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beevean · 5 months

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Man its just that the average nfcv fan vision of the belmonts is a human centipede. You grab the og belmonts, you kno the good hearted almost superhuman warriors who fought and killed Dracula time and time again, let nfcv turn them into regular vampire hunters that are framed as morally gray bc "muh poor vampires :(", and who are cynical jerks that don't do much of anything. And then you let the fandom bully them into the ground bc haha loser men and muh girlbosses.

And its kinda weird bc its also often making fun of them due to their traumas? Like yea maybe alcoholism due to losing your entire family at a young age isnt a joke you know. Or seeing your mother get killed in front of you as a child. Yes ofc you can make fun of dark stuff i'd be lynched as a hypocrite if i said you cant, but the way its done and how continuous it is... irrespectful? Like they dont respect the serious aspects of the character and legit think they suck for having horrible things happen to them? Im bad at gauging jokes like that but... yea (they just dont know how to bully fictional characters unlike us who throw Isaac off a 10 stories building everyday <3)

In any case, N! Trevor and N! Richter do not deserve that sort of treatment already, and much less their mainline counterparts :/

And regarding girlbosses, they way ppl need to put down their men to show how cool the girls are just, reeks of insecurity to me? Why does having a "loser dumb wife guy" makes her a girlboss? Why would a confident gal need a loser to take care of instead of a good partner were both compliment eachother's strong and weak points? Maybe im being a bit dramatic here, but it carries off a similar mentality to sexist guys that need to put down their gal's accomplishments to feel well Plus, the way how fandoms still revolve around said loser guys and how a lot of the times the writing itself makes the girlboss character a compliment or a motivation for the man without depth for herself makes it all feel performative. Just write a normal character with character traits who happens to be a woman ffs :/

It's incredible. NFCV alone feels like a shitty fanfiction, full of those fanfic tropes that would make me close immediately: flanderization, wimpification of "pretty" male characters, thirsting, juvenile wit, spotlight-stealing OCs, gratuituous sex and SA treated with the finesse of a charging hippo. Then you let the fandom fandomify this shitty fanfic even more, and the result is just a disaster, a kiddie pool of the most baffling misconceptions you could see.

Just to make one example, Trevor in the games is a noble but ruthless hunter, both friendly and fierce, fighting for mankind yet wanting respect yet gladly giving credit to his friends; in the show, he's a washed out Bojack Horseman-esque asshole, who despite his cynicism admittedly attempts to do the right thing when push comes to shove; and according to fandom he's pretty much a funny penis man with two braincells, Sypha and Alucard. the scene where he punches Dracula and he goes "you must be the Belmont" became a meme for a reason :^)

And yeah you're right that the fandom doesn't seem to. like the Belmonts much. But then again, they're acting like the show wants them to :) The writing doesn't take Trevor's alcoholism seriously, so they don't, alcoholism is a funny joke that makes people silly and just a tad pathetic (and it's not a serious addiction and symptom of larger problems no sir). Richter is a goofball who cries in a corny way, so it's easy to laugh at him - and that's when fans don't say that Julia deserved to die for being a "colonizer". Lenore is sexualized to hell and back, so the fans thirst for her and they think that Hector must thirst for her too, and look, wasn't her death so prettly tragic, maybe she was a good person after all!

The way fandoms treat girl characters nowadays is... barely an improvement over the 2000s when Amy would be called a slut for having a backless dress. Now it's all about how stronk and kewl and queens and girlbosses they are. And you can't criticize the writing of a female character because "just say you hate women 🙄", even when the said character is a female victim of abuse who was written by a molester as a smug radfem whose personality never goes beyond "i want to steal from men because men bad" *coughcoughcough*

The show itself is regressive when it comes to its female characters. They're all the damn same. They're either spunky sassy gals who put their men in their place, or evil but hot dommy mommies (Striga and Morana don't fit the mold because they're not characters). Most of them are magic users, even those who in the games were normal women. I will forever stand by my point that Annette did not need to be a metal bender, and if the writers truly cared, they could have fleshed out the skeleton provided by RoB. But they didn't. Because girl power!!! but only if you're conventionally "badass" and have a "strong" attitude.

#anti netflixvania #see i can gush about isaac and his hidden depths *and* yeet him to the ceiling and watch him fall to the ground at the same time #that's what makes bullying funny <3

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bearmemesreviews · 2 months

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Skylanders Review: Bash

We have now passed the threshold of main characters, covering both Spyro and the trios he's been a part of (for a total of five characters) and now we get into the rest of them! Yep, we'll be going through the rest of the Skylanders by the following order: Magic, Water, Tech, Life, Fire, Earth, Air, and Undead.

I am at a crossroads with our next entry from the Earth typing, Bash, our first of many non-Spyro Dragons.

[Image: Bash is a quadrupedal dragon without any wings, making it look a bit like a dinosaur. It has dirt brown, rocky hard skin with a dirty, yellow-colored underbelly. It's claws, teeth, spikes, and horns are the same shade of yellow. Instead of a thagomizer, its tail is tipped with a stone shaped like the head of a Morningstar (spiked ball). It has two rows of spikes running down its back and tail parallel to each other, and it has three spikes running the sides of all four of its legs. It has six horns in total, two on top of its head and more running down both its temples. Its horns are almost positioned like a crown. It has bright red eyes and a red tongue.]

Remember Rock Dragon? Yeah, this is what became of him. Elevated to named character status, you can see from the beta figures below that they played around with body types, he even started out with the nostrils of a hippo. He's a bit hard to talk about since he's been tossed to the wayside, having little to no appearances outside the mainline games. All five previous Skylanders I reviewed had been featured in comics, spin-offs and the show to some compacity and comparing their wiki pages Bash's is rather pitiful.

I guess he's like Finneon, he's sort of just there but by virtue of statistical probability there has to be SOMEONE who has him as a top fave. He's got a good gimmick anyway, able to roll up into a ball and launch himself with extreme speeds. You gotta' love Pinball powers.

He even got a slight redesign later on, giving his tail and organic Morningstar gold plating. This second design accentuates his Dino-qualities even more. They even built a rather flat looking golden crown onto his head, with three Loki-esque golden horns positioned like a Triceratops. So he must have sold some units to get this small amount of attention, right? And that's not even including the baby.

Or maybe he was just a creator's favorite who got by thanks to legacy.

His lore explicitly states that being a flightless dragon is rare, and we arrive to a bit of a Scootaloo situation where Bash wishes he could fly like others. His pinball schtick actually came about from his attempts to get into the sky, and through constant trial and error he toughened up his skin until it was as hard as rock.

He joined the Skylanders, and it's mentioned that he gets touchy when people mention his flightlessness. : (

Motto: "Rock and Roll!" It makes sense but it's still pretty boring. 2/5.

3/5 Chompies for the Proto-Chicken version of Sisyphus.

#skylanders #bmoreviewsskylanders #bmoreviews #skylanders spyro's adventure #bash #dino

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cowhides · 9 months

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estar guars

thinking abt darth jar jar and how he’s physically yoda’s opposite (long and gangly vs small and stout, floppy fin ears vs soft pointed elf-ish ears, red vs green, long taut marshland dinosaur face vs circular soft wrinkled face w large eyes, clumsy sloshing/drunken fist vs measured and calculated movements) and how a simple change of body language and voice could easily turn his goofy-esque frame into something way more intimidating. He’s already taller than the human characters, so if he straightened his back and squared his shoulders he’d be quite imposing with that alone. I also think his long floppy gungan fin-ears could potentially frill out like that one lizard and that would go crazy. What looks like a soft duck bill would peel back to show sharp teeth, claws for catching fish now much more sinister looking, same with his eyestalks and the yellow tint they have. I always hated how his feet are weirdly stout and not some kind of froglike webbed situation but then again when you think abt how nimble hippos are in water despite having those same kind of flat stump feet i guess it could work. His typical outfit almost makes his hips seem round and heavy, kind of that goofy silhouette again with a cartoony potbelly, but that extra weight that makes him look approachable could be shriveled away over time/as his plans progress, like how palpatine gets fucked up during he and mace windu’s confrontation in ep 3. I’ve always been partial to the idea that jar jar was darth plagueis and he learned how to escape death (unbeknownst or otherwise to his apprentice, sidious) by either plain bodysnatching a nearby outcasted gungan or potentially, if we were to rmr ep 9 despite how ludicrous it is and how much i hate it, he could’ve latched onto a force sensitive person and had them spontaneously reproduce and birth him, like palpatine apparently had shmi do w anakin. I think if lucas had had his friendly voice be less like a loud nasal honk/squeak and not in that forced and kinda 😬 space-patois, his original arc could’ve been preserved and his presence would be more tolerable. Bc i get that he wanted him to be unassuming but it just swung too far in that direction and made him loathesome rather than sneaky. I think his post-reveal voice should’ve been a sort of gravelly reptilian hiss too, really spooky that way but still making sense w his biology as opposed to a generic Evil Guy Voice. I also think the king gungan should’ve looked more like the rest of them lmao instead of looking like another species entirely, maybe with different coloring or some sort of frill/crest to make him stand out, like how queen bees look slightly different from regular bees.

