#also not really sure why i decided to make it super complicated but i guess i just needed more structure sksjs

[realmermaid333]

Hunger Games Book Things That Should Have Been in the Movie!!!

There is sadly a lot of stuff that should have been in The Hunger Games movies but wasn’t and it makes me salty so I am going to make a list lol. Some of the stuff, I understand was likely taken out due to time crunches, but other things there’s simply no excuse except it’s hollywood *eyeroll*

1. Rue and Katniss scenes- they cut out some of their bonding in the movies which took a lot of the tragedy out of her death. Not that it wasn’t super sad in the movies, but we knew more about Rue in the book and we saw her and Katniss bond for much longer. Which in turn made her death so much sadder since we also knew how much Rue reminded Katniss of Prim, how innocent and young Rue was, and how badly Katniss wanted her to win if she didn’t. 

2. Peeta and Katniss Cave Scenes- the scenes were in there, but they were kinda weird tbh. Like they made Peeta’s crush on Katniss seem kind of creepy and it was not at all in the book. Also, Peeta was lightening the mood and being funny in the books, and was not in the movie. Both Katniss and Peeta just seemed slightly out of character in the cave scenes.

3. Peeta’s missing leg!!!!- In the books, Peeta loses his leg from health complications from the blood poisoning in the arena! He had a metal prosthetic leg, he was disabled. They took that out of the movie which is disheartening considering the lovely disability representation that could have been there. They could have hired an actor with a missing leg, gave him a realistic prosthetic and hid it under his pants for the beginning of the movie, then had him wear a metal prosthetic for the rest of the series after Peeta’s injury, that would have been amazing! The least they could have done was have Josh be missing a leg! Also, Peeta’s lack of disability made his struggling in the Quarter Quell make less sense, the reason why Peeta was lagging behind a little and needing more assistance was because the boy was missing a leg! I will forever we upset about this lost opportunity due to hollywood’s bullshit. 

4. The adorable plant book scene and Peeta carrying Katniss to bed- this was wholesome content that made their relationship so much sweeter and really showed how Katniss did care for Peeta and really did like him. I’m not sure why they took this out, I guess it was a time related thing, but tbh the movies should’ve simply been longer because they butchered the books to make them fit into 2 hours, it is annoying af (there’s been loads of super long like 3 hour movies, THG could have been one of them)! Also the cute rooftop picnic scene when they were in the training center, and them cuddling all night afterwards. No wonder tons of people who only watched the movies think Peeta and Katniss’s relationship is lowkey boring, they took out all of their cute bonding moments outside of the arena!!

5. District 2 scene- The part where Gale and Katniss are together in District 2, they makeout and Gale realizes that Katniss is barely paying attention to him and isn’t that into it. This part was crucial I think! It showed that Katniss did not actually like Gale romantically. It explained why they did not end up together. And this isn’t just a THG movie thing, but I really wish this scene was used to explain Gale and Katniss not ending up together instead of Gale being involved in Prim’s death. This could have very easily been the turning point, where they decided to be platonic. I would have loved it if Gale and Katniss would’ve stayed best friends, maybe Gale would find someone else to pursue romantically and him and Katniss could move on. I think they deserved that. 

6. Johanna and Katniss bonding- I really wish we got more of this in the movies, they were roommates in the book! That would have been really easy to throw into the movies to show that they were friends. I like to imagine the two of them stayed in touch after the war :) 

7. Peeta and Katniss’s burn scars- There is no excuse for this! This is just hollywood being stupid and thinking they couldn’t put burn scars on Katniss and Peeta because they’d “no longer be cute” or whatever (they did the same thing with Katniss’s body hair, she was clean shaven even while in District 12, which is inaccurate as Katniss hated having her body hair removed). It would not have been hard to include the scars, they’d be more faint too by the end considering that they had all the fancy Capitol technology used on them. All they had to do was use some makeup to add scars to Katniss’s neck, Peeta’s forehead, and both of their hands. Katniss’ hair was shorter after the bombing  because quite a bit of it was melted off, they could have put Jennifer in a choppy, shorter wig to show that. It also could have been a cool way to measure time passing by when they went back to District 12. Katniss’s hair could have grown out throughout the ending scenes to signify the months that passed because the last 10 mins or so of Mockingjay part 2 is super confusing lol. Like Peeta comes back, then all of the sudden Annie sends a photo of her and her like 5-month-old-looking baby just chilling lmao. 

8. Haymitch parenting Katniss- As we know, Katniss’s shitty mom leaves her at the end, but in the books it is more clear that Haymitch ends up being the adult in her life that parents her. He makes sure she is eating, taking her medicine, he checks on her to make sure she is okay, he talked to her and gave her information even when she wasn’t responding. He helped Plutarch get her pardoned for killing Coin as he knew exactly why she did it. He went back to District 12 with her to take care of her, and he ended up comforting her a lot in the series (they did have this in the movies too), they even argued like a father and daughter in the books lmao. 

9. Katniss’s mental health issues and grief- So many scenes of Katniss’s grief are removed from the movies. She was so emotionally traumatized that she lost the ability to speak for a long time, many nights she’d wake up screaming, and she would wonder the mansion aimlessly and end up in odd little hiding places. She was trying to kill herself after she killed Coin, the poor girl was in absolute mental anguish and I do not think that was accurately shown in the films. She did not brush her hair, change her clothes, or shower for a long time when she went back to District 12. When her and Peeta reunite, she looked sickly and dirty--- enough so that Peeta was sad when he saw her. But, of course, in the film she looked fresh out of a shampoo ad, with flowing, long, not-matted hair. 

#katniss everdeen #peeta mellark #gale hawthorne #everlark #the hunger games #catching fire #mockingjay #thg #disability representation #female body hair #thg books #books to read #book recommendations #send asks #hollywood sucks #haymitch abernathy #district 12 #katniss x peeta

[twig-tea]

Bump Up Business Review

I just binged the entire show, and...really don't know what to think lol This is a drama in which idols from a group that first gained notoriety by overtly appealing to shipping culture in their choreography and MVs and then moved to making explicitly queer music videos that were dedicated to giving visibility and garnering acceptance for love between two men [the song dedications are in the official video descriptions], are starring as idols being asked to follow a "business gay" concept but who actually fall in love. This is...complicated.

Overall, this was better than I was braced for. It was a lot of fun watching OOO act, and the OST is great. Lots of flaws but I didn't feel like I wasted my time.

Spoilers below the cut.

Things I liked about the drama:

Both of them already knew they were gay from ep1 (it's unclear whether Eden is homophobic based on his childhood experience, but my takeaway was that he was trying to hide his homosexuality rather than being in denial. He is clearly super interested in Jihoon from jump and has to keep talking himself down. And we get him explicitly calling J his first love, which to me makes it clear his 'what do you mean, how could a guy be a first love' to Jihoon was his attempt to wave that off without outright saying Jihoon was wrong.

This means that unlike what I was bracing for, this was two various-states-of-closeted gay men in a homophobic but also ship-driven industry being asked to pretend to have affection for one another for views while they develop real affection for one another. Much more interesting than thought-I-was-straight drama!

The chemistry between Nine and Mill is of course excellent; for those who don't know OnlyOneOf they were already a ship before this series and are the stars of the last two music videos in their Be series.

Real kiss on camera (though see the list below)

I liked the OST main song , which is lucky because it repeats a couple of times

The we-met-in-childhood couple was not endgame for once!

Things I did not like:

This drama is really short, and the story is too complicated for the length (there are TWO love rivals?!; just generally it tried to give emotional weight to too many things and as a result nothing had emotional weight)

What happened between Hyunbin and Jihoon is not clear; it seems like Hyunbin conspired with Go Ra-eun to drug and take compromising photos of Jihoon so as to create rumours...I'm really not clear whether this was to hide their romance or to make him stop his idol activities, though I'm guessing the latter.

This drama didn't seem like it could decide whether it was in the BL world or the real world (in which homophobia exists). The CEO seemed fine with the idea of Jay and Eden dating; but Hyunbin challenged Eden that if he pursued Jihoon he'd have to tell his family and friends about him.

The acting was very uneven (Nine and Mill's acting was surprisingly good for most of it; I liked Mill's version of sunshine and Nine's version of grumpy)

The CEO is somewhat villainized as only caring about her agenda and not caring about the wellbeing of her idols, but this is also shown to be good business, so I'm not really sure it is successful in making a point about the industry, if it was trying to.

