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bringbackwendellvaughn · 6 years

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How would you relaunch Quasar

Okay, i’ll finally answer one of these ones.

I think Quasar is a character who doesn’t really need his own series.

But if he does I think there’s a few things that need to be taken into consideration.

Firstly, more than anyone else, we have Quasar and he is very much a character defined by one creator - Mark Gruenwald. To do a Quasar series and not in some way have it reverential to Gruenwald would be absolutely the wrong idea. There should always be at least some element of a love letter to Gruenwald in the book, be it continuity, his characters, running with his ideas or so on. It shouldn’t be weighed down with that stuff, that shouldn’t be it’s be all, but just the book should maintain elements people recognise as being in-line with Gruenwald. I think i’d want a Quasar series that i could see Mark Gruenwald picking up and being happy with - and that obviously doesn’t mean just copying him or rehashing - just something where he could go “it’s nice to see these creators appreciated my run so much and are continuing Wendell’s adventures”.

Secondly, this is all my ideas and yes i’d kinda love to write a Quasar book (or rather co-write/co-plot one with someone talented)… but a lot of the points i think should be applied to a Quasar book in general.

The start off with, I think Quasar needs to be re-introduced… we’ve already got him de-powered and stuff… i’d be slightly tempted to do an upbeat take on Dark Knight Returns (Quantum Knight Returns?) but that seems like it will have been done, not quite work or just be uninspired. The first issue is probably the hardest, because it’d have to get Quasar back as Quasar but in a manner that can grab new readers and tell a story. I think maybe something with the Quantum Bands being at Project PEGASUS and Wendell being the only one who can use them or a bad guy stealing them and Quasar taking them back before they burn themselves out. But both these seem too reminscent of past stories. I don’t want to just have Epoch show up and say “be Quasar again” coz that is lazy

But once we get passed that, I do think there is a very good unique model for a Quasar series. Quasar was a book always concerned with continuity or using continuity to tell new stories. Gruenwald’s series obviously dipped into this with stuff like the Ultimate Nullifier, the M-Bodies or just resolving loose ends like the Questprobe series or Iron Man’s Secret War armor. In my mind, a Quasar book could be the book that tells the story or stories about the MU. Think “Untold Tales of the Marvel Universe” meets … well, Quasar. It can be a bit like a illustrated Handbook but with a relevant narrative and stories spining out of it. For example, Quasar can learn about how the Celestials came to be or how the Uranians depicted in Quasar #2 and Untold Tales of the Marvel Unvierse work in conjunction with the Uranians depicts in Agents of Atlas or even resolve old loose ends from other books. Quasar is the perfect P.O.V. character for these sorts of things as he has a personality that would process these things the same way the reader would. It of course though is a Quasar series and these sort of continuity porn stories are small ideas or themes that could give the series a more unique approach - one of exploration and slightly different Cosmic adventure. There’s still plenty of other things a Quasar series needs…

There’d be much of the same sort of expected stuff - Quasar going into Space, Quasar fighting one of his rogues gallery, Quasar having down-time moments with his supporting cast, Quasar getting involved in crossover events, huge sprawling arcs and sub-plots, some stand-alone issues.

Plenty of stuff to focus on in Quasar.

For example; baddies.

I’ve got a “rule” that i think is better than anyone gives it credit. I think any property that doesn’t have 12 unique villains will eventually fail as a book. The idea is that they have 12 villains who are unique to them (or would/could be considered “a Quasar villain” above “a Fantastic Four villain”) so that feasibly there is straight off the bat at least a year’s worth of stories to tell. I don’t mean that it should just be a cycle of those 12, ever, but that if - say - the book ran into trouble, there’s at least a year’s worth of potential safe stories to fall back on.

Quasar is rare in that, I do think he easily has 12 unique villains. I was gonna name them all but it became long. Suffice to say, Maelstrom, Ereshkigal, Deathurge, Quagmire, Presence, Marvel Boy/Crusader/Blue Marvel/Thelius, Soul-Eater, Chief Examiner and Overmind are the “big ones”. There is honestly loads more and I think Quasar, combined with the above purvey of incorporating continuity, has potential for a really robust list of cool underrated Cosmic villains and obscure villains who can be redefined.

