#alexander had a pretty awesome fight

[alucardsathomewife]

Just finished Hellsing Ultimate last night

Spoilers will be in the tags

#hellsing ultimate #alucard #hellsing fandom #bla bla bla making space so people dont see spoilers bla bla bla anyways #WTH WALTER NOOO- #i havent gotten to Dawn yet btw #ngl Hans went to the shadow realm too quickly and his fighting was weird like he was giving obvious clues on how to defeat him- #it was a very neat fight #i got spoiled that the major was a robo bruh so didnt surprise me as much #But Seras pulling that big as heck rocket launcher from the ground very much surprised me #schrödinger pulled a fast one which was pretty clever ngl #he is still very much annoying so luv what integra did walking past him #near the entire end Seras did not get justice for those clips #alucard is so silly #alexander had a pretty awesome fight #i did not see Yumiko death coming #Luke did not get peace during Alucard and Walters fight lmao #had a break down starting ep 9

[jasontoddiefor]

okay so, i realize that's probably not your current fandom, but i'm (once again) in a pjo content binge and i when i checked your pjo tags (Trading Tomorrow fan here) the first post was "no mist au". Which sounds really, really awesome. would you be willing to share some ideas about it or something?

I am always willing to talk about my AUs!!! And I'm glad you like Trading Tomorrow! That fic is still very dear to me!

Right, as the name says, the "no mist AU" is essentially an AU where the mist ceases existing when Percy is still like toddler age and the world is thrown into chaos. We end in some sorta post apocalyptic state where we see the return of the old worship mixed with new ways because demigods are still pretty much the only ones who can kill monsters. But now, well, normal people are praying to the gods as well again.

Some plot points include

Sally taking Percy and running and establishing herself as a person who knows what's up, and more than that, has a kid. She ends running a city alongside the coast as Poseidon's priestess.

The Roman Empire makes a return. Ne Rome adapts quickly to these new circumstances and they do it really well, expanding territory. Thalia and Jason both grow up in New Rome!

On that note, there is kind of a constant power struggle going on between various territories and gods and Kronos is also Awake And Having Some Thoughts

Camp Halfblood is the other big player. I'm not sure which name it'll get but it'll definitely will be renamed. I like New Alexandria (as opposed to New Athen as I've seen in a couple fics) because of Alexander the Great kicking off the Hellenism (just bear with this phrasing I know that's not how history works) and PJO seeming to rely more on late stages of ancient greek history.

But here are plenty of other bigger settlements with their own leader, goals and protections. Though being a demigod guarantees having kind of a higher status in society and people that are/would have been born clear-sighted have a sort of sense for when monsters are near, opposed to normal people.

But yeah, mostly this is post apocalypse meets ancient greek civilization?

And Sally doing everything she can to keep her kid safe and being very badass in turn.

Uuuh take a snippet?

Sally had devoured entire volumes about Greek mythology and the gods’ worship during her pregnancy. She’d never breathed a word of it to Percy, choosing ignorance as protection, but in their changed world, her knowledge needn’t be summoned. It was already there.

“Does anyone have sweets on them or alcohol?” Sally asked.

The people in her group only stared at her in confusion, some even in mistrust.

“It’s important.”

“What are you doing?”

“Prayer,” Sally said. She hadn’t ever been religious, meeting Poseidon hadn’t changed that. But could this really still be religion if she knew it to be truth?

Sally tossed the chocolate bar and the vodka from the flask into the fire.

“To our Lord Poseidon, for protection and safety of this commune.”

Actually take two snippets:

Leo does not like to admit that they might be in trouble, but he’s so nervous he can’t think of a weapon to aid him, never mind focus on making any fire. He glances to the right where Bryce’s body was already cooling, and nearly threw up. The scorpion’s sting had ripped right through his stomach, leaving behind an ugly, revolting wound. Luke is still holding onto his sword, but he can’t even stand properly, never mind fight.

The realization that they are utterly fucked hits like a brick to the face.

He’s survived the end of the world, myth becoming reality and this is what kills him: a regular patrol in an area that should be free of monsters. Leo hadn’t even been scheduled to go on this patrol, only volunteered at the last minute. He’d hoped to impress Luke, maybe see if he could secure permission to move outside the safe perimeters to get more parts to work with.

How stupid, not even their base is truly safe.

With an ugly roar, the scorpion turns around, aiming straight for Leo. Behind it, Luke struggles to get on his feet.

That’s it, Leo’s done for.

He tries to smile so Luke won’t blame himself and maybe do the smart thing and get away. Optimistic last thoughts so that Leo can rest peacefully in the underworld, having died a hero’s death. Phrased like this, dying doesn’t even sound that horrible.

The thought does not make the scorpion look any less terrifying and just when Leo decided to scream, he is cut off.

“Hold this for me.”

Instinctually, Leo holds out his arms and a bag gets dropped into them. The bag is warm and soft and has bright green eyes and oh, gods, that’s a baby.

Leo looks up and there’s a blur of black and blue standing in front of him. His brain is a bit slow on the upkeep, still reeling with the realization that he is holding a baby, and in the seconds it takes him to realize a stranger had come to their aid, the man has already drawn his blade. It’s made from pure celestial bronze, which is enough to make Leo’s jaw go slack. He’s only seen pure celestial bronze or imperial gold only a handful of times. The metals are incredibly scarce and Leo wants to touch that sword right now.

But he can’t.

Because he’s holding a baby and the sword is in its wielder’s hand, who is using it to systematically decimate the scorpion without ever breaking a sweat.

The monster surges up on more time, and the man simply adjust his hold on the sword and drops low, piercing the beast from below.

And just like that, it’s over and the clearing is silent.

#percy jackson #leo valdez #sally jackson #luke castellan #pjo #no mist au #fanfic #ask #anon

[aotopmha]

I did the first two wings of the Pandemonium raid series.

I think Asphodelos is the less interesting wing narratively and more interesting wing gameplay-wise while Abyssos is the more interesting wing narratively, but has the less interesting fights overall.

Out of everything Endwalker did, I've seen the most negativity on the savage version of the Abyssos tier (people seem to *hate* P7S) and I think looking at the normals, I actually was disappointed by P7N because it looked so unique in terms of the arena in any footage I saw of it and in the end that unique arena didn't seem to end up mattering at all on a gameplay level.

I think P6N and P7N both felt underwhelming, really, but P8N wasn't far behind, either.

All three kind of were just really basic AoE dodging fights and felt strangely incomplete.

It's really wierd.

It felt like I was back doing some of the Alexander stuff, where some bosses just sort of fell over. And Omega and Eden didn't really have any of those in my eyes.

I say this because I think P5N is a really cool, complete-feeling fight with a strong identity: the use of shields on the quadrants, a cool transition, neat dodging.

P1-P4 are all also pretty neat. P1 had the crystals and triangle-dodging, P2 the sewers and head and body, P3 is probably the weakest, but it still at least had the phoenix stuff even if it was from other fights and P4 had the elemental effects with Pinax and the whole theater theme.

It's so wierd to feel underwhelmed by fights like this cause technically P6-P8 had their own thing going, P7 had that really cool arena, P6 had the snake debuff, P8 the transformations.

I think it actually are the dreaded massive hitboxes (which is another thing people seem to be annoyed about) that make it underwhelming because you can basically hit the boss from anywhere, so, as I said, that cool arena in P7 doesn't really matter because you can hit the boss from basically anywhere, so you don't have to think about positioning much and in turn hitting the boss doesn't feel as satisfying.

But as I said, all of them also feel wierdly incomplete. I feel like P8 suffers from this the most because it's the final fight and I feel it just kind of "ends". P4N feel like a very complete end, with mechanics gradually complicating, but P8 never seemed to do that.

It feels like all of them needed more time in the oven, so to speak, which is so interesting because it's really rare I've felt like this about a piece of content in this game.

I want to run them a few more times, to think about this issue a little bit more.

But to talk about the story a little bit, I really like the theme of burying your problems and the negative feelings within you that is developed throughout it.

Lahabrea's arc is entirely about him burying his issues in the most literal way you can think of: he cuts the bad stuff out of himself and seals it away and the embodiment of all of those parts, which also has festered on its own for a while, comes back to cause him and everyone else around him issues.

It's such a good alternative exploration and elaboration of the ancients' tendency to not address their issues, particularly anything emotional. In particular, I think the narrative is a really good companion' to Hermes' and his frustrations with the society of the ancients.

And it all ends with Lahabrea confronting the embodiment of all of the negative, unhealthy feelings within him and then finally opening up to his son and being direct and honest with him.

Awesome!

Except Pandemonium is now in the Aetherial Sea in the present.

I love that our actions actually had a negative effect this time around.

And I love that you can actually see it when you go down into the Atiascope.

It's such a good cliffhanger because it opens up so many possibilities and thus a whole bunch of speculation opportunity.

#Final Fantasy XIV #Final Fantasy 14 #FFXIV #FF14 #FF #Final Fantasy #Endwalker #EW #Pandemonium

[moonmoonthecrabking]

another rtc eurovision post (i'm so sorry for my brainrot y'all) with me associating a song for each character

fair warning, this is *LONG*, so i'd suggest scrolling past if you don't really like long posts :)

i don't think that anyone pre-canon would've watched it but, you know, post-canon everyone lives au, afterlife, take your pick either works!!!

mischa: as previously stated, stefania by kalush orchestra (ukraine 2022) is his top of all time. wikipedia describes its genre as "alternative hip hop and folk" which is basically this song is awesome/talia. it being a tribute to the frontman's mother also deeply resonates with him, missing his own mother. other favourites include soldi (italy 2019), dark side (finland 2021), lie to me (czech republic 2018) and kuula (estonia 2012) because... in addition he loves everything ukraine's sent (aside from 2012. imagine being able to have pride and audience support for practically every entry from your country). he just finds so much enjoyment and nostalgia in it (ie me projecting onto my fave). he was so surprised when noel knew about it and that he had a buddy in this uranium hellhole to chat about it. has a crush on alexander rybak (norway 2009) and chanel (spain 2022). he still does not realise he is bisexual. he starts a betting pool with the choir for each new contest (and all the ones only he and noel have seen. the two get sad at first that they can't participate with those ones, but then decide to fuck with them)

noel: his winner of 2022 was in corpore sano (serbia) for The Drama and The Art, but he also supported fulenn because france (the man was so disappointed when they got second last). his all time favourite is l'enfer et moi (france 2013), because frenchwoman singing about how she would make her ex's life hell meant that he could graft on his dreams to that. because he's canadian i don't think he grew up with it like mischa, i think that he went down a youtube rabbithole when the march he turned 14 somehow or other and fell in love. he loves all the songs like n'oubliez pas (france 2015), voila (france 2019), tout l'univers (switzerland 2019), and bonds with mischa over zitti e buoni (italy 2021 who am i kidding everyone knows måneskin, thanks to @curious-georg for that idea!!!). sometimes he puts on playlists of the earlier competitions while he's studying to imagine a morning in france. has a crush on half the male entrants.

i haven't thought through how the rest of the choir gets exposed to it because it's pretty much a "after canon once they're friends, wherever they are, au or not i don't know". but basically i have a feeling that one time on movie night it's mischa's turn and he brings along the 2021 contest (because it's one of the best of the most recent and the hosts are so good) and noel goes BATSHIT and everyone else is just like "hey... what?? this is four hours long" and then it starts and they end up really enjoying it, with them going through all the contests (sometimes on mischa's night, sometimes on noel's, a couple for constance's too) and watching them live (because i said so)

ricky: they love the entries that are just a lil quirky. a lil different. their favourite from 2022 was eat your salad (latvia), mainly because the audience *screamed* out "PUSSY" to fight the censors (eurovision is a family friendly competition). the peak songs for them were at the start of semi 1 and then it all went downhill from there. and their goat? space (montenegro 2017). if you haven't seen that video, bestie, you should. they really do watch it for the memes, epic sax guy (run away aka moldova 2010), anti-crisis girl (ukraine 2009), "but in the end, they didn't" (the 2019 host talking to that year's cypriot contestant about cyprus coming in second in 2018).

constance: her 2022 winners were not the same (australia) and i am what i am (malta) because she loves the expression of the internal self and hearing peoples' emotions through the melodies. her all time favourites are monsters (finland 2018) and cry no more (netherlands 2017) because of how both are personal, one is upbeat in its self-empowerment, while the other is about familial love and support. she relates to and desires both. otherwise, anything with a gay kiss. she screamed at the full-on makeout session that occurred during this time (lithuania 2015). and marry me (finland 2013) made her VERY happy for that kiss at the end. even then, it takes her a while to realise she is Not Straight.

ocean: her 2022 winner was hold me closer (sweden), then river (poland) because it genuinely moved her, then die together (greece). she hates I.M (israel) with a burning passion, and everyone except her sees the irony in that. from other years she loves last dance (greece 2021), only teardrops (denmark 2013), popular (sweden 2011), lipstick (ireland 2011) and euphoria (sweden 2012). she has a spreadsheet ranking her placements for each year they watch, as well as the rest of the choir, and uses that to predict the results of the betting pool mischa started. sweden and greece are in her top five every year. she put if i were sorry as her first place when they were watching the 2016 edition and mischa refuses to talk to her for the rest of the night (this one actually isn't me projecting i just think it'd be funny).

penny/jane: because this idea isn't super-solidified, and her character isn't either, it's hard to know. i think that she's a menace and loves the voice cracks and mistakes (i feel bad if i direct people to certain entries for that!!! but if you know, you Know). the best guess i have is that her favourite 2022 entry is miss you (belgium) because of the religious allegory and shifting genres (like in the ballad of jane doe), but i will take suggestions!!

this was a really long post, thanks for sticking around if you got this far!

