#especially when you have high affinity with johnny

[promises-atsundown]

thinking about how v’s name is only uttered twice during the events of cyberpunk 2077, and only once by the person who knew her the most. how the alias of “v” become something akin to a mask, something to hide behind. v the merc, strong-willed and capable. she put “valerie” to bed years ago, buried her. thinking about the conversation at the oilfields, when johnny says “most people i thought were my friends couldn’t even stand to be in the same room with me. you’re fucking closest to me by a long shot, there 24/7. and yet, you don’t seem to hate my living guts.” the intimacy of sharing one mind, one heart. v and johnny as an “us” and “we” in the most literal sense of the word; one and the same. thinking about the tower’s epilogue, where v talks aloud to johnny, even though he’s not there. how in all the endings where one is left without the other, how often that must have happened. how painful it would be to become accustomed to sharing one mind with each other, only to have that ripped away, and the loneliness that must come with it.

#phantom liberty spoilers #im so normal about them !!! #SO normal !!! #the whole conversation in the av in the tower ending … gut wrenching #especially when you have high affinity with johnny #cyberpunk 2077 #silverv #johnny x v #johnny silverhand #v cyberpunk #phantom liberty #ship: one and the same

[minsungchronology]

My Personal Opinions on Minsung's Dynamic (2021)

Disclaimer: I am not trying to pass off my opinions as facts. This is my personal interpretation of what is laid out right in front of us. I could be completely off base because I don’t know these guys personally, so take this with a grain of salt and feel free to disagree!

Good god their flirting has really ramped up this year.

If 2020 was subtle, then this year it’s more on the surface. I really think 2021 is where you get to see just how good their chemistry is and how well they bounce off of each other.

I think at this point they’ve found their footing and are very comfortable with each other. It’s so interesting to see their progression on camera, when you get to watch everything in order from the beginning to now. I keep saying this but it’s actually such a fun experience. There’s not a lot of content during the first half of the year because of Kingdom mostly. But the show really shows you how insane each member’s work ethic is, how talented they are, and how hard they work as a group. Not just with each other, but the staff who are with them 24/7 as well.

But back to the main topic:

They seem a lot surer of themselves and are blatantly flirty. Han is the boldest he’s ever been (the development). The members are openly more 😏🤔😟 of them. I think the teasing comes back in full force this year. 

First (I noted this in the video), this moment is debatable to me:

I know a lot of shippers talk about this one even though it’s not explicitly confirmed, but it’s during the Chan’s room Vlive where Lee Know recommends a few songs, one of them being Johnny Balik’s Honey. They briefly talk about the song and how LK has an affinity for listening to multiple songs of the same artist, etc. Then all of a sudden Chan asks if he likes “honey” with an almost teasing? tone of voice. LK is a bit taken aback by his question and is like “why do you ask?” And Chan says, “just because”.

I’m on the side that Chan was deliberately trying to tease him about Han “Hannie” (his name sounds like honey when you add the -ie particle). On multiple occasions, the members have also made connections with Han’s name and honey before, especially with JYP’s “Honey” song. LK’s confused reaction kind of adds on to that with him quickly saving the question by answering about actual 🍯. But again, this moment is debatable b/c it’s not as clear cut like the other moments I’ve placed in this project. I’m actually curious to see what opinions people have on this moment.

Then there’s Seungmin who blatantly says they act “lovey dovey” off camera (lmfao what tf does he see??????) and commenting on their photobooth photos and how they look like a couple. I think out of all the members, him and Changbin have the least filter when it comes to LK and Han. Chan is a close third.

Then there’s I.N feeling like a “third wheel” during the cooking show and subtlety alluding to that because of their high energy together.

Now onto the moments that make me go “what??”:

In Mysterious Kitchen, Lee Know asks himself what his favorite food is and Han very quietly but instantly blurts out “Me”. Man forgot the cameras were on for a second. 😭

Then comes the infamous Vlive where LK forgets to tell Han he turned on the speaker to his phone. Han ends up calling him “Jagi” through the phone and starts stuttering and panicking as soon as he realizes that everyone and their mom can hear him. If they played it off as a joke I wouldn’t raise my brows towards it at all, but Han panicked, so it must mean something and how they want/don’t want to be perceived at this point in time.

Han does come on his next live and clarifies that he also calls the other members that and vice versa (which again, it’s normal to use terms of endearment towards your friends), but him getting nervous and stuttering on himself when being caught with calling LK that is quite telling.

And then all of a sudden after this incident you have them openly calling other members “Jagi” on camera,,, when that has NEVER happened before. (LK did it as a joke back in 2018 at a fansign, but it was still a joke at the end of the day so…)

Another moment I want to point out is how LK mentioned on the radio show that Han is a “Yes man” when it comes to him (feel like this is also very much reciprocated, you’ll see this a lot next year). Recently, a Two Kids show episode came out and Han talked about how he doesn’t like hanging out with people in general. In the past, he’s also been open about being more of a homebody than someone who is constantly out and about. Compared to him, LK is more outdoorsy and adventurous, so it’s speaks volumes when Han almost always agrees to LK’s suggestions, and LK immediately understanding Han’s boundaries without any protest when he’s like “I don’t want to go out today, I already used up my energy for that”. Getting a little glimpse of that just shows you how well they “get” each other and how mutual/healthy their friendship (as we can see) is.

Personal Opinions:

I think this year, they are very much at a place where they’re the most comfortable they’ve ever been with each other.  I still think at this point they consider each other to be just friends and are able to maintain that, but they have no reservations playfully flirting with each other and even toe the line sometimes. Like the other members also seem to be very much aware that they have a special bond and aren’t shy about teasing them.

I also believe very, very late into this year, there’s a glaring awareness between them that the “more than platonic” feelings are mutual. But, again, they’re able to maintain their friendship while realizing that they might have something *special*. That’s probably why all of the playful flirting manifested this year.

2022 is where things start to get noticeably blurrier in the platonic/non-platonic department. It’s where I also believe at some point, maybe in the middle of that year, before or very early on in the Maniac Tour, is when they started something.

#minsung

[judestclare]

。· . ˙ ♪  ⌈ kristine froseth + cis female + she / her + solo g + clairo ⌋  have you heard ?  judith “jude” st. clare got signed by disclosure records two years ago ? they’re talented don’t get me wrong but i can’t believe it , they’re only twenty-two years old & some people go all their lives without making it , what makes them special ?  it’ll be interesting to see if the fame & success go to their head because i hear they can be quite careless , pliant & disloyal . but that could only be the rumours because i’ve also heard they’re gregarious , free-spirited & warm hearted . i guess only time will tell .  

     &.     hiii everyone !    i’m meredith, i’m nineteen, i use they/them and she/her pronouns. some more fun facts: i’m a libra, i’m from the est timezone, and really excited to be here !   under the cut you’ll find some #funfacts about the woman , the myth , the legend herself, jude st. clare !  

quick facts:

name: judith victoria st. clare

nicknames: jude — do not call her judith, she hates it

age: twenty-two

date of birth: january 20th, 1998

zodiac: aquarius sun, libra moon ( read here )

gender: cis female ( she/her )

sexuality: bisexual 

positive traits: open-minded, caring, fun-loving, free-spirited, warm-hearted, creative, adventurous, friendly, gentle, gregarious, bubbly

neutral traits: talkative, party animal, reticent, extroverted

negative traits: flighty, careless, disloyal, lazy, dishonest, flippant, easily manipulated/pliant, loud, facetious, unconfident, silly

tv tropes: plucky girl, hard-drinking party girl, the face, good bad girl

mbti: esfp, the campaigner ( curious, energetic, enthusiastic, good communicators, know how to relax, popular and friendly / overthinks things, too emotional, too independent, unfocused, little practical skills  ) 

background: 

jude was born and raised under the ever biblical name of judith in a tiny town in the midwestern united states to a religious family. growing up, her highest aspirations were winning a prize for best chocolate chip cookies at her church��s potluck. matching mary janes with her sisters and dresses with carefully picked cardigans took up the majority of her her wardrobe, and she could recite bible verses along with her times tables.

as teenage years hit, however, the spirit of rebellion was lit in jude. forcing friends and family to call her the much shorter, and in her opinion, much better jude. sneaking makeup in and herself out of picturesque suburban home, many nights were spent at house parties, doing beer pong inside, or smoking cigarettes or a joint outside. style never went full alternative — but baggy sweatshirts and ripped jeans replaced the uniform of sundresses.

two things that never suffered: her bubbly personality, and her affinity for bubblegum lipgloss. even as she tore away from weekly church attendance and skipped school more and more, jude still greeted all former churchgoers, classmates, and teachers in the grocery store with a beaming smile and a knack for remembering details — hi, ms. dawson. how’s little johnny? he’s two now, right? or i heard you were thinking about starting your own bait and tackle shop by the lake, mr. smith. i think you should do it. remember that bass you caught? you’re a natural! she had very little common sense, and didn’t do too well in school — but she always knew what to say and how to say it. she charming and friendly and fun to be around.

thus, jude’s rebellion was more so of the wannabe variety: in such a small town, everyone knew everyone, and everyone knew what she was doing. her parents mostly just waited for her to tire herself out — only it never happened. she dialed back on thick eyeliner, and still sometimes would show up to church on holidays to sing in the choir, but mostly, small town convention and religion were abandoned by the time she was in her mid-teens. 

eventually, she came out to her parents as bisexual, and it was a non-issue — despite religious background, her parents supported her 100%, no matter what clothes she wore, who she hung out with, or who she loved.

jude never graduated high school. by her sixteenth birthday, her attendance record was so spotty that they stopped calling home to let her parents know she hadn’t shown up to school that day — and a few weeks before she turned seventeen, after many screaming matches with her parents and sessions with the school counselor and principal, jude officially dropped out. 

she wasn’t going to sit around the house all day, however, instead driving her clunky car across town to the movie theatre every day, where she worked part time. she remained friends with all the people her age in town still, and made new ones at the theatre. however happy she was, jude was aimless. she knew she had to do something. finally, she turned a passion into a full time hobby, something she never thought would be lucrative. 

by seventeen, that knack for singing in the choir had been translated to covers posted with the gentle strumming of a guitar and manufactured beats. by nineteen, she was writing her own songs and gaining traction on youtube and soundcloud, and two weeks before her twentieth birthday, jude was signed to disclosure records and being flown to manchester. it was hard work, and it took years, but it still feels like a whirlwind to her — one moment she’s in her bedroom, playing bars in her local areas at open mic nights and upaid gigs, and the next she’s signed to the disclosure records. it’s a dream. 

tl;dr — jude is a flighty, fun high school dropout raised in small town middle america by a religious family. she grew into herself and was able to “rebel” despite her sheltered upbringing, and that unique sense of self + her musical talent got her a youtube following from the covers and songs she posted. that youtube following turned into a contract with disclosure two years ago, and she’s been in manchester ever since. 

career: 

a successful album and a successful tour behind her, the not-so-indie anymore lofi pop starlet is on the brink of even bigger fame, though she has a loyal following as she stands. she’s nowhere near super-fame — but she gets recognized in public, and that’s enough to give her the flutters in her stomach that she’s going to make it even bigger.

a regular social butterfly, jude regularly interacts with fans: instagram lives of acoustic covers from her apartment, constant posts to her stories. while her image isn’t exactly not genuine, it’s very curated: she’s careful what she reveals about herself, and the image she’s trying to maintain.

personality: 

image is not a thing, however, in jude’s personal life. still a party girl at heart, she’s down for anything once ... or twice ... or maybe a third time. she’ll say yes to almost anything, and a distinct — though never malicious — lack of loyalty keeps her unbound by romantic relationships or extremely close friendships. she’s friends with everyone, as she’ll tell you, and she has no problem at all with hookups, consistent or one night only.

in spite of this, she develops crushes at the drop of a hat, and will always be there to help someone else out ...  but don’t expect her to keep the same enemies, or to lose her forgiving heart.

jude isn’t dumb, and is pretty much a memorizing machine ( though not eidetic ), can be a little silly or ditzy, especially with sheltered upbringing and big heart. she’s not against being a shoulder to cry on, but when it comes to matters of her own heart, she’s as recticent as can be, never taking much seriously. as a mean youtube comment about her once said: that girl’s got about much depth as a kiddy pool. it wasn’t true, but it’s how she can come off.

drug tw / she drinks pretty consistently, and smokes weed even more so, though she’s not been known to deny any trying harder party drugs, however less consistent she is with it. she hasn’t a problem yet, but she doesn’t seem to be straying from the path that leads her there. if she ever encroaches in on one, jude wouldn’t be able to tell: she’s too busy having fun.

she’s a genuinely kind, caring person ... but jude is a little gullible, and trusts very easily. in spite of her affinity for friendship and relationship hopping, it’d be easy to convince her just about anything is true, or to do whatever bidding was necessary. say the right things at the right time, and jude will be wrapped around your finger. she doesn’t follow directions from authority terribly well, but friends ... that’s a different story.

above all : jude wants to be cool, fun, and liked. she’s a little desperate for attention and affection, and has inconsistent ideals about what’s good for her and the people around her. her self esteem is a lot lower than she makes it seem. 

wanted connections: 

party friends / drinking buddies: if anyone is as into getting drunk and dancing as she is, then call her up and get ready to go. she promises she can beat you in shots.

smoke buddies: a more chill version of the former, if anyone wants to sit around and have a songwriting session or just vibe.

friends: any kind of squad. she’s not the type to have besties, but if you consider her a friend, she’ll latch onto you whenever she gets the chance. 

hookups / fwbs: what it says on the tin, jude is down for anything and anyone (1/?)

crush: jude is very flighty and tends to have feelings come in like a hurricane, with the potential for them to leave just as quickly — this person would have jude wrapped around their finger.

unrequited: basically the opposite — someone likes jude, she’s a #dummy who doesn’t realize it and leads them on because she’s flirty with everyone and would probably also make out with anyone

enemies: jude doesn’t make many of these, but if someone is annoyed by her and lets her know it ... well, she’ll do everything in her power to make them even more annoyed. if you can’t make them like you, make them hate you even more.

tentative friend: on the opposite end of things, this person doesn’t vibe with jude but she’s half-oblivious to it, and is desperately trying to make them like her 

manipulator: jude LOVES attention, so if anyone needs any evil bidding or shit stirring done, just pay her some. she’d make an excellent lackey. 

anything else! seriously! just let me know what you want and we can brainstorm <3

#disclosure.intro #* musings / introduction.

