#offical screencap from twitter

[pinkpkmntrainer]

lookin' sharp babygirl

#the amazing digital circus #tadc #tadc jax #jax tadc #jax #jax simp #offical screencap from twitter

[sin-sidejob]

INSIDE JOB S1 PART 2 TRAILER, SPOILERS, AND ANALYSIS

Here’s the link to the trailer: watch

- heads up, this post will change frequently with new analysis and information.

SPOILERS AND DETAILS BELOW I SPOTTED

0:12 - we see the gang sans Reagan in Rand’s office. The moment the coup backfires and Rand convinced them not to overturn him and the company?

0:29 - we see the robes with two people before them kneeling, possible sacrifices (it’s hard to tell from a grainy overhead view) or who could be a younger JR Scheimpough and Rand Ridley

0:37 - WE SEE JR he’s in the corner while Glenn attempts to make a suicide pact, sitting in I believe the drivers seat of a car American style AND HES GOT A TATTOO — look at his right bicep and we see what resembles a tribal marking of a face and sitting shotgun is Myc! I couldn’t make out if he was wearing a tin foil hat in this shot but I assume yes. The gang looks like, according to the map, that they’re heading for Area 51.

After that we see Brett, Gigi, and Andre at the manhunt we have seen in previous clips where Ron and Reagan try to sabotage and end up getting tased.

Next we see the robes all 5 circling and enacting a blood sacrifice or ceremony in which they slice their palms. Kinda funny that they all look white

0:44 - we see Ron and Reagan on what appears like a date, Ron in a suit and Reagan in a gown as a crack appears in the street. There’s gears and mechanics within the crack, showing it’s calculated for that location and purposeful.

0:54 - we see a lineup of the Illuminati, a shrouded figure in a headdress alongside Oprah, Lin Manuel Miranda, and who I believe is Jay Z and Beyoncé

1:10 - we see a hellish dragon breathe fire and fly towards the screen, the surroundings are similar to the environment in the episode where the gang goes to the reptoid gala

1:11 - in the netflix trailer version, not the twitter or YouTube one, we see a figure of rand and tamiko sitting in what looks like the hologram room of Cognito and a shift in which a hologram either appears or dissolves, revealing Robotus sitting before Tamiko. There’s theories and concepts of the fight between Rand and Ro being over Tamiko and that Ro falls in love with her, etc, but my personal favorite would be Rand trying to disguise himself as Ro to sneak around the gang or Tamiko and Robotus finds out and beats the fuck out of him. Wishful thinking 🤷🏻‍♀️

1:13 - we see Ron and Reagan, in the same outfits as 0:54, fighting off a new Pope armed with a staff and looking off with purplish glowing eyes and Ron facing off with said pope using a crucifix we see throughout emitting a darker purple glow which returns in clips in the entirety of the trailer

1:17 - we see the gang get ready to go down to hollow earth, guided in a lift by one of the mole people. All are armed with tin foil hats

1:18 - we see Brett dressed in Ed Hardy and this is an honorable mention for @mrsbretthand

1:20 - we see puppet Brett and Brett with two characters in the background that could possibly be family members or siblings?? Due to the hair and eyes that resemble Brett’s own. Is that his family?

1:20 we see Myc alongside MUSHROOMS at a party, and Myc’s wearing a tuxedo collar possibly at Area 51?

1:20-> 1:22 we see a series of clips rapidly in which Keanu Reeves starts what appears to be a villain arc, AB Robotus has a gun and fires at something off screen, and Brett is playing around with a golden retriever that has to be Air Bud - there’s also a fleeting moment in which a hologram falters around Keanu Reeves and I’m not sure what to do with that, you’ll see why

1:23 - we see gigi on the Illuminati throne looking down upon Lin Manuel Miranda & see an image of Glenn in battle armor like a gladiator — I think Glenn dressed as a gladiator for Halloween then got high and is having a VERY bad trip but could also be another location, but the decorative lights in the background remind me of the Halloween party from previously released screencaps

1:24 - we see Rand Ridley and AB Robotus fighting with a figure in the background that looks like Tamiko

Also at 1:24 - we see a fleeting moment of a robe about to flip off their hood, and we see Reagan in the clip heading down an elevator and encountering the robes. Is she being initiated in? is she about to die? Who knows?

1:31 - Keanu Reeves versus Reagan, and she’s heavily armed and then decorated with a band of garlic, making me wonder if Keanu is a vampire?

1:35 - we see Gigi in an Illuminati headdress performing what looks like an old Welcome to Disney Channel advertisement with the blue glittering corner logo and wand

1:36 - we see Brett, Reagan, and Robotus standing far away from a glowing structure in the distance of a triangle, ominous and looking like a focal point to what’s causing the end of the world. Brett and Reagan wear tin foil hats while Robotus wears a triangular metal rod from his skull and is tube-less, just in treads to move.

1:37 - we see a moment of Ron aiming a laser gun or memory eraser at the screen, and him being reluctant to fire. It’s green, unlike the coloring on the memory eraser shown in earlier clips that Ron is armed with and uses in his job at the Illuminati.

1:39 - we see a clip of the staff used by the pope in the earlier scene being broken in half over someone’s knee, I assume Ron due to how the outfit of the person matches his the most. It exposes wires from the inside.

1:39 - we see Reagan I the center of a circle, surrounded by robes who are closing in. The elevator sequence Reagan goes through in the later half of the trailer resembles her going down into the earth where the Shadow Board/Council is located.

1:41 - we see a UFO hovering about a pyramid and a Shazam poster that appears around Brett throughout the trailer. We also see a mechanical device, a large one, being buried. Is it a Time Machine or something that bends reality?

1:42 - 1:43 we see a series of rapid fire images, including a poster of Rand Ridley captioned “Death to the Disloyal” in which he wields a bloody scythe, the device that gets buried at 1:41 located at the base of a structure that gets broken up by a UFO, Reagan wielding a red book, filled with notes and bookmarks with a red cover in surroundings resembling the reddish lighting of the elevator when it heads down to the Shadow Board. We see the Shadow Board circled around a pedestal and platform in surroundings that look tropical, Rand staring in distress at a tunnel made in the wall of his office, and a flashing moment between a worried Reagan and a high or drugged Andre.

1:45-1:50 - we see Brett, Reagan, and Glenn in a room in the midst of what looks like planning and strategy. Glenn plays with a hologram of a branching map of timelines and reality, making me wonder if a plan for the gang is to split the timeline or alter reality.

#inside job #inside job part two #inside job netflix #my inside job #personal inside job #robotus #jr #reagan #gigi #brett #andre #myc #glenn #tw: rand ridley

[maguneedsalife]

ffxiv psa: you can buy past seasonal event items with gil if you did the original event!

since this got around on twitter i figured i would post the psa here too.

now that some past seasonal items are getting un-genderlocked in the upcoming patch, you might be thinking of running to mogstation to buy those valentione waistcoats and songbird attires. But! If you’ve played the game long enough that you ran the events that gave out those clothes, you can actually still get them for free in game!

tl;dr if you have the achievement from a past seasonal event you can buy all of that event's gear from the recompense officer in the major hubs for *gil*, anytime, even if you didn't originally own all the pieces! yes, even gear for the gender opposite your character’s!

[image description: screencap from final fantasy xiv showing the player targeting an npc named “Recompense Officer” in Limsa Lominsa. This npc brings up a menu showing options for purchasing past seasonal event items, listed by holiday]

[image description: a menu showing a list of past Valentiones’ attire gear items available for purchase for 1,000 gil each (Except for the Lovely Moogle Cap, which inexplicably costs 1,500 gil). Both sets of male and female 2020 Valentiones outfits can be purchased]

Some additional clarifications:

for 2020 Valentione gear, you can only rebuy sets in the color you picked during the original event (i’m stuck with yellow). they’re dyeable though so you can easily change the color if you don’t like the one you got

since it's achievement based and not account wide, you can only rebuy past gear on characters who completed that event and got the achievement. my alts i made after the 2020 event can’t buy waistcoats from the recompense officer

also since it's achievement based, you can't re-buy past event gear from the recompense officer if you’ve only bought the gear from mogstation - just having the clothes doesn't give you the achievement. (”ren why would you need to rebuy the gear when you got it from mogstation” maybe i want another copy of lord’s suikan for reasons alright)

anyway, i think that about does it. reblog to save someone $5 on seasonal gear

#ffxiv #final fantasy xiv #psa #ffxiv log #shut up ren

[caveate]

Problem/Incident Management Rant

As I'm looking at pivoting my career to actually start fixing problems at the source instead of constantly being told to ignore or paper over them by my management, Problem Management has emerged as the term I've been looking at to describe my "OMG WTF YOU BLOCKHEADS DO YOU EVEN THINK PAST YOUR OWN FOREHEAD" moments at work. Let us begin with an example. Bear in mind I work in IT, so this will be an IT-centric rant, though the underlying theory also applies to everything from baking and restaurant work to construction and beyond. Here is a screencap of a UX one might encounter randomly when browsing any kind of website based out of the UK nowadays.

