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#existential dread and capitalism and etc etc etc

dyketennant · 2 years

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i feel like when dhmis first blew up, it was purely because of the shock value piece of it—look, they're singing funny songs and now it's all gorey. and there definitely is some of that in the new show, but having more time to really flesh out their narratives made it all feel much more purposeful.

watching it i couldn't help but think of how much the new show reads as a satire, not just some traumatizing internet video. it made me laugh more than it startled me. and it always seemed like a satire of children's media, but now it feels a bit more mature, critical, and complex—literally going from the big "capitalism is bad," to critiquing how we treat people who are grieving, to found family and feeling pressured to get along with your blood family, etc etc.

and by the last two episodes it's much less about the shock value and much more about a haunting, psychological horror that many of us can relate to. this existential dread, if "this" is all life is, even going to episode 5 and seeing how afraid and hopeless red is (something something growing up and fear of homelessness/not "making it").

this show was not as scary to me as the youtube series was. maybe it's just because i'm a little older. but honestly, i'm glad it wasn't.

#dhmis #don't hug me 2 #don't hug me i'm scared #dhmis spoilers #i just. i was excited ofc when i saw the teaser but #i like this show a lot more than i expected to

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literaticat · 1 year

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Why do you think in Ye Olden Days it was okay to have adult protagonists in kidlit (Amelia Bedelia, Poppleton, Nancy Drew, Mr. Popper) but it's not anymore?

I would argue that some of these folks are not adults, or they are "childlike adults" in a Sesame Street kind of a way.

Like, most of the monsters on Sesame Street are adults. They don't live with their parents, they often have jobs and love interests, they are allowed to travel to the big city, they can drive, etc. But they aren't like... ADULT adults. They are very child-like.

Amelia Bedelia works because Amelia is a very child-like adult, sometimes more kid-like than the kids.

Poppleton is an "Adult" in the sense that he has his own house or whatever, but a) animal protags are not the same as human adults, you often have a lot more leeway there, and b) He is doing just very gentle kid-like things -- helping a friend, eating a pie, whatever. It's not "Poppleton worries about paying capital gains tax" or "Poppleton visits the butcher and is suddenly filled with existential dread". (Many many animal protags are technically "adults" -- Fox + Chick, fox has his own house. George + Martha, married hippopotami. Babar, a King.)

Nancy Drew is a teenager. I mean nowadays that probably means she would have more "gritty" crimes and be in the YA section, but hey, it was a different time. (Same with many protags of classic books -- Anne of Green Gables was a kid at first but it goes through her teen, college years and older, and she's still in the MG Classics section and read by 10 year olds, so.)

Mr Popper I haven't read in 30 years but if I recall correctly, Mr Popper is a bit of a weirdo who fills his house up with penguins? I think that works because that's just a pretty uncharacteristically "adult" thing to do, it's just goofy, and again, I think that makes him less of a Responsible Boring Adult than a Big Interesting Kid.

Basically - I think you CAN have an adult protagonist IF they are a "stand in" for the child reader. Like if they are human, they are either goofy / wild / silly or otherwise acting in a child-like way, or if they are an animal, to whom normal "rules" do not apply, but again, they are navigating kid-like emotions or doing things that are otherwise interesting to children.

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astrobstrd · 2 years

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I've played Disco Elysium twice, seen it played probably three times, watched several friends take their first steps into Revachol. At this point it's like second nature to joke about how much of a cosmic fuck up Harry is when we first take the reins, how divorced he is, how he's secretly a huge fag, go on about how much we all love Kim etc etc. But a moment like ZA/UM fracturing and each and every one of the creative minds behind this incredible, sprawling universe getting scattered to the wind, this story only beginning to be told, is this stark reminder of how deeply important that fucking game is to me and so many other people, and about all of the things it has to say. There is something in DE that will speak to you no matter who the fuck you are because, despite the world bordering on fantastical in some aspects, it is still human, real, compassionate, and just a few degrees of magical realism removed from our own. There is undying love for others and the world, there is catastrophic loss and grief, people downtrodden and stomped until all that's left is hope, a city and, as far as we know, a world stripped bare for capital and profit growth. Anger, fear and death. Something about Kurvitz opening his foreword about The Final Cut basically confessing that it's this shared paracosm that survived worldly cynicism and the crushing reality that this [gestures around] is all there really is, all the bitterness of living in a post communist country and watching people around you succeed and cope with existential dread while you get to be The Artist. I will not be able to stop thinking about that, much like Disco Elysium. It's the one game I have not truly gotten over and don't think I will ever be over and I'm completely thankful for that

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senditcolton · 1 month

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hi! hope you don’t mind me joining in!! how about:🥤, 🧸, 🎲, ❄️, and 🌿 — ☁️

please join in!! (also, i've been meaning to reply to your earlier message about your thesis. that's so awesome that you're in the homestretch!! cheering for you because it is a lot of work and effort. and you're almost there!! go bestie!!)

writer truth & dare asks!

🥤: recommend an author or fanfic you love

oh there's so many (which is why i have a fic rec tag) but the one that immediately comes to mind is "Your Love is My Turning Page" by @tippedbykreider. like, it was the most poetic beautiful heartachingly stunning fic. i was at a loss for words and in tears by the end (but they were 100% happy tears)

🧸: what's the fastest way to become your mutual?

truthfully, there isn't that much of a formula! i think a lot of it comes from engagement but sometimes it just happens naturally! tumblr also makes it more complicated because this is a side blog so there are people that are 'mutuals' but not "officially" according to tumblr. so i probably have more mutuals than i think i do because of that!

🎲: what stops you from writing more in your free time?

right now, it's just existential dread (newly graduated things). but usually, it's capitalism - i mean, work.

❄️: what's your dream theme/plot for a fic, and who would write it best?

i don't have a specific idea but whenever i start to dream up alternate universes, i always think "oh Lauren (@ laurenairay) would probably kill this." she has such a knack for achieving the balance between giving enough information so you're immersed but not completely info-dumping and taking you out of the story.

🌿: give some advice on writer's block and low creativity

for writers block - the one i love is if you're stuck, go back ten sentences and read that sentence because that is usually where the issue is: you've introduced an idea too soon or the dialogue is wonky or something is out of character, etc.

for low creativity - it's a little cliche but taking a step back is the best way! or turn your creativity towards something else and that might help get your creative juices flowing. like, sometimes when I'm stuck in a fic, i'll make a playlist or a pinterest board for the story. that way, i'm still thinking about the story but i'm not staring in frustration at a word document.

#☁️ anon #asked and answered #thanks for sending these asks in!#i always welcome a distraction #(even though I'm forcing myself to write 500 words before taking a break)#(that way I'm getting stuff done but it's also a little bit of a bribe)#(there's another tip for you i suppose!)

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rainbowfucker · 1 year

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Yes yes fuck capitalism, your boss is not your friend, your job doesn't value you nearly as much as you care about it, I know. But man. Sometimes I really resent the attitude that you're a chump for having pride in your work or giving a shit what happens at your shitty job.

I HAVE to work. I pay rent, bills, etc to be able to live independently with my partner. I don't have a choice but to participate in this system. Hate it all I want, we're stuck in this shit. I'm in a pretty bearable place right now in huge part because of my current job and the job I had before, and I'm going to have to be working for a good long while still (possibly until I die).

So, for me, and the way I work mentally, I NEED to feel okay about my job. And for me, to stay sane, that means becoming invested in my workplace. This is how I stave off the existential dread. This is how I keep the very real, quite debilitating depression at bay. Feeling excited when things are going well, and being concerned when they're not, are important for me. I value work/life balance and refuse to work *too* hard now (my last job taught me that), but I have to be invested in what I do 8 hours a day or I will melt into a sad puddle of completely dysfunctional goo. I know in the grand scheme of things my work doesn't matter a whole lot (though it does in some small part help the wheels of digital infrastructure turn), I shouldn't have to do this, life is not supposed to be spent behind a desk, blah blah blah. But I do not have the energy or resources to fight right now. I am not mentally well enough to rage against the machine. I just want to live a nice life while I can.

