#sorry to be cynical on main but all I can think of is instead of watching this and being like wow we made a huge mistake here

[tippenfunkaport]

You know, it would be amazing if Hollywood learned the right lesson from the success of Nimona. Something like "Hey, maybe don't throw out a nearly done movie as a tax write off" or "people want queer stories" or even "don't be afraid to take some storytelling risks and be original" but you just know they're going to come away with some absolutely batshit takeaway like, "next time delete all the evidence and burn it to the ground so the gays can't make us look bad!"

#sorry to be cynical on main but all I can think of is instead of watching this and being like wow we made a huge mistake here #disney is just going to be mad because of how foolish this made them look #bc corporate america always learns exactly the wrong lesson #honestly hope I'm wrong and this humbles them and they do better #but also I am a realist #anyway go nimona kick 'em in chip and dale's nuts #nimona #nd stevenson #netflix #disney #oscar nominations #oscar nominee #hollywood

[victimsofyaoipoll]

Round 3

Propaganda Under Cut

Joan Watson

How were BBC Sherlock shippers so rancid about a WOMAN who wasnt even in the SAME SHOW?????

Martin Freeman of BBC Sherlock insulted Elementary and specifically Lucy Liu in the press. He straight up called Lucy Liu a "dog" in an interview APPARENTLY as a joke, because calling female actors ugly is hilarious. Benedict Cumberbatch was more measured about it, but he still said he was cynical about Elementary because it would lose the "male friendship" dynamic, which of course Johnlock shippers used against Joan Watson fans. Even the lead BBC Sherlock actors got in on the yaoi victimization of Joan Watson... 😔

she wasn't even in the same SHOW as the yaoi I've been convinced she deserves to win the entire poll. I was a Johnlocker but I did watch the first season of Elementary and it was fine????? It was totally okay????? Especially in hindsight given how hard Sherlock season four flopped. Also Lucy Liu is a queen and deserved zero vitriol for *checks notes* playing a character???? A fucking fictional character???????? Oh my god we were all SO mean to this show and we (or at least I) thought it was like The Good Fight™️, like we were defending BBC Sherlock against copyright infringement and straightwashing and Jonny Lee Miller's bizarre scarf, (it wasn't a good scarf I do stand by that) but then Elementary didn't make Holmes and Watson a couple either???? And also it didn't insult its audience constantly etc etc we've all seen the Hbomberguy Sherlock is Garbage video. This is really long sorry hashtag justice for Joan Watson

Nyota Uhura

She's Spock's canon partner in AOS, and I get it because they're not a great couple, but she gets villianized in fic so much. They constantly make her an asshole (which totally has nothing to do with her being black /sarcasm) and abusive just for the crime of dating a man headcanoned as gay. And I mean, I think Spock is gay and her being a love interest was unnecessary but still! She's cool!

Oh my god so in the Star Trek reboot she’s Spock’s girlfriend and the fandom has no idea what to do with her??? Like she is ALWAYS either such a bitch or like the mom friend? And there is so much more to her character than that? But they always break down her character AND find a quick and easy way to break up her and Spock. I’m not even mad at that but at least treat their relationship with some weight instead of just being like ‘it never mattered’. People can love multiple people throughout the course of their lives. You know that right? Just because you loved someone before doesn’t make your new love any less special. And even headcanoning Spock as gay… you realize he doesn’t need to be attracted to Uhura for their relationship to have mattered, right? Even if he confused friendship for romantic attraction, him feeling such strong friendship and openly expressing it is so monumental for him!!! 

she's dating Spock, who people ship with Kirk, so fans have decided that it's horrible writing and "really, they're just defending her, the movies turned her into just a love interests," which is not at all true. The movies do so much more for her to the point that the fans who have only seen the movies think that the main characters are Kirk, Spock, and Uhura instead of the Kirk, Spock, McCoy of the original series. Also having a black women being shown as being desired and loved in mainstream media, particularly by one of the most popular characters of all time, is a good thing, not making her "just a love interest"

#round 3 #poll #joan watson #cbs elementary #elementary #nyota uhura #star trek #star trek aos

[l3viat8an]

I'm sorry this is going to be really long but I've been thinking about this for so long now and I just need someone else's opinion on it--

So something I've been thinking about a lot lately is the way Obey Me! presents Satan's personality vs his actual behavior.

We've seen the game frequently tell us that he hides behind a mask of a smile, as if he has truly malicious intentions. I was reading a summary of his A Teasing Gesture Devilgram the other day on the Fandom wiki, and the final part of the Devilgram says that Satan asks MC if they aren't worried that they're being too trusting.

Again, this happens in one of the Season 1 Lessons when he gives us advice for the TSL quiz. If we choose to say "thank you", he wonders if we don't think we're worried about being fooled by him.

Then there's also his character introduction: "All smiles are just an act, the cynical fourth born", as well as his depiction as the Lord of Masks (again, hiding his true intentions behind a false smile). And in the Star event, even Asmo says Satan comes off as a friendly & approachable person "at first".

All in all, what I'm thinking about is, is that I feel like the way Solomare intends to present Satan as this malevolent person that hides his malicious intentions behind a fake smile, just doesn't fit with the way he acts overall all that much (and the reason why I say 'all that much' instead of 'at all' is because of his pranks on Lucifer, but we already know why he does that, but I kinda wanna exclude Lucifer so we can look at this in a broader perspective).

But the way I'm thinking is that Solomare want us to think of Satan as someone who'd be willing to betray the trust and hurt someone who didn't even do him wrong in the first place (such as MC), and maybe for the sake of his own entertainment.

I really feel like if Solomare wanted Satan to be this kind of sadistic, fake smile-malicious personality underneath kind of person, they would've done a better job at it. But I also feel like I could just be reading this depiction all wrong, and that it's just a way of saying Satan is trying to protect people from his wrath when he ever loses control of it. I feel like a could have also missed something along the way, or could be thinking a bit too hard, but for now I'm just going to leave it at this. What are your thoughts?

-🦢

Don’t be sorry!! You’re fineee 🦢!!!

And I definitely agree with you! If Solomare really wanted to make Satan this absolute perfect demon in public and a fucking bitch in private they would have actually done it. Yk?

Not make him even softer and more open around MC when it’s just the two of them. (and yeaaaa that could be another way Satan’s just manipulating MC but I don’t think so-)

Satan always makes it clear that he’s being as open as honest with MC as he can be. In the main story and Devilgrams he tells them how he’s always worried he’ll lose control and end up hurting the people he cares about. It’s always in the back of his mind that he could hurt them and how he did lose control for a few minutes, which just like he’s afraid of; resulted in MC getting hurt. (when MC refused to make a pact with him in season one)

Soooo yea- imo it’s more like you said at the end ‘Satan is trying to protect people from his wrath when he ever loses control of it.’ even if that means putting up another fact mask. and always holding himself back.

Then again I could be reading him all wrong and he could be just manipulating MC. But after so long, I don’t think he’d bother keeping up the act. I think by now there would have been a bigger crack in his mask. If Satan was going to be darker and actually manipulative we would’ve seen more of it by now. 

#🦢 anon! #small disclaimer tho I’m not really a satan expert lol #obey me! #obey me satan #om! satan #obmswd satan #ro rambles #om! #obey me mc

[humdrummoloch]

Hello! Can I ask about character arcs? And maybe some promps please

Hello!

I'm not super good at this but I'll give it a go. Sorry if these thoughts are a little scattered.

A character arc is (usually) a character unlearning a maladaptive approach and learning one that serves them better. That's the purpose of the world to the main character who is in it, to challenge their old ways and facilitate that change. Typically that's the plot, regardless of genre or setting (sequels often explore characters further developing in a changed world). It's considered by some storytellers to be the #1 method to creating a compelling story... but not by everyone, it must be said. Not every story is character-driven, and not every plot reacts to its characters or vice versa. I mean, not every story even involves change. Still, I think the concept of the arc is useful regardless of whether the characters are the core of your story.

An arc is about change. A misanthrope learns to care for the people around him. A closed-off hermit learns to open up. An ageing hero learns to step out of the spotlight and shift to a mentor role. The world pushes them to change their old outlook/behaviour and they push back to find that solution, creating the different elements of the plot itself. The end product of these arcs is usually a character who is better equipped and more fulfilled, but sometimes an arc can lead to their doom.

