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rene-spade · 3 months

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growing up räikkönen | f1 grid

fem! reader x räikkönen family, f1 grid

note(s): reader is kimi’s eldest daughter 👍 2nd pov but for the plot reader has a name. We start off in the 2021 season, reader becomes a driver for mclaren the 2022 season. main idea is everyone is obsessed with her lolol

Warning(s): potentially triggering relationship dynamics, some obsessive behavior tbh bc i like em crazy, mostly cute stuff tho!

GROWING UP RÄIKKÖNEN MEANS having a chaotic first few years, but with your father everything always works out. kimi isn’t even 22 when you’re born (2001), and your mother is just a fling who sadly passes away before you turn one, but you are his world. he melts at the sight of his eldest daughter; the one who he raised as his alone. Sure, you’ve had a couple step moms, but only one father who happens to be the protective type. You grow up in the f1 paddocks because kimi doesn’t like being apart from you for too long. even with his marriage to jenni, he has her watch you during his races. Just the racing part though, he commonly totes you along with him during anything he can, even media duties. due to his own upbringing, your schooling is the highest of priorities, but it’s still a guarantee you know how to drive anything by age 16. He wants you to be prepared for anything life throws at you, though of course he wouldn’t let you do it alone.

♤ ♤ ♤

SOME DAD! KIMI THINGS; childhood

he named you after himself (kimi -> miki, unoriginal)

when you were ages 1 month - 6 years, he took you everywhere with him

he nicknames you “lumienkeli” snow angel in finnish

his first tattoo was a portrait of baby-you with your full name and birth date

kimi can’t say no to his little girl, so you end up bringing all kinds of stray pets home, even from other countries

you and step-mom jenni iconic duo

uncle seb vettel and michael schumacher (who babysat you growing up) buying you and kimi matching outfits

kimi is very bad at documenting things properly, so jenni organized and labeled his entire “isä ja miki-mäiri” photo album. after they divorced, minttu took over that position, adding robin and rianna.

no-dating rule implemented as soon as you mention a crush at school (you were 6)

crazy dad! kimi who tried to run over your first boyfriend with a snowmobile

a responsible drinker around his sweet daughter but when you’re home attending school, he has his iconic drinking benders (championship era all the way to his divorce era)

kimi who learns to braid hair so you can keep your hair tidy and untangled beneath your first helmet

you are his mini-me (mostly, just in the ways he intended)

♤ ♤ ♤

Twitter; self-ran

♤ ♤ ♤

Instagram; self-ran

♤ ♤ ♤

photo album; written by kimi-matias räikkönen (edited by jenni dahlman and minttu räikkönen)

äiti ja miki-mäiri lumienkeli mik ja isä

2001 <3 (2004)

isosisko miki, minun miki-mäiri miki-mäiri ja robin ja rianna 10th syntymäpäivä setä rami (2006)

miki ja jenni <3 isän vauva miki-mäiri ja

(2003) (kesäkuuta 2002) serrku justus

♤ ♤ ♤

this is the introduction to this fic / au. Please send asks to get the ball rolling! If you don’t know kimi lore, this might not make much sense oops

- ren

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fannyyann · 26 days

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Hiiiii Stephanie I am curious about the lore around Matthew’s deal taking a long time because he did not want it to eliminate a teammate, I did not know this!!! His big heart 😭 Anyway if you would not mind sharing more I would love to learn more about this….

(- jules-in-deep)

First, I never mind sharing matthew lore! And second, I transcribed Matthew's quotes to the best of my abilities but he RAMBLES SO MUCH so they aren't entirely verbatim.

In the press conference they held after he signed, Treliving said this:

“As we were going through this process, we really only had two goals in mind this summer. When you complete the season and sort of do your debriefing and then you come back and try to put together a plan for the summer, our two goals for the summer were number one to sign Matthew and number two was to keep our team intact. What we wanted to eliminate was a distressed transaction, where we were in a situation where you had to throw a body under the tarmac to create space and it comes with challenges and it comes with, potentially, risks. We talked at length at the beginning of the process to Matthew and his representatives and I can tell you from the start, as you go through this process, Matthew’s goal was the same. He obviously wanted to get his situation resolved, but it could not, would not, and did not result with the elimination of a teammate. That’s what Matthew said to me at the beginning of the process and it goes again to the type of individual that we’re dealing with here.”

And Matthew said this:

"Yeah I think the plan from the start, we were looking at every option, but, you know, long term was kind of preferred at the start, and wanting to be here as long as possible, and being a Calgary Flame. So we thought that was going to be the way to get it done at the start. Then talking with Tre, and obviously getting feedback, we knew the whole cap room and everything, and we both kind of came to the conclusion at the beginning of camp that a three year deal was going to work best for the team. So, the best case scenario happened where there isn't one guy who had to be moved in this process. That was a fear of mine, you know, you never want to see that happen, and we had such a great team last year, and we brought in some pieces that made us that much better, and can be more successful in the postseason, so it was just a bonus that no one—that everyone is still here."

And then after his trade to Florida, Matthew said this:

"During this process this summer, I kinda thought back to three years prior when I was going through my contract situation then, and throughout the whole process after my entry-level, I was like 'six, seven, eight years, what are we doing?' and nothing really came from it. Finally last second, Brad—who's one of the best and one of my favorite guys in hockey. He's been awesome to me in everything, through both contracts he was great. So that summer, like at the middle of training camp, he's like 'well the only way we can keep this team together is three years,' so I was like 'okay, this isn't my ideal situation' but talking to craig, my uncle who represents me, he's like 'do you want to actually put yourself in a better position to evaluate it all in three years.'"

And then, as we know from an after hours appearance (1:00), he gifted his teammates and the training staff these wine bottles :')

#matthew ask #matthew lore #he's sooooooo :'))

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kald-dal-art · 8 months

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THG OC LORE PLS :D

Sure can share some Lore about the OCs I have actually shared on here, but I have a few more.

14th: Minerva Paxton (D2)

District 2’s 4th Victor and the first Female Victor. One of the first volunteers for the games. Because she volunteered to be in the games she immediately got a lot of attention from people. Similarly to Katniss she only volunteered to save a loved one, but she is credited to start the trend of Careers volunteering to the games. Seeing as a way to protect the weak and get the glory of the games and victory. Minerva have grown to hate her legacy over the years and is one of the few District 2 Victors that has declined training future Careers in District 2’s academy’s but she has been a mentor many times. She would have several long term relationships but she never got married and never had any children. I’m 50/50 on if she is still alive around the 75th game.

23rd: Rowan Holbrook (D7)

District 7’s second Victor and its first female Victor. Was immediately a popular Victor. With her being a likable in her interviews, being resourceful in her arena and being a capable fighter. (I imagine the first Victor from 7 won because of Survival skills instead of his fighting skills so she stood out compared to him). She is kind of a wreck after her game drinking a lot and being a bit impulsive. But she gets over it mostly over the years.

She got married a few years after her Victory and had three children with him, 2 girls and 1 boy. Unfortunately for the 49th game her youngest kid get reaped for the games. She tried her best to save him from the games but unfortunately he falls victim to the arena event for this year’s game after that she fell back to her old coping mechanism of drinking to cope with her son’s death and the game season. She dies a few years before the 75th games of long term illness.

31st: Kennedy Thomas (D6)

District 6 second victor and the Districts first female Victor. A bit of a troubled lost kid when she got reaped, but proves herself in the arena.

She is the only one of the District 6s victors that didn’t fall into alcohol or/and drug abuse to cope with the games and her Victory afterwards. Even then she is known for having a short temper and being a bit paranoid, but it has gotten better over the years. I have more thoughts around her backstory but I am currently writing a fic around the District 6 victors so her and her backstory gets more fleshed out there. She had one serious relationship but it didn’t work out and she never had any kids. She is still alive around the 75th game

41st: Topaz Lafayette (D1) and 43rd: Persephone Light (D1)

I imagine these two are one of the few Victors couples that are out there.

I imagine Topaz is a very charismatic and easy going guy. He didn’t actually have any interest in participating in the games, but then his father lost a lot of money through bad financial decisions and gambling. so Topaz saw an opportunity to take care of his family with winning the games. So worked very hard to be the male tribute in the games. Because he was far from being the strongest and biggest guy in his year.

I imagine he managed to get a lot of support because unlike other Career tributes he seemed more down to earth and not as arrogant. It also made it easier to throw the other Careers off their guard because they didn’t see him as much of a threat because they kind of saw him as just a silly little guy. He has been a mentor many times over the years, and usually drills it into his tributes there is no point being good with a sword if the audience can’t root for you. Usually very good at getting sponsors for his tributes.

Persephone won 2 years after Topaz. Being a typical career with her training her entire life for the games. Immediately catching a lot of attention with her beauty and tall figure. Many people comparing her to a goddess and she was proven to be a pretty scary foe when thrown into the arena.

