#but like… that’s so boring ? and also doesn’t address the issue of how the other feel abt him being there

[just-a-whumping-racoon-with-wifi]

TW: Pet whump, controlling whumper. 

Mason sat back in his chair, eyes glazing over the two figures in front of him. Training assessment were free, mostly so he could more accurately price the actual training, but sometimes there were owners that brought in pets that frankly didn’t need training. 

This owner was a good example of that. 

“Let me repeat these real quick,” he said, leaning forward and cutting off the owner as they rambled. “You’re frustrated with your pet’s tendency to be clingy, talkativeness, tendency to touch things he shouldn’t, and wandering?” 

“Yes!” The owner said, exasperated. “It’s awful, I get no peace and quiet when I get home from work, he’s always underfoot and -see! He’s doing it now!” 

The pet froze, leaned over towards Mason’s desk to poke at the circular screw protectors. Bashfully, he pulled his hands back to his lap and looked down, color flooding to the tips of his ears. His hair was getting long, either needing to be trimmed or clipped back somehow. 

Completely unrelated, Mason needed to make an appointment for Rudy at the groomer. 

Mason stared at the owner, trying to find a better way to word what the fuck is wrong with you. 

“Everything you’ve listed is just your pet’s personality.” 

The owner gawked at him, clearly offended. “Pets don’t have personalities!” 

Well, that wasn’t even worth a response. Mason reached down and opened the bottom drawer of his desk where he kept random toys for the boys when they came to the office with him. He pulled out a small cube with sliding parts and gave a short whistle to get the pet’s attention. The moment he snapped his head up, Mason tossed it carefully in his lap. Curiously, the boy started to twist and slide the pieces, turning it around in his hands to see how it worked. 

“Wandering at night can be easily controlled with a lead or crate. Talkativeness can also be addressed, but it’s more likely connected to the other issues. He’s bored. He doesn’t get enough attention, and doesn’t have anything to do during the day.”

The owner folded their arms and huffed, indigent. “I get the impression you think I don’t take care of my pet. He gets plenty of attention, I promise you that. You saw earlier! I’m constantly having to fix his behavior and stop him from annoying me or others. He’s always underfoot.” 

Mason merely raised a brow and looked pointedly at the boy, who was now sitting quietly as he fiddled with the toy. 

“You just think you’re better than us, asshole. Get up, we’re leaving. No, leave the stupid square you’re not taking it with you.” 