Speaking of, i wish they had padme not be a teenage queen but then also say that naboo apparently has elections. Either she’s a teenage monarch from a royal family thrust into power v suddenly like king tut Or the planet has free elections and someone maybe a parent was elected to a position of power. I get that they didn’t want to do another princess after leia but she could’ve been an ambassadors daughter or smth who went into politics herself once she was old enough and it would’ve made way more sense. Maybe this is elaborated on more in the eu but as far as the movies go it’s just kinda funky and messes with my suspension of belief more than droids and space magic ever could.

I also think when it comes to baby anakin in ep 1 that choosing to make him sort of…idk over-competent was the worst mistake when it came to his character. If midichlorians were going to be involved it would’ve been way more interesting for anakin to have a low to nonexistent mc count and that be the puzzling aspect, not the opposite. It would’ve been way more interesting to see him struggle to keep up through the events of ep 1/being constantly compared to other padawans and that be why the council discounts him so readily, even when he’s grown. I always wanted him to be saved from maul by obi wan more directly, maybe even with obi having to choose between him and qui gon, with qg urging him to protect and train anakin and sacrificing himself to buy them time to escape or smth. it’s like lucas felt the need to prove anakins legitimacy to us when like…we already know who he’s going to be lol there was no need for that, and having him be vulnerable and be a traumatized child instead of a self insert for the kids in the audience/george himself would’ve been way more emotionally poignant and also call the jedi order’s abducted child soldier practices into question way earlier, bc the movies don’t touch on that enough imo even when their other flaws (aiding and abetting a hawkish neoliberal regime, repressing emotions to the detriment of everyone around them, relentless bureaucracy and top down hierarchy, general aloofness and lack of concern towards the galactic citizens they snatch force-sensitive younglings from) are more evident. I did always love the yellow cruiser he flew in ep 1 though lol it’s v elegant. But I wish Naboo had been a little more adventurous with its architecture bc it just looks like the venetian hotel sometimes. It’s just a letdown when the gungan city was so cool.

Anyway. the masculine urge to blame all of sws problems on toy merchandizing.

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wvbaandtheboys · 2 years

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hi so like, i’ve been thinking about the dreamescape au!! so like i think its time to start writing down the concepts for the boxers. but, i’ll split em up into the circuits. alrighty, here we go Joe - Ataxophobia [Fear of Disorder/Untidiness] ”Nettoyé” Joe owns a bakery, and as his manifestation suggests, he is the embodiment of ataxophobia. He is dead set on keeping his space clean of clutter, which includes making sure there are no rodents or other animals getting into the food. His obsession with cleanliness may come across as just a bit creepy to Mac and Birdie, but for good reason! Joe sees them as... uh... ingredients. Was initially gonna have him just see them as rodents, but thinking about it, I think it would be creepier if he thought of them as living prey he had to hunt and kill! The more Birdie and Mac make a mess of his establisment, the more anxious and upset he gets. Von Kaiser- Chronomentrophobia [Fear of Time] “Ticken“ Von’s still a teacher in this AU, think of him like the teacher from Little Nightmares (well if you’ve seen the game.) He’s the manifestation of chronomentrophobia, the fear of time, BUT i’m putting my own little spin on the phobia. Normally, it means the fear of time passing. But, in Von’s case, its more over the fear of time being disrupted. If time is not passing at the right pace. Case in point, Von is OBSESSED with clocks, like grandfather clocks or just ones with loud ticks. [....maybe he’ll even have a clock on him for his design.] Anyways, he teaches young boys in a military-esque setting, and he easily discovers that something isn’t right when the time is disrupted cause of Mac n’ Birdie messin’ with the clocks. To their demise though. Von’s one of the more sadistic/cruel phobia people, and the more they mess with the time the more agitated he gets. Disco Kid- Sedatephobia [Fear of Silence] “Radio-Head” Disco’s the owner of a club! He’s the manifestation of sedatephobia, the fear of silence. This means that 24/7, there is some sort of noise emitting from the club without pause [which means Disco feels comfy and calm.] However, as soon as the sound stops, that’s when he gets upset and violent. Due to Mac and Birdie being uh, well, for lack of better word just homewreckers, the place goes dead silent. Despite his usual chill and lighthearted nature, Disco quite literally wants to rip them apart in his state of fear. Scary stuff. King Hippo- Anthropophobia [Fear of People/Society] “His Lone Majesty” King Hippo’s isolated with his small inhuman congregation on an island on cold waters. He represents anthropophobia, which is the fear of people. King Hippo’s very much not familiar with anyone outside of his own species, and is of course VERY much freaked out when he discovers Mac and Birdie on his island. Immediate hostility, literally just wants them gone. The longer they live, the more anxious he gets. [it’s kinda like him meeting an extraterrestrial if you want a comparison, he’s the peep that doesn’t know humans exist hence doesn’t eat em.] and that wraps up the minor circuit! lemme know what you think

#glass joe #von kaiser #king hippo #disco kid #dreamescape au #punch out au #punch out!!#punch out #punch out wii

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someoneoffthestreet · 2 years

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Ok ok so so so Taweret right:

This weird Purgatory/in-between/coma dream does the “and you, and you, and you were there” thing, with some things being more “grounded” than what we’ve been seeing so far, like Steven as an Indiana Jones-esque movie character, or the Moon Knight toy. What interests me here is that in this regard, Taweret has actually been inverted: in episode 1, she was just a plushie, but here she’s a real, actual, bipedal hippo goddess.

But also I’m wondering: the episode opens with Khonshu having been imprisoned in stone, and his ushabti (I’m guessing?) being placed with other gods that were as well. Now this was probably just meant to remind viewers that Khonshu is out of the picture and whatever harm comes to Marc & Steven from here on out is very serious. But I’m WONDERING: wherever Marc & Steven are now, are the imprisoned gods there, too? Like maybe Taweret is one of the imprisoned, or maybe she acts as caretaker to them? Is part of next episode going to be Marc & Steven (and Jake?? Maybe???) having to break Khonshu out to break themselves out as well?

(And they can only do that if Marc *shudder* goes to therapy.)

I don’t know! This is speculation! I’ll just be sitting here shaking the internet until episode 5 falls out!

#in which I ramble #MCU #Moon Knight #moon knight spoilers

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daily-wof-designs · 2 years

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whats your design process? like do you have multiple iterations of a design before settling or do you go straight to the final product? how much do you take canon designs into account, bc some of ur designs follow canon to a t (cricket, glory. etc) while others wildy differ (coral, tamarin, etc)

[rubs grubby little paws together] OH BOY IM GLAD YOU ASKED ANON!

Here's how I start- do I already have a design for them drawn out? May sound stupid, but if I have an art piece of a character from like, 2020, I'll start there. Ex- the first time I drew Coral was in this animatic.

Next, I decide- Is this design good? Or, do I hate it now? You can see in the aforementioned animatic, I liked my Coral design, so I stuck with it! But I wasn't so fond of my Turtle, so I changed him til I did.

If I didn't have a concept for them drawn out, I ask myself- do I have one in my head? I always imagined Tamarin as being light brown and orange, because when I read THK as a 12 year old, I didn't know what a tamarin monkey was, but I DID know that tamarind flavored candy was brownish orange. I later added blue to her design as a nod to her real, canon design.

Okay, let's say I have neither of those- I never imagined the character while reading them. They might have only been mentioned a couple times, so an image never solidified- like I never imagined what Snail or say, Truthfinder, looked like, because they were mentioned sparsely/never appeared.

With a blank canvas, I do these things in a variable order-

Check if the have a graphic novel design. I very rarely take these one for one, but they serve as a good starter.

Next, take their name into account. Cereus is a genus of cactus, so I gave her green eyes, but it also looks like the word Cerberus, so I gave her dog patterns on her sides. Snail got swirly snail-shell patterns. Urchin had a spiky frill. Mightyclaws has patterns on his talons. You get the idea.

I also do word association. Argus is a SilkWing mentioned in THQ, and in my favorite video game, a character is cursed by a demon with the "Curse of Argus." Therefore, I designed Argus after that character (Noel Levine from Witch's Heart, for those wondering). Another example is Saguaro, described as having a "Scar on her heart". This made me think of Mapleshade from warriors, who is sometimes drawn with a scar through a heart patterning on her fur, thus I gave Saguaro calico-esque patterning. Obsidian got purple spirals because he made me think of nether portals.