I think there’d be no contest to the decision to go with Maelstrom as the arch-enemy (with Oblivion as the obvious big big bad). Though i think Ereshkigal and Presence are both worthy arch-enemies if Maelstrom was unfortunately unavailable (though if I wasn’t allowed Maelstrom, I’d begin doubting whether or not a Quasar book would be as open to me as it should be - if you’re told you can’t use the book’s obvious arch-nemesis, what chance do you have of ever getting to do something with, say, The Stranger?).

Supporting cast is a lot more clear to me but i do have a few things i would …. i don’t want to say “improve” upon…..

I think Lisa and Gayle Vaughn should be mainstays (Quasar’s mother and sister). I think nothing exemplifies Quasar’s character and personality more than his still being close to his family. They should definitely form a backbone to who Wendell Vaughn is i feel.

Epoch is another obvious one, although maybe keep at a distance. Quasar shouldn’t be too dependent on Epoch for help but Epoch should definitely be available to provide both narrative and exposition when necessary. Epoch also allows to explore Quasar’s “daddy issues” through the means of him being a father figure to Epoch.

Kayla, unfortunately, i would keep away. Leave her in the New Universe. It’s a shame as she certainly belongs in a Quasar book but Mark Gruenwald wrote her out and they’ve been apart so long, it feels more like rehashing for the sake of it.. we were left to think she and Metallurgist would get together. Having them never meet again adds some more angst to Quasar, so i think it kind of makes more sense narratively to not get them back together. I’m sure Gail Simone would scream that i’m using a female character to benefit a male character’s story but she’s a hypocritical idiot.

Ken Tanaka would definitely keep around.. i actually do have an idea, that’s in my fanon too, that would explain what became of Vaughn Security Systems…

Makkari, Kismet and Moondragon i’d definitely have show up every now and then. Less so than they did in the original series, but, particularly Makkari and Kismet would make as many guest appearances as they could. I do however feel having any of them as a main fixture of the book is a bad move. It’s a Quasar book not Quasar Corps or Quasar and His Amazing Friends. If there’s a story to tell with Makkari or Kismet, it’d get told, but I probably wouldn’t have them go on almost every adventure with Quasar. Moondragon is slightly different, i anticipate - much like Gruenwald - having the character unavailable. If i was offered Quasar with Moondragon as part of the package, i’d be ecstatic, i would absolutely love to write Moondragon but, much like Kismet and Makkari, i wouldn’t want to detract from Quasar. If Phyla is alive or dead, i wouldn’t mind doing some stuff with her if i was able to.

Blue Shield and Jack of Hearts i’d probably drop in on once or twice. Wundarr too. I’d also like to have Tom Foster show up at least once. Project PEGASUS i’d like to have show up regularly, similar to how it did in DnA’s Nova, and I have more than a few ideas for which character i’d want working there. Speaking of Nova, same as Moondragon really, i’d be at the whims of what I’m allowed to do but I would love if i could include Nova.

Love interests is probably the hardest and most conflicting for me. You all know I 200% would love to pursue Wendell and Moondragon but I 300% know that that ship has sailed. I would never want to pursue that in an actual comic because I know it is grossly unprofessional and would enrage a huge fanbase - a huge fanbase that i would like to have on board, especially if i was allowed to write Moondragon, so i absolutely wouldn’t break-up Moondragon and Phyla for my Moondragon and Wendell (of whom, i still think i am the only shipper). But at the same time, i definitely would not make no reference to that, maybe have a bit of flirting or a stray thought here or there, but never commit to that.

Kayla is already off the board as i said and Kismet is part of another problem i have… it’s linked to the same thing as Makkari and co. - i think a solo star having a love interest who is featured prominently and is equally as powerful or more powerful than them creates story-telling problems. And no this isn’t me being sexist or misogynist screaming “boys should be stronger”, if I was writing Carol Danvers i’d never have her in a relationship with Silver Surfer.

With that said, i did really like how Brian Reed told Ms. Marvel and Spider-Man’s brief relationship in Ms. Marvel, so that has opened my eyes more to the possibility that Quasar can have a “super-girlfriend” and not have it intrude too much on his own book. Kismet is the obvious contender but I also quite like the idea of Quasar and Monica Rambeau or Quasar or maybe a female Nova Corps member. Jennifer Kale might be worth pursuing something with but i don’t see it as a long-term thing.