Similarly there was not enough in the way of exploring the impact and consequences of feeding into shipping culture for my taste; I feel like this show wants credit for criticizing this type of approach without actually criticizing it (other than the one moment where Eden says it's wrong and is ignored).

It drives me mad that the kiss we got was explicitly stated to be "business only" even though it clearly wasn't; it was also (less clearly) a drunk kiss; why do a kiss fake-out at the end? I assume it was to not encourage fans in thinking Nine & Mill are real, but if that's the concern then don't do this plot in the first place?

There was no good explanation for why Jihoon was avoiding Eden and why he was so successful; how had Eden gone from "I'll talk to him directly" to not going into Jihoon's dressing room to talk?

The water trauma was really glazed over

It ends in a really precarious spot, it's not clear at all what their future will be, whether they'll be allowed to stay in the group and date, whether they'll continue, etc.

Just generally this show started a lot of threads and did not do a good job maintaining them or keeping things moving evenly.

I don't have a rating system, so I'll just say: It's a good binge if you're bored. I feel like I still need to sit with the storyline about the idols but as it stands: it's complicated.

#bump up business #onlyoneof #bl meta #typed so I can stop thinking it

[dandelion-wings]

For the Sara-in-Mondstadt AU:

Mondstadt doesn’t do marriages, at least not like other nations. It’s far more a free love type of place than any other nation—a direct result of being the City of Freedom. Marriage actually doesn’t legally exist in Mondstadt. “Married” is just a relationship status, like “dating” or the famous “it’s complicated”. If a couple (or more, Mondstadt doesn’t get too caught up on concepts like monogamy either) says they’re married, that’s that, and they can break it off just as easily. It hasn’t been a legal concept since the years under the nobility, and was discarded as a legal concept alongside the nobility. No paperwork, no marriage contract, no super fancy weddings—nothing. Just ‘You wanna be my wife? Ok, then I guess you’re my wife now’ and that’s that. The only people that really care more than that nowadays are the remnants of the Lawrence clan. Married couples don’t even bother changing their names—Frederick and Seamus didn’t, for instance, and it’s why the sisters had different last names even before their parents separated.

Which then makes things interesting when foreign diplomats keep trying to offer political marriages, not understanding that political marriage just isn’t a thing in Mondstadt. Inazuma has been particularly obstinate—with other nations, they only have to be told off once or twice, and then it doesn’t become a problem again until they forget after a generation or two. With Inazuma, though, Jean’s pretty sure the actual diplomats get the message. The problem is that whoever’s in charge of them back on Inazuma itself is about as reasonable as a brick wall and refuses to accept that other nations might have different political cultures from Inazuma, and is too far away for Jean to give them a talking to personally (seriously, he’s shit at his job, probably some rich nobleman’s son given that position so he couldn’t fuck up anything that was more important).

So Sara ends up getting offered to Jean anyways, even though the actual in-person diplomats are only doing so out of obligation before they try sending her somewhere else that actually does do political marriages (like Liyue). But Jean reads between the lines and realizes they’re just trying to get Sara out of the country so she doesn’t get caught up in a purge, and she accepts even though it won’t actually be the diplomatic victory the guy in charge of foreign relations back in Inazuma thinks it will.

Maybe some extra Sara angst results as she deprecates herself for being ‘not even good enough for a real political marriage’ or something similar to that once she realizes the marriage isn’t actually going to get Inazuma a useful ally like the foreign relations guy at home told her it would?

Anon, I really love that headcanon about marriages! It's very suited to Mondstadt, and fun to think about. :> It's definitely one that works well for some of my poly concepts!

Unfortunately it doesn't work for me with this particular AU, because part of this one's appeal for me is the same as all my other arranged-marriage/marriage-of-convenience AUs (of which I have many, even if I have actually managed to write and post few). It's the concept of two people being legally tied together due to circumstances they might not necessarily have chosen on their own, and the ways that they negotiate that. Part of which for this one is Jean and Sara deciding what their marriage looks like for themselves, and another part of which is also Jean and Lisa dealing with having their own relationship disrupted. With the setup you're proposing, those things go away....

(I am definitely nabbing 'Jean reads between the lines and realizes they’re just trying to get Sara out of the country' as a partial rationale for why she does accept, though, because admittedly I'd been struggling with making the political/trade reasons work on their own.)

#asked and answered #...man i should make a tag for this au at some point #rn it's all findable in sara's tag though so i'll add that here #kujou sara deserves nice things

[jasmine-angel]

im gonna say it on here bc it’s safer than my other socials atm. i don’t think im trans (fully). i was dead sure for 9? years. i feel like i am losing a part of myself - i am ACTUALLY gaining something but idk my heart is breaking a bit.

i was on T for 2 and a half years. i was gonna get top surgery (and decided not to for diff reasons). i changed my name. the sex on my passport is M. like. i was SO SURE.

now after all this time i’ve finally been unpacking shit in therapy and also learning about autism. and … yeah. i fucked up lmao.

it is entirely on me, i chose to do all i did and i chose to get done what i did. i consented to everything and i do not regret it. i just feel like… let down. that i wasn’t offered the support i needed earlier to understand myself and how i would feel more comfortable.

i am happy w a lot of T changes! like super happy. it made me feel like my own person. but.. yeah.

i think i would consider myself agender but i dont wanna say i identify that way bc its less of an identity and more of just my general understanding of gender. i have never understood gender. probably an autism thing! but i just DONT GET IT. i dont know how it is meant to ‘feel’ or how u even know which one u fit in.

since i was a child i just couldn’t grasp gender like everyone else and i guess that’s why i transitioned bc i never felt like a real girl. but then i didnt ‘feel’ like a boy either. and then i decided to come out as nonbinary but idk. i never ‘felt’ like that either.

to make matters more complicated, my abusive ex stepdad would bully and belittle me for being afab. he made me HATE being born how i was. the csa i felt was only because of my being born this way. no wonder i wanted to get away from it all. i refused to believe he could have an impact like that when i was 16 or so and people were suggesting it. it made me feel even more out of control. all i wanted was to be in charge of my body for once. transitioning felt like getting that control back (one of the reasons im so grateful for it).

in an ideal world gender wouldn’t exist n we would all just utilise hormones and surgery to feel good in our skin much like any other affirming surgeries.

for now i will use they/she pronouns. but idc really. gender is confusing and unimportant to me. i care more for aesthetics lmao ..

i hope this makes some sense n if anyone resonates with it plz dm me :,) i feel quite alone currently. i know it’s a very odd experience but i hope someone somewhere gets it.

#autism #gender #lgbt #they she #agender #jaz rambles about gender #to an audience of no-one #jasper rambles #trauma #trauma and gender #afab #csa mention

[harmonyckrs]

Day 8 in Twisted Pleasantview: They're Here for Us

THE PREVIOUS DAY

NAME: DUSTIN BROKE

LIFE STAGE: TEEN

STATUS: ALIVE, POSSESSED FUNCTIONAL

SPECIAL NOTES: Never make a deal with fairies.

---

Dear Diary,

Mom went missing today.

The last time I saw her she was going to visit Cassandra to probably have a make-out session. Angela thinks she probably stayed the night, but I feel like she definitely would've told us if she did. Dad's still at the hospital because apparently there were some complications with the birth, so I don't know if he knows.

Dirk and Aunt Jen both gave me their condolences today, but I don't really feel anything. I did dream of this happening after Dina disappeared, but I never really thought it would happen. Grandma and Grandpa also moved in with us temporarily until Dad came back from the hospital, which feels unnecessary but I'd take them over either Mom or Dad any day. Am I allowed to say that? I'm sure Mom will be fine, anyway.

Anyway, I tried to ask Angela about how her report was going but she said she wanted to keep it secret. I know deep down she hasn't done shit, because I haven't seen her make any effort to try to talk to the Specters at all. Once I asked her about it more she snapped and said she overheard me talking to Pascal and was afraid that whatever I had in that report would end up undermining hers.

I don't know why she was so upset when the Specters have a good reputation while mine is on the guy that they fucked over with the help of all the influential people in town, but I told her that we can compare reports and she seemed to calm down after that.

We dropped by the Broke trailer after school to visit Dustin but it turns out he went missing and Ms. Broke was in a frenzy. I genuinely don't think I've ever seen her that panicked tbh, or at all really. We offered to help her look around, before we eventually found Dustin inside of what seemed to be a circle of flowers that formed around one of trees near the trailer. He seemed really dazed and just stared up at the sky, so we decided to play some good old-fashioned Punch You Punch Me as we waited for him to come back to his senses.

