#but out of character it was the most hilarious thing i've ever done 10/10 would do again

[boomerang109]

just pulled off the greatest fucking scam in dnd

so, party needed horses, i (a druid) cast conjure animals which conjures 8 horses. our party of 6 only needed 6 horses. because we’re idiots, one of my other party members had stolen a horse from a stable so i went to that same place knocked on the door and went “hey i’m selling these two horses, would you like some horses” they were like “omg we just lost a horses, you’re selling horses?!” and i was like “yeah! replace your lost horse with two new ones!” and then i got those people to pay me for two horses, which disappeared one hour later--long, long after my party was gone from town

new get rich scheme: conjure animals and sell them, then leave town before the conjured animals disappear

#to be fair i only made 10 gold off it because my character lowkey felt bad #(since we were not only stealing a whole fucking horse but then conning them out of more money) #but out of character it was the most hilarious thing i've ever done 10/10 would do again #my party has somehow become a band of petty criminals--before i joined they set the ENTIRE TOWN ablaze. we beat up a bunch of guards. #obviously there's an unnecessary amount of stealing shit. oh when we broke into the mayors house one guy just went ham destroying ALL the #vases before we burned the house down when we left #i feel like we've committed more petty crimes but i can't remember #but yeah we committed all those petty crimes without actually killing anyone cause we were trying to be somewhat peaceful #(that's now no longer true because we were attacked by goblins and lost our shit ajghdsg) #(one party member literally like DISINTEGRATED a goblin out of existence) #but yeah it's been lots of fun #also if this post somehow is seen by any of my party members/irls NO IT IS NOT #i would literally cry if my tumblr got found by my irls but also i wanted to share about this scam cause it was so fun #also cause my dm did a cut scene of the guy in the stable one hour later brushing the horses and then the horses just phased out of #existence and he just went ahhhhhhhh #life of a boomerang

[juneviews]

1st quarter of 2024 shows ranked

n° of shows watched from january 1st to march 31st: 13

1. analog squad: 9/10

I deeply regret not watching this one in 2023 when it was released bc it would've been my number one favorite show of that year ;_; it's such an original and touching show with one of my favorite tropes (found family) and some of the best characters I've ever seen. definitely already an all-time favorite and a comfort show for years to come <3

2. cooking crush: 8,5/10

y'all know how much I love offgun, and while this was no not me or theory of love, this show really brought me back to my early days of watching thai dramas and freaking out over any cute interaction on my screen & I love it for that! while this show has a lot of flaws, most of them are easily forgettable when faced with such great characters & one of the cutest relationships ever! I truly thought offgun's chemistry had reached its peak in not me but I was wrong, these two never cease to amaze me they really can play any role to perfection <3

3. ready set love: 8,5/10

this show really surprised with how pretty much flawless its execution is! it's hilarious but also deals with very deep & interesting topics well, and day might be one of my favorite female leads ever! a super solid show that is honestly gonna become a classic for me, I can feel it :)

4. love for love's sake: 8,5/10

this was a super sweet show that's very well done, I was dubitative of the plot at first but it really managed to pull me in & make it worth my while! one of the best kbls out there :)

5. the believers: 8,5/10

this is definitely one of the most innovative thai shows out there, dealing with a topic (religion) that I didn't think anyone would dare touch. the story had me hooked all 9 episodes & the acting performances were amazing, however I have to say this didn't pack as much of a punch as I expected it would. it's a very good show, but it stays a little surface level & doesn't explore its characters enough for me...

6. sing my crush: 7,5/10

this was very much adorable, however two things bothered me: 1) I didn't like the time jump from ep 1 to ep 2, I wish we could've seen the friendship between the characters developed more, and 2) I feel like them not revealing their feelings for each other felt a little forced & random. apart from that it's a very cute show!

7. intern in my heart: 7,5/10

this was a really enjoyable romantic comedy that I had a lot of fun in front of :) is it much more than that? not really. pretty basic but with charismatic performances that carried the show well!

8. perfect propose: 7,5/10

really sweet show that I wish was more developed & gave me more, but a good time nonetheless!

9. sukiyanen kedo do yaro ka: 7/10

this show got me, lost me then got me once again lol. I thought the chemistry for an established relationship was some of the best for a jbl, and the story was simple but endearing. but tbh something was kinda lacking for me, which made this ultimately very forgettable imo.

10. the outing: 7/10

I was SO looking forward to this show without much expectation but it still managed to disappoint me lol. the acting was very solid but there's too many characters that get introduced too late & I failed to really understand what the point or purpose of the show was. it seems to me as if this show took all of the worst points from remember 15 (the sex, the chaos, the betrayals & annoying characters), without the substance that remember 15 actually had. it's not a terrible show, and I was intrigued during it, but tbh it could've been so so much better.

11. love class season 2: 7/10

this had some of the strongest and most interesting ships I've seen in a kbl, however the writing & execution of the show was very frustrating. early on the characters barely get introduced & we struggle to understand how they're all linked together, leading to a lot of confusion on my part. it's sad bc it had a very solid story but bad execution imo :(

12. chaser game w: power harassment: 7/10

this had me very excited but sadly didn't deliver at all for me. the story is kinda all over the place & while the chemistry was really good and it's important to have japanese characters clearly labeled as lesbians, I found the acting kinda over the top as well... but it's a start for gl I guess 🥲

13. sahara sensei to toki-kun: 6/10

this is the kind of show that I managed to watch until the end... for whatever reason. but the age gap icked me out & I found that the main ship didn't have much chemistry. overall this story is very empty & didn't add anything for me, but I really liked the character of toki & would've loved to see him in a better show & ship.

