#the camera was still decent in 2017 it seems

[theemeraldforesthideout]

#own photo #2017 #woods #forest #green #light #tree #nature #woodland #no edit #even though I'd like too #I don't remember this walk to be honest #the camera was still decent in 2017 it seems #buuut #new old photos! whoop haha

[fishpuncher]

Reviewing Resident Evil games I’ve played for fun

I bought the Resident Evil 2 remake in April of last year and since then I’ve become a fan of the franchise, so I figured I’d do a little review of all the RE games I’ve played listed in sort of release order (remakes taking place of originals)

Resident Evil 1 Remake (2003)

The third RE game I played after the 2 remake and 7, so my introduction to the older games/originals. Honestly a lot of fun, it took me a while to get used to the fixed cameras and the controls (I used the updated alternate controls, not tank) and I never really mastered it but the game is super good. Great puzzles, great atmosphere, and it still looks pretty great 18 years later. The story is also good and isn’t particularly convoluted like some of the later games get lmao

Resident Evil 2 Remake (2019)

The first RE game I played, and what got me hooked on the franchise. I never played the original so I have nothing to compare it to, but this game is almost perfect imo. The puzzles are good, the environments are amazing, and the characters are likable. Mr. X is terrifying (at least in my first playthrough, he’s a lot less scary in subsequent playthroughs) and his chase music is phenomenal. Overall I can’t recommend this game enough.

Resident Evil 3 Remake (2020)

Pretty much everything I said about 2 is applicable to this one as well. Jill and Carlos are great characters and I only wish we got more of them. I know people say that the remake is way shorter and cut-down than the original, but I haven’t played it so I don’t have that frame of reference. As a standalone game, it’s extremely good and the final boss fight is extremely badass.

Resident Evil - Code: Veronica X (2000)

My introduction to tank controls. The game is extremely good, and I’m enjoying it immensely. It can be quite punishing if you forget certain items or don’t conserve your ammo, as I’ve read about players getting to the final boss and having to restart the game because they didn’t bring an item that the game doesn’t even tell you to bring. Luckily I’m an item hoarder in these games, as I’d already grabbed the item before I couldn’t go back for it. The puzzles are good as always, if not confusing as I’m forgetful and have to look up where new items go as I don’t want to spend an hour searching every wall in the game. My main complaint is the sniper battle halfway through the game, as the hitbox for it just seems random more than anything. I love that we get more of Chris too. His casual “Hey” after being thrown by an explosion just kills me. Steve is whiny though and kind of the worst.

Resident Evil 0 (2002)

Pretty okay game, but one that I can’t really recommend. The partner system was pretty good, and made for some amazing puzzles/gameplay at times (getting split up at the beginning and then getting split up in a castle-ish area later). I thought both of those were great uses of the partner switching and more than justify it. However, the reason I can’t recommend this game is almost entirely due to the way you’re supposed to handle items. I play the RE games like a hoarder, every single item goes in the chest. Except this game doesn’t have a chest. You have two inventories with only six or eight (I don’t remember) slots each, and no item boxes. Instead, you can drop items on the ground and pick them up again later. For a hoarder like me, that means a whole lot of backtracking when you advance to the next area. Another annoying thing was the final two boss fights, as they were confusing for my simple brain since one of them is legit just shooting them until they die, but there’s never any indication that you’re affecting it, so I’m running around the room looking for something else that will kill him. In the final fight, it’s the same thing, except the game makes a point of showing you certain parts of the room that are obviously interactable, so I immediately run to those. Only those aren’t used until the second phase of the fight. I like Rebecca and Billy though, and hope that they’ll return at some point.

Resident Evil 4 (2005)

Very fun game, the over the shoulder is a welcome respite from the fixed cameras of 1 and 0, even if it is still tank controls. Leon is very quippy and I’m not a huge fan of his constantly hitting on the woman on the radio, but he’s an entertaining protagonist for sure. Escorting Ashley through most of the game isn’t that bad, as you can have her hide sometimes, or she’s pretty decent at taking care of herself (though I definitely accidentally killed her a few times oops). I thought Ashley was like 15 for the entire game so her asking Leon if he wanted to fuck at the end of the game absolutely floored me (though I’m still not a fan of that unnecessary comment honestly). My main complaint is that I was playing the Steam version at 60fps, but QTEs just do not work at that framerate, so I had to lower it to 30fps just to get through certain parts of the game (I did that minecart section like five times). Overall a great game, though I wouldn’t say it’s the best in the series, as many do.

Resident Evil 5 (2009)

People say this one is bad, but it’s such a blast playing co-op with a friend. I didn’t have to deal with the AI partner, so I can’t talk about that, but this is such a good co-op game. Getting to a spot where you both need to interact with it and mashing the button so Chris yells “SHEVA SHEVA HURRY COME ON HURRY SHEVA” over and over is always funny and always annoying when you’re on the receiving end. I still don’t really get the story and how Umbrella and BSAA are related or anything, but the gameplay is super fun, I highly recommend this one if you’ve got someone to play with. Although, we did have to install some files in order to play online co-op, but it’s a pretty simple process.

Resident Evil: Revelations (2012)

This one is rough, as I got halfway through it before I got bored and quit. The game introduces Raymond as a bad guy pointing his gun at you, then there’s a flashback and his backstory is “guy silently standing in corner of room.” Back in present day, five minutes after being introduced as a bad guy, he’s helping you out. Jessica isn’t that bad but her character design is incredibly awful. The first minor thing is when she’s on a mission with Chris in snowy mountains and she’s wearing pounds of makeup. Then later they have her in a wetsuit but some hair is outside of it??? I guess so you know she’s a sexy woman. Plus her wetsuit is literally missing a leg. It leaves her left leg completely bare. The dialogue regarding her is sexist too. Overall, the gameplay is very meh and the plot is kind of dumb, even for RE.

Resident Evil 7: Biohazard (2017)

My second RE game to play, but probably the first one I watched. This game is amazing and I highly recommend it. The first person makes the setting much scarier, and it lets you relate to Ethan and immerse yourself more. I like that Ethan is just Some Guy with no training, he just walks his way through this whole mess like a champ. The boss fights are great and the characters are so memorable. Not to mention the DLCs for the game are wonderful: playing a fucked up version of 21 and then fighting goop monsters hand to hand are seriously fun.

Resident Evil Village (2021)

The most recent RE game and quite possibly the best. Village combines the first person perspective of 7 and the inventory system of 4, making an incredible game. The four lords all have such different environments and it makes for such good variety. My favorite one was the Silent Hill-esque house with the dolls, as scary as it was. The Duke is a fun character and I love that he’s part of the story. Chris’s section at the end turns the game into Call of Duty but it’s a fun massacre through the village, easily destroying enemies that have troubled you all game. Overall one of my favorite RE games.

#resident evil #re1 remake #re2 remake #re3 remake #re code veronica #re4 #re0 #re5 #re revelations #re7 #re village #RE8

[leqclerc]

I don’t want to be a killjoy but... I think you guys are reading a bit too much into Charles’ “he’s a great driver, he’s a four times world champion” statements. They seem like basic PR friendly words to me as a fan of neither Seb and Charles nor Ferrari. Helmet was a sweet touch from Charles, no denying that of course but interviews? They don’t seem personal to me at least.

No I get it, I see where you’re coming from. They’re obviously very media-conscious, having received extensive PR and media training, probably from quite a young age (the younger drivers in particular.) They know which languages are most beneficial to learn, how to act in order to represent the team, and how to market themselves to sponsors and the public for maximum desirability. They’ve got cameras trained on them for much of their “work day.” This of course sometimes makes it difficult to distinguish how much of what they’re saying in interviews is genuine and how much of that is them feeding the media a line. 

For me, when it comes to Charles and Seb, it’s also everything around the interviews that makes me think Charles’s admiration and respect for him goes beyond just a “might as well put up with this guy for the sake of the team” attitude which drivers sometimes adopt. For example the way he acted around Seb back in 2018 and even 2017, long before they ever became teammates - the way he’s genuinely happy for him when he gets his Monaco win; the way he’s so aware of him and watching him closely even during testing in the winter of 2018 or during the live event in Milan before the Italian Grand Prix that same year. Oftentimes he’d be seen approaching and greeting Seb in the paddock even when it wasn’t strictly necessary or expected of him, when he still in a different team and the Ferrari contract wasn’t even on the table yet. And then there’s the way Charles was all nervously excited, oscillating between flustered and preening when Seb spent the majority of the Monaco GP 2018 press conference praising him and his performance. Words can be deceiving, but a person’s body language can usually be a decent indicator of how they feel.

There’s also the little moments like Charles asking about Seb over team radio, often seeming genuinely curious or concerned, depending on the situation - he asked if Seb was alright after his qualy crash in Sochi last year, and after the race in Imola he took the time to ask what happened to Seb in the race, pointing out that he saw him having a good first stint and then he sort of disappeared; when the answer he got from the team wasn’t satisfactory, he waited for him in parc ferme and went to speak to him about it face to face. I think one of the biggest indicators - to me, at least - that he really cares about Seb is his explosive team radio after the last lap craziness in Turkey. He was obviously really upset and angry, yelling and criticizing himself; and yet in the middle of his furious self-loathing tirade he still took the time to say that Seb did a great job in the race, that he knows it hasn’t been an easy season for him, that he deserves the podium and he hopes Seb enjoys it - even though Seb got the podium by capitalising on Charles’s mistake. Sure, that could just be him trying to save face and say the right thing, but when your emotions are running so high...I’m not sure you’re thinking of PR lines in that moment. 

TL; DR: You’re right, interviews aren’t always the best gauge as the drivers are very media-conscious and PR trained to (most of the time at least) say “the right thing,” which can make them feel less personal and less genuine. For me, it’s the gestures and interactions that happen between these two outside of interviews that give the interviews more weight and credibility - in my eyes, anyway. 

#replies #anonymous #sebchal asks #long post #i'm by no means trying to like. convince you or anything; just sharing my point of view cause you make a very valid point #i mean i get it; after watching just dts and having no other context to work off of i did believe they dislike each other #it was only after i dug deeper that i realised that's not the case - they just have a peculiar and often awkward way of showing it lmao

[evelinamox]

Mammon x MC - Bewitched

*Side note before reading; I wrote this a few weeks ago. Been really out of practice writing, my peak was in 2017, so please go easy on me. ❤️ Also I should have named this something more like “Fell For You” 😂*

"Is he always late?" You groan to Satan as you wait outside RAD for Mammon to show up. Leaning against a wall, visibly pouting.

Satan shrugged and thumbed through one of his books. "Knowing him, he probably fell asleep in class or another teacher is scolding him for his grades."

You slid down against the wall until you were sitting on the ground. "Sadly I wouldn't be surprised," You looked down and picked at a loose thread on your RAD jacket. "Why did I even agree to meet with him here when he can't even try being on time? I'm never late so how come he can be whenever he chooses?"

Satan closed his book and looked down at you. "I have heard that exact line from you five times now. If you hate waiting on him then say something. I need to get going, good luck." With that he stepped away before you could even come up with a rebuttal.

Has it really been five times now? I mean I enjoy going with him places, especially photo shoots, but him always being late.. I think I'd rather be stood up at this point because at least it'd be clear how little he cares.

While lost in thought, Mammon snuck up to your side and attempted to scare you by grabbing your hip. Being an easily spooked, you let out an embarrassing yelp of fear that caught the attention of any demons within earshot.

"Grr Mammon!" You yelled at him as you jumped to your feet. Even while standing straight and trying to appear angry, you weren't near intimidating to him.

Mammon laughed at your attempt to be scary and ruffled your hair. "That's right! The Mammon has bested you! Say my name again for my victory!" He beamed a smile at you and put a hand behind his ear waiting for you to say his name again.

Crossing your arms at him and pouting, you shook your head in refusal. "Nope! Not happening!"

Mammon exaggerated a shocked look and clutched at his chest, pretending you physically hurt him. "After I grace you with my presence and you refuse my simple request?" Though still upset, his goofy nature caused you to crack a smile despite your annoyance.

Seeing you had cheered up some, Mammon did a "after you" hand motion, you started the walk together from RAD to Majolish.

Even while feeling a little better, Satans advice kept nagging at you until you spoke up. "Ya know... Not much of gracing me with your presence if you're making me wait every time." You said sounding dejected while kicking the same pebble every few steps to keep from looking at him. "I don't want to keep waiting for you on stuff you invited me to. I'm never late when it comes to our plans." The truth in your words hurt as they came out. You wanted to spend more time with him but being late for every plan he made got old fast.

Mammon at first became defensive at your words, "Why should I change my habits for a mere human?" but when you started picking up speed to get away from him, he quickened his pace to keep up with you. "Okay, fine! I will try to be on time from now on."

Due to his words you stop walking and so does he. "Promise?" You ask him with a hopeful tone.

He rolled his eyes at your question before saying "yes, I promise."

Without thinking you grabbed his hand while smiling at him. "Thank you!"

He became a bit flustered at first before nervously scratching the back of his head with his free hand. "N-no problem, (y/n)."

Unintentionally he looked down at your joined hands, but when you noticed and tried to pull away he held on tighter. "We'll keep it this way for now so I know where you are." He said while blushing brighter than you thought possible. You began blushing too since he wouldn't let go, but you went along with it as you both walked on.

Watching the shoot was intense as usual for all the workers. To avoid being caught in the hustle of all the other workers you took your usual spot against a wall between some unused equipment. You didn't ever mind your hide away nook since it also gave a decent side view of the action, and it was better than staying home studying.

After some time passed while watching the shoot, it started feeling awkward just watching Mammon. You liked him and he was undeniably hot, but you had a creeping feeling later he was going to say something like "Couldn't keep your eyes off me huh? Can't say I blame you though." Plus you weren't just tagging along to be some weird fan as much as it was entertaining.

Just as you took out your DDD to check Mononoke Land, you catch a glimpse of him winking at you which seemed to be anything but what the camera man wanted.

Was that intentional? Some kind of signal? You asked yourself. After that you continued to watch to see if it'd happen again. Before you knew it you forgot your plans catching spirits of Mononoke. Distraction. Definitely a distraction tactic that worked too well.

Finally the camera man ended the session and one of the assistants brought him a towel while a second assistant brought him a drink. It was noticeable that she tried to hold a conversation but he clearly just wanted to get away with how disinterested he acted.

Seeing him walk your direction you wanted to gather items and be ready to leave together. Rushing to pack your bag you didn't notice how numb your legs and butt were, causing you to stumble forward. Before you could fall face first Mammon caught you with his left arm wrapping around the front of you. Effortlessly he pulled you back up but then didn't let go. "Oh human, what would you do without me?" He laughed while still holding you against him.

Blushing from his bare muscles wrapped around you in what could best be described as a hug from behind, you glance around and notice a few staff looking at you two. Out of all the glances, there was a particular set of eyes glaring you down from the assistant that was trying to talk with him earlier.

"Probably have a few extra bruises." You try to laugh off how awkward you felt and lightly pushed off his arm that was still wrapped around you. "How much longer?" You nervously ask, feeling like a sheep with a wolf across the room planning its next meal.

"Aww want to know how long till we can leave and you can be alone with me?" Mammon beamed his same cocky smile.

Though you weren't sure it was actually happening, it felt as though the second assistant was starting through your back harder than before. If looks could kill, a crater would've been in your place. "Thanks." You sigh the word under your breath avoiding looking in her direction.

Completely oblivious to how uncomfortable you were, Mammon continued. "I'll get changed and we'll go. I'm not getting paid for cleanup so I'm not staying."

