#this one isn't like horrible or anything i just wanted it to be cooler but instead it's like . rly bland

[quirkle2]

2 for 3 in hating my own screenshot redraws i have made One that's good and it sure isn't this

#qkdraws #id in alt #oh well. cant win em all #this one isn't like horrible or anything i just wanted it to be cooler but instead it's like . rly bland #nothin cool going on.lame #mob psycho 100 #mob psycho #mp100 #ritsu kageyama #mp100 ritsu #also i didn't wanna make a separate post abt it so ill say it here where it's completely irrelevant BUT #i saw the trick or treats in my askbox this morning and im gonna be real i've never seen that before #and i deadass did not know how to respond so i simply didn't #it's appreciated tho . i think. idk halloween means nothing to me GVEIAYVA

[nunalastor]

The official hoof art and the beach art you reblogged has me daydreaming about a beach episode.

Not sure if the Pride Ring has an ocean, but Lucifer has canonically made a wildly popular theme park called Lu Lu World, so maybe he's made some water parks or (artificial) beach resorts too. So maybe after the construction of the new hotel's completed and Alastor's returned to the group, he decides to take his daughter and her new family to one of his water parks for some fun and relaxation after a really harrowing experience.

They get there and everyone's prepared to have fun, Charlie and Vaggie are cooing over how pretty/cute the other looks in their swimsuits, Angel definitely chose something racy and he's playfully flirting with Husk, and Husk carrying the cooler full of beers and rolling his eyes at Angel but has a knowing smile. Cherri Bomb joined in as well and is hyped to go surfing for the first time since she died and offers to teach Niffty who giggling like an embarrassed schoolgirl by the amount of skin on display. Lucifer's excited to show off his waterpark to Charlie and her friends and he closes it to the public for the day so that they can have it all to themselves. They get there and everyone is eager to jump into the water. Everyone except Alastor, who takes a seat in the shade and decides to read while everyone else is playing. He doesn't even take off his Hawaiian shirt.

Angel Dust teases Alastor for being a stick in the mud which just gets him grabbed by an underwater tentacle. Alastor has a laugh at Angel's terrified screams, but doesn't do anything more than scare him. Angel Dust decides he's gonna mess with Alastor in turn, so he gets everyone together and proposes a game; try to get Alastor's shirt off.

No it's not just 'cause he wants to see Alastor shirtless, shut up Husk.

It takes some cajoling, but eventually Angel's able to get everyone on board with the game. Mostly everyone. What follows is a series of Looney Toons style antics involving badly faked accidental tripping, booby traps, and at one point a giant fan. But whether through bad luck or Alastor's preternatural senses, he manages to dodge each and every attempt. Up until the very last moment when Niffty actually does trip for real and covers his shirt in fruit punch. Alastor's annoyed but he doesn't get mad at Niffty. He just goes to the changing room to clean up away from the prying eyes of the weirdos he's found himself in the unfortunate company of.

Lucifer feels kind of bad, realizing they may have crossed a line or three. So after Alastor's been gone a while, he grabs a towel and his spare shirt and follows Alastor to the changing room to offer him a hand.

But when he walks in he's stunned to find Alastor shirtless, running his shirt under the faucet. Nearly every inch of Alastor's torso is covered in horrible, rough looking scars. The moment Alastor notices Lucifer staring at him in the mirror he goes full demon, antlers elongating, bones popping out of place, and roars at Lucifer to get out. Lucifer isn't scared of Alastor exactly, but his heart is pounding nonetheless as he runs out of the changing room.

(No idea if Alastor's scars are still canon - or if they ever were canon - but god I hope they are.)

When Alastor eventually steps out of the changing room, back to his normal form, dressed, slightly damp, Lucifer is waiting outside for him. Lucifer starts to stammer out an awkward apology for barging in when he knew Alastor was changing, but Alastor cuts him off. With a perfectly pleasant smile that is at odds with the icy look in his eyes, he simply says, 'let's keep this bit of unpleasantness to ourselves, shall we?' and leaves to rejoin the group.

Since Alastor's determined to act like nothing happened, Lucifer goes along with it. Still, he can't quite shake the image out of his head.

(I don't think the scars are canon but who gaf about canon tbh.)

#hazbin hotel #huskerdust #radioapple #chaggie #alastor #lucifer #nunalastor asks #appleradio #radio apple #apple radio #niffty #angel dust #cherri bomb #charlie #vaggie #husk

[chayannesegg]

I think Tallulah is lying to herself when she says she's scared of the new eggs. Not completely, I don't doubt they make her nervous, but I'd bet Sunny and Tubbo are the root of her fear and she doesn't want to admit it.

I'd bet Tallulah doesn't like that she doesn't like Sunny. She wants to like everyone, but she doesn't like Sunny. So it must be because the eggs are new, right? All the new eggs are scary. Because they came from that horrible island. Because we don't know what they want from us. She couldn't possibly dislike Sunny just because she's loud and brave and loved by someone who used to put her first.

We know Tallulah was overwhelmed the first time she met Sunny. Sunny came up and tried to say hello first thing and Tallulah got barely anytime between that introduction and discovering Sunny is Tubbo's kid.

She was overwhelmed that whole time through meeting Em and Sunny, but one of the only times we see her relax is when she's teasing Tubbo about relationships. Because she loves Tubbo; he always works to make her feel seen. Then he leaves immediately off with his daughter.

Then yesterday, we heard Tallulah's concerns re: the new eggs. She also expresses concern over Niki and Tubbo's reaction over her hesistance. Especially Tubbo. She brings up Tubbo the most. While she really loves Niki, they haven't spent that much time together. When Phil left, Niki was supposed to watch Tallulah but instead Tubbo cared for Chay and her by himself. That last week before they left, Tubbo spent the whole time making sure they stayed alive. He comforted her on that last day. He shooed the others away and brought them to uppies and sang Jort Storm!

And then on that island, he stayed by her the whole time in that awful room. Waving and dancing and keeping her attention even when things were confusing and her papi wasn't there and they were in danger.

But now he has a daughter. A daughter he's going to put first, the way he put her first. A daughter she saw with her own eyes who seems louder and cooler and braver than she's ever felt. Where does that leave her? Another person gone from her life? Left behind for something better?

Why would she want to know the egg that's taking someone else from her. An egg her papa says steals and takes and wants. An egg who stole and took and wanted Tubbo. An egg we don't know the background of.

Today I think showed proof of Tallulah's underlying insecurities with regards to Sunny and Tubbo. She was totally fine to ignore Pepito when he woke up. He didn't interact with her, but she stayed in the area. It could just be that he didn't interact with her so it was okay, but that's the point. Pepito isn't trying to take anything from her.

Sunny though? We saw Tallulah get upset and leave at the mere mention of Sunny when she asked about Tubbo's crown. Tubbo who's showing his daughter's ownership love of him at all times. She turned around and left immediately after he said that.

We haven't seen much interaction with Tallulah and the new eggs, for obvious reasons. That said, I bet when we do it'll become clearer that her concern is centred around one egg in particular! And it'll be GREAT angst because Tallulah doesn't want to dislike someone, but she does. What happens when she can't hide behind fear of the other eggs? Or her grounding? What does she do then?

