people!) had also suggested she might be due for a little break.

“I think it’s a really good idea, Rukia!” Orihime added. “And if Renji says no, I promise, I will plan a bunch of fun stuff that we can do together! We can get mani-pedis or… or go to the trampoline park!”

“You do have to ask him, though,” Ichigo insisted. “Don’t be vague or beat around the bush. Say ‘I think you’re neat and I would like to go on a date with you.’ Just pretend he’s a CEO and you’re telling him to sell off an underperforming asset.” Ichigo glanced over and shot an incredibly soft look at Orihime. “It's embarrassing for about six seconds, but I promise you it’s worth it.”

Rukia absolutely hated it when Ichigo was right, but who was she to argue, when he was dating the most objectively perfect person in the universe? “Okay,” she huffed. “I will ask him out after he has completed my tattoo and our business relationship has come to a satisfactory conclusion. But if he shoots me down, Ichigo, you have to buy me no less than three pints of good ice cream and you both have to come over and sob-watch Mystic Pop-Up Bar with me again.”

“Deal,” Ichigo and Orihime said in unison.

#my writing #happy birthday rukia! #i *almost* broke this one out into its own ao3 story but i spent 6 hrs trying to think of a title and then gave up #i got kinda hype working on it but i really shouldn't until i clear out some of my other to-dos #i love them your honor #lettuce feed you was an actual restaurant that i could walk to from my dorm room in college #did i eat there even once? reader i did not #not sure how they even stayed open tbh

[queer-as-used-by-tolkien]

Storyline Study: Order Mentor

When you joined your Order at level thirty and met your mentor at level forty, each of the three was instantly revealed to be a different person altogether from the other two.

Tybalt Leftpaw, Lightbringer of the Order of Whispers, was on his first-ever field mission. He was very blatantly calling for you in a sort of undercover way, and simultaneously panicking when you tried to mention the full name of the Order. Your supposed mentor was as new to this as you, had a (sometimes very human-teenager) sense of humor, and had a rather sad backstory balanced by his good nature. You knew he liked apples.

Sieran, Magister of the Durmand Priory, was full of reckless abandon, disregard for authority, boundless curiosity and a heart for the little things. She was confident in her role and her ability, and unhesitatingly took you into dangerous places for the sake of exploration and adventure while brushing off rebuke like a tree sheds sap - even when it was heartily deserved. You learned to be rather frightened for her.

Forgal Kernsson, Warmaster of the Vigil, was an archetypal gruff, stern old mentor whose every drop of praise spoke volumes. But he also carried a sort of wildness to him, that rough edge from growing up a hunter in the Shiverpeaks, coupled with every willingness to say it like it was if it was true. He could be surprised, he could observe calmly when something was new, he could snark like the rest of them and even say things he didn't mean from time to time.

They all fought the dragons - they each more or less took it seriously. But Tybalt was a partner and friend, you were keeping Sieran in check, not the other way around, and Forgal trained you mercilessly.

You all grew together - they had each changed for the better by the time they died. Tybalt had learned that he was worth something, Sieran had learned friendship was worth everything, and Forgal had learned... well. He'd found a student to be proud of, a partner to fight with, a friend to trust... a child to carry on his legacy. But I'm not sure, exactly, what Forgal learned - what the point of his story was.

Sieran was more-or-less well suited to her role in the story; she symbolized innocence and cheer and optimism and the beauty of the world - so you could recognize what was being lost by the dragon's onslaught. Tybalt's story was one extremely well-suited to his character; he taught you that working together was vital to survival, even when neither of you knew exactly what you were doing - a valuable lesson as the story progressed. Both of their stories fit well enough into the three-mission story sequence concluding in their death.

But Forgal was different. He was the mentor who dies partway through. He was the one who trained you and taught you all he could, who died imparting one last gem of wisdom. Or, he should have.

I am not attacking Forgal. I am attacking ArenaNet. We had too little time with Forgal for the story Anet was trying to tell with him. He was like Obi-Wan but without showing up again as a ghost, without the prequels, without being able to send Luke to Yoda - without, most significantly, being able to explain why he'd said Luke's father was dead.

We don't know Forgal. We don't understand him. We only know his family died to Icebrood... but why is he with the Vigil, specifically? Why is he a good friend of Almorra's - allowed to butt in and insult a diplomatic ambassador with barely a reprimand? Forgal is the character that tells me the Vigil has been around decades, not a mere five years. Was he in another military? Forgal was over a hundred years old. You don't join a military at that age and, five years later, are a highly self-disciplined warrior such as he was. Maybe he was Lionguard? Hear this: Forgal is actually older than Lion's Arch. If he'd survived, he would have been old enough to bear witness to all three incarnations of that city. But, apart from being able to recognize the Orrian Scout on sight, this is only a trivial piece of lore.

After he judged us worthy, we should have had long training sessions with him - sparring matches wherein he would easily fend off our blows while simultaneously teaching us about the world, all the wisdom he'd gathered, expounding just a bit on the history of the Elder Dragons (perhaps customized for player's race!) - and then we go off and have a real Vigil mission. Perhaps remove the racial sympathy 'choice' and have all five! A sparring match before each one, with a different lesson (the racial sympathy missions were awfully short anyway). And if you want to keep the idea implied by the term 'racial sympathy,' you could change the tone of some of them, make the player more reluctant and Forgal more impatient, have a middle-of-mission lecture on why it's important to work with everyone - this way you joining an Order feels less 'oh you've always been sympathetic to other races' and more 'wait who are these people.' But you know the real kicker? These training sessions would have made us actually feel like we were a treasured part of his life, the kid he never had, that he takes the effort to train us and takes the time to correct us when we're wrong, that he shares his history with us.

And then, at Claw Island, he would place a hand on our shoulder and tell us - hey - don't worry. You did good. You tell my tale and you take my lessons and put them to good use, you hear me? Listen to Trahearne over there - I've told you a bit about him - he's a good kid, he's smart and he knows what he's doing. And - partner? Partner, I need you to put me down if that blasted dragon raises me.

And we're in tears and Trahearne standing there also puts up a fight and tells him not to go, but Forgal goes anyway, roaring his defiance at the dragon - and his famous line, "you may win the battle, dragon, but you will never defeat our spirit!" And maybe he adds - "you may defeat me, but I will be avenged!" like some cartoon villain only you know - you know that means you.

That is the storyline Forgal deserved. (I selfishly also fixed it just a bit with regards to Trahearne, but...) I don't care if we add an extra ten or twenty levels to the game to account for the four extra racial sympathy story chapters.

And see, now you'll argue that that's biased in favor of Forgal, to do all that with him but not the other two - and that's part of the idea.

Forgal isn't like the other two. He shouldn't be compared to the other two. The storyline we have is good for the other two. Extending their stories would feel... false. Yes, there are supposed to be parallels between the three Orders, but... in that case, ArenaNet should have done something entirely different with Forgal.

How about this: Almorra assigns us to someone else for a mentor, but we show such epic promise she switches us to Laranthir. His storyline? It's right in his idle dialogue at the Vigil Keep - he's always sought love. This puts his storyline on par with Sieran and Tybalt. What about Forgal? He's a Lionguard that all three Order mentors know well. We do racial sympathy with Forgal plus our Order mentor (doing those with only one ally is kind of absurd anyway). This can help set-up and foreshadow the tactical significance of Claw Island, too - and hey, maybe Forgal can even survive that! Or maybe he doesn't survive it but our Order mentor does! (Yeah, that fits better, since Laranthir is important in HoT.) And then, once the Pact is formed, their stories end more naturally without regard for the Order parallels, which would keep the story unique - where your choice of Order still matters even when it doesn't anymore. Tybalt didn't have to die - in fact, it's kind of absurd that he did since his story was about finding his own heroism, and then he dies. He can die later, perhaps, after he's thoroughly proved himself. (And hey, throw in an encounter with his old warband! Bonus lore points!) And Sieran 0 maybe Sieran could go through a heartbreaking transformation in Orr, the land of the dead - you see something far more heartbreaking than her death as she loses her spirit, and you and Trahearne both resolve that even if you're super-busy with the Pact, you can still cleanse Orr together to save Sieran. (This makes cleansing Orr a personal thing for you as well as Trahearne!) And Laranthir - well, I don't know what he was doing originally. Maybe he stayed back at the Vigil Keep to manage things, but you still see him now and then and he gives good advice and (since his storyline was about falling in love or something) you get to tease him about whatever's going on in his life, and then later he shows up again in HoT.

I'm going to stop - I already just presented a rough outline of a whole rewrite of core PS, I'm not going to step into HoT territory. (But since his storyline was about falling in love - ? Anything could happen really. Maybe his love died in the crash (we don't actually know of any characters who died in the actual crash. Awful shame) and that's why he takes the lead against Mordremoth. That would give him a cool motive.)

Anet I want this now.

I only wanted to say how unfair Forgal's story was to him, and then I came up with this whole thing - ? Some of it included a few helpful fixes for the Trahearne hate - this isn't something I can write out into a whole fic since I have a main fic and while this is a significant AU it's not quite enough for a whole fic but also far too much for just a headcanon - maybe I'll invent a new Commander.

#forgal kernsson #sieran #tybalt leftpaw #laranthir #trahearne #I cannot stress enough #FORGAL IS OLDER THAN LA #Forgal has been alive longer than Zhaitan has been awake!! #like technically our earliest checkpoint is that he was around for the fall of Port Stalwart and he could've been a kid for that #but he saw the Orrian Scout so I feel he was in a more military position? #we don't even know where Port Stalwart was supposed to be LOCATED on the world map #was it even a part of Kryta?! #but anyway yeah so if Forgal was old enough to be fighting at Port Stalwart then #he was definitely old enough to have seen Original Lion's Arch #gw2 #almorra #lionguard #lion's arch #claw island #zhaitan #jormag #mordremoth #icebrood #risen #orr #vigil keep #vigil #durmand priory #order of whispers #pact

[anastasiabeaverhousen87]

Make Wise Choices:  Part 7 Cuore  Mio

The next couple of days were rough on you, filled with cold meds, soups, lots of chamomile tea  and water and you felt like your teeth were about to swim out of your mouth, but according to Alex you needed to be hydrated and tea was good for colds.

A few days after Alex had to go back to the DEO, she was needed but Kara was able to stay with you as Supergirl wasn’t required to be there, not at the moment anyways. So that’s how you found yourself at Thursday afternoon Infront of the TV with Kara next to you in the couch watching some musical. Well, Kara was watching the musical, you were engrossed on your cellphone texting away with a very goofy smile on your face.

Kara: “Is that the hot doctor your texting…again?” –

Y/N: “well, if you really must know. Yes, I’m texting Cassie”

Kara: “Cassie huh? So now you’re on nickname bases I see”

y/n: “I heard Lena called her that and I liked it, also I think Cassandra is a beautiful name, but a mouthful. And calling her hot doctor sounded a bit rude, at least for the time being”- you give a naughty smile.

Kara laughs at that and mutes the tv “You really like her, don’t you?”

y/n: “I do, I mean I feel things when I speak with her and when I’m near her. And Oh my God she is sooo beautiful. You’re not mad, aren’t you?”

Kara: “Sweet girl I could never be mad about you liking someone. Besides she really is hot. But honestly it would be kind of hypocrite from me to not approve you liking her. She is also someone very dear to Lena so that makes her even more special. So no, I’m not mad, I’m actually happy for you, you never really showed any interested in anyone like you seem to be with her. Just be careful and don’t feel pressured into something you don’t really want”

y/n: “I know, I mean I’ve dated but there was no spark, nothing there. I did fool around a little but never really liked someone to go all the way. If you know what I mean?” – you blush pink at this.

Kara: “I figured as much. You’re a lot like Alex in that aspect, you concentrate too much in your grades and other things, work. But you never really sounded super doped on anyone you dated, when mom and Alex gave you the sex talk you were almost sick thinking about it, that was funny to watch” – You throw a pillow at your sister face “Hey!!!, don’t attack me little bean. And then when you asked about sex with women you sounded more interested but still, I can tell you weren’t ready. The question is, do you feel like you are ready now?”

y/n: “I feel like I am. Truly I’ve only known her for a little while, and I know is soon. But I really like getting to know her and to spend time with her. She is amazing and so caring. I can feel getting serious with her you know. Like I can trust her, and I can share that level of intimacy. It’s weird because is so soon, but I just know it feel right. Do you think is too soon?”