Her games got into a bit of controversy because people accused the Game Makers of rigging the game to make her win because he was biased. Nothing got proven but the game maker for her games quit shortly afterwards. She always hated those rumors, because she didn’t spend years training for these games and fighting her way on top just for people say she only won because she was a pretty face. She usually works at the academies at District 1, but has been a mentor a few times. She doesn’t like it though.

After Persephone wins she gets closer to Topaz because they won so close to each other. After a while they do fall in love and feel like the finally met someone where they didn’t have to keep their persona up. They got married around the 50/51 game and had two children. They are still alive for the 75th game.

47th Pearl McKinely (D4)

Probably the OC of these ones I have developed the least. But I imagine she was mentored by Mags and was a popular Victor after her victory. Was a more apathetic brutal person before the games, but afterwards she became a more caring person. Was a mentor for several years and takes good care for her tributes. She is still around for the 75th game.

Need to flesh her out more have a few ideas floating around for her. So think I have something more concrete for her in the future.

Here is the THG Fic I am currently writing about District 6 and it’s victors. ( X )

And some of these characters have appearances in that one as well.

Maybe one day when I finish my time line for THG I’ll do a proper fic about these people.

#the hunger games #thg oc #victors #eva answers stuff #thg fic #thg fanfiction #these drawings are for how they look like around the 50th game for context I guess

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miami-lolz · 3 months

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I saw this awesome question sheet by @bisexualricks and wanted to throw my hat into the ring!

1. top 5 episodes and why!

The Vat of Acid Episode - It was both a solid character introspection for both Rick & Morty, and also had some really funny moments. Morty flipping Rick off after he had to kiss the vat of acid absolutely sent me

Rest and Ricklaxation - There’s was a lot of funny bits in the episode and is generally pretty good. Also Jessica saying Rick would call her drunk asking about Morty or something is hilarious to me

Ricktional Mortpoon's Rickmas Mortcation - It was a huge turning point for lore but also Rick saying “perfectly fucking vertical.” In an incredulous tone absolutely kills me. Also solid light saber fight

The Rickchurian Mortydate - this entire episode was great from beginning to end. “oh I’ve got pubes, commander-in-queef, y-you wanna count them?” And Ricks rant on the Oval Office was hilarious.

Rickmurai Jack - I absolutely love Evil Morty’s character and the last half of the episode was especially fantastic. The music, EM’s rant “That’s what makes me evil, being sick of him.” Also I absolutely believe EM’s offer to let Morty Prime come with was a genuine offer. The whole “it was a toilet” was just EM trying to save face like he wasn’t kinda hurt.

2. least favorite episode(s) and why!

Claw and Hoarder: Special Ricktim's Morty - The subtext on this episode was mortifying and was just kinda weird and all over the place.

Final DeSmithation - There was a good couple funny bits throughout but again, any funny moments is ruined because we can’t go one season without weird incest plots.

Rickdependence Spray - I feel like this is self explanatory. Jfc Justin what we’re you thinking?

3. Moments that make you insane

“I don’t know this guy, you’re a my grandpa, Rick!” OH MY GODDD

The fact that Morty cares for a family he knows isn’t even technically his.

Mortys voice and expression when he yelled “Your not even in the hole, are you?!” In Fear No Mort because the amount of desperation in his tone nearly killed me

Rick lying to Morty about the Purge candy so he doesn’t realize what he has done. Like Rick absolutely could have told Morty the truth but decided not to.

4. your favorite lines

“oh I’ve got pubes, commander-in-queef, y-you wanna count them?”

“A Vat of Fake Acid, are you dying from dementia??”

“We could be clones, we could holograms, we could be clones controlled by holograms controlled by special remote control headsets the real Rick and Morty are wearing while they’re fucking your mother!”

“Betrayal! Betrayal on all sides!”

“You have a death crystal in your pocket??”

“No, yes, maybe!”

“You little monster, I thought you were masterbating!”

“And you took that in stride??”

“You rather I address it??”

5. Rick head-canons

⁃ Stopped doing any heavy partying after around season 1, not wanted to expose Morty to that, though he’d never admit that out loud

⁃ Is Bilingual, specifically he speaks Spanish. I’m pretty sure he’s canonically Hispanic as well.

⁃ He’s pansexual. He also hasn’t been in a serious relationship in decades. He avoids them after Diane. He did want something serious with BP tho

⁃ When he’s wasted, like emotionally upset and absolutely shit faced he will lock himself in the garage and avoid going near the Smith family

⁃ Sometimes Morty does things that reminds Rick of Prime and it drives him crazy. He will go out of his way to chastise Morty to try to get him to stop the things he can control

⁃ Rick doesn’t heal his battle scars as it’s a way to separate himself from other Ricks in the finite curve

⁃ Rick purposely let the original Prime universe get mutated and made it worse as a last middle finger to Rick Prime. He later felt kinda bad about it, just because he knows what he did is some petty shit Prime would have done.

6. Morty head-canons

⁃ Morty Prime has a lot more physical similars to Rick Prime then he does to Jerry. Most Mortys have brown but Morty Prime has blue eyes, similar to his Rick. His hair more disheveled and a bit more spiked.

- Refuses to drink alcohol most of the time because he’s seen what it’s done to people. However he will do recreational drugs & smoke cigarettes. Often on the roof on his house.

⁃ Morty has a jagged scar around the end of his hand where he had to use the train to cut his hand off. As well as a bit missing from his left ear from a stray gun shot, his nose is crooked from getting broken a lot and he’s missing a tooth.

⁃ He carry’s a blaster in his waistband and one under his pillow just in case. He is in general kinda paranoid

⁃ If Morty has a serious nightmare and/or can’t fall asleep he will sneak into his moms or Ricks alcohol stash and drink until he passes out because it’s the only way to get him to fall back asleep.

⁃ Sometimes Morty will stare at himself in the mirror and try to see if he has any similarities to Rick Prime and will try to change anything he finds. If another Morty refers to him as “Prime” he will bust their head open. Or cry.

⁃ Morty is aware Rick sees him as Rick Prime grandson, and is convinced one day Rick will finish what he started and kill him to. He’d never admit that to Rick

7. Family Head-Canons

Summer

- Is a lot more observant then she gets credit for.

- One of the reasons she started going on adventures with Rick is because she wanted to look out for her brother.

- She nearly cried when Rick told her she reminds him of Diane.

⁃ I could see her as Bi, as she’s flirted with Ethan and the girl from S7.

- She was planning on moving out as soon as she was 18, but lately has been thinking other wise. Her relationship with her family is a lot better then before.

Beth/ Space Beth

⁃ Trash TV is her guilty pleasure, like she says she watches it ironically but no she doesn’t

⁃ Not that great at cooking to be honest, never really got taught how to and can’t be bothered anymore

- is honestly proud of Summer for not ending up like her when Beth was her age

Jerry

⁃ is actually really solid at cooking, and would be a good house husband if he wasn’t kinda lazy.

⁃ Family is genuinely important to him and he honestly would sacrifice everything for them. Rick knows this and can respect Jerry for that

⁃ he’d never say it out loud but sometimes Morty scares him. He’s seemingly the only one to notice how aggressive he’s gotten lately and was mortified when Morty told him about the Tina-Teers thing.

8.Prime head-canons

⁃ He doesn’t regret what he did with Diane, but he did regret letting it get to that point

⁃ He honestly didn’t want to kill his own Morty, and was conflicted seeing him with C-137.

⁃ He was far from thrilled seeing what had become of his planet. He wasn’t necessarily attached to it or anyone in it, however he didn’t want it to end up as a wasteland.

- He’s been keeping tabs with Rick and Morty as was a little surprised with how Rick C-137 hasn’t killed Morty Prime or even really tried to.

- Wasn’t expecting Morty to take after him as much as he has.

9. Evil Morty head-canons

- Was actually bothered when Morty Prime didn’t accept his offer and just lied about it being a toilet seat to save face because he was kinda salty about it

- he’s definitely a clone, not sure what universe he’s based off of and doesn’t care anymore

- EM is lonely as hell and watch’s rom coms to pass the time. He’s not use to getting to live normally and isn’t sure what to do with all that free time

- he chose to use an eye patch because he knows Ricks are scared of pirates

- after the S1 finale, EM started keeping tabs on Rick C-137 and Morty Prime. It was also how he learned about the Prime universe

10. favorite rick and morty pair that ISNT c-137 and prime

Not technically a Rick & Morty pair but the Mortys from the citadel, Left-Handed Morty, Slick Morty, Glasses Morty, and Lizard Morty. The way Slick threw himself into the garbage shoot in a desperate attempt for other Mortys to be better off lives in my head rent free I wish they were still alive.

11. songs that you think relate to them

“This is love” by Air Traffic Controller. This song is such a good way to express Mortys codependency to Rick (not shipping btw you nastys)

#great question sheet op!#had a lot of fun with this one #rick and morty analysis #rick and morty #rick c137 #evil morty #morty prime

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spnexploration · 1 year

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Brotherly Figures part 3

Summary: (Early seasons) Sam and Dean save a 15 year old, newly orphaned teenager from vampires. Much to their chagrin, she ends up tagging along on hunts, giving them both a fresh chance at acting like a brotherly figure.