"I'll wait for you outside." You quickly answered before making a break to get out, not wanting to be alone in what felt like a lions den.

Waiting outside and taking in a fresh breath of air, you felt a dozen times better at the least. Mammon didn't take long either, but you did notice him shoving a strange crumpled piece of paper in his pocket while stepping out.

Awkwardly stopping at your side he extended his hand out to you while also bashfully looking away. "Let's get going."

Reaching out to grab his hand but stopping, you couldn't help but feel flustered. "Are you sure you want to still lead around a clumsy human?" You poked fun at yourself thinking back to him catching you.

Even after your question he still held his hand out but then looked back down to you. "It'd be for my own amusement, I'm not concerned or anything like that." He argued back, trying hard to not let his emotions show through.

Knowing he was trying to hide that he wanted to hold hands, you couldn't help but be a bit excited. Quickly you took hold of his hand and left together.

The walk home was fine, if not a little tiring. As a thank you gift you left a kiss on Mammon's cheek which left him so flustered that he was speechless as you quickly stepped away to hide your own embarrassment.

Next few days passed like any other school days, save for a few exchanged tsundere level flirting lines from Mammon and the usually shenanigans from the other brothers.

Early Saturday morning while sleeping you were suddenly awoken by rapid knocking on your door followed by a visitor coming in without permission.

Without even giving you a chance to comprehend his presence, Mammon deemed it appropriate to jump onto your bed in excitement.

"The hell do you want?!" You yelled while throwing a pillow at his face.

Mammon still excited ignored the pillow assault and showed you what looked like a paystub. "I got paid and decided you deserve a night out at a restaurant as thanks for coming with! We'll leave at 6p.m., so don't keep me waiting!"

He seemed so excited but you still wanted to pelt him with more pillows for waking you at 7 a.m.. "If you let me go back to sleep I'll give you a night to remember," you said, not really thinking on the meaning of the phrase.

Mammon's eyes widened and before you could take it back he ran out of the room while saying "Deal!"

"Nice one." You sighed sarcastically to yourself when you realized what you just said. In a short time you rolled back over hoping to sleep more but as soon as you closed your eyes many questions started running through your mind: Is this a date? Which restaurant? How should I dress? Did I really say I'd give him a night to remember? I mean I guess I wouldn't mind but... I must know if this is a date! It must be a date if he got that excited right? How long has he been planning this? Since when has he been a morning person?

After a fitful attempt at sleep that only lasted a few more hours, time passed and you began to obsess a bit too much over finding a outfit that wasn't too casual but also not to fancy either. Asking Asmo for help near noon, his shopping trip for you ended up taking another four hours before you could break free and retreat to your room.

Finishing putting on your favorite outfit of the assortment Asmo picked, you worry seeing that it was already 5:20p.m. and you haven't even attempted to help your hair yet. Sitting down at the vanity in your room, suddenly you noticed your face in the mirror appeared distorted. Your reflection appeared... Dead?

-Mammon's view-

While looking at his phone Mammon noticed it was already 6:20p.m.. Already annoyed he paced by the floor. "I gave (y/n) plenty of time to get ready. How dare that human make me wait." Getting tired of waiting Mammon marched up to your room about ready to pull you out of the room for the date. Nearing your room he felt dark magic in the air similar to what the witches have tortured him with. He made an audible gulp knowing that something wasn't right.

Knocking on your already open door he cautiously stuck his head in. "(Y/n)?"

Stepping into the center of the room he glanced around his eyes landed on a broken mirror and some strange green liquid he's seen before with the same witches he feared.

A churning feeling settled in his stomach and he ran to the first brother that came to mind that could help.

Slamming on the door to the twins room he started shouting. "Beel! Witches got (y/n)! Open up!!"

Beelzebub opened the door quickly when he heard that his favorite human was missing.

Completely panicking that two of Mammons worst fears became one, he didn't know what to do but he knew he needed help. "Beel! Can you sniff out (y/n)?!"

Beelzebub disappointedly shook his head at Mammons idea. "I'm a glutton but I'm not a dog! I will help you look though."

Mammon honestly thought it would be a solid plan for Beelzebub to sniff out (y/n).

Belphegor overhearing the conversation rolled his eyes at his greedy idiot brother, then got out of bed. Without a word he left the room and went down the hallway.

"Where the hell do you think you're going?!" Mammon shouted to his youngest brother. Half tempted to grab Belphi by the back of his neck like a kitten and make him help.

"Getting Lucifer, (y/n) is screwed if you're in charge." Belphie answered with his back to Mammon, still walking down the hall.

Before much time passed all the brothers were searching the property.

When it turned 6:35p.m. it became established there was no sign that a human left on foot.

Lucifer shook his head while thinking over all the information the brothers have gathered. "There's no sign (y/n) left in a normal manner. This means either (y/n) was taken by teleportation magic or managed to break the enchanted locks to the roof. We should all contact with any mages we know to see if they know what happened."

Mammon ignoring the last of Lucifers plan, his eyes widened in realization as all the pieces came together. At the photo shoot the other day he received a message from one of the assistants that was the key to all of this. One side had a phone number but when he checked it the note again later on the numbers were replaced with the message, "A tragic fall at dusk the day of Sabbath."

Mammon didn't think long on this note, thought it was a bad poem from a fan.

Without giving a explanation, he ran as fast as he could up the stairs till he reached the roof exit that only the best at magic should've been able to unlock. Much to his surprise and dismay he was right. Seconds away from dusk, you were stepping to the edge of the roof.

When you stepped off you regained control of your body, giving you a chance to scream out as you fell. Your scream was cut short, not because the ground or form impact, but because you felt someone grab onto but also falling with you. The scent and feel of the person holding on from behind was familiar, but everything was happening so fast you couldn't even think. Mammon had twisted you both in midair so you'd land on him. The feeling of the air engulfing you two before the landing deafening all the senses.

Crash landing together with a loud thud, Mammon let out a gasp while still holding your back tightly to him. "I got you. I have you." He said between gasps.

Opening your eyes you looked up at the building seeing that easily the fall could've severely hurt if not killed you.

Mammon let out a groan before rolling you over to the side of him so he could see your face. "(Y/n)... are you hurt?"

Slowly pushing yourself up into a sitting position, you nodded to him, feeling more concerned of his physical condition, though he didn't appear to be grimacing.

Mammon then sat up facing you, without a chance to ask his condition he pulled you to him in a tight hug.

Forgetting that witches were involved, only thinking of how his heart nearly lurched out his throat at the sight of you stepping off, he started shaking without realizing it. "Why? Why would you do something like that?! Do you hate it here so much that you'd rather die?!"

Unable to see his face or know what he was thinking, all you had to go on was the fall and the sound of him choking back sobs. "I.. I don't remember," You admit, wrapping your arms around his neck. "I was in my room, then next thing I knew I was falling in your arms."

"Don't ever scare me like that again!" He cried out, a few sobs escaping his mouth afterwards.

Forcing some space in his hold, you leaned back to look into his deep blue eyes. Instinctively you wiped away one of his tears rolling down his cheek. For longer than you could remember you had feelings for him, but could never get a full grasp of his emotions. For once his eyes and actions reflected how much he cared for and feared the thought of losing you. It hurt knowing how scared he was, but that made you all the more sure if there was ever a time to confess how you felt, it was then. "I love you too much to leave now." You whispered as you leaned in, your forehead against his.

In response to your words he placed his hand on the back of your head to push you into his kiss, it was a unexpected but welcomed surprise. Soaking in his emotions, a real feeling of love came from him. No force to it like lust, or void of emotions like pity. No, his kiss was perfect and reflected the bond you two built over the past few months.

When the kiss ended, his concerned expression was replaced by content. Hugging you to him once more he whispered in your ear. "I protect the things I love most, that includes you... (y/n)."

Epilogue

With help from all the brothers, Mammon found the witch responsible for the bewitching of (y/n). It turned out that a witch was helping the demon assistant steal Mammon's attention away, but the demon hoping to have just a disfiguring curse done to (y/n) was double crossed by the witch.

As it turned out this witch and Mammon held a contract but when he wasn't able to help with her most recent request, she decided to hit him where it hurt; by killing his precious human.

Though Mammon and the witch had a contract, no contract could save her from the brothers ripping her apart.

#obey me #mammon x oc #shall we date mammon #mammon x reader #please go easy on me #first work in years #out of practice #humans also fall like angels

[bluejaywriter]

okay okay okay

okay

WW84 spoilers below

EDIT: I just finished typing this, and it’s mostly complaining. Please don’t read this unless you’ve seen the movie. The movie is good. It is above average. I am just being really picky here.

EDIT 2: Okay, I’m watching again and I have to mention that the Amazons scene is very cool and I am probably complaining too much, and the opening scene is worth the price of the ticket/subscription alone. So there.

EDIT 3: Also Kristen Wiig is delightful, and I am so relieved that the CGI was actually okay, especially compared to Cats :P

Okay, so I have complaints, but not a single one matters because THAT MID-CREDITS SCENE IS EVERYTHING, I couldn’t stop smiling, it’s great.

Also, Themyscira is so BIG. Like, holy shit. Also everyone there is 100% gay.

Also, I wish for a well-written multi-season Wonder Woman TV series starring Gal Gadot where Diana falls in love with a woman and they have a grand o’ time together and neither of them permanently dies or turns evil, and if I got that, I would never renounce that wish, I would just sit in my bunker watching some damn good lesbian superheroing while the world burned.

Anyway...

Also Hippolyta smiles for the first time on camera, and I fainted. I wish there was less CGI, though. Could no one build a damn throne for their Queen? At least they gave her a horse to sit on last time.

Also, can we get an alternative movie where Diana wishes she could go home, if her being banned from Themyscira is still a thing? Or maybe that Antiope could come back to life? Or like... anything other than her dead boyfriend that she knew for a week coming back to life

ANYway

The tone was definitely different and not so much my taste, and it also seemed it was pushing a lot of nostalgia from an era that I wasn’t conscious for, so I think there was a lot that I missed.

Also, can someone write the WW84 version where Barbara Ann and Diana like... keep going out on dates and fall in love, because that’s the movie we deserve after 2020. We don’t deserve Steve Trevor, we deserve lovers to enemies to loving enemies. I will literally pay tens of dollars, and potentially sacrifice this good green earth for this.

I also renounce the story about the warrior who originally wore the golden armor because,

1. Hippolyta would have never let someone else do that, she would’ve kept those men back by herself, and she would’ve done it naked, and;

2. Don’t even think for a second that the Amazons didn’t kill their captors. They killed them. They’re dead. Every single one of them. Do you think Hippolyta freed them and they just marched down to the docks and left one woman to hold back an army? Who the fuck wrote this? Geoff Johns? I wish he would never touch a comic book again, especially after the Ray Fisher stuff.

Also, Hippolyta preaching to her daughter about building her character based on the truth rather than lies is pretty damn rich considering the whole Zeus lie thing, which I also renounce. Fuck Zeus, or rather DON’T fuck Zeus.

On one hand, I’m glad we didn’t get a Greek God popping in at the end, but on the other hand... like. It actually would’ve made sense this time for Diana to hunt down this guy and be like, cut it out. Like, humans are not good. And I highly doubt that EVERYONE would’ve reached into the goodness of their heart and renounced their wish. Maybe I’m just jaded by like, living in the USA for the last 9 months. And the world, in general.

Anyway, this is a lot of complaining, but it was entertaining, I don’t have that, OMG I need to buy another ticket to see it again tonight! feeling that I had with the first Wondy movie, but I probably will watch it 4 or 5 more times in full and then little scenes here and there until my HBO month runs out.

I wish it were darker though, but I guess we’ll get that with the Snyder Cut.

Also, DCEU Wonder Woman is now better at being both Batman AND Superman. For reals.

Anyway, decent movie. 7/10

.5 point taken out because Hans Zimmer really didn’t get much time to shine,

.5 point taken out because Diana didn’t get to kiss a woman. We didn’t even get the famous Cheetah spooning hug :(

1 point taken out for the cheesey-ass script,

1 point taken out because it just didn’t have the emotional oomph I was expecting (this is probably the most disappointing part). It wasn’t emotionless per se, but it just didn’t hit its targets for me.

Although, Barbara Ann’s “Thanks for talking to me” hit me like a sack of rocks, so thanks for that Patty Jenkins lol :P

BlueJay’s updated DCEU ranking:

1. Wonder Woman (2017)

2. Aquaman

3. BvS Ultimate Edition

4. Man of Steel

5. WW84

6. Birds of Prey

7. Shazam!

(I’m not even going to include Josstice League and Suicide Squad).

okbye

#WW84 #OOF #I liked Aquaman okay #I know the script is terrible #but it more than makes up for it in sea monsters #also speaking of sea monsters #there is a perfect opportunity for a certain sea monster to take her place in the Amazon Olympics #I'm sorry this is a lot of complaining

[punderfulowl]

Top 10 Anime (That I've Seen) in 2019

Three months late than never, I guess? There has been a LOT going on in my life and recent developments going on in the world doesn’t help things. However, I recently found a bit of a silver lining to help me back up onto the positive side of things and I hope to turn this into momentum.

With that said, I want to explain the rules of my end of the year list. As the title shows, this list won't be a showcase for the best anime that came out last year, but rather the best anime that I happened to view last year. I’m not the first to make a list in this format, but I find it fun to do so. 

Okay, let’s finally put 2019 to bed! Starting with...

10. Lord El-Melloi II’s Case Files (2019)

Once again, something Fate-related graces its presence on my end of the year list. Sure, being simply what it is gives it a good chance to make it on here, but what made it earn its spot, at least for me, is that this anime gave me a pleasant detour of what I’m used to from the Fate franchise. In short, this anime expands on the Fate lore, specifically on the mages of the Clock Tower, through eyes of an older Waver Velvet (Fate/Zero) as he solves magical mysteries with his Saber-faced partner, Gray. There’s no earth shattering revelations here, but, like I said, it’s a fun detour with magic, decent fight scenes, world building, and some “feels” if you stay till the end of the series. 

9. Humanity Has Declined (2012)

Well, isn’t this the most colorful post-apocalypse ever? 

Humanity Has Declined takes place on a post-apocalyptic world where the human population is down, resources are scarce, and tiny being called “Fairies” seem to be everywhere. The show is episodic in nature, but it doesn’t need to be anything more than that. After all, we don’t always need some deep commentary with a story that takes place after the world ends. Sometimes we just want to see how the remaining inhabitants live their lives in this soothingly-colored environment. If only Covid-19 was more colorful...

8. Shigofumi (2008)

What if you suddenly found yourself in the afterlife and had the opportunity to write one last letter to someone that’s still alive? Who would you send it to? What would it say? Shigofumi takes place in a universe where these happen and, well, there’s not much else I can say about it. Full disclosure, I can get pretty sappy when it comes to stories that involve heartfelt letters. I’m not doing a good job at convincing you to seek this anime out, but please give it a chance.

7. Kakegurui (2017)

Yeah, jumping from a show that tugs at my heartstrings to a show that scratches my head, here’s Kakegurui!

Kakegurui takes place at a prestigious (you guessed it) high school where your place in the social order is decided on gambling. Me trying to describe anything that happens in this anime won’t do it justice. It’s nuts, but it has my respect despite the violence and fan service. A philosophy I have for stories like these is if you’re gonna go crazy, go all in and it surely does. If any of this doesn’t appeal to you, at least check out its OP because it is, as the kids say these days, a “bop”.