Kara: “If you feel like you can open up to her, if she makes you feel safe enough, why not? you are very good at judging people’s character and I trust your judgement. I’m not gonna lie though, Cassandra being Lena’s friend and all I’ve heard from her she does sounds like a great person and I know Lena also doesn’t trust easily. So yes, that a great bonus and makes me feel more comfortable of you dating her. But I do trust you baby, you’ll know when you feel ready and what to share with her. Also, I know you won’t be able to hide who I am from her that much longer if things do get serious. When you feel ready to tell her I will support you, okay? Oh and if she ever treats you wrong I will throw her into the sun”. - she winks at you.

y/n: “Thank you Kara, that means a lot to me” – you hug your sister and you kiss her cheek while your cellphone sounds with an incoming text, you look down at your phone- “She wants to come over…” you give a small smile

Kara: “well, tell her yes. Go change into something more appropriate at least nicer pajamas. and if she does happen to make you diner again, I wouldn’t be opposed to her amazing pasta. Man, I’m so jealous of you, she cooks like a pro and if I wasn’t dating Lena or you being my sister I would totally charm my way to her, her cooking skills are so amazing. Now don’t get jealous little bean, I’m good with her being my sister in law, she still needs to get point and be on my good side. Just tell her food is the way to my heart” – you sister laughs while walking to the kitchen. “Go get change and tell your girlfriend to come over”

y/n: “You and your stomach. Crazy alien food crazed woman. And sister-in law, seriously? Let me date her first, jeez!” – you mumble while walking into your room.

You hear someone at the door, and you know is the blonde doctor, and you don’t even try to rush to the living room well aware that your bubbly sister will open the door and let her come in.

Kara: “Hello Cassandra, come on in please, y/n will be here in a moment. Y/N!!! you hot date is here!”

Dr. Sharpe: “You’ve been waiting a while to do that don’t you?” – the doctor greets the other blonde and kisses her cheeks hello.

Kara: “You have nooo idea for how long. She used to say things like that or worse when I first began to date Lena, even at the very beginning of our friendship. I’ve been waiting patiently for the time for payback! Ha…” Kara rubs her hands like a Disney villain but she honestly looks quite like the adorable golden retriever she really is.

y/n: ““Really Kara? You couldn’t wait a little longer?”- you shake your head amused and then walk to where the blonde doctor is standing, and she quickly kisses your cheeks and gives you a warm hug.

Dr. Sharpe: “Ciao Bella ragazza”-  

You blush at the words spoken by the blonde doctor

Y/n: “hello to you too gorgeous”

Kara: “Oh you guys are so cute, I can’t even…”- Your sister speaks and walks into the living room

  The three women spend the afternoon talking and the doctor even offered to make diner, much to your sister delight and happy squeal. Lena was on her way over and you got to know more of the blue- eyed doctor and you could see why Lena loves and admires Cassandra so much. She is an amazing kind and dedicated woman. You learnt that not only did the good doctor was a certificated periodontist, she had received a Master’s Degree in Oral Biology  and while in graduate school she also received the Balint Orban Award, which apparently is the highest level of certification in the field of periodontist. And that the reason Lena and the blonde woman couldn’t see each other so often was because Cassandra gives lectures all over the world on a wide range of topics including dental implants, gum grafting, cosmetic periodontal surgery, and bone regeneration. She is also the founder and program director of a dental study club whose purpose is to positively impact the quality of dental care by hosting the highest quality international speakers in the field of dentistry to speak to local dentists in different cities in the US. And in addition to that she also made multiple mission trips to countries in Latin America like Mexico, Guatemala, Venezuela among others where she has been able to utilize her skills to help the neediest of people.

To say you were amazed by the woman was an understatement, she was funny, beautiful and crazy smart. But behind all those accomplishments you could see a sadness withing her. And you felt the need to change that, to make her smile and a pull to her that you couldn’t quite understand. But you were pulled out from your thoughts when Lena spoke.

 Lena: “Sorry to cut my time short but I just got a text and I’m needed for a consult” – Lena discreetly elbowing Kara to see the text on her phone. Both her and Supergirl were needed at the DEO, so they needed to leave.

Kara: “Oh shoot, ok well let me drive you then”

And of course you couldn’t be cool about it and spoke before you could understand why they needed to leave “Kara you don’t even own a car and Lena has her own driver”- you look at your sister like she just said the stupidest thing ever. Until you recognize their looks and realized they both were needed for something important, DEO important. You curse yourself.

y/n: “Buuuut I mean I totally get it, you should go with her, you haven’t been able to spend time just the two of you because you’re been busy taking care of me. Soooo why don’t you guys leave. I´ll be okay on my own. “

Kara: “Yeah I don’t think so little one, you always forget to take your meds and…”

Lena: “If you don’t mind Cassie, can you stay for a little while with y/n ?” – Lena interrupts her girlfriend ramblings.

y/n: “Hey Lena, I thought you were on my side. I can totally take care of myself” – you pout at her

Dr. Sharpe: “I can stay, I don’t mind at all. I like spending time with you y/n”

y/n: “Yeah me too, I just find itoffensive my sister and Lena don’t think I could spend a few hours on my own. But sure stay we can watch a movie or something”

Kara: “Ha, yeah. Like last night you were so tired you fell asleep on the bathtub and knocked the shampoo inside the water and you made a huge mess with shampoo foam or you know when trying to make a chocolate shake with the blender and forgot to remove the metal spoon and you almost cut you hand when the blender broke to pieces, yeah totally you can handle yourself. Klutz!”

You gasp and look offended: “How dare you!!! Says the woman that burnt the brownies and set the microwave and toaster on fire !!! - you just childishly stuck your tongue out and pouted: “Well you make it sound like I’m the worse, thank you Kara”

Lena and the blonde doctor laugh at the antics and pouting face you make at your sister.

Lena: “I knew it was you the responsible for the toaster, Kara. That one was new”

Kara: “No, you are not the worse, but when you feel tire or sick you tend to make messes and I don’t want you alone, you haven’t completely got rid of your cold and you still under some strong meds. We just worry, you know we love you so much. And honey it was an accident I did got a new one though”

y/n: “Fine leave us now, bring back home some chocolate if you can pleaseeeee?”

Kara: “Totally my little klutz” -your sister engulfs you in a big hug and gives you a kiss to your head.  “let’s go Lena and…” – looking back at you and the blonde doctor “behave yourselves and don’t do anything I wouldn’t” – You hug ger back just as strong and let go of her.

Lena: “Come on sweetheart and leave them be”- Just rolls her eyes and walks away with the blonde superhero next to her. The door closes.

You just exhale and keep looking at the door and then your turn around to face the blonde doctor.  You are both now sitting at the couch and the blue-eyed woman is looking at you with a sweet and soft smile.

You scrunch up your nose adorably: “What?”

Dr. Sharpe: “Nothing, I just like the way you are with your sisters. You care very much and they as well. That’s nice, it reminds me of the way I used to be with my nonna and my brother” – the blonde woman face goes from fond to a little sad.

y/n: “are they in Italy?”

Her face is just so sad, and you can see a hint of tears in her eyes, and it makes your heart aches.

Dr. Sharpe: “No, they died” -you try to apologize but the blonde doctor sees that and stops you “Don’t, you didn’t know, you couldn’t. and it was a very long time ago. My nonna basically rise me and my brother. She died when I was 25 and my brother, he was my best friend. He …he uhm he was a Navy SEAL, he died in a terrorism-related mission three years ago.” – the blonde doctor just stares down at her hands trying to gain control over her emotions.

You just wanted to make her stop hurting so you did the only thing you knew you were an expert at. Hugging and cuddling people. So, you just hug her firm and strong you cling to her and try to convey through physical connection instead of words, that you are sorry, and you want to make the pain go away or at least lessen the burnt. You stay like that hugging each other and basking in the feel of each other arms.

Dr. Sharpe: “Okay, well you truly are an amazing hugger sweetheart, thank you”- the blonde woman kisses your cheek and near your mouth but not quite there. So, you take things into your own hands and sit up, throw a leg over the blonde doctor waist so you can straddle her. You put your arms around her neck and stare directly into those beautiful eyes, you really love those eyes. They are mesmerizing.

y/n: “God I really love your eyes, is like seeing the color of the sky when there’s a summer storm”.

the blonde doctor was completely still, mouth barely open and a little smirk on the corner of her mouth as she looks up to you amused loving eyes.

You took the opportunity to movie in and crush your lips against the blonde woman, who was more than happy to reciprocate. You initiated the kiss trying to control the kiss, hungrily kissing her lips, however the honey blonde had other plans, she bit down ever so slightly your bottom lip but soon you were surprised by strong arms shifting. The blonde grab ahold of your ass  and stood up with you in her arms and holding you tight against her waist  and twisted her body so you hold on just as tight and you felt yourself being lowered on the couch. The blonde had a hand behind you head, holding you were laid down flat on your back and she was hovering above you and broke the kiss but kept looking directly into your eyes.

You were just as turn on as the blonde doctor, she was looking down at you with such hunger in her eyes, and she was panting.

Dr. Sharpe: “Calm down little one” – the blonde woman lowered her face next to your ear and kissed the side of your neck – “if you keep pushing me, I won’t be able to stop”

y/n: “Well I don’t want you stop” – you tried to gain some sort of friction from the tight nestles between your legs.

Dr. Sharpe: “no?”- the blonde doctor keeps kissing your neck and jaw and you shiver in delight. You never felt this aroused by someone before. But the blonde just kissed you sweetly, you tried to hug her to bring her down on you, but the blonde kept it sweet and gentle, not really letting you get any traction in the kiss. Like an innocent sweet kiss.

You felt yourself being sat up by strong and gentle arms. She pulled you into her your legs intertwined, and she positioned you to lay on her your head being cradled in the crook of her neck and you felt another kiss this time to your temple. The blonde woman kept making soothing circles on your back with her free hand, rubbing your arm and face. You wrapped yourself even further into her.

You love cuddles and hugs, you did it all the time with your sisters and some friend, specially Lena. But this felt so different, probably the most intimate thing you ever done with anyone. You didn’t put up any fight, you felt so cozy and happy in her arms.

Dr. Sharpe: “shh cuore mio, I know you want this. But I want to take you on a proper date first I want to do this the right way, you deserve better and not rushing it in the heat of the moment” – she spoke so softly to you, that you just melted.

You kept basking in the tender touches and soft skin- “ I like it when you call me Italian pet names”

The blonde woman just smiled and kept the soothing touches.  You nuzzled you face into her neck finding that smell that was just hers, Cassandra’s and her warmth. You felt completely at peace and you felt yourself falling asleep in the most comfortable embrace. The blonde doctor kept looking at you and touching softly your back and arms, until herself felt the pull of sleep and the both were completely asleep in each other’s arms.

  Note: Well this happened, I hope you like it. 

Until next time...

#baby danvers #baby!danvers #alex x baby danvers #baby danvers x lena #baby danvers x kara #alex danvers #kara x reader #lena luthor #supergirl #supercorp #lena x reader #lena luthor imagine #kara danvers imagine #alex danvers imagine #original character #fanfic

[nightspeckle]

High School Au {Part 3}

Part 1 - Part 2 - Part 4

this one is like sorta long-ish? (for me lol, in actuality its like super short) and it’s trash so my b 

******

Here’s the thing. Working with Cardan was actually pretty good. I never thought I would ever think that and yet here I am. I’m pretty sure my delusions are growing but that's not really the point. 

The point is that the kid knows his shit. I mean really knows his shit. 

Noggle gave us Scipio Africanus’ Tactics which was an adventure in itself. Cardan had just looked at me with a toned-down version of his death stare and asked me if we wanted to break up the work. 

It was that simple. We made a combined slideshow that took about 20 minutes in total with each of us splitting the research. I was looking over the slides and when I got to his I think my brain imploded.

They were extremely detailed, more so even than mine and he had been on his phone half of the time. I mean even the sentences sounded smart.  He used the word consternation. I mean what does that even mean? Not that I was about to ask. 

Noggle basically pushed us out early when he saw how good our slides were considering this was just a club and so he shoved us out with a big smile. 

So in all working with Cardan wasn’t terrible. I barely even noticed how clear his skin looked from close up! So progress for me. 

But now as we currently exit out the east side doors to the parking lot I can’t help but notice how he seems to glow in the sunlight. Or the fact that something about him just feels ethereal at this moment. 

So I book it. Walking as fast as I possibly can to the back of the parking lot. 

I’m so focused and hightailing it away from the beauty that is Cardan that I don’t realize anything is amiss until I’m standing in an empty parking spot. 