#long post #i'm not kidding this is a mammoth #rtc #ride the cyclone #eurovision headcanon #mischa bachinski #noel gruber #ricky potts #i wrote in they/them for ricky bc some people hc them as fem some as masc so i thought that would be the clearest of the options available #constance blackwood #ocean o'connell rosenberg #penny lamb #i am so sorry #i understand that not everyone has the same Passions about eurovision and/or rtc as i do #hope you're at least entertained!!! :) #add your opinions and hcs if you have any!!! i'd love to hear them

[aceouttatime]

5, 9, 18, 19

Four different asks? Hell yeah!

(5. What’s your favorite size trope?) Oh, this is a difficult question--there are so many that I enjoy to bits! Overcoming adversity/fighting for equality and respect is definitely one of my favorites (ex., anything by @ratcatcher0325). I also love gentle giants, tinies that are far too smart for their own good, and good old hurt/comfort. G/t whump is always a good one, as well as the whole 'stranger in a strange land' trope (foaming at the mouth like a rabid dog over giant aliens). Finally, accidental/forced shrinking is so, so good. I live for angst. Apologies that these are in no order whatsoever XD

(9. What’s your favorite piece of sizey media?) For film, I have to go with Epic--I love the artistic detail and worldbuilding in that movie, especially considering it was geared more toward kids! Great pacing and loveable characters. What else could I ask for (other than a sequel *cough cough*)? I also love Arietty--Studio Ghibli movies are such comfort movies for me! As far as writing goes, I have a few different authors on Tumblr that have really lovely work! I’ll answer that in just a moment!

(18. Any favorite g/t content creators? People you wanna hype up?) HELL YEAH! I apologize in advance for the pings, but please, please, please go check out these awesome creators!  @not-a-space-alien pretty much got me into the g/t community with Thistle’s story! They have beautiful writing skills! I also really enjoy their whump series’ Magnanimous Moonrise and Savage Sunset! @belethlegwen has two of the sweetest characters I have ever had the pleasure of reading about. Henry and Melanie are two folks from very different backgrounds trying to make the best of a situation neither of them could have ever expected. And their flirting is so adorable--AUGH MY HEART! @ratcatcher0325 has written two different g/t pics that have stolen my heart: A Fraction of Justice and Nobody’s Fool! They are two of my absolute favorite works of all time--AFOJ is still ongoing, and I cannot wait to see how things play out for my fellow Alexander! @ayytaro-gt has some amazing content as well! Ugh, her art style is so soft and <3 It fills the void in my heart that longs for fluffy things. @imvenusasaboy is my partner in crime for all things Sylvan and Ari (g/t fic pending), and his art is so skrunkly in the best way possible. He has amazing music taste that I am gobbling up like coffee jelly, and he helps me with all sorts of world building things! (19. What’s your all-time favorite g/t daydream - the one thing you keep going back to?) Oh, boy, this is about to get a little personal, huh? Well, personally, I daydream a lot about being tiny. Sometimes while I’m falling asleep, I imagine being curled up on a giant’s chest and letting them play with my hair or trail a gentle finger down my back. I think that, above anything else, would make me content. I also think about Sylvan and Ari’s world a lot, personally, both for comfort and to help me get some writing down, so I suppose that counts as g/t daydreaming. But, uh, yeah. I just think being circa 3 inches tall would be nice. WHOOP that was a doozy. Thanks for the asks, whumpsday!

#aceouttatimeasks #g/t #g/t asks #g/t community

[kasplonk]

Episode 4 Moon Knight Thoughts:

(This is no necessarily chronological, just fresh from my head) (Also it's kinda long so yeah)

So it's clear they're taking a lot of inspiration from the Lemire & Smallwood run of the comics, which is really fucking cool

Layla being a badass and fighting the guys while Steven just takes a nap off to the side

I remember reading a headcannon a little while ago talking about how it's almost like Steven has the muscle memory, but in the wrong situations (I've forgotten who it was, I'm sorry), but that's all I thought of when Steven said that

Marc and Steven squabbling over Layla

"If I need a recipe for a protein shake, I'll call you" "I swear I'll thROW US OFF A CLIFF" These bitches god bless

But also Marc telling Steven he's not alone!! Honestly I love these two

Steven fucking kissing Layla anyway

It was so awkward, but so very in character

When he leaned in like that, I involuntarily looked away, but it was in character for him which I love

Honestly though I don't blame him, it's Layla El-Faouly for fuck sakes, who wouldn't fall in love with her

Steven just gushing about being in the tomb

Equally, Layla being patient and encouraging his enthusiasm!! We love to see it

Harrow is a little bitch, but I kinda like him. Like, I like him in a hateful way. Does that make sense?

ALSO when that mummy thing grabbed Layla and pulled her into the dark, I was so sure it was going to be the trope of love interest gets kidnapped and main hero has to save them, BUT SHE FUCKING ROCKED HIS SHIT!! QUEEN BEHAVIOUR!!! I WAS CHEERING SO LOUDLY!!

I've been given no choice but to stan!! But I really appreciate the fact she didn't need anyone to save her because she's strong enough to deal with it herself!!

I also really like that Marc wasn't actually the one who killed her father. It was foreshadowed, but once again, Moon Knight subverts typical expectations and. I'm. Living. For. It.

Steven calling Alexander the Great 'Mr Great'. Adorable

The seemless transition from Steven to Marc when Layla is angry. I love the idea that Steven was like 'oh hell no Marc you're in'

Another example of Oscar Issac's incredible acting skills

Also, backpeddling a bit, the drawing of the Eye of Horus was beautiful. And Steven figuring everything out!! There goes my boy!!

The breathtaking cinematography of this show. Honestly can't get enough

The continuous shot of everyone around the asylum though. Continuous shots like that aren't easy, and they did it really fucking well

Donna finally where she belongs 🥺❤

WAIT OMG I ALMOST FORGOT that clip of the old show in between was fucking awesome!! And then when the guy was introduced as Dr Steven Grant. The way I gasped

Harrow being the therapist. My guy at least take the glass out your shoes before you start playing psychologist I'm begging you

They honestly almost had me for a second though. Even though I know the general idea of the comics, the shots of everything around the room like puzzle pieces almost made me believe they were going with the "all in his head" route

Marc being sedated. DO I NEED TO REPEAT HOW TALENTED OSCAR ISSAC IS?? PEOPLE IN THE BACK AM I BEING LOUD ENOUGH??

Steven in the sarcophagus. The way he was panicking though. And when he sees and hugs Marc?? 🥺

No but honestly that hug was really great. It really conveyed the desperation and the relief at seeing someone they recognise (even if they look the same)

LET JAKE OUT

I KNOW HE'S IN THERE LET HIM OUT

I WANT MY BOY PLEASE

The difference in the screams when they see Taweret

Steven being all high pitched and shrill, while Marc is all deep and tough

Peak comedy

And when she speaks and it's like a discord trap. I can't with this show it's fucking incredible

And yeah, thats pretty much it, but I loved it as always and I can't wait for the next one (the one Jake is in, because if not I will take to the streets and riot)

#moon knight #marc spector #steven grant #long post #sorry #moon knight ep 4 #oscar issac #layla el faouly #this show will be the death of me

[the-ghost-king]

wait Apollo isn’t originally greek? thats so interesting 👀👀

Where ever did you hear that? /ij

Definitely putting all of this under a read more, it’s a long one!

Cw: Greek statues, they're naked :/

But yeah, Apollo was actually an inherited god, it’s likely that because of this as well he was a blending of multiple different gods to some extent. It’s also good to note that Apollo’s name is unknown, meaning that nobody really knows what exactly Apollo means, which is pretty weird all things considered about the Greeks who placed such importance on the god’s forenames (ie, phoebeus, acestor, age’tor, etc). 

"Though Apollo was the most Hellenic of all gods, he derived mostly from a type of god that originated in Anatolia and spread to Egypt by way of Syria and Palestine." (X)

There’s a couple of different things which point to Apollo being a Anatolian god (or being of, coming from him) named Appaliunas, and it is said they were on opposite sides of a war most beloved of their people during the fight. It’s important to note that it’s believed Appaliunas means “father light” and that he shows some level of importance over drafting peace treaties (which Apollo has some reputation in as the bringer of civilized order). We don't know too much about their connections however, because the documents are incomplete.

This theory also makes sense, because the name Leto (Apollo’s mother) is Lydian in origin, and there’s decent connections to her having been worshiped on the coast's of Asia Minor. And it is known the Greeks have adopted Anatolian gods into their religion before, see Cybele (sometimes called Cybele-Rhea), and the origin of Kore (later Persephone). There's stuff which points also to an Anatolian goddess called "Artimu" (Artemis) who is often confused to Cybele for some reason, and again this bears connections to the Lydians which worshipped Leto. There's information which points to Hekate being a goddess from Anatolia as well, which shows significance considering she is Apollo and Artemis's cousin (leading to my personal question of was Phoebe Anatolian in origin?). Apollo's divine number being 7 shows Babylonian or at least Mesopotamian Origin.

The Geographical location of these two places also bears similarities, they are close to one another, and it's known the Greeks had decent travel capabilities over water. There's also the fact that both of these lands border Troy, which is shown to have significant values in Greek culture and mythology, as well as the Greek belief that the Anatolian gods were present at Troy as well as the Greek gods.

(It's also notable the similarities in naming traditions, Alaksandu for one such example, does not sound too far off from the later Latin name Alexander, which came from the Greek name Aléxandros).

The other possible origin given for Apollo is Aplu (Apulu), a Hurrian god (of people who lived in Anatolia, Syria, and Northern Mesopotamia). Aplu and Apollo bear semblance to one another in more than name, Aplu was the god of plague (bringer of the plague more specifically) and he bears a large amount of resemblance to Apollo Parno'pius/Smitheus and Aplu's main story provides reasoning as to why Apollo may also be the god of healing and Medicine.

The story of Aplu involves the idea that the individual which brings the plague, must also be the one to banish it. This makes Aplu both bringer of plague(s) but also, protector from plague(s). From this we learn Aplu's name means "son of" (please note here Apollo's iconographic connections to "youth" and "sonship" among the Greeks, as the god of kouros), but the connection of "the son of" was a title granted also to the god Nergal (worshiped by many different people(s) across Mesopotamia) who is at least in part someone who holds power over the sun, and holds connection to Shamash (Utu).

Aplu is also often depicted naked (ya know) but wearing a laurel leaf, and part of a cloak... It's funny how these images are Apollo though:

Aplu is also symbolized by a staff and laurel a twig(s), while we know Apollo to be associated closely with the laurel because of Daphne, and Apollo having iconography related to staffs involves him giving his away to Hermes- which perhaps has to do with the caduceus being interpreted as the symbol for medicine, or the connection of Apollo to Asclepius and the rod of Asclepius.

Aplu isn't isolated necessarily either, there is also the Etruscan goddess Aritimi (Artume, Artames, or Artumes) and she oversees animals, human assemblies, and is considered a hunting deity. As well as scrolling through this list, you'll note more than one Greek/Roman mythological figure.

There's also a ton of stuff from Etruscan mythology (Hurrian mythology is just a subsect of Etruscan mythology) which overlaps with Greek mythology, some sources even state Etruscan -> Greek -> Roman mythology (I wont comment on that because I don't know well enough).