#qsmp #qsmp tallulah #qsmp tubbo #qsmp sunny #if I had to guess where the story leads #I'd say Sunny is going to be increasing jealous of any Tubbo/Tallulah interactions (basically already true) #and Tallulah is going to be protective and jealous of her knowledge of Tubbo as a person #she is very empathetic and was already lasered onto him when he got upset today she noticed immediately #and she could easily conclude Sunny doesn't care enough about Tubbo to notice his pain #even tho Sunny is just a kid who Tubbo wouldn't want concerned about that shit #and Tubbo also wouldn't want Tallulah concerned about it but she's primed to notice anyway #and her insecurity over their relationship will lead to her trying to prove her value #but that's a guess it could easily go another way

[merakiui]

fwb omegaverse leona on the mind.... nrc magishift team wins a game and there's a party at savanaclaw to celebrate. your best friend epel invites you along because it'll be fun (also if he's doomed to be caught by vil at least you'll be there to mitigate him getting chewed out when he sneaks back into pomefiore. T^T)

leona wants no part of it. he doesn't care much for parties or congratulations spoken on repeat, so he holes himself up in his room, intent on sleeping the night away. that aside, the party is lots of fun. there's food and drink. everyone's in a great mood. ruggie pops in to greet you, reminds you to have your fill and more. jack makes a brief appearance before he heads off to bed, determined to sleep at his usual time so he'll be able to get up for his morning run. you and epel are talking in between drinking. what starts as coherent conversation quickly spirals into fits of giggles over the most random things as you drink and drink: "oooh, vil's gonna have mah head if he finds out i'm here boozin' when i ought to be tucked away in bed!" and you laugh at him: "'have your head'? what is he, riddle?"

the two of you get swept up in the festivities and the whirlwind atmosphere. the night is long and loud. you're certain you'll have a horrible hangover come morning, but that's the least of your worries. epel asks you to get him another drink. you stand on wobbling legs, but the one he asked for isn't anywhere to be found in the coolers or on the table or in the spread of bottles. you wonder if there's any in the kitchen. yet for some reason you seem to forget what your task is halfway through because you pass the kitchen and find yourself exploring the halls of savanaclaw.

you're stupidly drunk, stumbling along. climbing the steps. it's when you're on the verge of falling over your own feet when someone's scent hits you head-on. it's so strong it almost shakes you from your inebriated stupor. standing at the end of the hall and leaning against his doorframe, arms folded, is leona kingscholar. and he does not look happy.

that doesn't seem to mean anything to you, for you smile widely at him and wave like a fool. he thinks you're awfully bold for creeping up onto his territory without your wits about you. not the smartest move for an herbivore, but then what was he expecting when you look ready to fall on your ass at any given minute?

to make a long story short, he looks after you. you spend part of the night in leona's room because the last thing he's going to do is send you off when you're so out of it. one thing leads to another and you kiss him because for once he's the one doing the nagging. not that you aren't strong or capable, but you're a drunk omega in a dorm with the highest population of alphas out of the seven (with octavinelle being second and diasomnia being third). of course he's going to worry. in any case, your kiss shuts him up. maybe he's still steeping in the exhilaration of a win. the team played well. he's proud. or maybe he just feels like he ought to do something before you start making a fool of yourself and drawing unnecessary attention.

he holds your face in his hands, tells you not to start something if you aren't going to finish it, and you grin at him, inhibitions abandoned. is that a challenge? if so, you'll gladly play. you kiss a few more times. hands wander. it would've gone further, but then leona catches epel's scent on the stairway, approaching. he hates to be interrupted, but maybe this is for the best. you're not in the right mind.

he brings you back down to the party, epel trailing behind, and a few noses twitch in his direction. people wonder... leona shuts them all up with a stern look. he instructs one of the few betas who hadn't been drinking to escort you and epel back. ruggie offers in his place, knowing it'll get him an extra something off of leona's credit card. leona shoos the lot of you away, content with this arrangement. weirdly, he falls back into bed (which smells faintly of you) and he's kept awake. so much for a good night's rest.

the next time you encounter leona it's in the botanical garden. he perks up at your scent, shaken from his nap. you arrive with a purpose, holding out the sandwich he likes from the cafeteria as a peace offering. leona wasn't expecting much and it takes a lot to truly surprise and impress him, so he's both when you make your bold offer: casual sex. you remember the night of the party. mostly the kissing. actually, that's the clearest memory you have from that night. ;;;; you enjoyed it and wouldn't be opposed to an arrangement like that. on weekends or something... whenever's best. he doesn't have to agree, but you make a tempting offer. who is he to say no?

he takes the sandwich from you, a smirk sprawling lazily on his lips, and he says, "not a bad offer, herbivore. as long as you know what you're gettin' into, i don't mind a little fun."

tl;dr: omegaverse fwb with leona, but feelings sneak up on him. and casual sex starts feeling less and less casual with every moment spent with you.

#meraki mumbles #tw: omegaverse #tw: abo #rsa savanaclaw has me in a chokehold as well... the little bow on leona's tail PLEASE OTL #leona catching feelings and not realizing until the realization startles him like cold water #ruggie: you're doing a lot of things a mate would do with that ramshackle omega... what gives leona? #leona: butt out of it ruggie it's got nothing to do with you #ruggie: whatever you say... :3c (he knows)

[vegasandhishedgehog]

Just a non-comprehensive list of all the things P'Jojo touched on throughout the entirety of The Warp Effect:

The harm of forcing teens to promise absolute abstinence from sex while not providing space for safe and open discussions about it

Some people have a strong sense of their sexuality/gender identity. Others don't

Even guys who seem like good ones can do horrible things and be unaware. They are not required to be forgiven no matter how guilty they feel

Being single by choice is not shameful

Fwb is not shameful either

No one has any right to expect more out of a relationship when you have communicated what you are up for up front

Female friendship is a beautiful, wonderful thing, why would we pit so many bad bitches against each other when they're cooler as friends?

Nonsexual kinks are valid and with the right person can make for a beautiful relationship

There are several methods for pregnancy and it's important to discuss things with your donor (if you've chosen one personally)

Listen to your partner! It is actually possible to be together for a decade and still be unaware of something they like/dislike!

