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kulay-ng-banaag · 4 months

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In the spirit of releasing all emotional debts on New Year's Eve, I’m going to open up about my frustrations regarding Desa aka dinosaurusgede aka the creator of Maaf.

For context, she made a Twitter account around the time that Himaruya properly introduced the newly canonized cast of SEA nations (Philippines, Indonesia, Singapore, and Malaysia). Like many other fans, she rode the nostalgia wave in creating content of them. By this point in time, Maaf was more or less a “finished” story to her — whatever Hetalia/SEAtalia content she published from that point onward was not as a continuation of, nor even as a reboot, of Maaf (although she did mention entertaining that idea). For the most part, the newer works she uploaded on Twitter were independent stories and were not necessarily linked to one other either.

Regrettably, I cannot present the problematic page/s for a more thorough and guided scrutiny because she deleted her Twitter account. Unless someone out there saved them, and frankly I wouldn't know who did nor would care to find out, everything was lost to the void. I’m literally working on what was imprinted in my memory by spite, so I apologize if I misremember details.

This will include discussion of anti-indigenous racism and other issues pertaining to colonialism.

She had an IndoPhil story titled Trust Me? and it was inspired by a fanmade BruPhil AMV wherein Indonesia was manipulating Philippines into believing that he was married to Indonesia and not Brunei. Trust Me? kept that concept of a manipulative Indonesia; the key difference being that Indonesia’s motivation for it (in Desa’s story) was the mix of hurt over Philippines “losing his precolonial memories” — based on popularized misconceptions of early Philippine history — of and how that was “aggravated” by his Westernization™, made worse under the United States (350+ years in the convent getting ratio'd by 50 years in Hollywood is hilarious ngl).

That was a lot to unpack, but before we even get there:

Indonesia and Philippines were having a tender moment when HWS America (as in the Hetalia personification that is Alfred F. Jones) walks in calling out "MY LITTLE BROWN BROTHER!"

Indonesia entered his Joker arc because he recalled how HWS America dumped the Philippines in a human zoo at the 1904 St. Louis World’s Fair. There was an explicit panel of Philippines in Igorot* dress and a painfully forlorn bearing.

What "triggered" Indonesia was when, after the flashback, Piri goes up to Indonesia and asks him if he's a Bolshevist 🥺 (the idea was PH being brainwashed by Red Scare propaganda). Cue kabedon moment from Indonesia, and basically a yandere walk down "memory lane."

I did not have it in me to finish reading that comic...

*Igorot is an outdated umbrella term for the upland indigenous peoples of Northern Luzon

Aside from the clearly intended shock value of that depiction, I was taken aback by the painful lack of objectivity on her part when it came to the reading of history. To be fair on Desa, she never specialized in history studies, so it was only courteous that we could not expect her to have as developed of a critical reading as trained academics of history. Unfortunately, that was precisely why I disagreed with the popular notion of Desa as both a great researcher and a great storyteller of her research — all the more when Maaf was just the mangafication of certain Wikipedia articles.

To be fair as well on Wikipedia, it was, at best, a satisfactory jumpstart into more in-depth reading, and we could give it the benefit of the doubt that revisions had since been made to at least some of the articles that Desa relied on while making Maaf (more than 10 years is more than enough time for change). Nevertheless, the articles themselves did not teach users how to scrutinize the sources — most especially the biases of the sources’ author/s — utilized in building up the information.

That mattered because much of the retrospect narratives about the St. Louis Fair had a tendency of raising awareness through the newspaper articles that covered the exhibition at the time. These chronicled the impressions of the visiting authors, who likely (and I say likely because we would have to more exhaustively discern their personal politics one by one) were biased in favor of the “benevolent assimilation” of the Philippines — and the sights that they beheld only validated it further. They did not, however, explain why these Philippine indigenous peoples were brought in in the first place — information that could have further cemented Desa's reputation had she truly spent the efforts, even while understandably juggling other commitments as we all do. Instead, she only perpetuated the habit of sacrificing the veracity of equally important, finer details to the bigger picture in order to sensationalize righteous fury against colonialism.

The 1904 St. Louis World’s Fair was also formally known as the Louisiana Purchase Exposition, giving away its purpose as a commemoration. More appropriately, it was the centennial anniversary (technically delayed by a year though) of the acquisition of French Louisiana, expanding the territorial bounds of the United States. Additionally, the point of a world’s fair was to showcase the achievements of a nation, and one could also think of it as the sale of a fever dream — what more for a fast-growing, fledgling power the likes of the United States, itself a former colony? On another note, the St. Louis World’s Fair was not the only one of its kind so no, the US is not that original lmao.

One could thus see how the inclusion of a dedicated exhibit to the newly acquired colony that was the Philippines neatly fit into the themes of a world's fair centralized on the US. It was all the more a paramount topic of debate, with prominent Americans the likes of Mark Twain (here are selected excerpts, but I highly recommend reading the entirety of his To the Person Sitting in the Darkness) publishing anti-US imperialism opinions, even after the endgame of the Philippine-American War essentially favored the pro-imperialists. While dissent from the American side at the time remains poorly studied AND THAT'S ON OVERRULE BY BIAS, we at least have a glimpse, if mostly obscure still, of its existence.

If we can assume that it must have indeed been a prominent discourse in America, loud enough to get the White House furrowing its brows, then it's plausible to understand how it was of utmost importance that the the Philippine exhibit was to be carefully — because, in a way, America had to sell itself as the "lesser evil" vs notable "rivals" — curated while still ultimately corroborating assimilation of the Philippines. Thus, enter Truman Hunt, the man who oversaw "the Igorot Village" of the St. Louis Fair, having won the hearts of the native Igorots for a powerful reason:

Section from Claire Prentice, The Lost Tribe of Coney Island: Headhunters, Luna Park, and the Man Who Pulled Off the Spectacle of the Century, New York, NY: Amazon Publishing, 2014.

While the cholera epidemic that occurred at the onset of the American Colonial Period was arguably the worst in the history of cholera epidemic management in the Philippines, I want to make it very, very clear that it was not the first and only wave that hit the archipelago. There had been a handful in the prior century alone — all of such magnitudes that it embedded a deep collective trauma; farmers refused to harvest their crops for fear of infection, tragically enabling famines and contributing starvation & nutrition deficiencies on top of a viral & swift killer (the experience of severe, rapid dehydration is such that one can fall dead within hours of infection).

Given such an imaginably harrowing experience (and it was an awfully painful topic to study as someone who got infected with and survived COVID-19 and has family working as frontliners), how could the natives turn away a stranger with such miraculous powers? Who knows how they comprehended it (e.g. a benevolent sign from heaven they must accept) because, unfortunately, we have yet to discuss preserved accounts on that matter, if any at all.

What is known, however, is that there were Igorots who were not just enamored by the "opportunity of a lifetime," but the selected lucky candidates clearly expressed their consent to participate:

More sections from Prentice, The Lost Tribe of Coney Island.

I will quickly add that, unfortunately, a few members of the Igorot delegation died from illness in making the trip, and Hunt aged like milk over the years (fell into the trap of capitalism in pushing for more subsequent exhibit trips, to the point that less care was extended to the Igorots and he was ultimately arrested for embezzlement). Given that our scope remains to be the 1904 St. Louis Fair, any signs of abuse inflicted upon the Igorots during their stay based on preserved photographs is simply not clear. To assume that they were in a pitiable state would be to enforce a presentist reading that might betray not just their memories & experiences but also their right to self-determination.

EDIT (01/02/24): A good example to demonstrate what I mean in analyzing photographs, here's an article on the author's personal, genealogical research into the Igorots — specifically, the Suyoc — who were at the St. Louis Fair.

It truly is ironic that a Filipino is making these points as if to defend the United States as a whole (no I am not, and if you think I do, lumayas ka). I agree that white people gawking over the peoples of the Philippines with such fascination that borders fetishism warrants all the eye-rolls. At the same time — and it is even more ironic that I am pointing this out as a lowland, Christianized Tagalog based in the metro (not just any urbanized part of the country) — there is a character of patronizing these indigenous communities in the unspoken assumption that their participation is the fault of their ignorance. Pay attention, once more, to the demographics that constituted the Philippine exhibit in the 1904 St. Louis Fair — what kind of "Filipinos" were included and who were left out? There were also Negritos*, Visayans, and Muslims from Mindanao (historically referred to as Moros) in the same event, yet we hardly hear about their experiences. Perhaps it might have to do with how they were considered "more civilized" than these upland groups.

*OUTDATED term (and please blame the Spanish for it); these are the Aeta.

I understand Desa's reservations against US imperialism and sympathies for communities marginalized by Western colonization. I just hope that I was able to clarify as best as I could why I was so taken aback in how she depicted the Hetalia personification of my country the way she did. I agree that, as far as I ever got to interact with her, she is generally very polite and kind. That's why I gave her the benefit of the doubt when she approached me in DM to apologize for how her narrative choice was offensive. As someone who despised red tape in academia, I tried to talk to her about how there were valid reasons as to why the American Colonial Period was considered a mixed blessing, even by PH historians.

Instead, she pulled a complete 180.

She said that — to a Filipino who condemned imperialism (no matter who started it), who also happened to study history as a profession, and was also a Hetalia fan who wants to explore Hetalia narratives differently from what was popularized. Half of the reason was because some fandom takes left a bad taste, like eating a dish with ingredients that even Gordon Ramsay would tell you shouldn’t go together; the other half was because I saw things differently and wanted to express it because why not?

I want to say it's not necessary to bring up something from a private conversation, but I will anyway to reiterate that my issue is not that she isn't nice. Bluntly, however, the way she said those words so formally did creep me out, but ultimately, my issue lies in how her biases have led her into making off-putting takes from time to time. I will not say more, but Trust Me? was not the only Twitter comic by Desa that got bombastic side-eyes.

And if only because Sukarno got dragged in, I felt compelled to briefly debunk that as well: even he initially viewed the United States in a very positive light: “The United States occupies a very distinguished part, a very distinguished place, in the hearts of the Indonesian people.” That was uttered in 1961, and it took a very specific historical context to instigate a complete shift by 1964:

Sections from Vincent Bevins, The Jakarta Method: Washington’s Anticommunist Crusade & the Mass Murder Program that Shaped Our World, New York: PublicAffairs, 2021, 121-123.

EDIT (01/02/24): Note that Desa was citing Sukarno's later sentiments in the late 1960s as her reason for characterizing Indonesia as such in her comic. However, the setting of the story was the late 1920s (Indonesia's visit was based on Tan Malaka's abscondence to the Philippines). I'd dare say the anachronism was not due to oversight but a deliberate choice in using a certain fictional character — namely HWS Indonesia — as propaganda for Desa's anti-Americanism.

It's definitely depressing to think about all the "lost" history & culture that thrived before the arrival of white colonizers. It's why I'm surprised that, for a fiction work, she didn't project all that anger onto Spain instead — it had to specifically be the United States. Was it because they basically cockblocked Philippine independence, even though Spain practically sold the Philippines to the US? The implication that Spain should be permitted to wash its hands clean of all accountability was an awkward message to convey.

I understand that nothing could be 100% accurate (I'm actually quoting Desa defending herself on that matter) in fiction, but the level of projection coming from a certain non-Filipino reading Philippine history was so silly. And again, how did it all justify the explicit depiction of HWS Philippines as an indigenous man in a human zoo? (END OF EDIT)

As my professors will also never tire of saying: you can disagree with a historian’s interpretations but you can never disagree with the evidence in themselves. You don’t have to morally agree either, and I can guarantee you that many Filipinos do not. I, myself, resented the endgame of the particular war that brought that period about in the first place. How dare, then, she said it was “not her place” to defend US imperialism, while granting herself the freedom to express her country’s feelings on the matter?

Oh, it’s all just fiction? I do not condone the subsequent treatment she received, but why then couldn’t she stop trying to “educate” NLID shippers? I do not know how both sides talked to one another, only that what caught me eye was: Why does everyone else have to respect her fiction while she gets to disrespect others’ fictions for not aligning with hers?

EDIT (01/20/24): Just to clarify further on that point — over a decade ago, she went ham in the comment section of someone's (APH) America x (fem!OC) Indonesia. That ship is not in my lore either simply because I follow a totally different route. To cut to the chase, she took that fanart very personally and infodumped on US war crimes that involved Indonesia.