I do a little 360 standing in the place where the car is supposed to be.

Fuck.

I should be surprised, or even concerned that my car is missing. But I’m not. 

Three sisters and two cars is not a perfect equation. I check my phone to see if I missed anything in the group chat. 

Viv: I’m taking Carol to work

Taryn: I thought we agreed on Joan? 

Vivi Yeah but saying I’m taking Joan makes me feel like a 40 year old mom who drives a minivan

Taryn: And Carol doesn't give you the same vibes?

Viv: Nah, Crackhead Carol is wildddddd 

Taryn: I hate you.

Taryn: I’m taking Olie to the mall, Jude can you catch the bus?

Viv: I can not believe that you give me shit for Carol and then named our beautiful baby after Oliver Wood.

Taryn: Excuse me? Oliver Wood is the god of the century

Viv: Bitch can't beat Luna

Taryn: You would

Taryn: Do we think Jude will even see this or am I gonna have to go back to pick her up

Viv: She’s probably to busy dreaming nasty thoughts about her ghosty boy and his little ghost

Taryn: Let's not start on this again pls

Viv: I’ll be home at 9 don’t die in the meantime xx

First of all, Shit. 

Second, I’m going to strangle Vivi with my bare hands. Garrett and I are friends and it's actually starting to piss me off.  

Third, how the fuck do they expect me to get Oak with no car? Fucking idiots.

Jude: Which one of you dumbos is gonna get Oak?

Viv: Workingggggggg

Taryn: I’m 45 minutes away... so like u

Jude: I am wishing death upon your souls :)

I look at my watch to see It’s already three. Shit. 

What am I going to do? Walk? I can’t call Orianna or Dad. I am not in the mood to face Oriannas snarky comments or Dad’s lectures about responsibility.

So that leaves walking. Or more like running. I am so going to be late.

But as I’m dashing across the parking lot I almost get run over by a black Porsche Cayenne.

 Which p.s. is one sexy ass car. 

Usually, I might stop to give the driver an earful about how running over pedestrians is not the vibe. But I have 15 minutes to get to Oak’s school which is like 20 minutes on foot.

I start walking again when I hear the car's window roll down and a voice from the driver's seat.

It’s Cardan.

Of course.

I’m waiting for a comment about idiotically walking behind moving cars but it doesn’t come. Or for him to unleash the snide comments he has been holding back all afternoon. However, what does come out is even worse.

“Do you need a ride?”

....

I’m staring at him through his open window. I’m about two feet from the driver's door and Cardan is tapping his fingers methodically on the door.

He doesn’t look very menacing. His eyes are flickering over my face and he raises an eyebrow up at me. 

“Well?” He asks probingly. I’m all too aware of what this means. The dude who terrorized my childhood is reaching out an olive branch. 

There’s a part of me that wants to turn and walk away from his cruel glares and the comments he used to spit at me and Taryn. But I really could use a ride. 

Plus, he looks extremely hot with one of his hands on the wheel which is like an added bonus.

“Yeah, I do.” He seems a little surprised that I said yes. I watch as a small smirk graces his face. Damn. 

He nods his head to the passenger side and I walk around the car and slide into the seat. Just FYI these seats are comfortable as shit. 

I look over at Cardan as he starts to back up. Which is a terrible idea. He looks so laid back and comfortable. He looks like he fits here and his face is blank of that awful sneer he seems to have on every day at school. 

It makes me despise him a little less. I should have walked. 

“Can you drop me off at Elfame Elementary?” 

He looks over at me quizically. “Yeah.” A pause. “Why do you need to go there?”

“I need to pick up my little brother,”. 

“Is that why you were running around the parking lot like a headless chicken?”. He looks amused as he says this.

“I was not running around like a headless chicken.” My voice is a little cold as I speak. His face goes a little more stonelike at my tone. 

Jude! Wtf, this guy is giving you a ride. Pull it together!

“My sisters took the cars and left me stranded,” I attempt a little more warmly. “So thank you.”

His face twists a little surprised at the thank you. Mind kind of does too. Me saying thank you to the kid who poured milk all over me on picture day for years throughout elementary school.

Cardan doesn’t say anything else as we drive to Oak’s school. He just turns on some music and drives. It’s actually kind of nice being able to watch the vibrant green trees go zooming by. 

Before I know it Cardan is pulling into the parking lot of the elementary school.

A little bit of me is disappointed it's over so soon. I actually feel a little peaceful.

I look down at my watch to see it’s 3:10. Perfect! 

“Thanks, Cardan, truly this was life-saving,” I reach over to the handle about to push the door open when I look back to see an expression on Cardan's face that matches my own.

“How are you going to get home after?” Cardan’s voice is soft as he asks.

“I was going to walk to Ralph’s, Viv has one of the cars with her,”.

“That's like a mile away,” Cardan says laughing a little as he does.

“Don’t really have any other options here buddy,”

“Buddy?” He looks offended. As if the word is a personal assault to his well being. I can’t help but roll my eyes. To which he notices and roll’s his eyes back at me.

“I can drive you and your brother home. If you want?”.

Yes. I do want. But I’m not really in the mood to owe Cardan anything and this feels like a favor a little too out of his way. Why is he helping me out?

So no?

But I’m also not in the mood for the complaining Oak will give me for walking in this sweltering heat. 

“Uh, yeah. Thanks.” Then I shut the door and head into the school.

....

Oak is looking up at me with a puzzled look on his face.

“I thought Viv was going to get me today?”

“Sorry, bud. She had to work.” He just shrugs. “Does that mean shell bring me back a milkshake!” He’s popping up on his toes almost jumping in joy. I just stifle a laugh and shake his hair up.

“Where did you park Olie?” Oak is looking around quizically trying to spot the black jeep named after the quidditch legend himself. When he cant spot Ollie Oak turns to look at me with a full face of disappointment. “Did you drive Crackhead Carol?”

The dad who walks by as he gives me a wide eyed look before shuffling his kids along in the opposite direction. I can’t help roll my eyes even though Vivi isn’t even here. 

Oak is still looking at me in despair. He hates Crackhead Carol. Says that it’s scary driving in it. Which is not true. The only reason he hates Carol is that every time he’s in Carol is when Vivi is driving. Which is an experience to drive any person to full body fear. 

“I did not drive Carol.” Oak’s shoulders un-tense and he goes back to bouncing as we make our way past the busses and smiling bus monitors to the parking lot.

“So how did you get here?”

“Oak, chill out we’re not walking to Ralph's,” I say still heading to where Cardan parked his car. 

Oak just stops halfway through the parking lot with his hands on his hips demanding an explanation. As much as he is trying to be serious he just looks adorable. 

“I’ll give you a piggyback if you stop being an annoying little butt.” He just smiles and catapults onto my back.  I don’t often offer to give Oak piggybacks any more. He’s gotten heavier as he's grown. Plus sometimes he thinks he's too old and cool for them. I guess today is not one of those days.

When I get back to Cardan’s car I can see he has an amused smile as he watches my cart around my lanky 7 year old brother. 

Oak looks at me with wide eyes as I buckle him up in the back and plop down in the passenger seat. Cardan has turned off the rap he was playing early and switched it to that teeny bob that I despise but Taryn loves. 

I look over to see that not only is the amused look on his lips but also in his eyes. He doesn’t say anything and instead just pulls out of the parking lot.

Oak who has been unusually quiet finally opens his mouth.

“Are you Jude’s boyfriend?” Oh my god.

“Oak!” My face has most certainly paled to the color of ice. Cardan looks at first like he might throw up with the thought but then he starts laughing. 

And damn is that a nice sight. His sharp features are relaxed and full of laughter.

“Jude’s never had a boyfriend before.” Oak pauses for a second before continuing. “Actually she had one boyfriend but now he’s Taryn’s boyfriend so that doesn’t really count.” 

I think I might strangle Oak. I look over at Cardan who seems to have gone a little rigid with this turn of the conversation. Having Cardan sit here with my brother telling him about my relationship disasters is embarrassing.

I mean, of course, he already knows this. He’s friends with Locke. But still, something about this is bugging me. 

“Oak,” My voice is diminished when I speak. I’m looking out the window forcing the feelings I've been fighting for months to go away. Taryn and I worked things out. We always do. But that doesn’t mean it doesn’t sting sometimes. 

That's when I feel a strong nimble hand grab mine. I look over to Cardan as he drives. His eyes are focused on the road as he squeezes my hand.

I think my heart is going to melt. 

But then I think I’m going to attack him. I remember seeing Nicasia laugh along with Valerian and Locke. Who’s to say he didn’t poke fun of the fool I was. I bet he’s only doing this now to go laugh at what an idiot I am later with all of his cronies.

But then he catches my eyes and he seems genuinely sad for me so I don’t attack him. But I do pull my hand from his and look back out the window. I don’t care if he’s been nice today. That does not exclude the years of name-calling. Of making me and Taryn feel small. Of how he glared at me at the party. What the fuck changed so quickly?

Oak is apparently not done talking. As usual. “Only Heather and Locke drive me places too. They're both my sister's boyfriend and girlfriend.” That makes me turn around.

“Cardan is not my boyfriend.” My voice is firm as I speak. 

I look over to see a little bit of anger on his face. He has both hands on the wheel. No aimless tapping or anything. He looks over with that cold glare he gave me at the party. 

Great! He’s mad because I pulled my hand from his. What an arrogant bastard.

....

When we finally get home Oak jumps out of the car running to the door. Something about Fixer Upper being on. What an odd kid.

Oak’s gone before I can even open the door leaving me and Cardan alone.

He’s staring dead out the window not even bothering to look at me. Which is fucking annoying. This dude needs to get a grip on his mood swings. I’m irritated enough to the point where I have to say something.

“Why the fuck were you being so tolerable early? You're usually pretty shitty to me. So whats up? What's with the bits of decency all of the sudden. You hate me. What's going on here?” 

He turns his head to meet me eye to eye. His lips are sent in such a hard line I don’t think I’m going to get an answer. 

“I do not hate you.” 

“No? What about that time you called me and Taryn lowlife orphans who were less important than the dirt on your shoe? Or when you would steal my lunch money every day? Or that time you tripped me at elementary school graduation? I broke my ankle.” I’m seething. My whole body hot with anger.

He just sits there. Stone cold as ice.

“I was a child.” It's icy. Dismissive. As if the pent up anger, the feelings I had that I didn’t belong where nothing. 

“Fine. What about Friday night? That lovely moment when you basically kicked me out of that party? Omg, what about when I started dating Locke and you called me a filthy slut! That was a fun one.”

He’s staring at me with a hard unrelenting stare. 

I can not believe I started to think he wasn’t such an asshole. Just listening to myself speak I realize how dumb I am. I’m too pissed at the feelings that have been in that dark space next to my heart to even wait for his answer.

I’m curious sure. But I’m done. I’ve put up with this shit for too long.

I’m storming out of the car. Slamming the door to his precious car as hard as I can. 

“Jude.” His voice is hard. Commanding. I feel like smacking him into next week.

I turn to see him standing out of his door arms crossed defensively. I can't help but match his stance. He’s only 3 ft away and I feel the urge to run as far as I can. 

“I don’t hate you.” He’s spitting the words out now full of force.

“You looked hot as fuck Friday night,”. What? “And that pissed me the fuck off because I like you.” 

What the fuck.

“I can’t stop thinking about you.” Oh my god. “And I hate that.”

 He takes a pause, “I despise you for it.”

I’m frozen in place. Just staring at this asshole who had the nerve to tell me he likes me? After the torment, he inflicted on me as a kid. After the name-calling and the glares and the...

My entire brain freezes as he tugs me into his chest. Hard.

Because now he's kissing me. And damn is he a good kisser.

He has a hand tangled in my hair and the other one is keeping me pinned to him. I’m a stone statue for a whole 3 seconds before I acknowledge what is happening. But then I can’t stop myself as my arms wrap around his body and I'm pushing into him as much as I can. 

He’s turning us around backing me up to his car door. The kisses becoming hungrier, needier. His hands have moved down to my ass. Holding me as close to him as possible. I can’t stop the roving my hands are doing. Finding their way to that sweet soft black hair.

I can’t let go. I don’t think I’ll ever get enough of this. What it feels like to not have a single space between us. What it feels like for Cardan's hand to be intertwined with my hair, pulling me into him. 

“See I told you Jude had a boyfriend!”.