Change is not necessarily a moral improvement or even a practical one -- characters can become 'worse' in a compelling way when their arc is understandable but saddening. Also any topic of arc can go in any direction due to the nature of maladaptive extremes. Two characters often meet in a healthy middle, which is a good use of a side character.

There's flat arcs too, or boomerang arcs as I like to call them, where a person comes close to the precipice of change and (for better or worse) backs away. Often done to great effect with multidimensional villains who help reinforce/reflect the character's arc. This can also be done when a hero resists allowing the world to turn them evil.

Entire seasons can be dedicated to a different arc in the main character's development as they change and learn how to face each new challenge.

You also might notice that lots of TV shows (especially episodic formats) have a mini character arc as the central plot of many episodes. Lots of children's media and sitcoms are this way and once you see it you never unsee it.

In my opinion, if you want to know how to create a character or a plot, then arcs are a very significant component. Understanding how to put a character through a meaningful arc can be the difference between "interesting premise" and "good story." The most beloved characters often have the greatest arcs, but make no mistake, the greatest arcs are often the simplest.

All that said, "character arc" is a made-up term; it is quite literally what you make of it, so don't take my word as law -- remember, once you understand them, all laws of writing can be broken!

Whew, I think that's everything I know about arcs, condensed.

Some prompts for arcs:

A hero in a healed world learns to finally put down their sword

A cynical town doctor learns it takes more than medicine to help people thrive

A heartbroken musician learns to grow from their mistakes instead of mythologising their broken relationships

A chronic case of 'I can fix them' learns to stand up for themselves

A lonely CEO learns what is more important than success

A conman learns earning trust is better than earning money

A revenge-driven character learns the cycle of violence can never bring happiness

Sometimes you don't know a character until you know their arc. Once you have a good arc nailed down, the rest of your story can slot into place like magic.

- HumdrumMoloch

#creative writing #writing prompts #advice #character arcs #plotting

[mandareeboo]

Unfinished Work #57: "Untitled" (Completed)

This one is a bit wild! When the camping episode first came out I wrote a oneshot about Uzi descending into oil-need back in the bunker- hence the arm in her backpack. But I didn't know if it was all that good- also, I had absolutely no idea how in the hell to tag it- so it's going on here instead!

Title: N/A

Summary: N/A

The first time is- well, Uzi can't rightly say it was an accident, but it wasn't intentional.

The day had been hell. No sleep, long school day, that stupid dance. Doll had never been a friend or anything, but it was still surprising to see the usually quiet and private worker just... decimate like that. And her hand still hurt from the damn knife. And when she looked down at her fingers, stained an ugly black color in this land of slaughter and insects, it hadn't felt like a big deal.

(She doesn't know N and V, like, super well, but she's seen them feed a half-dozen times. V specifically seemed to enjoy trying to get her to watch during her time in chains, slurping on an oil can with the confidence of someone at a fancy brunch who doesn't realize they're being rude.)

Her ears were ringing, everything stung, and something in her mind whispered why not? What's one little taste? Lots of robots stick their wounds into their mouths to stave off fluid loss. Hell, the disassembly bots had fixing saliva as part of their repertoire for that very reason.

Uzi pops them into her mouth. It's not as gross as she thought it'd be. The flavor is sharp and strong, but it's a fluid every robot smells and deals with on the daily. She's numb to it. She's seen it drunk from the disembodied necks of her father's coworkers. Simple. Easy.

(...Why does she suddenly feel a lot less tired?)

She grabs N's hand as he helps her over the table, the drone completely unaware of her transgression, and Uzi honestly feels okay. It feels... normal. As normal as digging through someone's corpse-covered house can be. Maybe they can laugh about this after- ha-ha, look at the silly worker drone trying out the fluid we eat every day, thinks she's so badass for it.

Then Doll says she's sorry, and Uzi's not okay anymore.

———————————————————————————————————-

Sleep doesn't come easy for Uzi that night. Sleep protocol has always been a bit finnicky anyway. It's great for recharging, but the slightest emotional mishap can have it cutting in and out like a fuzzy tv signal. And Uzi is nothing if not full of emotional mishaps.

Tossing, turning, feeling uncomfortably hot.

She wishes N was here.

She'd even settle for V. At the very least, the jerk gives her something to focus on.

Uzi's eye is buzzing again. She presses a hand against her visor. It's nothing new. It doesn't help. This isn't a button that needs some extra oomph to be activated. It's deep inside her mainframe, to the point where no one can get it out. (Maybe she's finally going mad. Honestly, Uzi was surprised it took so long.)

Something ugly and red flashes across her wall. Uzi knows that symbol. She's seen it on N and V. It's a warning.

But... her cooling system is still intact.

Isn't it?

Sitting up, Uzi rams her chest a few times, trying to force her fans to kick in. Nothing. Not even a splutter. And if there's one positive thing she can say about Khan, it's that he's always kept her updated.

This is bad.

It's not so bad, the stupid, hopeful part of Uzi says. She usually squishes that protocol deep down inside. Just go get some oil, dummy.

Which makes even less sense! Uzi's a worker bot. They don't need to feast on oil. They get a tune-up twice a year and everything's fine. That would be murder drone behavior.

So what? The more cynical side says. You're basically a murder drone by now anyway. You literally lived with two for a week. You saw N rip a guy's spinal circuit out to get to the main fluid line. He offered you some! You thought it was sweet he was trying!

The cynic did have a point. Besides- if she doesn't fix this now, she can't figure out what the hell is wrong later.

Khan sleeps like the dead. Uzi never understood it- how a man who put his wife out of her misery can just snore his way through everything. But it's always something she's used to her advantage, sneaking tools to make weapons or inventions. Tonight she grabs Doll's keys and stumbles into the hallway. Oh, coordination is not liking her right now.

It feels wrong to be doing this alone. A remnant of her whole trusting others arc, probably. But she can't exactly go outside when she can barely see past the Absolute Solver and 'danger: overheating' clouding her eyes. N would make this so much less scary. He'd probably carry her- he seemed to enjoy hefting her onto his shoulders or into his arms. Uzi had chalked it up to her being, well, a worker drone. It was probably fascinating to be so easy to throw around. N would put the oil in a little cup, or a bowl, and try to joke about it. V would call her a wuss and try to stick an entire head into her mouth.

They're dysfunctional, but familiar dysfunction is so much nicer than what she has to do alone.

There's no strict guard in the bunker, mainly due to people over relying on her father's stupid doors, and Uzi assumes that's why no one comes upon her before she's fumbling the key into Doll's door and thrusting herself inside.

Oil and death. Before the stench had been normal. Now it was... nice?

Uzi hightails it over to the pot. There's no time for decorum. The blaring of her alert is getting louder. She shoves her hands into the mess, ladling out handfuls she eagerly sucks on.

The smell was nice. The taste was suddenly... wrong. Uzi finds herself battling against purging protocol, coughing and hacking.

It's not fresh, a new voice says. It's clinical. It reminds her a lot of the monster J had sprouted from her corpse. It's a mixture of various 'bots, which means the oil quality is all over the place. You need something fresher.

Uzi's fingers dug into the counter. Not possible. It was this or nothing.

(She's never killed another worker before.)

Sucking in a deep breath, Uzi grabbed a disconnected arm. She very carefully doesn't think about the trash can full of missing posters as she tips the oil out into her mouth. The overheating warning slowly peters out as she feels her faculties righting themselves. Strong. Steady. She tilted it back more. It's wrong not to finish a good meal, right?

(She's tumbling out of control.)

Eventually, all that's left is dangling wires. She tosses the limb to the side, hearing it clatter against the tile. Uzi sinks to the floor, pressing her head to the cupboards. She's disgusting. A monster. She's... full. Warm. Tingling with renewed energy.

(Is this what the murder drones felt, all the time? She kind of got it now.)

Robo Jesus, she just drained an arm. What was she going to say tomorrow? Sorry, I got kind of snacky. Sorry, I guess being a cannibal is contagious. Sorry, I need a tune-up. (She's so sorry.)

Uzi shook herself. There wasn't any need to get N and V involved in this. It wasn't their fault she was a disaster. N had always done his best to be kind to her. And V... she was usually too busy doing murder things to do more than snip at her. Uzi would just pull up her diagnostics in the morning, fix the issue, and never have to think about it again.

