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bunchofbooks · 4 years

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It’s Time for Kyrsten’s Opinion: Flowers in the Attic Review Edition

Flowers in the Attic is the first book in the Dollanganger series but VC Andrews. It follows the Dollanganger family; the four children, Chris, Cathy, Carrie, Cory and their mother, Corrine. They were a perfect family, until their father is suddenly killed in a car accident on the way home from work one evening. The four children must stay hidden in the attic of their estranged grandparent’s estate for the sake of inheritance. Their mother assures them this is only temporary - one night at most; but the days turned into weeks. Weeks turned into months. And the months turned into years with no glimmer of escape.

While this book was a really enjoyable read it was also a really heavy read. Under the cut I have posted a spoiler free review of the book, with my thoughts and opinions including content warnings.

Before I even start getting into the review I wanted to jump right into the content warning. A quick sidebar, I first heard about VC Andrews through the podcast, My Favorite Murder. The women who host it were talking about reading this book in middle school and high school, I thought that it can’t be too bad if they read it when they were that young. The woman who was ringing me up at the store when I bought it also said she read it when she was in middle school and said it was intense, but that she was a baby so it probably wasn’t that bad. I just want to know WHERE WERE THEIR PARENTS?!?! This book needs a lot of content warnings and I’m hoping that I cover all of them here even if I don’t get into all of them in the review. Content warning for: death of a parent, abuse / neglect, self - mutilation, incest (holy incest Batman), suicidal thoughts, victim blaming, and death of a child.

The estranged grandmother is a vile woman who is abusive and neglectful of her grandchildren. She dangles the threat over the children and Corrine that all she has to do is tell one of their maids that Corrine has 4 children from her marriage and they can kiss that inheritance goodbye. The neglect seems obvious, these kids are locked in an attic 24/7, in the dead of summer and on the coldest nights during the winter, but she also at points is angry with the children and refuses to bring them food because they broke one of her many rules. One part in particular that sticks out to me is when she tells Cathy she can either cut all of her hair off or they can go one week without food. When Cathy does not agree and the kids are able to ration what little food they have left for the entire week, she drugs Cathy and dumps tar in her hair so she must shave it off; and even after she cuts off her hair, the grandmother still does not bring the children food.The children become so hungry that Chris cuts his arm and forces his younger sisters and brother to drink his blood (insert my screaming here). The grandmother whips her adult daughter and then makes her show the marks left to her young children so they see what she is capable of. The grandmother attacks Chris and Cathy, whipping them both and then beating Cathy until she is unconscious with a hair brush.

However, the grandmother is not the only culprit here. Corrine, while she starts out as being loyal to her children, starts coming up to the attic less and less once she starts getting some money from her father, leaving them to fend for themselves. At one point she leaves for days, not telling her children where she is going or when she will be back. When she does come back she does not understand why her children are not excited she had been on a trip nor do they want to hear about it or see what she has brought back for them. Corrine gaslights her children, saying that they chose to come with her. They chose to make these sacrifices of staying in an attic all this time. They chose this life for themselves. As if they had a choice in the matter at all. Corrine then leaves them in the attic. . . again.

The children are told by Corrine that they must only stay in the attic for one night, until she can get back into the good graces of her estranged father so they can get the inheritance. The children ask what she did to make her family disowned her out the way they did and for a little bit, all Corrine will tell her kids is that she did something that her family did not approve of. Instantly I’m thinking, oh she stole money, she ran off and got married, she got pregnant before she was married. It takes place in the 1950’s so while that isn’t the end of the world today, I can see how an affluent family would want to keep that out of the public to save face. NOPE I WAS VERY WRONG! I HAVE NEVER BEEN MORE WRONG ABOUT SOMETHING IN MY ENTIRE LIFE! The mother was disowned by her family because she was in a relationship with her father’s step brother - or her half uncle - but don’t worry no one else thinks it’s wrong (except for the grandmother and grandfather who are painted to be the villains in all of this) because he was so much younger than Corrine’s father and they were only half siblings. Have no fear though, because this is not the only instance of incest that we get to read about in Flowers in the Attic! Cathy - who narrates the story - and her older brother, Chris, begin a relationship. Which somehow goes from creepy to creepier. Cathy catches Chris spying on her when she is naked. Even more concerning was during the same scene, Cathy tells Chris to go away and he ignores her to keep staring at his sister. When Chris and Cathy are kissing in bed, Cathy tells Chris to stop and he says that what they are doing is not wrong, because they are only kissing and not having sex. . . However Chris your thinking is flawed because they do have sex, which will be brought up at my next therapy appointment and every therapy appointment from now until my dying day. While it is not a long scene, it is certainly graphic and more brother / sister sex scenes than I ever wanted to read. After they have sex, Chris is saying how he feels awful for what they did and Cathy says that she is to blame because she wears short clothes that don’t fit. If this were a youtube video this is the point I would insert the clip of someone screaming bitch what the fuck.

Flowers in the Attic, while definitely one of the most intense books I have ever read was enjoyable. There were aspects of it that I thought were amazing. VC Andrews was able to make it feel like I was in Foxworth Hall with the Dollanganger children in the attic and could make me feel claustrophobic even if I was reading outside or on a train. You really felt like time was ticking by and you were also waiting for the grandmother to catch you doing something wrong (not quite having sex with your brother, maybe something a little less. . . weird, like looking at your hair in the mirror, which is in fact a rule that the grandmother has because we don’t promote vanity. No sir, not at Foxworth Hall). VC Andrews would drop it on you like a bomb that all of this time had passed, the seasons bled into one another flawlessly. She would have one of the children say something, for instance, “sometimes eight months can feel like eight years”, and it hits you like a ton of bricks that it has been eight months since they first entered that attic, while also dropping that they should have been there only for one night.

Another thing that I loved was how much VC Andrews made me hate Corrine. Corrine Dollanganger is truly one of the most awful fictional parents I have read, but she isn’t instantly an awful person. At the beginning she is a wonderful mother who I genuinely believe would have done anything for her children. However, slowly VC Andrews would peel back these layers and show how having this money corrupted Corrine. Some of her finer moments include asking her 14 and 12 year old to provide a quality kindergarten education to her five year old twins so when they went back to school they wouldn’t be too far behind. Ma’am your children are literally living in an attic they’re going to have much bigger issues other than being behind in school. When the youngest son, Cory accidentally locks himself in a trunk, she is nowhere to be seen nor does she want to hear it, but she acts like mother of the year because she brings toys to the kids. However, the most infuriating thing about Corrine is how she causes so many fights among the children. Cathy tries to point out how messed up their situation is, but Chris does not want to hear about it and jumps to defend the mother who couldn't care less about him. Cathy at the age of twelve was left taking care of herself, including going through puberty, and her five year old brother and sister and Corrine would get all of the praise from the children when she came in to do the bare minimum! I would get so angry with this fictional woman!

The last fifty pages were absolutely wild. There were so many surprises twists that I did not see coming! Sometimes when books have all of these twists at the end I’m like, yeah okay let’s speed this along, but with Flowers in the Attic I could not get enough. I was caught off guard but it didn’t feel like it was phony in any way. I was sitting in the living room reading and I gasped and was freaking out about the ending.

My biggest complaint about the book would be the dialogue, specifically Chris. It was completely unrealistic for anyone to speak like that, even more so a seventeen year old boy. The children would talk in these elaborate metaphors and seem so worldly when Cathy says before that they lived a pretty sheltered life prior to the attic. Chris would say things to the twins like we shouldn’t quibble, as if they would know what that means?! Just say fight Christopher! At another part he is in a fight with his mother who had left them in an attic and says, “when you look and register do you see how healthy they have grown”. This is a direct quote that comes out of a child’s mouth. I understand that he was smart and read all of these books about medicine, but his dialogue specifically is what stuck out to me as unrealistic. Had VC Andrews ever met a 17 year old boy? Overall he just seemed like an unrealistic character. He kind of felt like he was there to be this convenient character that could fix almost every problem they came across. Cory and Carrie wanted a playground? Oh wow Chris comes in and saves the day because he knows exactly how to build one. . . in an attic. . . where they are living. Cathy is sick? Oh well Chris just read this book about childhood illnesses, they just have to make sure he gets plenty of fluids. Cory wants to keep this mouse that he found with its leg caught in a trap? That’s awesome because Chris can conveniently make a mouse sized splint for a little mouse leg.

Overall, I really did enjoy my time reading this book. I have some theories about the rest of the series and am interested to see how the rest plays out.

Would I recommend this book? Yes, but I would be sure to let someone know the content warnings. I would not recommend this book to someone in middle school or early high school. It was a lot.

Will I keep reading the series? Definitely!

#flowers in the attic #vc andrews #book reviews #adult books #books #dollanganger

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39hystericalqueens · 4 years

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It’s A Hard Life (Brian May x Reader) Chapter 1

This series was written alongside a companion playlist. Each song on the playlist is related to a certain scene or moment within the story and while this fic can 100% be read without the playlist, it adds so much to the story to listen along as you read. Throughout this series, you will see numbers in parentheses within the text. Each number corresponds to a track on the playlist. For example, if you saw: (1), this would mean play the first track on the playlist before continuing on reading. Some of the songs serve to set the mood, some correspond with a song that is actually playing in the story, and some tell part of the story better than I can and so they help to drive the plot. I will say again that you don’t need the playlist to understand and enjoy this fic but I strongly recommend at least checking it out.

MASTERLIST

Chapter 1

Warnings: Some swearing

A/N: It’s finally here! The first chapter of my Brian May x Reader fic, It’s A Hard Life. I worked really hard on this so I hope you all enjoy! Additionally, I don’t have a taglist yet so if you like what you read please message me and I’ll be sure to tag you in all future installments.

Word Count: 4.8k (she’s a long first chapter)

October 1969

*beep beep beep*

It never ceased to amaze you how jarring the sound of your alarm clock could be. Loud and unrelenting, it was especially obnoxious this morning because it signaled one thing: the beginning of the week. Grudgingly, you rolled over to check the time.

6:45 AM

Ugh. In an hour you’d have to be in class, and not just any class. Professor Wesham’s Intermediate Music Theory course was taught at 8am sharp every morning five days a week. Professor Wesham was a rather vile man with a love for discipline, trick questions, and embarrassing his students in front of the rest of the class. He had no interest in being a professor and mentioned that at any moment he saw fit. Rather, he believed that music theory was a subject that very few could teach correctly, and so it was his duty as a musician to impart those teachings upon young students, no matter how much he hated it. If you could have you would have dropped his class after the first week, but for a degree in music performance, all levels of theory were required.

You looked over at the clock again.

7:02 AM

C’mon Y/N, gonna have to get up sooner or later.

With quite a bit of effort, you finally pulled yourself up and out of bed and into the first pair of jeans you saw lying on the floor.

(1)

____

“...so when we’re looking to find a mode of a scale we can look to the intervals for the answers. Each mode has its own unique combination of whole tones and semitones, so if you know the patterns you can accurately alter the scale…”

As expected, class that morning was hellish. A thirty-minute lecture on the basics of modes followed by another twenty minutes of history and you found yourself slowly drifting back to sleep. Your thoughts were soon taken over by memories of being curled up in bed this morning and fantasies of what you would be eating for lunch in a few hours.

Maybe spaghetti? Or soup? I could really go for soup today. With luck they’ll have that creamy tomato one that I love down at the cafe...

“Miss Y/L/N?!” Professor Wesham’s voice rang out through the lecture hall

Shit.

“Miss Y/L/N I asked you a question, but it appears as though you can’t be bothered to pay attention to what I’m saying this morning. Have you heard a word of what I’ve said?”

You opened your mouth to protest, but nothing came out.

“That’s what I thought. Can anyone else answer my question? Anyone at all? Or are you all just going to sit there and stare at me like a bunch of deadbeats?!”

Silence filled the hall and for a moment it seemed as though he was about to give up and move on when suddenly he yelled,

“Susie! What is the C Mixolydian scale?”

From the back of the hall, a faint voice answered,

“It’s the 5th mode of the F major scale, it follows the Mixolydian interval pattern of whole whole semi whole whole semi whole, and the notes are C D E F G A and B flat.”

“Correct.”

And with that, he moved on forward with the lesson.

I could have answered that, you thought to yourself, all the bastard needed to do was repeat himself.

You sighed and silently took notes for the rest of the period.

When class let out you made a beeline for the door, hurrying out of the building and down towards the green commons in front. You didn’t stop walking until you saw the sign for The Cafe. Located right in the center of the music department, The Cafe was your go-to spot. Coffee and pastries in the mornings, sandwiches and soup for lunch, and full-on dinner seven nights a week. Although technically open to the general public, the music students at Ealing had claimed the place for themselves long ago, and you had never seen it empty in your entire time at the college. Today was no exception. You pushed your way in and headed straight for the counter to order.

“One creamy tomato soup please,” you said to the woman at the counter, and with your table number in hand, you found a small booth in the corner and collapsed into it.

It had been a particularly difficult week for you. The new term just started a few weeks ago and already your professors were piling on work. Theory worksheets, composition assignments, and three new solos had all been handed to you in the past few weeks, and it wouldn’t have been so bad if you didn’t also have a job that demanded long shifts late at night. You worked at Selmer’s, the music store in town and, due to your schedule, almost exclusively worked the night shifts from 6 until closing at midnight. It wasn’t a bad gig by any means, in fact you really liked working there. You never knew who would walk through the door. One moment it would be a broke uni student popping in to buy new guitar strings and the next it could be a famous musician like Pete Townshend. Okay so maybe not Pete Townshend, but you had once sold Jim McCarty a set of drumsticks. It was your one claim to fame.

As you ate your soup you enjoyably became lost in your own thoughts, so much so that you didn’t notice when someone sat down across from you.

“Hello? Earth to Y/N?”

The voice of your best friend Freddie interrupted your quiet contemplation. You loved him to death but sometimes he really had the worst timing.

The story of how you two met was actually quite funny. It was back in September of last year, the beginning of your first year of uni. The night before classes were set to start you had gone to a party and somehow ended up right in the middle of a game of truth or dare, only the rules had been altered slightly so that anyone who chose truth also had to take a shot. Being the relatively shy person that you were, you hadn’t taken many dares and as a result found yourself to be rather drunk.

“Alright c’mon Y/N,” said a guy named Greg (he was in your year and studying music as well) “you can’t pick truth forever.”

“Ok fine, dare”

“I dare you,” Greg continued, “to make out with Freddie.” He gestured to a man who appeared to be just as drunk as you were sitting across the circle. He laughed and said,

“Whenever you’re ready darling, I’ll just be over here waiting.” With a roll of your eyes toward Greg, you had crawled your way across the circle, straddled Freddie’s lap, and started to viciously make out with him to the best of your abilities in your drunken state.

The next morning you had woken up wickedly hungover and as you walked down the street to find something for breakfast you had bumped into none other than Freddie from the night before. He had laughed at the state of both of you (“we need to make sure that neither one of us ever drinks that much again!”) and offered to take you out to breakfast and the rest was history. It was definitely an odd way to start a friendship, but you two found that you just clicked together. His outspoken nature balanced out your tendencies to sink back into the shadows, and your level-headedness counteracted his love of making decisions on a whim. It really was, at least you two thought so, the perfect friendship.

“Hello? Y/N? Is anyone home in there?” Freddie continued as you looked up from your food.

“Hey Fred,” you said, coming to terms with the fact that your time for quiet contemplation was over. “What brings you down here? I thought you had a class way at the other end of campus this morning.”

“I did. And then I decided that I was feeling a bit peckish and could go for a bowl of The Cafe’s famous tomato soup, even if it is all the way on the other side of school. But this worked out perfectly, me running into you here, because I have something important to tell you!”

He dramatically reached his hands out and motioned for you to take them in yours.

“You know I have been following this band called Smile around for ages.”

You nodded.

“And you know I’ve been begging you to come out and see one of their shows with me”

Once again you nodded. At least once a month (if not more) Freddie would try and drag you along to one of their shows despite your efforts to tell him that rock concerts really weren’t your thing.

“Well recently I’ve started to hang around with them properly, them being the band, and we’ve become rather close. You and I both know Tim of course but it’s the other band members that I’ve really started to click with. We’re even talking about getting a flat together. They still won’t let me sing in the band, but that’s an issue for another day. What I need to tell you is that they’re playing a free gig tomorrow night right here at Ealing and you and I are both going!”

You opened your mouth to protest but Freddie kept talking.

“And don’t even try to get out of this one. I know for a fact that on Tuesdays you only work until 7, and I also know that you don’t have plans afterward because yesterday on the phone you expressed to me just how boring your week was going to be. So unless within the last 24 hours you have made plans to go out late on a Tuesday night after work, you have no excuse not to go with me to this.”

You stared back at him in disbelief.

“Alright Fred, you got me fair and square. I will go with you tomorrow,”

“Excellent!” he exclaimed, “I’ll be at Selmer’s to pick you up from work at 7 PM sharp tomorrow. Oh, this is going to be so fun!”

“Sounds like a plan,” and then you added, “And just because I’m going this time it doesn’t mean you’ll get me to go next time.”