After that, I look at their family. This is also the one of the only times I drew out iterations of a design before settling- For Lagoon, Albatross, and Sapphire. They are the ancestors to the ENTIRE SeaWing royal line, so I wanted to start somewhere. (The other time was with Tsunami because girl she is IMPOSSIBLE to design.)

As you can see I ended up making Lagoon a deeper color and giving her mauve accents. Albatross and Sapphire were pretty similar though.

Back to looking at their family- when designing Secretkeeper, I took Moonwatchers and Morrowseers design into account- Moonwatcher was an emerald green, so Secretkeeper had to be olive to balance out Morrowseers midnight. When designing Ripple, I took into account his mom's design was indigo and pink. Pearl had pink accents because her father had coral accents.

Then, other facts we get about them. Quicksand died of illness, so he gets a mask. Mayfly mentions hippos, I make her purple. Truthfinder is a principal. she gets glasses and scrolls. Jobs, life, hobbies, etc.

If all else fails- A character is mentioned once, has no canon description, no family, no other details. Just a name, a name that gives you very little to base a design off of- I make a generic design for that tribe. Ex, I had NO idea what to do for Foreseer. Give them weird eyes, maybe? So, I started with a standard NightWing design. Then, give them a notable characteristic. A cool scar, a piece of jewelry, something to suggest a personality or a backstory. In Foreseer's case, I gave them a nervous expression, a nick in their ear, and a sapphire earring. Something to suggest a life.

All in all, remember that each character is the most important dragon in their own story, and they should look as much. And, that sometimes, being described with "snowy blue" or "ebony black" scales, like every other dragon in the tribe, is a bad way to design characters.

#not designs #housekeeping - design process #asks #anon #i went off on this ask #but i think its good to get out there!

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butterfrogmantis · 2 years

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So I tried a little challenge for myself today - I put 20 Smurf names into a random name generator and pulled out 10 parents (so like, I spun it, wrote the name down, spun it again, there’s pair 1 etc) and these were the outcomes, then I spent the morning on Word Hippo looking for names.

Virtuoso: Honestly this one is pretty cute?? I think music/poetry would go nicely, maybe she’d be kind of Harmony-esque and actually be super shite at writing poetry though XD

Otiose: This kid is fucked up right here. Tbh absolutely no one should have let the exercise obsessed one and the lazy one have a kid cause it results in a kid that maybe wants to do well but physically can’t. Otiose feels pretty useless as a Smurf and that is sad. -2/10, never mix Hefty and Lazy’s genes again.

Forager: Another one I think is pretty cute :) She’d probably collect her own ingredients and then cook them, kind of experimental, pretty good at it too

Jeopardy: Honestly he isn’t too different to my actual Jokey ng Crescendo but I think Jeopardy might be even more fucked up cause he has Greedy’s power lust. I don’t recommend eating any cakes he offers.

Tinker: Ok this pairing made me laugh cause it’s the anti Brusty/Fixer Uppers that isn’t Brumsy. Honestly though I could vibe with it as a one off. Probably has a very thick Scottish accent you can’t quite understand but hey look he fixed the sink so that was cool

Ostentatious: Absolutely love/hate this. Brainy + Vanity equals pure, unfiltered egomania. Does not have a single friend. Well, the Smurfs would probably love him as a fellow Smurf but he would absolutely sell them to Gargamel for 1 (one) corn chip if it meant saving himself

Imaginative: Baby. That’s all I need to say. Dreamy’s big dreams and Painter’s love for art = he’s paint the Smurf equivalent of Van Gogh’s starry night. Don’t have a single bad thing to say here.

Sower: Ok when Farmer/Tailor came up as a randomised ship I lost it. I wasn’t about to mess with the results so I just went with it but I am in s e r I o u s danger of making her canon to the Butterverse. It’s also a pun cause you hear it pronounced aloud like ‘sewer’ and think ‘aw cute Tailor’s daughter likes sewing :)’ and then you realise it’s the farming type of sowing and she’s actually 2 apples tall of pure unbridled Tailor’s sarcasm + Farmer’s strength. If this was humanverse she would absolutely wrestle hogs. The muddier the better. Help I’m attached someone stop me-

Contrary: Another baby……… she’s a little klutzy but she’s kind and sweet :) Not very smart tbh but you can’t hate her

Austere: Here to take names and kick ass. And she’s all out of names. Unfiltered RAGE flows through this Smurf. She hates everything and everyone and you are going to know about it.

#smurfs #the smurfs #I can't really tag these as anything else fdsdfkj #with the exception of Sower I don't ship any of the parents in BV canon #and they don't count as BFM NG so #misc #my art

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rapharoni-supreme · 3 years

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Ranking all of Raphael Hamato-Jitsu’s Outfits

Because why not? Raph is Best Turtle and he has some pretty great and unique outfits too! ^v^ So, let’s rank them:

Hippo Suit: Standard mascot suit, nothing too special, though it still looks cute on him and I can imagine it’s pretty comfy too as long as it doesn’t get too warm. 6/10

Football uniform: ...It’s a football uniform. Again, it looks fine on him but there’s nothing really special about it. 5/10

Vacation outfit: Look at this cutie... Look at how happy is is. Also, the yellow and pink go really well with his light green scales and red mask/armbands. Like- peak color coordination with a hat that pulls it all together. 9/10

R&B Singer Outfit: I. LOVE THIS OUTFIT! Yeah maybe it’s a bit goofy - though given the episode’s plot, that’s kind of a given - but I think it also looks really stylish! This outfit definitely screams 70s from the style of the collar to the ruffled wrists. I love the wig and the gold necklace he wears with it, I love just how much FUN he seems to be having wearing it (”Anybody call for Soul Patrol~?”), and I just love that it totally seems like his style. 10/10

Overcoat disguise: Nice callback to the 80s cartoon/90s movie. The coat isn’t quite thick enough to prevent his elbow spikes from poking through, but it still looks good on him. The fedora of course ties this look together - out of all the Turtles, I’d say Raph is the one that looks best in a hat. 7/10

Savage Raph: Not much of an ‘outfit’ but eh, it looks cool enough. This and another outfit down the line sorta hints at Raph preferring ponchos, which is valid. 8/10

Winter Outfit: You know, it’s not often we see these guys wearing shoes, but the boots look good AND functional! I like the different shades of red, with the coat being darker while the scarf is the same color as his mask, and the brown pants look nice too! 9/10

Hamato Clan Uniform: I actually don’t mind the switch to a darker red with his mask. Honestly, as much as I love his normal bright red mask, I could see him switching to a darker red as he gets older. The outfit itself looks really cool, and the fact that you can’t see any of Raph’s spikes poking out just shows how well Splinter made this uniform (no doubt so his son could still be comfortable as he fought. D’awwww). 9/10

Hoodie and shorts: You know, it’s not often we see the boys out of their signature colors. While there’s still some red there, you can barely see it, so the main color is grey. But honestly, I don’t mind that much.

The hoodie and shorts combo still looks cool on him, and it’s definitely something a teenager would wear, though I question what the point was of him putting on pants AND shorts to cover his legs, but then ripping off his sleeves and revealing his spikes/scales. As a disguise, it’s maybe not as effective as it could be because of this, buuut if it makes him comfier then I’ll allow it (plus the ripped sleeves totally fit him, aesthetic wise). 7.5/10

R.A.P.H. Outfit: Just like his R&B Singer Outfit, I just absolutely love this one and how it captures the perfect balance of silly AND cool! There have been different incarnations of Raph who decided to be vigilantes, and I like how Rise!Raph goes for a more Superhero-looking spin with his instead of something like the Nightwatcher.