(Alt text: A manage cookies popup screen where Preferences is toggled to the left and Marketing is toggled to the right with no other text displayed for those options) So, of the two toggle options, which is Accepted and which is Denied? How can we tell? This is where someone looking at this and claiming training is needed to understand this gets punted into the stratosphere by me. Because this is not a training failure, this is far more fundamental than training. This is a designer who didn't think about any viewpoint that doesn't have the same knowledge and assumptions as they do. Which leads directly into

(Alt text: A Twitter post from Funranium. "Begin rant. When you hand me an incident report and you list 'training issues' as a root cause, you just told me that I need to pay much closer attention to management and the person that wrote this report.")

Why would listing training as the root cause of an incident report be a problem? See that cookies screencap at the beginning of this post? Training isn't the problem. The root problem is that the toggles aren't labeled with words which describe them which would allow anyone, regardless of prior knowledge, to know exactly what behavior to expect from said toggles. Now let's look into why this is such a hot button for me. See, in my job? Listing training as the root cause is the cheap fast option and the one management likes to use. Take the person who's been using Windows and Office for 20 years who just deleted 3 years of data from a database. The button in the in-house developed application said "Delete data? Yes/No." The user is used to Windows, so sure, click Delete and if there's an issue with it they have a fundamental assumption that said data isn't actually deleted, it's been moved to a Recycle Bin of some kind, so it's recoverable. Except even though they're on Windows it's an in-house developed database application and therefore there's no Recycle Bin. The user's been trained to expect non-permanent deletion by all their years of using Microsoft products and there's nothing telling them that is an incorrect assumption in this application. The solution according to me? Change the button's message to explicitly state "Permanently delete data? Yes/No." Management's solution? It's the user's fault for not realizing that Delete meant permanent deletion and the user should be trained better. And then the yelling starts. The user is unhappy at losing their data and then being victim-blamed and having their intelligence insulted by management, the database administrators are up in arms because they have to restore the database from backup, someone agreed about the warning message being unclear and cc'ed the email to the developers, and now everyone is in some form of Pissed Off as the ripples spread. If the user is influential at all or the database is important then this goes up the chain to higher management and then things really get bad. Over time the above scenario will repeat as long as "training" is used as the root cause and will result in a user base who does not trust the applications they're using or, worse yet, the IT department who blamed them for an honest mistake. The reputation of the IT department plummets, people stop going to the IT folks for anything, and suddenly things like rogue wifi points and other huge security issues start appearing. I've seen Access databases squirreled away on private servers, Excel spreadsheets critical for ensuring the company runs tucked away on someone's desktop computer, and so many other examples where after losing trust in the IT department the data owners and users decided to do things on their own. I've also seen data breaches, failed hard drives, lost laptops, and "Oh SHIT we need the spreadsheet for the report due in 2 days, but it's on Bob's computer and he's gone on vacation for 2 weeks!" which resulted in work shutdowns and 6 figure fines. None of these are good situations and all of them could have been avoided with proper problem management or incident analysis and fixes when the initial problem occurred instead of passing it off as "training" as the root cause.

#me #IT #rant

[imaginarycircus]

mood.

#this is was in my screencaps #it came from a review #iirc #meanwhile I'm crying about the corona virus challenge on twitter #most of it is hilarious #homemade protective gear and gag photos all in good fun #it's either laugh or cry #I'll be spending more time than normal in doctor's offices and hospitals for the nest week or so #I was near someone who came in with the flu and I washed my hands with verve after that #it's probably just normal flu or something #but I don't want that either #new fave suggestion is reciting Jabberwocky while washing #TWAS BRILLIG #we need more vorpal swords #or fewer vorpal swords #there's a grave imbalance in the number of existing vorpal swords #which is zero #we need some or less than none

[foodbytesback]

The Rise and Fall of Bon Appetit

Sometimes life comes at you fast.  Sometimes, that means stories in the food industry break in such rapid succession that you have no time to blink in between.  Sometimes, it means someone found out about something racist you did a few years ago.  What happens when it’s both?  Ask the fine folks at Bon Appetit.

In recent years, Bon Appetit made a name for itself, rising from the ashes of dying print media, through its Youtube channel featuring a diverse cast of personalities.  But over the course of this past week, many of the publication’s executives have been found to foster a toxic workplace culture, rife with racism, sexism and homophobia.  

Before I get too deep (because this is going to be a long one), I feel the need to point out that while this story’s breaking happened to coincide with Black Lives Matter protests across the country and gained traction from people’s outrage towards inequality, the events that have unfolded should not be blamed on “cancel culture,” “political correctness run amok” or any other reactionary dismissal of critical thinking.  Adam Rapoport didn’t lose his job because Black Lives Matter, Black Lives Matter came to be because of the damage that many in positions of power like Rapoport have done in both mainstream media and society as a whole.

[Also, yes, there are going to be a lot of links to Instagram posts that have been screenshotted and uploaded to Twitter.  Clearly the real takeaway from this debacle is that I need to get an Instagram account.  Also also, thanks to Tumblr’s new rules about offsite links, you’ll have to go to my main site for the full receipts.]

Preamble

Shortly after the killing of George Floyd, Adam Rapoport, Editor-in-Chief at Bon Appetit, wrote an editorial highlighting some of the coverage they’ve given to black chefs.  Many criticized this as being superficial and performative, with others saying that BA has, on numerous occasions, shut down articles relating to black culture for not being “trendy” enough or otherwise was discriminatory towards black employees. (Also, the repeated use of “uprisings” instead of “protests” seems a little suspicious.)

An article from Eater criticized the role BA played in the appropriating and whitewashing of many cultures’ ingredients and cuisines (gochujang, Aleppo pepper, and sumac seem to be some of BA’s favorite ingredients) that had become prevalent in food media in recent years.

While it’s a fairly minor offense in comparison, it may also be worth bringing up the time Rapoport accidentally called Priya Krishna “Sohla,” the name of his other Indian employee.

Monday, June 8th

Food writer Tammie Teclemariam posted a screencap of an Instagram post made by Rapoport’s wife, which depicted the two of them donning Puerto Rican stereotypes as Halloween costumes, brownface and all.    

Many were quick to declare their outrage and demand that Rapoport either resign or be fired.  Meanwhile, Sohla El-Waylly, one of the leading stars of the Youtube channel, was one of the first BA employees to speak up, and disclosed that this kind of behavior was just the tip of the iceberg.  She said that BIPOC workers have been paid disproportionately for their work, including not being paid a per-video commission that the white stars of the Youtube channel receive. 

Molly Baz, one of the aforementioned white stars, announced that she would no longer make videos for BA until all of El-Waylly’s demands were met.  One by one, their white coworkers chimed in in agreement.  

Former staff photographer Alex Lau also wrote an extensive tweet thread about his experiences at BA, including how he had futilely tried to fix the system from within.

By the end of Monday, Adam Rapoport had resigned from his position as Editor-in-Chief.

Tuesday, June 9th  

Since Rapoport’s official resignation did little to fix many of the systemic problems in place at BA, many began to turn their attention to other senior members of the staff.

Some came for Andrew Knowlton, the Restaurant Editor, for behaviors such as gaslighting an employee for trying to bring up racist practices in the offices.

Others called out Matthew Duckor, a VP at Conde Nast and BA’s former “Head of Video” (Did a 3 year old come up with that job title?), for a series of old racist and homophobic tweets.  He tried to apologize by saying that he was young and didn’t know any better at the time, but many were quick to point out that he was, at the youngest, 20, aka for all intents and purposes An Adult when he wrote those tweets. 

Tammie Teclemariam returned to ask current and former BA employees to DM her information about Duckor that they didn’t want to go public with themselves, ranging from his hand in the aforementioned pay disparity to making inappropriate comments towards women.

Teclemariam also did even more social media muckraking and found that Drinks Editor Alex Delany had once decorated a cake to look like a Confederate flag, while others found things like a Vine where he says the f-slur and some questionable comments about women on this Tumblr.  He later deleted his Tumblr and Twitter, and issued a cookie-cutter apology on his Instagram.

She also vague-tweeted that Brad Leone, one of the most beloved stars of the Youtube channel, is “possibly not a great guy,” but later added, “don’t fret.” At that point, some began to accuse her of just trying to stir the pot.

Ultimately, Matt Hunziker, director and camera operator for Leone’s show, reported that the higher ups were ignoring the situation regarding the pay disparity, and that they were not “learning and growing.”

