#apparently there are also just. artist shows out there. like the whole event is an artist alley and that's it

[cozylittleartblog]

good evening to the artist alley people. where do y'all hear about upcoming conventions/events

#liz blogs #artist alley #conventions #i have fancons dot com and that's it #and some facebook groups but they're not. terribly useful for me. but maybe i just dont know how to use facebook #apparently there are also just. artist shows out there. like the whole event is an artist alley and that's it #not a craft show but a secret other thing #there's one in north indiana I Need To Go #this is an open question please hmu in the replies/reblogs/my DMs/asks

[orange-artist]

Brainworms: Sabo x Yonji

Hello little people in my phone. Today I bring you new update in the Good!Yonji AU (AU where Yonji defects from Germa at age 15 after learning about Emotions and starts a clothing store instead. more here)

Woke up this morning and my brain said to me "you know what would be funny? Putting Sabo and Good!Yonji into a room together." AKA Orange talks herself into another rarepair

Apparently, the conclusion my brain came to was that they would kiss. I presented the thought to my little buddies, @nosongunsung11 (rubber duck and feedback loop) and @courfeyracs-swordcane (hypeman) and the idea devolved and now I just ship them whole heartedly.

Let me present too you my newest agenda, Yonji x Sabo. (Target audience: 5) I will give yall the elevator pitch, but this is the longest elevator ride of your life and the music is terrible. Strap in.

Okay, SO- Yonji is a fashion nerd right? And one day, a tall, blonde, hot and most perfectly proportioned man walks into the store in an impeccably well kempt suit. The simp/artist genes kick in. Yonji wants to make a suit for this man so bad.

Yonji would just be a puddle in the floor like "please sir I will do anything. Let me make a suit for you."

Then he find out this guy is a runaway noble? (Who ran away at age 5!) Who is now fighting the world government? (Second in command!) Has brothers he hasn't seen in 10 years and is rebuilding their relationship? Survived Trauma and is living it up now causing problems for people of power? Yonji is so far gone.

On the flip side, Sabo does not like Yonji at first. Thinks he's a hooligan. Tries to scare him off by using big words™️ but Yonji is also an ex-prince and is not intimidated but swoons harder because hot and smart? Holy shit. He is also peak autistic swag and deadass does not pick up on the fact that Sabo is trying to bully him. Also, Sabo is undercover.

Yonji does succeed in convincing Sabo to let him make a suit and they end up becoming buddies. (They both have brother complexes and the other reminds them of the brothers and its bad I hate it but it is true)

One day Yonji gets caught in a revs fight and Sabo's like "I need to protect this totally normal and helpless civilian who has nothing to do with this" and Yonji is like "holy shit, a chance to show off in front of the cool guy". Anyways cue both of them going feral and insane in a fight and Yonji, wiping blood from his hands with a handkerchief because he was raised as a prince and habits die hard looks over at Sabo and it like "Anyways that was fun, wanna grab coffee? Oh, I know some very good ways to get blood stain out of wool. :)"

And Sabo realizes "something is deeply wrong with him and I dig it." Or as @nosongunsung11 puts it: "I can't see the simping working on Sabo what would Work is Yonji going fucking feral on a bunch of random marines"

They also get attached to the other on the basis of Yonji's AuDHD swag reminds Sabo of Luffy and and Sabo's blonde suited runaway energy reminds Yonji of Sanji. Both of these idiots have massive brother complexes and they are working on it-

They're both stupid and have issues and it works. Anyways, Yonji ends up joining the revs.

He makes disguises. He also gets a fedora.

Also more chances to be unhinged and feral.

Other things. Yonji is a big foodie and always wants to try everything on the menu but is unable to finish it and he's learned to Not Waste Food, however, Sabo already orders everything on a menu anyways so Yonji just takes a bite of everything.

The both carry around little notebook/sketchbooks, Sabo for his notes on random things and Yonji for his designs. Yonji is sometimes allowed to illustrate Sabo's notes.

Bonus: Sabo models for Yonji.

(inspired by irl event of being an art student and sometimes you need your friend to do emergency weird poses)

Please give relinquish your opinions about this I need to know.

#good yonji au #yonji one piece #vinsmoke yonji #sabo one piece #yonji x sabo #yonbo? yonsa? yonsabo? saboyon? sayon? #idk ship name #sabo x yonji #my art #vinsmoke yonji x sabo

[concerningwolves]

today's disconnected but related Thoughts are about how stories should exist within "containers", and how problems in long-running TV series are typically introduced when the writers don't use those containers properly. I'm struggling to articulate it in a coherent order, but:

● an audience needs to be able to see some kind of boundary enclosing the story, otherwise it doesn't feel satisfying. This is why we have set plot structures like Freytag's Pyramid and Fichtean Curve which so many stories follow. Most storytelling formats lend themselves to this – novels, certain comic books and graphic novels, plays, and films all have a beginning and an end. You open the book or enter a theatre or switch on the telly, and you experience the story, and then it ends. The story might live with you afterwards, if it affected or resonated with you or made you want to analyse it, but if the creator did their job well you'll at least feel closure with it on a mechanical level (i.e., plot and character arcs have conclusions that you can see fit within the framework of the story, even if personally you didn't like or agree with something). The Good Place is an example of a TV series that did this very well, because the writers had a set vision for the series and they executed it.

● A lot of TV dramas and serials operate on the premise of being ongoing – a story that stretches on without any defined end in sight. This can be done well, but sometimes the story gets bloated and stale, or it ends up like separate swatches of cloth instead of an interwoven tapestry. I'm not saying this means every TV series automatically fails to tell a story in a satisfying way, or even that the series that don't are inherently bad. It works differently from books or films, and therein lie its strengths as a storytelling medium! For one thing, TV is excellent for character-focused stories, and these can go on and on for ages and still be enjoyable and entertaining (even if not "good" by critical artistic standards). There's also more flexibility in TV than in a film; the ongoing format lets writers string out rising and falling tension, and focus in and out on different plots/subplots across a far larger scope.

● The way these shows work is the overarching medium of the series contains smaller stories in the form of plots. The boundaries between one plot and the next usually need to be permeable, too – a plot arc should conclude satisfactorily, yes, but the things that happen in it ought to resonate with the larger narrative afterwards, otherwise it'll feel pointless to the audience. Ghost Whisperer is an example where the creators failed to do this, repeatedly: each of the five seasons introduces a new concept which seems to be building towards some kind of climax, and then... doesn't. Characters vanish from the story never to be mentioned again. Huge events that ought to have life-altering consequences for the characters only have consequences for a few episodes, and then it's swept under the rug. The series had its appeal in a fun concept and lovable characters, but was let down by the execution. By contrast, medical drama Grey's Anatomy has been going successfully since 2005. It has some continuity issues (like interns vanishing without explanation) and some plots are better than others, but on the whole it takes its status as a long-running story seriously and does it quite well.

● The streaming model and the way TV writers are treated is a factor, too. Even where the boundaries of a story have been pre-defined and could be executed well, the creators often don't have the chance. (and I'm sure the same is true of long-running manga/comic books/graphic novels, although I'm focusing mostly on TV here). Ratings, network politics and actors' personal lives/ambitions have a huge impact on what happens to a TV series, and the popularity or apparent success of a series doesn't always guarantee its continuation. Just look at Netflix's habit of axing series after 2 seasons! Or at Good Omens, which despite being written by Neil Gaiman, having a huge fanbase, and a pre-set story which would be concluded in three seasons, hasn't yet been officially greenlit for season 3 (afaik). The industry has created an environment where stories are commodified, and that's not an environment in which stories can flourish.

#fragments of essays

[accio-victuuri]

on light signs & fandom etiquette 🚥

one cpn and a whole lot of personal opinion. i want to write my thoughts about this topic. this is my least favorite thing to talk about as it touches on how people act which can’t be controlled both online and offline. to those who have no idea, it’s about some fandom drama during sdc finale live. this will be more on what i learned and observed. this whole post can be preachy and rant-y so beware. i just needed a place to reflect.

I’ll start with this exchange. It looks like Nathan Lee was asking Bobo if the light sign was his. What it means. Fans are saying it’s because the color is yellow that Nathan was not sure. He must know in a way that “Bo” could be equal to Yibo. Or maybe not. Then you see Yibo explaining yes it’s his. Bo. Yibo.

then hangeng comes in to explain as well and back yibo up then stops him. as if to make the conversation end, less he says more — this part is cpn. to me this is an interesting exchange because yibo clearly owns up to the light sign. it’s his. i have never doubted that bobo knows there are cpfs out there and he appreciates us, tho he cannot say it in the open. we understand. we always did.