Sometimes the assessments were also to save Mason the headache of working with some clients. 

~~~

The boys were happy as always to see him when he got home. Excited but manageable, just how he liked. There was nothing special planned for tonight, just the normal routine of dinner and resting before bed. Something kept pestering Mason, popping up again and again in the back of his head. 

In the middle of the TV show, he reached down and cupped Rudy’s chin, directing the boy to look up at thim. Rudy wasn’t afraid of him, eyes bright and waiting for instruction. 

“You know how lucky you are, don’t you Rudy? Not all owners are as good with you boys as I am.” 

Rudy smiled warmly at him. “Of course. Thank you, Master, for taking such good care of us.” 

Mason rubbed his head and let him return to watching TV. Damn right he took care of them.

#mason is good at his job #pet whump

[midnight-laundry]

wrote this on twitter but i figure i should put my meta on the meta website

been thinking about the last episode’s title, and how this could apply to edizzy/steddyhands. warning: i’m very confidently wearing my clown makeup and wig and shoes and nose so buckle in.

where edizzy stand rn, it makes sense to want them to end things and move on, but does that really address the source of their dysfunction? when you’re young or just starting to understand relationships, it can feel like the best thing to do is end things whenever they’re no longer easy or supplying you with as much dopamine as it used to. but as you get older, and hopefully more mature, it could become more likely that you’ll look inward instead.

obviously, there’s a line between actual awful abusive relationships that should absolutely end, and flawed relationships where the ppl in them lost their way and stopped trying as hard. i’ve seen some ppl argue that izzy in the relationship IS abusive (i don’t agree, obviously, esp with ed as the one with the power between the two of them) but viewing their interactions and the way they’re familiar with each other, i really don’t believe that.

these two are in a dysfunctional spot when we meet them, “discomfort in a married state” “trouble in paradise” and so on.

ed is tired of blackbeard, tired of the role he plays and the life he’s built. but the show doesn’t try to tell us that /izzy/ is the reason life has gotten like this for them. it makes it clear that this ennui is a result of ed’s own unhappiness and restlessness.

piracy has gotten boring, he’s tired of the grind, of the constant planning and scheming. for ed, it feels easier to glomp onto this new guy and to run away to china. but better metas than this one have delineated why that wouldn’t have solved his issues, and the edstede relationship would’ve blown up eventually, either by ed becoming bored once again, or stede resenting that he left piracy after his “career” had barely even begun.

izzy has his own plethora of issues he needs to face, too. while he could leave ed and find another captain, what would stop him from repeating the same mistakes he did with ed? dedicating his life to one person, devotion without reciprocation, lashing out when the person doesn’t live up to the be-pedestaled image iz has in his mind?

what if, instead, edizzy can find a way to actually… change… for the better? what if izzy sees a different way forward than just “the only retirement we get is death” and is allowed the space and safety to find it? what if ed is given the chance to figure out who he actually is and what he wants, if he were to understand why he feels so restless in the first place?

could they learn to see each other as a whole complete person? not as just a loyal dog (izzy) or a wrathful god (ed) but as a lover, a partner, a confused man trying to make sense of the cards they’ve been dealt?

stede will have to go on his own empathy journey, but I’d love to see edizzy figure it out without stede. there’s still something there, these two built a life and it must’ve worked for a while for them. i think there’s still something there worth salvaging.

because “wherever you go, there you are” and learning to be better to each other would be how they can get somewhere else, because then they’d be /someone/ else. and what better way to fix their mistakes than with the person they’d initially made them with? i don’t know if this makes sense but: tl;dr edizzy should fix their relationship bc it seems to fit the show’s thesis of “talking it through” and dismantling previous notions of “how things are done”

edizzy are salty sea dogs but could still learn new tricks. and also djenks should give us steddyhands as justice for all the sad pirate threesomes that never came to be

#ofmd meta #edizzy #edizzy meta #edward teach #izzy hands #ofmd

[tetrakys]

MCL Alternate Life review

Now that the three 4-episodes routes have been fully released, I’m ready to spend some final words on AL in general and the three boys specifically.

Plot

The plot is quite simple: AL was created to mostly address the break up, it is the canonical ending to Lysander, Kentin and Armin’s routes (while UL and LL are the canon continuation of Cas’ and Nath’s routes). The general plot is meeting your old boyfriend again, reconnect, solidify the relationship and resolve the long-distance issue. Quite simple, it’s the con of having only 4 episodes, but it does its job well, for years we asked for something that would fix the break up and we got it. Also I liked that the main structure was the same for all three boys, it provides a sense of continuity and a main theme for the season.

System

Same as the other seasons, 2AP x line of dialogue, however there is one main difference. Episodes 2 and 3 have choices which lead to different illustrations and scenes, meaning that they should be replayed twice if all illus with the crush want to be obtained. I personally quite like this system because the episodes are short and cheap, rarely over 1000 AP and this gives me a reason to play twice and extend my gaming experience. Plus replaying doesn’t bore me since the scenes are different as well so it’s almost like having two episodes in one.

The Art

I’m generally always happy about the quality of MCL’s illustrations, and I think AL keeps up with the high standard. As a con, I’d say that the poses might be a bit repetitive, hugging and kissing tend to be quite similar among the three routes, but other than that I’m happy. Backgrounds and sprites are also very good imo, but I’ll get to that soon.

Now, a closer look at the three:

Lysander

My Victorian prince was perfect as a teen and remained perfect in adulthood. Personally I think he looks even more beautiful, if possible, and his personality didn’t change at all, only slightly more mature due to being an adult with adult responsibilities. If on one hand this means that we got exactly what we lost 4 years ago, it also means that he’s the crush that remained the most static, didn’t have a real evolution like all the others did. Like a fae prince who remained frozen in time. It might make his journey a bit less interesting that’s true, but on the other hand can you improve perfection? I don’t think so.

In fact he’s the only crush we didn’t break up with. At first I was a bit surprised “for sure it must be Kentin the one we don’t break up with, right?” but afterward it made so much sense. His AL is one of rediscovery of someone who we never really lost, and despite me not liking farm life it makes perfect sense for him and Candy to have ended up there. His story is soothing, and calm, just like him. Finding him again is like feeling you finally found your place and your home.

Kentin

Kentin grew up a lot since high school. Not only physically as he got taller and bulkier (and hotter) but also mentally. When we meet him again we find someone who has completed a personal journey, a new person who knows his worth and who they are. These years spent travelling the world alone made him grew up and now he’s able to love Candy in a healthy way because he can also love himself. 

His AL is one of getting to know the new mature person he’s become but also finding out that what really matters, his feelings and good heart, are always the same. Its route is full fluff with 5 minutes of drama which only serve to learn how different being with him is going to be now but also how his love didn’t change. His story is about personal growth and the work you have to put on yourself before being able to be in a relationship. 

Armin

Armin is still the same jokester as before, but he’s not a boy anymore, it’s clear that the break up made him grow up as well. His new looks are similar to what he used to wear before (without Alexy’s terrible involvement), I’m not a big fan of the yellow but it compensate with the haircut which imo makes so much more sense than that octopus-looking one he had before. I also love that he kept a smirking teasing expression which is so him. 

His route, while remains similar to the other two in its basic structure, is completely different in the sense that while he did grow up and became more mature, his story isn’t as much as getting to know him while getting to know who Candy and him are together and if they can build something solid and long-lasting. With Lys and Kentin we get a finished product, with Armin we get a work in progress, that makes his route more eventful and dynamic. We start with a fight in episode 1, get a whole journey and end with a final declaration which address all the issues and uncertainties. We see both Candy and Armin grow during the story. 

Personal considerations

I think all 3 routes are really well done so preference becomes a matter of personal taste. On my side, Armin’s is above the other two for the simple fact that I enjoy the drama and the enemies-to-lovers vibe. I also love Candy in this route, and the teasing relationship the both have. I loved following their journey, for me this route is pretty much perfect and I can only hope Beemoov keeps up this amazing writing. 

The other two routes are also really great. Kentin’s route is perfect for people who like fluff above all and just want to live a sweet love story. Lys’ is for people who want to play something soothing and with a more fairy tail vibe. 

I’m happy we finally got a happy ending with the three of them and these endings make so much sense: with Lys we could only join him in his farm life, not my thing as I said, but I never saw Lys as someone who could enjoy the rockstar lifestyle, his choices don’t have to work for me, they have to work for him and I’m happy they do. With Kentin it wouldn’t have felt right if he gave up his lifestyle and stayed in town for us, it would’ve been a complete step back from his personal journey to see him give up everything and chase Candy once again, so I’m happy it’s Candy the one joining him this time. And with Armin, with all the times Candy was the one to follow him in his passions and hobbies (plus the whole long-distance and Disney debacle) it had to end with him staying, and I’m so glad it did.