“Fair enough,” Freddie said, “but you’re going to have so much fun tomorrow night that I won’t even have to ask you to go with me again.”

And with that he sprung up and made his way over to the counter to order some food, leaving you alone to wonder what on earth you had gotten yourself into.

——

The store was surprisingly slow for a Tuesday evening. Two hours into your shift and only three people had come in, and all within ten minutes of each other. To kill time you had started reorganizing the reed display, but quickly lost interest and for the past hour and a half you had simply been sitting behind the counter, listening to the old rock n roll music that played in the background, and thinking about nothing in particular.

(2)

🎵Without her I will be in misery (oh oh oh)

In misery (ooh ooh ooh)

My misery (la la la la la la) 🎵

As the song came to a close you heard the bell over the door jingle, alerting you that someone had just walked through the door. You craned your neck around the counter to see a guy with long dirty blond hair looking around frantically as though he had lost something.

“Hi,” you said, “Welcome to Selmer’s, can I help you find anyth-“

“Guitar strings!” he nearly shouted, “I need guitar strings!”

“Okay,” you said slowly, “do you have any idea as to which type of strings?”

“Oh shit...uh, I don’t know. The normal kind I guess? I just need strings!” he once again looked around frantically, eyes finally settling on the clock on the wall behind you. “Shit! I’m so going to be late!”

“Ok slow down a second,” you said calmly, “what’s all the hurry about? What, are you about to go onstage any second now?” You had meant it as a joke but to your surprise, he screamed,

“Yes!”

“Oh shit sorry I didn’t actually think you were- ok, um, so you don’t know the type of string but do you know what model the guitar is?”

“It’s uh...oh dammit I don’t know.”

“I don’t mean to be rude, but what kind of guitarist doesn’t know the kind of guitar they play?”

“I’m not the guitarist,” he said, “I’m the drummer. Our guitarist broke a string like ten minutes ago so I ran out to grab him more while he helped the rest of our band keep setting up.”

“Ah, I see,” you said. “Well since you don’t know which kinds of strings he uses I’ll just give you some Fender 12 gauges. They’re pretty standard, I’ve got a lot of people who use them so hopefully that should be ok.”

“Yeah, those should be alright.”

You rang up the package and handed it to him.

“Thank you so much, you just saved our show.”

“My pleasure,” you said as you handed him the strings, “I hope these will work out for you guys tonight, and if not, well then you didn’t buy them here.”

He laughed at your comment.

“You’re funny,” he said. “Normally I would stay around and chat, maybe ask for your number, but I do kind of have to be going or else my bandmates will have my head on a spike. But it was great to meet you…uh….”

“Y/N,” you answered his unspoken question.

“Great to meet you Y/N, I’m Roger.” Is all he said before turning on his heel and sauntering out through the doorway. You could tell he was trying to maintain a cool, laid back composure despite having burst through your door in a panic not ten minutes prior. You laughed to yourself, wondering if you would ever see him again.

Looking at the clock you saw that it was eight till 7. Freddie would be here any minute. You got right to work closing up the store for the night. You were right in the middle of locking the window display cases when once again you heard the bell over the door ring.

“Hello darling I hope you’re ready for a concert!” Freddie’s melodious voice sang out.

“Hey Fred, just give me two more minutes and I’ll be ready to go,” you replied.

“I have been absolutely restless all day today thinking about tonight,” Freddie continued, “We are going to have so much fun!”

He made his way over to the counter and leaned against it, facing your back. “I really think you’re going to like their music,” he continued, “they’ve got a very real sound, none of that formulaic clean-cut bullshit.”

“I told you, Freddie,” you said, turning around to face him, “I make no promises as to whether or not I’ll like them. But they do sound quite lovely from the way you describe them.”

With that, you shut off all the lights, lock up the doors, and the two of you were on your way.

____

The concert was being held in the student center at Ealing, right in the middle of the campus. On a normal day the large open room was typically used for fundraisers, game nights, and a variety of other student-run activities, but every now and then the school would allow bands to put on shows. As you walked through the door you were immediately overwhelmed by the sheer amount of people packed into the room. All the tables and chairs had been pushed to the sides making it so it was barely possible to sit down, though there were a few people who had managed to squeeze themselves into a seat. You were about to follow their lead, your eyes fixed on an empty table close to the back, but Freddie grabbed you by the arm and pulled you both up to the very front.

“Do we really have to be this close, Fred? I can hear just as well from back there,” you said, gesturing towards the table you had so lovingly had your eye on.

“Darling we’re seeing a rock concert, not the symphony, it’s not just about being able to hear them. Watching them play and being right up in the middle of things is all part of the experience.”

You looked at him rather quizzically.

“Alright, but if I get my ears blown out tonight it’s your fault.”

“That’s the spirit! Now I’m going to go and get us both something to drink. I’ll be right back.”

As you watched your friend disappear into the crowd of students you turned to focus your attention on the stage in front of you. They had taken the small stage that permanently stayed in the back of the student center and never usually saw anything more exciting than experimental theater pieces put on by the drama students, and had completely transformed it into something out of a whimsical fever dream. Brightly colored metallic fabrics had been draped over the dingy, dust-filled curtain that hung behind the stage. In the center of the stage sat a drum kit with a giant red-lipped smile on the bass drum. To the side, there were two guitars on stands, a pretty standard bass guitar, which you recognized as Tim’s, and a guitar which you had never seen the likes of before. It was a bright cherry red color with a black pickguard and it was oddly round in shape. You had been working at a well-stocked music store for nearly two years now and had never seen any guitar that remotely resembled it before. To top it all off you saw that they had covered the lights facing the stage with different colored translucent films, further adding to the whimsical ambiance.

You know, this actually seems like it’s going to be a lot of fun. Dammit, Fred, why’d you have to be right.

You shook your head to yourself and began to look around to see if you could see Freddie anywhere when suddenly everyone started clapping.

The band was making its way onstage. On bass, there was Tim Staffell. He went to Ealing, studying graphic design, and was a good friend of Freddie’s. The three of you often went out together for drinks. You then looked over to see the man behind the drum kit and couldn’t believe what you saw. Sitting there was Roger, the guy you had sold guitar strings to mere hours ago.

“Ha!” You said aloud.

“What’s so funny?” Interjected Freddie, who had just appeared next to you holding two beers.

“I know the drummer,” you said.

“You know Roger?”

“Yeah,” you continue, chuckling, “I sold him guitar strings a few hours ago. He was in a right panic about it. Apparently, their guitarist broke one earlier and didn’t have any extras on hand.”

“Brian didn’t have any extra strings on him? That must have really caused a panic, I don’t think Brian has ever forgotten anything in his entire life.”

“I’m assuming Brian is the guitarist?”

“Yeah, and he’s bloody brilliant at it. There he is right there.” Freddie pointed to the man standing on the right of the stage. He was incredibly tall and lanky, with a head full of unruly curly brown hair and deep brown eyes. He was wearing black pinstriped trousers and a white top which he had accessorized with the most interesting looking fuzzy vest. He exuded the most peculiar combination of confidence and recluse, and as he stood there fiddling with his guitar you couldn’t help but think he was the most beautiful person you had ever seen.

You turned to say something to Freddie, but before you could get any words out Tim had started talking into the microphone.

“Hello Ealing!” He shouted. He was met with a resounding chorus of cheers and whoops from the crowd. “We are Smile!” More cheers. “You all know me, I’m Tim Staffell, over there on guitar we have Brian May, and back there on the drums is Roger Taylor. We’ve got a good set for you tonight, all originals except for a few, and we’re going to start with a song called Step On Me.”

At once they struck up an upbeat tune and it didn’t take long for the audience to start dancing and singing along with them.

(3)

🎵Know what I said when I saw you crying

Hang on that’s folly

I was weak in the head out to meet your lying

You’re just a bad memory

My life was going to be better

My why did I never ever see she’d step on me🎵

As you listened to them sing you couldn’t help but nod and dance along with the rest of the audience. Fred was right again, they really did have a sound the likes of which you had never heard before. Not only were their harmonies perfectly in tune, but they had an almost angelic quality to them that pulled you in, wanting to hear more.

“Well now look who’s actually having a good time,” Freddie said to you as they finished their first song. I knew you would like them.

“They really are something else,” you said, “although I would probably like them even more if I weren’t surrounded by so many people right now.”

Freddie laughed.

“I guess I’ll have to talk to Tim about getting you a private show then.”

They went from song to song, each one more enjoyable than the last, and while you tried to keep your attention from wavering, you kept finding yourself drawn to Brian the guitarist. Freddie hadn’t been lying when he said that Brian was bloody brilliant at what he did. You watched him easily play his way through several guitar solos, making them sound effortless, though with your musical knowledge (and by the look on his face) you could tell that they were anything but that. He played with a look of concentration on his face, never wavering except for the few times he looked up and out into the crowd. It was then, you noticed, that a small smile would cross his face.

All too soon Tim was at the microphone again, announcing that this would be their last song. You felt as if you could continue to listen to their music for hours and wished to yourself that the show wasn’t over yet.

“You all have been such a great crowd tonight,” Tim went on, “and so to finish we’re going to be bringing you everyone’s favorite: Doing Alright!”

If you thought you had liked the songs they had played the rest of the night, then you loved this one. It started out with a slow ballad, complete with more complex guitar work, but as it went on it morphed into hard rock with grit and feeling. You thought the juxtaposition of the two styles was a daring choice seeing as it would be easy to mess up, but they did it with such grace and style so that it completely worked. When the song finally came to a close and the band took their bows you joined in with the thunderous applause and cheering.

“Fred, I’ve got to say it: I really did enjoy myself tonight. It was a little loud and crowded for my liking but I think the music and the show were able to make up for it, and maybe, just maybe, I’ll come with you again.”

“Oh that’s wonderful darling! I knew tonight was going to be a success. But it’s not quite over yet.”

“No?”

“Of course not! You didn’t think you were going to get away without meeting the band, also known as my new friends. C’mon, they’re probably around somewhere outside packing up.”

You and Freddie fought your way through the crowds of students to get to the door and out into the night air. As Freddie had said, you found Tim and Roger sitting on the back of a van which you could see was full up of their equipment. Brian was nowhere in sight.

“Freddie! So glad you could make it!” Exclaimed Roger, standing up. “And,” he turned to you, “I don’t believe it. Y/N from the music store, why on earth didn’t you tell me you were coming to the show tonight?”

“Mostly because I had no idea this was your band,” you replied, laughing. “Freddie here has been after me to see and meet you guys for ages.”

“And,” said Roger, “what do you think?”

“Coming from someone who doesn’t tend to enjoy rock concerts, I thought you guys were wonderful. I did not expect to enjoy myself tonight as much as I did. I think you’ve really got something special here.”

“You flatter us too much,” said Tim, “if you keep talking like that we’re all gonna get big heads. And Roger’s is big enough as is.”

“Hey!” said Roger, but he smiled.

“So,” you continue, “Freddie said you guys are thinking about getting a flat together?”

“Yeah, Brian and I found this place up the road a little, Brian’s our guitarist by the way,” said Roger.

At the mention of his name, you could feel your heart flutter slightly in your chest.

“Freddie mentioned him,” you said, “Did the strings end up working out for him?”

“I thought they were fine, but Bri gets particular about these things. I guess they were the wrong brand or gauge or something like that. He kept going on about how he was going to sound awful tonight and his sound was going to be too abrasive.”

“Well yes, different strings are going to give you different sounds and I don’t know what he usually uses, but you guys sounded just great to me.”

Part of you desperately wanted to ask where he was right now, but you decided against it.

Against your better judgment, you had let Freddie convince you to stay around and talk with him, Tim, and Roger for a while longer. In that time you learned that Roger was studying to be a dentist at London Hospital Medical School, and Brian was over at the Imperial College studying, as Roger put it, “some sort of space physics.”

“He’s real into all that,” Roger continued, “but I can’t say the same for myself. I get good marks and all that, professors think I have a lot of ‘promise’, whatever that means, but a dentist for the rest of my life? I’m not sure I could handle that. Nah, I’m hoping to stay in rock n roll for as long as I can. What about you? You’re over at Ealing with Fred and Tim, right? Are you another graphic design nerd like these guys?”

“No, music actually. Nothing like what you guys do,” you added, seeing Roger’s face light up, “classical repertoire mostly. I play the flute.”

“You any good?”

“I suppose that’s a matter of opinion. Personally, I tend to think I’m shit, but you ask any music student and they’ll tell you the same thing.”

“Oh don’t be like that, Y/N,” interjected Freddie, “she’s bloody marvelous. She can play you Bach like you’ve never heard before, although Roger I don’t think you have ever heard it before.”

“Oh come off it, I’ve heard my fair share of the classical stuff.”

“Yes, next time you go to the symphony be sure to refer to it as ‘the classical stuff’ I’m sure you won’t get any funny looks at all.”

You and Tim howled with laughter at Freddie’s comment while Roger gave him a good punch in the shoulder.

“Dear god, look at the time,” you said a moment later after having glanced at your watch. “Is it really two thirty in the morning?!”

“I suppose it is,” said Tim, “sure hasn’t felt that long.”

“I’ve really got to be going then,” you said.

“Aw c’mon stay out for a little longer with us,” said Tim, “Fred and I hardly get to see you anymore.”

“I know, and I wish that I could, but I’ve got class at 8 tomorrow morning and I should at least try to get some sleep.”

“Oh alright go on, we know you’re right,” said Freddie, “I should probably be going myself, I am quite exhausted.”

“See ya later Fred,” said Roger, “great to see you again, Y/N. You should come round to the flat once we get it, we’d all love to see you again and you can meet Brian as well.”

The flutter was back.

“I definitely will,” you replied before giving them all a wave and starting back to your own flat.

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ask-these-fantrolls · 4 years

Note

First off DAFUQ!!! Was with the anon. Personally I would like to see the more murdery part of homestuck shown in the community cause a lot of killing did happen along with some sprinkles of insanity. Either way I really like your blog/your trolls/and your plot. I just wish one day drama would stop.

[I feel you! I don’t know why that anon jumped to that conclusion other than wanting to start some sort of drama;;

I can really appreciate darker role play in all honesty. Sometimes it’s fun to rp something that’s fucked up, but if i can stand on a soapbox for a second Tumblr has really become a puritanical Christian type website where if you don’t show things that are all white, bright, and “good” then you yourself are a bad person no matter if you are condemning the bad things in your narrative. It seems like the only way you’re ��allowed” to enjoy the source material is if you ignore the bad things about it instead of understanding them and thinking critically about why they are bad (like all the death and murder and things like how the dolorosa was sold into slavery as her punishment for abandoning her duties and supporting a rebellion).

If i’m being very honest, evil and bad things help enhance a story. You see bad things happen to your heroes and it makes you connect more with them and actively want them to win and overcome. All the fucked up stuff that happens in Alternian society makes you want the rebels to win even more, and makes you even happier to see The Condesce killed and troll society continue on in a less fucked up variation. If you only ever have light and bright things, then there’s no reason for any plot to happen.

Then again I think most of the people who are so outspoken about anything bad happening most likely have a problem separating villainous things that you are supposed to be angry about from things you’re supposed to like and align yourself because of the nature of a RP environment, so they’d rather everything be happiness and rainbows 24/7 so that there’s no chance of them being seen as “problematic”. There’s absolutely nothing wrong with not wanting an overarching plot for your characters, or just wanting to do slice of life forever without any conflict!

But if you want to make a good story, you need an antagonist or a driving force for why your characters are trying to attain their goal.

This of course isn’t to say you should unapologetically expose random people to your evil characters, force your villains on others, or take away someone’s blog safe space by forcing them to use a vile character or theme that makes them uncomfortable. That’s why I barely ever use my evil characters and I certainly never do it without the other mun knowing exactly who and what my bad guys are. I especially hate when people use their villains as a ‘haha this is my main character who I make everyone interact with, now let’s trivialize the things that make them evil because I don’t understand how to handle serious topics respectfully or in a proper way”, or worse when they have atrocious characters and don’t seem to realize that someone who is a slave trader or rapist or serial murderer is a bad fucking person PLEASE gain some self awareness.

Now I have never RP’d anything dark or questionable like murder outside of DMs because I also understand that torture porn and death is Not Everyone’s Jam, and no amount of tagging will keep people from reading out of spite just to get angry or someone heaven forbid accidentally stumbling on it and reading out of ignorance. With that being said, there are some things that I will always refuse to RP even in DMs, including rape, incest, and pedophilia because like. There is a Fuckin Limit to things that you should dedicate yourself to write out as scenes like c’mon.

As someone who is a survivor of sexual assault and was preyed on by elders in my RP community when I was a young teen, it appauls me when people just... casually do shit like that for fun? I don’t understand how it could be enjoyable to RP as a victim of that and even less understand how you could enjoy being the predator in those situations... I believe that while you should use darkness and evil to enhance your plots, it’s also the responsibility of any RPer to do their best to keep younger and more vulnerable members safe. I wish that when I was younger someone had stepped in and stopped the creep who fucked me up for life, or that someone had at least explained why I should have not spent so much time with her.

