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bbangsoonie · 3 years

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just u

member: sunwoo genre: fluff word count: 1,903 synopsis: sunwoo thinks you’re a flirty drunk but doesn’t notice you only flirt with him.

a/n: oc’s facial flush after drinking alcohol is mentioned once in the fic

Eric: giant sleepover at hyunjae’s tonight

Hyunjae: this is news to me ??

Eric: be prepared to pull an all-nighter because we are doing everything from watching movies to playing games to ✨drinking✨

Sangyeon: his house is also my house ???

Eric: y/n, can you pick up some snacks and drinks with sunwoo?

You: sure

Sunwoo: this is news to me as well ?

Eric: see you all at 6! i know no one has classes today and tomorrow’s saturday so i expect full attendance :)

Juyeon: again, our house is not just solely hyunjae’s ???? younghoon and i live here as well ;-;

Eric’s impromptu gathering was in no way organized but he knew everyone would go along with it. Your group of friends consisted of the most spontaneous people you’ve ever met. They were always down for anything, anytime.

That was how you ended up going grocery shopping with Sunwoo and Haknyeon after you stopped by campus for your professor’s office hours. You ran into Haknyeon there who wanted to tag along to make sure you bought his favorite snacks.

“Any requests for chasers?” you called out to the boys who were an aisle away. You scanned the shelves of sodas in front of you, trying to recall who liked what drinks.

“Chasers are for babies,” Haknyeon scoffed as he made his way over to you.

“I’m baby,” you proudly pointed at yourself.

“Are you referring to the Kirby meme right now?” he blinked. When you nodded, he pretended to gag, making you slap his back.

“Do you guys think this is enough alcohol?” Sunwoo arrived with a cart full of bottles. You almost laughed at the amount of cases. Anyone passing by would think you were shopping wholesale. Which honestly didn’t sound like a bad idea for a group of 12.

“Should be,” Haknyeon shrugged, taking over the cart. “Now time for the good stuff!”

You and Sunwoo watched as he threw in bags of chips and jelly into the cart. You only picked out one or two for yourself since Haknyeon was essentially just getting everything. There was a wide variety for you to choose from anyway. Sunwoo had to physically stop him from adding more stuff, insisting that there’d be dinner as well.

With Hyunjae in charge of ordering food, it was no surprise that you walked into his house smelling like chicken. Eric greeted you from the kitchen and you hollered out a “hey” before joining Changmin and Chanhee in the living room. They were in the middle of an intense round of Super Smash Bros and by the looks of it, Changmin was winning. When the game finally ended, Changmin shrieked with laughter while Chanhee dejectedly collapsed onto the sofa.

Jacob and Kevin walked in not long after, exchanging greetings with everyone else. Sangyeon, Juyeon, and Younghoon emerged from the staircase after finishing their assignments upstairs in their own respective rooms. With the whole group together, Eric gathered you all in front of the TV to have a Super Smash Bros tournament.

“Only people who suck at playing games pick Kirby,” he yelled as you picked up a controller.

“I do admit I suck at games and love Kirby,” you stuck your tongue out as you chose your character, making Chanhee groan.

“All you do is spam down b!” Kevin whined.

“Well no one wants to teach me other moves or how to play other characters,” you shrugged.

“I tried,” Hyunjae sighed. “You’re an impossible student.”

“That’s because everyone kills me off while I try to learn!” you huffed.

To your amusement, you won the game by avoiding everyone in the air while they battled amongst themselves. Then you constantly attacked Younghoon with the same move until he eventually died. He screamed in frustration when your victory flashed across the screen.

Unfortunately for you, everyone decided to target you in the beginning for the next round. After easily finishing you off, they enjoyed what they called a “true fight” that Eric ultimately won.

The long night officially began with the mountain of boxes of chicken in the kitchen. It was easily demolished before Changmin won rock, paper, scissors to put a horror movie on. Before the film was even chosen, Sunwoo was complaining about how he hated jump scares.

“Bro just say you’re afraid and move on,” Eric snickered.

“I’m not scared! I just don’t like being surprised,” Sunwoo insisted.

“Pft, if you’re a true man you can watch it,” Chanhee teased, unaware of his embarrassment to come.

The next couple of hours was chaotic. Chanhee screamed at every noise, making everyone else scream as well. Haknyeon and Sunwoo ended up watching the movie with their ears closed and Jacob gave up entirely by trying to nap instead. You had the unfortunate seat next to Younghoon and became his ragdoll that he clung onto and shook every time he got frightened. You didn’t even get to react to the movie because he kept screaming and grabbing onto you.

Eric and his mischievous instincts spent the whole time trying to startle Juyeon who ended up chasing him around until he promised to stop. Changmin, Sangyeon, Hyunjae, and Kevin were the only ones who truly enjoyed the movie.

When the lights came back on, Chanhee and Sunwoo pretended that it wasn’t scary at all. Hyunjae laughed, reminding them of their reactions to which they feigned oblivion to.

“I need a drink,” you groaned. “Younghoon stressed me out more than the ghost did.”

“Everyone go slow and steady,” Eric warned. “I want to be playing until the sun comes up.”

“My body is too old for this,” Sangyeon mumbled as he began taking the alcohol out of the fridge.

“Hey, Y/n, can you pass me a bottle?” Sunwoo asked. You felt your heart skip a beat when his fingers brushed past yours to take the drink from your hands. The exchange made you blush and you quickly took a shot to mask your tinted cheeks with the flush of the liquor.

Spending the night with your friends meant that you would be spending it trying hard to not fall in love with your budding crush. You tried your best to keep a safe distance from him, relying on Chanhee to be your trusty barrier.

After a series of drinking games (that mostly resulted in your loss), you were beginning to feel the effects. With Chanhee and Haknyeon by your side, you were slightly swinging in your seat. You were all sitting on the floor in the spacious living room to start whatever game Hyunjae had suggested. His words had gone in and out of your ears while you were finishing your last punishment drink.

“So basically one person will ask another person a question and that person will say their answer out loud. The answer has to be the name of someone in this room. Those who are curious about the question will drink to hear it,” Hyunjae explained.

“Can I go first?” Kevin excitedly asked. With the majority agreeing, he happily went up to Jacob to whisper in his ear.

After hearing his question, Jacob thought for a second before saying your name. The boys teasingly “ooh”ed, making you roll your eyes. Sunwoo, Eric, and Changmin were the only ones curious enough to drink for the answer.

“Aw, Y/n, you don’t wanna know why he picked you?” Kevin pouted.

“By the look on your face, I think I get the gist,” you chuckled. “Any questions involving girls only leaves me as an option. And to be brutally honest, I don’t really care what he thinks of me.”

Jacob, faking pain, clutched his heart.

“Ouch,” he joked.

Jacob asked his question to Younghoon, who answered with your name again. This time, you were slightly intrigued.

“Me again for the second time in a row? Now I’m kinda curious,” you pretended to think hard.

Eric drank again and eagerly asked for Jacob’s question. Trying to elicit a response from you, he acted shocked and grabbed Younghoon by the collar. Laughing, you gave in and drank to hear the question.

“He thinks you’re gonna be the first to get cuffed,” Jacob whispered to you.

“Ah, unfortunately no,” you shook your head at Younghoon, sitting back down.

This time, Younghoon asked you a question. He asked who you would date if you had to choose from the friend group.

“Sunwoo,” you said almost immediately. His jaw dropped at how fast you made your decision and he gave you a smug look.

Again, Eric couldn’t hide his curiosity. His reaction made the rest of them interested and everyone ended up drinking to find out what Younghoon had asked you. Hyunjae hooted but the alcohol in your system left you unphased by all their teasing.

After their excitement died down, the game continued until each person had a turn. It ended with Eric drunk crying thanks to Juyeon picking him as his most cherished friend. Seeing him cry made Sunwoo cry as well and Changmin was having a blast laughing at them both.

Not wanting Sunwoo to also turn into a crying drunk, Sangyeon took his cup away from him. He reminded him to keep his pace, prompting him to sulk. As soon as Sangyeon looked away, however, Sunwoo stole it back and downed the rest of his drink.

“Sunwoo, no,” Sangyeon groaned.

“Sunwoo yes!” Sunwoo exclaimed with glee.

The group then split off into subgroups to take a break from drinking. You, Younghoon, Juyeon, Changmin, Sunwoo, and Eric propped a phone up to make TikToks together. Meanwhile, the rest of the boys were just chilling on the couch, laughing as they watched you embarrass yourselves.

Subconsciously, you ended up with your arm wrapped around Sunwoo’s neck for most of the stupid 15 second video. You honestly weren’t sure what you were filming or why you were so close to your crush but you were having too much fun to care.

Chanhee, on the other hand, definitely noticed. He smirked as you rested your head on Sunwoo’s lap and Sunwoo’s face reddened. He nudged Jacob to point it out and made fun of how oblivious you two were.

Before reconvening, you stepped outside to get some fresh air. When you didn’t return after 10 minutes, Sunwoo was sent to retrieve you. You lit up seeing him join you on the veranda and beckoned for him to sit down next to you.

“It’s cold out here,” he said. “Let’s go back in.”

“So then you should hold my hand to keep me warm,” you giggled, holding out your hand.

“You’re drunk,” he commented as he raised an eyebrow.

“Drunk on you,” you winked, making him shyly look away. He cleared his throat to rid himself of the awkward tension between you.

“You know, you’re a flirty drunk,” he mused.

“Only to you,” you shrugged. “Haven’t you ever heard of drunk actions reflecting sober thoughts?”

Taken aback, he stared at you in silence. You pouted at his lack of response and got up to go back inside. Before you could open the door, he finally spoke up.

“I’ll think about it if your sober actions reflect your drunk thoughts,” he said.

“Really?” you beamed.

“As long as your drunk self is only flirty with me,” he teased.

“Oh please, have you ever seen me like this with the other guys?” you laughed. “I only like you. Just you.”

#the boyz #sunwoo #the boyz sunwoo #the boyz fluff #sunwoo fluff #the boyz sunwoo fluff #tbz fluff #tbz sunwoo #the boyz fic #the boyz scenarios #the boyz imagines #sunwoo fic #sunwoo scenarios #sunwoo imagines #tbz fic #tbz scenarios #tbz imagines

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ordinaryschmuck · 3 years

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What I Thought About The Mitchells vs. the Machines

The Falcon and the Winter Soldier is up there as one of the best installments of the MCU. Sure, the action and CGI sucks, and the season finale could use a bit more polish, but there is so much more of what it does right. It brings up an engaging discussion through Karli; the bromance between Bucky and Sam is incredible; Zemo's surprisingly a riot, and U.S. Agent is a character whose inner psychology is something I would like to study. Plus, the series really dives deep into the themes of race and the realistic hesitance that comes with making a black man Captain America. It's easily an 8/10 series that is worth an in-depth discussion.

But f**k that s**t, because I'm talking about The Mitchells vs. the Machines instead!

I know it might be questionable that reviewing a movie starring a predominantly white family of idiots saving the world instead of the TV series about the powerful journey of a black man taking the mantle of an American icon...but this movie is fun, alright? And yes, I'm going to spoil it to explain how. So if you still have a Netflix account, I highly suggest you check it out when you have time.

Because, random people on the internet who most likely won't read this, this Ordinary Schmuck who writes stories and reviews and draws comics and cartoons is going to explain why The Mitchells vs. the Machines might just be my favorite film of the year (steep contest, I know).

WHAT I LIKE

The Animation: Let's get this out of the way right here and right now: If a single person ever tells you that this movie has awful animation, or the worst animation they have ever seen, just go ahead and assume that person is an idiot. Because holy hot cheese sticks, does this movie look amazing!

Say what you want about most of Sony Pictures Animation's movies, but you have to admit that they nail making a CGI movie looking like it could be in 2D. And The Mitchells vs. The Machines is the peak of that style. Every character in nearly every frame looks like they could work well if the movie was hand-drawn, and I love it. I am addicted to seeing films that look 2D with a 3D makeover because there has to be ten times the amount of effort to get that look just right, what with modeling each character in unique ways to nail that style wherein a hand-drawn film, you could just, well, draw it. Not to mention that the cell-shading and certain hand-drawn elements also add to the aesthetic.

Plus, there is so much attention to details, such as most of Katie's character model being covered in sharpie, or how you can see a hint of Eric and Deborabot 3000's drawn on faces even though their black screens are showing something else. Seriously, you can listen to any criticism this movie gets, but don't you dare let someone get away with telling you that it looks awful. It doesn't. It's incredible, and I SO wish that I could have seen it all on the big screen.

The Comedy: On top of being incredibly well-animated, this movie is also incredibly funny. Like, really funny. I shouldn't be surprised since it's made by the same people responsible for Clone High and The Lego Movie, but yeah, I found myself laughing, chuckling, and snorting with nearly every joke in the film. Not every joke works, to be fair. But because of the fast-paced humor, the bad jokes are almost immediately followed up with better ones soon after. What's even better is that the writers know when to take a break with the humor and let some surprisingly compelling drama take over. And even then, when there are jokes during the dramatic moments, they add sincerity to the scene rather than take anything away. Looking at you, The Amazing World of Gumball...I mean, I love you, but sheesh, you need to learn to let a solemn moment play out.

Anyways, the comedy is hilarious. And while I won't spoil every joke, I will go over some bits that might have gotten to me the most.

Katie Mitchell: Let's just go ahead and add Katie Mitchell to the list of characters I highly relate to on a personal level (which is getting longer by the minute, hot damn). But jokes aside, I really like Katie. Her love and desire to make movies is something I identify with, and her goal to just go to a place where she feels like she belongs is easy to understand. Trust me, if I found out there was a group of weirdos who like the same things I do and enjoy the things I make, I’d be willing to pack everything I have and go to them as fast as possible too. Plus, I feel like a lot of us can relate to a character who lives in a household where people question if our career goal is something we can make a living with. I remember two years ago when I told my aunt that I wanted to make my own animated series, and her reaction is a little too similar to Rick's when Katie showed him her movie. They mean well, but sometimes it's for the best to have a cheerleader rather than a critic, especially if that person is family.

Now, Katie isn't perfect as her enthusiasm can get a little annoying at times, and her desire to leave can be conceived as a little too harsh as well. Still, she's pretty cool and serves her role as a protagonist pretty well...also, if the movie gets a sequel, let's hope she and Jude become cannon by then. GIVE KATIE A GIRLFRIEND, DAMN IT!

Aaron Mitchell: But as great as Katie is, it's this goober that earns the reward for my favorite character. At times it looks like Aaron is nothing more than a source of comedy, but he handles some dramatic moments really well. Partial credit goes to Michael Rianda for that one. Yeah, having a child actor would have made Aaron sound more like a kid, but no other voice could have fit him better than what Michael offers as he comes across as weird but never obnoxious.

Also, let's give the writer points for making a character who is clearly neurodivergent. Yet also refraining from having him be annoying or useless to the rest of the cast. No one ever really disrespects or belittles Aaron and instead chooses to work with him rather than against him. Especially Katie, who forms a solid sibling bond with Aaron as a fellow weirdo. It's genuinely sweet to see, and I loved every minute that the writers showed that just because someone acts on a different wavelength doesn't mean they shouldn't be treated any less because of it. You get that with Katie, a little bit, but I see it much more with Aaron, for some reason. And I love him every minute, so that’s a win.

(Plus, I may or may not have had a dinosaur phase when I was younger, so go ahead and add him to the list of relatable characters too.)

Rick Mitchell: This is probably a character you will either love or hate, and I can see both sides of that argument. Because on the one hand, I really like Rick Mitchell. His motivation is clear and understandable from the first set of home videos with him and Katie, both near the beginning and the end. Sure, he messes up a lot, but he is still a man who cares deeply about his daughter, as well as his entire family. He gets to the point where he would make great sacrifices for all of them, especially Katie. Plus, it's just pleasant seeing a cartoon dad who isn't a complete idiot or overprotective regarding his daughter's love life.

However, there are times when Rick comes across as an irresponsible d**k. When he does things like smash the family's phones without telling them or giving them screwdrivers for "presents," you're either gonna find that funny or you won't. Personally, I enjoy Rick and his antics, and I have no problem with irresponsible cartoon dads. As long as they don't cross the line toward Modern-Peter Griffin territory, I've got no problem with dads like Rick, who I believe has never even got that bad. Still, some people might think differently, and I can't blame them. Because after getting great cartoon dads like Greg Universe, I can understand if some people won't be interested in characters like Rick Mitchell.

Rick’s and Katie’s relationship: Alongside the top-notch animation and gut-busting comedy, Rick and Katie's relationship is what I consider the movie's most essential asset. These two are the main characters of the film, and as such, they develop through each other. And what's crazy is that they have very conflicting goals. Katie wants to escape and be with her people, where Rich just wants one last chance to have a good memory with Katie before she leaves. To do so, they first have to understand each other. Katie has to learn why Rick is so desperate to spend time with her, and Rick has to realize why Katie is, well, Katie. What I love most about it is that they try. These two don't spend the entire movie arguing and being at each other's throats until a sudden "Oh" moment in the end. No, there are actual moments when they genuinely try to understand one another and fix their relationship. It's nice to watch, and I especially love when it cuts to Linda and Aaron celebrating each time Katie and Rick get closer to each other. When recommending this movie, I'd say come for the animation and comedy, stay for the phenomenal relationship building.

Monchi: There are probably people already comparing Monchi to Mater or the Minions due to being a comic relief with nothing else to add...but gosh dangit, do I love this little gentleman. Maybe it's because I'm a dog person, but I find Monchie to be incredibly adorable, and I will fight anybody who disrespects this king of kings. Probably not physically, 'cause I'm a wuss, but I will verbally. So WATCH IT!

“HeLlO. i Am DoG.”: Have I mentioned that this movie is funny?

Rick’s videotapes of him and Katie: And right there. Rick's motivation for everything is set in stone through a solid case of visual storytelling.

PAL: The writers do almost everything they should have with this character. PAL might not have the most creative evil plan in the world, but to me, a villain can have a generic scheme as long as they're funny. Thankfully, PAL is funny. Not only is the idea of a smartphone ruling the planet hilarious in all the right ways, but Olivia Colman delivers such a great cynical energy that the character needs. The way PAL reacts to people explaining why humans are worth living is just the best, and her flopping around in a fit of rage successfully gets to me.

If I had to nitpick, I'd say that I wish PAL had more of a meaningful resolution to her character. The movie builds up that she makes a big deal about Mark dropping her, so it feels weird that neither of them really get any actual closure with each other. I'll get more into that in the dislikes, but I wish PAL had more of a fitting end than just dying after accidentally getting dropped in a glass of water. Other than that, she's a great comedic villain for a comedic movie.

PAL MAX Robots: These guys are the funniest characters in the movie. Half of it is the bits of visual humor, while the other half comes from the solid line delivery from Beck Bennett. Especially with Bennett's and Fred Armisen's Eric and Deborahbot 3000. These two are definitely the comedic highlights, as nearly every line they say is both hilarious and kind of adorable at times. And just like with Monchi, if you dare disrespect these characters, I will fight you. Because they are funny, and I will not hear otherwise.

PAL demonstrating what it’s like to be a phone: Have I mentioned that this movie is funny?

(Don't disrespect your phones, kids. Otherwise, they'll try to take over the world.)

PAL turning off the Wi-Fi: Again, have I mentioned this movie is funny?

“I love the dog. You love the dog. We all love the dog. But at some point, you’re gonna have to eat the dog.”: It's the sick jokes that get to me the most. Everyone booing Rick afterward is just the cherry on top.

Attack of the Furbies: Have I. Mentioned. That this movie. Is funny?

Seriously, if you haven't lost your s**t during every second of this scene, then you never had to deal with the demonic entity that is a Furby. In a way, I commend you. But you also don't get to appreciate the comedic genius of all of this. So I also weirdly feel bad for you.

The Mitchells deciding how to celebrate: You don't have a real family if you spend more time arguing about how to celebrate after saving the world than you do about how to save the world. I don't make the rules. I just abide by them.

The PAL MAX Primes: There's not much to say about them. The PAL MAX primes look and act pretty cool, are brilliantly animated, and raise the stakes while still being funny at times. I love 'em, but I don't have much to analyze with them either.

The origin of the moose: ...I'd make the "I didn't need my heart anyway" joke, but to be honest, it's still shattered after WandaVision.