So now that we got our happy endings, what’s left?

I guess we’ll see 😏

#mcl #mclal #my candy love #mcl rambling #game review

[stranded-labyrinth]

Angsttttt

Just read a fic where will found Hannibal in Florence and was jealous AF about Antony diamond. But they worked it out and shit.

Let me raise you, Will ‘already horrible self worth/esteem issues’ Graham, leaving the second he sees Hannibal flirting with a guy who looks just like him, minus the myriad of ugly scars. And homie has a badddd self destructive habit already. So he heads to the closest bar with the intention to get black out drunk and find someone to take his mind off Hannibal. But then ends up running out of the bar because he’s gotten into a fist fight and beaten the guy to a pulp. (Projecting much will?)

But know he’s thinking, why not just kill that bitch, Hannibal was with? And not with his fists with a gun, the man doesn’t deserve any form of intimacy.

So as one does he finds the guys address and sneaks in, only to find Hannibal THERE. And in a fit of absolute hatred shoots Antony dead in the head. No guilt, Before turning on Hannibal. Who’s looks like he’s about to have a heart attack, before noticing it’s Will. And he smiles and gos to talk before Will interrupts him.

“It doesn’t matter what I do, does it? I’ll never be enough for you, you have your fun with me then throw me out, when I’ve grown boring”

before taking the gun off Hannibal. And ATTEMPTING to shoot himself, but Hannibal smacks the gun off course. So he ends up shooting himself in the arm (like where chiyoh shot him) and passes out from blood loss.

Then the rest of the fic would be Hannibal trying to fix the damage he’s done

i'll be so honest, there's been about 50 different flavors of this happening in my mind at any given time

Hannibal being an absolute shit with how he's gone about he and Will's relationship can spring so many different versions of this, to the point where i've desperately wanted to write something with it but i've struggled with knowing exactly how to go about it, because there's just so many ways to do it that i can't settle for one

personally, i don't tend to go the route of Will trying to kill himself if only because he's relatively used to stewing in depression, but teetering on the edge is not to say that something couldn't push him over the edge. the way i always imagine it is him, as usual, resigning himself to this life. he's drained of the joy of it, left with bitterness and resentment and aching, and yet this time around he also just feels so painfully empty. there's a hollow void that isn't going to be filled, Hannibal's made that abundantly clear through his lack of action, so why bother hoping? once again, just another person Will isn't good enough for. he exists to understand Hannibal and that's it, nothing further. no other meaning.

and, of course, Hannibal doesn't enjoy his Will without his passion, so he'd know something's amiss pretty quickly. but he's not going to ask so directly, he's going to poke and prod and guide, but Will's too tired and convinced his little world with Hannibal will never get better than what it is and he's too tired and he wants to go home but doesn't even know where home is anymore, because apparently it's not with him.

Will's feeling like a discarded toy, tossed aside when it became old hat only to be picked up when the owner gets curious.

he's not engaging in their little philosophical back and forths. he's not killing. he comes to bed, if only to lay curled up on his side, facing away from Hannibal, laying still until his grief for something he never had becomes a physical thing in the room and Hannibal has to reach out to him just to be able to breathe again.

of course, Will would break eventually, but until then he's just going day to day, mind on the bleak past and even bleaker future until it makes for a bleak present, and Hannibal's watching the life leave his eyes while being completely ignorant to it being his fault.

sometimes i think he'd stay and everything would break down that way, sometimes i think he'd leave (or try to) and Hannibal would go looking for him, because after all this time, Hannibal refuses to be without him. not again.

but like i said, all the intricacies of it could be so different that it's difficult to actually jot down.

#HEAVY tw for discussions of depression and suicide here everyone #be careful

[ilovebeingaturtle]

so sorry for the bother but I have to know your thoughts on Alopex?

Oo, not a bother at all!! Okay so yeah-spoilers for IDW? also this is gonna be kinda ramble-y and not fully thought out AGSHZ It’s very early in the day for me

To start of! Alopex is a great edition to TMNT, she fits in very naturally and she has a design that can simultaneously be adorable and fucking feral, which is great AHA, I’ve always enjoyed fox characters in media so I always feel just a rush of affection whenever I see her like look at that wittle guyyy. Outside of that though she’s just super neat! Again she feels very at home in the world and not just inserted into the narrative which is always a risk with ‘new’ faces in established properties, I love her weapons and her confidence a lot. I think I might be a liiiiiiittle burnt out on “character who was in the Foot that left the Foot” as a trope, but it was still cool!

I think this was the panel I was fully sold on her character, look at that smug little shit

I will say I did find her central-ish story arc in IDW kiiiiindaaaaa boring? Mind control as a trope doesn’t really interest me so I found the whole Kitsune thing with her sorta prevented her from really being her own character for a lot, it’s not that it was bad! It just made me personally kinda disinterested. This is definitely just my own opinion, I think the moments I loved Alopex the most were when her stronger personality traits are allowed to shine and she was sorta held back from doing that for a little, also again yeah it’s just not the type of story I really go for AHA

I’m also not really fully sold on her and Raph together as a couple, but that might just be the aroace in me talking. I couldn’t understand why they liked each other because from my point of view they barely had any chemistry, and by the time they did kinda have chemistry I was sorta lost on how we got to that point. And then in the last issue I read they broke up so, LMAO? I’m not really a romance between characters interested person but I can still often connect or feel the emotions in a ship and I just didn’t for those two AHSJH whoops (the speech Raph had with Angel about her though was cute but again I was sorta still like ???)

On the topic of that though, I haven’t read further yet because the Armageddon games intimidate me, but I did like that she left. I like that they fully addressed her trauma with Shredder like fuck yeah get out of there?! I don’t know how that storyline has been playing out because again, haven’t read it yet, but I am all for the idea of her striking it out on her own for a bit (oh also the shelter she was running at the start of the mutant town arc was a very sweet direction for her too forgot to mention that-)

I definitely really like her and I’d LOVEEE to see her get adapted into more versions! It was super cool seeing her in 2012 even if she didn’t stick around for long. She’s definitely a character filled to the brim with potential that I want to see more of, it’s just that from what I’ve seen so far she hasn’t quite been given a chance to reach it yet. I haven’t fully? Dug my teeth into all of IDW, so maybe I’m missing something? But ye! That’s the basics of my thoughts anyways AHA

#OH also her and Angel being vigilantes together was wonderful I LOVED that #in summary fox I like the lil fox 🦊 #I’m always going to be the number one defender of female characters in TMNT #so regardless of her having areas that I wasn’t reallyyyy engaged by she still has my FULL support AHA

[noodleblade]

prompt- simpatico publicly debating (flirting) and everyone else is done with it

Enjoy this silly little nonsense. It was fun to write. hope you don't mind the very background rodimags in this:) AO3 Link.

“How could someone as brilliant as you be so stupid ,” Brainstorm snapped, optics ablaze.

“I’m the stupid one?” Perceptor hissed, servo slamming hard on the table. “You may be one of the most intelligent mechs on this ship, but that doesn’t mean your processor isn’t glitched beyond repair-”

Rodimus groaned at the head of the meeting table, pressing his digits into his optic sockets. This went ignored by both scientists, too caught up in an argument Rodimus couldn’t even remember the reasoning for. And for once, he had actually been paying attention.

They had been discussing engine maintenance and scheduling a ship docking so they could shut them down completely. That was all boring but it also presented an opportunity to give the crew a much needed shore leave, which Rodimus was very invested in. He did his best to listen to Perceptor drone on because that meant in a few cycles he’d be off the ship and able to roam free. Somehow, in addressing the adjustment testing they wanted to run, Brainstorm and Perceptor had started bickering and nitpicking at each other’s points, ultimately going to where it always went doing these meetings- incessant arguing to conceal the worst flirting Rodimus had ever witnessed.

It had been going on for sometime now that Rodimus had ultimately lost track of how long . He could probably check the minutes he knew Ultra Magnus was meticulously maintaining but he rather this whole thing just be over with . The meeting already exceeded their estimated time slot and there seemed to be no end in sight. The only mechs actually paying attention at this point were Ultra Magnus (for the minutes) and Drift who looked like he desperately wanted to intervene to play moderator. Even Megatron who was frustratingly annoying about proving himself to be a “respectable” captain had started messing around on his datapad, clearly not paying attention. 

“Oh Primus-” Rodimus buried his face into his servos “-if I order you two to frag already will you both shut up .”

Beside him, Ultra Magnus made a series of stammers, too appalled to get the words out and settled for narrowing a glare at the captain. On his other side, Drift let out a long, exasperated exvent. 