#bypiningbisexuals #thought I'd try something new since my reviews have been kinda abandoned #cooking crush #ready set love #analog squad #love for love's sake #sing my crush #intern in my heart #perfect propose #sukiyanen kedo do yaro ka #the outing the series #love class 2 #chaser game w #sahara sensei to toki kun #the believers #the believers netflix

[irish-urn]

For the ask game:

001 - Dasey

002 - Derek and Casey

Dasey:

when I started shipping it if I did: Oh, boy. That's a question, now isn't it? I low-key shipped them when I first found Dasey fanfiction waaaaaaay back in my undergrad (so, like 10-12 years ago?). But it was super low-key. I got BACK into Dasey majorly in the spring of 2021 and stumbled upon fanvids and fanfiction of them AGAIN and because I was laid up health-wise, I got obsessed.

my thoughts: I have a LOT of thoughts about Dasey???? I think they're fascinating characters and I adore them both as individuals and as a couple. I think their physical comedy (and by that I mean they're complete lack of personal space) is hilarious; and I think they have insane chemistry. I think Derek knows Casey better than anyone, and Casey gets Derek better than anyone; and I think they're both stupid and stubborn enough to never acknowledge that. I think they're far more alike than they are different, and I think I need to continue my rewatch of the show because I'm gonna end up writing an essay about them.

What makes me happy about them: I think it's how good of a team they can be. I've always been a BIG friends-to-lovers shipper, but even more than that, a "we're partners and i've got your back" shipper. And even though Derek and Casey TRY to pretend to they hate each other, we have sooooo much evidence of them being protective of the other, of them going out of their way to help the other (usually complaining the whole time, but c'mon), and of them kicking serious butt when they do work together. It just makes something inside me purr.

What makes me sad about them: THEY'RE KIDS IN AN AWFUL SITUATION and they don't FEEL like family, but everything in their lives are telling them they're supposed to be; but they CAN'T be, and if they TRY to be together, they might hurt their FAMILIES who they LOVE so MUCH; and I think you catch my drift.

things done in fanfic that annoys me: ...I really hate OOC-ness, but the MOST OOC-ness I hate is when people make Derek to be, like, abusive? Or completely inconsiderate of Casey's boundaries, and you get into non-con. I just... Nope.

things I look for in fanfic: EXCELLENT CHARACTERIZATION. Good bantering, that push-and-pull that they both have... I also think they have at least mildly kinky sex, and I support this.

Who I’d be comfortable them ending up with, if not each other: Well, all of Casey's boyfriends SUCK except for Sam who is an excellent person but not good for her. And I'm pretty sure her husband in LWL isn't doing a good job either. So they'd have to create a WHOLE NEW CHARACTER for her--

I don't mind Derek/Sally, except I think they'd have to work things out as adults better. I dunno; the show purposely shows us that Derek and Casey are far more important to each other than any of their significant others (that's been stated by the creators, btw), so yeah. No one.

My happily ever after for them: THEY GET TOGETHER AND THE FAMILY ACCEPTS THEM AND THEY STAY TOGETHER FOR, LIKE, 60+ YEARS AND BICKER AND BANTER AND LOVE EACH OTHER THE WHOLE TIME and whether or not they have kids depends completely on their choices and Derek calms Casey's panic attacks, and Casey reminds Derek of his worth, and I cry.

who is the big spoon/little spoon: THEY. SWITCH. I think most of the time Derek is the big spoon because he's kinda sexist, no lie, but I think when he's having a bad day, he likes getting spooned. Casey likes being held, but she also likes holding him. So, uh... 80% of the time Derek is the big spoon.

what is their favorite non-sexual activity: Honestly, I think it's arguing. But in, like, a fun way? With bets and competition and teasing and flirting; I strongly believe that they would just have a lot of small arguments and that would keep the big fights small too. And Casey likes debating and Derek likes challenges.

Derek:

How I feel about this character: MY BLORBO???? I LOVE HIM??? HE'S SUCH A LITTLE SHIT; I ADORE HIM???

All the people I ship romantically with this character: Well. Casey, obviously. And to a certain extent, Sally.

My non-romantic OTP for this character: ...Derek&Lizzie. I know, I KNOW that Derek & Marti are like, gold, but I think his interactions with Lizzie are superb.

My unpopular opinion about this character: ...do I have one? I dunno. I have a lot of opinions about his relationship with his parents, but I wouldn't call them unpopular, more... me looking at things differently than some others do.

One thing I wish would happen / had happened with this character in canon: I wish, in LWL, people (Genora) recognized how much he had grown. Just because a person likes to have fun and tease and passes off some of his responsibilities to people he knows will do them (see: Skyler and Casey, but they also ENJOY doing these tasks most of the time), doesn't make him immature. He was SUCH a good dad and was taking steps to improve Skyler's life, and maybe their lives weren't traditional, but she was healthy and loved and appreciated and he had raised her as best he could; and honestly, his relationship with Skyler was much better than his with George, I'm just saying. Derek is clever with a large heart, and I wish people in the show saw that more.

my OTP: ...Dasey.

my cross over ship: I don't like crossovers? *shrugs*

a headcanon fact: Derek is a dork. He's a big ol' dork. I HC that he knows an awful lot about very certain things because he gets hyperfixated -- reword: Derek has undiagnosed ADHD. There. That's my fact.

#ask game #life with derek #dasey #derek venturi

[mychoombatheroomba]

Things I Love About the Shitty Live Action Resident Evil Movies

So, it was my birthday recently and my roommates asked if I wanted to do anything fun. My response, of course, was to suggest getting drunk and watching the live action Resident Evil movies and like, damn, I love those stupid ass movies so much. So I wanted to make a really dumb (and lengthy) post about the goofy things I like, whether for legit or meme reasons.

Y'all, I know they're bad, that is, in fact, why I love them.

1 - The opening is genuinely kinda freaky, like, the elevator scene? Oof, well done suspense

2 - Michelle Rodriguez. That's it, that's the post.