[aveaugvstus]

ALL ABOARD ! The HMS PROMETHEAN welcomes  AUGUSTUS SUTHERLAND  to the expedition in their capacity of  THE SCION. They are  24 YEARS OLD & CISMALE  and might be painted as  ROME FLYNN. When you strike up an acquaintance, address them as  HE / HIM. Their deeds on land prece their arrival — people say they are  CHARISMATIC, GOOD-NATURED, DAUNTLESS  but  ARROGANT, RECKLESS, OBSTINATE   when the tide turns. Their purpose aboard the Promethean falls in line with  “protecting the interests of the Commonwealth and maintaining order”, the pursuit of adventure, chasing the thrill of the unknown and hunger for all that lies beyond the edge of the world.

PINTEREST.    /    ARCHETYPES,  INSPIRATIONS,  ORIGIN,  WANTED CONNECTIONS BELOW.

I.  ARCHETYPES.

beautiful charming himbo™ that is actually super genuine and easygoing and gets along with everyone (much to his haters’ dismay)

super rich kid with the suffocating family legacy looking for a little fun and rebellion

pure of heart!!!!! dumb of ass

longing for purpose and capable of being more than he is beneath all the layers of carefree frat boy and clueless pretty boy

loyal to the death, ride or die for his people (which is most people unless you go out of your way to actively antagonise him)

II.  ORIGIN  /  HEADCANONS.

augustus was named by his grandfather, former admiral of the fleet in her majesty’s royal navy, and a fervent zealot in his glorification of the roman empire and civilisation.

his full name is augustus julius sutherland in case you had any doubts about the full extent of his obsession.

the sutherlands are old, old, old money. (if you traced their genealogy all the way back they don’t truly descend from any house in the peerage but they’ve won the prestige and esteem of nobility through centuries of climbing the ranks of the military and have reaped the accolades, rewards and bestowments of land.) war and conquest runs in their blood. august comes from generations of decorated admirals, generals and commanders.

his parents met when his father’s ship came into port at the bahamas. she’s painted as the exotic temptress that beguiled him with her beauty and feminine wiles because he was engaged at birth to be married to a nice rich white english girl.

august is half-afro-cuban and understands spanish but can’t speak it, having learned the language only through his mother’s lullabies and occasional slips into her native tongue.

august is sheltered growing up from what being mixed truly means — he gets the whispers and stares but it helps being the heir apparent of an extremely powerful and wealthy family. it also helps that he’s very likeable, handsome, good-natured, etc. his mother raises him to treat all people with kindness (with a touch of casual but well-meaning manipulation, it helps to be loved to earn loyalty, after all). as such he’s not raised spoiled rotten and pretentious like most of his peers.

being the embodiment of sunshine he is, he gets along with literally anyone he meets just by sheer force of will and personality — it’s the puppy eyes. he’s respectful, polite and genuinely interested in everyone from all walks of life and doesn’t care about class or station when it comes to making friends.

he’s risen steadily through the ranks of the academy, not out of any particular ambition or necessity but because his family name and presence essentially paved the way. a fact that’s pissed off plenty of people and former comrades-in-arms. if there was one word to describe augustus sutherlands’ life thus far it’d be “effortless”.

august sees his allegiance to the british empire as a perfunctory thing. he’s not bound to the commonwealth, the military, or his rank by any undying sense of duty and obligation and if anything, is quite naive about the realities of the empire and warfare. he’s young, impresssionable, and inclined to the see the best in people and situations. he view of the royal guard and being stationed on the hms promethean is one of adventure and limitless possibility. a means to an end to fulfil his thirst for something greater and more glorious than the mundanity of military life and high society.

III.  VIBES  /  INSPIRATIONS.

—    people: dave franco (in most of his movies but especially 21 jump street). michael b. jordan’s general energy and sheer charisma. zac efron in high school musical, not the character, but like his general ‘everyone’s high school crush’ vibe. —    tv: jason mendoza, the good place. joey tribbiani, friends. andy dwyer, parks and recreation. —    film: ferris bueller, ferris bueller’s day off. flynn rider, tangled. johnny storm, marvel. —    literature: peter pan. finnick odair, the hunger games trilogy.

IV.  PLOTS  /  WANTED CONNECTIONS.

fun and chaos, to put it simply. august is always looking for trouble, whether he knows it or not. most of it is harmless but he’s fond of dares, exploring places he shouldn’t be in and doing things he definitely shouldn’t be doing and getting away with it.

literally if you dare him to do anything he is honor-bound by the himbo code to do it.

not sure what the liquor rations are like on hms promethean but fuck it because august will happily get drunk with just about anyone on the ship. he demands drinking games! revelry! stolen moments in the dark

extremely good at finding things — be they lost or contraband that can’t be secured via the quartermaster. perhaps your character has a strange request for something that august can provide.

if a character ever finds themselves overboard, august will be the first man doing a perfect swandive into the water to rescue them, whether they can swim or not

people see august as trustworthy, so he’s privy to a lot of gossip and secrets he otherwise should definitely not be told. he doesn’t have a big mouth but he’s guilty of not treating things seriously enough when he should. those that spill their hearts out to him beware...

august loves a good tale of the adventure and will sit wide-eyed listening for hours to a captivating master storyteller

not to say that august is....... dumb but he’s a little gullible at times and has a fascination with conspiracy theories and mysteries. Loves ghost stories and horror stories

he has an equal affinity for animals as he does with people, he adores them despite being allergic to things with fur. he’ll pet your creatures and spend hours sneezing but he refuses to have regrets (ragrets). 

THE CHALLENGER. someone that august can’t seem to charm and bend to his will no matter what he tries. the thorn in his side that sees through all the rich boy bullshit and doesn’t care for it. a person that, against his better judgement, infuriates him because he can’t get a hold of them or why they seem to dislike him so much.

THE SWEETHEART.  a guest passenger that’s of the same warm, easygoing sensibility that he clicks with from the first moment. an instant kind of bond and warmth despite their differences in background or life. a person that brings out the big loveable heart in august and sees him for who he is.

THE CATALYST.  an older character that’s jaded and hardened and has their eyes completely open to the atrocities and sins of the british empire. a character that confronts august’s worldview and wakes him up, sparks a fire in him that leads to his disillusionment with the empire and the role he plays within it.

#thqintro #august yelling into the abyss: hey there terrors it's me ya boi

[fink-le-freak]

@mikey-putrid and I have this weird little desert town we created called Halflight and I want to share some of the character blurbs we wrote for the citizens

Notable Locations Within Halflight

-Halflight General Hospital

-Halflight Public Library

-Halflight Grammar School

-Halflight Town Hall

-The Flock and Feather

-Dragon's Keep Games and Comics

-Feline Good

-Pins N' Needles

-Ink Addicts

-Rose's Antiques

-Theodore's Oddities and Enchantments

-Kelly's Judo Club

-New to You

-Sunny Valley Nursing Home

Dr. Elsie O'Dalaigh, 54: The town's most beloved doctor. Her dry wit and eccentricities may put you off at first, but she's a very warm and wise woman and should you fall ill or find yourself hurt, you will be in good hands. She's originally from Dublin and has a fair number of stories to tell from her wild youth in Ireland. She has an affinity for all things macabre but especially spiders. You might find her dozing off on her porch swing or enjoying a cup of tea with a friend. You're always welcome to join her and her spouse for dinner.

Dr. Ivan Vasilevsky, 39: A sickly doctor who recently came to town from New York City because the air quality was better for his lungs. He's very brilliant but hardly friendly and very private. Because he's fairly well known, patients come from across the country seeking his care. The only person he seems friendly with is his nurse, Cameron.

Dr. Andre Jimenez, 34: An anthropomorphic parrot surgeon at Halflight General Hospital. He's a total social butterfly and loves to talk, talk, talk. He has trouble keeping secrets and falls into gossip frequently. He's well liked by all his colleagues, all but Dr. Vasilevsky that is.

Johnathan "Johnny" Ross, 20: A cowardly and sensitive young man with a passion for piercing. Though only an apprentice, he's very knowledgeable about body modification and keeps his own piercings immaculate. His motorcycle is also kept in pristine condition. He's also quite shy and is hardly ever seen without his girlfriend, Loretta.

Venus Estelle, 31: A laid back frilled lizard woman that claims to see the future through the smoke from her pipe. She's very transparent and sees no reason to keep secrets about herself. She has nothing to hide. She has a passion for music and plays drums in a local punk band, The Heart Electric.

Kaisei "Kai" Kelly, 56: A very stoic and serious judo instructor. His father was a boxer in Ireland and ever since childhood, Kai has been enthralled by martial arts. He fancies himself a train enthusiast and has a large collection of model trains in his home. His serious nature and brute strength can make him rather intimidating but his husband Rodney finds him cute. He visits his family in Kyoto every spring.

Rodney Kelly, 59: The gym teacher at Halflight Grammar School. Originally from Edinburgh and standing a diminutive 5'2", Rodney more than makes up for his height with personality. He's encouraging, kind, hyperactive and loud. Very, very loud. Fitness has always been an important part of his life, even at nearly 60. He does his best to make gym class a fun place for all instead of a source of bullying and stress for those who don't like team sports.

Jeremy Fox, 19: A brilliant college student neck deep in conspiracy theories. He's very paranoid and distrusting, often to his detriment. He wants to prove to his professors that aliens exist though none of them will give him the time of day. When he isn't studying or trying to prove his theories, he can be found practicing his bass guitar or stargazing. He and his older sister like to unwind by smoking pot and watching sci-fi movies. He's one of Johnny's closest friends.

Jodie Fox, 23: Jeremy's cheerful, supportive yet ditzy older sister and roomate. She let him move in with her after their parents kicked him out for being gay. She doesn't understand a lot of what he talks about but she's happy he's passionate about something. Her bedroom is filled with Care Bears merchandise and colorful collectibles. She's rarely seen without her sticker covered roller skates. The two siblings live in the apartment right above Johnny and Loretta.

Sunny McIntyre, 30: An anthro horse gym rat and fitness trainer. Her cheerfulness is contagious and her motherly nature makes her easy to talk to. Her thick southern drawl might make it hard to understand her though. She always looks on the bright side and doesn't have a pessimistic bone in her body. In addition to being a die hard Bon Jovi fan, she enjoys fishing, hiking and hunting. She also hosts a transgender support group at her house.

Junichiro Oguma, 46: An overworked and underpaid pharmacy technician. Though very good at what he does, he isn't really a people person. He's rather grumpy and has little patience for foolishness. He's infamously difficult to work with due to his perfectionism. He holds himself to ridiculously high standards and gets upset easily when he fails to meet his own expectations. His wit is drier than the desert itself.

Edward Dowler, 68: A retired illustrator living comfortably at the Sunny Valley Nursing Home. He takes his sketchbook everywhere and may sheepishly ask you if you would mind posing for a portrait. He's a gentle soul and a firm believer in the power of pacifism. He's very close to his adopted daughter and three grandsons.

Joanne Lawrence, 47: The owner of Joanne's Diner. She bought the place almost 20 years ago and turned it into a comfortable, 1950's style diner popular among bikers and travelers. She's very blunt and hates wasting time but if you treat her well, she'll treat you well. Threaten her livelihood however and you will pay dearly. Regulars might call her Mama because she takes such good care of them.

Dennis "Moose" Bowen, 52: The cook at Joanne's. He's a people pleaser and will do whatever a customer asks to make sure they enjoy their meal. Hearing someone say they didn't like his food is like a knife through the heart. He prefers to stay in the background and not call too much attention to himself. Joanne calls him Moose because of his large size.

Hilda "Mouse" Calhoun, 21: A demon waitress at Joanne's. Contrary to what you might believe, she's very down to earth and sweet. She's not here for souls or bringing you to damnation, she just wants to serve pancakes and save money for beauty school. Her petite build makes her the Mouse to Dennis's Moose.

Wally Mack, unknown but born before 1956, mentally and physically around 21-24: A living humanoid shadow that can usually be found on a wall at Joanne's. He's chatty and perky and loves to dance. He's able to interact with others through their shadows. If Wally was to touch your shadow's shoulder, you would feel it. He likes to play harmless pranks on Dennis.

Tiffany "Tiff" Cain, 25: An anthropomorphic eagle bartender at her father's restaurant, The Flock and Feather. She also volunteers to work with children with special needs on weekends. She's very patient and a daredevil at heart. Her straightforward, casual attitude makes guests comfortable and keeps them coming back. She may be seen skateboarding around town.

Hisao Nakajima-Stewart, 33: The recently appointed head librarian at Halflight Public Library. He's rather sarcastic and moody but becoming a father has softened him up. He's very passionate about high fantasy and hosts Dungeons and Dragons sessions at his house every week. He spoils his chihuahua, Kotori, rotten with all kinds of pretty dresses and toys. He loves his husband, daughter and newborn son dearly.

Delwyn Morgane, 29: An employee at Dragon's Keep Games and Comics. When his shift ends, he dons a full suit of armor and obsessively hunts down dragons, or at least tries to. He's yet to actually kill a dragon. He's quite handsome but has a few screws loose. He plays Dungeons and Dragons with Hisao and friends every Thursday night.

Klaus Brunsvold, 70: A quiet and hardworking man originally from Norway. English is not his first language but he's slowly improving thanks to his coworkers. Though he might look imposing, his warm smile puts people at ease right away. He works at the cat cafe, Feline Good, as a barista and gleefully serves customers fattigman and slices of ostekake. Goria says he has "big grandpa energy".

Jonas Ostergard, 61: A blunt, reclusive man that's easily recognized by his towering height and voracious appetite. Standing 8'2" in comparison to his wife's tiny 5', he's one of many oddities in this town. He's absolutely enthralled by zombies and robots and fills notebooks with detailed diagrams regarding them. He's often seen at the Flock and Feather, chatting up a storm with his friend Tiff. He has autism, ADHD and intellectual disabilities.