Series masterlist

Part 2 <- -> Part 4

Characters: Dean Winchester, Sam Winchester, Ava (teen!OC), Bobby Singer

Episode summary: The boys set their ground rules for Ava joining them.

Episode warnings: None

A/N: Bit of canon divergence here. I wanted John to still be alive so I had to set it in season 1, but I also wanted the opportunity of hanging out with Ellen and Jo at some point.

I awoke in a strange bed, opening my eyes to the empty motel room. I panicked briefly that the Winchesters had abandoned me, before noticing their belongings were still strewn around the room. Then I realised I could hear the low timbre of their voices, but couldn't make out the words, in amongst the noises of the road and birds. They must be standing outside talking.

I got out of bed and padded to the motel room door. I opened it a crack and saw the boys standing right outside. They stopped speaking when they saw me.

“If you're going to talk about me, you may as well do it in front of me,” I grumped at them. Dean scowled at me but they both traipsed back in.

“Alright, we have some conditions,” Dean began, “if you're serious about wanting to become a hunter.”

“I am.”

“The first one is that you don't see one speck of action until I say you're ready. You are going to have to train for this, just like we did.” I nodded.

“My condition,” Sam said, “is that you finish high school. You can enrol in distance education and I'll tutor you, but you are not throwing your entire future away.”

“Are you serious?”

“Sam is always serious about school,” Dean interjected, a touch of laughter in his voice.

“What the hell use is high school?” I glared at Sam.

“Well, for one it'll get you into college-”

“How many hunters go to college?!” I interrupted him.

“I did,” he countered, still calm despite my agitation. “And I'm going back to law school at some point. Secondly, hunting isn’t all about swinging knives and shooting salt. A significant portion is understanding lore, doing research, knowing how to critically read what's written. All skills you develop in high school.”

“Did you finish high school?” I asked Dean.

“I didn't drop out at 15,” he countered, arms crossed. “Besides, you want to travel with us you have to convince both of us. This is Sammy's hill and he's choosing to die on it.”

“You’re serious,” I said as I glanced between them, “I have to do high school in order to travel around literally killing monsters with you two?”

“Yes,” Sam said simply.

“Fiiiine,” I sassed. Sam smiled.

“Speaking of travelling around,” Dean started, “Sometimes, we're going to have to leave you behind. Especially in the beginning, but I can't promise you you'll always be able to come in the future, either.”

“So I just have to chill in the motel room?”

“Sometimes, yes. But when I say leave you behind, I mean we're going to drop you with some of our friends.”

“Who are these ‘friends’?” I said, apprehensive.

“Hunters and hunter supporters. We used to get dropped at Bobby's when we were your age too, and Ellen has a daughter a couple of years younger than Sam. We're not going to abandon you, kid.”

“You’re not going to take me if I say no, are you?” I said, much quieter and more hesitant than I had been when challenging Sam about school.

“No.”

I bit my lip.

“You'll be safe with them,” Sam said gently, reaching out to my hand and giving it a squeeze, correctly guessing the reason for my hesitation. “Promise.”

I nodded.

“Ok,” Dean said, “Here's the plan. Sam and I are going to finish this case. You,” he looked me straight in the eyes and pointed his finger at me, “are not going to leave this room. Once we're done, we're going to Bobby's.” I nodded meekly.

“What's our cover story if anyone does see Ava?” Sam asked.

Dean looked me up and down. “How is anyone going to buy two twenty-something year old men with a 15yo girl in their room?” he muttered. “We’re going to be arrested for child trafficking...”

“I could be your sister,” I said hesitantly.

“That could work,” Sam said. “We’ll need to all be up to speed on some details about each other in case we get questioned.” Dean and I nodded.

“It’s probably a good cover story for wherever we go,” Dean said. “If we're in a town being the FBI or whatever, then you can just be my sister. People who know us know that our Mum died when Sammy was a baby, so you'll have to be our half-sister from our Dad. Explains why no one has seen you before, too. But for the love of God, don't tell him you're our sister when we find him next.”

“Ok,” I agreed. “So, what do I need to know?”

We ran through our birth dates, putting them into our phone calendars. Dean was 26, Sam 22 and I had recently turned 15. We came up with a cover story for how I'd gotten in touch with them and started travelling around, and that my mother was dead.

“Alright, we're gonna head out and finish this case,” Dean threw me the remote to the TV, “Don't break anything, don't leave, and don't talk to anyone. Capiche?”

“I get it Dean, you've said it 30 times already.”

“We’ll bring you back some food later,” Sam said.

They left. I channel surfed, wondering what I’d gotten myself into.

---

Bobby didn't seem that put out when Sam and Dean rocked up with me in the backseat. “Who's the kid?” he asked as we got out of the car.

“Orphan,” Dean replied, at the same time as Sam said “Ava”.

“Need you to look out for her for us,” Dean continued, “get her started on her training.”

“You two idjits go on a recruiting drive?”

“It was not our idea,” Dean huffed.

“Let's get inside then,” Bobby said, turning to the house, “you can fill me in on the details later.”

Sam took me to a bedroom upstairs. I could hear Dean and Bobby talking about me in the kitchen, but I couldn't make out what they were saying. Sam left me to put my things in the room and went to join the others.

The men were still talking when I came down the stairs, moving quietly so I could hear them.

“I'm jus’ worried you're going to do to her exactly what your Daddy did to you boys,” I heard Bobby say, “and she ain't going to thank you for it.”

“Believe me Bobby, I know,” Dean said.

“We’re going to do it differently, we're going to do it better,” Sam said. “Besides, it's us taking her in or her going out and getting herself killed trying to hunt things alone. You saw her face Dean, she's already in this life whether we help her or not.”

“So long as you're aware, is all I'm sayin’,” Bobby replied.

There was a small lull in the conversation so I made more noise on the stairs and walked in to the kitchen. Sam looked slightly guilty, perhaps thinking about the fact they'd just been talking about me, but the others had better poker faces.

“Welcome to the family, Ava,” Bobby said. “Guess you're going to be living wit’ me for a while.”

---

Sam got my enrolment to a distance education provider set up, putting Bobby down as my guardian. He was nothing if not efficient, although I’d been hoping we could delay or even forget about enrolling in school. He found a bunch of grading tests and made me do them, so he could work out what level I was up to in each subject. Then he drew up a whole curriculum and timeline about what I needed to study between now and the end of the school year. He was worse than my teachers.

Dean was at least more fun. He took me out and set up tins on fence posts. He offered me a gun, “You ever shoot anything?” I shook my head.

Dean showed me the basics of the gun he had then got me to have a go. I finally got one of the tins on my 5th or 6th attempt, but I think it was a fluke. “Might be something you need to work on in between all that school work Sammy's devised,” he joked at me.

On my 4th day at Bobby's, Sam and Dean took me to one of Bobby's sheds. “You ever fight anyone?” Dean asked. I shook my head. “Guess Sammy gets to be your first then,” he smirked.

“What?” I asked, incredulous. “You want me to fight Sam? I've seen you two take down vampires with a flick of a wrist, not to mention he's twice my size! I can't fight Sam!”

“Relax kid, I'm not going to set him on you. We're just going to work on some introductory moves.”

“Oh. Ok.”

“But you are going to have to be able to fight him if you ever want to be let loose on monsters,” Dean said more seriously.

“Let's not freak her out just yet,” Sam interjected.

Dean ran us through a few key moves, getting me to block Sam’s attacks and try to escape him grabbing me. I felt clumsy and weak, and was panting and aching by the end of it. I was dispirited, clearly there was so much I just wasn’t cut out for in the life of a hunter.

“Hey,” Sam said to me, noticing my mood. “You're doing great. It's only early days. Dean and I have had a lifetime of this, you haven't even had a week.” I smiled weakly at him.

“It’s uh, it's also not too late to change your mind,” he said hesitantly. “We won't judge you if you want to pull out, we can take you back to your home town and your old school.”

“No!” I snapped.

“Ok, but just remember that the offer’s there.” We walked the rest of the way back to Bobby's kitchen in silence.

Back in the main house kitchen, Bobby approached me. “I found a local teen girls self-defence class,” he said. “Might be a good way to build up some skills, and make some friends your own age.”

“Oh, umm, ok,” I said, surprised he'd been looking. “Thanks.”

“You can't have an old geezer like me as the only person to talk to.”

---

The next day the Winchesters left. And so my life shifted again.