3- The LASER ROOM - so iconic they used it in the games. The first movie came out in 2002, RE4 then used the laser room in 2005, like, y'all, they took that from the goddamn movie, that's how much of a vibe it was

(And honestly, just the Red Queen in general, what an absolute icon, love that her appearance changes in every movie she's in)

4 - Alice is the most fanfic Mary Sue character I've perhaps ever seen on-screen, and I love that for her. Look at her kicking this zombie dog in the face, it's hilarious

5 - Pretty game-accurate costuming? I can dig it

6 - They're gay, your honor

7 - Bad CGI on the Licker, I would expect nothing less

8 - Alice is at her most powerful when she finds a white bathrobe just lying around somewhere

9 - Raccoon City gets destroyed in the course of, like, a day if I'm understanding the timeline right. Like, first infection to nuking the city seems to be about 24 hours. Incredible.

10 - Leon fucking wishes he was Alice, miss ma'am out here driving motorcycles into buildings and then launching them at a monster just to shoot it and blow it up.

(Special mention for another "they're gay, your honor"

11 - You'd think the kid they have to rescue from Raccoon City is Sherry, wouldn't you? An Umbrella scientist's daughter who the gang have to save? NOPE it's Angela Ashford. Not to be confused with the game's Alexia Ashford. Is it an easter egg? A botched cameo? IDK bro, you think they know the lore?

12 - "GTA MOTHERFUCKER" - LJ, before running over a zombie

13 - THEY GAVE NEMESIS A REDEMPTION ARC??? Incredible (not before making him and Alice fist-fight each other)

14 - Keeping with RE tradition, the helicopter almost always crashes.

15 - They just decided, fuck it, let's give Alice superpowers. Also the stupid Umbrella eyes, literally whenever they come up.

16 - The third movie is just Mad Max and Fallout: New Vegas merged together. Also the way they say the whole earth withered and died but later movies very clearly show flora still alive

17 - Why is Jorah Mormont from Game of Thrones here? WHY IS JOHNNY CAGE FROM MORTAL KOMBAT 1995 HERE???

Also why does Wesker look a little like Eminem to me in the third movie?

18 - The amount of just, like, "hey, this monster/character was in the games, let's just put them in the movie anywhere!"

19 - Carlos gets one of the only satisfying death scenes for a named character from the games. And by that I mean he gets one of the only on-screen death scenes for a named character from the games. Slay, king.

20 - Why does the Tyrant look like that?

21 - The army of Alice clones were blonde originally, but all went out and dyed their hair together between movies and I think that's cute.

22 - The timeline is so fucked up, I don't think they even knew how long was supposed to pass between the movies

23 - The way they shoehorned Chris in so bad that, as a kid, I thought he had no importance and they just wanted to give Claire a character to help her with her amnesia (also, Claire having amnesia). The Redfields do get to shoot the shit out of Wesker at the end though, good for them.

24 - THEY'RE GAY, YOUR HONOR

25 - The Executioner from RE5 just like, is in Los Angeles for some reason?

26 - This shot of Wesker.

27 - Wesker takes Alice's powers away in the beginning of the 4th movie, then at the end of the 5th movie he reinfects her with the T-Virus so she can be a superhuman again and just like, bud, you're wildin'. Also it's mentioned in the 3rd movie that Alice's blood could be the cure, and that she could synthesize it once the Tyrant is dealt with? But she doesn't? She just takes the clones of her in the facility instead of using the equipment to make a cure? I know they cure it in the last movie but like, girlie, you could have tried earlier idk. Fascinating.

28 - The opening credits scene for the 5th movie is actually pretty cool

29 - The rest of the fifth movie . . . whatever those writers were smoking, I want some. I know there's literally an Umbrella base in Antarctica in the game but like, idk, having an underwater base where you have multiple city simulations running for BOW production is so funny to me. They've got clones of Carlos and the whole team from the first movie, a random child Alice adopts, Las Plagas lads on motorcycles, more Executioners, Barry (oh, hi Barry!) and damn I love every terrible minute of it.

30 - "The Leon you ordered from AliExpress"

31 - Li Bingbing as Ada, my beloved

32 - Whatever the hell this fight scene is (I am obsessed with it). The sapphic energy of Jill v Alice. Las Plagas giving you instant superpowers. Michelle Rodriguez beating the shit out of Leon Kennedy (mans draws his knife and immediately gets disarmed, Krauser would be so disappointed). Ada just snoozing in the snow the whole time. Cinema.

The music kinda slaps though.

The second half of this where Michelle gets clocked in the face with a fire extinguisher and just looks offended? Immaculate.

33 - Wesker saying that he, Alice, Jill, Leon and Ada are the last hope for humanity from the roof of the White House. What a team.

34 - AND THEN LEON, ADA AND JILL FUCKING DIE OFF SCREEN BETWEEN MOVIES ARE YOU KIDDING ME???? Peak writing right there.

35 - I have never seen the Final Chapter, but I do know that Claire is the only (known) surviving original RE character. Chris is MIA and everyone else is dead. The lesbians win again.

36 - Also there's a character named K-Mart. No notes.

37 - WESKER GETS KILLED BY A DOOR LMFAO

I cannot say I would recommend these movies without the consumption of alcohol involved. Once that's in the mix? They're a great time.

#Youtube #resident evil #resident evil live action movies #they're like an acid trip

[not-poignant]

Hi Pia!

Do you have any advice on how to hook readers? Like how so you decide on what sentence or subject or scene to start with at the beginning of a story that will encourage readers to continue?

I've told multiple different things by people, like to start in the middle of the action or with dialogue, but I'm still not sure and have no idea what I'm doing 😆

Hi anon,

Hilariously I have been told that my beginnings aren't always very good so you should really take this all with a grain of salt, lol. Go beneath the 'read more' if you want to just get some actual practiceable advice that you can start doing immediately to get better at beginnings.