There's some other places Apollo's name might have come from, but those are probably the two most likely under the assumption that Apollo is a collective of many gods.

These are the specifics of the Anatolian god's Apollo may be born of/from, but there's a variety of things which point to him and mythology around him being of other origins as well (Minoan, Dorian, and Proto-Indo-European... yeah)

You may have heard one of Apollo's sacred animals is dolphins, Apollo Delphinios/Delphidios, this is because of a Minoan god named Paiawon (Paion) who was worshiped on Crete and also originated in Delphi. In the second part of Homeric hymn to Apollo, Apollo would transform his shape into that of a dolphin and carry the new priests to Delphi for the transfer of religious practices:

"Phoebus Apollo pondered in his heart what men he should bring in to be his ministers in sacrifice and to serve him in rocky Pytho. And while he considered this, he became aware of a swift ship upon the wine-like sea in which were many men and goodly, Cretans... Phoebus Apollo met them: in the open sea he sprang upon their swift ship, like a dolphin in shape, and lay there, a great and awesome monster, and none of them gave heed so as to understand but they sought to cast the dolphin overboard. But he kept shaking the black ship every way and making the timbers quiver. So they sat silent in their craft for fear, and... so they kept sailing on; for a rushing south wind hurried on the swift ship from behind... They wished to put their ship to shore, and land and comprehend the great marvel and see with their eyes whether the [dolphin] would remain upon the deck of the hollow ship, or spring back into the briny deep where fishes shoal. But the well-built ship would not obey the helm, but went on its way all along Peloponnesus and the lord, far-working Apollo, guided it easily with the breath of the breeze..." (X)

Apollo Delphinios was largely only worshiped by people of Crete and surrounding islands, but this is also largely where Paiawon was worshiped as well. There's also many things from early Grecian history which simply state Apollo to be Paiawon or of Paiawon, or at least doesn't bother to specify which god is being talked about.

In the earlier parts of Greek history, seventh-sixth century, there was distinctions made between the pair:

"and in Solon's opinion it is Apollo who makes a man a μάντις (soothsayer) but healers do the work of Paion" (X)

The whole thing with Apollo being descended from Paiawon however, is that Paiawon may not be Minoan but Mycenaean in origin, which means even if Apollo is originated in Minoan culture one of the gods who has influenced that origin wasn't even necessarily Minoan but taken in. Others believe Paiawon was Minoan or Aegean in origin but very far in the past, since his songs used a meter of pre-Greek origin.

You'll also not the commonalities between Paion (a spelling of Paiawon) and Paean (also spelled Paian), Apollo's original name according to Homer. It could mean a variety of things but "who heals illnesses through magic" and "pre-greek" are the most common translations of the word Paean, but it is also associated with music (most specifically a song sung by Thetlas who cured the Spartans) and is said to denote hymns for Apollo.

"PAEAN, that is, "the healing," is according to Homer the designation of the physician of the Olympian gods, who heals, for example, the wounded Ares and Hades. After the time of Homer and Hesiod, the word Paian becomes a surname of Asclepius, the god who had the power of healing. The name was, however, used also in the more general sense of deliverer from any evil or calamity, and was thus applied to Apollo and Thanatos, or Death, who are conceived as delivering men from the pains and sorrows of life... From Apollo himself the name Paean was transferred to the song dedicated to him, that is, to hymns chanted to Apollo for the purpose of averting an evil, and to warlike songs, which were sung before or during a battle." (X)

In regards to the possibility of Apollo having been of Minoan origin, one must consider not only his origins but the origins of the gods and goddesses around him and how they may have developed over time.

In this case Britomartis (Diktynna) is of particular interest, she was the Minoan "mistress of animals", she was a goddess (or sometimes nymph, or oread) of the mountains and the hunt. There's points to the name meaning "sweet maiden" or other similar things, but it is debatable.

Eventually Britomartis would become the goddess of nets in Hellenic myths, and would simply be closely identified with the goddess of Artemis. However, to the Minoans Britomartis wandered alongside a bow-wielding male hunter who's name has been lost, it is likely that aspects of this hunter were absorbed into Apollo; when the introduction of worshiping Artemis was brought to the island of Crete where Britomartis was also worshiped they were compared and quickly said to be of one another.

It is also said in some variations the myths of Britomartis that she was taken to the mainland in the nets of men after fleeing Minos, this seems like a euphemism for her as a goddess of worship being brought by fisherman to mainland and taken into their culture and worship, more so than it sounds like a goddess's story. Perhaps this led to her becoming Artemis, although most myths seem to agree Artemis gave Britomartis immortality... So who knows, but it's a point of particular interest for me.

Also I know I mentioned proto-indo-european origins for Apollo and I could analyze gods and goddesses relating to Apollo being a Minoan god like Aphaea, but I am not going to lie I am rather sick mostly of sourcing everything and I don't like to talk about stuff without stuff to back me up because I don't want to come across like I'm pulling information or ideas out of thin air because that's how misinformation spreads... But yeah, here's a somewhat simplified piece on Apollo's possible origins as a pre-Hellenistic god, and I hope you enjoy because I know you sent the ask a bit ago <3

#asks #glassamphibians #apollo #greek mythology #notpjo #apollo origins #historians please feel free to correct me

[bistortion-29]

If a character is named Alexander/Alex there's a 99.99% chance that the character will be queer and badass.

We have,

Alexander Hamilton- founding father. Was super bi. Wrote stuff for the constitution, was a lawyer, treasury secretary, did not like Jefferson. Was very very in love with John Laurens his bestfriend.

Alex Standall- most of you probably know the guy. Extremely sarcastic and badass. Shot himself in the head but that just made him even more sarcastic. Got the happy ending he (The guy is literally in love with the human form of golden retriever) deserved. Kinda looks like troye sivan.

Alexander Gideon Lightwood/Alec- everyone knows him. He's a shadowhunter. Fell in love with a warlock, first kissed him in front of the whole institute on his wedding day to a different girl and the went on a date. Everyone knows that this salty piece of shit turns into a puddle of happiness when his husband is around. From saying, 'Emotions are nothing but a distraction,' to, 'I can't live without you, Magnus.' Is super badass just like his husband. Did I mention that he has a husband?? He's pretty awesome.

Alex Fierro- child of Loki. a king and queen. Love them. They are pretty badass and I like how half the time Magnus will just be in awe of them.

Alex Claremont-Diaz- AHHHHHHHHHHHH yes now let's continue, he's the first son of the United States. Not only did he fall in love with Prince Henry, they both had a wonderful love-fight in the rain while they confessed their love to eachother. He's badass, sarcastic, a little oblivious sometimes, loves Henry. His entire family is badass to be honest. Is super bi and is named after Alexander Hamilton. He hopes to be a great lawyer.

Alexander the Great- probably the first Alexander to be not straight. Had like three wives but still went like, "that man too is Alexander," while referring to Hephaestion- his childhood friend and General of his forces. Loved Hephaestion and saw him as his equal. They even went to the tomb of Achilles and Patroclus- another iconic couple- and paid respects (Alexander paid Achilles respect while Hephaestion for Patroclus). He has even compared their love as equal to Achilles and Patroclus. When Hephaestion died, he was sad and then died under mysterious causes eight months later. He was the greatest conqueror and the very first Alexander to be very very queer.

These are the Alexanders that I know of. If you guys know more please let me know.

We infer from this list, that all Alexanders are super not straight, the name itself is like a package deal, they are all badass with equally sweet significant others and they are all sarcastic but as I said, that's a package deal with the name. Keep in mind, the list above is in no particular order and was written at 6 in the morning while being severely sleep deprived.

#alex claremont diaz #alec lightwood #alex standall #alexander hamilton #alex fierro #alexander the great #hamilton musical #hamilton #thirteen reasons why #magnus chase #shadowhunters #mortal instruments #rwrb #magnus bane #hephaestion #prince henry of wales #henry fox mountchristen windsor #charlie st. george #loveislove #greek mythology #patrochilles

[christinaroseandrews]

After getting into a bar fight, Alexander Woodroe is in trouble. This isn't new. Thanks to his ADHD, he often gets into trouble. But this time it's different, the two producers of the tv show that he stars on have had enough of his antics. To keep him in line, they assign him a minder... one of the producer's cousins. A woman who looks like a bird and is remarkably unflappable. Considering that she's his minder, Alex finds himself liking her. And then feeling more...

In desperate need of a break from her life as an ER therapist, Lauren Clegg didn't expect to get a job keeping tabs on a bonafide celebrity. But to keep the peace in her family when her cousin Ron asks for her help, she gives it. Grudgingly. It doesn't help that she finds Alex attractive but also a bit of an a-hole. A charming a-hole, but an a-hole regardless. Still, she can't help but like him... and maybe even feel more for him. But her assignment is only for nine months, besides guys like him never fall for a girls like her. Except when he does...

Note: This book needs the following trigger warnings -- ableism, fatphobia, body shaming, discussion of domestic abuse, discussion of workplace harassment, discussion of sexual harassment, discussion of mental illness. There may be more I missed, but this book handles the subject matters well. IMHO Also fixed fonts and font changes are present in the finished product, it’s something to keep in mind if you have a visual processing issue like I do (dyslexia, seizure, and migraine).

Okay, All the Feels totally lives up to its title. This book hit me in the feels. Multiple times. Like so many times. When I first read Spoiler Alert, I wasn't sure how I'd feel about this story. I wasn't totally in love with Alex, and Lauren wasn't a major character in the first book at all. But I trusted that the author would be able to make this pairing work, and she did.

There's a lot of good in here. First off, can we talk about how Alex has ADHD and how it manifests? We get to see his Rejection Sensitivity Dysphoria and how it can cause him to make poor decisions or jump to conclusions. We get to see how the medications that he takes for it both help and hurt. We get to see his decision processes which can be a bit chaotic and feel impulsive to the extreme. We get to see how he hyper-fixates and also how he struggles. The portrayal of ADHD in this is well done and while there is no one universal ADHD experience this is a pretty good portrayal in fiction.

I also like the theme of choice that runs through this book. People have to choose for themselves who they want to be. But sometimes they needs a little help making good decisions. And that goes for everyone.

I really found myself liking Alex as a character. Especially his joy in simple things like taking walks, various fanfic tropes, and even just going on an old fashioned road trip. His acceptance of fan culture and his desire to be a part of it was adorable. I mean there's a discussion on Sex Pollen. Sex Pollen for goodness sakes!  I loved it.

I also really liked Lauren. She's comfortable and content in her skin even if the rest of the world isn't. While she doesn't like being made fun of for things she can't control (who does?), she doesn't let others define her. However, what she does do is rate her own self worth as lower than those around her. This isn't a fat person problem, although it does happen a lot with people who are overweight/fat. It's a human problem. Particularly a woman problem. And I like that her growth is in finding her worth and what will make her happy while not sucking all of the joy out of her life.

There's some great supporting characters. The cast of the show are great as in the first book. And I really liked that we got to see Marcus being a good friend. It's also nice to see a good parent in these books. Alex's mom is kinda awesome. Lauren also has her own support system, but it's smaller and that's part of her arc. There's just so much in this book that I loved. I laughed out loud so many times. So so many times. I found the little interludes great.... particularly the group chats... (it's honestly all about Whiskers ~_^)

Additionally, I loved the consent. I loved that both leads were in their late thirties. I loved that the book featured a plus-sized heroine who was okay with her weight... even if the rest of the world wasn't.

The only disappointment was that there wasn’t a pegging scene. The author states that they wrote one but it had to be cut for length. Considering that there isn’t a lot of sex in this book, I can understand that.

Honestly, I hope that there's more to this series. This book and the previous book are going on my reread list and if you're a fan of fandom and plus-sized romances, then you need to read this book.

This book hit me right in the feels. And for that it gets...

Five stars

If this is your jam, you can get it here!

If you like these kind of honest reviews, please consider supporting us here!

I received an ARC of this book via NetGalley

#romance review #contemporary romance #plus-sized heroine #disabled romance #celebrity romance #older heroine #older hero #fandom culture #discussion of tropes #in the text #Olivia Dade #Five Stars #Rose and Lark review books

[yourlocalfictionalenthusiast]

IN LIFE, IN DEATH...

PART THREE

Part One, Part Two

Warnings: just some swearing

May 1995

“We’re totally gonna get a record deal!”

Luke said for the tenth time in the past hour as he bounced in his seat.