You can be forgiven for being shitty in high school but that is not up to you, it's only up to the person you have wronged

Always know the age of whoever you're talking to so you don't accidentally sleep with a minor

Fatphobia and transphobia have never been cool

Trauma hurts and the journey to work through it is difficult. It's not wrong to want to reconcile with someone and find that you can't. It's not wrong to try to push past it numerous times. It is not your fault someone ruined what should be a good experience for you

Nonsexual intimacy is valid and the right partner will work with you to understand your needs

The choice to have children is a really big one and no it should not be an excuse to keep the relationship together. The choice not to doesn't always have to break it up either

Abortion is a personal matter and should be done safely and legally

STDs have all sorts of origins and are an important matter to address in terms of being polyamorous or even going from one partner to the next. They are also not a reason to feel shame and are simply a matter of getting proper treatment and abstaining from sex while healing. Straight couples can get them, it isn't just a gay stereotype

Anyone can have a romantic relationship and not have sex

Parenting from afar isn't being responsible, but it is still possible to create a relationship with your estranged child

Dick size is nothing to be concerned about - you can find someone who enjoys a sexual relationship with you no matter what

It is so important to see your doctor. If that doctor makes you uncomfortable, though, you should be fine to leave and go somewhere else

Gay does not mean pedophile and it's important for you and your children to know the difference because there are gay teachers and coaches who have enough on their shoulders

Cheating doesn't have to include anything physical if you're seeking pleasure from someone who is not your partner and have not discussed such things with your partner or the person you cheat with

Sex work should not be criminalized and more of us need to standing up for the rights of sex workers

Masturbation is normal and doesn't have to be treated as sad or pathetic

Cishet people can be amazing allies. You can have your group of gays, lesbians, bisexuals, and trans people with a bunch of them included and it can be a fabulous group

Casting agents that don't allow for body and gender diversity don't deserve their job

The show gave us a whole PSA on pelvic exams????? HELP??????

ALWAYS PRACTICE SAFE SEX NO MATTER WHAT YOUR AGE, ORIENTATION, OR IDENTITY IS - ALWAYS HAVE A PROPER DISCUSSION AND STICK TO WHAT EVERYONE CONSENTS TO. ALWAYS

I swear I'm still missing stuff but everything that The Warp Effect said is so special to me

#the warp effect #thai shows #gmmtv #p'jojo

[bunnieshoneys]

china, thoughts

nico rosberg please come to every race im so serious. hes so fucking funny and genuinely incredible to listen to, especially in quali when he was talking through the laps... god i love listening to him so much

sainz... sainz... at the risk of being biased (i dont like sainz very much, lol) i really need him to Stop! im getting a bit sick of him just consistently blaming everything but himself for performance issues and refusing outright to be a team player. Between the comments on the sprint, fighting leclerc way too hard considering it was in a sprint for one (1) point and leclerc was faster (and could have caught perez!) and considering that he was carrying damage there too! no reason to not let your teammate through at that point. then the comments on the grand prix start losing places to russell and implying it was leclerc's fault for defending against him the same way HE did yesterday? god. please. just own up to being slower. charles has had zero issues owning up to his mistakes and low performance in australia and japan (both quali issues caused partially by the DNA of the SF-24), so why can sainz not do it?

as an offshot to this, sainz crashed out in q2 of quali and it was HIS fault and the commentators/pundits have barely mentioned it???? even using it as an excuse to praise the team?? and the bias is insane. i can think of a few drivers who would be ripped to shreds for the same mistake. ultimately it didnt mean anything because he got the car going, but god.

alonso recieving three penalty points for his move on sainz in the sprint (deserved penalty, but very harsh) but stroll and magnussen committing war crimes on ricciardo and tsunoda and only recieving two??? um???? FIA????

ferrari in general was hugely underwhelming and benefitted from a shockingly bad strategy call from AM to go on the soft (alonso on the hard likely wouldve finished above sainz, at least). Mcl also benefitted.

mclaren was a LOT stronger than we thought! but i think this is likely as a result of ferrari looking weaker than expected as well, regardless, lando delivered a great drive and dotd deserved today!! (never trust lando when he says they'll be weak, hes a LIAR!)

ferrari again: seem to only work on the medium tyres right now. they have to be a bit more aggressive or hope for much hotter temps in miami because they've gone so far on the tyre deg that they can't heat the tyres or get them into the correct performance window particularly in cooler conditions

piastri has struggled all weekend with tyre deg and i still believe this is why norris is clearing him, but !! piastri was carrying SIGNIFICANT damage after the safety car incident involving RIC/PIA/ALO/STR, so he did a decent job limiting damage. he stayed incredibly calm and composed. great drive from him.

speaking of damage control, hamilton recovered very, very well. p18 to p9 isn't bad, and considering russell was only p6, probably not far off what he could've managed with a "normal" quali, so...eh. not where merc wanna be, but maybe if they wanna be higher they could build a better car /j

RB got SHAFTED today holy shit, and ricciardo was on to score points too... yikes. pretty costly but neither driver was at fault even remotely.

STROLL??? LOOK WHERE YOU'RE GOING? fucks sake man

hulkenberg points in a haas what the hell is a polar bear doing in arkansas texas (he defo deserves that chance at audi, he's criminally underrated, shitbox whisperer)

williams... im looking at you.. score points...

verstappen dunking like twenty seconds on his teammate..... bro

off track helmut marko did NOT stop yapping about sainz exposing all his contract talks LMAOO apparently RB do not want him for the money he wants, which after this weekend i can see why. hes horrible at being a no2 driver

anyway. onto miami. need a charles leclerc front row start or ill die from withdrawals. also desperately need imola to be HERE

things to look for in miami:

logan home race!

mclaren bringing upgrades

i think ferrari might be bringin some very minor things also

peace out bye

#bunny talks f1

[magicalgirlsuggestions]

Do you think YuYuYu is ableist?

IMO, i think the concept of having your disability magically cure isn't that bad, and some (not all, just some) disabilities can indeed be like a curse (like chronic pain).

I don't get why some just badly hate its ending where the girls gain back what they lost; the show isn't perfect (*cough* sexualizing minors *cough*) but the healing of their disabilities shouldn't be counted as one of the flaws.

Many people can live with their disabilities, but others suffered from theirs, how come wanting to cure your disability is seen as ableist?

I totally understand what you mean, Nonnie. Though, I feel like the specific problem isn't that the characters were healed, but rather everything with Tougo.

Because at the beginning of the show before we know anything about mankai or the sange, Tougo is in a wheelchair. It's a fairly respectful depiction too! The chair lift at school, how she moves around and all that. The fact she's a member of the main cast and gets to fight along side the others is even cooler!

But then we learn "oh, she wasn't actually disabled! it was because of mankai!" and at the end of the first season, she doesn't need a wheelchair anymore. So we start out with amazing representation done in a respectful manner, only to end with that representation being erased.

Something I said in my review of the series (which you should watch :3c) is that yes, not being able to walk sucks and being disabled is not fun. But at the same time, it doesn't have to always be so bad.

For instance! I have food allergies. Peanuts, tree nuts, and milk can and will kill me. That is something I have struggled and lived in fear of my whole life. Whenever I see even a minor instance of a character saying "oh I'm allergic to that" I feel a bit excited because I am seeing an aspect of my personal life reflected back at me. An aspect of my life that often gets ignored or forgotten by others.

So if a character was like, idk CURSED with food allergies or something, and they spent their whole arc searching for a cure or lamenting about how horrible and agonizing it is to live with these limitations! Idk man I'd feel pretty bad.

It is a complicated issue that warrants further discussion. I know that the writers and animators behind the story put the utmost effort into respectfully and realistically portraying Tougo's disability, and they did an amazing job. It just sucks that the effort is no longer needed after season 1.

Not to mention, but Tougo losing her Doc-Ock ribbon stilts is just objectively a less interesting character design choice. All the girls can jump around and run, but Tougo's movements in season one were unique and super fun! So it sucks that it was lost moving forward.