Generally speaking, starting in the middle of the action scene or with dialogue is a distillation of something deeper and simpler:

Most authors start the story too early, because they need more exposition than the reader does, because they're learning the world and the characters and often have to learn it by writing them. This means that by the time they get to the good stuff, in many cases, they are 5-10 chapters in, and you can often safely drop all of those chapters, and other readers would have zero problems understanding the story, because the author has basically told themselves the story of those characters etc. and set up the major action.

This is especially true of authors who are learning to write, and still learning to feel out a story. And anon, you can't always shortcut this even if you do start in the middle of an action scene or in the middle of a dialogue scene. Sometimes you've just got to take it with grace when you hand a manuscript to a beta and they say 'cut the first 10 chapters, it's stronger without them.' I've had to do this to friends, and I've had this done re: my own writing.

The Ice Plague initially started - before I ever put it up - with Olphix going into the Aur forest and setting it on fire. That's a very strong, traumatising, major scene! No one can deny that's not starting with an action scene of great gravity. But it just wasn't the right place to start. I realised something was wrong and took a long hiatus, and then it came to me that it was more important narratively for the reader not to understand where Mosk's grief came from or what had happened to him.

The story had to start with Eran, and it had to start 9 months after that action scene, and if I had started The Ice Plague with my initial idea, I would have had to cut around 15 unnecessary chapters to get to the good bit, lol. (I do actually think The Ice Plague has a strong beginning). Mosk's history had to be mysterious and something that got revealed over time, in the same way that it was revealed over time. And I couldn't learn that until I started writing the story.

Sometimes, anon, you can know all the technical things about why some stories are stronger if they start in an action scene or with dialogue (some are weaker for it), but the only way you can really get through it is via...writing the story.

(Actual practical advice beneath the start plus a whole bunch of opening sentences).

Re: A hooky start, for myself, I want to start with an interesting first sentence. Something that interests me, lol, but something that I think would be interesting if someone else read it too.

I actually think the opening sentence of Stuck on the Puzzle is terrible, lmao. But I think the opening chapter is great. Anyway, here's a list of some of my opening sentences and you can decide or think about what you like about them, what you don't like, and if any of them prompts you to read further. Think about why, as well. What was it? What bit did you want to know more about:

Cateline described Grimglass as the ‘ass end of Corambis,’ and certainly while the heavy clouds hung over the sea like a pall, I could see what she meant.

Connor stared intently at the computer as it booted up, looked around the otherwise dark room, and then up to the security cameras he'd disabled. (This is not a very strong opening sentence, I think the whole paragraph is better lol).

Alex liked that they were both, in a way, failures.

In high school, Alex used to imagine forcing Sebastian to give him blowjobs. 

Red galaxies fired beneath Efnisien’s eyelids. (This one is also stronger in the whole paragraph imho).

The An-Fnwy estate was just as grand and imposing as Augus Each Uisge had imagined when he was an underfae teenager, living in a lake nearby.

When the Oak King proclaimed the new fae era, the ‘Season of Turning,’ we all assumed it would be a time of positive change, of growth. (Blah, the ORIGINAL first sentence was from the start of the next chapter).

Augus Each Uisge, predatory waterhorse, Unseelie fae, was bored.

Jack shifted uncomfortably in his ceremonial soldier’s uniform.

The magic around Eran’s wrist throbbed, the beetle-black ink of the months-old tattoo sinking deeper into his flesh.

Gwyn stood, embarrassed, in his wrestling gear.

Efnisien had forty four books in his plain grey melamine bookshelf.

The sun was bright red on the horizon, looking more like a bomb, the smell of smoke acrid in the back of Faber’s nose.

‘I hear they want to promote you to nursery manager,’ a voice said smoothly. ‘What a coup indeed.’

Almost eight months had passed, the next time Gwyn saw Augus.

-

Generally speaking I like to establish mood quickly, particularly embarrassment, discomfort, boredom, or the kind of emotion that you want to see resolved. These folks all have big and small problems they need fixing, and with very few exceptions, I want people to know that immediately, so that they'll...ideally stick around and watch the problems get fixed (or get worse lol). I also start strongly with character, rather than just...detached setting description.

That works for me, it might be different for you! Go find all your favourite books and read their opening sentences and paragraphs, do some research anon. Stop listening to friends (and ChatGPT written articles on how to write because there's so many now x.x) who say 'start in dialogue' or 'start in action' and do the research that teaches you why people say stuff like this and why it's also not always right. Don't even listen to me - I don't always write strong beginnings and I'm very open about that - go get 10 books, 20 books, 50 books, and write down their first sentences or paragraphs in a word document or in Google Docs and study them.

Which ones do you love? Which do you find boring? Which do you remember thinking 'ehhh maybe it gets better.' Notice and actively look for the things that hook you and the things that don't. How many start with dialogue? Or action? How many start with emotion, or description? How many are starting with setting, character, something else?

Try practicing writing sentences like this, or imagining openings like this for your own works. Learn by doing. How would you change the openings by genre? How would you change the voice by character? Alex's opening sentences are very strongly in his voice. Meanwhile Mosk's voice in Smoke in Autumn is non-existent, we literally start with Augus' dialogue dominating and intruding upon his mind and thoughts.

And then realise sometimes you still have to write 10 chapters that you might need to cut (hey bonus content that readers will want to devour one day! Make sure you save it :D ), to find the right place to start your story. It sucks, but it happens. I've been through this with Mallory & Mount and only now after like over a year have I figured out exactly where I have to start that damned story, and I finally have my opening sentence, which is:

The guard looked at Lewis Mount like the murderer he was.

And I love that opening sentence :D I'm biased, but I think it's very hooky.

