#afictionados

[theafictionados]

Every Afictionados Best Line Award (Robyn)

Riverdale Episode 717: A Different Kind of Cat by the Afictionados Podcast Network

#veronica lodge #kevin keller #riverdale #afictionados #best line award #episode #717 #a different kind of cat

[highfructose78]

#swanqueen #swan queen fanfiction #once upon a time

[pranay-bansal-digital-media]

Digital Media: Sources and Significance

| Blog Post #2

The conscious intertextuality of the “Fate” franchise

We were introduced with the concept of intertextuality in class, and one thing which I immediately associated with the concept was the massive franchise of Fate.

To explain intertextuality in simple words, it denotes the transposition of one, or several sign systems into another, as explained in class.

Fate series is a multimedia franchise following various events across multiple games, movies and TV shows called the Holy Grail Wars, involving magicians who summon Heroic spirits to battle for them in order to obtain a magical item called the Holy Grail, which can essentially grant any single wish to the one who obtains it.

The Fate franchise contains two levels of conscious intertextuality, the first being is relationship with historical events and mythology.

From the get go, it introduces a large number of characters, often taken from history and mythology and puts them in a modern setting along with a cast of original characters which exist only in the franchise itself. This creates an extremely interesting dynamic. One could easily jump in and start engaging with the franchise without any prior knowledge of the characters, and learning about these characters isn’t limited to just experiencing the various games and movies in the franchise either. Since the characters exist outside the franchise, different viewers can have different levels of engagement depending on how much they know about these characters before watching the series, none of which takes away from the enjoyment whatsoever.

The second level of intertextuality it contains is the relationship of the various renditions of Fate with each other.

Fate tends to put its own spin to the Heroic spirits/Servants it introduces, and every rendition is a little different from the other. It does this masterfully by introducing Class Names. Each class contains one type of servant usually having very similar attributes, but their personalities can vary, giving us a huge cast of characters with each of them having their own special qualities.

The Fate franchise is definitely a prime example of intertextuality done extremely well, especially when one looks at just how massive it really is. It takes a single, very simple concept and constantly experiments with it to create fresh and original stories, even when using the same characters.

Citations:

TYPE-MOON Wiki. (n.d.). Fate/stay night (anime). [online] Available at: https://typemoon.fandom.com/wiki/Fate/stay_night_(anime)#Characters

Enjay (2019). Strange but Familiar: Fun with Intertextuality in Fate/Apocrypha. [online] The Afictionado. Available at: https://theafictionado.wordpress.com/2019/06/06/strange-but-familiar-fun-with-intertextuality-in-fate-apocrypha/#:~:text=There%20are%20two%20levels%20of

[rainyblue]

1/5/2023

I decided to start a little reading journal to keep track of my thoughts about all the books I plan to read this year. My goal is pretty hefty - 50 books over 365 days. At present, I feel pretty good about this goal. Last year, I read 37 books, not counting the ones that I DNF'd halfway through.

But I don't want books to become just something to get through in order to reach a quota, words and meanings fading away as soon as a book has fulfilled its purpose of being counted toward my yearly goal. Hence, a reading journal, to remind me of why I read in the first place - for fun, to learn something new, to connect, and learn to think more deeply.

So, here are some of my most recent reads and my thoughts on them:

Hester by Laurie Lico Albanese (dec 17-20, 2022)

This was my pick for The Afictionados for the month of December. I have mixed thoughts about it.

Oh btw, this reading journal gon' have spoilers. Spoiler alert.

My favorite part of the book was the developmental journey of the main character, Isobel. At the start of the book, she is quite naïve and unsure of herself, which gets her into some bad situations, like getting married to a deadbeat 16th-century-equivalent of a Doterra salesman who steals her money and then disappears, leaving her alone in a brand new country. She ends up supporting herself using her talents as an embroiderer and seamstress, although that situation is also pretty sketchy. She also winds up in an affair with fictional Nathaniel Hawthorne, portrayed here as an emo fuckboy. He gets Isobel knocked up and then won't take responsibility for the child, even threatening to expose her synesthesia (which would have gotten her labeled a witch back in the day) to keep her silent.