(She's scared.)

Uzi goes back to her room, slowly and methodically, confused and alone.

(She takes another arm with her.)

#Unfinished Work #Murder Drones #Uzi Doorman #Blood #Blood TW #Uhhh again idk what to tag #So lemme know?

[transmutationisms]

last ask i meant key points instead of bulletpoints lolol :/ english isnt really my first language, sorry !!! and yeah, specifically those lens. sorry if it wasn't clarifying at first

nothing to be sorry for! but yes i have thought about succession in relation to fisher's capitalist realism a lot lol.

first of all, there's fisher's point about how "all that is real melts into pr"—ie, capitalism reduces the real into appearance. waystar is kind of the exemplar of this trend insofar as it's a media company, and we see logan make this type of argument a few times: it doesn't matter what's real, it matters how things look, and he can control appearances (like when he plants tabloid stories or alters public opinion on the president).

there's also the way fisher talks about neoliberal subjectivity, which i see as applying particularly to kendall (ideologically flexible in the way that capitalism is, and driven by the logic of constant pointless self-improvement ie auto-exploitation). i've sketched out an attempt to theorise kendall's drug use in particular using deleuze's remarks on control societies and fisher's discussion of the 'debtor-addict' as the figure of such societies.

although fisher makes gestures toward uncovering a more general subjectivity under capitalism, i do think a lot of 'capitalist realism' is very specifically engaging with the british middle class, and you can see this for example in the section on 'depressive anhedonia' lol. which is not necessarily a bad thing; the book clearly has certain roots in affect theory / psychology, and it's possible for it to be saying something useful and interesting about middle-class affect without necessarily being a totalising manifesto. i would argue that marx's paris manuscripts often move into similar territory in regards to an imagined (and largely imaginary) proletarian.

but that brings me to i think the central issue with both succession and 'capitalist realism,' which is, uh, the capitalist realism of it all lol. like, the main thrust of fisher's critique here is to point out the ways in which capitalist political-economy is presented as the only viable such system. and obviously, fisher disagreed, and the book is like 80 pages long and is more about explaining what capitalist realism is than refuting it, which is fine. but it bears saying that there is a certain strain of leftist (sometimes not even leftist) thought that leans heavily into the nihilism and cynicism that some people pick up from this text.

which is not really something i want to litigate in regards to fisher in this post lol, but i do feel like it's something worth chewing on in regards to succession. in a show that is driven by character studies of murdoch pastiches, what would a leftist or liberatory ending look like? these characters and their real-world analogues are trapped in their capitalist microcosms, which are located within larger capitalist structures; if there's no escape for them, is the show inherently endorsing the idea that capitalism is inescapable and omnipotent in general?

i will show my hand here and say i think an ending where the roys 'escaped' in any way would suck, honestly. this is not because i think they 'deserve' to suffer or be punished (i don't do that kind of carceral logic) but because i think it would feel saccharine and insipid to end on a note of, like, individual liberation for this one family whilst capitalism marches on or whatever. but this doesn't necessarily mean that any ending where they're trapped is good, or compatible with liberatory leftist politics, or narratively satisfying.

ultimately i also think this gets at some other issues fisher was interested in throughout his work: like, when art is made under capitalism, that limits both the meanings intended by the creators and the meanings audiences read from it. ie, what type of genuinely liberatory art is possible if it's doubling as a commodity? i don't ask that to let succession's writers off the hook lol, and if the ending is bad and unimaginative then it's bad and unimaginative. like, i'm not going to sit here pretending otherwise. but i do also wonder what ending is possible that would not be read as somewhat cynical regarding the possibility of escape from capitalism.

anyway i don't have a developed aesthetic theory here and i also don't yet have the succession ending, so like.... i reserve judgment until then lol.

#i always forget to readmore my long ass posts. here u go #blood sacrifice #i should have made a better tag for like.... talking about the show's politics in an external sense.... wot evah

[vendetta-if]

What inspire you to make this IF if you don't mind me asking.?

I don’t mind at all! A bit long for those who are interested, so I’ll keep it under the cut.

I’ve always loved good superhero stories even though I rarely read comics. My very first experience with IFs is the Heroes Rise Trilogy followed directly by Fallen Hero: Rebirth after that.

While I do enjoy MCU movies because they are fun, I just don’t think they resonate with me that much. It’s not because I think they’re bad, no, but, like, I rarely think more about them further after I’ve watched them and stepped outside of the theatre.

I’ve always liked the stories that are more… cynical (and almost realistic in a way) in their take regarding the superheroes. Which is also why I enjoy ‘Tiger & Bunny’ anime more than ‘My Hero Academia’😅 Also, the funny satirical tv show ‘The Boys’ of course (not the edgy comic book version).

Because I think it’s more likely that in a world where some people have superpowers and can easily harm or kill other normal people around them, quite a lot of those superheroes must have had big egos. Also, with the current Internet culture today, they will most likely become celebrities and influencers as well to stoke their egos even more 😅

Mix that with my preference for morally grey protagonists and the base idea for ‘Vendetta’ is born. I think most MCs in these superhero stories (including IFs) that I’ve experienced, all focus on such big aspirations such as becoming a superhero to make the city a better place or the reverse, becoming a supervillain instead, just as long as they’re making lasting and visible changes to the world around them, becoming or symbolizing something more than themselves.

I don’t really mind that but sometimes I feel like that’s too black and white. I want to see an MC in a superhero world who just wants to focus on doing and achieving something personal with the help of their bestowed powers instead of chasing after such lofty and idealistic dreams the entirety of the story. That’s why, for MCs in my story, becoming vigilantes or superheroes is in the Epilogue only. The whole story focuses on MC trying to avenge and find justice for their dad, while making choices that will help guiding them to a particular ending for MCs’ future in years to come, after the main focus of the story is achieved 😁

Sorry for the short essay I just typed 😅 I just gush a lot about topics that I enjoy or passionate about 🫣

#asks #if: vendetta #writing thoughts #if game #if wip #dashingdon #choicescript #info

[ray-the-sad-cat]

I just read 'The Catcher In The Rye' for the first time, and I had some opinions (positive) Ok so honestly, I initially went into reading the catcher in the rye with the idea that I would hate because of all mixed reviews I had heard from others but IF YOU ARE THINKING ABOUT READING THIS BOOK DONT LET THE NEGATIVE REVIEWS STOP YOU. I ended up reading the entire book in one day because I so engaged. The writing style Is unique, and the constant use of repetitive words and language really adds a unique element to it. additionally, the main character gives much insight to themes and struggles of innocence, gender, childhood, grief/loss, isolation, self-destructive behaviour vulnerability, and unresolved mental health issues that ultimately leads to holden Caulfield’s cynical outlook on the world. The book requires the reader to think critically and read between the lines to draw conclusions about Holden Caulfield and his actions/motivations, which I totally understand that psychoanalysing a fictional teenage character is not everyone’s thing but should not stop you from giving the book a chance.

One of my favourite things about the catcher in the rye is the unreliable narration given by Holden Caulfield. Holden will often leave out key parts of his life that is obvious to the reader to have effected Holden and explain a significant parts of the story, things such as questionably close relationships with a teacher, witnessing the suicide of a boy who happened to be wearing Holdens shirt as he attempted, and the death of his younger brother Allie. Additionally, Holden Caulfield’s consistent hypocrisy in his hatred for those he perceives as “phony” despite him consistently lying and deceiving others on practically every page and admitting and being proud of doing such. While this aspect of the book is often criticized it is sometimes forgotten that the book is very self-aware in its message and hypocrisy and can be an intentional element of Holdens insecurity and unaddressed trauma. Additionally, Holden Caulfield is a 16-year-old at the time the story takes place and often the criticism towards him don’t account for his young age and expected immaturity due to it.