There are videos out there of 🏍 vs. turtles. confiscated bjyx green and red light signs. in general, just the two fandoms shading each other. which are of course shared to the international audience. and well, you can take a guess which garbage dump app it’s popular in. I won’t go into the details because that’s not the point. This is not something new. there’s always been friction between cpf and solos. We know how toxic c-fandom is. Hell, even their government knows and they can’t do much about it. It’s the kind of thing i never understood and would never dream to emulate so i can fit in. sadly, lots of international fans adopt the “authentic” fandom behavior and are proud of it. wear it like a badge. there is only a handful who sees the whole c-fandom toxicity for the chaotic circus that it is and avoid copying it.

So, why are cpfs so hated? It’s because we shouldn’t exist. for a time it’s fine — but not this long. not this loud and prominent. brands love catering to solo fans/groups and even their companies do. it’s always been this way and not only in China. CPFs are considered a novelty, something that happens because of a project and are expected to fade when it ends. Also viewed as second-rate fans because their attention and support is split instead of giving their 100% to one artist. They ( artist and company ) can’t endorse and have an open bias to a CP because the artist must maintain the status of being single. An individual who can be paired up with anyone as needed. We are hated and considered a nuisance because we’re still here and thriving. Example, there were far more BJYX fan sites from last night’s event than solos. We still continue to show up. Support. We continue to stay relevant. I can understand the irritation from a toxic solo’s perspective and it gets worse if that person hates xiao zhan or yibo. To them, how dare we have the audacity to enjoy something. The nerve to spend our time and resources on a fandom that makes us happy. lol.

I personally don’t care who is better. Do you want the title of best yibo fan / best xiao zhan fan? sure. It’s yours. It’s theirs. I don’t need it. I’m here for the fun. The ( mostly ) stress free space I’ve created. zz/wyb is my happy place. That’s all I want.

CPFs are far from perfect. We’ve had our fair share of blunders and I personally have certain fandom personalities that I wish would just close their accounts. It is what it is. We can’t control each other’s behaviors. Some so/o pick a certain bad incident and that’s gonna be the way they look at us forever. Or they just go with the flow because it’s a sick pre requisite to hate on cpfs to get your so/o fandom loyalty card apparently. I will never understand wanting people to shut up just because you don’t like what they do. This is not some social justice issue. I like zz/wyb, you only like one of them. So? What’s the big deal. If you don’t like CP stuff then don’t seek us out. AND I CANNOT EMPHASIZE THIS ENOUGH TO CPFs, don’t bait them. Tag stuff properly. Please stop commenting CP things in obvious solo posts. This is why I stopped thinking about their opinion. Candies are for us and not them. We don’t need to convert them — that’s not the goal. At least to me ( the goal ) it’s to support the boys. Enjoy this fandom and try to keep away from drama.

Now the big question that’s related to SDC — Should CPFs bring their dolls and BJYX lights in solo events? My answer is Yes and No.

Yes because it’s their life and they can bring what they want. Bring 10 dolls, sure. For example the dolls lined up and taking photos @ GG’s ADLAD was seen by passer by as cute. Because it is. To those who don’t understand dolls and how it relates to fandom — just shut up please. Let people enjoy things. Some people enjoy drugs and being an asshole — then you have women who loves to bring their fandom dolls to events. to each their own. Even if it’s a “xiao zhan” character doll in an event that is for Yibo ( well it’s not just yibo, it’s SDC. people who watch the show are welcome ) , honestly. who the fuck cares. it’s a harmless non living thing. As for the light signs— sure, but I draw the line on trying to catch too much attention. They know unrelated light signs are not allowed so the rules should be followed. I’m sure the security and staff were only briefed about so/o light signs. No one is persecuting them. They know the rules. I know they have good intentions but we gotta be careful to not trouble Yibo.

No when it’s blatant baiting of so/os. some people really just love drama and will incite stuff. Also i’m not a fan of attention-seeking. Don’t shout BJYX at zz or wyb please. Don’t private message their friends or ask their co-stars about them. We are supposed to be low key about this. They know we exist — no need to beg for their attention.

I may be wrong about certain things that I just said but it’s all my personal opinion. At the end of the day, we will participate and act in this fandom with our own limits. I wish offline “fights” will be avoided in the future. We can all peacefully co exist by ignoring each other. 🙏🏼

-END.

#yizhan #bjyx #personal

[poupeesdecirque]

Travel Blog, Connichi 2023!

Part 1 - Thursday & Friday

As the Connichi moved from Kassel to Wiesbaden it was quite a trip for me, double the travel distance, a city I don't know and lots of stuff to happen.

I decided to write about my trip there for myself to cover some events, give some insights and share the memories. Includes phone snapshots, some sketches for situations I was in aaaand maybe some previews for photoshootings ;>

Thursday: arrival, food, traveling

Friday: First con day, cospay, food, mental health stuff

Thursday, 31. August 2023

As said I had to travel to Wiesbaden, I went by car. The road on its own was mainly highway but before I got to the highway I got stuck in traffic for almost 1 hour. After 5 hours of traveling alone on bad mental health I arrived in Wiesbaden before my friends did and waited for them

Apparently I looked rather pitiful and was approached by some weirdo who tried to give me candy and cigarettes and was super offended by me telling them off. I'm not used to people trying to prey on me but urgh, that was creepy af.

After my friends arrived I ordered my first Starbucks (it was an almond chai latte) as I didn't have anything to eat aside my breakfast that day.

We walked around in the city a bit and ended up in the indian restaurant I had researched before and I had some really delicious paneer with Naan bread and a Mango Cheesecake.

But ... Diamy and I decided to go for "medium" spicy and I underestimated it... I .... cried :'D

We later on found a super cute bakery and @adragonstale and I were totally in awe about the pastries they had.

I'm glad my friends arrived the same day, they really saved my mood.

Friday, 1. September 2023 - First Convention day

As the first day starts later on I decided to get out into the city as past!Allen and put on the Nea wig later on.

We walked a bit through the city, did some window shopping and I was able to share my wisdom about food and nutrition, I am such a nerd about it. Also sightseeing and just being casual about everything.

After that we decided to get changed and get into our convention attire.

The con itself... dunno. I was missing a whole bunch of publishers as there was only two bigger ones and 1-2 smaller ones, the other big ones weren't there, the Matsuri was lovelessly showed behind a construction fence, the artist alley was bigger, yes, but badly ventilated on friday that even I - who is freezing all the time - felt like I would be melting on the spot. Merch room was not even tempting for me I rushed through it, the other rooms were.. well... indoor photo shoot corners, workshops and all that. The invited guests all no names to me, therefore I skipped on the program. You didn't even have any anime series or movies airing at the con (which was a usual thing before) you had to leave the con and pay extra if you wanted to see old anime movies. Well. It wasn't my cup of tea aside the fact I think the building has no personality, I don't like those soulless new constructed modern styled bricks of congress halls. Yes you had the option to book photo spots in two older buildings BUT the slots were taken super fast and it was one location on Saturday, the other on the Sunday and .. well.. in Kassel you had a ton of old buildings you could visit. Wiesbaden has some nice spots too but things like the park being full of duck poop, drug addicts and garbage to begin with didn't help much.

During the con I .. somehow spiraled into the the now called "Anxiety Chihuahua" state. I met some D.gray-man cosplayers and was actually recognized as Nea BUT got told there would be a group meeting the day after and that it was for an existing group (not noticing it was ... my ... group ... ) and my head was all like "oh god now WHAT IF" and that made me sweaty, anxious and my mood in the end was horrible. To explain that: in my cosplay past I was part of some groups but in the end was ignored or replaced by people who were thinner or prettier than me, even when we had special outfits and the other cosplayer didn't have those outfits or even when I went to a certain event for that exact group ... it's past wounds. As my mental health was already a bit cracked it was easy for me to snap and get down.

I was super awkward and ran around like crazy, almost yelled at that one group that they were super cool and that i adore their costumes and just loudly said that I am just a fool and will be gone now. On the next day they told me they saw me earlier but I was too fast to approach. Uhm, yeah. Hyper anxiety clown here. Of course I didn't take much photos with any Cosplayers as I was too nervous which didn't help as I wanted some memories of course.

In the end it got that bad that as we went out for food that day I just stood there "I don't want any, I hate everything"; but I had 30k steps done and just a few snacks therefore... I needed something. Too little food and water makes the brain sad too and I think that added to my anxiety getting worse.

In the end we stopped at a small thai restaurant and my friends had to order for me as I totally refused everything. I knew it was my health being bad and I told them "just order a thing, I will pay. Just no bread". And @adragonstale got me tofu curry with rice (instead of bread) it was warm comforting food. Thank you again. I felt really better after that.

Even that much better that we did some photos of me as Nea!

And we discovered Wiesbaden has a wild population of parrots, they nearly flew into my face while we took pics.

I went back to my car after that and arrived in time for the Matsuri fireworks.

I was super beat that day after two quite exhausting days and hoped the main day would be better as the two prior. It was about time to debut Allen, and to face my fear with the group meeting and my past cosplay trauma.