Jamie De Luna, 18: A scrawny young man enamored with anime and martial arts. He's a bit hotheaded and immature but nonetheless determined to become an MMA fighter. His younger sister Tala is his biggest fan and supports her nerdy big brother all the way. He loves cheesy kung fu movies and takes them very seriously. He thinks very highly of his judo teacher Kai and seems to think of him as a father figure.

Goria Stout, 15: A high school student and part of Hisao's Dungeons and Dragons group. She's partially an ogre, 25% to be exact, and admires her ogre grandfather greatly. However, at the same time, part of her has been made to feel ashamed of her pointed ears and blue skin. She's rather lazy and self centered, but occasionally shows a more warm side. She wants to study magic and become a feared sorceress but just doesn't have the natural ability to do so. She frequents the comic shop and is the only one that believes in Delwyn's quest to slay a dragon.

Wesley Eldridge, 19: The bratty and materialistic son of billionaires left to play in mommy and daddy's mansion. His parents are constantly traveling the world, so he spends his days lazing about and relishing his family's wealth. He's notoriously snobbish and will have no part in anything, or anyone, he deems beneath him. He's had a fondness for unicorns since he was a child and even owns a purebred Irish unicorn named Divinity Diamond. He's very protective of her and has no qualms about sending his guards after you if you dare harm her.

Renwick Ozul, 25: E-boy and aspiring model with a sour disposition. He's distrusting of others and keeps people at a distance, except for his close friend Missy. Despite his cold and calculating online persona, he's quite insecure and struggles with his body image. He can be rather rude and nasty but has his moments of vulnerability and kindness.

Chelsea Montgomery, 23: A quiet young woman who keeps to herself. Some people say she fades into the background. She's very creative and resourceful, cleverly finding solutions to most problems she faces. Her interests include anime, cosplay, drawing and video games. She's great with kids and would like to be an art teacher one day.

Dallas Silvers, 27: A monster hunter and unofficial sheriff of Halflight. She's bold and quick witted, outsmarting any beast that threatens the town and quickly subduing it or killing it. Her talent with a rifle is nigh unmatched in town. She's the second oldest of 11 children and adores her older brother, the bounty hunter Smokey Silvers. She finds it difficult to be open about her feelings but loves her family dearly.

(Characters below belong to my friend @mikey-putrid, follow him he's cool)

Brody Erickson-O'Dalaigh, 47: The town's resident maternal figure and unofficial monster hunter (or befriender, really). Their spunky, adventurous attitude often gets them into shenanigans, but they always manage to pull themself out. They are kind and loving towards everyone. No matter who or what you are, you are always invited to Brody's for a nice meal.

Landon Borowick, 26: Brody's, often unwilling, sidekick and a security guard at the local mall. He's a cowardly young man who would rather stay home and get stoned, but thinks of Brody as his hero and therefore ends up getting dragged along on their adventures. Despite his fearful nature, Landon is a physically intimidating person who will do anything to help a friend.

Darcy Cooper, 16: A rough and tumble student at Halflight Grammar School. Darcy moved to Halflight with her mother to open up a bakery, which doubles as their home, and she often makes deliveries on her bike. Her warm and friendly personality helps her to make friends easily. Usually covered in bandages, Darcy loves practicing stunts on her skateboard, as well as watching anime and playing video games.

Loretta Sims, 20: Johnny's girlfriend, aspiring cryptozoologist and collecter of cool antiques. Loretta is shy and timid, preferring to blend into the background and not draw attention to herself. She loves spending time in the forest and working on her ever growing scrapbook. She's never far from her beloved boyfriend.

Cameron Payette, 28: A nurse at Halflight General Hospital and Dr. Vasilevsky's live in assistant. Having grown up with 15 disabled and ill siblings, Cameron has developed a love of helping people, keeping them healthy and cheering them up with a silly song on their trusty ukelele. During their off time, they enjoy video games and sci-fi movies.

#oc #original character #long fucking post

[tighnaurri]

NCT as Angels & Demons pt. 2

Hell’s Princes (pt. 1)

“The angel of awe that rules the months of August-September.”

Age ~ Unknown // Height ~ 5′9″ / 175 cm // Weight ~ 132 lbs / 60 kg

Race ~ Angel // Class ~ Guardian // Wings ~ White // Color ~ Gold

Relations ~ Former “brother” of Jaemin/Jaoel

Biography ~ Born an angel, Mark assimilated into human society quickly. He’s used multiple alias over his long life, Minhyung and Mark being the most recent. Among other angels, he is known as Morael. His job is to protect his assigned human, only ever having one human at a time. He must follow three rules:

1. Do not let them see you in any form besides human.

2. Do not reveal your true nature.

3. Do not get attached.

“The angel with power to thwart demons.”

Age ~ 1,455 years // Height ~ 5′8″ / 173 cm // Weight ~ 121 lbs / 55 kg

Race ~ Angel // Class ~ Warrior // Wings ~ Pearl // Color ~ Silver

Biography ~ Rizoel, since the day he was created, has been dedicated to his cause - eradicating demons, traitors, and other unnatural entities. He uses his human form, Huang Renjun, as little as possible due to finding it restraining. He strictly follows the rules and has never deviated from protocol - even other angels find it scary how he’s never even entertained the thought of temptation. He must follow three rules:

1. Leave no trace.

2. Leave no survivors.

3. Do not interact unnecessarily with humans - serve your duty and nothing more.

”The guardian angel who lives in the seventh heaven.” or “A state of euphoria.”

Age ~ Unknown // Height ~ 5′9″ / 175 cm // Weight ~ 128 lbs / 52 kg

Race ~ Angel // Class ~ Fallen // Wings ~ None // Color ~ Navy & Gold

Relations ~ Former “brother” of Mark/Morael

Biography ~ Nearly as old as Morael, Jaoel and the other angel were both Guardians - so close they considered themselves brothers. When Jaoel fell in love with the boy he was watching over, he fell - loosing his wings. Morael was heartbroken, but accepted the circumstances anyway, avoiding the younger as per protocol. To get back at his brother, Jaemin took up tormenting the elder’s protected humans. He knew he it was the only way to have his attention, as well as knowing that the angel could never kill him, Morael being too “sentimental” to do so.

“His birth land-marked the storm of the 21st Century.”

Age ~ 18 // Height ~ 5′8″ / 173 cm // Weight ~ 126 lbs / 57 kg

Race ~ Nephilim // Power ~ Electrical Manipulation // Color ~ Violet

Biography ~ Still not at full maturity, Haechan is struggling with both learning how to manage his growing power and avoiding those set on either killing or capturing him. The angels see him as an abomination - a perversion what it means to be holy - and wish to eradicate him from existence. Demons want to capture him and force him to do their dirty work. Haechan wants none of this. All he wants is to go to school at Blackwater High  without being suspicious of anyone nice to him, to go to the arcade, and have friends like a normal kid.

Is a normal senior year too much to ask?

Fact ~ His mother nicknamed him Haziel, meaning “Vision of God.”

“His birth land-marked the worst flood of the 20th Century.”

Age ~ 87 // Height ~ 5′10″ / 178 cm // Weight ~ 132 lbs / 60 kg

Race ~ Nephilim // Power ~ Water Manipulation // Color ~ Black & Silver

Biography ~ Where Haechan is abstinent from the devil’s influence, Sicheng has fully embraced it. He’s close with the Prince of Wrath, Kim Doyoung, because of a mutual respect built up between them. He spars with Johnny, the Prince of Violence, on the regular, and plays strip poker with Ten and Yuta when especially bored. Make no mistake, he is no one’s lap dog - he plays nobody's game but his own.

Fact ~ Jaehyun nicknamed him Suriel, meaning “God’s Command.” He found it tastefully ironic.

“He was not born into the craft - the craft found him.”

Age ~ 20  // Height ~ 5′11″ / 180 cm // Weight ~ 128 lbs / 58 kg

Race ~ Witch // Color ~ Dark Green

Biography ~ Jokingly reading a spell from a book when he was sixteen, Jungwoo discovered he had an affinity for magic. He taught himself the craft, learning how to preform all sorts of charms, incantations, and rituals by age eighteen - a self-taught prodigy. Now, as a twenty year old, he has begun cataloging wards as a profitable business, tattooing protection charms and the like on those eclectic enough to seek him out. He is very friendly and soft spoken, attending university to get a history degree. Jungwoo is truly a great witch in the making.

“Sometimes bad things happen for good reasons.”

Age ~ 16 // Height ~ 5′10″ / 178 cm // Weight ~ 128 lbs / 58 kg

Race ~ Vampire  // Class ~ Fledgling // Color ~ Red

Biography ~ Attending Blackwater High just got a whole lot harder for Park Jisung.

He was a good kid - excellent at dancing, popular without the drama, quiet but witty enough to defend himself. He had a good thing going, but then that one night had to go and fuck it up.

He decided to rebel a little, go out with his friends in the middle of the night, break into some old warehouse, pass around a single beer that’s been watered down to try to extend the “thrill.” On the way back, he was snagged by someone - something. No one saw it happen - it waited until he was alone, and now he has a lot more to worry about than puberty and voice cracks.

“The wolf - loyal to a fault.”

Age ~ 18 // Height ~ 5′9″ / 175 cm // Weight ~ 128 lbs / 58 kg

Race ~ Lycanthrope/Werewolf  // Pack Type ~ Familial

Class ~ Beta // Color ~ Brown

Biography ~ A senior at Blackwater High, Jeno is making the very most out of life. He enjoys everything as much as he can, supports others in their endeavors, and has a great love for music. When some Junior came to school smelling like death, he couldn’t help but investigate.

Now he’s mentoring a vampire fledgling like some strange foster brother, attempting to flirt with the odd-smelling girl who plays first-chair violin, and avoiding getting stabbed with a silver fork by the local family of hunters who’s son smells faintly of a house cat.

What’s not to love?

“A curse isn’t really a curse if you don’t treat it like one.”

Age ~ 16 // Height ~ 5′9″ / 174.5 cm // Weight ~ 128 lbs / 58 kg

Race ~ Skinwalker  // Favorite Skin ~ Dog // Pack ~ Familial  // Color ~ Peach

Biography ~ Chenle may be a skinwalker, but that doesn’t mean he aligns himself with other people of that ilk - not that he could if he wanted to. His family would disown him if he tried for he is, first and foremost, a hunter - even if he kind of sucks at it.

As a Junior at Blackwater High, it’s become harder and harder to maintain his sanity. The population of supernatural entities has only been rising, leading to his family to push for him to become a full-fledged hunter even harder. Try as he might, he can’t help but yearn for a different life. A life where he didn’t have to think about death, but instead living.

---

Thanks for reading!

Masterlist

#nct fic #nct scenario #nct fanfic #mark fluff #nct angst #nct #repost because my tags arent working #again #chaptered #moodboard #Angels and Demons AU #cloudtop #I worked forever on this and am very proud why cant tumblr just cooperate #pls i beg of thee

[vcg73]

Witch!Kurt #31: Getting Ready

This one is simply Kurt and Adam getting ready to go out. Next time I will do the bachelor party. I make no promise that will be no more incidentals after this one. They tend to creep up on me unexpectedly! 

~*~*~*~*~

“I know it’s rather late to be asking, given that the event starts in an hour, but are you sure you don’t mind the idea of a shared bachelor party?” Adam asked, joining Kurt in front of the long dressing mirror where he was fixing his hair. 

He met Adam’s reflected eyes. “Not at all. Since we have mostly the same friends, and they would have either had to throw two parties or split us up between them if we did it the regular way, this seems more sensible to me. Besides, I’ve always hated the idea that a man is supposed to be so reluctant to get married that he requires a night of wild debauchery to face up to it. Anyone who feels that way shouldn’t be getting married at all, and you can take that from someone who felt like he was having increasingly heavier weights piled on his shoulders every day closer to Labor Day.”

“Labor Day?” 

“The day Blaine picked for us to get married.”  

Adam made a sour face. “Chosen with no input from you, I suppose. Appropriate, though, considering he was anticipating being able to mooch off your heard-earned physical and emotional labor for the rest of his sodding life.”

“I hadn’t thought of it that way before,” Kurt said, shaking his head ruefully. He still felt disgusted and rather ashamed when something reminded him of just how much of his autonomy he had given up to be with Blaine. Even without the dirty magic affecting his will, he had spent too long allowing Blaine to make all the relationship decisions while he stayed in the shadows just to keep the fighting to a minimum. “Actually, I think he just picked it because it was the last day of summer break before school would begin again. This was before he bombed out of NYADA.”

Adam’s only response was a grunt that somehow expressed his opinion of Blaine and his “talent” better than any words could have.

“I’d much rather just bid a fond and mutual farewell to our screwed up pasts and drink a toast to a happy future together tonight,” Kurt continued. Then his smile faltered a little. “Oh, unless . . . Were you trying to tell me that you did want a separate party? Because I’m sure we could still call the Apples and . . .”

“No,” Adam cut in quickly, stopping him from reaching for his phone as he realized that Kurt was about to jump into one of his characteristically self-sacrificing gestures. “No wild oats or fear of a metaphorical ball and chain here, love. I feel the same way about making this a shared positive memory, and you must know that I’d marry you this instant. Though I couldn’t swear to my own safety once the coven got hold of me if we were to skip their gathering and elope.”

Kurt had relaxed again at the reassurance. “Me too. I don’t entirely know what to expect from next week’s ceremony, but I’m pretty sure Brittany would cry if she missed out on attending, and then Santana would be out for my blood, and Dani and Elliott would probably disown me, especially if I took that away from them and also made them miss out on throwing a double bachelor party.” 

“Ditto Clark and Tonya,” Adam agreed, remembering how excited his old chums had been when Dani and Elliott had asked if they wanted to help plan the event. He was delighted that the two groups were getting along so well. “The only reason I asked is that I had thought you might wish for a more private soiree to bid farewell to boyhood and single life. A night out with just the girls perhaps, since you’ve always been their particular pet, or hunting up some of your New Directions folk for an old-time chorus party.” 