Immediately the yelling ceased. Perceptor looked as if he had been struck while Brainstorm twitched, optics jumping to Rodimus to Ultra Magnus to Perceptor to Drift back to Perceptor, nervous clicking coming as he tried and failed to speak. 

“ Rodimus ,” Drift whispered harshly, “let them figure it out on their own.”

“No!” Rodimus slapped his servos on the table like petulant sparkling. “Nothing happens ever . It’s the same thing! Over and over and over and over! It used to be funny but now it's just sad. I’m done.” Rodimus crossed his arms over his chassis and pointedly looked at the two scientists. “We are having an intervention. Mags, call Chromedome, Rewind, Tailgate, Swerve. Probably need Ratchet here too and then at that point, bring in First Aid. Nautica for sure, Nightbeat, Skids. Anyone else I’m missing that’s issued a complaint?”

Ultra Magnus let out a heavy exvent before adding, “Whirl. Multiple times.”

“Add him to the summons, might as well put Cyclonus on there too.” Rodimus leaned in towards his Second to ‘whisper’, “He hasn’t said anything, but I know he’s got a list of complaints too.”

“Wait, wait, wait, wait ,” Brainstorm yelled, vocalizer almost squeaking out each word. “Complaints? What did we do?”

“ This! ” Rodimus gestured between the two scientists in an aggravated swipe. “All the time! Every meeting! It’s the worst type of flirting I’ve ever seen, even for two mega-nerds like you.”

Perceptor bristled. “Flirting?”

“Mega-nerds?!” Brainstorm yelped in offense. “Try geniuses. Sorry you cannot comprehend true academic debate.”

“It’s not debate if all you do is swing the most poorly concealed compliments I’ve ever heard. The amount of times you jerk off each other’s genius is borderline obscene and that’s coming from me.” Rodimus flopped his torso onto the table, covering his helm in his arms. “You both have no swagger and no game and it’s so embarrassing , you make Mags look like Casanova and he thinks audit reports are foreplay.”

“Who?” Ultra Magnus asked, clearly unsure if it was a genuine compliment or not, embarrassment tinged his field at the mention of audit reports belying some truth to that. 

Rodimus waved him off. “So either frag each other’s processors into blue screen or get over it . Even Megatron is done with it.”

At the far end of the table, Megatron looked up from his datapad. He rolled his optics, gave a stiff, reluctant nod and turned back to his reading. 

“See?”

Perceptor sighed. “Look, even though I find Brainstorm clever beyond words and a true marvel of scientific ingenuity, doesn’t mean I-“

“Wait really?” Brainstorm cut him off with quiet wonder. “You really think that?”

Rodimus was ready to blow a gasket if he hadn’t already. “He’s only been saying it for months ! Five kliks ago he called you the smartest guy here! That’s basically Perceptor asking you to pop your panel now-”

“Okay, that’s enough.” 

Drift slapped his servo over Rodimus’ mouth. Thankfully, both scientists ignored whatever had come out of their captain, optics locked on each other. Brainstorm’s optics were wide with awe and hope . Perceptor looked almost shy .

“Maybe we should leave them? Or excuse them?” Ultra Magnus dropped his voice to address the other mechs at the table but Drift shut that down. 

“Absolutely not. We are finally getting somewhere.” Rodimus vigorously nodded, despite Drift’s grip on his helm.

Perceptor’s vocalized made a small, embarrassing burst of static before he ducked his helm. “I thought it was quite obvious, how much I admire you.”

“I-” Brainstorm’s wings shifted uncertainly. “You never said anything.”

Drift struggled to keep his servo latched on Rodimus, muffling his rage. 

“Perhaps a mistake on my part,” Perceptor admitted softly. “I’ll correct myself in the future.”

Brainstorm squirmed in his seat, servos distractedly turning his data pad around. “I’ll make sure to do the same.” Brainstorm dared a peek up, their optics meeting. “You mean a lot to me.”

“Me too,” Perceptor agreed, too soft and too fond.

Rodimus ripped Drift’s servo off. “This is worse. This is so much worse. I rather hear Perceptor use the worst sciency words to describe Brainstorm’s aft than this .”

“Perhaps,” Brainstorm’s digits nervously tapped on the tabletop, embarrassment coloring his field, “Percy and I should excuse ourselves?” 

“Only if you agree to frag-”

Drift was silencing Rodimus once more. Ultra Magnus thankfully had more tact when he spoke.

“Perhaps it would be best to continue your discussion in private. We can reconvene next cycle.”

Hesitantly, Brainstorm stood first, optics watching Perceptor nervously. Perceptor was quick to join him, servo extended almost shyly . Rodimus wanted to peel his plating off at the virginal display. Drift managed to keep his groans of dismay muffled as Brainstorm accepted the extended servo, their digits interlocking as they left the meeting room.

“You,” Megatron finally spoke as the doors to the meeting room snapped shut, “you lose the bet.” Looking up from his datapad, Megatron smirked. “I believe no one was supposed to interfere with it.”

“Frag off,” Rodimus grumbled, “I just saved everyone. You're welcome . If anything, you all should be paying me for my services.” 

Megatron didn’t deign him a response, simply standing up and leaving the room. Drift was quick to follow, patting Rodimus on the helm affectionately. All the remained were the captain and his Second. 

“We didn’t finish the meeting.”

“I think there should be a bylaw about postponing meetings for saving everyone the humiliation of watching that .”

Ultra Magnus hummed in consideration for a moment before hesitantly asking, “So the audit reports are not acceptable for you?”

Rodimus patted his Second’ servo lightly. “I didn’t say that, Mags. But we do need to work on foreplay. Don’t worry, I don’t mind.” 

#maccadam #simpatico #brainstorm #perceptor #rodimus #ultra magnus #drift #megatron #mtmte #transformers #my fics #anonymous #prompt ask

[ladyelain]

lucien stans made a lot of us dislike him because a lot of his stans with well known accounts talk sh*t about feyre frequently because of their distraught friendship and history. i loved lucien until i read what his stans (who some also stan tamlin) had to say about feyre due to their issues in acowar and acofas. lucien is quite babied in this fandom and constantly victimize him when it comes to his friendship with feyre and how it’s always “she could’ve” instead of “he should’ve” they both made mistakes but out of the two if i’m really going to judge lucien disappointed me more in their friendship and then he was surprised she didn’t favor him the way she used to when he already proved that he’s rarely put her first. he even feels worse about spring falling than about what happened to both of them when they were there. they were having growth after acowar and he took 10 steps back by throwing her taking down spring in her face after she’s already expressed remorse for what happened to the people there when hybern ruined their homes.

First off, I’m not a fan of using Eluciens/Elriels/Gwynriels or even Lucien stans as generic terms for everybody and their mother when it comes to explicit, opinionated discourses around one character or ship.

It’s exactly what made the fandom so overly sensitive about everything in the first place. We keep blaming individuals for things they’ve literally never said, sometimes not even heard of. I mean, imagine being called an Elain stan because you like Elain… It’s the last group I’d want to be associated with in this fandom lol.

Just like I don’t identify at all with the whole pinning Feyre up against Lucien. Especially not Feyre and Lucien. They’re my babies and if I am babying them rn, then so be it. Not to defend myself here, I just feel like pointing out I’ve made posts trying to explain Feyre’s perspective and why she’s totally right having negative associations connected to Lucien. Though I am aware people are throwing shade at Feyre, using the points you made above.

Lucien and Feyre’s friendship failed for several reasons, the main thing being miscommunication which lead to mistrust. Not because they had nothing to address to the other, but because the circumstances didn’t allow for them to open up. It’s debatable whether they just gave up on each other after the war because they both found their people, or whether they need time and space still. Either way is totally valid.

I always try to put everything in perspective and context, and to me, Feyre and Lucien’s outfall in acofas seemed absolutely realistic. Their awkward behaviour also feels reasonable after everything they’ve been through. It’s nothing that couldn’t ever be fixed though. When Elucien happens, there will also be a Feycien comeback, I’m convinced. Their dialogues are just too iconic to not bring them back.

Feyre receives so much hate that isn’t even about Lucien because she seems to be in a better place than everybody else and that’s usually something people get bored of and eventually mad about. Honestly, in acofas she could have been the bigger person. Bringing up the Band of Exiles was a low blow. She made fun of them because she obviously feels betrayed and doesn’t quite understand where their friendship came from. Feyre wants everyone around her happy, yet there’s only so much she can do. Sometimes she’s just too much of a busybody.

#asks #lucien vanserra #feyre archeron #i swear someone will come @me again for the tags #can we be chill about this pls #i am literally defending feyre here

[kyogre-blue]

Finished replay Albedo story quest on the alt account. 

It’s bad! 

I feel vindicated in hating it on the first playthrough. 

Compared to the stuff Genshin starts doing later on, Albedo’s quest is actually comparatively tame. It’s just boring and drags up a bunch of threads that it then drops without going anywhere. It’s also not really in line with where Albedo goes as a character over the next two years’ worth of events. 

The biggest, most noticeable issue is endemic to pretty much all of Albedo’s writing and is presumably just a problem with whoever is in charge of his appearances -- the pointless, bloated dialogue that tries to pretend to be academic smartness. A good chunk of this quest is Albedo putting you through “experiments” while constructing various “hypotheses” about your nature. Unfortunately, it’s all extremely stupid and shallow. I recall this exact kind of endless word salad technobabble in the second Dragonspine event and when Albedo talked to Tighnari in Windblume 2 too. It was also painful then. 

Notably, Sucrose’s dialogue in Windblume also aimed to highlight her scientifically focused way of thinking but did so in a much less blunt, stupid way, since it was about her general thinking process while discussing more mundane subjects that were also plot-relevant. So you didn’t have this “what an idiot thinks academics do” stuff like Albedo going “ok, so maybe you’re kind of like a slime, but maybe you’re not, how about you go fight some slimes and I’ll watch?” 