I know Tan Malaka started the whole North Indonesia agenda, but come on, neither was it Desa's place to just treat HWS Philippines the way she did. An Indonesian schooling other Indonesians on ID history is not surprising, but an Indonesian schooling a Filipino on PH history? I'd be humbled if they had the credentials. She didn't and, unless she enrolled herself in a graduate program, she still doesn't.

By all technicalities, she can’t ship IDPH because the Philippine government was (unfortunately and grossly) complicit in the chain of events that led to the 1965-66 genocides in Indonesia. Yet, she does despite of that fact. We thus circle back to Trust Me? and how that was a manifestation of her stubborn refusal to acknowledge any nuances by projecting HWS Indonesia as a self-proclaimed savior of HWS Philippines from the beguile of US neocolonialism.

I empathize with her anger. I'm sorry that the US government by extent enabled what her family went through. I agree that it's not her place to defend them; in fact, she shouldn't. But when even the so-called "highest of Malay nations*" is worth her neutrality, how can she expect me to forgive her?

*That is literally what the Philippines is to her; I know this because she explicitly said so to me in DM. DO NOT ASK FOR RECEIPTS, I am not comfortable revealing that particular conversation.

I cannot — in fact, NO ONE SHOULD — afford to be neutral about Duterte or Marcos, etc., and for her to be so flippant about her privilege (by way of ethnicity/citizenship/cultural upbringing) to be neutral** about Philippine politics, while simultaneously NAGGING ON EVERYBODY TO RESPECT INDONESIAN POLITICS, is annoying at best and plain selfish at worst.

**Also explicitly said to me in DM. Again, DO NOT ASK FOR RECEIPTS.

(END OF EDIT)

I’m not Indonesian but I do not have it in me to politely accuse a native Indonesian of allowing their personal biases to misread their own history. As a Filipino, however, while I'm not surprised by the reductionist chronicling of the histories & cultures of the Philippines, I am at a loss for words over the continuing idolization for Desa & Maaf, when she was not the best and most reliable narrator, especially given her negligence in representing indigenous peoples through her comics.

I mean, guys, I'm not saying this as if the Trust Me? comic was the first and only instance when this was literally Maaf canon that sat comfortably in the internet for over a decade, and continues to be appraised as THE BIBLE OF HISTORICAL HETALIA.

EDIT (01/20/24 — originally added via a reblog): I cannot believe this needs to be said because this is the consequence of when Hetalia fans take their fiction too literally because creators have made careless takes.

There were SEAtalians joking about how the Yolngu are a dead people.

I repeat.

THERE WERE SEATALIANS JOKING ABOUT HOW THE YOLNGU ARE A DEAD PEOPLE.

(END OF EDIT)

So as 2023 comes to a close we enter 2024, I'd like to conclude this post with the following points:

At best, Wikipedia is a satisfactory jumping point, but please believe me when I say no historian will respect you for (over-)relying on Wikipedia. And given that anyone with a decent device & internet signal can access Wikipedia, Desa is just not a GOAT in historical research.

At worst, idolizing Maaf patronizes the work of historians. It doesn't help that PH historians have been targets of harassment because of dis-/misinformation campaigns. I bring this up because it's already bad enough to have to confront that reality outside of fandom spaces on a regular basis in standing our ground for more just historical truths. I hope that folks understand why that's a particularly sensitive struggle for me, and why receiving such comments like the one I shared above deeply hurt. She was not apologetic about that — and every time she would post about apologizing for the moments she has offended others, or when others compliment her for being so open-minded, I cannot help but feel bitter.

Other BIPOC — yes, not just other SEAsians and that's on literally drawing nations other than SEA — have spoken up on the matter. If you can talk about how you learned so much from Desa, you can also learn as much from other perspectives. I hope that in raising all of this, more SEAtalians understand that we risk othering non-SEA BIPOC.

The idolization of Maaf (and the creator in question) is personally far more off-putting than the problematic points of Maaf or any comic she has ever made, because I think she caved to peer pressure instead of learning to wield her fiction more sensitively without being too reliant of the opinions of those she has pleased. Not even Hidekaz Himaruya writes his nationverse characters like that — the one time I’ll admit that canon trumps fanon.

I’m not stopping people from liking Maaf or Desa anyway. I just cannot help but take issue with how the SEAtalia fandom feels less of a safe & inclusive community than it is a cult centered on one person — almost as if her fiction is unquestionable canon and anyone who disagrees gets the boot. Once again, I do not condone the subsequent treatment she received in retaliation, but frankly that's just not what I'm addressing here.

I'm also not saying it's wrong to give words of reassurance and validation to people you admire, only that some of you need to understand you're forcing a parasocial relationship with your idols. It may feel good to you, but please be mindful of the unwarranted pressure it imposes.

I apologize for dumping all of this at literally the end of the year. I want to let it all go in a manner that is clear, concise, and not overwhelming to digest. I do hope that my candid thoughts will push the fandom one step forward in critically consuming media without having to resort to crab-mentality tendencies — because it's been especially hard seeing the demeaning takes made about the Philippines in this fandom.

#hetalia #historical hetalia #hetalia critical #racism cw #hws philippines #aph philippines #hws indonesia #aph indonesia #hws america #aph america #mentions of death cw #sibuyas

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panelshowsource · 7 months

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If you had to pick a top three favorite episodes of any panel shows EVER, which would you choose? One of mine would have to be Terry Wogan guest hosting old NMTB, which I am dying to watch again in my lifetime. Your old-NMTB-posting reminded me just how amazing and formative those old episodes were for me. Anyway, it got me thinking… I would love to hear yours!

as long as i'm allowed to answer this totally subjectively...! because the objectively most iconic panel show episodes are probably quite different to the ones i gravitate to especially for rewatching — and especially in this difficult recent climate 🫥

this choice is almost bizarre knowing me, a huge huge huge sean lock fan, but this episode of cats does countdown — without sean! and not even golden era, probably, whatever that is in my mind — is so ridiculous and chaotic and stupid that i've watched it about 1000 times. there's something very specific about the dynamic between jimmy, jon, roisin, and joe without sean; those four have been in quite a few episodes without sean and they're like actual children without an adult in the room: jon is goofier and completely lets go of the game, jimmy throws even more to roisin (we do not talk enough about what a fucking kick jimmy gets out of her), roisin and joe's insane sibling dynamic becomes next level. anyways—this episode, which includes rly funny mascots, glory hole, the fucking hoop game and joe eating an onion and jon eating peppers???, THE UNICORN, its sheer childishness just cracks me up every time :') (if we're gonna mention the golden age, 2.02 is very iconic — from rhod killin it and always arguing with jimmy to claude to nick x susie hahaha but i have sooooo many catsdown episodes i love love love)

i really love the episode of 8 out of 10 cats following jimmy's tax scandal. it's not one of my favourite panel shows in general, but the circumstances of the news and the discussion epitomised what the show was meant to be: panel show meets reality tv meets a comedy central roast. watching that live, as the news was running it so heavily that even the prime minister mentioned it, as the press and twitter were reacting to it... wild times. it holds up incredibly well — it's hilarious watching them rip him to shreds, because he deserves every word and they're having a ball doing it to him, and i really appreciate jon grounding the conversation in just how tax avoidance hurts their country and some of its hardest workers — a really interesting, engaging mix of comedy and anger and wit and disappointment and political commentary that is not only funny but strikingly relevant no matter how much time passes. like so, so many people who were so, so disappointed in jimmy, this was the foundation of his carrying the responsibility, shame, reflection, and growth that people wanted to see — and that he truly needed to. since then he's talked a lot about not only righting the wrong (in paying back what he owed in avoidance) but just how the system is so broken — and taking the least complicated, most honest road forward since.

now i want to pick 1000 different things this is why i don't make lists or rank things!!!!! while my instinct is to pick a big fat quiz, i'm actually gonna go top-level nostalgia and say this episode of buzzcocks when stephen fry was a guest. what can i say — simon, stephen, it was two intellectual, mildly bitchy homosexuals on a stacked panel including josie long, dominic cooper, and yet another skinny white rock man for simon to pretend he's not trying to flirt with. stephen saying "there is a history, in pop music, of recto-veginal insertion" and denouncing god, like, in the first 5 minutes? stephen doing the intros round?? did i mention history boys-era dominic cooper??? such a throwback!!! (not to cheat but this ep with josh groban & martin freeman is my runner up)

i want to apologise to big fat quiz, taskmaster, wilty... THE WHOLE HISTORY OF PANEL SHOWS... I WISH I COULD CHOOSE YOU ALL

#roamingbadger #a

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chidoroki · 7 months

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182 Days of TPN - Day 160

Chapter 160: "Shackles"

I always give praise towards Isabella's facades and how brilliant of an actor Emma is, but never really include how talented James and all the other supporters were for keeping their actions and plans to help the farm children all so secretive and sly. Only reason for that is because we only see the dude in flashbacks so I don't think of him as often as I should, but he's seriously great. The kids would be doomed without him and his supporters.

If I can appreciate anything about Legravalima, it's how she outright refuses to help Peter. I wouldn't wanna listen to him in the first place. But hurray for the many death butterflies.

Yeah she eventually agrees because he appealed to her serious hunger and offered up the highest grade kids to her and only her upon capturing them which I guess was the best move on Peter's part, but damn, if I was ever gonna be fine with seeing her eat a human, it would've been with him.

Ain't no way some simple thinking like this was enough for Peter and the demon soldiers to successfully find the paradise hideout and kidnap all the children.

I know most of us pin Isabella as the main reason for the majority of Ray's pain (which is valid) but the Ratri clan are just as bad. Perhaps even worse on a great scale and effecting everyone at once. Isabella was just more on a personal level for him. On a lighter note, look at by boy carrying this oversized child all by himself. Such a good lad considering Norman couldn't manage that.

Well, Ray's good to a point, since he's carrying Zazie one moment then he disappears which leads me to imagine the poor boy dropping to the ground once Ray joins the GF hug.

Hugs are strange because explain to me why they all have their hoods up beforehand, put them down during said hug, than put them up again after. I know they're still sneaking around the demon town but what was the point of taking them off for a couple seconds? I can guess the hoods were just drawn down during the hug so we could tell who was who but the whole idea of them taking them off themselves funnier to me for some reason.

Missing children aside, I just wanna go in and explore the base myself. It looks like such a fun place to live (despite it being in shambles atm). You can definitely get a workout simply walking from the bottom floor all the way up.

Favorite panel/moment:

The fact this moment has such a big impact even though we're just as lost as Ray & Emma about what happened is crazy. I know the general consensus is that Norman apologized to Ayshe here for killing her father, but I still wanna know the truth word for word.

It is lowkey hilarious that, if Norman did apologize, he instantly goes back to being fully focused on the situation at hand, not even waiting for Ayshe's response. Maybe that could be another reason she's annoyed here. The first obviously being that she might not be able to completely hate Norman after the apology (if one was even said).

#the promised neverland #tpn manga #182daysoftpn #chidoroki used chatter

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tellthemeerkatsitsfine · 1 year

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Okay, fucking hell. I have been looking forward to the start of season 15 for so long, and when it finally happened, I got delayed even longer. Missed it the night it happened because I had to go out and live in the real world, then the next day I got really busy with work, then had to go five hours out of town and get no sleep in a terrible hotel room before spending yesterday yelling at some teenagers while they fought other teenagers, then got home today and had to do more work stuff. Now, finally, on Sunday evening, I get to do the thing I’ve really wanted to do for several days now, which is sit down and watch this fucking Taskmaster episode that aired on Thursday.

At long last, here are my thoughts on Taskmaster s15e01, written as I watch it:

- If you take into account Alex Horne’s fame for giving very memorable performances in Dictionary Corner of Catsdown, as well as impressive performances as a proper contestant on the real Countdown, this might be the best of all the “Greg gives Alex an insulting nickname” jokes they’ve ever done, thrown in as one of the very first lines in this season.

- Oh good, I have no good reason for this but I enjoy the prize tasks with a size or weight stipulation. I just think it’s funny to see the wildly different directions people can go with things that are about the same size.