“No. I’ll admit, there was a time when I couldn’t have imagined anything else, but I’m a lot more comfortable in mixed company now than I was in high school. And I’ve got Santana, Brittany, and Johnny from the old gang. Plus Artie Abrams is supposed to be there tonight and he’s bringing another McKinley friend who just moved to the city as his guest. I don’t think you’ve ever met Unique, but I’m sure you’ll love her.”  Kurt laughed. “Besides, it won’t take much to coax a song out of anyone. I’ll get my chorus party no matter what.”

Adam smiled, knowing that would indeed be the case. The two of them seemed to attract song-birds wherever they went. “So in short, a party with food and drink, songs and laughs, a mixture of old and new friends, with the one you love most by your side sounds as good to you as it does to me?”

“Practically paradise,” he sighed, tipping his head sideways for a moment to rest against Adam’s handy shoulder. 

Adam stared fondly at their reflection for a moment, then his attention was distracted by the sight of his necktie, rumpled and hanging at an odd left-leaning angle over the breast pocket of his new dress shirt. He made a disgusted noise and tugged at the knot, trying to get it even again. “How can this bloody thing have got cocked up in just ten minutes? I swear it’s having its own way every time I take my eyes off it. You haven’t gone and given Johnny permission to joke-spell my wardrobe have you?”

Giving his sky-high coif a satisfied pat, Kurt set his bottle of sculpting conditioner aside and turned to help. His eyes danced. “I would never do that. It does sound like Johnny’s sense of humor, but I think you’re safe. He and Monica have each sent about 20 texts today related to magical body and soul infusion, so I think they’re safely obsessed elsewhere.”  

As he spoke, Kurt pulled the abused tie free of Adam’s fretful fingers and gently stroked a few wrinkles out of the dark cherry-patterned silk before tucking it back around Adam’s collar, which he also deftly straightened before tying the cloth back into a swift, runway-perfect Windsor knot and smoothing it over Adam’s chest with a fond pat. “There you go. Stop taking out your nerves on this and it will be fine.”

“Thank you,” Adam said, shaking his head over the easy efficiency. A minute in Kurt’s capable hands and the tie looked better than it ever did after suffering his own haphazard fumbling. His dad had taught him how to do up a proper knot when he was ten and facing his first school uniform, but Adam never had or would share Kurt’s natural affinity for clothing. Vowing to keep his hands off the masterpiece lest he ruin it again, Adam put his hands into the pockets of his black straight-leg jeans and allowed himself a little pivot to and fro, admiring the overall effect. “Not half bad if I say it myself.”

Kurt’s eyes swept his form from the neatly gelled peaks of his golden-blond hair to the tips of his new chocolate brown suede Oxford shoes. “You look healthy and handsome, and I love this outfit on you, although you look so good in it that I’m tempted to skip the party and peel you out of it again.”

Preening under his beloved’s approving gaze, Adam said, “Why thank you, sir. I must say that I regret our timetable as well. The spot of necking when we arrived home was very nice indeed, but this navy silk with the black laces down the front makes me want to unwrap you like a present, and damn the consequences.”

“What, this old thing?” Kurt teased, smoothing the shirt and tucking it more securely into his hip-hugging leather pants. The skin tight black material had thin navy laces down the side of each leg to provide a coordinated contrast with the shirt. He had created the outfit himself, winning his very first photo op in Vogue dot com’s ‘one to watch’ section that Isabelle used to showcase up and coming designers. With a sly glance toward Adam, Kurt loosened the shirt laces slightly, adjusting them to reveal small diamonds of pale flesh from chest to navel.

Adam groaned. “Not fair. Those trousers are already doing evil things to me on their own.” Running a fingertip over one of the matching exposures at Kurt’s hip, he said, “The lack of underwear is a bold choice.”

“Well, I have to make one concession to wild singledom, right?” Kurt said playfully, raising both arms and bumping his hip against Adam’s. Then he laughed. “Actually, though, I’m not as risque as you think.”

Adam considered this, tilting his head to take a closer look at Kurt’s bum. “Thong?”

He nodded. “I don’t like them, but I have to bite the bullet with this outfit. A couple of high school experiences taught me that leather plus commando turns me into a gross sweaty mess.”

“Baby powder is helpful, I’m told.”

“It is. Trust me, there are some places you just do not want to risk being chafed, but I still hate it. I wish I was one of those people who could just glisten attractively, or stay completely cool under stress, but I sadly inherited my father’s hard-working pores.”

Adam playfully sniffed at his neck, then kissed it. "I rather like you wrapped up in a layer of manly musk.”

A burst of laughter responded. “Oh, well. Then I’m sure you’ll be absolutely swooning by the time I’ve been pulled onto the stage or dance floor half a dozen times. And so will I, because I overheard some of the gang laying out plans for us, so don’t think you’re getting out of providing some of this evening’s entertainment.”

Kurt’s hands went up, stopping Adam’s hand from rising to fidget with his abused tie again at the reminder of the crowd he would be facing tonight. “Sorry,” Adam said, cheeks flushing. “S’pose I’m a bit nervous about this still.”

Lacing Adam’s fingers between his own, Kurt lifted them to rest over his heart. “I was only teasing. You don’t have to do anything that makes you uncomfortable and nobody will think badly of you if you don’t. And if anyone gets too drunk and persistent, send them to Tubbington. He’s promised to be a sort of chaperone tonight and keep everyone in line so all of us ‘kids’ can have fun.”

Startled, Adam laughed. “Somehow, L.T. is not the first one who springs to mind when I think of responsible chaperones.”

“Me either, but after Brittany squashed all of his wilder suggestions, I guess he decided he might as well just be the grown-up instead. He doesn’t show off what he can do very often, but I trust his ability to handle things if anybody gets out of line. Have you ever noticed that even Santana is respectful to him?”

“I have. When she gets sharp and snarly with everyone, Tubbington finds an excuse to take her off on an errand. We haven’t had a single explosion of outright cruelty since he formally adopted her as his second Familiar charge.”

Kurt nodded. “Exactly, so trust him and trust me. I’ll be there the whole time. I really want you to come out and receive your share of the love I know all of our friends are putting into this party.”

Adam relaxed, allowing Kurt’s happy anticipation to reignite his own and push the fear back down. “Thank you, darling. I’ll do my best. And maybe I will give the stage a go. Though it’s been a long while since I sang a song for any audience but you and the family, so hopefully the others won’t be expecting too much.”

“The plan is for both of us to get completely shit-faced, dance like we’re receiving electroshock, and dominate the karaoke stage like Rachel Berry searching for the perfect duet partner,” Kurt said with such a solemn face that Adam almost believed he was serious. Then he laughed and Adam relaxed again. “Kidding. Drink, sing, and dance if you feel like it, or stay in your seat and just nurse a soda if you prefer. Though I may insist on one duet together if you’re feeling confident.”

"That sounds very nice, love. Either way, I don’t want you to feel that you can’t get up and have fun without me. This is your celebration as much as mine, and I want you to enjoy it.  Though on that note, I do promise I’ll keep you from doing anything that you’ll be ashamed to report to Burt next time you speak.”

Kurt covered his mouth, but a snort escaped anyway at the reminder that his father would almost certainly ask him all about the party the next time they spoke. “Thanks, I may need the help. Keep the others from getting any audio/video evidence to use as blackmail and I promise I’ll keep anyone from hounding you to perform.”

“Deal,” he said. He kissed Kurt, stroking the back of his head with gentle fingertips. Kurt had been too busy to visit his stylist over the last couple of weeks and Adam loved playing with those little curls when he had the chance.

Kurt returned the kiss eagerly, willing his love to give Adam strength for the evening ahead. “Should we call someone to come Teleport us?” he asked after a moment, putting a hand on Adam’s chest and backing up a step, reminding them both that they needed to get moving if they did not want to be late for their own party.

Adam considered it. “Would you object to taking a walk up to the Garden Street circle? It’s nippy tonight, but if we bundle up it shouldn’t be bad. I’d like a chance to center myself before we face the mob.”

“That sounds good. I could use a little exercise before gorging myself on snacks and booze,” Kurt agreed, happy and a little surprised at the suggestion. Adam found walking out in the world to be more of a challenge at night, when the atmosphere was dark and close. He had been spending a few minutes out on ‘that bloody fire-escape’ every morning, until the wide-open platform began losing its dread, and Elliott had made a copy of his friend’s new work schedule so the coven could take turns acting as escort whenever Adam walked to and from Bui’s Tea. 

Adam had not bought the ‘I just happened to be going that way’ excuse for long, but he was grateful for the distraction of friendly company on his bad days, and even more for his new friends’ willingness to let him go it alone on the days when he felt that he could handle it. The good days were slowly coming to outnumber the bad, but Adam still rarely ventured out after dark. The route he was suggesting tonight was well lit, which would help, and there were always hopeful cabbies milling around that particular area, so it wouldn’t take long to catch a ride to Callbacks.

Both young men bundled themselves up in coats, gloves, and scarves. Adam tugged his favorite blue woolen beanie over his blond hair and cocked his head when he saw that Kurt was doing without. “No hat? Darling, it can’t be more than one degree C out there tonight.” He picked up another of his collection, a cheery red and cream creation that he had knit during some of his long hours of convalesce, and offered it to Kurt.   

“I’m fine,” he said, stepping back as though he feared the woolen hat would somehow force itself upon his head if he got too close. “It’s sweet of you to offer, but I didn’t spend an hour getting my hair perfect just to mash it down flat again with that. I just hope I used enough hair spray to counteract the wind.”

“I’m sure you have, but I don’t want you to catch cold and I think you’re forgetting a little skill I’ve got,” Adam said, pulling off his beanie and twitching his fingertips to make his own wavy locks curl, straighten, spike, and then go back to normal again. “I can fix it up in a wink if you get mussed. And if you don’t care for this hat, you could wear one of your more ‘fabulous’ examples.”

Kurt had perked up at the idea of a ready magical solution to any hair related catastrophes that might befall him, but at Adam’s second suggestion he gasped, “Oh!”, clasped his hands and hopped in sudden excitement, and dashed into the bedroom where Adam immediately heard the sounds of rummaging. When Kurt left Lima for New York, he had left behind much of his accessory collection out of fear that it would be either be out of style, or that he would not have enough room for them if he ended up living in a broom closet somewhere. He had asked Carole to pack and send them after Christmas.

When he reemerged, it was not so much walking as strutting. Kurt’s left fist rested on his exposed hip as he held his long black wool coat back on one side and vamped slowly into the room. On his head was perched a tall black top hat, around which he had wrapped a blue silk scarf to form a trailing hat band that created the perfect accent for his runway ready ensemble. Doing a spin on one booted foot to make the streamers dance, he then bowed and doffed his new addition at Adam. 

Adam made impressed noises as he walked a slow circle around Kurt. “Here I thought you were marrying me for my stunning good looks, but I see now that I needed a fallback position, for I have become entirely eclipsed by my stunning fiance.”

With a grin and a kiss to his cheek, Kurt said, “You’d better stop that or we really will be late to the party.” He began fastening up his coat and pulling his gloves back on. “Are you ready for this?”

"As I’ll ever be. Let’s go. We’ll take the long way ‘round, and you can help me come up with a perfect song for our couples duet.”

Recognizing both a show of faith in Kurt’s ability to keep him safe along the way, and a promise to try his best to overcome his fears and have just fun tonight, Kurt squeezed Adam’s hand. “Sounds great. But you know I’m staking a preemptive claim to the powerhouse divas, right?”

“Not a problem as long as you’re singing with me,” Adam laughed, letting go of Kurt’s hand just long enough to lock the door behind them. “But if you go up with Elliott, he may fight you for them.”

“Only Diana Ross,” Kurt quipped, putting up the additional ward against magical intruders with a quick toss of his head. 

Hand in hand, the young couple headed toward the building stairwell and started walking down, the bright sounds of laughter and playful arguments over song suggestions echoing cheerfully behind them. 

The End

#Witch!Kurt #incidental chapter #W!K 31 #Kurt and Adam #just the two of them for now

[normanisource]

For most pop acts, uniformity is the fashion goal, from the Supremes’s identical sequined gowns to Destiny’s Child’s Tina Knowles costumes. Traditionally, singing together means dressing in sync. But lately, modern girl bands have stopped matching, choosing instead to embrace each artist’s personality with individual outfits. No group personifies this shift better than Fifth Harmony, the chart-topping quartet who rose to stardom with hits like “Worth It” and “Work from Home.” Though they color coordinate and share a love of Gucci, bandmates Normani Kordei, Lauren Jauregui, Ally Brooke, and Dinah Jane each possess a unique take on fashion.

“We’re very individual,” said Kordei, on a recent visit to the Vogue office. “Our look has definitely evolved, and it’s given us the opportunity to find ourselves and know what we like and don’t like.” Since they first joined together on the second season of The X Factor, the girls have gone from wearing Topshop separates on stage to arriving at this year’s iHeartRadio Music Awards in flashy Philipp Plein. Finding their style and growing up in front of the camera wasn’t easy, but it shaped their strong opinions and fostered a collaborative spirit. The group recently enlisted stylist Johnny Wujek, whose daring choices helped them quickly embrace statement dressing. “In the beginning, we were 15 or 16 and being cutesy,” Jane said. “Now we’re trying to elevate, working with different stylists and their visions. When they’re with us daily, they get to know each of us, then we create something cohesive.”

Uniting their style means respecting their differences, particularly where influences are concerned. Brooke and Jane draw inspiration from Kim Kardashian West, while Kordei sources ideas from high fashion magazines and Jauregui looks to grunge-era icons like Winona Ryder. The resulting melange speaks to their Generation Y status with their affinity for all things ’90s. “We’re really paying homage to that whole era,” Jauregui said, citing the expressive vibe of groups like TLC that they hope to channel on stage. As for those energetic shows, they demand looks that are sultry, but versatile enough to permit non-stop dancing. Personal costume designer Ashton Michael creates their dramatic awards show and tour looks, but the girls are actively involved in the process, starting from the initial sketches. “He pulls through every single time. He’ll design it in one day and have it ready for you the next day. It’s magic,” Brooke said.