All of this is made much worse by the fact that so many human-shaped supernatural beings exist in this world. Albedo compares you to slimes instead of adepti or youkai or anything else, which makes him seem extremely out of the loop about Teyvat as a whole. I doubt this is the intent, since he’s supposed to be rather widely travelled and knowledgeable. Him being so focused on life from other worlds also comes across strangely when he knows Alice, who discusses the barrier between worlds and stuff from other worlds repeatedly. Bro, just ask her instead? 

This also also leads into the way none of this has any narrative coherence. Albedo subtly suggests he feels isolated because he’s unique... and then doesn’t address this at all and instead 4shadows how he might lose control and attack Mondstadt. This might tie into Rosaria’s stalking... except she’s framed as too sensitive and insecure, unable to trust (ie in the wrong about this). Albedo rhapsodizes about how even a short, fleeting life can have meaning... in a conversation between two actual immortals. He’s not like part 1 Mash or Mini Vinci, he’s not a short-lived artificial being. He doesn’t age and is older than he looks, and so is the Traveler. What’s the point of them talking about the value of fleeting life, when neither of them is that? If this is meant to refer to their time in Mondstadt, comparing to something that explicitly dies is not the way to do it. 

My favorite (/s) part was Rosaria berating the Traveler for following Albedo’s instructions and drinking weird potions. Don’t worry, ma’am, we’re gonna do far stupider things in the future, including activating two (and counting) giant, evil-powered robots for, uh, lulz or something, breaking several seals on supposed evil god-type beings, and messing around with civilization-destroying magic pillars. 

#playing genshin

[gffa]

i'm still debating on if i should watch the rings of power - i know the whole rights thing and timeline is tricky so reading your recap/thoughts was really interesting! since they only reference certain events do you think it makes sense to people who *haven't* read the silm? it almost sounds as if you haven't you might enjoy it more because you aren't sitting there wondering 'hang on why are they doing [x]' etc i'm also really curious on where you fall on the 'no long-haired elves' debate lol

Hi! I think the biggest hurdle the show can't get over is that it wants to be all things to both groups, that it wants to appeal to those who haven't read the Silm and wants to appeal to those who have.  But, from where I’m sitting, it fails at both. Keep in mind that I’m deep enough into Tolkien’s Legendarium that I can’t really see the show without seeing the references to what they’re talking about, so sometimes it seems very obvious to me what they’re talking about and I don’t even think about how it comes across if you don’t know the context.  And sometimes I’m sitting there, waiting for them to SAY CURUFIN’S NAME so impatiently that I honestly can’t tell how well that scene between Elrond and Celebrimbor worked for someone else, because I’m too busy being annoyed at how they won’t actually address the elephant I know is in the room. My general feeling, though, is that the show really only achieves a middling sort of worldbuilding, that I’ve listened to a handful of reviews and they’ve said that it feels like a very generic fantasy world that doesn’t really draw them in.  Which has been my feeling as well--it’s not an outright crapfest so much as it is just kind of there.  It’s paint by the numbers.  There’s nothing that really hooks you on the characters or the story.  There’s nothing to the worldbuilding that feels unique or detailed. In some ways, you’ll have an easier time watching it because you’re not encumbered by seeing all the gaps in the story, but in other ways, you may well be bored because there’s just nothing there, because they can’t really put much of anything into it and you’re not going to know the history that’s necessary to give this world life and breath. As always, I would say watch it (or don’t) for yourself, either way, I don’t think you’ll be missing much or gaining much if you do or don’t watch it.  I plan to because if I’m going to talk about how something didn’t work for me, I have to watch it first, but also there are a lot of legitimate reasons to not watch it re: what a shitty company Amazon is (though, I’m curious to see if we’ll get that same energy with The Boys or Paper Girls or any other Amazon originals) that I respect any decision to stay away from it. I guess I would say (in very, very broad strokes) people are less inclined to hate it/be angry about it if they’re not familiar with The Silmarillion/Unfinished Tales/HoME/LaCE/etc., but that you’re also less inclined to give a shit about anything you’re watching because it’s pretty bland without that.  But that’s not to say you might not enjoy it, there are those who do and their enjoyment is not lesser because a bunch of nerds on the internet also have valid issues with it, so maybe you’ll like it!  I just really, really doubt it, because there’s nothing really there to grab onto, in my opinion.

#tolkien stuff #rings of power

[pissjesus]

Russel and murdoc for both

Absolutely cursed ugh your huge juicy brain

I’ve said once and I’ll say it again: they’re divorced

ELABORATION:

Enemies meme

* Everyone thinks 2D and Murdoc fight the most but 2D doesn’t like to fight so it’s mostly one sided— Russel and Murdoc absolutely fight the most

* Murdoc doesn’t *hate* Russel on a personal level, at least not anymore. He used to “hate everyone, and himself equally” as Russel says in the Apex Tapes, but now he’s a bit more agreeable and is more antagonistic than hateful.

* Russel, however, has very little patience for Murdoc’s bullshit

* Murdoc’s pretty scrappy but Russel can take him out with one blow, so Murdoc now (usually) knows better than to pick fights with Russel he can’t win

* Russel is soft-spoken by nature and rarely raises his voice— except towards Murdoc

* They reconcile for the sake of the music and also for Noodle, and over the years they’ve gotten better at it.

* Murdoc goes to Russel for serious problems because Russel won’t bullshit him, and Russel respects him more for admitting these things

* They both experience psychotic symptoms and help each other through them since they can understand what the other is going through

Ship meme

* Russel and Murdoc is the worst combo when it comes to having to share a bed because they’re both so sweaty and take up so much space. Spooning sounds fun in concept only

* Russel can’t really borrow anything of Murdoc’s but even if he did, he wouldn’t want to. Murdoc steals Russel’s shirts when all his laundry is too dirty for even him to tolerate

* Russel gave Murdoc the nickname Muds (which I love) and primarily calls him that, though sometimes will tweak it to “Mudsy Baby” but only if he’s being passive-aggressive or sarcastic. Murdoc throws “love” and “sweetheart” around, or addresses him as “Russel Love” or “Russel Baby.” He’ll also refer to Russel as “my wife”

* They show they care by doing things for each other without being asked, like Murdoc will order takeout for Russel if he’s been in a depressive slump and Russel will help pull Murdoc away from situations where he’s getting angry and needs to blow off steam somewhere else

* They don’t really “confess” anything so much as have an unspoken arrangement, but if one of them were to initiate anything, it’d probably be Murdoc

* Russel doesn’t *scream* over bugs but he doesn’t like them and would get one of the others to take care of it if he has a choice. Murdoc has no problem with bugs but unfortunately he’s more likely to pick it up and chase Russel with it than kill it

* They’re both the primary drivers in the band, but they hate the way the other drives. Murdoc thinks Russel drives too slow and hesitates too much when he has to merge so they miss exits, and Russel hates everything about the way Murdoc drives. However, Murdoc is somehow the only one that knows how to parallel park

* Russel actually enjoys cooking and likes trying new things. Murdoc can’t cook for shit, but he’s also basically banned from doing so. Whenever he offers to “help” Russel it’s just an excuse to pester him the whole time because he’s bored. However, he has Murdoc try things because he’s not picky like 2D and won’t just tell him it’s good if it isn’t like Noodle.

* Neither of them like PDA and would certainly not be caught *dead* being affectionate with each other, but Murdoc would kiss Russel antagonistically like Bugs Bunny

* Russel knows Murdoc is a whore and wouldn’t expect otherwise— if anything he’s like “please take him off my hands.” Murdoc has no reason to be “protective” of Russel but he tends to have attachment issues in general and feels threatened when he feels like the others could leave him

* Russel hasn’t really had any long-term relationships and doesn’t seek hook-ups like 2D and Murdoc (until Cello enters the picture yes I’m still working on the fic). He actually loved Del and has never really gotten over losing him— the first time when he was killed, and the second time when he was exorcised from him. Though he has a lot of grief from Del being exorcised, he also has a lot of anxiety and shame around intimacy because having Del possess him meant his thoughts and feelings were never truly private.

#asks #alicepalmersnokia #gorillaz headcanons #Russdoc #i jest but I find it hard to actually imagine pairing them romantically #they’re just divorced and that’s that #maybe they’ve explored each other’s bodies and don’t discuss it

[waterfall-ambience]

If you’re still doing the OC ask game, can you do 2 for Avery, 6 for Luna, and 16 for Riza?

2. What are your OC’s food preferences (flavors/textures/spiciness/calories/ when and how they eat) and how did they get that way?

Avery is a really easy person to feed because he’s not picky at all. Having grown up on Perpetua, he’s been exposed to and found an appreciation for a lot of different cultural dishes thanks to how the members come from all sorts of backgrounds. That, combined with being raised with Minerva's ‘everything in moderation’ + ‘try anything at least once’ approach to food, it's hard to find stuff he absolutely will not eat.

Flavour generally matters more to him than texture, and he doesn’t think too much about calories unless something looks/sounds insanely calorically dense.