(For real, though, this is a really effective scene that establishes why Rick makes a big deal with the moose and why he might feel hurt that Katie is willing to disregard it completely)

The Theme of Technology and Social Media: There's a theme about how family is important, and working hard on making things work is worth the effort. But that's a bit too generic for my tastes, so instead, I'm gonna talk about the equally important message this movie has about technology. Because as twisted as she is, PAL makes a great point. The technology we have today helps us in a variety of ways. It's especially useful with sites like YouTube, allowing content creators like Katie to reach out and share their voices. The only issue with technology is how people use it. Take note that the main reason why the Mitchells stand a chance against PAL is by using her own tech against her. Yes, over-relying on all the advancements around us can be dangerous, but if we're smart with how we use them, we can get by just fine. This movie isn't about purging all technology like most robot apocalypse stories are. Instead, it's about using it correctly and not being helpless sheep the second the Wi-Fi gets turned off. Which might just be the most unique thing this movie has going for it story-wise (more on that later).

The Climax: The Mitchells vs. The Machines has everything that I think I climax should have. First off, it utilizes callbacks and jokes that I wouldn't have thought twice on actually coming in handy for how the Mitchells win the day. But showing that Monchi causes the robots to malfunction turns a pretty "eh" joke into a solid case of foreshadowing.

Second, everyone does something. Some characters do more than others, sure, but the fact that every Mitchell, even Monchi, has a hand in beating PAL and her robots is a great sense of writing to me. It shows that you really can't cut anyone from the main cast, as they each add value to how they are essential to the plot. Even Aaron, who arguably does the least in the climax, still manages to be the catalyst to what is easily the best scene in the movie. Speaking of which...

Linda Kicks Ass: By the way, that's the actual name on the soundtrack. I'm not even kidding. Check it.

Anyways, for the most part, Linda seemed like a decent cartoon mom. She's insanely supportive but still has the common sense to keep her foot down, like agreeing with Rick to stay safe in the dino stop the second the apocalypse starts. A pretty fun character, for sure, but nothing too noteworthy...but the second she loses her s**t, Linda Mitchell frickin' SKYROCKETS to the best-cartoon-mom territory! Believe me when I tell you that seeing her slice and dice robots like a middle-aged female Samurai Jack is as awesome as it is hilarious. Does it make sense how she can suddenly do this? No, but at the same time, who gives a s**t about common sense?! Because this moment was epic, and I don't think I'll ever get tired of watching it over and over again.

Rick Learning How to Internet...Again: I consider this the funniest moment in the movie. Trust me, the Furby scene is a close, close, CLOSE, second...but I think this scene was funnier.

The final goodbye: This is what I'm talking about when I say humor adds to the dramatic moments. The Mitchells saying "I love you" in moose is pretty funny, but it's also a sweet moment given that this is absolutely how this family of weirdos would say goodbye to each other. And, yeah, I got a little misty-eyed during this scene. Especially when Rick saw Katie pocketing the moose. That s**t just cuts deep, man.

Alex Hirsch Voices a Character: ...That's it. I look up to Alex Hirsh as everything I want to be as a creator, and the fact that his name is on this movie fills me with joy. He's also a story consultant, so that can also explain why the movie turned out as great as it did...although there are some imperfections.

WHAT I DISLIKE

Katie-vision: What's Katie-vision? Well, throughout the movie, we get to see how Katie views the world as there are these hand-drawn elements that look like effects Katie would add if she was the one who made the movie. At times it can be subtle and cute, like when this little beating heart appears when Katie is talking with Jude and her other friends. It's when the movie is in your face with Katie-vision does it get annoying. Like showing how Katie is lying about being certain she can drive up a vertical ramp or signifying what is the Rick Mitchell Special. Even if you justify that this would be how Katie would edit the movie, it still doesn't change how obnoxious these moments can be. For instance, Monchi is justified to be essential for the plot, but that doesn't mean people won't hate him...I'll still fight them if they do, but that's beside the point.

I can totally accept this being a personal issue, as I'm sure some people enjoy it. As for me, I think Katie-vision works best when used subtly instead of crudely.

The Meme humor: It's something similar here. Because some people like meme humor...but I don't. To me, it just dates your story if you reference memes even once. Now, a show, movie, or book being partially dated is nothing new. We Bare Bears, a series that I love, reference memes, apps, and social media constantly. Yet, the show still has a timeless feel to it as it doesn't rely on those references too much. The Mitchells vs. the Machines doesn't rely on memes as much either. But even then, that doesn't make a difference about how annoying that gibbon monkey joke was. Seriously, what the f**k was that? And how is THAT the joke that gets used twice!?

Underutilizing Mark Bowman: It really bothers me how this guy barely does much. I mean, Mark Bowman is the main reason that anything happens in the movie. Because he mistreated PAL, Mark acts as the catalyst for events to come. So the fact that he could have been written out the second PAL takes control doesn't make sense to me. It's worse since I could see more potential with his character through his relationship with PAL. These two could be anti-Rick and Katie, as Mark and PAL show what happens when people disrespect their family. So separating them halfway through the story, and keeping them as such, is a huge mistake as it results in neither having a proper resolution to their arcs. Like I said, Rick and Katie develop through each other, and the same could have happened with Mark and PAL. It doesn't, making it something that I can't help but feel disappointed about.

The Poseys: These are characters I feel like work better with multiple appearances. Sure, they only have the one joke about being a perfect family, but at the same time, you can make a joke like that work. Look at Yvonne from Shaun of the Dead (Which might just be my favorite movie). That's a bit-character whose only purpose is showing how better she is than Shaun despite being in an eerily similar situation. But she works well as we constantly see how great she's doing in every instance we see her. The same could be done with the Poseys, as using a similar joke for one scene is underutilizing great potential to make an already good movie into a better one.

Plus, if you're gonna shoehorn in a romance between Aaron and Abby Posey, the least you could do is have more than one scene developing that...just saying.

Katie’s and Rick’s “Oh” Moments: I want to make it clear that I actually like these scenes. They're well written and effectively emotional. My problem is that they also happen two seconds apart. There's nothing wrong with having a character realize the error of their ways through a tear-jerking moment. It's a popular tactic for a reason. And given how both Rick and Katie are the protagonists, they both need their own "oh" moment. But you gotta space them out, as it makes things easier to see the emotional manipulation that you're clearly trying to pull on the audience. They work, but putting them back to back is an issue easily solved with at least two minutes of padding, not two seconds.

Katie’s Death Fakeout: This is one of the few instances that a joke doesn't work in the movie, made even more annoying with the fact that I could see the punchline a mile away and kept thinking, "Just get to it already." I'm pretty sure no one bought this, especially when Katie didn't look like she could have gotten killed in any way after throwing PAL. It's poorly handled and proof that even the funniest comedies have a stale joke every now and again.

Nothing New is really being done here: Keep in mind that in terms of style, this movie is incredibly innovative. And here's hoping future animated projects can take notes. But narratively speaking? Yeah, there's nothing really new that this movie is offering.

A story about how technology will be the death of us? Been there.

A story about a group of idiots miraculously saving the world? Done that.

A story about a father forcing their teenager on a road trip so they can spend quality time with each other, thus ruining the teen's chance of hanging out with their girlfriend? Believe it or not, I have seen A Goofy Movie...multiple times...both as a kid and as an adult.

Now, I have no issue with a movie's plot being a bit by-the-books, and in some cases, cliche. If done effectively, and if I still have a good time, I don't think there’s much to complain about. And there isn't with The Mitchells vs. The Machines. The problem lies with that I'll forget this movie along with the dozens of others like it in a couple years. Which might just be the biggest issue any film can have.

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Overall, I'd give The Mitchells vs. the Machines a well-earned A-. It has nitpicks, sure, but it's still a blast to watch. It might not be innovative or groundbreaking as movies like the last Sony Pictures Animation movie, Spider-Man: Into the Spiderverse. However, it is fun. And when the world is burning down around us, it's nice to have a fun movie that can distract us from all of it. So feel free to log in to Netflix the next time you're in the mood for a film that is great for the whole family. You won’t be disapointed

(And I will talk about The Falcon and the Winter Soldier pretty soon. I just needed to get this out of my system first.)

#the mitchells vs the machines #what i thought about

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ziracona · 3 years

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On a scale of one to ten (one is your screwed and ten is your gonna destroy them) how would you do in a fight against the dead by daylight killers. First rules though. 1. No prep for either side (suck it Danny) 2. No guns! Only weapons found around your house. 3. It's to the death one being leaves an that's it. 4. No help from friends or pets. 5. Whether legion is four teens or just one combined is up to you.

Uhh, this depends drastically on if you mean I one v one every one of them, or if I’m trying to fight a mob. Because if it’s me vs all of them, I’d just die. Like I’m sure I’d have decent odds of killing at least one, maybe two, and taking them with me. But I’m not John Wick—I cant 1v23 a bunch of armed people with some degree of experience with their weapons given no prep time, allies, or special weapons to save me. I like basically anyone else die sadly to the mob.

If this is one v one though, bc it’d be hard to get them all to work together anyway, and that’s the only way like anyone stands a chance?

Evan: I give me 50-50 odds. He’s way bigger than me and his weapon has a longer reach than any known, even the swords. I’m pretty good at thinking on my feet though. I feel like I have about a 50% chance of living or dying (I’m getting gravely injured regardless), but if I die, I am taking him with me, 80% chance. I was not always proficient at winning fights, but I was very good at not losing them. I’ve been known for taking a sword to get a kill hit at cons a lot. I give me a 6 at simultaneous KO or victory.

Philip I refuse to kill. Even if he was trying to kill me. I would defend myself though. Much bigger threat than Evan to me because I /don’t/ want to hurt him at all, which puts me at disadvantage and liable to freeze up or make mistakes even trying to deal nonlethal damage, he’s bigger and taller than me so height and weight advantage, and I don’t have long enough weapons to help me overcome that, plus on top of that, he’s a tactical fighter, which is what I am. And I think it’s harder to beat someone at your and their own game than just to beat another style most of the time. I mean skill is skill in any area, but I’d take a really strong tank in a fight rather than a planner any day of the week. I think he’s smart, probably smarter than me under pressure, definitely more experienced, and would kick my ass tactically if his heart was in it. If it wasn’t though, I’d have a chance to catch him off guard. I think Vs Philip I get one chance to use a tricky move, and if I mess that up, I die. If I do it right, maybe I can knock him out. It’s a one shot long shot at disadvantage. I give me a 4 if his heart isn’t in it, 3 if it is.

Hillbilly has a chainsaw and hammer, but those are both unwieldy and slow weapons. I’m faster than him, and I’m willing to get hurt. Also he’s killed a lot, but he’s not a /fighter/, which gives me an edge. Being tactical works really well vs someone whose edge is brute force. And he doesn’t have as massive a height or strength advantage. I also have tricks and home court advantage. So long as I don’t fuck up, I give myself an 8.5.

Sally isn’t that scary. I would try to incapacitate her. I feel I could easily take her as a ghost or a person. I have good ghost fighting supplies, salt, chalk, talismans, knowledge. I’m prepared for this. I think I’m coming in for this one at a solid 10.

Michael Myers would kill me. I mean, he’s got like X-Man semi invincibility, good skills, and I don’t really want to kill him. I’d try to talk him down while defending myself. I’d probably fail, but I’d try. Best case scenario I get him to hesitate, but also I’m being generous and giving me a 12% chance of that. Realistically, best case is I pull out a rug, trip him, and temporarily escape. A fight in an enclosed space, most likely outcome is I try and fail to talk him down, and I die. I feel very sure I cannot take him in a fight unless Ishtar herself blesses me with god like abilities. I’m probably dead. At least it would be quick. I give me a 1.6.

Lisa is tiny and not that strong. I could easily break her little glass bones. I’m taller and stronger than her, and she had worse weapons than me. I would try not to kill her though—just incapacitate. I feel I could do this while sustaining only minor wounds. Not to give you a look beyond weird ghost shit into my personal arsenal, but I definitely have supplies for that. I give me a 10.

Herman is tall and strong but he’s not a fighter. He’s a scientist. I’ve been shocked before, and I know what to expect from him. He’s getting blasted by a power washer at range until his weird face apparatus comes off and he’s down and out. I have more precise weapons than him and can easily neutralize his abilities and turn them against him. Also have rubber to wear. He’s big though, so for that alone I give me a 9.6 in case I mess up.

Anna would destroy me. She’s good at ranged weapons, I am not. I would try to look as young as possible and convince her in my very bad but slowly improving baby Russian to please have mercy on me. We’re back to the Michael scenario where I know I have no chance of normal survival and would have to try and talk my way out. My odds are higher here though. I’m pretty cute and I know a little Russian. I give me a 4. But the 4 is not me winning it’s my odds of surviving through begging for my life. She’d kick my ass in a fight.

Bubba isn’t that good at fighting and has a big and cumbersome, if scary, weapon. I feel I could easily use terrain, weapons, and strategy to my advantage and kill him, unless I’m in a place with no terrain or furniture. In which case it’d be a lot worse for me. If I was not, though, I give me a solid 9.6 at owning that fight. I have a good throwing arm and plenty of stuff that can blind a foe, and a lot of weapons. A lot of weapons.

Freddy. Okay this is hard. I know how to kill him about as well as anyone does? So comparatively my odds are good? But. Also he’s a demon and a bit of a heavyweight in this arena. Sadly. If we’re in-realm rules, I have a /very/ good chance of kicking his ass. Give me a 10 to win, although I might not survive either. Probably would. If he’s like /film/ loadout? I give me more like a 6. It would be a battle, but I have a lot of knowledge and determination. Also I’m taller than him and bigger and could break his arms.

Amanda. Easy fam, that’s a 10. No, 11. Injured recently drugged Eric Matthews almost kicked her ass while toting a smashed foot. She’s like, 5 foot 1 and 30 pounds underweight. It’s not gonna be hard at all.

Kenneth I give me a 10 too. Easy fam. Even if he gets realm rules where he’s not tripping balls on his own drugs, I know what he’s got. I’ve got better weapons, I’m young, fast, strong, and smarter. I hold my breath, and run him through. Quick jabs from a dagger, take him down. Use my agility. He was never a fighter anyway—he used drugs to prey on people who couldn’t fight back. You know what? Give me another 11.

Rin? Uhhhh, I know as much as about anyone how to deal with her, but my odds of succeeding /before/ she killed me are...not great. And if we fought, there’s no way I have the ability to kill an Onryo. I put using my supernatural beings knowledge to hold her back long enough to stop her in the realm of improbably, but potentially doable, and give myself a 2.7. This is not to kill her though. Just to make her stop killing me. I have no way near the power or spiritual knowledge needed to kill something like that.

Legion I’d not really want to kill. They’re all teenagers or baby 20 year olds. I don’t want to wail fatally on kids, even ones who suck. That said, I think I could take them in a fight. If it was four and I got to fight them one at a time, easiest, four in one body back to back is medium, four at once is hard. First two options I could potentially fight to not kill. Third option only choice would be do everything I can to even /maybe/ have a shot. I have less experience stabbing people, but I’m more ready to take pain, and more motivated, so I give myself a 6, 5, and 3.5 to those scenarios respectively. I would be badly wounded regardless.

Adiris I don’t have healthy enough fear of dying of bubonic plague, and that would give me an edge. I think I have a good sword and shield combo to deal with the mace. She’s tall, but I have her beat in strength and stamina as well as agility bc she’s emaciated and dying. I would not want to kill her though. Might try to talk to her in my fucked Akkadian. Try to incapacitate if that failed. I give me a solid 8 if she’s treating this like a 9 to 5 or distracted by me, give me a 4 if she wants me /dead/. Either way, I probably have to run to the CDC and pray I survive scarred after.

Danny is just some sneaky dick with a knife. He doesn’t even know how to get stabbed. Slightly harder than a few other knife fighters bc he wears so much damn leather, but the eyes and mouth of that mask are vulnerable, and I feel sure I can drive a knife into them before sustaining any kind of fatal wound. He doesn’t have much edge on me in any area, I have him well beat in conviction, and I’m smarter than him by quite a bit. I give me a 9.

Uhhh, Demo isn’t that hard, and I love fire. Probably gonna get a little hurt, but I’m not worried about this one. Easy 10.

Kazan is interesting. He has me beat in size and strength, but his weapon is unwieldy and slow. I have quick weapons and am more agile, and I’m ready to fight dirty to save myself. 7 probably. It’s a luck thing. I have the edge, but if he really lands a hit on me even once, it’s all over. So. Not the /best/ of odds. Maybe a 6.8, actually.

You said no guns but I assume Caleb still gets his. He only gets one shot before being vulnerable though, and he’s much older than me. I’m faster and more agile, and stronger. He’s got really good endurance too though so I don’t have the edge there. It’s gonna be kind of a game of chicken to see who blinks. If he misses his one shot, I win. If he gets the shot, he wins. However, I think my odds of baiting the shot and getting my opening are decent. I give me a solid 7 here.

I still don’t even know which Pyramid Head he /is/. Why does any version exist here and want to kill me, can he smell, can I use that, can electricity hurt him, can he use my guilt against me? There are so many unknowns for both of us, I give us both a 5.

Talbot is an easy 10 unless he gets the jump on you. But you said no planning, so no surprise attacks, so I give me a 10. His body is literally falling apart, and all the blight serum in the world can’t save him from me forever. I have a bunch of tools at my disposal, and he’s fast, but he’s not accurate. Edge, me.

Victor and Charlotte. Interesting one here. Don’t want to kill them either, but I would to save myself I guess if I couldn’t stop them. Not scared of Victor. I bite too, and I go for the throat. Charlotte is more of a problem. Finally it’s a tall killer with a short range weapon though, so edge: me, in weapons. I think I have decent odds of beating them, but I would not get out unscathed. Give me a 7.5.

Jo-Woon. Depends wildly. He throws tiny knives that do too little damage. If he takes me seriously as a threat and tries to go for the throat before I can get close, edge: him, and I’m in for a really rough fight even with a shield. If he wants to fuck around with me though, I’ll win. Because I am prepared to suffer immensely to get a kill shot. If he was smart, I’d give the fight a 6, but I feel extremely confident he’d be cocky, so I give me a 9 to survive, a 10 to at worst get a simultaneous K.O.

#ask #anonymous #dead by daylight

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kilyra · 4 years

Text

Anniversary Headcanon

Well, because Tumbler is now deciding not to post a gif OR a read-more line when I respond to an ask, I’ll do it this way instead...again... I mean do I report this? No one responded to my last support request (sigh). Anyhow, so Anon asked:

Could you write a head canon for Matt Murdock about what it would be like to celebrate an anniversary with him? (You can include others too if you would like😊)

Oh, fun! Thanks for the request! For this one, I'm running with Matt Murdock, Eric Northman, Helena Bertinelli, Cable (which cracks me up and I hope gets some love haha), Lucifer, and Benjamin Poindexter (Dex).

(If you want to be on the headcanon taglist, lemmie know)

Matt Murdock: When you and Matt started dating, he was trying to put the devil behind him. He wanted to focus on an actual life with you and his firm, Nelson, Murdock, and Page. But his past caught up with him and some nights he tells you he's working on a case, he's really trying to keep the streets safe. One such night is on your anniversary. You had made plans together at one of your favourite restaurants in town and it was there you watched the minutes turn to an hour. But instead of getting annoyed, you were worried, especially when he didn't return your texts. After you stopped by to check on him and no one was at his apartment, your worry exploded and you started texting both Karen and Foggy. When their stories didn't match for when he left the office, you didn't know what to think; you were a swirl of emotion – anger being one. The next day, however...everything changed. Matt invited you over to apologize and let you in on the side of his life he wanted to protect you from. But if you were going to be with him, truly be with him, you needed all the facts. It wasn't easy; you took a few days to think everything over, but when you decided you were all in, that you loved him and would stand by him, he was beyond relieved. Immediately, he took you out for a make-up dinner and spoiled you with flowers and a lovely gift, giving you a wonderful night to celebrate.

Eric Northman: For your anniversary, Eric goes all out. Limo, classy restaurant, extravagant gifts, you name it. On one level you’re surprised because he's not normally so showy, but you also understand he has an image to uphold. Not to say it's entirely for appearances however, as he does believe you deserve the only the best. But you’re happy just to be with him, you don't need anything much less such grandiose gestures. Even so, you happily go along with it all – being with him means you've got to help uphold the same image. As uncomfortable as it makes you sometimes, it's worth it to have him in your life.

Helena Bertinelli: Not having many people she deeply cares for in her life, Helena desperately wants to show how much you mean to her. Along with a beautiful locket, she books dinner at a fancy restaurant in town. But it's...too fancy. As you look through the menu, you realize neither of you knows half of what's listed and honestly you aren't sure if it's in a different language or just stuff you've never heard of before. Things get quiet and awkward until you're about halfway through your first drink. Finally, you crack a joke about trying to read the menu, and it's the first time a flicker of relief breaks through the muted fear that was plastered on Helena's face. Letting out a lengthy sigh, she finally smiles, glad it wasn't just her. When you tell her that you deeply appreciate the gesture, but suggest going to the dive pub by your place instead, she quickly agrees as a soft look of adoration drifts across her features. She fell in love with you all over again.