So for now I will be happy when my job is going well and determined to make things better when it's not, because in this big scary uncertain world right now, I fucking need this.

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randomshipperhere · 1 year

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nahhh cause like… watching video essays about Bo Burnham’s work slaps.

I’ve never ever in my life seeked out knowledge about sociio-political stuff. It was not in my interests but seeing these essays cover these range of topics I’ve never heard of is fucking amazing.

(like what the hell is post post modernism? Well from the vid I watched its actually a somewhat hopeful future. And also there’s like more than one version of capitalism??? wild. Yes I’m ignorant please forgive this person because they are trying their best to learn more)

And expanding? expounding? on things I’m already aware of (derealization, parasocial relationships, etc.) Whew. Existential dread and comedy is my type of depression rn. This shit is god damn addicting.

#i just wanna feel good #i just. wanna feel gooood #outtakes lyrics mmmm #I’m living in the future uhh #actually need to take a shit while typing lmao #anyways thats it for this #text post #see you whenevs #bo burnham

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darkhopping · 3 years

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strange how my ambitions went from “i want to be an accomplished illustrator” to “i just want a room of my own” really . really promising future there adam

#yep #just gen z problems hashtag heart #my only aspirations are: cute bedroom #and thats it #amazing #god #capitalism existential dread etc etc

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ladychlo · 2 years

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was just sitting here thinking about how happy Louis and harry look on their Tours and how connected and real they seem to their fan and then I think of the stunt and the whole bullshit and I get an existential void out of it. does it make any dense????!!!! seeing them like that makes whatever happens else just absurd and voided and not necessary I think I'm having an existential crisis because of this lmfao

hiii love,

I love tour for them so much, because they get to have that raw interaction with their fans with nothing in between....they get to receive genuine love and admiration, like you start in front of a sea of people, coming here just to hear you and your music cause they relate to it and they love it...and they show you a support you've been told it cant be real...

and Im laughing so hard at this, because I was talking with my friend Kaw specifically about this while ago. but yeah, not to say its highly predictable to get an existential dread from pr stunt because consumption of imagery is just capitalism. and what else that doesn't suck your soul of and commodify your feelings other than capitalism?

okay I might sound a bit far from the point but hear me out. PR stunt work on the basis of consuming two things, imagery and story. so you might think the only thing you consume is idk a song, album, movie...etc. but you're actually consuming more than that, you might ask why? well no consumption under capitalism and industries that works according to it gonna let you consume for free.

you might not pay for pap pictures but you pay in another way (your engagement, your reproduction of the purpose of these images..etc). besides, existential void comes with the death of reality, because there is no interest in selling your reality, reality can only be sold if it can be commodified. so genuinely, they don't care if you believe the story or not, they don't care of its not consistant, does it make sense or not. this goes on the sense of limiting consumption of a story if its true , which means if tabloids or entertainment media in general worked on giving you a solid truthful story, its a loss because the truth is boring and not in a cool-I-can-make-a-consumable-product-out-of-it-way.

now you might say, but these sold stories look stupidly fake and makes no sense at all why go with? why even survive? and continue to sell? because the point is as I said you are not sold the truth, you're sold the story. and people who consume these stories are not that dumb you know? its entertainning for them.

have you ever heard of KAYFABE?

it basically means "In professional wrestling, kayfabe is the portrayal of staged events within the industry as "real" or "true," specifically the portrayal of competition, rivalries, and relationships between participants as being genuine and not of a staged or pre-determined nature. Kayfabe has also evolved to become a code word of sorts for maintaining this "reality" within the realm of the general public."

.everyone knows that these wrestling stories are scripted as much as everyone knows that paparazzi don't just suddenly show in the street corner, or take the perfect storytelling shot or have access to private property, or have a GPS of celebrity locations planted in their brains...etc. anyone with decent critical thinking will understand that, but they choose to mascarade the show as true not because its real but because its entertaining. so staged events like a wrestling match in WWE RAW or a staged pap walk are produced as real and perceived as real. its the narrative that plays some sort of a theatrical drama with heroes villains romance etc etc etc. they dont give a shite if you dont believe it, or you point out inconsistencies or what makes more sense, because.....its not consumable beyond you and your friends of delusional gay conspiracy theorists.

#what a rant lol #but thought about this and why not share it with you #I need to find an article from teh new york time sooo sooo intresting #i ll find it and link it here

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safflowerseason · 2 years

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succession 3.06

I was nervous about Succession’s foray into a storyline that’s explicitly about billionaire politics and backsliding democracy in 2021…post Trump’s election, even post January 6, it has felt a little like *every* show now wants to make some comment on the dire American political climate. But it’s a hard, complicated subject to say something smart and distinctive about—exhibit A, my beloved yet ultimately misguided Veep—and it’s even harder to address without tacitly acknowledging that a healthy democracy is fundamentally a good thing and fascism and racism are bad. And Succession doesn’t deal in moral absolutes, or rather, its stakes don’t revolve around “good” versus “bad.”

So in that sense, I was pleased with the show’s crushing commitment to the realism of modern politics while also taking care to note, via Shiv, that fucking around with fascists is a capital-B bad idea. It was a good move to sidestep the Trump of it all, which was smart as Trump was merely a specific symptom, not the cause, of America’s current politics woes (and also he’s not really a billionaire anyway, not like the Roys), and focused more on the different threads of modern Republican politics and the role of billionaires and right-wing media outlets. We encounter the various Republican political archetypes while also observing the effects of the party’s radicalized base—namely, that right-wing authoritian sociopaths like Mencken are slowly taking over, partly because they understand how the Internet works in a way that the Boyers of the world don’t. Politics, while taking up the A-plot in this episode for the first time, is still ultimately used within the narrative as fodder for the evolving Roy dyamics, just like the takeover battle, just like the Pierce acquisition drama, etc. At the same time, I hope the show will equally be smart to keep the election humming quietly in the background providing external plot stimulation as needed, instead of turning into Succession: ATN Election Season or whatever.

Shiv’s role here in all this is interesting. I love that Succession has no interest in “backing” one sibling over the other, they are all equally horrible in different ways, but simply by virtue of her weak pro-democracy stance, she immediately becomes more sympathetic to the viewing audience. I might even go so far as to say her civic-minded concern is quite possibly her most sympathetic moment of the show so far. It’s incredibly satisfying to watch her bat down Mencken’s condescending pseudo-philosphical bluff, and Logan and Roman’s total and consistent disregard for her crystallizes once again the oppressive gender dynamics of her world. We strongly empathize with her desperate opposition to the notion that he could be president. At the same time, I don’t think we’re meant to take away that Shiv is “better” than her other siblings because of her politics. The show is too morally complex for that—and she did get in the photo, after all. But it will be interesting to see how their political differences continue to deepen the wedge between Logan and his “favorite” child.

All this to say…another disturbingly, fantastically good episode of Succession.

other observations:

- this was also a deeply funny episode in addition to its emotional mess, possibly my favorite of the season so far. The zingers! Political deal-making! Shiv’s power suits! Michelle Ann! Stephen Root was there! Tom’s existential dread! The return of Willa! (I liked her smacking down Connor for trying to whore her out to Stephen Root).

- After starting out the season weaker than ever, Logan’s fortunes have reversed dramatically…he looked like the cat who ate the canary this entire episode. I do appreciate the show’s super realistic-if-depressing portrayal of the DOJ case against Waystar, even if it is infuriating. The fact is, American corporations can absolutely get away with acting in super illegal ways!

- Relatedly, the show has been absolutely ruthless with Kendall this season—his fake PR identity as a woke revolutionary, his inability to hear anything he doesn’t want to hear, his narcissism and entitlement…that moment when he snapped the photo of Tom in the parking lot, desperate for some kind of leverage…the bitter blow of Tom’s reveal that he’s missing out on picking the next president. That could have been you, Kendall!