@leigh70

@malindacath

@ellie-andthemachine

#supernatural fanfiction #spn fanfiction #fanfic series #dean winchester fic #Sam Winchester fic #dean winchester #sam winchester #brothers #teen!OC #platonic supernatural #supernatural #sam winchester fanfiction #dean winchester fanfiction #teen reader insert #teen reader #supernatural x sister!reader #spn x sister!reader #dean winchester x sister!reader #sam winchester x sister!reader

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ravenya003 · 4 months

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Buffy the Vampire Slayer: Welcome to the Hellmouth, S01E01

My 2024 Buffy the Vampire Slayer rewatch starts NOW!

Before I jump in, here’s some quick housekeeping:

I’ll endeavour to do this on a weekly basis; watching an episode on Saturday night and writing up a post on Sunday.

I’m not going to worry about spoilers. This show was as good as it was because of how interconnected the themes and storylines were, so if something in season one reminds me of something in season seven, I’m going to mention it.

This is the first time I’ve watched this show (probably) since high school, and it’s almost certainly the first time I’ve watched it from start to finish. It’s actually rather dizzying in this age of eight episode shows that get cancelled after two seasons to consider there are one hundred and forty-four episodes of Buffy that span seven years.

Obviously I am not unaware of Joss Whedon’s mistreatment of others on the set of Buffy, and where it seems relevant I’ll bring it up. But I also don’t think it’s fair to the rest of the cast and crew to throw the entire show under the bus because of one person, especially when it had such a huge (positive) impact on so many lives.

For the record, my favourite ships are Willow/Oz, Giles/Jenny and Spike/Drusilla. My purpose in pointing this out is to make clear that I don’t watch this show to see what true love looks like, but to watch a close-knit band of social misfits fight the forces of evil together. To me, the heart of this show is the friendship between Buffy, Xander, Willow and Giles. The show is always at its strongest when it’s focusing on the four of them, and most of the love stories just don’t interest me that much.

Once season three is over, I’ll start alternating between Buffy and Angel episodes.

Okay, let’s get to it.

First of all, I was not prepared for how dated everything looks and sounds. Naturally my most recent memories of Buffy are watching the later seasons, when there’s cellphones and internet access and fashion choices that wouldn’t seem out of place today – but season one looks like a different era entirely.

There are some references that have dated amusingly (Cordelia and Buffy bond over their shared appreciation for James Spader), some that I didn’t get at all (who’s John Tesh? What’s Debarge?) and a few synthesized musical cues that are straight out of the nineties.

I had forgotten that the Cold Open involves Julie Benz as Darla, and that show-defining twist when it turns out that she’s the vampire and not her predatory date. Ah, Red Shirt #1 played by Carmine Giovinazzo – you have the distinction of being this show’s first victim. I salute you.

Also, it’s amusing to think that we had no idea just how important Darla would end up being to the franchise’s lore. She’s just a standard vampire minion at this early stage, though I do like the fact that she was presumably cast to look a bit like Buffy.

And of course, it all starts at good old Sunnydale High.

Our first glimpse of Buffy Summers begins with her in the middle of a nightmare, which... girl, get used to this plot device. This one is a bit more muddled than her later dreams, made up of a bunch of clips that’ll be used in later episodes that culminate in the Master, the season’s Big Bad.

I had to smile at the sight of those yellow school buses pulling up at the front of Sunnydale High. Buffy may not arrive at school in one of these things, but seven years later, she’s sure as hell going to leave in one.

Joyce – and later on, Angel – are both perfect examples of Characterization Marches On regarding the fact the writers’ room hasn’t quite settled on their personalities yet. In Joyce’s case, she comes across as a lot more flaky than in later appearances.

Oh, and here’s Xander, riding in on a skateboard that we’ll never see him use again across the entire run of the series. I get that he’s a very contentious character in the annals of the show, and though I’m certainly not going to let him off the hook for his occasional (frequent?) shitty behaviour, I also think I’m fonder of him than the average fan.

Honestly, I think Joss Whedon doomed him a little when he stated that Xander was the character most based on him in high school. Suddenly all his entitled, chauvinist behaviour was re-evaluated through the lens of knowing that Whedon was a pretty awful person – but I hope we can all agree that even at his worst, Xander is a MUCH better human being than Whedon.

We’ll see how we go.

Interesting that Willow’s history with Xander is established well before she meets Buffy. Not surprising, since they’ve known each other since early childhood, but interesting. Buffy is the protagonist, but Xander/Willow’s relationship with each other takes precedence when it comes to introducing the gang’s dynamics.

And hey, it’s Eric Balfour as Jesse! Oh man, they really dropped the ball on this character, didn’t they. It’s the one aspect of this two-part premiere that really doesn’t work... but I’ll get to that in good time.

Principle Flutie! Something else I’d totally forgotten; I honestly thought this show started with Snyder.

Also, that initial on his desk plaque is B. Does that mean his name is actually Bob (which is what he tells Buffy to call him)? Not Robert? Weird.

Buffy and Xander’s meetcute involves him helping her pick up some of the spilled contents of her bag, and accidentally saying: “can I have you?” instead of “can I help you?” Oof. Yeah, that’s not an auspicious start.

Buffy meets Cordelia before she meets Willow, and Cordelia comes across as surprisingly nice when she shares her textbook with Buffy and invites her into Sunnydale's popular clique. Then of course, the second relatively big twist of the episode occurs: Cordelia reverts into absolute bitchiness when they come across Willow at the drinking fountain.

Willow scarpers and Buffy looks deeply uncomfortable. There’s a nice subtext across this episode that suggests Buffy was once just like Cordelia, only for her calling to make her more sympathetic to social “losers” like Xander and Willow.

Cordelia also describes the Bronze as being in “the bad part of town”. Huh? I’m going to chalk that one down to more Early Instalment Weirdness, since I don’t think it ever comes up again. (Later Sunnydale is described as a “one Starbucks town”, which is also funny since it’s later revealed to contain a zoo, a shopping mall, several lakes and parks, a military base, and a university).

Buffy enters the library for the first time, and the first thing she sees is a newspaper with an article titled “local boys still missing” outlined in red. The plurality of “boys” means that this isn’t referring to Darla’s kill, which probably only happened the night before anyway. Instead, it’s an indication that there are ongoing problems of a supernatural nature in Sunnydale.

And here’s Giles! The most interesting thing about this interaction is that Giles has clearly been waiting for Buffy. As in, he knows that the Slayer is scheduled to appear in Sunnydale, and that she’s going to be enrolled in its local high school. As Willow says later on, he’s also a newcomer, having only recently taken the position of school librarian.

The show never goes into any more detail than this, but I have so many questions. Clearly Buffy was under surveillance from the Watchers Council, who knew she was coming and made sure Giles had a cover story and a position to fill at Sunnydale High so that he could more easily sidle himself into her life, but a part of me wonders they pulled similar strings for Joyce to get her that job at the art gallery in order to bring Buffy to Sunnydale in the first place.

Evidence for this is that Giles already knows it’s a hotbed for supernatural activity in his discussions with her, though I suppose his dialogue suggests it’s more fate (or the Powers That Be?) rather than the Watchers Council that had a hand in Buffy’s arrival at the Hellmouth (“there’s a reason you’re here and a reason why it’s now”). Still, it’s an interesting theory to ponder, and I always felt it was a shame that the show never delved too deeply into Buffy’s life after she became a Slayer but before she moved to Sunnydale.

(Though I suppose that had to do with the spectre of the 1992 Buffy movie, who’s relationship with this show is a bit tenuous. But now I’m getting off-track).

Buffy flees from Giles and strikes up a conversation with Willow instead. Willow’s eagerness and earnestness is very cute, and though she probably has the most profound development of any other character on this show, I’ll always miss this early dorky version of her.

In describing the library, Buffy says it gives her “the wiggins”. HAH! Remember that word? Remember how it didn’t exist anywhere except this show? Remember how it was essentially Whedon’s attempt to make fetch happen? Aw, man. What a delightful throwback.

On hearing that a body has been found stuffed in a locker, Buffy naturally cannot help but investigate – though I suppose we can chalk it down just as much to her wanting confirmation on whether or not vampires are in town than to any personal sense of responsibility.

Our first glimpse of her super strength comes when she busts through the locked door into the changing room, and she gives a weary “oh great” on seeing the bitemarks in the victim’s neck.

But then of course, she follows this up by sharing her discovery with Giles, who is quick to point out that she’s doing something about it. I have a soft spot for heroes who simply cannot walk away from danger and/or a situation that needs their intervention, regardless of how loudly they grumble about it.

Turns out Xander has heard their entire conversation about vampires and Watchers and Slayers from behind the stacks... which is an elegant not-coincidence since it was established earlier in the episode (in his conversation with Willow) that he was going to the library for a trigonometry book.

Giles is still jabbering about how Sunnydale is a centre of mystical energy that attracts all kinds of supernatural beings, and Buffy’s skepticism naturally gives way to a panning shot of an underground cave where a formidable-looking vampire is intoning “the Sleeper will wake” over a pool of blood.