As shitty as her situation is, Isobel learns an important but hard lesson, which is: men ain't shit and the only person you can trust is yourself and your Sisters from Other Misters. And Captain Darling *swoon*

The parts that I didn't enjoy so much: all the chapters about the Salem witch trials (which I felt had a very hazy connection to the central storyline, witch mania aside), and the chapters told from the POV of Isobel's ancestress, her namesake, Isobel Gowdie. I honestly can't remember that much of the book since I found them quite boring and I mentally checked out whenever the book got to those parts.

Another thing that got me was the predictability of the storyline, which I guess is just par for the course for a book that is a reimagining of The Scarlet Letter. Having already read that book and knowing the story of Hester Prynne, there was zero shock that Nat decided not to marry Isobel when she got pregnant. I found the writing to be very beautiful, and this was a very moody, atmospheric novel, but at times, I felt tired following the book's slow march toward a climax that I already knew about.

Still, any book is fun to read when I read it with The Afictionados. 3.5/5

Babel: An Arcane History by R. F. Kuang (dec 20-25, 2022)

Well, what I can say. My good sis Rebecca has done it again.

I will say, though, that this one was a bit tougher to get through for me, mainly just because of how big it was. I'm a big fan of 300-page fantasy, but this one was over 500 pages and nearly 24 hours long on audiobook. An adjustment for me, for sure.

But, having finished reading it now, I do feel like the emotional payoff would not have been as effective if the book were shorter, if any of the scenes had been cut.

There were a lot of parts in this book that resonated with me as I recalled my own time as a woman-of-color in college, studying English Literature. Colonialism was a big topic that came up in a lot of my classes, both as an English Lit student and an Asian Studies student, but I think the way that the topic is tackled in Babel really brought the evils of empire-building to life for me in a way that reading a bunch of essays in school didn't.

I especially remember a moment in my Asian History class when we were examining Japanese colonialism in Korea in the early 20th century, when we were reading an article about how the Japanese improved roads and infrastructure in Korea after they annexed the country in 1910 and literacy rates increased and all this other "good" stuff. At the time, I thought it was good that the Koreans got some better roads and better buildings, infrastructure and educations and all that, but then as we examined the situation some more, we got to see how all the "good" that Korea got out of colonization was only to further strengthen Japanese encroachment on the country.

The same kind of nuance is examined in Babel, too. The main character, Robin, loves his idyllic life at Oxford, studying, having tea, hanging out with friends, living the dark academia dream, yet because he is Chinese, this institution will never really see him as a legitimate Oxfordian (or even really human, tbh), and robin recognizes that although he's been given the privilege to live and work there and get an amazing education, everything he's gained from Oxford - his education, his career - has only ever been a way to make him a tool for even further colonization.

Maybe I should've seen the sad ending coming, having just finishing The Burning God, but it still made me emotional. Thinking about it now, though, any sort of happy ending would have felt unrealistic or too easy given everything that Robin would've had to do in order to get the ending he wanted.

Anyway, R. F. Kuang is one of my favorite authors. 5/5.

Remarkably Bright Creatures by Shelby Van Pelt (dec 28-30, 2022)

Magical realism isn't my favorite genre, but I think it's done pretty well in this book. Although I feel like it dragged a bit in the middle, I thought it was, overall, a very cute, heart-warming read about an octopus that helps a long lost grandmother and grandson find each other.

A very sweet time. 4/5.

Lobizona by Romina Garber (jan 3-4, 2022)

I'm also doing The Storygraph's Read the World Challenge, and one of the prompts is to read a book set in/from Argentina. I picked this YA book about an undocumented teen who discovers that she has a rare magical ability - she is a lobizona, a werewolf. She gets whisked off to a magical summer camp/Hogwarts-esque type of place where she learns to control her powers and unlock the secret of her parentage.

I do still love YA books, but I do find a lot of them corny nowadays. I did feel that way about this one at some points throughout the book, but maybe that's just because I am finding myself leaning away from anything with romance recently. Being that this book is about teenagers, you can bet that there's a lot of romancing and horniness going on.

One thing that I did like about this book, however, was the way it handled the plight of undocumented people. In the book, the main character Manu has had to live a shrunken existence in order to not be discovered, either by ICE or by the cazadores, because she's both an undocumented person living in the US and a hybrid human-lobizona. The parts of the book where Manu reflects on this experience were the parts that I felt were the most moving.

Overall, I liked it, but maybe I am outgrowing the YA genre. 3.75/5.

The Mercies by Kiran Millwood Hargrave (jan 4-5, 2022)

Man, I need to read more books in which women have good sex lol.