Cable: You can’t help but follow when Cable storms past you with a bouquet of brightly coloured flowers. As he reaches the kitchen, he roughly tosses them in the garbage bin as he grumbles about Wade. Apparently, Deadpool marked on the calendar that a year ago that day, they had taken down a particularly vicious group of criminals and decided to celebrate. Cable carried on, complaining about Wade’s antics and how he wasn’t even sure why he stuck around to keep dealing with such ridiculousness. When he finally slowed down, you cleared your throat, catching his attention. You can’t keep the amusement from your tone when you remind him that it’s also your anniversary – when he returned from that mission, was when things heated past just being friends and teammates. His face froze, expression unreadable as he stared at you. Grunting, he finally turned around to the garbage, pulling the flowers off the top and gruffly tried to fix the smashed arrangement. Awkwardly, he thrust them at you as he mumbled happy anniversary…

Lucifer: Your first anniversary with the Devil himself was rather surprising. You were expecting something big, maybe at Lux or some posh establishment he had connections with. It's not your style, but you were braced for it because that was most definitely his style. But instead, he invites you to come up to his suite and begins serenading you on the piano as soon as the elevator door open. The scent of amazing food wafts over to you as you make your way in and you see the table dressed up as elegantly as any high-end restaurant with a spread of your favourite food. He is already smiling at the bewildered look that settles on your features as he makes his way over to you with his gift in hand. Because, of course, he can't wait to give you your present, which turns out to be shockingly thoughtful. When you finally ask him what's going on, he admits that while he enjoys being out and making a scene, he enjoys you...just you...even more. Nothing makes him happier than having time with you all to himself.

Benjamin Poindexter: Your first anniversary is spent at your favourite restaurant. Nothing fancy or extravagant, but definitely centred around you. You sit at your usual table – the one that lets you stare out at the street to admire both the beautiful architecture of this neighbourhood and the interesting people that pass. And of course, you have your favourite meal. It's not terribly often that you go to this restaurant, but it is always a treat when you do. The staff is friendly, the view is great, and the food...oh man...the food is so amazing that whenever you have friends come from out of town you insist they come here. So it makes sense that this is where you are for your anniversary because Dex is just happy you're happy. Of course…you don't realize he's there. Sitting a few tables away, he keeps his nose buried in his phone as though he's taking care of business while absently eating his meal. But really, he's quietly appreciating your joy from afar. He is quite pleased that you chose to eat here of all nights – it’s a perfectly fitting place to celebrate the day he first realized how important you were to him.

Taglist: @foreverfaeries @flower-two @getlostinyourparadise @selfishkiddo @angelicshinigami @stylesxstark @natsukitakama @bisexual-space-slut @soul-of-a-traveller

#kily headcanons #matt murdock x reader #lucifer x reader #eric northman x reader #cable x reader #helena bertinelli x reader #benjamin poindexter x reader

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brokasteltranslations · 4 years

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Fate/Requiem: Chapter 6

It had not been enough.

Nzambi had been wounded by my blow, but it had failed to destroy her Saint Graph. Beneath the soft surface of her body lurked an incredibly hard layer. My Freischütz had been allowed to pass through, but my axe had not.

She looked down at the glaring gash I had opened in her chest in irritation, then reached for one of the many hands dangling from her body. Then she tipped her head back, with her mouth agape like an anglerfish, slipped it between her teeth, and bit down hard. With a crunching of bones, the Command Seals faded from it – and from many of the other hands too, which crumbled into dust.

She's... eating them? Eating Command Seals?

With my foe preoccupied, I took advantage of the lull in the fighting to retrieve Koharu from the ground and retreat with her clutched in my arms. I made it back to where Pran was waiting, and turned to find that my foe's wound had closed entirely. Even her cape was as good as new, with no tear to be seen.

“Your nature eludes me, spellcaster. Though I understand those branches you wield, at least. The grasping claws of poor, vengeful souls. Rather fitting for you, I think.”

The desiccated hands dropped to the ground, one after the other.

“Still, I swore an oath to take care of any who fled through these gates, and take care of them I shall. That branch of yours is certainly bothersome... but I doubt it can save you from these.”

She gave no signal, but still the two war elephants advanced. They smashed two of the pillars standing in the hall with their foreheads, and then curled their mighty trunks around their toppled remains.

“Surely it can't...? Wah! It can!”

The pillar one of the beasts flung at me must have weighed several tons. With Koharu slumped on my shoulder, we just barely dodged out of the way. I had no idea that an elephant could be so dexterous.

The other took the signal to charge, wielding its pillar like a battering ram.

“I have no more interest in you. Perhaps I shall seek out that boy next. His dear little head would look wonderful dangling from my neck.” Nzambi stepped up to squat on one of the war elephants' trunks, and it obediently scooped her up onto its back. “Hm. Or perhaps he has gone and hidden himself away somewhere.”

We turned to run from the two advancing elephants, only to find our way blocked by more ranks of the walking dead.

“I'm... I'll be fine, Erice. Get the boy... away from here...” Koharu had come to. She stumbled a little at first without my support, but soon enough raised her sword once more and set to cutting down the advancing zombies. It was clear that she was on her last legs, but I had no choice but to hope that that would suffice.

With a magus' tactical thinking, she had already attempted to heal herself. Seven-tenths of her Command Seal had vanished from the back of her hand, but it would take more than that to repair the damage from her collision with the wall, and her right arm was in no better a state. Whatever that blade was that Nzambi had stabbed her with, it had been no ordinary weapon.

It must have damaged her magic circuit somehow. Oh, Koharu...

----

The war elephant's thunderous footsteps shook the floor as it lumbered toward us. Nzambi's voice echoed around the corridor from the beast's back.

“You should know very well, that outside of this citadel sprawls a kingdom of the dead.”

A 'kingdom of the dead'? I had no idea what she was talking about, but I could sense nothing. Perhaps if I were a proper Master, I would have more insight.

“All those who have tasted death become my children, and how very dear they are to me.”

“All those who have tasted death”? It took me a moment to comprehend the true scale of what she had said. Was she simply spouting nonsense in an attempt to break our spirits? Or could it be possible that the Servants here had been so easily overwhelmed, rendered incapable of marshalling their full power, because of Nzambi's sorcery?

“Although some are terribly forgetful. All I do is recall the memories of death that they have forgotten. Memento Mori, as they say. Come, Galahad. No more hiding behind a little girl's skirts. Face me like a knight, and let us see how you died.”

We were not so green as to fall for cheap taunts. I flashed Koharu a glance, and she responded wordlessly: she was not to undo her Possession if she could at all help it.

Suddenly the internal broadcast system flared to life, projecting Ms. Fujimura's voice around the arena.

“Code Crimson has been invoked. The barrier around the Colosseum interior has been deactivated. All survivors, proceed to the central battlefield.”

The barrier she referred to was the forcefield erected between the battlefield and the seats to ensure that no harm came to spectators during a match. Deactivating it was highly unusual.

The announcement played once more. I doubted that anyone else listening it would know the true significance of Code Crimson. I don't know about the rest of the announcement, but that bit must be a message for me. I touched a finger to my forelock, but my call went unheeded.

Where are you, Ms. Fujimura?

At that moment, my phone ringtone blared. Karin.

“Hey, Eri! You alive? Still in the stadium? Listen, I'm super sorry, but the kid gave me the slip! I'll seppuku myself later, okay?”

“Guess you get to live. Pran's with me.”

“He's what?!”

“Are you barricaded up over there?”

“Damn straight! We're holed up in an empty stable just next to the arena! Got quite a few other survivors with us, too, and some of the fighters are helping us hold out, but they're knockin' on our door! I'm not sure how much lo- Crap! Momi, left!”

I heard a muted crash through the speaker, like something colliding with an iron cage, followed by the trumpeting of an elephant. Hannibal's final remaining war elephant, most likely – probably alongside the man himself.

“That announcement just now was Caren's voice, right? Is everything okay? Can we trust it?”

“It's real. Can you get to the central arena from where you are?”

“I think so. The shutters are down, but we can blast our way through. Apparently we can use Noble Phantasms now.”

“Then do it! Before it's too late! I'll-” A muffled boom echoed through the speaker, followed by static, and then the line went dead.

I turned to Koharu. “Let's go. We need to get to the arena.”

“But my teammates might still... I mean, there could still be competitors there, and you've seen what they can do. It's as dangerous in there as it is out here. And what was that Code Crimson they mentioned?”

“It means you're going to get your wish.”

She gave a little noise of surprise. Apparently she had understood what I was getting at.

“I see. In that case, let me lead the way. I'm more familiar with the Colosseum.”

----

“A little late for directions, don't you think? How could heading further inside help you, anyway? Are you hoping to checkmate yourselves?”

Still squatted atop the elephant, Nzambi rested her head on a bored hand.

“A trap, of course. Not appealing at all. I would prefer to leave it for my children.”

Another charge, and, a few seconds later, another crash. The war elephants' advance upon us had reduced the artistic interior of the hall to rubble. Zombies seemed to spring out of every nook and cranny, reaching for us with grasping hands.

I followed Koharu's lead, desperately trying to keep myself and Pran from harm.

Midway through our flight, Koharu stopped and turned. It was her turn to shout a taunt at our pursuers.

“Come, proud allies of Hannibal! Have you mistaken that woman for your master? I see how you strain under her yoke. Allow me to end your suffering!”

Nzambi's eyebrows knotted in irritation. “Such ignorance. These kind souls were stolen from their forest homes to watch their comrades die on the battlefield. Do you truly think you can appeal to their better nature?”

She stood up on the elephant's back and levelled her sword at Koharu.

“Enough of this. I shall crush you and be done with it.”

With a bellowing bray, the war elephants charged straight for Koharu. The knight stood waiting, sword clutched firmly in hand.

I hardly dared to look as the two collided with a violent crash... and then there was silence. The first thing Pran and I could make out was the beams of sunlight streaming into the corridor through the rising cloud of dust. The impact of their clash had torn a hole in the wall, opening the corridor to the open stadium in the middle of the Colosseum. The enormous battlefield lay before us once more.

Nzambi had leapt from her perch a second before the collision, and alighted before us without a care in the world for the destruction around her. The bellowing of the elephants was distant now, and I spared a moment's pity for the poor zombies who must have been blown far and wide by the blast.

“So this is the Holy Lance, hm? A child this young?” Nzambi peered at the boy as she spoke.

“You'll find out soon enough.”

I ushered him behind me. At that moment, Koharu appeared over her shoulder, streaking toward her like a bolt of azure lightning.

Nzambi deflected the strike with a nonchalant swing of her blade, sending the tall knight flying. It was almost as though she'd seen it coming.

Dammit! Koharu!

She struck hard against the interior wall once more, but this time slid to the ground as two separate figures: the girl Koharu, and the knight Galahad. Her Possession had come undone; likely, it had been unable to bear the damage she had accrued. From the look of him, Galahad had hardly escaped unscathed either.

“Perhaps a Heroic Spirit from the future, drawn here from the Throne?” Nzambi closed on Pran. “No, I cannot imagine so. Well, whatever the case, any Heroic Spirit must know death. My knife will tell me true. What do you say, little golden child? Shall we spill your guts and find out how you died?”

What do I do? I've got to buy time somehow... but how?

If Nzambi's gaze turned to Galahad and she elected to turn him into one of her zombies, I doubted we could escape with our lives. My best bet was to draw her attention to Pran, but...

Before the notion could fully occur to me, I was running. I bound my 'branches' together into a blade - a shortsword, simple, fast and accurate – and planted myself firmly in front of her. I was well aware that my weapon could harm the boy I wanted to protect just as easily as my enemy: a quite literal double-edged sword.

“I won't let you near him!”

“Do you mind? I thought I had said I was done with you.”

Nzambi's blade – her enormous knife – and my branch-sword clashed, and locked together.

“He's...” I swung my blade upward, placing my trust in the techniques he had once taught me. “Dammit, he's my Servant!”

My foe easily batted the blow aside. “I think not. You are nothing but a spellcaster, and I know your kind well. Magi, spellcasters - miserable creatures all, caring only for their own gain, and nothing for the lives of others. It is the value you see in this child that makes you so desperate, nothing more.”

I knew that better than anyone, but... but!

“He's my Servant! I don't care if he's useless!”

“Hahaha! So tell me, would you make him a toy to satisfy your affections? How cruel, how cruel! How do you expect someone useless to take pride in themselves?”

“Then let me be alone! It's all I need!”

At this close a range, it was impossible to muster as much force as my axe could. The crushing weight behind Nzambi's swing forced me back, and my blade began to come undone. The recoil sent one of its constituent branches lashing backwards, coming close to striking Pran. I immediately retracted my blade. My own defence was nothing compared to what would happen if that touched him.

“...Nngh...”

Seeing their prey snatched away before their very eyes, the evil spirits' anger swelled. Gore sprayed as I began to lose control over the defiled blood they inhabited. Black blood oozed from the countless wounds their wrath opened across my body, even from behind my eyeballs, and dripped to the floor, defiling this sacred battleground.

“Well now. It seems that if you do not satisfy that loathsome branch's hunger for spirits, it will devour you instead.”

“So... what?” None knew that better than I. My Erlkönig and my Freischütz, of which only a few bullets now remained, were not tools that would blithely heed my command. They were evil spirits in their purest form, and they were always watching for an opportunity to turn against their master. But even so...

“You'll never touch him!”

“Pitiful. I can hardly watch. Even the child has better sense than you.”

Nzambi leapt forward to plant both hands on the ground, then, with her body still in midair, uncoiled her legs like a spring to land a devastating kick in my abdomen. If there had been any air left in my lungs, I would have screamed. The blow sent me flying, bouncing across the dirt floor of the arena. One of my ribs cracked from the impact, and I fought for breath.

As I lay sprawled, I suddenly felt the entire arena shake violently. The roar of an explosion rolled from the other side of the Colosseum. I heard clamouring voices, collapsing walls, sustained gunfire, shouts and screams. Somewhere in the middle of it all, I thought I heard Karin's voice.

Through the earth, I heard the confused hubbub of battle.

My eyeballs were blocked with clotted blood, and sheer agony had rolled them back into my head. I forced them into place with my fingers and tried to struggle to my feet.

Before me stood Nzambi, with her knife to Pran's chest.

I have to stop her.

My fingers clawed furrows through the dirt as I dragged myself onward, seeking him.

Praying that there existed something in this world so pure that it must not, could not be tarnished. Praying that there existed something in this world even the omnipotence of the Grail could not replace.

If not, how was I ever to move forward?

“You don't seem to fear me, boy. Why is that?”

The child gazed silently back up into Nzambi's crimson eyes.

“You aren't a snake.”

He gently set his fingertip to the point of her blade.

“So I'm not scared of you.”

“...What?” Nzambi warily made to withdraw her knife, only to find it stuck fast. “Is that... It's cracking?! What have you...?!”

A white-hot glow spread across the outlandish blade from the child's finger. It flared fiercely for a moment, and then burst apart.

----

After a moment, the heat and light receded enough that I could make out Pran standing alone. He sank to his knees, then collapsed to the ground, as though all strength had been drained from his tiny body.

Where's Nzambi? I can't see her!

The dusk-skinned woman had vanished without a trace. I reached out with my senses, seeking. Perhaps she had temporarily relinquished her physical body and returned to her transparent spiritual form? That would present its own dangers, but in any case, it seemed that for now we had one fewer threat to worry about.

Galahad approached the boy, taking care to keep his own two swords as far away from him as possible. Koharu, now a young girl once more, staggered to where I lay huddled on the ground. She winced with pain, but bore it bravely.

“Erice! She's... She's here! The Stigmata!”

“Finally... She's here... with Lucius...”

As though a dam had burst, a wave of berserk Servants and resurrected corpses rolled across the open arena.

The pair entered from the upper seats far above, where they had a commanding view of the sorry state of the arena. He took a moment to survey the scene below him and then quite literally flew down the gentle curve of the outer wall. She lay clutched in his arms, clad in her ever-present black sailor uniform.

The great cape that fluttered from his shoulders was dyed in his colour: the purest, deepest red.

Code Crimson, it was called. The scarlet summons.

Its red was not the red of danger. It was the red of Rome. Of the proud battle standard of the Roman army, and their patron, Mars.

The Grail had build a thousand-year empire, and the cries of the populus called its defenders to their posts.

Now they had come, those defenders of the peace, and they would do their duty.

Manazuru Chitose, the Stigmata – and at her side, Lucius Longinus, the Holy Lance. They had answered the call.

“I'm sorry I'm late. The train was delayed, but we came as fast as we could.”

Chitose did not sound particularly apologetic as she alighted gently on the floor of the arena.

“I seem to recall doing most of the legwork.” Lucius responded, a little peeved.

“Well, of course you did. I worked up a fine sweat dealing with that mess in Shinjuku. Even the best of us need a break once in a while.”

Chitose's Command Seals shone dully even as the pair bickered. These were no cheap imitations; they were true Command Seals, of the old world. These four arcane symbols were what had earned her the moniker of the Stigmata.

Recognising what that light signified, the Servants around her flocked to her. Perhaps, with their minds lost, they behaved no differently to startled beasts... or perhaps even in their berserk state, their warrior's instincts acknowledged her as a worthy foe.

She spotted the pocket of resistance among her enemies – a rag-tag group of surviving citizens and Servants who still maintained their sanity – and called out to them in a voice that carried easily across the battlefield.

“Make your way around to me! Lucius and I will deal with them!”

----

Those words presaged a massacre.

In one hand, Lucius readied a greatshield summoned from nothingness; in the other, he gripped his crimson spear. Roman soldier and Master stood back-to-back, cutting down their enemies faster than I could follow. “Overwhelming” barely seemed fit to describe the sheer power that accompanied each flourish of the Holy Lance.

This was the might of the champion who had emerged from the Holy Grail War. Lucius Longinus, the centurion who met his fate atop the hill of Calvary. The Lancer of the Seven Heroic Spirits. The strongest Servant, who had stood victorious atop the melee of the Holy Grail War and delivered its prize to Chitose's hands.

No matter how illustrious the heroes whose souls they reflected, the Heroic Spirits of Mosaic City were but pale shades before his majesty.

We retreated warily, careful of our surroundings. Even as we distanced ourselves from the unfolding bloodbath, Koharu's gaze remained locked on the battle.

“Did you see that... Erice? That... That strike? What are those... on her hands and feet? Are those... Black Keys?”

It was little surprise that she was so fascinated. Chitose took neither the Black Keys nor Gandr for her weapon. This display of violence, so unbefitting of a magus, was something particular to her.

“They're called Sacri Clavi. They're replicas of the nails used to pin the Messiah to the cross...”

Or more simply Holy Nails: a conceptual weapon imbued with the concept of “binding”, born from the Command Seals adorning each of her four limbs. With every strike, square iron nails briefly manifested around her limbs to skewer her enemies, wicked and indomitable. An empty-handed pile bunker.

“Or so Lucius told me once. You wouldn't believe how hopeless she is at teaching anyone anything useful.”

“Holy... Nails?” Koharu shivered. She seemed nothing short of awestruck by this living legend.

But I doubt she herself is so pleased.

I knew Chitose would regard this battle as her greatest shame. She had been forced to acknowledge the breakdown of the city's peace and personally take up arms against its people and their Servants. It was grim work, and she would not have undertaken it gladly.

She had tried to safeguard against this possibility by distancing me from my work, but it hadn't been sufficient. An outside enemy had appeared in Mosaic City, and its arrival had been a long time in coming.

----

Finally the wave of chaos began to recede, and I managed to regroup with Karin. Usually she would greet me with a cheerful grin or by chiding me for my carelessness when I returned from a job, but this time she could only blanch at the sight of our injuries. If Pran had been in the same sorry state, she might have fainted on the spot. However, fortunately there wasn't so much as a scratch on him, and the sight of him – seemingly in an entirely different world to his surroundings, as usual - seemed to relieve her immensely.

That wasn't enough to excuse him from a furious telling-off, though. He looked a little shell-shocked as he stood next to a wounded and bloody Kouyou.

The wings of the battlefield had been transformed into a temporary evacuation point, and the air was heavy with exhaustion and that uneasy relaxation that takes the place of terror once it recedes. People huddled together in anxious groups, rejoicing to find each other safe and well, finally contacting family and friends. A group of pigs raced past me, squealing shrilly. Pigs? What on earth are pigs doing here?

Of the competitors I had seen earlier onscreen, I spotted at least Minamoto Yoshitsune and her Master having escaped infection. The young samurai stood a little way from the rest in her own corner of the battlefield, attracting uneasy gazes as she stacked her collection of severed heads into an enormous pile.