- Well, this show promised us Frankie Boyle being a human being for once, and here he is bringing his kids into it in the first thing he says. And then having a delightful little exchange where he calls Greg creepy for wanting a painting of him in his house. Lovely, no notes.

- Okay, when the trailer came out recently and spoiled the fact that Frankie and Ivo are the team of two, I said that’s great, because I know this might not say anything great about me, but I do find the “one contestant being terrified of another” dynamic hilarious, when it happens on Taskmaster. Dara O’Briain and John Kearns played it to perfection last season, and if anything could match that, it would be Frankie Boyle getting paired with a younger, skittish, susceptible-to-pressure Englishman who’s built a career on talking about how posh he is. My hopes for this were only buoyed when Frankie’s interview came out, and it turns out that after filming the tasks (including team tasks) but before filming the studio stuff, his answer to “Who’s your biggest rival?” was “Everyone except Ivo.” Ivo’s interview came out just today, and his answer to that question was to stammer slightly while saying “Frankie”.

I almost feel bad for expressing how funny I find the idea of this dynamic, because it’s not a good thing. Disclaimer: I think schoolyard bullying in real life is very bad. And I suppose there’s some level it can reach on panel shows, after which it would stop being funny. I’ve seen a few examples, across many years of television, of panel show bullying going so far that it’s not funny anymore. But I do tend to find it really funny until it reaches that level.

I give all the background because Frankie was the first person to present his prize, and Ivo had to go second. While this happened, I though Ivo looked and sounded a bit terrified, possibly just from having to explain something with Frankie Boyle looming over him.

But then I thought, okay, I’ve made so many assumptions about that dynamic before the season even started, that I’m projecting them onto what is clearly just a completely normal prize task description. He might sound slightly stilted, but there’s no need to imagine that he’s noticeably bothered by anything this early in the season.

But then Greg cut him off mid-sentence to ask:

And then they all stopped to acknowledge how weird it was that Ivo Graham sounded unnecessarily terrified, and then he immediately got bullied by Frankie Boyle, saying he sounds like he’s playing a game where he can’t say certain words. I’m not imagining it, everyone! Team Franko (just coined that one, will be using it any time I reference them in any post I make this season, add it to the list of Taskmaster teams with convenient portmanteaus, like Vicotrialan and Morguziree) is going to be fun. I’m sorry, I really do like Ivo Graham, but I kind of want to see him get crushed. To be fair, I think he’d be the first to admit that part of his appeal as a comedian is it’s funny to watch him get crushed.

- I haven’t gotten to the scoring yet, but Jenny got robbed in that chat, eggs are dependable as hell. Quick, easy, convenient, good for you, cheap, last longer than most things that aren’t processed food. Solid prize. Also, Jenny Eclair’s the one I know the least about, but I immediately like her energy. Based on the few YouTube clips of her I’ve seen, I predicted her Taskmaster persona might be Jo Brand’s level of giving a shit with Rob Beckett’s level of energy. So far, we’re on track for that to be true.

- Took this screenshot entirely because this joke of Alex’s seemed to unnoticed by the audience, and it deserved more.

- So, based on only his prize task presentation, I’m getting that Kiell is going with “wildly enthusiastic, going ironically over the top in selling himself” energy. Making me think of Guy Williams from Taskmaster NZ a bit. I like it.

- Slightly weird to see Mae Maritn introduce a prize task so soon after watching their new stand-up special, as their enthusiastic prize task selling persona is very similar to their stand-up persona. And to their self-insert sitcom character. Basically, I’m pretty sure this is just the actual Mae Martin we get every time. And it’s absolutely captivating. I promise I will try not to mention how incredibly attractive they are too many times before this season is over.

- Oh, I wrote the above point before seeing Mae’s actual prize, and I need to come back and say they nailed that one. 1) A full English breakfast is awesome. 2) Bringing in that kind of food plays perfectly to Greg’s tastes, the mark of a student of the game. 3) Perfectly fits the remit. A breakfast like that can get you ready for anything - dependable. And I love that they bothered to specifically make it a kilo. I mean, I assume all Mae actually did was tell the producers to measure out a kilo, they weren’t putting food on scales themself. But still. I admire the commitment of saying they want to follow the instructions perfectly. That is how you do a prize task.

- Alex calling Ivo out in the moment for not getting the remit right, letting them all make fun of him for that, and then casually mentioning at the end that Frankie was also way off - very funny. Also, Frankie Boyle got overscored pretty hard there, as a painting of himself on a horse is neither one kilo nor dependable. Should have been an easy one point. But I get it, Greg. It’s Frankie Boyle. The inherently interesting nature of the enigmatic character-within-a-character Frankie Boyle being weirdly human does feel like it should be rewarded with points, though if we keep seeing things that way he’ll win every task all season.

- Well, Kiell wins the Fun Outfit Award this season.

Jenny wearing something that could be a costume but could also just be how she dresses. Frankie dressing down, because he’s insufficiently jolly for costumes. Ivo turning up in what looks like a school gym class uniform, because otherwise he might not give off a strong enough vibe of “student who’s bad at sports getting bullied during gym class”. And Mae wins the award for “Jesus, it’s only a track suit, how can I think someone’s clothing choice makes them look so attractive when all they’ve done is put on a track suit?”

- Oh yeah. The joke about it being funny that Frankie Boyle is so far out of his element is going to take a while to get old. It might get old at some point, but that one has some mileage in it.

- Does the music playing in the background while they discuss their choreography remind anyone else of the But I’m a Cheerleader soundtrack?

- Alex mentioned that he’s had proposals and stag dos on Taskmaster before. He’s also choreographed dances before, circa season 4. To ringtones, that time.

- Jenny Eclair threatening to infect Alex with trench vagina on their wedding night is definitely backing up the idea of her having Jo Brand vibes. But she did say it with the enthusiasm of Rob Beckett.

- Ah, I see, dancing with no music. That makes sense - I did wonder why it said they could use any music, as surely only some stuff will be cleared in terms of copyright, not to mention Chanel 4 content regulations. But I guess you can play anything if you don’t actually play it. Similarly, ringtones are presumably not expensive to put on TV. They should keep having “choreograph a dance” tasks in each season, finding increasingly elaborate ways to avoid paying for music.

- Have now watched Kiell’s dance, and can say: Yep, they’re correct. I assume they created this entire task to prove the point that dancing looks funny with no music playing, and yep, turns out they’ve successfully proved that hypothesis. Dancing does, in fact, look funny with no music playing. Well done, Alex.

- Obviously Frankie Boyle chose an American hip-hop song from 2005, about socioeconomic mobility in a racist capitalist system. Obviously. It’s almost a relief, it would be too weird to watch him go completely out of character, all at once.

- I mean... it’s still pretty out of character.

I’ve seen a lot of sides to Frankie Boyle, from Mock the Week to New World Order, from his stand-up to his Guardian columns, his novel that had a little bit of everything. That’s a new one, though. Apparently he’s not always insufficiently jolly for costumes.

- Another comparison for Jenny Eclair: her dance reminds me of Mel Giedroyc’s from season 4. Also, best one so far in terms of making it fun to try to guess what on Earth the music is. And learning the answer makes it funnier.

- Ivo not doing a lot to dispel my theory that he’s going to spend this whole season like a gym class student who’s bad at gym class.

- Ivo revealing that he picked one of Greg’s favourite bands and put a reference to another one of their songs on stage as well, like a student desperately sucking up to the teacher - also not dispelling the theory. Why does it come off as desperate when Ivo plays into Greg’s hands but savvy when Mae does it? I don’t know, something about the public personas they have both carefully curated over many years.

- Oh, Mae Martin is not fucking around. They actually choreographed that. Picked music that would actually be appropriate for a wedding. Put effort into doing it and visibly winced when it went wrong. Mae Martin is here to be competitive and I am so pleased about that.

What an exciting matchup! Which of Charlotte Ritchie’s husbands would be able to give her the best wedding dance?

- Yeah, fair enough. I fully agreed with the scoring on that whole task.

Okay, I think the winner of this season (assuming it’s one of these two... and that is looking likely, based on how things have started) should get to actually marry Charlotte Ritchie. Those would be good stakes.

- Oh, I immediately like the premise of this next task. Reward and punish based on arbitrary adherence, or lack thereof, to basic social etiquette. Leave them wondering whether to follow the etiquette or not, before and after knowing the premise. I like any task where we get to watch the premise slowly dawn on someone, and then watch them work out what to do about that in real time:

- 1) Watching Frankie Boyle unroll a ball of string while giggling like a child and batting at it like a cat is delightful.

2) I haven’t seen whatever they’re building up to yet, just paused it after Alex asked him if he’s happy. They’re going to have to roll it back up, aren’t they? Frankie won’t see it, because he’s not paying enough attention.

- Okay... so the back of the task negates the front? But if they’re contradictory instructions, can’t they argue that following either one should be as good as following the other?

I mean, fair enough, Frankie.

- Oh, title drop from Ivo. Who’s keeping stats on these things? Someone should be keeping track.

- Ivo looking for another ball of string in the house: student of the game move. That is a man who’s watched all his friends do this show over the last few years, and has memorized ideas for the sort of thing to expect. I bet there is one somewhere.

- Alex Horne: Do you think a Canadian will trust an Englishman?

Frankie Boyle: Shouldn’t do.

Me: Thank you, Frankie. I’ll keep your sage advice in mind if I ever manage to save up enough money to visit the UK.

- Mae Martin throwing the string around with abandon is... I mean. I’m trying to not just comment all the time on how attractive they are. Why is throwing string around something that makes that especially difficult? It’s something about the determination and breathless enthusiasm. This might be the biggest crush I’ve ever had on a Taskmaster contestant, despite there being some very significant competition in that field.

- It’s early in the season for this level of betrayal, really.

- Ooh, credit to Jenny for that workaround. I didn’t think of that idea at all.

- And Mae found it! This is another thing seeing up a Mae/Ivo dynamic, in which they both similarly care about winning, but Ivo holds back and Mae commits harder so is better at it (which is how Mae sucking up to Greg comes off as calculated, while Ivo doing it comes off as desperate). I’d be happy to watch that keep playing out all season.

- Location task! I'm on a boat, I'm on a boat, take a good hard look at the motherfucking boat!

- Okay, this is basically a Super Mario game.

- Frankie Boyle saying “We’re lining up with this bad boy” and then immediately crashing into a tree on the other side of the river from his target is the first thing all episode to make me properly laugh out loud. Other parts have made me laugh, but not as hard as that.

- I really like this task. Where did they get a barge? I hope the other location tasks are not just in that general area, but are also on that barge.

- I agree with the decision to put that Jenny Eclair crash at the beginning of the opening titles. Good stuff.

- I’ve paused it after seeing Frankie and Jenny’s attempt to say: there has to be some other way of doing it, right? Some way of going around and catching the rings, not touching them but gather them on a stick or something? Maybe that wouldn’t work. Maybe they really do just have to drive a barge.

- Yep, I’m definitely on board with Kiell playing this season with comically over-the-top confidence. That’s entertaining.

- Mae and Ivo both kiling it out there, genuinely impressive. Sorry Ivo, I might have to take back at least a few things I said about you being competitive but incompetent. We’re getting competitiveness and competence from both people here.

- Oh shit! I think this is only the second time in Taskmaster history that two people have been so close in a “fastest wins” task that they’ve shown them next to each other. The first being Chris Ramsey and Sophie Duker, which was both a very exciting individual task, and the beginning of a really good rivalry.

- Right, I obviously wrote the above two points before this happened:

Well done with the misdirect on the photo finish, editors. That was slick.

- You know what else was slick? Mae Martin snagging those tubes like they’re a professional barge driver. God damn. Well done.

- Ivo completing the task, cheering so hard his hat fell off, and then immediately crashing into the concrete - another proper laugh out of me.

- I started this post by saying I’m amused by the idea of Ivo Graham being so afraid of Frankie Boyle that he had difficulty just introducing a prize while sitting next to him. That theory has also not been dispeled.

But based on watching him visibly squirm while they discussed his errors, and and then physically jump on the first person who tried to save him - I think this this season is going to offer me plenty of two things I like. One being highly competitive Taskmaster contestants caring way too much about doing well (from Ivo and Mae), and the other being, as I said, Ivo Graham getting crushed.