So that is one thing that I am VERY glad to have in this community. I do wish unnecessary drama would stop and people would stop trying to lure others into saying things that can be taken out of context as a gotcha, but I’d really like to hope that most of the “drama” that comes out is actually coming from a place of wanting to keep others safer than they were when I was a child. I have no doubt that the ask I got was just trying to stir up trouble, but I still hope that most of the warnings people put out and the posts people make (like the advice posts I put out from time to time here and on my main blog) are made from a place of goodness with the intent of positive change.]

#asks #ooc #long post #GOD i rambled here #i hope I worded this in an easy enough way to understand #Anonymous #dont reblog #these are my thoughts on the matter and i'd rather you write your own thoughts down and not share something that mentions my abuse on it #//rape ment #//pedophilia ment #//incest ment #//slavery ment

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nikatyler · 5 years

Photo

I have three weeks to learn everything for my last exams. Am I dying already? Well, no, but actually, yes. I kinda wish we had less time because this way, I’m going to waste so much of it procrastinating.

But maybe now that I’ve told you, I’ll decide to not procrastinate so that you can be proud of me or something. Maybe I’ll show that I am in fact capable of character development. Idk.

Yeah, I’m losing my mind. Just a little bit.

By the way, anyone else feels dead inside after watching the new Game of Thrones episode? You know, in the first part, I literally forgot what I was watching because everyone was so happy and celebrating and all that and then I got a reminder. This show is going to be the death of me.

desira-sims replied to your photo “Before we get to the replies, I want to quickly address something. I’m...”

I feel ya on social media. I recently got rid of a mobile game and the associated fb pages I was in. I’m no longer constantly checking my phone for it. It’s been nice taking a break from that. Focus on school, since that’s the most important thing. Come find us when you need a breather. ��

tiny-tany-thaanos replied to your photo “Before we get to the replies, I want to quickly address something. I’m...”

Yes, social media are basically time-eaters who steal the time which could be spend on writing or simming. Recently I've unsubscribed from several Instagram pages dedicated to memes as they my flooded dash and I spent too much time on them. Last two days I've played TS3 world adventures on my laptop without internet connection and it was great

tiny-tany-thaanos replied to your photo “Before we get to the replies, I want to quickly address something. I’m...”

And I barely paid attention to tumblr as well recently... Well the weather is so great that it would be a crime to spend time onlineXD

Ooh boy, if I was able to get rid of all the memes pages I follow, I’d have so much free time on my hands. But also, I mean...memes.

As for social media, I wish I could deactivate my Facebook account. I really wish. But sadly, all the people I know irl are there. I have to stay there to keep in touch with them. We still share a lot of school stuff there, I’d be lost without it. But those are the only reasons I’m there, I never post on it anymore. I actually deleted most of my photos and old status updates and unfollowed most pages.

I’m going to repeat myself here but I’m so glad I got rid of Twitter. I loved it there, but at the same time, it fueled my negativity. Even when I found and muted or straight up unfollowed the biggest sources of it, I wasn’t happy. So I just stepped into the daylight and let it go and it was the best decision I could make. Even though now tumblr will probably have to deal with my random thoughts. I need to find a special tag for that. Not just “nonsims” or “saviorhide”. Maybe “simmeronnie is losing it again”.

whysimstho replied to your photoset “Isla Paradiso didn’t disappoint at all. It was everything I’ve ever...”

Skyporn 24/7 sounds like a radio station

Lmao you’re not wrong. Or it could be something like a stream where they only record videos of really really gorgeous sky. I’d watch that. Seriously, shut up and take my money. I could stare at pretty sky all day.

desira-sims replied to your post “List 5 facts about a favorite sim of yours, and send this to 10...”

I recently went back and started this legacy. (Just got to the Gen 5 switch). I think Rachel is absolutely adorable.

Ahh, no way! I hope you’re having fun even though it’s a total mess :D I have to agree though, I love Rachel, she’s awesome.

Watch out, tiny gen 4 rant coming. When I have nothing else to do and I feel inspired, I rewrite gen 4 because I love these characters and they deserve a way better story. I consider the stories they got in the legacy the first drafts/starting point/base or something like that. So in some way, most of this stays in the “new canon”, it’s just thought through better or changed a little bit.

Okay, that wasn’t really a rant but seriously, stop me whenever I seem like I’m about to start rambling about gen 4.

tiny-tany-thaanos replied to your post “List 5 facts about a favorite sim of yours, and send this to 10...”

Number 4 - high five, Zoey, same with me!XD

5 actually, too

Ah, yes, same. Number 4...oh god. Been there, sort of. Just because I’m crushing on a person doesn’t mean I imagine being with them in bed all the freaking time. *looks at a friend who loves to imply that...when I’m actually a small innocent child who only knows woohoo from the sims and I’m not ashamed to admit it*

whysimstho replied to your photoset “Regan: “Court! Finally! How was the flight?” Courtney: “Not bad. I...”

Why is her face so funny to me ��

Well, it is kinda funny :D

philodendronandfoxes replied to your post “So you’ve made posts in the past about how you’re lonely or feel alone...”

Anon needs to chill.

desira-sims replied to your post “So you’ve made posts in the past about how you’re lonely or feel alone...”

Don't let them get to you. Something I have learned as I've grown older: Hobbies come and go. One minute you'll find enjoyment in something and the next it doesn't hold the same appeal. Some times you'll come back to that hobby and some times you never pick it up again. Taking a break is something everyone needs. They even tell new parents to take a little "me time" so that they don't get overwhelmed. Taking a moment to collect yourself is understandable.

108sims replied to your post “So you’ve made posts in the past about how you’re lonely or feel alone...”

Taking breaks from tumblr is good for your sanity. I had to last month for the sake of my mental health I got stressed out falling behind here and dealing with job stuff. Just like for you with school, job takes priority over my blog. I’ve taken so many breaks, honestly it’s fun to enjoy other hobbies and do other things.

dandylion240 replied to your post “So you’ve made posts in the past about how you’re lonely or feel alone...”

RL should always take priority. Taking breaks and doing other things is healthy and good. Don't let this anon get to you or make you feel guilty.

tiny-tany-thaanos replied to your post “So you’ve made posts in the past about how you’re lonely or feel alone...”

Anon is strange - as if tumblr was the only life you've got and you have to stay here whenever you like it or not. Why read between the lines and find unexisting stuff there like you don't care about your followers? It comes without saying that a person needs breaks from the tumblr every now and then

But who knows probably the anon wanted only to provoke you to start our "favorite" drama. In this case they do need to find a life for themselves

Btw too - feeling lonely on tumblr also can be a reason for a hiatus, so anon makes no sense

So I kinda didn’t want to address this anymore because I feel like I’ve said everything in my lengthy answer to that ask but I just wanna say thank you for writing all of this. I didn’t feel bad when I got this, the anon didn’t change my opinion, I still believe everyone has the right to take a break, leave tumblr behind for a bit and not feel sorry about it. Take that me time and come back better than ever (or not if you don’t feel like, that’s fine too)! I was still worried about posting this answer though. So thank you for letting me know I’m not the only one who feels this way!

dandylion240 replied to your post “April 30, 2019: Dear Diary, I believe I’m a good person. You know, I...”

Congratulations and have fun with the last day! It'll be bittersweet knowing this may be the last time you'll all be together but it's exciting too because it marks a beginning of something new. So happy for you!

tiny-tany-thaanos replied to your post “April 30, 2019: Dear Diary, I believe I’m a good person. You know, I...”

Congratulations and welcome to the "adult" life! Let this day be one of the brightest moments in your memory!

Now I'm feeling nostalgic, I'll go and look through my graduation album

108sims replied to your post “April 30, 2019: Dear Diary, I believe I’m a good person. You know, I...”

That sounds like a really fun way to spend your last day! At my school at least we had a Senior day where there were a bunch of games and activities. Good luck on your exams, and I hope you enjoy your last day and everything that is to come!

It was very fun and everyone looked so good in their costumes! One of my classmates wore this 20s-like dress and oooh boy. She was gorgeous. Just...leaving on that day was really bittersweet. Part of me was like “yas, we’re done with this place!” but the other part of me already missed it. And yeah, our teacher didn’t forget to remind us that all of us might never meet again. There are reunions, it’s a tradition, but there’s always someone who can’t come.

Okay, moving on or else I’ll start crying, and I’ve already cried a lot today. Looking at you, GoT episode 4.

alfalfalegacy replied to your photoset “Regan: “You made it! Nice. I’ve heard you almost threw up on the...”

i'm laughing at the two couples in the background, both flirting during this conversation

Oh god I didn’t realize how funny that looks :D I didn’t want them to just stand there haha.

dandylion240 replied to your photo “In Character Judgement Call: Caleb Protect this soft boy. RULES: You...”

I Caleb the most from gen 4

I know this is just missing a word and I shouldn’t laugh but it comes off kinda funny. Still, thank you!

dandylion240 replied to your photoset “Felix: “You look perfect. No, no, you are perfect. Some girls are...”

Despite his ability to burp at inappropriate times Felix can say the sweetest things

No sweeter words have ever been spoken about my boy

Also no truer words have ever been spoken about my boy

108sims replied to your post “I’m waiting for my exam (still have like 2 hours) and I’m bored. I...”

Good luck!

nineyellowgirl replied to your post “I’m waiting for my exam (still have like 2 hours) and I’m bored. I...”

keeping fingers crossed :D

desira-sims replied to your post “I’m waiting for my exam (still have like 2 hours) and I’m bored. I...”

Good luck on you exam!

Thank you guys! The results should come on May 15th. Wish it was that day already. I think I did well, but I won’t be calm until I actually see it.

harmoniouspixels replied to your post “One day, I’ll have a nice tiny mods folder again. Today is not that...”

The TS4 community needs to come up with a Compressorizer like TS2 and TS3 has tbh

Yeah that would be nice. TS4 needs a lot of things in general though, to be fair.

tiny-tany-thaanos replied to your post “Hmm...”

Hm the thing I do plan something with berries and I need a spouse for my founder which I don't want to create myself... Sooo... Yeah, I could use a sim ��

flowerhoneysims replied to your post “Hmm...”

@simmeronnie But it‘s another kind of pink ☺️

Alright guys, I have an idea. Shoot me a message and we can talk about it! I’m down for this. Here’s just a brief description of everyone I can offer (in case someone else would like a sim and would like to know what they’re signing up for), we can talk more in depth in the messages later. I have one mean pink girl who loves robots, then this one that I’ve shown (she doesn’t have too much personality yet, but she hates her other sister and loves videogames), an agender person with pink skin, white hair and white eyes (loves animals and is the total opposite of their mean twinsister - and yet they’re still best friends somehow) and one pink boy with white eyes who just aged up into a child so I have no idea what he’s going to be like yet. I just remember he got the No Sense of Humor trait.

Can I have a wish though? If I send you one of these sims, would you please share with me the sim they end up with? I would love for them to get together in my game as well.

Side note, can you already tell my bpr is going to be a bigger mess than all my other legacies combined?

lyrea replied to your photoset “Okay, clearly he didn’t ruin all the traditions. Crisis averted.”

^_^ That is an impressive cake they got.

Oh, it is! I’m not sure now, but it might be the one that came with Monte Vista?

#replies #desira-sims #tiny-tany-thaanos #whysimstho #philodendronandfoxes #108sims #dandylion240 #alfalfalegacy #nineyellowgirl #harmoniouspixels #lyrea #flowerhoneysims

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liveanddiehappy · 6 years

Text

God Tier

* Endless Summer: Although the last book was short and ended suddenly, the series itself was a treasure. We had a badass MC, a complex plot, compelling love interests (each with their own cross to bear) and a diverse set of characters we all fell in love with.

* Bloodbound: Words cannot describe how amazing this book is. I love all the Love interests, MC is a strongwilled badass, and the plot itself is so easy to get sucked into. Plus, we all know vampires are classic and fun.

* It Lives: Last chapter was awful, I will admit, but even that monstrosity of our friends not mourning us cannot outshine all the times this story snatched our wigs. Not to mention, we got another badass MC (noticing a pattern with the god tiers?), very diverse group of friends, and even important issues such as bullying are covered.

* Perfect Match: PM wasn’t one of my favorites, but let me tell you why it still made God Tier: 1) For once, we can have more female LI than men...which is huge for choices. 2) There are what, 16 different personality types? It seems like each Hayden is unique which is fucking rad. 3) The plot twist at the end had us all shook. Fuck, the whole book had us shook when we realized it was full of action instead of being a robot romance like we expected! 4) BADASS MC.

Good Tier

* Veil of Secrets: I’m a sucker for murder mysteries. I love the plot of the book and how swiftly everything is moving alone. Also, I’m secretly hoping that MC is evil and behind everything and that’s why she’s being interrogated, cause wow that would be a plot twist-

* The Freshman: Not the whole series, but the actual Freshman books. They were actually pretty good and drama filled (and realistic college drama - not ‘oh this poorly dressed weirdo and his friend were ok with setting me on fire cause of this evil inner circle club). Plus MC had a personality and her own problems that didn’t pertain to her friends 24/7 which was nice. OH, also, remember how they used to give us different free outfits for different occasions? Good times.

* The Crown and the Flame: Medieval Fantasy with fearless, badass characters. Need I say more?

* America’s most Eligible: Everyone gets to be thirsty and evil/sweet/extra thirsty depending on what you choose....oh, and it seems like our choices actually matter, which is cool. Oh, and DOUBLE OH, we finally get the option to customize a female LI.

* The Haunting of Braidwood Manor: Unique story, troubled ghost family not knowing a single thing, and a MC who is brave and determined. Love it. Also, the music along with the mom makes me creeped out (in a good way).

Mid Tier

* The Royal Romance: I’m sorry. I love the love interests and MC is great, but I know we all can agree the repetitive plot line gets really old really quick. If I was queen and married already I’d probably place this series in the good tier. But I’m not so...

* Red Carpet Diaries: The only thing super memorable about this book is the one time they made Victoria abusive and then had to change it. I have fun playing it to waste time though.

* Love Hacks: The characters are adorable and it’s fun to play...but it’s also not the type of story that leaves you hanging and dying to know what happens next.

* Most Wanted: I’ll probably get lynched for this, but whatever. The idea of MW is fun, I love playing games where I’m the detective (like cause of death!) but honestly, I would’ve preferred It if we didn’t know the killer. It would’ve been cool to investigate and look at potential suspects and then interrogate them and all that.

* Hero: The more I played Hero, the more fun it was...but I feel like overall it was just an “okay” book. Fun to play, but also no big deal.

Bad Tier

* High School Story: Book 1 was enjoyable, but book 2 and (especially) 3 were so bad it outshined book 1. Also, I’m really pissed that we’re playing as a 14 year old in the new book, and I’m going to be SUPERFUCKINGPISSED if we get HSS4 instead of PM2 or BB2. I wish they’d create a new series instead of the same series with different characters...😒

* The Sophomore: At this point, we realized we were going to be playing until graduation. The book lost its ‘touch’ and instead became a dragged out mess.

* The Junior: They stopped giving a shit and just want us to graduate already.

Shit Tier

* Rules of Engagement: Ok, I know most of us already know why this book sucks, but let me explain it just in case someone is curious. To begin, MC has no personality. None. The LI for MC are bland and also, ALL MALE. I liked the idea we could name all the characters, but I didn’t even use that feature and gave everyone the default names. 😂 Brother and Party Sister were the most fun to play as, but unfortunately MC was...well, the MC lol and we were stuck with her. Plus the grandma did Violet dirty which was shitty. OH AND WHO THE FUCK FORGIVES AN ATTEMPTED MURDER ATTEMPT? APPARENTLY MC!

* Home for the Holidays: Why did this book have 10 chapters and go past Xmas while THOBM had only 6? What the hell was PB thinking? Anyways, this book is fun to play if you want to make MC a dumb asshole, but if you’re expecting a good read this isn’t the place to go lol

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fanders-fic-awards · 6 years

Text

The Road Trip (SFC Submission)

Summary: A group of four friends travel across the country to see the Grand Canyon

Warnings: A car accident, self-deprecating speech, death mentions

WC: 3185

Vote

The old Honda Civic quietly drove down the rural highway, making its way through rural America. At the wheel sat Virgil, his hands carefully gripped in the correct position, his breathing focused and calm, his eyes attentive to the road ahead, despite no one else around. Next to him, in the passenger seat, sat the bookish Logan, his eyes darting between road maps, guidebooks, and hand-scribbled calculations, determined to pack as much fun and enjoyment into the road trip as he could. The back seats were occupied by Roman, a princely sports type who was enjoying the late morning sun as he daydreamed into another dimension, and Patton, the dad-friend who was more than content playing 'I Spy' by himself.

" I think I have it this time," announced Logan, finally tearing himself away from the papers.

"Well don't keep me in suspense, Specs," replied Virgil, teasing him with a nickname only they could get away with. "What do you have this time?"

Pushing his glasses up his nose, a sign he was about to go full nerd mode, he began "Taking into account Patton's habit of running off, and Roman's partially weak bladder-"

"Hey!" cried Roman from the back. "It is not weak, it's just..."

"Pissy?" offered Virgil.

"Shut it, Joke Colburn."

"Driving Miss Daisy reference? Good job."

"Thanks, I've been thinking of that one for a month now."