I hate my life.

~~~

My one tag hehe:

@fireheartbuzzard

#jurdan #jude #cardan #jude duarte #cardan greenbriar #jude x cardan #jude and cardan #cardanandjude #tfota au #highschool au #tqon #twk #twk au? #tcp #vivienne duarte #taryn duarte #oak #king cardan #the folk of the air #the cruel prince #the wicked king #the queen of nothing #i didnt write anything for 3 weeks and then this is the shit i come up with #this is terrible #i apologize #why is this so long #death :)

[lunebinnie]

(1/14)I am so sorry for taking so long! (I also had to spend a lot of time studying this week bc I had my first exam for my Anatomy Lab on Wednesday... And then we had our first exam for *Lecture* Thursday (which also was the day I had a bunch of powerpoints due for my very intimidating adviser...) and then I had to substitute teach all day Friday (and then I meant to respond sooner but I got so busy 😭) so yeah I completely understand about school getting in the way no worries abt it!)

And also sleeping in on a day off when you’ve been busy studying lately is completely valid hon 👌 I hope that your midterms go well and that you’re able to stay healthy and take care of yourself in the midst of preparing! (not that you wouldn’t, I just have a bad habit of neglecting things like healthy sleeping and eating habits when I get caught up studying, so hopefully you’re not like me in that way) And yeah me too! I mean on the one hand I understand *why* they have that limit

3)If u could just send as many as u want there would be so much more spam and ppl would definitely abuse that. But also?? Um? I have a chronic condition called ‘Can'tShuttheFuckUp-itis’? 🤷 This policy is so discriminatory towards people like me who suffer from this crippling condition! I feel oppressed honestly 🙄 tumblr rlly has something against ppl just trying to get to know each other huh? Lol, but at least now we know why it eats them I’ll be sure to try to prevent that in the future

4)And oh my gosh that’s so cool! I’m super jealous!! 😮 lol. I wish they hosted kpop nights at my local bar! 😭😭 But no, I’m here at my little state college in a little 2 mi2 town just under pop 5500 (and idek if that’s before or after counting college students) in the middle of the 'farm zone’ of my state. All we get is country night @Riley’s 😩 RIP. But ya I wish I had more ppl around me who were into kpop! So far I’ve only met 3 ppl who listen to it. One was that roommate I told you about

5)One is just a casual listener who isn’t really into 3rd gen groups and mostly just listens to Girl’s Generation but that’s valid, and one isn’t even rlly a fan of any groups in particular, she just puts the kpop station on when she studies bc she says she needs music but if it’s in English she gets distracted, lol And omg that is insane! $500?? And 5 copies of the same album? 😲 (Says the girl who’s been a Monbebe for a hot 2 months and has already bought three (3??) Monsta X T-shirts… 😂

6)in my defense tho one of them was only $10 bc it was Black Friday? And u can’t blame me, Hot Topic is my krypotonite lmao) but yeah I already feel guilty about spending 30+ dollars on one copy of an album (thx international shipping) That’s so wild. And yeah I don’t get why ppl feel the need go out of their way just to insult other ppl’s music taste. I’m also pretty self conscious abt sharing my music taste and obviously the way everyone around me talks abt kpop has made me even moreso now 🙃

7) I haven’t gotten into too many groups yet bc I’m trying to go slowly and focus on getting into one group at a time but I do have a long list of groups I plan on getting into eventually! NU'EST is one that I’ve heard some of their songs on my Spotify based on my listening history and they’re on the list haha 😂 And omg I feel really similarly about Got7! I tried to get into them after I got into Monsta X and right before I got into Astro and although I did really like some of their songs

8)I haven’t really been able to get into their music as much as MX and Astro’s yet. I do think they seem like a really fun group in terms of personality though. As for the comeback I know right?? I mean I know a lot of ppl were freaking out abt the comeback being a 'sexy’ and how it wasn’t gonna be the same cute Astro we all love anymore. But they filled the MV with flowers and glitter and still managed to make it sexy as fuck! This album has a very different vibe but it still felt like them

9) They managed to pull off a more mature and sexy concept while still staying true to themselves and I’m so here for it! I don’t know if I could really pick a favorite era because I love them all! I mean Spring Up was an excellent era and every era since then has been great. They really don’t know how to have any bad concepts or make any bad songs huh? Lol. Since I’m still pretty new I really love the title tracks since I’ve heard them the most. (I have listened to their full discography

10)But I haven’t listened to their Bsides enough to pick out my favorites from those) I also really love Again though! The first time I saw the dance practice I was super into it and then I looked up the lyrics and was like 'this is supposed to be sad/regretful song it has no reason to be this much of a BOP?!’ 😂 I have such a hard time picking favorites though. Since All Light is new though I actually have listened to it enough times to pick some 'non-title song favorites’ from there haha

11) Other than All Night (which is great, obvi) I also really like Starry Sky, Moonwalk and Role Play 😂 and Bloom is so pretty oh my god! 😭😭 the album is great and has no bad songs but those are the ones I particularly like. I feel u about the dances honestly. I think that’s actually what drew me to kpop initially. I mean I like listening to the songs ofc but it wasn’t until after I actually watched an MV/saw the choreography that I actually was like… Oh shit I’m gonna have to be a fan now

12) It was the visual aspect that really made me want to be a kpop fan bc I haven’t really seen that level of performance with any western music. Which isn’t to say I think all western music is bad but I think it’s really impressive to watch kpop groups singing and also doing really impressive choreography and performing at the same time. Plus that’s the part I can show my family and say 'even if you don’t like the music because of the language barrier you have to admit they’re talented dancers’

13)And yes! With Astro especially I think the dance practices rlly succinctly capture the reason why I love them so much. They are *super* talented but they also have such great chemistry and u can rlly tell that they just love each other and have so much fun together! I love a family of six hardworking dorks! 🤧💗 lol. And yeah it’s too bad that neither of are able to see them this cb ☹️ (I also did the 'hypothetically…’ research but it wouldn’t have worked out 😒) I hope you’re right though!

14)Hopefully the success of this comeback is the catalyst to Astro getting more of the attention they deserve and there will be many more opportunities to see them in the future! (Although it is too bad we won’t be able to see live performances from this cb, since it’s so pretty 😭 tho with their track record I’m sure future cb’s will be just as good lol) But what about you? Do you have any favorite songs from this cb in particular? Talk again soon! (I’ll try 2 b better @ responding 😭) -AHA

FUCKKK okay so after like a million years of midterms + 2 days straight of sleeping ya girl is BACK to answer these asks after getting through the hurdle of copying and pasting and italicizing 14 asks onto one response on my phone. Did I perhaps fail at least 3 of my midterms? Quite probably. Do I have the energy to care atm? No. Did I need to get away from everything and fly to Boston to visit my friend for reading week? Yes.

How did all your exams go? That sounds crazy though! I hope you got through everything ok!

Tbh I have the same unhealthy habits too, I essentially became nocturnal and lived on like one meal a day + snacks and coffee 😭 fr, I would be writing my midterm from 11:30-1:30, go home to eat, sleep from 4-7pm, then wake up to study all night for the next one, and repeat,,,,, I’m like an actual mess tbh

Honestly as much as I’ve enjoyed the Aroha secret admirer thing (it was sooo nice getting to meet new people) rn I’m just so glad that post-reveal we don’t have to deal with tumblr ask limits and writing entire essay responses all in one go.

Honestly 3 shirts isn’t even THAT bad especially if they weren’t all like ordered from overseas so they wouldn’t have been that expensive. When I went to the Myeongdong underground shopping centre I went craaaazy with Kpop merch despite stanning (at that point, pretty much only) BTS for a whole 3 weeks, so I ended up coming back with 2 albums, a bunch of stickers, a photocard pack (also bonus: got an Astro one too) and like a BUNCH of bt21 stuff. Speaking of, my All Light album finally came in!! I ended up getting a Moonbin, MJ, Jinjin, and Sanha photocard plus the a Rocky lyric booklet and ik I basically got THE best set for someone who loves all of them w my whole heart 😩✊ but I’m still sad I didn’t get any Eunwoo cards since he was my first Astro bias 😭 it’s soooooo pretty I love it sm and like lowkey I’ll probably end up buying more of their albums anyway oopsss

Speaking of Monsta X btw, I heard their new song and I thought it was really good! What did you think of it?

Regarding favourite songs, I swear my moods change so much, so it’s pretty common for me to not love a song at first and sort of rediscover it months later, and tbh that’s kind of what happened with Innocent Love, Baby, and Again. In this album though, I’d say my favourite Bsides are probably be Bloom, 1 in a Million, and Heart Brew Love.

And I toootally agree with the performance aspect of kpop being the thing to attract me it, even before I got really into it I’d sometime like to watch dance practices (and lowkey even learned a bunch of choreos a with my friend last term just bc we had access to a frequently empty dance studio). It’s just super impressive to see people singing and dancing at the same time mostly live, and for the same reasons I’m also super into musicals as well, which isn’t so say I think like lip syncing or just dancing/singing is bad, it’s just refreshing to see it done all at once, you know?

Also side story it turns out that I actually DO know another Astro fan irl!! Her older sister (who I’m closer to bc we’re closer in age) is the one who bought the million got7 albums. Even though she’s been a fan of Astro since before debut, her sister doesn’t even know she listens to kpop since she was afraid of getting roasted at first, but now she’s in too deep to say anything. I’d mentioned liking Astro to her before, but she didn’t say anything bc she didn’t want to expose herself in front of her sister but on Friday I saw her while her sister was out and she was like “oh btw here’s a secret I went to the Toronto fanmeet last year but my sister doesn’t know” I was SHOOK but tbh I’m just super glad now to have someone to talk about it and go to concerts with (I’m banking on the fact that they’re coming back)

Anyway, THANK YOU SO MUCH for waiting 2747287482 million years for my response, and it was so great to finally (officially) meet you Kjersten!

@kaptain-k-pop

[komodo-bros]

((Headcanons for the Komodo Brothers’s thoughts on the Crash Bandicoot cast part 1. This list will have the well-known enemy mutants and mad scientists. I’ll do the rest in later parts.))

((Warnings: Large wall of text and some strong language in a few entries.))

Scientists:

Dr. Nefarious Tropy (N. Tropy)

Joe: Oh boy, the, “master of time”, himself. Joe doesn’t like how pretentious and condescending this member of the Blue Man Group is. During the whole race competition, Joe would grate his teeth hearing Tropy go on about how nobody can beat his time trials. Not to mention, the time puns; by the ancients they’re terrible. They should be burned in a fire pit along with the time lord himself.

Moe: Looks like an alien and acts weird. Probably needs to eat a snickers bar to stop being grumpy.

Dr. Neo Cortex (N. Cortex)

Joe: Wouldn’t trust him within a 1000 km range. He knows about Cortex’s chronic backstabbing and what happens later on after the job is done. It makes working for the big-headed scientist not an ideal situation. 

Moe: Why is his head bigger than his own body?! It could crack open any second now! He must put this guy out of his misery.

Dr. N. Gin

Joe: Isn’t sure if he should feel pity, or want to throw him in the nearest junkyard. Anyone working for Cortex would have to greatly suffer under his bullshit attitude and endless mockery (he knows through Brio). But at the same time, Joe seex how dangerous N. Gin can be with his robots. Plus, the physicist has an overall unpleasant vibe to him. Not a person he would want to hang around with at all.

Moe: A potato sack given sentience through the evolo-ray. Now why would Cortex want a bag of root starches as a henchman is anyone’s guess.

Dr. Nitrus Brio (N. Brio)

Joe: Despite creating the two brothers, Joe doesn’t have great opinions on their former boss. After losing to Crash in the second game, Brio gave a stern lecture to the two with Joe arguing back. He felt it was best to cut ties, and went on to take Moe with him to the outside world. Joe figured Brio would forget about them, and try to make other mutants to get back at Cortex. 

Moe: Feels sorry for him despite what his brother might think. The scientist looked so miserable and tired in his eyes. He wished he could’ve had the chance to talk to him.

Nina Cortex

Joe: Scary as hell for a young kid. He’d hate to ever have an encounter with her, and would rather hide than fight the cyborg. Joe is worried that if she ever gets a hold of Moe, she’ll break him in half and possibly take him back to the lab to be experimented on.

Moe: Thinks Joe is a big chicken for being scared of her. He’ll show this prodigy a thing or two about being tough.

Mutants:

Pinstripe Potoroo

Joe: Absolutely hates his guts. He thinks Pinstripe is this dirt-faced asshole who believes he’s hot shit as this Scarface, wannabe gangster. They had numerous races and poker games together during their off time, with both having used dirty tactics to get ahead of the other to win; often for extremely petty reasons. Whenever Pinstripe makes a snide remark, Joe responds with aggression and goes straight for the potoroo’s throat. It usually ends with the two left with severe markings and shattered egos.