Writing beginnings and endings is a craft, but you'll learn with practice! And you'll learn a lot via research. Thankfully, you probably like reading, which means you can start researching literally right now.

The best way to learn what you're doing is to learn from the people who have already done it successfully. This is sometimes famous writers, but just as often it's looking at what your favourite writers are doing. Chances are you maybe want to write a little bit like them, so go study their opening sentences! Maybe they don't have strengths in that, but I bet some of them do.

And from there you can study opening paragraphs, opening chapters. You can feel out the ones you wanted to skip, the ones you'd read again and again, the ones you love, the ones you didn't feel anything over. :D

Anyway I think this is probably a pretty good place to start! The folks giving you advice have the right idea, it's just good to understand why it's the right idea. The best way to get to that is to just...research openings of books for yourself and decide what you like, what you'd like to write like, and then trying it out for yourself :D

#asks and answers #pia on writing #dodgy advice #i have definitely gotten better at openings #the opening for the nascent diplomat made me laugh #it's so bad #administrator gwyn wants this in the queue

[scattered-winter]

ao3 wrapped !!

I've seen a few people doing this and thought I'd jump on the train lmao

1: how many words have you written this year?

uh. um. 319,614 lmfaooo

2: how many works did you publish this year?

just 5!! it's been a slow posting year but I have a LOT of WIPs I was working on in the meantime lmao

3: what work are you most proud of, regardless of kudos/hits?

bound like quintenary stars, without a doubt. it's the largest scale project I've ever done, and it's really forced me to grow as a writer

4: what work of yours has the most hits?

hold onto me has over 15k hits which is still WILD to me lmfao. if only i could write an update to that thang. and if we're talking just this year, then it's buckley siblings and their terrible, awful, no good very bad first dates at almost 3k

5: favorite title you used?

DEFINITELY buckley siblings and their terrible, awful, no good very bad first dates. i read that book as a kid and i think i'm hilarious

6: what artist have you pulled lyrics from the most:

probably bastille. tbh

7: pairing that you wrote the most for this year:

buddie LMAO. of the 5 fics i posted this year, 3 of them are buddie. I'm not counting quintenary stars in this because as of right now it's still mostly genfic and the romance won't come in until much further down the line

8: favorite pairing you wrote for this year:

only a few people know this but I wrote a LOT of adashi. I'm working on a side piece for quintenary stars that focuses on them pre-kerberos, and there are also a handful of adashi-adjacent aus i've been working on including leverage, agents of shield, and rwby. i'm obsessed with them lowkey

9: what work was the quickest to write?

walking out into the dark, cutting out a different path, led by a beating heart was uh. well. i wrote it in a matter of hours in a haze of mental illness in between the promo for 911 s6e11 and the actual episode dropping later that night. for those of you who don't have the context, a character got struck by lightning and subsequently was lingering on the threshold of death in episode 10, and when the promo for 11 dropped we realized there was going to be a coma dream episode in which the character would experience what should have been his Perfect Life but without all the things that led him to where he was, he never would have had an impact on his friends and family, and there would have been disastrous consequences. I distinctly remember skipping out on an entire day of classes because I was writing this fic LMFAO. and to this day I'm still very proud of it. incredible things come from sheer insanity it seems

10: what work took you longest to write?

seeing as quintenary stars is still ongoing, I'll say you're such a heavenly view. i had just watched prince caspian (again) and was feeling insane (as per usual) but it still took FOREVER to get this thang finished </3

11: what's your longest fic of the year?

quintenary stars is currently sitting pretty on 221,491, making it my longest piece of writing ever. which is pretty cool and also kinda scary because bro. bro i have no idea where these words are coming from

12: what's your shortest fic of the year?

buckley siblings !! it was short and sweet. angst and whump. u guys know what i like

13: favorite character you wrote this year?

oogh...i LOVED writing peter's pov in you're such a heavenly view. i actually would love to write more narnia fic someday. and i also love writing in pidge's pov in quintenary stars she is LITERALLY just like me fr

14: what's one pairing you want to explore more next year?

HEITH. i'm not putting them in quintenary stars but BOY do i want to explore their dynamic. and i am also always down for more caspeter

15: how many kudos in total did you get this year?

579!!

16: which work has the most comments?

quintenary stars! which statistically makes sense to me because it's a multichapter and the others this year are oneshots. but the fic that has the most comments overall is hold onto me

17: did you do any collaborative works this year?

nothing posted on ao3, but there was a lot of collaboration going on behind the scenes! the voltron leverage au in particular is a pretty elaborate project @frigidboy and i are working on together, and he's also been my soundboard for a lot of quintenary stars stuff. I've also been collaborating with various members of The Groupchat (@dauntingday, @soleadita, @xandromedan, @moonlightperseus) on various ongoing projects and aus including but not limited to some rwby aus with day, red and 13 stuff with leo, COUNTLESS aus, ocs, and wips with mads, and some leverage stuff with abby. I've also made some zombie apocalypse ocs with @0xy--m0r0n. and there are probably more things I've collabed with people on but I FORGOR </3

18: what's your most common category?

gen and m/m !! I tend to lean more gen with just a touch of romance most of the time, but more often than not my oneshots will be more explicitly romance

19: what do you listen to while writing?

it varies, but most of the time it will be some kind of orchestral/instrumental music. I have a list of favorite compilations on youtube from hans zimmer and some other favorites that I rotate through, and I also have some playlists on spotify for when I'm not as picky. it also depends on what I'm writing at the time: if I'm writing quintenary stars, I will usually go straight to the voltron soundtrack (or other space sci fi like interstellar or gravity) just because I need a specific vibe. and if I'm writing a battle scene, sometimes I'll pull up another tab and put some space battle ambience over the music, too

20: favorite line/passage you wrote this year?