Hannibal was the last Servant to fall before Chitose and Longinus' unstoppable onslaught. Koharu watched his end herself, unable to do anything for him but witness his final moments. She fell to her knees in the spot where the Holy Lance had pierced him through, and heaved a heavy sigh.

Yoshitsune and her master stood at her shoulder, and after a moment offered some words of consolation. I had no words I could offer her; only the regrets welling up within me, as they always did.

Chitose had contacted the Caren Series in the other wards and was in the process of confirming the situation there. Koharu occasionally glanced at her from afar as she revealed that she had come to a decision.

“We can't allow this Nzambi to wander Mosaic City as she wishes. I will contact the rest of House Riedenflaus and set to work pursuing her. She certainly left no small amount of promising evidence behind. We should start by identifying her Master...”

Karin did a double-take. “You're going to what? Now?! Let yourself rest for five minutes, sheesh!”

“Hm? Very well. It has been so long since my last fox-hunt.” The latter dubious encouragement came from none other than her own partner, Galahad. What was he trying to accomplish with that?

I tried to talk her down as logically as I could. “Koharu, think for a minute. If you push yourself in your current state, you might never use magecraft again.”

“Then I will no longer be a magus.”

I struggled for a response in the face of such foolhardiness... but fortunately Lucius had arrived, and he understood her on a deeper level than I.

“I know you regret not being able to save your comrades, Riedenflaus, but it would mean nothing to chase this Servant alone. Now that we know her true name and capabilities, we can put together a proper plan.”

“The Roman's right, Koharu. Right now, you and Erice need to be focusing on not being half-dead. You yourself said this Nzambi wasn't even hurt, for goodness sake!” Karin's concern was plain to see.

Koharu sank into thought. I knew full well that she had thrown everything she had into facing Nzambi, and yet it had not been enough. In the end, it had been the woman she respected more than anyone else who had needed to clean up her mess. She doubtless felt that she had shamed herself and her dead comrades both.

It was her Servant's interjection that snapped her out of her fugue. “Let the little lady do what she wants. You don't have any right to be lecturing her about anything, Longinus.”

“Sir Galahad, I see. Just what are you defending? Look around you. Do you feel nothing, to look at this awful scene?”

“That will do, both of you.” Just as Koharu's fury with Galahad's arrogance was about to hit boiling point, Chitose returned from her inspection of the evacuees. “The situation is still in flux. You should be using your brains to plan, not to bicker. What’s more, I still can't seen to get in contact with Caren. Caren Fujimura of Akihabara, I mean.”

“I wonder what's wrong... The city's normal functions are currently paralysed, aren't they? Could that be because of the failure of an administrative AI?” Koharu ventured hesitantly.

She shrugged. “Not possible. She's alive, that much I know.”

Ever since the breakout of the infection, the entire Akihabara ward had been thrown into a state of chaos. An emergency team should have long since been dispatched to the Colosseum, but there was no sign of them. Interpersonal communications were still down, too; the best we could manage was expending Command Seals to communicate via magecraft.

None of it pointed anywhere good.

“We know she's got to be somewhere in the Colosseum. I'll go look for her.”

“I'll go with y-”

“You stay here, Karin. You and Kouyou need to take care of the wounded.”

I flashed her a smile to try and salve her worries, and suppress my own fears. Chitose wordlessly gave the go-ahead.

“Wait.” The child called out, but not to me. Rather, to someone I never would have expected.

“Chitose. I need to tell you something.”

“Tell me what?”

“A dog called to me. A black one.”

He's still going on about that dog? I was sure that Chitose would laugh it off... but instead she froze. Her confident smile had never faltered, even while surrounded by enemies a few minutes before, but now it was nowhere to be seen.

“It said to tell you something.”

“A black dog... And what did this dog say?”

“That death had come for you.”

#Fate/Requiem #fate #translation #light novel

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where-theres-smoak-2 · 3 years

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Future Episode Titles

So I have just discovered that the episode titles for 5x10 through 5x13 have been released so I figured and see if there are any clues as to what might happen in those episodes. All of these titles are in reference to various movies so be warned there are spoilers for all the movies the titles have. So if you see the name of movie and don’t want to be spoiled stop reading.

With 5x10 we’ve got a bit of an advantage as we also have the synopsis for that one. But the title is ‘The Pincushion Man’ the title is a reference to a 1935 animated short film. It is also known as ‘Balloon Land’. The story is set in a land where everyone and everything is made of balloons. Two young balloon children are given the warning to beware the Pincushion Man who lives in the forest. The Boy and Girl don’t heed the warning and travel into the woods where they end up leading the Pincushion man back to Balloon Land. He pops a load of the residents before he is finally brought down by the army. So I actually have alot of theories around this one. Obviously in Riverdale I think the Pincushion man is going to represent a serial killer, in the cartoon when he pops the residents he essentially kills them. But who in the episode could be the Pincushion Man. I mean we have a couple of serial killers at the moment. There’s the Truck Killer, TBK and even potentially The Mothman, though we don’t know for sure if they are killing people. So which one could be presented as the Pincushion Man. Well I don’t think its any of them or rather it could be all of them. The Pincushion Man could be more of the idea of a s serial killer terrorizing a town and so could be represented by a number of different characters/ killers. I actually think it could also be in reference to either Chic or Charles or both of them. The synopsis says that Betty and Alice get unexpected visitors and my theory is that this is Charles and Chic. I also think there are clues in that short film that support this theory though obviously like with all the titles that Riverdale episodes share with films I don’t think they will follow the plot exactly but there might some common themes or symbolism.

Like I said the Pincushion Man is lead to the town by a young boy and girl. In the episode 9 synopsis it says Betty has to make a difficult decision, which if you read my previous post I said that I thought that she would find out that Charles worked on cases relating to the the Truck Killer and is trying to decide on whether to reach out to Charles. It’s also worth noting that in this episode we know from released stills that Betty and Jughead will be interacting and maybe even investigating together. So as Charles is brother to them both Jughead might also be involved in reaching out to Charles. In this scenario Betty and Jughead would be the boy and girl that leads the killer to town whilst trying to escape. Also the title of episode 9 is Destroyer. There is a 2018 film of the same name. This film is about a detective who ends up investigating a case from their past and a criminal that re-emerges after 16 years. Again this could support my theory of Charles’ old cases being reopened as the killer has reappeared. Also in the film the law enforcement officers (a LAPD officer and an FBI agent who are partners working undercover) investigating the crime fall in love and decide to legitimately join in on the crime. Again this to me seems really similar to Charles and Chic with Charles being an FBI agent who becomes a criminal.

Going back to the 1935 short film, another reason why I think the Pincushion Man might be in reference to Charles is because in the short film the Pincushion Man gains entry through the gate and into the town through hypnosis. He hypnotises the guard at the gate to gain entry. We know that Charles has an interest/ skills in hypnosis.

But there is something else that is interesting. In the short film the Pincushion Man is finally stopped by the army. The synopsis talked about how Archie’s former general shows up in town with some surprising news. Now I do have a theory that its to do with the Military Base outside of Riverdale but now I have another theory on what it could be. There is a department called the United States Army Criminal Investigation Command aka CID. Now I am not going to pretend I’m an expert on this department but I did some research and what they basically do is investigate felony crimes where the Army is or may be a party of interest. So maybe the surprising news is that the Army or someone in the army is being investigated by the CID in Riverdale. We know that both Archie and Betty were doing stunts for episode 10 and I’m pretty sure this might be the episode Archie is wearing a Kevlar vest so we know its likely to be a pretty action packed episode. So maybe the FBI and CID investigate together. As to who they might be investigating I think it could be one of two. Either Eric Jackson really goes off the deep end and does some crazy stuff. Or it could still be to do with the military testing theory that Pop’s had.

Episode 5x11 is titled Strange Bedfellows. This again could reference a 1965 film of the same name. In this one a couple impulsively get married then when they realise they have nothing in common and always fight they separate. Seven years later they reunite to finalise their divorce and end up rekindling things. The next day they are right back to fighting and so decide to carry on with the divorce. But then the male protagonist finds out his promotion relies on him being married. So he woos her back. Meanwhile the female protagonist is constantly getting involved in public protests. To me this just screams Chad and Veronica. So here’s what I think is going to happen. I think Chad and Veronica will have a big bust up in the next episode 5x08. They will end up separating at the end of the episode. Then Chad will reappear in episode 11 to finalize their divorce. We know that in those episodes in between that Veronica will likely continue fighting against her father and working to save Riverdale. I think Hiram will come up with a scheme and will offer Chad this amazing job but will tell him he can only have it if he stays married to Veronica and helps distract her/ keep her away from trying to save Riverdale.

Episode 5x12 is titled Citizen Lodge. This one is actually really interesting to me. It is obviously to do with the 1941 film Citizen Kane. What’s interesting to me is the film has this theme about trying to solve a mystery/ find the truth but failing. The film is about a man named Charles Foster Kane who on his death bed whispers the words Rosebud before dying. A man is tasked with finding out what the significance of the word Rosebud was. He is never able to solve the mystery and resigns himself to the fact that they will never know the truth. I think this part will be to do with Jughead and his search for the Aliens/ Mothmen. It is worth noting that whilst in Citizen Kane the characters never find out the true meaning of Rosebud the audience does. I think this will be what happens in this episode we will find out something really important about the Mothmen but Jughead and the other characters won’t and maybe they will temporarily give up on finding the truth. It’s the idea that not all things can be explained.

The other thing that’s interesting about this film is that it is also about the rise and fall of a newspaper magnate. How he rises up from nothing to become one of the most powerful men in his business before then falling back into obscurity. I actually think this will be in reference to Hiram. I have heard some rumours, though to be clear I don’t think this is confirmed, that episode 12 will be a Hiram flashback episode. So I think we will see how Hiram came to be as powerful as he is. But I also think this will be the episode where it either all falls apart for Hiram or at the very least begins to. But I do think Hiram is going to take a drastic hit in this episode.

So lastly episode 5x13 is titled Reservoir Dogs. Again another film this time from 1992. This one is about a jewellery heist that goes badly wrong and leads those involved to think that one of them is a police informant. Here’s my theories about this one and they could be seen as a little out there but it makes sense to me. We know that Veronica is opening a jewellery store by episode 13 she should have that up and running. I reckon if I am right about Hiram taking a big hit in episode 12 then Veronica probably played a part in that. Hiram is known to take out revenge on her when she gets in the way of his plans like when he had her liquor license cancelled and smashed all the rum she had. So I think he will organise a raid on her jewellery store and this will go badly wrong. Some or more characters might get hurt. As to who might be the part of the police informant well in the film the informant gained the trust of the gang and become friends with one of them, they become really close and have a father/son like relationship and when that friend finds out he is a cop he is naturally devastated at the betrayal of his friend. I actually think Reggie is a double agent and will betray Hiram to protect his friends. Also I think Ted confirmed that episode 12 covers some of Reggie’s backstory so that would line up with this episode if in the one before we get to see how Reggie came to work with Hiram. I mean to me they seem kind of close. Reggie is clearly someone that Hiram trusts and he listens to his advice which we saw last episode when Reggie convinced him to delay the turnpike and let the Coopers search the swamp. To me it would make sense for them to show us how Hiram and Reggie developed a bond in episode 12 and then for us to see it be betrayed in episode 13. In the film major spoiler alert here but I think all but one of the thieves is killed. I am hoping that the story doesn’t go exactly the same way though because if it does it could lead to a situation where Hiram kills Reggie. In all honesty I don’t think they are going to kill a whole bunch of characters like they do in Reservoir Dogs but I could see either Hiram or Reggie dying maybe even both if Riverdale are feeling really ballsy. Personally I really hope that Reggie doesn’t die because I love his character as for Hiram I don’t know if Riverdale will kill him off but I also feel like there’s not much else they can do with his character. I mean we’ve already seen him in jail and we’ve already seen him as a villain about million times by now giving him an emotional death where he’s betrayed by someone he trusts could be a good way of bringing his story to a close.

As for who could be representing Mr Pink the only one to survive in the movie and who tries to sneak off with the jewellery I think this could potentially be Chad. In the film its a bit ambiguous what happens to Mr Pink but if you listen closing in the ending scene you can hear him struggling to start the car, and then police yelling at him. It seems to me like he gets arrested but does survive. I think Chad will attempt to get away with the jewellery but will ultimately get caught and sent to jail.

So yeah those are some theories I have based pretty much purely on the titles of the next few episodes and the plots of various movies.

#riverdale #riverdale theories

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densi-mber · 4 years

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Reflections

A/N: Although this page and event is dedicated to Densi, since the 250th episode airs tonight, we thought it was only appropriate to post a team fic for this momentous occasion. Happy first day of Densi-mber!

Based on today’s writing prompt.

***

“Don’t drop your left, Babe!” Kensi called out from the sidelines as Sam and Deeks sparred in the middle of the gym. It was mostly unnecessary at this point, but she couldn’t help herself. Encouraging Deeks was second nature by now and part of the game.

“C’mon partner, you can hit harder than that,” Callen said and Sam shot him a glare as he danced back from Deeks and then lunged forward. Deeks blocked him with his forearm, landing a punch to Sam’s upper chest. “It’s certainly different that the first time they fought each other. Back then Deeks didn’t stand a chance.”

She turned her attention back to Deeks, analyzing his movements. His form was definitely way better, his hits had more force behind them and after all these years he knew Sam’s style. It also didn’t hurt that Deeks had a more muscular physique than when he’d first joined the team. She spent a little more time than absolutely necessary to examine the flex and pull of said muscles as he attempted to pin Sam’s arm behind his back.

“Deeks wasn’t that bad,” she said eventually, partially out of loyalty, partially out of competitiveness. Callen snorted.

“Sam knocked him out cold.”

“That’s because it wasn’t an even match. If Deeks had as much muscle then as he–”

“Yeah, I think we all know how much you like Deeks’ muscles,” Callen interrupted dryly and Kensi made an outraged noise.

“That’s not what I meant.”

“I saw you checking him out. Again.”

“I was not,” Kensi protested as Sam and Deeks wandered over, both breathing heavily. Wiping sweat of his face, Deeks nudged her shoulder and asked,

“What are you guys talking about?”

“Your muscles,” Callen answered which earned an unsurprised look from Sam.

“I should have known,” he said. Deek nudged Kensi’s shoulder again, grinning.

“The question is, who started the conversation?” he asked, winking at Callen. Before things could descend into complete chaos, Kensi got things back on track.

“Actually, we were remembering the first you guys fought each other.”

“Oh yeah, good times. Sam knocked my lights out and then you guys proceeded to steal my case,” Deeks recalled as he grabbed his water bottle and downed half of it at once.

“And who’d have thought that we’d still be have your scrawny butt around ten years later,” Sam added cheerfully, roughly patting Deeks on the back.

“I think Kensi would argue that it’s a well-muscled butt,” Callen felt the need to point out.

“Should I be concerned that you’ve been checking out my butt?” Eric chose that moment to walk in and asked,

“Is this a bad time to interrupt?” Based on his vaguely disturbed expression, he’d heard at least part of the conversation. Kensi grabbed Deeks’ arm and physically removed him from the area before he could make things more awkward for Eric.

“Nope, you have perfect timing,” she said firmly, pushing an unresisting Deeks out of the gym.

***

They were in the bullpen later that evening, while Callen and Deeks finished up some reports. The discussion of their early days as a team had continued throughout the day; both Sam and Callen had proved to be surprisingly sentimental about the whole thing. They’d taken turns recalling various incidents throughout their careers before and after the rest had joined. At some point Nell and Eric had wandered down too and joined the conversation.

“You know, since we’re being all nostalgic today, I was thinking about what things were like before Deeks and Nell were a part of the team,” Kensi said, looking over at Deeks with a fond smile.

“It was a lot more peaceful for one thing,” Sam commented dryly, glancing pointedly at Kensi and Deeks. “There was a less drama and the chances of walking in on someone kissing was almost negligible.”

“And you guys never let me drive,” Kensi added under her breath. Nell, sitting on the edge of Callen’s desk, was looking wistful.

“I remember my first day working here. I was terrified. I told myself that I was going to do everything perfectly and be the best tech analyst the Office of Special Projects had ever seen. And then I’m pretty sure I spent most of the day rambling and making Eric hate me.”

“I didn’t hate you,” Eric protested from beside her, apparently horrified by the thought. Nell rolled her eyes at his loyalty, although she also looked somewhat pleased.

“Oh you definitely did not like those first couple weeks,” she countered. When Eric started to protest again, she raised a small hand in a halting gesture. “Which I completely understand. I kept cutting you off and trying so hard to prove myself that even I am retroactively annoyed.”

“And none of that matters now because I love you more than anything,” Eric said sweetly and leaned over for a kiss.

“Before this gets any cheesier than it already is,” Callen said, looking vaguely amused by the display going on in front of him. “Didn’t you also throw Hetty a massive birthday party? When we specifically told you that you shouldn’t.”

“I don’t know that you ever said I shouldn’t throw her a party,” Nell hedged. “Besides, she loved it.”

“Yeah, I’m not so sure about that. I’m think Hetty was so sick of hiring new analysts she was determined to like you no matter what.”

“That is not true!” Kensi objected, looking outraged on Nell’s behalf.

“Even if it is true, like Eric said, it doesn’t matter now,” Deeks pointed out, sharing a friendly smile with Nell. “Because it was one of the best decisions Hetty ever made. This place wouldn’t be the same without you.”

“Oh Deeks, that is so sweet,” Nell murmured, placing a hand over her heart.

“He’s right,” Sam agreed. “Even though I might not have seen it at first, all of you have made this team better and I can’t imagine if I didn’t have you guys around me every day.” Nell made a sound remarkably like a sniff after Sam’s impromptu speech and Kensi reached over to squeeze his shoulder.

“We love you too.”

“Ditto,” Nell said.

“It’s your turn.” Sam nodded in Callen’s direction, arms crossed expectantly and a hint of a smirk pulling at his lips.

“My turn for what?”

“To say something nice. You’re the only one who hasn’t yet.” Callen looked like he might protest, but then shrugged.

“Fine.” He let out a weighty sigh and confided, “I actually liked Deeks’ oyster beer.” This was met with a chorus of groans and protests.

“And on that note, why don’t we take this conversation to the Squid and Dagger,” Deeks suggested. “This time, I promise there will not be any seafood involved.” There were several sighs of relief at this news.

As they packed up to go, Hetty appeared in the doorway, hesitating in a way that was most un-Hetty like.

“Is that an open invitation, Mr. Deeks?”

“Of course,” he answered with honest surprise. “You’re always welcome.”

“Wonderful,” she said, clapping her hands together and somehow taking instant control of the impromptu get together. “Since we’re reminiscing, did I ever tell you about the time Mr. Hanna crashed his first Challenger?” Sam laughed nervously and touched Hetty’s arm.

“C’mon Hetty, I don’t think anyone wants to hear that story.”

“I do,” Nell piped up immediately while Eric nodded eagerly. Sam ignored them and began futilely trying to usher Hetty out of the bullpen.

“You told me that accident wasn’t your fault,” Callen commented, his eyes narrowed at his partner. “You said the other car crashed into you.”

“It wasn’t my fault,” Sam insisted as Hetty said,

“Well, yes, in a way I suppose that is true. A car did crash into Sam…but only after he smashed into a parked minivan.” Hetty continued the story as they left the mission, much to Sam’s dismay and everyone else’s amusement.

By the time they made it to the Squid and the Dagger, Callen was still ribbing Sam. Deeks disappeared into the storeroom to the grab the promised beer while the rest of the team found seats at the bar.

“Can we please talk about something else?” Sam begged after another round of jokes at his expense. “Like how nice it is to finally have this team all in one place again.”

“I will definitely drink to that,” Kensi said as Deeks reappeared with a crate of bottles.

“Hey, you guys better not have started toasting without me,” he said jokingly, starting to pass around the beer. Callen took one immediately while Sam and Nell hesitated. Deeks rolled his eyes as he bumped Kensi’s shoulder to get her attention and passed her a bottle. “I promise this beer is fresh, chilled and definitely not fishy. It comes from a local, award winning brewery.”

“It better be. I still have nightmares about that last one,” Sam said darkly with a disgusted shake of his head.

“It honestly wasn’t that bad,” Callen insisted.

“You have no taste buds,” Eric said with a horrified expression. Deeks had finished distributing the beers and went to stand beside Kensi, leaning against the bar.

Hetty cleared her throat and stood up, raising her hand in a way that demanded attention.

“Since we are all gathered her together, and thankfully in one piece for once, I would like to toast to this team. I am eternally grateful for the work you do each and every day. To the Office of Special Projects, may we be together for ten years more.” She ended by lifting her glass in the air and everyone followed suit and took a drink.