- I can’t be bothered to make a gif of this, and actually, I think the still images might be funnier anyway.

God damn, Ivo. Now I really do have to take back at least four or five of the comments I’ve ever made about your incompetence. That is… that was so cool, that you get one free pass in the future, you get to do one stupid thing some other time and I won’t even hope anyone crushes you for it.

Oh, that was genuinely good. Kiell responding in kind, also very funny. But humour aside, that was just a really smart idea out of Ivo. Fucking right.

- I tried to think of something to say about this screenshot so I could justify posting it, but I’ve got nothing, I just wanted that picture of Mae.

- Hell of a screenshot, this one is:

It’s a good Taskmaster episode when it produces at least one tableau that looks like it could be an ancient painting. It adds to the composition that it gets more dramatic as you work inwards - Frankie and Mae just observing, Ivo and Kiell processing what they’ve done with each other, Jenny raising her arms to the heavens.

- I like it. A strong balance in that opening episode, a solid mix. Some promising starts to various dynamics and personas, pretty much along the lines of what I was hoping for. This is going to be fucking good.

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spatio-rift · 2 months

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Hello! I wanted to ask your favourite ships and the ones that you don't really like and why

Hiiii thank you for asking i love to talk about stuff like that and procrastinating on work. i think in recent years ive been enjoying comedic dynamics the most ^_^ i love to laugh and the best kind of dynamics (romantic or otherwise) to me are ones that are funny first and foremost. and theyre best when theres something compelling about it but still a lot of room to play around.

a funny thing ive noticed also is that for most of the media i really really like i care about a platonic unit including the ship/at least one character more than the ship itself? like strky > imakasa, taka (oto) > suika, $quad > kubometo.... like the shipping is funny but the platonic unit is where i get the warm feelings from.

now to actually answer the question ^_^

my favorite ships are the ones cited above as i said mainly because theyre hilarious to me. but i also like that suika dont necessarily like eachother but grow to care deeply for eachother, and the plausible possibility of a history together in oto as kids from how much they know about each other despite being so hostile in early hebi. what happened there... its funny asf but It Could Be That Deep. and also i like the idea that they still hold a massive grudge against sasuke literally 15 years after he fucked them over even though the man doesnt care and probably doesnt even remember. ive always liked the idea that they could have bonded when they reunited during the war over both being mad at him for treating them like dirt but alas kishimoto decided karin still being into sasuke and beating the shit out of suigetsu was funnier.

kubometo and imakasa have a lot less going on, mostly i just find them absolutely hilarious. imayoshi in knb is mostly presented as weird menacing and creepy from seirins pov so imakasa (and strky) is a fun way to play around with his sillier traits, because in that unit hes not a scary opponent determined to do everything in his power to win, hes not an eccentric senpai that never says what hes thinking to his teammates... around kasamatsu and other dudes his age hes just a gay little freak. its refreshing!

i will not pretend kubometo has anything like this going on. its just really funny to me! so many things in saipsi are, but this one really scratches an itch for me. i would actually say that trying to make it deeper than it is and write about it seriously makes it a lot less interesting for me. well thats just my saipsi philosophy in general ^_^ if you start thinking too hard about it it becomes less funny, which is a capital mistake when enjoying a gag manga.

Erm ! for the ships i do not like.... there are so many but out of respect for some beloved followers i wont mention the ones that i really hate just because im biased as hell and no other reason (lol). lets just talk about a few that i have actual arguments for.

for saipsi i dont mind a lot of things as long as it is made funny by people who like it (otherwise i just do not care) but when it comes to saiko and kusuo im sorry we need to stop what is happening here. Out of every possible pairing in saipsi why these two. asou made saiko because financial power was the only thing he could think of at the time that was left to be a challenge to kusuos powers, and then he never really pitted them against each other because it was (offense number 1) already done (kusuos dynamic with kokomi and her divine beauty esp in earlier saipsi revolves around the exact same thing) and (offense number 2) literally not even funny.

their main reasons for interacting are 1) one sided rivalry because of kokomis crush on kusuo, which was abandoned Very Quickly and thank god for that because it wasnt funny at all and made saiko less likeable with each panel (and it encroached on makotos reason for existing in the work as well) 2) The Purge, except saiko never ever learns who that cyborg ciderman cosplayer that humiliated him was. kusuo barely registers in saikos mind past his introduction like he really doesnt care. the ones that consistently and meaningfully interact with him are always nendou, aren and kaidou, kusuos just always around so we actually witness it. it actually matters a lot to me that saiko is one of the only characters that are in the (extended) friendgroup not because of kusuo but mainly because of first kokomi and then nendou. so why make him and kusuo a thing?? theres nothing there! (heavy breathing) sorry if you like saisai i had to get it off my chest.

i think one other ship that i really do not like now for Actual Reasons is hanaima from knb. i used to be a Huge fan but as with a lot of things in this godforsaken fandom my enjoyment of it was really soured by people who just Did Not Get It. hanaima is the ship for people who want a ~Dark and Edgy~ dynamic in a highschool basketball manga. people who like it generally dont understand hanamiya and imayoshi as characters and the actual dynamic they have, they just want to write about abuse and poor little meow meow hanamiya and yandere sadist imayoshi and stuff like that. One! hanamiya is not scared of imayoshi he just hates him for being annoying and weird and not letting him do whatever he wants which is injure people and ruin their dreams! Two! imayoshi is kind of a freak but he is kind! whatever awful thing you think imayoshi did to hanamiya in middle school that explains why hanamiya doesnt want to do anything with him now is complete bullshit! its not about imayoshi being evil or an abuser or anything like that ITS ABOUT HANAMIYAS EGO! at most imayoshi is just annoying because messing w people hes fond of is his favorite past time!

ah well there are more things that people get wrong about their characters and dynamic but lets not increase my heart rate too much i wouldnt survive it. if i had to sum it up i think ships i do not like are either just offensively unfunny or like, the idea of the ship goes against established character so forcing it to happen makes them awfully ooc to the point of being near unrecognizable. like i know anything can happen in the mind of a fan but i like these characters for a reason, you know?! Erm well i dont know how to end this rant now so ill just say thank you for asking and sorry if its a boring read, just talking about myself and all ...!

#but to be honest even with the ships i do like... i only like the way *i* do it #because nobody really gets it the way i get it <- not to say im above everyone else but just we enjoy VERY different things about it #so i could make a similar rant about all the things i do not like about how people portray suika etc etc #its kind of hard to talk about stuff i dont like! ultimately its more like 'im neutral on this but people do it badly so i dont like it'#i dont want to ruffle feathers if i get really honest about the things i actually straight up do not and never will like

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selastheblue · 1 month

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Homeward Bound

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Flicker's next day was a bit of a change of pace to his previous two. He sauntered the empty bean halls like he owned the place, and inspected the building. Checking the state of the supports and the stability of the structure.

It was divided into the lower level which included a small kitchen in the rear, and a shop of some kind in the front with hangers hanging so many pieces of bean clothing. There was a long shelf covered in oddities and knick-knacks along the south wall, and piled in all around it was furniture of all kinds. Tables, chairs, dressers, and more.

The upper level was made up of a sitting room towards the front end, followed by a simple washroom next to it. Attached to the same hall, and with a direct door to the washroom was a smaller bedroom, and beyond that, the master bedroom with access to the attic. Not that Flicker used the bean way up when he went to make his inspection of it.

No instead he had to slip into the wall along a knot hole in the wooden wall panels, about halfway up the wall. But for him and Cat's Claw it was no trouble at all, and soon he was reconsidering the old abandoned building.

"Little leakage, strong beams, lots of resources to borrow. Little food but..... well maybe we can fix that. And Risenloaf isn't so far. I might be able to make trips if we have trouble." He muttered as he walked along, but then the pain in his lower back reminded him it would be a significant risk to have to make trips.

Up here there were more pieces of furniture, including something that made him stop in his tracks. Under a table pushed towards the very back he spotted what looked like a small replica of the very house he was now exploring. His feet brought him over to it, and he couldn't hold his curiosity in check.

He opened one of the two front doors, and was greeted by a staircase up. The place felt eerie As he ascended to the upper floor, where he found a dusty, but much more livable furniture setup then currently existed within the real house. Couches by windows, and soft beds with fake bedside candles. Even a little washbasin in the washroom with scrub brushes hanging from the wall, and a soft green towel folded neatly beside.

Everything was just a little big for him, but all it did was make the house seem greater in grander. When he opened the closet he found doll clothes hanging there. Stitching was a bit rough as bean hands couldn't really make something that small and have it be quality, but it was nice enough that Flicker took a shirt he liked the look of to replace his own.

The new shirt was white, with small frills around the wrists and neck, and hilariously large buttons. He would have to makes some changes to it himself later when he had the time. But for now he had decided that he would move forward with the colonization, which meant he would have to pick a spot for the colony to set up.

Near the kitchen was an option, like in Risenloaf. But that oven wouldnt be lit, and lighting it themselves would bring attention. So no real heat there, and if there was no heat there would be no point. The lower levels were more likely to have vermin problems as well.

"So then upstairs! But attic, or somewhere on the second level?" He considered aloud, speaking comfortably as he considered the potential places in the upper floor.

A rolltop desk in the master bedroom caught his curiosity and after climbing up onto the chair seat, he hopped up into the ajar desk. Within it was quite dark, but he could with a touch of light from the window opposite the desk he could make out several drawers, and two levels so to speak, with ladder like handles on the drawers that for him were perfectly sized to act as rungs.

"Cozy, cozy, what about the drawers...?" He pondered, and pulled one of the lower drawers open, revealing it's velvet interior. And just like that he grinned, "Oh yes. Deluxe, even. This will be it. I'll just need to set up the basics for now. Bedding, a water source, doors, and a passage into the wall behind the desk. And food. I'll need to look around and find what's close so I'm not scrambling once the others do arrive."

Flicker paced slightly as he spoke his plan aloud to himself, and made his way into the back of the lowest shelf of the rolltop desk. There he spied something wonderful. The key to the desk. That was good! It meant they could secure the desk closed if they had to. Perhaps the bedroom window would break in a storm, or rats become too numerous. Anything could happen, and Flicker liked to be prepared.

And prepare he did. The next two and a half days were spent making the house ready for his first colonists. He cut swatches from the softest shirts on the hangers downstairs and brought them to the desk drawers as bedding. He made that hole in the very back of the desk and went through the painstaking task of sawing a hole into the wooden paneling behind it. That took most of a day all on its own.

His scratch seemed to heal well, even if it itched maddeningly, and using the broken mirror in the wash room he was able to get a better look at it. It would scar for sure, but it had been a grazing blow luckily. In the moment he had panicked, but knew he would be ready if the beast came at him again. A handful of pepper would make the cat regret it's choice of prey.

The basic necessities in place, Flicker gathered his things and left the abandoned house through the way he had entered before. But he did note an easier way in for the non-Wayfinders through a chute along the north side of the building. The chute was long enough and sloped enough that no one would get injured on their way down.

Leaving later at night he found his passage through the backyards of his soon to be neighbors went much smoother the second go around. Maybe it was the clouds threatening rain? Cats were no more fond of water than borrowers were, naturally. Compared to the dense jungle of the residential properties, the streets of Slumberton were much more open and exposed.

Flicker wove his path close to the buildings or through alleyways as he could, all the while praying to the stars above that the rain would hold off just a bit longer. There were thankfully few beans out and about as well, and those that he did never came near to him. Some relighting the night lamps, and a few patrolling town guardsmen. His path wound a bit differently then when he had left Damperflue days ago, this time not lining up very well with the alleyway. He followed the streets instead, risky as that could be.

Once the old Inn was in sight he couldn't help but smile widely and pick up his pace. But then right in front of his face did a large startling drop fall, and land at his feet. The first drop of the deluge to come. Flicker's eyes widened and he did something he rarely did ever, and that was run. Along the houses of the street, and right out into the road between him and his destination.

The moment he had reached the midway point of the road did a carriage happen to turn the corner and make its way towards him! Freeze, or flee? He chose flee, and had to leap for safety as behind him the clatter of hooves on cobbles thundered, then scraped and clattered to a halt before the doors of the Inn.