"Delicate?" asked Patton.

"Pardon, my young friend?"

"Would you describe your bladder as 'delicate?"

"Not entirely. More-"

"Temperamental."

"Yes, Logan. Temperamental."

"Back on track, because of those things mentioned, if we allow 7 minutes at the following rest stops, we should still be able to hit every tourist point along the way, collecting the necessary souvenirs and photographs, and still make it to the Grand Canyon at a reasonable time."

"Alright," agreed Virgil. "And when is the next rest stop?"

"In 26.7 miles."

"But the sign up ahead says half a mile?"

"We can't stop at that one. We have a schedule that i literally just finished creating."

"Well, I just finished 'creating' something of my own, and I need to use a bathroom."

"Is it a poem?" asked Patton.

"You are just to adorable for words, you know that right?"

"I get that a lot."

"We can't stop, Virgil. I just made a schedule. It took me 17 minutes to do so."

"And think of all the fun you're going to have creating a new one," Virgil said, pulling in to the rest stop.

"Just because you're correct doesn't make you right, you know?"

The stop did not take as long as Logan had predicted, mostly due to his mission to follow Patton around everywhere he wandered whilst Virgil gathered supplies and used the facilities. Soon enough, they were ready to get back on the road again.

"Are you sure you don't want someone else to drive, Virge?" asked Logan.

"I'm good. I think I need to do this myself... to help, ya know?"

"Understandable. Please let us know if you want to swap."

"Oooo, I call shotgun this time!" cried Patton, running full force at the car.

"Wha-Shotgun?!" Roman retorted dramatically.

"I believe it is," Logan began, rifling through his little black notebook of idioms, "'the act of reserving the front seat of a car. An action that can only be taken when the vehicle is in sight.'"

"I know what it means, I just thought that I could possibly sit up front this time."

"Maybe next time, Knight Watch," chuckled Virgil. "C'mon, we better get a move on before Logan blows a fuse."

With that, they all piled into the car and pulled back on to the road.

The sun rose high into the sky as the group continued across the country, commenting and making jokes about the places and monuments they passed along the way. Even Virgil was cracking half a smile as they drove, his anxiety slowly fading into the back of his mind. It wasn't until around two in the afternoon that Patton finally cried out in delight "WAFFLES!!"

"What?!" yelled Logan, jolted from a nap he was enjoying in the warm sunlight.

"Waffles! Dead ahead! They have a Waffle Hut out here!"

He pointed to the large brown and yellow building approaching them, with a large sign outside reading "Waffle Hut, Come get some Breakfast 24/7"

"Well, I am famished at this point," admitted Roman, stretching his neck. "The snacks are delicious but nothing quite fills you like a good hearty meal."

"What do you decree, oh Lord of the Time Schedule?" Virgil jested.

"I guess... It would be a good opportunity to stretch the legs, as well as eat a proper meal."

"Yaaaay~!" squealed Patton, who was bouncing up and down in his seat.

"Hey, Patton. What did the Pancake say to the Waffle?" asked Virgil, pulling into the parking lot.

"Ooo, this sounds like a good one. What?"

"Nice abs."

"Oh my god... That was so adorable, I love it kiddo!"

"Knew you would."

Parking the car, they made their way inside, choosing a booth by the window and made their orders. Virgil went to use the bathroom, feeling the need to clean himself up a little. He looked at himself in the mirror after splashing his face with water. The bags under his eyes from the lack of sleep, the mess he called a hairstyle, not to mention the small, almost invisible scars, littering his face where the auto glass had sprayed him. He felt his heart begin to race, his palms becoming clammy, and his chest tightened.

"In... Hold... Out," he whispered to himself, trying to breathe that all too familiar pattern.

"Are you doing okay?" asked Logan, who was now standing behind him. Virgil didn't even hear him come in he was so distracted.

"Yeah... I guess..." he sighed. "Just another attack, nothing to fear."

"You're doing fine. Are you remembering to breathe?"

"Until I need to die," he said with a dry chuckle.

"Come on, the food is ready."

They walked out of the bathroom, joining their friends at the booth. In front of each of them sat their respective meals. Patton had a plate of waffles drenched in three kinds of syrup ,and a coffee mug filled with what was most likely orange juice. Roman was enjoying a couple of Sunny Side-up eggs with bacon, hash browns, and a waffle, in between sips of his Very Berry smoothie. Logan chose to eat a simple fruit salad, with an added waffle at Patton's insistence, and carefully sipped his green tea whilst studying the maps ahead of them. Virgil smirked as he drank his black coffee, and took uneven bites of his single plain pancake, knowing it was making Patton all the more upset he wasn't eating a waffle like the rest of them.

Bites of food, bits of time, slowly they finished their plates, making very minimal small talk between then, and soon enough they were on the road again. The sun was hanging low in the sky as they crossed the state border into Arizona, meaning they were only a few hours away from their final destination.

" We should probably stop soon," stated Logan, carefully tracing the roads on the map with his fingertip.

"I'm fine for a couple of hours," replied Virgil, keeping his eyes on the road ahead of them. "I want to get us as close as we can, so we don't have to wake up too early."

"I have to agree with Dark Luigi over here," affirmed Roman from the passenger seat. "I'm not really up for waking up too early."

"Luigi?"

"You're not the main character, but you are very important nonetheless, and you have a very mean stare."

"Who am I, in this equation?" asked Logan, finally lifting his head from his works.

"Iggy Kooper, of course."

"I'm a Kooper?!"

"You're the smartest Kooper," Virgil tried to reason. "I mean, who can create such fantastic creations than the most intellectual character in the game?"

"And let me guess, Roman. You're Mario?"

"Of course not! I'm Bowser." The car fell silent. "What? What is it?!"

"No, you're right..." Virgil muttered. "I mean, he has a castle, an army."

"A love for princesses?" added Patton.

"But isn't he... a bad guy?" questioned Logan.

"Preposterous and nonsense, that's just the media portraying him as such." Roman turned to Virgil, with pleading eyes. "Right...?"

"Well... I mean..."

"Why would you invite someone to drive go karts if they weren't a good guy and a friend?" interrupted Patton with a smile. "Bowser has to be a great guy, and it suits you, kiddo!"

"Thanks Patton."

"But, then who is Mario?" asked Virgil.

"I am not quite sure, I haven't had much time to think about it."

"Can I be Toad?!" squealed Patton, excitedly.

"Of course you can," Virgil said, turning his head to smile. "I'd think no one else could be a more perfect-

"Watch out!!" screamed Logan, pointing to the front.

In an instant, Virgil spun forwards to see the blinding headlights of the oncoming semi trailer. In the brief time he stopped paying attention, the car had drifted to the left into traffic. His heart sped faster as his mind flashed back to that fateful night.

HNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNK

The truck blasted its horn, trying to swerve out of the way. In an instant, he jerked his hands to the right, pulling the car back to their side of the road, and all the way into the gravel off-bank. Virgil's breathing was short, rapid. He could feel his heart race in his chest, almost begging to smash through his ribs and run away. All he could feel was the phantom pain of that night... of the car accident. He almost jumped when he felt Roman softly touch his hand on the steering wheel, and he realised how tightly he was gripping it.

"Virgil... It's okay." Roman tried to remain calm, to be a pillar of support. "It's all okay now. Can you do the breathing exercise that Logan showed you?"

"I... don't...know..." he replied between quick shots of air.

"Just in your own time, friend..."

Virgil lifted his hand from the wheel, parking the car properly, before turning off the key. Closing his eyes, he began to focus on his breathing. Long breaths, returning oxygen to his lungs, to his body. When his heart rate felt normal again, he opened his eyes.

"Are you okay?" Roman asked.

"I think so."

"There's a gas station up ahead," Logan added quietly. "We can stop in there and ask for directions to a motel."

" 'Kay."

"You going to be okay to drive?" asked Roman again. "Do you want someone else to take over?"

"I should be... I'm okay. I just need to get there."

Pulling in to the gas station, Virgil quickly ran for the restrooms, making it just in time to lose his lunch into the sink. Wiping away the residue from his mouth, his eyes met in the mirror, and tears began to form.

"I hate you so much," he whispered to himself. "Why are you like this? Why are you so useless?"

"It's probably not a good idea to talk to mirrors like that," chimed Patton, who had somehow snuck up behind him, causing him to jump. "It reflects badly on you."

"Patton, I..." Virgil tried to yell, but the tears kept flowing. "I'm scared..."

"Hey... Hey, kiddo..." Patton wrapped his arms around him, holding him close. "It's going to be okay, we're here for you. You're strong, but it's okay to be afraid sometimes."

"Thanks..." he mumbled in reply.

"C'mon, we better not keep them waiting," Patton said, giving him one final squeeze.

Walking out of the bathroom, Virgil turned to Patton, and said "I'm just going to grab a drink. I'll be in the car soon."

"All good. Can you ask for directions for the motel as well? I was meant to do that, but I kinda got sidetracked."

"Yeah, sure..."

After a few minutes, Virgil climbed back into the driver's seat of the car, switching it back on.

"You right to do this?" asked Roman, still in the passenger seat.

"Yeah, I'm feeling better now. The guy says there is a motel a few miles up, not too far off the highway."

"A good night's rest will make us feel better," Logan said with a smile.

At the motel, they all booked in to one room to save on costs. Roman and Logan took the queen sized bed, Patton chose the smaller bed next to it, and Virgil said he was happy on the couch.

"Are you sure, Virge?" asked Logan, preparing his nightly routines.

"Yeah, I'll be fine. I can sleep anywhere. You have a bad back, and Princey doesn't... do less than a queen."

"I heard that, Valentino Gothy!" called Roman from the bathroom.

"I'm not even a speedy driver!"

"Don't care, it's funny!"

"Anyways," Virgil said, turning back to Logan. "I'll set an alarm for us. What time is sunrise?"

"A little after 6, I think."

"So if I set it for about 4, we should have time to get there and do the hike."

"More than likely."

"Great... Well, goodnight guys."

"Night Virge," smiled Logan.

"Night kiddo," whispered Patton from his pillow fort.

"Goodnight my favourite black knight," sung Roman as he exited the bathroom.

Virgil didn't feel tired, but as soon as his head hit the pillow, he was out like a light. His dreams were filled with car accidents and fire, of broken glass and gasoline. He could feel the stabbing pain, smell the metal, taste blood... but for the life of him, he couldn't remember where he was. He could hear yelling, but the smoke was too thick. Waking with a startle, he could feel the cold sweat drip down his forehead. Reaching for his phone, he saw it was a little after midnight. He looked over to his friends, to see they were all still fast asleep, Patton having moved from his bed to lay across the other two. Virgil chuckled softly, laying his head back down and trying to sleep again.

Virgil's alarm woke him on time, and he was pleasantly surprised that the others were ready and waiting for him. Soon enough they had the car packed again and were on the road to their final destination. The car was silent, the group preferring the sounds of the road than the early morning radio, and each were distracted with their own things. In no time, they found themselves in the parking lot outside of Grand Canyon National Park. Virgil carefully parked the car, and smiled at his companions.

"We made it, guys," he said in a tired voice.

"Not entirely," Logan disagreed. "We still have a hike up the trail."

"And we should make haste if we wish to beat the sunrise," Roman added, checking his watch.

"Are you gonna make it, kiddo?" asked Patton as they piled out of the car.

"What, the leg?" Virgil patted his right leg reassuringly. "Patton, I've been fine for months. I barely limp. And I refuse to be left behind by you guys."

"We're here to help. You just need to ask."

"I'm sure I can do this."

Up the path they marched, Roman taking the lead as their gallant protector, and Virgil bringing up the rear to protect them from spiders, or as Patton called them, "Creepy Crawly Death Dealers". When they reached the halfway marker, Virgil could feel his leg ache, but his determination powered him forward.

"This trip isn't for me..." he whispered to himself. "It's for them..."

Cresting the top of the path, they were elated to find themselves in the open area overlooking the Grand Canyon. At long last, they had finally reached their goal. Virgil, in a spurt of uncharacteristic overwhelming joy, ran forwards to marvel at how far they had come together. It was glorious, a marvel, and he had made it there.

"Guys, this is... this is spectacular. We made it here... after long last, we did it," he said, tears of joy in his eyes.

"Yeah... we did, kiddo," Patton said from behind him, unusually sad sounding.

"But now it's time for you to let it go..." Roman added in a sombre tone.

"What? What are you guys..." Virgil turned to his friends, and he could feel a knot growing in his stomach. He could see them standing there, in the early morning light of the sunrise, but their bodies were translucent and glowing. Virgil forced a smile, and asked "What is this? How are you doing that?"

"Virgil... You need to accept what happened," Logan whispered, taking a step forward. "You need to forgive yourself and let us go."

"No... No!" Tears rolled down his face as he screamed at them. "No! This isn't real! It didn't happen!"

But in his mind, he knew it did. He knew that that faithful road trip they took two years ago had happened, that he had fallen asleep at the wheel because he was too stubborn to accept help. The car drifted across the lanes and into an oncoming semi trailer, collecting them all. Virgil was the only one to make it out alive.

"Please... Please don't make me do this..." he begged, tears streaming down his face.

"We can't make you do anything, Virge," Logan said. "We can only try to guide you. It was you who wanted to make this trip, to finally lay us to rest."

"And we appreciate that to no end, my..." Roman began to choke up. "My beautiful dark prince. We appreciate you honouring us in this way."

"But... how can I go on without you?" He reached into his pocket, fishing out the last physical memories he had of them. "How can I do this without them?"

In his hand lay three hand sewn patches, a gift to the group by Roman himself; the heart, the brain, the coat of arms. Each one representing a fallen friend, each one a dear memory.

"You can do it, because you're stronger than you realise," Patton said in a comforting tone. "We believed in you. Now you need to believe in yourself."

"I'm trying. I’m trying all the time, but it’s just too hard."

"No one ever said this was an easy task," Logan reasoned. "But in time, it will become less painful."

Virgil turned and walked towards the safety railing, placing a single hand on it, before turning back to the ghosts of his friends. "Please... let me come with you. I don't want to be alone."

"We... don't wish that for you, Virgil." Roman took a step forward next to Logan. "Please, you are our friend. Live on in the most extravagant way possible."

"But..."

"No 'buts', kiddo." Patton said, joining them. "Deep breath, hold, and then... release."

Virgil turned towards the canyon, the sun halfway up the horizon now. Closing his eyes, he filled his lungs with the fresh air of early morning, savouring the feeling, before letting it all go.

@wandering-scarecrow

#fandersficawards #springcomp #ent

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aphroditeurl · 6 years

Note

If I'm doing all the asks then so are you.

>.> fineeee

1. If you didn’t have to sleep, what would you do with the extra time?

Play video games, I’m not gonna lie about that.

2. What’s your favourite piece of clothing you own/owned?

I have a black dress I bought for myself a couple years ago that makes me look like a badass Bond villain. And I look sexy as all hell in it.

3. What hobby would you get into if time and money weren’t an issue?

I want to make custom dolls idk

4. What would your perfect room look like?

PINK i’m a fucking girly girl

5. How often do you play sports?

Never...I am not into sports. Watching others though is fun

6. What fictional place would you most like to go?

Diagon Alley

7. What job would you be terrible at?

Anything involving math. So I would make an awful accountant.

8. If you could turn any activity into an Olympic sport, what would you have a good chance at winning medal for?

Being sick apparently...nah I’m pretty good at graphic design I think

9. When was the last time you climbed a tree?

I am afraid of heights so never

10. What is the most annoying habit other people have?

loud chewing, I will want to murder you I Promise

11. What job do you think you’d be good at?

Anything with animals, I have a passion for them

12. What skill would you like to master?

A different language. Being bi-lingual would be cool. I hate English.

13. What would be the most amazing adventure to go on?

Oh fuck I want to travel. Even to places considered “dangerous”. I want to go everywhere, I have A NEED. I’m a sucker for those exploration videos on youtube.

14. If you had unlimited funds to build a house that you would live in for the rest of your life, what would the finished house look like?

Firstly it would be a beach house because I love water and beaches. Secondly, it’d have at least four bedrooms, maybe six. And a full sized basement. I want it to look Magical As Fuck. For reasons. There will be an aquarium in it.

15. What’s your favourite drink?

Coke. The drink.

16. What state or country do you never want to go back to?

I miss Michigan a lot. I loved it there.

17. What songs have you completely memorized?

A lot?? too vague

18. What game or movie universe would you most like to live in?

STARDEW VALLEY. Sustainable farming is sexy.

19. What do you consider to be your best friend?

@sedris-the-meme-king

20. Are you usually early or late?

Early. Like twenty minutes early. Anxiety fuels me.

21. What pets did you have while you were growing up?

A lot of cats, a few dogs, hamsters, and a couple bunnies. I love animals.

22. When people come to you for help, what do they usually want help with?

Relationship advice

23. What takes up too much of your time?

Depression

24. What do you wish you knew more about?

Space law. Which is weird. The concept of space really scares me but it’s also a little fascinating.

25. What would be your first question after waking up from being cryogenically frozen for 100 years?

“is my cat ok?”

26. What are some small things that make your day better?

Getting random texts from ppl.