I also think it’s cool that his poncho doubles as a cape, that’s super cute. And the letter gag is just so great, lol. Doesn’t do much to disguise his turtle-ness but you know what? He’s fifteen and he wants to be a hero, let him have some fun dammit. 10/10

Red Suit: Idk why Donnie didn’t like it, this suit is so stylish!! The pink and red works on him well, though I’d maaaaybe drop the shades. 9/10

Ripped Tank Top and Jeans: Kinda indifferent to this one honestly. Don’t hate it, don’t love it - I think it’s the belt that’s bothering me but idk why. Feels like he needs something else - like make the shirt a different color or wear a vest or hat with it or something. But yeah, just kinda meh to me. I do like the spiky wrist bracelets though. 6/10

Fedora and Bow: Ehhhhhh... Like I’ve said earlier, the hat definitely works on him, and the bow tie is cute too. But the shirt? ehhhh, not doing it for me. 6/10

Neon windbreaker: Like the jeans, like the colors - and also I want that jacket. Overall super fun outfit with an 80′s vibe that I feel is pretty fashionable too! 10/10

White and pink: Another 80s-esque outfit that just screams Miami Vice, lol. It’s cool enough, though unlike his hoodie and shorts outfit where I don’t mind all the grey too much, I feel like here all the white just kinda washes him out. The light pink shirt doesn’t help with this, and the super low collar is just kinda weird to me. I get why some would like this style, but it’s not for me. 5/10

Leather Jacket Outfit: OKAY HERE WE GO! This is a much cooler outfit imo. Cool jacket with shirt and pants that also work well with it, but the jacket really is the star here, with the belt and collar adding a bit of extra style to it. 9/10

So, it I had to pick my top 5 outfits for Raph, I’d go with: R&B Singer, R.A.P.H., Neon Windbreaker, Leather Jacket and Vacation, with Red Suit being the runner up. But hey! Let me know what your favorite Raph outfits are and why you like them! ^v^ I’d love to see other fans’ rankings

#rottmnt #raphael tmnt #outfits #long post

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deathvsthemaiden · 4 years

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Tagged by @natalya-romanova (ty! 💕💕) to answer this 30 question ask meme!

1. Nickname: none! Like friends and family can call me specific nicknames but they’re not free for all’s for anyone to use on me so 🤐

2. Gender: female

3. Star sign: Cancer, idk what that says abt me

4. Height: oh god. 5 foot smth not very tall numbers are not my friend 😐

5. Time: basically 11pm

6. Birthday: July 5th 🌟

7. Favorite Bands: Saint Motel, Glass Animals, IDKHBTFM, Tape Five, Hippo Campus 💙💜

8. Favorite Solo Artists: Victoria Monét, Janelle Monáe, Adia Victoria, Tamino, Caro Emerald, Tanerélle, Frank Ocean 💛🧡

9. Song stuck in my head: none. Ghlana by Noura Mint Seymali is playing via my headphones rn tho

10. Last movie: Vampires vs The Bronx ⚰️

11. Last show: Schitt’s Creek

12. When did I create this blog: 2015? 2017? 🧐

13. What do I post: random thoughts that come to mind and I rb art, words, fan art and other fandom-y stuff

14. Last thing googled: Homegoing family tree (as in the book by Yaa Gyasi, I had to refresh my memory on some things) 📖

15. Other blogs: a blog for art tutorials and a blog for art references 🖼

16. Do I get asks: sometimes! 💖

17. Why I chose my url: it’s somewhat of an inside ish joke? But mostly just bc I find it hilarious 🧸👁👁✨

18. Following: 3461

19. Followers: 694

20. Average hours of sleep: I don’t know if I could possibly calculate that :/ I’m very disoriented and inconsistent nowadays wbsjwjhsjshs 😴

21. Lucky number: numbers fill me with unease 🥴

22. Instruments: nope 😗

23. What am I wearing: pjs 💤

24. Dream job: omg.... probably something that doesn’t exist. Can I just test drive mattresses for the rest of others? Be paid to sleep on them and give reviews? Otherwise potter/ceramicist 🥺🤲🏽

25. Dream trip: don’t feel like going anywhere rn tbh... I’m in bed that’s good enough 🥱

26. Favorite food: rn id love some of those tiny samosas with sriracha <3 or hot and sour soup

27. Nationality: American

28. Favorite song: atm? Warm by Dre’es or Cherry by Jungle, can’t decide ☀️🍒

29. Last book read: Interior Chinatown by Charles Yu

30. Top 3 fictional universes I’d like to live in: 1) Roshar of The Stormlight Archive but specifically the Purelake.... oh to be a Lightweaver and dwell in the Purelake.... or Herdaz..... 2) honestly. I forget the name of the planet Warbreaker is set on but that would be fun too I want an increased heightening 3) a vague fairy tale esque world like the kinds in some of my favorite books that aren’t clearly defined but not nonsensical either. Just our world but not modern and more overtly whimsical 🤔 if that’s a bad answer then I choose the world of Eragon bc of the sheer amount of time I’ve spent daydreaming abt it as a kid 😳🐉! 4) Fate and Stormlight consume me most nowadays so a very specific version of Chaldea.... maybe

Tagging: no one for now! If anyone would like to do this, consider yourself tagged in spirit!! Go ahead and do this and tag me 👀

#tagged in

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theradioghost · 5 years

Note

I know youve talked about them in the past, but I don't always catch the names of the books you've been reading, and I am also gay and have too much free time. Could you list the actual titles of the books in your last post, if you have time? Thank you

@celestial-tendencies asked:

give us the book titles,,,,,,,,,,,, i need more gay fiction,,,,,,,,

@drowninginstarlights replied to your post “I’m so glad I have the energy to read and to look for books again...”

Oh I want to read every single one of those oh my god they sound awesome

HELLO SORRY I ACCIDENTALLY DELETED THE FIRST OF THESE ASKS but yes here are the Gay Books!!!!!

everything here is queer, it is adult fiction and not YA, it is not romance novels (there’s nothing wrong with romance fiction in general but GOD a lot of gay romance novels are skeevy as hell bc they’re written by and for straight women) and I generally look for the most intersectional Gay Shit that I can find. also a lot of it is under five bucks if you’re willing to buy things from the Kindle store

American Hippo (collection of the novellas River of Teeth and Taste of Marrow) -- morally ambiguous Crime Squad of hippo-riding cowboys do a Swamp Heist in alt-history late 1800s Louisiana

The Bulletproof Spy novella series -- Man From UNCLE-esque paranormal Cold War espionage thriller where a Russian spy and an American spy are forced to work together. but also the American is just straight up a werewolf

A Study In Honor -- Sherlock Holmes but set in a dystopian future America, the main characters are queer black women and Watson has a ROBOT ARM

The Lovelace & Wick series -- a demon named Iago Wick grows tired of tempting humans on behalf of Hell and sets out to make his last job one to remember -- and just maybe to convince his partner Dante Lovelace to run off with him -- but first, he has to avoid the demon hunters on his tail. Feat. some REALLY GOOD steampunk Gothic Science Wives

Deadline -- After a failed forbidden ritual gets her excommunicated, blood witch Harrietta “Harry” Lee takes a dangerous job for a powerful family of magic-users and promptly discovers she’s gotten herself in way over her head again. Worth checking the provided content warnings.

Miranda in Milan -- sequel to Shakespeare’s Tempest but it’s gay now and also witchcraft and politics

Havemercy -- apparently dragon rider fiction but the dragons are steampunk robots and the dragon riders are Gay

The Year of the Knife -- alt-history urban fantasy noir british witch cop with undead girlfriend?

Winter Tide -- first in a book series from the perspective of one of the surviving people of Innsmouth, Massachusetts, years after the U.S. government imprisoned the town’s entire population at the end of H.P. Lovecraft’s “The Shadow Over Innsmouth,” as she attempts to rebuild her home and her history in the midst of the Cold War (this one’s got a free online prequel)

(I also made this post of some more Good Books most of which are also Gay Books like last week and also if yall like I can put together a full list of all of these books I’ve got on Goodreads or something? Because this is actually a fairly small slice of what I have.) (I might also be putting together a book review/recommendation sideblog for this kind of stuff, if people would read that, but We’ll See)

#bobbie recommends things #hello I am a simple peddler of niche gay genre fiction wares #I no longer feel very comfortable properly Reviewing podcasts but I'd love to dip into something like that with books #lavosse #asks #my posts

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ducktracy · 4 years

Text

25. battling bosko (1932)

release date: february 6th, 1932

series: looney tunes

director: hugh harman

starring: johnny murray (bosko), rochelle hudson (honey)

next on our list: battling bosko! bosko takes on the menacing boxing champ, gas house harry, with unsavory results.

i love this shot! the cartoon opens with the silhouette of a big, beefy, mysterious boxer. the camera pans to reveal tiny little bosko, merrily punching away at his punching bag. this gag is a looney tunes staple—setting the audience up, only to let them down by providing the opposite of what’s expected. i love it!

honey reads that her sweetheart is going to fight the champion, and she’s absolutely ecstatic. she croons “what a man!”. i’m sure there are a few cartoons that parallel this one (it’s only likely out of a library of 1000+ shorts), but this setup really reminds me of porky and daffy. porky gets the news that a champion is willing to take on any challengers, and eagerly he signs daffy up. obviously there are differences—the newspaper doesn’t say that daffy is in the fight, and daffy is sleeping in a bathtub instead of training away like bosko, but you get the idea. just a neat little connection. it also reminds me of porky the wrestler.