Finally, many seem not to enjoy or understand the pacing of the plot, or perhaps the lack of plot. Admittedly the catcher in the rye is not the most conventional of all plots, not really having a spike or singular main problem that is eventually resolved. Instead, the text follows Holden in a diary/journal like formant where Holden talks to the reader about the couple days, he spent wandering around New York. This element of the story seems to be disliked by people who either don’t find interest in the subject of the story in the beginning or who naturally prefer more action and plot driven books.

sorry for the ramble lol

#reading #english literature #books #review #booklr #book review #book recommendations #the catcher in the rye #literature #ramblings

[the-slasher-madame]

Since it’s Bo simpin hours, how would Bo react if he found out his long term best friend (maybe like a year since they came to Ambrose) turned out to be a vampire? They’d probably make a joke like “yeah that’s why I wasn’t scared of y’a, you couldn’t kill me if you tried”

It's always Bo Simpin' Hours. When I said I want this man to point a double-barrel shotgun at me, I mean like dead center of my chest. Anywho, I think this is gonna be fun >:3

ALSO I'm sorry writing these take me so long >_< I'm trying I swear

TW/Notes: mentions of violence (as per usual), cursing (as per usual), vampires, please let me know if I missed anything!!

Bo Sinclair with a Vampire Best Friend:

Bo had thought you were remarkably calm when you first arrived at his happy waxen town

Like you didn't even scream, and that kinda pissed him off. He likes when they scream, you weren't any fun :(

That's really the main reason he decided to keep you, he wanted to see what made you tick

Unfortunately for him, he decided you were a really cool person!! Now he kept you around as a friend instead of as a toy

You were pale, but he figured you were just like that. You didn't explode on-sight in sunlight, but you kept heavy amounts of sunscreen on-hand

Again, Bo just figured you were pale and maybe from somewhere cold, he didn't think about it too much

There also weren't a whole lot of crucifixes in the house or the House of Wax (religion has failed him and his family enough that he resents the Christian god), so that isn't much of a problem. And he's pretty understanding if you say you want to keep away from the church, cause again he understands

One night, about a year after you were inducted into Ambrose, the two of you were sitting on the porch, drunk as skunks and shooting the shit

"Ya know, I never understood just why yous was never scared of us," he asks you, his voice slurred but pleasant, slinging his beer bottle around

"Hell, you couldn't've killed me, I'm basically fucking immortal," you were slurring your speech too, but pretty giggly either way

"The fuck you mean? My shotgun was loaded and ready to blast yer ass ta Mars." "Bo, I'm a vampire, shotgun ain't gonna do shit."

At first he just laughs at you, cause like wow vampire good one pal

You decide to prove it by turning into a bat, and that sobers him up real quick

He's terrified, this man was raised as a Christian and he's a cynical son of a bitch. A vampire? Aren't those things evil and deadly n shit? (like he ain't deadly smh).

You're back out of bat form, and you can see he looks a little pale (hehe). You reassure him it doesn't change anything, you wouldn't hurt your found family

I think then, cause he's still a little drunk, he's pissed. "The fuck didn't you say somethin? Motherfucker."

Bo wishes you'd have told him, he's your best friend and your his

When you introduce him to your wonderful world of weirdness, he decides it might be a good idea to upgrade the armory around town. If he acquires any anti-vampire weaponry, he probably wouldn't tell you. He doesn't want you to think it's for you, but for any other vampires that might wander through (and let's face it, a piece of him will always be worried you'll cut and run, you're his best friend but he's been hurt too much to not have a plan in place)

Also stocks up on stuff for other supernatural critters, like packs of silver bullets and iron and crucifixes and the likes

Will not let you near his neck, what can I say he's superstitious once he realizes the supernatural exists

Thinks it's hilarious when you go to bat mode

With all the victims that come through Ambrose, you get to have some fresh food. Bo would beg you to help freak the tourists out and deliver psychological torture

You like human food too, so dry periods in Ambrose are tolerable. If it gets really bad, Bo can tolerate having blood taken and bagged to give you a snack (complains the whole time though)

Will also take you out hunting with him and/or Lester to get some fun yummy animal blood

Overall, he freaks out, then is pissed, then goes back to normal and makes fun of you, but will make sure your taken care of

Sidenote, I think he would leave you be when you feed. He's only human, and I think it would freak him out (yes he kills people, but he's weird alright? He just is)

Hi!!! I hope you like it <33333

I don't know much about magical critters, and I feel bad it takes me so long to get to my requests >_<

But yea vampires!! Pretty cool, and I relate to being an unfortunate shade of pale. I swear, I burn when I go out to do yard chores. I do really like fangs and teeth though, I am perfectly fine with Bo biting me. Besides the point, but there it is. Love you Fang (and Bo) <3

#slashers #slasher fucker #slasher community #bo sinclair #bo's bestie #vampire reader #I tried

[not-poignant]

Since I am completely not ready to part with these characters from the series (that previous chapter was CRIMINAL!! MY COMFORT CHARACTER!!! GWYN, MY BOY!!! /cries), I'd like to ask, would it still be possible or would you ever consider of making another au for them? (Like the Nascent Diplomat, The Spoils of The Spoiled, etc.)

I don't like to ever rule anything out, but the fact is, right now, I just don't want to keep hurting those characters.

And that means I just don't want to write those characters as central characters anymore, outside of The Nascent Diplomat, which we can all agree is generally the softest and gentlest and most slow burn tenderest version of Gwyn and Augus that exists so far. But still has a fuckton of angst because like, it's me, and I hate writing fluff with every inch of my body until we get to the end or it's really really earned.

My general perspective is like, I've been hurting these characters pretty intensely for nearly a decade, across millions of words, the equivalent of tens of books, and they've earned a break, and so have I, lol. I have new characters to hurt, lmao.

(This is where fanfiction is a wonderful thing, imho).

I am still writing Fae Tales AUs, for example Underline the Black will be an Efnisien/Gary AU with some familiar Fae Tales faces, but I don't plan on centralising Gwyn and Augus in an AU or main story outside of The Nascent Diplomat (or maybe a oneshot or two) for hopefully a good long while - like half a decade, maybe more. And by then, I really hope I've written enough new characters that there's a plenitude of options for AUs etc. across many, many characters.

I love love love so much that people love Gwyn and Augus so much. And I really love them too, they have - whether it's professional or not - become very well-realised, 'real' kind of personalities to me. And it's hit a point where I just kind of...get really drained hurting them. I mean it's very repetitive, it has been a decade basically, and it starts to feel like 'oh boy, guys, I've done nearly everything to you, and I think maybe you just deserve a quiet retirement in all your happy endings across all your stories.'

I also don't want to become a person who writes characters to make other people happy, who then becomes cynical and bitter towards the whole process, or who feels trapped. We've seen what happens in books and TV shows etc. when the creators and writers get tired of a franchise or a series - and to put it nicely - it turns to shit, and creators tend to stop focusing on the integrity of the story. So I'm bailing now, while I believe I've still done well by these characters, still love them, and am not sitting here feeling cynical or bitter because folks want me to write about them for another decade. Instead I get to feel grateful, a little sad, very excited, and relieved that I'm stopping outside of a gentle side story and soft landing. :)

Obviously for folks new to Augus and Gwyn - even if you're 'new' as in the last year, or two years, or five years - it might not feel like you've spent enough time with them. I am sorry for that! They have like the equivalent of 30 full-sized novels about them in serial format, and I am a little spent! I welcome you to realise what I have - which is that a version of those characters will always be with you, and you can create as many new stories for them as you like in your head, and there's always re-reading.

For me, personally, I will mostly just be writing them a lot of mental happy endings. 10 years of being under my very brutal, angst-loving hands, and I think they've more than earned their retirement as my flagship OTP.