Lil concluding car selfie aka what if Nea would steal Allen's glasses.

#con #travel blog #connichi #cosplay #connichi 2023

[dearweirdme]

taekookers in general consider taekook's premiere 'date' a statement, or a semi coming out, or water testing, or normalizing seeing them together. all of which make 0 sense.

1) taekook don't need to normalize the sight of them together as it isn't something abnormal to the fandom in the first place. 2) they're not coming out right before of military enlistment for sure, idk how people even consider that option, and 3) the "testing waters" thing is hypocritical.

what is there to test? reactions to what? there's nothing gay about attending an event together, namseok did it already, jihope did it at pfw, all of these members attended events together for the first time, and it'll probably happen more times in the future with different combinations of members.

and the fact that the people who dismissed any and every queer coded message in jungkook's gcf films are the same ones saying that is hypocritical. gcf tokyo had a queer coded song by a queer artist. gcf saipan had queer coded lyrics over jimin's part twice. gcf helsinki had the entire frame change to white and the filter change to bright colors when jimin appeared on screen (but people love to ignore that part yet always praise the filter warming up at namjoon's part). gcf osaka paused the music twice just to show us jimin giggling and being a goofball. the fact that in general every time jk's voice was heard in any of the gcfs was always because of jimin being at the crime scene. all of that means nothing though, because apparently jungkook is stupid and doesn't know what he's doing or what kind of messages his gcfs send in regards to jimin and the music he chooses is meaningless (even when he himself said he searches for the lyrics of every song he posts/uses) because people are being willfully blind. or jungkook is just a company puppet doing whatever he's told, including highlighting jimin in gcfs to serve a hidden company agenda.

if everything queer coded (the gcfs, showing up with the hickey instead of just covering it to avoid discourse, etc) thing jungkook has done in regards to jimin can't be him testing reactions or normalizing his... rather unique bond with jimin, then what is there to normalize about normal friend group hang outs or public appearances?

Hi anon, long time no see!

You are reacting to me saying I don’t think Tae and Jk were testing the waters by spelling out why they aren’t testing the waters. Isn’t us agreeing on that enough anon? Why the whole ask again? Go send this stuff to Taekookers who do think that instead, don’t use my blog as your platform.

Also, funny enough you say Tae and Jk cannot possibly be testing the waters.. but Jimin and Jk can?

I don’t disagree entirely that Jk could have been queercoding his GCF’s, but I dont think it’s likely. You however think he’s Jimin-coding his stuff… and that to me is highly unlikely. Idols in general do not share their relationships, no member of BTS has ever shared his relationship, Idols in general are not allowed to come out.., idols dating in-band is not great for marketing, so allowing a queer in-band couple to test the waters is not an option in SK. If it were only testing waters for a public relationship or only testing waters for a queer member… big maybe.. but all of those together, nope. If Jk and Jimin were actually together Bighit/Hybe would not have let Jk publish that GCF. They let him, because they know it’s a platonic friendship.

You take queercoding to a level it’s usually not taken to. Queer coding (and there is also debate on using this term dor real people, but I do get what you mean) is done by queer people to point out their sexuality, not their relationships. Queer coding is Tae referencing queer artists, and art, it’s Jk wearing queer coded clothing and doing song recommendations. It is not pointing to one person and outing your relationship.

You see everything Jk and or Jimin does through Jikook-eyes. Leave the ‘hickey’ (it’s a bite!!!) and the GCF’s and Rosebowl out of it for a minute… and then what is left of your ‘proofs’? You come to me with the same three things over and over and those just don’t actually proof anything, because it can also point to friendship. Ofcourse Jk and Jimin have a unique bond, they are members/brothers/friends who have lived together for years, who have gone through tough times together, who have worked together on a physical level as well… all of that creates closeness. Look at Hobi and Jimin and how they interact… not that different if only you want to see.

And please, read my posts better, because I’ve explained all of this before and I am not prone to change my mind about this.

#taekook

[joemerl]

Writer's Month 2023, Day 19: "Cloud" and "At a Party"

Fandom: Avatar: the Last Airbender/"the Kyoshi novels" Status/Word count: A little vignette, which could possibly be inserted as a flashback of my long-neglected Yun fic. 490 words. Summary: Yun muses on his name and shows off at a party.

"Avatar Yun," the noblewoman said, as though testing out the sound. As an afterthought, she asked "That's with the character for 'cloud?'"

"Yes, ma'am." Yun wondered why she was asking, since his name had, he presumed, been written on the invitation Sifu sent out.

She smiled wanly. "An interesting name for an Earth Kingdom Avatar. Seems more fitting for a Water Tribesman or an Air Monk, hmm?"

She tittered and looked around at the other guests who were standing nearby, apparently believing that her comment was quite witty. Her husband and a few others obliged her with polite smiles.

Yun kept his face pleasant, though inside he squirmed a bit. He honestly didn't know if that was just a bad joke, or a bad attempt at an insult. He wasn't used to hobnobbing with aristocrats yet, or wearing shoes and fancy clothes, so this whole party was making him anxious and uncomfortable.

What he was used to was performing. And so, struck with a sudden idea that he knew Jianzhu probably wouldn't like...

He reached into his pocket. "Actually, madam, I think it's a pretty good name for an Earth Kingdom Avatar."

He showed them a fist-sized stone that he had been carrying in his pocket. Later it would turn out that this was the thing Jianzhu least approved of—bringing a dirty rock to a fancy party. Yun had stuck in there without thinking, because on the street, he had always carried around bits of earth in case of an emergency. In any event, he levitated it over his hand, and then, with a flick of his wrist—

The guests around him jumped as the rock exploded into fine powder. There was no danger to anyone's expensive clothes, however, since the dust quickly condensed itself again, swirling in the air above Yun's palm. He wiggled his fingers, causing it to roil above his palm.

"See? Earth also comes in clouds."

He couldn't help but smirk. It was a subtle show of his skill. Ironically, most earthbenders couldn't work with things like dust—the grains seemed too small and insubstantial for them to think of it as "earth." Sandbending was a skill that only the desert tribes worked to master, but Yun had self-trained himself in it years ago, simply as a challenge.

Had he been less of a showoff, and more inclined to talk about personal matters with annoying strangers, Yun might have mentioned that clouds had cultural significance back in Makapu—they were a frequent artistic motif, representing either the smoke from the volcano, or perhaps the actual clouds that hung around its peak. He could imagine his mother gazing at them as she picked out his name.

He mused about that later, as he laid in bed and reviewed the events of the party. Airy water, clustered around a mountain filled with fire. It seemed like a fitting name for the Avatar, whichever nation he was from.

#WritersMonth2023 #Avatar: the Last Airbender #Avatar the Last Airbender #Kyoshi novels #Avatar Yun #The Rise of Kyoshi #The Shadow of Kyoshi

[goongiveusnothing]

The thing with Louis is that, he has no radio play. The only times his songs get played are when fans request them. Why is it like that? The bands that support him have radio plays and they are way more Indie than he is, one of them is like proper punk. When his album reached number 1 in the UK, bbc (jack Saunders) made the customary phone call, where louis tells him that he got that without radio support and it is thanks only to his fans. Guess what, they edited this part out before putting it on YouTube. Why would they do that? When his first single was released, and there was no radio play, some of his fans from the UK wrote a written complaint to the officials in BBC and the song was added to the c playlist, which they play at 2am. Even that they wouldn't do for more than a week. There was a q&a he did two weeks ago in London, where he again talked about the lack of radio play.

He cannot reach new audiences without that. He is the only one from ot4 who hasn't played bbc live launge or similar stuff. The next thing he can do is play festivals. Again he himself said that he doesn't get invitations to festivals. It is evident that he can pull in a crowd, then why wouldn't he get booked? He made a festival by himself and even that would hardly get any media coverage.

His number 1 album got four mainstream reviews that qualify for a meta critic score, just four. Out of which one is by an ex larrie, who wants to impregnate harry styles and fuck Zayn. He went private on twitter now. He has been abusing louis on twitter since 2017. Again if there is no review, good or bad, no new audience. Bruce Springsteen's album was released the day louis' album was released. This guy from official charts tweeted about the extreme level of promotion Springsteen has been doing and mentioned Columbia and one direction and BMG. Louis's uk promo was near to non-existent. No Graham norton, no tv performance, nothing. Again no new audience. All of this cannot be a coincidence. I hope Harry is not at least directly complicit in this( but I also hoped he had nothing to do with that whole euphoria mess, which he clearly had) . Sony 100% has involvement in this. Do the Azoffs have? I don't know, there is nothing to implicate them directly. But as you have mentioned they have a clear history of sabotaging artists. Afterall louis and harry share a fanbase. Larries like to tell that all this is happening because he left syco music. That is not true. This has been happening since his second single with bebe Rexa came out. At that time in 2017, there was this twitter conversation between her team and some rj's, where the rj's mention the lack of effort from his label's part as the reason for it not going viral. His next single just like you(which also mentions the Sony- George Michaels clash in the visuals). Was pulled off the radio within a week. And it has been like that ever since.He teased an album and world tour for 2018, instead he became a judge in x-factor. He said that he could not get people to write with him( even though he is the one with the most writing credentials in 1d), he said recently in Zach zang show that he contemplated leaking his album walls because it was going nowhere. He isn't even invited to events or after parties, since 2017. Absolute blacklisting!