This was another book that I read for the Read the World Challenge, this one being from Norway. It's set in 16th century Norway and follows two women. Maren Magnusdatter lost her brother, father, and fiance in a freak storm that also killed all the men in the village, leaving the women to fend for themselves. Ursa is the wife of the village's new commissioner who is hell bent on ridding the village of witchcraft by any means necessary. Witch mania ensues, and also, lesbians.

I normally don't shy away from dark, depressing stories, but this one just got me for some reason. Of course, awful things happen, like neighbors accusing each other of witchcraft and women being branded with hot irons, dunked naked into freezing oceans, strangled with rope, and burnt at the stake for wearing trousers instead of skirts. But it's Ursa, trapped in a suffocating marriage with an ultra-radical Christian man 20 years her senior, who depresses me the most.

Still, I was curious about how the events would unfold, and if Ursa and Maren would finally get together. The neighbor characters were infuriating, and it was scary recognizing their hysteria and righteousness from my own many years of going to church.

This one's a 3.75/5 for me.

Up next, we've got The Ones We Burn by Rebecca Mix, and I am still slowly making my way through Mexican Gothic by Silvia Moreno-Garcia. I'll also be reading Fantasticland by Mike Bockoven at some point this month. More bookish thoughts coming soon.

Also, maybe I should read fewer witchy books? They can be fun, but also depressing. Who knows?

[blastoisemonster]

Special Strike Magazine: Issue 16 (Complete Scan)

I attended the Etnacomics and all I got was this lousy fanzine. No really: once again conventions proved to be impossible to buy retrogames from. Of the two booths in the whole event, one only had stuff already in my collection and the other redirected me to Game Gear games when I asked for Game Boy ones. There are no words... There was, however, a very big booth of vintage knick-knacks! Not my usual buying grounds but they're always fun to rummage through for a nostalgic trip through gadgets of yesterworld. Among old mangas there was this zine too! Sure it's not a game, but whatever: had to be mine :P And now you can read it too, since I uploaded it on Imgur!

SPECIAL STRIKE ISSUE 16: FULL MAG SCANS

Unlike Pokèmon World and Pokèmon Fanbook, both commercial publications regularly sold at newspaper kiosks, Special Strike was a bona fide fanzine: published by a very small indipendent italian print based in Genova, its issues were available only through mail order and the money invested by its readers was solely employed to recover costs. It usually catered to manga and anime fans by dedicating each issue to a different franchise: there are volumes focused on Ranma 1/2 and Marmalade Boy, just to quote a few titles that have appread on this blog too. I've always been a big fan of physical fanzines; the limited availability turns its readers into members of a special club, and finding these volumes out in the wild after so many years (and so far from its region of origin!) makes one wonder how important and widespread indipendent press was at the time.

It's still a pleasure to flip through its pages and feel the general excitement geared towards collectable monsters during the late 90s, yet this fanzine does feel incredibly amateurish: while I'm willing to close an eye to the abundant use of Comics Sans (it was still acceptable in that decade... though barely) there's also many misspelling errors, unclear writing and a lot of half missing or incorrect information (Mew under the truck? Really?). It's almost as if the writers have dumped wall of texts from old fansites, enriching everything with their own knowledge or mouth-spreaded rumors. It's commendable, though, the staff's will to fit something for everyone: Pokèmon is indeed a wide franchise and even in its infancy it spanned from videogames to animation and trading cards, so the whole issue tries to cover as much of these as possible (sometimes jumping from a subject to another even mid-paragraph). And yeah, a good half of these pages may be filled with lists ranging from the anime episodes to the ever present Pokèdex to an index of cards in the Base/Jungle/Fossil set, but back in the day it wasn't that easy to get a full directory of these collectables! Makes sense that Special Strike wanted to provide a checklist service for its readers.

I wonder what has been the fate of Special Strike during the years, if the advent of widespread Internet halted its production just like many other publications from that period, or if it managed to survive thanks to an audience of nostalgic afictionados. Wherever their staff is right now, I hope they know they made one new reader feel like a kid again. :P

#Fandom

[ladyloveandjustice]

Just in time for Halloween, The Afictionado was kind enough to give me a review for my queer dark fantasy, In the Way of All Flesh! I’ve always loved her reviews, so it was an honor to get one from her, and she was very insightful. (spoiler warning though)! She also digs into some other queer books worth a look!