But my heart lies in making it a “civilian” love interest. I absolutely don’t want it to be a new character, it seems such a trope and part of my feelings (less so with absolute civilians but with say SHIELD agents or Daily Bugle reporters) is that the MU is too populated. My first thoughts for a civilian love interest were: Evelyn Necker (depending on her current status) from Project PEGASUS or Talia Kruma from Starcore as they both can be implemented into the stories well as well as providing a chance for Quasar to do stuff during down-time. But my problem with them is one doesn’t quite match with Quasar and the other is a real non-entity… so then I thought of two very good ideas and one mediocre one. The SHIELD agent girlfriend is another annoying trope imo but i thought Gail Runciter would be a good choice. There’s some backstory there with them having both gone to SHIELD academy together, so bringing them back together isn’t absurd and having them have some affection isn’t entirely out of the blue. The other would be Cap’s ex Bernie Rosenthal. I think they would absolutely get along and have a nice chemistry and shared belief systems and Bernie’s not been around much at all since Gruenwald. Both of these ones being characters I link to Gruenwald also feels right. Joy Mercado would be the 3rd choice, a non-starter of a Spider-Mna love interest, she is about as random as they come but she hasn’t been in a comic since 1994 and i thought she was quite cool (plus Daily Bugle reporter is the other trope). While i’m at it, for all 2 people interested, i would definitely fill in the backstory with Jeannine o’Connell…

Artwise, i think art is very important for a Quasar book. This is probably not the priority most people would lead with but I’d want an artist who could draw a monthly book. When it comes to style, i think something a bit classic-y or old school would work or maybe something that combines those elements with a slight anime/manga feel (i.e. something like Greg Capullo…). So my idea for artists range greatly. One of my recent thoughts was Gang Hyuk Lim from Darkhawk as he definitely captures something I can see working but i don’t really know his capabilities. Juan Jose Ryp is another top candidate. There’s loads of great artists like Aaron Lopresti, Sean Chen, Andrea Divito, Tom Grummett… I’d happily have on board but not entirely convinced if they would strike quite what i envision or if they can all meet that monthly schedule. Maybe some veterans still in the industry like Ron Lim or Keith Pollard or, this would be great, Walt Simonson. But to be honest, i think the best choice would be to get a 90s artist who mostly works commissions now… most of them have improved fantastically. MC Wyman, Michael Bair or even past Quasar artist Andy Smith I would be happy to have - they’ve all become fantastic artists since their 90s heyday and would strike the right look. My random outsider choice would be CP Smith from New Invaders, in fact, he’d probably be quite up there on my list, maybe even first choice (if he could meet a monthly deadline). If Greg Capullo could do covers, that’d be amazing…

i would love to write a Quasar series but as i said i don’t think Quasar needs a series. i think it’s a prospect that should only be pursued if there is direction and a real drive and commitment to Quasar and his stories. if there’s absolute confidence in what is going on in it. I don’t think Quasar can ever be anything above a niche book but it could play the strengths of being a niche book. on the flipside, i would hate if they did a Quasar series that completely took the character in a bad direction or really revamped him badly (like someone like Warren Ellis would do) with having him be a chain-smoking cynic or having him become a “Cosmic shaman”. I think my idea for a Quasar book would be cool and some people would love it but i don’t think the audience for it is necessarily still around and even if they were that it’d be sufficient enough to justify a series.

#asks

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askthepokemutants · 6 years

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Speara: Seriously calm down!

Hikari: How can I be calm when you bit my tail!?

Speara: Considering I know you can set it on fire, do you think I’d take the chance at grabbing you that way if it wasn’t important?

Hikari: ... What is it?

Speara: I think I spotted a Strident Knight-

Hikari: And?

Speara: You don’t... know a lot about the Knights, do you?

Hikari: I know their leader’s strong, that’s enough-

Speara: The Strident King has a powerful Sub-Leader for each of the major regions, including Orre, and I think that’s one of them...

Hikari: ... So-

Speara: You’re on your own if you get into a fight with that Gardevoir.

Hikari: Is it because you’re rogue?

Speara: ... No, but I do know my limits...!

Hikari: ... Do you really believe they’re that powerful?

Speara: Yes, yes I do...

Hikari: Hmm...

Speara: Let’s just stay back for now...