It was Friday night and normally, you would all be messing around at the park, the beach, or just watching a movie in the studio. But when your phone rang and it was the booking manager for the Orpheum telling you that Sunset Curve is officially the new opener next month, the boys insisted on being there the second your shift at the diner was over.

So instead of arguing about having another Star Wars marathon or playing at the pier, you were all packed in your regular booth at Cece’s for celebratory milkshakes. You sat on the very edge of the booth, practically falling asleep on Alex. Ever since you got the call that morning, every cell in your body felt supercharged with excitement.

But now that the day was coming to an end, you could hardly stay awake enough to pay attention to the conversation.

Bobby, who was in your usual spot, pinched Luke’s arm. “Don’t jinx it, dude.”

“It’s not jinxing if you know for sure.” Luke said. “I mean, we’re awesome! And we’ve worked so hard to get to this point. It’s all gonna pay off.”

As much as you wanted to believe him, you were still nervous. There was nothing you were prouder of than your music, and you knew that a crowd that big would be good for gaining a lot of new fans. But the idea of that many people seeing you perform and hearing your lyrics was nerve-wracking.

You could tell the others felt the same way. Bobby was biting his nails, Alex was bouncing his leg so hard it almost hit the table and Reggie was slumped against the wall. Luke just stared at all of you, his bright smile never fading.

He snapped his fingers so loud that you jumped at the noise, then he started digging in his pockets. “I know what’ll cheer you guys up.”

Luke pulled out a safety pin, then brought its point down into the table, his tongue poking out of the side of his mouth in concentration. After a few minutes, he brushed off the table and presented his design proudly. It was four words in huge slanted letters.

‘SUNSET CURVE WAS HERE’

“Seriously, Luke?” Alex said, his eyes wide. “Cece’s gonna kill you!”

Luke just smirked and handed him the pin, gesturing to the space under the words. “‘C’mon, man. You’re up first.”

It took a lot of convincing, but Alex eventually gave in, and one by one, you all signed your names.

‘Alex,

Bobby

Reggie

Luke

(Y/N)’

You heard the sound of Cece’s heels hitting the floor as she exited the kitchen. Panicking, you shoved the pin in your pocket just in time as she came up to the table. 

Before she could even see that anything was different, Reggie pointed at Luke.

“He did it!”

Cece frowned before inspecting the table, letting out a deep sigh and putting her hands on her hips.

“Are you vandalizing my diner, Patterson?”

Luke paled. “It was a group effort.”

“But it was your idea,” Alex said with a smirk, no doubt trying to pin the blame on Luke to keep his spot as Cece’s favorite. You had to bury your head into his shoulder to contain your laughter.

You could tell from the way that she was struggling to keep a straight face that Cece wasn’t actually mad but you weren’t gonna tell Luke that. He tried to kick Alex’s leg under the table but he hit yours instead. You hissed in pain and Luke paled even further.

“Shit, sorry, (Y/n).”

“And abusing my staff?” Cece joked, shaking her head.

Luke flashed her a charming smile as he rubbed the back of his neck. “Sorry, Cece. Just got a little excited.”

“I can see that.” She laughed then turned to you. “Hey. Get up. I got you something.”

You looked up at her in confusion but she didn’t offer you any answer as you dragged yourself up. Cece pulled a small blue box out from behind her back and handed it to you. “What’s the occasion?”

Cece rolled her eyes. “Just open it.” 

The first thing you saw was a folded piece of paper with your name on it, under it was a silver key. You picked it up and held it in between your fingers as you carefully unfolded the paper to see three words in Cece’s careful handwriting.

just in case

You looked up at her, eyebrows knitted together. “Cece?”

She just winked as she put her hand on your cheek. “Honey, you know that I couldn’t have more faith in you and your rockstar dreams. But just in case things don’t work out...well, I couldn’t imagine giving this place to anyone else.”

You flew into her arms and hugged her so tight it was a little painful. Of course, all you wanted was for Sunset Curve to get signed to a label and take over the world. But this place was like home to you and the idea of owning it some day made your heart swell. “Thank you!”

The booth erupted in cheers and Cece playfully glared at them as she tucked you under her arm. “But you have to promise you’ll keep these boys of yours from doing any more damage to the property.”

Bobby scoffed. “Hey, we’re not-”

You slapped your hand over his mouth before nodding at Cece. “I’ll try my best.”

The bell on the door jingled to announce the arrival of another customer, and Cece left to greet them. You twirled the key around in your hand and looked at the boys' smiling faces, unable to hide your own.

As you settled back in the booth and took a sip of your milkshake, you couldn’t help but feel like everything was coming together.

2020

L.A was somehow so different, yet exactly the way you remembered.

The way the bright lights flooded the streets, to the way that every surface you see was decorated with a piece of art, made you anxious to re-explore the city you loved so much. 

You couldn’t help but stare through your swinging legs at the crowds walking around below, listening to the soft buzzing of the Orpheum’s sign above your head.

An hour ago when Luke had suggested walking around the city, you figured you would end up here eventually. But now that you were actually here, you couldn’t help the hollow feeling that settled in your stomach.

It must’ve shown on your face because Luke launched into one of his motivational speeches. “C’mon, guys. I know being dead wasn’t our first choice. But you gotta admit, it is easier to get around.”

Reggie pouted. “Easy for you maybe. I lost my shirt on that one.”

You hadn’t even noticed that he was shirtless until it reappeared in a flash and he sighed in relief.

“So, why did you bring us here?” Alex asked Luke. “Just another painful reminder of where we never got to play?”

You smiled sarcastically. “Yeah, thanks, Luke.”

Luke rolled his eyes. “Because, we’re not done yet!”

He slung his arm around Alex’s shoulder, and gripped yours as he poofed you all down to the sidewalk, pulling away from you as fast as possible once your feet were back on the ground.

“I’m telling you.” Luke said. “We’ve been given a second chance. Let’s go see how many clubs we can hit before sunrise!”

He started walking down the street and Reggie was quick to follow, leaving you and Alex behind. As you watched them skip down the sidewalk, Alex let out a sharp ‘hey!’ and you whipped around to see him rubbing his shoulder.

A man in a long black suit stared straight into your eyes before tipping his hat to Alex and disappearing down the street. Every hair on your body stood on end as you stared at the spot where he was just standing.

“That was weird.” You said, turning to Alex. “You okay?”

He ran a hand through his hair. “Yeah, I’m good.”

You could hear Luke and Reggie’s excited shouting as they ran down the street, but you and Alex kept your distance. He reached his arm out to you and you took it automatically.

Over the last six months, Alex had become your best friend. You had always been close but last summer when things got bad with his parents, he turned to you.

And when things started to get weird between you and Luke or you had a fight with your mom, Alex was the only one you wanted to talk to. 

“Alright.” Alex sighed. “Out with it.”

“Out with what?”

“I know you’re dying to talk about Luke.”

“I am not!”

Alex raised his eyebrows, clearly not convinced.

“Besides, there’s nothing to talk about.”

“Nothing-” He took in a sharp breath. “(Y/n), for someone so smart, you’re acting like a dumbass.”

You put a hand on your chest, dramatically gasping. “Alexander Mercer! I had no idea you were capable of using that kind of language.”

He flashed you his middle finger before unlocking his arm from yours and pulling you into his side. “Seriously though. What’s rolling around up there?”

You were quiet for a few minutes as you rested your head on his shoulder. “I just want to know what I did, you know?” 

Alex nodded, but didn’t say anything, as he knew that you were just getting started.

“I mean, he’s always been there. He's always been my person. The one who I could count on for anything. Then that night in the studio, I thought…” 

You trailed off and Alex held you a little tighter. Even though he wasn’t there, he could probably describe that night in exact detail from the amount of times you had told him about it. “I just miss him."

“Yeah, I know.” Alex said, his eyes glued to Luke’s back. “But, hey, you know that he loves you, and that didn’t change because of one night.”

He started to say something else but cut himself off as he saw Reggie and Luke approaching, both with big, goofy smiles. Reggie took your arm that wasn’t around Alex’s back and locked it in his.

“What are you guys talking about?” He asked.

“Nothing!” You said way too fast, cringing to yourself as you dragged Reggie down the sidewalk. “Come on, Reg. Let’s go see if that old comic book shop is still around.”

As the night wore on, you became more and more thankful that you weren’t able to get tired.

You spent the whole night sneaking into concert venues, clubs, and pretty much any place you wanted now that there was no chance of getting caught. It wasn’t until you passed a small street-side café that you let yourself think about the one place you hadn’t been yet.

Cece’s Diner.

When Julie told you it had been 25 years, you assumed that it had closed down. That Cece had moved away. Maybe even reconnected with her son and lived out her life. It seemed like such a perfect thought that you didn’t want to ruin it with reality. 

But now that you had seen the way things had changed in the time you had been gone, you were now filled with a sense of urgency. You launched up the sidewalk until you were in front of the boys.

“Hey, guys?” You asked. They all stared at you curiously as a smile slowly spread across your face. “Anyone up for milkshakes?”

-

When you walked up to the diner - for only an instant - it was as if no time had passed. You felt the urge to run inside, throw your hair up in a ponytail, and make a beeline for the kitchen before you got in trouble for being late for your shift. 

Only as you got closer, you realized how much had changed. The building, which had always been a little ordinary and worn like a well-loved home, now felt about twenty stories tall. You dragged yourself forward toward the door, unable to look away.

The boys lingered behind you, but no one said a word. 

Your hand reached for the doorknob before you remembered that you wouldn’t actually be able to touch it.

I really gotta get used to that, you mumbled to yourself as you walked through the door.

It looked so different that you almost didn’t recognize it.

The bright blue paint had been replaced with brown on every wall, bookshelves lined the corners of the room, and long leather couches had replaced the booths and tables. The old jukebox had disappeared, and some old jazz song was playing over speakers over your head.

“Can I help you?” 

A voice asked from behind the counter. It was a boy that looked a little older than you, messy black hair and an uninterested smile. He dragged a blue pen across the margins of a book as he waited for your answer.

“You can see us?” Alex asked, to which the boy rolled his eyes.

“I’m talking to you, aren’t I?” He said, raising his eyebrows when you all failed to answer either of his questions.

“My, my. Aren’t we chatty.”

“Who are you, exactly?” You said, trying to mask your annoyance with a smile.

“Teddy.” He said, pushing himself off the counter and making his way around until he stopped just a few feet ahead of you. “And you’re (Y/n).”

A shiver ran down your spine. “How do you know that?”

“You were a friend of my grandma’s.”

Before you could ask what the hell he meant by that, a man came walking out of the kitchen. He looked so much like Cece that it made your stomach flip. It was her son.

And as you looked back at Teddy, your mind slowly connected the dots. “You’re Cece’s grandson?”

He nodded.

“Okay, this is just too weird.” You said as you rubbed your temples. There was no way that this was actually happening, right? Maybe you somehow fell asleep and are having some weird ghost dream. 

“Okay, well I definitely feel old.” Alex sighed.

Your head was spinning. “What is even happening right now.”

Teddy smiled. “Well, it’s too bad we’re dead or else I would buy you coffee and explain it to you.”

You internally cringed at his pick-up line but you couldn’t help but laugh a little. Normally, random guys flirting with you made you uncomfortable but behind his cocky attitude, he seemed like a genuine guy.

Maybe it was the way that he twirled his pen between his fingers the way that Cece used to, but something told you that there was more to him than meets the eye.

Before you could answer, Luke spoke up. “Well, it was nice meeting you. But we really should be getting back home.”

You could see that he was right as the pale light came in through the windows as the sky started to lighten.

But you couldn’t help but notice that this was the first time he had interjected in the conversation since you got there, and a small part of you wondered if that had anything to do with the way that Teddy was staring at you.

You shook those thoughts from your head, giving Teddy a soft smile.

“Maybe next time.”

Though you weren’t capable of getting cold, you still shivered a little as you walked through the door and back out onto the street. You could feel Luke’s eyes on the side of your face, flickering down to the sidewalk when he saw you looking.

You gave him a light nudge on the shoulder, and he gave you a soft smile that you couldn’t quite decipher the meaning behind.

That was pretty much all you got from Luke these days.

“So,” Luke said, his enthusiasm returning in full force as he threw his arms over Alex and Reggie’s shoulders. “I think it’s safe to say we’re officially back in business.”

-

The second that you landed in the studio, your jaw dropped.

Julie was sitting at the piano, her voice shaky but full of passion as she belted out the most beautiful song you’ve ever heard. Her fingers hit the keys expertly and you smiled.

