#i got them bears from joanns

[cassius-the-kitten]

beary christmas everybody. remember to give all the bears in your life a present or a big kiss under the mistletoe. or both. :3

i actually own a pair of socks that uses these colors that says "beary christmas" on them. i got them from joanns and i love them dearly. i also love brain dearly <3

#brian harding #dream daddy #dream daddy a dad dating simulator #ddadds #art on tumblr #artists on tumblr #digital art #autistic artist #small artist #christmas art #holiday art #my art #cassius art

[purringfayestudio]

Faux Fur Sources

I sometimes get asked where I get my faux fur fabrics, so here's a list of sources, and a little about each. They are US based unless otherwise stated, and I have purchased from all of them.

BigZFabric

A great affordable place to get both realistic and solid faux fur. I use a lot of their animal and wolf furs, as well as their half-shag/beaver (1/2") and short shag (1"), but they have lots of cool things. As a company they're great about listening to the needs of their customers and several fur and minky lines are a direct result of community requests.

Howl Fabrics

My favorite place to get solids, which come in matching beaver (1/2"), teddy (1"), shag, and luxury fox. There are sometimes realistic furs in their fox section as well. They also recently started carrying minky. They're a great small company to support!

Mohair Bear Making Supplies

Where I go for realistic faux furs in small quantities, as you can buy anything from 1/16th all the way up to by the yard. You need an account to purchase, but it's super easy to sign up. Based in the UK.

FakeFurShop

A huge selection of faux fur, both solid and realistic, high quality or economical. Based in the Netherlands, so shipping to the US is painful, but worth getting what isn't available in the US. This is my most expensive source, aside from specialty things on Etsy.

Honorable Mentions:

FursuitSupplies: They have some good quality solids. I don't use them too often because they're so popular that the things I want are rarely in stock.

Fur Addiction: Based in Australia, they have some neat high quality stuff sometimes.

Etsy: There's a ton of faux fur and other fabrics available on Etsy, sometimes some really unique stuff. You just have to search for it.

Less Used

Mendel's: sometimes carries different things, but sadly with Shannon Fabrics discontinuing faux fur, their selection has fallen drastically.

Fabric Depot: Some weird niche stuff, but sometimes I get something interesting from there. Some of my old furs are from them before they shut down and then popped back up.

SY Fabrics: Some old stuff on there which is neat, but they keep messing up my orders and their return window is too small to matter. But may still be worth the gamble now and then.

Fabric Empire: lower quality furs, but much of what they have can be found on BigZFabric.

Joann: I have one locally that I've gotten a few things from. It's really hit or miss though.

Fabric.com: this site no longer exists, sadly. I list it only because it's where I got a great number of my furs over the years. It sounds like they may eventually be absorbed into the main Amazon site, but I'm not holding my breath. I'm not a fan of supporting Amazon anyway.

Don't forget to check your local small business fabric shops! As well as second hand stores for faux fur pillows and coats in good condition. Sometimes cheap blankets from discount stores work great as well.

I hope you find this useful! I'm also always happy to help someone hunt for a specific fur if you can't find what you're looking for, too.

Happy sewing!

#collecting fabric is a hobby on its own #I've been collecting faux fur for 8 years now and I have SEEN THINGS #art plush tips and resources #Aliexpress also has faux furs but I've never bought from there #feel free to add on your sources! #long post

[gaviicreates]

Craft week in review

Good Morning, and Happy Sunday! Here in the US, we just caught up with the rest of the world with that twice annual clock adjusting we do. Those of you without daylight savings, you know where it's at. In any case, Northern Hemisphere means we got extra sleep today, so not too many complaints from me here. Even the dogs accepted the lie in, which was amazing.

I'm still figuring out how I want to use this blog space. My impulse posts I can't put here, because I used a log in type that requires me to be on my laptop. That means you get the nice pictures, the reflections, the organized WIPs updates, but none of that is helpful in keeping the space active. What are you, blog? An archive, a journal, a gallery?

Please bear with me while I figure it out. I get that the pictures of the finished objects are what tends to inspire people, but I like writing and sharing the journey, even if those musings are not as entertaining. I'm still working on the balance.

~*~

Doilies

Last week, I primarily worked on blocking some finished doilies I had to work on over a couple of days. I only have one set of blocking boards with the circle lines for me to properly measure out the doilies evenly. I'm fine throwing my own stuff on the normal boards and eye-balling it, but not for commissions. With those finished I decided to open up some more local commissions, which quickly filled with family members, and posed the question a bit more in general to the online audience. So four more commissions have joined my schedule, though not all of them need to be in by Christmas.

In the meantime, I started another tree doily, and I plan to take pictures of those pieces soon so I can share them. Here's a phone one to hold you over.

Purchases/Acquisitions

I had a couple purchases last week - and some quick turn arounds. In the yarn world, I placed an order for some Hobbii Rainbow Lace which is one of my go-tos for when specific colors are requested. The yardage is not as much as one might get with Aunt Lydia's from the local JOANN or Michaels, but the shades they carry are so rich and varied. Plus, I'd been eyeing up a rust color I needed an excuse to add to my cart. I also grabbed some dark reds and soft greens to play around with Christmas shades.

Of the hand-dyers, one of the brands I follow is Hue Loco out of Colorado. As with hand-dyed, you're paying for what I consider a luxury material, so as much as I would like to buy everything I do try to splurge sparingly for the sake of my wallet. But I stumbled upon a colorway that was perfect for a project I'd been planning, and since it was going to be a gift for my husband, I didn't mind going the hand-dyed route. The colorway is called "Magpie" and it's a beautiful blend of blues and greys with a sprinkling of browns. SW 100% Merino in worsted. This one came in yesterday, and I couldn't resist working it up right away.

I may have also purchased something for myself while I was on their site. Shh.

I also splurged and ordered some Furls wooden streamline hooks I'd been wanting - in Ebony. One of my dogs got ahold of one of the nice resin colors that were no longer in stock, so I couldn't re-order it when it made unusable.

Expensive week for me! But it'll be the last for awhile while I budget instead for Christmas and start working on the projects these materials were purchased for. For a last hurrah before the holidays, I'm happy with these selections.

Upcoming

The sock DPN class I signed up for starts tomorrow, and knit night at my LYS on Tuesday.

I have one more more doily to block, the next tree one to finish, and the commissions pending.

The new Furls Hooks should arrive next week. Hobbii is enroute.

WIPS: My sky blanket project is making great progress - I've been able to keep up with it and the goal will be to provide an update monthly around the middle of the month. Chevron Scarf was put on hold this week, but maybe I will work on it some today to give me a knitting break.

#crochet #knitting #crochetblr #knitblr #craft update

[gollancz]

Nominations for the 2023 Hugo Awards!

Nominations are still open for everyone's favourite phallic* SFF award! If you are able to nominate, why not consider some of our great books?

Everyone with memberships to either Chicon 8 or the 2023 Chengdu Worldcon that was purchased before February 1, 2023 is eligible to nominate up to five items in each of the 17 Hugo and 2 other award categories.

Some of the things you might consider nominating us for are under the cut!

*I don't wanna invoke the stalactite post but, like, come on

BEST NOVEL

Anything that came out in 2022 is eligible! And we had some bangers.