At least for another few years anyway. :D

#asks and answers #gwyn ap nudd #augus each uisge #fae tales #fae tales au #fae tales verse #gwyn will still be my queue administrator #and i'm not ruling out like responses to prompts etc. #i just...am stopping before i end up hating the repetition #it's a scary thing to do #but i can also tell in my heart and in my soul #that they are ready to rest #and i am ready to find new characters to hurt and then comfort #the nascent diplomat is the exception #and i don't think i could make myself write more than one chapter of that a month #because i want to be fresh with it and not like tired #it's a weird place to hit as a writer because i've never been here before actually #i just have so much love for these characters i can't tell you how much i think #after 10 years of hurting them #that i just now believe they really really really deserve a lengthy spell of joy #and isn't that strange and wonderful? writing is a strange art

[theinfinitedivides]

being british is not "a fast track to being not decent". if you're not living in britain then your perception is being altered by the fact that the only ones you ever fucking see on screen were born into the 0.1%.

also how did you miss the entire point of that post, the point is that any english actor allowed to have any kind of career these days is the opposite of representative of the majority of citizens. hopefully you're just a kid but if not jesus christ learn to fucking read

i was going to start this with the traditional pleasantries but it seems my general use of sarcasm (humorous or otherwise) on this main for the past 3+ years is lost on you (even though i am trying to give you the benefit of the doubt by saying that you're coming across me for the first time), so let me make it very clear: my ancestors were f*cking enslaved by the UK. there are ancestors that haven't been confirmed except through word of mouth that were most likely f*cked over by the UK in various ways. i think then, in this circumstance, that i have the right to say that the British government in general has done f*cking horrible things. the British themselves have done f*cking horrible things. i am not talking about individual people on the streets and in the countryside just trying to live their lives, i am talking about the entire f*cking system that enables sh*t like this. the British system is not decent. not at all, and if you're steeped in that like a mf*cking teabag for God knows how long, i've found it hard to discover exceptions to the societal bedrock that is racism, classism and white jackassery since we're talking about the same place that, despite giving us Shakespeare and Rickman and Princess Diana (landed gentry aside) also gave us Churchill (took the UK through WWII but engineered a f*cking famine in India bc according to him they 'breed like rabbits'), the f*cking Fiennes clan (Ralph is a JKR supporter), and Charles and Andrew and the rest of the royal f*cking family, so if that isn't a fast track to being not decent then idk what is.

that being said, sure, as cynical of a bitch that i am maybe my perception is less than ideal bc of the 0.1%, but if all of the f*cking people in charge are part of the 0.1% then how tf do you expect me to say otherwise, exactly? the reason there isn't representation is bc the industry sucks ass, which is why the only actors i'm interested in are Welsh and Irish and Scottish—the status quo rn is not concerned with allowing people with a regular 'English' background to have their time on screen, let alone LGBTQ+ and POC. and so yes, the nepo babies are going to continue to have a career, even if they act worse than f*cking paint on a drywall, and the cycle will start all over again, and we can forget about having a f*cking accurate portrayal of the average citizen any time soon, and this goes for the British film industry and Hollywood and Bollywood—contrary to your belief, i am privileged enough to have been able to learn in such a way that i was able to pick up the necessary comprehension skills needed to function meaningfully in this society without being disenfranchised. (PSA: others, i know, have not been able to. that does not make them worth any less.) i didn't know, however, that i was supposed to write an entire essay in the f*cking tags??? to explain that i did, in fact, comprehend??? and to reiterate what was already f*cking there??? i'm sorry??? just bc i chose not to address the aforementioned info and instead indirectly acknowledged that it was correct by emphazing what i did doesn't mean i didn't see it—i literally put a qualifier for the first point you brought up (something like '... if the ancestors minded their f*cking business #and lived their lives like normal human beings'). generational tendencies and traits are a thing, that's why we have a whole subset of American citizens who still think it's alright to use the f*cking N word to refer to Black people

look, i really don't know what side of the bed you woke up on and i'm sorry you felt the need to come into my inbox and bitch about this, but i hope you felt better after sending this and didn't put any of this toxicity into anyone else's space, OK? ty <333

#inbox #q: anon #i am so aggressively passive aggressive here while also cursing like a mf*cker sfjsfdnkjsdnj #sweetheart if you're truly making a valid point and i am not Getting It bc of the aggressive quality of this ask #then i apologize in advance but ykw #if you were that pressed about it....... you could have just...... idk...... blocked the post??? DMd me??? sent this ask off anon??? #i'm not the kind of person who doxxes people who send things off anon when it isn't nice #i'm not going to send people to dox you either #but do know sending hate mail on anon is one of the worst forms of cowardice on this hellsite and i see it every time #to make my point i'm stealing @angelspulse's tags from the OG post to confirm that #if an actor from heres white theres a 90% chance their family were directly responsible for colonising a country #i was also going to say the industry sucks d*ck but as someone who's also gay af that's an insult to the solidarity of most MLM /hj #anyway i need to go and sleep now if you're still pressed anon figure it out

[pulquedeguayaba]

The C the C the open C my beloved

More than God loves them

Ugh the callback of this line to EP1 with Franklin 💔💚💔💚💔 Like in both cases there's a genuine fondness for both men but with Francis it's like a more concrete, non judgemental and more impactful imo kind of love (leaving the cans to the mutineers), instead Franklin is a words of affirmation (and more judgemental) type. James' relationship with Francis is more equal than the one he had with Franklin allowing for more love?

Going back to England, lady Jane's appeal thanks to Charles Dickens 🤢 woman can tell a speech that appeals to middle and upper class English sensitivities ngl, an orator like her husband.

THAT ZOOM IN TO HER FACE AND MOUTH TO CUT TO THE JAW OF ONE OF THE MEN THE ABSOLUTE USELESSNESS OF IT ALL

Tommy Hartnell was the one taking the most after Francis I think, in terms of leadership, like during the mutiny and the tuunbaq attack, standing his ground and protecting the men in the boat, offering support after the mess.

Those are some big ass boats and it must had been an absolute pain in the ass to haul them 💀

In love with the shot of Fitzjames exposing his reopened wound to the men, the composition that of a baroque painting

Dundy and Little proposal and the double meaning of allowing them "to rest" 💀

The way the camera follows and frames Hickey, first as he's with Billy in the tent. Despite the cynicism and the (supposed) pragmatism, being tender with him. Making up his mind, he goes out of the tent, goes to his to grab his knife, stabbing him in the back no less. So much to dissect about the rat man.

Speaking of dissecting, his threat to Goodsir so that he cuts Billy up. How Goodsir is trying to come to terms with it and the way the tent blows hard in the back of his head. Then the change of frame and the threats to Hodgson off screen, proving again that this show is a workplace comedy.

People have been commenting about the contrasts between Billy's and James' deaths, but also the parallels, how were they related to Francis and Hickey each.

James' death oh my god 😭 the intimacy, the resignation, the complete love and trust between these 2 men. The fact that even us the audience aren't allowed into their last moments together, and the fact that Francis refused to offer a speech or service to the men.

This episode has no restraints, going punch after punch (even in the more quiet moments). Immediately after James is buried, Blanky breaking the news to Francis, the tragedy, but also the camaraderie, the banter between them as Blanky implies his plan with the forks.

BLANKY BEING THE ONE TO FIND THE PASSAGE. We're reminded (just like the men) after like 6 episodes what this was all about. And he also gets to go like the goat that he is 🔥

The fact that they were able to find a place as desolate as the real KWI. The sterility of it all, this party of white men are a plague to the land, causing others to suffer for no reason.

The fact that the tuunbaq is going first after the mutineers, dude knows where the most rotten apples are (looking at you Des Voux)

The moment of the cannibalism that is both heightened and understated, Hickey wasn't impressed.

Hodge I'm so sorry but I'll always zone out during your Catholic anecdote, like Goodsir probably did.

Tozer sharing what happened with Collins. Everybody cried so much during this episode and with good reason.

Bridgens death :( the corpse lying on the side. The breaking of the main pairs in this episode by the death of one of them, leaving only the "strongest" alive, but Bridgens refused to it.

Really like the callbacks to history here and there, and in this episode is way more obvious, I think; there's some bending of facts ofc. Kept thinking about Woodman's book about Inuit testimony, about the splitting of all the parties and their fates, and that in real life they did find game (still wasn't enough for whatever it is that went down and which we might never know), but points are being made so some distortion is allowed.

#and now onto the final episode #shit this was long apoligies in advance #the terror

[danganronpasurvivoraskblog]

FreFo/FuFo Heist Planning: Volume #2

So, down to business, now that we’re all here...

*A little while later, Oliver, Leona and Kouji all show up, and everyone gathers in the basement of the building. 

So that’s the situation?

As I’m sure you’ve already been informed by your friends, Emilia Feng and her company are collaborating secretly with Organization Zetsubou.

And they’re planning something big. We don’t know what it is, but we don’t know if we can stop it on our own.

Yeah, we examined some shit from Tamashiro’s mansion after that whole fiasco, and that Kerokuma that came in and killed him might be part of a bigger project...

Why didn’t you say this when you asked us for help the first time round?

Because we’re not dicks?

We understood your situation. We didn’t want to press for it...

Because, like Leona said...we’re not dicks.