Once he left the ring he said he was tired and wanted to go to sleep, but Angela was able to talk to him while I went to take a shit in their bathroom. The Broke walls were hella thin, so I heard everything. Dustin claimed that he got transported to another realm by a fairy and that he saw an Asian man with long hair and green tinted glasses staring at him from behind a cold, glass wall. He also mentioned seeing a hall of mirrors which reflected the people who went missing, including Beau and Mom, but that he was sent back before he could do anything about them. He seemed kinda frazzled the entire time, so we decided to just let him go to sleep and return home.

I guess I can ask Ripp if he could introduce me to Puck, one of our other classmates who's a fairy. He seems pretty chill but he's super shy, so it's hard to talk to him because of that. I'm guessing he might know something about it, or at least direct me to someone who has. I'm not entirely sure if I believe Dustin, but considering how he just magically appeared in that flower ring I'm certain fairies probably had something to do with it.

I wonder if Strangetown ever had fairy incidents, like they do with aliens. I did hear that they're mainly from Veronaville, due to it the environment being more friendly towards fairies, but I don't think it's impossible for fairies to be found elsewhere. I guess I can ask someone from Strangetown about it later.

THE NEXT DAY

#ts2 #pleasantview with a twist #lilith pleasant #angela pleasant #dustin broke

[snorkling-in-sodasea]

Moments of Stupidity 13

Well, I guess I was misinformed or mistaken on when exactly the newest episode was gonna come out. Although I'm still making the post in early November and yeah, I'm certain the episode will still in this series of posts because, really, every single episode before it - excluding the pilot - have had stupid moments that progress the plot. If anything, the newest episode will be a shocker if it didn't have anything like that itself

Unhappy Campers -

Well... Moxxie's got a shit ton of stupid moments that pretty much carried at least a bulk of the plot so I should list them all before anyone else. So here goes

1) Moxxie made up pointless background stories for both himself and Millie. You two are on an assassination mission, not working as spies to gather information and shit. Even if you did need information, you didn't need to come up with too-complicated backstories for a simple hit

2) Moxxie completely ignores his wife's pointing out of the culprit. While he may have a point in that they shouldn't just assume shit, the culprit was so painfully fucking obvious that the guy should have been the first option they tried. Didn't Sherlock Holmes say in the book he comes from something about 'eliminating the obvious'? That means, by never investigating the most obvious thing about their case, it just makes Moxxie look even more inept at investigating if he covered all options except for the most obvious one

3) Moxxie just went up to a bunch of pre-teen girls, hijacked their conversation with bits of made-up info that just sounds so damn cringe as it goes on, and just expected that to work. It's like, even if he hadn't talked to a lot of teens before, especially while he was growing up, wouldn't he still see them around as he goes around town in any ring? Hear them talk? Could his upbringing really leave him so clueless that he would think that telling a bunch of teens who never met you before about periods would endear you to them? Even just spewing out stuff about yourself like it's trivia, does that really sound all that welcoming?

4) Moxxie decides to get so butthurt that a bunch of pre-teens don't like him that not only does he berate Millie for fitting in so effortlessly but also decides to care more about getting their approval than actually. Sure, throughout the week, he is watching through binoculars, no doubt trying to find the culprit, but he still lashed out at Millie because it still mattered more to him that he didn't get the kids' approval while his wife did. It was super damn obvious in the choice of words and how they were said so it was all so stupid, the kind of priorities Moxxie had. It never even occurred to Moxxie to use Millie's popularity to find answers. Seriously, if Moxxie couldn't get info, then why not Millie? Those kids would have told her anything she wanted to know

5) There was a little moment when Moxxie met up with Blitzo again. Blitzo says that he's trying to find his sister, kicks down the door, and yells out Barbie's name. Barbie yells Blitz's name back. Moxxie still asks is Blitzo knows her. And since there's fucking circus pictures of Blitzo and Barbie hung up in the office, then how the hell does Moxxie not have any inkling of Barbie's existence prior? Even without the pictures, and even though Barbie was disguised, the whole scene of Blitzo and Barbie meeting up with each other combined with Blitzo saying that he's looking for his sister makes it pretty damn obvious

Now a stupid moment that both Moxxie and Millie share together is that they don't try all that hard to keep up the charade that at least Moxxie thought was so important to maintain. It's even stupider for Moxxie because he's the one who made up the cover story that they're brother and sister. Yet Moxxie's complimenting Millie like he's attracted to her while they're on stage and still disguised as brother and sister. Then they fucking fuck on stage in front of cameras, because they decide that they're so horny that they simply shouldn't care where the fuck they are or who's watching to literally fuck around. Honestly, Blitzo might not even needed to try all that hard to watch Millie and Moxxie have sex since it's like that. No wonder Moxxie never found out until the episode Ozzie's that Blitzo has watched him and Millie do it a shit ton of times

Let's not leave Blitzo out of the equation, too. For the most part, he was a selfish jackass for creepily investigating the whereabouts of his sister who didn't want anything to do with him. The thing is, he apparently wanted to meet up with said sister so damn badly that he completely neglected a mission that came up. Blitzo had the fucking gall to chew Moxxie out for being so incompetent at this mission when it was thanks to Moxxie being incompetent that Blitzo even got to see his sister in the first place. Seriously, Blitzo might have just ran into a dead end or even gotten a hurt or dead sister because Moxxie had a braincell and didn't stop Millie from investigating the boathouse. Really, he's upset at Moxxie's ineptitude this episode but that's exactly what ended up doing him a solid this time. Besides, Blitzo also gave the mission to Moxxie to handle because he decided his company and the job a client came with didn't matter nearly as much as finding his sister so what place did Blitzo have to get on Moxxie's case for taking an entire damn week?

Even without all that, there's still the fact that Blitzo still acted like there was any remote chance in the end that Barbie was actually going to take him back. The asshole makes Barbie out to be the bitch for never contacting him, especially when she got of rehab - which is massively hypocritical given the fact that, in order to be shocked that Barbie checked out months ago, Blitzo had to go for that long without ever contacting his sister himself - accused Barbie of making Blitzo go through investigating and searching for her despite the fact it was entirely voluntary on his part, and never called off the hit that would leave Barbie without a job yet Blitzo still offered a chance to catch up like everything's going to be hunky-dory

Oh, and let's not forget a fucking huge-ass plot hole that makes Blitzo and also the rest of I.M.P. huge-ass idiots concerning the entire fucking premise of the series. At least, what was supposed to be the premise. I'm talking about the Asmodean Crystals. Apparently, those crystals are even better than the Grimoire in every possible way. Far more portable than the Grimoire, could easily avoid situations where you need to escape like in Truth Seekers because there'd be no spell to read or look at, and the crystals provide disguises that the Grimoire apparently doesn't - or maybe I.M.P. were too stupid to even think of trying and using spells from the book that would provide disguises. Yet no one in I.M.P. has a fucking crystal. No one even brings it up after Loona asked about disguises in Spring Broken. How the hell does anyone go for this long, almost halfway in season 2, without even thinking about getting a crystal? Millie might be one thing because she's someone living kind of isolated, at least not as crowded-looking as Pride or Greed seem to be, and she's never characterized as someone who goes out of her way to fixate on details. As long as things are fine, there's no need to think all that deeply. But what about Loona or Moxxie or Blitzo? Loona was the one who first brought up disguises so why the fuck wouldn't she also bring up the crystals at any point? She called the imps out for being so stupid to not have disguises, even if it was in worry for her own well-being, so why didn't Loona check with anyone about getting some damn crystals? Moxxie is the one most fixated on details and should have known about the different ways to go up to the surface. If not, he would have researched it; he seems like the type to do that. Blitzo is the one who's trying to start up his damn business. Even if he's a lazy ass who pushes his work onto others so that he doesn't have to do any heavy lifting for his company, you'd think that Blitzo would at least find some way to go up to the surface in the first place. He went to steal the Grimoire because he knew that was a way to do it. Did Blitzo really not look into more options than stealing a powerful book that a Geotia would definitely notice if it was missing? How the fuck did Blitzo think that mugging some cubi demons for their crystals would be too much work and/or be too dangerous than stealing the fucking Grimoire?