------------------------------

Lizzy: Are you guys okay? What happened?

Gail: We ran into a few unexpected issues-

Enola: It was the white Pikachu-

Lizzy: Um... Hikari? Really?

Gail: And a three-legged Luxio I’m pretty sure has some connections to the Knights...

Emmit: Huh? I don’t remember any Luxio on boss Rteddy’s list...

Lizzy: Hmm... Maybe-

?????: Oh, you again...

Emmit: U-uh-oh...

Gail: More like intimidation through strong telepathy... Amazing she can effect a dark type too.

Enola: C-can we go...? I don’t think-

Carla: “We got strong enough”? I’ve never been to Alola... how was it?

Lizzy: ...

Carla: Well, rudely invading your thoughts wouldn’t be right, would it? Honestly... with what little free time I’ve had, I tried to learn more about you all...

Emmit: L-Lizzy...

Carla: You all should be dead, right...?

Lizzy: ... Hah... I don’t know-

Carla: It was roughly around the time very strange events started occurring in some parts of the world-when the Terrible Trio were at their peak...

Carla: There were rumors of that trainer appearing, or someone who looked closely to her, but no one could track her down-she vanished whenever someone got too close-often those who tried to follow also vanished... The thing-that humanoid toy... did it have something to do with your mysterious disappearance? The fact that you’re alive? The missing people and Pokemon reports? “Lizzy”... maybe... “Elizabeth”?

Lizzy: Guys... get ready...

Emmit & Enola: WHAT?!

Gail: Wait, Lizzy-

Lizzy: Flash, Emmit!!

Carla: !!

Emmit: ...!!!

Carla: Aagh... crap... where-gone...? I can’t even sense their auras... how? Huuh... ... ... great... everyone’s left the area...

Carla: Whoever you were... if you thought I didn’t notice... thank you.

????: CARLA!

Carla: ... Oh great... yes-

????: About time you responded!!

Carla: Watchog, I’m-

????: Your mother contacted me.

Carla: What...?

----------------------------------

Hikari: And Reid refuses to elaborate, as if it’s some kind of taboo subject...

Speara: And you think Vris will tell you?

Hikari: It’s worth trying...

Speara: At least their allies aren’t as powerful, I guess... so we can defend against them, but...

Hikari: They’re becoming bold.

Speara: Yes... Even if she doesn’t want our help, we do need to find Vris again, both for her well-being and... I guess ours as well...

Hikari: It doesn’t make sense why we’re targets though... nor does it fit that they finished off Team Machine... ... but it’d fit so well with their lack of attacks...

Speara: And the Strident Knights did have a huge impact on them as well, so it may have been a pincer attack.

Hikari: ... We should probably get back-

Gino: I’m not going out there...

DIcie: The rain is tiring...

Hikari: Humph...

Speara: Once the rain stops... I can help you get back; view it as a thank you for helping me here.

Hikari: ... Thank you.

<<<Previous<<<

@ask-the-shadow-pokemon

#A10: WantedWanted #HikariPikachu #SpearatheLuxio #EmmitSylveon #EnolaHaunter #GailMurkrow #PokemonTrainerLizzy #CarlaGardevoir #GinoFurret #DicieFroakie

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closetofanxiety · 7 years

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50 wrestling questions

I answer these burning questions here, below the cut:

1. What got you into wrestling?

I don’t really know. I’ve gone through three phases of being a wrestling fan in my life. The earliest was probably just because all the other kids in the neighborhood liked wrestling, and I was a people-pleaser even then, so I wanted to fit in. I remember the older kids like AWA or NWA because they were “real,” while us littl’uns thrilled to the exploits of Hulkster Hogan in the WWF. I like nothing else that I enjoyed as a child, not the movies or the TV shows or the books or whatever, so there was something about wrestling that stuck with me.

2. What is your favorite wrestling promotion?

ECW, if I’m being honest. A lot of that stuff has not held up well, but I got into it at the perfect age, when a lot of my friends were getting into it, and I have very fond memories bound up with ECW. For better and for worse, the most influential American wrestling company of the last 30 years.

3. Favorite male wrestler of all time?

Gorgeous George, but if we’re talking about people who were alive when I was alive, then Dusty Rhodes.