- Logan and Roman’s approach to politics appears to be based primarily on vibes only. (This is actually Kendall’s approach to the DOJ case too).

- Tumblr seems to be having some kind of collective meltdown over Roman’s eye-fuckfest with sociopath Mencken, as if this constitutes some kind of profound violation of his relationship with Gerri. Everyone needs to calm down. Their whole thing was absolutely consistent with how the show likes to reverse the professional and the personal—ie, how so much of politics and business can be like managing a sexual or romantic relationship. (Plus, the whole Gerri/Jeryd thing is 100% intentional, you can’t convince me otherwise). That scene of the two of them in the bathroom, in their shirtsleeves, hair all mussed at the end of a long day, the sparky coy glances across the small space…damn! Filmed as intimately as any scene between Roman and Gerri (and more intimately than anything between Shiv and Tom).

- Whoever played Mencken was perfectly cast. Literally the scariest person in the room at all times.

- Matthew Macfadyen slayed this episode. He was the real protagonist, by far. His conversations with Greg and Kendall were absolutely devastating. Some of the most nuanced acting we’ve seen on the show, and that’s a fucking high bar to clear.

- Greg sucks. Can we say that now? Ready for Kendall to burn him.

- At the same time, Tom calling Greg in the middle of the night is quite possibly their most romantic moment so far. Meanwhile, Shiv and Tom’s marriage is literally unraveling before our very eyes (in an exquisitely angsty, compelling fashion that still highlights what draws them to one another). The logical step for them after this episode is to have a real conversation, cut their losses with Logan, and head over to Team Kendall. That would require emotional intelligence and actual communication on their part, though, so I doubt it will happen. At the same time, it’s no coincidence that this episode ends with both of them more uncertain about their futures on Team Logan.

- Caroline! Getting engaged and not even telling your kids! I loved that Roman and Shiv called Kendall immediately. Some things transcend corporate battles, and that includes your emotionally witholding mother getting remarried. (Guess we know why everyone is headed to Italy for the final two episodes).

- Logan’s assistant Kerry has been getting more and more screentime in the recent episodes, and much like the Roy siblings I truly did not pay her any attention until she began to speak up in meetings. Whatever’s happening between her and Logan, I just hope Marcia finds out and she decides to come for Waystar as a form of punishment. Marcia for CEO.

#succession #succession season three #what it takes #succession analysis #succession meta #logan roy #shiv roy #roman roy #kendall roy #connor roy #jeryd mencken #roman x …jeryd?!?!#tom wambsgans #greg hirsch #succession spoilers

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hachichimitsu2 · 3 years

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ABOUT ME

Hachi ✨ 20 ✨ She/Her ✨ 🇵🇭 ✨ INFJ 6w5

Hello, I’m Hachi! I'm a full-time freelance illustrator on Fiverr, and I hopefully plan to branch out in other artistic areas in my life! Expect me to dump all of my artistic interests over here : #hachichiart

I also have a children’s picture e-book that I self-published on Amazon. I made it as a requirement for my high school thesis, so while the art there is definitely a representation of my past, I still stand by the message I was trying to send. I hope to eventually branch out this series in a form of a webcomic of sorts, for people who can’t afford to purchase my e-book for financial reasons. These characters are extremely dear to me, and I can’t wait to expound on them when I have the time lmao. Here’s a tag regarding the series: #behindtheartistichand

Some note-worthy things to mention, this blog is generally 15+, but I do make sure to tag any NSFW content and general triggers out there. I often post and retweet adult animation, so I’d say tread carefully if you’re a minor. I’m also critical with the media I consume, but most of the time, I like to talk about why I like something rather than why I hate it. I just find it more fun to expound on the positives of my favorite things. I also don’t take everything seriously.

Please let me know privately if I did or say anything wrong. Sometimes I say things without meaning to, and I’m not the brightest crayon in the box, so constructive criticism is greatly appreciated. If you take offense with anything I posted, just send a polite DM and explain why it offended you so I can be educated regarding the subject. I’m also available for any questions, DMs and a genuine chit-chat.

MAIN INTERESTS

1. Character-Driven Storytelling

2. Adult Cartoons

3. CGDCT / Slice-of-Life Shows

4. Pastel Goth / Creepy Cute Fashion

5. Coming-of-Age Stories

6. Magical Girls

7. Psychological Horror

8. Well-Written Children’s Media

9. RPG Maker Horror Games

10. Video Essays & Film Studies

11. Speed Metal / Vaporwave / Shibuya-Kei

12. K-POP / J-POP Girl Groups (Serotonin Babey!)

13. 4LT (MBTI), Typology, Cognitive Functions

14. All Types of Artistic Endeavors (OCs, FanArt, Comics, Film, Music, Fanfiction, etc.)

TOP 5 ANIME SERIES (IN NO PARTICULAR ORDER)

1. K-ON!!

2. Hunter x Hunter

3. Neon Genesis Evangelion

4. Ojamajo Doremi

5. Ouran Highschool Host Club.

TOP 5 CARTOON SERIES (IN NO PARTICULAR ORDER)

1. South Park

2. Bojack Horseman

3. Moral Orel

4. Ed, Edd n Eddy

5. Infinity Train

FAVORITE MOVIES

1. Interstellar (Favorite Sci-Fi Movie of All Time)

2. Nacho Libre (Favorite Guilty Pleasure Movie)

3. Johnny Got His Gun (Scariest movie of all time due to the sheer existential dread)

4. Studio Ghibli Films (Particularly Ponyo, My Neighbor Totoro & Grave of the Fireflies)

5. Perfect Blue (Favorite Anime Movie)

6. One Cut of the Dead (It’s hard to recommend this movie without spoiling it, but it’s an absolute must that you finish it in its entirety before you proceed to make any further judgments)

7. Coraline (I know almost everyone loves Coraline at this point, but it’s genuinely good.)

8. Interview with the Vampire (Favorite Vampire movie of all time that doesn’t seem overdone or cliché. It’s also really gay)

9. Get Out (2017)

10. Us (2019)

11. Up (2009)

12. Toy Story (Movies 1 to 3)

13. Hereditary (2018)

14. The Shining (1980)

15. Audition (1999)

16. Misery (1990)

17. The Green Mile (1999)

18. Shawshank Redemption (1994)

19. Saving Private Ryan (1998)

20. Mommie Dearest (1981)

21. The Others (2001)

22. The Platform (2020)

23. The Lodge (2019)

OTHERS

1. Homestuck (It’s been a good while since I read Homestuck, so my memory of the general storyline is fuzzy. I’ll re-read it once I have the chance)

2. When They Cry (Currently up-to date with the Higurashi anime and watched the live-action movies. Finally started to tackle the sound novels. Have yet to encounter Umineko and Ciconia)

3. Age of Youth (Favorite K-drama of all time.)

4. Squid Game (Battle Royale-type thriller series that tackles capitalism and the illusion of choice and free will? Sign me the fuck up)

5. Majisuka Gakuen (Favorite J-drama of all time. Also, yes, I’m biased because of my love for AKB48.)

6. Flight of the Conchords (Favorite live-action series of all time.)

7. Adult Cartoons (The Boondocks, Camp Camp, Superjail, The Oblongs, Bob’s Burgers, The Simpsons, Aqua Teen Hunger Force, Home Movies, Beavis & Butthead, Daria, Smiling Friends, Aggretsuko)

8. FilmCow (I absolutely love everything they put out. Currently up to date with VuloLives’s broadcasts)

9. The Eric Andre Show (A good friend recommended me this show, and I haven’t stopped since.)

10. Nathan for You (My humor condensed into one show)

11. CGDCT / Slice-of-Life Shows (Sweetness & Lightning, The Amazing World of Gumball, Spongebob Squarepants, Gakkou Gurashi, Lucky Star, Gakuen Utopia Manabi Straight, Koufuku Graffiti, Hidamari Sketch, Pita-Ten, A Little Snow Fairy Sugar, Di Gi Charat, Miss Kobayashi’s Dragon Maid, Yama no Susume, Shirobako, Sayonara Zetsubou Sensei, Saint Young Men, Gunslinger Girl, Kareshi Kanojo no Jijou, Osomatsu-san, Hey Arnold, The Peanuts, Arthur, Hibike! Euphonium, Nichijou, Asobi Asobase, Azumanga Daioh, Codename: Kids Next Door, Chowder)