sounds of the radio interrupt honey’s reading. she beams and claps when the announcer declares “bosko’s in great shape, folks!”. her celebration is cut short, however, when the announcer continues “...but what a shape that champ’s got!” honey ogles dubiously at the radio as the announcer drags bosko to shreds, predicting a bad night for him. honey turns the dial and sticks her tongue out. finally, some personality! she’s come a long way from her 1930 days of dialogue limited to obnoxious giggling.

finally, we get a glimpse at the competition. again, how very looney tunes! juxtaposition and contrast go hand in hand with humor. this device would be used often, a big brute versus a tiny cute character (again, see porky the wrestler and porky and daffy to name a select few. you also have a battle of the wimps, which is also just as funny, such as elmer vs daffy in to duck or not to duck).

back to bosko’s house, who’s training as hard as ever. the phone rings and he answers it. it’s honey, expressing her excitement at the fight and hoping he wins. bosko assures her he’ll do just fine.

launch the dance sequence! bosko begins to sing and does that great dance above, while honey plays piano on the other end. it’s very corny and comes out of nowhere, but i love it. it almost feels like a parody in itself.

elsewhere, everyone else shares honey and bosko’s excitement. newspapers are being distributed, bets are made, and trolleys of animals deflate as the passengers deflate (in the same manner as the movie theater deflating in the film fan).

back to honey who’s tinkering away at her piano. the announcer, who introduces himself as graham cracker (god i love that), indicates the start of the fight. honey listens eagerly as we get a shot of our fighters swaggering down the aisle amongst a sea of cheers.

our fighters are introduced as gas house harry (who receives a boo from honey listening to the radio) and battling bosko, who is received by cheers and applause. the desire for the underdog to win is strong as always!

the fight begins with the ring of a bell (pulled with a cat’s tail). predictably, one swing from gas house harry sends bosko ricocheting around all sides of the boxing ring, conveniently landing in a corner.

an assistant approaches him and sprays him with water, and, in crude looney tunes style, sprays beneath his pants, prompting bosko to slap him and giggle “stop it!” FINALLY putting the looniness in looney tunes! maybe that’s saying something about my maturity (or lack thereof), guffawing at a crotch joke, but i love it! the delivery of bosko’s squeaky voice is the icing on the cake. the crudeness of this gag leads me to suspect that it was the work of bob clampett somehow.

the bell sounds and bosko’s up and running again, putting up his dukes. we get a neat shot of gas house harry throwing some punches towards the camera, when BANG!

bosko decks him in the face. in all of its corny goodness, the tattoo of the sailboat on gas house harry’s chest sinks as he’s momentarily down for the count. clichéd? maybe so, but i certainly wasn’t expecting that! so comes the joy with watching all of these cartoons for the first time, you don’t know what to expect.

the hippo from ups ‘n downs yells “C’MON BOSKO!” (with better voice acting thank god). the referee momentarily attempts to step in to break up the fight, but they’re still going at it.

intervening once more, the fight ceases immediately as they stop to dance. again, i wasn’t expecting that at all! this is hilarious! VERY similar to porky, the referee, and porky’s opponent in porky the wrestler where they “play train” around the ring. this humor is very tex avery-esque, which i adore. tex will come into play in 1935’s gold diggers of ‘49... 3 more years!

immediately, the fight resumes like nothing happened. what a good transition! we get a glimpse at honey who’s anxiously listening to the radio, cringing as the announcer narrates the blows bosko is receiving.

in parallel fashion to porky and daffy, bosko is down for the count. honey and bosko’s dog, bruno, run to the ring as the camera occasionally pans to the unconscious bosko, referee counting the seconds. honey arrives and begs “bosko, speak to me!”

bleary eyed, bosko rises and says to the audience “aw, hot dang!” iris out as he pulls the boxing ring over him like a blanket and goes back to sleep.

wow! easily the funniest cartoon thus far! it actually felt like looney tunes, not a stale imitation of disney. the gags were spot on and unpredictable, the music was lush and beautiful, the animation and visuals were imaginative. i think there was only one bit of recycled animation, using the hippo from ups ‘n downs, but that’s it! bosko’s unbridled optimism and honey’s support make them very likable. personality at last!

overall, definitely worth a watch! it’s my new favorite cartoon out of all the ones i’ve reviewed. certain to put you in a good mood!

youtube

#lt #battling bosko #reviews #long post #racism tw

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fweeble · 6 years

Text

Episode 7: The Rich Boy

So if my predictions are on track, everyone will want a friend available to hold their hand this episode, but especially next episode. This is your early warning detection system Fwee working just for you. Pick a calming friend.

*hysterical laughter* THE MUSIC. Shorter, my love, please. I die without oxygen.

Ibe popping out at the last second to take this snapshot is the cutest thing. Weh.

Shorter, no. Are you taking pictures of her. That’s rude. Also, what’s with this bizarrely off-model hands-and-arms action going on, Mappa???

That poor lady.

Please have some pity, Ash. He was in a very emotionally taxing custody battle over his son and now you are all heading to his ex-wife’s. And Jessica is to be feared and respected.

I’m awful and I’m laughing so hard at the fact that Max nearly hurling is what causes the car to careen away from the lady. Good job, Max. Stop Shorter from being skeevy.

*cries* Eiji and Ibe are so cute in this. My heart.

Holy shit, Jessica, your house is gorgeous. I want to live in a house like that. And in the LA area.

Y’all are heartless. Poor Max. At least offer him a bottle of water. His poor nerves.

*screams* IT’S MICHAAAAAAEL.

My heart. Max’s happy face at seeing his son. Q vQ <3

THIS IS EXACTLY MY FEELINGS.

JESSICA PLEASE. GUNS ARE DANGEROUS AND YOUR SON IS NEAR YOUR TARGET.

Just gonna casually slide these panels in:

Truth in television: most child abductions are by family members (particularly parents if they are separated).

I’d hide behind the car too. Look more worried, Ash.

*cackles at Max’s face*

*even louder cackling*

I love Jessica.

Fair enough.

Max’s adopted kid and his biological kid: side by side.

They tactfully left this conversation out. = u= Poor Michael.

My heart. You’re such a good child, Michael.

ASH. WHY. LOOK AT IBE AND SHORTER’S FACES.

Have I mentioned how much I love Jessica.

The phone book interruption is marginally better than asking for mustard. @ v@

Oh, Ash. My heart. Why the lighthearted music, this is actually super painful

*clutches chest* This is super rude. Q AQ

Apparently they don’t discuss Abraham with Jessica, huh.

Max, Jessica’s gonna knee you in sensitive bits if you keep that up.

*cries*

Usually I’d be blowing kisses at Mappa, but all I can think about is I want this house, I could have some dogs run free in the front yard.

Shorter, why do you walk like this. You’re gonna kill your back.

*cries over their protective stances* Sweet children.

*high pitched distressed noises*

I always forget this line. Personally, I never found them very similar. Looks or otherwise.

*screams* STAY HIDDEN ALEXIS, STAY HIDDEEEEN.

They also totally cut out an additional scene in NY with Charlie and Jenkins.

I really love how they don’t bring up Ibe or Eiji, since they both, without a doubt, know that they’re in violation of their visas. Q uQ You’re good people, Charlie, Jenkins.

I LOVE JENKINS SHOWING OFF HIS DETECTIVE SKILLS. Q vQ <3

SHORTER WHY MUST YOU STAND AND WALK LIKE A YANKEE STRAIGHT OUTTA SOME 80′S MANGA. YOU’LL HAVE BACK PROBLEMS BEFORE YOU’RE 30.

*cries* I really do have a type when it comes to favorite characters. Yankees.

Eiji is so impressed. I miss the scene where Ibe and Max are the ones astounded. Good ol’ 80′s.

Criminal geniuses, Max please. Eiji isn’t one.

*cries over how much Ash trusts Shorter* I love these two so much.

GOOD INSTINCT!!!

VERY GOOD OBSERVATION, ASH!!! That’s why you’re the boss.

...of your own gang.

BULLSHIT. I’m clumsy as fuck. I’m like a bull in a china shop. *cries* I will never be called twinkle toes unless it’s an insult.

Bless you, Shorter, for being an inelegant asshole as well.

Nooooooooooooooo. They cut so much ooooout. But, fair enough. More time for better things later!!!! (Please keep in my two favorite scenes, please!!!)

He had to meet some friends. *emotional*

I LOVE THIS SCENE SO MUCH. Sassy asshole Ash is always my favorite Ash. u vu <3 <3 <3

Eiji is basically Daphne. He finds all the good clues.

Which makes Ash Velma, since he puts those clues to good use. u vu

AWW LOOK AT THESE TWO. They’re gonna develop their own high five. Please give me a scene where Eiji and ash also have their own secret thing. Maybe a handshake that involves hip-checking. Please.