As villains go, the Master is obviously not particularly inspired, especially since he spends most of this season as a quintessential Orcus on His Throne, but it was also way too early in the game to have a complex or personal Big Bad. You can’t come out the gate with a Glory or an Angelus, and I think he serves his purpose just fine as a Nosferatu-esque spectre that a sixteen-year-old girl would understandably be intimidated by.

Ditto Luke as the show’s Starter Villain: a physical threat to Buffy without being all that interesting.

On Buffy’s way to the Bronze we get our first Angel sighting, and much like Joyce, his characterization is a bit off. He’s way too smarmy and negging, but also... kind of upbeat? It’s amusing to reflect that the writers room knew very little about him at this point, including the fact that he was a vampire (making his “I don’t bite” comment deeply ironic) so it’s lucky that they never filmed any of his scenes in daylight before the truth comes out six episodes later.

In any case, his role in this episode is to namedrop things like “the Mouth of Hell” and “the Harvest” (which Giles will start researching as soon as Buffy passes them on to him) and give Buffy the silver crucifix which... becomes important at some stage? I remember the claddagh ring in season three, but have no recollection of this necklace.

Also intriguing is this dialogue between them: Angel – “I’m a friend.” Buffy – “Maybe I don’t want a friend.” Angel – “I didn’t say I was yours.”

I mean, I know it’s just meaningless banter, but Buffy assumes the “friend” he’s talking about is Giles, who soon confirms that he’s never met him before. So was Angel actually referring to The Powers That Be? Whistler, maybe? Again, I know that this was just filler dialogue with no established context, but I’d be interested to see if it fits in with season two’s flashbacks where he’s introduced to Buffy from a distance.

There’s a very sweet interaction between Buffy and Willow at the Bronze, in which the former gives the latter some advice (“seize the day, because tomorrow you might be dead”) and assures her she’s coming back – despite Willow’s expectation that she won’t – when she spots Giles on an overhead balcony.

The staging of the scene between her and Giles is a bit sus – did he really have to stand behind her and lean over her like that? – but at his insistence she spots a vampire in the crowd, though not because of her preternatural senses, but because of his dated fashion sense. And uh-oh, he’s chatting up Willow, who is unfortunately taking Buffy’s “seize the day” advice.

A throwaway line from Cordelia down on the dance floor is telling: apparently her mother never gets out of bed. Our resident Alpha Bitch clearly doesn’t have a great home life.

Poor Jesse gets the brush-off from Cordelia and runs straight into Darla instead. The reveal is wonderfully corny, in which she swivels around in her hanging basket chair with a smile that wouldn’t melt butter.

We’re heading into the third act cliff-hanger now: Willow is being ushered through a graveyard by her vampiric date, Jesse is clearly also in danger, the Master has risen and sent out his minions to bring him fresh blood, and Xander’s skepticism over Buffy’s Slayer status quickly turns to concern when he learns that Willow is in trouble.

They all converge in a graveyard crypt, and – bless her – Buffy is bantering right off the bat. It’s actually a pretty good tactic, as the vampires are caught off-guard by her confidence. Though... shouldn’t Darla clock the fact that she’s a Slayer? We learn later that she’s familiar with the concept, though this is obviously another case of not having figured out the character’s background at this early stage.

A point in Xander’s favour: Buffy tells him to “go” and instead he enters the crypt to help Jesse and Willow. You have to admit, that’s classic Xander.

And we end with Xander/Willow/Jesse being threatened by more vampires outside, as Luke lowers himself onto Buffy after he’s thrown her into an open tomb. To be continued...

Miscellaneous Observations:

Do we ever get an explanation for the force field that’s keeping the Master trapped underground? It’s obviously magic, so who put it in place?

How did Angel know about the Harvest? Who sent him? I know the answers are still to come, but the question is deliberately left dangling in this episode.

Giles mentions incubus and succubus in his litany of monsters that are attracted to Sunnydale, but I think they’re the only two creatures that never actually appear in the show.

I love the little glimpses of non-main characters going about their business in Sunnydale, namely Aphrodesia and Aura gossiping about Buffy before the dead guy falls out of the latter’s locker. I wonder if those girls made it to Graduation Day...

Watching this episode, the most eye-opening character is Cordelia, who has quite the epic journey ahead of her. It’s almost funny to see her in a role that requires her to be little more than Buffy’s antagonist and foil – essentially what Buffy would have been without her calling. I’m taking a moment to think about where all these characters end up, and it’s pretty dizzying.

Giles gives the famous Slayer mantra: “Into every generation a Slayer is born: one girl in all the world, a Chosen One. She alone will wield the strength and skill to fight the vampires, demons, and forces of darkness; to stop the spread of their evil and the swell of their number. She is the Slayer.” This is repeated in the show’s very final episode, and not only forms the crux of Buffy’s entire identity crisis, but also serves as the inspiration for her solution to it. Damn, I love this show.

But who the heck is the guy who speaks these lines in the opening introduction?? It’s later taken over by Anthony Stewart Head, but in season one at least we get a completely unfamiliar narrator.

As excited as I am to embark on this rewatch, I know that after the third season the show loses its centre a bit as the main trio form relationships that are ostensibly more important than the one they have with each other. I love these early seasons because their friendship is clearly the focus of the show – the thing not only protecting them against the forces of evil, but getting them through the hell that is high school.

The show loses its lustre when it loses sight of their bond, but I have three whole seasons to enjoy before that happens. Let’s do this.

Best Line: Cordelia (after Buffy has accidentally slammed her against a wall, thinking she’s a vampire): “Excuse me, I have to call EVERYONE I have EVER met, RIGHT NOW.”

Best Scene: The climatic fight in the crypt, not for the fight itself, but for the shock on Xander and Willow’s faces as the world (and their lives) irrevocably change.

Best Subversion: Obviously when the vulnerable and demure little blonde in the Cold Open reveals herself to be the real danger in the room.

Death Toll: Darla's date in the cold open. Thomas, the vampire that Buffy dusts in the crypt. Also, the newspaper in the library mentioned "local boys still missing" but since we never see them on-screen, the toll stands at TWO.

Grand Total: One civilian, one villain.

#buffy the vampire slayer #rav's watching log #welcome to the hellmouth #rav's buffy rewatch #buffy season one

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bluemooniegif · 2 months

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besides bungo stray dogs, can u rcm me some manga having thought-provoking theme like that

ABSOLUTELY I CAN!! here are some manga, book and movie recs for you, cause I couldn't help myself :>

MANGA RECS:

1: The Case Study of Vanitas (Vanitas no Carte)

I knowww it's a cliche that BSD fans must also enjoy VNC, but it's genuinely just AHH so good!! it currently sits at 62.5 chapters (10 volumes & 9 uncollected chapters) and it has a 2-season anime adaptation. it's the second manga series by Jun Mochizuki, who's also well-known for her series Pandora Hearts, and is still ongoing.

set in 19th-century France, our story begins with Noe, a young vampire, who's excitedly travelling to Paris for the first time. in his travels, he encounters the strange and enigmatic Vanitas, a human who somehow possesses the power of the Vampire of the Blue Moon- a feared being shunned by the rest of the vampire world.

we learn from the very beginning that Noe is recounting this story to us, and that he kills Vanitas with his own hands- but why? how? nobody knows, but we're bound to find out!

2. Attack on Titan

I doubt anyone was expecting me to mention this one, because it has quite a reputation for being gore-filled and action-packed, but when I say this literally changed my life I'm really not kidding (I wouldn't have this blog or be into anime at all if not for AOT!). it's a completed story, with a four-season anime (including 3 OVA episodes) and 139 manga chapters (in the main storyline; there are multiple spin-offs and 2 bonus mangas/light novels).

many years ago, the final remnants of humanity were forced to flee into a city surrounded by three giant walls. these walls are the only things keeping humanity from perishing at the hand of the titans, giant humanoid figures who hunt and eat them. but a young boy, Eren, wants nothing more than to see the world beyond the wall- until a titan taller than their walls breaks into the city, throwing humanity (and Eren's life) into disarray.

though it's true that a large chunk of this animanga is action, the lore is incredible. I can't say too much without spoiling, but the thought-provoking aspects aren't talked about nearly as much as I think they should be. once you've finished watching or reading, I highly recommend you watch this video, which is one of my favourite video essays of all time!

BOOK RECS:

1. Slaughterhouse Five

this is one of my favourite books of all time, and it's only 177 pages, so it's a super quick read! not only is it severely anti-war, but it's deeply though-provoking. I think about it every day. I quote it regularly. I'd recommend it to anyone and everyone, especially now, with everything happening in the world.

I honestly don't have words for how much I love it, so here's the synopsis on Goodreads:

Prisoner of war, optometrist, time-traveller - these are the life roles of Billy Pilgrim, hero of this miraculously moving, bitter and funny story of innocence faced with apocalypse. Slaughterhouse 5 is one of the world's great anti-war books. Centring on the infamous fire-bombing of Dresden in the Second World War, Billy Pilgrim's odyssey through time reflects the journey of our own fractured lives as we search for meaning in what we are afraid to know.