That being said, if asked to pick from a menu, his choices would be a little boring. He might take the spicy option (now that he has a ‘resistance’ to a capsaicin, he WILL reap the benefits because it’s more fun that way).

But he’s also equally likely to pick the ‘default’ or ‘classic’ option because he’s not picky to the point where he doesn’t have strong preferences for almost anything (unless, say, he’s going for some kind of ‘vibe’). He’s also liable to order things with the expectation that someone else might want to sample from him.

6. What would STOP your OC from Doing the Right Thing in a tense situation?

The boring answer is ‘nerves’ or ‘he suffers from analysis paralysis when trying to figure out the best outcome’.

In an ideal world, Captain Luna is a perfect moral paragon and nothing would stop him from doing the Right Thing except the gods themselves. He always strives to do the Right Thing, and sometimes he can’t for whatever reason, be it nerves, or stretching himself too thin when trying to figure out the best outcome. Maybe the cost is too high, or he has to focus on the big picture rather than personal impact, the needs of the many vs those of the few. Even if the Right Thing is not achieved, what matters is that he tried and that he retains his personal innocence.

But of course, the world is not ideal, because the man is more than capable of holding a grudge. Even if the grudge is justified (see: that with the Wither King), he’s not immune to the catharsis of watching a bastard go down in cruel and sometimes unusual ways. He tries to hold off on it, because he recognises that a hard punishment that doesn’t really do anything to address the issue is just an excuse to torture someone, but dang, does it feel good, especially if he already hates them.

It's unlikely that anyone would ever find themself in this situation, considering that Luna finds forgiveness to be more beneficial for all parties involved, but god help you if you manage to seriously cross him.

16. How strong or weak is your OC’s Impulse control? What’s the worst thing that happened because of their Impulsivity or inability to be so?

Riza's impulse control isn’t great, and she’s prone to doing things on a whim if she has the energy. Usually it’s mundane, little things, like deciding stay up late to watch a slasher film, painting her nails a different colour, cropping her shirts, scaring people with her invisibility powers, nabbing stuff from stores because she thinks it’s funny (technically shoplifting, but ‘everything on Perpetua is an art piece so it doesn’t really matter’). Y’know, little things.

Though despite all of this, she doesn’t come across as particularly impulsive (not like Icarus or how some other members more obviously are) because she generally tends towards laziness. She doesn’t usually go around pocketing random things, but it’s less due to an absence of an urge to do so, rather than thinking about it and subsequently deciding not to.

Riza's impulsivity hasn't really gotten her into major trouble yet (maybe just Alice being disappointed in her + making her work more), but that just might be because Alice doesn't let her in any important control rooms with levers and big red buttons.

#globeland perpetua #asks #thank you!! sorry this took a while ive been a bit held up with life rn (and it takes a while to come up with answers im happy with LOL)

[ciaossu-imagines]

I just thought of something that I should’ve asked on day two but forgot. During Bandō’s drunken rant he says “It’s true that I was kinda nerdy but at least I was good at sports…”. What do you think he meant specifically like that? My latest theory is that he said it because he’s good with computers and that kinda stuff (his character profile said that he’s good with machinery) but I’d like to hear your thoughts on it.

This was a really great ask, my lovely anon! I love getting to really deep dive into stuff like this and I hope you’ll enjoy my take on this!

Now, first addressing the ‘good at sports’, I do believe that Bandou was, and still is, pretty good at sports. While he lacks the pure physical power or stamina of some of the other boys, Bandou has really good hand-eye coordination and can generally handle his body pretty well (except around horses, which he might now have a grudge, and a tiny phobia around, thanks to Basashi). While he might not always be the best sport, he’s pretty good at working with a team, if he respects the other players on his team at least.

Onto the nerdy part! I definitely do see Bandou, though he may come off foolish at times, as definitely being one of those dumb smart people. He’s actually really intelligent; it’s just that he does dumb shit because he gets swept up in things or, sometimes, because he does kind of want the attention or the thrill of doing something risky and dangerous.

I feel like his brain works very logically and very straight-forward, despite being an emotional kind of guy, and even from early on in his school life, he not only excels at, but actually enjoys, science and mathematics. He can perform mental math really quickly and numbers come incredibly easy to him. It’s nothing for Kusanagi to slide him a sheet of calculations for Bandou to double-check or to get Bandou to figure out which of the possible suppliers is the best solution for the bar based on all these facts and data Izumo has.

Though he stopped putting much work into his schooling towards the end of middle school and into high school, Bandou had extremely good grades throughout his early education. He could have been accepted into a prestigious high school, if his behaviour wasn’t so rough and if he had decided to put the work into it. He really only gave up on school because he doesn’t really like authority and because, honestly, the work they were being given in school was stuff that he found too easy, and he’d get bored and just not do it.

Bandou’s also very technologically competent. He understands technology, computers, and gadgets. Those are things that come naturally to him and things he enjoys. Not only does he understand enough about computers to be able to suitably hack into things he needs to, but he also can build computers and I do think that his own laptop is a modification of his own design, if not a custom build.

Bandou’s also really good with his hands and is mechanically minded. He loves gadgets and tech and can figure out how things work. He enjoys taking apart new things he encounters, figuring out what makes them tick, and can fix a lot of things technology wise. But he’s also pretty good with just basic handyman work and mechanics. It’s not something he enjoys quite as much, but he does enjoy it, and it’s usually Bandou that the HOMRA boys go to when they have vehicle issues, with them only going to a mechanic if Bandou doesn’t have the right tools.

#event asks #k project #project k #headcanons #bandou saburouta

[insert-witty-user-name-here]

Unconventional writer ask game: my answers

Thanks to @knuckleslove for this fun game. Thank you @queen-of-meows @dewdropreader @starport-seven-five and @lgwilt for the tag! I feel so honored to be thought of by amazing authors such as yourselves! Here are my answers. (and I hope you all tag me in your answers so I can read about your writing process)

How long have you been writing fanfiction?

Honestly as long as I can remember I’ve been writing drabbles and outlines. But last year was the first time I ever completed and published anything. 

Do you have a favorite word? (One that you love. Doesn’t necessarily have to be one you use all the time.)

Hm… I know my favorite themes are those surrounding love and hope.

Share a favorite run-on sentence that you’ve written.

Lol idk about a favorite. Run-on sentences are my baseline though. Here's one from Between the Golden Arches. I definitely cheat grammatically by adding in periods when technically I shouldn't.

Loki had seen and been with many men in his lifetime. Men in various states of dress, in various positions. But for reasons beyond his immortal comprehension, this man, in his ill-fitting suit, boring blue dress shirt, and only slightly above mediocre forearms, was going to be the death of him.

Share a bit of a scene that you’ve written that still gives you FEELS.

As much as I want Lokius to be canon, I think if I were to choose any scene from one of my fics to be in Season 2 it would be the scene where Loki meets Sylvie��s younger self, Princess Loki who has no fear transforming into her Jotun form.

Loki did a lot of changing and growing in the Loki series but an area still left unexplored is his deeply internalized hatred of his Jotun heritage. I’d like to see that addressed next season.

Passage at the end of this post (I couldn't cut it down- I love it too much). This scene is from the end of Rising From the Ashes.

What is your favorite kind of character interaction to write?

I really love writing inside jokes or light banter between characters. I also really love when you can see one character taking on traits or habits of another character, showing their impact on one another.

Do you have a hyper-specific genre?/ Any personal or frequently used tags?

"Slow Burn" specifically "slowest of burns because lots of individual character growth needed" and "Idiots in Love"

Share a joke or funny moment that you’ve written that still makes you laugh.

I do enjoy how I wrote Thor and Sylvie meeting in Here.

“Lady Loki-” “It’s Sylvie,” Sylvie corrected. “Oh, of course, Lady Sylvie.” “No. It’s Sylvie. Just Sylvie.” “My apologies.” Thor grabbed Sylvie by the shoulders and looked deep into her eyes. “Sylvie the Just, it is indeed a great honor to meet you.”

Best editing tip?

Read your own stuff as a reader. Once I get my fics to a place where I’m not actively cringing I like to put the editing pen away and read as a reader. Purely reading allows me to notice frequently used words, pacing issues, repeated sentence structure, etc. I don't notice those things if I'm solely focused on editing individual sentences.

What drives you to write?

My favorite stories are the ones where I learn (or am reminded of) something about myself as I watch the character struggle to overcome their internal hurdles. 

I strive to do the same in my stories. To tell a story that’s deeply resonate and reminds us all about the importance of hope, love, and growth. 

Where do you draw inspiration?

Music. I listen to a lot of music. 

What is your biggest challenge in writing?

Not giving up during that first round of editing. No matter how many times I’ve written something that ends up being something I’m proud of whenever I read a first draft of a new story I get that ugly voice that says “ah-ha so I am a fraud. I knew it. All those other stories were lucky coincidences. I actually can’t write and this is terrible.” Which just isn’t true lol.