But you see, this is helpful for us as well. Fang Inc. are Organization Zetsubou’s biggest international sponsor and supplier. Zetsubou’s best weapons come from the company, and there’s a chance the CEO had a hand in Operation Toxic Love as well. 

Right, that poisonous rain scheme...But why would Feng collab with terrorists from Japan anyway?

Hm...Well, from the way you’ve played up these guys as extremely dangerous, it’s likely that their influence, should they succeed, will affect the entire world; not just Japan.

It would make sense if the old woman’s goal was to aid Organization Z in doing that, and then fight a war against them. 

For profit I assume?

Likely, but at the same time, if a war gets too big, it falls out of even Emilia’s control. If OZ conquer the world, and destroy most of the cities, even she’ll struggle to reap the benefits of that.

I don’t think that matters. Emilia’s an arrogant bitch, but...she’s not a cynic. She’s gotta make sure both she herself, and everyone else around her, sees herself as the hero. 

Every time she goes somewhere, be it here, or anywhere else in the world, she has some mad plan to fix all it’s problems. Like with highly-trained police, or automated crop fertilizer or some bullshit. Society to a woman like her is a technology problem, and people are bugs in the system.

Which means she’d be more than willing to discreetly remove them to “fix” the system.

Yeah. That’s the issue.

So whatever she IS planning on doing, it can’t be a good thing. In fact, it may actually be Organization Zetsubou’s first step into dominating places off border.

So we need to stop it, but...how do we even find out what her goal is?

That’s the first step in our “master plan”

...

*Kuripa and Maya simultaneously pose.

Lame...

Oi!

No, she’s right. That was lame.

I think it was good teamwork.

Can we focus?

Yeah, come on guys. 

Alright. Here’s the deal.

*Kouji nods to Oliver, who loads up a map on the projector.

This right here is one of Fang Inc’s biggest police stations, and work buildings. It was one of the first facilities that the company produced in their early days.

It’s also open to the public on weekends, and serves as a digital museum, detailing Fang Inc’s history...Naturally, leaving out all the skeevy shit they do.

It’s a museum all about Emilia? Talk about sucking your own non-existent dick.

Hey! Watch the language, we have kids here!

...Sorry...

But why is this place so important?

Because Emilia’s got an upcoming meeting in two days time at this place. She’s assembling both her main circle, as well as some government officials to talk about a major project she has planned for the US.

The US as a whole?

The company may be based in DC, but their influence expands over the whole continent, AT LEAST.

How...do you know this?

Eh?

How do you know about this meeting? Did you intercept phone calls or something?

Not outside of our budget...or morals for that matter...

But no. We have our own Hercules Mulligan, but she’s a badass chick instead.

Who?

Have you never seen Hamilton, Boss?

What Maya means to say is they have a spy on the inside.

Who is this spy? I was under the impression that there were only 6 of you.

That’s...uh...not important right now. Let’s just focus on this, ok?

...

Alright, sure. Then what we’ve gotta do is...

Sneak in, and infiltrate that meeting. Get those juicy deets. Easy clap!

Sweet! I’ve always wanted to be in on a caper!

Uh...are you sure it’s a good idea to let this kid in on this plan?

As her mother, naturally I’m protective of her...But...

Before we adopted her, Akeru survived by herself on the street for a long time. She even formed her own gang.

And she’s stealthy. If this is an espionage mission, then she’s our best bet.

Heck yeah I am!

Hold on a second. Even if Akeru IS a capable stealth agent, I still don’t think sending her in there by herself is a good idea. She’s still young, and it’s not like she’s ever breached a place that’s got Fang Inc. levels of security.

Besides, you know what happened the LAST time she tried to do an espionage mission for us.

That doesn’t mean we can just bar her from doing one again. She’s so talented at it.

Yeah, but even so!

Yeah, I’m with Toko on this one. Just from looking at this place from the outside, it’s definitely not a doddle breaching it. The kid might have to sit this one out.

Aw...

But we have to get in somehow, and it’s too early to risk a full-frontal assault.

If sending in a child is what it takes, then so be it. We have to know what Emilia is up to.

Maya, she’s 13 or 14 years old. And she’s my niece. It’s not happening.

*sigh* Alright. Sorry, I guess that was shitty of me.

Language...!

My bad!

...

Sorry Akeru. I bet you were looking forward to it.

It’s fine...

Alright, but if Kid Ninja’s off the table, what’s the plan? If we can’t navigate past the security, how do we get in?

Have you ever heard of the phrase “If you can’t beat ‘em, join ‘em?”

You mean...?

*Leona suddenly produces a uniform out from under the table.

Ta-Dah! Our secret contact provided this for us! It’s the staff uniform for that facility!

So the way we’re going to break in is by disguising ourselves as employees, and blending in?

Yes...However, there’s just one problem.

We only have one uniform. And...if you’ll forgive me for saying so; I promise this doesn’t just apply to your group but also ours...

A lot of you...stand out way too much.

That’s fair. This hairdo has it’s problems.

Everything about you has it’s problems Hiro.

So ultimately, what you’re saying is...we need to pick ONE person who doesn’t stand out too much.

AND who can act as an undercover agent by themselves.

Basically, we need a perfectly normal proxy...

...

*There is a moment of silence, but then everyone’s heads simultaneously turn in the same direction, like valves.

God Fucking Dammit!

LANGUAGE!

Oop! S-Sorry!

Perfectly normal appearance...check...

Is reliable when it counts...check...

Welp. Good luck Boss~

Hold on a second! I’m not saying I won’t do it, but don’t I get a say in this!?

Sorry Mak...You’re the only one who can pull this off...

Besides, it’s not often that you get to be this useful to the whole group.

Hey! That’s uncalled for!

Jeez...Fine! But you owe me a coffee on the house AT LEAST!

Done deal! Don’t worry though, we’ll lend you a COM device you can put in your ear and talk to us with. Just try to be discreet.

You’ve got a few days to prepare as well.

And what happens if I get caught?

Well...

I’ll burn the whole place down before I let that happen.

Thanks...I suppose...

Good luck Uncle Koto!

Believe me...I’m gonna need my Ultimate Luck now more than ever.

#danganronpa survivor #danganronpa #danganronpa 1 #dr1 #hyper danganronpa h2o #hdrh2o #danganronpa ultra despair girls #drae #into the ocean arc #makoto naegi #kyoko kirigiri #byakuya togami #yasuhiro hagakure #aoi asahina #toko fukawa #komaru naegi #kuripa kurafto #maya canzanilla #four kaiden #oliver feng #hunter rosenhall #leona vasquez #akeru yozora

[attic-zine]

dancing in the dark

a conversation with tinnie

Deep thoughts. New ideas. Constant movement. Sudden epiphanies. Being consumed by nostalgia. The urge to be impulsive. The former are just a few of the words that come to mind when I think of my friend, Tinnie.

Now, listen, she is not like the rest of us. In fact, she is the literal epitome of ‘unusual’, as her distinctive name itself may suggest. I mean, have you ever met a girl named Tinnie before? She may come across as your typical Swedish blue-eyed gal at first, but once you get to know her, a gate to a world of eccentrities and excitement is opened, and your life will never be the same again. It’s difficult to pinpoint what it is about her that makes her stand out from a crowd, but no matter what, you will always find her. I can safely say that I would not be the person I am today had I not become friends with Tinnie.

I first met her in fifth grade when we were both just 11 years old. I saw her from afar and thought she looked really cool, exactly the kind of girl I wanted to be. This was the thought that occurred to me before I had even talked to her and only attempted to scratch the surface. However, my first impression of her was somewhat accurate because, for reasons beyond my own control, we ended up hanging out almost every day after school and before either of us noticed, eight years sitting in my room or hers, talking about the most insane shit that had ever crossed either of our minds, had passed... All in the blink of an eye. Our main source of bonding remains unknown to this day, but perhaps it could be our mutual, and rather odd, perceptions of the world and everything within it, as well as our shared endeavors of hopeless romanticism and the (sub)conscious determination to never accept reality for what it truly is.

I wanted to interview Tinnie because she’s an incredibly important element in me finally bringing this magazine together as both her and I have always obsessed over ‘90s editorials, and it would just be ludicrous of me to leave her out of the very first issue. Aside from that, she is one of the most interesting people I have ever met who is always burning with the uttermost passion to laugh, dance, scream, cry, and to exist. Plus, she is incredibly photogenic, regardless of what she might have to say about it. So, here is our one-and-a-half-hour-long conversation — which got rather cynical and dismal at times (as our conversations often do) — transcribed. Enjoy.