Look at a certain someone about to spontaneously combust with envy. That’s totally the face of envy and not... outright confusion.

Holy shit, Prof Dawson. Still using XP!

Nope. It truly isn’t.

*whispers* Essentially, Nanner Fish is primarily shrooms and LSD.

Prof Dawson, who keeps notes like this. Please revise your notes. At least add commas. And work on formatting.

*blows kisses at Mappa* Marry me.

This answers my giant question I’ve wondered about for years. Hong Kong, huh. No wonder they spell their last name with Lee. I’ve always wondered why a clan part of the Chinese mafia would use Lee instead of Li.

Hong Kong is one of the few places (besides Taiwan and Macau, I think?) that uses that variation. (ANWAYS, back to the Nanner Fish anime...)

Shorter. Please. Your back. Just take the phone from him, look at it, and return it.

Oh, my heart.

THIS IS NEW AND SO FUCKING RUDE. EXCUSE YOU. *crying* Shorter without his sunglasses. I’m crying. Nadiaaaaa.

*ugly bawling*

FUCK.

*screaming*

*uncontrollable sobbing*

Sonny... Q AQ

Fuck you.

TAKE YOUR HANDS OFF HIM.

(Don’t look at me. I’m fucking. Nooooo.)

Ooooh, I like this change. Instead of switching between Max-and-Ibe and Max-and-Ash, it just starts with Ash and Max working on the Nanner Fish research together. Nice.

Ooooh, is this a callback to the vivisection password?

*noises* Griff.

*whispers* Papa Max. I don’t care what anyone says. I like to believe that Max guilt-adopted Ash as a son in his heart. He meant to think of Ash as a baby brother, but paternal instincts are strong.

Listen to Max, Ash. Please.

*distressed dying manatee noises*

*loud wounded hippo noises* Just leave me to die.

My heart... *lies drowning in endless sea of salt and tears*

They’re really trying to make him so much more sympathetic in the anime. He was a lot more aggressive and confrontational in the manga. A sample:

*cries* Max...

I tried so hard to get a nice picture, but it was panning so quickly every one of my gyazo shots were blurry. God. How much did this kill Shorter?

CMSKDLFJOIEWJFLDSKF. FUCK YOU.

*HIGH PITCHED SCREAMING* YOU ARE TOO GOOD, TOO PURE AND THE LEE CLAN TOO CORRUPT AND CRUEL.

SHORTEEEER.

FUCK YOU WITH THE LARGEST BASEBALL BAT WITH THE RUSTIEST LARGE NAILS HAMMERED INTO IT. HOW DARE YOU MAKE IT A RACE THING. ESPECIALLY IN THE 10′S. FUCK YOU.

CMLKSDMFLSDF. YUT-LUNG. FUCK. *cries over the opening*

MAPPA YOU ARE SO UNBEARABLY RUDE.

Please. Just kill me now.

*cries* I’ve always loved this lovely mood whiplash exchange. I prefer the manga version of it, though. It’s more... slapstick?

Poor Sonny. Q nQ

Why would they put the mark there. That’s not easy to conceal.

I think they should’ve stuck with the bracelet. Yeah, someone could steal it, but still a lot more subtle than a huge black dragon tatt on Yut-Lung’s neck.

Yup. *sigh* Sadly...

*whispers* And this is why, no matter what people say later on, why I will always hold a grudge against Yut-Lung. Shorter...

Consider this: No. Fuck you.

Oh, my heart. Since Shorter made the comment that Yut-Lung looks like Eiji... I wonder if this is why he makes that comment. Because... Because...

You’re a kid too, Shorter...

*whispers* This is important.

*continues to stage whisper* Also important.

I love the effort Mappa put into all the details. The strangely Chinese-esque artwork hanging on the wall considering this is Alexis Dawson’s house and he’s not connected to the Lee Clan.

Good job, Ibe!!!

Especially since the anime doesn’t bring up your visa status.

m so glad Ibe doesn’t have to fully entertain the notion that he might just have to kidnap Eiji (and how he’ll have to do it). Bless Ash for volunteering earlier.

Poor Ibe. Eiji, you’re gonna make him age 30 years in 3 months.

Also, bonus Max being hot-headed and totally not reading between the lines.

*cries* That’s not true, Eiji! You helped solve the computer’s password! ...In the manga...

YEAH. AND THAT. I totally didn’t forget. *sweats*

*strangled noises* Ash...

What about Shorter. Q AQ

Excuse me as I curl in the fetal position, crying about letters and mountains and leopards and how everything about this is so much more painful in hindsight.

Eiji... I just... *aggressive hands* All these feelings and nothing I can do about anything.

On one hand: I like the art direction taken.

On the other: Why you gotta be like this, Yut-Lung?

*whispers* They left this out. Truly toning down Ash’s tsuntsun nature.

Every time I read these panels, all I can think of is Shorter internally screaming for Ibe and Eiji to get away. To fly to Japan and never come back.

If y’all have your friends on hand like I suggested... lucky you.

@freykugel...

Because I’m in pain...

I love how Max has a higher EQ* than he does in the manga. He truly misses a lot of emotional cues that he doesn’t in the anime.

I miss Max rubbing it in, though. Manga Ash was a lot more emotional and hot-headed. Until...

...

*really fucking loud crying about epilogues*

I really appreciate how much emphasis is put on Max’s guilty conscious in the anime. My heart.

Cmkalsfsadfljkasfd. NO. Yut-Lung. Just. No. NOPE.

I’m sad they cut out my son’s snark, though.

Rebel! Rebel in every tiny way possible, Shorter! No matter what happens, what anyone says, I know you tried. And I’m so proud of you.

There’s a very valid reason why...

Cmkalsdmflasfd. I just want to see his eyes. I want to see Shorter’s face after he’s been order to commit another betrayal.

God dammit, why do you have to live a billion miles away. I seriously need someone who knows what’s about to happen to be close enough to hold my damn hand already. *weeps*

FUCK YOOOOOOOU.

CMSDKLFMLSDF. FUCK YOU SO MUCH, YUT-LUUUUUUNG.

HOLDING NADIA HOSTAGE.

Oh god. Seeing Shorter’s eyes doesn’t make this better. Cmklsamfdlsafd.

Ohmg, yes!!! They kept this bit in!!!

(How dare Mappa add this expression. How dare they try to make me sympathize with Yut-Lung any more than the manga already tries. How dare.)

This is so much worse than I ever thought it could be.

Shorter.

WHY DO YOU LOOK SURPRISED. WHY.

*strangled sobbing* I wonder if this is a reason why... Yut-Lung obsesses so much... about...

*intense feelings about Yut-Lung and his feelings towards himself and his family*

Why add this totally unneccessary scene about Yut-Lung noticing Shorter’s tears, Mappa you bastard. *cries*

The same scene in the manga because I’m emotional and I’m totally not biased for Shorter and hoping people don’t start dumping my boy in the trash... Honestly...

(I live in constant fear...)

THIS IS SO CRUEL.

I’m so torn between: EEE! Michael with his surprise present (that didn’t show up in the manga! Since there wasn’t an excuse of “It’s Michael’s birthday”). Cutest child to ever cute.

But also: Fuuuuuuuck. I was secretly hoping they’d get off scott-free since Jessica doesn’t know anything about them heading to check out Dawson’s house. Whyyyyyyy.

Why you gotta be so observant, Jessica. Q vQ

Fuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuck. Nonono. No. NOOOOO.

I said NO.

SOMEONE SAVE THEM.

Lay me to rest. Play If I Die Young at the funeral and send me off like like Going Merry. I’m done.

I’m not quite sure how they’re handling the pacing, especially since it seems like my projections are a little off. Still so worried how they’re gonna fit 19 volumes in 24 episodes... especially since it looks like The Episode I Fear the Most won’t be happening next episode like I originally estimated but episode 9 instead...

*Emotional Quotient: google it if you’re curious

<<Episode 6 Masterlist Episode 8>>

#Fandom: Banana Fish #Banana Fish #Nanner Fish Liveblog #spoilers #tw: spoilers #long post

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callioope · 7 years

Text

11 Questions Meme

I was tagged by @letthepeoplesay-oh and @ta-dala -- thanks both of you because I love these! Also I’m just going to combine these into one long post so I cut it so it wouldn’t be ridiculous.

Rules: Answer the questions given to you. Make 11 questions of your own. Tag 11 people.

First set: (letthepeoplesay-oh)

1. If you could have any animal (real or fictional) as a pet, what would it be? My actual dog is pretty awesome, but that’s probably not the point of this question. So I’m going to say a red panda because they are the cutest animal and that’s a fact.