6. Aggretsuko S2 (2019)

When putting this list together, trying to figure out what I’d rank where, and coming up with what I wanted to say for each, I decided to add a new rule: No more sequels. That doesn’t mean that I’ll never watch new seasons of a show, but I just won’t include them on the lists for now on. 

With that said, Aggretsuko season two was more of what made me a fan since last season: relatable scenarios for us twenty-somethings. Season two decided to focus on the struggles of romantic relationships and even though it was touched upon in the previous season, it went a little deeper this time.

5. Rascal Does Not Dream of Bunny Girl-Senpai (2018)

This anime fascinates me in more ways than one. In the biggest way, I consider this show to be on par with the movie, “Cabin in the Woods,” because fans of both have done a good job without giving anything away. To keep this (kinda) tradition up, I will also not say too much. I WILL say that I loved the dialogue and dry sense of humor. Please watch this so you can be in on this, as well!

4. The Rising of the Shield Hero (2019)

I didn’t watch this because it was recommended to me, I watched it because people kept making memes from it.

The Rising of the Shield Hero surprised a lot of anime fans considering that it was ANOTHER isekai, but it just goes to show that an overexposed genre still has room for the occasional compelling story. I was originally going to put this in the top three, but decided to dock it a spot out of precaution. It has another season coming up which means a whole season to screw this up...please don’t screw this up!

3. Infinite Ryvius (1999)

It’s Anime Lord of the Flies in Space. Yes, it’s better than it sounds.

Infinite Ryvius follows a big group of students living and learning in a space station, but one thing leads to another and now these kids have to fend for themselves. The biggest strength this anime has is how lived-in the environment feels. You get to see all these minor characters live their lives whenever the camera isn’t focused on the main cast. It’s also nice to look back on the amazing 90s animation. Take some time for this underrated classic when you get the chance!

2. Made in Abyss (2017)

“Don’t judge a book by its cover,” indeed.

I was definitely one of those that went into this thinking this was going to be a cutesy adventure, but coming out the other end being several shades of wrong. The abyss is a strange and fascinating world that, in a way, becomes a character in its own right. Can’t wait to learn some more when the movie comes out!

1. Hunter x Hunter (2011)

I’ll admit that Hunter x Hunter being number one on this list is a bit unfair, but it’s also earned. For a long time, HxH was one of those shows that I would hear about here and there, but never anything in-depth. Any art I would see came across as colorful with nothing that would stand out to me. What would eventually get this anime on my radar, oddly enough, was a bit in an AMVHell. Skip ahead to about this time last year and I would finally give show a try. I don’t remember ever coming across a fictional world that’s this thought out. The rules of the power structure alone is enough to floor me. The characters are likable as well as interesting. The animation is consistent throughout. GAH! Please check this out if you haven’t. This very well may be the best shounen anime ever made!

#lord el melloi ii case files #humanity has declined #shigofumi #kakegurui #aggretsuko #rascal does not dream of bunny girl senpai #the rising of the shield hero #infinite ryvius #made in abyss #Hunter X Hunter

[dansnaturepictures]

11/10/2020-Phalarope paradise at Pennington: The 10 pictures in this photoset different to those I tweeted just now 

As you may have seen we went to Bushy Park yesterday on our big wildlife watching and photography trip which is a part of a day trip we do every year which I loved and was one of the best times of our year without a doubt. I always try to not do trips like that further afield with so many photos and sightings on a Sunday and have to go to work the next day (even when it’s working from home) it just makes me tired and hard to find motivation for the morning and fully cool down from the trip a bit so after the weather putting us off Bushy last Saturday Bushy was locked in for yesterday. On Friday we learned of the mega bird a Wilson’s Phalarope with Grey Phalaropes at Pennington in the Lymington-Keyhaven nature reserve at the foot of the New Forest. We instantly knew we’d go there today then we didn’t even have to decide. In hindsight I can say that phalaropes do stay around a few days it seems when they do turn up as they are always birds blown in by Atlantic storms on migration and that’s how they end up in Britain they stay a few days to feed up before flying off again. But I have got to say I did just have a little feeling of slight desperation last night as every tweet I clicked on seemed to be have a picture of the Wilson’s Phalarope! Which is remarkable in itself really. 

People from Hampshire and far and wide (as we observed in person here today for the latter) were coming to my beloved local and one of my favourite nature reserves and getting criminally close views of this very rare and stunning bird and the Grey Phalaropes that I needed to see for my year list too. I just had in my head that I’d feel maybe a bit bad if I missed it being at one of my spots but I had one of my best times of the year at Bushy so I would never have regretted going there and I would not have swapped it for the world yesterday. And finishing the weekend off at Pennington worked it’s a trip much more suited to a Sunday being half an hour to forty five minutes away from us. And I have a feeling yesterday in terms of social distancing many people would be there. Today it’s a Sunday so perhaps some people do other things and there were not hoards here today and it was easy to socially distance when here today. The feelings of “I want to go and see this” gave me interesting twitcher’s vibes. 

So with the strong memories of Bushy still engulfing me in amazement of the experience yesterday I was also so excited to get back to Pennington for the first time since last month on a very sunny afternoon today. I took the first three pictures in this photoset of nice views here today. As we walked down to fishtail lagoon the one that usually always hosts the rare birds interestingly here where the Wilson’s Phalarope had been seen we got binoculars views over the lagoon and noticed a phalarope fly and land by a bank. It was so tall compared the grey and red-necked we are familiar with which the Wilson’s is so we were sure this was the bird. 

We then got down to the lagoon on the pathway and walked towards some people. To our delight right beside the path in the channel south of the lagoon was one of the two Grey Phalaropes around! Like we had seen of one further down here in 2017 we got stunning views of it. It really was so close, it did not seem bothered by people at all. It was simply amazing views and I loved watching it swim down the channel. My first of the year. 

The Wilson’s Phalarope had flown out into the lagoon so we looked for it. Someone then spotted it by the fence of the lagoon coming into the channel further up. The channel is a flooded bit of ground outside of the fence really. We walked down and were astounded to see it right beside us in the water as it swam in and out of reeds. We got absolutely stunning and remarkable views of it. I took the fourth and fifth pictures in this photoset of this incredible bird. This one wasn’t bothered by people either and we just saw this smashing and beautiful bird so close. It was a dreamlike experience to see a bird like this so close. Special stuff. I was in my element watching it as phalaropes do swim up and back along the channel. It showed off its attractive yellow legs at certain points and got on with what it was doing without a care in the world. It even tried to get back through the fence onto the main lagoon at one point which was interesting to see. 

So this is a new bird for me, my sixth this year now only one behind how many I saw last year and level with how many I saw in 2017. It’s my 272nd bird in my life and with the Grey Phalarope my first of the year today takes my bird year list to 186. So my year list is still solidly my third highest ever for amount seen on this date behind last year and 2018, I am only four behind my 2017 total now. But this for seeing a new bird this was something else. The last time I got views this good for a new species I think was my first Crested Tits at RSPB Loch Garten in the Cairngorms in January 2018 and the Barred Warbler at Titchfield Haven weeks before it at the end of 2017. It was telling it was a good view of a new bird as for the pictures I took of it I didn’t use my bridge camera so long distance specialist once but used my DSLR and big lens the whole time it was that close which this camera and lens is so good for usually to see something new now it’s gotta be rare like this was so it’d be a long way away but that’s not always how it works with phalaropes. They are known to be approachable because they can be a bird of the wilderness in their natural range so are less used to humans so seeing them come and behave like this here is quite something. 

We walked on up to Keyhaven lagoon and back noting decent numbers of Wigeon and Shoveler which was really interesting to see some coming in for the winter now, we also got chatting to some lovely people as we did for the whole walk and twitch today who pointed out a Peregrine to us the first we had seen for a while. We also took in some great views as the sun came back after going in a bit including the sixth and seventh pictures in this photoset. When we walked back beside fishtail lagoon the Grey Phalarope was still parading up and down in the channel of water so close to us. We took in more stunning views of this beautiful bird that we missed seeing last year but was now my eighth occasion of seeing one, once in 2009 here, twice here in 2017 as well as at Blashford Lakes and Hayling Island oysterbeds that autumn, twice in 2018 on the River Itchen at Riverside Park and here the next day the same day we saw another new bird the Temminck’s Stint and now today. I took the eighth picture in this photoset of this lovely bird. It was so close I had the idea to take some phone videos of the bird. 

We walked up to the proper channel of water east of fishtail lagoon where followed by observers the Wilson’s Phalarope had moved to. We got more sensational views of it here coming so close to many of us swimming along and I took phone videos of this too all of which I shared posts of from my Instagram earlier and tweeted whilst out today many people were doing the phone videos it was an interesting quirk of this twitch symbolic as another person remarked of how incredibly close the bird was to us. It was so delightful to watch the Wilson’s Phalarope as the bird swam about in the later afternoon sunlight. A real fantastic autumnal moment and stunning birdwatching one. I took the ninth and tenth pictures in this photoset of the Wilson’s Phalarope. A great vibe and atmosphere we were all so in aw of the bird. 

Before we left we saw the Ruff with a white head that we saw here our first of the year in February with another of its kind which was nice I tweeted a picture of that. This ended one of my best and happiest times of the year this weekend and ever. I saw sensational wildlife and views and took so many pictures. The two trips further afield and local complimented each other so well I think. It was two perfect high standard days to follow each other in great weather. Such joyful times I shall never forget this weekend! Thanks so much for sharing it with me and all your appreciation shown. I hope you are all keeping safe and well. Have a nice week.

Wildlife Sightings Summary: My first ever Wilson’s Phalarope, my first Grey Phalarope of the year, two of my favourite birds the Peregrine Falcon and Little Egret, Cormorant, Black-headed Gull, great view of an Oystercatcher and many more, Lapwing, lots of Curlews which was nice, Ringled Plover, Turnstone, Redshank, Wigeon, Shoveler, Pintail, Mallard, Coot, Meadow Pipit, Carrion Crow, Woodpigeon, lots of late Swallows today which was nice to see flying around, Pied Wagtail and Large White butterfly. 

#pennington #wilson's phalarope #grey phalarope #year tick #year list #life list #yellow #birdwatching #birds #bird #wildlife #photography #shoveler #turnstone #lovely #nice #happy #weekend #amazing #day #safe #woodpigeon #redshank #ringed plover #waders #europe #america #migration #migrate #storm

[ordinaryschmuck]

Top 20 BEST Animated Series of 2010s-18th Place

From here, we jump from one unstoppable franchise that defined my childhood to another!

#18- Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (2012-2017)

The Plot: Fifteen years after their mutation, four turtles trained in ninjutsu finally get a chance to leave their home in the sewers and catch a glimpse of the surface world. However, they soon learn that the city of New York is surprisingly full of crime. The type of crime run by dangerous mutants, aliens from another dimension, and even a legion of ninjas run by a dangerously pointy samurai named The Shredder. With the training from their rat sensei, these unlikely heroes will save their city, foil the villains' plans and still have time for pizza!

Now I know that you might be thinking about how this is the dumbest plot for a T.V. show. To that, I say...yeah, pretty much. HOWEVER, the show is called Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. There is no way you didn't know it was going to be a dumb show going in, right? TMNT is a franchise born from stupidity but not hindered by it. The many reboots rarely, if ever, take themselves too seriously. And the main reason this franchise lasts so long is that the writers know to embrace the weirdness rather than make fun of it. Something similar can be said about this particular reboot.

Sure, there are episodes with more serious stakes than others, but those episodes still know when to keep things light-hearted and fun by placing a well-timed joke between the more dramatic beats. Or at least, they try to do that, but I’ll get to that later. For the most part, TMNT (2012) has a great sense of humor that will make kids laugh and give the adult fans an occasional chuckle. Even when the show does take itself seriously, it handles it well. And do you want to know why the jokes and drama work in this series? It’s all because of the characters.

Here’s a tip for people who want to write a comedy series: Comedy doesn’t come from the joke, but the character who makes the joke. A common complaint you’ll hear about Rise of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles is that it has the mistake of everyone having too similar of a personality. The jokes are still funny (sometimes), but it comes at the expense of making the characters stale. That isn't the case for this version. Each turtle has a unique trait that helps explore a joke (Leonardo being the straight man and Donetello's over the top freakouts, for example). Even Master Splinter gives an occasional laugh with his dry sense of humor. However, not every joke in TMNT (2012) works, and that’s either because some gags are out of character or are just not funny. For instance, Michelangelo is the team’s moron, so his humor comes from doing something stupid or random. Sometimes it earns a laugh, but for the most part, it comes across as annoying.

The writers also do a somewhat good job at handling drama with its characters. By making the audience like these characters because of their sense of humor, we immediately root for them when they’re being thrown into a more dire situation. The best example of this is every time the turtles and their allies face off against the Shredder, which is always an intense scene to witness. That’s because we care about the characters and will feel panicked when they are in a fight they might not walk away from unscathed. However, not every instance of drama works well. There are times when the show takes itself a little too seriously. While the adult fans will most certainly enjoy those episodes, the same can’t be said for kids. Most kids' cartoons during the 2010s manage to handle drama well in a way where both children and adults can be invested. They usually do this by remembering to keep a stable mix of light-hearted humor with serious storytelling, and sadly this series sometimes fails in finding that perfect mix.

In the first season (and half of season 2), TMNT (2012) did have that balance of comedy and drama. However, halfway through season 2, the humor and drama begin to contradict each other. It starts off with the more comedic episodes coming across as sillier than the dramatic ones that come across as too dark. For example, a story where the turtles nearly die from getting eaten by mutated pizza comes right before one where they almost die from fighting a trained assassin who's a mutated tiger. Things get even worse where even the tones don’t match up for an episode. A majority of the dramatic episodes in later seasons will have a dumb joke that ruins the moment's intensity. And every time, that joke is always made by Michelangelo, who we already established as being not that funny. Because of the contradicting tones, both new and old fans of the series can lose their enjoyment.

However, there’s one thing all fans enjoy that this series excels in, and that is having great action. While the current reboot definitely has the best action animation-wise, it’s mostly styled with no substance. That’s not the case with the 2012 reboot, as it does a decent job at mixing cool action into a story. It’s easy to make a fight between four mutated turtles fighting an evil mutant look cool, but it’s a whole other thing to actually have that fight make sense in a story. Because this reboot works in a half-hour format, the fight scenes between the turtles and the new villain of the week feel more natural and nicely paced with everything else going on within the episode. Plus, while not as epic as Rise of the TMNT, the fights are still pretty cool. They can be fast-paced, have phenomenal camera work, and can be pretty brutal at times when they want to be. And it’s somewhat because this series trades the traditional 2D designs for a 3D makeover.

It’s funny. When I found out that this version of TMNT was planned to be animated using 3D models, I was ready to hate it due to how unnatural it looks. The thing is that the 3D designs are what makes this show stand out from the rest. The level of detail each character has is impressive and would have taken much longer to animate if the show would have stuck with 2D. Although there are a few small complaints, I have character designs. These problems don’t really bug me that much, but they are still worth mentioning. One problem is that not every redesign for the characters work, especially with how they made Casey Jones (do a google image search if you don’t believe me). But I can learn to live with it because every reboot has that ONE design that not everyone will agree with. Another issue I have is that it is apparent when the animators took shortcuts. Such as making an army where the characters look identical to each other or having the transformation from human to mutant look a little lazy. Now I can accept that for two reasons: One. It would take a long time to make a new unique model for a character who would appear for just 10 seconds. And two. Animation (Especially 3D animation) is crazy expensive, and you gotta make cuts where you can. However, for things like the city of New York, one of the most populated/crowded states in the country, being practically devoid of all life can be pretty distracting.