#helluva boss #moxxie #millie #blitzo #ranting

[forevercloudnine]

Hey, I've been meaning to ask you some recs for Superman, just general reading and watching list if possible, I absolutely know about nothing of the character outside of some Mr. Mxyzptlk conflicts and some homoerotic stuff with Lex Luthor. Also I would be the most grateful if you could list some DC stuff with Clex(Superman x Lex Luthor)

💗💗💗 Sure! Here are a handful of my faves:

Legion of Super-Heroes (2006): Animated adaptation of a common plotpoint in Superman media, which is that a 31st century alliance of alien superheroes decide to take advantage of the invention of time travel and hang out with their favorite historical celebrity (guess who). If you were to watch one episode as a taste-test, I'd recommend S1:E3, "Legacy," where Alexis Luthor falls into the family habit of becoming obsessed with Superman. Lex also appears in-person during issue #13 of the tie-in comic, The Legion of Super-Heroes in the 31st Century (short run, loooong title).

All-Star Superman: Maybe the most iconic Superman comic. An alternate universe story where Superman discovers he's dying and has to figure out what he wants to do with his limited remaining time. Deceptively heartwarming and a huge love letter to the Superman mythos. If you were to read one issue as a taste-test, I'd recommend #5, where reporter Clark Kent interviews death row inmate Lex Luthor. There’s also a pretty decent animated movie adaptation.

Superman Red & Blue: One of DC’s many attempts to cash in on the iconic and unexpected success of Batman Black & White, but this cash grab has been nominated for like three Eisner awards, which is pretty decent. Each issue is an anthology of short stories-- my favorite, “For The Man Who Has Nothing,” is in #4 (which also happens to have a Mr. Mxyzptlk focused story, if that appeals to you).

If you’re interested in a story about Conner (the Superboy Lex made from his and Superman’s DNA) and his relationship with his “fathers,” I’d recommend “The Boy of Steel” in Adventure Comics #1-3, #5 (second half), and #6.

Also, Reign of the Supermen (2019) is a fairly popular animated movie condensing the comics where Lex created Conner in reaction to Superman’s death. Superman’s death itself was adapted in the imaginatively named The Death of Superman (2018). The pair were created as an endeavor to create a more comics-accurate adaptation to replace Superman: Doomsday (2007), which tried to cram everything into one movie and ended up just excluding Conner entirely. On the other hand, Superman: Doomsday has a scene where Lex gets shirtless and beats up a clone he made from Superman’s corpse while screaming “WHY DID YOU LEAVE ME?” before climbing on top of its unconscious body and calling himself its daddy. So sometimes comic accuracy isn’t everything.

“Superman: Brainiac”: Action Comics #866-870. Maybe this should have been my first recommendation, since it’s a pretty good baseline for the typical Superman status quo, plus an explanation of the destruction of Krypton and one of the most prominent Superman baddies (the titular Brainiac, who pops up in a lot of these stories). But also the only reason I REALLY like this story is because of a few scenes centered around the difference between Clark being an orphan who never got to experience his birth culture, and his cousin Kara being an orphan who witnessed their birth culture being exterminated. There’s a scene where Clark says “Kara made me realize I know a lot of facts about Krypton, but I still don’t know what I’m missing,” which always makes me sad. He’s memorized everything he can about his birth culture, but that will never recreate Kara’s experience of actually living in it-- which is emotionally complicated because obviously he had a great childhood and never had to experience his home being destroyed, but also he’s completely disconnected from his heritage and never even got to meet the loved ones that Kara is mourning.

New 52/Rebirth: I mostly read Superman comics for Lex, and I stand by my belief that the most fun portrayal of Lex is his doomed attempt at a redemption arc and the subsequent cosmic fallout in the current continuity. I’m going to reduce it to like three flagship stories-- if you enjoy them and want to read more of the context surrounding them I can give you a more detailed reading list, but I think these get the point across.

REDEMPTION ARC, KIND OF: Action Comics feat. Lex Luthor #23.3 and Forever Evil #1-7. Superman and the Justice League disappear after being defeated by their evil mirrorverse counterparts, leaving it up to Lex to save the world. After he does, he realizes he enjoys playing the hero and attempts to become one full-time by joining the Justice League. Justice League (2011) #30-50 are just Lex being rejected, blackmailing his way in, and getting rejected again for twenty issues or so.

BREAKUP ARC: After a long series of shenanigans, Lex has started wearing the Superman symbol on his chest and Superman has been reluctantly working with him in Metropolis. But all the rejection eventually comes to a head in “Imperius Lex,” Superman (2016) #33-36, when Superman’s continued inability to trust Lex causes Lex to get frustrated and breaks off their alliance, giving up on the idea that Superman will ever accept him as a hero.

COSMIC MELTDOWN: Okay so the shenanigans surrounding this plot are complicated, but to make a long story short, Lex finds the secrets of the universe while trying to cheer himself up by destroying his abusive father’s favorite bar in Justice League (2018) #2. By Lex Luthor: Year of the Villain #1 this knowledge has led him into becoming a higher being, but he’s still an insecure mess so he just uses his new abilities to travel between dimensions and screw over other versions of himself that seem happier than him (including a Lex who seems to have successfully married his Superman??? I’m not joking). Year of the Villain: Hell Arisen #1-4 is the story of how Lex ended up rejecting the new source of his power, but honestly you could just read #3, which is an interesting interaction between Lex and Joker where Joker gives Lex a very narratively-aware dressing down.

Obviously this is a narrow selection of Superman media, but I think it covers a lot of bases? This isn’t official content, but I’d also recommend Ookla The Monk’s song “Suprema Lex” (which is on Spotify, though I personally found it through this Clex edit on Youtube).

#superman #clark kent #lex luthor #clex #losh 2006 #hopefully this is something along the lines of what you were thinking of #you know i used to always think that legion of super-heroes was inspired by star trek #because of the whole. galactic federation of aliens thing #but it turns out that their first appearance in superman comics was six years before gene roddenberry copyrighted his pilot for star trek! #so actually they came first. but the vibe is definitely similar #especially the 2006 show #idk if you're a data fan but if you are you might really like brainiac 5

[bookofmirth]

Was sjm planning on making Mor and Azriel endgame or did she just want it to be Azriel has feelings for Mor and it’s one sided? Do you think I’m ACOMAF Mor had romantic feelings for Az, but it was complex/complicated? I’ve seen people say they were supposed to be mates/endgame, but I feel like maybe they weren’t going to get together and it was going to be revealed why, but I think sjm decided to do that by making Mor queer which isn’t okay. I think if she didn’t want to make Mor + Az endgame, then she could’ve either dropped hints in ACOMAF that she was queer or it could’ve been that she didn’t see him in that way. I’m sorry if this doesn’t make sense!

We don't know for sure, without a doubt what sjm planned for Az and Mor. She's never talked about it at an event that I know of. She's hardly talked about Mor, for that matter, other than saying she's excited to write her story. The best that we can do is theorize and guess what sjm's intentions were until she actually comes out and says what her thought process was.

I was talking with the groupchat about this a LOT today, and IMO sjm was flirting with the idea of them, decided against it, but then didn't decide until acowar why it wasn't going to work out. Perhaps they would have been like chaolaena, or feylin. There was something there, but not in the endgame way and perhaps she didn't come to that conclusion until later on, when she was drafting acowar? Maybe.

I agree with you completely that it's not really okay for her to have made Mor queer as a way to explain why they hadn't been together/wouldn't be together. Queerness isn't a plot device in the way that it seems she has been writing it. Case in point - Mor continues to only matter when she's causing other people romantic strife, which is fucking ridiculous. I judge sjm hard for this. Mor didn't need to come out in acomaf for it to be clear where sjm was heading with the two of them. It's a pattern with her writing, though - Oh look, Mor is queer! Oh look, Helion is Lucien's father and everyone is supposedly too dumb to have noticed! Oh hey, Amren remembered this random thing called the Dread Trove!

I do lean towards them being the original plan because 1) moriel had better, more iconic quotes in acomaf than other ships we are currently debating, 2) like you said, if Mor was always supposed to be queer, then it shouldn't have felt like it came out of nowhere in acowar, 3) it shouldn't require character assassination to show why two characters won't be together, and 4) she had super romantic images on her pinterest that she titled "Mor and Azriel".