Then there are larries, the bane of his existence. They have been writing essays on why he shouldn't be let to grow as an artist for the past many years, especially for the past two months. Spoiler alert: their theory is that louis is forced to make music, his life ambition is to get inside a suitcase and travel alongside harry styles and be a good loving house husband. Apparently he broke his arm, to not promote his album and go visit harry who had the flu. Now a large chunk of them are boycotting him, because he celebrated his birthday with his son. Some of these buffoons are cis white women who are senior citizens.

I am actually quite surprised that he got to make two albums. Honestly didn't expect even that.

Sorry didn't realise it became this long.

it's just that music is a gamble, and sometimes popular musicians don't even get the steam they need, and really talented ones are overlooked entirely. so it's hard to say well it's all because they're being blacklisted or whatever. it's just not a set in stone industry.

i have to say that with radio everybody knows it is a payola industry. it's pay to play. i've always assumed that because louis has real genuine convictions about pay to play and the machinations of the industry, that he's just never been willing to pay to get his music on the air. that he wants the success of his music to be organic and real, not a playlist payola or a radio payola scheme like harry styles.

with the other things like festivals and reviews, i've felt that's because the industry has decided because he's a former one d member, and because harry styles and maybe niall horan are the only ones you're "allowed" to like from one d, that they don't do these things for him. niall does more radio friendly music. louis doesn't and he knows that he doesn't. louis is trying to break into an area of music that is pretty tough because rock/indie music is very gatekeepy, so they don't want former boybanders to show up, as they think it's uncool. we've seen this already in random bands try and make fun of him. he has to really work hard to break into that scene.

we also know how the industry is all about connections. harry has masses of them, and they all cater to him. rolling stone interviews, vogue, another man, auditions to every movie in the world, MET gala, even louis has basically spoken about that. louis could try and spend his time in hollywood trying to schmooze people, but that isn't him. is louis willing to literally become a family member to some random powerful member of the industry just to get a career? do people think louis would be happy like that?

and while i also think showing up to events is something that would boost his profile, again these are things that louis has always said he's not interested in. he's always hated these PR event things, he even hated when in one d. they're very fake and everybody's posing and being full of it, it's exactly where louis would hate to be.

maybe i'm wrong about things. i can think of good promo ideas that don't involve these types of machinations. doing charity work, being seen at local charities or music for like impoverished kids type things, doing low key cheap gigs at small places, learning an instrument or showing how far along on the guitar he is.

personally, i would also change louis's sense of fashion, i think it's just boring to me to see a guy in hoodies onstage. but again, louis thinks wearing that stuff is authentic because it's him. but i personally think it's cool and fun for a musician to have a bit of flair and fun with fashion onstage, of course not clown costumes and maybe he has PTSD from thinking if you dress onstage you gotta dress like a clown like harry, but just something a bit fun. i remember the clash used to talk about how nobody would show up to a gig if you looked like shit, you had to dress cool in a way other dudes want to dress, i do think that does create a coolness and appeal and would be fun.

#just my thoughts #maybe i'm wrong #i think the industry is very gatekeepy #and guys like louis are seen as people they want to gatekeep out #whereas guys like harry play the game #and want to be in on all these things #so they get an in

[todayimgonnaplay]

Today I'm gonna play: Final Fantasy XIII-2

This is my first post! I don't have a format on how I'm going to discuss games, so I'm just going to rant out whatever comes to mind I guess! I'm putting an apostrophe for terms exclusive to the game and will detail them at the end.

I've recently finished FF13, which...wasn't the most enjoyable FF I've played. Although its level design was linear, and the characters can be a little tropey, I had more issues with the lack of party customization that only gets unlocked later on in the game, and the general difficulty as well as its expensive economy, it had some very impressive art direction and music that still holds up to this day! I've jumped on to its sequel to see how it fares.

I'm currently on episode 4, and I've seen some nice improvements so far! The Paradigm Shift* system is a lot faster and responsive, and the game allows you to do Preemptive Strikes* which gives you an advantage with the Stagger Bar*, as well as grant Haste* temporarily which is a nice tactical advantage. Your additional party members now consist of up to 3 monsters you capture and equip, who each have their own paradigm class. Overall this makes the combat very fun and customizable!

The first game also constantly focused on combat. This time, I'm seeing puzzle segments, which are somewhat confusing, and some options to dress up monsters you catch. Not perfect systems, but it's nice to see some downtime. I do find the Mog Throw* funny though.

Levels this time are larger and non-linear, giving more replayability as well as a sense of exploration. This exploration is linked to the main story too, so it doesn't feel too much like a chore. I'd say it's somewhat of an improvement.

The graphics are still the same, but I'm enjoying one area in particular for its futuristic aesthetic, so it still has some nice artistic direction going on. I would say the character designs are a hit or miss compared to the first game. Serah's outfit in XIII-2 seems...odd despite looking more battle-ready. Her gloves and weapon are the only pluses, but it looks like they're more keen on showing more skin for some reason (with her having a swimsuit outfit too apparently). Noel on the other hand has a more appealing design! His head gives me Squall Leonhart vibes but with the hair grown a little.

I also like the characterization more than the first game. Noel is really smart and capable, and even shows a side of impatience so he's not perfect. Serah is also interesting as she journeys from being a girl that couldn't do anything to being a courageous heroine. The duo's dynamics are more pleasing to watch compared to where the first game had a larger cast that was constantly at odds with each other but awkwardly come together at some point.

The story is also easier to follow as there's not a lot of weird terminology anymore that doesn't explain itself. Even though it's about time travel, I haven't seen anything crazy yet.

One detail I really like is that it reminds you of previous events. Every time you get back into the game, it has a ''story so far'' segment that pops up before entering a world to catch you up to speed, and for those that have not played 13, there's a whole summary section available in the menu. This may be annoying for people who have been continuously playing the game (like me) and don't need to be reminded, but there are times where we drop a game because life happens, or another game catches our attention and we wander off to playing that. But having a reminder is a nice touch for a positive experience. Perhaps this feature could have a toggled off option in the settings.

One detail I dislike is the pacing of the extra dialogue that plays in the overworld. The first game paced this well, but this sequel seems to have longer dialogue that could potentially pressure you to stop and listen if you want to hear the extra details, otherwise interacting with anything else risks you from skipping them. Grand Theft Auto also has this issue, when you're driving during a story mission and you cannot hit the destination marker yet because the characters are still talking. The only solution I can see to amending this would be to allow the player to see/hear the next dialogue by pressing a button. NEO: The World Ends With You has (non-voiced) dialogue pop up in the overworld, which you can interact with to see the rest of it while still on the go.

Overall, I'm looking forward to what the rest of the game has in store! The music is as great, if not even better than the first! I have listened to some of the tracks long before getting on this game, but I've heard some new ones that are absolute bangers! 13 made me a fan of Masashi Hamauzu, but 13-2 is now making me a fan of Naoshi Mizuta too! I'm gonna put a link to my current favourite track.