Check out her blog in general for great takes on fiction, whether it’s anime, literature, video games or anything else. 

#in the way of all flesh #queer ya #the afictionado #bloggers i enjoy

[metastation]

Welcome back to Meta Station! We’re back from the magnificently delirious weekend of nerd fun which was Unity Days 2017, and we’re here to tell you all about it! Joining us are special guests Brittany Rae and Robyn Jeffrey (formerly of The Giantist, now co-hosts of the Afictionados podcast network) and Sam Coley of TellTaleTV, who – along with The Dropship’s Jo Garfein – were our fellow panelists for the Unity Days Friday night Meta Panel, where we answered fan-submitted questions and meta prompts about the show. For those of you who missed the fun live, we’ll recap our weekend experience, from the best questions we got at the panel to our favorite cast member encounters to the most exciting season 4 tidbits we picked up along the way. We also got way too many meta questions submitted to answer live at the panel, so we’re recreating the magic here and answering a few more of our favorites on air that we weren’t able to get to at Unity Days, discussing everything from Hogwarts to My Little Ponies. And stay tuned at the end of the podcast to hear our post-Unity Days conversation with Caitlin Walsh and Kelsey Juntwait of Talk Nerdy With Us, recorded in our hotel room right after the con ended, with more fun stories about cast encounters and nerdy fun. Thanks so much to Leana Santos, Miah Bannerman, the whole staff and volunteers of Unity Days, and of course the amazing cast of “The 100” for a totally amazing weekend we will never forget! We’re even more hyped for S4 than we were before!

cc @unityeventscanada

#unity days 2017 #unity days #Unity Events #talk nerdy with us #afictionados #telltale tv #the 100 cast #the 100

[ladygeekgirl-and-friends]

It’s Asexual Awareness Week, which means that though I’d do it any time of the year, it’s the optimal time of the year to recommend and gather recommendations of media with asexual protagonists. Today I want to talk about two brilliant geeky YA novels with main characters that are not only relatable, complicated, and funny, but sit on a perhaps lesser-known place on the asexual spectrum: these are two characters who are confirmed as demisexual.

Demisexuality is when you only begin to feel sexually attracted to people once you form a strong emotional bond with them. The most common misconceptions about it tend to be that the demi in question is just “picky” and chooses to get to know people first, or that they’re no longer, or never really were, asexual at all once they find someone they like enough to be attracted to. As with the many grey areas along the ace spectrum, it can be a tricky thing to both explain to people and define for yourself, especially given how society so easily conflates romantic, aesthetic, and sexual attraction all together as one big amorphous thing when they’re really separate and very different feelings—and, as always, different for every individual person!

I know that I’m somewhere under the ace umbrella, but finding an exact word to define my unique, personal scenario has kind of felt like I’m a sleep-deprived detective staring at a conspiracy board trying to link evidence together with bits of string. While I’m still bumbling along trying to figure myself out, it was immensely rewarding and heartwarming to read these two books where characters (who are younger than me, mind you) get to not only find happiness in their ace identities and have fulfilling relationships, but get to be the stars of moving and engaging stories.

Read More

#alice oseman #scott westerfeld #afterworlds #radio silence #asexual awareness week #demisexuality #Lady Geek Girl and Friends #The Afictionado

[duskcowboy]

My issue with fanon Gwyn and the “Quirky Girl” archetype:

[This is a label I am not applying to her myself; it is what I believe the Gw*riel fandom has dreamed up Gwyn to be themselves. Buckle in for a long post and let me know if you agree!]

I came to this realization after coming across a few “false acotar quotes” and headcanon-type scenarios on here, and I couldn’t put a finger on why they bothered me so much until I realized that it was because the posts were projecting Gwyn as the “Quirky Girl” archetype who’s “adorably awkward,” “eccentric,” and “imperfectly refreshing”.

This article by The Afictionado, called Perils of the “Quirky Girl”, thoroughly explains this issue.

Here are a few highlights from the article:

“A problem with the Quirky Girl archetype is that she is often written as a way of making a character approachable and likeable to the female audience, reassuring them that it’s okay to like non-mainstream things and be a bit eccentric and dress the way you want, and to ~be yourself~. In fact, doing all the things that would usually make you deemed weird will make you seem cute, and some boy out there is just dying for you to come along and liven up his life with your adorable weirdness!”

(Can we just take a minute and see how on-spot that last point is? How it sounds familiar?)