Wednesday, June 10th

By this point, journalists were able to do more thorough investigations and put together exposés that were more than a blurb about an accusation followed by a nut graph.

Business Insider published an article where they interviewed 14 current and former BIPOC employees of Bon Appetit.  In addition to information already discussed above, it also described events such as an incident where several BIPOC staffers were told they weren’t allowed the test kitchen. (Carla Lalli Music, the Food Director at the time, would later defend her stance in the affair on Twitter.)  Ryan Walker-Hartshorn, a black woman who served as Rapoport’s personal assistant, recalled that she would often spend her day doing menial tasks like polishing her boss’s golf clubs or trying to teach his wife how to use Google Calendar.  In another incident, Knolton called Rick Martinez a “one trick pony” for only developing Mexican recipes, which is what he was being forced to do so BA could tout “diversity” bonus points.  Martinez would also say that the magazine under Rapoport’s tenure “went from old and irrelevant and white-washed content to young and trendy white-washed content." (Martinez would also upload a more graphic description of the treatment he received  to his Instagram that same day.) Later that day, Business Insider would also report that Duckor had left the company.

Vice would liken Rapoport to Michael Scott from The Office, but noted that that kind of bumbling, endearingly insensitive bad boss archetype isn’t as charming in the real world where real employees are being affected.  Parallels were also drawn between the Youtube channel and The Office itself, stating that the “quirky workplace” facade put on in the videos helped hide the more sinister practices that lurked beneath the surface, and that the notion that they were “one big family” often pressured BIPOC into doing more than their fair share for the greater good.

Jezebel showed email transcripts where Rapoport argued the semantics of having his costume be called “brownface” when he wasn’t wearing makeup, and had to be explained to, like a child, that the term refers to the racist caricature and not the literal act of putting brown makeup on one’s face.  What a douche.

Bon Appetit published an official apology on their site, a whole two days after the controversy began.  Many believed that their empty promises of “learning from their mistakes” were a day late and a dollar short.

Meanwhile, on Twitter, former BA writer Alyse Whitney said that senior editor Andy Baraghani had, on several occasions, used his influence to undermine her efforts. Whether this had to do with racism, sexism, or just Andy being petty is up for debate, but still constitutes as unprofessional behavior to say the least.

Thursday, June 11th

As interest in the story seemed to wane for many in the industry, Claire Saffitz, arguably the face of the Youtube channel, released another statement on her Instagram.  She said that her relative silence was due to taking time to find the right words, and that the same-old promises to “learn and grow” that most had been giving felt empty and performative. Unlike many of her white coworkers, she directly apologized for being complicit in the toxic environment  and for not using her status to try to leverage even pay for her BIPOC coworkers.  

Another BA Youtube personality, Amiel Stanek, also released a statement in response to BA’s official press release, where he demanded Conde Nast to stop avoiding action by setting vague timelines for changes or making excuses for not giving BIPOC workers raises like “the money just isn’t there.”

Associate editor Christina Chaey also opened up about her experiences with being pushed into more and more videos to “diversify” them- all without compensation.  

Friday, June 12th

The biggest scandal of the day was that, as Teclemariam predicted, Brad Leone is possibly not a great guy.  A leaked screenshot of an Instagram DM showed him making callous, almost Trump-y comments regarding El-Waylly’s demand for better pay.  He also allegedly said that if Delany were to be fired (as of that day he had been sent on leave), he would quit.

Saturday, June 13th

The New York Times published an article suggesting that the issues prevalent in BA’s management may go all the way to the top of Conde Nast.  Highlights include Chief Executive Roger Lynch chastising the whistleblowers within the company for raising their concerns in such a public manner and an account of an incident where he gave his black assistant a guidebook on how to speak “proper” English.

The Sporkful released a special episode of their podcast containing interviews with several current and former BA BIPOC workers.  Nikita Richardson divulged that after she was laid off, a story she had already done all the leg work for was picked up and credited to Amanda Shapiro, a white staff writer who is now acting Editor-in-Chief in lieu of Rapoport.  Sohla El-Waylly confirmed that the self-congratulatory editorial Rapoport wrote in the wake of George Floyd’s death was the real beginning of the end, and that the racist photo was just the final straw.  She also described a company-wide Zoom meeting held after the photo began to be spread around where Rapoport issued a half-hearted apology, and began talking about how he would “fix the brand” before El-Waylly demanded he resigned.  Furthermore, she revealed that after her Instagram posts began circulating rapidly, Duckor had offered her a new contract with increased pay, but she is refusing to sign it until all BIPOC have received similar compensation.  She also said that she had a hand in the wishy-washy statement that BA had published on Wednesday, and said that it originally had taken much firmer stances on the issues but their PR office made them tone it down.  Also, she commented that Leone, for the most part, just seemed like she “genuinely think[s] [that he] just found out racism is real.”  Ultimately, she was glad that the story was getting as much coverage as it was, since it made her feel that her voice was finally being heard.

Sunday, June 14th

Baraghani released a statement on Instagram apologizing for his behavior, saying that trying to achieve his personal goals in BA’s toxic, competitive environment made him lose sight of solidarity with his fellow BIPOC.  

While that may seem like the end of the story for now, it’s important to note that, even with the resignation of two executives, nothing has truly been done to fix the systemic problems at hand.

#bon appetit #adam rapoport #matt duckor #alex delany #sohla el waylly #molly baz #carla lalli music #andy baraghani #brad leone #clair saffitz #amiel stanek #tw racism #tw homophobia #tw sexism

[leila4you]

Okay, so I know a lot of people don't like Police Officer!Dick because they feel that Dick would be too ACAB to be a police officer and honestly, I agree.

But, what if instead of Dick being a Police Officer because he wants to be able to help people during the day and the night (I think that was part of reason given, I'm not sure), Dick's actually an Investigative Journalist undercover as a Police Officer to expose corrupt officers/politicians.

(But, probably gets fired 6 months in because he got into a fight with a higher ranking officer or something.)

It would kind of make sense. I read in an article that Dick was part of the School newspaper in High School and his short time at college.

This is kind of based on a fanfic I read where the author kind of gave a rewrite idea for the whole Officer Grayson time period where Dick was just trying to expose corrupt officers in Bludhaven and hating every second of it until he just gives up and says 'Abolish all Police' and an old Twitter post (I think it was from Twitter, I saw screencaps of it on instagram, so I'm not sure) where this ex-police officer write about all the racism he witnessed when he was a Police Officer and how it started at the Police Academy. So, basically, Dick Grayson is taking that and writing an exposé on them.

#dick grayson #broke: Officer Grayson #woke: ACAB Dick Grayson #Awakened: Investigative Journalist!Dick Grayson hating every minute of neing undercover as a Police Officer #headcanon

[sword-dad-fukuzawa]

Framing in BSD

This post arrives as a product of a bunch of rewatched scenes, pondering before going to sleep and while in the shower, and many frustrated screams. Anon, I think I’ve finally figured out what hell Bungou’s deal with framing is. Yeah, it’s going to be a long post, folks. 

So, the basic question, posed by anon, was this:

During the Fifteen arc in the anime (haven't read the manga) I noticed there are a lot of scenes where we're really zoomed out and they have the characters in these huge empty spaces (abandoned warehouses, Mori's office, etc.) with sharp dividing lines between them (e.g. window lines, or pillars, or metal supports). Any thoughts on that? Like why position them that way? 

Bungou has framing like this frequently enough that it has to be on purpose. A simple wide-angle shot of two people, usually facing each other so we see only their side-profiles, seems like a very lazy and simple shot. But it happened too damn often, and during moments of really high tension/flashbacks, that I needed to figure out why. The fact that the lighting usually splits the screen further into diagonals also kept poking at me, along with the emphasis on scenes during sunset (I talk about that in this post). 

Can I just say that finding screencaps for this was hell?

In short, I think that it comes down to relationships and characterization. Like anon mentioned, characters are in huge empty spaces. Usually, according to my boyfriend (who knows cinematography stuff, unlike me) wide-angle shots suggest that the environment is important. But in this situation, the opposite is true. The sparse, clinical environment draws attention to only the characters, but because it’s zoomed out, we don’t have the luxury of watching their facial expressions. Instead, we’re given posture, lighting, and color, which allows for subtler characterization. 

Posture, first of all. I want to talk about this scene, which is from the very first episode of the anime. 

Notice how Dazai’s standing, completely relaxed, and in the shadows. Atsushi’s illuminated by the moonlight but he’s on his back foot, backing away as if in fear. The harsh line separating them emphasizes the contrast. At this point in time, Dazai holds all the cards. He’s the one with the power, the confidence, and the skill to back it up; and, added to the shadowy lighting, it’s almost menacing. Atsushi just looks like a scared child. This is the power dynamic that BSD begins with, and it’s summarized pretty clearly in a single frame. 