Terms exclusive to the game: Paradigm shift - Strategic set of roles your characters can have which you can switch around during combat. Preemptive strike - Allows you to strike an enemy first to gain an advantage. Similar to Player Advantage/Ambush in the Persona/Shin Megami Tensei games. Stagger bar - A gauge the player fillswhen fighting (best by casting magic) which allows the enemy to be vulernable to more damage Haste - An effect (or spell) common in FF games that makes you act faster Mog Throw - An ability that allows you to throw Mog (Moogle, a creature in FF games) to inaccessible/far places and give you treasure in return

#game analysis #ff13 2 #final fantasy xiii 2 #Youtube

[dragoninahumancostume]

Was dreaming of like the Powerpuff girls and Dr Utonio had a meeting at a computer and I think I was either Blossom or her sister I think? And the dream starts with the doctor (who is not the doctor, he looked skinnier and darker and kinda like if Waluigi had sharper edges? Idk what I'm saying) drawing in his computer for the notification bar's signs, like let's say he was doing some shit like changing the symbol of like the lantern or smth and he was making it look like a beetle, something like that. And he's excited to explain it and he seems to really like it. And so we go to the place and I'm too lazy to describe it tbh but we (the doctor, the girls and me) go there and the ppg wait outside. So doctor goes inside for a while with me and then he goes out once he's done saying all the pros and cons of the computer and there's a black screen with white letters hanging on the wall that says "correcto" "mal" and something else above "correcto" and to the side of the words they have hours so it's all scheduled and have some glowing red and green points to mark which ones we're done talking about. And then is my turn to say what I like about the computer, which I had never used or even touched. And I'm like "well I like the art feature because you know in an artist and creativity is important for me, and that feature allows my creativity to flow in more ways than in normal art programs", it's not word for word but it's close enough, and I legit was just bulshitting my way out of that presentation lmao. And so the lady (who kinda looked like the scientist from Dragons Rising? But kinda younger) that was asking me while the other people, I remember clearly seeing one man and someone else sitting on the table the doctor sat but it was suddenly a four person table instead of a one person (chairs appear outta nowhere), the table was just below the screen. Well so the lady asks me about what I don't like about their laptop (bc apparently they had also made a laptop and I was meant to try it??) and I'm like "Uh..." and I honestly don't know what in the actual fuck happened in between events but the man was like searching through my brain or something and he found some picture that looked like those old things that used to show movies in the projector (like the thing with lotta pictures?) and the picture was a girl that was in blue outfit that was like a swimsuit and she had some thick thighs and was kneeling, and he saved the picture that he found, but only the lower half and he gave me back to upper half, but that girl was a fox, like I had furry art of a girl in a swimsuit saved in my brain and the dude simply saw it and said "ah yes, for the investigation, that is the only reason I could need this, no other reason at all" and he took it and (he found other things but I don't remember what) the they sent me outside and I was talking to the girls about the fox he found. And then I'm in the supermarket with my parents and my sister is sitting in the shopping cart and I decide to buy a board game and I take it from the shelf and I hug it close to me like "maybe I have a problem..." (likely referencing the fact that I've been thinking of a magical card board game with dragons for at least a whole week every day) and I was hoping my parents would let me buy it. And the cover of the box is blue and it had two girls like jumping to opposite sides or smth, I don't remember what it was but there was a movie about them and it was somehow related to the computer thing from before, the closest idea I can get is the Magic Agency with Hansel and Gretel movie but I know it wasn't exactly that. Well and so I put it in the cart and they let me buy it and then I woke up thinking of foxes in swimsuits and redhead girls with shotguns and long light colored coats

#dreams

[ppulverse]

this is a bit random but i remembered you saying in your tags that your will to live dropped after ptd did and like... the real lasting legacy for ptd for me personally is that now i have trust issues every time a kpop group i like is about to release a song. like the preview for back for more sounds good and that makes me a bit optimistic but part of me is also cautious bc a preview is just a small snippet, what if the whole track turns out to be a song that i dislike and that i feel doesn't fit txt at all? maybe a few years ago i would've been purely excited but now there's always that part of me that's like "please don't be another ptd" so i feel cautious before every release

anyway this is just a vent and this is my own personal problem, like i said i think the preview sounds good and it's cool that other people are excited! this is just more of a "what if" nagging thought for me and sometimes i wonder if other fans feel the same or if i'm just being pessimistic

ok i talked too much so i'm adding a read more break here

JDKAJDJA i feel u 😔 personally i don't have a problem if i don't like a song one of my fav groups releases, so i won't be TOO disappointed if i don't like it. plus as someone from brazil i am REALLY excited to see them releasing a feature with a brazilian artist tbh 😭 my problem with ptd was the series of unfortunate events that lead us to that moment yk? like they were supposed to promote mots7 (which to me was a wonderful album) and go on tour, but then covid happened so the tour was cancelled, then they released dynamite... which was a BOP ngl i loved it i was just as obsessed as anyone else. but bighit saw how well the song performed internationally, especially in the usa, and seemed to become obsessed with trying to make bts appeal to the american media. so we got butter (and i was FUMING at the time bc txt had a cb with 0x1 shortly after a fcking bts comeback and i felt like they wouldn't stand a chance against bts on mysic shows and stuff 😭) and later on we got ptd which to me is honestly the weakest and most generic song bts has ever released. bts went from a group that co-wrote and co-produced most of their songs to a group that was being forced to only sing other people's generic stuff. (and i won't even mention BE bc that felt like a fever dream tbh it was literally released just as damage control and also at a specific time of the year so bts could win album of the year in 2021 without actually releasing an album in 2021.) and now that bts is on a hiatus i fear that they try to put them txt through a btsification process or smth idk???? but at least for now it doesn't seem to be the case. i don't mind them appealing to the american public and releasing songs that are meant to be a radio hit over there or whatever, as long as they don't lose their essence in the long run... and considering this album concept seems to be following that txt formula we know and love (since it's a continuation of the previous one, apparently), i think everything's still ok for now.

plus around the time do it like that was released they mentioned it on a welive that korean fans were getting kinda frustrated at how much promotion they were doing in the usa and not in korea and they were like don't worry we still have smth BIG coming up for us in korea, and i'm p sure they were talking about the album!! so i think we will survive. i hope. particularly i'm super excited to find out what the album is gonna sound like!! it's the first full album since freeze so hopefully we'll get many great tracks to jam to

#thanks for coming to my ted talk 😭 #anyway it's fine we'll be ok!!! i trust them!!! although i guess they have no power over bighit and i do NOT trust bighit #but it's ok #i'm rlly excited for this comeback tbh!!!! #anon #💌

[squeemcsquee]

Anime Central 2023, Day One (Fri)

Since we weren’t sure of what the crowds would be like during breakfast, we got up early on Friday to make sure we wouldn’t have to wait long to eat. We did this each day, actually, But I’ll admit that even at its busiest, the crowds for breakfast never seemed too bad.

               Going to breakfast early on Friday had another advantage – we were able to eat without having to be in costume. @shbumi​ and I did get into costume after breakfast – I was debuting Pinkie Pie, which was a somewhat last-minute idea, as I obtained a wig for free and found good casual clothes for the character about a week and a half before the con. @shbumi​ also got some time to pack her stuff up for her move to the Aloft later that day. Of course, our room at the Embassy was closer to con than the Aloft, being right across the street. So it would still serve as a “base camp” of sorts for her during the weekend, if she needed to temporarily stash purchases or just get a quiet spot for a bit.

Then we headed over to the con – still early, still before anything except registration and the main lobby were open. It’s an excellent time to try to get photos of cosplayers before everyone starts rushing about.

When the Exhibit Hall opened at 1000, we went in, just to get a feel for the lay of the land before we would be exploring it proper later in the day. Had I known then that the ACen 2023 enamel pin would sell out before noon, I would have jumped into the line for the ACen merch booth – but there was no way to predict that would happen. In the past, ACen has appeared to have had more than enough stock of enamel pins and so I figured this year would be the same. Judging by the comments on the con discord, I wasn’t the only one to assume so and be disappointed that weekend.

               The Exhibit Hall first thing on Friday usually feels like a ghost town, because while you’re definitely there with a whole crowd of people, you’re all dispersed in this wide space.  This is the time to go, before the lines get heinously long, if you know there’s something specific that you’re looking for.

               For us, we were actually trying to find our friend @artbyquinton​, in the artist alley, to say a quick “hello” before going to the first panel of the day. In turns out that not only were ACen staff constantly updating the guidebook, but they’d apparently done some updating to their artist and vendor booth layout that hadn’t been input into Guidebook. @artbyquinton​ was listed as being at booth J37 in Artist Alley, but when we found it, it was just an empty table.  We did find him later in the day, thanks to communication on Facebook – @artbyquinton​ had been moved completely across the Artist Alley to D32.

               First panel of the convention for us was the “10 Obscure JRPGs” panel. It was in Panel Room 14, which somehow did not have a room flag of its own. Two of the panelists were standing outside the doors, hawking the panel to anyone coming down the hall.  I used the Guidebook app to take notes on the titles. All of the games were at one point published in the US, and so could possibly still be found in some way. And the titles are: Grandia II, Skies of Arcadia, Growlanser Generations, Thousand Arms, Vandal Hearts, Steambot Chronicles, Saiyuki: Journey West, Metal Saga, The Wizard of Oz: Beyond the Yellow Brick Road, and The Magic of Scheherazade.

               After the panel, our group split up a bit: @lechevaliermalfet​ was off to kill time watching the Revolutionary Girl Utena movie in one of the viewing rooms. @shbumi​ and I headed to the gatherings area, where I intended to take part in a small My Little Pony photoshoot from 1230-1300. And I do mean small – I think maybe we had between 15-20 cosplayers show up. I think the shortened time frame and the fact another, longer MLP meetup was scheduled for Saturday worked against us. We also did not have an organizer show up to the event, so @shbumi​ took charge in gathering everyone to claim our spot at the photoshoot flag, and then another attendee and I worked together to call out grouping options and do countdowns for photos. With such a small group, we finished after only about half of our allotted time had passed. Which meant I had more time to help @shbumi​ search the dealer hall for a particular vendor and then to run to the room for lunch. The crowds were slowly starting to trickle in, but it was still easy to maneuver through the hall.