“Not only does the creation of these Quirky Girls create a new stereotype that is irritating and a bit offensive in its own right, but it somewhat spoils the “be weird, be yourself” message by only showing a certain set of standards as being acceptable and labelling them as “quirky” to get away with it. Plus, it creates problems for people at the other end of the scale by pushing the notion that people who do fit society’s ideal are all evil monstrous monstrosities.”

(Is the author of this article an Elriel stan? Because they’re literally pointing out exactly why fanon Gwyn rubs me the wrong way. That last line literally encompasses the misogynistic hate towards Elain for being a societal standard “feminine,” “soft” girl.)

Of the three types of “Quirky Girl” types the author lists, I believe fanon Gwyn falls under “Hollywood Standard Flawed”:

“So they make her socially awkward, a bookish loner, a klutz, bubble-brained and/or fond of spouting ridiculous things that make no sense. This makes her awkward and thus relatable to awkward girls… but only in ways that will call on the laugh track.”

(Cue the #false acotar quotes that have Gwyn asking if people “eat the shell of the banana” or if they think she’ll “fit inside a washing machine”)

To conclude:

“The trouble with going out of your way to create a character that is “quirky” is that in the effort to make the character bizarre they create a whole new stereotype that has enormous negative connotations of its own.”

(The article focuses more on Hollywood movies and television who utilize this archetype, but the same notion can be applied here)

Don’t get me wrong, like any other entertainment stereotype, archetype, or trope— there are fans of them, and there are those who cannot stand them. When it comes to the “Quirky Girl”, I definitely fall amongst the latter. That is why I have grown to dislike a lot of the online content pertaining to Gwyn.

Canon Gwen is intelligent, resilient, strong; she’s a trustworthy and dependable, loyal friend. She’s not someone who would call Az “her little meow meow” (I honestly don’t understand how others don’t find this cringe-y)

This fandom is truly doing her a disservice when they project this disingenuous character trait on her. I think she’d actually be offended if she were real. Not only is the “Quirky Girl” trope unenjoyable to me, it is also extremely reductive.

“When someone is painted with the quirky brush, it imbues their work with a set of preconceived notions — it is odd, zany, cutesy, weird, personal and light. It is not intellectual, meaningful or serious.” - The Problem With Quirky by Madelin Newman

It reminds me a lot of the “I’m not like other girls” phenomenon—

“The ‘I’m not like other girls’ cultural phenomenon is a reaction against typically feminine stereotypes — that is, makeup, fashion, fitness, and the like. Some girls who don’t fit said archetype attempt to separate themselves from the female population, hence the phrase ‘I’m not like other girls.’” - I’m not like other girls by Lauren Luna

“Modern feminism acknowledges that the ‘I’m not like other girls’ movement carries hints of internalized misogyny, when girls proudly claim that they ‘are not like other girls’, it suggests that this ‘other’ breed of girls is generally shallow and vapid with no other interests besides fashion, fitness, or beauty. - I’m not like other girls by Lauren Luna (link above)

In this case, it feels like Gw*nriel stans make an effort to distance Gwyn’s personality from Elain’s soft-spoken, reserved personality. Instead of it being mainstream interests like fashion & makeup, it’s Elain’s classic femininity—her hobbies like gardening and baking. They label Elain as “shallow”, “useless”, and “boring” for these traits. The sad thing is that I think Gwyn and Elain would really like each other. These misogynistic viewpoints to pit these two women apart or label one “better” or “more deserving” than the other really disgusts me. I hope when the next book is out, we can finally do away with this conversation.

Thank you so much for reading this far! I felt like I was writing a thesis by how passionate I am about this issue. We don’t need to pit women against each other based on personalities and interests. Women are valid no matter their hobbies, interests, or personality.

#quirky girl archetype #gwyn berdara #i’m not like other girls #please stop #pro canon gwyn but anti fanon gwyn #pro elain #elain archeron #anti gw*nriel #pro elriel

[kabbypositivity]

The Afictionados and Meta Station are great podcasts with super smart hosts who love Kabby! I love them both a lot.

cc @theafictionados and @metastation!