And here:

The setting of Mori’s office is built to demonstrate power dynamics. You know all those scenes where Mori’s in his chair, calm as you please, while some harried character petitions him while standing? In Dark Era it’s Dazai, in Fifteen it’s Chuuya, but it emphasizes that Mori’s the one who calls the shots, and it’s Mori who’s in control.

Okay, now let’s talk lighting. 

Pretty sure this is from the episode where Ranpo goes on a sidequest inside Poe’s book, but I did get this screenshot off of @/animeronavirus on twitter. So, again, posture shows that Ranpo’s in a position of power. But more than that, he’s illuminated by a shaft of bright light. It demonstrates fundamental differences in their characters. Ranpo’s bright, extroverted, and friendly, who really doesn’t care who he pisses off and says what he wants to. Poe is shy and introverted, preferring to stay in the darkness because other people scare him. This dynamic is summed up, once again, in a single frame. Their relationship looks a lot like the above, with Ranpo tugging Poe into his light. 

Lastly, color. 

(Do you see all these diagonals?) It’s black and white, but I picked this frame to talk about color for a reason. It’s dreary outside, raining and cloudy like the day Oda went to confront Gide. The cafe they’re in is similarly gray, but there’s a bunch of bright colors underneath the table. It draws your attention to the two men bracketing the colors, rather than the sharp, unforgiving blackness of the top left frame. Power dynamic between Natsume and Oda aside (one sitting, one standing, there’s a clear contrast there) it’s what they share that makes this relationship special. 

They both have stories they want to tell. Shared between them is their need to write books, to write stories, and that’s what brings color to the dead, washed-out world of the flashback. 

And, c’mon, Oda’s fight against Gide is full of the red-blue symbolism that Bungou uses as shorthand for diametric opposition. 

And again, it’s the same shot. Wider angle, two people facing each other. Both Gide and Oda are standing tall with no extreme posture differences and the lighting is washed out. What it comes down to is the color, to show the opposition and conflict in their relationship. 

It’s about shorthand, all of it. Visual shorthand, and that’s what I’ve been beating my head against the wall to try and understand. It seems kinda obvious in retrospect now. Like this shot in Fifteen, look:

Dazai and Rimbaud, in opposition. Dazai is Mori’s protege, and Rimbaud’s a traitor flinging around the corpse of the old boss. But then, this is the next frame:

Chuuya, and he steps out on Rimbaud’s side of the frame, leaving Dazai by himself. This is before the fight, when Chuuya and Dazai haven’t really fought together as actual allies. The more important relationship, this frame says, is the one between Chuuya and Rimbaud--what Rimbaud knows about Chuuya. 

It’s just more visual shorthand, conveyed in a way outside of the limitations of dialogue. And it’s brilliant. 

#Aurie Character Analysis #god i adore this anime #this post is brought to you with pain #cinematography #anime #manga #bungou stray dogs #bungo stray dogs #bsd #chuuya nakahara #dazai osamu #oda sakunosuke #andre gide #atsushi nakajima #soukoku #framing #visual shorthand #characterization #fifteen #the dark era

[popatochisssp]

I need memes for the new boys. Meme me, Poppy. Meme me.

As always, I am ashamed at how well-equipped I am to answer this question...

Meme Fluent: Ash (Undergloom Sans), Ell (Horrorswap Papyrus), Sunny (Gastertale Sans)

Can At Least Ask Where The Bathroom Is In Meme: Brick (Horrorfell Sans), Nemo (Horrorswapfell Papyrus), Aster (Gastertale Papyrus)

Meme-blivious: Yrus (Undergloom Papyrus), King (Horrorfell Papyrus), Merc (Horrorswap Sans), Pitch (Horrorswapfell Sans)

Ash (Undergloom Sans): Very savvy and up on all the most popular memes, scrolling through memes is an activity very low on the ‘activity’ part and great for when he’s feeling a little too tired to do anything else. He’s very into tiktoks, which help him keep up to date on the latest meme songs-- some of which he might try to learn to play on his own. In general, he’s also into memes with funny or weird-looking animals (frogs, possums, axolotls, etc), no specific kind of meme, the presence of a goofy-looking creature in it is usually good enough to get a smile or a chuckle out of him.

Yrus (Undergloom Papyrus): Not all that up to date on the meme scene, he’s usually busy with other things... but! He really loves relatable memes, especially ones about procrastination or not being able to focus on work or having to do chores, everyday mundane irritations that everybody can relate to! He also thinks reading comprehension errors are great harmless fun (i.e., “my bad i thought u said moths”), just silly misunderstandings that make for confusing interactions until someone realizes.

Brick (Horrorfell Sans): Doesn’t always remember every meme, but he gets the gist of most of them. His favorites are the MS Paint memes, usually the more poorly drawn, the better (but a fan of pretty much every catcrumb image he sees, those chaotic little cats are great). He can also be caught laughing himself to wheezing and banging on the table over completely bizarre and out of context interactions--for some reason, they just hit right on the funny bone and he has no defense against them. (The ‘Nyquil Detroit Become Liquid’ post nearly killed him, but he would’ve thanked it.)

King (Horrorfell Papyrus): Not too interested in memes. He’s peripherally aware of them but rarely knows the latest trends or cares to know them. He does have a slight fondness for evil memes--ones about being evil or having an evil lair or just have the word ‘evil’ as an adjective in front of something else seemingly incongruous--he finds them silly and they can usually win at least a smirk out of him when he happens to come across one. If you want a laugh, though, find him some of those screenshots of old newspapers from the 30s-50s, formally written humor that still holds up even now (like The Windsor Star, Ontario, November 1, 1958, The Cincinnati Enquirer, Ohio, February 21, 1947, or Barnard Bulletin, New York, December 20, 1935). Sensible chuckles abound from those!

Merc (Horrorswap Sans): Not too into memery, he’s definitely got a lot of other things going on and isn’t always online. Still, he is a fan of stuff like one-time-i-dreamt and other accounts of peoples’ dreams or thought processes. He thinks it’s interesting, the little peek into the wandering, strange, and sometimes funny subconscious, or how people think about love and tenderness and nostalgia and remind others to appreciate those things, too. It’s a very niche, wholesome sort of enjoyment for sure... but not to worry! If you’re looking for something more mainstream and ‘haha funny,’ he also got very into the whole ‘Surprise! It’s cake!’ meme trend that was going on for awhile and is still delighted to find a video where a realistic object is cut into and turns out to be cake. He’s definitely going to make one himself, maybe as a social media marketing thing for his home business...

Ell (Horrorswap Papyrus): Very meme savvy and tends toward some of the maybe darker types of humor--stress and anxiety memes, introvert memes, et cetera. Animated text is a big one he likes, with enough of a mix of pessimist and optimist memes that he doesn’t come away from checking it actually bummed out or feeling bad, a fine line to walk to be sure. He also likes coding and programming humor! He’s still kinda teaching himself, so he definitely doesn’t get them all, but it gives him a little sense of accomplishment and community when he does, which he really likes.

Pitch (Horrorswapfell Sans): Not interested in memes, and a lot of them are heavily based on visuals which, unfortunately, he’s going to miss the context. Still, he does get a hell of a kick out of brazen and blatant misinformation--the smooth sharks post, facts-i-just-made-up, and the like--and finds it hilarious when someone insists something that is obviously untrue, especially if a lot of people aren’t getting the joke and are trying fervently to convince them of their wrongness. He’s also a little bit evil, so whenever he learns a new piece of whatever slang is popular and in at the moment, he’s going to use it incorrectly, or use outdated slang to induce cringe in those around him. ‘Totes yeet yo’? Yes. ‘That is so pog, as the kids say’? Of course. ‘It’s lit, fam’? Definitely, who do you take him for? The cringier, the better, he revels in the discomfort of others when he throws one of those babies out.

Nemo (Horrorswapfell Papyrus): Definitely knows a little bit about memes, not always the latest trends but his base knowledge is pretty good, and of course has his favorites. He loves John Mulaney references and reaction images, they just Speak to him, y’know? Outside of that, he’s very fond of day-of-the-week memes, Tuesday Again?, Out of Touch Thursday, Fat Fuck Friday and so on. Aside from being a useful reminder of what the hell day of the week it is, he likes the consistency and recurrence of it, just a silly little moment to look forward to at some point like, “oh yeah, it’s el muchacho monday, nice!”

Sunny (Gastertale Sans): Pretty wise to the meme scene overall, loves the fun and creativity of it all. If you want him to absolutely lose his shit, though, show him a terrible picture of an animal--by which I mean, poorly photoshopped, blurred, in mid-panoramic, as long as the end result is an absurd or very screwed up image. Why are things like ‘buff half cat’ and ‘dog but very, very long’ his sense of humor? He has no idea, but the worse it looks, the harder he laughs. He has a bit of a fondness for ‘gotcha’s too, like a Rickroll but really anything where you go into it expecting one thing, and get trolled by receiving something else. (If Megalovania memes were a thing in his universe, he would be all over them, if that gives you an idea of the kind of gag he thinks is funny!)