SJM is a pantser, and I think this is a glaring example. Her intentions are suspect at best because her intentions do, can, and will change. Trying to understand her intentions as a writer can honestly feel like trying to herd cats. I also think that she starts things off based on aesthetic choices (e.g. Az pining over a woman for 500 years can seem really romantic), and then when she realizes she has to make it work in practice, she fudges things to get the characters where she wants them to go (e.g. wait, now let's make her a queer woman, ummmm but what do we do with the mess we've made of Az's character? Let's make him lean into it with Elain!)

I seriously, seriously doubt that sjm put the thought into making Mor homoromantic/bisexual as an organic, natural choice. I think that instead, she was just trying to cover her basis and explain Mor's actions (IE sleeping with men) and OF COURSE the only reason someone wouldn't want to be with Az is if they are GAY!!!!!

I have a lot of thoughts on this subject but ultimately, it's in my top three wishlist of the series: to know wtf she was thinking with these two characters.

#moriel #acotar #ask #anon #sjm critical

[aeoki]

Ghostic: Prologue

Location: ES Halloween Stage (fine) Characters: Touri, Shinobu, Mao & Yuzuru Season: Autumn Writer: Seitarou Kino (Happy Elements) & Akira

Yuzuru: (Ahh, what a disgrace.)

(I, Yuzuru Fushimi, have made a mistake of a lifetime. At this rate, the Young Master will be in danger…!)

Touri: Help me…

Yuzuru: Young Master…!

I’m over here! Where are you? Young Master!

Touri: ………

Yuzuru: Oh, thank goodness. You were over here. I’m relieved to see you’re unhurt.

Touri: ………

Yuzuru: The Young Master’s eyes are lifeless…

Yuzuru: As I thought my hunch was correct – there is something “bad” in this haunted house.

I should have been more cautious if I had known this would happen.

There is an evil haunting this mansion. Among the evil ghosts, there is–

< A few days ago. >

< The latter half of October. On a certain day preparing for “Halloween Party”. >

Location: Student Council Room

Mao: ...*Phew* Good job, guys!

I wasn’t sure if we could finish in the beginning, but it looks like most of the paperwork for ES’ collaboration has been completed.

I think the management for “Halloween Party” has gotten a lot easier. 

Yuzuru, thanks for getting in touch with Tenshouin-senpai too.

Yuzuru: No need to thank me, I was already having difficulty with this year’s “Halloween Party”.

Under normal circumstances, it should have been I, a member of “fine”, to request Eichi-sama’s assistance. I’m terribly sorry.

Mao: No no. It feels kinda wrong of us to contact a senior who’s graduated already. I didn’t want him to think I’m unreliable, so you’re not in the wrong at all, Yuzuru.

Anyway, it really helped that Hasumi-senpai got wind of our troubles and negotiated ES’ joint sponsorship with Tenshouin-senpai. 

Thanks to him, we’ve cleared the issue of not having enough performance venues at the school. All that’s left is to focus on our own “units”.

Touri: Yeah, you really got lucky~ It’s all thanks to Hasumi-senpai negotiating with Eichi-sama that we get to have Halloween with ES.

You guys better be grateful for Eichi-sama’s generosity~

Mao: Hey, you’re also a member of the Student Council, so he technically helped you out too, you know?

Oh well. Either way, I should be thankful to a graduated senior who helped us with our unexpected troubles.

Shinobu: Yup. He truly is a “helping hand” ~de gozaru. Thanks to him, I think I can meet up with “RYUUSEITAI” earlier than expected for our Halloween activities. 

I’m happy to see that everyone else can also meet up with their “units” ~de gozaru ♪

Mao: Everyone else but me in “Trickstar” is working really hard, so it just feels like I’m just dropping in at the last minute, though.

If I remember correctly, Tenshouin-senpai’s in charge of the event for “fine”, right?

Touri: Yup. We’re leaving ES to Eichi-sama.

Both me and Yuzuru were helping out with the planning up until halfway, but Eichi-sama told us we should prioritise Yumenosaki Academy, and I thought what he said was very true.

Besides, we don’t have to worry since Eichi-sama has created so many successful events already. That’s why we decided it’d be best for him and Hibiki-senpai to go ahead with the preparations.

Fufu, if there’s anything worth worrying about, then I guess it might be the fact that Eichi-sama is feeling lonely because I’m not there with him~♪

Yuzuru: It’s too early to relax, Young Master.

Seeing as Eichi-sama and Hibiki-sama are working on the preparations for Halloween in advance means we must work harder than them, or else we may not make it in time.

Touri: I know~ Sheesh, you always notice the small things, Yuzuru.

Besides, I’m always super motivated, you know?

You saw Eichi-sama’s proposal, too, right? They’re doing a grand haunted house at ES!

A difficult lesson is nothing compared to that ♪

Mao: A haunted house? That sounds pretty complicated~

Shinobu: As expected of Tenshouin-dono. His ideas are on a whole different level ~de gozaru. 

Touri: I know, right? No one can even stand close to Eichi-sama’s planning skills ♪

Anyway, we’ve reached a good stopping point in our Student Council work, so let’s go to ES. Yuzuru?

Sorry, but “fine” is gonna be the main attraction of Halloween this year! Take care not to get buried in the ground~♪

Mao: Haha, he sure seems energetic~ His footsteps look so light ♪

Yuzuru: I apologise for my Young Master’s rudeness, Isara-sama, Sengoku-sama.

Shinobu: No, it’s fine. I feel motivated watching Touri-kun too.

“RYUUSEITAI” doesn’t have the same funds as “fine”, but we’ll liven up Halloween as a familiar presence ~de gozaru!

Yuzuru: Thank you for your kind words.

But the Young Master’s movements seemed oddly light. I was sure he would have been frustrated not being able to have a say in “fine’s” plans up until now, due to his position as a member of the Student Council.

…Or so I had thought, but this is not the time to be sharing what’s on my mind. If I were to leave the Young Master on his own, I’m sure he may carelessly hurt himself.

I shall take my leave as well. May you all enjoy the rest of your evening.

Mao: Yeah, you too.

Sengoku, you can leave too. Your “RYUUSEITAI” members are waiting at ES, right?

I’m planning on practising at school, so I’ll lock the student council room.

Shinobu: Thank you for being so considerate. Then, I shall go as well ~de gozaru.

Trick or Treat – I’ll do my best so that I can make everyone happy on the big day…☆

Mao: Haha. They all left like baby spiders. They must have all been itching to participate in the Halloween activities.

Alright. I’ll take a break from student council work and get the Halloween spirit going as an idol!

Wait for me, “Trickstar”...☆

Next Chapter →

#enstars #enstars translation #ghostic

[hornynofilter]

This happened to me about 3 weeks ago so I'm still processing the whole thing, but I thought you might appreciate this situation. I've been pretty sure I'm bisexual for awhile now and lately I've gotten way more curious about being with men. There's a bathhouse not too far from my place and I decided to visit one night. As soon as I stripped down in the locker room and started walking around the place in a towel, I began to feel very intimidated and out of my element. I was curious about being with another guy but I was also overwhelmed. I went into the sauna to sit down and clear my head. While I was in there, an older guy came in and sat down near me. He started to make small talk and I relaxed a little bit. He opened his towel and started playing with his cock. I've seen plenty of hard cocks in porn, both gay and straight, but this was the first time I'd ever seen another man get hard in real life. Honestly, it was mesmerizing to watch him stroke himself to full erection. He told me he wanted to see me get hard, too. The way he phrased it was less of a request and more of an order. I don't know why but I just kind of followed along. I was so nervous I had trouble getting hard, and that made him chuckle a little bit. He asked me if it was my first time and I said yes. He told me not to worry, that we didn't have to do anything I didn't want to do. But in the next breath, he told me to stand up and bend over a bench. Again, I knew I could have said no but it didn't really seem like it was request. He started rimming me, which felt amazing, and then before I knew it, he was inside me. He never asked me if it was okay, he just started fucking me. He wasn't super big, and I've played with dildos before, so I got used to it pretty quick but I was in shock that it all happened so fast. He stopped for a minute to spit on his cock, and then started fucking me again. This went on for a while. In truth, I lost track of time because my head was just spinning. I didn't even realize that somebody else had come into the sauna but before I knew it there was a cock in my face as a guy was standing in front of me jacking off. He said something to the guy fucking me about "Looks like you found a new toy to play with." The guy in my ass just laughed and said "Yeah, he's a newbie." After a few more minutes the guy standing in front of me grunted and shot his load all over my face. Around the same time the guy behind me pulled out and stroked himself until he came all over my back and ass. They both told me that I was really fucking hot and they hoped they would see me again sometime, then they left. I just sat down on the bench trying to get my head around what had just happened. I was covered in cum and my ass was sore and tingling. I was reeling because none of it was really consensual. I never said yes to any of it but I also never told anybody to stop. I just let it happen. I also realized that I was super horny and really frustrated because I didn't get off at all.