But while the designs for the characters are great, the characters themselves are also...fine. Okay, truth be told, there isn’t much I can say about the characters. Most of them range from passably generic to forgettably bland. However, there are characters in this reboot that I feel are worth mentioning. For instance, this show has the BEST version of Master Splinter. His backstory of the life he had as Hamato Yoshi is legitimately heartbreaking, and the way he interacts with the turtles can be both heartwarming and hilarious. Then there’s the character who I’m iffy about, and that’s April O'Neil. And it’s NOT because she’s a teenage girl in this version (Although I can see why people can have a problem with that), but instead because she doesn’t seem like April O’Neil. Without giving too much away, TMNT (2012) does something that I’m okay with, and that's trying to make April less of a damsel in distress and more of a character who can actually take care of herself. However, the way the writers do that is by making her less like April O’Neil and more like...well, without spoiling anything, she’s more like another famous red-headed comic book character who deals with dangerous mutants. Finally, there’s the character I’m frustrated with: Michelangelo. When I was a kid, Mikey was always my favorite turtle from the bunch, and that was because he was the funniest turtle. This version, on the other hand, comes across as more annoying than funny. In fact, not only is Donatello the most hilarious turtle in this series, but even Leonardo has moments when he’s funnier than Michelangelo. And those are both characters who have had the reputation of the most boring in the franchise!

So, does this reboot of TMNT have its faults? Yes. Yes, it does. But do you want to know what else this reboot has? It has both style and substance. It has both drama and humor. It has fantastic designs and great characters to go along with them. In the end, if you’re a new or old fan of the franchise, odds are you're gonna have one shell of a time with this series.

(Also, while I pointed out it’s faults, I do enjoy Rise of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles...for the most part. I’ll explain why, some day.)

#top 20 of 2010s #teenage mutant ninja turtles 2012 #what i thought about

[incorrectswntquotes]

WHERE ARE THEY NOW?

Scotland vs England - UEFA Euro 2017

Gemma Fay - Scotland’s No.1 & Captain made 203 appearances for her country (her first came in 1998). Scotland’s appearance at their first major tournament would be Fay’s last hoorah as Scotland skipper. She retired after the tournament and now works for Scotland Rugby as head of Women & Girls rugby.

Frankie Brown - The current Bristol City player has made 95 appearances for Scotland since 2008. Shes kind of shite, to put it nicely. Can’t remember the last time I saw her, to be honest.

Ifeoma Dieke - Plays for Apollon Limassol in Cyprus, but she was also shite. Made 123 appearances between 2004 and 2017 and she also retired after the tournament. The fact we conceded 6 goals in this game and Jodie Taylor scored a hattrick tells you all you need to know.

Vaila Barsley - Wonderful human, shite footballer. Made 6 appearances for Scotland since 2017, never to be seen again. Currently stealing a wage at Eskilstuna United in Sweden.

Chloe Arthur - Has made 19 appearances for Scotland since 2015, part of the furniture now and deserves everything good in life. Shares a brain cell with Jen Beattie, doesn’t get out very often. 1 half of Soda and Lime, making her extra....important, shall we say. Currently plays for Birmingham City and looking absolutely fantastic while doing so.

Rachel Corsie - The fact she was substituted off from defensive midfield in the 76th minute proves that she should not play anywhere other than centre back. Took the captains armband mercilessly from Gemma Fay and a fantastic captain she is at that. Plays for Utah Royals in NWSL. Now surpassed 100 caps for Scotland, which seems crazy for someone who shakes their coffee.

Lisa Evans - Absolutely bat shit crazy, still playing for Arsenal in the WSL. Now on 83 caps for our beautiful wee country, runs round causing havoc with a camera. Kind of weird, but we like her.

Leanne Crichton - One half of dumb and dumber (w/ Rachel Corsie). Still playing for Glasgow City. Still scoring goals. Still winning titles & trophies & being generally awesome in the Champions League. Made 64 appearances for Scotland since 2006.

Caroline Weir - Now plays for Man City. A wonderful stand in captain when Rachel and Kim are unavailable. Now on 68 appearances for Scotland.

Fiona Brown - She’s still a wee bairn. Got nae braincells and says things that only Nicola Docherty would ever find funny. Now plays for FC Rosengård. She’s injured, again. She has 37 caps for Scotland now.

Jane Ross - Used to be decent. Now she’s pretty average. She’s got 132 caps...somehow.

#swnt #scotlandwnt #scotland wnt #scotland #scotland women #euro 2017 #gemma fay #frankie brown #ifeoma dieke #vaila barsley #chloe arthur #rachel corsie #lisa evans #leanne crichton #caroline weir #fiona brown #jane ross

[laughing-with-god]

Pen Pal II

Words; 4.6k

“I love you so much that nothing could matter to me- not even you...only my love- not your answer.  Not even your indifference.”

Reincarnation was an interesting theory, you decided.  

It was a philosophy that held the utmost importance upon karma and charity.  In a way, it made sense. If you did something good in a past life, you should be rewarded in the next one with good fortune.  This mindset explained how some of us seem to have been born under the worst circumstances that was only added on by very odd and horrid luck that appeared in the form of people or situations.  While others have the rare ability to just waltz past life without a single hitch to hinder their enjoyment.

You deduced that you must’ve been a very wicked person in the life prior to this one.  

That could be a grand explanation for the awful series of events that have been striked upon you by an outside force whom is hell-bent on making you pay for crimes you weren’t aware you committed.  ‘Yes’, you thought, ‘I must’ve been a devilish person in my past life.’

You were cursed to forever be terrified of the world, your only sibling meant to guide you through life was murdered in front of you, your mother has gone mad and the one person you found comfort in somehow found a way to be worse than what you already knew him to be- a criminal.    

You bitterly chuckled.  

You wished he was a good-for-nothing criminal.

You would have much preferred that over what he truly is.

A serial killer.  

Tuesdays were the worst.  In your rather short and uneventful life, a pattern had formed concerning the second day of the week.  Your sister was murdered on a cloudy Tuesday afternoon. The day you were labelled with a disorder was on a Tuesday morning, right in your own home.  The day your mother had finally broke and yelled atrocious things at you that you’ve always known she thought but never voiced, was on a Tuesday evening.  And the day you discovered the jarring truth about your ‘pal’ was at 2 am while surfing the web on a Tuesday.

You were naive to be giddy at the latest letter you had received.  

Jungkook had said some rather mean things about your mother, however due to your bruised ego and lingering depression caused by the woman’s harsh put down of you; you couldn’t bring yourself to be upset with his insults toward the woman who gave birth to you.  In fact, your heart felt warmed at his protective slandering. For it meant that he was offended on your behalf, that he cared of what you felt and that anyone who disgraced you was harshly judged by the critical eye of your ‘friend’. He took your side in the matter.  Like a loyal ally that you have always wanted on your side for times like this.

He mentioned that he wanted to utilize the option of calls instead of letters.  You had to admit as an old soul that writing letters to a companion was a very vintage and refreshing practice that you had grown fond of.  Childishly, you would picture yourself in a Fitzgerald novel as a lonesome and willowy woman who eagerly awaited the letters of her dear partner who was far far away.  Or maybe off to war. You supposed that reading all those books had made you a romanticist.

But there was something rather intimate about getting to hear someone’s voice despite the miles in between them.  

You wanted to please Jungkook by surprising him with a call.  And more secretly, you wanted to see if his voice matched his face in the picture he gave you or the voice in your head that would recite his letters whenever you read them.  

You imagined it being very gentle and almost musical, like the light buzz of bees on a Spring day, humming around the blooming flowers.  You hoped (and somehow just knew) you were right in this prediction.

But, you needed to find a way to make this possible.  

That’s when you seeked information in the form of the internet.  Although you loved to picture yourself in a Fitzgerald-esque, roaring twenties type of era, you couldn’t deny the usefulness of the current one that you were living in.  

According to the re-search you had gathered, a telephone account had to be set up in order for Jungkook to talk to anyone.  Also, inmates were allowed to make outgoing calls but incoming ones were not allowed. You frowned, this meant that Jungkook had to call you but you couldn’t call him.  The air of surprise was deflated.

However, you did have a role to fulfill.  Only someone from the outside could set up the calling account.  You would have to pay for the ability for Jungkook to call anyone.  

You then went onto the prison’s website and began to fill out the form for the account.  

Name: (Y/n) (M/n) (L/n)

Age: (Age)

D.o.b: (Date of Birth)

Address: (Address)

Relation to Inmate; Friend.

Card Info: (xxx-xxx-xxx)

Phone Number:  (xxx-xxx-xxx)

Prisoner;

You were stunned at the prisoner section of the form.  It wouldn’t allow you to write Jungkook’s name down, instead you had to enter numbers.  You sighed and realized that you had to get Jungkook’s number in order for the system to match him up with the account.  Luckily for you, the info of prisoners was public knowledge for anyone wishing to seek it. You opened another tab to go the the penitentiary’s website and searched for Jungkook’s name.  

A mugshot of your friend popped up. his boyishly handsome face stared almost disinterestedly at the camera, dark and glassy eyes brooding with raven strands of hair revealing his smooth forehead and framing his sharp face that was marked with intense brows, strong Romanian nose and plush berry lips that sat above his cleft chin that marked the ending point of his angular jaw.  The frosty complexion of his skin made the darkness of his features and orangeness of his jumpsuit stand out. You knew he was very good-looking, and it was a shame that he was locked up. You were sure many ladies would be all over him if it weren’t for the fact that he was stuck in an all male prison for a lengthy amount of time.

The top of his head met the 5’10 mark of the background of the mugshot, making you note the height of Jungkook which was a detail you never really thought about before.  He was tall, but most handsome men were.

Below the image was information about him.  You briefly felt as if you were violating privacy, but you consolidated yourself by reminding yourself that you simply needed his number to further the calling process.  It had to be done. Besides, Jungkook was your friend. You were positive that he wouldn’t mind.

Name: Jeon Jungkook

Height: 5’10

Weight: 154 lb

Date of Arrest; June 6th, 2018

Crime: Serial Killing, Multiple Homicides, First Degree Murder, Crimes Against Humanity

ID Number: 65709-303

Your blood ran cold.  

--

You would have made a decent journalist.  

But to be fair, it wasn’t like his crimes wasn’t that well documented.  

He was practically famous.  

A warm cup of joe is all that you had to company you as you began your plunge into the crimes of Jeon Jungkook.  It had required the use of many old news clips, dramatically written articles and even pictures of the vulgar crimes along with court documents and police reports.  Amidst this crazed quest for knowledge that was fueled by a harsh sting of betrayal, a narrative formed from the foggy woodworks. The jagged puzzle pieces of your beloved ‘Jk’ formed, creating an image that you wished to never have witnessed.  

On March 27th, 2016 an innocent woman was murdered.  Her name was Lee Ji-eun and she was a music teacher at a prestigious private high school.  She was found in her office, throat slit from ear to ear and body laying lifelessly across her desk, school papers stained scarlett red in her blood.  The killing shocked the community, she was adored by her classmates, respected by colleagues and admired in her community. No one had a clue on who could’ve committed such a random act of violence.  

On April 16th, 2017 a man called the police due to his missing wife and daughter.  The daughter, Nayeon was found in a field out in the country, throat blue from having been strangled to death.  Her mother was only a few yards away from her, bullet enlodged in the back of her head from being shot execution style.  Nayeon’s father was desperate for justice, but the police had told him that the killer was just too good.

On April 1st, 2018 another girl named Lalisa was found in her room, dead.  Unlike the other crimes, her murder wasn’t a dramatic or gory one. It had appeared that she was poisoned to death.  Up until then, the police had no leads. It wasn’t until the realized that Lalisa’s boyfriend had been missing as well.  He was caught getting in a suspicious vehicle on surveillance camera, only to never be seen again. A vehicle that was traced to Jungkook.  

Jungkook admitted the murders of all three of these girls, along with Nayeon’s mother and Lalisa’s boyfriend.  Although the boyfriend’s body was never found.

He did all of these crimes on Easter.  

The first murder of Lee Ji-eun just so happened to fall on that day.  

But like other serial killers before him, Jungkook formed a habit.  A ritual. A routine.

You noted with distaste how little the motives were discussed.  

Jungkook never told why he killed his victims.  He was silent. Even in the interrogation process, he just admitted that he was indeed the killer.  Nothing else was uttered from his lips. The trial was semi-famous, due to the fact that such a young and handsome man turned out to be a murderer.  People even called him the new Ted Bundy for his aristocratic fall from grace that was the revelation of his sick minded actions. He came from a rich family, was somewhat quiet as a student but still earned high marks.  Someone no one thought could be capable of taking five innocent lives in such a bloodthirsty fashion.

The Easter Bunny was what some struggling news station tried to nickname him in a frenzied act of getting higher viewership rates.  Turns out, the name stuck.

You shut your laptop and stared off into space.  

The five faces of the victims would forever be burned into your memory.  

You just had one question, why?

Why take away these people’s lives as if it were nothing?  What had they ever done to him? It was just so random and it puzzled you.  Jungkook was a smart man, why did he never tell anyone the reasoning for his snap?  Why did he let the press run with guessing motives and possible reasonings instead of putting the victim’s family at rest by telling them the truth?  Did he plan to take it to his grave?

What could those five people have done to make him murder so ruthlessly?  

You gulped down the last of your coffee that was somewhat chilled due to the long passage of time.  

Remorse slid itself over you body, spreading its’ inky and sticky dread until every part of your body was effected.  

You felt dirty.

You had unknowingly created a friendship with the slayer of five lives.  

A psychopath had somehow became your closest buddy.  You had seeked comfort within his sweet words.

Was this how he lured in his other victims as well?

A shudder came next.  

He lied to you.  If you had known all of this from the beginning, there would be no way that you would have tried to reach out to such person.  You fancied yourself a empathic and understanding woman, but this was just something from hell itself.

You stood and decided to take a shower, hoping that scrubbing the invisible stains of guilt would somehow ease your racing mind.  

--

It was a given that you would stop all communication with Jungkook.

You could never even attempt to play as if things were normal after this.  As much as it pained you, you would have to lose a friend.

It would be rather simple, you will stop sending letters and he would catch onto the silence and move on with his own life.  You were sure that he would have more vital concerns in that concrete jungle that was his home. Although you would miss the communication, you valued your conscious more.  

You attempted to fill your time by distracting yourself with mundane things.  You managed to stay away from your front door, not wanting to catch yourself longingly gazing at your mail slot for Jungkook’s letters.  You began binge-watching one of your favorite shows. And when this wasn’t quite enough to divert your mind and heart, you ordered a new novel online.  Reading always made you emerge yourself into other worlds, you would drown yourself into any plot at the moment. Despite not being able to relate to most characters within those free-spirited stories, you still rather bury your head in a book then spend your time thinking of Jungkook and what he was doing.

This lead to another problem.

The drawings.  

Your assumption of him being an artistic soul was indeed spot on.  He sent you three etchings, all done by pencil and depicting of you.  The first one was just a drawing of your selfie, you could tell by the hair-do, pose and outfit.  The second one was just of you, portrait style with eyes staring ahead at any observer and very detailed.  And the third one was of you tapping a pen against your chin, brows scrunched and staring down at your hands that held a piece of paper.  Right next to this image was a side note of ‘this is what I picture when I think of you writing me letters.’