BEST SERIES

The Graceling Realm series by Kristin Cashore

The Elric Saga by Michael Moorcock

The Last War trilogy by Mike Shackle

The Hussite Trilogy by Andrzej Sapkowski

The Legacy of the Mercenary King trilogy by Nick Martell

Rivers of London by Ben Aaronovitch

The Mistborn series by Brandon Sanderson

The Great God's War trilogy by Stephen Donaldson

THE ASTOUNDING AWARD FOR BEST NEW WRITER

Rebecca Zahabi, The Collarbound

Kelly Andrew, The Whispering Dark

BEST EDITOR - LONG FORM

Gillian Redfearn

Maybe we’re biased, but Gillian’s the best. She’s been at Gollancz nearly 20 years, and is the editor for Brandon Sanderson, Joe Abercrombie, Alastair Reynolds, Aliette de Bodard, Joanne Harris, Garth Nix, Elizabeth Bear, Patrick Rothfuss, Miles Cameron, Chris Wooding, Sarah Pinborough, Charlaine Harris… the list goes on! She is so involved in the SFF community, attending cons worldwide and she is staggeringly great at what she does. The only UK-based editor to be shortlisted for a Hugo award, she’s also genuinely one of the nicest people you will ever meet. Shortly after I first met her, she said something nice to me in the pub and I cried. On the plus side I set the bar for our future relationship very achievably low.

Marcus Gipps

Marcus has been in the biz for decades, starting as a bookseller and had a review Livejournal (yes, that's right, one of us) that helped him build respect with so many people in the industry. Any of the legendary, big names of SFF? He probably edits them. Michael Moorcock, Christopher Priest, Paul McAuley, Pat Cadigan, Stephen Baxter... He led the acquisition of THE LAST UNICORN once Peter S. Beagle got his rights back, he heads our WITCHER publishing, and his knowlege of SFF history is encyclopedic. He also leads our SF Gateway and Masterworks projects, archiving out of print SFF and saving them to keep in circulation. Marcus may be the most unflappable many on the planet, which is good because I'm extremely flappable so we balance out nicely.

Brendan Durkin

Do you like CHONKY books? So does Brendan. If you want a book to use as an offensive weapon, Brendan will have likely commissioned it. Brendan finds the books that are going to be the classics of the future. He works with J. T. Greathouse, Christopher Buehlman, Mike Shackle, SJ Morden, Chris Wooding, as well as being the lead for the Ursula K. Le Guin estate, the Terry Pratchett estate AND the Frank Herbert estate! Oh, and our beautiful D2C editions? All from his crazy genius mastermind brain. Also if you need somewhere to eat in central London? Go to him for a recommendation. I impressed him with my lunch choice the other day and felt like I'd Made It.

#Gollancz Blogging #Hugo Awards #Worldcon #Award Nominations #SFF Awards #Please nominate us!! #Maybe if any of our stuff gets shortlisted I can make a case for getting some Very Important Checkmarks

[le-roi-baleine]

I DONT CARE HOW YOU FEEL!!! YOU HAVE TO LISEN TO ME TALKING ABOUT MY 50s-60s BLACK BUTLERS AU!!!!

So here it is:

First of all nobody is dead. For the simple reason that I said so.

But Ociel still have a link to Sebastian. On one fateful night where the phantomhive estate burn 🏠🔥. Ociel get dragged somewhere with Rciel. The GREAT LORD DEMON👿👑 want to lurk people to eat fresh soul but by some tricky play from the destin ends up possessing Ociel. But it’s much more like he is trapped inside our little precious son head. So start there journey together.

The twin are found by the police 👮‍♀️ and they are brought to there parent. The people who tried to kill the phantomhive get death sentences and we are all happy. But Ociel still have a demon inside him and the only one to know is his brother. So with the help of the demon that can’t bear this situation the twins start there adventures in the paranormal to find a solution.

The boys are still in Eton school. That where they’ll be friend with McMillan and Joanne who will follow them in the great world of hunting ghost and devils. But it’s not just them. Elizabeth and Sullivan are there too. For obvious reason the girls can’t go to Eton. They study at the great St Martin in the field.

Sullivan knew Ociel and Rciel. They had met each other during one of there recherche of exorcism for Ociel. The green witch. They where kinda sad to found it was a simple genius German girl in a abusive household. But they get her out of there and got her into their protection.

Obviously the twin know Lizzy since birth. There parents told them that there family is linked since victorian time. And so it made them great great great great great great great great cousin.

But how does there little group met all in complet? Eton school is very strict and doesn’t allow visitor or there students to get out. Well the answer is simple. Elizabeth just make sure that everyone get past the wall.

And so everything is alright. They got caught sometimes and Lizzy got suspended many times. But she just love being with everyone. And most of the times the students of Eton love her bright energy so much, they just help them escape. Even one of the old men that keep the gates help her sometimes. But only to pass gift and letters for her brothers and friend.

So they are all together chasing paranormal activity.

But none of them beside Rciel are trying to help Ociel get the demon out (who turn out to always saying sassy thing in his head). Not because they don’t want to. But because they don’t know. The only one to suspect anything is Sullivan.

Voilà! It’s pretty much the prologue. Or the first season. After all it’s took them actually some times to reunite their group.

If you want to know more, I will be very happy to talk.

#manga #anime #black butler #kuroshitsuji #ciel phantomhive #elizabeth midford #ociel #sebastian michaelis #rciel #miles mcmillan #joanne harcourt #sieglinde sullivan #50s style #60s aesthetic #ghost hunters #paranormal #50s au #60s au

[angiix08]

I’ll be revealing the names of the characters in the Ranma 1/2 spinoff. Bear with me. I cannot come up with clever naming.

The protagonist renames themselves Joni Starling when they immigrated to America. Their last name is taken from their cousin. Their old name was Chinese and abandoned because they aren’t apart of a tribe anymore. She is cursed with Spring of Drowned Man. When they’re introduced to the class as male, they go by Jon. When they’re disguised as their female form, they name themselves Joanne. Her best friends just tend to refer to her as Jo just in case.

Their love life is complicated and traumatic. Their first kiss was stolen by a guy they don’t like and their second kiss was stolen by a girl they hate. They don’t know if they like girls or boys as their body keeps changing between the two. What they do know is they may have small feelings for her best friend.

Her cousins are named Zane and Anya Starling. She’s very protective of the two. Zane knows a few basic marital art moves and consistently keeps up with his archery regime.

Her best friends are Nathan and Sammy Phantom. They’re the coolest twins in her grade and go along with whatever Jo gets up to. They’re total opposites as Nathan doesn’t speak too much and Sammy is a chatterbox. Jo has a small crush on Nathan and is in constant peril about him finding her secret.

Their last friend is Luke, a member of the newspaper club. He smells something off about Jo and is constantly on guard around her. He gets a weird feeling about Joanne. 

Their classmate is named Spencer Baxtor, a football jock who hates losing. He cannot stand Jon and will always challenge her to whatever they do. He feels irritated but intrigued by Joanne.

Jo’s main rival and childhood friend is named Meg Moonflower. Having also changed her name and run away from the tribe, she is cursed with the Spring of Drowned Duck.

Meg’s best friend is Madison, a member of the gymnastic club. After witnessing the fight between Jo and her rival, she starts learning martial arts too. She really likes Joanne more than a friend.

Meg’s rival is named Emily, the leader of the rivaling gymnastic team. After being defeated by a girl like Joanne, she gets a crush on her. She is used to getting what she wants and is pretty powerful when she’s serious. 

Meg’s crush and Jo’s biggest admirer is Brett Thunders. He is a part of the basketball team and is in love with Joanne. He despises men and doesn’t like that Jon is getting in the way.  