Again, I recommend watching my review because I go into a bit more detail on my personal feelings of the matter (around 20:34 is the timestamp). It is a very nuanced topic that deserves further discussion.

#ask #anonymous #mod post

[fantastictrashpolice]

hi. you never told me all of this!! and i honestly don't know what to say, because feeling like you exist, like you're valued as a person is one of the hardest things in the world. most people take others for granted which is shitty and horrible and undermining D: please know that i love all your interests and having more, or fluctuating between them is literally what makes you cooler! i would love to hear about anything you're obsessed with, and i would love to hear about your writing too!! what inspires you? tell me about your ocs! and what kind of music do you like? (ok i just skipped from subject to subject there, and did you know!there's a french phrase for that- "sauter du coq à l'âne", which literally translates to "to jump from rooster to donkey"! isn't that interesting?) which countries do you like? what's your dream aesthetic, or just. your dreams in general!! please don't put yourself down, i love your blog, your aesthetic, and you're amazing and beautiful. you ARE cool. i wouldn't be able to keep up with all your interests never in my life. also unrelated but being described as the "absolute chaotic academia masterpiece". but back to the subject. maybe you need to make a change in your life? i mean i think you're doing perfectly! maybe you need some different frens :3. idk. but please just know that i love it when you interact with my posts and i think you're really interesting and complex. and i want to get to know you <3333 anyway here's some tea ☕ and cookie 🍪 🍪 🍪

Thank you for such an amazing ask!!!!!

(I ferociously devour the cookies, then take a very long slow sip of the tea)

To answer your questions in order:

I'm inspired by music, fanfiction, and whatever random thing I can think of that would make a vaguely entertaining story.

Right now I've got one major OC and another OC in development. The finished OC is (currently) named Professor Eden, who's a burnt-out researcher who keeps rats in his apartment. The in-development OC is a rat who lives in Professor Eden's apartment and is probably the protagonist of the story. Oh, and there might be a rat god involved.

I like fan songs, punk, and songs from musicals. Plus a bunch of songs that fall into other categories like indie, pop, or... I'm not even really sure.

I don't really have a favorite country, but I've always thought the UK was cool! (...mostly because of Doctor Who.) ...I just realized you're French... You know what, forget I said the UK is cool- what I'm trying to say is that Doctor Who is cool.

My dream aesthetic is either goblincore or dark academia.

My biggest dream in general is to become a published author- or better yet, to become a published author with a devoted and respectful internet following :3

As you can see, you're in good company because I also tend to jump from rooster to donkey. Thank you for the kind words and excuse to rant!

#long post #writers of tumblr #writeblr #ocs #writing #wip-ratgod

[egg-emperor]

Last I checked, William isn't causing world-ending atrocities everywhere he goes. Nor as vastly.

If it was new fans saying that, that'd be one thing. But somehow, Frontiers somehow managed to make over 50% of the fanbase forget stuff like Gamma, Emerl, and even Metal a few time. (There's literally an official animation of Eggman abandoning Metal for months and only took him because Amy returned him. Then the doctor proceeds to use him as a footstool.)

Just because Eggman is nice to Sage [so far], it doesn't erase what he did or could do to other creations in the future. Including her.

Yeah like I love William Afton too and the comparison is fun, that's why it bothers me to see him putting against a misinterpretation of Eggman that inaccurately presents him in a way that downplays and softens him, to try to say William is worse and more dangerous. It's way cooler to look at them accurately. He hasn't surpassed any limits of Eggman's (he doesn't have any aside from the world he wants to rule being completely destroyed so the Eggman Empire can't even exist), he's been stuffing small creatures into robots and trying to kill kids decades before William was created, he's like the blueprint lol

People aren't realizing that the comparison is way more fun when understanding they're both terrible people and incredibly alike in many more ways! But ultimately when it comes to who is most dangerous, it's factually Eggman for his way bigger target of the entire planet, his reach with multiple globally devastating destructive atrocities he's caused that has realistically wiped out thousands, and how he seeks to own and control the entire planet and make everyone his slaves and will kill anyone who gets in his way and won't submit to the empire.

I don't blame Frontiers itself for why people are saying Eggman is the better person, it's the misinterpretations that's making people think he's soft and believe he has being a good father over William because he really doesn't. In fact, Frontiers is just what makes Eggman a father at all and a bad one at that with the real canon dynamic with Sage + how he's treated all his other creations terribly such as Metal Sonic, E Series, Orbot and Cubot, etc, which are now like his kids too as he entertained her wanting them to be her siblings- giving him yet another thing in common with William. XD

Sage is already trapped in the situation of being the favorite child for appealing to Eggman's selfish desires and ego, so there's the pressure to live up to high standards of perfection as he gets pissed the second she does anything he doesn't like but highly praises her the next when she does exactly what he wants in a way he approves, which is manipulative. Then there's how he takes out his anger in direct verbal and physical ways with his other creations which is bad for them and Sage to be around. It's a toxic environment to be in, they're only valued for as long as they're loyal and useful.

so Eggman 🤝 William - harming small creatures and shoving them into robots, killing children, and being bad fathers lol. him being a father doesn't make him nicer and softer than William at all because he's a bad one too, it actually just gives them yet another thing in common with how terrible they are! and I love horrible insane murderous middle aged dilfs so this is an absolute win lol

#asks #dr eggman #eggman #dr robotnik #dr. eggman #my post #five nights at freddy's #fnaf #william afton

[negative-speedforce]

Superpower Asks for Siv, Jessi, and Kyle please!

2, 5, 16, 22, 24, 37, and 48?

2. How often is your character underestimated?

Siv: Near constantly. Siv's a fairly physically small person, and because they tend to wear baggy clothes that hide their musculature, people often assume they won't be able to fight back when attacked.

Jessi: Constantly. Jessi's powers are completely unknown, and anyone who figures them out will just get hypnotized into forgetting about them, so most people don't even know that she's basically a mob boss.

Kyle: Not that often. Even without his powers, he's still over 6' and built like a quarterback (which he was). He tends to intimidate people, albeit unintentionally.

5. Under what circumstances would your character willingly give up their powers?

Siv: As long as Eobard was dead, pretty much any. Siv isn't exactly fond of their abilities, since they tend to cause more harm than good for herself and others.

Jessi: If it benefitted her in the long run, sure. More money, more power, more fame, etc. Otherwise, it's not going to happen.

Kyle: While his powers are really more of an inconvenience than anything else, he loves what he's able to do with them, so he probably would only give them up for the greater good. Like if a supervillain said he had to give them up or the city would be destroyed.

16. Who is your character most likely to turn to for guidance?

Siv: Probably Jay or Ember. Before finding out he was a murderous psycho, she would have turned to Eobard, but that didn't exactly work out.

Jessi: Doesn't really believe she needs guidance. I mean, she has her PR manager and her agent, but that's about it. Otherwise, she prefers to just do what she wants and let her legal team take care of the rest.

Kyle: His family. He's still pretty close to his parents, even though they still haven't really gotten their heads around him being gay, they're at least trying.

22. How would your character’s civilian self speak about their supersona?

Siv: Would make the Dark Streak sound like way less of a loser than she actually is, and would defend the name to the end, despite picking it on a whim while panicking because people were asking for their name and she hadn't picked one yet.