It was almost unbelieveable how good he was at drawing you.  

It was as if he knew your face for years, he created it so well from just having a picture to go off of.  The cross-hatching, the shadowing, the use of texture, the blending and the perfect imagery of every feature on your face.... It was baffling. It was like looking at the lense of someone else’s perception of you.  He clearly thought you were way prettier than you did. The girl he drew was elevated from what your self-esteem would let you think yourself to be. It was so odd….but you couldn’t help but marvel at his works. It was nice of him to draw you, almost intimate.  You wondered how carefully he dissected your picture to be able to draw you in situations that he’s never seen you in.  You never thought you’d say a boy took the time to draw you, but you were flattered.

Too bad you were unable to tell him how impressed you were with such effort.

Too bad you couldn’t study them any further.

You thought about burning them.  Cutting them into millions of pieces.  Throwing them away. Letting them drift in the wind onto some random street below your apartment.

But when you worked up the nerve to initiate any of the acts of destruction, you just couldn’t.  

You may hate the artist behind the creation.  But not the creation itself.

You stored them under your bed, not wanting to spare any thought to Jungkook but also wanting to preserve the art for a later time when your heart wasn’t wounded and a certain serial killer was in your rear view mirror.  

But you couldn’t ignore the killer for as long as you would’ve liked.  

Your book arrived.  And you had to get it,

While doing so, you were faced with three envelopes addressed to you.  From Jungkook.

Your halted your actions for a split second.  It was almost second nature to feel the bubbling excitement and instinct to reach for them.  

But then those deceased five faces flashed before your eyes.  

In the end, you ignored them in favor of retrieving  your freshly purchased book.

But after you laid yourself on your couch and found yourself re-reading the same first paragraph over and over again, you realized that those letters just couldn’t be ignored.  They stubbornly beckoned your attention, a siren’s call demanding your priority. You huffed and set the book down, fixing your gaze towards the entrance of your humble nest, were the letters innocently laid.

Here you were faced with a dilemma.  

Did you trust yourself enough to read the contents of the letters and not send a response of your own?  

Would it be the right thing to even open them?  

Could you bear not knowing what he had to say to you after you haven’t made contact in a while?  

You bit your lip and contemplated the ethics at play.  

Surely, just to read the letters wouldn’t mean any harm…...right?

You had ended the ties but what was so wrong with glancing over some previous records of the relationship?  Because that’s what Jungkook’s letters would be...evidence of the past friendship you shared with him.

You honestly couldn’t bear the mystery.  

You just had to know what he had to say.  

You grabbed the letters and ripped them open in a rush to put an end to your inner turmoil.

He was worried.

He was confused.

He was hurt.

Jungkook expressed his somberness for not hearing from you.  He also voiced his concern for your well being. He was anything but mad at you, just alarmed.  That alarm was genuine from what you could tell by his growingly frantic penmanship.

This set ablaze a glowing fire inside your chest.  

The audacity of that...that...heathen.

To act so kind and compassionate when he lacked those same emotions towards his victims.  You almost wanted to laugh at his pitying tone, wondering if he had such ability when he put those five bodies six feet under.  How dare he put the blame on you for not responding back? For making you feel guilty? It was him who was at fault.

A sudden urge to inform him that his jig was up suddenly hit you.

You wanted nothing more than to shove his face in the fact that you broke free from his cute manipulative narrative concerning his mother.  In a burst of fury, you quickly grasped for a pen and paper. A rebuttal was all too ready to escape your mind and pierce his soul.

‘Dear Jungkook (or should I say Easter Bunny?)’

--

It had been a week.  

Usually, this is when you would get a response letter.  

But when you went to your mail slot and opened the incoming letter, you were left scratching your head in bewilderment.  

‘My Dearest Y/n,

I see you found out about the nickname the hideous press gave me.  

Well...I think this type of revelation is best talked over in person.

I’ll see you soon.’

It hardly seemed like a proper response to what you had said to him.  

You had exposed his truth and his despicable crimes and the only thing he had to reference was the nickname bit?  Was he avoiding the topic? Why was the letter so fucking short? And how come he mentioned seeing you in person?

A little bit of paranoia was the theme for the rest of your day.  

Logically, you knew that he had no way of seeing you.  He was locked up and the severity of his crimes would surely mean that he was heavily guarded, and even if he did manage to overcome that burden, then how the hell would he find you?  

But still….you didn’t think Jungkook was capable of murder either.  He still did that as well as lied to you to add a ripe cherry on top.  

Perhaps he was just trying to fuck with you?  To play with your head one last time and freak out the mentally ill girl as one last ‘fuck you’.  It wouldn’t be the first time someone used your fears against you. Maybe he wanted to manipulate you once more so you couldn’t help but look over your shoulder even after you two stopped conversing…..

Yes.  Getting into the mind of a killer, you would think this was the most effective way he could cause lasting harm to you from behind bars.  He was most likely snickering in his jail cell, telling his inmates about how he managed to scare his lunatic of a pen pal. He probably delighted in turning your phobia against you.  

This was the only logical explanation.  

But still, you made sure your doors and windows were locked after this letter.  Just for the sake of clarity.

--

Days have passed along with your paranoia for the oddity of Jeon Jungkook.  You were focused on getting your life back to normal. Or normality to you, considering that not much changed.  You just opted out of daydreaming of conversational topics to send to your pal along with the obvious sending of letters.  Sure, you still thought about him from time to time...but you would catch yourself in these moments and force some random chores upon yourself to occupy your brain.  

Today was a rainy day and you made a goal for yourself to finish the novel you had bought only days prior.  

About 30 minutes in, a knock at your door sounded, interrupting your leisurely reading.  

You smiled and checked the time.

Your groceries had arrived.  

You went to answer the door, making sure to grab the delivery boys’ tip on the way.

When you opened the entrance to your home, the usual boy was there, handing over two big brown bags that were overflowing with food.  You grabbed one of the bags and reached for the money to hand over so you could have to tact to grab the other bag without having to struggle to give the boy his tip, when something struck you.  

The boys’ head was ducked downwards, not show casting his face but instead the grocery store’s logo on the hat.  His hair was darker than you remembered….now that you noticed it, he was taller too. And overall just bigger….

The grocery boy you were used to seeing was of a more adolescent type of figure, you knew it would be preposterous for the boy to have such a growth spurt in only a weeks’ time.  Unless he suddenly decided to take up steroids. Confused, you tried to call out his name to get a better look.

“Renjun?”  

A moment of suffocating silence.

An icy shock of terror crashed down upon you and somehow you just knew who was under that hat without him having to look up.  

A flurry of movement commenced, marking the beginning of your doom.  

You tried to keep him out, but your reflexes weren’t fast enough,

In a haste, you dropped the bag and moved to shut the door, pressing your weight against it with all your might to keep him out.  Your body was acting faster than your brain could, not sparing a second to even comprehend how the hell he was here. You had to keep him out, he couldn’t violate your safe haven like this!  Survival instincts were kicking in.

But he was faster, and stronger and arguably more determined.  

He strode in easily, as if your attempts were at a child’s level.  Your found yourself with a large and snowy hand clasped over your mouth, preventing any hollerings for help.  

He ducked closer to you, big glassy eyes staring at your horrified expression with an almost dreamy manner.  

“Why are you shocked?  I told you I was going to see you.”

--

You never gave much thought to what it would be like to be in the presence of a killer.

Somehow, you knew it wasn’t supposed to be like this.  

You sitting on your couch with the killer wrapped around you, large frame practically enveloping your smaller one as you were forced to feel his pulsing muscles up close.  His face in near proximity to yours, big eyes absorbing your profile with an unreadable look upon his graceful face.

You were under close inspection, it had been like this for twenty minutes at least, him staring at you whilst keeping you caged under his far more capable body.  He stared at you with such focus, you found yourself wondering what possibly could have been going through that demented mind of his.

Were you next?  

Were you going to be the sixth notch under his belt?  

Why wasn’t he saying anything?  

The silence was unbearable, for you knew that when it would be broken; something very unpleasant would unfold.  You wanted the silence, but it also petrified you.

Finally, you gathered the courage to pierce the blanket of quiet.  

“A-are you going to kill me?”  

His nose scrunched up at this, transforming his stoic expression into that of confusion from a now somewhat boyish face.  His already big eyes seemed to widened and they peered into yours with a new softness that you wouldn’t expect from a killer.  

“What?  Of course not!  I just wanted to talk to you.”  

His voice was indeed what you pictured it to be, somewhat breathy and puerile but musical in a sense that could not be explained.  You didn’t have time to analyze the person behind the letters, compare him to the mental image you had in your head, when you were too busy trying not to panic and hyperventilate.  You read somewhere that if a person is ever kidnapped it’s best to not outwardly panic because it could cause the attacker to want to get rid of you sooner. With this in mind, you tried to calm your racing heart and breathing.  First, you need to find out what he wanted, convince him to trust you, and make him turn himself back in. Freaking out could get you nowhere, you must use logic as your escape plan.

“What do you want to talk about?”  You wished you sounded as calm as your voice sounded, it completely masked the chaotic state your nervous system was in.  

“My crimes.”  He nuzzled his face into the crook of your neck, inhaling your scent very loudly as if the smell was addicting to his nose.  His behavior was odd, it was as if he was separated from a long lost lover who he finally found once again. He was attached to you, petting you, studying you and even breathing you in.  It was so intimate and you felt like you were being groomed for slaughter….

“Why did you do what you did?”  

Jungkook halted his cuddling for a moment to lean back and stare into your eyes with a more serious feeling.  

“They didn’t love me like I loved them….”  

You were sure you were going to die.  

He was insane.  

The killings were crimes of passion, towards innocent girls who were unfortunate to witness the side of Jungkook that you are seeing now; a love-struck and delusional man with no boundaries or sense of relationships.  

In a last effort to stay alive, you wrestled against his larger form and made a reach for the door.  

To your surprise, nothing prevented you from getting up.  He didn’t stop you.

“What are you going to do Y/n?  Leave?” He called out from behind you in a cynical and delighted tone.  

“Sugarplum, you know damn well you can’t go out there.”

Terrible, terrible realization dawned upon you like a poisonous fog that forced your eyes to water and lungs to clog.  You were only a foot away from your front door, but you knew you couldn’t venture behind it. Your safe haven has become your own prison.

“You’re stuck here with me.”  

#yandere jungkook #jeon jungkook #jungkook #BTS jungkook #yandere #bangtan boys #obsessive #love #yandere kpop #kpop #pen pal #bts #fanfic #my writing #horror #murder

[riotatthemovies]

Alien Force (1996)

One of our fellow Riot at the Movies buddies suggested I watch Biohazard 2 The Alien Force and in my search for such a film I found a movie just called Alien Force. What do you know this one made in 1996 is directed by fellow group member Ron Ford. Wowee Wowee. When I saw the first few seconds I knew I needed  this film to start the Pain o Thon of Doom 2020. Lowbudget movies that do what they want to. The first few seconds are simply a scene in the dessert with Burt Ward acting as a mystical messenger telling our soon to  be hero Trace what the mission is and basically the entire point of the movie in 33 seconds. It looks so much like a scene from one of Donald G Jacksons RollerBlade Seven movies. Post opening credits with a song that is so almost Alice n Chains it could only exist in 1996 we then cut to a girl being harassed by a psycho gang in the ugly city streets. This still looks like a Roller Blade Seven movie but the psycho gang is just that little bit more designed and seem just a little bit more like real actors. Then our space traveling hero Trace shows up in the city and he throws out some impressive martial arts but we seen what budget issues cause to a guy who knows how to fight. Ends up looking like power rangers meets the room which the decent fighting actors limited by limited cameras and access to safe locations. But this is what makes a great bad movie. So much passion and chance taking while having no money and at that point very limited skill. Extremely dated in styles due to most of the actors just being real people and tight on the love for X files and pop culture of the time. Basically Trace is a human alien come to earth to track down an evil green alien who has been disguising himself by possessing actual humans. FBI agents get mixedup with it as well as a young woman with an spunky attitude that helps Trace track down the alien and stop him from using the deadly weapon he has. Oh look its Mark Sawyer of  Eyes of the Werewolf and the hilarious Randal Malone of Mark of Dracula and Dahmer vs Gacy. I must give Ron a shout and see if there is a better copy of this as I just watched it on a screener copy on youtube. Id love to screen this to a group of people when the world allows us to gather again. I really liked the evil FBI agents way over the top performance as well as how intense acting all the random walk by actors were being in this pretty backyard Terminator movie.

 I also think I need the final scene of this to be in a show I plan to tour next year where i host and comment live on movies that I spoil for you by showing the last 6 or 7 minutes of. Very B yes a strong B type movies that most of the world has not heard off where I show you how it ends and make you mind boggle on how the hell the movie could have got to that point. A show of spoilers that makes you want to watch the movie better than a trailer would even if you know the movie  is gonna be a cheese o rama stinker.

Oh did I mention what happens to the people after they have been alien possessed ? Well its friggin hilarious.. so I guess you need to see it now.

When I started doing these pain a thons yearly I was advised of a movie co made by Ron Ford back in 2017 and it appeared in my first book. The movie was Alien Agenda: Endangered Species and its may be the reason I love doing these all day post a long and love bringing up fairly unknown movies. When I posted my review of Alien Agenda: Endangered Species I got an email from a complete stranger that was so exited that I wrote about the movie because their roommate was in the movie and they were always told no one ever saw it. It was such an odd message to get that I felt from then on I had to reach out to underground film makers and let them know.. in the creepiest way possible.. we are watching.. dun dun dunnn.

#alien force #painathon2020 #riotatthemovies #ron ford

[p4nkow]

You take my breath away - part III

I had so much fun writing this part! Enjoy and please let me know what you think 

Part I, Part II

As usual while reading this fic you need to pretend that Dominique was given much more space on the storyline, just like to the other love interests of the boys. Of course it is just fiction, even though I tried to make it as realistic as possible. I know it might seem a bit confusing so if you have any questions or if you’d like to let me know what you think of it just know that my DMs and Inbox are always open :) 

Summary: reader has always dreamt of being an actress and she gets the chance of a lifetime when she’s cast as Dominique Beyrand in the infamous biopic about the legend himself, Freddie Mercury. But what will happen when she gets to know better the man who plays his love interest in the movie, Roger Taylor? Will Ben and Y/N’s story be as lucky as the one of characters they portray or will they be starcrossed lovers? Because it happens that things might get complicated because of Ellie, Ben’s long-term girlfriend.

there are a few visual evidence ;)

South London - December 21st, 2017

Being busy helped you not to think about Ben. You’d been foolish to think that he might actually be interested in you, his co-star. Because that’s all you were — his fictional love interest. And you had to get over it.

You tried to fully enjoy your free time with your family and friends after wrapping on BoRhap. “Did you already write your letter to Santa?” Your six-years-old nephew was sitting on your lap, his head resting on your chest as you gently rubbed his back.

“Yes, mommy helped me out with it.” You smiled by hearing his soft, sleepy voice.

“And what did you ask Santa for?”

His answer made your heart sank and melt at the same time. “A drum set, just like the one that’s in your movie, auntie.”

You remembered facetiming your sister while being on set. That day Ben had tweaked his drums – why didn’t it sound like a news to you? – and Gwil was mocking him for that. Your nephew had popped up on the camera just when you were filming Ben, who was trying to fix the mess he made. 

He had given Francis the biggest of the smiles, but the kid’s eyes were all for the magnificent drum set. And that’s the reason why his request to Santa didn’t surprise you at all.