“And to the members of this team who are no longer with us,” Deeks added and they drank again. There was a moment of contemplative silence and then Callen said, frowning down at his bottle,

“You know, I kind of miss the oyster beer. It had an interesting muskiness.”

“You are ridiculous,” Sam said with a chuckle.

“I’ve got more in the back if you want it,” Deeks offered. Hetty set her half-empty bottle on the bar and declared,

“I believe that is my cue to leave.”

“Thank you for coming, Hetty,” Kensi said graciously as Hetty gathered her belongings.

“I wouldn’t have missed it. Oh, and Mr. Deeks, please do not let Mr. Callen have more than one of those beers,” she added over her shoulder with a delicate shudder.

“Yes, Mom!” Deeks called out as she left and the others spread around the bar, Callen in search of more musky beer. Kensi wrapped her arm around his waist, leaning into his side, and sighed contentedly.

“When you first told me you wanted to buy a bar, I thought you were crazy,” she started, and Deeks snorted.

“I know, I thought you were going to kill me when I took the team here the first time.”

“Mm, but now having the team here for drinks are some of my favorite nights.”

“Mine too,” he murmured. He cupped the back of her head and leaned down to kiss her. Who knew if they would last another ten years as a team, but he knew they would be their own weird version of a family forever.

#Densi-mber 3.0 #Densi-mber 2019 #Densi-mber Day 1 #ncis la #ncis la fanfiction

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atsushishelteredinmoonlitjasmine · 4 years

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Fire Emblem: Awakening Thoughts

As of the date May 20th, 2020, I finished my playthrough of Fire Emblem: Awakening on its one year anniversary of when I got it. It is now June 5th of writing this. This post will be my thoughts and feelings on Awakening, much like the KH3 Grievances and Blessings post last year. Let's get into some history between me and Fire Emblem before I go into Awakening.

As I've said before, Awakening was both my first Fire Emblem game and my first Tactical RPG. Smash Bros. was where I had heard of Fire Emblem but it wouldn't be until Ultimate came out that I would start to get interested. It was because of my friend's preference for Lucina that got me into playing as her in Smash and that's pretty much how she became both one of my mains and a favorite. It honestly wasn't till I listened to the Smash remixes of Id, Conquest, and Lost in Thoughts All Alone that I decided to play Awakening and then Fates. So thanks go out to both Smash and my friend Eric for converting me to Fire Emblem trash!

Much like the KH3 Grievances and Blessings post, I'll be going over every aspect of Awakening I can think of, from the graphics to the gameplay to the story. I'll even include a Best/Worst Girl and Boy of both generations because that kind of thing seems to matter to some people, along with my reasons for why X is Y. Keep in mind that whoever I choose as those categories, it is just my opinion and you're free to disagree with me. I say this because I know that, no matter what I say, some diehard fans will get pissed at me and come at me for daring to shit on their favorite character. I already know some people are gonna get mad because they think X should be Best/Worst and that'll be fun to see (You can interpret that as sarcasm if you want).

Listed below are Awakening spoilers, so if you want to play the game and don't want to be spoiled, now's your chance to stop reading. I know Awakening came out in 2013, meaning 6 or 7 years ago, but there may be some people who haven't gotten around to playing it yet so I want to be courteous to them. Here are my thoughts on Fire Emblem: Awakening!

First off, the graphics. I think they looked really nice for a 3DS game that came out in the early 2010's and I believe this was Fire Emblem's first fully 3D game as well so that's really impressive. The in-game models were nicely detailed, the in-game sprites were nice looking, and the prerendered cutscenes were beautiful. This doesn't mean they're not without their faults, though. I wish the in-game cutscenes were more animated because it's easy to tell when an animation's been used over and over again, I feel as if the in-game sprites have some dissonance with official art, and there are times where expressions or animations for the prerendered cutscenes have looked pretty awkward. In terms of the first and last point, I'm giving IntSys some slack because, as I stated earlier, they were developing a game for the 3DS, a powerful handheld device but it's still a handheld, and this was FE's first 3D game so there may have been issues transitioning from 2D sprites to 3D models. I'll explain what I mean by my second point. I've looked at Cynthia's official art and when I see her face, I tend to see what I'd call a baby face, pudgy cheeks and all. Her in-game sprite, however, her face is sharper, more mature, if that makes sense. Maybe it's the pigtails throwing me off or it's just a difference between two art styles, I don't know. I'm not an artist so there's not much weight behind this but I'm just saying there's somewhat a dissonance between official art and in-game sprites.

Secondly, gameplay. I loved how easy it was and how I could switch between a simple and complex UI if I wanted to see which attacks could hit or what the enemy's stats were. This may sound stupid but I honestly thought it'd be way more difficult due to this being a Tactical RPG. I know strategy's a big part of Fire Emblem but strategy's not a big problem if you're like me and you grind to hell and back. Speaking of which, I played on Easy Casual mode so that might be why it seemed so simple from the get-go. Just to give you an idea of how much I grinded, I put in 200+ hours and that mostly consisted of buying a shitton of Reeking Boxes, spawning Risen on some of my favorite grind spots, and fighting them over and over again. I went through the 3 basic classes each character could have, maxed out their default class one last time, promoted them to their advanced class, and maxed out those classes 2-3 times over. I have a video on my Twitter that shows the stats of these characters and most of them are over 220 (The shapeshifters 300). Needless to say, I loved each and every fucking crit I got. Cordelia even got what I call a miracle crit, which means she got 2 crits in one round and after the enemy attacked, she got another 2 crits. Level grind ain't a joke in this game.

Thirdly, the music. Considering it's part of why I got into this game in the first place, I loved it. As I'm writing this, I'm listening to the OST and it sounds so much better when you don't have the ambient sounds and you're not listening to it through the 3DS speakers. The song that hit me the most and just gave me the overwhelming feels was Id~Sorrow as it played in Chapter 21. It fit so well with the tone of the scene and I just sat there for a few minutes, letting it play in the background as I did shit. Other notable mentions are Id~Purpose, Destiny, Conquest, and the song that is just ellipses. If the music is this good in Awakening, I can't wait to see what's in store for Fates!

Fourthly, the voice acting. For a game where most of the voices come in forms of clips, I thought they were good. Each of the actors tried their best to convey their characters in the clips they were allowed to have and I think it shows. The only critique I have, and it's not the actors' fault, is that some of the characters' voices don't fit them. I'm not saying they miscast these characters, it's more like the direction was off, if that makes sense. Let me bring up Cynthia, Kjelle, and M!Morgan as examples. I don't think it's a stretch to say that, sometimes when you look at a character, you kinda imagine what they'd sound like before you hear their actual voice, right? I already brought up Cynthia's looks so I imagined her voice to sound very high-pitched and maybe a little childlike. I hear her voice and, while she's high-pitched and some of her voice clips do go into that childlike territory, she's nasally sounding and more mature. Kjelle is a complicated case in that, her voice fits her appearance (minus the armor) but not her personality. Her personality is similar to Sully's so I figured her voice would sound gruffer and not...cute, if that's the right word. M!Morgan's, I think, everyone can see the problem with. He's supposed to be the youngest of the kids, right? Since he's the only third generation character and all that? I think he just sounds a little too old for the supposed baby of the kids. Again, I'm not saying the voices are bad or that the delivery/emotion was bad, I just think the direction in which they were voiced don't fit some of the characters. Maybe I'm just thinking in terms of archetypes or something.

Now we move on to the story. I can't say as to whether it was good or not, mainly because I spoiled myself on it way before I decided on playing Awakening, so I don't think I can say much to the quality. The least I'll say is it's serviceable. I'll admit, the one thing I was shocked by was the appearance of the Grima Avatar because I thought Grima was inside Robin the whole time and I didn't think he'd have a separate vessel. I straight up thought Grima!Robin was either my mother or a twin I wasn't aware of so I'm giving credit to the writers for surprising me. Anyway, I think the only flaw I have with the story is with the pacing. I thought the first half was fine, it wasn't too fast or too slow. It was the second half that the pacing couldn't find a middle ground. Now I'm going to say that this half was stretched out over months of my playtime so whatever I say next might be exaggerated because of my procrastinating ass so... I feel like the Valm arc was way too slow and the Grimleal arc had so much trouble finding a middle ground. The beginning of the Grimleal arc was quick but Grima himself decided that I had to finish 2 and a half chapters before I finally got to beat him and you have to deal with constant reinforcements before you kill off the target. I think if it weren't for my overleveled as fuck units, I wouldn't have finished Awakening in time for my birthday.

Just for shits and giggles, I'm gonna say what I picked for my choice with both Luce's judgement and Grima's fate. I picked the self-sacrificial choices, which means I accepted Luce's judgement and allowed her to kill me and I dealt the final blow to Grima so Chrom didn't have to. While I knew the outcomes of both choices and them ultimately not meaning anything, I wanted my Robin to reflect what I would've done and I'm a very self-sacrificial person. Because I made Chrobin happen in my playthrough, which meant Luce was my daughter, I believe that, if my child who came from an apocalyptic world told me I was the reason for that happening and that she came back through time to stop that future from happening so she and the others wouldn't suffer, I would've let her kill me. Parents would and should do anything for their kids and if my death possibly gave my daughter the chance for a better life, I'd take it in stride. As for me dealing the final blow to Grima, if it was to save everyone I loved, I would've done it. Although there's some feelings of wanting to give a big "Fuck you" to Grima and to permanently end the problem so any future descendants wouldn't have to deal with it. This section may sound more philosophical and personal than I usually write but I think it deserved it.

Now we're on to Supports and who I chose to be together. I don't think it's wrong to say that this is where the characters really get to shine and it's because of the Supports I love these kids and how much I'm going to miss them when I move on to other FE games. As for the "canon" couples, I mainly went with characters that I thought would complement each other and this was one of the few things I tried to choose for myself. I tried my best to go for pairings that weren't fan favorites but I'm also not very connected with the fandom as of writing this so I may be completely wrong in which ships were favorites or not. So here are the pairings I got for my playthrough!

Chrom-Robin

Frederick-Sumia

Virion-Miriel

Vaike-Nowi

Stahl-Sully

Lon'qu-Cordelia

Ricken-Lissa

Gaius-Maribelle

Gregor-Cherche

Libra-Panne

Henry-Olivia

Lucina-Inigo

Owain-Cynthia

Brady-Nah

Kjelle-Laurent

Severa-Yarne

Obviously, there are some characters missing from this list and I can explain why. I didn't recruit Kellam and Tharja and it's because your girl is a dumbass. Kellam, I thought, was already on my team, he was just labelled as an ally so I didn't need to recruit him. They really should've made that clear. Tharja, on the other hand, was an even bigger dumbass than me because she decided to charge after Robin, who happened to be in front and was way overleveled, and got her ass promptly beaten with a crit. I regret not getting Kellam but after hearing how awful of a person Tharja is and how many fans are willing to put aside emotional abuse and stalker-like tendencies to have a chance to fuck her, she can stay buried in the sand where I electrocuted her ass. Unfortunately, this does means Noire didn't pop up in my recruitment list and that fucking sucks. The only characters left I didn't have a pairing were Gerome and Morgan. I think Gerome wouldn't really care for a romantic partner because he's all about not wanting to create ties in this time and shit and, since I see Morgan as the baby of the kids, I figured he'd be a little too young to be in a relationship. Despite that, I wish I got him and Nah together because I found out after she was shipped with Brady that Morgan's the only S-Support she'll say "I love you" to and I was immediately filled with regret.

Before I move on to the Best/Worst contest, there's something I need to bring up because I can see what sensible fans have shown now. This game is HELLA gay. Like, holy fuck, how many instances are there where you have two characters of the same sex and they have dialogue that seems to have been written with romantic intent but the writers decide it's meant to be platonic? Maybe I just have this weird line of thought on how straights are because there's no fucking way some of these gay moments would be a thing with even the most accepting straights. Maribelle calling Lissa darling and other pet names, Robin blushing from some of the girls and even mistaking Flavia's proposition for a marriage proposal, Severa looking at Kjelle's abs, the list goes on. I'm not straight because I'd be doing some of this shit with a potential girlfriend if I could! Why did it take IntSys until 3 Houses to implement LGBT+ pairings when this game is right here?! At least this game doesn't have the weird student/teacher relationships 3H has and believe me when I say that, if it weren't for the fact I could give less of a fuck for 3H, I wouldn't play that game for that reason! Anyway, Awakening is hella gay and it should've been the first LGBT+ FE game instead of 3H.

The Best/Worst contest... As I said in the beginning, there'll be a Best/Worst Boy and Girl for both generations because that's fun and it seems to matter a lot to some people. Repeating what I said, this is just my opinion and you're free to agree or disagree with me. One rule I'm putting in is I will try my best to not pick fan favorites. Don't get me wrong when some of the crowd pleasers are good but there are other characters that deserve just as much love as the fan favorites so this is why I'm putting in this rule. Without further ado, here are the rulings!

1st Gen

Best Boy-Lon'qu

Best Girl-Panne

Worst Boy-Virion

Worst Girl-Miriel

2nd Gen

Best Boy-Owain

Best Girl-Cynthia

Worst Boy-Inigo

Worst Girl-Severa

Let's see how many people I piss off with these judgements. So, my reasoning: Best Boy for 1st gen was a big toss-up. I kept wanting to choose between Chrom, Frederick, Stahl, and Lon'qu because they really endeared themselves to me but I chose Lon'qu in the end because he's honestly such a dork (I mean, all of them are) and I gotta admire how he tries to overcome his fear of women and try being there for his wife and daughter if he happens to have one. There's also the fact he has to literally psyche himself up to talk to women if you check in with him in the Barracks and I'm just like "Fucking hell, that's adorable and I GET it". Best girl is Panne because believe me when I say that the moment I see this woman and hear her voice, I'm immediately gay for her. Then she transforms into a giant rabbit, kicks so much ass, and I'm in love. Funny story, I'd talk to my friend about my progress in Awakening on Discord and the moment he asks me who best girl was and I answered Panne, he called me out for being a furry. Granted, I would've automatically said Luce but I'm trying not to pick fan favorites so I get his criticism. If a woman like Panne existed in real life, bunny ears and tail and all, I'd probably become a furry for her, no questions asked. As for worst boy and girl, Virion and Miriel are characters I honestly don't give much of a fuck about. Not that they're bad, I just don't care about their archetypes, if that makes sense. Miriel I found to be boring and Virion's of the Casanova archetype and I've always kinda hated that archetype so that's why they're on the ranking.

Oh boy, 2nd gen. So, best boy being Owain. This boy is going to kill me. He's so adorable and sweet and he's just a good boy. There are literally Tweets on my Twitter where I just gush about him and he deserves so much love. He's just a sweet boy who loves his parents so much and is so proud to be their son and how he manages to rope his cousins (Luce and Morgan) into going with his fantasies and how they just go along with it! Owain is a cinnabun and I want to protect him and love him. Anyway, best girl being Cynthia is sorta the same reason as Owain. She's just so bubbly and happy and just adorable. Yeah, she may get carried away with showboating but I just love her earnest desire to be a hero. I think everyone can see why I paired Owain and Cynthia up. Now for the worst. Inigo and Severa are probably the only characters in this whole game that straight up got on my fucking nerves and for different reasons. Outside of his supports with Olivia and Henry, Inigo's constant flirting with the girls and Robin and inability to take no for an answer just rubbed me the wrong way. I actually put out a Tweet saying how Inigo's like an r/niceguy and I still think he is one. Course, this doesn't mean I didn't have my fair share of laughs from him. I fucking died at his and Gerome's A-Support where he ends up pathetically crying after the emo loner got more game than him and Gerome has to comfort his ass, that was hilarious. It also helped the fact that Liam O'Brien, who I've only heard him as the brooding emo loner role, voiced Inigo as the complete opposite of that and I had a blast. Severa, on the other hand, was...really unpleasant. There's a reason I hate Tsunderes with a passion and it's because they're unnecessarily bitchy towards everyone they know, even if they have no reason to be. Severa, however, was somehow worse because she went out of her way to be horrible to people. My dislike for her was cemented the moment I saw her and Cynthia's C-Support and she chose to make fun of her, despite Cynthia minding her own business and Severa just going "fuck it". However, I should express that I understand why Inigo and Severa are the way they are and that's why I'm not being as harsh on them as I could be. They still have their good moments and I can appreciate them while also raking them over the coals.

So that concludes my review/experience of Fire Emblem: Awakening! Despite some moments of frustration and annoyance, I had fun playing this! I mean it when I say I'm gonna miss these kids but I had plenty of time to spend with them so it's time to move on to newer lands. Next up on the list is Fates and I think I'm siding with Hoshido first. It's funny how, despite me spoiling the story for myself 3 separate times, I still can't remember much, if any, of it so that may say something about the quality. I also know Fates is pretty divisive among the fandom but the thing I know it for is the weird pseudo-incestuous ships it has so that's going to be fun! Hopefully, I'll get around to playing as one of my other mains in Smash, my water horse dragon Corrin, sometime soon and I'll be sure to let everyone know when my journey will start!

#fire emblem awakening

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stereksecretsanta · 4 years

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Merry Christmas, @hotaruyuki!

I hope you, and everybody else will enjoy this little thing.

Read on AO3

*****

Two Potted Pines and a Hole in the Wall

It’s movie worthy, definitely not something that should happen on an ordinary Tuesday shortly before December. And yet it happens at precisely seven minutes to ten on that very Tuesday morning, while Derek’s in the middle of decorating the two small trees his sister had brought from the nursery, the smell of baking bread and cooling cookies hanging mouth watering in the air.

For a few weeks workers had been in and out of the space next door, bringing with them the ruckus of power tools and people yelling to be heard above said tools. The noise had been annoying, grating on his nerves, but he’d taken comfort from the fact they usually didn’t start before seven or later and that they’d eventually be done, not to mention they’d been good for business. Soon they’d packed up their things and left at the end of one day not being there the next.

It hadn’t been deserted though; Derek had seen the back of someone going through the door, had heard what could be furniture being dragged across the floor and various other noises indicating there would probably be a shop next to Derek’s soon. But today’s been quiet, and like he’s done every year since Laura conned him into opening his little bakery, Derek - after the morning rush was over and Isaac had left for class - turned the sign on the door to ‘closed’ and got lost in the task of decorating.

A pounding sound pulls Derek from his thoughts, and once he’s focused on it he can’t ignore it. Lifting his head he is met by the expected sight of the beverage making machinery and the stacks of to-go-cups, the open floor space between that and the counter, the old fashioned looking till at one end and the pick-up station closest to where he currently is, with various syrups, stirrers, packaged sugar, sweetener and creamer and a million other things he doesn’t care about and the existence of which he’s outsourced to his manager, Erica, who knows about these things. (Derek bakes, everything else is Laura’s fault. Thankfully she also hired Erica without whom he’d be lost).

The sound is familiar but before Derek can make out what it might be it suddenly grows louder, morphs into something akin to smashing porcelain (not a single plate, but the entire cabinet) followed by a bemused “eum… oops,” raising questioningly at the end. Turning, the pretzel shaped ornament he was about to hang on the tree still dangling from between his fingers, Derek finally locates the source of the noise. In the wall Derek’s shop shares with the one next door - the wall Derek had thought was a solid concrete common wall - is a hole that might be big enough for him to wiggle through with a man standing on the other side, a hammer clutched in his still raised hand, a few nails sticking out between plush lips, eyes wide with surprised shock.

Everything is still and quiet, the two of them locked in a disbelieving staring contest - seems Derek wasn’t the only one thinking that had been solid wall - and then, like the snap of fingers, the world starts moving once more, the man wobbling, leaning a little too far forward and realizing he’s falling Derek’s knees straighten and his feet take him across the room just in time to put his hands on the man to keep him from toppling over and fall through the hole and injure himself, not caring for the faint sound of shattering glass.

This close Derek can see the faintest hint of stubble, a smattering of moles on pale skin and lang, dark eyelashes framing a pair of amber brown eyes. Beneath the palms of his hands the man’s stomach muscles twitch with his movement as he steadies himself, Derek only reluctantly loosening his grip when he’s certain the danger has passed.

“This was not how I imagined meeting my new neighbour,” the man’s voice is warm and deep, laced with the grin clear on his face; for some reason he doesn’t seem the least bit worried he nearly fell to his death moments ago (Derek might be a bit dramatic, it probably wouldn’t have been more than a few bruises and maybe a bend rib, which - while painful and not something to joke about - not immediately life threatening).

Taking a step down from where he’d apparently been standing on a footstool, he reaches out his hand. “I’m Stiles, thank you for saving me from myself.”