Jessi: Would say that Sonata was a horrible person who should be in jail and publicly condemn her actions, despite quite literally being her.

Kyle: Would talk about Blackout like he was a super chill guy, like a friend that he knows. He'd probably make Blackout sound way cooler than Kyle himself actually is.

24. How would your character feel about someone trying to impersonate them?

Siv: Probably would kill them outright. Siv already walks a fragile line between good and evil, and anyone trying to push the scale either way is just going to ruin their image and get in the way.

Jessi: Would roll her eyes. Jessi already has to deal with cover bands, tribute bands, whatever, especially unlicenced ones that her legal team has to go after, so it wouldn't be that big of a deal to her.

Kyle: He'd be really concerned. After all, he's not really one of the big league superheroes, and he's not really much of a superhero in the traditional sense either, just a guy trying to do the right thing with his powers.

37. What are your character’s views about others in their field?

Siv: Hates them all. They all want to kill her or throw her in a cell, regardless of moral alignment, since they've backstabbed basically all of them.

Jessi: Thinks she's above them. They're all a bunch of stick-up-their-butts wussies that are too afraid to play dirty to be as much of a girlboss as she is.

Kyle: Tolerates them, but sometimes they cause more harm than good by creating a lot of collateral damage that smaller heroes like himself have to clean up.

48. What kind of merchandise would best suit your character if they had to get branded?

Siv: Energy drinks. Both with the whole speedster thing and the fact that Siv is the most ADHD person on the planet, something designed to make people skittery would be perfect for Siv.

Jessi: Tee shirts. She's got an extremely iconic image, and she's a highly successful international pop star, so her face would be perfect for tees for her fans to wear.

Kyle: Self-defense stuff, like tasers and pepperspray and stuff. In his line of work, he knows a lot about that kind of stuff, so he'd be great to endorse them.

#ask revan #oc shit #practically-an-x-man #jessi juno #siv thawne #oc: kyle spencer

[thegeminisage]

time for a star trek update. sunday we watched ds9's "dax" and tng's "tapestry," and last night* we watched ds9's "the passenger"

*times changed as always i am actually typing this up at 1am and scheduling it to go up later

dax (ds9):

i feel like we sorely needed this episode bc we havent gotten much out of dax yet, except for how she (he? to refer to the old one right) and sisko fucked twins together or something (and good for them)

i like the ethical questions it presents. IS jadzia responsible for crimes curzon committed? she both is and isn't the same person, but who she is can't be split down the middle, so how can you be fair to both halves?

WWWILD that people fight for the honor of being possessed by a worm. i think that sounds horrible. not everyone has to agree with me, of course

i like whatever sisko and dax have going on. "you used to be way older than me and my father figure and we fucked twins one time but now you're a SUPER hot young woman who i both know very well and also don't know at all and one time you touched my face oh So gently." like, what the hell was that, firstly, and secondly, he can't even decide if he's attracted to her or not. the upshot of it all being that if jadzia was only jadzia she would, hilariously, be way too young for him

kira didn't have much screentime in this episode but i like when she and sisko instantly and nonverbally worked out that she was gonna be a shit about bureaucracy simply to get dax's ass out of the frying pan. and she smiled the whole time she did it!! i love i love i LOVE that she smiles when she's angry. one hundo percent my fav thing about her

they didn't exactly answer any of the questions they set up in this episode bc dax got off on a technicality (didn't do the murder) but i kind of like it better that way. like, you really CAN'T answer where dax ends and jadzia begins, that's the point of it. if i was ranking ds9 characters from most to least favorite (adn trust me i WILL get to that), dax would probably be near be near the bottom, not bc i don't like her but because usually she's very closed off and not interesting, but this was fascinating af. good for her

tapestry (tng):

this episode fucking sucked ass

firstly, q didn't add anything to this episode. like he didn't save picard from danger, or affect change in any way whatsoever. picard coded but lived. that's the exact same thing that would have happened had q not interfered. so what did he even do that for? normally he gives a reason even if it is a bad one but this time it's ???

way too few moments of q wanting desperately to fuck picard while picard wants desperately to be away from him bc he a wretched little man. i bet he watched picard fuck that girl though

which by the way is sooo weird. she's too young to be kissing sir patrick stewart, love and light

the story picard told about getting stabbed to wesley was actually one of the cooler moments of that episode, but seeing it acted out, especially by the actor who played young picard, made it...less cool. sir patrick stewart did a better job because he's sir patrick stewart, but i was so done with the episode by the time we got there that i didn't care

what was the message of this episode exactly? it's dumb to have regrets? you should always get into bar brawls that can kill you and you're a bad friend if you don't do it? don't attempt to initiate a romantic relationship with a girl you've been crushing on who has stated that she likes you back? picard's like "hey maybe we shouldn't provoke these guys who can kill us over a fucking game" and suddenly everyone in his life thinks he's a bad person?? like he was afraid for his life and his friend was just bulldozing over all his concerns THAT GUY is a bad person. not picard?? for once??

johnny nickname stupid. actually picard's whole younger self persona sucks. it's like what society thinks captain kirk was, because of KIRK DRIFT. he's a caricature. and old present day picard is a pussy who never leaves the ship and told worf to kill himself?? is there no middle ground???

oh yeah and isn't it a little insulting to be like...my god, this LOSER who carries around papers all day and does nothing else, this life is a fate worse than death! it's better to be DEAD than in a body of a low ranking science officer. If You Don't Get Stabbed In Bar Fights No One Will Ever Notice You You Will Never Be Offered Opportunities

like sorry who did they think watched star trek...surely not people with day jobs which involved carrying papers to superiors

at least we have dom jot. it look sooooo fun i was utterly captivated by it i wanna play it in REAL LIFE

anyway. bad episodes when we not only don't have the side characters doing nothing but they straight up arent even here. SIGH. i want tng to be good so bad please please please let the next ones be good

the passenger (ds9):

HELLOOOOOO this one served SOOO much cunt. like, first of all, i want that twink obliterated

it's increasingly funny to be watching julian get shot down by dax. it's like the vibe q and picard have but more grounded and less horrible. and you can tell she really likes him but not Like That, more like a "aww this is my pet twink who keeps hitting on me hes so funny" kind of way. she thinks he's adorable but wouldn't fuck him.