Aster (Gastertale Papyrus): Aware of memes, but not all that invested in them. He likes corporate and office/business memes a lot-- the kind that roast bosses and unnecessary meetings, translate ‘polite’ corporate phrases, anything to do with emails--because they can be very relatable. He also likes seeing screencaps of people on Facebook or Twitter getting dragged for misinformation, or trying to act like a pompous jerk and getting shredded (for legitimate reasons of course, not just random unprovoked cyberbullying). He...may be involved in a bit of that sometimes himself: he may not be working in a scientific field, but he is half of a scientist, and just petty enough to spend a few hours of his free time looking up and reading through a few credible sources to cite in a strong and well-crafted rebuttal argument if someone is being especially, dangerously wrong about something. Not everyone has the time and resources to do it, so why shouldn’t he? 😇

#undertale #sans #papyrus #headcanons #undergloom #ug!sans #ug!papyrus #horrorfell #hf!sans #hf!papyrus #horrorswap #hs!sans #hs!papyrus #horrorswapfell #hsf!sans #hsf!papyrus #gastertale #g!sans #g!papyrus #kunabee

[kirby-the-gorb]

reply roundup!

highlights for the past couple weeks:

@shegosato wrote another image description [here], for mining kirby, and @pranque wrote an image description for kirby at his computer [here]! thank you both! <3 all you folks who’ve so kindly contributed your time to add image descriptions since I’m not currently able to are honestly super important and appreciated.

there are also new stickers! etsy link is [here].

on the [last roundup]:

@spageddie28 said: THE GORB NOTICED ME 😳😳🥺🥺💖💖 #all praise the gorb

@askluckyandfriends said: I got noticed too :D

yes!!! that’s why I do these roundups, I love seeing all the fun tags and replies everyone leaves for me, and this way I get to acknowledge them!

@your-local-neighbourhood-kat​ said: The hug would make both of us feel better 🥺🥺🥺

even though he’s got little arms I bet kirby is the best at hugging. (I hope whatever’s on your mind eases soon.)

@shegosato​ said: i love ur kirbys they deserve an id <3 hope ur year's been good so far op!

aww, thank you! I know writing good image descriptions takes genuine effort (which is why I don’t do it myself like I should, I’m sorry TnT ) and deserves sincere recognition at the very least! (I’d love to just properly compensate someone to caption all of them as they go up someday, but it will take a while to afford. I will be sure to put out a call for interested parties once I get there!)

on [keyboard]:

@zer0cracy​ said: Freddy Mer-kirby

ohhh what a good pun! he’s even got the sparkles to match lol

also to the person who tagged it metal gear, I see you. I appreciate you.

on [train]:

@papioligoat​ said: Look at this gorb go. Lad vibin.

he’s where he Belongs.

@rinnyhere​ said: I want to ride an endless train and just sleep. tired of thoughts.

ohh that sounds so peaceful. just ride the train forever. highest quality naps.

on [miner]:

@macro-microcosm​ said: I also lost my part-time work haha. please donate to this artist! they’re so delightful and make such lovely work. they’re at this every. single. day.

aw that sucks! I hope things are at least relatively stable for now. (and thank you so much for your kind tags! I haven’t missed a day since I started in june 2018 :> )

@jupiterlandings​ said: he’s mining to get his webkinz crown of wonder

unfortunately I don’t know anything about webkinz so I can’t fully appreciate the joke but he’s clearly working very hard towards his goals and I support him!

@shegosato​ said: op thats a cute easter egg. also hope uve doing well! mayhaps a post abt commissions or donations will help?

I was very happy with myself when I came up with it lol, and I think that is a good idea! I already put out new stickers this month, but maybe I will finally figure out sticker commissions or just advertise kofi commissions at the same rate as the patreon tier.

on the [sticker poll]:

@liongerudothesilly​ said: I do not have Twitter, but I vote Fancy Dresses please! If you'll take a commented vote!

I just want to make sure you know your vote was seen and counted! (and I secretly wanted fancy dresses to win too lol, but even counting your vote and mine it still fell a little short. maybe I will just do it next time without asking! :v )

on [sweep]:

@aggron-rocks​ said: what a responsible orb

one does not become a gorb on virtue of cuteness alone. good orbs also help with chores when they can!

on [valentines stickers]:

@insertusername77​ said: These are so good. At the rate things are going, Kirby's gonna be my Valentine this year

I imagine kirby would love to be your valentine. :> (he may not be very reliable at giving you chocolate, but I think he’s pretty okay at making bouquets from supermarket flowers!)

@here-comes-de-custard​ said: im going to cry these are so cute

@osohey said: joy and love and happyness and joy

@leolithe​ said: !!!!!!!!!!!!!! great arts!

I don’t always have anything to say in reply so they don’t always end up in the roundups but I see all the tags people leave and I always love tags like these, I love it when my art can make people happy <3

@legendarykerfuffle said: all i need for valentines is kirb

honestly same lol, my partner knows this and often manages to find cute little kirby plushes to give me :v

on [sumikko]:

@virovac said: Decided to look up Summikko Gurashi [screencap of character description for “penguin?” that says “am I even a penguin? penguin has no confidence. in the past, there might have been a plate on penguin’s head...”]

penguin is just like that! (they were a kappa rather than a regular penguin, which is why they are green and like cucumbers a lot. that’s what the plate thing means.)

@askluckyandfriends said: Aww I hope your mom has a great birthday!

she told me she had a nice day! (and also bragged about my art to her friends at the office lol)

on [stamps]:

@virovac said: Kirby says support your post office!

yes!!! we love the post office!

@tinybandee said: delicately places him in the mailbox, happy trails kiddo

if I wasn’t already tired for today I would love to draw him peering out of the mailbox back at you. that would be very cute. instead we will imagine it together.

from the ask box:

anonymous said: It's fine! Don't push yourself, you can't help it not feeling too great *showers you with support*

(this was sent when I posted about delaying stickers for a day) thank you so much! this genuinely did make me feel better about taking longer than I expected to get them ready <3

#reply roundup #asks answered #text #title text #long post #readmore #merch #for sale #shegosato #pranque #spageddie28 #askluckyandfriends #your-local-neighbourhood-kat #zer0cracy #papioligoat #rinnyhere #macro-microcosm #jupiterlandings #liongerudothesilly #aggron-rocks #insertusername77 #here-comes-de-custard #osohey #leolithe #legendarykerfuffle #virovac #tinybandee #anonymous

[helsa-week]

Header artwork by @ravinewreyn​.

Join the Kingdom of Helsa Discord server for Helsa Week 2020! No matter where you call home on the internet – Discord, Tumblr, deviantART, Instagram, Twitter, FF.net, AO3, or elsewhere – you are welcome to participate! Post your work in as many or as few places as you wish, and tag it with #helsaweek and/or #helsaweek2020!

This year’s theme is AUs!

[AU stands for “alternate universe” and refers to taking one or more characters and putting them in a different setting (time, place, and/or fandom).]

Day 1 (Monday, June 22nd): Swap Change an aspect of one or both characters to the opposite of their canon self/selves. [Examples: gender-bend, evil!Elsa, good!Hans]

Day 2 (Tuesday, June 23rd): Modern Put the characters in the modern world. [Examples: high school, office, coffee shop, casino, crime]

Day 3 (Wednesday, June 24th): Powers Add or remove magic or other types of power. [Examples: fire!Hans, powerless!Elsa, superhero, “power couple,” non-royalty]

Day 4 (Thursday, June 25th): Fantasy Put the characters in a fantasy world. [Examples: Shakespearean (Romeo and Juliet, Hamlet), folklore/myth (Norse, Greek, Egyptian), game (D&D, Elder Scrolls), fandom (Star Wars, Witcher)]

Day 5 (Friday, June 26th): Time Put the characters in a different time period. [Examples: 50s, 80s, Cold War, Viking, futuristic, ancient, Victorian]

Day 6 (Saturday, June 27th): Divergent (As in “canon-divergent” material.) Change something within the Frozen canon from any source (movies, shorts, books) and go from there. [Examples: What if Elsa and Anna didn’t grow up separated? What if Hans didn’t propose to Anna? What if Hans and Elsa met earlier? What if Hans and Elsa had an arranged marriage? What if Hans and Elsa were childhood friends? What if Hans had come back for Frozen II?]

Day 7 (Sunday, June 28th): Free Participant’s choice. Anything goes.

The examples above are merely ideas. Feel free to use your own interpretations of the prompts.