27. Who’s your go to band or artist when you cannot decide on something to listen to?

Rihanna or Halsey

28. What’s the best way to start the day?

By sleeping in a little longer

29. What shows are you into?

Anything that’s paranormal, pretty much anything on TLC, Gordon Ramsey is Good

30. Who has impressed you most with what they’ve accomplished?

@floating-in-the-dark for being a good bean

31. What age do you wish you could permanently be?

18. That was a fun age dude.

32. What TV show or movie do you refuse to watch?

13 Reasons Why, Game of Thrones, I’m petty

33. What would be your ideal way to spent the weekend?

Video games, ice cream, kissing, things of that nature, maybe going to the movies, exploring a haunted abandoned hospital, casual things you know

34. What is something that is considered a luxury, but you don’t think you could live without?

My phone

35. What’s your claim to fame?

Idk what this means???

36. What’s something you like to do the old-fashioned way?

Dating. I’m sort of a cliche geek ok.

37. What’s your favourite genre of book or movie?

Horror for movie and fantasy for books

38. What have you only recently formed an opinion about?

God phoning. Non-pagans won’t get this.

39. What’s the best single day on the calendar?

The first of every month because it feels sorta refreshing

40. What are you interested in that most people haven’t heard of?

Sexual education

that’s a joke but I am also serious

41. How do you relax after a hard day of work?

I watch youtube videos and play some games, or RP

42. What was the best book or series that you’ve ever read?

The Maze Runner. Sorta corny but it was enjoyable.

43. What’s the farthest you’ve ever been from home?

California. 10/10 would go back.

44. What is the most heartwarming thing you’ve ever seen?

“I would blink” out of context this makes no sense but it meant a lot to me in context

45. What is the most annoying question people ask you?

“Are you SURE you’re __ age?” I am small, I sound 12, but yes I promise I AM TWENTY

46. What could you give a 30-minute presentation on with absolutely no preparation?

Harry Potter at any given moment. Esp Draco Malfoy.

47. What is something you think everyone should do at least once in their lives?

Tbh??? Move away to a completely new place that you have no connections in. That sounds crazy stupid but really, it was the best choice I ever made.

48. Would you rather go hang gliding or whitewater rafting?

Whitewater rafting

49. What’s your dream car?

1967 Thunderbird bitches

50. What’s worth spending more on to get the best?

Make-up, and bath stuff

51. What is something that a ton of people are obsessed with but you just don’t get the point of?

Game of Thrones lmao

52. What are you most looking forward to in the next 10 years?

School. I can’t wait to start college in the fall.

53. Where is the most interesting place you’ve been?

UP Michigan

54. What’s something you’ve been meaning to try but just haven’t gotten around to it?

There are lot of ways to answer this.

I want to try a ghost pepper lmao

55. What’s the best thing that happened to you last week?

I started talking to someone really sweet

56. What piece of entertainment do you wish you could erase from your mind so that you could experience for the first time again?

Undertale tbh

57. If all jobs had the same pay and hours, what job would you like to have?

I’d work at a graveyard no joke

58. What amazing thing did you do that no one was around to see?

Absolutely nothing my dudes

59. How different was your life one year ago?

Extremely different and I sorta miss it

60. What quirks do you have?

I wiggle my mouth from side to side when I am in thought, I tend to rub my nose randomly, I walk on the balls of my feet

61. What would you rate 10/10?

@funkypanda

62. What fad or trend do you hope comes back?

I!! Want!! 90s!! Fashion!! Back!!

63. What’s the most interesting piece of art you’ve seen?

anything @floating-in-the-dark has done

64. What kind of art do you enjoy most?

See above answer

65. What do you hope never changes?

Most of my friendships

66. What city would you most like to live in?

Londonnnnn

67. What movie title best describes your life?

The Boss Baby

68. What did you decide to do the work you are doing now?

Huh????

69. What’s the best way a person can spend their time?

Being kind to others

70. If you suddenly became a master at woodworking, what would you make?

Some really weird shit dude

71. Where is the most relaxing place you’ve ever been?

UP Michigan lol

72. What is the luckiest thing that has happened to you?

Meeting my best friend

73. Where would you rather be from?

Canada

74. What are some things you’ve had to unlearn?

My temper, some bad habits that were formed from anxiety

75. What are you looking forward to in the coming months?

School, getting a puppy, summer

76. What website do you usually go on when you have time off?

Tumblrr

77. Where would you spend all your time if you could?

Japannnnn or South Korea

78. What is special about the place you grew up?

Everyone was a community. We all supported each other.

79. What age do you want to live to?

100+ cause I fear death a lot

80. What are you most likely to become famous for?

The Biggest Baby Award

81. What are you absolutely determined to do?

Finish school and become a zoologist cause that’s the dream

82. What is the most impressive thing you know how to do?

I can code and shit????? idk

83. What do you wish you knew more about?

Space law

84. What question would you most like to know the answer to?

“will I ever be successful at anything”

#THIS TOOK ME A LONG ASS TIME SO YOU BETTER READ ALL OF THE ANSWERS #funkypanda

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littlenancydrewthings · 7 years

Text

#cluecrewquestionnaire

No one tagged me but I want to do it sooooo

rules: copy and paste, answer the questions, tag 10 people to do the same!

1. What is your favorite Nancy Drew game and why?

ASH 5ever, for reasons I’ve already subjected you to endless gushing about over the years. SHA, because I’m from/in soulmates with the Southwest (the same part of Arizona, actually) and the game captures it perfectly, and is perfect in every other way. MHM, because you can’t beat a quintessential haunted Victorian, and for nostalgia reasons mentioned below.

2. Have you played all 32 games in the series? If not, which ones haven’t you played? If yes, which one did you play first?

All except the original Secrets Can Kill. My first was MHM in 2001. I’d read some of the books, and I’ve always been intensely obsessed with ghosts and mysteries in general, so the title and cover caught my eye at the store. The screenshots in the fold-out cover with their eerie captions captured my imagination. After that it was all I could think about. I talked about it every day for weeks, until eventually I came home from playing and found it sitting on my bed. We couldn’t afford it and I didn’t really expect to get it, so I was beyond excited. Playing in the dark that night was magical. Now I hunt ghosts in Gettysburg with access to an endless supply of haunted houses, but the Golden Gardenia is my favorite.

3. What is your favorite quote from any character in the series?

“It’ll be brief, painful, and full of garbage, but that’s life, isn’t it?” “It’s good to know you’re keeping the mean streets of Pancake City free from crime!” Everything Alexei says.

4. If you could change the ending to any game, which one would it be (no spoilers, though)?

The Silent Spy would have a satisfying ending that did justice to the deep and complex story it had up until then, instead of the rushed, haphazard nonsense we got.

5. Which game is your least favorite, and why?

MED is possibly the absolute worst, for too many reasons to unpack in a paragraph.

6. Which character is your favorite? Why?

do I even need to say it

7. Which character is your least favorite? Why?

Rick Arlen and Tino Balducci. I’ve had to deal with so many of that brand of sleazebag in real life, they make my blood boil. Not in a good way, like how Toni Scallari and Brenda Carlton are entertaining to interact with while being horribly repugnant.

8. How do you feel about the whole Nancy/Ned vs. Nancy/Frank situation? Do you ship her with someone else? Who, and why?

I don’t think Nancy is particularly interested in either of them, or in settling down at all. To be honest, I like the idea of Nancy casually hooking up with hot people she meets on cases, then dashing. I’m especially fond of the idea of her and Zoe having an ongoing rivals-with-benefits thing.

9. Do you have any fun headcanons about any of the games or characters?

Until we met him in person, I used to headcanon that the reason we could never quite catch up with Sonny Joon was because he was on the space station. Jamila blogs about classic sci-fi. My crack headcanon about Alexei being a serial killer is a running joke among my entire household. And in my mind, practically every character is queer.

10. If you could visit any of the game locations, which ones and why?

Japan is my #1 travel goal, so the Ryokan Hiei would be first. I would love to be in Nancy’s shoes when there are no other guests left and she has the whole place to herself. Iceland is my #2 travel goal. I’d own the Golden Gardenia, because it ticks every box on my ultimate fantasy home checklist. I'd spend a couple days at Thornton Hall with my ghost hunting squad. I’d deliberately book a room at Wickford Castle when there was a snowstorm forecast, and do exactly what you do in the game. Shadow Ranch, because out in the middle of the Southwest desert is my place. Alexei’s shop, where we would complain for hours while I bought everything in sight.

11. Did you read any of the original Nancy Drew books? If yes, do you like them? If no, would you consider reading one?

Yeah, I started reading them shortly before I discovered the games. They have that old-fashioned charm, and I enjoy the detailed descriptions of Nancy’s outfits and Hannah’s meals. But they’re also super formulaic and frequently racist. Most of my favorite books are more recent. I particularly love Lights, Camera... and the sequel Action! They’re begging to be adapted for a game.

12. What is one thing any good detective can’t live without?

I’m gonna copy and paste what @nancydrewcomplex said, because it’s on point... “A smartphone for taking notes, allowing friends to find your location when you are inevitably kidnapped or entombed, social media stalking your suspects, some quick research, and most importantly the camera for swiftly taking pictures of evidence and journal pages and things you otherwise can’t risk taking the time to read at that very moment.”

13. Which game had the best soundtrack?

CLK’s use of the 1930s sound is 👌👌👌 FIN's music couldn’t be more perfect for a darkened historic theater. It’s mysterious, magical and haunting, like remnants of the music that played in the theater during its 1910s heyday. I love how CAR has carousel music not just on the ride itself, but worked into the many of the songs. Sometimes it’s creepy, sometimes dreamy, like the ballroom theme, which evokes ghostly ladies and gentlemen waltzing around the haunted house that was once the Galaxy Ballroom. And of course, MHM’s soundtrack is a classic. It captures the feeling that the mansion is an isolated bubble of its own history and secrets, unconcerned with the world passing by outside. I love that each room has its own theme, like characters, from the eerily faded saloon music in the basement to the Chinese room to the dark, forgotten sound of the attic.

14. What is one thing you wish HER would’ve included in any of the games (a conversation, interaction, location, feature, etc)?

More recurring characters. So many of them are way too great to only use once. Also more background on everyone. A big part of the reason I love Alexei so much is that he’s one of the few characters we get extensive background details on.

15. Do you have any ideas for a future game? What is it?

Tons! I’ve posted a couple, with plans for many more.

16. How long does it take you to finish a game from start to finish?

Depending on how many times I’ve played it, anywhere from two to eight hours. Hard to fathom now that my first playthrough of MHM took months. I didn’t yet have the internet to find a walkthrough and would put it aside for awhile when I got really stuck.

17. Did any of the games scare you? If yes, which ones? If no, why?

My first time playing MHM, the “I see you” on the stairs scared me so bad that I never used those stairs again, I took the creaky ones every time. The dog attack in Ghost Dogs scared me to death as a kid. Being outside when the howling started and Red saying “get back in the house” was super effective. It’s hard to scare me anymore, yet I dread going near the burned out ruins in GTH. The bad vibes are so oppressive it’s like static electricity.

18. Why did you join the Nancy Drew fandom here on tumblr?

I didn’t know there was one when I started this blog. I’d seen other “_______ things” blogs and kept thinking of Nancy Drew things. I doubted there were any other serious fans, let alone adults, but figured I’d make the blog anyway if only for my own enjoyment. I was thrilled to hit 20 followers. I was totally blindsided by how fast it took off. I’m continuously grateful and amazed by how good my experience of this fandom has been.

19. What is your favorite Nancy Drew joke (from in-game or even floating around the internet)?

I get a kick out of how SPY is the Ascended Meme game. I did not expect how feelsy they managed to make the horse shirt.

20. Who is someone in the clue crew you’ve always wanted to get to know?

Everyone I used to follow has left :’(

21. What are three unpopular opinions you hold about the games?

Ned is annoying and bland af. I don’t mind Fox and Geese. I’m okay with Nancy getting a new voice actress (not that we’ll ever hear her).

22. Do you have any fun theories about any of the games?

I know the dates don’t line up, but I love the theory about Lizzie Applegate and Diego Valdez being Frances and Dirk under new identities. The prop lady is Nancy as an old lady, which is why the prop room is full of souvenirs from her cases. Aunt Eloise writes about Nancy’s adventures under the pen name Carolyn Keene, hence the box of yellow-spined books in her house.

23. Who was your favorite animal character featured in the games?

Iggy with his tiny outfits >w<

24. Do other people in your life know about your love for Nancy Drew?

To know me is to know about it. It’s too important to keep on the DL. And I’ve gotten all my siblings and even an in-law into it, so no one’s judging.

25. How long have you been playing these games?

Since 2001, when I was nine.

Anyone who wants to do this, consider yourself tagged!

#nancy drew #cluecrewquestionnaire #personal

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fraddit · 7 years

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autumn tag game🍁🍁

Tagged by @milanima Thank you! I feel so popular today!

The last:

1. drink : water

2. phone call: my sister

3. text message: forwarded an anti-capitalist tumblr post to my husband

4. song you listened to: Mazzy Star – Look on Down From the Bridge (currently playing)

5. time you cried: uhhh... *thinks* Wednesday morning?

6. dated someone twice: nope

7. kissed someone and regretted it: I guess? Kinda? Meh, not really. I mean in hindsight the dude sucked but, whatever.

8. been cheated on: no

9. lost someone special: Yes, actually my cousin died a few years ago and his birthday is tomorrow and he died a week after that. So it’s on my mind this time of year.

10. been depressed: I currently am and have been a lot, but I’m seeing a professional now!

11. got drunk and thrown up: nope

3 favorite colours

12. Gray

13. dark gray

14. light gray

in the last year have you

15. made new friends: I’m sure trying to! Gosh I’m so bad at tumblr…

16. fallen out of love: no

17. laughed until you cried: It’s a weekly goal

18. found out someone was talking about you: I have no idea

19. met someone who changed you: ummm, maybe?

20. found out who your friends are: I already knew

21. kissed someone on your Facebook list: Does my husband count?

general

22. how many of your Facebook friends do you know in real life: Most of them

23. do you have any pets: No pets currently. My cat passed away recently.

24. do you want to change your name: I love my name.

25. what did you do for your last birthday: Um, probably nothing? Did we go to a restaurant I like? Maybe that was last year? No idea.

26. what time did you wake up: Sometime around 7 or so

27. what were you doing at midnight last night: Scrolling tumblr to read all the reactions to THE EPISODE of Once

28. name something you can’t wait for: My kneejerk, joke response was “death.” For real… I’m hoping to finish a manip I’ve been working on soon.

29. when was the last time you saw your mum: Uhhh… *thinks* was it like a month ago? No idea.

31. what are you listening to right now: Now the song that’s playing is Massive Attack - Teardrop

32. have you ever talked to a person named tom: My dad’s name is Tom, so yes.

33. something that is getting on your nerves: Uhhh, my depression? My adhd? The current state of the world?

34. most visited website: Tumblr, tumblr, and more tumblr (I have a problem)

35. hair colour: brown

36. long or short hair: buzzed

37. do you have a crush on someone: Does Colin O’Donoghue count?

38. what do you like about yourself: Haha, nothing. That was a joke. Uhmmm, sense of humor? Intelligence?

39. piercings: 11 on my ears

40. blood type: I honestly don’t know

41. nickname: none

42. relationship status: married

43. zodiac: cancer

44. pronouns: She/Her

45. favourite tv show: To watch, that’s currently running? Probably Brooklyn Nine-Nine for actual enjoyment, but I spend 98% of my time thinking about Once Upon a Time.

46. tattoos: none

47. right or left handed: right

(did you notice that number 30 is missing? If you did, kudos! PM me and I’ll humorously predict your future😄) - I didn’t notice

first

48. surgery: 11 baby teeth removed in middle school because they didn’t fall out on their own

49. piercing: I got my ears pierced in second grade, I think? So like 7.

50. sport: To play? I’ve never really played a sport. Just like gym class stuff.

51. vacation: Disneyland when I was 4

52. pair of trainers: Who actually knows the answer to this?

more general

53. eating: nothing

54. drinking: nothing

55. i’m about to: work on my manip instead of homework

56. waiting for: the will to do homework instead of anything else

57. want: for my manip to look super fucking awesome

58. get married: already am

59. career: I don’t have one. I’d like to write for a living, novels or shows or something, I think.

which is better

60. hugs or kisses: hugs

61. lips or eyes: eyes

62. shorter or taller: taller

63. older or younger: are these for romantic partners or what? My husband is only a few months older than me. I don’t have a preference.

64. nice arms or nice stomach: Yes?

65. hook up or relationship: relationship

66. troublemaker or hesitant: hesitant troublemaker

have you ever

67. kissed a stranger: nope

68. drank hard liquor: just sips for tastings

69. lost glasses/contact lenses: no

70. turned someone down: yes

71. sex on the first date: never did

72. broken someone’s heart: yeah

73. had your heart broken: yeah

74. been arrested: no

75. cried when someone died: both real and fictional

76. fallen for a friend: yes, and now we’re married

do you believe in

77. yourself: hahaha… no. But I’m trying to work on that.