Thanks to Michael and Wujek, the group rarely feels off their game, but there is one thing they wouldn’t mind wearing more of: Alessandro Michele’s heavily embellished Gucci designs, which have struck a collective chord. “It took all of the strength inside of me to not buy 10 pairs of shoes,“ said Jauregui, who found herself in the brand’s New York boutique and picked up a pair of platform loafers on her last trip. Brooke echoes the pro-Gucci sentiment. “I’m obsessed—I have the backpack, the purse, and I just bought the high tops. The designer is absolutely killing it!”

Only time will tell whether Fifth Harmony will join Gucci’s roster of floral print–clad ambassadors, but in the meantime, they’ve got another line to consider—their own. With all of music stepping into merch, they haven’t ruled out the possibility of channeling their love of fashion into a namesake line. “It would be super dope, and I think it’s something our fans could relate to,” said Kordei. “There are days where I feel, oh my gosh, I’m going to wear a choker like Lauren today, I want to try these shoes because Dinah would wear it kind of thing; or Ally has this cool hairstyle, and I’m going to put pins in my hair like she did.” With a legion of Harmonizers hanging onto their every word—and look—it’s only a matter of time.

Here, the group talks personal style influences, online inspiration sources, and why they want to raid Rihanna’s closet.

Lauren Jauregui

On personal style

“I like to dress in edgy black leather and denim, but I like a wide range of things. I’m either dressing like a rocker chick, or I’m looking like I just stepped out of ancient Greece! It all depends on my mood, I love bohemian vibes, too.”

On finding inspiration

“Tumblr used to be a huge source of inspiration [for me] but not as much anymore. I do feel like the blogs that I follow share an aesthetic and draw a lot from ’90s influences. I love the dark velvets and lace, the really simple makeup, and the undone hair, plus the film stars from back then, Winona [Ryder] and Drew Barrymore, especially.”

Normani Kordei

On personal style

“I always aim more high fashion and editorial. I really enjoy editorial shoots, so I try to incorporate that within my daily routine and the choices I make as far as streetwear. [My style] is sexy, sophisticated, and always elevated.”

On finding inspiration

“I look to different magazines and runway fashion. In the music industry, the fashion can get a little repetitive and I like to look ahead. I take what I’ve seen on the runways and make it my own. In terms of people, I love Bella [Hadid], Sofia Richie, Zoë Kravitz, Zendaya, and Rihanna, who are all dope and fearless with fashion.”

Ally Brooke

On personal style

“For me, my style is very versatile. Right now, I’m wearing something that makes me feel sophisticated, and then sometimes I’ll switch and wear a V-neck and leather jacket. I definitely have a range: It can be eclectic or feminine, sexy or simple. I love statement pieces that really stand out and are creative.”

On finding inspiration

“I love to change it up. I scroll through Instagram and Twitter, and whenever I see something that speaks to me, I take a screenshot to save it for red carpet inspiration. Sometimes, if I see an outfit I like on the street, I’ll take a picture, too. References are so important. Jennifer Lopez inspires me because she has this tremendous versatility within her wardrobe. J.Lo, Kendall [Jenner], and Bella [Hadid] have all been killing it.”

Dinah Jane

On personal style

“I’m very into urban chic; it goes with my personality. I’m very chill, and when I’m out, I want to make sure that my outfit makes me feel comfortable and that I don’t feel restricted.”

On finding inspiration

“We look up to so many people, and I get a lot of inspiration from just going through Instagram and keeping up with what they’re doing. For me, it’s Rihanna and Kim Kardashian who I always keep up with, they both have incredible style. There was a phase where Kim started wearing blazers all the time, and I was hooked. I was like ‘well, I’m going to start buying blazers, too!’ and I started wearing them with blouses and jeans.”

#normani kordei #normani hamilton #fifth harmony #5h #all #article #vogue article #2017 #interview #dinah jane #lauren jauregui #ally brooke

[fapangel]

Left-Wing Violence and False Equivalencies

After the attempted murder of several Republican Congressmen last month, I skipped any big blogpost on it because I'd already posted it months before - a simple "I told you so" sufficed. The bloodletting was everything I - and countless others - had said would be the inevitable consequence of the tide of pathological hatred and thuggery currently ruling the left wing. The shock of the event should have spoken for itself.

Imagine my surprise, then, to hear people I respect glibly equating the unceasing, obsessive hatred and calls for violence from the left wing to "right-wing rhetoric," implicitly suggesting some sort of parity. Apparently, this needs saying: left-wing violence, and calls for violence, are qualitatively and quantitatively far more evident, excessive, effective and dangerous on the left. This owes to three main reasons:

Left-wing violence and violent rhetoric is openly promoted and legitimized by people in positions to influence the ideology of the masses, especially Hollywood stars, university professors and famous national “comedians.”

Left-wing violence and violent rhetoric is organized, political, and international in scope.

Left-wing violence and violent rhetoric is unashamed, unapologetic, and accepted in their own cultural circles.

These are not opinions, or arguments. As I will document, these are facts. Let's start with the first point.

Grasping for Straws - Media Accusations

Let's compare some reactions - reactions - to the Scalise shooting, after conservatives dire predictions of bloodshed had been borne out. Trinity College professor Johnny Eric Williams published an article on Medium.com charmingly titled "Let Them Fucking Die," openly wishing that the attempted murderer had been successful. It opened with this disclaimer:

[NOTE: This essay is in the context of bigotry and is speaking about bigots. If you aren’t a bigot, then it doesn’t apply to you. But, if you happen to feel hit, then holler, dog.]

One rubber-stamp label later, and murder - outright murder - is justified. Then there was Chelsey Gentry-Tipton, a Nebraska Democratic Party official and chairwoman of Nebraska's Black Caucus openly mocked the shock of the shooting victims on social media. She also posted “The very people that push pro NRA legislation in efforts to pad their pockets with complete disregard for human life. Yeah, having a hard time feeling bad for them.”

But even that pales in comparison to Phil Montag, another Nebraskan Democratic Party official, who came to Gentry-Tipton's defense and was caught on tape saying that he was glad Scalise got shot and that he wished Scalise was dead. Click that link - it must be heard to be believed, especially Montag combatively arguing with his fellow Party officials who released the tape.

And let's not forget James Devine, a New Jersey Democratic campaign strategist for 35 years who tweeted “We are in a war with selfish, foolish & narcissistic rich people. Why is it a shock when things turn violent?#HuntRepublicanCongressmen.” (The original tweet is still up. Look for yourself.)

Again, this is after theory has become fact, after blood has been spilled, and after people have been gravely wounded and almost killed. The reaction of tenured professors Democratic Party officials and career Democratic campaign staffers wasn't just approval, but combative, nasty, in-your-face avowal; the conviction of people convinced they're right and not afraid to say so.

Now turn the tables and time-warp to 2011, after Gabrielle Giffords was shot and the left-wing media overwhelmingly and immediately blamed it on "right-wing rhetoric" - such as a campaign map with "cross-hair graphics" placed over crucial districts - to explain the actions of an insane man. Initial diagnosis of mental illness mean little, since these perpetrators are unstable and violence-prone by definition - defining it as root cause or aggravating factor requires investigation. I was going to say that no such ambiguity existed in the Giffords shooting, trusting to Fig. A., the shooter's mugshot, to carry the argument -

- but the media happily spared me the trouble when the New York Times, the pinnacle of journalistic standards and so-called "newspaper of record", repeated the election-map claim six years after Loughner's gibbering insanity had been firmly established. The editorial board of the New York Times missed this, which implies something about their remembered narratives. Incidentally, that editorial was itself a reaction to the Scalise shooting, and claimed that there was "no sign of incitement as direct as in the Giffords attack." With the blood of Scalise and two police officers still soaking the ground, the Times rushed to defend the left and blame the right with an outright lie.

This was going to be my key example, but once again the media preempted me. It's been drowned out by the overwhelming backlash against CNN's thuggish threatening and intimidation of some random Reddit user, but the media's desperately been arguing that Trump re-tweeting a meme gif of him fake-wrestling a CNN logo to the mat is promoting violence against the media. CNN, of course, is in the throes of high dudgeon. This is what the major mainstream media outlets - with their massive, unquestionably powerful platforms and reporter/researcher apparatus - find and hold up as examples of violent right-wing rhetoric: crosshairs on campaign maps and fake wrestling meme .gifs from reddit. Given the power, influence, and dominant platform of these organizations, it strains credulity to claim that there's significant instances of right-wing violence promotion that they somehow haven't made headline news.

A Non-Stop Litany of Hatred

Barely two weeks after the mass shooting at the Republican baseball practice, Johnny Depp, famous Hollywood actor, stood up in front of a crowd in England and “joked” about assassinating President Trump. “When was the last time an actor assassinated a president? I want to clarify, I am not an actor. I lie for a living. However, it has been a while and maybe it is time.” Back in May, Professor John Griffin, of the Art Institute of Washington, called for GOP Representatives to be “lined up and shot.”

Then there's the Otto Warmbier tale. Soon after the 22 year old was sentenced to 15 years of hard labor for “stealing a political poster,” the Huffington Post was openly gloating about how that filthy white male had it coming for thinking his white privilege would let him get away with his “crime,” apparently happy to take North Korea's word on the young man's “guilt.”And they weren't the only ones, with comedians, Salon.com and Affinity magazine piling on also. After Otto Warmbier was murdered by the North Koreans, Fox News wondered if those leftists were still laughing. Turns out they were - or at least Kathy Dettwyler, professor of anthropology at the University of Delaware, said he got “exactly what he deserved” because of - again - his white privilege. Tom Curry, associate professor at Texas A&M, gave an interview about “killing white people in context,” in which he said that “some white people might have to die,” because, of course, black people are dying. A Fresno State University professor, Lars Maischak, went on a twitter rant calling for Trump to be hung, “the higher the better,” and for Republicans to be executed. One particularly saucy tweet: “Has anyone started soliciting money and design drafts for a monument honoring the Trump assassin, yet?”

Back to Hollywood with Madonna, who talked about thinking of “blowing up the white house.” When Palin's campaign puts cross-hairs on crucial electoral districts it's an “incitement to violence,” but when Madonna says “blow up the White House” she's just speaking in metaphor, apparently. When Michelle Bachmann says “slit our wrists and become blood brothers” she's using “violent rhetoric,” according to Montel Williams, but when he says “slit your wrist, do us all a better thing, move that knife up two feet and start at the collarbone,” he must be speaking metaphorically. At least there's no ambiguity with Joss Whedon, who wants Speaker Paul Ryan to be raped to death by a rhino with its horn “because it's funny, not becuase he's a #GOPmurderbro.” Director David Simon tweeted that if Mueller (who's busily hiring Clinton campaign donors for his “investigation” team,) is fired, you should “pick up a goddamn brick.” Unlike Trump's WWE meme tweet, which was clearly an incitement to violence, he was just “speaking in metaphor” too. Lea DeLaria threatened to “pick up a baseball bat and take out every fucking republican and independent I see.” Rappers “YG” and “Nipsey Hustle” wrote an entire rap packed with death threats towards Trump. Marilyn Manson made a music video showing him violently decapitating Trump, reminiscent of Snoop Dogg's music video showing him shooting Trump. (These are the latest in a longer trend of vivid left-wing murder/assassination fantasies - they made an entire docudrama fantisizing about murdering George Bush.) Sarah Silverman, a “comedian,” tweeted her call for a military coup to depose the “mad king and his handlers.” It's unclear if her call for military violence against our democratically elected government - to remove fascists - was intended to be ironic. Perhaps it was a metaphor?

Artists are an arcane and subtle lot, so let's see if the straightforward, all-facts style of journalists is more clear-cut. Here's Bill Maher prodding people to assassinate the vice president on national television: “I have zero doubt that if Dick Cheney was not in power, people wouldn't be dying needlessly tomorrow... I'm just saying if he did die, other people, more people would live. That's a fact.” Here's Courtland Milloy, Washington Post (WaPo) columnist, expressing his deep desire to “knock every racist and homophobic tooth out of their Cro-Magnon heads” because “they” disagreed with him on health care policy. Here's Linda Stasi of the New York Daily News comparing the Boston Marathon Bombers to one of their murder victims becuaes he was a filthy Republican bigot.

But the media talks a good game. What about actual politicians? You know, the people actually leading the Democratic Party? Rep. Paul Kanjorski, D-PA called for then-new Republican governor of Florida Rick Scott to be put up against a wall and shot. He clarified that Scott was a “millionaire and a billionaire,” a “damn crook,” which leads me to believe he was not speaking in metaphor when calling for his murder. A few months later he'd also react to the Giffords shooting with a New York Times op-ed calling for “an atmosphere of civility and respect.” State Rep. Chuck Kruger (a Democrat) tweeted that Cheney deserved the “same fate as Saddam.” Just a joke, bro, just a joke! Allen Brauer, communications chair of the Democratic Party of Sacramento County, wished death on the children of one of Ted Cruz's speechwriters: “May your children all die from debilitating, painful and incurable diseases.” Of course, this was justified because those evil Republicans started it.

I could - actually, it's 6AM, I have gone on all night documenting this, and I could go on another few. But if anyone else points this out - say, the NRA, in an ad saying “they use their movie stars and singers and comedy shows and award shows to repeat their narrative over and over again,” then the Washington Post (WaPo) whines that conservatives are “inciting violence.” As was detailed in the running debate with an antifa (anarcho-communist revolutionary) supporter on this very blog, the left is currently justifying violence via the dire need to “stop the Nazis who want us dead,” but when the NRA points out that the left is calling to “kill them [conservatives] first," it “sounds like an excerpt from North Korean state television,” a “stark picture” that's “designed to provoke fear, if not incite violence.”

A Qualitative Discrepancy

Some of you are already bristling, I'm sure, reaching out for tumblr and twitter links of conservatives advocating violence, or any of the left-wing politicians or groups who have received “hundreds” of death threats (usually anonymously, on the internet.) I'd link some myself, but aside from one WaPo story, every combination of search terms just turned up story after story detailing threats going the other way. Ho hum. It doesn't matter, because the quantitative argument, “look at all those redneck goons on twitter!” misses the point: you don't see right-wing public figures, media personalities and politicians issuing stark, unapologetic calls for violence. There's a vast discrepancy in who is making the threats between left and right - and why.