2. No Longer Human

there are so many editions of this, and I would recommend all of them- this is my other favourite book of all time, by the way. I may be barking up the wrong tree when I tell a BSD fan to read Dazai, one of the most accessible and relatable Japanese authors for a Western audience, but hey, I've got to remind you just in case you haven't given it a shot.

No Longer Human follows the life of Yozo Oba, a boy born into a big rich family, who constantly feels at-odds with the world around him. it's an exploration of mental illness, social isolation, self-expression, and compassion. I actually have an entire youtube video talking about it and how BSD-Dazai reflects Yozo as much as irl-Dazai, and it's my pride and joy so please go watch it!

MOVIE RECS:

Okay, I only have one rec for you, but this movie haunts me (in the best way possible):

Forgotten (기억의 밤)

I really need more people to watch this actually because holy shit it was amazing and nobody talks about it!! WATCH IT!!! PLEASE!!!!

Jinseok watches his brother get kidnapped right before his eyes, and it powerless to do anything. 19 days later, he returns, and... something is different about him. Jinseok is determined to uncover the mystery surrounding his kidnapping.

the twists in this are actually insane. I can't tell you anything aside from the synopsis without spoiling major plot points. if you only take one recommendation I bed you to take this one.

okay that's all bye!!

#asks #bsd #manga recs #book recs #movie recs #no longer human #slaughterhouse five #the case study of vanitas #attack on titan

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disappearinginq · 2 months

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5, 7, 13, and 20 for fanfic asks?

5. Fic most proud of writing This is a toss up - because I am one of those people who likes their own stuff a lot. :-D But, one of the Big Three: Damnatio Memoriae from the Lucifer fandom, Running Up That Hill for Agenst of SHIELD, and Wrong Side of Heaven for Magnum 2018. Mostly for different reasons, but they all have the same vein of "I got mad at canon and I fixed it".

Lucifer was a roller coaster for me - I loved season 1, season 2 was okay, 3 made me want to throw something at the screen 90% of the time, season 4 WAS EPIC, and I gave up halfway through season 5 and never finished the series. Damnatio was written because I wanted much more involvement of the supernatural, not just a therapy/self discovery mixed in with crime of the week. Also, being raised adjacent to Catholicism, I was getting really irritated that they weren't even using the comic lore, and missing the basic fundamentals of the sources they were pulling from. This story had a lot of reader feedback, to the point of it being almost choose your own adventure. As it went on, I would ask readers to pick from two options that I had rolling around in my head, and it actually worked really well to keep the ball moving with my writing.

Running Up That Hill was again another one where I just got mad at canon, but because I don't like the narrative of "these people are exempt from moral standards while this person is Wrong No Matter What", and I probably would've let it slide except the issue I had was that the one that Wrong No Matter What had all of his life changing trauma as a child and then had it reinforced his entire adult life. Everyone else was an adult when Bad Things happened, and I don't like the hypocrisy of saying "get over it" to someone who legitimately doesn't have the toolset to do that.

Wrong Side I love because this actually was my first foray into something that had no supernatural elements to it whatsoever, and based firmly in reality, and a reality I knew pretty well. I wasn't a huge fan of how the TV show just glossed over the fact that these guys were POW's for a year and a half of a terrorist organization that tortures and kills people with such violence that they became a whole new subsect of terrorism. Like, no, these guys aren't just going to walk away without an issue. And the fact that they were sold out by someone who said to have loved them? AND THEY HAVE NO FALL OUT FROM THIS?! Get fucked, shitty narrative. Suicide in the veteran community is at a high not seen since post-WWII, and these fuckers have the audacity to suggest that you're just being a little bitch if you can't acclimate to civilian life.

7. Favorite ship to write Well, that's pretty easy - none. Romance is rarely done well, and I have never liked anyone enough to relate to the narrative of "Well, I'm throwing all of my friendships out the window because now I have a RomAnTic InTereSt" and it irritates me to no end. if anything, my favorite ship is between Captain Kirk and the Enterprise.

13. Latest fic written/last WIP? A fix it fic for Yellowstone that showcases the brothers Kayce and Jamie, and because I am on a western kick, research for a Magnificent Seven fic that will likely never see the light of day, but I still love the show and the characters, where Ezra (the gambler from Georgia) is a spy for the Union during the Civil War.

20. Hardest Character to write/get the characterization right for? The female characters written by men. And I realize that sounds really weird, but because I swear to god men don't understand being a woman, they're just shit at writing them, and they say/do the dumbest things because guys would do that shit, or, worse, the guys writing the character are using them as hyperboles for women they think did them wrong. And then because the writers don't understand them, I can't understand them, and they wind up being the people that in real life, I'd want to hit with my car. Beth Dutton is a great example of this - some of the things she says that I know are supposed to come off as "strong, powerful woman" make me physically recoil and hide my face with a pillow while watching because What the fuck nobody would ever say that and it's actually cringeworthy. Until women started getting involved in the writing process for Magnum and Lenkov was fired, I absolutely wanted to stab Higgins in 90% of her scenes. Post Lenkov - I actually found her really sweet sometimes, and actually relatable.

That being said, the other ones that I'm not good at because it is so far outside my sphere of comprehension are characters like Angie or Dani off of Will Trent and Prodigal Son. I love those characters, they are complex and unique and I love them, but I don't have relatable experience to them at all, and they are some of the hardest people I have tried to write (which is why I don't have fic in those fandoms even though I love them).

#asks answered #games we play #whew #had to think about a couple of these for a hot minute

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superectojazzmage · 8 months

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Ahsoka Review

So far, this show is like a weird middle ground on the whole rollercoaster of quality that has been the Disney+ Star Wars shows. It’s nowhere near as fantastic as Mandalorian seasons 1 and 2, Bad Batch, and Andor. But it’s also not anywhere as godawful as Kenobi, Book of Boba Fett, and Mandalorian season 3 ended up being.

Acting is all over the place. On one end, you have Ray Stevenson (God rest his soul), Natasha Liu Bordizzo, Eman Esfandi, Diana Lee Inosanto, Clancy Brown, and David Tennant all giving great or at least good performances but occasionally hitting points where they’re clearly struggling to make their dialogue sound like actual human speech. On the other end you have Rosario Dawson talking like she’s either weirdly smug or on Valium with no in-between; my feelings on her as Ahsoka have definitely soured a lot as time goes on, she’s just so emotionless and robotic and when she isn’t doing that, she comes off as unlikably self-righteous. And then you have Mary Elizabeth Winstead really trying her best despite not being a great pick for Hera and Ivanna Sakhno who hasn’t really gotten much of anything to do so far.

Writing is even more hit and miss. One second, it’s perfectly serviceable, the next very clunky, but it’s never really as good as in most other Star Wars works. It’s a bit like the dialogue in the Prequels; more concerned with conveying exposition to the audience than sounding like natural conversation. Some of the character interactions work really well, some don’t. Some of the humor lands really great, some doesn’t.

Music is absolutely AMAZING. Kevin Kiner is a godsend.

Fight scenes are pretty good. Not groundbreaking but definitely enjoyable. Choreography is good and the characters usually actually feel like they’re trying to kill each other rather than getting way too showy like the Prequels could. Sabine and Shin’s dual definitely is going to awaken things in the lesbians.

The story succumbs to the “making things too complicated and messy and lore-breaking” flaw that the Sequels did. What is the point of this Star Map when the Imperial Remnant is already in contact with Thrawn? How is Thrawn in contact with the Remnant AT ALL given that he’s apparently in a different galaxy entirely? Why was the Map hidden away in an old Nightsister temple like it’d been there for centuries instead of being in Imperial Remnant custody and how did Morgan know it would lead to Thrawn? How did Nightsisters even get ahold of this thing? Who are these mysterious extragalactic beings? I’m sure some of these mysteries will be explained as we go, but I’m also kinda scared they WON’T be and I furthermore feel like the story is just throwing in unnecessary complications; literally why are we dropping the world-breaking bombshell of going to another galaxy instead of just having Thrawn be in the Unknown Regions like in Legends? The whole “bootstrapping a bunch of hyperdrives together” thing would actually kinda make sense if they were just going to the Unknown Regions, but another galaxy entirely?

”It’s not loyalty, it’s greed”. I see we will NOT be having any moral complexity in our Star Wars today. Especially hilarious because Ahsoka’s assessment there doesn’t even match the events onscreen at all and the situation actually portrayed feels very much like it should have depth to it, the show just doesn’t want to acknowledge it. Disappointing, given how good of a job Andor and early Mandalorian did at depicting things in a nuanced light.

This show tips the New Republic from merely over-stretched, over-bureaucratic, and deeply flawed to downright criminally incompetent. It was one thing when Mando season 3 showed one or two Imperial spies subverting the broken system for their own ends. It’s another for this show to have AN ENTIRE MAJOR SHIPYARD be Imperial spies operating directly under the Republic’s nose. It’s like they’re trying to make us feel happy the First Order is gonna blow it up.