I also checked in on the chalk art performance. This is one of those low-key things that I really enjoy about ACen - watching the chalk art be completed through the weekend.

               Since we had a fridge and a microwave in our room, we actually ate rather well this ACen, with meals that were made pre-con by a good friend of ours.

               I ran a bit late with lunch, so I only caught about half of the Meet Yurika Kubo panel. She was very enthusiastic, appreciative, and gracious towards every fan that stepped up to the mic to ask their questions or tell what her characters meant to them.

               When that panel ended, I headed over the photoshoot area to the MXTX/Danmei shoot. I was mainly there to support @shbumi​. Just like last year at Anime Magic, I could really only recognize a handful of the characters there, even if I had encountered them in the source material. I hope that changes as I keep reading more.

               After the photoshoot, which lasted for almost all of its allotted hour, I was headed back to the panel area for Loud, Annoying, and Very Annoying with Robbie Draymond, Ray Chase. And Max Mittelman. It was basically a voice actor version of Whose Line and it was very fun to see the audience prompts and character suggestions acted out. There were no photos allowed during the panel, but we were given a couple minutes at the start to take any photos we wanted of the setup, the actors, etc.

               Loud, Annoying, and Very Annoying started late, and ended about 5 minutes over, so I had ro rush downstairs to the next panel, Remembering Leiji Matsumoto. Helen McCarthy ran this panel and her knowledge and recollections regarding Matsumoto were wonderful to hear. Matsumoto’s influence is well known, but it still sometimes feels like his work gets a bit overshadowed by current fandoms and so I had wondered what sort of turnout there would be. I’m happy to report that it was well-attended.

               A little bit of breathing space – enough time to grab a drink or bathroom break – and it was time for another panel: Influential Women in Japanese History. I’ve attended this panel before, but I felt like there was additional information this year. We were also given a resource sheet for every influential woman who made the list, so that we could continue research into their lives on our own, if we wished to do so. I love educational panels like this, that can give a glimpse into history and culture that isn’t usually covered.

               When the panel released at 2030, it was time for a very late dinner. Upon our return to the hotel, we learned that all of the elevators were broken down, except for the service elevator. Since it was not clear where the service elevator could be found from the ground floor, we opted for the stairs. We really got our leg work in this weekend, let me tell you! And climbing 4 flights before eating is a good way to ensure you’re hungry for dinner.

               As we headed to our room, I glanced down into the atrium. Maybe it’s because the Embassy Suites allegedly has a quiet hours policy, because it isn’t the host hotel, or because Anime Central is large enough to provide plenty of entertainment at any hour, but the atrium wasn’t super full of people hanging out. It could be a combination of all of that. But unlike the Hyatt, where the lobby remains packed constantly, there were only a few groups doing some card/tabletop games in the Embassy atrium.

               Post-dinner, I ditched the cosplay for the night. I wanted to be out of the wig and also wanted long pants. I tend to get cold at night in the con center, as the AC remains cranked high but the crowds are thinner.  @shbumi​ headed towards a Cards Against Humanity event hosted by Samurai Dan and Lady Jillian. @lechevaliermalfet​ and I headed to the MangaGamer panel. Interestingly, despite both events being 18+, none of us encountered staff to check for wristbands/IDs or otherwise assist in getting attendees into the panel. This was left up to the panelists.

               In the MangaGamer panel, we got plenty of racy previews of upcoming releases, merchandise discussions, etc. They had some giveaways for those who answered trivia questions, though we didn’t participate. The hosts also stressed that the surveys MangaGamer puts out are important – maybe they can’t always get the titles that fans want, but it lets them know their audience and the types of game their audience prefers.

               When the panel ended, @lechevaliermalfet​ and I headed to the gaming area. Unlike my poor luck at Mitsuwa, I actually managed to win a couple of small prizes from the claw machines nestled near the classic arcade cabinets in the gaming hall. We also had our usual at-con match of Magical Drop II. We probably killed about 30-40 minutes there before we decided to check out an ACen rave for the first time in all of our years attending. We made our way to the SoapBubble.

                We got in easily, which surprised me – I remembered seeing huge lines for the raves in the past. We arrived during and stayed for approximately 30 minutes of Zoa’s set. It was a good vibe, I liked the music, but I think we were just both burnt out from the day. ACen has always involved a decent amount of walking but not usually so many stairs. But hey, maybe we’ll manage to attend more of the SoapBubble at future ACens.  

               And that was Friday.

All of Anime Central 2023 Coverage

Day Zero - Thursday 

Day One - Friday (current post)

Day One Cosplayers

Day One Photoshoot - My Little Pony

Day One Photoshoot - MXTX/Danmei

Day Two - Saturday

Day Two Cosplayers

Day Three - Sunday

Day Three Cosplayers

#Anime Central #ACen #Anime Central 2023 #Acen 2023 #con review #con report #prose and cons

[420hamlet]

The Queen – Raúl Victoria III (#41)

I had a draft of this in which I waxed poetic about music. I wanted to deeply explore the nature of music to explain your place in it, but I can’t. I’ve realized how much I need music to exist, and despite this, I can’t comprehend it. I know nothing of music except how much I love it. So now, instead of talking stupidly about a topic I know nothing about, I’m going to talk about musical experiences; melodic moments from my life, to better exemplify the impact you had in it.

The first moment I remember truly appreciating music was when Ryan Keen destroyed me. My best friend, the fantastic musician known to the world as Raw Bean, had just come back from another country (Australia this time) and had new music recommendations, as per usual. He showed me a video of a guy inside the London Eye with his acoustic guitar playing a song. I couldn’t have guessed the number of times I’d repeat this in my life.

I loved his raspy soft voice; later I would also love how nicely it fitted with mine, allowing me to pretend I sang well. I adored how the lyrics said things I hadn’t put into words; later I’d explain how I loved his songs because he lived a life like mine. Finally, literally, as the song came to an end, Ryan transformed himself into my favorite artist, and this song into my favorite song (a title they both held uncontestably for 6 years), as he started repeating “If all we have is love…” again and again, until he did something I had never seen before. HE HIT HIS GUITAR WITH HIS FINGERS, and with that beautiful beat he finished the mantra:

“If all we have is love…we have it all”. I have never been the same.

I made it my mission to listen to everything Ryan had ever written and performed in any shape or form. Apparently, he likes to punch his guitar in a large variety of ways, and I was up for all of it. Ryan Keen made me a fan of music and sparked the first intentional time I decided I wanted to start playing the guitar. I will never not be in love with his art and, in case he reads this, please make Room For Light (and all other songs you have…like Reflections in the Water) available on Spotify Mexico, I am dying without them.

My musical path years later led me to other poets. Childish Gambino and Bob Dylan changed my life in many ways with their music, this is one of them. On the way to the beach, I played my music in shuffle until Like a Rolling Stone started playing. I had heard it before of course, but the careful attention I gave to the lyrics as I looked out the car window at the palm trees passing by…obsessed me. I played it on repeat the whole trip. I walked up and down that beach for hours, listening and repeating non-stop to the Nobel-priced poetic lyrics of Dylan. When, at night, I finally decided to give something else a chance, I let shuffle do its magic, and it did again.

Gambino had taken over my gym life with his debut album Camp and now he came to kidnap my vacations by the beach with an anthem for it. 3005 painted my beach nights with a nostalgia of love and the future as I gazed at the stars and watched waves break on shore while feeling the fresh night breeze blowing on my skin as I walked and ran and sang and ran up and down the beach. To this day I can’t listen to these songs without feeling the beach. They feel like vacation: far from home but peaceful as one can be.

Then He came around. The Golden God of Fruits and Sensuality. In my young-adulthood I had left behind Ryan Keen as the preacher and writer of my life’s events and emotions, I had changed, and Harry seemed to literally be living my life. He seemed…me. I seemed him. By accident and on purpose, in many ways, I became him and made him become me. It was fierce and burning how deep and how fast I fell in love with Harry Styles. He gave me the soundtrack to so many road trips, parties, loves, explorations, crises, discoveries, and he even helped me connect deeply with many different people in our shared love for his art (and him, obviously).

To my delight, he announced both new tour dates and a new album, the same year I had become obsessed. The album became personally intertwined with my life as the anthem to the blossoming romance with the love of my life. The concert, on the other hand, was an absolute odyssey to get tickets for. First try, failed completely. Second attempt, we stood early in the morning, second in line and ordering whatever tickets were fastest to acquire. I bought terrible seats, but I had them. The person directly behind me didn’t get the chance to. I had made the right choice. Finally, the miracle of my girlfriend (the aforementioned love of my life) having an ex-boyfriend who was selling amazing tickets and offering them to us. I went into debt (still am) and we made the best trip ever to see you perform. In the concert, we had you so close you even saw us., and even though you didn’t sing Ana, or Medicine, or anything particularly special for us, I loved it. In all of its imperfections, your concert was perfect.