The driver, he might've seen me...! Flicker's mind panicked, his head turning as he climbed the curbside to peer back.

There was a well dressed coach driver bean with blonde hair who descended from his seat at the front of the vehicle, boots hitting the paving stones with enough force to send a tremble through the ground to Flicker. The fellow walked for the door of the carriage, looking exhausted as he turned the handle and began to open the door.

"Greetings, Lady Remmie. We have arrived." And from the door he pulled an odd device Flicker had never before seen. It unfolded to become a barrier between the bean and the spitting rain.

Flicker knew he wouldn't make it to the building before the beans saw him, so he made the decision to hide in the only place he could find. A crevice in the stones of the walkway just big enough for him. In the dark, and the rain, and their hurry to get out of the weather he hoped he would be missed. And not crushed under boot. That too would be nice.

Flicker's eyes watched as a truly pallid pale bean stepped out of the vehicle. She was dressed in a dress of a fine make, and green in color, and while short for a bean...

That meant little to Flicker as he watched her take the waterproof device from the driver, descend from the carriage, and say, "Thank you, Cardon. I'm sure you can park the carriage just around the side for now. I will have a room ready and paid for by the time you get inside." Her voice was soft for a bean, as was her step. But no matter how 'soft' a bean stepped, if her boot landed on him, he was as good as dead.

Stay or go, hide or run?

Flicker saw the bean's boots move his way and held his breath, closing his eyes. He didn't want to see his demise if it was to be fated.

Boom

BOOM

Flicker's eyes opened as above him he saw the heeled boot crash down and he nearly felt his soul leave his body. To bean's booted heel was to his right almost touching his arm, and the arch coming down to his left just missing him.

And then in an instant it was being lifted back up, as the door of the inn opened, and the carriage began to roll away and around the corner.

He was alive.

He was ALIVE!!

Flicker wasted no time as soon as the door to the inn was closed once again, and sprinted with the wind at his back to the lower level borrower entry point. He twisted and opened a shingle on the side of the building, and slipped within, closing it behind himself.

Cold, wet, filled with the adrenaline of surviving his closest ever encounter with a bean he paused to double check he was indeed intact before muttering, "I'm alive.... star above. An inch to the left or right and I'd of been done for...." then he hook his head as the chill from his wet clothes caught up with him, "I never want to see a bean that close again." And he began to make his way up through the hidden borrower tunnels, knowing very well as a Wayfinder it was quiet possibly some day he would.

He hoped he would survive that one too.

The passages were many but Flicker navigated them with practiced ease, until finally he found himself in the familiar attic. Its dustiness not off-putting as it might have been to any bean visitor. No in fact it was a comforting consistency. Assurance there would be no beans here.

The brick pressed in easily, and he followed it in to Damperflue. Things were winding down, as was expected this early in the morning. There was Poppyseed singing a lullaby on the stage as several groups of borrowers began to yawn and doze. A few headed upstairs to sleep, and other things, in pairs and groups. Flicker's entry however caused a bit of a stir, as his fellows pointed to him.

He was only halfway across the main dining hall when a shout from the kitchens pulled the eyes of most of the room, silenced Poppyseed's singing, and woke up the sleeping much to their irritation.

"FLICK!!" Caramel shouted as she ran out of the kitchens, pausing only to place down her knife on the counter before charging over to him and lifting him up off the floor.

Her warmth felt great on his chilled self, and he hugged her back tightly, "'Mel, ah, it's good to be home." Flicker was squeezed tightly enough to have a bubble of water drop out of his clothes and to the wooden boards below them, then she puts him down as another borrower comes over with a big fuzzy blanket. Flicker doesn't hesitate to strip down, and accept the blanket while his clothes are taken away to be cleaned, and dried.

"I bet it is. You look pretty rough! Is the bakery ready to be colonized?" she asked as she and a couple other borrowers followed him over to a pillow pile near the quieter corner of the eatery.

Flicker flopped down wrapped in his cozy fuzzy blanket with a deep sigh, "Chutefall beat us to it. New colony of Risenloaf has been established by Mittens."

The ginger borrower who had brought over the blanket, Cuppa, sits down next to Flicker to help warm him as she replies with disappointment, "So.... then no new colony?"

Her gentle tone and soft voice bring a smile out of Flicker, she was his favorite littermate, "Well, I talked with Mittens a bit and she suggested another spot her and Buckle looked at a long while ago. An old abandoned building that needs some work, but will be all ours." he reached out an arm and hugged Cuppa into himself lightly.

"A different spot? While it sounds good to me, we should gather the other colonists this afternoon after a bit of sleep. See if everyone is still on board with it even if it's gonna be somewhere else." Caramel suggested, cuddling in to the other side of Flicker.

"Good idea. If you don't mind doing the footwork to get everyone gathered for me? I just had the scariest night of my life. And a cat got me a few days ago." and he let his blanket fall to show show his new battle scars to be.

Cuppa gasps and turns him a bit more to inspect his back for herself, "Flicker! You should have come back so I could treat this! You're lucky it's not infected!"

Flicker, feeling very loved from her deep concern, just grinned at her, "Just call me Lucky Flick."

The smaller borrower's eyes narrow at him, and she flicks his nose hard enough to water his eyes, "You do things like this again and it'll be Dead Flick!!"

Scrunching his face and rubbing his nose he promises, "Okay, okay! I'll be more careful."

Little Cuppa nods once, and then rises, "I am going to clean those cuts now, and bandage them. Then it's bedrest. Bed. Rest." she emphasizes poking his forehead.

"Aye aye!" he salutes her, before she departs. A little silence settles in as Flicker relaxes again, eyes closed, blankets pulled around himself closely.

It's Caramel who breaks this silence, "...dont think I wont hold you to that."

"I'd think you'd been replaced by a doppelganger if you didn't."

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#g/t #borrowers #giant/tiny #giant tiny #gt #micro #g/t writing #ocflicker #wayfindertales #borrower

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isfjmel-phleg · 1 year

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(Batman 2016 #16)

I've seen some of these panels floating around but the entire context is so good, so unexpectedly hilarious (considering the usual tone of these comics)

The fact that in-universe this restaurant exists at all.

("Batburgers" apparently were a thing in the 1966 show. Of course they were.)

Someone felt the need to stress that the Ivy Salad is not actually poison, which is not reassuring at all.

The sodas available are Spite, Choke, Sunpist, and Zapt. No Zesti.

Bruce taking this way too seriously and holding up the line to lecture the guy taking his order on the inappropriateness of naming seasoning for fries after a homicidal criminal...

...while Duke stands there shooting snarky looks at him.

Dick, still taking on a parental role, bought Damian's meal for him

...and made the executive decision to get him something more child-appropriate.

I can't tell if Dick ordered the Night-Wings or the Robin Nuggets, but either way it tracks. And the Nightwing emblem is on his cup.

(He's got to be enjoying this.)

Jason, unlike Bruce, is unoffended by Jokerized fries.

The vicious scowl Damian gives his Red Hood action figure. Reminiscent of the look on Bruce's face earlier.

It was apparently Dick's idea to come to this specific place, ostensibly for a change of pace. But probably also for the amusement of Bruce's priceless reactions to this establishment.

Bruce having to do that awkward thing where there's not enough room in the booth so you have to drag over a chair and sit at the end of the table.

(There are other tables in the background that possibly could have accommodated all of them. They went with the booth.)

Jason pilfering the action figure of himself and Damian discovering that he does want it after all and getting into a fight over it (which includes shoving his burger in Jason's face) in the background while the others have a Serious Conversation.

Bruce just does not know How To Fast Food. He eats a burger with a knife and fork. He's wearing a suit and tie. He probably hasn't been to a fast food joint in ages, if ever.

Duke is more concerned about this than the impending crisis they're officially discussing. Villain on the loose? What else is new. Millionaire vigilante Cannot eat a burger like a human being? Worrisome.

(Either the artist failed to keep track of which wrist Bruce's watch is on or he's wearing two watches. Why not.)

Damian referring to Jason as "Red Hoodie."

These boys have died so many times it's now a joke among them. Once more, Duke has Concerns. Bless his heart.

I have no context for why Tim is dead at this point, but that is tragic, not least because the addition of him to the chaos that is these brothers' interactions would have made this scene even more entertaining.

Bruce, having officially killed the mood, just gets up and walks away, leaving his uneaten meal behind. Is he expecting the boys to clean it up for him?

Damian's jab at Jason about his hair is probably a reference to Jason in Batman and Robin (2009), in which he comments on how he's starting to go bald (and he's also redheaded? it was a weird era for his character).

Duke is clearly the sanest person at this table and I respect that.

I haven't encountered a lot of Jason-Damian interaction in the comics, but I need more of it.

What happened to the action figure? Who gets to keep it?

#comicsposting again #commentary is not going to be a regular thing #but tonight I have pointless remarks that do not need to be made but have been anyway

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soul-dwelling · 1 year

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Man, maybe its just confirmation bias because I heard this take many times, but yeah, rereading the manga fully for the first time really makes it seem that after the baba yaga arc the whole thing kinda lost steam, with chapters just meandering about, charachters getting introduced while being boring, established charachters just turning into evil caricatures (Justin, Crona) and the good guys just being kinda anoying and acting like unlikable brats.

I mean, if you’re re-engaging with the same work more than once, you’re bound to find details that you scrutinize more. I hope my negativity isn’t leading to confirmation bias, and I hope on re-reading you find details that you appreciate more that can balance out what new stuff you’re finding that you’re scrutinizing more.

The post-Baba Yaga era is a bit of a story reboot--without going far enough. We start strong with showing Soul’s new power set, setting up an opponent in Gopher, teasing out the mystery of why Justin turned and what Noah is up to and why he wants Giriko. We show what the other students are up to, including Black Star looking for Crona, and the Thompsons and Team B looking for Medusa…

…and then things kind of feel like missed opportunities.

It’s not all bad, but some things fall apart.

Soul is a Death Scythe, he and Maka have to learn a new balance in their relationship when it comes to the form of the Grigori wings. And while flying is cool, how many times did we really see it between the Gopher fight and the Moon arc? Flying wasn’t as integral to, say, the Book of Eibon arc or the Black Blood Bubbles arc. It’s not that these arcs needed to have flight--but we don’t even get just action panels showing Maka flying to destinations?

(The revelation that Maka has a Grigori soul and what that means going down the line also feels like it is swept away. It’s neat trivia and worldbuilding, but it isn’t explored much. It feels like a logical tie-in to finally bring Maka’s mother into the story--except, first, it doesn’t seem like Maka’s mother had the Grigori soul either, so, second, she would just end up repeating the info dump we already got from Spirit and others.)

The mystery of what Noah is up to collapses once you learn he is an extension of the Book of Eibon. I think it could have been saved if the Book had a bigger victory over Asura at some point in the final arc, but it didn’t pan out that way.

Giriko’s story ends in a fitting way.

Justin’s story collapses on its own, until you put it into context with Fire Force to read Justin’s character arc as much as an indictment against organized religion and fanaticism as it within Soul Eater a reflection on how isolation and unquestioning faith are bad things.

(This is a whole other tangent as to how Justin’s story does and doesn’t work, seeing as we don’t get a sense that anyone really cared to intervene in Justin’s isolation--perhaps because they didn’t notice?--and not even some regret on the part of others for not seeing the signs earlier--you would think, with how smart Azusa and Stein are presented to be, that you’d hear far louder regret from one of them at this screw up.)

Black Star and the others finds Crona and Medusa’s clowns…and then they disappear again. Cool action scenes, new powers unlocked--but just kind of happens. It makes me think you could have combined this part with the last arc of the manga and have a faster pace that would make the developments more impactful on the reader. Instead, you wait until the Black Blood Blood arc to get back to Crona and Medusa, just to have Crona kill Medusa and wrap up this narrative.

Maybe I’d push back against saying the new characters introduced are a bit boring, or that the good guys become annoying and unlikable.