While Francis was falling asleep on your lap, you managed to get your phone, opening the Whatsapp group you had with the rest of the cast and which you hoped no one ever sees.

      You: How to react when your nephew asks you Roger’s drum set as a Christmas present? Asking for a friend.

You bit your lip as you waited for them to read, but you didn’t have to wait long — Joe was already typing.

     Joe: Just buy him a bass, woman

You tried not to chuckle at his answer in order not to wake the baby up. The rest of the boys joined the conversation.

     Lucy: You’re doomed

     You: I guess I am

     Gwil: Try on Wikihow

     You: 🤦‍♀️

     Rami: I’ll pretend I didn’t read that

And your heart speeded up when you noticed Ben was typing, too.

     Ben: they boy has good tastes 😉

Your smile grew wider by reading his reply and just for a moment everything seemed normal between the two of you. No Ellie, no kissing, no feelings. Just you and Ben. Your phone buzzed again as you got other messages.

     Joe: don’t act like it isn’t your fault, man

     Lucy: lol just don’t tell Roger

     You: no way

     Gwil: Alexa play Money, money, money by ABBA

Aaaand Ben was typing again – which was pretty normal, given that you were in a group chat. But that didn’t stop your heart from racing in your chest.

     Ben: I’m afraid I can’t take credits for that

Actually it was because of him but there was no need for him to know that.

     Allen: what’s going on??

     Rami: just Y/N’s nephew asking for Roger’s drums

     Allen: I thought kids still played with Lego’s?

               Oh and before I forget

               I’ll see y’all in a couple of days, right?

Crap. You’d forgotten that Allen was getting married and you were all invited to the ceremony, which happened to be in California. The bop of the phone brought you back from your thoughts.

     Lucy: sure thing

And shortly after she sent a picture of her and Rami with their thumbs up. Theirs were the biggest smiles you’d ever seen. Gwil did the same, sending a picture of him with his fist raised and a warm smile on his face. You couldn’t help but notice he was wearing a Wales shirt, his favourite one. “I’ll be there!”, he texted right after sending the picture.

You decided to send one too right after seeing Joe’s one. He was clearly jogging, given his messy hair and the fact that he had his headphones on. He was wearing a shirt of a bright pink and he was standing right next to a flower of the same colour. “Count on me”, He texted, adding shortly after “I’ll match with the flower.”

You took a picture of you and Francis – who was still asleep – but it took you a few moments to decide whether to send it or not. There was a tight smile in your face as your cheek rested on Francis’ head, his angelic features relaxed while sleeping. You were looking straight at the camera and after giving it a better look, it became your favourite picture.

But you tended to overthink on everything, even on pictures you were supposed to send to your friends. At the end you sent it anyways, adding a text. “Ofc! Hopefully he’ll wake up by then.”

Lucy replied to your message with the heart eyes emoji and you were about to put the phone away when you got another message.

It was Ben’s pic; the first thing you noticed – aside that he was handsome as hell – was that he looked tired. You didn’t see the typical sparkle that usually lit up his eyes. If you had to be completely honest with yourself you missed seeing his beautiful face in the morning or spending whole nights in his company.

Santa Ynez Valley (CA) – January 5th, 2018

“This damn thing”, You heard Joe say under his breath in front of the mirror. You turned towards him with your brows narrowed just to see him struggle with his tie.

“Maz, wait.” You sighed deeply and walked towards him. You’d given him that nickname after watching Undrafted together, the movie he’d directed and produced, and somehow it just stuck to him.

You moved away his hands from the tie, stopping him from trying – and fail again – to do a decent knot. You gave him an amused look right when he looked at you with gratitude, starting to do it for him just like your mom had taught you to do.

“Ties are the devil’s tools.”

You chuckled at his words, moving your gaze to him just for an instant before turning your attention back to the tie. “Don’t be overdramatic.”

“Oh, you know I am.” You grinned at him and just when you finished your job someone knocked at the door.

“Mate, are you ready?” Ben’s deep voice came crystal clear to your ears. Your heart started racing in your chest and by the look Joe gave you, you knew he suspected something.

“Yeah, coming!”, He replied and while he walked towards the door you adjusted the folds of your dress, giving a quick look at your hair through the mirror just to make sure it was fine.

You were so bloody nervous that your hands began to get sweaty. Joe gave you a quick look from above his shoulder before opening the door. Ben didn’t notice you at first so you had the chance to give him a better look.

You weren’t surprised to see him in a black suit, but that didn’t mean he didn’t leave you speechless. He had his hair back and it was oddly in order but it highlighted the shining of his green eyes, which seemed even more clear than you remembered.

“I was sure to see you with your tie undone, buddy”, He said in an amused tone, nodding towards the know you’d made. He peeked out his tongue as he used to do and in that moment you wish you could kill the butterflies in your stomach.

He’s not your man, you kept saying to yourself. 

Joe softly laughed at his words, pointing at you with a thumb. “Y/N was here to save the day.”

And that’s when Ben’s gaze moved to the back of the room, looking straight at you. You felt his gaze raking your body before meeting your eyes. His lips were a bit parted in surprise and he slowly raised a corner of his lips in a tight smile. “Y/N.”

He pronounced your name like if it was a praise and you shyly smiled at him. “Hey, Ben.”

You heard Joe sigh and you were pretty sure he rolled his eyes at the two of you. He murmured something under his breath before saying out loud “I’ll see you downstairs.”

Ben didn’t seem to pay him attention when he walked past him and shortly after you heard his footsteps walking down the stairs. You forced yourself to move your gaze away from him, grabbing your purse and giving a last look at the room to make sure you weren’t forgetting anything.

When you joined Ben in the hallway, closing the door behind you, his gaze was still on you. “You still blush?”, He murmured in an amused tone and you wondered if he’d ever stop asking you that.

“Oh, shut up, Jones.” He giggled at your words and the two of you, one right next to the other, started to walk towards the stairs. In the hallway you crossed two or three people and given that they were all dressed elegant you were pretty sure they were heading to the wedding, too.

“You look gorgeous.” You bit the interior of your cheeks at his words, giving him a look with the corner of your eyes.

“You look good, too. But you know that exist other colours beside black, right?”

“Don’t sass me, wifey.” You grinned at him and you gave yourself a second to appreciate his presence next to you. You had bloody missed him and now that you were together again, that night at the pub seemed to be forgotten. Seemed, because you couldn’t forget how humiliated you felt when he left you.

Ben was looking at you with a grin, his gaze raking your body once again. You felt flattered by the fact that he couldn’t stop looking at you and you couldn’t help but smile in victory. He even tried to place a hand in your back while walking through the hallway and if at first you couldn’t bring yourself to move his hand away because of the shivers his touch sent down your spine, subsequently you pulled your arm back and gently moved it away.

“Hands off, Jones”, You said with a half-smile, meeting his gaze. “I don’t want to be chased by any angry girlfriend.”

He let out a small laughter and even if by now you were in a dangerous ground, you felt pretty confident. “At least take my arm, I don’t wanna see you roll down the stairs.” And by saying so he offered you his arm, which you gratefully accepted.

As you focused not to stumble over the stairs with your heels, Ben’s tone suddenly changed. “There isn’t any angry girlfriend.”

You suddenly felt a knot in your throat and you didn’t look at him, afraid that if you did you’d loose your balance. “Yeah, like for the last time.” You didn’t mean to say these words but now the damage was done.

He turned his head towards you and you could feel him staring at you; thankfully you were at the last step of the stairs. “For real this time.” You were about to let go of his arm but you couldn’t bring yourself to do so when meeting his eyes, looking at you like you were the only woman in the room. And maybe that’s how he saw you.

You looked away from him when you heard Allen drawing the attention of those presents from the garden where the ceremony would take place, so you murmured “We’ll talk later.” And he just nodded at you.

The whole ceremony was touching and you had to admit you even teared up a little, gaining some amused looks by Joe and Gwil. It was an emotional moment to see a person you cared about making a move that important – and besides, Lucy had teary eyes, too.

The whole crowd cheered up by hearing their “I do” and right after the ceremony you and the boys went to congratulate with them. Their smiles were unbelievably contagious and they just couldn’t stop looking at each other.

The alfresco ceremony started shortly after ad it took place in the amazing garden of the resort. Among the rest of the guests you spotted a few popular faces such as ‪Lea Michele‬ and ‪Darren Criss‬, who started to sing shortly after.‬‬‬‬‬‬

You were taking a sip of your champagne when you suddenly realised you were alone. Rami and Lucy were already on the dance floor, her arms around his neck as the slowly followed the rhythm of the music. Gwil was dancing with his girlfriend, too, and Joe and Ben were having a chat near the buffet table.

You were about to take a seat in one of the closest tables when you noticed someone approaching you. “Hey.”

You raised your gaze just to meet a handsome ginger. “Hi”, You replied hesitantly.

“I’m Seth”, The man said, extending you a hand. “I’m the brother of the bride.” He could’ve been two or three years older than you and you couldn’t help but notice that he looked good. “Oh, right. I’m Y/N.” You shook his hand, giving him a big smile.

“Are you Allen’s friend?”, He politely asked and you nodded your head ‘yes’ at his question.

“Yeah, we met on set.”

“Of Bohemian Rhapsody?” He seemed amazed and surprised by the fact that you were an actress. Well, who wouldn’t? Your face wasn’t exactly well known.

“Yeah”, You said once again and you felt your cheeks turning rose. He noticed your reaction and his smile grew wider.

“I’m sorry, I’m just trying not to freak out. I’m surrounded by actors.” You let out a small laugh and you nodded in comprehension, giving a look at the rest of the guests. You noticed Ben looking at you, probably even not paying attention to what Joe was telling him. You quickly looked away, focusing again on Seth.

“We’re not aliens, y’know”, You replied in an amused tone and he gave you an apologetic look.

“Oh no, no. I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to sound rude. It’s just… never mind. What d’ya think if to make up for it—”

But Seth never finished his sentence because the two of you were interrupted by a new voice. “Hey, babe.”

You looked above your shoulder just to see Ben standing behind you, an arm surrounding your waist as he looked at you with a smile. You narrowed your brows, looking at Seth first — who was staring at Ben with a confused look — and then at him. “Hey”, You simply replied, not knowing what game he was playing.

He nodded towards the dance floor, saying without paying the smallest attention to Seth “Shall we dance?” And you gave an apologetic look at the ginger before following Ben at the centre of the floor.

“What was that?”, You asked him in an amused but confused look. He placed both his hands on your hips, pulling your body closer to his. You hesitantly surrounded his neck with an arm, placing the other hand on his chest. You could easily feel his heart beating as fast as yours.

Lea Michele and Darren Criss — who had kindly offered to sing when the band that Allen hired couldn’t play because of the weather — were still playing in the background one of your favourites song: My Eyes by ‪The Lumineers‬.‬‬‬

“What?”, Ben asked with a brow raised. You raised your chin to meet his eyes – the last time you’d been this close you ended up kissing. And for as much as you liked it, you weren’t going to do it again. Not when he was still thinking about someone else.

“You literally dragged me away”, You managed to say as he lowered his gaze to your lips. Your breath become heavier under his staring gaze and the way he was gently caressing your hip with his thumb didn’t help at all. “Ben”, You whispered, almost begging him to stop. But you didn’t want him to.

His eyes were again fixed on yours when he spoke again. “I’ve broken up with Ellie. For real this time.”

You sighed deeply, looking at his green eyes while thinking at his words. “Sometimes breaking up doesn’t mean not to be still in love with someone.”

“She’ll always be important to me. I mean, we’ve been together since we were like nineteen, but it’s over now.” And he seemed sure of his words. You bit your lower lip, looking away from him in order to think clearly. And you couldn’t do that with his eyes fixed on yours.

You placed your forehead on his chest, taking deep breaths as you could feel your head fighting with your heart. He took a deep breath, his chest rising and lowering under your forehead. Ben surrounded your back with one arm, placing his cheek on your head. It took him a few moments to speak again. “I’ve missed this.”

“I missed it, too.”

London - February 7th, 2018

Plenty of big, rectangular screens had been placed in every wall of the room, in which were projected old pictures of the band and new stills of the movie. There was also a small stage in where a band was playing Queen songs.

You never thought you’d spend the BoRhap wrap party — also called BoWrap — singing Queen songs at the top of your lungs between a drink and the other. But thanks exactly what you were doing.

“Y/N, come on up here!” You bursted into laughter by hearing Lucy calling you through the mic. You raised your arm in the air, letting out a little scream of excitement before finishing your drink in one gulp and starting to walk towards the stage.

You grinned at Clara and Rachael while walking past them on your way to the stage and you grabbed the hand Rami was extending you to join them. Somehow you ended up holding a microphone and singing — or better, shouting — the words of Radio Ga-Ga alongside with Lucy and Rami.

From the stage you could easily see the rest of the room, which was illuminated with a pink light. Everyone was there — every member of the cast and crew, even Roger, Sarina, Brian and Anita.

But you were looking for one person in particular — Ben was standing in the front row, a drink in his hand and a grin in his face. He was already looking at you and probably for the first time ever you didn’t blush. Ah, the power of alcohol.

“All we hear is radio gaga, radio goo goo”, You sang to the mic, trying to clap with your free hand. Lucy moved closer to you and started to sing, too before the two of you bursted into laughter. Joe and Gwil were also singing, clapping their hands by following the rhythm of the song.

“He can’t take his eyes off you”, Lucy murmured in your ear, pushing away the mic from you. You quickly turned towards her with a surprised look, your lips parted as you met her amused gaze. “Lucy!”

“What? It’s true!” She couldn’t have been more obvious by the way she nodded towards him. And the thing was, she was right. The way Ben was looking at you sent shivers all over your body.

When he noticed you were staring at him he raised a corner of his lips in an amused grin to which you replied with a big smile. The song wasn’t even over yet when somehow you managed to get off the stage without stumbling. He was standing there, not so far away from you, in his dark jeans and grey sweater. 

“Hey, stranger”, You said when you moved closer to him, giving him a tight smile. 

“Didn’t know that hidden talent of yours”, He replied, nodding towards the stage. You let out a soft laughter, shaking your head.

“That’s nothing.” His green eyes were fixed on yours and he gave you a look you couldn’t read. You didn’t like the things his stare made you feel and you looked away from him, when you spotted something at the corner of the room. “Is that...” You started to say in excitement, gaining a confused look by Ben. “A photo booth?”

“What?”, He asked with a small laugh, following your gaze to that spot. You grabbed him by his hand, his gentle touch once again on you. “Please, please come with me.”

Maybe it was the look on your face, maybe it was your excitement, but somehow he agree on coming with you.

“‘right, fine”, He said with a big smile and you were about to clap your hands when you noticed he was still holding your hand. “C’mon”, He added, and you followed him through the crowd.

You waited for him to insert the coins and while doing so he gave you an amused look by noticing your excitement. “You’re cute.”

You narrowed your eyes at his words and it might’ve been silly or you, but you just couldn’t stop smiling. “Thanks?”

I want to break free was playing in the background as the two of you entered the booth. It was small, though, and one could barely move in there.

“Uhm.” Ben was giving a look around him and you could easily see the inner workings in his brain try to find a solution, but you both had too many drinks to think clearly.

“‘kay, how about you sit in my lap? I’ll behave, I promise.” You narrowed your brows at his proposal, looking at him while he took his seat. You nodded in agreement — probably because of the alcohol — and you took a deep breath before doing so. You noticed the bin of his Adam apple and by the look in his eyes you could tell he wanted you just as much as you wanted him.