As illustrated by the above anecdotes, left-wing personalities are open, unabashed, and unapologetic about calling for Republicans to be murdered, in as many words. They don't bother walking their statements back even after someone acts on them. Even Phil Montag, who says “I won't say this publicly,” is still incensed enough to be shouting down his own Party colleagues in defense of someone who did publically chortle at attempted political assassination. Even if you live in 'Darkest Appalachia' where you can jaw about them damn 'coloreds' between bites of chaw, you don't dare get publicly identified saying it, because it'll cost you your job - and you sure as hell don't post it online yourself anywhere it's connected to your name. Liberals whinge about “microaggressions” and “subtle racism” because overt racism has been rejected by our culture for decades now. Many liberals hold conservatives to all be secret racists, harboring their despicable ideologies close to their vest, prevented from open expression only by the punitive power of larger culture - but even they agree that the left wing has all the cultural power. There is nobody they cannot destroy, and nobody too small to feel their wrath, as CNN's doxxing crusade against some random Redditor demonstrates. Leftists claim the violent Antifa riot staged to shut down Milo Yiannopoulos's Berkeley speech was justified, because he “used his platform to bully a transgender girl”(49:52) who was then harassed by internet trolls due to the publicity. I wonder how they feel about CNN - which has much more money, power, connections and influence than a single gay conservative writer - using their platform to target some random Redditor (who had an expectation of anonymity the transgender student did not) because Trump thought their meme was the dankest? Exposing his identity would assuredly wreck his life - SJWs take such glee in harassing employers to get people fired for voicing crimethink that they've got an entire tumblr dedicated to gloating about it.

The left wing has the power, and they know it. When a left-winger says “murder the President,” they're in the company of famous Hollywood actors, respected intellectuals and University professors, and even Democratic Party officials, both on and off the record. With leftists so geographically concentrated in major cities and in full control of every establishment capable of shaping opinion and ideology - the universities, the arts, even the media - they've no reason to feel afraid about being open with their crude, violent intolerance. Some of those professors in the above anecdotes paid with their jobs - (which doesn't mean they won't find another at a more “understanding” institution,) but some didn't - and only a few apologized. Almost all of them haven't deleted their tweets (hence the direct links to them), few apologized (often defensively and begrudgingly,) and a few, like that asshole Devine, actually doubled down. A conservative can't make a dank meme gif without CNN hunting them down and threatening to destroy them, but leftists can issue blatant terroristic threats under their own name and get away without any consequences whatsoever.

The Moral Disconnect

This is why left-wing violent rhetoric is far more dangerous and influential: the respectable authority of the establishments, institutions and public figures echoing it lends far greater weight to the arguments - effectively normalizing it as acceptable. They're also everywhere and repeated incessantly, because every traditional establishment of communication and education, from cradle to grave, is controlled by the left. This normalizes the narrative, which provides the moral justification for moral disengagement with the act of political violence itself. As Albert Bandura said, “Moral justification is a powerful disengagement mechanism. Destructive conduct is made personally and socially acceptable by portraying it in the service of moral ends. This is why most appeals against violent means usually fall on deaf ears.”

In many of the earlier anecdotes - including Montag saying that he wished Scalise had been killed - they immediately justify it by citing some Crime of The Right (healthcare policy is popular currently, and the grievance Montag himself used.) You hear it all the time from antifa supporters and anyone else calling Republicans “Nazis,” painting them as jackbooted thugs forming death squads even as they speak. Just consider select quotes from this HuffPo article calling for violent revolution:

"The rise of Donald Trump has exposed the frightening underbelly of America’s foulest tendencies. Our racism, nativism, xenophobia, misogyny, Islamophobia, ableism, and propensity toward authoritarianism have been laid bare... There’s been an upswing in anti-Muslim hate crimes that correlates with his candidacy—including several offenders who cite him as their inspiration. Another of his supporters beat an unhoused Latino man. Yet another sucker punched a demonstrator at a rally and then, more alarmingly, went on to say, “The next time we see him, we might have to kill him.” Treating this like politics as usual allows it to become politics as usual, and those who do so risk complicity ushering in a new era of fascist politics in the United States.”

It's often phrased as “turnabout is fair play,” justifying violence, coercion, harassment and other kind of thuggery and hatred on the grounds that “conservatives did it first.” These are the people who decry capital punishment as barbaric and cruel one moment, then wholeheartedly embrace Old Testament “eye for an eye, tooth for a tooth” rhetoric in the next. It's doublethink by definition, and as Orwell observed, the crucial prerequisite for enabling political violence. And like Orwell's doublethink, it's reliant on an overarching support structure of propaganda, cultural control and incitement to thrive. Unlike prejudice or bigotry, which is resentful, reactionary and bred by ignorance, moral disengagement needs an active social movement to incubate and reinforce the message, as a high school history teacher discovered when his social experiment (The Wave) to demonstrate the allure of fascism to his students took on a life of its own in just three short days. (And you thought fidget spinners were bad!) Violence incited, encouraged and enabled by an overarching social structure will of course mirror that structure in its aims, methods, and level of organization - and indeed, when you look at left-wing violence as it's currently conducted, that's exactly what you see.

Deliberate Strategy versus Provincial Bigotry

Republicans have their problems - if you're Republican and doubt that, you're either a moron, or one of the Presidential primary candidates that got their asses kicked square by a reality TV show star with a bad spray-tan. (But I repeat myself.) And those problems are largely provincial. Stereotypes come from somewhere, and for Republicans the image of the cloistered “flyover-country” hick stems directly from the “good ol' boys club” problem of provincial, smoking-room corruption.

We've a ready example in the Kansas budget crisis. One of my educated, intelligent liberal friends declared it the evil fruits of Reaganomics, the inevitable consequences of backwards conservative economic theory. After establishing that Gov. Sam Brownback tried to apply Federal-level tax cut strategy to a state, my diagnosis differed - I suspected Brownback of being a blithering moron acting with perceived immunity to public opinion only the Good Ol' Boys coven can offer. Five seconds on Google later, and I found a newly-elected moderate Republican legislator saying exactly that:

“What we’re having is a standoff with the governor holding on to the old days where he had all these people elected,” said Senator Barbara Bollier, a moderate Republican who voters promoted from the state House last year. “They aren’t there anymore, and he can’t let go and follow the will of the people.”

Plenty of people pointed out how Brownback's policies weren't True Conservatism and thus shouldn't tarnish it, but when people vote in a conservative governor who destroys the economy and state budget, you might say it reflects on conservatives, eh? The provincial attitudes of rural red-state Republicans do have problems, as the author of Hillbilly Elegy himself stated;

"Nearly everyone in my family who has achieved some financial success for themselves, from Mamaw to me, has been told that they’ve become “too big for their britches.” I don’t think this value is all bad. It forces us to stay grounded, reminds us that money and education are no substitute for common sense and humility. But, it does create a lot of pressure not to make a better life for yourself, and let’s face it: when you grow up in a dying steel town with very few middle class job prospects, making a better life for yourself is often a binary proposition: if you don’t get a good job, you may be stuck on welfare for the rest of your life.”

He also observes that it's at least in part a reaction to the sneering disdain from the coastal elites (which, post-Trump election, has become outright hatred,) but as Joshua Rothman points out, that logic only goes so far:

“It’s one thing to criticize a culture. It’s another to see that the culture being criticized is formed partly in response to other cultures, and that those cultures are, in turn, worth criticizing. This is why explaining human behavior is so difficult: the buck never stops. The explanations don’t come to an obvious, final resting place.”

This is the truth the “they started it” justifications of the left utterly miss and the one I try to remember. So I don't pretend that conservatives don't commit violence - they do. The leftists attempting enumeration of it demonstrate the usual stupidity, such as calling a lunatic that was literally eating a man's face off a “Trump supporter” because he was wearing a MAGA hat while chowing down, or the Uber Killer who claimed to be under the “control of the Uber app” when picking victims. You don't have to be a clinical psychologist to diagnose apeshit crazy as the primary factor in those. But just because internet leftists are lazy doesn't mean violent rednecks don't exist, and some of these people aren't just violent, but willing to ambush and kill cops. And some of them even form little terror cells and plot terrorist bombings. Oh yes - conservative violence exists.

The scale, however, is entirely different. Deliberate ambush murders of police is at a ten year high - and and it sure as hell isn't white conservatives defining the epidemic of murders, is it? It's minorities who - by their own admission - are putting into practice the violent rhetoric of Black Lives Matter, who openly celebrate cop killers as “black revolutionaries.” The right wing simply doesn't have a parallel to this - even when the gibbering lunatics called “sovereign citizens” manage to ooze out of their mother's basement long enough to commit violence, they don't come anywhere near the virulence of Black Lives Matter: “sovereign citizens” have killed six police officers since 2000, but twenty officers were ambushed and murdered in 2016 alone. Maybe - just maybe - it's got something to do with Black Lives Matter having slightly better PR than rambling lunatics on youtube.

Nor can three rednecks compare to Antifa and the anarcho-communist black block in general, who are a domestic terrorist organization who openly advocate (and carry out) sabotage of public infrastructure, have staged multiple violent riots across the country in just the last year to suppress their political opponents and have international reach, as they demonstrated in the massive riots in Hamburg just days ago. Three rednecks being led on by an FBI agent eagerly providing them with automatic rifles to entrap them, they ain't. It's not even unusual - right wing “militia” groups tend to be some middle-aged rednecks talking tough in a bar within earshot of an FBI informant hoping to justify his paycheck, like the “Hutaree” clowns whom turned out to be guilty of nothing but losing the genetic lottery. Even the Oklahoma City Bomber's closest encounter with the Michigan Militia was attending a few of their meetings (sitting quietly in his reeking trench-coat in the corner, presumably,) and considering that 80% of the Militia scattered to the winds once the tenuous connection was revealed by the media, it's hard to credit them as a serious threat. McVeigh's act of violence was so devastating to the militia movement's credibility that the militia considers him a CIA stooge in a plot to discredit them. Contrast to Black Lives Matter, which weathered the Dallas shooting without a hitch and is still going strong, if not stronger.

The most telling comparison by far, however, is the least spectacular - in contrast to the oft-cited racist or bigoted crimes against minorities, immigrants, homosexuals, etc., leftist violence targets Trump supporters. With conservatives, the politically motivated ones (i.e. anti-government militias) are all bark and no bite, unlike the racists and bigots. Leftists display the exact opposite behavior; their violence is overwhelmingly political, mirroring the nature of the social-political movements that provide them with legitimacy, support and a public platform. This helps explain why left-wing politicians are so comfortable with endorsing it, like Texas state Rep. Ramon Romero, who physically assaulted Rep. Matt Rinaldi before threatening to wait in the parking lot and ambush him on his way to his car. On the floor of the Texas state legislature, no less. Left-wing violence isn't just outlash - it's revolution. It's violence with goals defined by ideology. If you doubt, just consider who is committing the violence.

College Professors and Students versus Middle-Aged Trailer Trash

One of the black-masked Antifa members who has been arrested for his crimes is Eric Clanton, former adjunct professor at Diablo Valley College, who was videotaped fracturing some Trump supporter's skulls with a u-lock during the Berkeley riots. The masked Clanton was identified by the "weaponized autism" of 4chan (compare to CNN, which can hunt down and coerce one random redditor, but found Eric Clanton to be unworthy of coverage.) “Conservative” violence invariably comes from middle-aged  welfare-roll racists or flat-out skinheads, not otherwise-upstanding members of society - and certainly not the youth.

Nowhere is this more evident than the recent (and ongoing) insanity at Evergreen State College in California, where radicalized students have piled excess upon excess. What's most striking about the whole affair is how little I've heard of it - every time I hear more about it, new details are revealed that've seen scant to no national coverage. The latest information comes from a HuffPo article published by one of Evergreen University's own provosts, who just left the University this month. To summarize, students on this campus have:

Set upon a professor in an unruly mob to threaten, harass and intimidate, ultimately resulting in the University police telling him to avoid campus for his own safety,

Taken University administrators, including the President, hostage, complete with guards to escort them to and from the bathroom, all to coerce compliance with their list of demands - while the police milled around outside due to President Bridges cowardly order to stand down,

Until the President, who'd repeatedly ordered campus police to stand down, had to call in the State troopers for help after things got even worse despite his appeasement (they can be seen in the HuffPo article patrolling campus in full riot gear,)

And finally, the students forced a “community patrol” armed with baseball bats not just for “protection” from outside threats, but to intimidate other students who disagreed (there was a “scuffle” between students because some were chalking up messages to “get back to teaching.”)

But the cherry atop this turd tartufo is the lone death threat phoned in by someone promising to take down all those “communist scumbags” with a “.44 magnum,” who turned out to be - you guessed it - a 53 year old unmarried sad-sack racist with hints of mental health issues.

The conceit of leftists is telling us the last bullet point is at least equal to the preceding four, if not outright justifying the thuggery, violence, and coercion by dint of the grave and dire threat posed by some daffy trailer trash.

To reiterate, at Evergreen University, we've seen a student body, acting in the name of social justice and countering vile racists, go from mob justice to revolution to forming their own Gestapo in the space of a few months. A few months. This alone should give anyone pause, but it's not alone - it's just one more drop in the damn bucket of violence, hate and revolutionary rhetoric.

And that deep well of dangerous people has an unparalleled ability to recruit, organize, and mobilize.

Organized, Mobilized, and Well-Led

Left-wing violence has always been organized, or quickly self-organized; from the French Revolution, to the overthrow of the Czar in Russia, till the spate of 19th-century Communist uprisings that created terrifying totalitarian dictatorships that last today (including Cuba and North Korea.) Revolutionaries are violent by definition, since rejecting the legitimacy of a ruling state's laws entire leaves only one recourse for deposing it. To defeat a state's army, you need an army yourself.

Here is the left wing's army in action.

It's impossible to understate the severity or scale of what happened at the G20. The largest black bloc protest in history - enough to overwhelm the 20,000 police officers present - showed up and basically ran the show. They were even using social media to hunt down reporters that didn't agree with them - aided by establishment journalists. Click that link - the journalist describes how people were hunted down and beaten half to death because they were standing near her in the photo a journalist from a major German newspaper tweeted.