oh god there are SO many favorites. but probably in the coma dream buck fic (walking out into the dark) when I used imagery to draw a connection to the Shooting Scene. like of all the literary things I've pulled over the years I think that one is hands down my favorite

"Shit's crazy here, man," Danny said as he stepped up to the sink beside Evan. "Did you know there was a sniper a few months ago? Some crazy cop was shooting firefighters out in the streets." A chill ran down Evan's spine, coldness settling in the bottom of his gut. Danny turned on the faucet. Water splashed in the bottom of the sink, flung up and out.  Droplets splattered across Evan's face. "Damn," Evan murmured, raising a shaking hand to wipe it away. "Was anyone killed?" "One was," Danny said offhandedly. "He got shot right after a call, middle of the street. Nobody even saw it coming.” Evan was shaking, all over his body. Danny just kept going, like he didn’t even notice. “His team was trapped by the sniper and by the time they got him pulled out, it was too late.” Stay there! I’m coming to you! “The news said his name was Diaz. Eddie Diaz." Evan dropped the plate he was holding. Shards of ceramic flew in every direction, pinpricks of pain prickling at his legs and bare feet. Gunshot in the street. Blood splattered on his face. Asphalt against his cheek. Are you hurt? "Evan?" Danny was looking at him, brows furrowed together. "Are you okay?" Evan swallowed, took in a shaky breath, nodded. He bent and began to gently gather the broken shards in his palm, but something made him pause. "Huh." "What?" Danny was looking at him like he was crazy. "I'm not bleeding." And he wasn't. His legs and feet were untouched; smooth, unmarred skin where only seconds before, he'd been so certain he'd felt cuts. "That's weird," Danny said, before shoving a broom in Evan's hands. "Your mess, your job. You get to finish the dishes."

overall that whole fic was just. probably some of my best work I think. I'm so proud of it fr

21: biggest surprise while writing this year?

i was NOT expecting quintenary stars to get as much engagement as it's been getting!! i feel like everyone's kinda trying to forget voltron ever existed (understandable) so i didn't think there would be much of an audience for it. but there is!!! and i love you guys!!!!!

TAGGING IF U WANNA DO THIS TOO: ppl i've already tagged above, plus @scorchedhearth, @ anyone else who wants to do it !! I'm so sorry I am totally blanking on mutuals/followers/friends who are also writers so if u see this and want to, consider urself tagged !!

#i didnt realize how much i'd written this year until i went through my docs lmao #i was just thinking of the 5 fics ive posted and was feeling kinda bad because i didnt post a lot but damn. i have written a LOT. #anyway this was fun <33 #winter speaks #ao3 wrapped #tag games

[wondereads]

Personal Review (05/29/22)

Howl's Moving Castle by Diana Wynne Jones

Why am I reviewing this book?

This is one of my favorite books in the world, and I was just waiting for a chance to reread and review it. It is very different from the movie, so I suggest everybody read it!

Plot 1  2  3  4  5  6  7  8  9  10

Sophie, as the oldest of three sisters, has always known that she would fail miserably if she ever went out to seek her fortune. However, when she offends the Witch of the Waste and is transformed into an elderly woman, she sets off on an adventure of her own, one that includes overdramatic wizards, fire demons, and perhaps a little bit of true love.

Compared to the fast-paced, high-action fantasy novels being published today, Howl's Moving Castle can seem meandering. However, a key factor of Diana Wynne Jones' books is knowing exactly what the problem is from the get-go and then spending the rest of the book avoiding that problem until it gets too big to ignore. While the first read-through may seem a little weird in its pacing, this book has some of the highest reread value ever. Every time you go back, you will notice little hints, little bits of character work that were hidden the first time around. It all comes together to make a story that might veer of course but never gets boring.

Despite there being no hard worldbuilding really, it's very easy to follow the magic rules of Ingary. It's all the rules of fairy tales and fables brought together, the ones we're intimately familiar with from a young age, to make a system that is simultaneously simple for the reader and absolutely chaotic. Speaking of chaos, the climax of Howl's Moving Castle is one of the most chaotic I've ever read with almost every character of importance being literally shoved into a tiny space and forced to deal with each other. It also provides a lot of ways for Howl's curse to be snuck in there and resolve everything.

Characters 1  2  3  4  5  6  7  8  9  10

The characters of Howl's Moving Castle are some of the most unique I've ever read and will always be among my favorites. Starting with Sophie, she starts off very timid and self-deprecating, but becoming an old woman allows her the freedom to speak her mind and do what she wants. While aging sixty years isn't ideal, it's abundantly clear that had Sophie not been cursed she would never have been able to move past the societal structures that were keeping her from living her life. As an old woman, Sophie has no issues with barging into an evil wizard's home to become his housekeeper while she certainly would never have done it while she was young. The way Sophie comes to love herself is one of the most beautiful character arcs I've ever read.

Howl is a whiny, overdramatic, flamboyant wizard at the beginning of the book, and by the end, he's exactly that only a little better. Howl has to learn to be honest and have a bit of bravery every once in a while, but it doesn't permanently alter his personality. He's still the Howl the readers have fallen in love with. Oh, it must be mentioned that he's just a dude from Wales who used to play rugby, which is absolutely hilarious.

As for Howl and Sophie together, something to note is that outside of their romance they are foils to each other at the beginning of the book. Sophie prioritizes everyone else over herself while Howl prioritizes himself over everyone else, and by the end of the book, they have taught each other that neither extreme is good or healthy. Then, of course, they have one of the funniest, sweetest romances ever. Their incessant bickering is reminiscent of an old, married couple, and while they care for each other in very small but important ways. Also, Sophie is very good at pinning Howl down, who, as we all know, is very good at slithering out of things.