You closed your eyes, listening to her voice echo through the room and getting lost in the warm feeling the lyrics filled you with. It wasn’t until she stopped singing and sniffled quietly that your heart dropped.

Both you and Alex surged forward to comfort her but Luke shook his head and swirled his finger, signaling to meet up outside. You wanted to protest. To stay and comfort your new friend.

But Julie sniffled again and you thought that maybe it would be a good idea to give her space. You made a mental note to talk to her later and poofed out of the garage.

-

In Life, In Death Taglist:

@ifilwtmfc @instabull @wanniiieeee @tenaciousperfectionunknown

JATP Taglist:

@caitsymichelle13

Let me know if you want to be added!

#luke patterson #luke patterson x reader #luke patterson imagine #julie molina #Reggie Peters #Alex Mercer #jatp fanfic

[favescandis]

NEW interview with Alexander Skarsgård about Godzilla vs. Kong and The Northman with Uproxx

Alexander Skarsgard Knows You Don’t Care About Him In ‘Godzilla Vs Kong’

MIKE RYAN, SENIOR ENTERTAINMENT WRITER MARCH 30, 2021

Yes, Alexander Skarsgard is under no false impressions that you are looking forward to Godzilla vs. Kong to see the adventures of his character, a geologist named Dr. Nathan Lind. You see, Godzilla has been causing some problems for humans for unknown reasons and, just maybe, Kong can take care of business and let Godzilla know that his antics aren’t appreciated by means of a knuckle sandwich. And Dr. Nathan Lind has been studying Kong for years and has a good idea of what Kong’s motivations might be and what Kong actually wants.

So, yes … there are times where there is not a lot to talk about when even one of the lead actors in a movie admits people aren’t coming to see him or his character. Though from past interviews, I know Skarsgard has a pretty good sense of humor, so the real questions soon devolved into kind of outlandish fake questions and, luckily, Skarsgard ran with them.

Also, Skarsgard’s next film is The Northman, which is interesting for a couple of reasons. First, he teams with Robert Eggers, which will be the director’s followup to the acclaimed The Lighthouse. Second, it will completely screw up Google searches for True Blood fans searching for Skarsgard’s character, Eric Northman. And, yes, he’s thought about that and wonders how many people will show up expecting to see vampires. (There will be no vampires.)

It’s funny, because just the title of this movie, that isn’t false advertising.

Oh yeah.

Multiple fights.

It’s almost a two-hour-long movie, and it’s like an hour and 55 minutes of fighting.

So what’s this like for you? When you sign onto something like this? Because it’s Godzilla and Kong and they’re going to wind up getting a lot of the attention.

It’s humbling for a narcissistic actor like myself, to be put in my place, to show up on set and know that no one will go to see this movie because I’m in it.

Well, that’s not true. I have noticed over the years you do have a fan base that goes nuts for you.

That’s flattering to hear. But I’m under no illusion that I’m the star of the show and that anyone will go see the movie because they want to see Nathan Lind, the geologist.

The geologist.

Yeah, well, in a way, to be a vessel and a way for the audience to get to know, in my character’s case, Kong, more so than Godzilla, because I’m with Kong throughout the movie. But in a way to not necessarily humanize Kong, but to show a different side of Kong, to show that he has empathy. He’s lived a very solitary, lonely life on Skull Island without social connections, without family. And the thought of him to be reconnected, or to find his family in Hollow Earth is, is kind of the driving force, to reconnect. So I felt like my job was kind of set that up in a way and to kind of show the audience that side of Kong.

Well, you said people aren’t coming to see Dr. Nathan Lind, the geologist. But once here, where you tell me, how you’ve spent the last five years, studying with geologists and following them around and becoming a trained geologist yourself, people will look at this in a different way.

Right? Well, that’s how seriously I take my job.

You threw yourself into it. The last, maybe, ten years, you’ve been studying with geologists, just to know exactly what you were doing in this movie.

It’s just the kind of actor I am, Mike. Even though I play a very peripheral character and no one cares, I still take my craft seriously. And that means a decade of studying geology and living, breathing the character. Just to give the audience that sublime performance that I give in the movie.

When you’re giving the technical jargon during the movie, viewers can rest assured that you know exactly what you’re talking about, because you studied for so long with trained geologists.

Exactly. And they can see that in my eyes, that I’m not lying. I’m not pretending. I’m not acting. I’m not playing a geologist. I am a geologist.

You are a geologist.

Yes.

So when you filmed at Hollow Earth, in the center of Earth, was that on location?

Obviously, it was.

Yeah, I could tell.

And being there was trippy. I felt like you can’t … the audience can tell whether you’re there or when you’re actually there, or if it’s the soundstage with green screen. So the only way to do it, when you make a character driven drama, like Godzilla vs. Kong, is to actually go there and actually spend time down there and be there with Kong. So it was six very intense months, deep down in the center of the earth with a gigantic ape.

That’s why we haven’t seen you in a while — because you’ve been down there.

I’ve been down there, with a gigantic ape.

Being serious, doing the “there they are” reaction seems especially difficult in this movie, with these being such central characters. And I know that’s part of the deal with a lot of movies, but this seems even more that.

Absolutely. Watching the movie, I could tell that I’m reacting to the wrong thing, like I’m reacting to something else. And they play my reaction to something that I think I’m reacting to, but many things have changed. Or they use that reaction to something else. So they kind of make it work. So it’s like, I look at something, and I think I’m reacting to something completely different, but I’m not. They completely changed that. So it’s quite a ride and exciting to watch the movie, because I’m as surprised as the audience. When I watch it, like, “Oh really? That happened.” And, “Oh, look at my reaction here.”

The scene that we all saw in the trailer, which surprisingly happens pretty early in the movie, where Kong just punches Godzilla in the face. So do you watch the movie and go, “If that really would have happened in front of me, I might’ve reacted quite differently than I did even in the movie”?

Well, that specific sequence, they actually had in the pre-visualization, so that actually looks quite very, very, very close to what the previs two years ago looked. So Adam [Wingard] played us that. So pretty much the whole fight scene was choreographed before we shot our reactions to it. So I knew that that punch was going to land, and that’s what I’m reacting to.

We’ve given Dr. Nathan Lind a lot of time, and we’ve given King Kong a lot of time. We haven’t really talked about Godzilla. He gets annoyed when people bother him. I relate to that.

Me too. Going into the movie, I was very much team Godzilla. I love the old Godzilla movies, like the ’60s and ’70s, that era, when it’s zero special effects.

Just a guy in a suit and it’s awesome.

It’s a middle-aged dude in a suit, kicking a miniature version of Tokyo on a set.

In your next movie, you’re working with Robert Eggers, The Northman. You’re done filming that, right?

We’re done. Yeah, we shot for six months during the pandemic. We started last summer and finished just before Christmas.

Did you look at his prior movies and just go, “I have to be part of this.”

Well, I courted him. I loved both The Witch and The Lighthouse. And was developing The Northman and was trying to find a director for it. It was a very different iteration of the script, and the story was very different from what we ended up shooting. But I had a version of a viking movie that I wanted to make and basically went after Rob. He was my dream director and I thought that he would be perfect for this. And that, when I mentioned it to him, it turned out that he was a huge viking fan and knew everything about the mythology.

That doesn’t surprise me for some reason.

Yeah, he knew so much about that world and that era and got really excited about the idea of potentially making this movie. And then he found Sjón, this Icelandic author and poet and screenwriter. And Sjón and Rob together wrote the screenplay to what ultimately became The Northman, the movie that we shot. So it’s something on that was slowly percolating and growing over the course of eight years. So, to finally be on set last year, with the greatest filmmaker of our time and some of the greatest actors of our time, was the highlight of my career, for sure.

Have you thought about how this will screw up Google searches for your True Blood fans?

[Laughs] Yes, I am very much aware of how problematic the title is.

Well, not problematic. True Blood fans are going to have to put in a few other keywords now.

Yeah, that’s true. That’s true. I do apologize for that. And I’m sure some people will be pretty disappointed if they go to see a stand-alone movie about Eric Northman, and then they sit down and it’s a goddamn Viking movie and not a vampire in sight.

I think they’re in for a treat, to tell you the truth.

Well, I hope so. I hope so. I’m very excited about the movie, but I have to admit that, unfortunately, there are no vampires in the movie.

‘Godzilla Vs. Kong’ hits theaters and HBO Max on March 31st.

Photo credited to Getty. [Paris Men’s Fashion Week Armani show, July 2, 2019]

https://uproxx.com/movies/alexander-skarsgard-interview-godzilla-vs-kong-the-northman/

#Alexander Skarsgård #Uproxx #Godzilla vs. Kong #The Northman #Alexander Skarsgard #long post

[bwoahtastic]

Okay but, I know this doesn't quite fit with the idea you had but if the drivers were superheroes what power would they have?