4. Favorite female wrestler of all time?

The Fabulous Moo- no. I don’t know. I don’t have the background in Japanese grappling that would allow me to make an informed answer here. Women’s wrestling in the USA was pretty terrible between the mid-1950s and the mid-2000s, and I mostly know American stuff. Let’s say Gail Kim, though.

5. Favorite current male wrestler?

Joey Janela

6. Favorite current female wrestler?

Su Yung, obvs

7. Favorite theme song?

"Psycho Killer,” when that was Ciampa’s theme song. One of my favorite wrestling memories is Americanrana ‘16, when the PA system died and the crowd sang the song a capella for his entrance. If we’re talking songs written specifically as wrestling entrance music, then Steve Austin’s music. With Shawn Michael’s “Sexy Sexy Boy Ooh La La” or whatever it’s called as a close second. That song makes me laugh every time I hear it.

8. Least favorite theme song?

I hated Ballz Mahoney’s ECW theme song, it just encouraged the worst meathead elements of the crowd, and it always heralded a crummy match. For wrestling-specific theme songs, Lana’s, while new, is almost unbelievably shitty. It’s like incidental music from an episode of “Night Court” where they go to a jazz club.

9. Favorite gimmick?

Gorgeous George, which is still being imitated to this day. Again, if we’re talking about people who were alive when I was alive, the Road Warriors. They were almost 100 percent gimmick, and they were massive stars for years. They were the only non-WWF guys us WWF-loving kids would buy action figures for, because their look was so good.

10. Least favorite gimmick?

It’s hard to choose from all the racist and gay-hating gimmicks that have been used over the years. By sullying the image of the immortal Prince Rogers Nelson, fucking Velveteen Dream is making an impressive run for this designation right now.

11. Best entrance (either their usual entrance or a special one, like a Wrestlemania entrance)?

Again, Gorgeous George had the best entrance of all time, it was 70 percent of his act and it made him a fortune, and everyone has copied it since. In terms of more recent stuff, I liked the Sandman’s entrance. It was 90 percent of his act. Pretty much everything Sandman did except his entrance was so-so to terrible, if we’re being honest.

12. Best Undertaker Wrestlemania match?

The one where he got his ass beat by the savage god Roman Reigns

13. Most overrated?

The Undertaker. I acknowledge that he made a massive, unthinkable success out of a truly ludicrous, sub-Memphian gimmick, but he was never a real draw, and I was never a big fan of his at any point in his career. Maybe no one in WWE history benefited more from protective booking, where he was always billed as an unstoppable, supernatural monster even when he had a mid-life crisis and decided he wanted to be a motorcycle man instead.

14. Most underrated?

Pretty much anyone who had their entire careers, or the bulk of their careers, prior to the 1980s and the attendant explosion in wrestling’s popularity. It’s hard to properly rate someone like Nick Bockwinkel, when so much of his best work was done in the 1970s, let alone Gorgeous George or Buddy Rogers. Of guys since then, I’ll say Ted DiBiase, who is fixed in the public mind as the cackling rich guy caricature, but who was a phenomenally talented wrestler who could effortlessly pull off being a charismatic babyface or a cheating, despicable shitheel. Ted’s Mid-South run is amazingly good stuff.

15. Have you ever been to an event? If so, which one?

I have been to many pro wrestling shows. Last year I averaged three per month, which is, I’ll have you know, Too Much Wrestling Shows. My mother took me to my very first one, and since she died when I was five, I must have been very young indeed. I remember almost nothing about it, except that Bob Backlund was there.

Since then, I’ve been to a lot of ECW shows, including the 2000 Living Dangerously PPV with the famously hideous New Jack scaffold bump; many WWE shows, ranging from Raw and Smackdown episodes to house shows to Backlash 2003, where Goldberg met the Rock in the ring FOR THE FIRST TIME ANYWHERE; and lots and lots of indie shows, which are my favorite. I’ve sort of limited my show-going this year to Beyond Wrestling, Blitzkrieg Pro, and Northeast Wrestling, and I don’t go to all of their shows.

In the late 1990s and early 2000s I used to go to shows with big crews of friends, but these days it’s usually me and one or two other people, or sometimes just me. It turns out most people my age are not down to drive to West Warwick, R.I. to see Zack Sabre Jr vs. JT Dunn! I enjoy it, though, it’s been a nice thing to have in my life at a time when there isn’t much else going on.