12. Idol Anime (Love Live! School Idol Project, Aikatsu, Revue Starlight, Full Moon wo Sagashite, Pretty Rhythm, AKB600SEC // Will get into IDOLMASTER eventually)

13. Undertale (Will pick up Earthbound and Omori eventually)

14. RPGMaker Horror Games (Mad Father, Misao, The Witch’s House, Ao Oni, etc. Hoping to get into newer released games!)

15. Fictional Children / Adolescents Getting Trapped in Dangerous Scenarios (Digimon Tamers, Made in Abyss, The Promised Neverland, Alice Academy, Code Lyoko, The World Ends with You, Total Drama Island, Danganronpa)

16. Weird, Experimental or Slightly Disturbing Series (Serial Experiments Lain, Kuchuu Buranko, Invader Zim, Flapjack, Salad Fingers)

17. Shounen Anime (Yu Yu Hakusho, Mob Psycho 100, Dragon Ball Z)

18. Magical Girl Anime (Sailor Moon, Cardcaptor Sakura, Tokyo Mew Mew, Mermaid Melody, Puella Magi Madoka Magica, RWBY, Panty & Stocking with Garterbelt, My Little Pony, Princess Tutu, Powerpuff Girls, My Life As A Teenage Robot, Bee and Puppycat, Star vs. The Forces of Evil, Steven Universe // Will pick up She-Ra & The Owl House Eventually)

19. The Haunting of Hill House / Bly Manor (Don’t let the jump-scares deceive you. It’s a genuinely good character-driven horror series)

20. Sci-Fi Cartoons (Rick & Morty, Solar Opposites, Futurama, Bravest Warriors)

ROLE MODELS / BIASES / OSHIMENS / BEST GIRLS

1. Trey Parker & Matt Stone

2. Gain & Narsha (BROWN EYED GIRLS)

3. Hyuna (SOLOIST)

4. Sooyoung (SNSD)

5. Gyuri (KARA)

6. Hani (EXID)

7. Seulgi & Yeri (RED VELVET)

8. Sana (TWICE)

9. Yves & Olivia Hye (LOONA)

10. Shuhua (G-IDLE)

11. Yena (IZ*ONE)

12. Winter (AESPA)

13. SUZUKA (ATARASHII GAKKOU)

14. Shiroma Miru (NMB48)

15. Yabuki Nako (HKT48)

16. Takahashi Minami (ex-AKB48)

17. Kojima Haruna (ex-AKB48)

18. Shinoda Mariko (ex-AKB48)

19. Sayaka Akimoto (ex-AKB48)

20. Watanabe Mayu (ex-AKB48)

21. Shimazaki Haruka (ex-AKB48)

22. Matsui Jurina (ex-SKE48)

23. Sakura Miko (HOLOLIVE)

24. Natsuiro Matsuri (HOLOLIVE)

25. Oozora Subaru (HOLOLIVE)

26. Inugami Korone (HOLOLIVE)

27. Houshou Marine (HOLOLIVE)

28. Kiryu Coco (ex-HOLOLIVE)

29. Momosuzu Nene (HOLOLIVE)

30. Kureiji Ollie (HOLOLIVE)

31. Takanashi Kiara (HOLOLIVE)

32. VuloLives (INDEPENDENT VTUBER)

CONTACTS

• Instagram: @Hachichimitsu

• Twitter: @Hachichimitsu

• I take art commissions on Fiverr: https://www.fiverr.com/hachichimitsu

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miraculous-rewrite · 3 years

Text

Miraculous Rewrite- Child Like (a Stormy Weather 2 Overhaul)

What’s this? TWO child related akumas in a row?

We open on Lycee, Mme Dubois is handing out an assignment on future career paths. She explains that this isn’t the end all be all of their futures of course, but it could decide whether any of them will be shooting for university or not. It depends on what they decide they want to do.

“Now, since this is personal goals, there aren’t any wrong answers, but we all need to keep in mind that some career paths just aren’t an option. Some of you already have feet in the door in certain opportunities but may need to consider whether they’re sustainable in the long term. You have the rest of class to get started.”

The students begin to dive in, some looking focused and ready, others staring blankly at the assignment, clearly unsure.

We clip over Team Miraculous, seeing Marinette, Alya, and Nino quickly and easily filling out their own plans, but Adrien, Amber and Chloe seem to have more struggles. Chloe scribbles a list down and grumbles to herself a bit more before a lightbulb goes off, “Ah! Duh! Beautician is a job!” she starts digging into her own assignment. Adrien huffs “Crap…How you doing Amber?”

“.....I’m still working on what my HOBBIES are, let alone what I can do for a living.”

“I feel that, you spend your whole life on someone else’s schedule and suddenly-”

“Suddenly your time is your own and you don’t know if you should be trying new things or sticking with what’s familiar.” They share a sort of sad smile.

We clip to a few more kids, Ali has simply written down “Political sciences and economics in university” since well… he’s already set for everything else. Lila has written down “Political sciences and humanities in University, get foot in door for diplomacy.” and Sabrina of course has written down “Criminal justice and psychology”

We scan across a few more kids, Alix has ‘Archeology and sociology’ in hers, Max has ‘PhD in robotics’, Kim has ‘Olympics’ etc etc, we pan over to Aurore and Mirielle, Mirielle seems to be struggling with her own assignment, but Aurore fills hers out with clinical efficiency. Of course Aurore’s has a solid ‘keep foot in door on TV news stations; become news anchor’

By the end of class some have only gotten vague thesis’ down for their assignments while others already have rough drafts, and they all place their papers at the front before heading for the science classroom.

“Anyone else feel an unconquerable existential dread at considering life once we become Capital A Adults?” Nino groans as they walk along.

“Yeah i get that.” Amber agrees “Terrifying.”

“I dunno, it seems exciting to me.” Marinette chimes in “I mean, no point in looking back, we can only move forward. Especially us.”

“Marinette’s right.” Adrien chimes in “About the moving forward stuff, I also agree with Nino about it being terrifying.” they fist bump. “I mean i don’t even know how much of me is stuff i LIKE to do and how much of me is stuff i HAD to do and grew a taste for.”

There is the sharp clacking of heels as Aurore breezes past the group, heading them off for the science classrooms. “Knowing what you want requires passion. It’s not enough to simply think to yourself that something isn’t BAD, it needs to light a fire in you.” She offers over her shoulder. “Find what lights a fire in you, and grab it with both hands.”

The scene then changes, us cutting to The guest room in the Dupain-Cheng household, Fu is sitting on the floor in front of the bed, skimming through the tablet he has the grimoire on. He grumbles to himself and comes across a certain page, featuring one figure lying flat with two other figures hunched around them. There’s a sort of purple energy that seems to emulate from the figure laying flat, and the place where their ‘eyes’ would be are darkened pits.

“When Johnny comes marching home again, hurrah hurrah!” a little voice pipes up, and sure enough Hopps floats into frame, peering down at the tablet grimoire. “We’ll give him a hearty welcome then hurrah Hurrah!”

“Hopps, my friend, you are unlike your brothers, tell me, in your sight can you see when you will no longer be split?”

“The time arrives swiftly, as the raven descends on the lame shrew, and as the scorpion strikes the frog as they cross the stream.” Hopps confirms. “But whatever will we do then, when the roses are all painted red with the shrew’s blood and the scorpion cannot change its nature?”

“We will simply have to wash the roses ourselves.” Fu confirms, he offers a small carrot to Hopps who happily chows down. “If you will stay with them afterward.”

“Of course I will, I’ve invested too much time into this mudball to not want to see how it plays out.”