Pacing is… odd. It’s a very easygoing and slow story, which is very good as it gives the characters and events time needed to breathe, but there are times where it can feel like it’s really dragging out scenes that other stories would’ve sped through in the name of getting to the damn point.

Bizarrely, despite this being supposedly being Ahsoka’s show, every other character feels much more meaningful, likable, and pivotal to the narrative. Sabine is a great protagonist, Hera is still the Space Mom we know and love, Huyang is a fun sidekick, Baylen Skoll is really interesting as an antagonist, Thrawn and Ezra cast a palatable shadow over the plot without even directly appearing, and so on. Meanwhile Ahsoka feels like a prop.

Thank God Chopper is still committing war crimes.

The best way I can describe the plot so far is like it’s somehow simultaneously holding itself back and doing too much, if that makes sense. It’s jumping into territory that could easily hurt it and other works in the setting, but also seems too antsy to commit to doing something genuinely daring.

All in all, this is pretty much Rebels Season 5 but in live action, and it’s a very hit and miss affair. It’s enjoyable so far, but I’ll have to see what direction Filoni takes the subsequent episodes in before deciding whether or not this is a good series or goes in the “not my canon” trashcan.

#star wars #ahsoka #ahsoka series #ahsoka show #star wars ahsoka #ahsoka spoilers #sw ahsoka #star wars legends #star wars rebels #star wars the clone wars #the mandalorian #star wars expanded universe #dave filoni #star wars andor #andor #book of boba fett #kenobi series #kenobi show #the bad batch

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the-s1lly-corner · 7 months

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Eyeless Jack with fem S/O who is fan of Legend of Zelda series as S/O tries to get him be as BOTW Link as S/O as BOTW Zelda? 🦋

S/O trying to get EJ to cosplay BOTW with her!

obligatory ive never really touched a LoZ games or series outside of like. the ben drowned crp but i doubt that counts since its a fan made story !! so this is mostly going to be like, vague stuff since i have next to no clue of the games' contents so this'll be heavy on the dressing up part! hope you enjoy!

he probably gets into gaming on handheld consoles during his college years, and carries that into his life living in the woods as a hermit (dont ask how he charges his stuff in a run down cabin we can just assume he has a generator or something)

he likes those therapeutic chill games! think ACNH, helps him keep his feelings and stress in check since that can effect his funky curse thing that made him. eyeless jack. do not let this man play slime rancher you will not see or hear from him for a week

anyways

so you introduce him to one of the legend of zelda games! he's into it, but he'd much rather watch you play or ramble on about the games and lore. he himself isn't much of a talker so he likes it when you fill the silence

at first he's against the idea when you first propose the cosplay, mostly because cosplay isnt really his thing, but also because where would the costumes come from?

if you insist on making it yourself he'll also be against it, he doesn't want you to make anything for him (and that's on him not knowing how to handle receiving gifts, but that's an entirely different thing for a different post)

but lets say, you get him to cave. hes going to insist on helping, this guy knows how to sew! he lives in the woods! he has to patch up his own clothes! plus he'll force you to step back if you prick your finger one too many times

both because "aww he doesnt want you hurting!" but also "fresh dripping blood around eyeless jack is dangerous because hes like a cracked out piranha"

when the costumes are done you guys just kinda

stand there and stare at each other and stare for a few minutes in the middle of the cabin

one of the rare times you see him without the mask since the thing was throwing off the rest of the costume

dont expect him to go out with you without something covering his face, though, you may have to rely on a hood or make a new mask that at least fits with the theme or vibe of the character. good luck trying to get jack to budge out past the door's threshold without it

stubborn prick

his ears are already pointed so you don't need to make ear prosthetics/j

good luck getting this guy to go to a con with you/j

OHOH NO because of course, spooky season, imagine convincing him to help you hand out candy at your place

or or or

you guys go out and about in your costumes showing off

sure he'll shuffle around awkwardly behind you, since he's not really. good with eyes on him...

or eyes in him/j

im sorry that was really mean spirited and uncalled for it will happen again

overall? he enjoys the time spent with you from you info dumping on him to just simply walking with him around town!

will he go out and walk with you again? probably not, at least not on nights where everyone is out and not when he's wearing this costume of an iconic character that's bound to catch some attention

7/10 experience, docked some points since you can feel the tension radiating off of him once you get him out of his cabin

don't bring it up but he keeps the costume in pristine condition when he isn't wearing it, and keeps it nearly folded and stored somewhere where it's not likely to get a bloodsplatter on it from one of his feeding nights

bonus hc but its steering a little off topic imagine walking in on him furiously scrubbing on the costumes tunic(?) because he got one (1) drop of blood on it. like he's hunched over on the floor over it trying to get the stain out, muttering n cursing under his breath

idk that's just goofy to me

anyways

peace

#creepypasta headcanon #creepypasta x reader #creepypasta x you #eyeless jack x you #eyeless jack imagine #eyeless jack x reader #eyeless jack headcanon

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pyreo · 2 years

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I’m glad they peppered a few new hints and clues into S1 for Scarlet because it’s such a great opportunity to nudge at things after the story’s wrapped up. In a way it’s actually a neat benefit of having no Season 1 for nine years because most games wouldn’t get to throw in some edits to their first chapter once it’s all said and done

Then I remembered that if I think about it long enough Scarlet’s lore makes me do this

Scarlet Briar’s personality makes no sense in the world she’s in. She has more degrees than anyone else in the world. She saw the eternal state of the universe and it turned her into a Batman villain.

I felt a whisper, on my neck Her voice was bleeding through I felt his talon, at my back Please be quiet, or he'll hear you

This is a page of her ‘poetry’ from Clockwork Chaos referencing the voice of the Pale Tree and the pressure of Mordremoth, but whatever Scarlet became aware of when she saw Everything compelled her to stop at literally nothing to figure out how to wake Mordremoth up, so it would make more sense if ‘be quiet or he’ll hear you’ was the instruction from that ‘voice bleeding through’, one that Scarlet was ignoring. Which creates the fun possibility that the Pale Tree was warning Scarlet throughout S1 not to do this, and never told us she knew what would happen.

I haven’t totally caught up on Tower of Nightmares but I’d really love some further clues as to why exactly Scarlet thought it necessary to wake Mordremoth. There’s a bunch of options. Mordremoth compelled her to do it (though how did he gain control after she Saw Everything? was knowing about it enough to let him into her mind)? Scarlet realised there was an upcoming elder dragon elimination round and wanted to beat the heroes to that punch? Or, my favourite guess, Scarlet’s mission was suicidal from the start, intending to force Mordremoth’s activity out so the Pact would have to deal with him after Zhaitan, preventing Mordremoth from absorbing the spheres of other dragons by the time they got to him and putting the entire future of sylvari in danger.

Or maybe that version of the future was insurmountable, and Scarlet re-ordered the elder dragons into a sequence that could be beaten by DW, and if she hadn’t intervened we would have failed.

What did she see that made her choose this

#gw2

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kurokoros · 2 years

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“the duffers are geniuses who have been throwing in Vecna hints the entire series!” no??? they weren’t??? I hate to tell you this, but regardless of anything the Duffers say about always having a five season plan, the writing each season getting sloppier and sloppier tells me that they don’t have a long-game plan and simply keep adding more to the ST lore each time Netflix offers them money for a new season because the show is stupidly popular. The Duffers may have had an idea board with ideas for Vecna or One, but I sincerely doubt that had S4 planned from the very beginning, not with how... inconsistent the show has been in terms of writing.

The Duffer Brothers bend too easily to fan pressure and cast choices to have had some master plan the entire time. As examples, Steve was, allegedly, meant to die in S1, but the Duffers chose to tweak the plot because they liked Joe Keery so much. This is a massive change when you consider that S3 largely hinges on Steve getting a shitty job at an ice cream shop in the mall that shouldn’t exist in such a small town. Robin was initially written to be a love interest for Steve, but this was changed because Maya Hawke wanted to make her queer, or they weren’t getting the right vibes from the actors, which has, in turn, led to the Duffers cockteasing stancy in S4 because, aside from subjecting him to physical abuse, they don’t know what to do with Steve when he’s not in a relationship, pining, or having his heart broken, I guess.

Plus, the “Vecna’s been hinted the entire time” “proof” is... well, it’s really just minor inconsistencies that happen in the screenwriting process all the time because someone didn’t think something through, someone forgot an aspect of the lore, or they needed the plot to work so they just said “fuck it” and left the inconsistency in because it’s a small detail and they figured no one would notice. Besides, the three things from the pilot I see people repeating all the time are that:

1) the Demogorgon attacked Will without him being injured or bleeding.