16. Who has the best merch?

The Young Bucks have something for every aesthetic.

17. Do you own any merch?

Yeah, I mean, too much. T-shirts, 8 x 10s, DVDS, loads of old wrestling magazines. I have a Young Bucks foam “Too Sweet” hand. I have a little plaster sculpture of AJ Lee where she’s a zombie, because WWE Shop was selling it for five dollars. I’m a disgrace, as a grown adult man.

18. Best nickname?

"The American Dream” Dusty Rhodes.

19. Worst nickname?

I’ve always thought “The Cerebral Assassin” was the dumbest goddamn nickname. Is the assumption here that assassins are typically stupid?

20. Best mic skills?

Bobby Heenan. He could do screaming and angry, he could do calm and menacing, he could do blustering and funny. He had the timing of a professional comedian and the verbal dexterity of the Midwest’s best used car salesman. People hated this man so much that a member of a Chicago crowd shot a pistol at him.

21. Most annoying?

All-time: The Ultimate Warrior. Currently: Bray Wyatt.

22. Most attractive male?

Roman Reigns. The WWE is leaving money on the table by having him wrestling in a shirt/vest and long pants.

23. Most attractive female?

I really like Hikaru Shida’s complex aesthetic, which combines “hard-hitting Japanese wrestling” with “elaborate theatrical strangeness” and “Hey, check out my ass.”

24. Favorite faction?

The first two incarnations of the Four Horsemen. If pressed, I prefer the Flair/Arn/Tully/Windham lineup.

25. Worst faction?

It’s easy to pick one of the five million here-and-gone WWE factions like the Union (ugh) or the Social Outcasts or the League of Nations, but they didn’t really last long enough, or have enough of an impact, to be truly wretched. Same deal with, like, the Aces & Eights: they just stunk up TNA, which was already bad to begin with. The answer is the nWo, from January, 1998 onwards: until that point they had been the most compelling thing about American wrestling, but after that they became a bloated, tedious, airtime-gobbling monstrosity that helped drag WCW down into depths it never recovered from.

26. Best ring gear?

Su Yung and Penta El Zero Miedo. I like the spooky stuff.

27. Who do you think would be the nicest in real life?

I’ve had very few interactions with wrestlers beyond the standard “Hey, great match, how much is that DVD,” but among those I have had more substantive encounters with, JT Dunn, Swoggle, Gangrel, Su Yung, and Santana Garrett stand out as particularly nice. I’ve also heard people from all walks of life praising Little Guido as the nicest dude around, and universal praise is vanishingly rare in pro wrestling. I like to imagine Kevin Owens is a good egg.

28. Who would be the rudest in real life?

Like anyone else, I’ve Heard Things, but I haven’t had a really bad encounter with a wrestler beyond this one guy who works local indie shows and who is a rude chud in real life. It seems unfathomable to me that Matt Riddle is the kind of person I’d want to share a cab ride to the airport with, but maybe that’s just the strength of his brand working.

29. Favorite heel?

The Dudley Boys in ECW. I legitimately hated them, and bought tickets in the hopes of seeing them get their asses beaten.

30. Most hardcore?

I bet the real answer to this is like the answer to the great “Who is the most legit tough guy” question that everyone asks. Like, it’s someone we’d never suspect. It’s not Nick Gage, it’s Eva Marie. That woman has seen some shit that would turn your hair white, I bet. I honestly don’t know the answer to this. Probably a guy in Japan who blew himself up in a volcano.

31. A wrestler you could beat?

At wrestling? Absolutely none of them. Eva Marie would destroy me, Goldberg style. It’s like sports: the worst fucking guy on the worst fucking NBA team would beat the best pickup player in your town by a hundred points in a one-on-one matchup. Once-a-monthers who have office jobs and still wrestle in singlets and are 30 pounds overweight could put me in a coma without breaking a sweat. But what about ... trivia regarding papal history? Ah, now the worm has turned, Eva Marie! You’re on my turf now.

32. Best story line?

Have to agree with Tape Machines, it’s the Freebirds vs. the Von Erichs

33. Biggest missed opportunity for a story line?

The WCW Invasion angle didn’t work for a lot of reasons, and some of those reasons were probably beyond WWE’s control, but holy shit did they bungle what could have been a gigantic machine that spit out money.