Jo’s other rival is nicknamed Nick and he is cursed with Spring of Drowned Tiger, making him look a bit like a sabretooth. He follows Jo from China and has sworn to defeat Jon. He doesn’t know Joni is female and just wants the cure. He doesn’t really care if his opponent is female, but doesn’t see them as challenges. He really likes Madison. 

Another rival is named Miranda and she is cursed with Spring of Drowned Snake. She was vacationing in China when she got pushed into the spring. She saw Joanne’s face while drowning and wants revenge. She falls for many guys such as Luke, Jon, and Zane, trying to chase after them. 

The monkey rival is nicknamed Ana and she is cursed with Spring of Drowned Monkey. Having passed by and been defeated by Joanne in China, now she wants to have endless fun with her new toy in America. Luke piques her a bit but she’s too blinded by her addiction to having fun.

The ram rival/friend is renamed Adam and he has been cursed with Spring of Drowned Ram. His deadbeat father abandoned him in China and he came to America to work hard to pay off all the debt from the Chinese mafia. He works for Emily’s family and doesn’t like when Jon accidentally sabotages his job offers. 

#ranma #shampoo ranma #ranma 1/2 #ranma saotome #ranma x ryoga #ranma x akane #alternate universe #alternate history #alternate reality #au #alternate meeting #alternate version

[pbandjesse]

I do not know what but my leg is hurting very much. It started yesterday and it hasn't improved. Even with James trying to squeeze and massage it. Hopefully I just like twisted something weird and I'll be okay soon. Cause it's really uncomfortable.

But today was a nice day. And it's Jess's birthday! She finally joined me in being in her thirties. And she got the flowers we sent her! Poster above, they are shaped like a cat and we though they were hilarious.

I slept alright last night. And felt a little better this morning. James had loaded up the car already. I was slow to start. But got myself together and we headed out.

We beat the rain. But it would be on and off all day. And after we got breakfast James helped me set up my table.

The pavilion was all wet but Ann had worked hard on brushing the water away with the broom. But I wouldn't notice a new puddle showed up under my chair and the whole bottom of my dress got soaked and it kept sticking to my legs and it was cold and terrible. I would survive but only barely.

Callie was at the market today working for Helen. It was so fun having a friend there. And it wasn't a terrible day. I made my break even sale goal, but it was slow. The rain didn't help I'm sure. But there were good waves of people.

And I had fun. Sewing. People watching. Chatting with CJ. I had my two little friends come and I showed them how to sew and let them work on some of my keychain bears. I will be redoing them but it was fun to let them do it.

I did have a slightly stressful interaction with some kids who wanted to buy keychains and their parents said yes but then wanted me to change the pins to keychains and I did but then the kids changed their minds and had meltdowns about wanting pins still. There was a lot of screaming?? But it was fine. I am glad they liked my stuff.

It started storming really hard and it got really loud for a while. But it would calm down again. And as 1 came around we started packing up. And then it started raining again and I got all wet carrying everything to the car. Ah well. It wasn't to bad.

I went and said goodbye to James. And then I went home.

When I got back here I would collect my dried flowers and put some new ones in my books. Callie let me keep some that fell on the group. And had my leftover chipotle from last night.

I got changed and laid down. And would eventually fall asleep.

I woke up when James came in. I told them to wake me up for real when they got done in the shower. And I would take my time getting myself together. James had two podcasts to do today. And once I was up and dressed I left.

I drove out to joann's to buy yarn. They didn't have the colors I wanted but I got black and that's fine. I went to savers next and had a weird interaction when I asked to get by someone and they were really rude. They were blocking the whole aisle and I waited a little but they weren't moving so I asked politely to get by and they made a fuss backing up to make room and then said I should have gone down a different aisle??? No?? You don't own the whole store?? It out a bad taste in my mouth. I hadn't had my headphones in but I would put them on now because I didn't want to hear nasty people anymore.

I would end up finding two more skeins of yarn that were brand new and the brand I like. $3 a piece! So I was very pleased. And I found a little white towel rack (?) That was only $2 and I am going to use as camp and I was very pleased. And older lady, as I was leaving the store, told me it was a really cool find!

I checked out and went over to the goodwill. There I found a dress for the Ren fair. And had a nice conversation with the woman at the counter. She thought using the dress for the Ren fair was a great idea.

In the car I decided I wanted a pretzel. But the Towson mall was closing soon. So instead I drove out to white Marsh mall. And got a piece of pizza and a pretzel and walked around the mall for an hour. Smelling all the lotions at bath and body works. Looking at the jewelry and makeup at Claire's. Enjoying that goth fashion is back at hot topic. It was fun.

At 730 I went home. Getting back here at 8. As James was finishing their podcast. While they did that I played with making my Ren fair outfits. And soon would go and take a shower.

Me and James have been hanging out in bed since then. I am cozy and happy.

And tomorrow is the first day of camp!! I'm excited. I hope it's a good day and everything goes smoothly. Wish us luck. I love you all. Goodnight!!

[paulinevuong]

1/2

woke up at 11 for ghi meeting and my gma said wow ure up early LMFAO

i ate chao rq and made coffeeeeeeee! then meeting time beep boop

after meeting i was just on a grind or smth so i kept working and it felt rly nice!!!

after my dad brought home banh mi ga and it was delicious and i had that w more cofffeee!

then we went to talk to a lawyer 🫡

BUT WHEN WE LEFT IT RAINED! 🌧🌧

so we went home and i started cleaning an old room!!

then left for rodeo 39 and it was yum :) went w jordan, my sis and her bf, my lil sis, some cousins, and aunt and uncle! we each got a diff thing and it was yum. i got a burger from oi and it had truffled shiitake mushrooms and pickled red onions and oof that was so good. also got boba from bestea and cookies. my mango green tea was so (cringe but) bussin 😭

then JORDAN TOLD US ABT HOW THERE WAS A XMAS SALE AT TARGET and lmfao joann got so mad at fi for it but isok AND THEN WD WENT OT TARGRT!! 🎯🐶

AND BOUGHT 20 ROLLS OF RLY CUTE WRAPPING PAPER LOL

then we carried it home so happily and greeted da dog :)

i cleaned a lot more and washed the curtains and wiped da windows and all that

then went next door to my cousins house to hang out! helped them plan big bear trip for tmrw and then we started planning our hang out! tmrw we shall watch avatar and go arcade and saturday will b theme park!

then got home at 2:30 and waiting for my sis so i could shower but then i got yelled at by my dad bc my lil sis is not going to school 🙂

but then we addressed a lot of issues at home and then i showered and slept at 5 am 😭

OKAY CHAO!

[ithseem]

My Intro Post, I Guess

Welcome to my blog, good wanderer. My name is Ithseem, and I will be your guide. The content I post varies from art to writing and to roasting the shit out of you (in good fun ofc), I suppose. My blog is made for 16+ audiences but will remain sfw. Tread carefully, dear wanderer, or you might get lost

DO NOT INTERACT IF YOU ARE:

Racist

Sexist

Homophobic

Transphobic

Ableist

P3d0p1l1c

Support 1nc3st

Support 1sr@el

REQUEST STATUS: Open

‼️RULES‼️

MASTERLIST

150 Followers event: Closed

ITHSEEM'S SLICE OF LIFE:

moots ♥

meet the artist: ...pending...