78. miracles: no

79. love at first sight: no

80. santa claus: no

81. kiss on the first date: go for it? This question is weirdly categorized…

82. angels: no

other

83. current best friend’s name: I’ve got a few lifelong friends. They’re not going anywhere.

84. eye colour: Green with brown around the pupils

85. favourite movie: I always say Raiders of the Lost Ark

This thing is a beast, so I’m tagging anyone who actually read this to the end. Tag me if you do it.

#long post #tag games #shut up fraddit

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sophiescarlet · 7 years

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My reviews of all the Nancy Drew games

I was writing this up for a friend who’s just getting started on the games, but here you all go. My favorites are bolded. Sincerest apologies to anyone on mobile if they haven’t fixed the read-more bug.

1. Secrets Can Kill – Nancy goes to a high school to investigate a murder. It’s a bit more simplistic than later games, but still enjoyable. Plus Aunt Eloise is a librarian! She doesn’t actually appear in the game, but Nancy does go to the library to do research. I actually think the original version’s storyline (which sticks more closely to the book) makes more sense, but imo the “remastered” version’s gameplay makes more sense and is more fun. (NB: The original version no longer works on current computers.)

2. Stay Tuned for Danger – Nancy investigates sabotage on a soap opera set. I’ve only played this once and don’t see myself returning to it. The storyline is good, but the mechanics are reeeeally hard to figure out. It’s probably my least favorite actually.

3. Message in a Haunted Mansion – Nancy investigates supposed hauntings in a San Francisco Victorian. There are elements of the occult and Prohibition era. It was pretty fun; I ought to play it again.

4. Treasure in the Royal Tower – Nancy goes to a ski resort or some such thing and searches for Marie Antoinette’s stolen jewels, I think? It’s one of the biiiiiig fan favorites, but not one of mine; I just didn’t enjoy the mystery. Points for introducing the series’ best character, Prof. Beatrice Hotchkiss, though.

5. The Final Scene – Nancy has to rescue someone being held captive in a historic theatre that’s about to be torn down. Appropriately claustrophobic and atmospheric; I need to play this one again too.

6. Secret of the Scarlet Hand – Nancy investigates thefts from an exhibit of Mexican artifacts at a museum. Interesting but kind of eh. Guess it’s just not quite my cup of tea, topic-wise.

7. Ghost Dogs of Moon Lake – Ghost dogs haunt a rural cabin. Prohibition-era elements again. Also not one of my favorites because of tedious mechanics, and just a weak storyline.

8. The Haunted Carousel – Nancy investigates a New Jersey amusement park with strange happenings, like a carousel that operates by itself. Admittedly this is totally my bag as far as plot/setting because I love amusement parks, but I think the setting is a great mix of “old-fashioned” nostalgia and modernisation, and it has one of the most appealing sets of secondary characters in any of the games. Plus it has a MacGuffin, which I think is a large part of the key to the best Nancy Drew books (and games).

9. Danger on Deception Island – I don’t actually fully remember the setting/plot but it’s something on the ocean in the Pacific Northwest, I think. I remember the setting being very Murder, She Wrote, in a good way, but the game as a whole didn’t really make an impression on me, obviously.

10. The Secret of Shadow Ranch – I’ve played this twice and still struggle to remember it, so you can probably take that as an indication of quality. It’s not bad, just, all the pieces seem a bit disconnected, from what I recall? Also, I found the love interest character very annoying. At least Daryl from Secrets Can Kill was cute and gentlemanly.

11. The Curse of Blackmoor Manor – So this is actually the only one I’ve never played. It’s the fan favorite, though. I read the book it was allegedly based on – though past The Final Scene the extent to which the games are truly drawn from the books is hit-or-miss, and past Secret of the Old Clock it’s a total joke – and it was pretty shit, so I guess, can only go up from here?

12. Secret of the Old Clock – This was an interesting concept, to try to place a game in the 30s when the original ND books were set, and it works fairly well, though inevitably sometimes comes off as gimmicky (the phone system and gramophone being good examples). Trying to combine elements of all of the first four books was certainly a choice, particularly after adding in the new element of spiritualism, but the story actually turned out really well imo, even though it ultimately can’t be reconciled with the book universe. It’s also I think the last game where the puzzles integrate pretty directly with the plot, rather than just being random-ass mini-games thrown in to make the gameplay longer.

13. Last Train to Blue Moon Canyon – The first full appearance of the Hardy Boys, though they appeared fleetingly as far back as The Final Scene iirc. It’s also (veeeeery loosely) based on the first Nancy Drew and Hardy Boys SuperMystery I ever read: they’re invited on a newly-restored train trip by a Paris Hilton lookie-likey who wants them to solve the decades-old disappearance of a miner. It wasn’t bad, but it was hardly a gem. I don’t see myself playing it a second time.

14. Danger by Design – Nancy investigates why a Parisian fashion designer seems to be losing her mind. It was okay, though it took me two tries to get into it, but somehow it just seemed kind of half-assed.

15. The Creature of Kapu Cave – The second and last full appearance of the Hardy Boys. Pretty much universally considered one of the three worst games in the series, and I’d call it the worst. The plot is iffy and the gameplay not very entertaining, though at least you do switch between playing as Nancy and playing as the Hardy Boys, which is a neat twist. It’s also more linear than the other games, and ... yeah, the plot is just crap.

16. The White Wolf of Icicle Creek – Nancy investigates sabotage at a Rocky Mountain lodge and yes this setting is in fact Royal Tower revisited but without the cool castle. It also has the most notoriously difficult puzzle in the series. I might play it again at some point, but I wouldn’t count on it.

17. Legend of the Crystal Skull – Nancy investigates a murder in New Orleans. This is known for being one of the creepiest ND games, and I liked some of the characters, but it still falls flat for me. I guess I don’t think the plot is rich enough, especially given the very rich setting. You do get to play as Bess, though.

18. The Phantom of Venice – Nancy investigates a series of thefts in Venice. I’d say this is the best rendered of the more exotic locations, and though most of the secondary characters are just okay, Margherita and Enrico are absolute joys. Admittedly the plot doesn’t make much sense, and the different elements of the game can seem disconnected at times, but I find all the puzzles so much fun. I think this and The Captive Curse are the ones I’ve played the most, at least if the two versions of SCK are counted separately.

19. The Haunting of Castle Malloy – Nancy investigates something (I forget what) at an Irish castle. What I remember about this more than anything is how fucking tedious it was and how much fun I didn’t have. The bartending puzzle was the absolute highlight, which is kind of sad really. I don’t remember the plot being bad, but I don’t actually remember the plot at all, so it sure wasn’t good either.

20. Ransom of the Seven Ships – This is one of the three widely reviled games, but I didn’t think it was that bad. Nancy and George are marooned on a tropical island and have to find a kidnapped Bess. Yes, the plot is weak, but it’s still fun. Certainly not my favorite, but certainly not bad imo.

21. Warnings at Waverly Academy – Nancy investigates threats and sabotage at a girls’ boarding school. Yeah, SCK teas for sure. Personally, I found the supporting characters a bit of a letdown; it seems like this should have one of the best casts of characters of the ND games, but Rachel is the only one I really liked, and even she’s pretty milquetoast. The plot is a bit weak too.

22. Trail of the Twister – Not one of the more popular games, and for good reason. Nancy joins a tornado tracking team (alliteration entirely unintentional). I didn’t enjoy most of the characters or most of the puzzles, and I found the gameplay tedious at times. But mostly the plot just wasn’t engaging enough.

23. Shadow at the Water’s Edge – Along with Crystal Skull, one of the big “creepy” games. Nancy stays at a Japanese inn that seems to be haunted. I felt that the secondary characters were stereotypes and kind of racist, and one of the puzzles is stupidly frustrating, but the plot is actually really good, and the gameplay is fun (though traveling on the subway can be tiresome).

24. The Captive’s Curse – Yesssssss, this has to be my favorite in the series. Nancy goes to a German castle supposedly under attack from a monster. The supporting characters are excellent, for sure my favorites in the series, and the puzzles are pretty fun too. The setting is great as well, though it has the same frustrating “navigating the woods” thing as Castle Malloy.

25. Alibi in Ashes – Nancy is accused of arson in River Heights and has to prove her innocence, then catch the actual arsonist. This is the last game that involves playing as other characters: in this case, Bess, George, and Ned. I haven’t had a chance to play it a second time, but I’m sure I will, because it was pretty fun. Plus, Deirdre Shannon is a total gem of a character: “Nedward” is instantly iconic.

26. Tomb of the Lost Queen – Nancy goes to an archaeological dig in Egypt. Which should totally be my bag, but the plot here feels very superficial, and the gameplay seems disconnected.

27. The Deadly Device – Nancy investigates a death at a high-tech scientific facility. The mechanics can be tough to figure out, but I enjoyed the story and the characters. I’ve seen at least a couple people say they enjoyed this more than they expected to, and I concur. Joe Hardy is at his comic best too.

28. Ghost of Thornton Hall – Nancy investigates a haunted Southern mansion. The last of the creepy game trio (interesting that two of them are set in the South), and in some ways a throwback to MHM. It got a lot of acclaim at the time, but it was pretty average for me. I’ll probably replay it at some point, but it’s not what I call a priority.

29. The Silent Spy – Nancy goes to Scotland to learn about her mom’s past as a spy. Yeaaaah... That basic idea is pretty out-there and really not in keeping with the franchise as a whole. I don’t really know where it came from, honestly. The parts where Nancy has to come to terms with her mom’s life and death are good, but overall, it’s not that great.

30. The Shattered Medallion – Another pretty widely reviled entry, and again for good reason. Nancy and Bess go to New Zealand to compete on an Amazing Race-type reality show. There is little to no mystery here; it’s evident that the whole game was just an excuse to bring Sonny Joon, a long-running off-screen character, into the series, and damn, they did not do Sonny justice. I probably won’t play this a second time.

31. Labyrinth of Lies – Nancy investigates thefts from a museum in Greece, tied to an upcoming theatre production. I didn’t like most of the secondary characters, and the plot was weak, though the setting is good. Definitely in the bottom third or so of Nancy Drew games.

32. Sea of Darkness – Nancy goes to Iceland to search for a missing man and ends up getting involved investigating his girlfriend’s family history. An appropriate finale to the series (or at least it would have been if Her had managed to end things gracefully instead of dragging them out so painfully). The secondary characters are appealing, and the setting is great. Plus, points for having the only two canonically queer characters in the series.

Dossier #1: Lights, Camera, Curses! – Nancy investigates problems on the set of a remake of an Egypt-themed Old Hollywood movie. Pretty fun, though it really could have used a hint button like every other hidden object game I’ve ever played.

Dossier #2: Resorting to Danger – Nancy investigates bomb threats at a spa. Pretty generic setting, but they do make the most of it.

#nancy drew lb

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serendipity-y · 7 years

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part two of the ask!!!

@xoauroraaxo 65 asks: 1. Do you ever doubt the existence of others than you? i don't understand the question 2. On a scale of 1-5, how afraid of the dark are you? like 4 3. The person you would never want to meet? i don't know, probably paul ryan bc his face annoys the shit out of me and i just want to punch him 4. What is your favorite word? fuck, probably 'petrichor' 5. If you were a type of tree, what would you be? weeping willow 6. When you looked in the mirror this morning what was the first thing you thought? either 'you need to sleep' or 'you need to dye your hair again' 7. What shirt are you wearing? a black tank top 8. What do you label yourself as? ?? gay as fuck?? 9. Bright room or dark room? dark room 10. What were you doing at midnight last night? probably talking to aurora and watching supernatural 11. Favorite age you’ve been so far? i think,, six?? idk why?? maybe because i was living with my mom and step dad again and everything was happy 12. Who told you they loved you last? my mom :) 13. Your worst enemy? any bigoted piece of garbage 14. What is your current desktop picture? it's a picture i got off of Rookie Mag 15. Do you like someone? yes bitch i do 16. The last song you listened to? Never Be by 5 Seconds of Summer 17. You can press a button that will make any one person explode. Who would you blow up? this is so hard!!! probably pence bc trump will die soon anyway 18. Who would you really like to just punch in the face? paul fuckin ryan 19. If anyone could be your slave for a day, who would it be and what would they have to do? my sister rory, and she'd have to go an entire day without arguing with me 20. What is your best physical attribute? (showing said attribute is optional) idk nothing?? i guess my eyes/ my lips 21. If you were the opposite sex for one day, what would you look like and what would you do? i don't know, i'm skipping this one 22. Do you have a secret talent? If yes, what is it? i can figure out what any crystal is (if you give me like 10 minutes and the crystal) 23. What is one unique thing you’re afraid of? being drowned by a clown spider (that's a real fucjin thing) 24. You can only have one kind of sandwich. Every sandwich ingredient known to humankind is at your disposal. idk,, anything?? 25. You just found $100! How are you going to spend it? donate it!!! 26. You just got a free plane ticket to anywhere in the world, but you have to leave immediately. Where are you going to go? france (you can also come) 27. An angel appears out of Heaven and offers you a lifetime supply of the alcoholic beverage of your choice. “Be brand-specific” it says. Man! What are you gonna say about that? Even if you don’t drink booze there’s something you can figure out… so what’s it gonna be? (Castiel is that you?) i have no clue,, i'd like to stay away from it. 28. You discover a beautiful island upon which you may build your own society. You make the rules. What is the first rule you put into place? no bigots 29. What is your favorite expletive? does idget count?? bc ever since i heard bobby use it i think it's hilarious 30. Your house is on fire, holy shit! You have just enough time to run in there and grab ONE inanimate object. Don’t worry, your loved ones and pets have already made it out safely. So what’s the one thing you’re going to save from that blazing inferno? (besides my phone??) probably my camera 31. You can erase any horrible experience from your past. What will it be? ummm,, that one time when my cousin did this thing to me that i'm still not over 32. You got kicked out of the country for being a time-traveling heathen who sleeps with celebrities and has super-powers. But check out this cool shit… you can move to anywhere else in the world! australia 33. The Celestial Gates Of Beyond have opened, much to your surprise because you didn’t think such a thing existed. Death appears. As it turns out, Death is actually a pretty cool entity, and happens to be in a fantastic mood. Death offers to return the friend/family-member/person/etc. of your choice to the living world. Who will you bring back? okay so, if this was two people i would bring back my twin cousins who died from cancer (i never met them?? but i know my aunt would love to have them back). but since it's only one i'll say my dog brownie 34. What was your last dream about? idk i don't remember my dreams 35. Are you a good….[insert anything you’d like here]? [singing] people say i am, but i don't think so 36. Have you ever been admitted to the hospital? no 37. Have you ever built a snowman? yes 38. What is the color of your socks? i'm not wearing any 39. What type of music do you like? p much everything 40. Do you prefer sunrises or sunsets? sunsets 41. What is your favorite milkshake flavor? chocolate peanut butter 42. What football team do you support? (I will answer in terms of American football as well as soccer) i don't watch sports lmao 43. Do you have any scars? yeah 44. What do you want to be when you graduate? a writer/ anything enjoyable that has to do with art (i think that's what the question is asking) 45. If you could change one thing about yourself, what would it be? fuck, i'd change more than i should (any hh fans ;;)) ??) but i think i'd change my teeth??? 46. Are you reliable? i'd like to say so 47. If you could ask your future self one question, what would it be? DOES THE WORLD TRY TO KILL YOU?? 48. Do you hold grudges? depends how big the issue is 49. If you could breed two animals together to defy the laws of nature, what new animal would you create? if create a pig- pug hybrid 50. What is the most unusual conversation you’ve ever had? one time in a group chat it was like 1am and i kept saying "mary jew ana" and i wanted to fucking die 51. Are you a good liar? it depends who i'm lying to and what i'm lying about 52. How long could you go without talking? not long, because i like yelling at my computer when dean is being ridiculous 53. What has been you worst haircut/style? when i got bangs 54. Have you ever baked your own cake? probably lmao 55. Can you do any accents other than your own? no 56. What do you like on your toast? butter 57. What is the last thing you drew a picture of? it was a sigils that i put in one of my paintings 58. What would be you dream car? i don't really like cars but,, a '67 impala just because of spn 59. Do you sing in the shower? Or do anything unusual in the shower? Explain. i sing in the shower?? and it's really bad?? 60. Do you believe in aliens? yes 61. Do you often read your horoscope? not really 62. What is your favorite letter of the alphabet? i like u 63. Which is cooler: dinosaurs or dragons? dragons 64. What do you think about babies? they're cute most of the time 65. Freebie! Ask anything interesting you can think of. "what is your favorite lipstick?" i have teddy bear by melanie + lime crime and i love it

#ask #xoauroraaxo #it wouldn't all fit in crying

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brynprocrastinates · 7 years

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Compliment of Questionnaire Tag Games

Since I have three of these stored up from the past two or three weeks, I’m just going to stick them all here.

Tagged by @writerkaitlinm...

1. If you could stay one age forever, what age would you choose?

Probably 27. At this point, I’m still getting people who think I just graduated high school, so I think I need a few more years before I look like a legit adult.

2. If you were running for political office, what would your campaign slogan be?

“Please don’t elect me, I hate politics”...?