“I should discuss the possibility of tying up loose ends with Marianne, else she’ll be taken by surprise.”

“Wave the flag for Hudson High boys, show them how we stand!” Hopps goes back to singing their nonsense.

“The Scorpion will never change its nature, and the frog will always lie dead at the bottom of the stream.” Fu repeats to himself.

Speaking of the Scorpion, here’s Tsering Wan, we haven’t seen him since he tried to go all ‘here’s what a REAL teacher is’ on the Zodiac.

And also maybe sort of sent Adrien to take a swan dive.

We don’t talk about that.

But right now he’s actually doing that thing he said he’s here to do, being a historian. He’s currently speaking at the Louvre, telling ‘his family's Story’ and the significance it had on Tibetian history. He gestures toward the family crest in the shadowbox as it looked all the way back in The Scorpion.

“And I know what you all must be thinking, ‘what could one clan have done that would have left a historical impact’? And the truth is, I couldn’t tell you, I was a boy when the Chinese invaded Tibet, and if my family had more political power we might not have been able to hold off the armies of Mao Zedong, but we would have fought. And Many more lives may have been spared. It’s important to consider what could have been just as well as what was. As we can look upon these tragedies and ensure they do not repeat themselves.”

His phone buzzes, and he humms. “It seems as though I'm being called upon. Please, follow your tour guide.” he gestures toward the tour guide in question, and as the little group of people file off he answers his phone “I’m working. What is it?”

“We have a lead on the Guardian’s new whereabouts.” Nathalie.

“..I’m listening.”

“During the akumatization of Miss Dupain Cheng’s father, he was right there. Gabriel didn’t catch much of their conversation at the point of contact, but he did hear something about Fu being unhappy with having children fighting for him as well...Do you still want to take him on yourself? No Akuma powerup? Just you and him?”

“Of course.”

“Then be ready by about four.”

Tsering Wan smiles, but we cut back to the Lycee. It’s the last class, and Mme Dubois is handing back assignments

“I’ve made some notes, nothing judgemental, but to make sure you’re all looking at as many different angles as you can. If you focus too hard on one route you may forget how to get there.”

Some kids look crestfallen as they look over their notes, others nod and consider.

“I’d like reevaluations on my desk by Friday.”

The others all walk out, some complaining about their goals being called unrealistic, others implying that they never thought about this or that thing from that angle.

Aurore hoever is still staring at her assignment. Mirielle puts a hand on her shoulder and asks what’s wrong, but gets waved off.

“Mme Dubois! I have a question.” She jolts to her feet and approaches Mme Dubois. “Becoming a news anchor is hardly unrealistic, I’m already a child reporter for Kids+, my foot’s in the door already, what’s so unrealistic about using that to join a proper news crew?”

“Aurore, news anchors are a very competitive market, there’s not a lot of channels out there and it’s a daily guaranteed spot, it’s possibly one of the most competitive Television related markets out there. I just want you to be prepared if when you’re out of Lycee and no longer viable on Kids+ that you don’t put all of your talent and drive to waste in a field that rarely wants new recruits at all.”

“But I wouldn’t be! The Kids+ ratings have gone up since Mirielle and I started becoming regular segments! ANYONE would want that on their stations!”

“Aurore, people may have voted between the two of you, but it may simply be that you and Mirielle aren’t the draw so much as the idea of children being a news crew. I’m not saying anything about your skills, but you have to be prepared for that. Focusing on something as highly competitive and single market as though it’s the only option is… child-like.” Aurore stiffens, clearly incensed.

“I’d like you to consider backups in your assignment. In case the news cycle doesn’t work out for you you should have a fallback in place.”

“I Don’t need a-!” But Mme Dubois is already returning to her desk, the conversation over.

She turns heel and marches away, the door slamming behind her.

“So I’m Childlike huh?” Aurore hisses to herself, popping out her parasol as he marches off.

“Maybe they should see how childlike you can get?” An akuma touches down on her umbrella.

We cut from the akuma-contact to the entry-way of the school. Team Miraculous is chatting amongst each other, Adrien and Kagami play-fencing on the grass as they show off some more advanced moves and Marinette trying to follow along. The rest of the team is sitting on the steps watching the three with smiles and cheers. It’s obvious the group is waiting for someone, but we don’t know who immediately.

Luka has his guitar, and is the only one NOT on the steps, instead he’s lounging on the side-railing of the staircase, strumming a few notes before jotting them down in a notebook, clearly working on a new song for Kitty Section. Chloe and Amber are huddled together over a notebook, with the latter occasionally looking up to let out a cry of delight when Marinette succeeds in copying one of the more experienced fencers.

Alya has her head leaned against Nino’s shoulder, letting out shouts of “Kick his butt, Mari!�� while Nino rolls his eyes playfully and tugs her beanie over her eyes.

“I haven’t kept you kids waiting long, have I?” A new voice pipes up, and the team looks up to see Fu approaching. He’s leaning maybe a touch more heavily on his cane than normal, but is otherwise as he normally is.

Marinette drops her practice rapier to run over to his side, smiling brightly. “Uncle, thanks for coming to pick me up after school! I’m sorry the lycee is farther than the college.”

“It’s not a problem, Marinette. It’s nice to see all of you, no matter the distance it takes.” He assures her, but the teen is quick to guide her ‘uncle’ over to the steps of the school where Adrien and Kagami have begun to pack their things up at.

“Well, you can at least rest here for a minute,” she declares, “and we can stop at the park on our way home.”

Fu lets out a small chuckle, but acquiesces to her requests, sitting down with maybe a touch of difficulty. It’s a calm, peaceful, moment, the whole of the Inner Circle for the New Order together, but it doesn’t last. A rumble overtakes the calm, a childish laugh, and Fu, in a moment of spryness that doesn’t suit his age, grabs Marinette and Adrien by the backs of their shirts and shoves them off the steps of the building, just out of the lycee bounds.

Magic swirls around the school, the childish laugh growing, and then a declaration of “let’s see how childlike we can all be!”

The Magic continues to swirl, obscuring their friends and allies from sight and stepping out from the vortex is a little blonde girl toting one of those ‘umbrellas with kitty ears’ pigtails high and curly on her head, and wearing a bright blue raincoat, with hot pink polka dots patterned across the thing. A pair of green rain boots with frogs on them, and a bandanna mask not unlike a ninja turtle.

“Oh hiya! Looks like you two missed the boat! Oh well, I guess they could prooobbbabbblly use some babysitters! I’ma go find Ladybug and Chat Noir!”

“A...Aurore?”

“Nu-uh!” She shakes her head, her little pigtails swishing with her movement “I’m Child Like now! And I’ma go see how childlike everyone can be! Bye Bye Marinette! Bye Bye Adrien!” she waves and twirls her umbrella, the whirlwind of magic dies down and spouts from the tip of her umbrella, surrounding her like a cocoon and zipping away like a gust of wind itself.

“....Well shit.” Marinette huffs. “Talk about taking a bad grade hard.”

“Hey that’s a bad word!” another squeaky voice pipes up. A small chorus of ‘ooohhhh’s following, like any child catching their older sibling swearing.

“Oh that’s what she meant by needing a babysitter.” Adrien deadpans.

Sure enough, everyone on the steps (and likely everyone inside), is a lot younger than they were before. It wasn’t… impossible to tell who was who, but it was somewhat difficult. The two who were lovebirds before were now sticking their tongues out and making yucked-out faces (and the boy was whining about cooties), and the pair of blondes seemed to look almost identical.

Luka, or who they could assume was Luka, looked to be a bit older than the rest, but only slightly. There’s no hairdye in his hair, and instead of a guitar, there’s a ukulele, which he looks at with curiosity and interest, as if only now considering music.

“YOU’RE NOT MY BROTHER!” One voice shouts and the two unaffected teens wince, turning to the source, which is one small angry child holding a wooden sword in their faces. “I WANT MY BROTHER, WHERE AM I?!”

“Ad..Adrien..?”

“On it.”