COMMISSIONS:

Ko-Fi

OC STUFF:

Obey Me oc

Twisted Wonderland oc

Court of Darkness oc

OC SIDE BLOG: @theunpaidtherapistsclub

MISC:

Dumb MC things

Things they said

More Dumb MC things

COURT OF DARKNESS:

Joanne's thoughts on the Saligia Gang S-Ranks when you flinch at them raising their hand Royals when you flinch at them raising their hand Gender Non-Conforming Fem!MC is Done with Guy's Nonsense and Burns the Dress He Got Her Toa Comforting a Demotivated MC Lance and You taking Christoph to Build-A-Bear Fenn and Guy with an Outspoken MC Saligian Soap Opera Hijabi MC Things Drawing Henna Tattoos (S-Ranks) Drawing Henna Tattoos (Royals + Headmaster) Who is a Metalhead/Rock enjoyer based on no evidence whatsoever

OBEY ME:

...pending...

TWISTED WONDERLAND:

Homesick How well will they get along with someone who's their opposite?

Regrets

ARCANA TWILIGHT:

...pending...

THE HOLY TRINITY:

Pushups The Three Dimensions Exchange Week

TAGS GUIDE:

#ithseem's arts and crafts - my art (search #my art for my older pieces) #ithseem writes - for my writing posts #ithseem answers - answered asks #ithseem's slice of life - shit that happens in my life #ithseem reblogs things - for reblogs (#reblog for older posts. also, I'm not always the best when tagging reblogs)

SIDE BLOGS:

@courtofmatchups for matchups @theunpaidtherapistsclub for OCs (it's a work in progress) @overheardbyvarioustherapists for shitposts @ithsjustspam for reblogs

#obey me #twisted wonderland #court of darkness #ocs #arcana twilight

[doll-princesse]

#i got them bears from joanns #ag dolls #og dolls #my dolls #suzuko #kirsten

[ashintheairlikesnow]

AAAAAH!!! Petition for the news people to show Chris's face on tv and Akio and his mom see and come to rescueee -🦖

(follows from this piece, in what I am calling the Chris Saves Himself AU)

CW: BBU, some vaguely dehumanizing language, references to child abuse and ableism

"Mom! Aki!" Emi's voice rises loud enough to filter right up the stairs and into Akio's room, audible right through his headphones while he listens to his playlist of Tristan's favorite songs and lays in bed.

Akio sniffs, sitting up and taking the headphones off, rubbing the tear tracks off his face. It's still light outside - he never knows what time it is anymore, not since he quit gymnastics. "Emi? Did you say something?"

"Yeah, you better get down here like right now! Right now!" The urgency in her voice sets his heart to beating faster and Akio pushes himself up, taking the stairs three-steps-to-a-jump. His mother is right behind him, coming out of her own room with her book still in hand, thumb marking her place.

"Are you okay, honey?" Aimi calls out. Somehow even though she doesn't skip any steps she beats Akio to the bottom. "Em? Emi?"

"I'm fine, I swear, just-... look at the TV!"

Akio and Aimi swing into the living room, finding Emi sitting on the couch, remote in hand, groaning in frustration.

"Damn it, they just cut way from his-... hold on, let's see if they cut back before this ends. You have got to see this."

"Just what have I got to see?" Aimi asks, frowning, walking up behind Emi and absentmindedly tucking a bit of hair behind her daughter's ear. Emi sort of ducks-pulls away, rolling her eyes. "I'm almost to the bit where the ship sinks, Em."

"I know, I know, don't mess with your reading time but-... but look!"

Akio's eyes scan the TV, reading the chyron - the little moving headline at the bottom - that says MYSTERY BOY FALLS FROM BALCONY IN GOVERNOR'S MANSION - IN HOSPITAL WITH SERIOUS INJURIES - POLICE LOOKING FOR CLUES TO IDENTITY - GOV. BRANCH CLAIMS LEGAL PURCHASE FROM WRU - WRU DENIES CULPABILITY...

Talking heads banter back and forth about the seriousness of the scandal, the lack of documents to prove any kind of veracity to the governor's claims.

The anchors start interviewing a woman with short, dark red hair with a cold smile that sends a chill down Akio's spine. Karen Renford, WRU Representative to the Media, reads the little nameplate beneath her as she speaks.

"Since when do you care about politics?" Akio asks, head tilted. "This is stupid. I don't care about any of this."

"WRU sponsors your team, Aki-"

"It's not my team anymore. I'm going back to my room."

He turns to leave, but feels Emi grab at his wrist, and when he looks back her black eyes are pleading. "Please, Aki. Please. Trust me, you will want to see this."

He sighs. Everything feels too heavy to add one more thing to his days right now. But Emi is his little sister, and... "Yeah, okay." He moves around the corner of the sectional and flops himself down on it. He's put on some weight since he quit gymnastics, the waistband of his jeans digging just a little into his stomach where he used to have to wear a belt.

He doesn't care. It's... actually really nice to not have to care. He kind of likes himself better this way.

If only he didn't have to be grieving his best friend's death to get there-

"There!" Emi hisses, and her nails dig hard into Akio's forearm, hard enough for him to wince. "There, Aki, fucking look!"

"Language, young lady-" Aimi starts, and then falls silent. When she whispers, "Nantekotta..." That's when Akio looks at the screen.

Where his dead best friend is very much alive in a hospital bed.

He hears a thump and jumps, turning to see his mother's book on the floor, fallen from suddenly numb fingers as she stares unblinking at the boy on the TV screen.

Akio looks back and swallows, hard, and then swallows again. Inside him there is a sudden burst of fight between the despair and anger he's been living in and a kind of awful, horrifying hope.

"Tris?" He whispers.

"I told you!" Emi says, still holding his forearm painfully. He doesn't pull away from her - he can feel her starting to shake right alongside him. His eyes flood with hot tears and he has to blink them away to focus on the screen.

"-are speaking with the boy, who appears to be a legitimate WRU product. A simple barcode scan was performed, and police have the pet's designation, Facility number, and basic identification number." Karen Renford's voice speaks in voiceover. "However, WRU has been unable to find in our own records at the Facility any record of the boy's existence or training. WRU has strict ethical protocols surrounding the age of accepted trainees who apply, and it's increasingly clear that none of our Facilities would have taken on this individual, especially not our flagship Facility here in Berras-"

Akio hears none of this.

Instead, he hears only a rushing as loud as a waterfall filling his ears, the sound of his own blood pulsing through his veins as his breaths go shallow and gasping.

Tris is right there.

He's alive and he's right there.

He's sitting in a hospital bed, cringing back from the doctors speaking to him, looking at them with wide, terrified eyes. There are bruises around his neck like someone-... bit him, or something. His arms are bruised, wrists rubbed red in circles. He doesn't sway or rock or tap like Tristan Higgs, he sits perfectly, hauntingly still.

But it's Tris.

It's him.

"He's alive," Akio says, and his voice is strangled. "Tris is alive, he's alive, but he's-... he was-"

His mother's hand rests on his shoulder and Akio tenses at the firey rage he feels right through the tension in her fingers. "His aunt," Aimi says with a voice that cuts through bone. "His aunt told us he was dead."

"She said he-... you know... did the thing. To himself," Emi says, looking nervously sideways at Akio. "That he ran away and they found him."

"He told me she took away all his stuff and stopped giving him his meds and then she took his phone... why would she say all that if he was alive the whole time, Mom?" Akio looks back up at Aimi, and she looks back down at him.

He is terrified of her, in that moment. Scared of her the way you are scared of a bear rushing at you, knowing that you aren't much more than a matchstick in its way. But he also wants - needs - her to tell him everything is going to be fine.

Instead, she pulls her hand back off his arm and turns to leave the room. She murmurs to herself in a rapid-fire string of Japanese even Akio isn't quite keeping up with, and he jumps up to follow her, Emi on his heels.