Which finally brings us to you.

In the same time period Raw Bean presented me with Ryan Keen he also presented me to you. I obsessed over your music in the exact same way, listening to everything you had. I still remember when I “officially” finished listening to all your songs, it had been a year since I had started and I was shocked to realize that, within those hundreds of songs, I had found none that I didn’t enjoy. I loved you childishly in discovery.

For a period of my life you kidnapped all my nights with music. All my teenaged-filled-with-pain nights you serenaded me as I thought of long-lost loves, fantastic adventures, and life itself. Your album Remember Us to Life played like an unending soundtrack every night. I loved you youthfully in nostalgia.

Finally, getting concert tickets to see you was also impossible. I went into debt, again, bought from re-sellers, again, and planned a whole trip just to see you, again. All our decisions were made based on whether or not they would get us closer to you (Raw Bean joined me in this journey, as a person who deeply loves your music and introduced me to it). “Wanna go to Guadalajara the day of the festival or the day before?” The day before gives us safety to see the Queen perform. “Wanna smuggle things into the festival?” Might risk getting kicked out and missing the Queen, so no. “Wanna go watch *band who played before Regina in the festival*?” Not really, I don’t care at all for them, but we will be there, to get closer to the stage during and after the concert so that we can have the Queen as close as possible. I love you presently and decisively.

And then you walked into the stage.

We had been standing for more than two hours holding our positions. When I saw you, I got lost in it. Smiling and wide-eyed (you and me both Regina) nothing else existed. Then you spoke, I responded with my yelling, and you started to sing…I experienced what Lovecraft would call Cosmic Awe.

I won’t attempt to explain what happened when I heard your voice live. Read back to the impact previous musical events had on me, add them up, multiply them, factorize them, expand them infinitely, they can’t compare to the awe Regina Spektor and her spell casted upon me during her concert. But experientially, I can say that for the first two, maybe even three songs of your oh-so-short concert, I couldn’t close my mouth in absolute fascination for the musical goddess I had in front of me.

Regina, you sang directly to my soul and it has been smiling ever since. You are pure light and your musical gift rivals that of Orpheus. Despite you giving me everything I wanted to hear in your concert and more, I came out of it thinking only about all the songs missing and how much I need to follow you to listen to them one day.

Thank you for the most beautiful sounds I have ever heard.

Love-youology, Raúl.

1461 words (FUGGIT).

Instagram: @thevictoryville

#escribir #writing #420culture #shakespeare #hamlet #challenge

[streetlights-was-taken]

wait. I suddenly had an extra idea for the epilogue of the syllables melt away omg.

I think I have all the pieces to finish this fic. I should probably jot this down...

(spoilers for the whole fic)

I've been building up in chapter 5 (unpublished as of this writing; yes, I know it has been two years, shhhh I promise I haven't forgotten it) all the relevant plot details like tsugumi phasing in and out of the UG on her own (thus requiring her to wear an accessory with a reaper's decal on it until she can control herself), hinting at rie's career and relationship with 777, neku's own growing career, and of course joshua trying to woo neku (and tsugumi) in the RG. along the way, I've been writing about neku's small interactions with the UG as well, including how he can still use pins in the RG (which, on a reread, I was pleasantly surprised to find that I already foreshadowed this in a previous chapter) and how he's taking an interest in the newer pins coming out (since pins do go in and out of fashion), and even plays with tsugumi using pins.

I already knew how the last three chapters will go. chapter 5 is more about the buildup of the plot/relationships and it's halfway done. chapter 6 ends the story with rie's concert, the revelation of tsugumi's parents and what their whole deal is (which, I think should be obvious already by chapter 5), neku landing his job in aftermath as creative director, and joshua establishing an RG identity so they can date like normal people.

okay, before we move on, checklist. what did the fic summary say again? neku...

learns how to cook? ✔️ (higashizawa taught him)

lands a stable enough job? ✔️ (in chapters 6 to 7)

rediscovers old friends? ✔️ (we already showed all his friends, the reapers, and even shooter makes an appearance in chapter 5)

resolves a dispute he has with an important partner? ✔️ (the speakeasy date)

falls in love? ✔️ (he has always been...)

possibly gets married? ❓

becomes a father? ✔️

and so we at last arrive at chapter 7, which is a long epilogue in joshua's pov. I say epilogue because I do think that the story ends in chapter 6, but I believe chapter 7 rounds it out and gives the story closure.

it's a time skip set maybe a year or two in the future. tsugumi goes to daycare now, or preschool, idk (and she meets rindo and friends there). joshua is still composer but now mingles with the RG more and has RG friends outside of neku. character growth, etc etc. and neku, of course, is the one to propose to joshua; thus, finally making a "life-altering decision" for him this time, instead of the other way around (yes, this is what I had in mind when I wrote joshua saying, "when the time comes when you want to make life-altering decisions for me for a change, well. I'll be here.")

this is quite different from how I imagined this fic would turn out when I first started writing it in 2014, but I do think this is the better progression of events.

anyway, the idea I had today that I wanted to add in the epilogue though is this: what if neku becomes a pin designer? gosh, that would be kinda cool actually. he still does his job in aftermath, being creative with musicians. but what if he now also has a side job of anonymously designing pins and distributing them in different shops? not just designing them visually, but also being able to configure how they work in the UG. in that way, he is able to help players in the UG and makes a name for himself as an anonymous pin artist in the RG. like, CAT has his murals, neku (still thinking of his pseudonym) has his pins.

and I just think: wow, that actually rounds out the story well. one of the things that is becoming apparent as I write chapter 5 is that joshua making an effort to connect with neku in RG terms endears him to neku. through this, joshua is no longer this untouchable, non-human deity. their relationship, in neku's eyes, is something that seems within reach now. tangible, and real.

but likewise, although neku rejected the offer to become conductor, he isn't fully divorced from the UG. and it's not like he wants to separate himself from it altogether. he just wants to live in the moment, live in the RG more. he fought for that, you know?

but I do think he'll try to help players when he can, so him being a pin designer is his way of compromising and being involved with joshua's world too. and that's what this fic is all about, right? joshua and neku finding a balance, learning about each other's worlds, being involved in it in their own ways. and isn't that what makes them the perfect parents for tsugumi? for someone who lives with one foot in the RG, and one in the UG?

man. I'm just... listen, I had this dialogue written out two years ago that I haven't been able to publish yet, but I always wanted to include it in the fic. the context here is that neku finally sees tsugumi phase into the UG and joshua has to tune her back to the RG. he then asks joshua why he thinks he (neku) can tune tsugumi on his own too.

joshua: I don’t think you [neku] can quite see the the whole of the underground like before, at least not without practice, but I can teach you. it’s a bit different when a human does it though, but sanae taught me. neku: he said that before. that you could see the UG even when you were alive. were you [a reaper baby too like tsugumi]...? joshua: no. I was completely human, and my parents were too, just like you are now. I was just always able to see it even when I was alive. perhaps I had an encounter with the supernatural when I was younger that opened my eyes, so to speak, but I don’t remember it. I think your ability opened up after your reaper’s game happened. which, as you recall, had very special circumstances that required you to exercise your imagination to your limits. tsugumi just naturally does it. perhaps it’s because she has been exposed to the underground since the beginning that, to her, it’s all the same reality.

just. when I think about this dialogue... everything falls into place now. though their circumstances are different, tsugumi could have had the same ability to "see the dead" like joshua. she could have grown up like joshua.

but neku and joshua are going to be there for her. they'll be there, to guide here through the RG and UG, because they both understand these planes of reality intimately, and soon she will too. and it will not be a curse to her. she will live a wonderful life indeed.

I know I'm really bad at updating this fic and I'm probably butchering the lore at this point (I still have not finished NEO........ I'm planning to do that one day, when the stars align). but I really do want to finish this someday. it's just such a fun and chill universe to write about.

#fic: the syllables melt away

[kylesvariouslistsandstuff]

The First THOR

I was rewatching sections of THOR today, the fourth film in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, released all the way back in 2011. Seems like it was only yesterday. I was barely a year into college, for starters.

Directed by Kenneth Branagh, his only MCU venture, I actually always liked the first THOR a great deal. When THOR: RAGNAROK came out some 6 years later, I remember a lot of people online were very, very quick to throw this film and the much-maligned sequel - 2013's THOR: THE DARK WORLD - out of the way in their praise for Taika Waititi's more kooky-kozmik spin on the character. But then after some time - and a few AVENGERS movie appearances, Thor made one more solo return. Waititi went and directed one more Thor movie, THOR: LOVE AND THUNDER. It came out this past summer, for those of you who may be living under a rock. Unlike RAGNAROK, LOVE AND THUNDER wasn't... So well-liked...