I think there is lacking potential in some new characters. Tezca and Enrique should be hilarious--but we rarely get to see them outside of some brief interactions. Show us some weirdness, like how the DWMA reacts to Enrique running around; we got some of that with Free commenting on him to Eruka, but that’s about it. Tezca is a fan favorite because of his design and limited background information on him--and he’s funny, but we get so little of him. Does anyone remember the name of the person who made the airship to the Moon, Gen? He was here for a corny pun on “ecchi” and that was about it.

And I actually like the good guys being a little annoying and unlikable. There’s the debate about whether what Lord Death is doing is right--it’s underdeveloped, but it’s a worthwhile question, one that should have been explored more so that his death and his faith in Kid hits harder. Maka being indecisive about what to do about Crona is earned and is a legitimate debate, one that opens up her teammates to debate as well, finally giving some of them some personality, including making Harvar a hardass and, yeah, unlikable, which is the point, to add some conflict to the story. It’s a little late to do more with Harvar (he and Jackie are sidelined in Baba Yaga, and that arc also reduces Ox and Kim’s conflict to a love confession--not bad, especially how Ox sees good in Kim, but kind of limited).

#long post

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jaydonsjam · 1 year

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Fables I

Fables #1-5: “Legends In Exile”

Fables #1-5 - writer: Bill Willingham | penciler: Lan Medina | inker: Steve Leialoha

Before I get into my thoughts on the comic I wanted to give some context on my experience with Fables. So, this is my first time reading through this series and before I finished this first arc, my only knowledge of this world comes from Telltale’s The Wolf Among Us which is one of my all-time favorite video games. I’ve been interested in reading this book ever since I played that game back in 2014 but there’s so many issues and I have never had the chance or time to collect all the trades but there is a wonderful app called DC Universe Infinite which if you subscribe to, you can pretty much read most of the DC and it’s other imprints’ library including Fables (obviously not sponsored by DC just a recommendation for DC fans). I also didn’t know that The Wolf Among Us is a prequel to the comic which honestly got me even more excited to start reading. I didn’t know if the game was an adaptation of the first arc of the comic so I was pleased to learn that it’s 20 years before the first issue.

The comic, like the game, follows Bigby Wolf who is the fairy tale character, Big Bad Wolf investigating a mysterious murder of Snow White’s sister, Rose Red. We meet many fairy tale characters like Jack (Beanstalk), Beauty and the Beast, Pinocchio etc living in exile because their lands were taken over by a demonic being called “The Adversary”. What I love about this world so much is how Bill Willingham infuses different genres like noir detective with fantasy and also this book is really funny. There’s a quick scene with Pinocchio at a party explaining his disdain for the Blue Fairy (see panels below) and it was genuinely hilarious.

Bigby Wolf works as a sheriff for Snow White and honestly the best part of this comic is the scenes between Bigby and Snow. I could not put this comic down and I enjoyed every second of it. There’s even a cool twist when the “Parlour” chapter in issue five happens where we get the reveal with what happened to Rose Red. I don’t want to ruin the twist just in case people are interested in checking Fables out for the first time. For me though, I didn’t see the twist coming and I loved it. It’s a simple detective story when you really boil it down but it was fantastic. I’m so interested in the backstory and I can’t wait to see what happens with The Adversary and if the Fables will get their lands back. Also before I finish I have to mention the art which was penciled by Lan Medina. It really fits the storybook/fairy tale aesthetic and blends the noir real world setting brilliantly. I love the way they drew Snow White especially. So yeah, a great beginning arc to a comic that I can’t wait to continue reading.

#dc comics #dc #vertigo #vertigo comics #fables #fables comics #sheriff bigby #bigby wolf #snow white

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10dance · 2 years

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Real 10 Dance 2022 Review!

The remote version of Real 10 Dance this year was streamed on 6/25 at 8pm JST and was available for playback for 72 hours. This was my first time attending the event, so you know I had to go back and take so many screenshots >:). Unfortunately most of them came out pretty blurry, but you can find much higher quality pictures from the Real 10 Dance twitter, Odori Biyori twitter, or Nishio Kouichi’s blogposts (first half | second half). (If you’d like to see, I also posted all of my pictures here on Imgur, some of which will be in this post.)

The stream is long gone now, but they sent a behind the scenes video for audience members who added tips to the staff, dancers, or Inoue. Here is the link (password: dancethanks) if you would like to see parts of their performances. I keep reliving the experience by rewatching this...

The first few sections were a lot of talking which I did not understand, but sailorspazz wrote up a very detailed report for that too :), please go read it for an accurate account of the event. As for me, I’ll skip right to the manga discussion and dance sequences under the cut lol.

Our panel of dance (and manga) experts come into frame and introduce themselves (left to right: Takashima Kiyomi, Motoike Jun, Shimoda Ai, Kajiya Takashi). I liked how Motoike-sensei hid his face behind the catalogue from the 2019 exhibition lol. He was my favorite part of the segment since he was sometimes just flipping through the pages while the others talked about something else haha.

The first section was the dancers picking out a dance scene they liked from the manga and discussed the characters’ postures as well as the atmosphere of the dances that were portrayed (ex. the waltz from chapter 4, the God of Dance in chapter 25 etc.). The second section was almost entirely them breaking down all the things that make Suzuki’s face great (and praising Inoue’s art in general lol). Motoike-sensei even went as far as recreating a Suzuki panel on the whiteboard, which I imagine was very hard to do. They had to clarify that he definitely doesn’t draw under the Inouesatoh pen name lol.

(This pictures cracks me up no matter how many times I’ve seen it)

Then comes the main dances! I’ll include 2-3 photos of every number (incl. links to the music) and give short comments for each. (Again, there are way nicer pictures in the links mentioned above but I’m partly writing this for me to recollect my thoughts so bear with me :P)

Masquerade (Khachaturian) - Viennese Waltz (Shimoda Ai, Murano Miri, Seuchi Hideyuki, Masuda Daisuke, Sekine Choma, Takagi Takashi, Motoike Jun, and Nishio Kouichi)

I loved that we got to see a female dance pair!! The way their dresses spun was so pretty, and when the rest of the group joined in, it really felt like a masquerade dance. This piece was very important in the 10 Dance plot, I’m glad that I could see people dancing to it (nothing came up on Youtube when I searched for it lmao).

Butter (BTS) - Cha Cha Cha (Kajiya Takashi and Katsube Kou)

This is probably the first time I listened to Butter in full, and now it’s kind of stuck in my head... The dance was really upbeat, I especially liked the part where they kept spinning, they just kept going..! The pair looked liked they were having a lot of fun lol.

Calmi Cuori Appassionati - Rumba and Samba (Sekine Choma and Takagi Takashi)

This was one of my favorite dances! It told such a dramatic love story and I kept rewatching it (and the BTS version) over and over again. As sailorspazz already mentioned, the shorter dancer (Sekine Choma) got to lead during the dance as well which is a bit uncommon even in same-sex dancing, so that was really cool. I had to add this third hilarious photo in as well, it’s so good that I’ve made a meme using it lmao (more HQ pictures from this dance).

All That Jazz (“Chicago” musical) - Slow Jive (Kamiwaki Yukiko, Saiki Tomoko, Shizumu Ai, Numata Manami, Takashima Kiyomi, and Tsukada Mami)

Ladies’ number B)! I saw the pictures soon after the in-person event was held in April; I quote retweeted it with “Women 👀” and got a like from one of the dancers... That wasn’t relevant, but anyway, I loved watching this dance!

Romeo and Juliet (Nino Rota) - Waltz (Nishio Kouichi and Motoike Jun)

Uh oh, time to bawl my eyes out again... This was obviously going to be my favorite dance of the event; it’s got the drama, the angst, and them wearing tuxedoes just makes the Honor Dance headcanon that much more real, how could I not cry?! Both dancers are similar in body type, so I’m really looking forward to using these pictures as reference for a certain fandom day coming up in a few months 👀...

Up All Night (Charlie Puth) - Rumba (Seuchi Hideyuki and Masuda Daisuke)

This is another song they managed to get stuck in my head lol. It’s such a sweet rumba (compared to the angsty one before) and it really felt like the dance moves and expressions matched the lyrics! The hand hold at the end is adorable too...

It’s Time To Dance (“The Prom” musical)

Allow me to indulge in spamming pictures from this finale, there were simply too many cute moments! I’m pretty sure Nishio-sensei and Motoike-sensei have paired up in past events as well, and they got to strike three different poses in this dance (not including them fixing each other’s collars because AWW THAT’S SO CUTE WTF). All in all, this was a great experience for those who couldn’t attend in-person, I hope they keep doing it every year for us overseas fans as well!

#10dance #10 dance #information #real 10 dance #ballroom dance

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ashsreads · 2 years

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live reaction: check, please! (webcomic by ngozi ukazu)

(as a figure skater, i just had to make my first post about an ice sports webcomic :) so here we go!!) (also, to clarify: these are notes i take in real-time while i read whatever i'm reading. i take the notes in my notion bookshelf, then copy/paste them over to here once i'm done!)

i’ve never enjoyed reading about hockey players before

they’re all such himbos, i love them

the way they talk about substance abuse in this is actually?? very nice?? like it’s not romanticized, they call it like it is, and it’s shown to have real consequences on the characters and their lives

i also enjoy that the Haus is shown to have baggies of condoms on their message board alsdkdjl safe sex ed at its finest

hockey shit with ransom and holster works better than my zoloft

the way the teams foster environments of inclusivity is so important to me; many queer athletes really worry about what their teams are going to say, and seeing these fictional teams be so warm and accepting makes me so so so happy :,)

only con: i would’ve liked a more developed ending! it felt very sudden, and a lot of strings left untied.

like what happened with bitty’s parents? how’d the press conference go? how was bitty’s senior year? i have QUESTIONS

edit NEVERMIND I SKIPPED 20 CHAPTERS ON ACCIDENT ALKSDJFLS BRB

edit edit: the ending is incredibly well developed when you actually finish it!! it’s such a sweet, adorable, happy ending that celebrates queer joy.

i would also like a copy of bitty's cookbook please, his pie recipes must be phenomenal

just found out the author doesn’t skate herself??!! i’m ASTOUNDED, her research must have been insanely extensive. i will say the figure skating knowledge isn’t quite up to par with the hockey knowledge, but overall bravo!! bravo indeed

i do wish this story had was some trans/nonbinary rep. we get approximately zero of that in ice sports.

however, when considering that this comic launched in 2013, the representation for BIPOC and LGBTQ+ people in hockey (and ice sports overall) was absolutely a step in the right direction.

like is this another piece of queer media focused on two cis white men?? yeah. is it also a webcomic that includes representation for many marginalized groups, was created by a black woman, and started when gay people couldn't even get married in the US, much less be out in pro sports?? YEAH! this comic tackled so many topics that were seen as fairly radical/controversial in the early 2010s, and i've gotta give kudos for that.

also would've loved to see some more exploration into the figure skating part of bitty’s past!! like how that helped in his journey w/ hockey, why he switched, etc.

i will also say that at some points the panels were kind of hard to read in webcomic format. especially some of the ones that take up like longer/narrower rectangles(??), the text gets super tiny and hard to read. most of it's perfectly readable though!

overall an incredibly enjoyable read!! it's cute, it's hilarious, and took my mind off all the horrible things in the world for a moment.

and if we could possibly get a live action tv show of this one day... the world would know peace 😌😌

#check please #omgcp #webcomics #LGBTQ+ focused #ash reacts live

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raiquen · 4 months

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Book Review: Ultimate X-Men, Mark Millar, Adam and Andy Kubert.

My Review in a Tweet:

I like how corny Marvel comics are. Being so cuddled by the MCU, it felt refreshing to see many characters just existing there and moving the plot by acting rather than being, like they didn't need to justify their existence for a greater plot and could just inhabit the universe.

Full Review:

Being primarily an MCU enjoyer (I wouldn´t call myself a fan now), seeing the plot of the Sentinels as the first thing in this comic book was jarring, as I was expecting a more introductory story before anything like that. It is an early story anyway, as the X-Men as a group are barely getting started in Men of Tomorrow. Scott Summers/Cyclops serves as the founding leader of the team under the tutelage of Charles Xavier as a group of mutants who seek to discourage the U.S. Government from implementing the Sentinels program, protect other mutants and impede Magento from recruiting them to his side.