2. What’s your Hogwarts house? (Or your best guess, if you’re not a fan!) I spent all my life thinking I was a Hufflepuff, but Pottermore put me in Ravenclaw.

3. If you could change the smell of rain to any other smell, what would you choose? Ummmm so I can’t actually smell so I don’t really know how to answer this question. Isn’t the smell of rain supposed to be pleasant?

4. What was your favorite book as a child? Haha well ok. My sister and I always loved to check out There’s a Hippopotamus on Our Roof Eating Cake by Hazel Edwards from the library. I don’t know what we loved about it, maybe that the hippo got up to so many strange activities on a roof? So we recently found it super cheap on Amazon and reread it, and it’s actually kind of creepy? There’s a line where the kid is talking about how they like to watch TV and it goes “He watches. I know he does.” So anyways. We liked a weird book.

5. If the police came to your house to arrest you right now, what crime would they charge you with? Listen, when it comes to cops, I am basically Ben Wyatt. I’m Lawful Good. I’ve refused to jaywalk before. I don’t even know how to answer this. I cannot imagine myself committing a crime.

6. If you could sit on a bench in a beautiful woods, who would you like sitting next to you on the bench and why? My fiance because we always go hiking together and idk there’s no one else I’d rather be with

7. If you could choose your age forever, what age would you choose and why? I think 27? Idk why it just seems like the sweet spot between feeling young and feeling old? At least for me.

8. What’s your earliest childhood memory? I used to say it was when I was 3, sitting in our backyard in San Antonio, our neighbor’s ball landed in our backyard and I liked it so I just decided to keep it. But I think that’s more a memory of a memory at this point. So I’m going to go with... I was 4, saw Beauty and the Beast on ice at Hershey Park in PA, would fall asleep listening to the soundtrack.

9. If you could go back in time and change history, what would you change? Everything? There’s too much badness in history, I’m struggling to pick one thing. Maybe stopping Christopher Columbus. I think this would have just delayed the horribleness that was wrought upon the Americas but... maybe if he was stopped, it could have been different. Anyways Orson Scott Card wrote a book about this (Pastwatch: The Redemption of Christopher Columbus. It’s probably problematic (I mean the title sounds kind of problematic); I haven’t read it in years, and Card has a tendency to be problematic. But it certainly was an interesting thought experiment.)

10. If you were to change your name, what name would you adopt going forward? I used to use Fiona as a pen name before I started using Callioope... I guess I also like Abigail. I wanted to use this name for a future kid, but my fiance’s aunt is named Abigail so now we can’t use it. Dumb. Anyways I’ve always felt really lucky that I like my name and wouldn’t want to change it.

11. How do you like to spend a rainy day? Curled up on the couch, hot tea in hand, reading.

Second set: (ta-dala)

1. What is the “craziest” thing you’ve done for the love of something? Well. I went skydiving for my fiance. I have a strong fear of heights, he’d been wanting to do it for years and said he’d prefer to share such a life experience with me (so he wouldn’t go with anyone else). I refused for many years, but this past summer I finally took the leap (har har) and bought a groupon for it for his bday. I actually ended up having a blast, so I’m glad I went, but… I definitely thought it was a thing only crazy people do, before I did it.

2. What is your ultimate bucket-list travel destination? I would have said Efes, but I had the fortune of going there in 2014. (Both my user pic and cover pic are from Efes.) Otherwise there are so many places I want to go that it’s hard to choose just one. Hmmm we didn’t do Pamukkale when we were in Turkey soo maybe that. I mean, basically, ancient ruins are usually at the top of my list. And there are a lot of ancient ruins in Turkey along the southwest coast that we didn’t go to that I want to go back for. Oh and hot air ballooning in Cappadocia!

3. Cats or dogs? Dogs. I have nothing against cats, but I grew up with dogs all my life because my mom was allergic to cats.

4. If you could be anywhere in the world right now, where would it be? I mean, right now I’m sleepy and still not quite 100% (but very close) recovered from being sick, soo… being at home, in pjs, on my couch is pretty appealing. But my usual answer to this is somewhere in Turkey, or maybe München. I’d move to München if distance was somehow made negligible by science fiction-esque modes of transportation and thus I wouldn’t be so separated from friends and family.

5. Write me a piece of advise that you’d go back and give to your younger self. Perfection is the enemy of good enough — you don’t even have to be great at something as long as you try and give it the best you can.

6. Share one sentence of something you’ve written and tell me why you like it. “She discovers him on Endor, eyes dark and far away even after the Death Star disintegrates into fireworks above them, and they spend a night separate from the celebration, their own relief soft and slow and solemn as they reconcile their fears of tomorrow against its new promises.” from “if i wait (will you stay?)”

I enjoyed writing the imagery here; I liked the idea of Jyn and Cassian keeping their celebration of the destruction of the second Death Star private, it’s too deep and personal for them; I liked the alliteration of ‘soft and slow and solemn.’ The victory/beginning of the end of the war would be so charged for them because this is a war they’ve been fighting all their lives and it’d be the first glimpse of the light at the end of the tunnel and I think that would terrify them as much as it would excite them.

7. Can you still love/be a fan of something/someone and be critical of a choice or decision? Why or why not? ABSOLUTELY!!! Thank you for this question, this is a good question and one I feel very strongly about. (Look, I’m a fan of A Song of Ice and Fire/Game of Thrones, there’s no way I haven’t learned how to take enjoyment from something while still being critical of it.)

I’d argue that maybe you don’t really love something until you’re honest about its faults. That seems a little dramatic to say though. And I don’t want to devalue someone’s love of something because they’re not critical of it. (Also, some things just… are less problematic.)

With my own experience in fandom, I’ve felt more sincerely and honestly connected and engaged with a work once I’ve acknowledged its criticisms. I think it comes about naturally when you pay enough attention to something or analyze it deeply enough. And to some extent (depending on the work), I feel if I wasn’t honest about its faults, there’d be a level of idolization happening that isn’t 100% sincere. Placing works or people on a pedestal is dangerous. Understanding the faults of a person or thing, to me, seems like a more true/sincere/honest understanding of it.

Also, nothing in this world is 100% Perfect and Good. It’s possible for a Thing or Person to both propagate very good, positive, progressive ideas and beliefs and commit mistakes and misunderstandings that aren’t great. In fact, most things in life are probably this way. Open honesty about how something is good and how something is bad is a natural, and I’d say necessary, course for progressing and improving and gaining a better understanding of the world.

8. Rogue One. Dead or alive? ;) I don’t… I don’t understand this question. What do you mean dead? Why would they be dead? Obviously alive… :P

9. You can only eat one food the rest of your life. What is it? (You really didn’t want to ask me this question. I apologize in advance.)

It’s potatoes. There are so many different ways to cook them. I’m assuming that I’m allowed to cook them in different ways? Boil ‘em, mash ‘em, stick ‘em in a stew? I mean, in addition to what Samwise already wisely (heyyy) pointed out, there’s baked potatoes, potatoes au gratin, Hasselback potatoes, roasted potatoes — and so many ways to roast them! You can also make french fries, you can make potato chips. Cream of potato soup. Hash browns! Tater tots! Gnocchi! (I have leftover gnocchi from Maggianos in the fridge and it’s time for dinner and guess what I’m doing when I’m done here. I took a break to eat) And honestly?? I’ve only really covered western cooking for potatoes here. I’ve had potatoes in Indian cuisine that is delicious!! I just can’t remember what any of those dishes were called.

Look, I just googled all the ways you can cook potatoes and the first line of the first link that came up said “the potato is the Mariah Carey of vegetables.” They’re not wrong.

10. Give me your Desert Island Discs list. This was very hard and for the record, these only reflect my tastes as of today.

Records:

All This and Heaven Too by Florence + the Machine

Sibelius Symphony No. 2 by Jean Sibelius

While My Guitar Gently Weeps by The Beatles

(Can I count the end of Abbey Road as one medley? I mean, can I just bring Abbey Road? Only one song? FINE) it’s going to be whatever the best cover of Carry That Weight is with the longest jam session in it, research pending

Night on Bald Mountain by Modest Mussorgsky

Between Two Lungs by Florence + the Machine

Cassiopeia by Sara Bareilles

Howl by Florence + the Machine

On the Radio by Regina Spektor

A Day in the Life by the Beatles

Book of my choice: The Golden Compass. But I was very tempted to take Wicked. Gregory Maguire’s prose is next level it’s so beautiful I just…. But he’s a little darker for me. The Golden Compass has been a solid fave for a long time.

One luxury item… pen and paper?

11. What is your favorite curse word? I’m not really creative when it comes to cursing, I generally just say ‘fuck’ a lot.