Moe: While he doesn’t understand the rivalry between him and his brother, Moe wouldn’t hesitate to throw a saber at him.  He’s a bully who has made fun of his size and intelligence.

Tiny Tiger

Joe: This extinct marsupial is dumber than his own brother, which is saying a lot. He often cons Tiny into buying cheap, counterfeit trinkets in exchange for anything of value the thylacine carries on him. It’s both satisfying and hilarious at the same time.

Moe: Likes to throw meat snacks at Tiny. He does cool tricks, and will even scream with Moe to let out their anger. Good times.

Dingodile

Joe: He’s ok in his book. Not someone he can call a friend, but isn’t bad to play card games and pool with. Dude also knows how to make a mean BBQ lunch.

Moe: He makes great BBQ food, it’s a sign that he can be trusted.

Ripper Roo

Joe: A weird kangaroo with issues, but is very smart and well educated. Only ever interacted once under Brio, so he doesn’t have much of a solid opinion. He enjoys reading his book, “Through the Eyes of the Vortex: A Study of Rapid Evolution and Its Consequences”. It’s got a bunch of information Joe can sink his teeth into.

Moe: Finds his book boring as beans. He’s more interested in how Roo is blue compared to the other kangaroos. Now that’s a story he would read about.

Koala Kong

Joe: Another dumb muscle to rival Tiny. He’s only ever met the buff koala in a few card games and not much else. But has seen him in the action movies he stars in. After watching them, Joe think they’re brainless, vapid pieces of cinema.

Moe: Loves the movies he’s in. He would want to get his autograph if given the chance.

Bonus:

Viscount

Joe: He will never work for that two-faced, devil bastard of a prick ever again. After helping to get the treasure map back, Viscount only gave 1/10 of what he promised the brothers at the beginning. Joe was so outraged at this sleazy,  millionaire asshat, he wanted him dead on the spot (Along with having his head be fed to a bunch of wild crocodiles). This never happened, and he was kicked out of the mansion along with Moe.

Moe: Hates him the same reason Joe does.

Rusty Walrus

Joe: Not a big fan of his food. Prefers Dingodile’s cooking over the pinniped’s any day.

Moe: Watches his show every week . He wants to try some of his dishes in real life despite not having access to some of the ingredients shown.

Rilla Roo*

(*Note: While the player has the option to fight the brothers as Roo in Crash Bash, I bet most picked the other characters and not this DK crew reject. If the ape was chosen, it’s possible that the two never heard of this dude’s name. In that case, this mysterious primate was given the nickname by Moe as, “Pants Monkey”. Hence why they don’t know of Rilla Roo’s existence.)

Joe: Never’s seen him, and likely will never meet him. For all he knows, this hybrid is some sort of urban legend spoken among the inhabitants of the islands.

Moe: Who?

#Brains & Blades (Joe) #Brawn & Blades (Moe) #headcanon #character thoughts #character interactions #crash verse

[doktorpeace]

in Persona 5 for me it’s July 11th, meaning I’m exactly 3 months into the game. I’m going to assume I’m getting to about the third way point, both previous games lasted 9-10 months and I’ll assume this one will last until January on the end game Calendar. Here’s my thoughts so far, spoilers inside:

Well I’ve spent a clean 44 hours on the game already so there’s that. I haven’t even been fucking around a lot, I completed Madarame’s Palace in just the 3 required visits and I completely cleaned out Kaneshiro’s Palace in just one discounting Makoto’s joining visit and the re-visit to defeat the boss. I’m really digging the story so far, it feels well paced and everything’s progressing at a reasonable, steady rate but the tension keeps building. It also REALLY breaks tradition, but in ways I’m finding refreshing. I’ve already formed my Judgement Confidant in spite of being only a third(ish?) of the way into the game, and I’ve formed a Confidant relationship with someone I know WILL be a party member even when he’s not a party member yet. Though I don’t trust Akechi as far as I could throw him. I’ll have to play farther into the story to write a real feeling piece about it, I’ll probably do that once I complete the game. Igor’s got me scared though, and I really loved and trusted Igor wholly in the last two games. My social stats are progressing well, I’m at rank 4 on Knowledge, 3 on Guts (promoting to 4 soon I think), 3 on Charm, 2 on Kindness, and 2 on Proficiency (also promoting soon). I knew Knowledge and Guts would be the most important ones going in, they always are so I’ve given them a special priority. So far I love this game, it’s really stellar and it’ll be my game of the year for certain. Everything works really well, my sole complaint at this point is that one time I had a shadow not join me after giving two good answers to its questions during a negotiation and I wasn’t told why not, but whatever it’s fine. The dungeons are getting steadily tougher and I really like the variety in design approaches they take. Kaneshiro’s was incredibly long but could be done all at once if you had enough items and good enough pacing, Madarame’s required more involvement and opting into scripted events since you had to get stuff done in the real world as well, and given it was a tutorial dungeon Kamoshida’s was also good. Honestly the level design in the Palaces has all been really good and I’ve liked each more than the last by quite a bit. I even got unlucky with some Onis getting crits and hitting my whole party with Rampage near the beginning of my run through Kaneshiro’s Palace and I still made it through so I was pretty happy with that. The main plot and characters are very much enjoying that the game, while fairly lighthearted so far, takes itself seriously and handles its themes maturely. They don’t make jokes about serious things and they let things have the weight that they should. The Party Member’s social links going on lockdown if you advance them too fast to wait for another moment in the plot is also a great idea since it means they can build in some of the character’s development from the plot into the social link and vice versa. This, combined with how the social links each focus on them growing as a person from the issue that caused them to be socially outcast and ostracized in the first place gives it a more down to earth feel. The party members have noticeable growths of character and mindset in both components of the game’s writing side by side, and it’s good to see them finally address this issue the series had been having. Rather than being like Persona 4 and making each of them a HUGE LIFE CHANGING EVENT THAT HAS A MASSIVE EFFECT ON THEIR PERSONALITY but then that having no bearing on the plot so the whiplash of maturity is really immersion breaking, this game’s focus on a more personal push towards growth and change. Be it making amends for past mistakes like Ryuji, finding a new source of strength with Ann, or pushing forward and grasping his future in spite of his situation like Yusuke, they all have to deal directly with what caused them to become an outcast in the first place, and feel like strong bits of development that don’t completely change them as people. I personally like and relate to Makoto’s being about being more honest with oneself and living for you, and not for the expectations others have for you. This sense of giving situations the gravitas and seriousness they require extends to side social links as well, of which I’ve liked all the ones I’ve found. One that sticks out to me is Kawakami’s social link. She is your teacher and you happen to hire her through a maid service because Ryuji and Mishima are fucking dumbasses who want to see a hot maid do chores for them and the situation you find yourselves in is naturally a little sexually charged, something which the game does not ignore or distract from. It owns up to the awkwardness of the situation it sets up. As the social link progresses (without Ryuji and Mishima there) it even gives the player the option to try and hit on her in a sexual manner, but she turns you down on the grounds that A) You’re her student B) the age gap is gross and C) specifically sites it would make her no better than Kamoshida, who was your first target as the Phantom Thieves in no small part because he sexually harassed and in one case raped a student. The fact that the game doesn’t just walk the walk of saying ‘oh yeah sexually assaulting minors is bad’ which is obvious to anyone of decent moral standing, but further drives the point home and WON’T make an exception for you because you’re the player is very good and not something many games are willing to do.  The variety of characters you encounter during social links is also nice, from a washed up politician genuinely trying to improve the world after learning from his mistakes, to the owner of a model weapon shop doing illicit business, to just the guy who runs the Phantom Thieves’ Forum they’ve all got a charm to them and feel well written. One that worried me initially was one where you meet a news reporter in a bar and the bar happens to be run by a drag queen. I was worried cause I had heard this content was transphobic, but seemingly that was a misunderstanding from someone playing the japanese version with less than a perfect understanding of the language. Lala Escargot as she goes by, is voiced by a man in both versions and is referred to with ‘-chan’ and female pronouns, however this is proper etiquette for drag queens while playing their stage persona. Further, Lala Escargot is shown to be of good moral standing and isn’t made out to be a joke, two things I was glad to see happen. This game’s schedule also feels good. Like I said, I’m about a third of the way in and I feel like I’ve been able to make comfortable growth with both social stats and social links, and I was worried about that because the game really railroads you a lot in the first two plot arcs, but it’s working out comfortably. Combat feels really good, while spell animations feel a tiny bit less flashy than previous games I’ve still only seen a handful of them, and the combat animations are all still really good. The balance is great, I feel challenged but not overwhelmed, but it is noticeably getting a lot harder with each main palace. Your Teammate’s in combat abilities they gain from social links are definitely nerfed compared to P4 or P3 Portable, but honestly that’s welcome in my opinion. In the previous games they were flat out overpowered and could carry you through the game. As is they feel like nice bonuses that happen just often enough you don’t forget they’re there, but not so often that they take away any feeling of depth or strategy, particularly in P4 where they were extremely ‘Win More’ mechanics. Particularly the ‘Save the main character from death once per battle’ is reduced to a chance, but can happen more than once per battle if you’re lucky, and requires the relationship be at rank 9 instead of rank 5. A hefty but welcomed nerf that doesn’t eliminate any feeling of danger. Oh also! The fact that your non-party member Confidants confer permanent benefits, some in combat, some out of combat is a GREAT incentive to level them up. I know that I’m focusing on Kawakami’s so hard because it frees up so many phases in the game, not having to waste my own time brewing coffee or doing laundry is a huge boon, plus 1 point in knowledge from lecture (assuming I get the answer right) can be exchanged for two lockpicks and two points in proficiency, or a book read and its bonuses which is a great bonus effect. Eventually she even gives you the ability to go out at night after going dungeon crawling which in and of itself is an ENORMOUS benefit. Finally, as for the party members it’s really cool the variety this party has and their variety of motivations. They’re a very fun group whose personalities work together dynamically an in a fun way, I know I still have 3 party members left to get, so we’ll see how they affect things. I’m just loving how much we get to see them all interact, between how many plot events there are and that there’s at least one text chatlog a day with everyone talking together, it gives you a ton of dialogue with them and time to see their party dynamic.  Ryuji’s a good boy. I like him a lot, he reminds me a lot of myself in terms of behavior. His social link has been a little slow, but cute, and his date sequences when you aren’t actively going up ranks are also cool. One big improvement he has over Yosuke in particular is that after being hit on by a couple of gay guys he just expresses distaste for the situation and leaves it at that. He was uncomfortable with it, but he doesn’t hark on it and veer off into being a homophobic shitbag like Yosuke. But Atlas, blease let him be gay in the expansion I know you’re going to make. Let me date the vulgar boy he’s such a cute good boy. Really though his growth as a person is already tangible, he’s gone from feeling like a total outsider with nothing to work for and nothing to lose to being a fairly responsible guy who owns up to his mistakes. He’s still not smart but he’s grown enough that he’s the party member to remind the others to keep it calm and lay low after a major operation, which is a really cool role for him to play. Ann is fucking great, her force of personality and strength as a character is immediate right from the start. I was worried for her, but she’s an explosive character, a lot of facets to her personality and situation are revealed to you quickly and then elaborated on over the course of her social link and when you hang out with her or go on sunday dates together. She’s obviously a kind, strong individual but she questions her own genuinity and strength as a person, and is exploring different ways to broaden her horizons and improve. I was a little worried she’d be a generic spitfire angry girl, but really she’s only super pissed off at injustice and sexual harassment. A big part of her character comes from her staunch hatred and opposition ‘of men who treat women as sexual outlets’ (literally word for word something she says) and it’s a really strong, cool way for her to be. I’m very grateful for the game’s writing for having such a staunch, unmoving stance in opposition of treating women like objects especially in a series like Persona where fans have an extremely gross tendency to do just that. It’s a good lesson and message to put out there. In other cases she’s actually really level headed and willing to admit when she was wrong or when someone’s outplayed her. I like Ann a lot. Yusuke’s a really deep and interesting character who I sadly keep blowing off for Makoto and Ryuji, but I’ll hang out with him more soon. His circumstances are really fucking difficult, first of all he’s an orphan, which sucks. Secondly his adoptive father is abusive, which really sucks. Third off he’s autistic. Seriously, think on his dialogue and tell me I’m wrong. We directly get the line ‘not many people will deal with my eccentricities’ which is as close as Japanese media ever gets to saying ‘yes I’m autistic.’ His dialogue often hints to how people ostracize him for being autistic even though he’s a great guy and I’m sure it’ll come up in his social link in the future. I’m glad the game paints it as a negative thing for society to treat him bad and not that it’s bad he’s autistic, it’d be very easy to slip into that but they haven’t fucked up yet. And finally, he’s fuckin gay dude. Don’t fight me on this one, I know a gay when I see one. He specifically dodges the idea of being attracted to Ann ‘as a member of the opposite sex’ and the way he says it isn’t ‘oh I’m interesting in girls, just not Ann’ it’s much more ‘I’m not interested in girl, and thus not interested in Ann.’ He’s got a lot going against him, but unlike with Kanji nobody acts like it’s weird he isn’t attracted to Ann (though Ryuji will rib the player for saying the same thing) and everybody’s doing their best to be supportive of him. I’m excited to see more of his character and see how he overcomes the ways society is stacked against him. You can even take him on dates and he comments that it looks like you’re lovers. I hope he gets a nice boyfriend. (also atlus please make him a romance option in the expansion as well.) Finally Makoto is the character I’ve most been suspicious of how she fits in. She’s an honor student, lives in a nice house, has a sister in a high paying job, was born into a good family, what’s bad about her life? Well, she’s outcast from the average student because she’s ‘just a robot’ and she has these obscene expectations thrust upon her, yet people still call her useless. She has to constantly wear a face and be who people expect her to be and not who she really is. It’s a more subtle kind of outcasting and she certainly doesn’t face the negatives the other members do like being an orphan or having their best friend hospitalized after a suicide attempt, but she’s got her own set of issues which are playing out alongside these things. The game also doesn’t frame her situation as equally bad, it’s just a very stressful, difficult situation for her and she really needs an outlet and somewhere she can genuinely just be herself. The fact that her rebellion is just having a space to express herself normally in is kind of fucked up, she had a really suffocating life and now she doesn’t and I like that. Her Confidant relationship is also really fun so far, I like Makoto even if she’s not an outcast in as strong or the same kind of way as everyone else. I don’t have a lot to say about Morgana so far. I like him, he’s an enormous step up from Teddie, but I think I’ll only be able to write how I really feel about him once the game is over. All in all I fucking love this game and it’s a huge improvement over all of Atlus’ old products in all the ways I’d hope it would be. I’d still prefer there be a gay romance option in the game, but the fact that you can take guys on dates and that you have a gay party member who isn’t treated as weird for it is great. 10/10, my personal game of the year already.

#P5

[purpleandods]

Early Review: aliaZalea’s Upcoming Comeback Novel “Boy Toy”

First of all, I should thank Gramedia Pustaka Utama for inviting me to “Boy Toy” advanced reading event. There was a total of 5 people attending this small event and got a chance to become advanced readers for aliaZalea’s upcoming novel titled “Boy Toy”. It was such an honor for me as one of aliaZalea’s hardcore reader. 

So, “Boy Toy” is the opening story for a new and fresh series about boyband named “PENTAGON”. The novel was written in 3rd person perspective, telling about your unusual romance story because both Hero and Heroine are surely unlike any other characters that aliaZalea has written before. From what I read in aliaZalea’s Facebook page, the novel was originally titled after the boyband name, “PENTAGON”, but later was changed into “Boy Toy”. I don’t know why, but I like “Boy Toy” more and fortunately I like this story too!

I think you should take a look at the book introduction first, here I provide you the blurb taken from goodreads:

Ada tiga kata yang Lea yakin tidak akan pernah diasosiasikan dengan dirinya: BOYBAND, BRONDONG, dan ABG. Sampai dia bertemu dengan Taran, personel boyband paling ngetop se-Indonesia, dan superbrondong. Untuk pertama kalinya Lea paham ungkapan "never say never". Terutama ketika Taran jelas-jelas mulai mengejarnya dan dia, seorang perempuan yang bisa dikategorikan perawan tua, menemukan dirinya merasa seperti ABG yang ngefans berat pada seorang brondong personel boyband.

I must say; “Don’t Be Pessimistic About This After You Read The Blurb”

Do Not Ever! You will miss something big if you give up by the blurb alone. 

Even though I have read so many books all of my life so far, I have to admit that I am such a picky reader. This story, if only it wasn’t written by aliaZalea, would also be left on the back burner. Every aspects I hate is in it, named them 1) BOYBAND 2) BRONDONG 3) A-BE-GE, I won’t consider this story at all - again if it wasn’t written by my Metropop author crush, aliaZalea. Thank God, for once I tried to overcome things I dislike and try to getting know more about the story. The result was amazing, I AM IN LOVE with this book. 

Now let me write a short-but-comprehensive list on why I like this story despite this contains so many “ee-yuh” factors I refuse to deal with before. 

1. The Heroine is UNIQUELY CHARMING 

Lea was a broken-hearted and long time single woman with no prospective husband-to-be. I know, it is still so-so. The unique factor about Lea is her educational attainment. She’s got doctor degree, is a biology lecturer, is a researcher as well, and smart as hell. I don’t know about you, but I always like how aliaZalea always capture the value of education for women in her novels. We’ve got Inara, Adri, Tita, Jana, and so on. Now, we have new comer who is even cooler compare with the others. BIOLOGY! How awesome is that!? 

2. The Hero is AWKWARDLY FUNNY AND HOT AND SWEET AND GENTLE AND TENDER AND ELSE AND ELSE IT WILL COME SO LONG

Taran is a boyband member. NO! Don’t start with Indonesia’s typical boyband! Pentagon is rather comparable with “One Direction” if I should mention one name. Pentagon was formed in “X-Factor Indonesia” and was produced by Revelino Darby. Yes guys! It’s Revel, our hot musician who have already become a daddy in “Celebrity Wedding” and “Devil in Black Jeans” (respectively). Taran was your average handsome boy at first, but BAMB! He turns into a cute-aggresive-but-smooth man when it comes to the moments he tried to win Lea’s heart. He is witty, funny, and honest with everything. This post will never enough to describe his cool gestures, funny jokes, smart moves, and infinity love for Lea. 

3. The story is UNEXPECTEDLY FUNNY AS HEEL! IT’S ALSO FULL OF ROLLERCOASTER ROADS IN WHICH YOU WILL ENJOY FOR SURE

All of participants in advanced reading event laughed after so many moments in the novel. We laughed here and there, at this page, the next page, the next two pages and so on. You will find so many good jokes inside and they weren’t even extras, they were part of the story. Like, there were novels which are funny because of what the side characters do or say, but this one is not. The story itself is full of comical scenes which I don’t expect will be written by aliaZalea. SHE IS AMAZING!! Those farcical moments are natural, I believe every one of you will like it. 

4. The social values nail it

You’ve got jokes, but they are not all, “Boy Toy” gives you so many good values and lesson for life. It shows some taboo unpopular topic with deeper story telling and wider perspective. Lea, Taran, Pentagon, Lea’s Mom, and even Lea’s ex-fiance are all working so hard to punch you so that you will look more into things you avoid before. 

5. PENTAGON IS LIGHTING UP MY FANGIRL MODE

As a retired full time fangirl, Pentagon has lighten up the mood at the bottom of my heart. I want to do some fangirling stuffs over their songs, their stages, their performances, and their concerts. I wish they were real, so that I could buy their albums, listen to their songs, go to their concerts, watching their performances, OMG PENTAGON IS BAE! All members are great! They are comical, talented, and humble as hell! I can’t wait to read their story one by one after “Boy Toy” (HAHAHAHA)

6. Lea’s office background has Trisakti vibe

Okay, I am now a “Yellow Jacket” student, but I can’t forget the 3.5 years experiences in Grogol as a “Reformed Jacket” student. All those slowly faded memories were back thanks to “Boy Toy”. Lea is a lecturer and the university where she works has Trisakti vibe. Nostalgia factors or not, this still left impact in me. So, if you were also a “Reformed Jacket” alumnus, I think you will love this little background detail as much as I do.  

There goes the end of my list. Six is enough, guys. The rest will be special surprises for you. I give 5/5 stars for this book - no doubt. aliaZalea kicks the gigs again with this. I hope it will become great starts for “PENTAGON” series, because this is legit the best Indonesian romance book I have read in a while. You can grab it very very soon in your near bookstores! Let’s become “Pentagon” fans together and protect the boys at all costs! CHEERRRSS!

bonus:

#aliazalea #boy toy #aliazalea boy toy #gpu #gramedia #fiksigpu #novel gramedia #novel boy toy #resensi boy toy #resensi aliazalea #review boy toy

[recentanimenews]

Nelke & The Legendary Alchemists: Ateliers of the New World Is Fun, Light, and Addicting

  I only just recently got into games where you have to build and then oversee some kind of town or establishment. Last year's Jurassic World: Evolution was my entry point in this particular genre, and I adored it, though I always wondered whether or not this was due to me actually digging the gameplay or just because I got to breed an army of Spinosaurs. Well, I guess the Animal Crossing games sort of count here, too, but I was never able to immerse myself in many of them, and they rarely have the urgency that most town-building/social simulators have. Instead, you're just kind of building your own house and hanging out with quirky animal residents. It's like if Gilmore Girls took place on the Island of Doctor Moreau. It's cute. 

    So when I was asked to review Nelke & The Legendary Alchemists: Ateliers of the New World, I didn't know quite what I was getting into. I knew it was the latest in the Atelier series, but I had never heard of any of those games, so I was jumping in totally blind. In it, you play as Nelke von Lestamm, an aristocrat that is obsessed with the myth of the Sage of Granzweit and the Granzweit Tree, which is a sacred, mysterious tree that is a source of immense power. So her Dad makes a deal with her: She can go and search for this tree that's apparently around the small town of Westwald, as long as she builds Westwald up and makes it prosper. 

    So, aided by her supernaturally helpful maid Misty, she enters the town and, while recruiting many helpers and alchemists, tries to make it into the booming urban center that it was always meant to be, all while working with these alchemists to find the Granzweit tree. It's a story that, for a game that's basically about making sure that people are buying stuff from your shops, is juuuust complicated enough to keep your interest. However, all of this information, including the ins and outs of navigating the menus and constructing your little city, is thrust upon you at the very beginning of the game, and if anyone is going to quit Nelke & The Legendary Alchemists: Ateliers of the New World, they're probably going to quit in the first two hours.

    It doesn't seem like it would be a lot, but it is, especially since there's very few breaks in it. It's a tutorial mode that feels more like a class lecture, and while the lessons that it provides are (mostly) necessary, I found myself itching to be able to just go off and do stuff on my own. As someone very, very new to this series, I appreciate it holding my hand a bit and making sure that I don't tank my village before I even really get started, but come on. It could've at least spaced it out a little bit.

  For example, it could've told me how to set up some shops, let me fiddle with that for an hour or two, and then brought up the investigation portion and how to fight off wild critters. That would've been way more enjoyable than the Economics & Alchemy 101 (with Light Monster Slaying) class that the first section of the game devolves into.

    After that, though, the game becomes infinitely more enjoyable, and if you feel swamped in note-taking during your initial sit-down with Nelke, powering through to the easy-going, fun part is worth it. Because Nelke & The Legendary Alchemists: Ateliers of the New World can get seriously addicting. I lost time to it, and I don't say that about very many things. The first time I played Nelke, I started around 7 PM and suddenly looked up to find that it was 12:30 AM. What? How? What had I missed? Had my wife and dog left me? Had an entire wave of hot anime memes come and gone? Luckily, I am still married, I still have a wonderful cattle dog, and the anime meme industry is still going strong, even though I lost 25% of my day to anime girls telling me that I need to sell more apple tarts and grow more wheat.

  If you're wondering where the "alchemist" thing mostly comes into play, they're the ones that save you from your villagers eating dirt all day. Along with helping you out in your overall Granzweit quest, they can synthesize materials to create new stuff that you can actually use and sell. They can also join you on your investigations out of town. These skills come in handy, especially when you start getting a ton of requests from townsfolk, as these requests are usually either "Hey, I'd love to see some of (insert item here) get sold!" or "Hey, there's a giant horned creature outside of town. Go kill, like, four of them and I'll be happy." 