"Mom? Mom, what are you doing? Mom, answer me-"

"Mom?"

They manage to catch up to her in the den, where she's picked up her cell phone still charging, plugged into the wall, and dialed a number.

"Mom-"

Aimi holds up one finger without looking at him, phone to her ear, and Akio's voice cuts off immediately.

"Yes, hello," She says to whoever picks up. "My name is Aimi Nakamura and I am calling about the boy found in the governor's mansion today. I believe I can tell you who he is." She pauses. "Who he really is."

Another pause.

"Yes, I'll wait."

Yet another pause. Akio and Emi stay in the doorway, staring at her in baffled confusion. Neither of them dares to speak when her face looks this way. They know better than that.

Finally, Aimi takes another breath. "Yes. Thank you. Hello, Detective... Davis. Right. My name is Aimi Nakamura." She rattles off her phone number and address when she is asked for them without hesitating. "Yes, as I said-... as I said to whoever answered the phone, I know who the boy in the governor's mansion is. I have absolutely no doubt... Yes. His real name is Tristan Paul Higgs. He was born-... oh, yes, sorry. I can slow down. His birthday is March 6th... yes. I don't know his social security number entirely but I know the last four digits were 6654... his mother and I were close friends. Veronica Botham Higgs - Ronnie. She was murdered, with her husband, it was a double-... oh, you remember? Tristan survived it. Custody went to his only surviving relative, Joanne Botham..."

Aimi swallows, and Akio feels Emi's hand seek his out and squeezes it tightly, reassuringly, as their mother's steel comes flashing to the surface underneath her usual deceptive tranquility.

"Joanne Botham works for WRU. Her nephew lost his family and was given to her. And now, more than a year after she told us he was dead, he falls out a window with a WRU barcode. I think you see where I'm going with this, detective."

Another long silence.

"Yes. I need about an hour and a half. Is that too long? Perfect."

She hangs up, and turns to look at Akio and his little sister. There is a startling brightness to her that makes Akio think she's feeling exactly what he is - grief and horror and rage and that awful swell of hope.

Maybe it really was just a horrible mistake.

Maybe he's never been dead.

Maybe he's still breathing.

"Put your shoes on," Aimi says in a flat voice. "We are going to meet Detective Davis at the hospital where Tris is."

#Chris Saves Himself AU #chris the strawberry blond romantic #aimi nakamura #akio nakamura #grief tw #dehumanizing language #karen renford #bbu #box boy #box boy universe #alternate universe #I might do one more AT the hospital but that's it I swear

[d-criss-news]

[UHQ] Abigail Barlow + Darren Criss. Photo by Scott Suchman.

All Is Bright Again: Inside The Kennedy Center’s Star-Studded 50th Anniversary Celebration Concert

Celebrating 50 years of world-class art, innovation, education and community, the Kennedy Center hosted a magical night of music, dance and even spoken word poetry for its 50th anniversary celebration concert on September 14 — and suddenly, to those of us in the audience, all felt right in the world.

The concert hall was electric from the star-studded lineup, with appearances ranging from first lady Dr. Jill Biden for opening remarks to Oscar- and Grammy-winning artist Common, who closed the show with an inspiring, uplifting two-song performance that included “Black America Again.” Artists like Kennedy Center Hip Hop Culture Council Member Robert Glasper and rapper D Smoke exuded musical relevance with “Common Sense” while guitarist Grammy Award-winning guitarist Keb’ Mo’ and Grammy-winning bassist Christian McBride honored musicians who came before them with Leadbelly’s “Black Betty.”

The audience roared for six-time Tony Award winner Audra McDonald as she gracefully stepped onstage to host this one-of-a-kind show directed and choreographed by Joshua Bergasse. But let it be known that this nearly three-hour production had something for everyone to enjoy, and more than enough for my desperate-for-live-concerts, music-loving soul.

If you have never seen the National Symphony Orchestra perform before, this was the night to develop an unwavering appreciation and totally swoon. Conductors JoAnn Falletta, Steven Reineke and Thomas Wilkins led this group with heaps of bright energy, filling the room with tranquility and light. Luckily for us, this also meant ample solos from the prodigious and expressive Taiwanese-Australian violinist Ray Chen, who wowed at every given moment and sent the audience into a collective chuckle when flirting with soul icon Bettye LaVette.

With the orchestra playing behind most of the night’s vocal performances, this Kennedy Center experience was elevated into unmatched, intimate concert territory. When Broadway and opera star Kelli O’Hara enchanted us with Sondheim’s “Take Me to the World” from “Evening Primrose,” I immediately got goosebumps that turned straight into happy tears when Darren Criss came onstage right after to serenade us with a new rendition of “I Dreamed a Dream” from “Les Misérables,” with just his guitar and smooth tenor voice to guide us.

The musical theatre geek in me was over the moon when Criss came back onstage minutes later to join TikTok sensations Emily Bear and Abigail Barlow for a duet of their song “Oceans Away” from their newly released album “The Unofficial Bridgerton Musical.” I followed the duo, known as Barlow & Bear, for eight months on the Internet as they wrote and composed the album right in front of our eyes in a myriad of encapsulating TikTok videos, so seeing them perform lyrics that have been stuck in my head for months for the first time in person was a real treat.

While it felt as though this celebration was highlighting luminaries of the present and future, it just as much recognized soulful powerhouses who have been performing for decades, such as jazz singer Dianne Reeves, who scatted and belted Duke Ellington’s “It Don’t Mean a Thing (If it Ain’t Got That Swing)” alongside McBride and Chen on the violin, and Lavette, who put tears in our eyes with her powerful cover of George Harrison’s “Blackbird.”

Among some of the powerhouse vocalists mentioned above, there was incredible tap dancing, intense ballet choreography with dramatic lifts, modern bluegrass and Americana vibes from Punch Brothers combined with powerful blues vocals from Lake Street Dive’s Rachael Price, and a moving spoken word piece called “Dignity as Currency” from Marc Bamuthi Joseph, vice president and artistic director of social impact at the Kennedy Center.

The evening ended on a high note — literally, from Broadway star Joshua Henry’s talented voice — with Common’s (and John Legend’s) brilliant Academy Award-winning song “Glory” from the movie “Selma.” While Common rapped in honor of the memory of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor and Trayvon Martin, among others, the cast from David Henry Hwang’s “Soft Power” sang the heart-clenching “glories” in the background.

Of course, there was nothing but respect and applause for the uplifting message and powerful tribute from this finale group. The praise may have only been louder when Henry had brought down the house moments earlier with a fiery rendition of Sam Cooke’s “A Change Is Gonna Come.”

The way these artists and musicians played off each other with such effortless musicality, you’d think this star-studded lineup performs together every night — the sign of a brilliantly curated grouping thanks to the production’s creative team. It’s hard to describe the warmth of the concert hall with just words, but if there’s more excellent programming where this came from, D.C. is in luck.

To check out more 50th anniversary celebration events at the Kennedy Center, visit kennedy-center.org.

#darren criss #abigail barlow #district fray magazine #kennedy center's 50th anniversary concert #press #sept 2021

[fbfh]

thankful for my (found) family - demisquad + reader thanksgiving special

2.4k

platonic everyone + reader, implied future/potential leo x reader if you look real close, thalia has a girlfriend that I had to make up bc they never mention hunters of artemis but go off rick, calypso is not included bc she acts more like an antagonist imo, gif doesn’t have anything to do with it besides nostalgia lmao

happy thanksgiving <33

You and Leo are cooking in the kitchen 

You have been all day

The doorbell rings, and Annabeth goes to answer, binder full of travel plans in hand

“That should be-”

Clarisse enters with a loud greeting and a hug to everyone in arms reach

Percy’s loud cheers echo from the living room as he calls out the new score of the football game he’s keeping everyone updated on

She drops her bag, hopping over the back of the couch to watch with Percy

“Woah woah, catch me up Jackson! What'd I miss?”