The side characters are all wonderful as well. There's Michael, Howl's young, teenaged apprentice who often gets dragged into Sophie's schemes, and Martha and Lettie, Sophie's younger sisters. The sisters have their own story going on where they swap places with a disguise spell, and despite the rules of fairy tales, they love each other and Sophie very much. There's a lot of emphasis placed on family whether it's the blood between Sophie, Lettie, and Martha or the motherly affection Sophie has for Michael.

Writing Style 1  2  3  4  5  6  7  8  9  10

Oh, Diana Wynne Jones' writing style. I love it so much that my own writing mimics it. The way she has that wonderful, matter-of-fact, humorous tone while still immersing the reader completely within the whimsical magic of her world—it's more than any reader could hope for. There's a lot of genuine humor in this book; even after rereading it for the umpteenth time, there are always parts that make me snort. Her writing fits her stories and settings very well, which only serves to enhance the experience.

I will admit that, as I said before, the pacing might feel a little off the first go-round. After all, it seems like nothing happens for quite a while after Sophie meets Howl, but things are happening! Pay attention, and enjoy finding the hints in your reread.

Overall 1  2  3  4  5  6  7  8  9  10

What, did you expect something else? I will be promoting this book until the day I die, and then you can expect me to talk off anyone's ears in the afterlife. The story is unique and fun, the characters are lovable and well-developed, and the writing style is perfect for the situation. Howl's Moving Castle means so much to me. I strive for fair reviews, where I can point out the flaws, even in the books I love, but I can't bring myself to say anything bad about this book. If you haven't read it, go read it; you won't regret it.

The Author

Diana Wynne Jones: passed away at 76 in 2011, also wrote The Chronicles of Chrestomanci, The Merlin Conspiracy, and the Dalemark Quartet

The Reviewer

My name is Wonderose; I try to post a review every two weeks, sometimes once a week, usually over vacations. I take recommendations! Check out my about me post for more!

#books #reviews #howl’s moving castle #diana wynne jones #fantasy #young reader #ya #sophie hatter #howl pendragon

[florafound]

knowing your partner well can potentially make writing together a lot easier. ( repost do not reblog ! )

✿ name:  rook ✿ PRONOUNS:    he/they ✿ preference of communication:  discord is honestly easiest, please ask for it. ims are good but they can be lost sometimes bc tunglr's bs ✿ name of muse(s):  Birth name is Sophie Poole, but known as Kit.

✿ EXPERIENCE/HOW LONG (MONTHS / YEARS?):    i've been on tumblr for over 10 years now so....jesus uh....awhile. Quite awhile. I'm thinking I started in middle school so like...16+ years now.

✿ PLATFORMS YOU’VE USED:   i've been on tunglr for 10 years now as i said - and wow holy shit that's....wild. Because it feels like yesterday I was on my other websites -- I also used dreamwidth, some livejournal forums, gaiaonline and my start was with neopets forums.

✿ best experience: i've had so many wonderful experiences roleplaying. it's a great chance to meet and greet with other people. i've found so many good friends who put up with my shit so often. but shout out to meeting @badassxbirdy 10 years ago when I first started roleplaying Mel and the extremely hilarious way Tyler and she met. Demons. Nakedness. Awkward all around. The works. But how that meeting became a friendship that I wouldn't trade the world for is so important to me. I'd love to go back to England and see Emmy again soon and hope the world will let me.

✿ RP PET PEEVES/DEALBREAKERS:    starting with the basic, i'd say most people would agree that hate and drama is a big dealbreaker and I'm one of them. But some of my other pet peeves are people who come into your ask/ims and guilt trip you. And I'm pretty uncomfortable with large amounts of nsf.w, specifically imagery. If your blog is like 3 pages of nsf.w on any given day, blacklist is probably breaking down on my dash and cant block it all. And I'm super easily squicked out by sexual imagery. But that's about it.

✿ fluff, angst or smut:  smut is never an option on this blog. and while I've tried dabbling into it again with my older muses, my fluctuating nature of squickiness about smut can be limiting so it's very very very rare. Of the other two, I used to be well known for writing ONLY angst, but over time I've got much better at writing fluff. But i'm a sucker at exploring trauma, trauma reaction and the emotional outcomes, so more than likely my longer threads are angstier than fluffy.

✿ plots or memes: i want to say both, because plots can be so thereapeautic to see them through. But for me memes are ALWAYS easier to work with. I'm nervous about plotting and can almost NEVER think of anything on the spot when someone says "hey let's plot" and it ruins the vibe. However, if I ever have a thought about our characters or vice versa, I am hELLA ready to slam into DMs.

✿ long or short replies: preference for long replies because I'm a big sucker for novella level emotions. on the other hand, I know I struggle to write a lot. And I'm sure my partner's run into the same thing as well, so sometimes short things are a good way to continue building character dynamics without as much effort or plotting.

✿ best time to write:    when i'm not absolutely dying from exhaustion or mental health issues. I have such a chaotic activity, I'm aware. And I wish it wasn't like that but sometimes my brain just says 'nope' and that's been a lot lately too.

Honestly though, I find that I write a LOT better when I'm at work because when I'm NOT on a call, there's really not much else to do once base chores are done. But at the same time it's at the whim of the EMS gods if I have the chance to sit down and write at all or if I get interrupted in the middle of my flow. Doesn't really matter what time of day though.

✿ are you like your muse(s):   if I'm being honest - most of my muses have SOME bits and pieces of me mixed in. They say write what you know and all that. And as my comfort muse, I'll admit that Kit is a LOT more like me than the rest. While I'm by no means an escaped science experiment that's been brainwashed, a lot of Kit's interaction with the world and in particular her autistic traits, are very heavily based on my own or how I perceived the world in some cases. In other ways we are very different - I am not a nature encyclopedia for one. And also cannot punch to save my life.

tagged: @byanyan & @femtaile tagging: anyone else who hasn't done it, please please please

#dash games. #about the mun.