  I'm sure that, for long time fans of this series, the array of alchemists will provide an added bonus, as Nelke & The Legendary Alchemists: Ateliers of the New World marks the 20th anniversary of the series and many of the alchemists are from prior games. So it'll be like a parade of old friends, coming in to make small talk, help you out with your quest, and prevent your town from falling into sadness and ruin. 

    If you're hoping that this atmosphere lasts and that the game doesn't spiral into typical angst, you're in luck. Sure, the characters have some issues, but they're mostly resolved through hard work, cheer, and through Misty always being around to help. Seriously, (and especially in the early portions of the game), Nelke is always like "Gahd, I have to write up the report!" and Misty bursts in with "ALREADY DONE. I DID THAT AND BREAKFAST AND OUR TAXES, ALL BEFORE YOU WOKE UP THIS MORNING." She's incredible, and Nelke probably copied off of all of her papers.

    While I played Nelke & The Legendary Alchemists: Ateliers of the New World for the Nintendo Switch, it's also available on PC and PlayStation 4. I recommend it to anyone with 1) The ability to sit still during an hour of slow tutorial, and 2) The ability to enjoy building a town and watching your population grow and thrive and demand more beer and apples. 

  REVIEW ROUNDUP:

+ Super addicting once you get the hang of it

+ The alchemy aspects end up being a cool lesson in time management AND FRIENDSHIP

+ Town building is simple and fun

- Opening tutorial bit is quite a slog

  Have you played Nelke & The Legendary Alchemists: Ateliers of the New World? What did you think of it, or any of the other games in this series? Let us know in the comments!

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

Daniel Dockery is a writer for Crunchyroll. He has a Twitter that is full of anime and general whimsy. 

  Do you love writing? Do you love anime? If you have an idea for a features story, pitch it to Crunchyroll Features!

By: [email protected]

#Anime #News #Latest in Anime News by Crunchyroll!

[cryptnus-blog]

Compliance Is The New Black

New Post has been published on https://cryptnus.com/2018/05/compliance-is-the-new-black/

Compliance Is The New Black

Visiting home is always good. I arrived at the Heathrow airport for my flight to Helsinki in a very smooth state of mind listening to the Bad Crypto Podcast ep that had just come out. This soon changed as I left the to-be-exhibited 2/12 Gold edition of ‘Fork and Flip’ in the men’s bathroom. This became apparent only after having checked in my bag and having gone through security. Luckily I was there early so had time to sweat buckets for two hours running around asking airport staff to help me find it – which they eventually did. Big ups for the Heathrow crew for that!

The Blockchain and Bitcoin Conference Finland on May 25h was a surprise in some ways. Finns are notorious for their stance towards obeying societally set rules. There is even a TV series about them as there are simply too many. The thing about rules is that they don’t necessarily solve the problem. Sometimes they just create one. This A to B example is of a Helsinki restaurant where the customers are forced to ask the restaurant staff to carry their drinks to the terrace. It is because of the ‘sidewalk alcohol legislation’ about the in-between space.

People actually do it too.

Due to this, the atmosphere of the country is not generally quick to adopt controversial innovations like blockchain fast, so the event was a much more ‘flying under the radar’ deal than the international scene usually is. The attendance number at a 150 was something that could have been expected elsewhere in early 2017. The local and international speakers were on point, the scene and setting were great but only half the seats were filled. This did not prevent the passion from being felt by those present. It was also good to see the politician Annina Ruottu attending the event. This kind of forward thinking in the political sphere is uncommon.

There are of course many positive sides to this as well from getting bank accounts fast to trusting the time arrival of public transport. The place is mostly well organized for sure. Wallets left on tables are often returned money inside to those blissfully walking away. The very clean air/water are a bonus too coming from London let alone Cairo or similar. The social well-being safety net built in the boom of 80’s and the health care system is in a real crisis (personal experience) but a general spirit of honesty and truthfulness still bind people together. For creative and entrepreneurial people who like to challenge the status quo and innovate, this frequency leaves very little breathing space. Add high taxes and very little sunlight throughout the year to the above and you get an interesting mix. This is why you need Sisu.

As I had an exhibition booth, I missed many of the presentations of the day but was offered a chance to be on stage. The one I caught before presenting my 5-minutes of ‘creativity on the blockchain’ pitch was by Stefano Virgilli. Stefan is the CEO at VOX.sg Advisory Singapore with stunning resume from the financial world. What was most impressive to me, however, was his close to hundred certificates from Adobe. The depth of knowledge this guy has on key software for my creativity is unrivaled anywhere in the world. His no BS attitude and presentation was a breath of fresh air about ICO’s. The other cool gent I had the privilege of hanging out with turned out to become an inspirational figure regarding the birth of the “Compliance is the new black’ art piece.

Zachary Reece is implementing an ambitiously and carefully put together a vision for a coming full-service investment institution, Lotus Investment Strategies. Some people’s presence is simply impossible to ignore and this guys energy was infectious. Some of the stuff he was telling me about self-directed brokerage accounts, managed products, and precious metal solutions as a ‘one-stop super shop’ flew over my head but I know when someone has their thing together and are driven to succeed through helping others. Below both of these gents and on his knee, my friend Sampsa Fabritius, a pragmatic utopian, are doing their thing by the AFC booth. I’m proud to call them all my friends now.

During the final conference panel, emotions got heated in between an audience member and the panelist Zachary. The point of conflict was about whether Bitcoin should be left alone to figure out its own regulation or if it was something absolutely necessary for mass adoption via some consumer protection. ‘Regulation is coming so get ready’ was the general view of the panel as well that at least some were necessary. No one was about to just roll over though and everyone knows the banks, as well as government, are ultimately going to lose a lot of power through this innovation. Andreas Antonopoulos, in one of his most popular lectures, put it simply as:” Bitcoin allows individuals to start behaving like how the multinational companies are already behaving.”

“Compliance Is The New Black” art piece

During this interesting and sometimes temp rising debate, Anu Honkalinna from Nestholma blurted out:’ Compliance is the new black’ which got a laugh. Regulation is hot as the topic refused to step aside. No one can stop the blockchain tide so avoiding unnecessary conflict through compliance is healthy. There have been plenty of scams to write home about. The debate is tricky though, as in some ways it is the light bulb asking the candle for approval.

All of a sudden, when talking about crypto, many people talk like Wall Steet and the government has a flawless track record of honorable conduct and somehow have it all together in comparison to crypto. No FIAT, of course, has big volatility and everything in Venezuela is hunky dory. It is illegal there now to report someone as having starved to death, so it doesn’t really happen. The Unchained episode with Jesse Powell, CEO of Kraken, is a perfect example of compliance requirements being about shady tactics by the status quo.

If at this point you would like to hear one of the most in-depth interviews regarding my art, blockchain, society, and spirit I can recommend this podcast recorded on the last day of the trip with my longtime friend Robert J Janetzko. I was very impressed with what he has put together with this show in a short amount of time and this guy has a story of his own too.

There are many points in this I’ve been unable to express elsewhere. Admittedly, there were a few things that were a bit too ‘rant rabbit hole’. Call it ICO incongruency fatigue and sustained art world damage. It was good to shake off some old dust and the ep does illustrate well why my outlook is not necessarily compatible with current Finnish mindset regulation. Most topics, of course, are in positive forward motion, in an attempt to propel the conversation about our collective future forward.

The whole thing left me feeling very grateful that I could once again go home for a bit, enjoy the phenomenal summer weather, the crypto event feels, friends, family, and the ever-punctual tram line.

The most valuable thing though was my 92-year grandmother making me gluten-free pancakes on Sunday with her shaking hands. She learned how to do them as she got to know I had become allergic to wheat. That kind of value? You can’t buy with FIAT nor crypto.

V E S A Crypto Artist

[morningrainmusic]

Top 25 Albums of 2017

A lot of very good albums came out in 2017. These are my favorite 25, with some thoughts on each of them. See you in the new year.

Best,

The Staff of Morning Rain Music

25. Ty Segall – Ty Segall  Almost all of Ty Segall’s albums (there are a lot) are made to be turned up to 11. His second self-titled release is no exception. Segall said of the live recorded album, “There’s something about a band in a room – it’s a feeling you can’t replicate. There’s a feel to the music. The band is so good, and I love the feel of this record.” So do I.

24. The Feelies – In Between  I took one journalism class in college. The professor would play music before starting lectures and I vividly remember one class when he played The Feelies and then talked about how great and underappreciated they are for a little while. I don’t recall much else from the class, but I remember that. I wonder what Greg Downey is up to now.

23. Mount Eerie – A Crow Looked at Me A Crow Looked at Me is this year’s Skeleton Tree (Nick Cave’s 2016 musical tribute to his late son). To call Phil Eleverum’s meditation on the death of his wife a slog of misery would be a profound understatement. Listen to it and feel his utter despair.

22. Fleet Foxes – Crack-Up  Fleet Foxes’ return after six years on hiatus isn’t as triumphant as Helplessness Blues, but it’s a bold and invigorating odyssey of an album that could only come from the questioning, adventurous minds of Robin Pecknold et al.

21. Ryan Adams – Prisoner I got really into Adams’ Heartbreaker this year. Could this have primed me to enjoy Prisoner more? It has been called his best and most personal record since his 2000 debut. You be the judge, I guess.

20. Chastity Belt – I used to spend so much time alone If The National are music’s reigning “sad bastard” kings, Chastity Belt’s latest album make them contenders for the spot as queens. Or “sad bastardesses” maybe. A quick glance at the track-list is a pretty good indication of what you’re in for—“Stuck,” “What the Hell,” “5am,” “Bender.” These aren’t exactly pit of despair bummer songs. They lack the “look at me” dramatics of The Smiths or Joy Division. Chastity Belt keep it low-key, conveying something of a slow-crippling, dejected resignation that’s truer to life. If I’ve just made this record sound like complete agony, let me assure you, it’s not. I used to spend has some pep in its step—a bit of that Pacific Northwest punk spunk. One of the guitar breaks in “Something Else” even slightly recalls The Cranberries’ “Dreams.” So it won’t completely overwhelm with its ruminations on feelings of self-loathing/emptiness. For that kind of experience, turn to Mount Eerie.

19. A. Savage – Thawing Dawn Thawing Dawn  has some glaring flaws, but I listened to it a lot in 2017 because I really like it. Andrew Savage (who is in a band called Parquet Courts, you might’ve heard of them) has an everyman’s voice that sounds like a too-clever-for-his-own-good friend talking to you on the subway, regardless of whether you’re actually listening (“Eyeballs”). He also delivers a tender, slow-burning love song (“Wild, Wild, Wild Horses”) and a full-blown country waltz, slide guitar and all (“Phantom Limbo”). It doesn’t all work (see the church organ-heavy dud “Untitled” and overly drawn-out existential crisis-mode plod of “What Do I Do”). But something about the rest of Thawing Dawn, imperfections and all, is simply pleasant and demanding of the occasional revisit.

18. Kevin Morby – City Music If you like Bob Dylan (any era) you will probably like at least a handful of Kevin Morby songs. This may seem like a lazy assertation since the same could reasonably be said about a few dozen current artists, but I feel the comparison is worth making because Morby leans into the Dylan-ness a bit further on City Music, the follow-up to last year’s also excellent Singing Saw. The influence, of course, is not accidental and it isn’t limited to Morby’s charmingly wooden vocal delivery. City Music finds Morby getting even more introspective, a tad emotional and notably more poetic. One of the highlights is the ambling, groove-laden title track, which is preceded by a short Flannery O’Connor passage read by musician Meg Baird. The track gradually builds to a rapturous rave-up with Morby shouting the lyrics (there are only fifteen distinct words in the whole song). Play it fuckin’ loud. Side note: “Caught in My Eye” is a great introductory song to this album and Morby in general.

17. The xx – I See You  The xx, a band known for hushed tones and stark minimalism, broke free and brought dancehall spirit to their brooding songs. I See You is a natural next step in the group’s evolution.

16. The National – Sleep Well Beast  The National are not everyone’s bag, and understandably so. They require time and attention, which people seem to have less and less of these days. For those who do though, and are inclined to give The National a chance, the experience is a rewarding one. On Sleep Well Beast they do a bit of everything—rock out, wail lovelorn agonies, get glitchy, and mutter cryptic lyrics. I’d like to know who “dead John” in “Carin at the Liquor” store is, one of the record’s strongest, and most National-y tracks. But then again, The National are with each new record proving that they’re quite adept at going in a lot of different directions.