#the afictionados #meta station #podcasts

[theafictionados]

Every Afictionados Best Line Award (Brittany)

Riverdale Episode 716: Stag by the Afictionados Podcast Network

#archie andrews #reggie mantle #riverdale #afictionados #best line award #episode #716 #stag

[acrossthewavesoftime]

TURN: Washington's Spies the Musical

Okay, so the title is clickbait. Cheap, dirty clickbait. There isn't a musical version of TURN: Washington's Spies, but there is an eerily similar, almost forgotten musical out there fans of the series or American Revolutionary War afictionados who need something new to supplement Hamilton and 1776 in general can turn to.

The fans of the Anna Strong/Edmund Hewlett sub-plot in particular will find the 1925 Broadway musical Dearest Enemy (music by Richard Rodgers, lyrics by Lorenz Hart) eerily familiar.

The history

Essentially, the plot of Dearest Enemy is based on a real incident during the Revolutionary War; in 1776, following the American defeat at the Landing at Kip's Bay, Mary Lindley Murray entertained British General Howe and his officers at her house, allowing General Putnam's American troops to escape in the meantime.

The plot

Knowing the Continental Army to be in danger following the Landing at Kip's Bay, Mary and the young ladies of her household, among them her daughter Jane and her Irish niece Betsy Burke, plan to delay the British forces by inviting their officers to their home, thus giving General Putnam's forces precious time to escape.

The women of the Murray household decide to put on a ball for the British officers to distract them for the night. Despite their allegiances fascinated with the dashing officers, things get flirty between the women and the officers. Unexpectedly, Betsy Burke falls in love with Captain Sir John Copeland (who 'rescued' her earlier that day when she went for a swim and a dog stole her clothes by finding her something else to wear; the only thing he can find is an empty barrel, though). Reluctantly, she accepts her feelings (I'd Like to Hide It), but continues to remain true to her convictions. When her aunt's messenger is captured, Betsy volunteers to deliver a message to General Washington herself and is also put in charge of lighting a lantern in the evening as a signal for Putnam to indicate when it is safe to move. Copeland discovers what Betsy's up to fairly early on (Here In My Arms), causing him to doubt her feelings to him.

Sir John and Betsy talk it out however and decide that their love is bigger than their political differences (Here's a Kiss). Betsy's intervention causes Putnam to be able to escape (while the British are enjoying an anecdote of Peter Stuyvesant (Sweet Peter) and singing Yankee Doodle) and re-join Washington. Shortly after, Sir John is taken prisoner by the Americans.

Betsy grieves the loss of Sir John, thinking she will never see him again (Bye and Bye- Reprise). When General Washington comes to thank the Murrays in person after the war, praising the importance of the women's work and their bravery, he asks Betsy why she is so sad, in reply to which she hints at her broken heart. Washington tells her "My dear little lady, America owes you a great debt; she can never discharge it in full, but she can do something, and she is sending you a gift: a gift we hope you will always prize."

The "gift" is Sir John, released by Washington to be re-united with Betsy (Finale Ultimo).

The remake

To be honest, I didn't know about this fairly obscure gem until @burgoyned posted about it and got curious. Luckily, at least recordings of a 2012 concertante version are available on YouTube.

The parallels to TURN are plenty;

like Betsy, Anna Strong as portrayed on the show has a somewhat Irish-sounding accent

both Betsy and Anna are involved in intelligence-work; both are tasked with conveying secret messages and signalling

In season 1, when Selah escapes across the water and Anna decides to stay behind at the last moment, jumping into the water to swim back, it is Hewlett who gives orders to help Anna back on shore (he doesn't offer her a barrel to 'dress' herself in, though)

like Betsy, Anna initially tries to win Hewlett's trust to aid the rebel cause, then discovers she's genuinely in love with the British officer and is distraught when he is captured to the point she is ready to do almost anything to get him back safe and sound.

like Copeland, Hewlett is being released from captivity on Washington's orders (although he manages to escape before said orders arrive)

both Copeland and Hewlett do not reveal what the women they love are actually doing to their superiors despite knowing it will hurt their own side because they still want to protect them.

A bit of a coincidence, if you ask me....

In my opinion, Dearest Enemy beats TURN if we're looking at this one story line alone; Betsy and Sir John are open about their feelings for another and can accept their different political inclinations, resulting in a happy end. The old-timey music (that sounds even catchier in 1920s recordings) is delightful and although a 21st century audience might not find Betsy clad in a barrel as funny as an audience 100 years ago the message at the end, conveyed by Washington himself is a really good one, stressing the importance and bravery of the women who were involved in the American Revolution.