3. What is your favorite “bad” movie?

Oh man, that’s tough. I haven’t seen The Room yet, which is rather disgraceful, but you can’t go won’t with Neil Breen movies.

4. What Hogwarts house would you be most surprised to be sorted into?

I used to think slytherin, but now I’m pretty sure I’ve transitioned into ravenclaw. So if I was actually going to hogwarts I would’ve been a slytherin student, because that’s were I aligned in middle and high school, but I probably would have had a lot of ravenclaw friends and went into a very ravenclaw field of work.

5. You’re supposedly the last person on earth, and someone knocks on your door. Who would you be most horrified to find out is the only other person alive?

Trump. There’s probably someone I would be more horrified over but I can’t decide at the moment.

6. What book has had the biggest impact on your life?

There is one particular book series which motivated me to deal with some of my mental health problems, to read for fun after not getting through an entire book since high school, and to start writing again after not having put a single word down on anything for over two years, but as it’s consider “too problematic” on tumblr I won’t release the name of it quiet.

7. How do you get rid of stress?

Exercising really helps, but usually I just sit away and cry instead.

8. Asking questions or answering questions?

Both, depending on the subject.

9. What’s your favorite Olympic sport?

Ice skating!

10. What app is a must have?

Discord, because it’s where I talk to all my international friends.

11. What would you rate 10/10?

It’s hard to say I would rate anything 10/10, except maybe something vague, like the Isle of Skye.

Tagged by @scribble-dee-vee...

1. Do you prefer books with an emphasis on character building, world building, or plot development?

All three, preferably! If I absolutely have to choose one, good characters will pull me through an otherwise bad book, but I don’t think you can have a genuinely good book without all three being well focused on and thought through.

2. Do you watch a lot of television? If so, what are some of your favorite shows?

I only watch tv on netflix on occasion. Some of the shows I’ve enjoyed, off the top of my head, include Parks and Rec, Leverage, Stranger Things, Voltron, and Blacklist. And my all time favorite show in all existence, Avatar; the Last Airbender.

Currently I’m watching iZombie, which is pretty enjoyable in it’s own quirky way.

3. What’s the most acceptable book-to-screen adaptation in your opinion?

The first three Harry Potter movies and the LoTR movies (not including the Hobbit series.)

4. What’s the least acceptable book-to-screen adaptation in your opinion?

AtLA and Percy Jackson totally never ever had movies made after them, so probably have to say Eragon, though the book itself wasn’t spectacular.

5. How do you feel about the last book you read?

Good Omens. Absolutely fantastic.

6. Which of your favorite fictional characters would you most want to meet?

Probably Dejean. I just love him so much, and also I have faith that he both wouldn’t kill me and wouldn’t do something totally innocent which accidentally results in death.

7. Which of your favorite fictional characters would you least want to meet?

Most of them would kill me...

8. Cake or ice-cream? Discuss.

Eh. Ice cream if it has fruit in it, but cake if it’s moist with the perfect amount of sugar in the frosting.

9. Tell me about your favorite oc or character from a current WIP! You know the one :D (if you don’t have any, feel free to gush about a favorite from a book or movie instead)

Kleos. But I can’t actually say anything about them because it’s major spoilers.

10. What’s your favorite outfit?

I’m a comfort over fashion type person, so my workout clothes are legitimately my favorite.

I really want a giant cloak tho...

11. What’s your classification in your favorite series? (ex, Hogwarts house, Homestuck classpect, godly parent, Voltron lion, etc.)

I dunno to be honest. I was really into that through high school and most of university, and then I just stopped caring for the last couple years, so I’m not sure I would even be in most of them.

Tagged by @roselinproductions...

1. If you could learn all the careers you ever wanted to be in a single year, what would you study?

Pretty much everything but history. Computer programming, organic chemistry, medicine, theoretical math, quantum physics, animation, literature, acting, anthropology, and a whole lot more immunology.

2. Tomorrow’s the last day of the universe. You have 24 hours to do anything you want, no limits. What will you be doing in the last seconds of our universe’s existence?

Hiking to some crazy ancient ruins in the jungle. OR skydiving down to them. And then swimming by a waterfall.

3. First ever film you remember watching in a movie theater?

I honestly don’t remember.

4. Have you ever met a celebrity/role model/king or queen and who was it?

Never.

5. What do you do when you’re bored?

Turn on music and clean, while singing.

6. What type of food would you sell if you opened a restaurant?

Putting aside the fact that I can’t cook and I’m pasty white, I would probably open some sort of Mongolian stir fry, because that’s what my favorite restaurant is, and I would kill to be able to eat it whenever I wanted.

7. What year has been the best of your life and why?

The year I lived in Scotland for the fall.

8. How do you react when you see an animal pass by while walking down the street?

... Usually I’m oblivious, so I don’t do anything.

9. How would you survive the Hunger Games?

Do an awful lot of hiding and sneaking around, but try to pick people off quietly and quickly so I wouldn’t have to worry about growing weak from lack of food or water. Probably climb a lot of trees and rocks and attack from the air or behind.

10. Would you rather live up to age 20 having lived the success of all your wildest dreams or live up to age 90 having lived simply a beautiful ordinary life?

I don’t have any desire to live to be 90 anyways, so the first option sounds ideal.

11. What’s something you’ve always wanted to do but never have because of fear?

For a while now I’ve wanted to tell certain members of my family (including my parents) about my sexuality, but I’m deathly afraid of their reaction. I would also love to drop everything and travel the world, but I’m (rightly) afraid that I’d run out of money before getting on the first plane.

#tag games #long post

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lovemesomesurveys · 7 years

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1. Do your parents ever encourage you to hang out with people that you don’t like? No.

2. Would you think it was odd if someone got fabric paint to decorate their underwear? I don’t care what someone does to their underwear.

3. Do you ever stalk old friends? I wouldn’t call it stalk. Facebook is there to be looked at :P <<< lol. Yeah, I’ve looked up people I went to high school and/or middle school with out of curiosity.

4. What year was your worst school picture taken? I liked my preschool and kindergarten ones the best, but I’m cool with them all up until like 4th grade. My middle school and sophomore year ones are probably the worst.

5. What made it the worst? Just ew.

6. Do you think you could count all the freckles on your body? I don’t feel like trying.

7. Do you ever crave a good cuddling? Yeah.

8. Which of your friends has the coolest siblings? My mom’s sisters are cool, but I’m really close to one of them. She has a lot of brothers, but I’m not close with any of them. We hardly see them.

9. Are you ever greedy? I’ve been guilty of that.

10. How much would you pay someone if you never had to go to school again? I finished school, but if I didn’t want to continue on then I wouldn’t have.

11. Would you like to be home schooled? I’m twenty-seven.

12. Would you like to go to an all girls [or if you’re a boy then all boys] school? I’m done with school.

13. Why or why not? --

14. Is your school’s band any good? Sigh.

15. Do you have a favorite lyric from any song? Oh my god why is it so hard to think of these things when you’re asked about them? <<< I have the same problem anytime a survey asks about my favorite anything.

16. Who is the biggest attention whore that you know? No one.

17. Is your life no longer enjoyable? I’ve felt that way for a long time.

18. Did you get to see your friends as often as you would have liked to? You say did as if to imply a certain time in the past. Like, when are you referring to? Currently, I haven’t seen any friends in almost a year.

19. Does orange sherbet sound good right now? I don’t like oranges or orange flavored anything.

20. Would black hair look good or bad on you? I dyed it black my sophomore year in high school and when I look back on it I hate it. I didn’t like anymore by like that next year or so.

21. Are you on anyone’s hero box on myspace? Myspace is dead, but no I wasn’t on anyone’s hero box. No reason I would be.

22. Who has the biggest eyes that you know of? Mila Kunis comes to mind, but as for someone I actually know it’s a girl I went to school with growing up.

23. Do your wrists ever hurt from typing too much? No.

24. What can you imagine as being the worst thing that could happen to you right now? Anything death related.

25. How many times did you go swimming this summer? Zero.

26. Have you ever been to a hard rock cafe? No, actually. I would like to check one out sometime. 27. When was the last time someone called your cell-phone and you didn’t know them? Not sure.

28. Do you hate it when people overuse the phrase ‘lol?’ I don’t care.

29. Do you ever have those weird little dreams where you’re like half awake? Yeah.

30. Do you ever push your pillow off the bed? No.

31. What’s more important to you living it up or getting good grades? As I’ve said repeatedly, I’m done with school. However, grades were always at the top of my list, but I also had to stay sane and allow myself time to do what I enjoyed and hang out.

32. What do you think of little children? Annoying as hell or cute? They can be both.

33. Is there any song that makes you think of your dad? There’s a few.

34. Do you ever look for comfort in surveys? In the sense that they serve as a distraction or as a way for me to vent.

35. Do you like frogs? Not particularly.

36. Have you had any really bad experiences while plucking your eyebrows? Yes.

37. Who of your friends acts the most like a prep? This one is clearly designed for someone in jr high or high school.

38. Is the whole prep thing overrated anyway? Blaaaaah.

39. What’s up with Fergie’s song Big Girls Don’t Cry? What’s up with it?

40. Is it hard to stay friends with someone when one of your close friends hates them? I’m too old for that drama.

41. Have you ever read The Outsiders? No.

42. What did you think of it? --

43. What does your backpack/messenger bag/whatever you use for school look like? --

44. Where did you last go shopping at? Wal-Mart.

45. Would it be weird if a person’s real name was Cheeto? I guess.

46. Is there anyone you want to give a hug to? No.

47. What is the difference between giving and receiving a hug? Uh, well the one who initiates it is the one giving it.

48. What are you listening to right now? The TV, but it’s more background noise than anything right now.

49. Do any of your friends have the same name as any of your family members? No. 50. Have you seen Talladega Nights? Parts of it. I didn’t pay that much attention to it.

51. If so what was your favorite scene in it? --

52. How often do you paint your nails? Not often at all. Last time I did was last October, and before that it was quite awhile. Not much nail to paint.

53. Have you ever taken a picture of you kissing someone? No, but a friend took a picture of Joseph and I.

54. If you are one of those people who’s always single do you ever long for someone to sit around and take pictures of while kissing? Hahah. Yes. I long for someone to take kissing pictures with.

55. Can I buy you a ‘drank?’ I don’t drink, but I’ll take a coffee.

56. If you know what song I’m referring to, why do you think T-Pain says drank and not drink? How old are you?

57. How come boys never take surveys? They do... Hi Lane, hi Jagged.

58. What is the last thing you did on powerpoint? Something for one of my psych classes.

59. Do your grandparents know what myspace is? No. They know what Facebook is, and they both have one.

60. When’s the last time you sprinted? *shrug*

#personal #text #survey #surveys

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hellspains · 7 years

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questions 1 to... oh hell you know I'll ask you to answer them all. Although I think I know a few answers alread

I’m putting this under the cut because it’s LONG.

Original Character Asks* 1: What is your character’s biggest fear?Iago is terrified of death and being alone. His old self was homophobic but it wasn’t his biggest fear. * 2: What is your character’s favorite memory?Depends on the verse, but in his main verse Iago’s favorite memory is tied with his worst; summer camp. * 3: What is your character’s least favorite memory?See above. * 4: Does anyone have a crush on your character? Is your character aware of this?Not in his main verse, and Iago’s pretty… oblivious about other people’s feelings in general.* 5: Describe your character’s dream date.He’s much of a “date” guy because that usually means he has to walk around/eat things/be in public and he doesn’t like that. He’d prefer staying home and doing drugs or having sex, though if a date was required, he’d pick the movies.* 6: What is your character’s sexual orientation?He’s GAY AS HELL but in complete denial because of trauma he lived through as a kid which led to internalized homophobia.* 7: How does your character feel about their name?He hates it XD. His full name is Iago Holden Dantes because when he was dumped at the fire station he was in a box of books including Othello, Catcher in the Rye, and The Count of Monte Cristo. When it came time to name him, the nun (a Spanish woman and a teacher) picked one name from each book. Iago is the Spanish form of Jacob, and she had planned on naming her son Iago before she became a nun, then Holden because it means “gracious” and she thought he could use it instead of Iago if he ever wanted to appear more American, then Dantes because it means “one who endures” and she liked the dual reference to The Count of Monte Cristo and The Inferno. Of course Iago was mercilessly tormented by the other boys in the orphanage for his weird name, and when they started reading the books in school, it got even worse. The “worst” moment was when they were reading Othello in English class and the teacher decided to assign roles to students so they could act it out. Iago was assigned the role of Iago and he actually enjoyed it but it only made the teasing worse. * 8: Does your character hate anyone? Why?Yes. He hates queer people because of internalized racism, bullies, most authority figures, and of course, himself.* 9: How does your character feel about religion?He was raised in a Catholic orphanage so he’s relatively well versed on it, though he never payed rapt attention, so his knowledge is spotty. He mostly treats God like a deadbeat dad; to be used as a threat by some and cursed at/hated by others (including himself).* 10. Would your character ever kill someone?Yes. Without a doubt. It just depends on the person, but in some cases he might kill someone by accident just because he got into a fight and lost control.* 11: How did your character meet their best friend?His best friend is a cat named Pig. In most verses Pig actually finds Iago, either by walking up to him and meowing loudly/slamming against his shins in a demand for pets, or somehow making his way into wherever Iago is living without being spotted and making himself at home in Iago’s room.* 12: How would/does your character feel about roller coasters?He’s never been on one, and he’d be terrified but too proud to admit it. After one ride, he’d love it. Iago’s an adrenaline junky.* 13: What would your character die for?Iago’s been suicidal since he was 8, but he’d die “for” people he loved. * 14: What is the cutest thing your character has ever done?Bahaha Iago’s accidentally cute a lot (he’s 5’4” so even when he’s angry he’s cute) but he’s never purposefully cute and will probably fight anyone who says he’s cute (which would be cute anyway because… he’s 5’4”) but some accidental cute things he’s done include; sleeping curled up around Pig/a stuffed animal/a pillow, waking up and wrapping the blanket around himself like a robe and dragging it to the kitchen to make coffee, when he listens to music or watches TV/movies and he thinks no one is looking he’ll either sing along, or talk to the people on screen and it’s adorable. * 15: What music genre would your character listen to?Punk, rock, metal, rap, and anything he deemed “hardcore” though he’d also listen to top 40 hits and sappy/cheesy/angsty songs but he wouldn’t tell anyone. * 16: What other fictional characters remind you of your character?Well he’s based off Iago, Holden Caulfield, and Edmond Dantes, so there’s that. Beyond those three, Hayley from Hard Candy reminds me of him, and Negasonic Teenage Warhead, and Rorschach from Watchmen.* 17: Does your character have any irrational fears?Yeah, he’s terrified of needles. * 18: How would your character feel about having their life recorded?He’d HATE it. Anxiety alone would make him wanna die. * 19: What is your character’s deepest, darkest secret?At most points it’s that he’s gay, or the trauma he lived through. He THINKS his deepest secret is that he “liked” the abuse, but he didn’t like it, he just has a fucked up definition of enjoyment and consent.* 20: What is the most surprising thing about your character?That he’s actually really… sensitive? He likes flowers and animals and bright colors. Had he not been abused/grown up in a “normal” household, he’d probably be the type of gay boy you see on tumblr posting selfies of their makeup and nails and wearing flower crowns and neon croptops and he’d have a million pets and stuffed animals and spend his time studying to be a veterinarian. * 21: Is your character flexible?Physically? Yeah, mostly because he’s so skinny (and because whenever he gets drunk/high he ends up going out and getting screwed by men who bend him in half which is his form of stretching. * 22: What is the worst thing your character has ever done?Well… that depends on who you are. He’s fought people, bought and sold drugs, said horrible things to people who trusted him, and almost killed himself. * 23: Is your character morally gray or black or white?Probably gray. He’s not without his sins but most of the bad shit he does hurts himself more than others. * 24: What prejudices does your character have?He’s hella homophobic but after he realizes he’s gay, he pretty much turns into an anarchist liberal. * 25: Would you want to hang out with your character?Hahaha uhm… that depends on what version of him. I doubt Iago would want to hang out with me, regardless. * 26: What is your favorite headcanon for your character?His love for animals. It can be explained as simply as “he loves animals” or delved into deeply to explore why he feels the need to save and protect creatures who can’t do it themselves. * 27: What would be the worst way for your character to die?At his own hands or from a drug OD. Alone. * 28: What pet would your character like to have?ALL OF THEM. In most verses he has one cat, and that’s it, but in some verses he gets snakes, hedgehogs, puppies, birds, and even attempts to take in seals, raccoons, lions, bears, and monkies.* 29: What would be your character’s favorite food?Strawberries. * 30: Would your character have any hobbies?Doing drugs? Or drawing. Or both. * 31: What social media would your character use?I made him a fake Instagram once. He’s likely have a snapchat and a twitter as well. He might join tumblr after he comes out. (and grindr)* 32: What does your character look like?His fc is Ash Stymest, though Iago’s quite a bit shorter than him. He’s got an eating disorder so his weight fluctuates, though he’d never be described as anything but “skinny” even at his heaviest. He’s covered in tattoos, with very pale skin, dark hair, and bright blue eyes. He usually has bags underneath them from a lack of sleep. He’s be described as “disheveled” and if you saw him on the street you’d likely be concerned for his health. * 33: In what ways is your character like you?Hooo boy. A lot. I tend to take the advice “write what you know” too far, though Iago shares more traits with my younger self than me currently, which is a good thing. * 34: What is cliche about your character?If you boil him down to the core, almost everything. Skinny gay but homophobic white boy with tattoos and mental illnesses who does drugs but has a soft spot for animals? Yeah. Cliche. * 35: What is unique about your character?I’d like to think that I make him unique by how I write him, though I couldn’t tell you what makes him unique to others because I’m constantly paranoid that he’s not unique at all. * 36: Does anyone want to harm your character?Bahaha yeah. Iago’s not what you’d call “likeable” but most of the time he’s literally asking for it. * 37: Do people have justified grudges against your character?Grudges? I dunno. He doesn’t hang around people that much in general so unless he gets into a barfight and the guy takes it personally, there wouldn’t be a lot of people who hold longterm grudges. * 38: What role does your character play in their story?The victim. :/* 39: What would be your character’s niche on Tumblr?See above “cliche” question, or the one asking what’s surprising about him. * 40: What would be your character’s favorite school subject?Theater but he’d never admit it, so any class he could sleep in, really.* 41: Would your character want to have any children?NOPEx100000* 42: What would be your character’s dream career?Veterinarian. Or vaguely an “artist” somehow. * 43: What is your character insecure about?EVERYTHING. His looks, his smarts, his past, his height, his weight, his interests, his tattoos, his education….* 44: What is your character proud of?Uhhhh well when he comes out he’s proud that he can take dick like a champ and he doesn’t have a gag reflex but that’s about it. * 45: What would your character change about themselves?E v e r y t h i n g.* 46: Would you want to trade places with your character?Hopefully no one. * 47: What fandoms would your character be in?As a character? I dunno. As a fan? Marvel, DC, probably some anime fandoms, and anything he deemed “badass” (James Bond, TMFU, Tarantino films, etc)* 48: How would your character type?Badly. Quickly, but badly. Lots of text speak or typing errors. No punctuation and no capital letters. * 49: How does your character stand politically?He’s… not political. He thinks everything’s shit so if nihilism is a political view that’s his. * 50: What is your favorite thing about your character?Probably the fact that he’s so weird? Like I never know how he’ll react until I sit down to write stuff out. He’s volitile and that makes him fun, (but exhausting) to write.* 51: What is your character’s favorite animal?If you pressed him he’d say “cats” but he loves all animals and he’d hate you for making him pick one. * 52: How would your character act in gym class?Sit by the bleachers and steadfastly refuse to participate. (He actually forged a note from a doctor so he didn’t have to attend gym for the last two years of highschool.* 53: What clubs would your character join?He’s not a club kinda guy. * 54: What is the saddest thing about your character’s life?ALL OF IT lmao. No but he’s an orphan who was raped and molested for 3 years, then dropped out and ran away to become a semi-homeless drug addict in denial. * 55: Would your character do the Ice Bucket Challenge?No. His ED means he’s pretty much always cold and he would think it’s stupid anyway.* 56: What’s one of your character’s quirks?He runs his hands through his hair/scratches his arm when he’s nervous. * 57: How would your character feel about feminism?Originally? He’d be of the “fuck SJWs/feminazis are dumb/I’m an egalitarian” sort. He’d evolve over time. * 58: Is your character dorky or more athletic?Neither hahaha though he can be a dork he’s not dorky, and he’s certainly not athletic. * 59: What is your least favorite thing about your character?People think he’s gonna be one way but he’s not and they get mad or freaked out when he behaves a certain way because they didn’t think I’d go “that far” (i.e. crying during/after sex, attacking them, using slurs)* 60: If you could title your character’s life, what would you title it?“What the everloving fuck” maybe. Or “dear god look away” or “it keeps happening why does it keep happening” or just a gif of a giant rotating middle finger.