“Anytime,” he says, distracted by the fact that despite being an inch or two shorter, Stiles’ hand is quite a bit larger than his own and there are a few moles on the back of it matching the ones Derek has already noticed on his face.

Stiles laughs, genuine and delighted. “I’m gonna hold you to that, dude. I might’ve grown into my limbs but I still trip over thin air from time to time.”

“Don’t call me dude,” Derek says, extracting his hand from Stiles’ because he realizes they’ve been shaking for at least thirty seconds more than is usual. He also immediately has to suppress the urge to face palm as he remembers never actually introducing himself.

“Derek. My name’s Derek.” He sweeps out his hand, encompassing the room, “and this is ‘Hale’s Sweets’, finest bakery in the street.”

Stiles leans closer and sticks his head through the hole in the wall, takes his time looking around the shop. “Pleasure to meet you, Derek.” He hesitates for a moment, looks down to take in the damage before him. “Maybe I could buy you a cup of coffee as a thank you for saving me, and figure out what to do with this?”

That’s how Erica finds them when she gets back a little before three to get ready for the afternoon reopening. Stiles is telling a story about the shenanigans he and his best friend, Scott, had gotten into in high school, whole body moving and arms flinging this way and that, Derek with his head thrown back in laughter; there are no decorations hanging from the ceiling or in the window, one tree is half way decorated while the other isn’t. She grins and backs up without making a sound, quickly scribbling a note and then sneaks out the back door. As soon as it closes behind her she shoots off a two word text; It worked

Laura had taken one look at the young man before handing him the contract for the other half of the building housing ‘Hale’s Sweets’. Letting him read through it she went and told her secretary to cancel the rest of her appointments before calling Erica, asking her to get there as fast as she could.

Getting back to her office the young man had looked up and asked for a few days to have someone look it over. Laura had happily agreed and waved him of in time for Erica to catch a glimpse of him.

It had taken them less than an hour to come up with a plan and only a little while longer to set it in motion. Erica being married to a bricklayer sped up that part of the plan involving renovating the space.

He’d been back two days later with a feisty red head who’d made demands Laura was willing to meet and soon the contract was signed, Stiles - as he’d told her to call him - leaving with a copy while Laura’s secretary had filed away the original and Laura had congratulated herself with her own brilliance.

Laura had known from the second she saw him, that Stiles would be perfect for her brother. Sure, she could’ve done what normal people do and introduced the two to each other, but seeing as she didn’t know Stiles and Derek didn’t like meeting new people that wasn’t really an option. And as she’d said to Eric, where was the fun in that, anyway? Besides, it wasn’t some nefarious plan to gain world domination, more a ploy to create the best circumstances for her brother to meet someone interesting that she thought he would hit it off with.

The renovations got done in record time. Luckily the door that had originally been between the two parts of the building was still there, had only been walled on either side; getting it free on Derek’s side had been a matter of waiting for her brother’s day off and then have the crew work as fast as possible. Luckily Derek wasn’t in the habit of staring at the walls which meant he probably wouldn’t notice anything amiss. They’d uncovered and cleared the door opening and then made it look like a solid concrete wall, figuring that at some point someone was going to hang something there.

The text from Erica confirmed that Laura made the best plans.

For some reason they never get around to fix the hole in the wall.

Derek watches the space take form, sees how differently Stiles shapes it compared to his own. Shelves filled with books hang among different movie posters and paintings by local artists - little, discreet plaques informing the viewer of their names and in some cases the price of the pieces - potted plants hang in the windows and are placed on a few tables at the armchairs.

When neither’s busy they often find themselves in deep conversation through the wall, Stiles talking with his whole body and Derek listening intently, often laughing at something the other say to Erica’s wordless amusement and wonder. She’s worked for him since he opened ‘Hale’s Sweets’ and has never heard him laugh neither as frequent nor as loud.

Months passes and Derek and Stiles’ friendship grows with each passing day. They graduate from only talking through the hole in the wall during the day to the exchange of numbers and subsequent texting to doing things together outside of business. The first time Derek meets Stiles’ friends is a Friday night at a nearby bar. When he arrives they’re all half way towards drunk but they’re nice and welcoming; not necessarily people Derek would’ve chosen for himself but being thrown in among them he finds that he likes them, think they could his friends, too.

It’s a while later Stiles finds out his landlady is actually Derek’s sister. He’d fallen asleep in his tiny office and wakes to raised voices from Derek’s side of the building. Blinking owlishly at his watch he groans when he manages to make sense of the blinking numbers and, hoping Derek has some coffee he might be willing to part with, he gets up and makes his way to the wall.

Despite the early hour he recognizes Laura Hale instantly where she’s jabbing a finger at Derek’s chest, the man grimaces and catches her hand on its next inward jab. Stiles clears his throat, catching their attention; seeing him she smiles brightly while Derek looks like he’d just bitten into the world’s sourest lemon. Still, he reaches for a steaming cup on the counter and a package of sugar with his other hand, expertly rips it open and dumps the contents into the cup, then he stirs while stepping closer to the hole in the wall, handing the cup to Stiles who eagerly grabs it and takes a careful sip.

”Stiles, my sister Laura. Laura please leave,” Derek says just as Laura happily exclaims; “Stiles!” and runs up to awkwardly hug him through the wall. Derek rolls his eyes and takes the cup from Stiles almost as if he’d expected this to happen.

”In a minute, brother dear,” Laura says, her attention focused solely on Stiles.

”Ms Hale,” Stiles starts only to be cut of by a “call me Laura. After all you’re my favorite tenant. Not to mention everything I’ve heard about you and your shop; quite impressive. But have you ever considered getting a partner? Expanding your product range?”

Stiles stares at her, then at Derek who looks like the proverbial deer caught in headlights; he can’t believe he didn’t think of that. How many times has he watched potential customers walk in from Derek’s shop with a freshly baked bun or a slice of pie and a cup of coffee only to sit down at the tables in Stiles’ shop to eat and drink before browsing his wares. Not to mention every time someone comments of the heavenly scents drifting through the wall, and when leaving his shop turn left towards ‘Hale’s Sweets’ (Stiles having a ‘duh’ moment when he realizes he should’ve known Laura Hale and Derek were related long before today) to sate their sweet tooth.

”That’s,” he hesitantly begins, catching Derek’s eyes and whatever the man sees in his gaze has him relaxing, giving Stiles the confidence to finish his sentence, “actually a great idea. Derek?” The man nods in response, Laura beaming at the two of them.

”Now that’s cause for celebration. Stiles, are you busy tonight?” he shakes his head and Laura continues, “awesome. Then maybe you and that red headed friend of yours would like to come to dinner tonight. We could talk business and get to know each other.” Behind her Derek was shaking his head but Stiles grinned and said he’d call Lydia right away, see if she was free.

Enough days had passed for the last Tuesday of November to roll around once more. Cora had delivered two new pines the day before - last year’s back outside where they belonged - and Derek had gotten the decorations out of storage. The morning rush was over, the sign flipped to ‘closed’ and both Erica and Isaac had the rest of the day off. Music was playing quietly over the speakers, the smell of freshly baked goods hanging heavy in the air.

Stepping from the kitchen into the shop itself Derek couldn’t help ponder the difference from last year. He and Stiles had decided to merge their shops and the easiest way to do so was getting rid of the common wall (after making sure it wasn’t load bearing); they’d then had the workmen make another wall at waist height with a wide opening to keep the spaces apart while still a unit. The café style tables and potted plants spilled into Derek’s space, the coffee brewing migrated to Stiles’ and books were everywhere and at some point all of it became their space.

Now, with no customers in sight, Stiles was dancing to and singing along with the music. Derek sat the chest on the counter smiling at the sight; Stiles had no rhythm whatsoever and his singing wasn’t ever going to win him any awards, but he was enjoying himself, his joy infectious and Derek took a step closer, then one more and when Stiles turned in his direction put his arms around him, slowly swaying them around the room. Stiles trips and steps on his foot, Derek bumps into a chair knocking it over and still they keep moving, smiling at each other as one song ends and the next begins.

It’s dark outside when they open the box, on top of all the decorations two small, black boxes containing the jeweled promise of forever.

End

#hotaruyuki #stereksanta15 #*fics19 #*gifts19

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thecomicsnexus · 4 years

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TEENAGE MUTANT NINJA TURTLES ADVENTURES #46-50 JULY - NOVEMBER 1993 BY STEVE MURPHY, CHRIS ALLAN, RYAN BROWN, JON D’AGOSTINO, BRIAN THOMAS, JIM LAWSON, ERIC TALBOT AND BARRY GROSSMAN

SYNOPSIS (FROM COMIC VINE)

The TMNT, Ninjara and Splinter are relaxing in the lair when an intruder arrives - a fox dude that turns out to be Ninjara's brother, Naga. The young fox states that he has come because Ninjara's grandmother has been captured by a hunter. Raph demands to know how the mutant found their secret lair, and Naga states that Ninjara gave him directions. This upsets Master Splinter and the TMNT, and Ninjara apologizes, saying that she only told her brother where she was. Raph isn't appeased by her apology, but before an argument can erupt, April suddenly appears on the TV giving a report about a giant, four armed creature attacking the city. The Turtles announce that they've got to investigate, but Ninjara states that she has to leave with her brother. Raph asks Splinter if he can accompany her, and the Sensei grants him permission and tells his student that he must release his anger concerning Ninjara giving away the address to their lair.

Of course, Raph doesn't do this. The three stow aboard a plane to Japan, and Raph badgers Ninjara about telling her borther the secret. Ninjara screams at him to shut up and the two fall into angry silence, leaving Naga to awkwardly try to make peace for the duration of the long, long flight. Once the trio lands, they take a boat to an island hidden by clouds, the home of Naga and Ninjara. The children welcome the foxy ninja home, but an Elder is not happy to see her because she has left her people. Kenji, Ninjara's old boyfriend, tells our heroes that the Council of Elders has decreed that no rescue will be attempted for Ninjara's grandmother.

The next morning, Raph, Ninjara and Naga set out on their own to rescue the foxes' grandmother. No sooner have they entered the forest when Ninjara and Raphael are ensnared by a trap net. Ninjara orders Naga to cut them free, but the youth reveals that he's made a deal with the hunter - he's offered the man Raphael in trade for his grandmother. The hunter arrives and decides that he will keep both Raph and Ninjara as his trophies. Naga tries to argue, but the hunter smashes him in the head with the butt of his rifle and then shots the netted Raphael with a tranquilizer.

Raph awakes in a cage next to Ninjara in the hunter's trophy room. Naga and his Grandmother are there as well, though they are not caged. The man gloats, which sends the Elder fox into a rage and she attacks. Naga uses the distraction to open the cages, and Raphael punches him in the face for betraying them. Ninjara notes that they can settle their dispute with her brother later, right now they need to escape. A fire bursts into life and the mutants head outside, where they find themselves stranded upon a high cliff. Grandmother explains that they'll have to escape via the Underworld - a place Raph is not interested in visiting, but a huge explosion rips out of the hunter's building as his ammunition begins to ignite. The blast convinces the Turtle that they'll have to go through the Torri gate to make their escape. Just then the hunter arrives and begins firing his pistol at our heroes. Raph is able to hold him off while the Elder fox opens the gateway to the Underworld. The four mutants jump through the portal, but the hunter chases them and manages to get through the gateway before it closes.

The five outworlders arrive in the Underworld and are welcomed by a demon, who tells them that they can leave via the Torri that they arrived in. The hunter makes a dash for the gate, but rather than passing though a portal to his dimension, he simply plunges through the framework and falls into the pit. The demon asks if she had forgotten to mention that it only works for the pure of heart. Grandmother decides to test if the demon is telling the truth, and walks through the Torri, vanishing. Naga is next, and he too disappears. Ninjara and Raph embrace, and then run to the Torri holding hands.

The couple pass through the Torri and arrive on Ninjara's home island, where they are greeted by Grandmother and Naga. Ninjara compliments her kin on her fighting ability and Raphael makes peace with Naga.

The alien four armed creature continues to attack the city, now accompanied by an even stranger four legged beast Mikey dubs "dino-dog." Leo, Don, Mike and Splinter attempt to stop the destruction while April and a slimey reporter named McIntyre broadcast the story. Leonardo cuts off one of the armored figure's arms, sending it into a painful retreat. The dino-dog leaps at the camera crews filimg the action and embeds itself into a news van, where it lays unconscious. The armored warrior then grabs one of the video cameras from a newsman and takes it to an abandoned alley. The Turtles discover that their adversary is blind, but in short order it attaches the camera to its head and uses it to see. Leonardo approaches the being, holding the severed arm. The Mutant Turtle apologizes for the attack and tries to give the limb back, but it suddenly springs to life and chokes him! The other Turtles implore the alien to release their brother. The creature slowly begins to assimilate the English language. After releasing Leo from its grasp, the alien explains that it is a Triast, one of a race of sentient, silicon-based lifeforms created by the Mergia.

The Mergia had created the Triasts to work for them, but after time, the Triasts desired freedom, and a war broke out. The battles lasted for years, until the Triasts themselves created the "dino-dogs" called "Battle-Beasts", which gave them the upper hand in the conflict and sealed their victory. The Triasts tried to lobby for equal rights with the Mergia, but the creator race wouldn't accept the terms (even in defeat), so they fled the planet. This Triast's master left it with a final insult, taking its eyes before he left, leaving it blind. The Triast explains that the Battle-Beast accompanying it, named Qark, is helping it track its master. The alien pair have followed their prey to Earth. The former slave was able to retrieve one of its eyes from the wreckage of the space craft. It then explains that it needs all three of its eyes before it will be able to see properly.

Mikey asks the alien of its name is Sarnath, and sure enough, it is. The Turtles take Sarnath back to their lair, where they receive a call from April, who informs the terrapins that McIntyre's TV show "Inside Affairs" is about to broadcast live footage of the captured Qark. Sarnath states that he can see what Qark sees, and the "dog" is surrounded by cameras. Donatello reattaches the symbiot's arm and then hooks up a monitor to the video camera that the alien is using to see, giving everyone a clear view of Qark's predicament.

Donatello breaks into the control room of the TV studio and destroys the circuit box, sending the theater into darkness. The Turtles free Qark, just as the lights return - leaving our heroes in the spotlight. Leo shouts "Vanish!" and our heroes make their escape, leaving the studio full of bewildered reporters. April mocks McIntyre for losing his big story, and the man suspects that she's involved with the mysterious "green men" due to her smug attitude.

Outside, Donatello explains to the disheartened Sarnath that his other two eyes were transported 100 years into the future. The other Turtles lament that the whole world has seen them, thanks to McIntyre's live broadcast. Splinter states that they'll have to maintain a low profile for quite some time and then Sarnath invites them to accompany him to Dimension X. Mikey is excited about the idea and Leo muses that they could try to fnd out what happened to Cudley the Cowlick. Splinter consents, and Mike, Don and Leo head off to the other dimension with Sarnath.

Meanwhile, Raph and Ninjara are having a picnic in Japan when Sarnath's ship arrives. Ninjara and Raph join the others, and as they head into space, Leonardo tells the pair about their unexpected TV appearance. Back in the TV studio, McIntyre studies the footage of the TMNT.

Sarnath's ship arrives in Dimension X near a Black Hole. As Don explains to everyone what a Black Hole is, their craft is suddenly attacked by Ki'Rec and his Imperial Aerwyl Fleet. Sarnath fights back and a space dogfight ensues. Everyone puts on pressurized space suits in case they need to abandon ship.

Sarnath does well dispatching the attackers, but his ship takes heavy damage and is eventually destroyed. As the Turtles and Ninjara float in space, they see the wreckage of Sarnath's ship being pulled towards the Black Hole. Mikey screams to their friend to eject, but Sarnath states that there's no time to save both Qark and himself, and he jettisons an escape pod as his ship disappears into the Hole.

The Turtles find themselves under attack from the remaining Imperials. Just as all seems lost, a strange ship arrives and destroys the attacking vessels. The pilot pulls alongside our heroes, explains that the ship belongs to the Nova Posse, and offers them a ride. Once on board, the TMNT met the rest of the Posse. The pilot is a gargoyle-like alien named Zebulon, who is accompanied by a humanoid woman named Trip, a blue woman named Luna Azul, a purple man named Rave and a four-armed bat-like woman named Exeen. Trip explains that the Black Hole they've just encountered didn't exist in that spot a mere six months ago - in fact, there wasn't even a star in that location that could have become a Black Hole. Donatello states that's impossible, and the Posse explains that not only is it possible, it's getting bigger and devouring everything in its path.

The ship then comes upon Stump Asteroid, where a huge fleet of ships is circling (among them Cudley the Cowlick). The Posse land on the asteroid, where they're greeted by Stump and Sling. Luna tells the materialistic duo that the Posse is at their service. Much to Luna's surprise, Stump and Sling are far more excited to greet the Turtles and begin planning their next wrestling match. When the Turtles explain that they're not interested and the Nova Posse has arrived to help assist them against the Imperial Forces, the wooden aliens couldn't care less.

Donatello excuses himself to go to the restroom. On his way, he encounters the Sons of Silence... and disappears.

Donatello finds himself floating in a white void, but soon discovers a "floor" and spots the Sons of Silence seated around the Turnstone. Don is puzzled, as he thought that Cherubae had wished the Turnstone and the Sons out of existence. The Turtle then ponders where he is, and what the Sons of Silence are up to - so he decides to ask them. Don walks up and taps one on the shoulder, and the group turns on him. They communicate telepathically, asking the mutant if he is afraid. Don states that he's not afraid, and one of the Sons touches his face. Don protests, but then admits that he feels much better afterwards. Donatello is then questioned if he's ever thought about his destiny, and the Turtle replies that he hasn't, as he's always believed that we were masters of our own Fate. Don then asks why the Sons are asking him this question, and they tell him that they're not. Confused, Donatello states that there's no one else there - when he's surprised by the Turnstone telling him that he's wrong.

Back on Stump Asteroid, Leonardo discovers that Don is missing. Before they can search for their brother, the Turtles are taken to a large conference room, where all of the local aliens try to decide what to do about the growing danger of the Black Hole and Emperor Mazool. Trap explains that the planets closest to the Hole must be evacuated, and how Mazool has taken advantage of the chaos the Black Hole is creating by attacking everyone with his Aerwyl Imperial Fleet in effort to take control of Dimension X. Trap tells Nova Posse that they'll have remove the threat that Mazool poses while the others rescue those in peril. The Turtles state that they want to help, and Trap tells them to assist Nova Posse. Everyone heads out to their ships.

Meanwhile, in the white void, two ships crash, interrupting Don's conversation with the Turnstone. Sarnath emerges from the wreckage of one ship, while the other houses one of the Imperial Force pilots. The Imperial pilot attempts to fire his pistol at Donatello, but it doesn't work. Donatello leaps at the Imperial, but he bounces off of a force field. The Turtle quickly surmises that the Turnstone is preventing any violent acts. The Imperial pilot is excited by the Stone and attempts to grab it for Emperor Mazool, but when he touches it, he disintegrates! Don states that he tried to warn the pilot, but Sarnath states that he heard nothing. Confused, Donatello reaches towards the Turnstone, saying that it's calling him.

The Nova Posse's ship approaches the planetary home of Emperor Mazool. The team manages to break into the Imperial Palace, but they find Mazool waiting for them with a brigade of soldiers. As Mazool explains that all of their efforts are futile, the Black Hole suddenly doubles in size, and begins to pull everything into it! Back in the void, Donatello is holding the Turnstone, his eyes are blank, but a huge grin is plastered on his face.

The battle btetween the Nova Posse and Mazool's troops intensifies. Our heroes are forced to retreat from the planetary base of their adversary and join the space combat near the Black Hole.

Donatello continues to experience cosmic awareness with the help of the Turnstone when Sarnath states that he's been contacted by his companion Qark. Sarnath attempts to draw Don's attention away from the Stone, but Donatello punches his friend and states that he has no interest in Sarnath's "dog" as he's far too occupied being "one with the universe". Sarnath pleads with Don to remember where they are and to grasp what the Turnstone is doing to him and the universe beyond.

Nova Posse's ship takes a direct hit that fries their control panel, preventing them from making contact with their allies. Since the Posse's craft is identical to those piloted by Mazool's forces, our heroes appear as enemies to their friends in the Stump armada.

Sarnath surmises that Don is in control of the Stone and attacks him, trying to gain control of the powerful object. Sarnath manages to distract Don by getting him to focus on the peril that his brothers are in, and uses the opportunity to wrest the Turnstone from the Turtle's grasp. Sarnath states that he is far better suited for the task at hand. The multi-armed alien is instantly "plugged in" to universal awareness, and he states that it's time for Don to go, using the Turnstone's powers to teleport Don to the ship that his companions are aboard. Sarnath then faces the Sons of Silence and tells them that while they would have been able to control Donatello, they won't be able to control him.