Hazel is helping Rachel make cute diy table settings and party favors 

Rachel, as with most art projects she takes on, is very focused on making it Martha Stewart levels of cute and amazing 

Frank and Piper are keeping everyone updated on the parade 

Frank pops down the stairs, calling out, “The last performance just ended, the dog show starts in 5!”

Hazel drops what she's doing and exclaims, “THERE’S A DOG SHOW?!” 

She runs upstairs to watch with Frank, her yellow dress swishing behind her

You chuckle, calling over to Annabeth as you mix batter in a bowl, " Hey Annabeth, how are the travel plans looking?"

She shuffles through some papers in her binder

"Magnus and Alex had another layover, but they should still be able to make it in time. Thalia and her hunter friend will be here in 10, and Travis's flight got delayed because of a sudden snow storm."

"Really?" You reply, "This time of year? That's pretty ironic for a son of Hermes..."

"I know, I'm looking at some shuttle services to see if that would be faster…" Annabeth replies

Nico enters, stealing a couple appetizers, "This is so stupid, I could just go get him."

Will, right behind him, eats the appetizer Nico hands him and replies, "No you can't. Doctors orders."

Nico starts to protest 

Will shoots him a look 

"Boyfriend's orders."

Nico tries in vain to stare him down,  "… Va’ a farti fottere." he says, cracking a smile

"Love you too," Will counters 

You and Leo shoo them out of the kitchen before they steal more of your recipes

Jason and Grover walk by with a bunch of pillows and blankets, setting up guest rooms. 

Grover calls through the pile of fluff he's carrying, "Hey, we're gonna need a few more pillows-"

Jason, over his pile of bedding, corrects, "A lot more!" And Annabeth runs over to help carry some of the blankets he's about to drop

"-A lot more pillows…"

You grab your keys

"okay uh… Grover, do you want to head to the store to get some more pillows-"

Leo, vigorously sautéing something adds over his shoulder, "And basil! And, uh… red wine vinegar, olive oil, and potatoes."

You rip a piece of paper off the notepad on the fridge and scribble a quick list 

You're probably going to need some more ice, too 

Tyson, very distressed, holds up an empty container of mellowcream pumpkins, declaring, "THERE'S NO MORE BABY PUMPKINS!" :(

you loudly add candy pumpkins to the list

Rachel approaches. 

"Are you going to the store?"

"Yeah," you reply, "how's crafting going? You need anything? "

"We're almost out of glitter and mod podge. It's not looking good. We could use some more fake leaves, warm toned glitter, and rhinestones - the nice ones."

Grover looks slightly lost 

You narrate as you add to the list, "Fancy rhinestones, mod podge, fake leaves, red, yellow, orange, and brown glitter…"

Tyson, still distressed, yells, "AND BABY PUMPKINS!"

:(

You hold up the paper, "Already on the list, bud, Grover's gonna get them!"

"What if he gets the wrong kind?" Tyson asks 

You, turn to Grover quietly, "Grover, can you take Tyson?"

Grover nods

"Hey Tyson, Grover has a lot of stuff to get, could you go be his shopping buddy? That way you can pick out the right baby pumpkins."

He doesn't look convinced

He wants to keep working on a secret project he’s been doing out by the garage

"And…" you add, sweetening the deal, "you can get two candies for the way home."

He agrees

You turn to Grover; "I'll call you guys an uber-"

"I'll drive."

You all turn around, shocked to see Reyna awake. 

You thought she was still passed out 

She showed up at 9am and immediately fell asleep from traveling all night 

"Reyna, hi! Are you sure-"

"We'll be fine, I need to stretch my legs a little." She proves by rolling her shoulders

"Okay, as long as you're sure," you hand her the paper, re-entering the kitchen

She takes the paper from your hand as you shut off the beeping timer and grab a pair of oven mitts from the drawer

Reyna examines the paper, "...This is a weird list. Where are we supposed to get all this?"

Leo moves to the side as you pull out the rolls from the oven, using tongs to set them on a wire cooling rack, "Maybe target?"

Leo, still very focused on cooking, announces, "If you get me generic brand spices I will burn this place to the ground."

"O-kay," you turn back to Reyna, laughing, "there's a Wegmans and a Joanne's right next to the TJ Maxx, you can probably find everything there."

"We'll be back within the hour." She states, taking your keys. 

Rachel meets her at the door. "Here, use my card. Also, make sure you get the flat backed swarovski crystals. And please pick some glitter with a nice color shift!"

You remind them to call or text with any questions and be safe

Heading back into the kitchen, you fill up a big bowl with carrots, celery, cucumbers, and mushrooms

You grab two cutting boards, knives, peelers, and a plastic bag for the peels, tips, and tails

You set it all down on the coffee table in front Percy and Clarisse

“Can you guys get the relish tray started?” 

They agree, and immediately return to yelling at the referee

You shake your head laughing, and head back to the kitchen

“How we looking, Sparky?”

“Stuffing cups just went up in the oven, pie crust dough is chilling, and the green beans are almost done sauteeing. Rolls are cooling - could you stir the cranberry sauce? - and… the turkey is going up as soon as the stuffing is out.”

You stir the sauce as you continue talking

“Great! We’re making good time so far. Oh, I found a recipe for brown sugar pie, which Frank requested - apparently it’s a Canadian Thanksgiving thing - so I figured if you’re doing turkey I can handle the pies.” 

He pours some cooking wine into the pan, and shakes it as the alcohol burns off

“Sounds like a plan, babycakes.” 

You laugh at the nickname, and grab butter, salt, some herbs, and a stick blender to finish the potatoes

A few minutes later, you hear the door open 

Reyna and the boys are back already? That was quick

You wonder if they need help bringing groceries in

“Eeeey get over here you knucklehead!” 

Bags drop, and you hear Jason laughing in protest

You poke your head out of the kitchen, and see Thalia with Jason in a headlock

In spite of the fact that he’s about half a foot taller than her, she’s still noogie-ing him, pretending she can’t hear him objecting through his laughs

She finally lets him go, greeting everyone as he adjusts his glasses

She bear hugs Annabeth, punches Percy in the arm, and high fives and hugs pretty much everyone else

You run up the stairs to the guest room Grover was setting up before he left

You finish making the bed head back down, meeting Frank and Hazel on the way 

"Oh, Hazel, what did you think of the dog show?"

"It blew my wig!" She says giddily 

A confused smile settles on your face

"It was awesome and she loved it," Frank translates smoothly

He and Will are understandably best at deciphering 40s slang

Thalia is introducing everyone to Amber, a girl she’d met on the hunt and become really close with

You greet her, and turn to Thalia

“Your room is all set up if you wanna get settled in,” you turn to Amber, “and yours will be ready soon,” 

They share a look

“Oh,” Thalia starts grabbing their bags, “that’s fine, we can share a room. We share a tent on the hunt all the time, right Ambie?”

"Oh,”

And then it clicks

“yeah, however you’re comfortable.”

You grab one of the bags, and help them upstairs

“Why don’t you guys take a while to settle in, I’ll tell the others you’re resting.”