Despite the textbook-ending of marriage and happily-ever-after, the women are portrayed not as the 'bonny and blithe at bed and board'-type you often get in pieces with a historical setting, but openly interested in making the most of their mission by enjoying the company of their dashing house-guests and, given their overall objective, successful allies to their Cause and the men serving in the Continental Army, eventually even receiving recognition for their success in helping Putnam and his men escape from the c-in-c himself.

While, Dearest Enemy being a product of its time, it is always safe to add that anything historic needs to be approached with the context of the time of its creation in mind, it's a catchy, playful musical that should definitively be performed again.

#dearest enemy #turn amc #turn washington's spies #anna strong #edmund hewlett #amrev #american revolution #18th cenrury #u.s. spies #secret agent #british military #history #musical #broadway

[maxwell-grant]

Not an ask so much as a thank you, I picked up The Spider: Robot Titans of Gotham after your Spider recommendation post and it's everything I ever wanted. Also just a general thank you for the Spider content, you're the only other person I've seen online who even seems to know the Master of Men exists.

Well thank you! I'm glad you liked it, Robot Titans of Gotham was my introduction to the character too. Now you get to join the current Spider treehouse consisting of me, at least some of my pulp-loving mutuals, you, and Dan Schkade, and a couple dozen ghosts.

Honestly though, I think The Spider's doing better now, status-wise, than he used to be, certainly better off than he was in the 60s-70s or in the 2000s. I've seen him get brought up a lot more often recently by afictionados other than me, additionally, he also got two recent novels by Will Murray.

If I don't talk about The Spider as much, it's mostly because I think his virtues are incredibly self-evident and I am absolutely positive he's going to have a comeback sooner or later, if only because, if I'm not mistaken, there's a chance he might become available for public domain sooner than the other major pulp heroes (seeing as his first story is already PD). The odds may seem low, but when have they ever been in his favor?

I believe The Master of Men may soon return to wreak havoc on webcomics or crappy low-budget fan films, and then he's gonna be back in the pop culture gutters where he once ruled. One can hope.

#replies tag #pulp heroes #pulp fiction #the spider #DEATH TO THE BRINGERS OF DEATH

[kellachfromthewoods]

Kellach Gear Check #2

Name: Sabotender Ciclope's Outfit

Description: An outfit comprised of a mask, a thick metallic green torso sash, canary yellow pants and boots, a red sash acting as a makeshift belt body paint on his left side, tracing an eye going down to the arm as well as glowing markings on his fists.

Functionality: The overall functionality of the outfit is simply to hide Kellach's identity as part of his former quest for, well, identity and current pseudo-infiltration of the Coliseum in Ul'dah, just in case something occurs that would warrant Tower involvement, or something wanting to get involved in Tower business. Also, it's good exercise.

The pieces specifically, however, have different functionality beyond just obfuscating Kellach's identity.

The mask is an Amal'jaa design based off Pagal'than barefisted warriors. More importantly, it puts the "Ciclope" in "Sabotender Ciclope" as a giant eye is imprinted on its front. As the brown cloth of the mask does not allow for viewing Kellach's face, it acts as the fighter's "sole" eye. More importantly, it has been enchanted to modulate Kellach's voice a bit, just in case someone who would know him by sound could ear.

The thick torso sash helps protect against piercing and blunt blows to the heart, but is otherwise just a very thick dyed training cloth. It is arranged to maximise defenses and bewitch audiences. After all, as a gladiator, you must be both fierce and marketable.

In fact, the overall metallic green and canary yellow part of the outfit is specifically done to catch the eyes of audience and opponent alike. It's difficult to see Kellach's foot position in the bright Ul'dahn sun against the sand, doubly so when there's a bright metallic green portion that just calls for attention.

The boots themselves are extremely sturdy - Moreso than what typical barefisted or pugilists prefer. This has everything to do with the specific styles that Kellach employs in a fight - The previously mentioned styles of the Tribe of the Roc and Tribe of the Bear. As he is prompt to fight both on ground or in the air, he needs to make sure his ankles are well-protected and that if someone goes for a bone-breaking maneuver and only lands a glancing blow, he can still stay in the fight for a time rather than have to forfeit immediately.

The body paint is simply to further hide the identity, as others would expect a tattooed person when they see this kind of paint. Doubly so the glowing parts on his fists. Who would go to such extremes unless it's very important? Hence why it is body paint and not actual tattoos, as it is easily removed with a specific alchemical concoction.