Sarnath states that "this must end" and a huge projection of the alien is seen in space, surrounding the Black Hole. Suddenly, dozens of spacecraft explode as their engines overload. Nova Posse is able to save their ship with quick action by their helmsman. Sarnath teleports the Sons of Silence away... and then the Black Hole collapses onto itself.

On the planet below, Mazool vows to hunt down and destroy the Nova Posse.

Don explains to Leo that he, Sarnath and the Sons of Silence had been in another dimension. The Stone had gotten control of Don, and without Sarnath's help, he could have destroyed the universe. Leonardo asks about the Black Hole and Don states that Sarnath collapsed the Black Hole and sealed the dimensional gateway - he won't be returning.

REVIEW

There is a back-up story for Mutanimals that takes up four pages of each issue. Not much happens in those pages, but a group of villains wants to kill the Mutanimals. No reasons at all, but the whole thing looks horrible.

The covers for these issues have always caught my attention, especially issue 49. This comic is so far from its early issues that is incredible to think it’s the same book.

As usual, the story kind of makes sense, but doesn’t hold up if you really think about it. It is unclear to me what the Sons of silence were trying to accomplish with this black hole. But where logic fails, emotions work better. The story of Karnath, finally regaining his sight one last time to sacrifice himself is kind of poetic.

Chris Allan makes very cute, yet feisty, Turtles. I think this is one of the main appeals of the series (as it was when Ken Mitchroney was around as well).

I give this story a score of 7.

#peter laird #ryan brown #chris allan #mutanimals #archie comics #comics #review #1993 #modern age #tmnt #teenage mutant ninja turtles #teenage mutant ninja turtles adventures

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rkkyungsoo · 5 years

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‹★›

#5007 episode 2: interview

Kyungsoo begun his preparation for the interview as soon as he stepped off of the stage. Being one of the first to perform, Kyungsoo had plenty of time to think about what he wanted to say. The interview questions were likely similar to the ones in the first episode and from what he saw in the episode, people’s interviews were more likely aired if they gave negative reactions. This meant, at least in his mind, if he wanted more screen time, he had to give interesting responses, possibly the sort that could start controversies.

He fixed his eyes on the stage, keeping note of interesting performances while also thinking about who he could potentially take a dump on. The safest option was likely Suwoong since the guy would never be able to truly hate him after all the free rides he got over the years. However, from what was shown of the first episode, there was already a strong rival thing between two family members. Perhaps a loving cousin relationship would suit the camera’s taste better. That, was literally the only reason why he actually got up and clapped during dear Susu’s performance when he ran around the stage like an idiot asking for more cheers. When he realized not many other people were standing up, Kyungsoo awkwardly sat back down again - it was such an embarrassing moment.

What? You think he should just be honest and answer however he want? Don’t be a fool. If this didn’t work out, Kyungsoo had to go back on his path to future CEO and any misbehaviour on this show could come back to hunt him. There was no way in hell he was going to let a televised survival show he entered on whim affect his public image, even if it was aired years before his potential success. An intelligent man must think ahead and Kyungsoo knew from a brief once over of the crowd of kids that there were quite a few who thought things through like he did, despite their young age.

Perhaps he shouldn’t risk railing on people yet. Maybe later, when he has more information.

What did you think of the results last week?

“There were quite a lot of contestants eliminated. I’ll be honest, I lost a lot of familiar faces and now have to figure out who to sit with.” He smiled, giving his head a light shake. He didn’t like sitting with strangers but the idea of making new friends also felt exhausting. Kyungsoo will admit, he wasn’t the extroverted type like his cousin and most of his close friendships involved a persistent person who didn’t mind his silence, judgment and occasionally smacks to the shoulder. Just sit with Suwoong? Oh hell no. He’d rather get shot than sit with his loudass cousin and his pack of howling wolf friends. “You guys have to admit, I may not be a good dancer but I know a solid choreo when I see it. All of the dancers I really enjoyed made it through to this round.” Hoseok, Yena and Taeyang.

How do you think you did?

“Everyone certainly looked shocked when I threw my glasses on the ground. I hope I didn’t scare anyone but I was trying really hard to get in character. I think when you channel a certain persona, your voice naturally changes to fit it. I like telling stories with my performance.”

Do you still have those glasses?

He nodded, pulling them out of his pocket with an awkward smile. “In case I become an idol one day, these will be on sale as Do Kyungsoo’s smashed glasses during MGAS 5 performance. I was thinking about charging an insane amount of money.” His expression showed that he wasn’t serious. “Just joking, interviewer noona. I am planning on keeping them as a souvenir. A reminder that I was on the stage and I did a performance I am proud of.”

Who do you think is the best under each skill?

“I don’t listen to enough rap songs to be able to determine what is considered a skilled rap performance. Hyeon did catch my attention because of his song choice because it wasn’t fast all the way through and had slow parts. In addition, I liked the little movements he did with his hands while rapping. Those movements were small but they were quite on beat, I think.” Perhaps the kid was secretly an all star and can dance too. Kyungsoo wouldn’t be surprised. If he could move well with his hands already absent minded, then who’s to say what he could do with his feet.

Dance wise...hmmm. “Yeji chose a very passionate song and I definitely felt it in her expressions. Taeyang was good as always but of course, I still like Hoseok the most. Oh, Eric did a girl group song, didn’t he? I remember laughing during that because it was fun. Hyunggu did a mash up and I thought that was creative.”

Singers he shouldn’t talk about too much because of direct competition, but bringing up one or two should be fine. “Yuri was good. The song she chose was one of my favourites from the movie.”

@rksuwoong, @hobirk, @rktaeyang, @rkhyeon, @rkkhg, @yuzurk, @rkyeji & @rkyuri

#rkmga5 #rkmga5skill #ok i decided i amma only answer a few questions every round #otherwise id sit here until my eyeballs cramp #wc: 867 #rksuwoong #hobirk #rktaeyang #rkhyeon #rkkhg #yuzurk #rkyeji #rkyuri

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atrumpetofsedition · 2 years

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Review: The Unfathomable Ascent-How Hitler Came to Power-by Peter Ross Range- Little, Brown and Company (August 11, 2020) 464 pages.

"Hitler pounded out Mein Kampf " with two fingers on his little typewriter."[1]

"If twelve or fifteen thousand Hebrew corrupters of the people had been held under poison gas . . . the sacrifice of millions at the front would not have been in vain."

—Adolf Hitler, Mein Kampf

"Ideology is a process accomplished by the so-called thinker consciously, indeed, but with a false consciousness. The real motives impelling him to remain unknown to him. Otherwise, it would not be an ideological process at all. Hence, he imagines false or apparent motives." [2]

"When a state turns fascist, it does not only mean that the forms and methods of government are changed in accordance with the patterns set by Mussolini – the changes in this sphere ultimately play a minor role – but it means, primarily and above all, that the workers' organizations are annihilated; that the proletariat is reduced to an amorphous state; and that a system of administration is created which penetrates deeply into the masses and which serves to frustrate the independent crystallization of the proletariat. Therein precisely is the gist of fascism".

Leon Trotsky, What Next? Vital Questions for the German Proletariat[3]

When researching for this review, my first thought was did we need another biography of Hitler?. At the last count, it was estimated that there were nearly twenty thousand biographies, but this book changed my mind. Ross Range's political biography is an extremely well researched and thought-provoking political analysis of how Hitler came to power.

I want to say that I have been following Ross Range's work for decades and that this was my area of expertise, but I would be lying. I was drawn to this book by the extremely interesting and important interview with Ross Range by David North on behalf of the World Socialist Website[4]. Significantly, Mr Range agreed to the interview, although he does not share the political views of the World Socialist Website, it is a sign that broad layers of the middle class and, for that matter, the working class are starting to seek answers to today's problems through learning the lessons of the past.

📷

It has not always been the case that the I.C.F.I. (International Committee of the Fourth International) has promoted, let alone sell, books of this sort on their media platforms. In the past, if a book was important for the development of the movement, it was discussed internally. In my own experience, I can remember one important book being discussed, and that was by Eric Hobsbawm's Nations and Nationalism.[5] I think this is an important change. The Marxist critique of the 1619 project is a hugely important event, and the collaboration with leading historians of the American revolution and the promotion of their books on Mehring Books[6] is extremely important and groundbreaking.

It is eighty-eight years since Hitler came to power. It would seem the purpose of Ross Range's book is to learn the lessons of that period to prevent it from happening again.

President Paul von Hindenburg gave Hitler power. During his twelve years as German chancellor, as Peter Swartz eloquently points out, "the Hitler regime committed crimes never previously witnessed by mankind. It smashed the organized labour movement, subjected the country to a totalitarian dictatorship, destroyed Europe in an unprovoked war of aggression, and murdered millions of Jews, Roma and other minorities. January 30, 1933, was a historic turning point. Before then, barbarism and antisemitism had been considered traits of economic and cultural backwardness. In 1933, however, the elite of a country that was highly developed both economically and culturally handed over power to a barbaric anti-Semite whose party relied on the dregs of society.[7]

While predominantly a political biography of Hitler and the rise of German fascism, Ross Range does not shy away from showing the terrible economic crisis that paved the way for Hitler to come to power. As Peter Schwarz again points out, "The source of this crisis lay in the irresolvable contradictions of German and international capitalism. The consequences of World War I and the onset of the global economic crisis in 1929 had ruined broad layers of the working class and middle class. German society was deeply divided; democracy existed only in name. The Weimar Republic survived based on emergency decrees and presidential cabinets as it headed towards a social explosion".[8]

This book is a very rare breed in that it contains a masterful political analysis of the rise of Hitlerite Fascism. It has an almost novel-like pace which is the hallmark of good narrative-driven historiography. His book is meticulously researched. Ross Range has deep mined and ransacked many German archives, and many of his sources have been translated into English from the German originals, probably for the first time.

Many things separate Ross Range's work from other historiographies. He does not believe that Hitler's antisemitism was fully developed during his pre-war Vienna period. In his book, Mein Kampf, Hitler said he was stimulated in his hatred of Jews because they were walking around Vienna, saying they were "an apparition in a black caftan and black hair locks".It is true that Hitler early on had a murderous hatred of Jews.

But as Konrad Heiden points out, Hitler "hated the whole great sphere of human existence which is devoted to the regular transference of energy into product; and he hated the men who had let themselves be caught and crushed in this process of production. All his life, the workers were for him a picture of horror, a dismal gruesome mass, everything which he later said from the speaker's platform to flatter the manual worker was pure lies".[9]

As David North points out in one of his earlier works, "Herein lies the key to an understanding of Hitler's demonic obsession with the Jews. In Mein Kampf, Hitler explained how his conversion to antisemitism flowed from his encounters with the labour movement. It was among the workers that Hitler first came into contact with Jews. He then discovered, to his amazement, that many Jews played prominent roles in the labour movement. "The great light dawned on him," wrote Heiden. "Suddenly, the 'Jewish question' became clear. … The labour movement did not repel him because it was led by Jews; the Jews repelled him because they led the labour movement. One thing is certain, Heiden concluded, "It was not Rothschild, the capitalist, but Karl Marx, the Socialist, who kindled Adolf Hitler's antisemitism."[10]

In his book 1924, Range quotes historian Othmar Plochinger stating that Hitler only started using antisemitism as a political weapon in Munich. Plochinger believes Hitler's antisemitism was "the winning horse in the existing political environment."8

Ross Range does not appear to subscribe to the "great man of history" genre and does not inflate Hitler's intelligence. However, he does make the point that Hitler learnt from his mistakes. According to Ronald Bleier", Hitler's flexibility "was due to a realistic self-appraisal of his extraordinary political, administrative, and rhetorical abilities and his clear understanding of the turbulent politics in which he operated".

Ross Range shows in the book that everything was not plain sailing for the Nazi leader, and on many occasions, he could have been defeated, and his political career ended.

In a Time Magazine article, he elaborates, "Adolf Hitler did not have to come to power. Indeed, during his 13-year quest for leadership of Germany, he almost failed many times. In the end, however, his astonishing success showed how demagoguery could overcome potentially career-ending challenges—and profoundly change history. A determined strongman, not taken seriously by the elites but enabled by a core of passionate supporters, could bend events his way just as his country went into free-fall. Hitler's seemingly improbable ascent is an object lesson in the volatility of history.[11]

This is an extremely valuable book, and I highly recommend it. Ross Range proves that Hitler ascent to power was entirely fathomable. It is, however, not without faults. Ross Range says next to nothing on the betrayals of the worker's movement by Social Democracy and Stalinism. Hindenburg gave political power to a homicidal maniac to save German capitalism from revolution. The monstrous betrayals carried out by Stalinism, and Social democracy paved the way for Hitler to come to power without a single shot being fired.

As David north pointed out in the interview, Ross Range cannot write such a book, but it is down to the Fourth International to write such a book. This new work has to draw heavily on the political writings of the great Russian Marxist Leon Trotsky, whose writings are still prescient for today's political situation. One such book that does that is Why are they Back.

Speaking of the danger of a fascist movement today in Germany, Christoph Vandreier said, "The fascists are not a mass movement but are a hated minority. However, the ruling elite is once again promoting fascism and right-wing ideology in order to suppress opposition to its militarism and worsening social inequality. That is why an independent movement of the working class is the only way to fight this danger."

The working class must learn the lessons of this history. As the writer, Bertolt Brecht warned, "Do not rejoice in his defeat, you men. For though the world has stood up and stopped the bastard, the bitch that bore him is in heat again."[12]

Notes

1. Peter Ross Range, 1924: The Year That Made Hitler (New York: Little, Brown, 2016), p. 224-225.2 Range, 224-225.

2. Why Are They Back? Historical Falsification, Political Conspiracy and the Return of Fascism in Germany, Christoph Vandreier-Mehring Books.

3. The Struggle Against Fascism in Germany (Merit S.) Hardcover – December 1 1970

About the Author

Peter Ross Range is a world-renowned journalist and author of numerous books. In addition to The Unfathomable Ascent: How Hitler Came to Power (Little, Brown and Company, 2020), he is the author of 1924: The Year That Made Hitler (‎Little, Brown and Company, 2016).

[1] Despair and Triumph in Hitler's First Miracle Year: A Review-Essay on Peter Ross Range's 1924-by Ronald Bleier-http://desip.igc.org/Bleier-Range-Review.html [2] Frederick Engels in the The Jewish Question, Abram Leon, The Jewish Question, Pathfinder Press, pp. 234-35 [3] https://www.marxists.org/archive/trotsky/germany/1932-ger/next01.htm [4] https://www.wsws.org/en/articles/2021/12/08/unfa-d08.html [5] Nations and Nationalism Since 1780, Second Edition: Programme, Myth, Reality (Canto Classics) Paperback – 29 Mar. 2012 [6] https://mehringbooks.co.uk/ [7] https://www.wsws.org/en/articles/2013/02/02/pers-f02.html [8] https://www.wsws.org/en/articles/2013/02/02/pers-f02.html [9] Konrad Heiden, Der Fuehrer, (Boston: Houghton Mifflin, 1944), p. 58. [10] The Myth of “Ordinary Germans”: A Review of Daniel Goldhagen’s Hitler’s Willing Executioners-https://www.wsws.org/en/special/library/russian-revolution-unfinished-twentieth-century/15.html#fn15 [11] https://time.com/5884522/hitler-ascent-lesson/ [12] Referring to Arturo Ui (representing Adolf Hitler), in The Resistible Rise of Arturo Ui (1941)

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spn-ficfanatic · 6 years

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The One Moment- Ch2: Love Is The Rhythm, You Are The Music

SERIES MASTERLIST - PART 1 - PART 3

Chapter Summary: Jared walks you home and takes the opportunity to get to know you a little better. 20 questions anyone?

Genre: Fluff, a teensy bit of angst

Words: 2570

Warnings: Mild swearing

A/N: Fun Fact! Chapters 1 and 2 used to be big one 5000 word one-shot that started this whole fic, and I decided to split them when the story took control. They flow nicely so y’all get a special treat and I’m posting Ch 2 now! Part 3 might not be out until early next week, but I’ve included a little preview at the bottom xo

The song was over and the crowd was cheering. The adrenaline was pumping through your veins and you were grinning like an idiot. You had been quietly annoyed with Lucas for pulling you up here at first but now you were so grateful you had. You pulled him in for a hug and whispered a thank you in his ear before affectionately slapping his face. He smiled back and helped you off the stage, to a heap of pats on the back and ‘well done’s from the crowd. You thanked them all as you blushed, trying not to run back to the safety of your table and your friends. You were pleased to see Jared and Jensen looked a little shell-shocked as you approached Lacey who gave you a hug.

“Oh my god babe, I haven’t heard you sing in ages! I nearly thought you’d forgotten how!” she laughed, kissing you on the cheek. You thanked her and turned to the boys, waiting for one of them to talk. Jensen decided it would have to be him, because Jared appeared to have lost his voice.

“So, you can sing and dance. Can you act? Are you a triple threat? Should Jared and I just start looking for new work now? Because I’m pretty sure Eric will have a breakdown if you leave him for a career in Hollywood,” Jensen asked in mock seriousness. You pulled him in for a hug, laughing as you did, and patted him on the back.

“Thanks Jay,” you said warmly, blushing slightly. You started to wonder if it was possible to blush too much. Would blood soon start rushing from your nose and ears? He finally saw you looking at him and he cleared his throat.

“Um, wow. That was... that was something,” he said, and you smiled as you gave him a hug.

“My god Y/N. I’ve been searching for the last 3 years and apparently YOU were the key to shutting him up all along!”

He told Jensen to shut up, pulling you closer and braving a quick peck to the top of your head. You looked at Lacey who wiggled her eyebrows suggestively, and you poked your tongue out at her.

“Well,” she started. “I think it’s time to call it a night. What do you think Jay?” she asked Jensen, staring at him pointedly so he’d understand the hidden meaning behind her words. He obviously got it, and cleared his throat.

“Um, yep. Yep I think it’s getting pretty late. Better get you home!”

“Such a gentleman,” you laughed, winking. He blushed, actually BLUSHED, and you laughed even harder. You gave Lacey a quick peck on the cheek and waved her and Jensen off. Kevin had left with his dance partner before you got up on the stage so it was just you and Jared left, and suddenly you couldn’t help but feel a little awkward.

“It IS getting pretty late, did you want to get home too?” he asked you. You sighed.

“I suppose so. I need to get out of here at least, it’s getting a bit warm.”

Jared led you out of the club, his hand placed on the middle of your back. As you pushed the door open you relished in the fresh air; it was warm and you were grateful to not be carrying around a bulky jacket tonight.

“I guess I should be getting home as well,” Jared commented. There was no suggestion in his voice, no silent beg for an invitation back to yours for “coffee” and for that you appreciated him a whole lot more. You had to laugh though.

“I think you better check your phone Jared. Hate to tell you but Lacey never brings guys back to our place.”

Jared raised his eyebrow just as his phone vibrated. Sure enough, he read the text Jensen sent him and put his phone away sighing.

“So, apparently Lacey doesn’t bring guys back to her place,” he reported.

“Yer, I had heard that somewhere,” you giggled. “Lucky for you, I do. Cummon.”

You stopped dead in your tracks and your eyes widened in horror when you realized how that sounded. You turned to face him, to see him smirking at you.

“Um, I didn’t mean that like it sounded. I don’t ever bring guys home I swear. Not that I’m a hermit or anything, I’ve had s- been with guys before. And it’s not that I’m not good, I’m amazing, I just don’t sleep around oh my God shut up Y/N,” you scolded yourself, holding your hands over your face. Jared meanwhile was shaking from laughter, using a nearby post to hold himself steady so he didn’t go completely over. Try as you might you could help join in, and pretty soon you were both howling from laughter and wiping tears from your eyes. Calming down you held out your hand to Jared, “sorry, let me introduce myself. I’m Y/N, and I have verbal diarrhea when I get nervous.”

He cleared his throat to compose himself and smiled, reaching to shake your hand. As he shook it though he surprised you by yanking you toward him, and smashed his lips into yours. You melted into him immediately, wrapping your arms around his neck and deepening the kiss. You felt his hands drift up your back under your top, caressing your skin gently, while your hands found themselves running through his long hair. You had never experienced a kiss like this before, your entire body was jittery with anticipation and you could feel the heat building between your legs already. You could feel Jared’s pants become tight, and suddenly realized where this was going. You pulled your lips back, but didn’t dare to shift your body from his.

“Um,” you started, licking your lips. “Not that I’m not enjoying this IMMENSLY, but…”

Jared brushed his fingers across your face and gave you a gentle peck. “It’s ok, I understand. But for what it’s worth, I definitely want to pick this up again someday.”