Ooohh you're in for a ride jsjs. I spend a good few hours on this and yeah am obsessed already

~~~~

Sebastian Vettel: he would have visions about the future. Not necessarily what will happen, but a possible future.

Charles Leclerc: according to @loving-ricciardo there is someone in the series Misfits whose superpower is making other people horny by touching them and yup that would be Charles.

Max Verstappen: he would be all about fire. Shooting fire from his hands, heating up hot chocolate for Lando, he can do it all.

Daniel Ricciardo: shape-shifting. Be it being another human to confuse you, or a badger to chew on shoes, or insects to scare you. Please don't expect him to shift into something serious though.

Antonio Giovinazzi: healing magic hair powers like Rapunzel, you heard it here first.

Kimi Räikkönen: some sort of ice power. But you all probably guessed that one

Valtteri Bottas: invisibility. Idk not to be rude but maybe he sometimes already has that power

Lewis Hamilton: he would be able to charm anyone and everything into doing what he wants. Like he will smile and you will forget you're fighting.

George Russell: heightened senses. Yes he will hear everyone's secret farts and spot differences to f1 cars from miles away

Nicholas Latifi: lowkey vibe with him having wings. That would be awesome

Alexander Albon: telekinesis. He doesn't use it a lot unless Lando wants to float around for a bit. Also useless to move your boss away from you

Esteban Ocon: regenerative abilities. Very useful, I think he's quite clumsy so very quick healing would be his saviour

Kevin Magnussen: Water bending. He my pretty little mermaid you can't convince me otherwise. Like annoy him and suddenly the water in your water bottle will attack you

Romain Grosjean: time manipulation/time freezing. He will mostly do it to keep people out of trouble though

Pierre Gasly: mind reading. And yes that leads to embarrassing situations.

Daniil Kvyat: superhuman strength, I think he would just yeet stuff away as if it weighs nothing all the time

Lando Norris: power absorption. He can literally take any power he wants. Mostly steals Dan's powers to change into the Aussie and annoy Max, but his pranks are not limited to that

Carlos Saint Jr: mind manipulation. You'd never be sure what you really think around him, not cos he uses the power a lot but because its like a Pavlov effect jsjs

Lance Stroll: talking to animals. It ain't much, but you can bet your ass cats always spill the tea.

Checo Perez: teleportation. I have the feeling he would be popping up everywhere just to scare everyone

BONUS

Nico Hülkenberg: look he will just hulksmash a bitch, it's simple

Jenson Button: phasing - which is just a fancy word for walking through walls. You won't even be safe in the bathroom

Yuki Tsunoda: I can see him just being an epic human fighter like Black Widow. Don't know if that's technically a superpower but I think you'd see it as such after he whoops your ass.

Fernando Alonso: his power is being a little bitch - jk he would have something cool like laser beams from his eyes - and that's all on him having a death stare hehe

[voicefromthecorner]

1. Neku Sakuraba

Original Song: Alexander Hamilton

The story of Neku Sakuraba (told in a rather disjointed way, but hey, it’s just how everything fitted together!).

The first song of my TWEWY-Hamilton crossover series. I’ll (hopefully) be uploading these roughly every 12 hours, in time with the clock striking 12 here in the UK.

It was fun doing the casting for this one. If you’re wondering why I changed the “I loved him” line, I’m doing my best to keep these true to the spirit of the games. I’m not saying Shiki doesn’t feel that way, but it felt more acccurate to have her bluster through the subject, in homage to Neku’s crush on her. I wasn’t going to put words in her mouth but I couldn’t leave the line alone either. This felt like a good compromise.

That first verse was, as once posted here, one of the first things of this project I ever wrote, largely as a joke to see if I could. Flash forward a year later and it’s a full song cover. And it was actually one of the last songs I got around to writing - wasn’t sure if I could manage to adapt it to this game’s events. But I’m pretty pleased with it in the end.

The awesome RG Shiki Sprites were done by BlueRainbow 101

Next: My New Partner Index

Transcript:

[SANAE HANEKOMA] How does an emo loner In his own zone wearing headphones 24-7 Just to negate the presence of those present, An end to his friendless situation, Go on to be Shibuya’s salvation?

[SHIKI MISAKI] The self-staker music-player became a Player Got a lot greater by staying a lot safer By acting a lot braver By being a fate-changer At fifteen, he never thought that he would be a saviour

[DAISUKENOJO "BEAT" BITO] And ev’ry day while Players got erased by the Noise, Reapers cuttin’ down waves, he struggled an’ made his choice Deep down, he was longin’ for someone to share life's joys This Player had to learn to trust someone or be destroyed

[RAIMU "RHYME" BITO] Then this Player was betrayed, and devastation reigned Our boy saw the future drip, dripping down the drain He abandoned his one chance; he chose his heart over his brain Gave up what he could have gained, a testament to his pain

[JOSHUA KIRYU] The Composer saw him and he’d said, “This kid is insane, man” Sent him to the Reaper's Game; his memory, his payment “Forget your education; forget from whence you came, Will the world even know your name? What’s your name, man?”

[NEKU SAKURABA] Neku Sakuraba My name is Neku Sakuraba And I was killed in Udagawa But just you wait, just you wait...

[ERI] He was confused ‘til he found CAT, that was that, his passion Some time later, see Neku's isolation long lasting One friend, other people a burden he won't bear

[FULL COMPANY EXCEPT NEKU (whispering)] Enjoyin' ev'ry moment; moments left unshared

[777 (& COMPANY)] Went to meet his friend, the friend was in an accident and died Left him with nothin' but ruined pride, something new inside A voice saying (“Neku, you're better off by yourself.”) He started hissin' and listenin' to every CD on the shelf

[JOSHUA (COMPANY) ((BOTH))] He couldn't have won games at such pace For someone so disgraced He would've been brainwashed or erased Obliterated without a trace But he trusted, busting the borders of his own world Thinking and rethinking ev'rything that he'd seen and heard ((Scannin')) every mind to read what he can learn from ((Plannin')) all his moves to fight the noise, slash and burn 'em (Ooh) Throughout the city that will change the whole Earth Shibuya will make you know your worth

[COMPANY (NEKU) ((WOMEN)) (((MEN)))] Shibuya will make you know your worth (Just you wait) Shibuya will make you know your worth (Just you wait) Shibuya will make you know your worth ((Shibuya)) (((Shibuya))) (Just you wait!)

[COMPANY] It's Neku Sakuraba (Neku Sakuraba) We are waiting in the wings for you (waiting in the wings for you) You could never back down You never chose to waste your time! Oh, Neku Sakuraba (Neku Sakuraba) When Shibuya sings for you Will they know what you overcame? Will they know you rewrote the game? The world will never be the same, oh

[HANEKOMA, (MEN), ((COMPANY))] He's walking through the streets right now See if you can spot him (Just you wait) Another strong creative soul Comin’ up from the bottom ((Just you wait)) His enemies respected him And nobody forgot him

[SHIKI, JOSHUA and BEAT] We fought with him

[RHYME AND 777] Me? I died for him

[BEAT] Me? I trusted him

[SHIKI] Me? I, well, I...

[JOSHUA] And me? I'm the damn fool that shot him

[COMPANY] There's a million things I haven’t done But just you wait!

[HANEKOMA] What's your name, Phones?

[COMPANY] He's Neku Sakuraba!

#neku sakuraba #nekuxander hamiltaba #crossover #twewy #hamilton #the world ends with you #bluerainbow-101 #song parody

[octanesimp3000]

The Bunny, The Decoy and the Apex Games #4

AO3: https://archiveofourown.org/works/32034451/chapters/79672615

Summary:

On the battlefield, so much can happen. But little did the audience of the Apex Games know, they were watching the game that was about to change your relationship with Octavio forever.

Chapter 1 / Chapter 2 / Chapter 3

————————————————————————–

Your squad had landed right in the centre of Harvester. You noticed that at least two other teams had landed close by so you focused on quickly gathering the loot you needed in case a battle was imminent. “R-99 here. She’s fast like me!,” Octavio tossed you the submachine gun and a handful of light ammo before dashing off to the opposite side of the Harvester to try and find his preferred weapons: a Wingman and a Peacekeeper. 

“Bad guy over there. Be careful, guys,” Elliott warned, pinging the platform above us. Moving to crouch behind cover, you managed to spot Alexander setting up his annoying gas traps through the iron sight of your gun. The other two people on his squad were no doubt somewhere nearby too. 

While you and Elliott were content with waiting for the right moment to push the enemy team, Octavio was unfortunately never one for patience. He charged right towards the platform, threw his jump pad and launched himself right at them, all while spewing bullets from the Spitfire he’d picked up.

You and Elliott both took different directions up to the platform to try and catch the enemies off-guard. It wasn’t surprising that Octavio was still very much alive and annoying the enemy squad like a persistent fly as he was skilled at using his stim to slip out of sight every time they thought they finally had him. 

Just as you’d arrived on the platform, Octavio had managed to down Ramya but had suffered severe injuries from her prized mini gun, Sheila. You spotted Octavio recharging his shields behind cover and quickly took note of the blood covering his mask. Although you were concerned for him, you knew there was no time to help tend to his wounds. Octavio was out for the rest of this fight, it was up to you and Elliott to defeat the final two in this squad. 

Elliott used one of his decoys, directing it into the room where you two suspected Alexander and his squad mate were camping. Just as you’d expected, bullets started flying at the decoy and when they least expected it, you and Elliott charged into the room with your guns ablazing, taking down the last of the squad. 

Octavio entered the room, still healing up with a health syringe. “That was awesome, let’s do it again!,” he said excitedly, jumping up and down on the spot. You crouched down in the corner of the room, away from sight from the windows or the open doors and began recharging your EVO shield. He must have noticed the frown on your face because Octavio asked confusedly “What’s wrong, chica? We did great!” 

You heaved a heavy sigh and wondered whether it was even worth trying to explain it to him. You finished up charging your shields and stood up to face Octavio, saying exasperatedly “Well yes, we did do great with this fight but you could have died there! You can’t just go charging into battle all on your way without even warning us, Octavio. I...we were worried about you.” 

Even though you couldn’t see his face through the mask, you could tell that Octavio was pouting. He snapped in an annoyed tone “You never used to say anything about it before, why are you getting onto my ass about this now? We killed the entire squad, that’s what matters!” Octavio stomped off towards the nearest death box and busied himself with looting it.

His words surprised you. Although you’d always been slightly annoyed when Octavio charged into battle on his own in the past, you’d never been worried for his safety before. He was more than capable of dealing with his own fights and even if he was knocked out of the fight, you knew you’d see Octavio on the dropship later when the game was over anyway. So, why were you experiencing such feelings for him now? 

Unable to come up with a response, you walked over to the Replicator to craft yourself a purple backpack. You were a huge fan of termite grenades, much to Walter’s joy when he found out during your first game together so getting a backpack large enough to fit all of them plus your ammo and healing materials was extremely important to you. “Hey, you okay?,” Elliot, who had just finished crafting a purple extended light magazine, asked with a concerned smile. 

“Yeah, yeah. I’m fine. Octavio’s just being a bit of an ass, can you believe he just jumped in like that?,” you grumbled, typing on one of the Replicator’s keyboards. The machine began whirring to life as it turned the crafting materials into your backpack. Elliott chuckled in amusement and you turned to him with a frown. “What’s so funny?” 

Elliott shook his head and said “He always does it, and he manages to get himself out of trouble every time. I think you’re just feeling a bit sensitive, ya know? Cause you two are dating now and all.” He shrugged as if what he’d just said was a mere suggestion but the twinkle in his eyes told you differently. 

“That’s not it,” was all you said in response as you grabbed the freshly crafted backpack and put it on. The announcer spoke up again, stating that there was only 30 seconds left before the ring would start closing. It was time to get moving towards Fragment East to get you and Octavio’s big event for the screen going, even if you two weren’t exactly on the best of terms now. 

Your squad managed to successfully make it to Fragment East without bumping into any enemy squads along the way. Elliott luckily hadn’t questioned why you wanted to go that direction even though you both knew that it was pretty much a death trap. Octavio had been strangely quiet the entire journey there and you were worried that he was going to back out from the plan. The Syndicate would not be happy and you didn’t want to find out what the punishment would be. 

You made your way towards the four-level building, your nerves beginning to catch up to you. The whole world would soon see you kissing Octavio, how would the public react to it? How would the other Legends react to it? This evening on the dropship after the game would definitely be utter chaos. 

Taking the zip-line over to the top floor of the building, you glanced around to try and spot where the cameras were hidden. The manager you’d spoken to had said that they would be placing cameras on every floor of the building to ‘give you two the freedom to choose where you wanted to do it’. If they weren’t paying you, you’d have decked the manager in the face by now. 

Elliott began looting the floor and Octavio came over to you, holstering his gun. “Should we get to it? Before any enemy squads decide to push us?,” he asked, glancing around nervously. You agreed and took the zip line down with him to the second floor, putting some distance between the two of you and Elliott. 

You thought it would be much easier than this. It wasn’t as if you’d never kissed anyone before, you’ve had plenty of practice. Yet standing here in front of Octavio now, you could almost feel your heart beating so hard that it threatened to explode from your chest. He pulled his mask down and said with a sheepish smile “I’m sorry about earlier, I just get so bored waiting around. I didn’t mean to get upset at you for caring.”

You felt your cheeks begin to heat up. “You don’t need to apologize for that. I overreacted, I’m sorry. You’re more than capable of taking care of yourself and I should trust you as your squad mate,” you said as you leaned back against the wall in an attempt to hide your wobbly knees. When was it going to happen? 

Octavio opened his mouth to speak and closed it again as if thinking carefully about his next words before he finally said “You only see me as a squad mate?” He stepped closer towards you and since you’d backed yourself into a wall, there was nowhere you could go. You stared at Octavio, eyes wide in shock at his question. You mentally reminded yourself that he was probably just acting for the cameras and to not panic. 