And while he handles a phone call and an increasingly shouty small child with a sword, Marinette takes stock of all those on the steps, and one in particular who seemed to be out for the count, and she runs over to him. He seems to be the oldest out of the bunch, looking closer to her and Adrien’s age, and that’s all the answer she needs for who he probably is.

Only one person was on the school grounds old enough to not be below the age of ten when affected, after all.

“Ma-” She starts, before glancing around the staircase. “Fu? Wang Fu?”

The teen’s eyes open slowly, then all at once, and he jumps away from her outstretched hand.

He shouts, in Chinese. Subtitles appear thankfully, since Marinette can understand him.

“Who are you?! Where am I?!” he reaches a hand over to his wrist, and startles when he comes up with bare skin.

“What did you do with my friend?! Wayzz! Wayzz! Are you near?!”

“Master!” Thankfully, Wayzz is near. He darts out from his hiding place beneath Nino’s hat (now one of those knitted caps with the fuzzy ends) and zips over to the young master. “Master I am here! You are safe.”

Fu reaches out and grabs Wayzz, pulling the little kwami to his shoulder in something similar to a hug. “Where are we? Who are these people?”

“They are friends, Master. Your memories have been altered a bit.”

Fu looks up, now taking the rest of them in properly, he focuses on the coin around Marinette’s neck, then her earrings.

“You… Are you...like me?”

“I’m a wielder, yes. My name is Marinette. Right now you’re in Paris France, and you were hit by an Aku-....the champion of a rogue butterfly wielder that messed with your mind a bit. Turned most of my friends into little kids.” She gestures out around them. “You are safe, Fu.” she reassures him. “You’re among friends. Try to focus, do you remember me?”

Fu narrows his eyes, looks Marinette over, he glances to Adrien, who's currently in the middle of getting ‘beaten up’ by Kagami and her wooden sword, Chloe and Amber cheering from the steps. He looks back at Marinette, and places a hand on her shoulder.

“I’m not sure. But I do believe you are my friends. What’s the year?”

Marinette looks away, a bit guiltily. “....two thousand and seventeen.” Fu’s eyes widen, he looks very, VERY surprised. Blinks twice and looks away

“Wow…That’s uh… That’s a long ways in the future.”

“Okay, Kenji’s on his way from his private school.” Adrien finally chimes in. “We can probably drop everyone off at the Grand Paris, and-”

He blinks, pausing to look between Marinette and Fu. Then blinks again, just out of surprise and confusion. Fu, likewise, takes in the ring on the hand holding his phone, and the collar around his neck, then back to Marinette.

“Another of your friends, Marinette?” He inquires, and Adrien snaps back into reality.

“Y-Yeah! My name’s Adrien. I’m sorry that you got caught up in the attack like that…” Good thing Adrien knows Mandarin, too. (He’ll thank his dad… maybe. Probably not.)

“Better it was myself than the two of you, Adrien.” He says, then looks almost surprised at his words. “I… pushed you two out of the way?”

“You did.” Marinette assures him “you’re always looking out for us.”

“Well, if this really is… two thousand and seventeen...then I’m likely an old man by now. Have I been joining you lot in the battlefield?”

Adrien and Marinette share a look. “You had a rough time Master, your body isn’t what it once was, or… is now I guess.” Adrien huffs, “Most days you can’t hold a transformation long.”

“....well that’s unfortunate. However it does raise an opportunity today then.” He walks over, toward Nino. “Wayzz is this your current wielder?”

“Nino is very much a worthy wielder master, though he is..indisposed at the moment, he’s shown himself as loyal, kind, and brave.”

“I see.” Fu kneels down to be at Nino’s level. “Hello there, can I see your bracelet?”

Nino huffs “What’s he sayin?”

Marinette smiles softly, before kneeling down beside Fu. “Nino, you probably don’t recognize me like this, but it’s me, Mari. This is my cousin, and he wanted to see the bracelet I made you.”

Nino squints a bit, looking at the teenage Marinette before, perhaps in a bit of faint recollection, recognizes the teen as the scruffy child he’s best friends with. “...You sure it’s ok?”

“Yup!” She affirms. “I trust Fu with my life, you can trust him.”

Fu looks over at her with wide eyes, as does Nino, before the little boy takes off the bracelet that hangs perhaps a bit too big on his wrist, and extends it out to Fu. The teen reaches out, almost hesitating, before picking up the bracelet as though it were an old friend.

“Thank you,” he whispers, and Marinette translates as she places a hand on Fu’s shoulder in a comforting gesture.

“Hey Mari, why’s your cousin talk weird?”

“It’s Chinese Nino, he’s from Shanghai.”

“Oh…Mama says we’re from M’rocco.”

Fu stands up, quickly slipping the bracelet onto his wrist. “Alright. You say the butterfly was found? It’s wielder went rogue?”

“Yeah, he’s called Hawkmoth.” Adrien responds. “Although there’s also another that he alternates with, a woman Monarcha.”

“Oh, Mast- Fu, there’s something you should also-”

“KAGAMI MY PRECIOUS BABY SISTER” Leave it to Kenji to interrupt at a moment’s notice.

“ONII-CHAN!” Kagami runs as fast as her little legs will allow and hugs Kenji’s leg. “Where were you! I was worried!”

Kenji looks so gd chuffed to have Kagami this lil again and happily hoists her into the air onto his shoulders “Sorry for keeping you waiting Kaga-chan! Now I heard that I gotta play babysitter with a bunch of babies so you guys can keep tabs on the akuma for Team Miraculous?”

“If it’s not too much trouble.” Marinette responds, pulling a length of rope-of all things- from her bag. “Okay, who wants to play Ducks in a row?”

Sure enough Kenji is left with a rope around his waist and a line of children behind him, all grabbing hold of the rope. “Ask for the Butler Jean-Luc, he handled Chloe a lot as a kid, he’ll know what to do.”

“You got it. Happy hunting!” Kenji waves them off as he trots happily down the street, a caravan of children behind him.

Only once they were gone the three left shared a look.

“Since when do you carry rope in your bag Marinette?”

“I carry more things in my bag than seems physically plausible. Let’s go beat up a child.”

As the three prepare to move out, Adrien reaches out to rest a hand on Fu’s shoulder, the two falling a bit behind Marinette, and he whispers softly into the old man turned teen’s ear.

“HE’S HERE TOO?! AND STILL ALIVE?!”

Speaking of the ‘he,’ Tsering Wan looks admittedly bemused as Child Like approaches him.

“I’m starting to worry about some of these… champions… Hawkmoth comes up with.”

“Oh don’t be a silly!” Child Like waves him off “If I didn’t hit Mr Fu he wouldnta been able ta fight ya! He’s old and wrinkled and he doesn’t fight no more!”

“That’s true young one.” Tsering Wan crouches down to take the child in “While simply killing him would be satisfying on its own, a final confrontation would be truly poetic.”

“I made him older than the others cuz you said he was fourteen. How old were you?” She begins to spin her umbrella, the small whirlwind of magic beginning to form again.

“I was sixteen child. I suppose it would be… entertaining… to even the playing field a bit.” he reaches up and feels at the scar on his face “to shed this mark of failure once and for all.”

“Okiedoke!” The whirlwind encoumpasses Tsering Wan, turning him back to the rage filled teenager he was on that mountain top oh so long ago. “Mr Fu’ll probably be headed over here soon, and Ladybug n’ Chat Noir will be comin’ too lookin for me.” Child Like humms, taking a fan spoke out from a pocket in her raincoat. “.....I don’t wanna stab myself, it looks like it hurts.”

“Oh give me that.” in the most temperamental teen fashion, Tsering wan takes it from her grip. “Oh, right. Misso transform me!” Now, as the Scorpion, he looks himself up and down. “Do I still have the split in my mask?”

“Nu-uh!”

“Good.” He jabs the fan spoke into his chest, just beneath his collarbone. Emerging from the spoke is… himself. The scorpion in his proper age bracket, but in place of his transformed costume, he wears scorpion themed battle armor.