I HOPE. i'll be crushed if he has any romantic entanglements because i want to exclusively imagine him with garak but also because whatever he has going on with jadzia is really funny

also, whatever speech he was making to kira in the shuttle about how fucking great he is when this is his first field assignment. he is so unwell and also funny. her giving up in sheer incredulity and playing along for the bit because he's so stupid you can't even be insulted was like. really good.

odo my beloved...he was really autistic in this episode. he was like, i need to know exactly what my duties are and who's in charge and know that i won't be undermined here. considering the xenophobia he's dealt with i absolutely get it. AND!!! he gave that annoying yellowshirt guy full credit where it was due even though he was being annoying and a big meanie earlier. i loved also that sisko was straight with him, said he liked him, AND!!! stood up for him behind his back. picard never supports his people like this he's too busy telling worf to kill himself ro whatever it is that he does

i also like, of course, all that he has going on with quark. "i'm always watching him" or whatever he said. so true. not to be space racist, but if you'd told me before i watched ds9 i'd have so much fun with the ferengi i'd have thought you were out of your fucking mind

anyway, i haven't decided if anyone in ds9 is my specialest little princess yet but odo, sisko, and kira are currently my top contenders.

oh, speaking of that annoying yellowshirt guy, i was SOOO sure the bad guy had jumped in him bc of his personality transplant but he really did just get his act together and the bad guy was in bashir instead. LOVED that twist bc star trek so rarely manages to trick me, but also i solved it ahead of time because of Clues so i got to feel tricked AND feel smart

the guy who plays julian certainly did act. in those scenes. he opened his mouth so wide to enunciate. he spoke so slowly. it was so fucking hilarious

i like when he got back and he was like it's me, don't shoot! they shot his ass anyway. i literally want that twink obliterated

anyway 9/10 great episode the only thing i missed was o'brien

NEXT TIME: tng's "birthright," parts i & ii, hopefully at the same time lol

#personal #star trek blogging #ds9 lb #tng lb #i will be at work when this goes up!

[cheeto-flavoured-pasta]

WIP Excerpt

Here's a random snippet from my current WIP, Don't Leave, aka DL (yes, I'm too lazy to work on the other one I was obsessing over for this whole week).

Word Count: 1, 376 words.

NOTE: This is an excerpt from the first draft, so things are still subject to change.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

My head lifts up, hair strands warm in the hot sun. I raise a hand and squint an eye, only to see what seems like a cluster of small gray buildings on my far, far left. Is that a flamy landmark towering above the house? It sure seems so. Although I'm viewing the settlement from miles away, I already have this twisting feeling in my chest about it. 

That place looks like no good.

  But still, I want a small peek. A little spy mission, if you will. There's a cliff and boulders near the village, so I have something to hide behind. And if I ever find myself endangered in the village, I can book it out immediately.

Swallowing with steely resolve, I shift my direction and start walking towards the cliff near the settlement. 

My feet burn, the weather isn't getting any cooler, and walking takes an hour — breaks included. I'm going to run out of food at this rate. I've already eaten all my bread before it got spoiled, and as for the fruit, well… it's the same fate for them.

If there's anything to take away from today, it's that I'm horrible at conserving things in situations like these. And that will likely be the death of me.

But still, I get to the strange town, tired and sweaty. I reach the cliff with all the rocks, near the village with cobblestone houses and wooden roofs. My eyes haven't scanned the citizens yet.

I exhale shakily, grab my spear, and set down the sack near the largest boulder here. Chanting and chatter can be heard in the distance, and… I can't even tell if it's friendly or intimidating. It just sounds dull and monotone. This entire village is dull and monotone. I slowly peer out from the boulder and lean forward to get a better view. 

Oh dear...

It's the masked people again. They walk around the dirt paths as if they own the place — which, well, they likely do, but that's not good news for me. My adrenaline spikes along with my heartbeat, and I breathe deeply, sidling behind the boulder again.

Never mind this then. It's most definitely time to leave the place. 

"GET. BACK. HERE."

A scream instantly rips from my throat at the menacing voice that booms through the air, and I clap a hand over my mouth to silence myself. Swiveling on my heel, I peek to see a girl with long brown hair and a mask on her face darting down the village pathway and leaping over the metal-wired, purple-glowing barrier around the roads. 

Wait, that's not any girl.

It's —

"June!" I whisper-shout, grabbing my sack and darting away from the boulder and running alongside the cliff. 

She's taking the same route as me, and when her head turns, she waves. How the hell did she get that mask? Wait, has she been part of this dangerous masked the whole time? But, no, that's impossible. 

So how…?

"Kaguya!" her voice booms in my ear, almost making me trip. How'd she get so close so fast?

June grabs my arm and pulls me along even faster, the wind rushing in my hair as I stumble over my own feet. Through the grass we run — we run and run and run all the way until we reach a giant cave on a small, hill-like mound. My friend drags me behind the cave and crouches low. Just as I'm about to speak, she places a finger over her lips.

I look down from the mound. There's a ring of of giant boulders surrounding us in a perfect circle at the bottom. I suppose it makes for good protection, but I still don't feel entirely safe.

Three masked figures dart across the grass, and the sight sends bolts of fear stabbing right through my chest. But they don't notice me or June, no. They keep running forward, exclaiming, "They went that way!" 

If this wasn't so damn scary, I would laugh at how idiotic they are.

"Kaguya," June whispers. "What are you doing here?"

"I could ask you the same dang thing," I retort. "Why are you wearing those people's clothes? Are… are you part of them now?"

She shakes her head calmly. "I was only trying to fit in with the village folk and gain information by listening to them."

"Oh, thank heavens." I sigh of relief. "What did you find out about them? All I know is that these Mask People are scary as all hell. One almost tried to kill me last night."

June's eyebrows shoot up momentarily. "How… How did you get out alive?"

"I have no clue."

"The Possessors are able to control people whenever they please, and nobody is immune to their dark magic. Did they possess you, Kaguya?"

I cock a brow. Possessors? Dark magic? What?

"No, no. They didn't possess me. Also, is that what they're called? 'Possessors?'"

June nods. "Precisely. But why wouldn't they control you? Did they not use magic on you?"

"I… I think they did. They shot huge dark spheres and beams that hurt terribly. But they didn't possess me." My stomach starts to churn with dread. "I didn't even know that was a possibility…"

"The dark spheres are what they use to possess others. So they did try to possess you. And it should have worked, but why didn't it?" June scratches her chin. "It doesn't make sense…"

"Do you want me to get possessed?" I frown. "Also, how long have you been in this village to know this much about the people there?"

June drums her fingers on the grass. "Well, I've been at this village for over a day now, which isn't long, but I've been trying listened in on as many conversations as I possibly can to gain a lot of informaton. The only risk to that is being found out that I don't have dark magic."

"Why is that a risk? I mean, I already have an idea why, but…"

"Apparenlty all Bayholdens do not have dark magic; only those who are Possessors do. And it appears that these Possessors are very aggressive towards Bayholdens, for reasons that I… don't know about. That's why you saw me running back there. Someone had asked me to demonstrate my dark magic abilities, and I couldn't, so they figured out I was from Bayholde and tried to slaughter me."

A chill shot down my spine. 

"So what you're telling me… is that you almost died today because these lunatics found out you were from Bayholde."

"I suppose you could put it that way."

How is her face so blank and calm while she says that? "What?" She tilts her head. "I know saying such a thing is shocking, but I didn't actually die, so I figured it's not bad."

I scramble and scrape through my head for words to say, and eventually, I grab onto the first thought that's been lingering in the back of my mind.

"June, we need to go home."

"Home? Where is that? We haven't found home yet."

"Bayholde!" I snap. "That's our home!"

"It's never felt like a home, and I don't say that because I didn't have a house to live in back there. I came out to the Darkelm in order to find my home — somewhere I can truly feel at peace. I don't consider Bayholde my home, because I was never at peace  there."