“My heart belongs to you, Y/N. Ever since the day I joined the Apex Games and you showed me around the dropship, I knew I felt something for you. I just didn’t know it was love until, well, just now,” Octavio said with his light green eyes locked on yours. He put a hand up to your cheek and asked “I just need to know, do you feel the same for me?” 

Who knew Octavio had such a romantic side to him? Certainly not you at any rate. As nervous as you felt, you knew it was your turn to play your role as the smitten love interest. You smiled as sweetly as you could and said as you put a hand up to Octavio’s cheek as well “Of course, I do. I could never imagine being with anyone but you.”

With the romantic words having been uttered by the both of you, it was finally time for the big kiss. As Octavio’s face moved in closer to yours, you closed your eyes and waited for the impact. When you felt Octavio’s lips pressing against yours, you were surprised at how soft they were. This wasn’t as bad as you thought it’d be after all. You felt strangely safe. 

“Woah!,” a sudden exclamation came from the direction of the room’s entrance where the zip line was situated. Octavio quickly pulled away from the kiss and stepped back, turning to face Elliott who looked absolutely shell shocked. Elliott started speaking again, tripping over his words as he did so “I, uh...I’m sorry for interrupting! I’ll come back later, yeah? Bye!” 

Elliott made a run for the zip line and disappeared onto a different floor of the building, leaving you and Octavio alone again. You two had done what the Syndicate had asked of you. Now all you had to do was to convince everyone that you were in a real relationship.

Octavio grabbed your hand and flashed you a happy grin before putting his mask back on. He shouted “Let’s go and win this game together, chica!” before pulling you after him down the zip line and back out onto the battlefield where enemy squads awaited.

#apex legends #apex octavio silva #apex octane #apex fanfic #apex mirage #octanexreaderxmirage #octavio silva #mirage #apex legends mirage #apex legends octane #elliott witt #fanfiction #fake dating #love triangle

[lizacstuff]

I'm sure others will ask this but what are you thoughts on the episode of SCK?? I love your in-depth analysis lol. I personally loved it!!! Also can I just say that the edser/hanker chemistry is off the charts lol. If this was the first episode I watched ever, without subtitles, their scenes would be a giant neon sign that says "THESE CHARACTERS ARE MADLY IN LOVE!!!". Eda was beyond cute/in love/adorable in this episode with serkan, girl has got it bad and I wish she didn't have her stupid grandmother and these insecurities in the way ahhh. I really love the Ayfer/Aydan duo, they're fun when they're together and Ayfer wasn't annoying like the last few EPs. Also, Balca can go choke lol, I'm so glad Serkan didn't fall for her trap for him to stay over!! He was like nah come to the party (my girl is waiting!!!). Was serkan about to tell Eda that he had to stop by her house? He seemed really nervous. ANYWAYS, I love EdSer and am going to go watch their scenes 1000x before next week 😭🥰

Thank you! I love Edser too!!!!  Like you, I enjoyed this episode, though it was despite some of the narrative issues (that I posted about here.) There were good, meaty Edser scenes, which is why I watch this show. Once again I'll start with the non-Eda/Serkan thoughts and then get to the feelsy stuff at the end.

Babaanne's introduction did not disappoint. The actress has the right energy for the role. I guess we now know why Eda has been adamant about cutting her out of her life, Babaanne is next level controlling and vindictive. We'll have to see how she develops and what her endgame motives are. Does she want her revenge more than she wants her granddaughter and daughter in her life? Or does she think if she wins and arranges everything including an advantageous marriage for Eda, Eda will eventually go along and decide it's awesome and reconciliation will come about that way? *evil laugh* She doesn’t know her granddaughter at all if she thinks that’s a possibility. 

(more under the cut)

I enjoyed her non-Balca scenes, especially when she was going toe-to-toe with Eda. That scene in Serkan's old upstairs office was intense, both actresses really brought it and kudos to Eda staying true to her defiant character. No one pushes her around. Prepare yourselves to see her waver a bit, I'm sure it's quite jarring to see your loved one in jail and know that he's there because of you, but she'll get to the point of fighting beside him. I have no doubt.

It was nice to see Ayfer protecting Aydan and Seyfi, it made for some great comedy and it was a good change after all of Ayfer's annoying, unrelenting negativity in general and about the Bolats. We'll see what happens between the two now that they appear to be vying for Chef Alexander's attention. Nesilhan just cracks me up when she's portraying Aydan play acting, the stilted voice she takes on is always hilarious to me, like when Ayfer was introducing "Aisun" to Serkan.  As we move forward, though, I want to see some badass Aydan. She  was introduced to us as a force of nature, so I hope we see that woman, a woman who will go to the mat for her son and Eda, emerge at some point. No hiding from Babaanne long term. Everyone needs to gear up to fight!

Peril and Engin got married! Their scene at home was really well done and gave me a bit better insight into them and why they might work. The only thing I was disappointed about here was that Serkan was not their witness. He counts them as some of his only friends and they didn't call him? Come on, show!  They could have easily structured the ep to have him get the call while there was chaos at his loft that morning and it would have been the perfect excuse for him to grab Eda and head to the wedding leaving the moms and Babaane to Chef Alexander.  It wouldn't have changed anything about the episode because Eda still could have gone to do her thing after the wedding and everything else would have been the same, except it all would have had a bit more heart. Missed opportunity there. 

I've decided that Ferit is a catch. At the beginning of the show he was just so naïve, that he seemed foolish, but he's really turned into a sweet, upstanding man. You hold on to him, Ceren. The irony in his relationship with Serkan is just outstanding to me, because ALL of this started because Serkan was willing to upend his own life (and Selin, Ferit and Eda's) will the sole goal of keeping Ferit out of his business, and now here we are 24 episodes later, Selin is long gone, Eda is the love of his life, and Ferit has turned into a solid, trust-worthy business partner and friend who is putting Babaanne in her place on the first day. Love to see it. 

Balca, that snake just gets more unhinged as we go along. Good GAWD. WTF is wrong with her? Her eventual comeuppance better be big. I'm really to the point that I can't enjoy any scene that she's in, it's just too maddening, because neither Serkan nor Eda are taking her seriously enough. Which I realize they don't know what we know, but dang I hope Serkan is finally connecting the dots because her behavior is not normal. As Eda says, who gives a gift like that to their boss? Who calls their new boss instead of the police when there's an intruder in the house?  By now he should be able to figure out she's manipulating him.  

Also how was she not daunted when she called and Eda was there?  What did she think would happen when he came to get the gift when he had Eda to get home to? On top of everything else she's shameless and delusional.  As for the gift, that was creepy AF. Did she seriously think that her boss, who she's known a week, would be romanced by that?  Or any man for that matter? Did Selin give her the impression he was so arrogant that this would be the perfect thing for him? As much as I want less of her on screen, I would like to know the thought process behind that embarrassing monstrosity. Because it was not a savvy move. But the good news is that no one was more creeped out by it than Serkan Bolat. It seemed to really unsettle him, which it should. It was nice to see Eda getting over her jealousy, perhaps that came with her decision to try and move forward. Before she was in this state of flux, deep-down wanting Serkan to be hers, but not being able to admit that and feeling an outside threat during that confusion. 

I saw some criticism of Eda because she was openly mocking and dismissive of Balca. However, while I agree her behavior was a tad immature at times... Balca was totally asking for it.  She's been at the company for mere days and her weird, manipulative, obsessive behavior is totally inappropriate. Also if she didn't take a hint from Eda opening mocking her, Eda picking out her gift from Serkan, Serkan deferring queries about his NYE plans to Eda, Eda being at his house when Balca called, I think we can safely say that Balca in unaffected by any of Eda's behavior, thus Eda isn't hurting anyone. While Balca is over here, claws out, trying to start a war. Balca is the villain here, not Eda for recognizing and making fun of it.

Despite the emotional inconsistencies between Eda and Serkan in this episode, during one scene they were hot, the next, one or the other was cold without rhyme or reason, there were many great conversations. I really enjoyed their conference room scenes in particular. Serkan confident and calming her down, Eda being enraged by Babaanne, but listening to him and letting him calm her down. 

His little Eda Bolat coffee cup gag was priceless, he did succeed in both diverting her and flirting with her in one suave move. Also a nice bit of foreshadowing there, which there was a lot of this episode. Not just this and the bouquet catch, but also every single one of their domestic scenes. 

As I said in this post, the rewrite, or whatever happened this episode, did cause some pretty big emotional inconsistencies from scene to scene. I know most people loved the scenes when Eda went to find Serkan, but it was a little whiplashy for me.  We go from Serkan being calm and collected and happily flirting with her about being Eda Bolat at the office, to a short time later him being moody and standoffish with her at his house? It's understandable that he would be upset at her suggestion that she leave the company, but I would think the man that broke her heart for her own good, would understand why she might think of  leaving in order to get rid of someone who is threatening him! 

It just felt like a weird time for him to hit his threshold with her, especially since this was when they were supposed to be heading to Paris (huge writing fail that there was no "Oh I guess we have to postpone Paris" throwaway line).  However, perhaps that was accelerated for him in the face of a real threat?  Like if it was just another day he's fine with her waffling and their little contract game, but he feels in his bones that this is go time and he needs to find out if she's ready for what's coming?  (Look at me finding reasons for the inconsistencies as I answer this ask, lmao).

Then the shaving scene was interesting. She starts by saying "Leaving was a dumb idea, I'm still here, I'll be by your side," which YAY and seems to me to be a huge step forward for her.... but then he doesn't feel it. Why exactly, didn't he feel it?  So then she transitions to the biggest head scratcher of the episode for me, and I really hope it's a translation fail. She basically references the movie they saw and says,  "If I could erase all memories of you, I would." Um... what? Is she really saying to him she wishes they never met? I sure hope there was some modifier in there, like "bad" memories only or something. It seemed way harsh and inconsistent with their feelings for one another. However, once he starts talking about being a machine before meeting her and his heart being too heavy without her, the dialogue is pretty great. He really bares his soul and she reciprocates with intimacy.  The second half of this scene is absolutely lovely. 

The visit to Aydan's house was interesting.  At some point I'm gonna need Aydan and especially Ayfer to step up when it comes to Babaanne.  Ayfer ran scared the whole episode and it's just not fair of her to leave the burden on Eda. Hopefully, she'll get there. There was a reason Babaanne told Eda not to tell Ayfer about the threats, and threatened harm to Serkan and family if she did so. I'm guessing Ayfer may be better equipped to deal with her mother than was suggested in this episode. The conversation about Eda running from her grandmother as a child and losing the bracelet was very affecting and well done, and thankfully Serkan was out of his sulky mood and in full-on supportive boyfriend mode. Phew, good to have you back, Serkan.

That throne Babaanne brought in was something else. Worth a good laugh. However, I feel like it highlights a few cracks we've already started to see in Babaanne's scary façade. First, there's the one I just talked about, with Babaanne not wanting Ayfer to know what she's up to, so we now know who might be successful in opposing her or might know things that could shut her down.. her daughter. Then this ridiculous throne move had to be her way of unsettling everyone, but as we see that fails with Serkan. He's pretty unflappable when it comes to her nonsense antics. 

Then Babaanne singles out Balca as her ally, which on one hand, it was astute of her to figure out who was the outsider, ripe for the picking, but she straight up choose the wack job, who let's face it, is not going to be all that competent of a foot soldier for her, because she has no allies and she's not in anyone's confidence. Plus she made that critical error with the present being so off-putting to Serkan. Balca might be able to cause problems, but she can’t get Serkan to transfer his affection for Eda onto her, so her usefulness here is limited. Babanne needed to try and fool someone like Melo, Ferit or Leyla. Prey on the nice ones who might try to be accommodating just so everyone gets along. 

Anyway, I loved the Edser scenes in the office, he brought her lemon water! My heart.  And I loved the meeting with the inner circle. Serkan has a plan! Of course our boy does, he wouldn't be Serkan Bolat if he didn't. It's always fun to see how much they all trust him to lead them through these tough times. He will once again emerge victorious. It just may take some time on this one

Note Blaca wasn't invited to that meeting, someone already can sense she can't be trusted. In the meeting later with Babaanne, I loved how Eda was sitting next to Serkan at the head of the table, totally squared off against her grandmother. That blocking was not by accident. It showed them facing her. On the same side. Together. United. That's what we call foreshadowing and that's how they're ultimately going to defeat her. Together. 

It's interesting to me that earlier in the day when Eda tells him maybe she should leave the company he gets upset, but when she shows up at his house and straight up says they can't be together, he's completely calm and is his normal confident self, talking her into staying the night with his usual ease. I'm thinking her manic rambling about him getting tired of her and her grandmother separating them was just too obvious of an emotional spiral after an exhausting day (that lasted 47 years and multiple wardrobe changes) so he didn't take any of it to heart.

As for the reason she needed a place to stay, WTF is Ayfer doing letting Babaanne stay in their home??  Kick her out for the love of God. I don't mind, since it gave us this fabulous sleepover, but come on woman, at one time you were strong enough to remove your niece from her which could not have been easy, where is your backbone now? Find it. Fast. 

LOVED LOVED LOVED every second of domestic Edser. How cute are they? Serkan wheeling her dinosaur suitcase was so adorable. And how cute is it that he bought hot chocolate for her? And THEN, THEN when they went to look at the stars? My heart melted clean out of my chest when he said, "I'm already looking at the most beautiful star."  Remember in 13 when he asked her, "How are you real?" and she basically told him to be careful or she'd get spoiled and expect that kind of romance all the time? Well apparently the romantic robot has an endless capacity to generate heart-stopping one-liners so she really needn't have worried. 