My questions:

What was your favorite game to play as a child?

You hear just the first few notes of a song, recognize it instantly, and are filled with joy -- what song is it?

Name any goal you ever set for yourself that you are proud to have accomplished.

If you had to pick a senior yearbook quote today, what would it be?

What would your daemon be? (aka an animal manifestation of your ‘inner self’)

What was the first concert you ever went to?

If you were a city, what city would you be and why?

If you could automate a chore so you wouldn’t ever have to do it anymore, what would it be?

What is something you’ve learned in the past year?

Name a person, real or fictional, that has inspired you and explain how.

What is something anyone can do to make the world around them just a little bit better?

Tagging: @ta-dala (you seemed like you wanted more tags, so tagging you back! :) ), @theputterer, @magalis, @latinaspitfire, @thenewleeland, @estherlyon, @thestarbirdfromtheashes, @jenniferjuni-per, @lustfulpasiphae, @caffeinosis, @imsfire2 (and of course the disclaimer: no pressure/no worries if you don’t want to do it! and apologies if you’ve done it already)

#tag meme #personal #about me #liz rants

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nettheworldonfire · 4 years

Text

If the Genes Fit, Test Them.

It’s been 2 weeks since I’ve last posted. Somewhere between the drama and chaos that was diagnosis, first treatment, and weaning my 6.5 month old external tumor, and now the end of life as we know it (also known as COVID-19), I just didn’t have much to say, or much time to say it.

So while Charlie is sleeping, and Olive is screaming at me in her typical zombie-esque growl and tossing each toy I give to her on the ground, repeatedly, I’ll painstakingly stop and start this post, until I’ve given a short update about all that has been going on.

Genetic Counseling Update: On Wednesday I spoke to a genetics counselor over the phone. I was supposed to go in, but the appointment was modified due to COVID-19 and we took care of everything via phone. The counselor’s name was Stephanie and she was extremely kind and informative. She called me promptly at 8 am and the call lasted almost exactly one hour, like she said it would. (I kind of wish all appointments were this easy.) They are sending me out a saliva swab kit to test my DNA. The kit should arrive within a week, I’ll send it back out, and I should have those results within a month. Easy peasy.

Stephanie said that about 10% of neuroendocrine tumor patients are genetically predisposed to getting cancer. While only about 1 of those percents are people with my type of neuroendocrine tumors, due to my family history, they think it is smart to check. On my mother’s side, I have a second cousin who also has pancreatic neuroendocrine tumors and liver metastasis (she recently started Lanreotide injections, too). Additionally, my mother’s father had a neuroendocrine tumor on his spine, near the nape of his neck, which they assumed was was not cancerous, even though it was fatal. He was diagnosed in the 70s though, and then Neuroendocrine tumors were thought to not be cancerous because of how slow-growing they are. When I was diagnosed 8 years ago, we tried to access his records from his more recent Jefferson hospital stays/surgeries (he passed away in the early 2000s) but we were not able to obtain them. Anyway - that is enough to make this a fishy scenario. And in the words of the counselor, “reasonable to think there is an underlying genetic predisposition.”

While the most important reason for genetic testing right now is to find out if my immediate family may also be at risk for these type of tumors, it can also be helpful to know what treatments may be beneficial. If an underlying genetic cause is found, it would trigger two things - testing for my mother and brothers, and testing for my children. A genetic predisposition has a 50/50 chance of being passed to your children, so therefore, if I have it (presumably from my mother, since it’s on that side of the family) it would typically indicate that she does and my brothers and children have a 50/50 chance of having it, too. There is yet a third consideration though - which is that it is a NEW genetic predisposition started with ME. Apparently, there are 10 new genes in each baby, that did not come from either mother or father, meaning that issues like these can start with anyone, at any point (crazy, huh?).

They told us that this testing, if not covered by insurance, costs $250 per person - something I think is worth it, in the long run. I don’t think they would test my children now, but they said they would fairly early - and if they also have the gene - they would be followed/scanned regularly to ensure there are no tumors. Definitely not the sort of thing you want to have passed down to the kids (I think they would prefer a family fortune, or a shorehouse) - so fingers crossed that I don’t have this gene and it’s all just a horribly shitty coincidence.

Adventures of Olive in Formula-land Update: My (adorable) hungry, hungry hippo is now taking 25-30 ounce of formula daily, from a regular medela bottle with a disposable enfamil nipple (go figure), like a freaking champion. This girl can eat. She is so proud of her bottle-loving self, that she gets up three or four times a night to show me how much she loves her fancy formula. Luckily, she is four months away from regular old milk (or an abundance of yogurt and cheese, the route Charlie opted for) and we can stop spending $30 a week on her elitist beverage of choice. I joke, but really I am thrilled that the horror of weaning is over. That nearly killed me. And in more personal news, I didn’t even have to pump that long, didn’t really get sore, and have pretty much stopped producing much at all - so that is a literal relief.

University Update: After learning I was locked into paying for the course I had started a few days before my diagnosis, I was annoyed and anxious about what was the best course of action. I decided that it would be better, for the purposes of my sabbatical (and needing to complete a certain amount of my program to meet the requirements of my district and not owe them back what I’ve earned this year) to struggle through the course, versus withdrawing, if we were paying for it either way. So that’s what I did. But, but rather than struggle through the course, I just kind of didn’t do anything. I felt overwhelmed even thinking about it, so it was easier not to. And I didn’t. This past week, as week 8 (the final week) of my course began, I discussed my options for salvaging the course, so that I might at least “pass” with my chairperson. She was accommodating and understanding, and now with even more craziness in the world, sympathetic. She and I discussed a minimalist approach to completing back-work and hitting the milestones I missed in the last few weeks, so that I could still get some late credit. I felt like so many of my students, basically asking, “What is the very least amount of work I can do and still pass your class?” I suppose what goes around, comes around?

I started working my dissertation proposal again Thursday and will have more to work on this weekend - but should be able to pull off a small miracle. I did send a crass email to the finance department and will likely be taking a hiatus from the program, as I am not sure where to go from here. While I want to finish this dissertation and accomplish what I set out to -- I also just don’t give an eff at this point, and may want to spend the tiny bits of spare time I have doing things that make me genuinely happy. After all, you only live (or die) once, and If the last two months say anything about life, well - that’s enough to scare anyone into treating each day as your last.

Side-effects Update: After my first injection, I felt okay for awhile, then got extremely tired for about two hours. Later that night, I was quite nauseous and vomited a couple times. By the next day, I felt a little wonky and sick - but overall, not terrible (more like a bad hangover). Within two or three days, I think I felt normal again (what is normal anyway?). Even now, almost three weeks later, I can still feel a bulbous spot in my upper butt cheek and from time to time it is sore. I can definitely see why they recommend doing the injection on alternate sides. The specialty pharmacy called me this week and everything is set up for my shot to arrive at Dr. Rose’s office sometime next week. He should be back to work on Monday and I am hoping he calls me with next steps/ideas. The only thing I know for sure is that I need to get blood work next week and I am not looking forward to sitting at Labcorp and germ swapping with my Abington area neighbors, but I will be careful.

Anxiety Update: I started a daily dose of 5 mg of Lexapro about the same time as I started the Lanreotide - I think I have been on it for 25 days maybe. I can’t really tell if I feel a difference because everything has calmed down a bit, and we have a plan of action to tackle this cancer and I am not actively writing my dissertation - or if the medication is working? Hard to say. I do feel better(ish), minus the impending shitstorm that is COVID-19 lurking around every corner. My doctor, however, didn’t think I was any more susceptible than a normal 37 year old, so that was the good news. The bad news is, that if they start making triage decisions based on health - metastatic cancer is one of the things that means you don’t get a ventilator - so I better watch my back (and wash my hands, and not touch my face, and all that jazz). We’re socially distanced though, and other than my appointments, we will remain that way until things are less deathy out there.

Options Update: I am assuming that the whole COVID-19 thing has changed his thoughts on doing the embolization in April, and since Dr. Teitelbaum felt it was something we could hold off on, I think that may be the route we go now. I don’t even know if they would do it, or if it would be considered elective. Not that anyone would elect to go through this, but you know. Hoping I will have a conversation with him on Monday to sort this all out. Til then...

* Dark side: Quarantine, still, and maybe forever.

* Bright side: A lull in posts means a lull in “activity” means a lull in bad news - I’ll take it! * Next steps:

3/30/20 - Conversation with Dr. Rose about the plan of action

4/1/20 - 10:00 a.m. - Bloodwork at Labcorp

4/6/20 (tentatively) - next Lanreotide injection (I forgot to write down the time!)

* Sciencey GIF:

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