They thank you, and you start to leave

“By the way,” you poke your head back in, “you two seem really cute together. Welcome to the family, Amber.” 

She blushes and Thalia gives you an appreciative look

You nod and head back down

You let the others know they’re going to nap for a little while, and not to wake them up

“Hey, any travel updates?” You ask Annabeth, on your way back into the kitchen

“Alex just texted, she and Magnus are finally on their way, should be here in the next few hours. As for Travis…” 

She holds out her phone, showing you Travis’s tiktok

He’s filming the mirror in the airport bathroom

“So uh, my flight’s delayed, I’m bored, I’m gonna fuck with some people,” he holds out a hand full of stickers that look like outlets

He records himself putting them around the airport, then gets people’s reactions when they try to use them

He ends the video asking for more prank ideas

You look back up at Annabeth, holding back a laugh, “Seems like he’s doing okay,” 

“Oh,” she replies, “that’s not all.”

She scrolls up, showing the next prank video where Travis goes around the airport having fake phone conversations to get people’s reactions

Conversation topics including ‘I hate to be the bearer of bad news, but slept with your grandma’, ‘hey bro I can’t come to the party, also turns out I’m going to be your stepdad’, ‘hey dude remember that old lady we used to cat sit for? Well, I found out I got chlamydia from her, so…’, and ‘yeah man, I’m so excited for the poetry slam. Also, it turns out my jazz fever is actually syphilis.’. 

Your hand flies over your mouth, trying not to laugh loudly enough to wake Thalia and Amber

“Yeah,” Annabeth says, fighting her own laughter, “he’s doing okay.”

You start putting together ingredients for pie filling

“That is the most in character thing I could have imagined,” you laugh, and Annabeth shows Leo the videos

“There’s a bunch more, too,” she adds, “Around making tiktoks, he found a bus heading this way. He’ll be here in a few hours.” 

“Cutting it close,” you muse, filling pies, “I’m glad he’s not stuck at the airport though. How about Connor?” 

“Haven’t heard much from him, but he said he'll be here in time for dinner."

A little while later, Thalia and Amber re enter, joining Percy and Clarisse in the living room 

The door opens shortly after, and Tyson enters, arms full of containers of candy pumpkins 

Reyna and Grover are right behind him

You take Grover's bags, announcing that Thalia got here a little while ago

He bleats excitedly and runs to hug her, Reyna right on his heels

Piper and Tyson bring in the rest of the groceries

Tyson sets down the last bags in the kitchen, looks out the window, yells, "IT'S ALMOST SUNSET!", and runs back out into the back yard, presumably to finish his mystery project 

Everyone eventually makes their way to the living room, nibbling on appetizers and watching classic Thanksgiving specials 

The food is almost done, all that's left is decorating the pies and a little tidying up 

You walk over to Leo, placing your hand on his shoulder 

He looks up at you

"Why don't you go take a quick shower and change before dinner," you muse, knowing the hoodie and jeans he's been cooking in all day isn't the outfit he'd picked out, "I'll wrap things up in here,"

He thanks you, dramatically presses a kiss to your forehead, and exits the kitchen 

You decorate the pies distractedly, catching the doorbell right before the second ring 

You smile at the people about to enter

"Annabeth," you call, "Magnus and Alex are here!" 

She drops what she's doing, and runs over to greet them 

Leo is back down stairs a short while later 

His brick red hoodie replaced with a burgundy one - his fancy hoodie as he calls it - a heavy flannel layered on top, and a beanie pulled over his almost dry hair

His pyrokinesis makes you forget how cold he gets sometimes 

You're about to go upstairs to change out of your cooking clothes when Tyson enters dramatically 

"The surprise is done!"

Everyone files outside to see what Tyson made as he leads you all out to the garage 

Perfectly attached to the side, is a very small horse stable 

"Wow!" Percy starts, "Great job, dude!"

Tyson is beaming as he's showered with confused praise 

"So uh," Percy ventures, "what did you build it for?"

"Maybe something like this?!" Descending voices declare in unicen 

Travis and Connor land in front of you on no other than Blackjack

Everyone erupts into cheers

“I thought you were stuck at the airport! What about those tiktoks?”

“Saved in my drafts, baby!” Travis laughs

Percy greets Blackjack and everyone else heads back inside with Travis and Connor 

You run upstairs to shower quickly and change, and are back downstairs just in time for appetizers and drinks 

You're about to take a sip of coffee when the door opens 

An irregular set of footsteps echoes into the room, along with a familiar voice 

"Ah, children, I hope there's room for one more," 

Everyone turns in surprise as Chiron enters the room 

After lots of warm excited greetings and making sure he has a warm cup of tea, he settles in to chat for a while

"I was on my way to meet with my more, ah, rambunctious cousins, but I couldn't let a day like today pass without stopping by."

After two cups of tea and lovely conversations, Chiron heads out to meet up with the other party ponies 

Thalia, Percy, and Will get all the food on the dining room table while Rachel makes the finishing touches to the centerpieces 

Everyone finds their seat, and you make the first toast

"I think I can speak for everyone when I say I'm thankful for you guys - my found family."

Every glass is raised

You can all drink to that. 

#Heroes of Olympus #heroes of olympus headcanons #heroes of olympus x reader #Leo Valdez #pjo imagine #also the thing nico says to will means go fuck yourself in italian #bc he is a warm gushy affectionate boyfriend #:) #I was gonna put a translation but i think it's funnier if you google translate it yourself #especially if it says fuck you or some shit like that #never fails to make me laugh #also this was the first thanksgiving i can remember not being debilitatingly dissappointed on #so uh #i'm rlly happy abt that thanks mom ily #yeah when you cut a narcissist out of your life your debilitating dissappointment rates plummet #it's a nice feeling #lmfao oversharing hours are coming to a close #I hope you all had a good day today #if you don't celebrate american thanksgiving i hope your thursday was nice #ily all and I'm so grateful for all of you #I'm gonna try to answer all your nice asks soon i have had zero social juice or i would have done it already #cause i really wanna <333 #I love you babes #you're all the best xoxo #fr how did I manage to attract such nice people to my blog #not gonna look this gift horse in the mouth #anyway good night I hoep you enjou six or so pages of domestic hoo holiday fluff #bc I sure did uwu

[thestupidhelmet]

What are the pros and cons of each season, excluding season 8 which we all know never happened?

This is a subjective opinion, of course, and it won't be a comprehensive list. That would take me too long. 😅

Season 1

Pros:

The American '70s milieu being part and parcel of the show's stories and characterization rather than being background element.

Eric and Donna's playful relationship and its development into romance.

Red being less of a hardass, his love for Eric being obvious despite Red's general toughness toward him, and Red's higher tolerance -- and even enjoyment -- of Eric's friends and Jackie.

The development of Jackie and Donna's friendship.

Hyde's complete characterization overhaul in "Prom Night' (1x19)

Kelso showing loyalty to Eric in "Grandma's Dead" (1x23) and other moments where he actually seems to be a friend to Eric and Hyde rather than solely a selfish, self-interested dillhole.

Kelso being a math and tech prodigy.

Jackie not being a stereotype "dumb cheerleader" but someone who cared about her studies, did homework on Saturday nights, and got As on her essays.

Laurie, in the first two-thirds of season 1, being depicted as smart academically, savvy socially, and not interested in Kelso at all. She was an overall more complex character until the writers used her as the show's main antagonist.

Fez being characterized as naive and trying to fit in with his American friends; he didn't know how far to push a joke and often pushed it too far in an attempt to acclimate to a new culture. Because of this, he said some disturbing things, but he came by them innocently. It wasn't due to being a boundary-invading perv (as he later became).