So, Tinnie, why do you love dancing so much?

(laughs in confusion) I don’t know... I’ve been doing it since I was a little kid. I couldn’t tell you if I wanted to. I can’t put words on it. It’s a way of self-expression for me. But you know what, I barely dance seriously nowadays... I just do it because it’s fun. But that’s exactly why I dance — because it’s fun. Why else would you do it? You don’t need to take everything so seriously all the time.

You’re right. That’s something we do a lot — we just laugh at everything because why bother?

Yeah, even though it can be hard sometimes. But instead of feeling sorry for myself, I just try to focus on the fun parts of it all. That’s also why it’s important to have people in your life who you can laugh and have fun with, especially if you’re like me and good at getting yourself in a bad mood and just being negative. I saw a video the other day where this skateboarder who hadn’t skated for years tried doing a trick he used to be really good at, but then he fell and broke his ankle. Despite that, everybody around him was just like ‘look how happy he is...’. He broke his foot, the ambulance got there and he was hurting really bad, but they didn’t turn it into a big deal because they were all in a positive mindset. He was just like ‘fuck it! At least I tried. The wound will heal in no time’, you know? It’s important to not let the little things get to you.

What else really moves you?

Uh... I would say boats. I’m sorry, what was the question? Illnesses. Diseases. Snakes. 

I mean positive things...

Doing make-up. I don’t know... I like it because I’m creative, I guess. It’s also one of the few things that allows my mind to fully focus because it’s something that I’m really interested in. That’s just the way my mind works. (pause, she remembers something) I’m just like that guy in The Stone Roses.

Huh?

You know, the interview where they’re asking him a bunch of questions and he’s just like ‘I don’t know... I’m just doing what I think is fun...’ (uncontrollable laughter follows)

How would you define the word ‘youth’?

Fun. You can do whatever the hell you want. Freedom. Peace. A pain in the ass...

What do you mean by that?

You know, when you’re young, you just don’t have any real responsibilities. What do I mean by ‘peace’? Marky Mark and the Funky Bunch. (laughs as she’s thinking about their song of the same name) Just listen to that song.

And why is it ‘a pain in the ass’?

Because it’s just so... There’s this stigma around being a teenager, that you have to have fun and you have to drink, you have to do this and that. You know? That’s something that everybody says is all a part of being a teenager... (covers her head and mimicks her head exploding) Nobody cares. It doesn’t matter if you’re 40 or 14 years old when you start drinking. (laughs) Why am I talking about alcohol? This doesn’t have anything to do with it...

What is a song that radiates good vibes for you?

‘Good Vibrations’ (another Marky Mark song). Just kidding. I’m not obsessed with him, okay? I would say ‘Keep on Smilin’’ by NKOTB. I just get happy when I hear it. I always listen to the words. The song is just really positive. I love it.

What’s your favorite scent of anything?

Chocolate. (laughter) No, let me think a little... Something from my childhood probably. I can’t remember though.

What about your essential oils?

Dragon’s blood! Definitely. It just smells so good.

What movie will you never get tired of?

‘Dirty Dancing’. It just reminds me of summer. 

What is your main goal right now?

Graduating. Getting my fucking diploma. Really. Just getting my certificate. (gets all excited) In one year, I might have my certificate!! I haven’t thought that long ahead... You saw the joy in my eyes, right? I might start crying right now. I’ll get my diploma and it will say ‘certified make-up artist’ on it... Wait, I just got really excited about school! I might actually bawl my eyes out if I receive my certificate at graduation. I’ll pass out. I’ll die.

If you could go back to a decade, which one would you choose?

The ‘80s. The whole decade was great from beginning to end, from 1980 to 1989.

What is it about the ‘80s?

There was good music everywhere. Good shit was happening all the time (not allll the time though). You could go to all these incredible concerts. Everything just seemed so fun and happy. There was life all around.

Who’s your biggest inspiration?

My mom. She’s just really good at teaching me how to direct my thinking, to have a more positive mindset. Ugh, it sounds so cliché... (‘Dreams’ by The Cranberries starts playing in the background) And that’s my mom’s favorite song. My mom is basically the reason that I’m still going to school, the only reason behind my motivation. She always asks me questions like ‘why do you do the things you do?’ so I would reflect on them and come to my own conclusions. She’s my inspiration for everything.

Let’s get deep now... What do you really think of our generation?

People our age tend to be addicted to their phones and social media, which eventually leads to them suffering from really bad social anxiety. We’re just so overwhelmed. All the time. I don’t feel like I relate to our generation. You know, I’d rather be a teenager in like 2008 than right now.

Really? For me it’s the opposite. I feel like people our age are finally beginning to realize that we should put our phones down sometimes and try to live in the moment more. 

Yeah, that’s true. I noticed this when I was in Greece, how people our age would just be out and having fun, and actually talk to each other. But then the part where we try to make friends is so different from what it used to be, you know, like asking for someone’s number? Nobody does that anymore. Our generation asks for socials. And then people just text each other, they don’t talk. (holds her head in distress) We’re all so heavily influenced by social media...

Yeah, people try to change themselves and fit in with how people look on social media... 

Exactly.

Songs trend for 15 minutes and people listen to them solely because everybody else is doing it.

Yeah. People can’t relax and have a really hard time being themselves because they’re so affected by it all. They’re influenced by everything they see on social media — what everybody else is doing, what they’re wearing, what they look like...

You mean, instead of trying to find themselves, they are busy looking for ways to better adjust themselves to the rest? To be socially accepted by people on the internet?

Exactly! Nowadays, it’s just... What we kind of talked about before, people are so serious all the time, and they have trouble with looking at things with more positivity.

I think our generation is just really tense all the time because we have to put up with so much, like global warming and all this shit with social media... 

Yeah, it has a lot to do with all these apps. People are constantly stressed about everything they see and everything they read on there.

Everything just seems to feel more real, much more direct, because we can so easily obtain all of this information. It feels like we’re living it all.

I was just watching an interview with this older singer and he was talking about how nowadays, we have all this easy access to things but back then they couldn’t look up all these small things that, at the end of the day, didn’t matter. They just minded their own business.

We’re all so caught up with everyone else’s lives instead of focusing on our own problems because we’re constantly being fed all this information on social media. It’s all there, handed to us on a silver platter. I remember reading somewhere how we as human beings are not made for this kind of world, how our brains just can’t handle it — no wonder we’re all so stressed! People are overwhelmed because it’s not in our nature to deal with this many things all at once.

Yeah. There’s not that many people who realize that that’s the problem. It’s scary.

People in this day and age don’t seem to think a lot, like really think, because we spend so much time on the internet.

They’re reading what others are posting on social media, and all the comments that follow.

Yeah, and they might not notice that they’re being influenced by it all. But they are. It’s going to leave a mark. The way we’re following all these celebrities and retrieving information about them every day stimulates our brains too much. People have trouble sleeping because their brains are activated all the time.

Yeah, I know people like that. They always tell me “you don’t get it... There’s so many other things going on, that’s why I can’t sleep”, and they’re partially right, of course there are other things that affect it too, but the worst thing is that they’re looking at their phones all the time.

That’s what worsens it by a 100. 

The older people, they get it. People our age are so ignorant towards them. They just think, “ugh, my grandma is nagging me so much about my phone”, but they’re actually right.

Just sitting and talking for hours without looking at a screen with someone is rare these days. Disconnecting yourself completely seems almost impossible to do.

Exactly. It’s scary.

The contrast between then and now is scary, too. The first thing we think of when we wake up is ‘I need to check how many likes this post got last night’, ‘who has seen my story?’, ‘has anyone texted me?’, whereas back then, it was much more laid-back and not all that intrusive. People weren’t concerned about the whole world.

Yeah, they were more focused on their own doings, their own friends and own life. A lot of teenagers nowadays have trouble finding themselves, but then they spend their time scrolling on TikTok and watching videos like ‘sometimes I want to be this, other times I want to be that’... And then they read about 80 comments underneath those posts.

The answer to finding yourself is getting off TikTok. If you want to be happy, you just have to turn that phone off sometimes. You will lose yourself completely if you read all these comments. You won’t be able to distinguish your own opinions from others’.