“You would be useless in a fight, young one.” Child Like shouts angrily “Therefore I must compensate.”

Scorpion turns his attention outward again, both himself and his Projection keeping vigilant.

“Ah! Here they come! The Lucky ladybug and the Cursed Cat.” Scorpion jeers. “Where are their teammates? Don’t tell me they ran scared? Or were they already your victims, young one? It doesn’t matter. They think they can beat me because I'm not their ‘akuma’, but once I find my prey they’ll wish I let them die quickly.”

“You’re kinda scary, you know that?”

Scorpion draws his spear, but his Projection looks over in another direction and hisses, showing a mouth of blackened teeth.

“Tsering Wan!” Scorpion turns, and sure enough, his old enemy was there, fourteen and plucky, a fool in the turtle’s garb.

“Fu… How… wonderful to see you again.” He looks to his projection and gestures at Ladybug and Chat Noir “Kill them.”

The projection draws its spear and charges at the two immediately. Fu narrows his eyes and takes out the shield. “You’ve been at this for almost two hundred years Tsering.” Fu speaks. “We’re old men.”

“Oh I’m well aware of the time that’s passed.” Scorpion strided forward, his spear drawn. “One hundred and seventy two years, actually. One HUNDRED and SEVENTY TWO years, of my life torn asunder, one HUNDRED AND SEVENTY TWO years of knowing everything I knew being torn from me because of YOU. Because you were a FOOL and you turned your teacher and too many against our way of life!”

“The Miraculouses should be used to aid people, not to be squirreled away never to be seen!” Fu responds, seems like the regressed ages make the actual argument still a sore subject. “I didn’t know things would go so far! I just wanted to help people!”

“Well you could have started by helping your own.” Scorpion hisses “Because from where I’m standing your little ‘humanitarian’ goals brought nothing but ash.”

And then he charges.

We cut back to Ladybug and Chat Noir now, the two of them assaulted by the Projection. As a reflection of Tsering Wan that’s surprisingly in lockstep with Tsering Wan as a person, it’s a bit of a beast in the field.

Chat’s able to keep it at bay for a time with his staff, but just as it seemed he was leaving an opening for Ladybug to go for Child Like, the seemingly decorative tail on the back of the projections armor came to life and blocked her way.

For a Projection alone, it seems to be doing pretty well in holding them both off. Which is to be expected, granted it was a projection of Tsering Wan’s. The lot of them are fighting till a standstill, whereas the fight between Fu and Scorpion is going much the same, the two are evenly matched. And it’s really pissing Tsering Wan off.

“I don’t understand! You were a novice back then! You only won because you got lucky with applying Shelter!”

“We both never stopped training Tsering!” Fu responds, for a moment his expression turning very old and very tired “Our only difference is that you trained for vengeance, I trained for justice. I helped people when I was transformed, I saw real battles after the war. All you saw was what was right in front of you.”

In a moment of blind rage, Tsering Wan lunges forward without any real thought behind his action, falling victim to precisely what returned him to his prime in the first place. Fu has something akin to disbelief but not shock, sighing. “Just as you cannot accept what has already happened.”

Two things happen in quick succession.

One - Fu raises the shield at an angle, bracing himself, and just as Tsering Wan hits the shield he cries out “Shelter!”

Two - Tsering Wan is on the ground, his mask once again broken, and the fan spoke knocked out by being hit point blank with the shield’s formation, the replica of himself Ladybug and Chat Noir were fighting fizzles out of existence.

He reaches up to grab at his face, the exact same place his scar was in before, but as he turns to hiss at Fu, his own gaze is caught by the tip of his spear, lying just a few feet away, the smallest drop of blood trailing to the ground.

“It’s over Tsering Wan.” Fu insists, dropping Shelter and lifting the fan spoke from the ground. “The war was eons ago, it’s time to let it go and move on.”

Tsering Wan looks down at the spear, then at Fu, fourteen still but tired eyes implying his memories have been fully restored instead of the patchwork they were before. He huffs for breath, for just a moment, he truly looks the age Child Like has set him at, a scared, despondent sixteen year old.

“Never!” He reaches for his spear, just barely able to get it in his hand, he springs to his feet, about to charge one last time-

“I think that’s enough of a tantrum for one day.” A yoyo string wraps around the spear and wrenches it out of his grip again, throwing him off balance.

“Yeah, I do believe he’s overdue for a time-out, Milady!” And then a staff swings out like a baseball bat directly into Tsering Wan’s stomach, sending him flying off before he can even try to use his ability (though as he slips further into the mindset of his age, he very well might’ve been too rage-filled to even consider it), smacking back-first on the ground of a park miles away.

Ladybug looks at the spear in her hand, before tossing it aside without much thought for the weapon, returning her attention to Chat Noir, Fu, and Child Like, the latter of which is holding her parasol out like a sword and trembling.

“Child Like, playtime’s over, give me the parasol.”

Child Like is shaking, big blue eyes filled with babby tears “But-! But-! But I didn’t get ta-!” she looks down, sniffling. She scrubs at her eye with a sleeve. “Yeah okay.” She hands over the parasol, which breaks in Ladybug's grip.

We get a quick comedy cut to the Grand Paris, of Kenji sitting among a throng of children, Kagami in his lap, Chloe and Amber playing with their bears, Luka playing his ukulele (badly) and Nino and Alya aggressively pillow fighting each other. Everyone returns to their original ages, Kagami shrieks in outrage and pushes herself out of Kenji’s grip with a loud ‘ANIKI’ Nino and Alya shrug and go back to pillow fighting.

But back to the heroes, the world has been returned to normal, and Aurore seems super embarrassed as she apologizes for causing a ruckus and shuffling off. Now that the Akuma has passed, Ladybug and Chat Noir glance at each other.

“Should we go find him?” Ladybug asks

“He’s probably gone from wherever he landed.We’d just be giving him an opportunity to track us.” Chat shakes his head. “We should head off before he makes his way back over here.”

The two nod, and Ladybug turns to Fu, now old again, but still transformed. He’s looking off in the distance, pensive.

“Master? Are you alright?”

“Hm? Yes, I-...I believe I will be Marinette.” he still looks perturbed though, even as he detransforms and Wayzz leans in to sit upon his shoulder. “It was simply… jarring… to be back in the fray again. It’s been some time. And to face him like that…”

“Master you don’t have to talk about it-”

“No, No. I fear I must, he will not stop, perhaps not even if he manages to kill me, now that he knows of you. He will continue to fall into his old patterns until he destroys himself.” Fu sighs “I can only hope when that day comes as few people as possible will have suffered for it. Come, I must admit that while I told you all the truth of my time in the Order, I did not tell you all of it. And I find it… important… that you both in particular know.”

#Miraculous Ladybug #Miraculous rewrite #rewrite #Stormy Weather 2 rewrite #Mod Vega #Mod Aimee

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powerandmagic · 5 years

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MAÑANA: Latinx Comics From the 25th Century is now open for submissions.

[Noten: Toda esta información también está disponible en español a pedido.]

"In 1492, Christopher Columbus sailed to the islands of the Caribbean. That single event led to the radical transformation of the region, the hemisphere, and eventually the entire world.

Indigenous peoples were decimated. Lands were colonized. African peoples were displaced and enslaved. Race, as a concept, took root. Black women and indigenous women were subjugated. Cultures died, fused, changed, and were, sometimes, reborn. Art, music, foods, and faiths echoed these tangled pasts. Immigrants from across the planet flocked to the newly christened "Latin America." A caste system based on race and color reigned. Liberation struggles were fought. Revolutions were won. Wars of independence were waged. Coups were orchestrated. Global capitalism ran amok, fueling the mass exodus... And we survived it all.

That all seems so far away now."

MAÑANA: Latinx Comics From the 25th Century is a speculative fiction comics anthology set throughout Latin America in the 2490s, roughly one thousand years from the voyage that changed the world. It took 500 years to get us where we are now -- where could 500 more take us?