This is the power of the black bloc. They are an army, by definition. Consider, for a moment, what an army needs:

Young people, because soldiering is a young man's job - whether you're throwing hand grenates or molotov cocktails, you need to be fit and reckless

Leadership, because even a mob needs some inspiration, some demagogue - a Robespierre - to push them into acting together at the right time.

Ideology, because you need a reason to fight, a reason a lot of people can agree on strongly enough to unite, even if it's just a mob.

As I've established above, the violence-inciters and violence-doers on the left wing meet all these criteria. They're invariably young, they're educated in extremist ideology by extremist college professors (who set the example themselves, as Eric Clanton shows,) and they have a smorgasbord of left-wing voices to serve as demagogues, people who's latest utterances are on everyone's lips and Twitter feed by the next morning. But above all, the ideology - the political nature of the beast - is the most essential. Ideology unites, motivates and inspires in a way reactionary racism, resentment or bigotry simply cannot. Jews had been brutalized and persecuted for centuries before Hitler rose to power - anti-semetism was just one pre-existing prejudice he levered (along with nationalist resentment, poverty-born desperation and a rudderless young generation.) Racism alone isn't enough to drive wars and mass atrocities like ethnic cleansing and genocide. Consider the Kosovo War; the parties weren't just ethnic groups, but nations; a complete identity formed by culture, religion and inter-group loyalty - summed up, this forms a complete and distinct ideology. For racism to drive organized, effective and widespread right-wing violence, it must be part of a national identity - which is precisely why the Ku Klux Klan proliferated in the South, which was such a culturally, religiously, economically and thus ideologically distinct nation that it eventually formed a nation-state and started a Civil War. Racism and bigotry can prod bitter people (and the older they are, the more bitterness they've had in life) to murder people in ones and twos, but only ideology can motivate the young masses into an army capable of great crimes.

The left understands this - which is precisely why they're suddenly screaming “white supremacist” every chance they get. Racism isn't an ideology, but “white supremacy” is. It's essential to establish the existence of a sincere, widespread “white supremacy” movement in the right wing for their caterwauling of Naziiiiiiiii to be taken seriously.

It doesn't exist, of course. And if you look at the right-wing militias themselves, you start seeing why - they're a bunch of old farts, bored and bitter, fantasizing about how they'd blow away those government goons if they came to their house to confiscate all their guns. Not how they'd lead the Glorious Revolution - not how they'd stride into the Federal Reserve and upend the money-changer's tables before casting them from the temple - no, just how they'd defend Their Own Castle (Doctrine.) This is get off my lawn cranked to eleven, Ultra-Reee: Knee Deep in the Dad.

Young people don't find this exciting, sexy, or inspiring. And that's why these people show up at City Hall to scream NOT ON MY FRONT LAWN, but rarely, if ever, do anything violent. They never walk the walk. They're LARPing attention whores. Antifa puts on masks to fracture people's skulls, loot stores, torch cars and throw bricks at cops. Militia members put on masks and walk into police stations with assault rifles... so they can lie on the floor and shout AM I BEING DETAINED? (That link must be seen to be believed.)

The Bundy clowns are perhaps the perfect case-study - a bunch of ranchers with purely local range-related resentments that'd simmered for years before they occupied a government office, armed to the teeth - only to give up without firing a shot, the only casualty being a militiaman shot dead in circumstances shady enough that the Fed responsible was prosecuted for lying about the circumstances.

Compare that sorry dumpster fire to what Antifa's managed in the last twelve months alone - not only have they staged multiple violent riots in cities across America, not only have they achieved their goals (wider publicity and the silencing of speakers they hate,) but they're also forming their own militias now. Sure, they're just a different flavor of obsese LARPer at present - but that puts them equal to where the right-wing militias have been at for decades. This is where the right-wing peaks - and the left wing starts.

If you want to see where the left-wing ends, look at Hamburg, where the fires are still smouldering...

...and the left wing apologists are already downplaying and justifying it.

Clear and Present Danger

Now that I've documented the nonstop litany of outright, unabashed left-wing hatred being repeated by actors, Democratic party operatives and establishment journalists - echoing the open calls for violence and murder of conservatives - and observed both how quickly and naturally the left wing translates its ideology to organized oppression (Evergreen College), how that organized violence is already underway in the United States (Antifa's multiple riots across the country) and what these people are capable of, given time (the literal takeover of the entire city of Hamburg,) I want you to imagine how conservatives feel when CNN screams about a meme wrestling gif.

Or the New York Times screeching over cross-hair graphics on a map.

Or being told that those racist birther guys harassed Obama, so it's all a wash.

We've all been frustrated to have our friends rebuff arguments we thought were incontrovertibly true - it's only the normal friction between people. There's some things even close friends will never see eye-to-eye on. But conservatives can't shrug this topic off as mere disagreement, anymore. Using the tu quoque fallacy (right out of the Soviet playbook) to avoid admitting the problem of left-wing violence is bad enough, but now the left wing is using the purported existence of organized, militant right wing violence (“Nazis”) to justify violence against us. When you deflect or dismiss the existence of left-wing violence - or assert a parity with right-wing violence - you're dismissing a grave threat not only to us personally, but to the stability and continued existence of our democratic government as a whole. Everything I've detailed above isn't happening in a vacuum - also remember that California's begun forming its own foreign policy (in direct violation of the United States Constitution,) and the left actively encouraged deposing the rightful winner of the Presidential election by encouraging electors to break the law. The laws of civil society, the rules we all agree to follow, the underpinning of the social contract itself, is starting to unravel. The left wing is starting to look a lot like their own nation - with all that implies. And when we point to the sharp end of the spear; the Antifa rioter with a club, being pushed forward and supported by the entire left wing - we're scoffed at.

And that pisses us off.

Ere The Conservative Began To Hate

Conservatives have felt marginalized for a long time, because the left dominates so many of the important public spaces. It's not just the presence, but the vitriolic, savage hatred displayed against people who dare to speak up against leftist orthodoxy (and I do mean leftist, not liberal.) I've personally been threatened by a professor and had an African-American classmate stand up and scream me down. The tenured professor who threatened me has survived multiple complaints (much worse than mine) and my journalism professor not only took my screaming classmates side, but gently asked, in roundabout fashion, if I'd inherited my prejudices from my parents (all because I called Kwame Kilpatrick a crook - at least the courts agree with me.) Conservatives are used to being censored and cowed everywhere that really matters - in school, at work, you name it. And over the years, it's only gotten worse. We've tried to talk, and tried to talk, and tried to talk, and all that's gotten us is backed against a wall begging for “dialectic” while a screaming lynch mob closes in.

We're mad as hell, and we're not going to take it anymore. Moderate conservatives are about to give up on “talking” permanently, because it's clearly not working. You can't talk to masked thugs with clubs. Our concerns aren't imaginary, and they can't be brushed off - and this is the last chance for the liberals to engage with us and at least consider why we're scared stiff. If moderate liberals don't do this, and continue making excuses for the violent leftists in their own party, then the bloodshed that started on that baseball field will continue. The militant left will not stop, not as long as people who damn well know better are making excuses for them. And while our majority might be Silent, it's anything but cowardly. The militant, violent left is going to get more than they're bargaining for. And our last opportunity to halt this madness is slipping by because of people willfully denying reality. If liberals continue to ignore the problem, refuse to confront the true nature of the leftists sheltering behind them and allow them to keep pushing their agenda of violence, the blood will continue to flow.

#leftism #alt right #cnn #media bias #media #politics #donald trump #trump #leftist violence #leftist #punch a nazi #violence #extremism #steve scalise #congress shooting #radical left

[jonfarreporter]

The resilience of a Country Singer at the County Fair

Riding Golden Gate Transit along 101 as summer unfolds, at a bus stop the poster displays the attractions and guest appearances at the upcoming Marin County Fair. This reporter spotted on that bus shelter sign a face and a name I had not heard about or seen in years – Dwight Yoakam.

“Dwight Yoakam,” what’s a major County Music star doing at a county fair, out here in Marin California?” I mused.

Then my writer’s imagination took off, wondering how many a major singer, rock band or celebrity returned to the places they started from, early in their careers? 

That in and of itself could be the material for a country music song, could it not?

Then my thoughts turned to stars like Willie Nelson, Johnny Cash, Loretta Lynn, Tammy Wynette and so on. They all made the rounds of performing here and there and at a county fair. And, each of them could write and sing a soul-revealing song right from the heart; which could capture the attention of any audience, especially those of the work-a-day, ordinary people at a county fair.

And, then it got me in my thoughts to realizing that no matter how major a star might become or be at any given time, their popularity and “star-power” is not guaranteed. The old saying, “be kind to people on the way up, because you will probably meet them again on the way down,” or something like that came to mind. Besides, how many truly great stars had a roller coaster of a career ride?

As the heat of the summer increased that afternoon as I was riding Golden Gate Transit, I was eager to get home. My musings trailed off as I stepped off the bus.

Surprisingly, maybe even Serendipitously, Perhaps? When I grabbed a Pacific Sun newspaper on my next ride on Golden Gate Transit the following week, there it was, a feature article about singer Dwight Yoakim.

This peaked and tweaked my curiosity. I was surprised to read that Yoakam’s career has never been in a slump. If anything it has continued, amid the ever-changing taste in music and culture.

Described as someone who upheld “rough-hewn authentic country,” in his music, the article noted that Yoakam has achieved both commercial success and critical acclaim.

When he arrived in Nashville more than 30 years ago, the trend was a more Rock and Roll influenced Country Music. Frustrated with Nashville at that time back in the 1980’s, he took off for Los Angeles. Yoakam’s commitment and determination to his style of country/blue grass worked out, because the emerging “rock-a-billy” and “punk” music scenes in LA helped his music.

I was surprised that the Kentucky-born, multi-gold, triple-platinum record singer was raised in Ohio and made his way westward, first before going to Nashville. He financed his debut record himself and continues to blaze a trail all his own.

It takes a lot of courage, determination as well as talent to persevere as Yoakam has. Along with his music recording and performing career, Yoakam is an accomplished actor. Starting with acting in productions in high school his venture in theater, movies and television over the past two decades have proven to be just as successful as his music career.

In 2016, he appeared in AmazonPrime’s original series “Goliath,” a legal drama with  Billy Bob Thorton as the lead.

Spotlighting the Bakersfield sound of which Yoakam has become associated with, he launched a new channel on SiriusXM, last year called “Dwight Yoakam and The Bakersfield Beat.” This was initially based upon a song written by Homer Joy and performed by Buck Owens.

Yoakam formed an affinity with Bakersfield after Owens and Yoakam performed a duet version of the song. It became a hit in 1988, Yoakam’s first big hit song; and since that time, it has struck a chord with Yoakam and audiences.

Yoakam’s connection to California through Country Music is strong, his most recent album, “Swimming Pool’s and Movie Stars” is taken right from the theme song of the classic TV sitcom “The Beverly Hillbillies.” 

As is explained on his web site.

And, this album (released in 2016) really is that hybrid expression of a journey — and it’s the American journey. It’s the Dust Bowl ‘30s era blowing colloquial music out to California with all the Okie/Arkie/Texan migrants. Folks from Kansas and Nebraska and the plains all ended up out here and brought with ‘em their cultural elements. Without that, you don’t have Buck Owens out here, and you don’t have Merle Haggard, perhaps, in the way that we knew him.” And without them, you certainly don’t have the man many of us consider the reigning king of California country, Dwight Yoakam.

Now, I understand, why he is appearing at the Marin County Fair – country music is for everyone, even in sophisticated and upscale Marin. 

The Marin County Fair begins July 3 and continues through Independence Day until July 7. Golden Gate Transit, route 35 goes right to the Fairgrounds in San Rafael. Check GGT for details. For more information about the Marin County Fair visit the web site.

And, to learn more about the multi-talented Dwight Yoakam, visit his web site.

-thoughts and musings by journalist, Jonathan Farrell

#Marin County #Marin County Fair #Summer #dwight yoakam #Swimming pools #Movie stars #Country Western Music #Blue grass #bakersfield #california

[aion-rsa]

Weak Sauce: The 15 Lamest Superhero Weaknesses

As CBR knows only too well, the world of comic books would be pretty damn boring if none of the heroes had any weaknesses or limitations; after all, their powers have to be balanced out somehow or every battle would be over in seconds. Without conflict, there are no comics… or, at least, none worth reading!

RELATED: 15 Superpowers That Would Suck in Real Life

That being said, we here at CBR reckon some heroes’ vulnerabilities are a whole lot easier to justify than others. Brute force? That’s pretty plausible. Magic? Heck, why not. But when incredibly powerful characters are taken down by simple, mundane or outright bizarre weaknesses such as a tree branch, lack of water or a color, you can’t help but wonder what the writers were smoking. Listed below are the lamest weaknesses CBR can think of. Try not to laugh too hard!

SUPERMAN: PRETTY SPACE ROCKS

Kryptonite isn’t the lamest superhero weakness out there, but CBR reckons it’s got to warrant a mention. After all, being allergic to pieces of your home planet is a pretty weird vulnerability to have, especially when its radioactivity is so weak that humans are largely unaffected (Post-“Crisis” Lex Luthor excluded, of course). The variant colors of kryptonite affect Superman differently and some of the symptoms are flat-out hilarious: green just makes Superman weak, but red makes him have psychedelic visions or morph into embarrassing shapes. Silver, meanwhile, turns him into a hungry drunk. And pink? Well, pink makes him super… effeminate. We have Peter David to thank for that absurd little morsel.

Perhaps what’s most ridiculous about Superman’s biggest weakness is that kryptonite is so readily available on Earth. As per “Action Comics” #600, Krypton was located approximately 50 light years from our own planet — falling within Tomar-Re’s Sector 2813, for any “Green Lantern Corps” geeks out there — so even if a few meteorites carrying the substance did make their way into Earth’s atmosphere, it’s unlikely that more than a few fragments could be recovered. So how come Lex Luthor’s got stockpiles of the stuff?

DAREDEVIL: NOISE POLLUTION

After a young Matt Murdoch is blinded by a radioactive substance while trying to save a man from being flattened by a truck, he develops other super-heightened senses that allow him to “see” using sound, smell, taste and touch… okay, okay, mostly sound (don’t worry, he’s not going to start licking the walls to track bad guys or anything). Oh, and he also becomes a martial arts master because, y’know, it’s a Stan Lee comic and it’s cool.