Blood attracts the Demogorgon (like it does with a lot of predators that rely on their sense of smell), but someone doesn’t need to be injured to be attacked. The Demogorgon slaughtered several scientists in the lab, also in the pilot episode, when they were presumably uninjured beforehand. We also know that later in the season two men from Hawkins go missing. There’s no reason to think they had been injured prior to being attacked by the Demogorgon either. The monster noticed Will and chased him down because that’s what predators do.

2) the figure Will sees doesn’t look like the Demogorgon we see later in the first season.

The Demogorgon is 50/50 practical effects and CGI. It’s a dude in a suit. Later in the season the Demogorgon is seen up close and in full, meaning they needed to use heavier CGI. In the pilot, the Demogorgon is just a silhouette so they didn’t need to spend extra money on the CGI. Also, the practical effect suit doesn’t actually look all that different from the silhouette in S1E1

3) the “Demogorgon” unlocking the Byers’ front door means that actually it was One the entire time.

The Demogorgon can rip holes in the fabric of reality in order to open a gate between dimensions. We have no reason to believe it can’t have minor telekinetic abilities. Additionally, the Byer’s front door was a simple chain lock. It wasn’t complex or heavy, so there’s no reason to believe it couldn’t open the door.

Look, the Duffer brothers clearly just wanted a cool chase sequence in the pilot. They also Will to survive S1. There’s no deeper explanation for why Will survived in the Upside Down than “because they didn’t want to kill the kid.” Vecna was not hinted in S1. If production tries to tell you it was always the plan, that’s simply to save face because it sounds cooler than “Netflix wanted another season so we pulled something out of our ass to meet our deadlines”.

#source: i took film classes in undergrad #stranger things #'vecna was planned all along!!!" please don't #sure it's a fun little fan theory. but the duffers should not be praised for having just enough minor plot inconsistencies to make it work

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raspberrykraken · 10 months

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So last night I finished the Diablo 4 campaign. And then immediately started finding all the Alters of Lilith. Because the next big push of content is on July 18th when the pre patch drops and you need 3 things done so you can go into Season 1 with maximum effiency.

Finish the Campaign

Clear the entire map

Collect all Lilith Statues

Logging in on the 18th or after with the character who has all these 3 done the most lets your seasonal characters have these things too!

Theres other details dealing with these things but these are the core aspects of what’s coming. Because if I think about the story of the campaign I am going to scream.

Note: at the time of working on this, July 12th, 2023 on twitter Joe Shely announced you don’t even have to complete the campaign to count it as completed. You play it partially and then turn around in the menu to skip the rest. I am livid. I am beside myself. I voiced my thoughts on Twitter about it and go no response. Because its so bad they know it and are offering people a way out. Wonderful.

I have played all the other games. And honestly trying to provide any kind of rank to them doesn’t do anything. The problem is how much time people have spent with each game forming strong opinions about them and Diablo 4 is new. The drip of content has only just begun for it. And it seems like every patch notes they nerf Barbarians again or fix some bug that makes them unplayable.

The Lore has always been cooking in a crockpot since Diablo 2. With books and speculation. Which is why Diablo 3 felt like a betrayal with its more “cartoonish” approach and throwing key characters aside for the sake of brevity. Letting the narrative get highjacked by a npc and then having the deal with those consequences. It both “advanced” the story, brought Heaven to its knees, and the rewrote its ending in its expansion. Honestly you can argue they have been trying to course correct since 3 and still are with 4.

The following will be me screaming into a pillow over the story because no wonder my coworker played it with his friends and was confused as heck with it.

In Diablo 2 you are dogging the Dark Wonderer who inserted the stone into his head to protect the world from Diablo and becomes corrupted. You are always one step behind them roaming the world, seeing the destruction and chaos of Hell. Overtime you do meet Inarius who is bitter about his fall and the creation of Sanctuary. You make other friends along the way, all the while trying to help as much as you can. Eventually leading to a climatic battle where the World Stone that the Barbarians had been guarding for generations to be shattered and left in a what if moment with Sanctuary no longer being shielded from both sides.

In Diablo 4 you are dogging Lilith and Elias. Roaming across this intrepid world making friends, trying to make people better. All the while in high quality cutscenes Lilith and Elias are doing “bad” things. I mean having other people sacrifice their friends, family, children, animals to her is totally bad. Because she is a cocreator of Sanctuary. In a way Inarius uses the Church to do the same thing in the name of holiness and righteousness, rejecting sin and putting to death the sinners. It’s an interesting dichotomy that doesn’t give the player time to think about.

In previous games we have never met her, heard her side. We have met Inarius before and he’s as bitter as he’s always been casted to the mortal realm for his involvement in cocreating Sanctuary. The Heavens have disengaged with him, don’t want him back because he had sex. And the children they had were too powerful for their own good. Only to be narrowed/mentioned to one. Rathma who we don’t get to meet either.

All we get in the end of this “journey” the narrative gets highjacked by npcs sailing off to the end of the world, which the world is super flat btw. Sanctuary is like small Pangea. To find and defeat Diablo and Baal because Mephisto is already in the stone/influencing the entire game from the start. Giving no room in this narrative for Lilith or the player character. How fatherly.

Also in the ending moments the Church has turned on the player character and Lorath. Never thought about or mentioned again. Just go the Tree of Souls, start doing bounties! Explore the map! Collect statues! Do pvp! Get back to the Diablo 3 mindset! Get to level 50 and move up a world tier! Also Season 1 is coming, get ready for that!

The gameplay loop is good, I just see where Blizzards heart is now. It’s not focusing on the narrative anymore. And thats where I am with this. Frustrated and a shame. Because Blizzard promised more lore and story with each seasons and adding on to the campaign. Definitely doubting it.

#diablo #lilith diablo #diablo series #diablo spoilers #diablo iv #diablo 4 #spoilers #game spoilers #upcoming events #thoughts #hot takes

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musicfeedsmysoul12 · 10 months

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Now that you’re finished Owl House: what are your thoughts?! How would you fix it if you wrote it? Do you have anything to fix?!

Oh man. I loved the entire thing and I loved all the subtle slaps to the face they gave Disney. You can just TELL they had a lot planned and couldn’t get to it. Very sad.

One thing I actually completely 1000000000% adore is that in the end, Luz beats Belos with Eda and King. The two people who looked at this weird ass human and decided “Yeah we like her. Weirdos stick together.’ These three started the show and they were there at the end, fighting the good fight. Freaking AWESOME. Also the ‘well we ain’t’ line before SMASH.

Honestly, if I had to say what I’d fix is really based on pacing and the introduction of characters. I’m still convinced they didn’t have Hunter in the first season because Disney would have jumped on him and tried to force him to be with Luz as the main pairing. However if they had still kept him in season 2 but had longer to do the show I think they could have had a really good redemption arc with him, bordering on Zuko level. Yet in a world where we didn’t have to worry about that: Hunter being in the first season and having his rivalry with both Lilith and Kikimora would be awesome. It would have also allowed for the development of HuntLow better. (I like it but it’s kind of a shallow ship for me sadly. Very little meat compared to the other ships)

I would have had Raine show up season 1 as well, to show that not everyone in the covens buy the pretty lies. But also cause they’re there that final moment of Belos and I think having them around, connecting to Luz, for a longer period would be really good.

More lore would have been epic. I wish they’d done way more build up for the King is a Titan reveal. I wish we had more info on the titans in general and maybe we could have had more hints of the Titan connecting to Luz (she has those brief moments in season 3 I’d love to expand on. Maybe the portal she made kick started it?)

I’d love to also have more drama with Vee. I have THOUGHTS on how Vee accuses Luz is being ungrateful. I wanted Luz to toss back that Vee doesn’t know her. That sure she might have liked the camp for teaching her how to be human, the other kids apparently hated it and called it prison. “How do you think I would have liked being sent away?”

“She loves you!”

“She wanted to CHANGE WHO I AM!”

I just want this anger. Because yes, Luz loves her mom. But I think that the anger is needed here, that we need to see Luz be angry that her mom decided she had to change. We already saw that it was born out of worry for her daughter but like… that’s still not okay. I want the anger. I want Luz to throw it in Vee’s face and then I want Luz to be pissed at her mother.

“What you’re going to make me give up what makes me happy again?! Were you happy I came back changed?! Did you ignore the glaring signs I was different because I was finally what you wanted?!”

I want the rage. I want it. Because I love how kind and generous Luz is.

And she deserves to get mad.

I just… there’s so much there. I wanted to see th development of Lumity over a longer period. It was great, my fav ship, but god there was so much potential of a good slow burn and character development. I wanted to see how Alador slowly became more invovled with his kids. I wanted to see him realize how his wife treats them all is horrific. I wanted to see Darius’s bitterness towards Hunter followed by a realization that this was a KID he was bullying.

There’s so much unseen I wish I could have had more of. I still rank the show 9/10 because of how good it is. But if I wasn’t ignoring how rushed it was, it would only be 5/10 because there’s so much there we could have had.

#the owl house #do not let me do a full rewrite #fuck I’m going to do it arent I?

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