Every day since, I've gone back and forth between feeling like that was the hottest thing that ever happened to me and feeling like I should go file a police report. I can't figure out why I let that go down the way it did. Another thing that complicates the issue in my head was how good it felt. Once I loosened up a little bit, it was amazing. I've never experienced anything like that kind of pleasure. In the moment there was something so hot about being taken like that but like I said, I'm struggling with the fact that I never really said it was okay.

I guess what it really boils down to is yes, I was raped. And not only was I okay with it, it was hot. But it bothers me that I was okay with it. I don't know if that makes any sense. It's like I enjoyed it, but I'm really mad at myself for enjoying it. And at the same time, I kind of can't wait for it to happen again.

Hey, wow, thats a lot but still, thank you for submitting! Usually I try to take submissions as fantasy but ofc, that's not always the case and by the way you're talking towards the end I believe this actually happened. Therefore my brain is stuck between, encouraging you to give into that and go for it again and being real and hoping you're okay so bear through my rambling as I try to meld between the two(being neurospicy doesn't help lol).

I don't think you should be mad at yourself for enjoying it? but can completely understand why.. Being s/a'd isn't always how its depicted in media and such. Sometimes its being pressured by a loved one into giving in when you don't want to and then you think 'well i consented' when you were pressured. It leans into dubious consent. You did what he said but you didn't say yes or that you were okay with it. He should have asked.

Society and upbringing wants us to see sex or being sexual as negative. But I think you should accept what you want? Like I want to be a slut who gets fucked but I'm also not that LOL. I've wanted to go to glory holes and get used but I'm not that type of person due to those things and anxiety and the fact I'm demisexual (also definitely doesn't help)(like those things make you develope shame for enjoying it and if i didn't feel shame or anxiety, I'd whore out ngl).

If you enjoyed it and wanna do it again, then i'd say go back? just be safe and make sure you keep yourself on guard incase stuff gets too much and make sure to get tested every now and then. Keep yourself safe. OR - get a partner who you can consensually do noncon/be free use with. Cause that taken feeling can still happen like that if consent is giving way before hand. Putting safe words and such in place as well would stop it from crossing any lines and you'd be a hella lot more safe.

In the end, do not feel bad for liking it. If anyone shames you, they can fuck off. Bodies are weird. Brains are weird. All of it is weird lol. Do you, be safe, have fun~ and thank you so much for sharing! (Sorry if i did not give you a response you wanted and please keep me updated on what you might do/how you feel from this response?)

#ns/fw #nsft #ns/fw confessions #n-s-f-w #anon confession #ns/fw advice

[foxgloveinspace]

@thoseeyeslikefire @absentviolet @kyloreno-911

It's another LONG w.i.p. Wednesday! Explanation for why I haven't been making these, I guess:

took a week off in October cause I didn't feel like taking pics, then we had company and I didn't have time to do it, and then I got sick, ugh. But now I'm back and I'm gonna try to do these when I can again, possibly not every week, maybe every other week, cause I want to spend more time reading and writing this month if I can. (it's gonna be my first 'real' NaNoWriMo. Where I have a goal and such).

first off, the confession. I frogged the cardigan part of the og skulls cardigan. I kept looking at it, and looking at it, and I went 'I'm never going to wear this, I'm just doing it, to do it'. It's gone through like, three other iterations that I haven't been talking about cause I was really just trying to figure it out. I've finally found something I'm excited about making, which is a pieced together cardigan of double crochets, where on the right side rows I crochet through the back loop only. I'm feeling very inspired by this, especially since I could work on this even when I was super foggy from having a cold. Sadly, it did not get done in time for Halloween, but also I didn't intend for it to be just for Halloween. Hopefully this is something I'll wear all winter. It's my main w.i.p. rn and I hope to get it finished this week, so I'll post finished pics when I get it done.

and another 'wellllll there was a goof' project, lol. I messed up the left sock of my hocus pocus socks. so I decided to frog it, since then it would be easier to make the heel flap and gusset of the right sock! so! i then paused the first sock until I can catch up on the second sock, and when they are both ready to knit the foot, I'll pick them both up to knit two at a time again. I just haven't been able to knit very much cause of the foggy head from my cold. But! I am really happy with these and hopefully I'll have them done before the end of the year.

I picked back up the pass the honey cardigan! mostly cause it was easy knitting while I was, again, foggy from the cold..... wow. Any way, I know it probably doesn't look like it, but I did get some progress done on it, I think like two or three pattern repeats? I wasn't sure I wanted to continue it, but then I had the thought of 'it looks like dragon scales, not just honey comb' and now I love it lol. It's my dragon scale armor now.

and now! my birthday shawl!! (The Gaia Shawl) I only did the first bit on my birthday cause I was DETERMINED to get it started on the right day. I am loving this yarn and how it's working up, and I am really liking the little bit of the pattern I've worked at well. I'm not worried about how long it takes me cause my birthday shawl last year was being worked well into January. It'll be there when I feel good enough to work on it again. The only problem is that the pattern website keeps freezing.....

small yarn haul time!

the multi colored yarn is from one of my mom's friends actually, she has sheep and she goes through the entire process with it, and I got it from her 'booth' at the Heritage Days festival in Warsaw (which is no where near where I live). I have no idea what I want to make with it?? I'm thinking a hat and some socks maybe? it is a fingering weight yarn. Definitely the hat first, and then if I have enough yarn left over the socks. It's so soft and squishy, and I really love it.

and then the blues are for a project for my sister in law.... she kinda volunteered me for it, but it'll only take me a couple days at most. It's for a pixie from Harry Potter. The yarn is nice and soft, and I guess I'm looking forward to the challenge, but also she's just...... It's complicated.

And that's it from me! Thanks for reading <3

#knitting #crochet #wip wednesday #very much so #the tumblr knitting club💖 #Dakota knits

[charliesons]

Leviathan Bday Collab 2023! Coffee Shop prompt.

genre: fluff pairing: leviathan and gender neutral mc ---------------------- Every shift worked with Leviathan was an interesting one, he was genuinely pretty funny and it was easy to make small talk with him in order to pass the time, but something that MC would never be able to get used to was the comments that he makes when he takes people's orders. If something wasn't interesting or on theme with the coffee shop, he would make a slightly 'rude' remark that would send the customer into some sort of emotional frenzy. MC could never understand how his opinion on a drink could do that to someone, but they also wouldn't complain about it when it happened. A free show is a free show, afterall.  "Levi, this is like the 5th time you've referred to someone's order as "super normie," what does that even mean?" MC commented, laughing as quietly as they could, not wanting to disturb their customers "and they've all looked really offended every time!" It was amusing to see how worked up people could get over a cup of coffee. Afterall, it was just a drink that could, if you're lucky, give you a boost of energy to go about your day. Surely there was no genuine reason to take offense to some silly word. Leviathan grinned, "Their orders are just so basic and extremely boring! They need to spice them up a bit, everyone gets pretty much the same thing everytime, it's so lame," he shook his head. "If you ordered what they do I'd say the same thing to you, too. So bland. You'd think that people would order something more creative since this is obviously a themed coffee shop!" It was obvious that he had very strong feelings regarding the subject. MC shook their head, a smile on their face as they watched the boy before them, "And what exactly is a normie order? I've got to avoid your judgemental gaze. Can't have people thinking I'm bland and boring." The situation was actually really funny to them, but Leviathan seemed slightly serious and took a moment to consider what his answer would be, there was no telling what was going on in that head of his. Hearing his complaints regarding what people ordered was not something they had expected to encounter while working with him, but another conversation with Leviathan would always be a win in their book.     "Well, obviously something bland or having nothing to do with the coffee shop's theme," he paused, he appeared to be rethinking his answer, "I guess everyone is entitled to their own preferences, but this is a themed coffee shop and it is so boring when people come in and order the same plain drinks over and over again without changing them up at all, surely they can just add some type of twist to what they order. Even some fruit or pieces of candy would be so much better. I'm so tired of hearing people ask for lemondes or white mocha lattes. Why not get something cool or create your own combos?" he sighed, he had a hand placed on his hip and the other raised in the air as if he was shrugging. MC nodded along, grinning at him. "I guess that's reasonable, it's not very fun making the same raspberry lemonade every day, and I do enjoy making the more complicated drinks when I get the chance, but, we can't really complain about what the customers order, after all they are paying for their orders, if we complain too much they might just stop showing up completely, and that would just suck." They took a moment to think over everything Levi had said before speaking again, "Maybe start recommending people drinks? I'm sure they'd be more inclined to order something different if you put in the effort to let them know that there were some pretty good combinations that they could be ordering instead." There was a beat of silence as Leviathan thought, and, after careful consideration, he nodded. "Yeah, I guess that could work, but if they decide to still order something boring I'm going to start complaining," he sighed, rubbing the back of his neck, "man, who knew working in a coffee shop would be so stressful? This job sucks, I just want to go back home and play my games, anything would be better than this place." The look on his face told MC that he only really half meant what he was saying. He did really like the job he had, he found it a bit fun, really. Nothing could beat the embarrassed expression of someone who had just gotten called boring. "Oh, come on Levi, this job isn't that bad, don't you like working with me?" They were grinning, the smile on Leviathan's face was the brightest thing in the room, sweeter than any order anyone could ever come up with.