Although this sensory sensitivity works effectively as a substitute for vision most of the time, it comes at a high price. Therein lies Daredevil’s daftest weakness: he can’t bear loud noises. So much so, in fact, that particularly powerful sounds weaken all his senses rather than enhancing them (not just hearing, but balance and orientation too), and can immobilize him completely as the sensory overload is so painful. You could quite literally defeat him without throwing a punch: just yell at him through a megaphone!

AQUAMAN: DEHYDRATION

Since his creation by Paul Norris and Mort Weisinger back in 1941, Aquaman has been the butt of many a joke. He’s gifted with a range of pretty impressive abilities, including super-strength, enhanced hearing, night vision and the capacity to withstand bone-crushing pressure, but his affinity for oceanic creatures has always made him seem a bit… well… fishy.

However, we here at CBR would argue that the silliest thing about Aquaman isn’t that his closest allies could be defeated by a fishing net, but that his entire power set is reliant on him having regular access to water. Sure, the average Joe might get a headache if they don’t stay hydrated, but being out of the sea for more than an hour renders this Atlantean King completely powerless, a flaw that was retconned in during “Adventure Comics” #256 in 1959.

Aquaman can easily fight the baddies on the beaches as part of the Justice League, but what about in the middle of the city, a space station or an underground lair (all legitimate supervillain hangouts by the way)? Take him out his element, and he gets a lot less super.

THE HUMAN TORCH: ASBESTOS

Don’t let those dodgy “Fantastic Four” films fool you: Johnny Storm is a force to be reckoned with (although, granted, he’s a little wet behind the ears). Not only can he create, absorb and manipulate fire, which is pretty awesome, but his nova flame is hot enough to vaporize the particles of anything in his way, whether it’s a bullet, a bad guy or a building.

There is, however, one tiny exception to this rule… his powers can’t penetrate asbestos. This doesn’t seem like much of a weakness, given asbestos is now banned across most of the world, but back when the Human Torch was first conceived by Stan Lee and Ernest Hart in 1963, it was commonly used to insulate pipes and wires, soundproof rooms and even make cheap garden furniture.

This initially left the Torch open to a wide range of hair-brained attacks he had no defense against. In “Strange Tales” #111, the imaginatively-named villain Asbestos Man side-stepped Storm’s powers completely using a fire-retardant shield, net and “super-asbestos” suit. However, the Human Torch prevailed in the end and the toxic properties of Asbestos Man’s suit meant he later relied on an oxygen tank for survival. Tough break, man.

THE FLASH: RUNNING TOO FAST

They say what doesn’t kill you makes you stronger, but in the case of Barry Allen, the opposite is true: his speed might be his greatest strength, but excelling in his abilities puts his life in mortal danger. As part of the 1985-1986 “Crisis on Infinite Earths” crossover comic written by Marv Wolfman, the Flash uses super-speed to thwart the Anti-Monitor’s evil plan, but the speed vortex he creates to stop the villain’s anti-matter cannon firing is so fast it sweeps the Flash away along with it. He ends up being stranded for 23 years in the Speed Force — the mystical energy field that gives all speedsters their powers — being thought dead by his closest friends, including Wally West, who takes up the Flash mantle in his absence.

Being one with the force does have upsides though, as according to the “Secret Origins” Annual #2, Allen is able to go back and mess with his own timeline (again… will he ever learn?!), becoming the lightning bolt that hit his lab and gave him superpowers in the first place. Plus, he didn’t stay dead forever, as Grant Morrison brought him back for 2008’s “Final Crisis,” but his need for speed still makes him vulnerable!

ADAM STRANGE: FORCED DEPORTATION

To anyone who thinks archaeologists can’t be superheroes, we give you Adam Strange, the intrepid dirt-explorer who inadvertently found himself on the planet Rann and was gifted with all the powers of a superhero in “Mystery in Space.” His creator Julius Schwartz never really explained why, but Strange quickly settles down on Rann with his space-babe of a wife, Alanna. unfortunately, this life of bliss is frequently interrupted by his rather inconvenient transportations back to Earth, where he has no powers at all.

The technology responsible for bringing him to Rann — the mysterious Zeta-Beam — only allows him to remain there for as long as it’s transmitting back to Earth… and as it takes the beam a good few years to reach Strange’s home planet, it’s not exactly easy to catch a ride back. Strange might well have been recruited as Rann’s savior, but his timing issues really make his role more of a part-time gig. He could be mid-way through his heroics before vanishing without a trace. He even left his wife to nearly get eaten by a tiger once! Luckily, as Alan Moore’s “Swamp Thing” series clarified, the Rannians are more than capable of looking after themselves when Strange isn’t around.

GLADIATOR: LOW SELF-ESTEEM

Marvel’s Gladiator, created by Chris Claremont and Dave Cockrum, is arguably one of the most powerful comic book heroes ever, and that’s a big accolade. Being gifted with planet-shattering strength, super- speed, heat vision, frost breath and a few psionic abilities to boot, he’s a superhero most guys would love to be… but, funnily enough, he’s never really learned to love himself.

Although low self-esteem isn’t exactly fun for anybody, for Gladiator it’s a fatal weakness. His power fluctuates according to his confidence, as seen in Dan Abnett and Andy Lanning’s “War of Kings” crossover in 2009. As such, he can be defeated by opponents with far lesser abilities if only they can make him doubt himself. A prime example of this crops up in “War of Kings” #3, when Guardians of the Galaxy’s Rocket Raccoon manages to convince Gladiator his gun will hurt him and, despite withstanding far worse in the past, succumbs to the self-fulfilling prophecy and is beaten. So he’s not just insecure, he’s also dumb enough to be outwitted by a raccoon. Should that count as two weaknesses?

BANSHEE: A SORE THROAT

It’s not exactly a secret that shouting yourself hoarse won’t do you any good, mainly because everyone around you will think you’re cray. But what if your voice was your superpower? That’s the problem that Marvel’s Banshee faces, as an X-Men mutant with a sonic scream powerful enough to disable his enemies. Of course, having super-powered vocal cords doesn’t make you invulnerable to a sore throat, as Banshee learned to his peril in “Uncanny X-Men” #119.

In it, he completely lost his powers during a battle with the terrorist Moses Magnum after overexerting himself… and by overexertion, we mean yelling really, really loudly for a few minutes ‘til he ran out of wind. It’s odd to think that something most people could cure with a lozenge or two is capable of taking down a superhero permanently (as Banshee retired shortly after this defeat to shack up with Professor X’s ex-girlfriend), but since when have comic book vulnerabilities made any sense at all?

CYCLOPS: MISPLACING HIS GLASSES

Stan Lee and Jack Kirby’s Cyclops is a powerful mutant and an effective leader of theX-Men; well, so long as he’s wearing his ruby quartz visor, that is. Without it, he’s basically a walking death trap. His optic blasts may be incredibly precise, but he’s unable to control or direct them without the visor. This weakness originated from a childhood brain injury (as stated in “Uncanny X-Men” #156), but was later retconned in “Astonishing X-Men” #14 and explained as a self-imposed mental block, resulting from the trauma of his parents’ death. Either way, even opening his eyes a little without his designer cyber-specs is likely to cause general carnage and endanger everyone around him.

Laughably, many fights with Cyclops inevitably involve him losing his visor somehow and blasting holes into everything until someone stops him scrabbling around on the floor blindly. You’d think with all the super-powered technology lying around Xavier’s School for Gifted Youngsters, someone would’ve been able to design something to help Scott Summers keep his visor on!

MARTIAN MANHUNTER: FIRE

He’s a powerful superhero who can shapeshift at a molecular level, changing his entire genetic composition to allow him to pass through solid objects, withstand ferocious attacks or bend light waves around his body. Moreover, he hails from Mars, otherwise known as the Red Planet or the Fire-Star. So, why exactly should Martian Manhunter be so afraid of fire?

In Frank Morrison’s “Final Crisis” #1, the Martian Manhunter is captured and killed by Libra in the presence of the Secret Society of Super-Villains on the orders of his past B-list foe, the Human Flame. Theoretically, J’onn J’onzz should be able to shapeshift into something fireproof, or wet, or something, but he ends up being torched like a marshmallow instead. Weirder still, any attempt to overcome this aversion to fire turns J’onn J’onzz into an entirely different person, specifically the Burning Martian Fernus, one of J’onn’s ancient Martian ancestors. As Joe Kelly’s “JLA” #87-89 proved, Fernus isn’t really a very nice guy — he’s fuelled by “psychic grief,” after all, which is almost never a good sign.

THOR: 60 SECONDS

As the God of Thunder, Thor is granted a range of truly awesome abilities, including enhanced strength and endurance, flight, weather manipulation and a near-immortal lifespan. However, it’s worth pointing out these powers are granted by his mystical hammer, Mjolnir… and it just so happens that Mjolnir can be pretty damn fickle. Original canon dictated that if Thor lost physical contact with his hammer for more than 60 seconds, he would instantly revert back to his mortal alter-ego, Donald Blake. Moreover, if someone “worthy” of Mjolnir’s power reached the hammer first, they could claim Thor’s abilities for themselves.

Creator Stan Lee unwittingly made Thor an easy target for quick-thinking villains and wannabe gods. After all, Thor’s preferred method of combat is throwing his hammer around and occasionally using it to pin down a bad guy or two, so taking him down became very simple: keep him occupied for more than a minute and create an obstacle to prevent Mjolnir returning. Boom! De-powered Thor. Thankfully, the 60-second rule was abolished in 1984, in “Thor” #340 during the “Stormbreaker” story arc written by Walter Simonson, so bad guys can’t take out the Thunder God so easily anymore.

WONDER WOMAN: BONDAGE

Superheroes don’t come much more kickass than Wonder Woman. As a gifted warrior with enough power to take on the gods and win, she’s shown time and again that she can hold her own in the testosterone-fueled world of comic book heroes… but she wasn’t always the self-assured feminist icon we’ve all come to know and love. As it turns out, Wonder Woman’s creator William Moulton Marston had some pretty barmy ideas about the amount of power men should be able to wield over women back in the day.

Case in point: despite being a super-powerful Amazonian princess in a land ruled by women, Marston made sure Diane of Themyscira’s powers (like those of her kind) could easily be neutralized by any member of the “greater” sex through the simple act of binding her wrists. This, according to Aphrodite’s Law, made her “as weak as other women in a man-ruled world,” reinforcing the idea that women should be answerable to men at all times. Incredibly, this gender-specific weakness persevered from Wonder Woman’s debut in 1941 (in “All-Star Comics” #8) right through to the mid ‘80s, when DC finally retconned this flaw out for the good of all womankind.

POWER GIRL: ANY NATURAL UNPROCESSED MATERIAL

You’d think that after getting around that whole “vulnerability-to-kryptonite” thing through the sheer convenience of having come from another dimension (kryptonite doesn’t work when it’s brought to other realities), Power Girl would pretty much be unstoppable; after all, she’s got exactly the same powers as her on-off cousin Superman, and that strong personality of hers means she can stay sharp and decisive when the going gets tough. There’s only one problem with that: Power Girl’s got a different weakness, one that is far more common than an obscure, radioactive space rock. She’s vulnerable to all raw, unprocessed materials. Yes, you read that right.

After being knocked to the ground by a tree branch and then impaled by it in Peter David’s “Supergirl” Vol.4 #16, Kara tells a bemused Supergirl that “sticks and stones can really break my [bones]” in a nod to the old schoolyard rhyme. CBR can only assume that means “names will never hurt” her. Small comfort! Wood, stone, dirt, sand — if it’s on Earth and it’s not man-made, it can harm her. Being impervious to bullets only counts for so much if your enemy can take you down with a slingshot!

CAPTAIN MARVEL JR.: SAYING HIS OWN NAME

Speaking of being hurt by name-calling… did anyone call for Captain Marvel Jr., DC’s resident narcissist? Unfair, maybe, but there aren’t many superheroes whose powers rely on their ability to say their own name, and for good reason. Apart from being a rather ridiculous way to activate someone’s powers, it also opens the character up to mishaps of sitcom-worthy proportions.

If Captain Marvel Jr. tries to introduce himself to a super-powered ally or, for some reason, feels the need to say his name in the middle of a battle, he’ll instantly be transformed into Freddy Freeman, a decidedly ordinary young lad who relies on a crutch to walk. If he speaks his superhero alias aloud while in the guise of Freddy Freeman (who works in a newsroom — an environment where everyone’s bound to be interested in superhero shenanigans), he’ll transform into a shimmering beacon of muscly justice and give himself away.

Writer Jerry Ordway tried getting around this flaw during Captain Marvel Jr.’s sporadic appearances in “Teen Titans” between 1995-1998 by having Freeman refer to himself as “CM3” so he could avoid accidental transformations, but the change didn’t stick (largely because saying it made him sound like a CMd-bag).

GREEN LANTERN: YELLOW

For many fans, Hal Jordan is the definitive Green Lantern. He’s protected the Earth from innumerable threats through sheer force of will, making him one of the most impressive wielders of the Power Ring. However, being color-coded does have its downfalls… like being rendered useless by the color yellow. Yes, yellow. The color of sunshine, raincoats, buttercups and pee-pee.

According to canon, an impurity in the ring’s power source meant that Jordan became powerless when faced with this color. This was later explained in Geoff Johns’ “Green Lantern: Rebirth” as being tied to Parallax, a yellow fear entity who was locked in the Central Power Battery, thus weakening it. Before this was revealed, though, GL’s weakness was exploited to hilarious effect, incuding by writers such as Frank Miller. He had the Caped Crusader trap Jordan in a yellow-painted room in “All-Star Batman & Robin” #9 before letting a gold-suited Robin clobber him. Why? Because, as stated explicitly in the comic, it’s the “dumbest weakness… ever heard of.” Bruce Wayne can be a bit of an a-hole, but he’s often right.

Can you think of any other daft superhero weaknesses? Let us know in the comments!

The post Weak Sauce: The 15 Lamest Superhero Weaknesses appeared first on CBR.com.

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