Eda's phone call with the girls was another whiplash moment for me. So wait... all episode her trepidation has been around her grandmother interfering or Serkan getting tired of her, but now she's back to wondering if he can change? Ne? And she isn't articulating what she wants him to change, or talking to him about change at all, only asking her friends if they think it's possible?? The change thing made perfect sense to me in eps 20-22, because she was coming off of his lie that broke her heart, but now I can't figure out what she wants from him. I think this is another casualty of whatever writing changes happened in this episode. I really hope the writers pull it together and figure out what the character's headspace is and stick with it. It's one thing to yo-yo from episode to episode, but to yo-yo scene to scene is too much. 

I know that they're trying to create suspense for whether she would meet him to ring in the New Year, and start fresh, but there are much more elegant ways to do this than constant retread conversations that don't make sense in context with the scenes that came before. Honestly, this episode had a LOT of wonderful scenes and humor and heartfelt moments, but it also felt like a franken-episode,  like if different writers were assigned different scenes and then they assembled the episode without going back to smooth out the tone and emotions.

That leads us to Serkan discovering Eda in the bath. What do we think was going through his mind there? lmao. He looked exceptionally pleased and he did the jokey flirty thing, taking a mental picture, but then when she comes downstairs in her jammies, he has gone into stone-cold work robot mode. I suppose the best I can guess is that he knew she was confused, he knew he had convinced her to stay under the guise it would be platonic and the "last time." 

He's always been a gentleman with her. So perhaps he felt compelled, for her sake, to keep it in that place, but seeing her in the bath send him into overdrive and the only thing he could do is throw himself into work to make sure the situation didn't go any further before she was fully ready? That's my best attempt at explaining it.  Still she was flirting hardcore with him when she came downstairs, it feels like that was the moment he's been waiting for since episode 19, and he let it sail by.  Ah well, at some point soon both their engines will be revving at the same time and we’ll finally get to the sexy times. 

The next morning was 100% adorable. Serkan Bolat serving breakfast in bed. I swoon!  What a sweetheart, because I'm pretty certain that Serkan does NOT like crumbs in his bed so this was a big gesture. And you could see how much she appreciated it, despite teasing him about the portion size. Eda, that breakfast would have been just fine by me, but if the girl has a big appetite, so be it.

Also, Edacim, it would be a lot easier to buy your "confusion" if you hadn't brought him a heartfelt gift that would have taken a good while, like weeks, to procure and then sketched in it for him!!!!  She had to have been planning that for some time.  Anyway, a very sweet gift and one of those moments where actions speak louder than words. We all want to hear Eda say the words "I Love You," but she just said it very loudly here in the form of this gift. Even if she wasn't fully aware she was saying it. It's obvious where her heart is, she just has to give herself permission to follow it.

This ep also brought the funny when half the cast of characters barged in on Edser’s little love nest. Good for both Eda and Serkan for refusing to be a part of the subterfuge for Babaanne. I'm hopeful we're going into a secret relationship/engagement storyline, but at this point I like that neither were cowing to her. Eda is an adult and it's nobody's business but her own where she stays the night! 

It cracks me up that Eda and Serkan were discombobulated by the intrusion, had the silent #married conversation, and headed upstairs together. Mostly because they are the two in the dark, what are they going to figure out by going upstairs alone? What they really needed was to talk to any of the other people to find out what in the hell was happening. Not that I blame them for wanting to escape that scene together. However, what was beautiful was their connection in these scenes. They were functioning as partners, as each other's person, as the one each turns to when they need support (or escape).  And that's really saying something since they were in a room full of the people they're both closest too.

Finally, I'm glad they spoiled the final scene in the fragman, because I would have been too stressed watching Balca's psychotic efforts in keeping Serkan away from the party, and Eda, if I hadn't known he would make it.  As it was, it  was too much to watch. They've done absolutely nothing to make her even a little sympathetic. I feel zero empathy for her, I don't understand why she's willing to take these risks. No man is worth it, girl! Especially not a man you just decided you wanted because of his initials!  The character needs to serve her purpose and go. Soon.

As for Serkan making it in time, THANK GOODNESS. I don't think Eda could have handled being stood up again. Even taking her call was a mistake. That's why we have voicemail, Serkan. And clearly he should have called the police on his way. I sincerely hope that he finds out the break-in was a fake and that's what makes him realize what level of crazy he's dealing with. I assume, because he didn't know what else to do, he left Balca in his home and that's what he wanted to tell Eda right before the police arrived. I shudder to think what damage she might do there alone. Installing a hidden mic or camera for Babaanne? Going through his things? Planting more items. Ew. If that spec is right the place will need to be fumigated.  

Serkan's gift was, of course, perfection. Talk about love in gift form, and did you notice that one of the charms was an "E" and one was an "S"? A sweet, heart-felt detail and a nice little nod to which initials really matter on this show.  Interestingly, after a full episode of inner turmoil, once Serkan arrived, Eda seemed to be all-in. She was bubbly and happy to see him and definitely acting like he was her date. And then the hug! Finally! They've obviously been physically close in recent post-break up episodes, for example elevator, pottery, dancing, skating, but what a relief to finally have this pure, intentional display of affection from her to him. Also a cheek kiss! This show, I swear it makes me grateful for the most chaste of moments.

As I said in another ask, I think the, "Will you be my girlfriend?" was in Serkan's head. We didn't see him say it, she didn't respond and the audio was hollow like it was a thought or memory or dream. However, what I can't answer is why we heard that. Why put it in there? We know he wants them to get back together, so that line doesn't inform the audience of anything they don't already know. So maybe proposal foreshadowing?  On the other hand, there is the line earlier in the episode that was voice over added after the fact (when Edser are in the small conf room and Serkan says he’s going home) so maybe they added the audio after the scene for some reason? I don’t know with this episode anything is possible. 

Then, of course, Babaanne ruins their moment with her evil plan. Next episode will she be sitting on her throne stroking a hairless cat Because it feel like Babaanne may like a bit of evil aura to surround her. Anyway, next stop... jail! I'm honestly excited to see how the next ep plays out. We're going to go through some things, so prepare your soul, but I honestly think we may end the ep in a better place. (new cliffhanger notwithstanding) We shall see. 

#Edser #sen cal kapimi #Sen Çal Kapımı #sckask #sck 1x24 #sck episode discussion #edser discussion #asklizac #Anonymous

[2o2o-kit]

An American’s Thoughts on Horrible Histories Songs

Born 2 Rule: Iconic, really set the stage for Horrible Histories, not my favorite George III song though that prize goes to Hamilton, (also I was always taught George III was mad in an angry way)

Wives of Henry VIII: This song walked so Six can run, still iconic

Making a Mummy: Kind of forgettable, but if we are going by the pattern as seen in the first two, I predict the next big history musical will be about making mummies

The Tudors: I don’t know why but I love this song’s intro, but I find the dance moves cringe worthy

Georgian Lady: It’s great when you can read along to it, but Martha is still iconic

I’m a Knight: I love the whole Monty Python inspiration, this always makes me smile, just pure wholesome knight energy, one of my favorite season 1 songs

Caveman Love: It gets better the more you listen to it

It’s Not True: Probably my least favorite Horrible Histories song, still better than most songs on the radio

The Plague: The plague was made for musical theatre, besides this check out Spamalot and Something Rotten

British Things: Drags on a bit, but haha Britain, you are not perfect, (but America is far from perfect)

We are Greek: It’s king boring, but lyrics are still pretty clever

Burke and Hare: I’m not a fan of this TBH, maybe it’s because I’m not a huge fan of true crime and stuff like that, it’s not that catchy either

Literally: Nothing like an 80s rock parody, it’s also one of the funniest songs

Charles II: This was the first HH song I listened to and I’m glad, because it’s a banger, and this is probably the closest you will get to a kid friendly Eminem

Spartan Musical: This is so camp and just you have to watch to understand

WWII Girls: Katy Wix needs to be in more songs, I love the costumes in this

George IV: I’m obsessed with this one, Jim’s vocals in this are perfection, definitely one of my favorite of the whole series, I wish I could belt like that

Blackbeard: The acting in this is perfection, I still laugh while watching it

Victorian inventions: I’m not a big fan of this type of music, but it’s still funny

Hieroglyphics: Idk why Mat did a Texas accent, and I’m not sure but it’s not bad, but it’s not as great as the other songs

Cowboys: The accents are good but I could go without all the farts

Boudicca: This is an inspiration

Funky Monks: I’m not a big fan of this one, it’s funny but I wish they had more singing in this, but Terry is great as always

Pachacuti: At first I was bit nervous to watch it because of the brown face, and yes it’s in there and I also thought it would be too cheesy but that’s the point and makes it so much fun, also what’s a northern accent

Dick Turpin: For most people it’s the guyliner that makes this a thirst trap, for me it’s all the tricorn hats 😍. When I first watched this video I recently developed my tricorn fetish and this song was just... The music to this is great too, I listen to this daily. And imagine me learning that this thirst trap’s name is Dick

Monarchs: Iconic, super helpful, now I can name all the English monarchs, thanks

William Wallace: Better than Braveheart, seems like a lot of fun to film

Work! Terrible Work: Hey look theatre reference, this so is definitely not a mood booster, but those sideburns (and I’m not really into sideburns)

Ra ra Cleopatra: Martha is killing it, and I love all the Lady Gaga references

Richard III: Thanks for talking about the horrors of Tudor Propaganda and the lyrics in this are amazing

Evil Emperors: If you claim your bad, don’t make such a catchy song that can easily be confused as another thirst trap, love the parody and Caligula and Nero and some of my favorite HH characters

Suffragettes: This song proved how hard these ladies worked, also I want to sing this song with others, who’s in?

Ain’t Stain Alive: Okay just like Pachacuti, I’m sure this song can’t work today, but it’s great, so catchy and the screams, also the behind the scenes of this is iconic

Age of Stone: I like how it explains the time periods but I’m not really a big fan of how it was presented

English Civil War: The choreography is on point, Lawry needed to be in more songs and I love the song they parodied, it’s Cool from West Side Story

Celtic Boast Battle: I don’t know, I find it a bit too much but the ending is perfection

RAF Pilots: Now I’m not big on war history, epically WWII, but song is perfection, I love the coloring used for this, the music is just awesome, and this along with The Captain from Ghosts and Molly McIntire are proving the WWII is gay

Nature Selection: I’ve been using this phrase a lot during the pandemic,

The Thinkers: Alright, no strong opinions

It’s a New World: A jam, love the shade of how the pilgrims treated the natives, and it’s a great parody altogether, also I need a New New Castle now

Mary Seacole: So catchy I love it, and the dancing is great. I wish they didn’t cut out that one lyric about Florence because that’s important

Victoria and Albert: It’s kind of slow, but I can see why others like it, maybe it’s just because I’m alone

Blue Blooded Blues: I don’t really like Blues music, even though I’ve lived in cities known for their blues, but James Cape™️, GAAAYYYY!!!

The Luddites: Definitely one of my favorites, I love the cinematography, the costumes are my type, and nothing like historical heavy metal, ironic right, and Jim has the vocal range

The Borgia Family: I love everything about this, the music, the accents, costumes, this is better than the Showtime series, wish Ben got a solo in this song though, (also is it just me or do the Borgias remind you of the Trumps expect the Borgias are more like able)

Mary I: It’s okay, Sarah in this is great and it’s a great parody but I always thought of Mary having a deeper voice (I know weird)

William Shakespeare and the Quills: I love Shakespeare, but I’m not a big fan of this type of music, also I low key wish Shakespeare was sexy in this one

Georgian Navy: Please forgive my star spangled ass, but I’m not a fan of the British military during the Georgian era, and yes I know Nelson didn’t really fight in the American Revolution, but I’m not a big fan of war history

Flame: Will get stuck in your head, but who cares it’s an awesome parody, Jesse Owens in amazing, we love Jim’s Nero, and Mat you said you were all nude (I feel cheated)

Death’s Favorite Things: Hilarious, and a mood for me

Rosa Parks: Now Rosa’s story is something we get drilled in our heads in America, which is good, this song is so catchy and I love the costumes, but the ending did say ‘segregation was ended in America,’ but technically...

Vikings and Garfunkel: Aww so peaceful,

Charles Dickens: I love the music on this and the cinematograph, but there is something about it that I’m not a big fan of it, but I’m not sure what

Crassus Minted: A freaking underrated banger, just like the real Crassus

Joan of Arc: I’m sorry but this song is a bit cringe worthy but still way better than the new seasons

Alexander the Great: I mean is there any other song that can truly depict Alex

Owain Glynwr: Wish they had more Welsh history on the show but Tom Jones parody I never knew I needed

Transportation: The dancing in this is amaze, and I’m obsessed with Ben’s accent in this, how is his Midwestern accent better than mine, and I have a Midwestern accent, (stop making me like Henry Ford!) and I love whenever they do musical parodies

Henry VII: This song makes me want to be Henry VII, he made the monarchy great again

Matilda Stephen and Henry: There are more ABBA references in this than a production of Mamma Mia, and it’s brilliant,

Australia: I’m surprised they got away with saying Hellhole in this, but still very catchy, low key wish Thomas sang this in Ghosts

Cousins: It’s silly and I like it

Love Rats: Lyrics make me want to remain single, video is having me crush on actors that are old enough to be my parents

Final: Supersweet, but I can only watch it once because it makes me emotional

#horrible histories #my opinion #history