Luckily, I know this and move past it. All part of the writing ✨ process ✨ 

What is your immediate reaction when you receive a new comment on a fic?

Happiness EXPLOSION in my brain. And then I’m smiling about those kind words all day. I want to print each one out and put it on my wall.

1-2 sentence preview from your current WIP?? (Only if you are willing.)

From the final chapter of Becoming His Mobius (posting Sunday)

A horn from a commuter train sounded outside the window. Mobius glanced at the clock beside Loki’s bed. It was later than when he normally woke up, mid-morning instead of the crack of dawn. He shifted and rolled his shoulder slightly. It was mostly healed but there was still a bit of lingering pain. He must have slept on it wrong. Loki sleeping atop him probably didn’t help but Mobius didn’t mind. He could handle a little pain. Loki stirred slightly at Mobius’ movement.  “Mobius,” the god grumbled, tightening his arms around the TVA agent, “for once in your life please sleep in. We almost died last night. Surely that has earned us a bit of a respite.” 

What story or scene are you most proud of?

Rising From the Ashes. I've been writing my entire life but this was the first story I have ever seen through to the end. Writing it allowed me to prove to myself that I could write and finish something I was comfortable sharing with the world. It will always have the most special place in my heart.

Thanks again for the tags! Also tagging my dear Lokius friends @mimisempai @loki-is-my-kink-awakening. It's been a joy to see some of your answers and reminisce about your beautiful stories and hope to read about your answers too @rins-love-wins

Share a bit of a scene that you’ve written that still gives you FEELS cont: Loki meeting Princess Loki

The young Sylvie looked at her older self again and let out an exasperated sigh before she changed right before Loki’s eyes. They told me I was adopted. The princess’ pale skin transformed to the bright blue of the Jotun, white markings etched across her face and arms. Her red Frost Giant eyes found Loki’s and she smiled cheekily. Those eyes. Loki couldn’t suppress a small gasp. Loki had always been silently grateful his body was an illusion he hadn’t figured out how to break. Loki didn’t want to look down and see that blue skin tainting his own, those red eyes staring back at him in the mirror. Loki hated this form, his true self. This form showed him what he had always believed to be true. He was the monster parents told their children about at night. Every child of Asgard lived in fear of seeing those bright red Frost Giant eyes descend upon them in the dark. They were the eyes of demons, angry and evil. And yet, looking into Princess Loki’s red Frost Giant eyes, Loki saw none of that. He saw a cheerful, intelligent, kind, if a bit mischievous child. Loki was struck once again by how similar those eyes were to Sylvie’s, how similar they were to his own. In this child’s eyes, he saw the eyes of a hero, of a warrior. He saw eyes worthy of a Princess of Asgard.

#my writing

[quillyfied]

I think I take issue with a write-off labeling of Izzy as an abuser because of a couple of factors: 1. It erases Ed’s agency in his own story (and subsequently ignores that what they have is a toxic as hell dynamic that is TWO-SIDED), and 2. More of a philosophical wondering of if a person who is a textual part and subtextual victim of a culture of abuse is an abuser in the classical sense, or something a little more complicated, and wondering if we even have the right vocabulary for this. (At least, I certainly don’t. Personal aside that I’m not an abuse victim, but am working on healing from long-term emotional damage done from the messy business of someone else’s baggage cutting into mine and making mine worse without either of us really understanding that’s what was happening. Maybe that’s driving my interpretation here and maybe that’s wrong but wanted to speak my piece about it regardless.)

Initial point of order that has to be addressed in order to dig into both points: as far as Izzy is concerned, he’s fallen down the weirdest rabbit hole of his life. He’s probably the only person present who might have had any kind of sympathy for Chauncey Badminton’s little breakdown where he declares he’s ended up in Backwards Land. Like most people, he seems himself as the most rational person there, a realist, a pragmatist. And to a degree, he is; he attempts to take charge with ship repairs and maintenance, he tries to get the man who’s supposed to be in charge to come up with a game plan for running from the Spanish navy, he does everything he can possibly think of to get Ed—the pillar on which he’s decided to build his life, for better or worse (yes that’s absolutely a nod at David Jenkins calling Izzy’s storyline that of a jilted spouse)—away from this influence that as far as Izzy can tell is turning the most feared and respected pirate of the seas into even more of a liability than he was before, and worse, an OPEN liability. Izzy runs around trying so hard to squeeze even an ounce of what he sees as proper respect from the crew of the Revenge, trying so hard to keep Ed’s peculiarities stuffed down and Blackbeard’s image preserved, that he contributes to a life that was already smothering Ed half to death. Izzy can see that, can see the results of how bored and unpleasant Ed is, he just doesn’t understand it, the same way Stede doesn’t understand why Ed is so complacent and even cheery about throwing Blackbeard far away that he shaves his namesake completely off. In a lot of ways, Stede and Izzy are foils for each other, rivals in a very real sense with similar goals and very different methods and schools of thought for achieving them. I could derail this entire train of thought down THAT rabbit hole.

But to keep on target, what I want to also establish is that Blackbeard as a legend is important because for Izzy and for Ed, Blackbeard is protection, prestige, and a hella wobbly, hella dangerous precipice to be balanced on, an act to be meticulously maintained. Ed slips even an inch, they’re all done for, crunched and ground up back into the violence machine that is piracy and left for the sharks. Crew doesn’t respect and fear Blackbeard, doesn’t immediately follow orders, doesn’t know in their bones that one wrong move will see any unfortunate crew member maimed or worse in the name of compliance? The ship goes down, authority breaks down, utter chaos ensues, the whole crew, captain and all, dies. Motivation like that doesn’t NOT make Izzy abusive, but context is important. Izzy doesn’t do any of what he does to and for Ed just to hurt him. In Izzy���s mind, he’s protecting them both. Again, not saying this absolves him or makes him not as bad, because Izzy assuredly is in the wrong, particularly when it comes to his final gambit to snap Ed out of his funk and he awakens a Kraken instead; it was a piece of calculated cruelty designed to be a reality check, an ultimatum of pretty dire proportions given Izzy’s loyalty and the lengths he’s willing to go for that loyalty. But more on that later.

First point I want to address: labeling Izzy as abuser and Ed as victim in a traditional sense takes away most, if not all, of Ed’s agency in his own story. Ed is the captain. Ed holds the authority, between the two of them, to get stuff done. A note about the relationship between captain and first mate, which I’ve picked up from observance of a wide variety of fiction sources: the captain makes the plan, the first mate executes the plan. The captain says where they’re going, the first mate communicates to the crew what they need to do in order to get the vessel to its destination. The captain gives an order, the first mate sees it through. It’s delegation. On a particularly well-oiled crew, the first mate oversees the crew and gives orders as they see fit to maintain equilibrium while the captain is busy with administrative or personal business. A captain and a first mate are supposed to be a team, voices of authority presenting a unified front to the crew. An order from the first mate is an order from the captain or as good as, unless the captain themself says otherwise.

So when Izzy lists off the things he’s done for Ed, the ways Izzy has done his best to manage a questioning and bloodthirsty crew while his captain essentially mentally checks out, Izzy is right in that he’s going above and beyond for Ed. And Ed’s boredom with it all doesn’t absolve him of his responsibilities as captain, or from the pressures of being captain, as he illustrates for Stede so thoroughly when they swap clothes. Ed absolutely is dismissive of Izzy’s feelings, teases him almost like an angry chihuahua by having it all in hand and not telling Izzy a thing about it (keeping in mind that if Ed had shared it earlier, Izzy could have corrected the date mistake, and they could have figured something else out sooner. This is not a blame game, just a statement of fact). Ed is the reason Izzy stayed on the Revenge (“I need you here.”), and ultimately too the reason he leaves it (“Bonnet…done something to my boss’ brain.”). Ed is the one who gave Izzy his marching orders, above all loyalty to his captain, Ed is the one who made a plan and backed out on it (“The plan is very much alive. He promised me.” And all that follows), and Ed is also the one who chooses to see Izzy’s betrayal of Stede as a betrayal of himself as well (keeping in mind too it wouldn’t have been, if Ed had left with Jack as planned. STILL not a blame game, STILL stating facts). I don’t think it’s unfair at all to say that Ed is emotionally as bad for Izzy as Izzy is for Ed—and about to get worse, with Ed going full tilt in the opposite direction and burying himself in the anger and violence that are as much a part of Ed as they are of Izzy, as they are of anyone who’s spent their entire adult lives working to the top of the pirate food chain.

I see Ed and Izzy’s dynamic less that of victim and abuser and more as a couple who came together for necessity and that worked for a while but now the relationship is going stale and restrictive, and while one of them is outgrowing the relationship, the other is desperately clawing at anything he can to stop things from changing. Because, as Izzy says, the only way to retire from piracy is through death; there’s no graceful bowing out of being a legendary pirate, and if the captain’s been stabbed, the first mate is about to see worse (see too how Izzy tried to appeal to Black Pete for help during the mutiny, having made him first mate, but Black Pete shrugged him off by saying he never formally accepted the position. First mate is supposed to have the captain’s back. Always). This is also why Izzy threatening Ed is such a huge deal; it’s a massive betrayal of their dynamic from Ed’s perspective, and from Izzy’s it’s a last resort to save both their skins. The rub being, Izzy might not be entirely wrong in being afraid that if Ed embraces his softer side so completely (debates about whether that’s what he was doing and was healing, or if he was just mimicking Stede to try and mitigate his hurt notwithstanding), it’ll kill them all the next time a ship with proper weapons tries to make a pass at the Revenge when her crew is like this.