Fez's insight and friendship with Hyde.

Red and Kitty being in love and continuing to have the hots for each other -- and only each other. Goes against the cliched TV longtime-marriage that's lost its passion.

Cons:

Hyde's characterization before "Prom Night" (1x19) / His very problematic and disturbing pursuit of Donna romantically / sexually.

The major character shift in Laurie as a mischief maker and sower of chaos, screwing up other people's relationships for her own amusement and pleasure.

The episode order being shuffled by Fox and the premature time jump to 1977, which confused the true story arc of season 1.

"A New Hope" (1x20) being the original season 1 finale, leaving Eric and Donna's relationship uncertain. A huge conflict occurs between them in this episode, intended to the cliffhanger for the audience to ponder over the summer -- are Eric and Donna breaking up? -- which is promptly forgotten as if it never happened in the episodes that followed.

The mixed messages of "Eric's Buddy" (1x11). It's a combo of "Gay is okay!" and "Gay panic for laughs!"

Season 2

Pros:

The storytelling, in general, is very on point. It puts character (and character development) first and lets plot and humor arise naturally from it.

The character development (e.g., Red being out of work and Kitty supporting him emotionally and family financially, Hyde becoming compassionate toward and protective of Jackie, Eric and Donna working through their relationship issues and growing from them, etc.)

This is my favorite season of the series, and the two above points, I believe, cover all the pros (again, if were to make a comprehensive list, it would be way too long)

Cons:

Kelso's characterization shift. He goes from being a semi-louse who has (some) loyalty to other people to a full-on, selfish, self-entitled dillhole.

Laurie essentially raping Kelso.

Fez's Nice Guy syndrome toward Jackie

The American '70s milieu fading into the background

Red losing a good portion of his softness; becoming a less balanced character

Season 3

Pros:

More good storytelling and character / character-relationship development. Even if that development isn't always pleasant, it's organic.

Cons:

Jackie's invasion of Hyde's boundaries played for laughs (even though Donna does call her on it, which is a pro).

The show not acknowledging (through Jackie, Hyde, and other characters) the huge arc between Jackie and Hyde during season 2 and the first third of season 3 -- with the exception of "Ice Shack" (3x10), as if it never happened.

Kelso invading Donna's boundaries in "Roller Disco" (3x05)

Season 4

Pros:

The good storytelling and character / character-relationship development continues -- but not for the whole season.

Fez's characterization and relationship with Rhonda.

The unintentional but never-the-less present moments of bonding and closeness between Jackie and Hyde.

Bob and Joanne's relationship

Cons:

The destruction of Fez's character at the end of the season.

Kelso's growth of the end of S3 and first half of S4 being erased and replaced by an even worse version of Kelso.

One of the main reasons Donna and Eric breakup at the end of S3 is so she can experience independence; but she jumps deeply into a monogamous relationship (on her end) with Casey Kelso halfway into the season.

Jackie and Hyde's S2-S3 relationship dynamic getting no acknowledgment; their relationship getting no direct, obvious development at all.

Season 5

Pros:

Eric and Donna reconcile romantically.

Jackie and Hyde's romantic relationship begins.

Many good episodes (but not all).

Kitty getting a story arc focused on her.

Laurie's character development.

Cons:

Eric and Donna not dealing with what broke them up. Eric saying, "Forget about all that stuff," is the writers' way of saying that to the audience so they could move onto the engagement storyline. It's not good storytelling. At least one episode (if not more) were needed for Eric and Donna to deal with their issues from season 3.

Jackie and Hyde's romantic relationship being disconnected completely from their S2-S3 relationship.

A somewhat pathological passive-aggressiveness being added to Hyde's character

Hyde's character being manipulated to serve plot and create the cliffhanger at the end of season 5. The writers were aware this is what they were doing and acknowledged it through an exchange Hyde has with Roy before Hyde chooses not to confront Jackie and learn -- which is what he actually would have done -- and, instead, "retaliates" for the perceived injury Jackie gave him, which also serves as his passive-aggressive way to break up with her.

Hyde putting his fear of losing Jackie above Jackie's pain and feelings of betrayal once he admits his transgression with the nurse.

Hyde acting like Jackie pitting him and Kelso against each other for one night in a competition for her affection is equal to the injury he causes her by sleeping with someone else (out of insecure assumptions, a lack of trust, and an unwillingness to give Jackie the benefit of the doubt).

Fez's behavior growing more and more disturbing (e.g., hiding under Donna's bed to masturbate while Donna and Jackie sleep).

The beginning of the end of Red's true and consistent characterization, toward Kitty specifically. The start of him becoming a cliched, put-upon sitcom husband, whose wife is a cause of misery more often than joy.

Season 6

Pros:

Some very well-written, well-characterized episodes (particularly for Jackie/Hyde and Brooke/Kelso).

Kelso's character growth and story arc with Brooke.

Cons:

Kitty becoming a certified alcoholic.

Red continuing his downward spiral into a cliched, put-upon sitcom husband.

Hyde's transgression against Jackie in season 5 never being mentioned. Hyde acts like the injured party in the first few episodes of season 6, and the show writes his and Jackie's issues as if they're both equally to blame when Hyde is the one who bears one-hundred percent of the responsibility for their breakup.

No true development between Donna and Eric. Their storylines are rehashed from earlier seasons.

Eric and Donna unnecessarily setting a wedding date instead of remaining engaged, only for neither of them actually feeling ready to get married by the end of the season.

The show's first filler episode "Young Man Blues" (6x09), which does nothing to further the overall plot of season 6 or develop the characters.

The total mishandling of Pam Burkhart's storyline. This includes Hyde acting completely contrary to how seasons 1-5 Hyde would have (i.e. being pissed at Pam on Jackie's behalf, wanting to support her rather than feeling it's a burden, feeling protective of her, etc.) It also includes Jackie and Donna's potential for friendship development due to their shared parental situation being wasted.

Fez's continuing to devovle into a punchline, a punchline-giver, and someone who commits inappropriate behavior toward his female friends.

Laurie's recast causing the writers to scrap the originally intended storyline for her as an individual (i.e. continued character growth) and for her and Fez's relationship.

Season 7

Pros:

A few funny episodes.

A few decently-characterized episodes.

The introduction of W.B. and Angie.

Cons:

Red changing from someone utterly devoted to Kitty, feeling romantic and sexual passion only for her, to someone who not only finds other women attractive but seeks out their attention -- and generally (though not always) acts like being married to Kitty is a hardship instead of a blessing.

Wasting the potential of W.B. and Angie's characters. Focusing on Angie's relationship with Kelso rather than with Hyde. Not exploring Hyde and W.B.'s relationship deeply.

Jackie and Hyde's unnecessary breakups. They're caused by a rehashed conflict that was resolved in "Do You Think Its Alright (6x18)" and were likely meant to lead up to a "dramatic" series finale outcome where Hyde finally fully commits to Jackie by proposing to her.

Separating Eric from Hyde, Kelso, and Fez is many storylines and keeping most of his storylines between him, Donna, and his parents.

Fez remaining stagnant as a character.

Most of Kelso's growth being -- yet again -- erased.

Brooke and Betsy's absence.

Another post of mine you might find interesting is: What I Think Is Each Character’s Best Season of the Series (Exclusding Season 8), Character-Wise and Why.

#That 70s Show #That '70s Show #Jackie x Hyde #Red x Kitty #Eric x Donna #Ask #Anon #My Meta #My Essay