Submission Period

Submissions will be open to the public from May 27th - July 7th, 2019 (11:59 PM Pacific Time).

Who Can Participate

To pitch a story to MAÑANA, you must be Latinx or Latin American. We define Latinx as "a person living outside of Latin America whose cultural background includes any of the Spanish, Portuguese, or French-colonized countries of the Americas and the Caribbean." We define Latin American as anyone born, raised, and currently living in any of those same countries.

You may pitch as a SOLO CREATOR (making the whole comic by yourself), as a WRITER ONLY (story writer who we will pair with an artist), or as an ARTIST ONLY (a comics artist who we will pair with a script).

Solo Creators with a strong story idea but not-as-strong artwork may receive an offer to be paired with a different artist (vice versa for pitches with stronger art than story).

"Writers Only" may request to be paired with a specific artist. The artist they request must be someone they know for a fact is filling out the "Artist Only" submission form. The reverse applies to "Artists Only" requesting a specific writer.

Age Restrictions

All contributors must be 18 years of age or older. All content must be suitable for readers as young as 14 years old.

Specifications

Comics from 2 - 12 pages long (must be an even number)

6.625” x 10.25” trim size (template will be provided)

Bleed? Yes.

Black & White, or Grayscale (no screen tones)

600 dpi

.PSD final files

Timeline

Selection Process (May 2019 - Aug 2019)

Open Submissions: 5.27 - 7.07 (6 weeks)

Selection Period: 7.08 - 7.28 (3 weeks)

Acceptance Emails & Feedback: 7.29 - 8.08 (1 week)

Paperwork: 8.09 - 8.15 (1 week)

Creation Period (Apr 2019 - Sep 2019)

Script: 8.16 - 9.15 (4 weeks)

Feedback/Edits: 9.16 - 9.29 (2 weeks)

Thumbnails: 9.30 - 10.20 (3 weeks)

Feedback/Edits: 10.21 - 11.03 (2 weeks)

Pencils: 11.04 - 12.15 (6 weeks)

Feedback/Edits: 12.16 - 12.29 (2 weeks)

Inks: 12.30 - 1.26 (4 weeks)

Feedback/Edits: 1.27 - 2.09 (2 weeks)

Toning & Shading: 2.10 - 3.01 (3 weeks)

Feedback/Edits: 3.10 - 3.15 (2 weeks)

Lettering: 3.16 - 4.05 (3 weeks)

Feedback/Edits: 4.06 - 4.19 (2 weeks)

Final Files Due: May 3rd, 2020

Kickstarter (May 2020)

Payment (June 2020)

Compensation

Contributors will be compensated at a rate of $107/page plus any Kickstarter bonuses unlocked through stretch goals. Contributors also receive a minimum of 10 complimentary copies of the anthology, royalties on all digital sales proportionate to their page-count contribution, and royalties on any future print runs of the anthology after the first printing sells out.

"Writers Only" will receive $42/page, with bonuses, comp copies, and royalties split evenly between themselves and their artist.

"Artists Only" will receive $65/page, with bonuses, comp copies, and royalties split evenly between themselves and their writer.

All contributors have the right to purchase additional copies of the anthology at 50% off the cover price for as long as the anthology is in print.

Rights

Creators will cede exclusive first worldwide print and digital rights to their stories for a full calendar year from the date of publication, and non-exclusive worldwide print and digital rights (in both the English and Spanish languages) in perpetuity. Ownership remains with the creators.

What We WANT:

Comics (not illustrations, not prose, not poetry).

Previously unpublished stories.

The protagonist (or POV character) must be Latinx or Latin American.

Writers who have a connection to the country they choose as their setting (either from there, born there, parents or grandparents born there, lived there for many years, etc.)

Speculative fiction: How has technology changed? How has society changed? How have politics changed? The natural world? Fashion? The thoughtfulness of your world building will make or break your pitch.

Informed fiction: We want stories whose ideas about the future are rooted in an understanding of the past and present. For example: we're less interested in whether flying cars exist and more interested in whether the Amazon rain forest makes a full recovery (and what that means for Brazil).

Optimism: your vision of 25th century Latin America doesn't need to be utopic (although it can be) as long as themes of improvement, empowerment, growth, or problem-solving predominate.

Peaceful stories, sad stories, triumphant stories, funny stories, failure stories, action stories, philosophical stories, love stories -- the full spectrum of humanity is welcome. The catch: it must end “positively.” Everything doesn’t have to work out, but we prefer stories end on a note of hope, new understandings, resilience, etc.

What We DON’T Want:

No fan works. No auto-bio. No prose. No one-off illustrations.

Comics that are already finished or that you’ve already started drawing.

Hacking the Mainframe: Unless you really, really think you can "WOW!" us with a highly original take, avoid "hackers take down the mega corporation" as a plot (because it's been done to death).

Fantasy: We want science fiction and/or speculative fiction based in the real physical laws of our universe. However, certain elements of magic realism can work for us (e.g. in an otherwise realistic setting, a character speaks to a long departed ancestor, experiences old gods in a vision, or watches their life unfold out of sequence).

Ahistorical Takes: any stories that erase, deny, or revise the real-world histories of Latin American peoples will be rejected.

Horror: Your story can use fear and danger as plot elements, but if instilling fear/existential dread in the reader is the overarching goal, this is the wrong anthology.

Cursing is permitted as long as words aren’t used literally (i.e. “Shit, you scared me!” as opposed to “Let’s go shit in the woods!”) and are used very sparingly when used at all. In general, we’d prefer not.

No porn. No references to specific sexual acts. No explicit nudity whether sexual or non-sexual (sorry, folks). “Consensual fade-to-black sex between legal adults” is fine.

No depictions of abuse (sexual, physical, psychological) whether pictorial or written. Characters may vaguely reference (in non-graphic language) abuse that they have suffered in the past if doing so serves the story or is integral to the character.

No gore. People can get hurt, bleed, die, etc, but not in a grossly over-the-top way that fetishizes violence.

No slurs, no racist statements nor imagery, no misogyny, no transphobia, no ableism, no xenophobia, and no white supremacist nonsense in general. Since this anthology is about Latin America's future, these topics can be broached in your story, but we urge you to tackle such subjects in a more creative way than "[insert drawing of some guy yelling a slur]."

Ready to pitch?

"SOLO CREATORS" APPLY HERE.

"WRITERS ONLY" APPLY HERE.

"ARTISTS ONLY" APPLY HERE.

Here’s what you’ll need to complete each form:

SOLO CREATORS:

A working title and page count for your comic (doesn’t have to be exact).

A synopsis of your story, including a beginning, middle, and end. Spoil everything, but try to keep it under 300 words.

Preliminary sketches associated with your pitch: character ideas, environment concepts (the latter is especially important if your portfolio lacks strong examples of background art), etc. These don’t need to be final or polished pieces! Just clear enough to give us an idea.

Links to any relevant publishing credits. Self-published works and webcomics count as credits! Choose examples that best reflect the style you intend to use for this comic. You may simply include a link to your portfolio if you have no pre-existing credits, but please note that folks with sequential storytelling examples will receive preference.

Tell us about yourself, your cultural and creative background, and why you want to be in MAÑANA. Short and sweet is best!

WRITERS ONLY:

A working title and page count for your comic (doesn’t have to be exact).

A synopsis of your story, including a beginning, middle, and end. Spoil everything, but try to keep it under 300 words.

Links to any relevant publishing credits. Self-published works and webcomics count as credits! You may simply include a link to your writing portfolio if you have no pre-existing comics writing credits, but note that folks with comics writing experience will receive preference.

Tell us about yourself, your cultural and creative background, and why you want to be in MAÑANA. Short and sweet is best!

ARTISTS ONLY:

Links to your portfolio and/or any relevant publishing credits. Self-published works and webcomics count as credits! You may simply include a link to your portfolio if you have no pre-existing credits, but please note that folks with sequential storytelling examples will receive preference.

Tell us about yourself, your cultural and artistic background, and why you want to be in MAÑANA. Short and sweet is best!