And apparently the first two Thor movies were much better now, because they were "more serious" or whatever. Felt more like fantasy movies. There are those who still like the two Taika movies and have little to no love for the first two Thor tales...

And then there's me... I actually legit really like the first THOR, there are things I quite like about THOR: THE DARK WORLD, a good half of THOR: RAGNAROK was quite awesome to me, and THOR: LOVE AND THUNDER has its moments but feels like a generic MCU movie and not the colorful galactic high fantasy adventure it could've been. It could've been a combination of general MCU fatigue post-AVENGERS: ENDGAME and the apparent lack of time spent on these movies these days. That Kevin Feige and company just had to churn-churn-churn them out to meet the 3-to-4 a year quota in addition to what seems like a gazillion Disney+ Marvel shows...

It's no surprise that following Bob Chapek's ouster from the Disney CEO position this past November (same time as BLACK PANTHER: WAKANDA FOREVER's opening) that there are talks of whittling down Marvel's overall slate. Both movies and TV shows. That's good, especially now that Chapek's aggressive pivot to streaming during and after COVID-19's worst months (see also, how the animated features from Disney Feature and Pixar were handled) is waning. Returning CEO Bob Iger is seemingly laser-focused on theaters again, and surprisingly, less quantity when it comes to the ever-expanding MCU. Not quality over quantity per se, because it's all subjective, but at least not a glut of stuff and more time for the crews to work on these things. Delaying THE MARVELS to this coming November, judging by some shots in that recently-released teaser, seem to indicate that they may be getting back on the right track. Leaks of VFX artists not being treated well and being crunched also help illuminate what's been going on, and now a lot of the world knows... It's not a good look!

The first THOR was made and released during Phase One of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, which of course capped off with THE AVENGERS in May of 2012, which changed the series' whole game and trajectory almost entirely... You could say a particular "house style" came to engulf all the following films, post-AVENGERS: AGE OF ULTRON.

But THOR was made before that, and as such, there's now some newfound admiration for the Phase One movies. They may be a little rough around the edges in their construction and setting up of larger events down the road, but another look reveals films that actually kind of look like *films* (when I rewatched sections of IRON MAN 2 not too long ago, I was struck by how less flat it looked in comparison to something like BLACK WIDOW or SPIDER-MAN: NO WAY HOME) and some even bare the distinctive stamps of their respective directors. They show why we all got into this whole series in the first place.

Branagh brings a big, epic Shakespearean scope to his very golden Asgard, with plenty of Dutch angles to spare. His film, written by Ashley Edward Miller, Zack Stentz, and Don Payne, actually quite embraces the space-fantasy stuff nicely. It doesn't write the weirder things off with that later-era glibness that the series is now known for, it saves the "this is kinda weird!" silliness for the fish-out-of-water sequences set on Earth, where that kind of thing is supposed to work. Even then, the film is quite funny and witty with that, it does not overdo it to the point where you're taken out of this fantasy world meets real world mesh. Told as a classic humility tale with Mjinor written as an Excalibur-type test of worthiness and true strength, there's still an emotional core to Thor and Loki's dynamic, their family, and the world of Asgard around them. I also always dug Thor and Jane Porter's chemistry too, and Thor's relationship with the other major human players.

While THOR doesn't go as far-out with the fantasy/cosmic stuff as it probably should've, it still functions fine as a movie that holds your hand a little bit and carefully steps you into this side of the MCU, after the fairly normal and grounded likes of the two IRON MAN movies and THE INCREDIBLE HULK. Technology and science are largely those films' game, and THOR goes into magic and otherworldly creatures and realms. I usually dislike using this word in any context regarding superhero movies, but there's a "grounded"-ness to THOR that works in its favor. Not in the dull post-DARK KNIGHT sense where everything superhero-y and comic book-y is entirely stripped from the picture, but in a human sense. That even the comically heightened realities of even older superhero films had, ironically. You feel like you're with these humans and are part of this world, more so than many later cosmic MCU movies, where they quickly filmed the things and then quickly CG'ed in all of the stuff that's supposed to be spectacular and wonderful - and served it up with that aforementioned sense of humor that tends to undercut what should be cool and out-there and captivating... While also following this template of sorts that I like to call a hybrid of Joss Whedon's quippy AVENGERS movie stuff and the workmanlike beats of the Russo Brothers' movies. Perhaps the 2016 release CAPTAIN AMERICA: CIVIL WAR, often criticized for its rather blah color scheme and cinematography, solidified all of this going forward. Even films like the BLACK PANTHER standalone adventures and ETERNALS, which feel more director-driven than usual for this franchise, still kind of struggle to get out of this sticky trap.

But something like THOR? Not so much! And it's a refreshing revisit, even in sections. On its own, it's a fine fantasy character in the real world adventure.

#thor #mcu #random #unorganized thoughts

[getmemymicroscope]

No. Just no.

It's not a suspense - not only do they spoil it super early, they also do a miserable job of hiding it before that. You know almost instantly who it is: what they do hide, for a bit, is the "why?" but even that is ruined very quickly. (Though, I guess, "revenge of the artist" as a tagline also sort of gives it away - though they do initially try to hide who the 'artist' actually is.)

And ruined, both of them are, simply because the 'gruesome' they've given us thus far (one man naked and with numerous deep cuts; one man cut in half with organs spewed; one man with organs distributed over a field) is apparently not enough for them - but they also want to re-live everything by showing it again, this time from the point of view of the killer so that they can be even more morbid. It's unnecessary, but more than that, it immediately takes our 'protagonist' (okay, probably not) and makes him not worthy of supporting. And then, all of a sudden, you have no one to care about.

His backstory, revealed through a bad film at the end of the movie, is too late to garner much sympathy, because that's a reality for many people who do not fall to these depths of cruelty. Bollywood's constant obsession with psychological disorders (especially schizophrenia or delusional disorder) in villains is also sorta grating: they're just playing, deeply, into a stereotype that can be pretty harmful. Which is unfortunate.

Even worse, though, is the 'transformation' she undergoes into, eventually, a screaming bean bag. ... Like, I get it, you signed up (willingly) for something crazy risky and refused to back down when offered. But then to go completely insane because your mom was hidden away (for her safety!) and to constantly scream about wanting Danny (even though you'd been told you keep it a secret and just let the event play out) - you've gone through a multi-year pandemic, so how can 1 day without mom and Danny drive you insane? - was not only somewhat inexplicable, but also fucking annoying to hear. Like, you were better than this for the entire movie. And then this nonsense. ... And then, somehow, he picks her up and throws her out the window, across an entire fucking street as if she's a bean bag. What in the what?! (Even more stupid, she only has a cut on the face; later, Sunny Deol makes that same leap and apparently destroys his leg.) Like, he literally throws her as if she's a bag of flour. It's so unbelievable there.

In fact, that whole scene - from the moment she starts yelling, through the bean bag toss, and all the way until Sunny Deol fucking finally looks in the room (and then leaps out of the window and across the fucking street) - is an absolute mess of a sequence in an otherwise pretty well-constructed story (I have issues with the way it plays out, yes, but it's well constructed despite those issues).

Even at the end, the Guru Dutt connection is very flimsy; his reasons for acting now are unexplained; and Pooja Bhatt's character, in the role she has and with her given specialty, not knowing who Guru Dutt is is insane; and her final proclamation that "the pain makes the artist" (paraphrased) is ridiculous. And, even if that were true (it's not), that doesn't justify everything we've just seen him do.

This felt like a movie made by someone who had gotten a movie badly reviewed by critics and he was just acting out on internal wishes/anger. Worse yet was that they made it so clear who was guilty and then, in spite of this, had to still reveal everything early just so they could glorify the morbid. Of course, it's not like there were many other options for the "who" anyways: half the people are critics themselves, her mother is blind, and Sunny Deol is the cop. No one else really gets any significant screen-time.

I read a review somewhere the decried the movie for giving the serial killer a 'flimsy' reason to act - and while I do question 'why now,' I disagree with that part of it. There's too many 'larger than life' villains who want to take over the world or destroy all of humanity or end everything. Seeing someone with a slightly simpler/narrower focus is not a bad thing - that's one thing the movie does well.

Of course, what he fails to realize is that everyone has different opinions of movies. Not everyone will like or hate the same films, or even if they do, not for the same reasons. Critics are, yes, overblown in their power - especially since they're seemingly so aghast with any sort of comedy or masala film or anything that isn't uber-serious ... but the simple response is to just ignore them. There's some types of movies that they can be listened to about, I'm sure (I just haven't found that yet), but, in general, they're best left ignored.

Maybe it's because I had heard/read some good things online, but I'm pretty disappointed with how this non-suspense movie turned out.

#movies #gmmm does bollywood #movieblr #gmmm does movies