Please note:

Please tag all posts appropriately (including, but not limited to, fandom(s), characters, ship(s), and spoilers).

Anything posted online must stay within that site’s rules and/or TOS.

This event accepts all media types, including, but not limited to, fanart, comics, fanfics, essays, poems, screencap edits, cosplay, photography, and mood/aesthetic boards.

If you have any questions, don’t hesitate to ask. Have fun!

This is a repeat/make-up week for anyone who was unable to participate in April and anyone who wants to participate again.

#Prince Hans #Elsa #Helsa #Frozen #helsaweek #helsaweek2020

[wherever-the-chaos-is]

A Guide to MDZS novel and its adaptations

Mo Dao Zu Shi (MDZS) is a BL novel by Chinese author Mo Xiang Tong Xiu (MXTX). It was first published in Chinese as a web novel but it is now also available in paperback and in audiobook format. Official translations in Thai, Vietnamese, and Korean are currently published. Fan translations in Japanese and English are available online.

The novel has been adapted in the following formats: audio drama, manhua, donghua, and live action drama. The following are links for purchasing and accessing the novel and the various adaptations.

Novel (Original Source)

Status: Complete as of 2016

English Translations (complete): https://exiledrebelsscanlations.com/grandmaster-of-demonic-cultivation/

Official Source at JJWXC (currently unavailable)

MXTX’s author page on JJWXC: http://www.jjwxc.net/oneauthor.php?authorid=1322620

This is a screencap of the bottom of her page, where you can see her other works (2 are still on lockdown 😢):

Mainland Simplified Version Volume 1 Purchase Link (censored):  CURRENTLY OFF SHELVES https://detail.tmall.com/item.htm?id=583563763849

Taiwanese books (uncensored and extended chapter 111) set is no longer available: Volume 1, Volume 2, Volume 3, and Volume 4

Korean Version Volume 1 (unsure censorship or not): http://item2.gmarket.co.kr/English/detailview/item.aspx?goodscode=1642828680

Korean Version Volume 2: http://item2.gmarket.co.kr/English/detailview/item.aspx?goodscode=1658845993

Another place to read in CN (censored): https://www.luoxia.com/modaozushi/

Audiobook (Volume 1 only, ongoing): https://www.ximalaya.com/youshengshu/25069034/

MXTX Weibo: https://weibo.com/u/5907302111

Audio Drama

Status of the original audio drama: Complete as of October 2019

Status of the Japanese ver.: Ongoing

The audio drama is the most faithful adaptation of the novel while also adding some FUN extras. Highly recommended!!! It is a cinematic experience!!!

Guide on how to purchase the CN audio drama: https://twitter.com/rossogattino/status/1048244205129068545?s=20

The Japanese version can be purchased through the MimiFM app and has more accessible options for international fans.

Links to each season on the official site: 

Season 1: https://www.missevan.com/mdrama/drama/15861

Season 2: https://www.missevan.com/mdrama/drama/19059

Season 3: https://www.missevan.com/mdrama/drama/22602

*OR download 猫耳FM (missevan) from your device’s app store, then search -> 魔道祖师 第一季 | 魔道祖师 第二季 | 魔道祖师 第三季 | or just 魔道祖师, and it will appear.

CN Audio Drama Producer: https://weibo.com/brackets

CN Audio Drama Studio’s Weibo: https://weibo.com/trionespenguin

CN Audio Drama English fansubs (ongoing): https://suibiansubs.tumblr.com/

MimiFM twitter for JP audio drama: https://twitter.com/mimifm11

Manhua 

Status: Ongoing

The manhua follows the novel closely though it misses some details.

Guide on how to view/purchase the manhua on the official site: https://twitter.com/chiharuzushi/status/1122649132223664129?s=20

Official site to read: https://www.kuaikanmanhua.com/web/topic/1749/ (more recent chapters need to be paid for)

Animated Manhua version: https://t.co/MWraePL4VP?amp=1

English Fan Translations: See on MangaDex

Official English Translations: https://m.wecomics.com/comic/index/id/236

Donghua (Anime)

Status: Season 2 Concluded as of September 2019

The donghua is a loose adaptation of the novel. Expect differences in plot and characterization.

Guide on how to purchase Tencent VIP subscription to watch the donghua on the official site: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lOPXtMC-7iE&feature=youtu.be

Donghua (official): https://v.qq.com/x/cover/k4mutekomtrdbux/i0026ssfw4k.html?ptag=2_7

Official English Subtitles: https://wetv.vip/play?cid=r8t02fkxr9jyvvn&language=en&vid=e0029bmqymw (also on WeTV app)

MDZS Q or chibi donghua can also be found on WeTV

English fansubs: https://guodongsubs.tumblr.com/tagged/Mo-Dao-Zu-Shi

Donghua’s Weibo: https://weibo.com/u/5406119222

Live Action Drama: Chenqingling/The Untamed 

Status: Complete as of August 2019

The live action is also a loose adaptation of the novel so, again, expect differences in plot and characterization.

CQL on Tencent (VIP): https://v.qq.com/x/cover/vbb35hm6m6da1wc.html

Offical English subs on Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLMX26aiIvX5pYn98zge18X88sfeYbnhTr

CQL on WeTV (subs in English, Thai, Bahasa Indonesia, Simplified Chinese, Traditional Chinese): https://wetv.vip/play?vid=d0031smeq8n&language=en (also on WeTV app)

CQL on Viki (subs available in 16 languages specified in description): https://www.viki.com/tv/36657c-the-untamed?locale=en

CQL is also on Netflix.

CQL Official Weibo: https://weibo.com/u/5921252454

Mobile Game

Still on beta. No release date yet. Press release says it will be following the novel's story despite taking CQL's title (apparently because the title "MDZS" did not pass the review board... just China censorship things...). Head over to cql.163.com to see previews!

//

We strongly suggest reading the novel first (+ manhua and/or audio drama) for the full effect of the unique way in which the story is told. Censorship takes away, not only the gay in the story, but also a lot of its complex layers. The original story also contains MATURE themes and EXPLICIT content, you know the drill.

If there’s anything that was left out, let us know.

Please support the works from the official site if you can!

(Updated on 31 July 2020)

#mo dao zu shi #mdzs #cql #the untamed #chen qing ling #chenqingling #魔道祖师 #陈情令 #wei wuxian #lan wangji #wei ying #lan zhan #wangxian #grandmaster of demonic cultivation #my post #mxtx #mo xiang tong xiu #founder of diabolism #master of diabolism

[sepdet]

Hey #RESISTANCE!

Wakey Wakey!

Are you feeling strangely purposeless, after almost a week off?

GREAT NEWS!

WE HAVE SOMETHING TO CALL OUR CONGRESSCRITTERS ABOUT AGAIN!

[Link to Tweet screencapped above]

We deserved some time off. BOY HOWDY did we ever.

But while Biden has spent his first few days unfucking Trump's "Fuck You" EOs and issuing a slew of executive orders related to everything from DACA to establishing a Ministry of Unfucking Red Tape to help people deal with federal and state offices screwing them over, Congress is slower to act.

Which is unfortunate. Because Biden can't legally establish new things through EO; he can only tinker with existing things. The way the government is SUPPOSED to work, Congress passes legislation (some of it pushed by the president), and then the president gives the orders necessary to implement it.

Biden needs us to pressure Congress to MAKE THINGS HAPPEN. He can't do it alone. And on the one hand, CONVICTING TRUMP NEEDS TO HAPPEN, but on the other hand, LOTS OF OTHER THINGS NEED TO HAPPEN. Including Biden's next economic aid package, which includes stimulus checks. So he needs Congress to impeach AND get to work on his stimulus bill and covid legislation, as he said even before taking office.

But on the other hand, we can't just let Trump off the hook for summoning and BANKROLLING right-wing groups that stormed the Capitol in order to lynch Pence, abduct or kill members of Congress, loot and damage goverment property, and disrupt the functioning of goverment in order to stop his opponent's victory from being certified. I can't believe we have to tell the GOP that insurrection is NOT OK. We can't just shrug and go "oh well" and let there be no consequences, just because he wasn't able to get the military or justice department to go along with his coup and wound up having to use a mob. The next guy to try it might be more effective.

TL;DR: RIGHT NOW, WE NEED TO CALL THE SENATE EN MASSE AND TELL THEM TO CONVICT, AS TRUMP SUPPORTERS ARE DOING THE OPPOSITE.

DM RESISTBOT "CALL" on Twitter or by texting the number above, and it will automatically help find your SENATOR'S PHONE # and initiate the call.

#us politics #resistance #resist

[starlling-writes]

I’m screaming!!