#leviathanbday2023 #leviathan avatar of envy #leviathan x gender neutral reader #leviathan obey me

[katnissgirlsmakedo]

bestie I'm asking this for u to rant. WHAT is wilds about? I have never heard of that show and it's on Netflix right?

i am so impressed that you’ve apparently been seeing me say the most inconsistent and incomprehensible things about this show for days and have only just now decided to see what i’m on about…. ok i’ll explain it to u, ur gonna want to sit down it’s a lot

ok so at it’s core it’s about how being a teenager sucks and about how insanely good it would feel to be able to scream as loud as you possibly can for as long as you need to and just let out everything. but in terms of the actual plot it’s about these two groups of kids (8 girls and 8 boys) who are in two “plane crashes” and are stranded on two separate islands as part of a larger science experiment led by this crazy evil milf. it’s like kind of a thriller so there are a lot of twists that really make the whole thing a fun experience to watch but i’m assuming that if you’ve been watching me talk about it all this time you don’t care much about spoilers. but anyway i’ll still keep it vague <3

so. season one is all about the girls island, and it’s incredible. they’re gay, they hate each other, they’re best friends, they’re family, something really weird is happening and only leah notices but she is like certifiably insane so no one believes her. also one of them is a plant from the people running the experiment and she’s there to make sure the rest of them don’t find anything suspicious or whatever and she like reports any problems to the observers and you don’t find out who she is until like the last episode. but anyway. all eight of them (even the double agent) have backstory episodes that really flesh out their characters and why they are the way they are and how they ended up at this supposed “feminist retreat in hawaii” they were meant to be at before the crash. and it’s SO good, every single one of them is sympathetic and lovable and three dimensional, even the ones that might have been considered boring are still interesting it’s sooo good. and the whole time it’s cutting between three distinct times, there’s the girls on the island, their flashbacks, and the present where the girls are being interviewed by who they think are a detective and a therapist, but they actually work for the evil milf scientist i mentioned earlier. the specifics of her experiment are incredibly vague though, she’s basically trying to prove that young women are capable of banding together in a survival situation and creating a peaceful and practical society by themselves, while i guess young men are not? and this proves…. um, that girls rule and boys drool? idk what she thinks is going to come out of this extremely unethical and gender essentialist research but it’s whatever i guess. and the season ends with finding out there was also a whole deprecate island of boys the whole time as a control group to the girls island

and then season two is where it gets a bit complicated. the timelines are way more muddled (the whole timeline of the experiment doesn’t make any sense to me i can’t even begin to explain any timeline stuff in season two because they clearly did not put much thought into it in the writers room) and at the end of the day, the boys are just not as well done as characters, like collectively. like some of them are really good but they fail as a unit because not all of them got fleshed out with backstory like the girls did. and also they just don’t like each other that much. some of them are buddies but they’re not like a friend group the way the girls are. and one of them is a total maniac on a power trip because he also happens to be in on the experiment and it’s super fucked up

anyway i do think it’s a really good show that you should definitely watch if you’re interested even though i’ve definitely been talking shit about it… it’s still mostly very good i promise!

#also it’s on amazon prime not netflix which is good because netflix would have cancelled it lmao #also i’m sorry this took several days for me to respond. i was gathering my thoughts and then i forgot this was in my drafts and then etc yk #asks #anonymous #the wilds liveblog

[signalwatch]

Raquel Watch Party Watch: Kansas City Bomber (1972)

Watched:  02/17/2023

Format:  Amazon Watch Party

Viewing:  First

Decade:  1970's

Director:  Jerrold Freedman

So...  Picking movies for Friday watch parties is always a challenge.  We talk over the movies, so it can't be anything too complicated.  It has to be fun because we're not watching a movie on a Friday to be miserable - and that's not the vibe for riffing, anyway.  

While Raquel Welch is an international icon, and I wanted to use the Watch Party to celebrate her the week of her passing, and thus I was also looking to find a movie in which she played the lead.  Plus, I like Roller Derby.  So, I picked Kansas City Bomber (1972), not really knowing much about it.  But that is not to say that I saw the trailers and was not dazzled that the romantic co-star was Kevin McCarthy.  I mean... 

Look, I'm not a an expert on 1970's filmmaking, but there are some various strains of what happened during the decade, and I don't think it's entirely a mistake that by the early 1980's we pivoted and movies have built on what some directors were doing during the 70's while what others were doing shows up in indie film but isn't what makes mainstream film or blockbusters.  You can love Altman, but meandering movies with sprawling casts and confusing audio are not still super in vogue.  

Kansas City Bomber (1972) could have been a fun movie about the wacky world of pro-Roller Derby, a third-tier sport that mixed actual competition with pro-wrestling hucksterism, ginned up rivalries and general ludicrousness.  But this is 1972, and someone decided this movie needed to be a working class drama about a woman who rolls away from the life built on certain expectations that didn't work out.  She's more or less abandoned her two kids from a failed marriage to live with her mother and she's making a living as a regional Roller Derby pro, a career that literally can't pay much.  Which really just opens the door to all sorts of questions like:  but why?  and... what for?  and... does this really pay any better than literally any other job?  

It's a movie that - like a particular flavor of 1970's movie - believes we're to just catch snatches of conversations and bits of story with a sort of fly-on-the-wall observation of the characters more than ever being right alongside them.  And, because our hero, KC (Welch) never says what's going on with her, it's a lot of inference.  Which, as it turns out, is pretty tricky when it comes to movies and characters.  We can kind of infer, gather and guess as to how KC is doing, what she wants, etc...  but you're never really on sure footing.  I'll argue, this can be done well.  This ain't it.

The end result is that you get the feeling Raquel Welch, who is a good actor, is doing her best to turn in a performance as a lead - a messy, imperfect protagonist - and you're watching someone from thirty feet away through a screen door.  The journey her character is on is hazy - it feels more episodic than a clear through-line as we try on some montage filmmaking.

Anyway, I like Kevin McCarthy.  He's been a big part of making me enjoy many-a-movie.  He is a supremely weird choice for the romantic interest for KC.  He's got 26 years on her, and isn't exactly Tyrone Power and seems like a walking red flag (in this film).  

The movie wants to show the They Shoot Horses, Don't They? lifestyle of the blue-collar world of Roller Derby.  To that end we get a few predictable and not well fleshed out b-plots, like Jackie - the former hot skater who has lost her crown to Welch and is now drinking heavily.  We have the Lenny-like Hank who has "doomed" written all over him because he is nice and not corrupt and exists to be a cautionary lesson to KC.  I assumed Jackie would be the necessary "has a bad night and KC watches and then we never see the character again" character, but it was Hank.

BECAUSE ROLLER DERBY WILL DESTROY YOU.  

Anyway, I appreciate what everyone thought they were doing.  It's a shame it isn't a great movie because it has pretentions of being one. But this was kind of that era of film school grads deciding they were going to make "realistic" films, and with budgets what they were, we got Hal Ashby movies and even Scorsese films.  And some of that works.  And you have a whole lot don't work for audiences in 2023, I suppose.  Or me, I guess.

If you're looking for a movie with well-drawn characters about Roller Derby, just watch Whip It!  You'll be happier.

Does Welch look amazing in a roller derby uniform?  Sir, that is not a serious question.  Do I buy that she'd throw an elbow or knock someone over?  I assume she did that, anyway, without direction.  