34. Worst story line?

I can’t pick just one. The 1990s were an absolute golden era of terrible storylines, from Cactus Jack getting amnesia and thinking he was a sea captain to the terrible saga of Katie Vick. I’ll say the Chuck and Billy storyline, because it somehow managed to be insulting to people who had never heard of wrestling in their lives.

35. Which wrestler should turn heel?

Matt Riddle. I mean, I guess he is a heel, in the sense that his act today is the exact same as it was when he was breaking into the business in 2015 and was hated by indie audiences. He hasn’t done anything differently, but the smug choads from the Internet Wrestling Community have decided he is their savior because they can chant the syllable “bro” in public.

36. Which wrestler should turn face?

Kevin Owens. I’d love to see what he could do as a fearless asskicker with witheringly sarcastic putdowns on the microphone.

37. Who would be the worst to room with?

If you’ve ever had close friends or relatives with drug problems, you know the answer to this is Jake Roberts. On a more lighthearted note, sharing an apartment with the Ultimate Warrior would have been a mindbending ordeal, since he was pretty much like that all the time.

38. Who would be the best to room with?

Candice LeRae is a former professional baker, so as a fat guy, I would be very happy to be the person she tests out new cakes and stuff on. But most contemporary wrestlers are people obsessed with the gym, video games, and meal prep, so calibrate your roommate expectations based on those parameters.

39. Who would be your best friend if you were a wrestler?

I like to imagine it would be Kevin Owens, and I would constantly joke about him betraying me like he always does with best friends, until finally he’d stop responding to my texts. AND THEN I’D KNOW.

40. What would your job be in a wrestling promotion?

I would be styled as “Engagement Director for New & Emerging Media and Content Outreach,” and my job would be taking tickets at the door, applying wristbands to people old enough to drink, and keeping my fucking mouth shut when the wrestlers were hanging around.

41. Favorite wrestling podcast/Youtube channel?

AIW’s “The Card is Going to Change” is the best wrestling podcast in the world. I recommend it to people who don’t even like wrestling, mostly because it’s three dudes telling picaresque tales about restaurants getting trashed and bizarre exploits in northern Ohio. Their recent episode about being paid to put on a show for a child’s 10th birthday is amazing. My favorite wrestling YouTube channel currently is Rassle Reel, which is constantly uploading obscure shit from the 1970s and 1980s.

42. Favorite finisher?

Mr. Perfect’s Perfectplex, a thing of artistic beauty

43. Least favorite finisher?

The Pedigree

44. Favorite match?

Taz vs Sabu at Barely Legal in 1997

45. Favorite PPV?

I’ll always have a soft spot for the first Survivor Series, which is the first PPV I ever watched (we didn’t order it; the neighbors did, and a bunch of us crowded into their den to watch). I don’t know if the first Starrcade was technically a PPV, but that’s one I can watch over and over.

46. Guilty pleasure wrestler?

I don’t like the concept of guilty pleasures, but if we mean which wrestler do I like that some vague critical consensus insists I should hate, I’ll say Honky Tonk Man.

47. Favorite submission?

THE KATA HA JIME, otherwise known as the Tazmission.

48. Most entertaining to watch?

Randy Savage

49. Best spot?

Anyone spitting mist into the unsuspecting eyes of their foes

50. Who do you most respect?

I respect you, booker man.

#wrestling #questions

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transtrendhumanity · 7 years

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current core status: callon is still our actual core, defined as the person who fronts most often and who is more or less in charge of wrangling the rest of us. cilla and nine have been on core rotation as well. cilla is avoidant and small, nine is sociable and extravagant as usual, although perhaps not so much as before. when nine was core, ze was closest to azdien, and their combination was our face to the world. we were a golden peacock, flamboyant and invincible. now, callon is core, and the face ey wants to present to the world is quite different. multifaceted but gentle. a silver night on the calm ocean. evening in the library. and since nine is still the closest to our old friends and family, ze is by default close to callon now, close to where hir particular skillset might be necessary. but ze knows we don’t want to present hir as our face to the world, so ze’s been toning it down a bit when ze fronts around our singlet acquaintances. it feels like any of us can only truly be ourselves among others who know that the actions and presentation of one of us do not necessarily reflect on who we are as a whole. we don’t really want to be seen as a singlet any more, but we aren’t entirely comfortable talking about system matters with non-kin singlets. it’s a dilemma, but one we will solve in time.