It’s sad. I hate seeing this happening to so many people around me.

Alright, enough with this never-ending pessimism... Do you believe in life after death?

Yes. I believe that our bodies die, but not our souls. Like energy. That doesn’t die either.

What is a lesson you recently learned?

I have actually noticed that I don’t learn much from my past mistakes. (laughter) It’s true! Because I’m just so incredibly impulsive. I don’t want to blame my ADHD, but...

What is your favorite memory of anything?

There’s so much that happens all the time, I can’t even remember...

A recent memory then?

My trip to Greece... Nightswimming in the sea. That was the most fun. There were crazy big waves. It just felt like a dream. You can’t do that here (in Sweden), just go and take a dip somewhere downtown.

If you could say something to your younger self, what would it be? 

“Shut up”. I talked crazy much.

(laughter) As if you don’t talk much anymore...

Yeah, I do. But I don’t mean it in a negative way because I used to be so carefree. I wasn’t in my head so much. Now, all I ever think about is ‘oh God, why am I talking so much?’ but back then, that never occurred to me.

So you would actually like to go back to your younger self and maybe tell your future self “just stay carefree”?

Exactly. You just read my mind. 

I wish we had more questions... 

Yeah, like ‘have you ever smoked pot?’...

Have you ever smoked pot?

I don’t count that one time. I only inhaled three times.

And what did you think of the experience?

Well, I didn’t get high so there’s not much to say. I wouldn’t recommend it if you’re a sensitive person, though. My friend got high and she got all paranoid. She was panicking and screaming because she didn’t understand where she was. If you’re already worried about something and then you do that, you’re just going to get even more worried. I feel like in general, it’s something that people really romanticize. Getting high, I mean. Drinking and smoking cigarettes, too. If you really think about it, people do these things because they just try to bring out this side of themselves that basically doesn’t exist, or exists, but not unless they’re under the influence. In a way, I can relate to it because when you drink, you just feel it right away, like ‘oh, I’m so much more talkative and can express myself better’. But you see, I’m aware of that, so when it happens, I think more like ‘I should work on that side of myself without alcohol’. It scares me because all I can think in a situation like this is ‘no, no, no — I have to learn how to behave this way without it!’. I’m not trying to say that I’m perfect because I’m not, and I get it — it’s not easy for everyone, and I understand why people drink... But instead of pouring alcohol down our throats to find solutions to our problems, we should just try to work on ourselves...

photography by emily tali

#attic #issue no. 1 #zine #magazine #interview

[creatiview]

[ad_1] Square Enix's new action-RPG Forspoken takes a lot of inspiration from Isekai anime, but one area where the game differs from that anime genre is with its protagonist Alfre "Frey" Holland. A cynical New Yorker and orphan who was bounced around foster homes, Frey's arrival in the fantasy land of Athia has been a running joke online, with many out-of-context examples of her interactions giving the game a somewhat cringey atmosphere. Frey's voice actress Ella Balinska has seen all the discourse circulating online, and she's not bothered by it, having instead embraced the varying reactions to her spell-slinger."There are things that we all do that might be eyebrow-raising to other people," Balinska said to The Verge. "I think people always have a positive or negative response to something they're not used to seeing, and that's completely okay because that’s the way we incite change." You need a javascript enabled browser to watch videos.Size:640 × 360480 × 270 Want us to remember this setting for all your devices? Sign up or Sign in now! Please use a html5 video capable browser to watch videos. This video has an invalid file format. Sorry, but you can't access this content!Please enter your date of birth to view this videoJanuaryFebruaryMarchAprilMayJuneJulyAugustSeptemberOctoberNovemberDecember12345678910111213141516171819202122232425262728293031Year2023202220212020201920182017201620152014201320122011201020092008200720062005200420032002200120001999199819971996199519941993199219911990198919881987198619851984198319821981198019791978197719761975197419731972197119701969196819671966196519641963196219611960195919581957195619551954195319521951195019491948194719461945194419431942194119401939193819371936193519341933193219311930192919281927192619251924192319221921192019191918191719161915191419131912191119101909190819071906190519041903190219011900 By clicking 'enter', you agree to GameSpot's Terms of Use and Privacy Policyenter Now Playing: Forspoken Video Review Balinska added that she thinks of her eight-year-old self when she talks of projects that she's proud of doing, and the idea of playing a game in which she's essentially the main character, has left her speechless. "I just never would have thought me playing games downstairs with my mom's hairdresser's son while she was getting her hair done," Balinska said. "Now, to think that he can pick up this game and play as me, it's just unbelievable. And I hope it inspires other people to realize that if you commit to the bit hard enough, something really crazy can happen."Contrary to the Whedonesque marketing materials and the memes spread online, Frey's characterization is surprisingly rough and accurate to her nature. In Forspoken, she's looking out for herself at first and is horrified at how Athia is expecting her to be a messiah that engages in murder for the greater good."It tells a largely forgettable story that sets up major stakes but fails to offer a compelling reason for why the player should care," Jordan Ramée wrote in GameSpot's Forspoken review. "Luminous Productions' action-RPG feels great when it allows you to really stretch your legs and magically parkour across its fantasy landscape, but combat is clunky and regular exposition too often stalls the action." The products discussed here were independently chosen by our editors. GameSpot may get a share of the revenue if you buy anything featured on our site. [ad_2] Source link

[dimpledpran]

Hey Mimi

I am your secret santa and your message that you want me to have fun and will love it reassured me a loot. Thank yoou <3

Here are few questions i have as i am thinking what to do for your gift

1) would you be okay with hurt/comfort vibe or would that dampen your holiday spirit?

2) what makes you like pluen/talay and pat/pran?

3) what makes your pat and pran your favourite characters?

Helloooo! Thanks for coming over to say hi! And of course, as long as you enjoy the process, the outcome will be beautiful. Also my reply ended up being way longer than it should be, just ignore it and scroll down for the last bit if for a summary.

1)YESS. I am a lover of angst, so go ahead and make something angsty or dealing with hurt/comfort. I am up for it.

2) I love PatPran because I love their dynamics. I love their banter and their squabbles, and how they just live off teasing one another. But at the end of the day, they stand for one another and support each other. And I love that. I very strongly believe that a relationship can only work when there is mutual trust, respect and honesty. That essentially is their relationship. They treat each other as equals, and don't try to hide from each other. Which is admirable.

For Puen/Talay, I've heard so much about them from @talays-portkey that it is inevitable that I fall in love with them. I love that they were kinda thrown into this universe where they HAD to final someone who shares a connection with them in order to go back, but they ended up owning it instead of letting it break them. They clearly had their own personal baggage going in, and maybe started finding their portkey with a selfish reason. They started off very hesitant and reluctant but they truly gave it their all in the end. That is very heartwarming to see. Again, I love their dynamics that they can be very serious people on their own but let their guard down and became absolute menaces with each other.

3) Where do I begin, Pat and Pran are my babies. I absolute adore them. I love Pran for so many reasons. He is such a strong and resilient character, and he has his own set of rules but he isn't uptight or stoic. He just chooses to show certain sides of him to different people. And I love seeing him let his guard down and be his chaotic self when he is comfortable. And he is so damn relatable. I have never identified with a character this much. That is one of the main reasons that I cannot get out of the BB brainrot. I love Pat because even though he can be impulsive and appear to not take things seriously, he is not "dumb". He can analyse things very well, and knows how to handle situations well. It is so endearing to see someone who wears their heart on their sleeve also be so rational and well balanced. And I love seeing that despite having quite a disturbing upbringing, both of them came out of it as stronger people.They didn't up being cynical or judgemental people just ready to yell at the world, they grew up to be beautiful and kind souls who decided to live their life the way they want.

I definitely went off on a tangent and rambled way too much. I am very sorry for this essay that you did not ask for. But basically long story short, I love PatPran and PuenTalay's dynamics with the whole cat-dog and "I only let my guard down with you" vibes. And i love Pran for being so relatable. And Pat is inspiring to not let the world cause you to become jaded and stop wearing your heart on your sleeve. I hope you have fun working on the gift. I can't wait to see it! Happy December! Happy holidays (if you celebrate!)

#I am very sorry #i really did not expect this to be this long #answered #gift exchange #anon friend