You hummed and nodded in agreement, and peeled your body off of his with a sigh. You looked into his eyes and offered your hand for him to take, smiling as he did.

“Let me lead you to my castle,” you told him, starting the journey down the street.

“You live nearby?” he asked, sounding surprised.

“About 4 blocks from here. I’m assuming with your freakishly long legs you’ll make it without breaking a sweat,” you replied with a wink.

“So, I guess we have some time for 20 questions then?” he asked you quizzically. You raised a questioning eyebrow and nodded, allowing him to continue uninterrupted.

“You don’t drink?” he asked. You were surprised that was his first question, and that he even noticed.

“No, I don’t. I like to be prepared in case Eric ever needs anything on the fly,” you replied. It wasn’t the whole truth but you felt it was enough to not have him push the topic further, and you were right.

“OK… so how do you know the band? You and the singer seemed to be kind of chummy,” he said, a hint of jealousy in his voice.

“We hooked up a few years ago but we’re still good friends. We’re not interested in each other like that and mostly just stay in touch over social media. I occasionally bump into him at bars and clubs though.”

Jared nodded, notably more relaxed upon hearing that. You smiled and continued to walk, allowing him the chance to keep asking questions. You were mostly an open book so you’d take just about anything he threw at you.

“Alright, I know I said 20 questions but really I only have one more,” he said, tightening his grip on your hand. “Why am I only meeting you for the first time tonight, when we’ve been working practically side-by-side for the last 6 months?”

You slowed your pace, trying to decide how much to tell him at this point. He noticed and slowed down too, concern flashing across his face.

“I’m sorry, did I ask the wrong thing? You don’t have to answer, I’m just curious I guess…”

“No it’s ok, it’s a fair question. I know how I am at work so it’s only natural for you to wonder.”

“So… that IS you doing it on purpose?”

You nodded, and stopped walking entirely so you could face him. “The job I had before Eric hired me… I loved it. I mean, really loved it. I worked for a really kind lady, even though she was extremely successful she wasn’t snobby and she always had time for me. Would allow me time off whenever I asked, on the rare occasion that I did. She was a CEO and spent most of her time in the office so I saw a lot of her employees. One took an interest in me and, well,” you stopped, not entirely sure how much to tell him. You were having such an amazing night with him and didn’t want to bring that down. “I told him I wasn’t interested, he didn’t really take that well and eventually I decided it was better to leave. I don’t want to say he scared me off but things weren’t really the same after that,” you told him, taking his hand in both of yours for just a little extra comfort. Not that it was necessary though as he pulled you in for a hug. You tucked your head under his chin and leant against his chest, listening to his heartbeat to try and calm yourself down.

“I’m sorry Y/N. I shouldn’t have asked.” You pulled away to look at him.

“No, it’s ok, I’m glad you did.” You were past the serious part of the conversation so felt comfortable moving again, and continued on your way down the street with him in toe. “After that, finding a job like this where the LARGE majority of cast and crew are male, I decided to play it safe. Not draw attention, try and stay invisible. And it’s definitely working; I was all prepared to introduce myself to you tonight when I came up for a hug.”

“Haha, no. For what it’s worth, I notice you at work. Your smile caught me within the first week but then I started seeing you help out around set and it was hard to NOT notice you. I may have had a little crush,” he admitted, blushing. Your stomach started flip flopping with that confession. Jared Padalecki, star of a hit TV show and pretty much 10 feet of drop-dead gorgeous, actually had a crush on you?

“What are you thinking about?” he asked quietly.

“Sorry,” you said, shaking your head slightly. “Nothing I guess. Just, you know, making a mental list of all the jackasses in high school that made fun of me, that I now need to call and brag to.” Jared laughed at that, and let a comfortable silence fall between you as you walked.

After a block or so you struck up conversation, and the rest of the time was spent discussing a million little things. Nothing serious, all the regular stuff like family and friends and past jobs and such. Stuff that would normally bore you to tears on a date that Jared somehow made sound so interesting. You would be sad to reach your apartment, you realized.

~~~~~~~~

It took you a moment to remember where you were when you woke up. You rolled over and saw a pile of scrubs on the floor and it started coming back to you. Jared took your bed, you took Lacey’s, and Lacey definitely took Jensen’s. You smiled as your thoughts drifted to the gorgeous giant sleeping in your King size bed right at that moment, and decided you wanted to make something nice for him for breakfast.

You threw on Lacey’s slippers and snuck down the hall to the kitchen. It was fairly silent as you plod past the kitchen counter to where the pots and pans where kept, and let out a scream when you saw a figure crouched down in front of you. Jared jumped up suddenly, letting out a yelp of his own, holding up his hands in defense.

“Jesus Christ Jared!” you cried, holding your hand to your chest feeling your beating heart go a mile a minute. “You scared the crap out of me, I thought you were asleep!”

“I’m so sorry Y/N. I uh, woke early so I thought I’d surprise you with breakfast,” he replied.

“Well, you definitely surprised me, I’ll give you that,” you told him, taking a couple of deep breaths.

“Pretty sure you won’t need a coffee now,” he tried to joke, giving a lopsided smile which you couldn’t help but love.

“I wouldn’t say that. Don’t say that,” you replied seriously, taking the empty mug he was holding and walking over to the cappuccino machine. You set the mug down and turned it on, before turning back and surprising Jared with a deep passionate kiss. He returned it hungrily, holding your face in his hands and stroking your cheeks with his thumbs. You pulled away saying “surprise,” with a cheeky grin.

“That was better than my surprise,” he said quietly, gazing into your eyes while still holding your face in his hands. You were interrupted by the coffee machine and you groaned. “Oh god, how do I choose? The man of my dreams or the coffee I dream about?”

“Man of your dreams huh?” he asked you, his face lighting up. You blushed and started to pull away, but he grabbed your hand and pulled you back for one more quick peck. “For what it’s worth,” he continued, “I was dreaming about you long before last night.”

He let you go and you gave a happy shudder, moving over to make your coffee. You and Jared made comfortable small talk while you drank and made pancakes, which continued as you settled down to eat. “Um, what are you doing?” Jared asked with a raised eyebrow and grin. You stared blankly at him while putting your topping of choice on your pancake. “Is that, um… are you putting pancake mix on your pancake?”

You laughed, “Have you ever tried it Mr Judgy-Pants?”

“Well no, but, it’s kinda wei-“ you cut him off by shoving your fork into his mouth, covered in pancake mixture covered pancake. He chewed slowly before breaking out into a big grin.

“Ths’s ‘mazing,” he said, reaching over for the bowl and pouring it all over his pancakes.

“Hey hey, don’t bogart my topping,” you laughed, taking it back and adding some more to your plate.

“So, I wanted to ask you something,” Jared started, licking mixture of his fingers.

“Fire away,” you replied with a full mouth.

“I just wondered, well, I’d like to take you out sometime,” he said, looking at his plate nervously. You couldn’t help but laugh.

“Aw sweety, are you asking me out on a date?” you lightly teased. You raised his chin with your hand and give him a kiss, resting your forehead on his. “Of course Jare, you didn’t even really need to ask you know.”

“I guess I wanted to do it right,” he replied, lifting his head to look into your eyes, before pulling you in for another kiss.

Part 3 HERE

PREVIEW:

“Y/N isn’t here,” Jared confirmed to Lacey. “What’s going on? Is she ok?”

“I don’t think so,” she replied with a groan. “It’s just I’ve come home and she’s not here, her hot chocolate’s on the floor, it looks like she left in a hurry and I just… I have a bad feeling.”

“Everything” Tag List - @angelsandwinchesters , @grace-for-sale

“The One Moment” Tag List - @pansexualmoose , @winchester-writes

#supernatural #Supernatural Fan Fiction #supernatural fanfiction #Supernatural fanfic #supernatural fic #jared x reader #jared padalecki x reader #jared padalecki fanfiction #Jared Padalecki #Jensen Ackles #Jensen #SPN #spn fic #spn fanfiction #supernatural angst #supernatural fluff #reader #reader fanfiction #reader fanfic

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your-music-sucks · 6 years

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Ed Sheeran’s “Perfect” Sucks

Driving with my girlfriend, I heard Ed Sheeran’s newest, biggest hit for the first time. Since I have a phone, internet connection, and a house that’s not a hole 500 miles underground, I was aware of the song beforehand. I don’t listen to the radio when I’m driving in a car, and I usually have Spotify tuned to whatever music I feel like listening to. “Perfect” never hit my radar. In the case of The Chainsmokers’ summer smash “Closer”, my curiosity got the better of me and I looked up the music video. The case of “Perfect” did not apply. From an outsider looking in, the song seemed like the usual schtick: Ed Sheeran pens an acoustic ballad, millions of people cover it, everyone and their grandmas plays it at every gathering for the next eight months, and then we chalk it up to an older reference and simultaneously starting the cycle back up.

So there I was, in the front seat, my girlfriend driving. As we were driving, I could recognize Sheeran’s voice, though I didn’t know it was “Perfect”. Even before I knew what it was, I was thinking to myself “wow, this song is generic”. And it was when I heard him sing the line “darling, you look perfect tonight” that everything hit me and a swirl of thoughts and feelings swelled into one, huge revelation:

Ed Sheeran’s “Perfect” is a generic, uninteresting, and disastrous blow to the music industry that doesn’t deserve a hundredth of the sales it’s pulling.

Let’s start with the chord progression: G, Em, C, D in the verse. Lord, where do I start? If I made a list of every song that uses that progression, we would be here all week. For my non-music nerds, it’s the same progression as songs like “Earth Angel”, “Stand By Me”, “In The Aeroplane Over the Sea”, “Last Kiss” and hundreds of songs like that. However, I’m not going to knock Eddie boy for this. Major keys and 1-6-4-5s are if-it-ain’t-broke-don’t-fix-it kind of chord progressions.

Moving on, are the lyrics at least redeemable? Nah. It’s about a girl in his life, he’s known her forever, and she looks good in a dress. This can describe the song, "Stacy’s Mom” by Fountains of Wayne, Romeo and Juliet, and even the Star Wars prequels. Note how none of these works end with a happy ending (don’t tell me “Stacy’s Mom” doesn’t end horribly. It’s a child trying to have sex with an older woman. Every choice ends in court.) Again, Ed gets off the hook for this. If we wrote a different song about every moment in our life, even the oldest farts would run out of clean material. The guy’s gotta eat too.

What about the arrangements? Bland, generic, done before. Wow Ed! You made a string section go down the major scale. Golly gee willickers, it’s a good thing artists haven’t been doing this for literal decades, or you might not be an original artist! Acoustic guitar, strings, piano, organ, you know what this song is? This song is “Wonderful Tonight” by Eric Clapton. That song does all the same things Eddo over here’s doing, but has top-tier guitar leads from a top-five rock guitarist in terms of icon-status. Ed’s got musical skill (I’ve seen videos of him live, and I was impressed) but he shows none of it on “Perfect”. One again, I don’t knock him for this.

You know why “Perfect” bothers me? You know why this song makes me want to yell at the music industry? Because this song is huge. Everyone’s trying to learn it, play it, everyone’s listening to it, and it’s the biggest ballad of the year. The key to art is expectations. Art is only as good as the emotions you think you’re going to feel. Low expectation resulting in a good song make for a great work of art. The opposite make for a bad experience. Remember when Tom DeLonge told us Angels & Airwaves would be the biggest rock revolution of the last twenty years or something like that? Remember what came out of that? Even if you have no idea what I’m talking about, my point still stands. Have you ever been at an open mic and seen a stranger blow you away, inspiring you to give them all your money and praise? That too.

Ed Sheeran’s “Perfect” is also a representation of the decline of rock music. We live in an age where hip hop and metal music dominate the pop and alternate scenes, respectively. Neither of these two genres are inherently bad, but they don’t offer nearly as much wiggle room and pure rock does. There is so much Rock can offer, so many directions and styles and approaches, and the industry takes their biggest figure and makes him get a paycheck. “Perfect” has no heart, no passion, or anything worth diving deeper into. At least John Legend’s “All of Me”, another I-need-to-eat song, was lyrically interesting, mixed things up chords-wise in the pre-chorus, and had some solid piano playing. Ed’s newest biggest hit offers none of that. My jimmies are rustled. I’m going back to Spotify and my musical happy place of 80s electro pop. Text me when something interesting happens in the music industry. By the looks of it, I’ll be jamming to “Video Killed the Radio Star” for a while.

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orbemnews · 3 years

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How the late night talk show set became an American icon Written by Jacqui Palumbo, CNN “The Story of Late Night,” a new CNN Original Series on the history of the iconic genre, airs Sundays at 9 p.m. ET/PT. Listen to the companion podcast, “Behind the Desk: The Story of Late Night,” here. For more than six decades, American late night talk show hosts have sat behind large wooden desks, with guests in cushioned chairs or couches to their right. Behind them, the wall may be painted to mimic an open vista; around them, a brightly lit studio set is made more inviting through warm wood tones, mugs on a desk or — in Johnny Carson’s case — a couple of well-placed house plants. As much as the programs themselves are part of Americans’ nightly rituals, the late night talk show set has become an iconic — and predictable — fixture in television, today inhabited by comics including Stephen Colbert, Jimmy Fallon and Jimmy Kimmel, following in the lineage of Jay Leno and David Letterman, and further back, Carson, Steve Allen and Dick Cavett. Johnny Carson (pictured with Dolly Parton) remains televisions longest-running late night talk show host, spending four decades behind the desk for “The Tonight Show.” Credit: Alice S. Hall/NBC/Getty Images “It’s funny how late night sets have not changed much since they started,” said Robert Thompson, a media scholar and professor of television and popular culture at Syracuse University, in a video interview. “It’s an attempt to show some semblance of our idea of an American living room. But an American living room where one of the people, the owner of the living room, sits behind a desk.” When it was first introduced around 1949, late night was a different beast than the already familiar entertainment of evening variety like “The Ed Sullivan Show” or daytime talk show programming like “The Today Show.” The late show concept had a very low bar for success, as the CNN original series “The Story of Late Night,” details. Prior to the debut of the then-novel, post-11pm programming, the nightly news would give way to a test pattern, and then static — a foreign visual today, in an era when there is always something to stream. Watch a brief history of late night talk shows “Late night began as a way to kill time,” host Conan O’Brien, who just announced the end of his long-running program on TBS, said in the docuseries. “It was the networks realizing… ‘let’s kick the football a little further down the road and see what happens at 11:30.'” Today, late night talk shows have branched out beyond network television, and have begun to include more women and hosts of color, including new shows helmed by Seth Meyers’ writer Amber Ruffin and popular YouTuber Lilly Singh. Yet the desk setup largely remains, and it’s notable when a host tries to do away with the formula — like when Bill Maher sat among his guests on the ’90s show “Politically Incorrect.” Last year, Samantha Bee explained the reason her weekly show “Full Frontal” is deskless in an interview for the Television Academy Foundation, saying the traditional approach made her feel “super confined.” Comedian Steve Allen first introduced the talk show desk during the often experimental 1950s show “Tonight Starring Steve Allen” — the first iteration of “The Tonight Show.” Credit: NBC/Getty Images Still, the spirit of the 1950s and ’60s era of set design has largely persisted. “Every time you see a late night show, it seems like everybody starts with the same formula,” said Keith Raywood, a production designer who has built sets for O’Brien and Fallon, in a video interview. “They just dress it differently.” Designed for power dynamics The pioneer of the late night talk show was actually a woman, the actress Faye Emerson, who hosted interviews and gave her own political commentary in 1949 on “The Faye Emerson Show,” often from a couch in a living room. But then women were relegated to the realm of daytime television, where advertisers could appeal to stay-at-home wives, media historian Maureen Mauk explained in “The Story of Late Night.” “The men started to take over (late night), and the women were really never to return, in a lot of ways,” Mauk said. (The next female host to nab a nighttime talk show was Joan Rivers in 1986, but Fox cancelled “The Late Show Starring Joan Rivers” the following year. A decade later, Cynthia Garrett became the first network late night Black female host, but her NBC show “Later” was axed after a single season.) Joan Rivers was often a guest host for Carson on “The Tonight Show,” as pictured here with Oprah Winfrey, but wound up competing against him with her own short-lived Fox show. Credit: Paul Drinkwater/NBC/Getty Images Comedian Steve Allen first introduced the desk during his wacky and experimental programming that was the first iteration of “The Tonight Show” — which included him dipping into vats of jello and happily pie-smashing his guests. According to “The Story of Late Night,” Allen’s successor, Jack Paar, added the content format we’re still familiar with today: a monologue, interview and performance. But it was Johnny Carson, host of “The Tonight Show” for over four decades, whose affable, family-friendly charm became synonymous with late night. And his long-running show also cemented the hierarchy implicit in the layout of the set. “The desk is occasionally breached,” said Thompson. During the first taping of the “Late Show with David Letterman,” Bill Murray spray painted Letterman’s desk. Credit: Alan Singer/CBS/Getty Images “It’s less democratic, less egalitarian, if someone is sitting behind a desk in an elevated position, and his guests are not equal in stature in terms of how they’re being seated,” Raywood said. Thompson points out the setup “leaves the guests to be fully exposed.” Cavett, whose talk show slots included late night, preferred to sit more casually on comfortable chairs with his guests, putting them on equal ground. Arsenio Hall (here with Eddie Murphy) shook up late night as the first Black host — and notably did away the desk format. Credit: Ron Galella, Ltd./Getty Images But one magnetic personality aimed for an even more personal way of engaging with his guests. Arsenio Hall, who in 1989 became the first Black host to helm a late night talk show, sat close to his guests, who were on a couch, and leaned in with rapt attention. “We see him in his entirety,” Thompson said of Hall. “He would lean into his interviews…which gave it a sense of intimacy.” Carson, on the other hand, “had an emotional distance to him,” Thompson said. “The idea of him leaning in in that friendly, familiar way that Arsenio did would have been unthinkable. And I think it’s one of the reasons (“The Arsenio Hall Show”) really had some voltage and some energy — because it looked less like what we had seen so many times over and over again.” Reworking the formula Some of the most creative takes on talk show sets have come out of the parodies, which have become as ubiquitous as late night itself. The original spoof, Norman Lear’s “Fernwood 2 Night” from 1977, and its grandchild, Zach Galifianakis’s “Between Two Ferns,” which premiered in 2008, directly referenced the ever-present greenery on Carson’s set. President Obama was famously tapped for Galifianakis’s Funny or Die series, which took place on a simple black set with two towering green ferns. During his interview, Obama deadpanned to the comedian: “When I heard that people actually watch this show, I was actually pretty surprised.” Eric Andre and Semere Etmet at “The Eric Andre Show Live!” The sketch comedy series parodies public-access talk shows with a wild dose of surrealism. Credit: Michael Tullberg/Getty Images Meanwhile, “The Eric Andre Show,” the absurdist Adult Swim show that debuted in 2012 and repeatedly destroys its set, heightened all of the strangeness that Steve Allen had established in the Wild West of late night, and that Letterman continued early in his career. “Older late night television had a real sense of that iconoclastic,” Thompson said. But Thompson has noted how even kitsch and subversion has become cliché. It’s only recently that another substantial shift in late night set design has occurred, he said, thanks to the ongoing coronavirus pandemic, which forced late night hosts to tape from home for an extended period of time. “All of a sudden, the set of the talk show itself was totally downsized, because people were doing it from home,” he said. “Colbert started in his bathtub the very first day.” As Colbert suited up in his bubble bath the first night for “The Late Show” on CBS, Meyers posted up at his in-laws’ house for “Late Night” on NBC. After 68 episodes there, a painting of a sea captain, which had become an animated “guest” throughout the remote shows, said goodbye with a jaunty sea shanty. Late-night TV marks anniversary of pandemic “In a strange way, the liberation from those Carson-era studio sets was actually, creatively, a good thing for late night talk shows,” Thompson said. Instead of guests stopping by the set, they could dial in from wherever, using Zoom backgrounds or sharing the intimacy of their homes. “Sometimes it’s more interesting to talk to Arnold Schwarzenegger from his house, than it is to have Arnold Schwarzenegger wander onto the stage, which is so artificial, so prepped,” Thompson said. Raywood also signaled that it’s time for something new, after nearly seven decades of following the same formula. “I think we could easily be due for a change in format for late night television,” he said. “Every generation veers into another direction — how they look at things, how they dress, the kind of music they listen to — so why are we doing the same show every (time)?” He added: “You need producers who are creative enough, and brave enough.” This article has been updated to correct the title and year of Joan Rivers’ late-night show with Fox, and to include additional context regarding the Dick Cavett set. 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