Senpai noticed me and complimented my writing! *insert fangirl noises here*

The scene I wrote is typed below the cut for anyone who’d like to read it (I didn’t want to just paste the pic of the text since that would be rude to anyone who is blind or has trouble treading screens). There are a couple typos in the original that I left in the copy below for authenticity’s sake (also because if I start editing one bit, I’ll want to edit the entire thing, lol).

Note: this is my personal twitter. I do technically have one for writing/exophilia/adult content,@ StarllingWrites, but I don’t use it a lot.

[ID: screencap of a Twitter conversaion between two people, Erika Ishii and Effy, consisting of three tweets. First tweet is by Erika saying, “One day I will be a Bond villain. I will have delicious scene-chewing monologues. I will wear a tailored tux and do martial arts in an evening gown. I will seduce Bond. And a Bond girl.” Second tweet is from Effy saying, “Okay so... this vague idea has been stuck in my head since I first heard Nice to Meet Ya by Niall Horran. I changed some of my original details to fit your Bond villain idea (though honestly, I love it more now). Hope you enjoy, (heart emoji).” Below that, is a picture of text. Third tweet is from Erika saying “Oh my god this is so good????” End ID]

Scene opens in a casino.

In walks Villain (V) wearing a tailored suit, no shirt under the jacket; gold necklace/body chain; simple yet stylish stilettos; hair up in a neat ponytail, perhaps adorned with a small gold ornament/clasp; (other accessories to taste). V is flanked by two fem bodyguards in black dress shirts and slacks, keeping a generous distance back.

V sits down at a table for a card game. Bond Girl (BG) is already there playing. BG stats acting coquettishly towards V. V plays into it. After a couple hands V says, “Why don’t we make this a bit more interesting. If I win the next hand, you’ll join me for drinks in my VIP lounge. You win... and I’ll make sure my ladies don’t kill Mr. Bond as he searches my office for this-” V pulls out an SD card or key, whatever.

Cut to scene of Bond in V’s office finding a note from V saying, “You’re going to have to try harder than this, darling ♡“ Behind Bond, a number of guards slowly walk into V’s office, ready to fight.

BG’s blood goes cold as she eyes the card as V slips it back into her jacket then watches the smirks grow on V’s face. “Well [BG’s name]. Do we have a bet?”

Cue fight scene, cutting between the fight of V vs BG, and Bond vs guards. V tells her 2 bodyguards in the casino to stand down, keeping it a 1v1 fight. V and BG’s fight is filled with homoerotic tension, ending with V pinning PG. “Looks like you owe me a drink,” V says.

V disengages, adjusts her clothes and gives BG a once over. “I’ll send some new dresses to your room. Drinks in an hour.” V walks off confidently, knowing she doesn’t need to threaten BG more, nor keep an eye on her, to know she’ll show for drinks.

During drinks, V comments, “I hope I didn’t leave any scars on you. Unless... you want a scar to remember me by.”

#erika ishii #bond #james bond #bond villain #flash fiction

[arashigossip]

Sakurai Sho “Bifurcated Love" Live with my favorite and shares a room with a model

Sakurai Sho (38) was reported having a premarital trip with his favorite girlfriend Ako san on January by Bunshun and a month later on February 16, Bunshun was reported that Sakurai had been playing with another woman.

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Sakurai's friends from Keio Kindergarten revealed the relationship between Sakurai and her favorite girlfriend (Ako san) "Ako san  is a former Miss Keio, and Sakurai's classmate. They have been friends since student era and started dating after graduation”. Ako's presence was recognized as "She"  (Sakurai's she) by his closest friends from Keio Kindergarten. When the news of Bunshun came out, they immediately knew "Ah, that girl". The relationship was a “long distance love” between Osaka and Tokyo until the last fall when Ako san quits her job and moves to Tokyo.

Surprisingly on the night of February 16, Sakurai appeared in a high-rise apartment separate from his house a luxurious apartment in Minato-ku. After that, appeared in the taxi a beauty model similar to appearance to Hirose Alice. After passing through the entrance of the apartment, she disappeared into the room where Sakurai waited. The room that Sakurai visited was a property purchased by Sakurai about 10 years ago. Even after moving, Sakurai still using it as a separate home, his name remains at the property. In adiction, Sakurai showed up at the entrance of the apartment just after noon on the 17th.

Preparation for marriage

Sakurai and Ako san are preparing for marriage after the suspension of Arashi's activities, and a secret meeting with a model is likely to create a huge ripple. Last december Sakurai introduced Mieco to his parents at a luxury Italian restaurant (above 50,000 yen per capita), but in order not to be exposed to other guests, he called their other friends for cover them. The source said the topic of early travel was mentioned during the meal.

Bunshun photographed them repeatedly, such as January 11th, Mieco went to a high-end Chinese restaurant to meet Sakurai, and then both went back to the same house separately. On January 12, Mieco went to the Sakurai´s job site. Sakurai was shooting a rugby match for NEWS ZERO. Mieco was accompanied with friends and they drunks sake and watched the game. 

The separate apartment was bought by Sakurai ten years ago. Registration is on his own name. This separate house is not far away from the shared house by Sakurai and Mieco. Three kilometers away, five minutes by car.

He stayed with the beauty B-san for three hours - she left at about 12:30 pm - Sakurai hit a taxi at noon the next day and returned to the "home" where Mieco was waiting.

Who is this beauty who has gone to Sakurai ´s "Separate House"?

A friend who has known Sakurai for a long time said that she is a general woman in her 30s. B san had an unusual relationship with Sakurai  a few years ago and met through a common friend. When Sakurai saw her, he actively asked her to drink something. And B whom is a very straightforward and reliable character, said yes. Bunshun reported that Sakurai didn´t asked B san to hiding and didn't tell her that he had a genuine wife, Mieco. (B's friend said) "When Bunshun photographed them, they did not live together." After meeting with B, the appearance of living with Mieko in the "home" was witnessed by the surrounding residents.

Mieko resigned from Kansai TV under the pretext of "helping a friend in Tokyo", but she was actually going to marry Sakurai. But in the process of preparing to get married Sakurai still having a meeting with other women. Bunshun asked Johnny's office about Sakurai's marriage preparation and also the existence of B san, but didn't get a reply. When Sakurai wrote on Otonoha that he try to make "a lot of people happy, not just someone" fans thought he was talking about the mood of swinging between love and Arashi. One of these many "who" maybe it's B san? --

EXTRAS 

An affiliate of the advertising company revealed that Sakurai doesn't  like to play with women any more than a day or two. Many people in the industry who introduced him to young girls around him even formed the "Sakurai Club". The female college student previously photographed by Bunshun were also introduced through this process.  -- A quote from Weibo user 专业主播bot

[A day in Sakurai’s life] Itinerary made for the same weibo user 

- Around 9 o'clock on the night of February 16th (Sun) I'm in a house in Roppongi with B san

- After 12:00 on the night of February 17th (Mon) B san left from apartment.

- After 12 noon on February 17 (Mon). Sakurai was leaving Roppongi and he go back to Akasaka to the home who lives with Mieco, and sleeps all night there.

- February 17 (Mon) at 5:30 pm. The report of the cancelation of Beijing Concert

- February 17 (Mon) 11 o'clock at night. Sakurai doing news zero live.

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Note from the author: This is madness! I don't know which part is true and which not! On my personal view I can't judge sexual encounters from others. I guess all was consensual? And Mieco didn´t complaint about? Is fine for them is fine for me.  Now I asking to myself ... this is the  "large scale photo scandal" from a weeks ago? Or we must to wait another bomb?

--- Screencap from VS嵐 20190425 Sho: "if I adopt polygamy, everything will fit round" Sakurai make the pose that includes multiples partners  and the announcer said “all wives?”  A great way to illustrate Bunshun Gossip from here @5zJNjKWJBOp4VgY https://twitter.com/5zJNjKWJBOp4VgY/status/1237736191073456128

--- By the way I don´t know how to name Takauchi Mieko 高内三恵子 some fans refers her as Mieco due her former twitter account @3co29 and other calls her “plastic bag” for her infamous dresses (too cruel)  and tabloids only quoted her as “Ako san” or “former Miss Keio”

-- For the record: Hirose Alice 広瀬アリス (25) is an actress and former model, she is the elder sister of Hirose Suzu (Suzu co star Laplace no majo movie). 

-- You can share this article, reblog or redirect here but please don't copy and paste! or claim as your own. always redirect to @arashigossip Thanks in advance.

-- Sorry for the delay. Due work overdose I only update on weekends. See you! 