“It’s gonna be so much fun!” He smiled at your words, his arm surrounding your waist and yours was around his shoulders. Your cheek was right next to his and that’s when the first photo was taken.

“I wasn’t ready!”, He complained and you looked at him with a big smile. 

“C’mon, Ben. Don’t be so serious.” You turned again towards the camera and you pulled out your tongue for the next picture.

Ben in the meantime was mouthing ‘God knows!’ as the song played in the background and that’s why he was all so pouty in the next picture.

For the third one you parted your lips and it captured Ben’s hand on his way to your face. And for the next one Ben placed a kiss on your cheek, your smile bigger than ever. You’d been taken aback and that’s why you turned towards him with a surprised look “Ben!” 

Man, if you thought you’d been taken aback a few moments before, thanks because you didn’t know what was waiting. Ben’s hand was still on your cheek when he crushed your lips into yours. You immediately kissed him back, placing a hand on his chest. You both forgot about the pictures the moment you felt his tongue asking for permission to deepen the kiss, and you let him. His hand moved to your hip and he gently caressed your bare skin given that your shirt had lifted up a bit.

The little, hot moan that escaped his mouth made you crave for more, if it wasn’t for the curtain of the booth that swung open.

“Shit!”, Joe said, immediately closing in again. You backed away from Ben’s lips and you giggled.

“Go away, Maz!”, You shouted and you didn’t have to wait for long for him to shout back “Go get a room!”

And that’s when Ben said in an amused tone “Shall we follow his advice?” Just the idea left you speechless and that’s why it took you a few moments to answer. “Oh, shut up.”

Ben giggled but despite your words, you were considering his proposal for real and Ben noticed it by the look in your eyes. Oh man, you were doomed.

Taglist: @caborhapch @ohtheseboysilove @classy-fangirl @royalblueviper @rogers-weirdo @geek-and-proud @mrsbenhardyx @julessbrown @the-little-warbler  @bouncingjoe @benders-diamond-earring @radiob-l-a-hblah @luvborhap @mrsmazzello @orchideax @gardengirl-18 @dearestdeaky @brianandthemays @ixchel-9275

If you wanna be added in the taglist just tell me!

#ben hardy #ben hardy x reader #ben hardy fic #bohemian rhapsody #Bo Rhap #borhap imagine #borhap fic #borhap #roger taylor #roger taylor fic #roger taylor x reader #Queen #queen band #queen fic

[fmdminaharchive]

007: lipstick titletracks (updated version)

wordcount: 1,549 (old: 735 & new: 814)

run devil run: when she first sees the skin-tight bodysuits, minah is a little taken aback. she’s nervous enough for her debut as it is. minah isn’t a naturally alluring person, always on the more reserved side herself, something she has to completely cast aside to suit the image of lipstick. but, luckily, run devil run feel like safe enough baby steps for minah. she gets to ease a little into what bc has in store still for her.

flashback: if run devil run was the kiddie pool, flashback is the deep end. or so minah feels at least. the song itself is nice of course, she has plenty of lines too, but it’s hard to focus on that when there seem to be much more pressing matters. flashback is everything but subtle about how sexy it is and minah has never been someone effortlessly sexy, not in her own eyes. most of the promotions, she spends worrying, about the way she looks, the way she acts, about everything but her since.

because of you: lipstick dials it a bit back again with because of you and minah is very glad for that. because of you is a slower song, bursting with emotional vocals and relatively sparse on choreography which, of course, makes it a big win in minah’s book. she enjoys performing and promoting because of you a lot but due to their debut year being such a hectic one, both in terms of comebacks and her personal life, it’s an era she doesn’t think back on a lot. a good song that got buried under less fortunate circumstances.

hoot!: minah likes hoot, a lot. there is something very classy about the retro vibe of the song, even if she thinks there isn’t much classy about the shorts they’re wearing.  hoot, if anything, makes her realize that maybe, she’s not too terrible at the whole alluring thing, it’s not all about flashing her body or being sexy, it’s about the way she carries herself. this era, minah might not grow much as a vocalist, but she does as a performer.

bang!: not going to lie, bang intimidates minah a little bit (read: a lot). minah would argue that it’s lipsticks first perfomance-oriented title track and she’s a little intimidated by it. bang! is a good song, minah wouldn’t argue that, but it’s definitely the type of song where some of the other members shine more than her and that’s more than okay with her. she does kill that high note in the bridge though.

first love: when bc told them they were going to be pole dancing, minah felt like she could cry to be honest. but by some stroke of luck (or bc’s choreographers having as little faith in her as she did in herself) minah is actually exempt of any and all pole dancing. she’s just there to look pretty and sing, yes queen give us nothing. she doesn’t hate this era but she doesn’t really love it either, it’s just very neutral for her.

mr. mr.: honestly, mr. mr. could have been one of minah’s top lipstick songs. but it’s not. there are a lot of things that minah likes about this comeback, the styling and choreography are some of her faves they ever had and she likes the song too, apart from one thing. the heavy electronics in the background are just not for minah and it’s always been a huge deal-breaker for her, leaving mr. mr. somewhere in the mid-tier rather than somewhere in the top of the list. 

tell me your wish (genie): there is one thing minah and the general public can agree on, genie is one of the best things lipstick has ever done. if not the best. minah loves everything about genie from the song to the styling and so on. it was also their launch to the top of the industry leaving minah with a lot of good memories of this era. also, minah’s iconic ‘dj, put it back on’ launching lipstick into stardom? i think iconic.

dolls: another all-time favorite of minah. dolls is an upbeat, swing-y song that never fails to put minah in a good mood. it was not the hit genie was but it hasn’t made her love the song any less. another thing minah likes about dolls is the choreography. generally speaking, that’s not minah cares about, as long as it’s simple it’s good with her. but for the point dance for dolls, she has a soft spot, it’s just so fun to watch and do.

the boys: the boys is another iconic songs, a clear milestone in their careers and yet again, minah can definitely see why, it’s an incredible song. the only reason it’s not among the very top of her favorite lipstick songs is because -much like bang!- it’s definitely not her strongest era. she has fun doing it, that’s not it, but there are a lot of the members that pull off the song better than her and she has the utmost respect for that.

mr. taxi: yeah no, minah really did try to give this one the benefit of the doubt but mr taxi really just is another miss. the song is little special, not the worst but far from good either, a very forgettable type of mediocre. oh well, it’s only a repackage anyway, it’s not like anyone has high hopes for it. the sexy taxi driver concept is also one of the absolute least favorite things bc has put them in through the years.

party: this… what was this exactly? party is a weird move for lipstick. it’s cuter than their usual sound for some reason and minah isn’t sure why exactly and she doesn’t care to find out either. party is generic, boring and pretty annoying in all honesty. minah cares absolutely nothing for it and if they never have to revisit the song again, her life will be better for it.

lionheart: the better single on the album. with a nostalgic sound and classy 20′s concept to go with it, lionheart rapidly becomes one of minah’s all time favorite lipstick title tracks. lionheart truly redeems the mess that was party.the song is sweet, it’s elegant, and it’s perfect for minah, what more could she ask for?

holiday: remember when minah called party childish? well holiday multiplies that in tenfold. the styling, the song in itself, everything about it. what is it with bc and giving their full albums one good single and one terrible one? in late 2017, minah can’t help but feel like she’s getting too old for stuff like this. also, what the hell are those tule skirts? who allowed that?

all night: the better single on holiday night, anyone with taste would say so, minah included. it’s not one of her all-time faves, but she does appreciate it for what it is. also, she’s a sucker for that disco beat it has to it.

catch me if you can: noise, just like mr mr had been, a harsh electronic undertone that minah just can’t ever grow accustomed to. the prechorus and bridge are nice, she’ll give the song that, the only parts of it that lend for some decent vocal work too, but the rest of it is pure and utter garbage. on top of that, she’s no fan of the choreo either, she’s not a dancer okay. a disappointing comeback, especially as their first without goeun.

gun: those vocals. oh damn. those vocals. gun era didn’t come to play, and minah is here for it. she takes on a large part of the vocals, this time actually interesting ones and never before has she been as determined to prove she is in fact worthy of lipstick’s unofficial new main vocal title. it’s rather on the sexy side, but by now, minah has gained experience, she hasn’t been promoting all these years for nothing.

lil’ touch: minah isn’t gonna lie, the choreo for this one is tough (or well, by her standards at least, which aren’t that high) but it’s so, so worth it. maybe it’s the years of experience, but finally, minah accepts that she can’t keep complaining about dancing, it’s part of the job after all. most of all, lil’ touch assures her lipstick will be just fine.

glue: after all the dust settles, it’s almost like bc remembers what they had in mind when they debuted. sexy, alluring and loads of pleather, the true essence of lipstick, or that’s what it feels like at least. glue is a song that they could have released around their debut era with a non-existing budget to match it. she’s not a huge fan of it, but well, what can she do other than hope their next comebacks will be better. it could be worse though, lipstick has definitely done worse.

wild: honestly, on paper, minah should hate this song more than she does. she’s always been the least favorable towards their sexier concepts mainly because minah doubts she’s much of sexy presence but wild, it works somehow. sure, the mv is a bit much with its cleavage shots and seductive camera staring but the song is actually a lot of fun, very high energy and it makes it nice to perform. 

the best of the best...: genie, dolls, lionheart, gun

...and the worst of the worst: mr taxi, party, holiday, catch me if you can

#*:･ﾟ♔– «taste of a cherry pop» // headcanons. #//okay so to avoid any confusions i italicized all the parts i copied from the old headcanon #//and left the new ones + the ones i rewrote for context reasons untouched #//i couldve just done the new songs but i wanted them all in one place #//plus like i said some of the other songs descriptions have moved around a little #//anyway ive said this 50 times in the past 2 days but the way genie is minahs song

[shannonsblog20-blog]

Shannon’s Reddit Adventure

This week, I have shifted my social media focus to be mostly on Reddit as it is not a channel I typically use. I have had an account on Reddit for several months, but I often forget that I even have it as I am consumed by checking and scrolling through Instagram, LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter, YouTube and Snapchat. Wow, writing (typing) it down definitely makes it seem like I am consuming a lot of social media throughout the day. Probably because I totally am.

Given I am fairly new and inexperienced with Reddit, I still find myself not understanding exactly how to use it or what I should be following (any advice and/or best practices are very welcome here!) As of now, I have joined communities that are mostly around my current hobbies as well as subjects related to clients I would love to have someday. For example: r/AdvancedRunning, r/CampingandHiking, r/Fitness, r/NationalPark, r/nonprofit, r/writing, and r/PublicRelations.

Hanging out on Reddit this week differs greatly from the media I typically consume because it is based more on discussion than it is about the content being posted. When I am using other social media platforms (such as Instagram or Twitter), I am just skimming captions (if I am reading them at all) and mostly looking at the images being posted. Reddit causes me to slow down a bit and think more, whereas using other social media is usually a more mindless experience for me.

The Reddit community (Redditors), unlike other social media platforms, is engaged in a more long-form way. Rather than just sharing likes and quick comments on posts, they share full responses to subreddits that are sometimes paragraphs long. Since I am in a handful of fitness and health communities, it is interesting to read all the subreddit comments because the Redditors are so encouraging of one another. Everyone seems genuinely interested in sharing advice and comparing experiences. I find this very motivating and inspiring! It’s fun to see what like-minded people are doing and thinking.

According to an eMarketer (2019) piece from March of 2019, Reddit had 26.4 million monthly users, and, in fact, last year, Christine Cassis shared a blog post on Reddit (2019) which reported that, from 2017 to 2018, the site found a 43% increase year-over-year in its health and fitness category. Personally, I love this about Reddit since this is the topic I am most interested in getting content around!

Photo from Reddit (2019)

I find that the most interesting thing about the media format of Reddit is how casual and low-key it is in comparison to a platform like Instagram. When I am scrolling on Instagram, I see highly-edited, high-quality photos that appear to go through a decent amount of production before they are posted for the world to see. On Reddit, when I browse through my feed, I am met with photos of screenshots and lower quality videos and pictures that appear as though they were taken on an iPhone rather than a professional camera. The content on Reddit is a bit more everyday and organic, which is also refreshing.

The content I follow on Reddit is also somewhat different than what I follow elsewhere. On social media platforms such as Instagram and Twitter, I like to keep up with news outlets, journalists, and companies. On Reddit, I don’t find that these organizations and people have communities that they post from themselves so it isn’t a great way to find out what they are currently promoting or reporting on. 

To me, Reddit is a lot different than other social media platforms. It’s wordier and more thoughtful. It engages you in a different way and makes you think about things and other people’s opinions differently. It’s a great way to seek and share advice without being expected to keep your comment short on someone’s photo. I’d like to integrate Reddit into my weekly routine more so that one day I will feel comfortable enough to make my own contributions to a subreddit and experience it firsthand. 

Lastly, a really random experience I had in just the past couple days scanning Reddit: I saw two posts (in running-relevant subreddits) that had to do, specifically, with the town that I am from! One man was talking about the trail he runs on, which is right by my parent’s house and is the trail that I have ran on hundreds of times. The other post was a woman who posted a map of a bike ride she did and, when I looked at it, I noticed she was riding around my town/neighborhood. So weird!

References

Cassis, C. (2019, January 23). Health & Fitness on Reddit. Reddit.

https://redditblog.com/2019/01/23/health-fitness-on-reddit/

eMarketer Editors. (2019, March 26). Reddit to Cross $100 Million in Ad Revenues in 2019. eMarketer.

https://www.emarketer.com/content/reddit-to-cross-100-million-in-ad-revenues-in-2019

[thriftthatisviolet]

Words on *that* incident (Long read)

Ok, I think yall know what I want to speak about rn, but if you don't, its the Leclerc-Verstappen incident in the race.

Just incase you live in the UK or another place where the race is really late, here's a tldr; I think what Charles did was dangerous, BUT (oh boy, here it comes) I don't think that some of the hate he's getting is, mature, to put it best.

I've been on every form of social media where opinions are discussed, and I think that I have gathered enough evidence to fully confirm that some people don't know how to remain sensible on the internet.

It's strange, you know? The way the people act on the internet, knowing that these are real people "expressing their opinions", and also knowing that some (most, actually) of these people are GROWN ADULTS.

It seems like these people don't know what r e s p e c t, is! All sportsmen and women have respect for eachother, incuding F1 drivers. Each and every pair of Rivals and teammates have high respect for eachother.

You know, we wouldn't have had Senna V Prost if they hadn't had a bit of respect for eachother. If they didn't, then they'd probably hate going up against eachother. There wouldn't even be a rivalry! If they hadn't had respect for eachother, then I bet my 10 bags of Supreme cheese Doritos and 900+ litres of Mountain Dew that whenever Prost realised that Senna was on his rear wing, he wouldn't even bother fighting with him since he would think that there'd be another crash between them.

No, that's obviously not how it went down. We get all these fantastic, historical races to look back on for when we grow grey and old. And now, lots of fans have been hyping up the Max and Charles rivalry, a rivalry that a new generation can witness and tell to our 6 year old grand children.

But that can't happen if they don't have respect for one another. The whole point of a rivalry is to prove that you are better than then your rival. You obviously wouldn't want to prove yourself to a s*** driver, would you. So, obviously, if you want to prove that your a future F1 champion, you gotta label a talented and strong driver as your rival.

And how can you do that is you don't think that there good? Obviously, you would think that your better, and that's normal. But you'd obviously still think that your rival is a strong driver...no?