So Izzy makes the threat, wraps himself in his unerring loyalty to his captain by making an appeal to whatever latent survival instinct Ed might still have in him—you’re Blackbeard, you protect us, and if you won’t, I’ll kill you (fine print: before you can get us all killed). Ed decides to react to it by not only going back to the way things were, but likely going back to it in such an opposite-swinging extreme that the Kraken is probably even more of a danger to himself and others than Edward was. No one made Ed do any of what he does when he’s the Kraken. Izzy never so much as made a suggestion of any of it. Izzy is just as responsible for the consequences of the Kraken, in my opinion, but its birth and actions are all Ed’s. We were told as an audience from the beginning that those were the sorts of things Blackbeard was famous for doing, that he’s capable of some truly heinous acts. He’s top dog pirate for a reason. Piracy is an ugly profession.

Which dovetails nicely into my second point: is Izzy an abuser for being stuck in an abusive cyclical culture? That, I don’t know for sure. Maybe. But calling Izzy an abuser just seems to me to be walking away from the whole second half of the equation: the fact that he’s STUCK there. But Ed tried to get out, and Stede was making his way in it without getting stuck! Fair points. But remember that Izzy sees himself as the only one in this situation with any sense of perspective or pragmatism. Things don’t work in the “real world” that Izzy lives in the way they do on the Revenge. And he has a point! Look at how hard Stede struggles in the first few episodes when he butts up against real pirate culture; it almost kills him, and he has to be saved by “real” pirates from his own mess. Izzy and Chauncey have the exact same thought, though: whatever weird magic the Revenge seems to hold in her boards, it’s a fluke. The real world doesn’t work like that. And Izzy isn’t going to let his captain, his meal ticket, his protection, and frankly everything he’s worked for for the past untold years, destroy himself on the rocks chasing mermaids. Ed’s going back to the real world kicking and screaming if Izzy has to drag him back himself. And he tries. And, eventually, he succeeds. So he thinks. Season 2 will tell the extent of his follies. But I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again, what the Kraken is about to give us, I fully believe, is unchecked rage and hurt and violence on a scale that doesn’t take into account any level of loyalty or service. Izzy Hands got by for years on “managing” Edward; there is not going to be any “managing” of the Kraken.

And when the dynamic is that sickened, I don’t think calling Izzy Ed’s abuser is really true, any more than it would be to call Ed Izzy’s abuser. They’re hurting each other, yeah, quite a lot, but that’s just the world they live in. As Calico Jack said, “they’re all just in various stages of f/cking each other over.” Calico Jack is manipulative; Izzy is a traitor. Hornigold, by the sounds of him, was a captain who was an abuser; Izzy is a first mate using the only tools he knows to protect himself and his captain, because he refuses to believe that Bonnet’s little fantasy world will ever do anything other than make himself and his crew and whoever is stupid enough to stick around dead. Crucially, I want to make it clear that it doesn’t mean Izzy is RIGHT. But he is JUSTIFIED, based on the logic of his understanding of the world. And that’s what makes him SO DANG INTERESTING. And why boiling him down to “Ed’s abuser” is just…too simplified for everything going on here. Certainly there are ELEMENTS of abuse, but a toxic dynamic doesn’t automatically mean one of them is the evil holder of power and the other is a helpless innocent. They hurt each other, and they need each other, and you can’t simplify a dynamic like that without doing them both a huge disservice.

#our flag means death #took several times to post this bc paragraphs 2 chonky whoops #anyway back to my point #i am not so much an izzy hands apologist as i am an izzy hands analyst #con o'neill didn't give us a beautiful soundtrack of swear words for people to flatten the nuance of his character like this #'izzy is an abuser' tired #'izzy and ed are two toxic crabs in a bucket who keep dragging each other down' wired

[queezleofprague]

Phase 2 of Skullduggery Pleasant sure is... something. I haven't read very deeply into it before I fell out but I'd love to hear your thoughts about it! 🐙

I’ve read up to book 13 and then just purposely had the last two books spoiled for me because I didn’t care enough to read them, but Until The End doesn’t sound too terrible so maybe I’ll see if my library has it.

That being said, phase 2 in general just feels like all of my problems with the series cranked up to 11 and without any of my favorite parts. The whole magic system just makes less and less sense as the series goes on, the new characters feel really flat and boring, and a lot of people also say the books feel really ooc, but I think it’s more than that. It kind of feels like Landy just doesn’t know how to write character development, like he’s trying to have Valkyrie process her trauma, for example, but he keeps missing the mark. Her character arc doesn’t have the emotional impact it should, and any time she makes even a little progress, it’s undone by the beginning of the next book, with no real explanation. Her friendship with Skulduggery has basically devolved into them being very reluctant coworkers, but again, the book avoids addressing this change, why they might need space from each other, how dysfunctional their original partnership might have been, etc, in any meaningful way.

Skulduggery himself also continues to just. not get any emotional depth. and it is so frustrating, especially because Valkyrie trying to deal with her own issues could have opened up an opportunity for Skulduggery to start trying to do the same in order to help her. And a lot of what’s been happening in phase 2 should have had some emotional impact on him, but again, I feel like Landy doesn’t know how to write that.

#gah. i am Frustrated with phase 2 #deep space static 📡 #shadowy-dumbo-octopus #skulduggery pleasant #it could have been good!! and instead we got this bullshit

[zumpietoo]

Errmmm....nooo...we meet Slizzy, the user and the slut, always taking credit for the accomplishments of others, fucking over others and being a trampy, violent psychopath....

No, she’s “looked to spiral” and now has “looked to a cult”..

Yes, yes....sorry, but not new..

Noooo, she’s become the champion for self victimization, being a total hypocrite, temper tantruming and body shaming other women for choices that are none of her business. Especially when she doesn’t get invited to parties. 

I met PP in LA, she was already sulking her ass off. She remains seated because she’s fucking lazy AF. She talks to me about her ladypain and not bothering to get real treatment/address her issues....she does sidestep her cult a lot this time, so maybe she’s getting bored with that shit.....otherwise, she literally says the same bullshit she always says....

There is nothing remotely “intimate” here, it’s her stand blabber (tho she might’ve let slip a thing or two)...

I fucking hate this job, even tho it’s the best I’m ever gonna do. But I like to pretend otherwise. Also, do you have $5 to give me? I need $$$

I actually haven’t and I’m seekritly fully aware I suck ass. I’m also seekritly aware this is the best it’s ever gonna be and I’m staring down obscurity already. And by “my style”, I mean everybody kissing my ass...

No, in fact, I have to buy my way onto things. This is some bullshit I’ve made up, since the role/project is on indefinite hold, anyway.....and I was neverrrr gonna get it. And even if I had, would’ve fallen flat on my face.

I was sooooo speshullllllll.....and sensitive, cuz that’s how I like to see myself when I’m a difficult mess....

Sooo, soooo, SOOOOOOO speshul....

I wanted lots of attention and could tell Cole was finally getting REALLY fed up with my bullshit for good, so I figured I’d preemptively shade him with this....also I really like $$$, so I figured I’d “publish” shit I’d shared with my fandumb for free on tumblr all along....

I can’t believe people are such meanies that they actually CRITICIZED  my middle school style whining!!!

Oh no, I routinely excuse myself from everything! And I, in fact, exactly wanted everybody to see how deep and sensitive I am....and to start shading Cole, cuz how dare he get fed up with me fucking around and making my MH issues the central focus of our relationship? It’s like he thought HE was a person with needs, tooo!!!

AND HOW DARE HE FUCKING DUMP ME AND START DATING, A FULL YEAR LATER, A WOMAN WAY SKINNIER THAN I AM?????

Alsoooo.....my costars point at me and call me “fatty”. Except FT, cuz her ass is huge....oh and Shannon, but I don’t count her. She’s moar Cole’s friend and actually talented/serious about her craft....

By “therapist” I mean cult leader, buuut..... Oh yeah....and did I mention, as I’m saying this, I’m a total hypocrite who gets lots of plastic surgery? Cuz this is all legit bullshit......it’s soooo hard.....

I was told to ask you about something you never shut up about/is not remotely new info! BTW....did you just basically say “you’re bi-polar”??? Cuz that isn’t how depression works....

Also I believe you have no “healthy relationships” in your life atm and the last (possibly only ever) one was Cole, correct? Is that why you’re stalking him/his current GF with his other ex?

Oh also, I totally am NOT “trying to escape” by being in a cult, doing drugs a lot and “talking to ghosts thru the ether”...

People don’t, actually...my agent had to really haul ass to make it happen. I have exposed myself as a whiny hypocrite who just wants to get attention, sympathy and most importantly swag/$$$.

Also, I’ve been telling peeps they “don’t know what I’m capable of” since 2017....so plenty of time to change that. I’m too lazy and entitled....this is my slightly humbler version, cuz I’m also soooperrr gloomy these days. 

But, again, depression rocks...see above!