"Well, you're not at peace here, either. And I doubt it's safe to spend another night trying to look for a 'home,' because there's a high chance you could get killed, or you could get possessed and kill me under a Possessor's control — or both! It's not worth it."

June raises a brow. "Were you not the one who rambled on about escaping Bayholde for years? Why the sudden switch-up?"

"Because — because —" I break off into a sigh. "Because I thought I'd find freedom out here, and that the Darkelm wasn't as bad as the Elders always said it was. But I think I was wrong."

I bury my face in my hands, shame overtaking me in the form of a sunken heart.

"I think I was really wrong, June."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Note that this is still a first draft of the book, so things can still be subject to change. I'm not sure where I'll put this up yet -- my only current writing platform is Penana.com, but I only have APS on there as a 'test' to polish up my writing skills (also that site is deteriorating, just a bit) I'll have to figure out the platform I'll post DL on later, I guess.

*Also if you don't know the premise of DL, it's briefly explained at some point in this post. I've yet to do a proper WIP intro for it, but it's coming soon.*

#wip excerpt #writeblr #writing excerpt #am writing #writing community

[zombeebunnie]

This is actually a very good question that took me a lot of time to work on and think about so I could give the best and most transparent answer without spoiling anything and give the player(MC) an idea of the area they're in when it comes to the game.

From Noah's perspective, even though he deals with a lot of rainy weather he actually enjoys it because the sound of it really helps him sleep and he likes the smell of the rainy air. To an extent, he does have moments where he misses the sun/moon peeking through especially at night. He'll take some time out to enjoy it while he can if he has the energy to do so but the area he stays in tends to have a lot of fog and dense areas that block a lot out and if he notices this he just won't go outside.

His favorite season is spring! He's slightly more active around this time and enjoys what he can. One of the few things he loves about spring is the animals coming back through the swamp and the surrounding areas as he explores. They remember him and sometimes approach him so he just kind of goes along with it while giving the animals enough space. He'll be in such solitude that he may accidently fall asleep only to wake up hours later to the surrounding animals comforting him or sleeping next to him since they don't see him as a threat. This specific situation happens every now and then but if Noah is gone for too long inside the cabin, they will show up unannounced at his door wanting him to come outside, he eventually caves and spends some time with them until they leave. On top of that a lot of the floral begins to bloom and he'll spend a while just enjoying the scenery and taking it all in, even collecting some to bring back with him. The weather during this time is also not too hot and is cool enough for him to really enjoy it with there being enough days of rain to keep him at ease.

His second favorite or a close tie with spring would be fall! He can get a bit melancholy during this time with everything going away from the animals to the leaves, flowers, etc. What makes up for all of that though is the cooler weather and the colors the forest and swamp change to as it rains. He thinks it's beautiful to watch the leaves fall around especially as the light rays peek through when he looks out the window. When the fog isn't too bad and he has the energy to takes his strolls, he feels warm and comforted. This also gives him a chance to bring out more comfortable blankets and pillows for even better sleep. This is just a fun little addition but before the events of the game, he really loved receiving and buying fall scented gifts and items. Even if it's a thoughtful basket filled with cheap fall scented stuff (candles, soap, etc) he'd accept it with a big smile on his face and use up everything. :]

For winter he's really mixed on how to really feel about it, it's better than summer by a long shot for him but his own personal reasons keep him from really enjoying it. Winter has a bit of what he likes and doesn't like so it's almost like a gamble. It rarely snows where he's at and if it does, it's pretty inconsistent and doesn't last long so he won't be too interested in going outside. At most there will probably be lots of ice and freezing rain, the scenery would look very bleak and almost uncanny. It's not something he'd enjoy unless it's really foggy outside, he would prefer that type of view instead. He would just stay inside and wrap himself up in blankets and find something to do or sleep.

He really does not like the summer, if anything he actually hates it, he'll only tolerate it if it's raining, cloudy, or decently warm. When it's full hot blazing sun with no clouds or fog to keep things cooler, It makes the area humid and horrible so he chooses to stay indoors as much as he possibly can, even if it eventually rains.

#Get to know: Noah #Trembling Essence #game development #male yandere #visual novel #dating sim #itch.io #illustration #yandere #horror game #digital art #drawing #artist on tumblr #survival horror #indie developer #interactive fiction #ask me stuff #ask box #indiegamedev

[traumasurvivorshelpingsurvivors]

Hi, this is not so much a trauma ask rather a idk autism ask? Sensory issues ask!

Idk if I have autism, I will probably see a therapist one day in the further future and tbh it is just too complex for me to feel comfortable even considering self diagnosing.

My sensory issue (amongs others) is, that I have a real issue with all body fluid. It is really effecting my relationship because many sexual activities are impossible. That's actually not what I wanted to talk about. My most day-to-day issue is sweat. I have always hated it, it is very horrible. Though I can't prevent sweating, I have a dog that I need to walk daily, I usually prepare a shower beforehand and then jump right into but even the time before is horrible. Even knowing "I'll shower right away and will put all clothes away" doesn't make it better. I don't mind having sweated. Like, if I overcome the "I am wet" point and am dry and only maybe stinky, that's okay for me. I haven't yet figured with kind of fabric might help, especially in winter with a thicker jacket, I haven't found anything that I don't sweat in.

Another issue is that I need to do sport a lot for my chronic illness. I usually go swimming for obv reasons but that's not always possible and I can't convince myself to do some workout at home (because of sweat) instead and will be in pain as a result.

Do you have any ideas, maybe fabric suggestion, mindgame "convincing myself it isn't actually bad" suggestions, sport suggestions?

It is a daily issue, really.

Hi anon,

I'm sorry you're struggling with this. You're not alone.

Personally I use this, which is a dusting powder. It smells nice and absorbs moisture, as well as leaving skin silky smooth. There are different scents if lavender is not your thing, but also be aware that not every product will be suited to each person. It would be safest to ask your dermatologist before trying, in case you may have a reaction.

I also looked here and saw that Under Armour has something called HeatGear which is sweat-wicking, meaning it absorbs sweat. It says it helps "many athletes stay cooler, drier and lighter when they needed to." That could be something you could try as well.

If anyone else has any suggestions please feel free to share. Otherwise I hope I could help and please let us know if you need anything.

-Bun

#mod bun #trauma talks

[starfoam]

Here's an interesting question: What types of villains are okay with the Mun for Lo to be interacting with? Also, on a side note, how does you manage to balance Lo's abilities if another muse had magical abilities as well or just in general? Since using such abilities can be seen as "godlike" depending on the setting/interactions.

Mmm, that is a good one, Well, here's a couple hard rules:

No real life criminals or any muses who existed (or still exist) as real people who did (or still do) genuine horrible things. Even if the portrayal is fictionalized, the victims are real and I am not okay with using their loss as a vehicle for entertainment.

Sexual assault is a hard no, as are hate crimes. Again, the victims of this stuff are real people, and those aren't subjects I consider acceptable for my magical girl roleplay.

Here's what IS okay: small time or organized (fictionalized) crime, world domination, aliens, monsters, killer robots, really fucking rich dudes with doomsday machines, giant robots, demons, and basically anything else that falls outside of those two hard no categories.