Now, like I said earlier, I've been on many sites where opinions are regularly shared like Youtube, Tumblr (of course!), Twitter, Insta, Reddit and countless blog and news sites. And on nearly every single one of them I find MULTIPLE comments berating and disrespecting many drivers. And they're more simmilar than you think.

Some include-

Calling Seb "Spintell"

Calling Lewis a "Crybaby" (yes I've seen that photoshop of him)

Labeling Max as- " Crashstappen"

Most recently, Hating on Charles for being the "Golden boy of Ferrari" (Lecry, Grosjean of the year, Glorified midfielder) (That last one's actually true..)

Gasly. Need I say more?

Teasing Stroll, a decent midfield driver, and calling him a "Un-talented pay driver", even when he is pretty good and that a lot of succesful and strong drivers are pay drivers.

And the list goes onnnn and onnnn-

Do you e v e r hear any of the drivers call eachother any of these? No, I dont think so. Remember Baku 2017? The Lewis and Seb incident? They might've been a bit mad at eachother then , but do you ever see them sending eachother death stares or flipping the bird at one and other when they (think) that the camera isn't looking at them? NO!

Another instance with Seb and our main chatting point, Charles, is Singapore and Russia. The press, F1 "fans" and journalist are chewing up a team issue, and bellowing out nonsense headlines that aren't even true. Why the hell would Helmut Marko and Christian Horner be warning Ferrari? They'd probably be rubbing their hands in sheer delight with what was happening.

Anyways, while the press spreads rumours about how Seb and Charles secretly loath each other, and how they silently wish that the other would just burn in hell (over exaggeration , both of them seem have common sense outside the car, and instead of having all those hateful thoughts, those two are gleefully answering fan questions, playing rugby, dorkily making some origami 'Kokoni' cranes and happily chatting to one another after a tough race for both of them. Doesn't sound like hate does it? If I put it correctly, it should sound like a word that I've been saying for a little bit now.

Going back to the topic at hand, I think it's utter bull crap to be calling some of the only 20 most talented, popular and fantastic drivers offensive nicknames, hating on them and DISRESPECTING them is not, at all, mature.

Max and Charles are definetley stars of the future, and they're handing out samples of a brand new chocolate bar called "Suprise mother heckers it's the new generation" to us for many races now. But I don't think that many people might be enjoying this brand new flavour of chocolate.

Anyways, I still think that Charles might need a penalty (not like it'll do anything, think he finished like 10 secs off Ricciardo, I think?) I don't really think many people picked up on it but Charles was shown the black and orange flag, I believe. But that's deffinetley not enough. He litteraly kept going after his front wing had been shattered to pieces, creating a safety hazard. It was a great drive from him after, but still, a very dangerous and avoidable start (still love him tho).

Max, did not deserve any what happened to him this race. Today was very unfortunate for him.

So, take this as a lesson boys and girls, men and woman, or any other genders. pLeaSe, for the love of the God you beleive in, be responsible on the net, share opinions lightly, respect those who respect eachother and remember-

You're not alone on here

Warm regards,

Thrift

#f1 #charles leclerc #max verstappen #sebastian vettel #lewis hamilton #f1 rant #long reads #essay #kinda?

[melissatreglia]

Did You Miss Me?: Darkiplier in 2018

For the most part, 2018 was a quiet year. In contrast with 2017, where we were gratified to see Dark's monochromatic visage throughout the year, 2018 carried playful hints and teasing of the elusive entity's presence but no confirmation. There were thumbnails and quick flashes that indicated He was continuing to pull strings, ensuring that His presence was felt but His face never really seen.

Throughout 2017, He'd show up during what us mere mortals consider major holidays or important events. Valentine's Day. Easter. Even Cinco de Mayo got a nod. And of course, the infamous Friday the 13th late in the year.

But 2018? He apparently decided to stay home in the void during our days of revelry, with the possible (though not confirmed) exception of the decidedly strange Fall in Love with Markiplier video for Valentine's Day. And for the TWO Friday the 13ths in 2018? He was a no-show. In 2017, He'd returned to shake things up in our safe little lives... and in 2018, He left us wanting more, like the skilled manipulative seducer He is.

Getting Over It, Part 8 included a thumbnail with Mark's dour expression and a suspiciously familiar colour scheme. The thumbnail for WATCH OUT!! had Mark reaching for us in a state of panic (which belied the contents of the video itself). 

Try Not to Smile Challenge #3, while the smile-free serial killer laugh is creepy, it's not a Darkiplier moment. Though, him joking near the end of the video that people who didn’t smile at some point during the video are "soulless demons" does seem to be a Darkiplier reference of some kind (or maybe a Devilplier reference, since the Cuphead song was released just two months later)?

In Madison, when his game character watches a television that glitches and fades to static, Mark fearfully squeaks, "Darkiplier, is that You?!" While in the description for End My Suffering, just ten days later, Mark wailed, "What malevolent being did I piss off to be cursed like this!"

Brother Wake Up promised "I’ll try to help in whatever way I can but you have to wake up!" Which, while it fit perfectly with the title of the game, the description also fit pretty damn well into the channel lore too. And Umfend's description was likewise ominous: "You shouldn't have forgotten about me... I'll make you remember..."

Meanwhile, the title for the video of Welcome The The Game 2.0 doubles as a callback to an earlier Darkiplier moment: "Don't Play This Game". Horns of Fear did it one better, with the thumbnail featuring many eyes staring out at the viewer (again with an all-too-familiar colour scheme), while the title warned us "DON'T LOOK AWAY..."

In the Warframe playthrough late in the year, Mark's camera briefly freezes. But in 3 Scary Games #9, his camera freezes repeatedly before glitching back to normal, and he implies that "there's something else" messing with the camera. In 5 Nostalgic Games, when Mark gives the definition of ubiquitous and bares his teeth while saying "We're learning today!", the video suddenly glitches. 

The thumbnail for Markiplier has fled the country had Mark lunging at the camera, his face completely darkened by shadow. And the thumbnail for 3.75 Scary Games blatantly toyed with the fandom with text shouting "DARKIPLIER?"

And the fanbaiting didn't stop there. More thumbnails that hinted at Dark included a hand bathed in blue light reaching out to the viewer for the fittingly titled The Devil Haunts Me, and a cartoon of Mark cowering away from Dark's furious glare for You're Perfect.  

Markiplier's Tour: The Movie featured the improv teacher stating that Markiplier wasn't at the shows. "I don't know who that guy was, but it wasn't him." Even the Markiplier Animated short I've Got Boobs?! features a brief scene of a shadowy Darkiplier rising from a well and whispering something unintelligible.

For the most part however, the teasing came directly from out of Mark’s mouth.

In 3 Scary Games #5, Mark jokes that a ghost (clad in the classic white sheet and glitching somewhat) is Darkiplier. 3 Scary Games #13, the first (jokey) game called "Death Trips" features RGB text and Mark narrating in an echoing voice. In Midnight Shift, a game where Mark is memorably being chased by mannequins, he jokes that an RGB poster on a wall is "expricitly [sic] Darkiplier". In SCP Containment Breach #57, Mark jokes when he sees the intro screen of a pretty lady in 3D with an open third eye, "Look at this Darkiplier ass thing... it's like Celine, straight out of [Who Killed Markiplier?]". 

In 3 FNAF Fan Games, he even chortles that the game has “Darkiplier letters.” In Devil Daggers, he scoffs, “A high-pitched ringing in the darkness. That’s always good.”

[Image captured by me, on June 3, 2018.] 

Just before midsummer, I received a pleasant surprise. In Imscared: Steam Edition, Mark says "I gotta go get back into the Shadow Realm, the Upside Down." Which, personally, made me very happy at the time. Since I first became active on Tumblr in July 2017, I've been referring to Dark's void dimension as the Shadow Realm, while Mark has referred to it in the past as the Upside Down, making the link fairly clear in this statement. (Somehow, whether by happy accident or serendipity, my terminology and its proper context made its way to Mark. As a fan, I can't describe how pleased that made me, to know he might have actually seen something I’ve made.)

(But enough about me. I’m just an obsessive Darkiplier fangirl. So let’s get back to cataloging all the hinty goodness!)

By this point, you’re probably wondering, “Okay, so all those hints are decent. But where the hell is Dark in all of this?!” But that’s the point, my friends: He was there the whole time. In brief flashes of imagery, in hints and innuendo. Unseen, but his presence clearly felt as our expectations were played with by our channel host.

We expected a wild ride at the beginning, when Mark made two brief livestreams on January 5th, wandering through the theatre he was slated to play for the You’re Welcome Tour. 

The first of the two, “What’s Going In?!”, he showed us the back area of the Paramount Theatre, using only improvised narration and acting to build an atmosphere of dread. He claimed the theatre was haunted, and that he could smell “the scent of death”, ultimately vowing to protect those who would be visiting the theatre to see him that night. He also declares the EXIT a trap, before being pursued by an unseen entity.

The drama continued with “...” (a title that is impossible to find using Youtube’s search options), that begins with an eerie quiet. Tyler eventually finds Mark’s dropped phone. He asks the viewers where Mark is, before going on a search. He’s eventually attacked from behind and the stream cuts off, leaving those who weren’t at the show that night to wonder how the matter resolved.

In Simulacra, there's a brief flash of Mark in his Big Mood outfit with text saying "WAKE UP". When the simulacra changes the colour of the cellphone's display and begins to speak in a calm, creepy voice, Mark reflexively responds, "Darkiplier?" and sounding unnerved at the mention of "behind your black mirrors", then being stunned as the screen appears to crack.

At the end of Simulacra, he gives an uncharacteristically downbeat speech, declaring that "We're all just digital copies of ourselves, idealized in a digital form. And maybe that's the way that life is just supposed to be. Maybe we should all just roll over and accept it, because there's nothing that we can do to change our fates, after all. And who's to say that it's not better for us just to wear the masks that are our digital personas, and live our lives as those? Maybe that is for the best."

The How To Make Slime video goes from harmlessly silly and takes a twist for the stabby. Mark declares "In order to appease the Dark Gods..." then he instructs the viewer to slice their palm and "whisper the words of power." The words in question? "They shall rise. They shall consume. All will be lost when they rise from the darkness of the ocean. Madness opens up to everything." When the making of the slime is concluded, he adds that "We all get to enjoy three years of peace before the Dark Gods consume us all."

I have no idea what that means, but I’m pretty sure it may involve Cthulhu chomping on my kidneys. (Then again, Darkiplier is a Lovecraftian monstrosity Himself. So, if it’s Him who’s one of the Dark Gods? He can have a kidney from me if He’s really that hungry. Kidneys are a redundant system anyway, so you really only need one.)

April Fool’s Day brought us the gag gift of The Official Markiplier Rock, with a suspiciously deep voice informing us that the rock is available in white. Additionally, the video warned to alert the SCP Foundation if the rock appears to start talking! (What? My rock has been talking to me since I got it, and there’s nothing wrong with me!)

Baldi’s Basics: Secret Ending featured an explanation about attaining the secret ending, with Mark’s otherwise normal voice echoing slightly with subtle white noise effects. (Hmmm...)

In December, for the charity livestream and archived in a video called Santa Spills The Tea, a Santa Claus that sounded suspiciously like Wilford Warfstache declared that Dark, the master manipulator and Big Bad of Mark’s channel, was a “sweetheart! He shouts a lot, but he’s just a big ol’ pussy. He can’t even possibly… he didn’t hurt anybody! He didn’t kill one person! If there’s anybody who’s on my naughty li— uh, on my list of people who’ve been bad, he’s the only one not on it.” (And mind you, in 2017′s Markiplier TV, Wilford sang a little ditty about how he killed Santa Claus and the kids wouldn’t be getting any presents that year. And Dark still convinced us to shoot someone in A Date With Markiplier, while apparently feigning regret. But heck, use your own judgement.)

Mark also dropped one heck of a hint of things to come in, of all places, Markiplier Tries Korean Beauty Products. There, the descriptive intro to the following year’s DAMIEN animated feature can be heard at one point. “Snow blankets the field, a pristine meadow of untouched white. No animals call. No birds cry. Only the steady rustling of wind through dead trees accented by the impact of his axe. A crack-like thunder rings out as the ancient pine finally succumbs to his murderous assault. The old giant crashes into the ground. Dami-”

Wilford Motherloving Warfstache was, of course, focused on the mustachioed entity. But there were elements to the short film that felt like Darkiplier was watching along with us. Particularly the VHS-style glitch at the end of the film.

Of course, there were only three videos that year that potentially contained Darkiplier himself.

One candidate is Fall in Love with Markiplier. Yes, the name on the title is Mark’s... but is it really him? The entirety of the film is a fourteen minute staring contest with Mark, as he lovingly (and somehow also creepily) gazes at the viewer in different settings -- by the ocean, at a dog park, and in a bubble bath. The only spoken words are in the intro, over the strains of the music from A Date with Markiplier: “It’s scientifically proven that you can fall in love with someone simply by maintaining eye-contact for an extended period of time. So now, you can fall in love with Markiplier all over again in these three locations. Happy Valentine’s Day.”

The second candidate is World’s 5th Quietest Let’s Play, released just 5 days prior to the Let’s Have a Romantic Staring Contest video. Unlike the previously mentioned video, there’s more going on this time around. The game to be played quietly this time around is Bennett Foddy’s infamous rage-inducing creation “Getting Over It”. 

He threatens the developer with the words, “You will see the inside of your entrails, when I drag them out of your abdomen and show them to you.” (Ah, how romantic.) He goes even further than that, saying soon after, “This is a representation of My sins... You will be purged in the fires of absolution, along with all of your ilk. I will burn the heretics that you are harbouring inside of your soul... I will destroy you.” (Now there’s the smite-happy Hellgod we all love!)

But He doesn’t stop there, snarling under His breath, “You will burn in the fires of My own hell! And I will choose your pain to last eternity!” However, He is ultimately defeated by the game, departing our company with  “Alas, I leave you now, to slumber amongst the ancients.” (Aww, poor guy needs a hug. And I know just who’s ready to snuggle with Him...)

But the last of the video to potentially contain Darkiplier is... the four-hour long play through of Hearts & Heroes. Is it canon Dark? No, probably not. It’s a fan game, though the words of dialogue are acted out by Mark himself. But rather than simply recounting key phrases for you, here’s the Boss Battle between Mark’s team and Dark, edited by the lovely icedpinkpeebles (Mark’s goofy character names and all!):

So, what does all of this ultimately mean? Why did Darkiplier fade into the background in 2018? And, most importantly, what is He up to now?

The truth is I don’t know any more than you do. I can only guess.

But I can tell you this: We don’t know Darkiplier as well as we all think we do. Many of us (including me) fully expected Dark to raise hell following the events of the jokey Darkiplier vs Antisepticeye video in 2017 (because He did mention how He hates being mocked!). And while we did get more Dark at the end of that year, it was in the form of an origin story.

Whatever Dark’s planning, we’re not going to see it coming. Because He’s playing a long game. And when you’re immortal like He is, you have all the time in the world to get what you want. Be it for love or revenge, Darkiplier remains a force to be reckoned with.

But here we are, in the eye of the storm. Only time will tell before the final wrath of the hurricane makes landfall.

#markiplier #darkiplier #markiplier fandom #darkiplier fandom #iplier egos #dark egos #2018 recap #vid: simulacra #vid: how to make slime #vid: santa spills the tea #vid: fall in love with markiplier #vid: world's 5th quietest let's play #hearts and heroes