#ask #answered #iago #about iago

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renaroo · 7 years

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Wednesday Roundups 7/6/17

Wow I had a lot to read and I still managed to turn it out faster than I turn out about 90% of these which I’m not sure if it’s a reflection on my reading and writing skills getting better or if I was stressing out over doing these way too much in the past.

Regardless, we have quite a variety this week and still seem to be celebrating Wonder Joy so let’s just get into it~

DC’s Batman, Creator Owned CBLDF Defender, Marvel’s Spider-Man/Deadpool, DC’s Superman, IDW’s Transformers: Lost Light, DC’s Wonder Woman FCBD, DC’s Wonder Woman: Steve Trevor, Viz’s Yona of the Dawn

DC’s Batman (2016-present) #24 Tom King, David Finch, Danny Miki, Clay Mann, Seth Mann, Jordie Bellaire

Okay, so I follow Batman at a distance because I’ll be completely honest: Tom King absolutely lost me with the Gotham and Gotham Girl plot because I just could not get into it, and it annoyed me, so I’ve been hands off with the title for the most part, a decision I only double downed on with the Catwoman debacle and my correct assumption in King really relying too heavily on TWISTS. a

....

But I absolutely picked up this issue because even if nothing in my thinking brain believes, at all, that this will be allowed to change the status quo between Bruce and Selina...

I love BatCat so much you guys.

He proposed. And I bought it purely for those pages.

I have to emphasize it was for those pages alone because I could not have cared less about Claire and Bruce’s conversation because I’m just so tired of how many people there are in Gotham and how this conversation would have been so much more meaningful if it came from Kate or Dick or Tim or Cass or Duke or Harper or Damian or Julia or Luke or Jean Paul or Leslie or -- THERE ARE SO MANY BAT CHARACTERS THAT ARE NOT BEING USED TO THEIR FULL POTENTIAL RIGHT NOW DAMMIT.

The conversation itself is kinda stuff we’ve heard before, and while I like how it tied in thematically it just wasn’t in me to not criticize the fact that it’s coming from the current OC of the Day.

Anyway.

I came for the BatCat and I was happy for it even if it was basically only three issues and I had to deal with grown artists making Gotham GIrl’s skirt incredibly short while she was in weird positions for most of it.

So. That’s my take on that.

Now I can write 3 million fics about how this could be wonderful and that Helena Wayne gets to grow up with all her siblings and be loved by the world. byyyyeeeeeeee

Creator Owned CBLDF Defender Vol. 2 #2 Marc Adreyko, Gene Luen Yang

So this is mostly just an addition at the last minute both because it’s free and because it’s, well, an information brochure about uniting to subscribe or pledge money to the Comic Book Legal Defense Fund for all those who have been encouraged into activism thanks to recent events and the collective consciousness surrounding events like last year’s Pulse nightclub shooting.

It’s a good idea and it’s pro-community messaging speaks to me. I’d like to spread awareness for people that these voices are out there and that if you’re interested in providing support you can check out this particular brochure on Comixology for free or google at your leisure.

Marvel’s Spider-Man/Deadpool Vol. 2: Side Pieces Scott Aukerman, Gerry Duggan, Penn Jillette, Nick Giovannetti, Paul Scheer, Joshua Corin, Reilly Brown, Scott Koblish, Todd Nauck, Tigh Walker

Okay, so... I like Spider-Man/Deadpool’s first arc... but it’s pretty much exactly like Trinity over at DC and it’s spiritual predecessors Batman/Superman and Superman/Batman in that, outside of what’s honestly a pretty stellar initial premise, there is not a whole lot of plan behind where the comic wants to go for the future.

So you get a whole lot of different creative teams and no cohesive narrative or direction for the comic to go.

But I guess that really brings into question what makes ongoing comics work and whether or not th idea of “hilarious monthly team ups of Spider-Man and Deadpool without a point, and assumedly without continuity consequences” is enough to work.

And as someone who honestly really enjoys one-shot one-and-dones, that’s honestly a pass for me.

But at the same tim... I mean there’s a reason I have both Spider-Man/Deadpool and Trinity on trade wait status now.

The whole is not equivalent to the sum of its parts, but honestly it’s got some genuinely funny and worthwhile parts as it stands. And I appreciate that.

DC’s Superman (2016-present) #24 Patrick Gleason, Peter J. Tomasi, Doug Mahnke, Jaime Mendoza, Mick Gray, Joe Prado, Wil Quintana, John Kalisz

You know, sometimes being a comic fan is kind of like reading the newspaper more than reading a narrative story.

For me that’s kinda what this issue felt more like, I was getting information on where all the characters had moved since last time, the motivations, some backstories. Slight progress and movement in the form of an update on what happened to Lois and getting to see her still kicking Clark’s ass in gear despite his concern for her injury, which I liked, but overall this issue mostly felt like filler for the final moment where we see Jon fall completely into the control of Manchester Black.

Who... is a big whooping plot hole I am stil waiting to be addressed. Clark remembers Manchester Black from the New Earth continuity still and the “What’s So Funny About Truth, Justice, and the American Way?” and knows about the Elite, but do they know about him? Or are they completely different from the Super Elite we knew? Are we going to get a Justice League Elite mention (which good god please spare me, though I’ll take Sister Superior).

This is one of those cases where I feel like my overly extensive knowledge of things in continuity actually puts me at a disadvantage to actually like... reading and taken things for granted.

I want things to make sense, or I want enjoyable Kent family shenanigans.

But this issue did have Krypto so, I automatically add a star to it. Sorry, I don’t make the rules.

IDW’s Transformers: Lost Light (2016-present) #6 James Roberts, Jack Lawrence, Joanna Lafuente

Look, sometimes I think it’s important for critics, reviewers, readers, what have you, to bea ble to say that they’re confused and don’t know what emotion to feel or whether or not the comic accomplished exactly what it wanted to and I’m just. Like.

Yes that is my emotion at the moment.

A lot of stuff happened in this issue. Like lots of crazy, out there, amazing stuff was packed into a single issue and it’s like, there were panels where you’d blink and you’d miss important character development notes -- like Ratchet hugging their Rung once they got back. Like there’s so much good -- Rodimus had a lot of amazing moments throughout and I love the range of humor to anger to disappointment that he showed. Like his trust and faith in others is already pretty shattered at the moment and to feel Megatron’s apparent betrayal adding onto that is like a million times more stuff. I fear he’s nearing a very dangerous ledge, which is bad because this issue also tells us that Rodimus’ death wish and lowkey desire to put himself in dangerous positions to die heroically is still as prominent as ever.

Someone hug my trash fire of a son, please.

And then magical girlfriend romance bringing back her girlfriend as a baby and it’s kinda weird like is it still going to be the same Lug? Does Anode acknowledge that it’s weird? Is anyone going to point out that they could feasibly use protoform matter now to resurrect anyone whose spark remnants are available now? Including Skids and Ravage?

what is going on

Anyway.

There’s a lot packed into this issue which is why I am honestly kind of happy that next issue’s description is a “fallout” from this because holy shit, I need room to breathe and think through things.

Also. Dat smile when Megatron heard Optimus’ voice in the epilogue-ish finale. I like. Maybe had a fangirl moment. Just maybe.

Anyway. I’m shrug emoji right now until I can get my emotional state sorted out because wow there’s a lot at the moment. Like a lot. A lot a lot.

DC’s Wonder Woman FCBD 2017 Special Edition (2017-present) #1 Greg Rucka, Nicola Scott, Romulo Fajarado Jr.

Like last week’s Wondy special, this is a reprint, but it’s a reprint of the first issue of “Year One” which still holds up as the far superior of the two starting Wonder Woman titles from Rucka last year and is amazingly well held up...

...save of course for the exact same criticisms as the last time I went over the issue which is Dead Bro Walking trope and a whole lot of Rucka Why???? that comes attached to the really bizarre treatment of race in the first arcs of the series. It’s just so bizarre.

But honestly, again, these moves are meant to attract the new, excited audience after the box office smash that has been the Wonder Woman movie -- an audience that has been largely female of all ages. And if there’s one free comic I’m glad will show up immediately on their google searches this Wednesday, I’m very glad it’s going to be the start of what has quickly become my favorite standard bearer of Wonder Woman’s origin story.

Something I appreciate even more after having finally read the entirety of Azzarrello’s Wondy run which. Eck. Wash my mouth out.

DC’s Wonder Woman: Steve Trevor (2017) #1 Tim Seeley, Christian Duce, Allen Passalaqua

So this addition to my pull was kind of unexpected in that I had no idea that it was coming out this week and thought “why not” because I’m literally still so Wonderfully Pumped Up a the moment and as far as I can see, the more proceeds DC and WB can see attributed to Wonder Woman the better.

That being said, Tim Seeley really dug into his Grayson roots in this one because that’s about the only thing I really got from this issue is that Steve Trevor’s a badass secret agent with secrets and a deep seeded guilt thing. Which kinda felt like a harsher toned take on his Dick Grayson more than anything else. Which is fine.

Part of the problem here is that I did not read the New52 short term published book that was A.R.G.U.S. or whatever where Steve starred during the weird interim where Steve was not allowed around Diana and Lois wasn’t allowed around Clark but DC still wants to make money from fans anyway.

idk. And since those kinds of spy books are rarely my cup of tea, I don’t think this issue sold me on renigging on that instinct.

Still it was cute and Diana and Steve’s interactions, while minimal, are really the driving portion of his narrative which I think is always good.

But, just like the Annual, I’m left just sitting here going “why don’t we use this opportunity to show off the upcoming Wonder Woman creative team, DC????”

And I get no answer bc DC actually doesn’t care about some weirdo random blogger on the internet constantly screaming at them.

Viz’s Yona of the Dawn (2009-present) Vol. 6 Mizuho Kusanagi

I have actually been very interested in Akatsuki no Yona since I saw its anime show up in my Crunchyroll feed, and as with most anime I can’t help but immediately try to find the manga instead because I am impatient and want Answers Now. As I understand it, the Viz official translations are far behind the current run of the manga (makes sense, as the manga series has been ongoing since 2009 in Japan), and is only catching up to where the anime left off so far, but that’s more than okay for me right now.

Because oh my gosh, it’s so amazing to read such a beautiful story about the growth, empowerment, and pure will of a female character as told by a female author and artist. I’m not the biggest fan of Shoujo as a style of art, but having Yona strike a balance between beautiful and cutesy visuals with what is ultimately a fairly action driven plot with intense moral posturing and constant detail put into the grayness of life’s choices makes Yona of the Dawn honestly unlike just about any Shoujo I’ve read before.

Yona is one of the most compelling heroines I’ve ever seen, and her intensity of spirit and her meaningful examination of her kingdom makes this fairy tale story really unlike anything else out there.

And while I’ve really enjoyed Yona to this point, I have to say it is an amazing relief to reach Volume 6 an finally get more female characters than just Yona. I like the reverse harem appeal of the cast as it has been so far, and I have affection for several of the boys, but man is it so much more meaningful to have a few more compelling female characters backing up Yona in the representation department.

Especially since some of Yona’s crew still feel... a little bland to me. It’s usually not a good sign in a massive cast when the traits that come immediately to mind for me are purely character design.

I’m excited for what’s to come and to see how our Princess fully realizes her potential as the Crimson Dragon.

Also I should note some skeevy parts of this. One I don’t mind but am sure other people might, there’s the fact that Yona’s current storyline is dealing with Yona taking down a ring of human traffickers and slavers, which brings up the question of autonomy both for Yona as a woman in this honestly pretty traditionally sexist kingdom but also for the Dragons themselves and how their “service” to Yona is framed as a question of their own will. But it’s still a story about human trafficking and that could bother a lot of people. Another thing in this volume, which has bothered me in the previous volumes but really came to a head this time around, is Hak’s... weirdly possessive outbursts toward Yona. I get that they are meant as... idk protective and romantic to some and that we’re supposed to be compelled by his struggle to not show his affection for Yona, but honestly I’m just kinda... naw hoss. Like Hak’s a fine character and I like his relationship and history with Yona most of the time, but like.. the weird pushing her against walls and... licking honey off of her wrists and just. idk. We’re lost in translation here or something bc I’m not a fan.

I’m also not a fan of Viz’s weird changes in the font randomly throughout the book? Like just stop. It’s bad when your translations look lazier than the fan translations I’ve seen floating around on tumblr.

I’ll be honest, as high quality as I consider almost all of these comics this week, I would say the good majority of them did not give me a fully emotional experience or really captivate me in a way that satisfied me from start to finish. And I’m sure in the follow up issues to come there’ll be a lot for me to question into why that might be for the majority of them, but that time is not now. So, as much as it may feel like cheating to pick a volumed book over single issues, I can’t help but say that Yona of the Dawn by far is my pick of the week. It delighted, it changed up its structure and storytelling, built out its world and has started spending more time on the titular characters where before it often felt like we were just taking for granted that there was a dragon gained every volume. And Yona herself is just one of the most satisfying characters to see grow into their own.

But that’s just my opinion, I’d love to hear what you all think. Agree? Disagree? Think I missed a great comic this week? Please let me know!

#SPOILERS #Wednesday Spoilers #Rena Roundups #Yona of the Dawn #Wonder Woman (2016 )#Superman (2016 )#Transformers: Lost Light #Spiderman/Deadpool (2016 )#Wonder Woman: Steve Trevor (2017)#Batman (2016 )

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