As for interacting with other muses... it comes down to respect. Reading the other person's verse page, figuring out how powerful their muse is within their own universe, and playing off of that. It helps that Lo doesn't want to be a god figure, and actively holds back a lot of the time to mete out what she feels is necessary and little more.

Of course, I expect the same in return; despite her restraint and small size, Lo is the most powerful being in her universe as of right now, and for the foreseeable future. I don't expect her to be worshiped or anything, but it's not fun if I feel like my partner is discounting her strength or using it as a stepping stone to demonstrate how much stronger and cooler their muse is. We're not on the playground anymore and it's not a zero-sum game, we can both be cool and powerful.

Besides, that's what makes crossovers fun, isn't it?

#as for how her magic works in other verses... fuck man idk #I barely know how she got her powers. First it was unown; then five cosmic entities from the dawn of time #now it's a glowing rock from a hole in the ground that disappeared (hole and all) when she came back to it #I'm honestly not that interested in answering the question anymore tbh

[koraesrambles]

The Watchmen

The Great Reading Adventure Part 3!

It's time for the Watchmen, guys and hooooooooboy did I have a lot of expectations going into this one. Buckle up!

The Writing

I took notes the entire time I was reading this. It's only 12 issues long, so I decided to read it in its entirety.

I didn't like the first little bit. Don't get me wrong, I could see the crumbs in there, and I could see why people were drawn to it, but as far as gripping premise that pulls you in, it was a little lackluster to me. There were interesting moments in the beginning, but I didn't really become invested until Issue 9, which is 3/4 of the way through the story.

That said, once these guys gripped me, they GRIPPED ME. Issue 9 was beautiful, by far my favorite issue of the whole thing.

Part of the reasons things were confusing to me was because all of the "good guys" kept being compared to far right wing extremists and Nazis. Like, Rorschach is definitely supposed to become cooler and cooler throughout the books, and be kind of the moral backbone in a lot of ways. But like . . . I dunno. Hard to sympathize with someone who repeatedly got called a Nazi and blamed the dedregation of society on jews and communists. Like, I get it was the 80s, but the people in universe who defended him also defended the KKK. I just . . .I'm not down with that. I can't make myself think he's the good guy.

However, I had no idea that the famous quote "None of you understand. I'm not locked in here with you, you're locked in here with me." Came from the Watchmen. That moment . . . man. It gave me absolute chills. It was excellently built up to and brilliantly executed. I loved it. If I EVER have a moment in my writing career where I hit people as hard as that, I'll have more than achieved my dreams.

I also think that they pretty much nailed the ending. At least the atmosphere and feeling that I think they were going for. That horrible, sick feeling that the day is saved but actually everything is ruined and all it'll take is another day for everything to have been for nothing. It was a powerful ending, I liked it a lot.

That said, I did not like Adrian's solution. Maybe it's because I've lived through Covid, maybe because it's been 40 years since this was written and some tropes have been done more than others, but pretending an alien threat is coming in order to unite the world just . . . I dunno. It didn't hit for me. I didn't feel compelled by it. I get the reasons he did it, I understand what the writer was going for, I even can acknowledge that it does the job. But it felt incredibly lackluster to me, and not worthy of the really fun villain they had made to execute it.

The Art

The art is better than anything I am currently capable of, and I want to acknowledge that first, but also admit I didn't love it. It's ugly, which of course was by design. This is not a pretty story, it's not meant to give you warm and fuzzies. It also very much is in the style of many other comics I've seen from the 80s, which is just one I'm not as fond of. It did the job, but isn't something I'll be combing over looking for ways to emulate it.

The way the panels were laid out was also interesting to me. It was very repetative, just multiple square panels in a row. I imagine that this is also a result of being from the 80s, and as comics evolved so did the many different layouts, but it was kind of comforting to me as well. If it serves the story best to just have four panels in a row exactly the same size and shape to tell your story, by all means do it. I didn't even notice anymore once the story picked up for me.

As far as things I can learn from the art? Perspectives and the use sof perspectives were MASTERFULLY done here. Both with zooming in on specific details or zooming out. How it was used for emphasis. How it made you feel sick when something horrible was being said and something as mundane as the side of a coffee pot was being shown. It was truely masterful. It also helped make long conversations more interesting.

The Characters

This is probably where I have the most thoughts. The characters in this story are INTERESTING, full caps definitely needed. I mentioned in the writing section that it was kind of hard to root for the main characters when they were being compared to Nazis all the time. But over time they did grow to, at the very least, compel me, even if I still didn't "like" them.

My favorite character probably ended up being Laurie, who out of all of them seems to be the least crappy person. Not that she wasn't crappy, but she was at least trying, you know? I also liked her as Jon's tether to humanity. I feel like she was the audience surrogate in a lot of ways.

Jon was extremely fun, but it creeps me out that humans are like ants to him and he was having sex with them? I dunno, maybe it's the ace in me, but I don't understand when things like that happen. I love that he killed Rorschach at the end, I think that was absolutely the right call. I like how they showed us who he was and how he thought, all compelling and interesting.

Rorschach himself could be very cool one minute and a scum bag the next. He's an excellent character, but I'm glad he died. I think I'm supposed to be glad though. I also think he's the most clever of any of the characters. Not the smartest, but the most clever. He dies, but he's the only one who really wins in the end.

Dan was . . . he was fine. He felt like a knock-off batman and was by far the least interesting of all the characters to me personally. He was a good foil for Rorschach AND Laurie. He didn't compel me much though. That said, there was absolutely a lingering hand holding thing between him and Rorschach where i was like . . . "Are they implying something? what's happening here?"

This was after they revealed that two of the old superheroes were gay and a bunch of weird examples of homosexual couples and I just . . . I'm not imagining things here, am I? I thought things were going to go in a very different direction for a second.

Adrian as a character was utterly uninteresting until he was hypercompetant and defeated all of the "good guys" saving the world by essentially doing a really big trolley problem (greater good, and all that.) That said, nothing is sexier than a competant villain. I was on his side by the end, honestly.

The other background characters were all fairly well fleshed out and interesting. A lot of the women ended up being a little 2 dimensional, but every once in a while they'd surprise me. Almost everyone felt like a horrible person, or like they were just waiting to become a horrible person. They were all good characters even if they weren't good people.

Final Thoughts

I could write pages upon pages of analysis on this comic run. Which would probably be me just repeating what people much cooler and smarter than me have already said. I didn't get into the ways it's aged poorly or the homophobia littered throughout it. But, even with flaws, it was absolutely worth the read, if only to understand how it influenced the rest of the comic world. I understand other comics better now because I've read this one.

Concrete things I learned to apply to my own work:

Take advantage of differing perspectives, both to emphasize important background details and as a way to keep the audience engaged during long dialgoue.

If you need to put a few square panels in a row to get your point across, do it. Why fix what ain't broke?

Your characters don't necessarily have to be likeable to be compelling. You can make terrible people still worth reading about.

#Reading analysis #Reading challenge #100 top comic books #the watchmen #the watchmen read through #rorschach #doctor manhattan #nite owl #silk spectre #This was a lot of fun #tedius at the beginning #but I got over it #reading through all these amazing comics has been so much fun