Anyway, I wish I'd picked 100 Rifles, but here we are.  I'll watch that one later.

https://ift.tt/9xy0goZ

from The Signal Watch https://ift.tt/De8E6Am

[c0rpseductor]

this is nothing bad its just me being a little bitchy? rude i guess? idk. im not trying to say anything bad about anyone im just trying to sort through some complicated feelings that have very little to do with this person and are not super charitable

anyway on my selfship account i am following someone who likes the moon knight guy(s) as, like, friends or something im not sure. recently a lot of people have been talking about episode 5 and they were like, upset about that episode and were just vaguely like “fuck you marvel for ep5″ so i decided to look up what exactly happened in it, and like

im not sure which part was most upsetting for them, but in regards to the abuse, i very much kind of felt like...”well, it’s a television show about someone with DID; the fact this character was horribly abused as a child ought to have been obvious from the jump.” 

which i get is kind of cruel of me, bc it’s still got to be a bummer for people who are attached to the character(s), and obviously watching it on tv instead of reading it as a recap it’s probably kind of upsetting and could activate PTSD symptoms if youve been treated that way. i also realize in some ways i’m very sensitive about child abuse but in others i’m incredibly desensitized, so my emotional perspective is usually not normal. but i really kind of feel like, why be mad? that’s obviously going to have been the case.

i guess given the context of everything they mightve been upset about steven (?) dying (??) but not marc (???) which. is more comprehensible to me. i don’t know why that was a writing choice though. it’s so utterly bizarre, especially for a show that otherwise seems fairly concerned with accuracy. but i would get being upset by that. actually i bet that’s why they were upset and not the fact that he was abused as a child. that’s just a given. i just never know sometimes, like i feel sometimes like people react with a lot more shock and surprise to child abuse than i’m used to bc as fucked up as it is i just like...idk it does upset me but usually it doesn’t shock me unless it’s really really far beyond egregious. like they said in the recap he was beaten by his mother and i just was like ok. (but i guess thats normal bc he’s not real and that’s barely anything to go on.)

i feel like kind of a jerk about being a little confused and conflicted about this and their love of the show. there’s a part of me that feels like having a big emotional reaction like shock to something like this or to my own abuse is, like, “soft” or otherwise kind of weak and embarrassing, but part of me feels kind of like, uncomfortably vulnerable at like, wondering what this acquaintance might think of me based on this tv show. i feel intensely uncomfortable when people express really effusive sympathy or like shock and horror when i relate any part of my abuse, which is more like gross and socially unacceptable to talk about, so it kind of concerns me even if i’ll never tell this person, like just hoping they wouldn’t also react to me with shock and horror.

once again, probably a moot point bc it makes WAY more sense to me to be upset a fictional character died than to be upset they were abused as a child, but with how popular moon knight is right now i feel kind of like nervous about the increased attention on DID. i don’t have an issue with the show or think it’s bad but the last thing i want is to feel like my life is somehow indirectly being exposed to marvel fans, and the fandomization of DID kind of terrifies me (i’ve seen people posting fanfic for “DID AUs” in the DID tag who don’t even have it, which made me so sick i had to go take a shower). i know the answer is to just ignore the show and not go digging around in the tags when there’s usually nothing of value to begin with but like. it’s rough out there lol

[tehuti88-art]

3/1/24: r/SketchDaily theme, "Free Draw Friday." This week's character from my anthro WWII storyline is a twofer: Sgt. Thomas "Harrier" Harricks, and Flight Lt. Donovan Bradford, in a garrison cap (top drawing) and in a peaked cap (bottom drawing). These are two poorly developed British characters from the previous reboot. Donovan (he prefers going by his first name) is a laid-back pilot but now stays on the ground, whereas Harrier is short tempered and unpleasant. There'll be more about them later in my art Tumblr and Toyhou.se.

Regarding their design, Harrier underwent a last-minute drastic design change based on my mistaken memory that HE had been the pilot; I suddenly decided to change him from a rat into a bat, making him only the second non-rat character in the rodent half of the story (Papillon is the other). He's passing as a rat, which is why the pointy tips of his ears are clipped off, plus he wears gloves and avoids shaking hands because of how bat hands are constructed. (This is something I only JUST realized about Papillon recently, his fingers are his wings! He effectively has no hands! I came up with the idea of him having prosthetic hands operated by his thumbs, and this led to more plot development. Harrier of course deals with a similar complication.) Also, I just noticed I really borked up the British garrison cap in my original design--it has earflaps buttoned in front like a German field cap--so my older Liam Morgan portrait will need to be tweaked.

TUMBLR EDIT: Harrier and Donovan both date to the first attempted reboot, and both severely lack character development (similar to characters like Evans and Beaudry); here to be thorough I'm looking to dust them off and flesh them out sometime. This section will be divided among the characters to avoid repetition.

Here is Flight Lt. Donovan Bradford's original description from the old character list (2002):

DONOVAN BRADFORD: 1st lt.; the Trench Rats' contact among the British fighting in Germany. Indispensible in assisting them with contacting the Americans and the outside world. Very affable and easygoing, slow to anger; witty and charming, very gentlemanly. Tolerates Harrier's constant griping with ease. Reports to Ellroy and sometimes to the French forces as well as the Americans. A flying ace, but now spends most of his time on the ground. Prefers to be called by his first name. Current storyline

Donovan's rank has since changed; he's in the RAF, which apparently has a rank called "flight lieutenant" (which seems more the equivalent of captain in other branches, but I wanted something with "lieutenant" in it). Ranks are kind of over my head, so I try not to overthink it much; he's now a flight lieutenant. I'm also not so sure he's an "ace" anymore, as I believe he's a bomber pilot rather than a fighter pilot like von Staden, though again, such things are a bit beyond my understanding. In any case, those are the corrections. (The "Ellroy" referred to is Major Titus Ellroy. This part here is super awkward, I just typed up how he's the American contact of the European forces and not Donovan's CO, when I then looked at the character list and...he's British and he literally IS Donovan's CO! Turns out I was mixing him up with Major Dupries (the actual American character). Oops. 😅 Guess I'll have to get around to him sometime soon.)

I don't know as much about Donovan yet as about his good friend Sgt. Harricks, AKA Harrier. I do know he befriends Harrier early on, and gives him his nickname after seeing him fly, though Harrier goes to great lengths to disguise his identity as a bat--even the tips of his ears have been clipped--so Donovan honors his secret, and even pulls strings getting him in the British army and obtaining him a desk job, as Harrier's wings make combat difficult. I suspect Harrier may have been some sort of petty street criminal or laborer who helped Donovan out at some point, possibly by flying. Donovan is a bomber pilot whose aircraft is downed; he parachutes out in time, though I think the parachute malfunctions, and again, Harrier swoops in to help out; he's long admired Donovan and his job, seeing as, passing himself off as a rat, he has to refrain from flying, himself. Donovan is injured, yet survives. For some reason, however, he's declared unfit to return to duty as a pilot, and so settles for a liasion role to the American forces, mainly the Trench Rats. (Perhaps he introduces them to Lyndsey Skye?) Harrier takes this harder than he does; Donovan is like, "Eh, what can you do," although he does try to encourage Harrier to seek a more active role utilizing his own ability to fly. He's Harrier's biggest cheerleader, although Harrier is too full of doubt to oblige at first.

Donovan may have had a previous relationship with LC Lyndsey Skye before she joined the Trench Rats. If so, the two appear to have parted on amicable terms, as they get along well, and Donovan never expresses any jealousy when Skye later gets involved with Burgundy Rat. He and Harrier are familiar, at least in passing, with Sgt. Liam Morgan; like the Trench Rats, they never even realize Morgan's been turned by the Waffen-SS, nor American corporal Anna Julian's role in things. They're as stunned by this information as the Trench Rats are when it finally comes out.

Aside from this, I'm afraid I haven't much more info available on him; unlike Harrier, he doesn't have a sudden new plot development to flesh him out. Perhaps some more will come to light at a future point; until then, check out Harrier's entry for a bit more.

[Donovan Bradford 2024 [‎Friday, ‎March ‎1, ‎2024, ‏‎12:00:15 AM]]

[Donovan Bradford 2024 2 [‎Friday, ‎March ‎1, ‎2024, ‏‎12:00:26 AM]]

#artists on tumblr #ibisPaint x #SketchDaily #original characters