The hard-cover book includes a second story arc, Return to X-Weapon, where Wolverine takes center stage and fights to rescue his newfound team after nearly betraying them in the previous story.

I rescued that panel in particular because it was hilarious to me for some reason (Quicksilver complains to Scarlet Witch that Magneto said that his superspeed mutation was effeminate).

Both story arcs were neatly written, with not much time to spare on developing the mutants, but maybe it's commonplace on issues dedicated to a team rather than to an specific character. Magneto and Xavier, as well as Wraith, have their time to shine and expose their views. I was delighted to see Nightcrawler on this, so half an extra point for that.

Overall, an amicable reading, not too deep, fun for moments. The artstyle is a bit underwhelming and there aren't many interesting compositions, but besides that, enjoyable.

6.5/10.

My Other 2023 Readings.

#2023 readings #my 2023 readings #xmen #ultimate xmen #men of tomorrow #mark millar #adam kubert #andy kubert

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chidoroki · 1 year

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Black Clover ch354

Fair warning that I am going to ramble on quite a bit this time and it’s all thanks to Lucius who decided to be the clever, little villain he is and conjure up a plan that I had very much feared for my own well being and the great turmoil it would inflict on some favorite characters of mine. That plan consisting of bringing even more powerful mages back to life, specifically those such as Morgen and Acier. (I also figured he’d revive people like Lumiere or Licita as well, but nope, not yet anyways. Or he might not at all, I dunno.) Now for Morgen, there’s no way I could’ve anticipated him in this first panel. Acier however? OH I noticed her INSTANTLY. All thanks to those Silva sandals of hers. We’ve seen Noelle so often throughout the story (and me personally rewatching/rereading many of Nozel’s moments too) that the family’s choice in footwear is just so noticeable. Chances are I might’ve recognized Morgen right away had I focused on his chapters more too, but I didn’t. My flimsy point here is my nerves were sent straight to the edge right from the beginning and it’s almost hilarious how quick a tiny shoe detail instilled so much fear and anticipation into my heart.

As I hoped last chapter, we skip right to judgement day, which I’m sorta on the fence about now that I think about it? Yea I’m real glad we’re finally back in Clover, but still kinda wish we got to see how everyone else prepared for the fight, or their efforts to try and find Asta. We could very well get flashbacks to both later on so I’m not worried. And if we don’t, then whatever, it’s fine. I’m very excited to see Yuno fight alongside William, however where we’re all located right now is a tiny bit concerning? I understand they evacuated everyone into the noble realm for protection, which is great, but if y’all are gonna fight the big bad threat here, how safe can they truly be, ya know? Regardless of that, I noticed Yuno’s left arm is still bandaged up like it was in ch336 and I dunno if there was a reason for it that I most likely forgot about or what (but if we’re all clueless then oooh mystery~). Oh, and because the previously mentioned footwear got my nerves shot, I also took note of how a certain handsome captain wasn’t included in this rooftop lineup and it got me even more worried that he would indeed encounter the lovely lady in the Silva sandals on his own.

Thankfully I didn’t have to fret much longer to finally see Nozel after patiently waiting for many months! Of course I’m relieved to see Mereoleona, Fuegoleon and Rill too, but also others that haven’t received nearly as much screentime. I genuinely want to see more of Randall and Fragil, and hell, all the Purple Orcas honestly. I feel like they get left out on so much, like we barely see Kaiser and he’s the captain. The only Orca we know a lot about is Zara and he’s..- oh my god, what if Lucius revives him too?? OH NO!.. Ah, I digress, but sure we’ve got glimpses of their magic once or twice before as they each had their brief spotlight, but I wanna see them all have a badass moment of some kind! If this is the final battle then we should see just how strong and capable everyone is, yeah? Also, just realized Dorothy ain’t around? Wonder where she might be.

Keep in mind I’m still highly anticipating a certain steel princess to descend into battle but for now I can at least take a breath and appreciate this short YamiChar moment. Happy to see Charlotte apologizing for running away so much recently but feeling even more giddy at the fact Yami essentially set up a date for the two of them. AND how he remembered she and booze don’t mix well and offered tea instead, like how cute of him is that? Unexpected sweet side of him aside, this man looks so exhausted. Has he been worrying about Asta this whole time? Or judgement day? Or both. Possibly that.

Now the calm before the storm is finally over, much to Jack’s impatient and soon-to-be-temporary relief, as Lucius and a newly revealed Morgen suddenly appear behind the rooftop crew. Yeah it would be easy to confuse Nacht and Morgen with that perpetual smile always on both their faces, but the robe here does sorta kinda resemble that of the Grey Deer of which Morgen was a member of. Jack’s comment does make me wonder where Nacht could be if he hasn’t been seen these past couple of days. No doubt with the other Bulls, possibly attempting to locate Asta or something.

But oohh boy, not even ten seconds into the fight and we already got some serious damage on our side. Morgen straight up broke his blade, put a gashing hole right through his stomach and sliced his arm clean off, all in one move! For a dude who loves to cut things up, this is some horrible irony for Jack. For real I have no idea how he’ll recover from this. Granted, William is close by and could summon up a healing tree or whatever he calls it, but y’all gotta be quick about it! Like, super sonic speed fast considering Morgen has light magic and thanks to Patry we all know how much of a pain that could be.

Silly me was so focused on the Silvas during the raw leaks that I barely even thought about the reunion between Yami and Morgen. Sure I was worried about Nacht seeing him again, if and whenever he does eventually show up, but him and Yami were real close friends too. Looking forward to see dark and light magic clash against each other this time. Ohh and our captain dropped his cig, so you know it’s about to get serious.

Now, I dunno if there’s any relation to having Morris paired against the Crimson Lions, but if there is then it’s certainly not as soul shattering as who Morgen and Acier are set on fighting with. Always down to see our undefeated lioness go all out though. Oh, but in this moment I just realized something.. how would Mereo react knowing that Acier is back? Of course I want the Silva siblings to have their moment against their mother, but damn, I’d love to see both women actually battle for once too! Imagine if this was the one time Acier lost to her.. that’d be pretty sweet.

Okay so now is the time I go full on Nozel fangirl and I won’t apologize for any of it, but y’all.. lemme tell you that this encounter has already got me so emotional (and not much has even happened yet!). Back during ch343, just the tiny possibility of Acier being revived entered my head and it struck me with so much worry, so the fact that it is actually happening right here and now is gonna give me several heart attacks. I was completely fine with the brief moment Nozel and Noelle had with Acier’s soul in 303. It was so touching and that entire chapter is what made me love Nozel so much, as it revealed a lot of his character and finally allowed him to own up to his mistakes, to see how strong and persistent he is and to finally be free. Even though we didn’t get to see anything of the recent year and a half timeskip after Spade, I’m sure he became much more relaxed, since he didn’t have to worry about the curse anymore, and possibly have a more meaningful bond with Noelle. Maybe the whole family is doing better now as a whole too, at least I’d like to hope so. I wanted to see this new, improved Nozel so badly (and I sincerely hope the anime expands on that timeskip one day, whenever it returns), but now I have to endure seeing my man stressed beyond belief because he has to fight the mother he loves and respects so much?? WHY?! I want him happy for once in his life and this is the furthest thing from it! In fact, he looks positively pissed off! I have no doubt his anger is more towards Lucius for pulling off this stunt rather than Acier herself. Not to mention that when Nozel last saw her soul in ch303 she was at peace and finally free in a sense, and now he has to watch her fight again against her own will. Sure he’s probably frightened too, I mean it’s not every day your mom comes back to life in front of your eyes (even in a world with magic), but I think his reaction is an interesting contrast compared to Nebra and Solid. The two of them are in complete shock and look far more upset, which is kinda reasonable since neither one has seen their mother since before her death when she was all frail and weak, so seeing her appear suddenly with all that power has got to be chilling.

Now then, I could very well be in the minority for this, but whenever Noelle does join the battle (because she will, I’m certain), I sorta pray she doesn’t do too much? Of course I want her to finally see her mother since she died when Noelle was so very young, but you guys have no idea how badly I want this fight to center more around Nozel (and the other two siblings, sure). Lemme try and explain. As part of the main cast, we’ve seen Noelle level up and have these grand spotlight moments throughout the entire story. While she and Nozel both played a major part in defeating Megicula, due to their personal reasons of avenging Acier (both) and Lolopechka (Noelle), it was still our Bull who landed the final blow against that devil. At the end of the day I just want a big moment for Nozel okay? And I feel like him having the biggest role in this fight against Acier would be such a wonderful way to go about it. Not to mention that this man is in serious need of some kind of power up. Thankfully he’s been strong throughout the entire story, as is required of a squad captain, and he’s no doubt had fantastic displays of strength in both manga and anime, but we’ve seen him pull out the same spells time and time again. A handful of other captains have improved over the story, such as Yami and his different dark slashes, Mereoleona’s hellfire, Fuegoleon with Salamander, as well as Charlotte, Rill and Jack all stepping it up during the Spade invasion. Of course I enjoy the spells Nozel uses now, but he still deserves a bit of an upgrade. Way back in ch178/ep108, Acier expressed how excited she was to see what spells he’ll learn when he received his grimoire, but never got the chance to see any of it due to her untimely death, so I think now is the perfect moment for him to learn something new to spice things up! Like can we give my man some mercury armor please?? Imagine how damn proud Acier would be. And hell, if Noelle can figured out such a spell then it should be no problem for Nozel. I mean, the story praises his level of mana control all the time. Also think it would be pretty interesting to see similar magic such as steel and mercury fight against one another, even more so that they’re around the same age here, which is kinda funny to think about. At least I think so, right..? Acier was in her early thirties when she passed so Nozel has to be about the same age now with all the timeskips we’ve had since the very beginning. Anyways, I really dunno how well Nebra’s mist and Solid’s water will fair against Acier? I see the two of them providing more support than anything. Again, they also look a bit scared to even attack her. Nozel might not have zetten like the Ryuzen Seven or anti-magic like Asta (both methods that proved to defeat paladins), but I’m sure that he certainly has the resolve to fight back. The ch303 flashback showed us how badly he had wanted to save Acier from the curse and the regret of having failed and believing he “killed” her due to watching helplessly. He can certainly redeem himself (in his own mind, I personally have ages ago) during this fight and prove he did indeed become stronger than her by stopping Lucius’ control over her with little to no hesitation. Long ramble aside, I just think it would be far more impactful for Nozel to fight (& win) against Acier due to his magic, history and feelings revolving around Acier rather than Noelle coming in later and claiming another victory solely because it’s her mother she’s never seen or spent time with before.

Oh, also wanted to mention this but the previous chunk of text was getting hella long already, but I wonder how Acier feels about all this? We know from Asta’s fight against paladin Lily that her feelings were still sorta buried deep within, so perhaps Acier won’t go too hard on her children? Or she totally could thrash them..if only to judge how strong they’ve all become. Anyways, do we know if paladins such as Acier and Morgen will die again once defeated? Lily was put into some kind of sleep til Lucius is defeated, but with Heath (who was also revived), it wasn’t really clear if he was killed again or just knocked out last chapter? I dunno. I don’t wanna get my hopes up at the slim possibility of Acier actually getting a second chance at life with her children but oh god, that would certainly warm my heart. And if not, I hope the four of them at least get the chance to say their goodbyes. Speaking of paladins, I don’t think we’ll only have these three to worry about. I’m not entirely sure what all those angel/bird things Lucius has flying around in the sky now, but it can’t be good news. I wouldn’t be surprised if he takes control over more people too, considering he took over Lily pretty effortlessly.

I still have Lumiere and Licita as potential paladins; half because their magic would be very problematic, half because of the drama it would start with Secre and Asta. Yeah anti-magic and/or a real powerful hit like zetten can apparently cancel out Lucius’ control, but surely there has to be more solutions right? Asta is bound to show up eventually..somehow.. but I dunno if the whole Ryuzen Seven would accompany him to Clover as backup. Would be nice of course and I would accept it, if only to see Yami and Ichika meet up again. I do have a random thought that is sort of a longshot, but ya think the Witch Queen could assist at all? Maybe take control back from people with her blood magic or something? How cool would it be if she could flip the switch on the paladin’s minds and have them fight on our side? It would be precious to see Morgen and Nacht team up as well as Acier and all her children. Or queen could do literally anything else, whatever. We really dunno too much about her and it’s been ages since she’s appeared in the story. I’d happily welcome her if she returned at Vanessa’s request. Imagine if she and the other Bulls went to the witches’ forest to inquire if the queen could see the future regarding Asta or judgement day. It’s a highly unlikely idea but hey if my hope of having Acier encounter her children was possible then I’m holding onto it! good lord i haven’t rambled on this much since tpn. i kinda miss it.