15. Hiss Golden Messenger – Hallelujah Anyhow  Hallelujah Anyhow is a record that seems to have slipped through the cracks. That’s a shame because MC Taylor creates the kind of terrific country-ish folk rock that should make any self-respecting music fan who’s ever picked up a Lumineers or Mumford and Sons record seriously question some of his or her life choices—no offense to those bands. Listen to “Harder Rain” and tell me that isn’t dang good southern rock music. But really, listen to the whole album.

14. Aimee Mann – Mental Illness  Aimee Mann does here what she does best, which is craft melancholy portraits of life’s disappointments. And she does so beautifully. It’s a strange and strangely uplifting album. Also, it might be the most universally enjoyable album on this list.

13. LCD Soundsystem – American Dream James Murphy broke up his band when they were seemingly at the height of their popularity, threw a huge goodbye concert/party in Madison Square Garden, and then spent years puttering around with coffee, wine, and musical turnstiles. All the while he was (presumably) wondering why the hell he called it quits. LCD Soundsystem’s new album which, as recently as three years ago was never supposed to exist, is a solid homecoming that retreads their well-established punk meets electro art-rock style with some new tricks. They have a long history of spastic, challenging songs and American Dream contains the most in terms both of quantity of tracks that fit this bill and quality (the challenging-ness, that is). If you don’t like their first album (or the genre they’re working in) don’t bother. That being said, songs like “how do you sleep,” “oh baby,” “tonite,” “emotional haircut,” and “call the police” bring the goods dance-wise. Album closer/bonus track “pulse (v. 1)” finds LCD going full techno for almost fourteen minutes. So yeah, it’s good to have James Murphy and co. back again.

12. Alvvays – Antisocialites  Alvvays, is one of those little indie bands that could. The spelling of their name is stupid. The songs they make are sunny and catchy. Lead singer Molly Rankin wrote much of the album “in isolation in an abandoned schoolroom” on the Toronto Islands. Taking your word on that one, Spotify “about” section.

11. Japanese Breakfast – Soft Sounds from Another Planet  Soft Sounds could be called a distant cousin of Frankie Rose’s Interstellar from 2012. Both Rose and Japanese Breakfast’s Michelle Zauner sing in angelic tones, inspired by distant worlds in the infinite cosmos. Zauner, however, thinks a bit bigger, and quite a lot hookier too. I’m talking about entrancingly dreamy, poppy, shoegazing tunes that shoot for the stars and land firmly in the heart. Fantastic song titles too, like “Here Come the Tubular Bells,” “Jimmy Fallon Big!,” and my personal favorite, “The Body is a Blade,” also one of the standout tracks on an album full of those.

10. Vince Staples – Big Fish Theory  Between songs during Vince Staples’ set at Pitchfork Music Festival in July, I leaned over to a friend and said I think Staples could be the next Kendrick Lamar. He looked at me quizzically and said, “I think he already is.” It was a bit of a “no duh” moment and one listen to Big Fish Theory proves the comparison to be accurate. It’s a club-ready banger of an album with sharp rhymes and an aggressive current running through it. “745” is, give me permission to write this just one time, the trillest track of the year. It also echoes Lamar’s “Backseat Freestyle” with the repeated “all I want” lyric.

9. Spoon – Hot Thoughts By now, everyone who gives a damn about good music should recognize Spoon as one of the most reliably great bands of the last twenty years. Hot Thoughts sees them stretching their legs, experimenting with some new sounds, but always sounding like Spoon, which is to say cool, confident, sexy, and slick.

8. The Courtneys – II  I feel like The Courtneys should be bigger. Maybe not huge, but definitely a lot bigger. They’re three gals from LA by way of Vancouver who love 90s pop culture and write songs that fall somewhere between candidly wise (“Tour”) and endearingly goofy (“Lost Boys”). There’s also a Big Star-inspired track (“Country Song”), one about a guy moving to the cold North Country (“Minnesota”), and one about iron deficiency (“Iron Deficiency”). Everything is up-tempo and there’s nothing not to like.

7. Lost Balloons – Hey Summer How do you feel about fuzzy, sentimental jangle-pop? How about infectious melodies sung by a guy from Japan? How about deep left-field bands cracking the top ten of MRM’s best albums list? Those questions are rhetorical and this album is very good. Lost Balloons’ Jeff Burke and Yusuke Okada crept under the radar for a while, but they’ve earned the seven spot with a record full of sprightly, mournful ditties. They’re what the characters of Sing Street call, “happy-sad.”

6. Mac DeMarco – This Old Dog The pepperoni playboy is so good at making excellent, laid-back, reflective indie-rock, it feels like only three full-length records in, folks are already taking him for granted. I’ve seen very little love for This Old Dog on other year-end lists…what gives? It’s the most stripped back and mature-sounding of DeMarco’s work so far. Is Mac more fun when he’s singing about the lighthearted aspects of life? Of course. But listening to a song like “Dreams from Yesterday,” it becomes clear that this gap-toothed goofball is at his best when he gets into the deep stuff.

5. Alex Cameron – Forced Witness Part of me can’t believe one of the year’s best albums is by a dude who sings about prowling for women on the web, benching other guys’ bodyweight, and how he’s “packing heat” under his jeans. What’s so remarkable about Forced Witness is how easily it could have been a complete disaster. Adopting a stage persona this crass and outlandish requires an unwavering commitment to the character and, more importantly, having the musical chops to back it up. Cameron and right-hand man on the sax Roy Malloy deliver both, with a batch of killer tunes that weave tales of pathetic delusion, macho posturing, and (perhaps unexpectedly) extreme vulnerability. The carefully crafted façade Cameron takes on is one of the most entertaining aspects of these songs, but it’s how sadly desperate for connection his brazenly low-life characters are that make many of them perversely beautiful. Cameron mixes uninhibited rock star swagger with portraits of seedy, disturbed individuals from the underbelly—like Springsteen, Zevon, and 80s Joel all rolled into one greasy-haired goon. The results are mesmerizing.

4. Mount Kimbie – Love What Survives The opening two songs of Love What Survives sometimes remind me of a terrific movie from this year, the Safdie brothers’ Good Time. The film’s music by Oneohtrix Point Never is a completely different brand of jittery electronic from Mount Kimbie, but these songs produce images of urban menace and escalating panic that, if you’ve seen the film, you’ll understand why they would fit snugly in its world. But then, three tracks in, the record pivots. “Audition” and album standout “Marilyn” slide in to cleanse the palate, providing a hazy, coolly detached warmth. If that sounds a bit enigmatic and contradictory, that’s because it is. This is the brilliance of Love What Survives, an album that earns the distinction of 2017’s breakout revelation. The genre Mount Kimbie occupies is admittedly not my area of expertise, but if ever I was asked to recommend an album of UK-based electronic/“post-dubstep” to a total neophyte, this might be the record. Built around a half dozen guest vocalists including James Blake and King Krule, Love What Survives is a gorgeous collage of sounds—organic and industrial, familiar and foreign, soothing and unsettling—that has a truly captivating effect. And while it is not the best of album of 2017, it is the most fascinating.

3. Lorde – Melodrama  I want to begin by saying I think the music of Taylor Swift is pretty much irrelevant to Lorde. They are both massive female pop stars with fiercely loyal fanbases and, as it would happen, the two are pals (or at least they present themselves publicly as such). Stylistically though, all the two have in common is that their songs fall into the (depending on your point of view) ever-broadening or frustratingly narrow genre of mainstream pop. The reason I bring Swift up is because 1989, which is now just over three years old, seems to be the unanimously agreed upon best pop album of recent memory—it is also the highest selling. Its appeal is near-universal and it is indeed, a stellar album. I’m here to tell you that Lorde’s Melodrama is even better. This is a collection of moody and electrifying songs whose consistent quality is made more impressive by the fact that her previous record is similarly fantastic. Loosely based around the concept of a night spent partying, Melodrama is the rare example of pop music that transcends its generic conventions and manages to be both a supremely satisfying get-up-and-dance record as well as a thoughtful reflection on youth, romance, and the fleeting nature of both.

2. Kendrick Lamar – DAMN. Crown him folks. Kendrick Lamar, best rapper alive. What’s that? We already did that? Okay then, if you weren’t sure before, you ought to be now. The man can do it all. DAMN. is a rightfully ALL CAPS PERIOD rap record that tackles everything from heritage to crippling self-doubt to our divided nation and racism like no one else can. When it comes to beats, flow, intelligence, and charisma Lamar is in a category of his own. “There’s a difference between black artists and whack artists, ” Lamar raps on “ELEMENT.” He’s not wrong.

1. The War on Drugs – A Deeper Understanding  This is a blog so ridiculously unread that the point of keeping it up at times feels woefully nonexistent—I sometimes question why I don’t just shut it all down to the dismay of no one. Why post something on the internet for it to be utterly unnoticed? The same question could be posed to the tens of thousands of other amateur music bloggers across the country with year-end lists that probably look a lot like this one. I don’t know what their reasons might be. Complete lack of awareness? Blissful ignorance? The self-assigned obligation of a shameless vanity project? Mine, for the little it’s worth, is an unadulterated love of rock music and a compulsion to champion the uncompromising musicians that make compelling art. That’s a mission statement of sorts, generic and predictable as it may be, for a largely inactive blog run by a guy who listens to and reads a lot about rock music. That’s all this is. And since I’m on the subject of big cliché statements and uncommissioned content that oversaturates this largely vapid world wide web, here’s an undercooked question whose answer is as subjective as it is insignificant: What is the state of rock and roll in 2017? Reading Collin Brennan’s COS piece from early this year, in which he mines bands like Japandroids, Cloud Nothings, Jay Som, and Real Estate for something resembling a conclusion, I got to thinking about this question myself. Then I got to thinking about The War On Drugs and how they fit into this tired conversation. Here’s what I know to be true: rock and roll, contrary to what people may tell you, does not require a new roster of fresh-faced superstars. It does not need to dominate the charts. It does not need to be young people’s genre of choice, the soundtrack of a revolution, and it certainly doesn’t need to lazily repackage the sound of former greats. Don’t call The War on Drugs or any other band for that matter, “saviors of rock” because rock doesn’t need saving.

Artists like The War on Drugs, albums like A Deeper Understanding are proof that rock and roll’s health report is just fine. The Philadelphia-based band, led by studio obsessive Adam Granduciel, are endearing underdogs: the guys that rose from indie obscurity to fame-straddling heights on the back of an exceptional, critically adored 2014 release. They have made a name for themselves by borrowing from the best. A little Dire Straits, a lot of Bruce, some Ghost is Born-era Wilco distortion, Granduciel’s hushed, Dylan-esque drawl—their sound is built from a foundation of musical greats. These influences are easily recognized on A Deeper Understanding, but it never sounds like mimicry. Instead, it sounds like reverence. Steven Hyden (who also named it the best album of 2017) put it nicely, writing about how the record doesn’t actually sound like the artists the WOD are so frequently compared to. “It does sound like your memories of that questing, widescreen heartland rock music,” he writes. “This is what Adam Graunduciel does best: He evokes the spirit of classic rock’s past without ever literally replicating Bryan Adams’ gruff vocals, Mark Knopfler’s bluesy guitar, or Born In The USA‘s glockenspiels.” The band has mutated their sound over the years from rootsy to atmospheric to this new incarnation, which could be called “quietly epic.” This phenomenon comes across best in a song like “Thinking of a Place,” the eleven-minute opus that somehow doesn’t feel a second too long. “Strangest Thing” builds to the point where its swelling guitar motif will forcibly displace you from whatever you are occupied with and once it’s over you’ll need a moment to come back to Earth. “Nothing To Find” is the breeziest on the record, and equally suited for a large amphitheater or a car stereo on an open road. I could go on and on, but I won’t. This album will not knock you on your ass or change the way you think about music. It’s not the best thing since Nevermind, it’s not even the best album by this band. Here’s what it is: an engrossing sonic experience marked by lush guitars, heartland synths, and a whole lot of things being very strongly felt—longing, nostalgia, confinement, and of course, pain. It’s the kind of album that hits you at your core without sounding like it’s trying too hard to. If the question, “is rock and roll is still capable of having a profound impact today?” were a legitimate one, the sixty-six minutes of A Deeper Understanding would make for an effective, resounding, “Yes.”

Honorable Mentions:  Courtney Barnett & Kurt Vile – Lotta Sea Lice Real Estate – In Mind Run The Jewels – Run The Jewels 3 Randy Newman – Dark Matter Four Tet – New Energy Margo Price – All American Made Big Thief - Capacity

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