By A-san (not B san  or C san hahaha! )

#二股愛 #櫻井翔

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#arashigossip #arashi gossip #sakurai sho #Takauchi Mieko #mieco #3eco29 #arashi #sakurai sho marriage #sakurai sho girlfriend

[beesmygod]

this is what riverdale is about (part 5)

part 1

part 2

part 3

part 4

hey guys. im back to upset you with more information about the first season of riverdale. the next post will wrap up season one. this post will cover eps 7-9. iirc the previous episodes, even when watching it, felt like filler. i was worried i was never going to get the fire of the first three episodes back. we do. don’t worry.

images are from the riverdale wiki

SEASON 1 (PART 3):

in a lonely place: jughead is now living in the high school, living every weirdo teenager’s worst nightmare. even better, literally everyone finds out about his relationship with betty “harriet the spy” cooper, making things a little awkward in the group. while discussing polly’s bold escape, cheryl’s goon squad of mean teen girls let her know the hot goss, which she takes to her mother and the sheriff to implicate polly in the murder of jason blossom. she then, and i mean this 100% literally and honestly, goes on twitter and tries to get the following hashtags trending: #PollyCooperKilledMyBrother, #NowhereToHide, and #SharpenYourPitchforks.

jughead then tries to convince his alcoholic, gang leader dad to shape up and get his job back at andrews construction but his dad is a stupid dick. later the gang goes on a hunt for polly in the woods. when this is unsuccessful, betty’s mom reveals ALL about polly’s pregnancy on camera during her plea for her to come home. it turns out polly is just hiding in the attic of the house, where betty finds her. polly begs betty not to tell anyone where she is and that she wants to have the baby and continue with her plan to go to the farm upstate where she will raise it herself. keep that in mind.

with the knowledge about the baby out in the open, cheryl offers an olive branch to betty by offering to let polly secretly stay at their house. cheryl is truly a capricious trickster spirit who pivots from one extreme to another at the drop of a hat.

then literally the most crazy and inexplicable thing int his episode happens: veronica, kevin and josie go to a fucking club on a school night. these teenage kids go to a club in a town that primarily runs on maple syrup and they are let in for some unexplained reason and this is just portrayed as a normal thing you can do in riverdale. they are minors and end up drinking for free when hermoines mom cancels her card and they threaten the owner by exposing him for serving minors. this scene is BONKERS

jugheads dad goes back to work with fred andrews but there’s tension between him and archies dad. literally none of it ends up mattering. don’t worry about it. jughead tells his dad that his mom is getting her GED, working in a call center to support jellybean (his little sister, not like a dog or something). this is a huge spoiler from the future but i dont know if the riverdale writers forgot about this scene or don’t care but none of this turns out to be true to their situation at all. not even close.

jughead is arrested and unarrested for jason’s murder when archie’s dad inexplicably forges a time card to cut him loose. the only proof was fingerprints on the torched car, which are still there for some reason. cheryl intercepts betty yet again to warn her and polly that the blossoms also are insane weirdos who just want her for the baby so polly is shipped off to the stay with the lodge family in the 5 star hotel.

the final shot reveals jason’s varsity jacket is in jughead’s dad’s trailer...for some reason.....

the outsiders: this ep starts with polly explaining literally everything we already know except with the added information that jason was selling drugs FOR the southside serpents for money for the baby. betty worries about how escalating situation between the coopers and the blossoms and who gets control of what when it comes to polly and the baby, and veronica bizarrely suggests they hold a baby shower to unite the feuding families. if you just want to have a party just say so.

clifford blossom, professional bastard man, has purchased archie’s dad’s construction crew out from under him which leaves the project in limbo. he confesses to archie about how fucked the company is now and how everything is fucked. clifford is also making a play for the land veronica’s dad secretly bought from prison using his wife as a proxy, which makes the whole “let’s host a baby shower thing at our apartment and invite the blossoms” thing seem like a hugely bad idea now. BUT DONT WORRY TEAM!!! 4 high school boys are here to do construction for no pay to save the company. no one verbalizes what an insane plan this is. they carry on until moose, the big closeted gay lad, get his ass flipped like a pancake by two anonymous goons who bust up some equipment and moose’s face. archie the brain genius decides he’s going to solve this mystery himself, taking moose and jughead to a bar called “the whyte wyrm” (literally the worst name for anything ever in human history) to find out who did the slapping. as archie is about to get his head caved in by a gangster, jugheads dad shows up in his cool leather jacket, revealing himself to be the head of the gang.

the baby shower is a miserable affair. alice cooper shows up, penelope blossom shows up, for some reason they bring the senile grandmother. the tension is so thick you can cut it with a knife. then archie BUSTS in flipping his ass about jughead’s dad being a gangster. the just immediately throw him out which kind of rules because no one has time for him right now. the baby shower ends horrible when the blossoms make the lightest suggestion that polly might visit them and betty’s mom loses her fucking mind. everyone shuffles out except for polly, betty and alice. POLLY NOW DECIDES TO REVEAL THAT HER DAD HAD SCHEDULED AN APPOINTMENT FOR AN ABORTION APROPOS OF NOTHING. COME ONNN. anyway alice focuses her insane rage on hal who she boots out of the fucking house for his insane choice.

jughead and betty ask jugheads dad if he killed jason, he denies it and then they share a smooch outside the trailer. “they” being jughead and betty, not his dad. that would be a little too weird. well, not as weird as the reveal that jugheads dad has been instructing kevin’s serpent boyfriend to date him and pretend to like him for information.that’s pretty fucking weird. jughead’s dad refers to jason’s jacket as “insurance”.

jughead’s dad then shows up with his gang to take over the construction from the 4 high school boys, but hermoine reveals that the goons that were sent were sent by her husband, who might have caught wind of her affair with fred.

polly wisely decides to take her change with a different insane family instead of the one that tried to force an abortion on her and heads to thornhill manor with cheryl and the rest of the blossoms.

la grande illusion: i really need to thank whoever transcribed this entire narrative buttnugget from jughead because it truly is a spectacular example of the level of writing quality you get from the fine people at the cw. please enjoy this screencap of the opening monologue from the riverdale wiki:

today in riverdale is the annual meeting of the board of trustees, where the blossom family meets to discuss the state of the business and slurp syrup in redheaded harmony. the wigs on this show are outstanding and never more noticeable than when they’re all lined up in a row for you to appraise. cheryl invites archie to the tree-tapping ceremony and he, for reasons i cannot understand given everything we know and love about cheryl, accepts, albeit after some prodding on her mom’s behalf. she knows people at a very prestigious music academy you know, nudge nudge. betty thinks its also a good idea for him to go so he can check up on polly, who is ignoring betty’s calls now.

ethel, who you probably remember from the “sticky maple” episode, reads a fucked up poem to the class and veronica reaches out to ask her what the FUCK that was all about. things at home aren’t good for ethel: her family is fighting over money and they’re going to have to sell the house. so veronica invites her over for a play date with kevin so they can do whatever rich people do.

archie attends the tree tapping with cheryl where he holds a bucket and cheryl taps the tree. everyone claps. great job cheryl. archie comes to her defense when her family shit talks her ability to hit a tree or lead a company, but i guess they somehow don’t know that she is the most wild bitch on the planet and can not be dissuaded from doing anything. in fact, she insists that archie join her for a banquet later and he CANNOT say no.

betty is told polly is fine, and passes on this and the news from the blossom shareholder meeting to her mother who plans to use this information to destroy the blossoms using her newspaper. betty’s mother is truly a needlessly perpetually horrible woman for literally no reason almost 100% of the time. if its not to betty its to her sister and if not to her then to any random stranger she can sink her fangs into. however, her husband is still fucking pissed about the whole “getting thrown out” thing and is enacting a one man coupe on the newspaper. alice trashes her own office in retaliation. these people are the worst.

meanwhile veronica realizes that ethel’s dad used to work for her father, until hiram lodge’s incredibly illegal deeds financially ruined them all. ethel’s father tries to commit suicide and veronica shows up with flowers explaining how her family is the one responsible for all this. as you can expect ethel is not really pumped about this turn of events and tells her to tell the truth at her dad’s trial.

at the banquet, archie is HIGHLY encouraged by the blossoms to keep seeing cheryl. perhaps...in a romantic way? i wonder what reason this family of redheads could have for trying to indoctrinate yet another ginger into their fold. they share a weird kiss and archie flees, but not before securing two bits of information: polly warns him that the blossoms are involved in jason’s death and the blossoms themselves are close to securing the drive-in plot and part of their plan was to send veronica’s father to jail to eliminate the competition.

betty FOR SOME REASON invites her mother to write her expose at the school newspaper. why? i don’t know. her mom accepts. why? i don’t know. archie’s girlfriend, valerie, dumps him because he’s been spending so much time for cheryl, which i don’t know what he was expecting. in the final scene, cheryl, spurned by archie, scratches out his and polly’s face from a photo of the tree tapping. like a normal person would

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if you like my posts and write ups on various things you can see more of it on my patreon, which is primarily for my webcomic, but sometimes other things too. consider tossing me a buck for more freebies. ok bye see you next time for the end of season 1

#riverdale