#black clover #bc manga #chidoroki used chatter

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jmalegni · 1 year

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Swampcon 2023

So this was my first ever "experience" with anime culture in a physical setting. And I have to say, it was pretty cool. Being able to see all kinds of cosplays and recognizing different characters was a lot of fun. I spent most of my time exploring different panels and learning about the physical nature of the culture surrounding anime.

The vendor hall and artist alley were very interesting. I've grown up with amazon and other online marketplaces dominating the figurine, clothing, and other related merch. It was very refreshing to see it all in person and get a sense for how it would actually look/feel. Also, interacting with the people selling the items and art was great, a lot of the artists seemed very passionate about their work and I feel like a learned a bit about the whole process. Which I loved because I am the exact opposite of artistic.

To get to the panels, I started off with cosplay 101. Before this class I had barely even thought of cosplay or the many intricacies associated with it. I was very surprised about how deep you could go if say, you wanted to make one from scratch. I was also introduced to proper manners that come with cosplaying, most of which are common sense, but also some additional things like wearing sealer if you are using body paint so it doesn't rub off on your clothes or other people. I don't plan on cosplaying, it seems really fun, but you would probably need to go with a group of friends or to a larger convention to get full enjoyment out of it. Overall, very interesting panel.

I spent the rest of Saturday going to humor based panels, Rating Muscular Women in Anime, How to get a Rizztraining Order, and best of all Javier's Bad Fanfic Reading. All of which were hilarious and incredibly entertaining. The fanfic reading was definitely an experience I will never forget. I won't get into the details, but Javier did an incredible job at narrating and setting it all up and I want to give him props for it. Even with the more silly nature of these panels, I see a lot of the aspects that we talked about in class in relation to anime/otaku culture. The fanfics included very popular characters from media that the author's wished to "make their own", the entire rating system for muscular women is a method of personally attaching the presenter's sexuality with a variety of characters from popular anime. Even the Rizztraining Order panel gives insight into the more negative side of otaku culture with stalking/downright creepiness of cosplayers.

I sadly was unable to attend the convention on Sunday. There were a couple more panels I had wished to attend, like vtubers 101 and the history of japanese literature. Just from a learning standpoint to see more examples of the physical culture surrounding me, but I am sure I will learn plenty more as life goes on, and there will be plenty of other opportunities. Oh and I missed the cosplay contest too, which I was looking forward to, I'll just make sure I don't mis it next year.

Overall, this was a very memorable experience and a great introduction to what conventions are like. I will definitely be attending next year, and hopefully will learn even more.

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thewildwaffle · 3 years

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Humans are Weird - Helium

It's been a while since I got a new story up. I'd been working on some other projects, then had some pretty unhappy life events happen. I am doing fine, so don't worry. Hopefully, now my muse is back and will stick around a while :)

This story is from a prompt ao3

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When you bring together a wide variety of races from different planets and environments, you tend to have an equally wide variety of needs that need to be met from species to species. Ships were typically staffed by a food and nutrients safety team. Custodial teams were careful about residual chemical and oil cross-contamination between particular races. Sections of hab suites had controlled ventilation systems that could be set to various atmospheric needs. Outside the hab suites, at work stations or in communal areas, some species have to be fitted with atmospheric filters. Over the years, these devices have gotten less uncomfortable, thankfully. They weren’t the best, they were a bit bulky, noisy, and in some cases obstructive to the wearer, but hey, being able to properly breathe on a ship with beings who had different atmospheric needs than you was more important than comfort. When the humans joined the galactic community, the newer filters started becoming noticeably smaller and less obtrusive. Many were concerned that the changes would make them less effective, but leave it to the humans to tinker around and invent the impossible when they really wanted to. The latest models were supposed to be so small and comfortable, you could sleep with them on. Heck for some races, you could barely tell they were wearing an atmospheric filter at all. Not only that, they were up to 40% more effective at filtration and gas delivery for many species. This opened up crew rosters for ships. Species who couldn't reasonably be stationed in the same ship due to the gases they breathe being dangerous to others, or vice versa could now be on the same crew.

That included duibs like Marvi who breathe large amounts of helium. She’d been serving aboard Galactic Coalition ships for more standard solar rotations than many of her fellow crewmates had been alive. It helped that duibs were long-lived, of course, and in her time, she’d seen many new technologies come and go. If you pressed her hard enough, she’d likely say that the atmospheric filters the humans developed were by far her favorite. Being able to safely and comfortably pass through different atmospheric biomes was an important ability when you had a long list of custodial and maintenance duties each rotation. Marvi huffed a deep sigh as she rounded another corner. Lighting beam replacements weren’t heavy, but maneuvering them around corners like this was a bit of a pain. “Need a helping paw Marvi?” Marvi turned to see a dark gray priso steadying the end lighting beam she was carrying. The furry face was relatively expressionless, but a clear look at his flicking whiskers and triangular, alert ears and bright eyes told her that he was holding back laughter. He must have just come up from around the other corner and seen the small duib struggling. “Oh, hello Aurrin. I definitely would appreciate some aid, though I would understand if you are busy right now,” Marvi replied politely. Honestly, the help would be very nice and she hoped the offer was serious. “I’m waiting for Human Karl, I can help until he gets here,” Aurrin rose to his back paws awkwardly and grabbed the ends of the light beams in his dexterous front paws. Priso were normally quadrupedal on flat ground, but the forested terrains of their homeworld meant they were at least somewhat adept at grabbing and climbing. He followed along, holding on to the light beams and kept them away from the walls and corners as the pair walked. “I was actually just installing something by the hab suites over there,” he tilted his head back to gesture behind them, “I’ve got something I wanted to test before I go off duty. After that, I’m looking forward to two whole cycles of rest and whatever I want to do.” The corridor here was darker and Marvi stopped walking. This was where she needed to replace the light beam. “Two whole cycles, huh?” She set down the light beam carefully, Aurrin following suit. She pulled out a tool from her hip pack and started working on opening the control panel. In order to open the panels to install the new light beams, she had to make sure power was redirected for safety. “What are you going to do with your time off? Any fun plans?” “A few plans. They might change depending on how my experiment goes.” Marvi worked quietly, waiting on the priso to expound, but other than chuckling to himself, he didn’t say anything more on the topic. Well, Marvi supposed it was not really her business, so she changed the subject and chatted cordially until the new light beam was installed and she rerouted power back to the panel. The darkened hall was filled with bright, cheerful light and Marvi let out a satisfied sigh. “Well, that’s that. Another task down.” The old light beam would need to be taken back to her shop for a repair and gas exchange, or refill, or whatever it ended up needing to get it up and running again. “Thank you again for your help. I should be able to get these back alright myself, I don’t want to take up too much of your time if you’ve still got your experiment to run.” From around the corner of the corridor, the distinct sound of a hab suite door opening was followed by approaching footsteps. A light on Aurrin’s comm device flashed and the priso’s long tail flicked excitedly back and forth. “No worries, it looks like my experiment is already underway.” Marvi felt the frills all along her body perk in curiosity, but before she could ask anything else, Human Karl rounded the corner. He grinned without showing his teeth, as it would have been a sign of aggression to many species on the ship, and gave a small wave as he approached. “Hey Karl,” Aurrin started. Marvi only partially listened as he started in on a spiel about his upcoming off-duty

plans. Instead, she was more interested in a quiet hissing noise and was trying to pinpoint where it was coming from. It sounded like… well it sounded almost like an atmospheric filter, one beside her own. Hers was in light operation since she was in a sector of the ship that was tuned to a generalized setting, but this noise sounded like a filter at full power output. Did Human Karl hear it? Could he hear it? Surely Aurrin could? She studied them, they didn’t seem to notice. The noise had started when Karl arrived, did that mean…? Her suspicions were confirmed the moment Karl opened his mouth to reply to Aurrin. “I’m actually on my way to…” What. The. Frewan? Human Karl’s voice, which was usually a calming deep tone, was disturbingly high and unnatural. The surprised expression on his face made Marvi’s core freeze. That meant this vocal change wasn’t some weird human thing? What was going on?! “I, woah,” the squeaky voice stuttered, “is this… helium? What is this? What’s going on?” He looked at the comm device strapped to his wrist and pulled up the readout. Sure enough, it was an increase of helium output from his atmospheric filter. The skin on his forehead wrinkled as he looked from the readout to Marvi and Aurrin, his eyes finally locking on the latter who was fiddling with something on his own comm device readout. “You punk! How did you do this? Change it back!” Karl started laughing a bit, Marvi wasn’t sure if it was directed at the ridiculousness of his voice or if it was because the helium was affecting his cognitive functions. She worried it was the latter. Panicking, Marvi approached to see if there was some sort of override. She had to act fast! Humans didn’t breathe helium, he could die! Before she could do anything though, Aurrin spoke up while trying to muffle his laughter. “Okay, okay, hoooo… I’ve deactivated it, you’re good. Keep talking though while your voice turns back to normal, you’re hilarious.” Karl gave him a look that Marvi couldn’t interpret. “What was that? How did you do that?” His voice was already back to normal and it sounded like a mix between annoyed, intrigued and amused. “When you came out of your hab suite, you passed a sensor I set up that overrode your atmospheric filter controls. My latest invention. Imagine this: a ship gets attacked and boarded. Normal defenses prove insufficient and the crew is in grave danger. As the hostiles pass hidden sensors, their atmospheric filters are overridden and they fall asleep, get loopy and confused, or simply pass out before they can get to and harm any crew.” Marvi and Karl blinked in unison while Aurrin’s tail swept side to side proudly. Marvi was the first to find words. “Your… your experiment?” Marvi glanced between Aurrin and Karl worriedly, “Is this what you were experimenting with? You ran it on a crewmate?!” “Well,” Aurrin’s ears pulled back slightly, but his whiskers still kept their amused look, “I say experiment pretty loosely. This was more of a field test. I ran all the actual experiments long ago. I knew exactly what would happen. And I did research on humans and I found out what effects helium has on them and I had to see it for myself. That’s why I was waiting for Karl.” The human in question was still laughing a bit - of course, a human would be able to laugh after nearly being asphyxiated, they’re crazy - before he ran his hand over his head to compose himself. “So this was a prank?” “For science.” “Of course. For science.” Karl’s smile suddenly morphed into a thoughtful frown. “Wait. Is this payback for the soap thing I pulled on you last week?” Aurrin’s face was statuesque and solemn as he stared silently at the human for a moment. “Yes.” “You’re the worst.” “Thank you.” “Want to go do this again in front of Aylin? She and Maruti-kar would think it’s hilarious.” “I had been planning on it. But only if we can get video evidence of it.” “For science?” “Naturally.” Marvi watched, hearts still beating rapidly from her panic, as Aurrin and Karl deactivated and retrieved the sensor to reenact the stunt she had just been a witness

to. Almost reflexively, she started tracing the side of her atmospheric filter. The quiet hum and hiss were calming. Helium to her was life. She’d thought it was toxic to others. And yet Aurrin thought it fine to use it on a human, and Karl was not only unworried about it but found it funny. Was it not dangerous?! And his voice? Why did it do that? She pulled up a search screen on her comm device and searched in the human database. Helium. Breathing. Voices. Apparently, helium took up space in their lungs that normally would be filled by oxygen, so yes, it was dangerous because they could asphyxiate. It also amplified higher-pitched tones of their vocal tract while simultaneously dampening lower tones because of the gas’s low density. That explained the voice change. And for some reason, the funny noise was enough of a reason to play around with deadly materials. Well, if anything, she supposed humans did keep to their MO pretty well. She picked the spent light beams back up and headed back to her shop, careful to not hit the ends on any walls or corners.

#humans are weird #space orcs #humans #aliens #helium #science #writeblr #original writing #space #spaceships

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