How It Got Its Name: Sabotender Ciclope's Outfit got its name because it is Sabotender Ciclope's costume. As for the identity/character itself, Kellach was drawn to sabotenders and wondered how exactly they got their names. After all, they all seem to follow a naming convention that was obviously not classic Eorzean (E.G.: Sabotender Bailaor, Sabotender Guardia, Senor Sabotender), and figured it would make for a good mystery in the bloodsands. This also inspired the metallic green color pattern, mixed with the bright yellow.

Additional Notes: Kellach once used Glower, an actual cyclops ability, in his early matches but caused tensions between the Celestium and Coliseum as this was a Blue Mage ability, and thus should be kept to the Celestium only. Almost exposing himself there, Kellach stopped using it entirely in his coliseum matches.

At the coliseum, Sabotender Ciclope is what's known as a "gatekeeper". As Kellach refuses to enlist under a specific gladiator stable and is often unreachable for weeks at a time, he has yet to make an appearance in the true high-stakes matches of the bloodsands, but it is known among coliseum afictionados that the result of a match against Sabotender Ciclope is often a good hint at how a gladiator will fare when at the top-level of the bloodsands.

#Kellach Gear Check #FFXIV RP #mysterium

[lilacsandorangeblossoms]

Pass the happy! 🧡 When you get this, reply with 5 things that make you happy and send this to the last 10 people in your notifications!

Aww thanks love

Painting my nails

Playing with my dog Leo

Watching Dane Dehaan movies

Listening to the afictionados podcasts they always make me laugh

Writing

@i-like-bow-ties-and-glasses, @thewomenofwindsor, @ffaraday, @dumb-bitchculture, @gooddame, @somethingbitchyythiswaycomes, @megafandomfreak, @stydiaeverafter, @infernal-panda, @taraknowless

#awww sweet people

[blastoisemonster]

Ranma ½: Kakuren Bodesu Match

We've browsed through some mags and unboxed a brand new repro, let's get back to old games and old cartoons! This time I chose to search for Ranma 1/2 stuff, as I used to watch it back in the early 2000s when a local channel decided to broadcast a couple dozen episodes; unfortunately, not only the order was completely random, mixing up most of the continuity, but the broadcast also ended abruptly and got swapped with Tsurikichi Sanpei, which, well, it ain't the same thing. >:c It was definitely time for me to track the anime down and watch it properly from beginning to end. It also had three game versions on Game Boy, so there's plenty of room to discuss about it.

The original story is a creation by Rumiko Takahashi, defined by many the "princess of manga"; it started appearing on Weekly Shonen Jump in 1987 and finished its course in 1996 after 38 tankobons. Due to the magazine it debuted on, Ranma 1/2 is considered a shonen, though it's way more mellow than usual stories of the genre and definitely more centered on the characters' romantic triangles, which is a theme more akin to shojos. In the end, there's something for everyone in this story, probably one of the reasons it became very popular. Studio Deen curated the animated adaptation starting from 1989 and worked on 161 episodes in total; of course, with the comic still going at the time, its plot is, as a result, rather different; there are many filler episodes and the ending is very open, à la "if we ever need to continue, this won't be a problem". Personally though, I don't really find it frustrating as many other fans say: afterall, open endings have been proven rather common in shojos.

In Italy, the manga was a mid-nineties masterpiece published by Star Comics in 53 volumes; for a while, it was THE manga: Rumiko's round and soft style, with big eyes and flowy hair, defined the genre for many, a lot of aspiring artists used it as a model for fanarts and original drawings sent to fancentered zines (I have seen a lot of them while browsing mags!). However, it also had the reputation of being reading material for "grown-up" or a tad more pervy teens (despite not being hardcore at all), so younger manga afictionados were being kept far from it. The anime also arrived to italian TVs in its complete form, albeit with several degrees of censorship, starting from 1995; a bunch of channels either local or more famous decided to broadcast the series (and their own cuts) for many years later, the last airing of which was in 2003. A long life on screen!

It's hard not to be a fan of Ranma 1/2's bright colours and soft round style, and while sometimes the characters may act like complete arses or unbearable idiots, at least the episodic nature of the show allows for a very relaxed viewing. Also, a lot of the backgrounds are iconic with its aesthetic, so easy to get lost into!

Tune in tomorrow to know more about the game pictured above and the other two Game Boy tie-ins!

#Photography