as far as our poles go... trysten has fully stepped into the role of the red pole, leaving azdien as the host of vaer mansion rather than a person with responsibilities outside of it. we worry that trysten’s single-minded passion is actually not quite right for the role. kayden might also be a good candidate. in all honesty, the two of them work well together, so that’s probably something we’ll look into developing further.

gail has been Very Asleep, which is good. now that we’re thinking of it, cilla could easily be considered.. a variation on its theme. both of them non-verbal, both of them scared of outside attachments. but where gail was a descendant of ooze ocean, cilla is a descendant of echo. which is fitting, honestly. ooze ocean and echo showed up at the same time, the first headmates we recognized when we realized we were a system. cilla is no pole in our system, but she fills a role firmly in the white sector of headspace.

i think a lot of the people who have been showing up recently have been.. updates on older themes. people brought in to fill roles that other people once filled, but they’ve either grown away from that role, or the need for that role has evolved. ooze ocean and gail, echo and cilla, remm and nessie, vex and venic... maybe even kayden and vite.

ooze ocean showed up to present a hostile front which might protect us, and while void still fills that role as needed, that level of hostility is rarely necessary. while gail is by no means pleasant, it is a great deal more subtle than ooze ocean. ooze ocean might be likened to a natural disaster, gail is much smaller snowstorm. enough to close the roads, but not to threaten their destruction.

echo showed up to be something small and fragile when we needed to express those feelings, but she’s grown into quite a strong character, leaving her original role unfilled. so it makes sense that cilla would arrive to be that person.

remm is a mean girl, our evil queen of intrusive nasty thoughts. and ve still does get the blame for a lot of those thoughts, but nessie is.. more focused, more social, more dimensional.

vex used to be quite a nasty character, and still to some extent is, but i think everyone has noticed how much ey’s softened out since picking up shun as a kintype. besides which, ey’s now so productivity focused as to be almost entirely ace, leaving eir previous nasty inclinations to someone else. venic picks up eir sadism, the side of vex that has dirty terrible fun.

and if vite is here to be a bright connection as kayden once was, then kayden is free to become even more powerful. the more multi-directionally gay person in system, the only system member who has laid claim to the ability to drag new headmates in single-handedly, what else lies in store for this ray of sunshine?

i guess it would be accurate to say that we have two overlapping power structures in system right now. we have the poles, who rule our out-of-system interactions, and we have house leaders, who maintain order in system and make sure we’re all taken care of.

amelia, of course, is still the “house leader” so to speak, of the entirety of headspace, but sea’s also the house leader of the main house itself. as it’s a lot of responsibility for one person, floret is mer support, and i believe the main house has been developing sub-houses. vex’s room has turned into a “house” for em, jace, venic, and sometimes callon. and riley, raliel, nessie, and sometimes nitexx are forming their own clique as well, although i’m not entirely sure who the leader of that faction would be.

azdien is of course the house leader of vaer own mansion, and seems to do quite a good job of it. if i had to name someone vice-captain of that house, it would be drohen.

corian is also a house leader. they seem to be angling towards being a host as opposed to a mage, and retiring from that position to allow tyto to fully spread eir wings.

the last house leader would be skye. and while skye’s cabin is only a house of two, looking after aloe is a full-time job. although now that i’m thinking about it, i wouldn’t be surprised if cilla’s home away from front was with skye rather than our initial thought of it being with echo in the main house. either way, it might pose an issue for skye to be a house leader and our blue pole. i think it’s difficult for faer to focus on faer responsibilities out of system when taking care of us is so important a role for faer? although as a demi-deity, faer benevolence is near-endless, so it might not be an issue. that said, i think it would be good for us to allow & encourage amelia to help faer when need be. picking up new headmates in that area might not be a bad idea, but the forces governing such things are fairly unpredictable.

and the last house leader is a bit uncertain. the treehouse can be thought of as a summer camp, maybe. yacinthe is something like the camp councilor, but nero is still very much the leader of the pack.

so that’s where we’re at in terms of system structuring. ill do a more normative roll call in a minute

#[roll call]#[system mythology]

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