[ihopeyoubothstaysafefromharm]

Ask game! Share 10 different favorite characters from 10 different pieces of media in no particular order. Then send this to 10 people (anon or not, your choice). Have fun! 💖

I did this yesterday but I got a few more anon ones and also from you and @saintgarbanzo so I decided to do like an unnecessary deep dive into why I love each of the characters I listed.

Draco Malfoy fanon draco is such an excellent example of the ownership readers have over text. Stories are both the smallest unit of life and the biggest most all encompassing serious thing, and that gives readers this extraordinary authority to reject either the author's treatment of a character as a person, who has evolved from a something into a someone, or to reject the story's treatment of a character in the capacity of some benevolent omnipotent force that can pick and choose life's twists and turns. the first drarry fic i read was what we pretend we can't see and that draco is just so immediately redeemed, so fully human and idiosyncratic and such a ridiculous, likeable creature, and that impression of him followed me through everything i've read since. i've dealt with a lot of placed and unplaced guilt and shame in my life, along with this lingering feeling of having done something completely irredeemable and irreversible. i adore how fanon draco shoulders all of that and how he still manages to find a place for himself, how people find a place for him guided by this beacon of his humility and wit. when i buy new shoes i go out and get them dirty right away. i prefer worn in things. like me, like draco some things are better a little dented.

Loki like a lot of people who've ever felt pretty trans and a little feral, and orphaned in any capacity, i've always loved characters who just let themselves get as close to evil and insane as their little heart will allow. i liked loki in the comics and films, but when i started reading fics, i fell in love with this fanon dimension of him that's infinitely exposed, laid bare and waiting for love and approval. that thinks he's unfixable and smarter than anyone, and is taken aback by the effect that mundane delights and mundane heartbreaks have on him. he's also just so...sparkly. like he seems impossible not to love, and he's just tiny and brave and smart and emotional, and so broken that he's ready to resign himself to the worst punishments. but he's a part of a whole, and thor is always going to be there to miss him and love him and save him and be saved by him, and there's something so comforting about a character that can only go so far alone, because they belong to some mighty huddle.

riddler he's a crazy little lonely person who loves words, hates power structures and spends a lot of time on the internet. what's not to love

will and hannibal

i love characters who can do anything. like yes nuance and good writing and complexity are all super sexy and important and What We’re Here For but i just love when one of the characters in a ship is so competent and smart and strong that it’s a little deus ex machina-y. it’s just so charming. like how fanon hannibal is incredibly strong and knows literally everything and can keep fighting if badly injured and has infinite money and resources. it’s just so cool, there’s a child reader in me that gets a huge rush from that certainty that Things Will Probably Work Out because this character is there, no matter how bad it gets. and then in contrast to this extremely exaggerated magical man is an extremely Regular Guy will, who's anything but regular - just cutting and hilarious and insightful and Over It. And despite being shown as this traumatized, snarling little creature, he finds love and chases it literally over a cliff, because there's no tiredness and terror that would be worth losing that spark. it's so romantic. i also like couples who don't need anyone else.

5. Q

smart little gay boy. my favorite thing in fic is how hardworking he is, but also that he's always like... very social and socially apt? like he's the normal person and bond is this feral old cat that he sort of tames? it's so charming

6. crowley from good omens

i fell in love with him when i was 10 and i never stopped loving him. i love characters who fight against their heritage, but what i like in particular is that his life story is the thing i'm always most afraid of - that i've accidentally done a lot of little bad things and that this path can't ever be retraced, that i've sauntered vaguely downwards. which he has, but he discovers that it doesn't matter at all, that it's still you, and your love, wherever you are. i also love people who love deeply and desperately, ted mosby and jim from newsroom and the office and those sorts of people. crowley is one of those.

7. arthur from inception

he's extremely neat and clean and uptight. i don't like a lot of characters like that, they usually piss me off, but there's something so endearing and sometimes a little heartbreaking, how much his fanon interpretations fear disorder and feelings and how he fights against it. my favorite quote from an arthur/eames fic summarizes my love of him very well: ""I've seen things," said Arthur, because the word no made him break out in hives.""

8. jay from okja

i have a weak spot for messianic righteous characters and jay is just such a delightful iteration of one of those. i love that he wears a suit because he represents A Cause, I love that he adheres to a moral code, I love that he's violent in funny ways, and how sincere he is. i love that he protects animals. i've always wanted to have a singular cause. also i'm obsessed with translation and linguistics, and he that he thinks translation is sacred, which just absolutely kills me.

9. cherry from sk8 the infinity

like loki, cherry is a part of a whole. he's also extremely intelligent and it holds him back from certain things, from intimacy and hoping for good things for himself, which i find very touching. also, like hannibal, he's one of those characters that can do anything - his presence is sort of infinitely reassuring. i also love that he's a man with long pink hair, it makes me excited to maybe one day do that.

#tag game #joyful theory

[nny11writes]

Okay, so about that Super Gal Pal Trio fic.

Best fic name ever

Is this one of the infamous Lost Super Poly Trio/Catrapta Fics we were talking about a couple months ago?

WE DIDNT GET TO SEE THE OTHER TWO FIRST KISSES >:((( we saw them mildly thirsting over scorpia but we were promised two more first kisses and the author left it u_u

i was really surprised by how this was made after season 1 yet the author seemed to be hitting story beats from season 4, in particular Catra's nightmares and guilt, her feelings over Adora, Entrapta, and Shadow Weaver blurring together, much like they did in the show.

rest under a read more. do these work in asks??????

The chapter of Scorpia ripping open the vent to talk to Entrapta, and then trying to carry her to her bed and accidentally ripping apart the bedding, well, I think this fic has one of the best and funniest Scorpia characterisations I've ever seen, especially impressive with how little we knew about her, or her relationship to Catra and Entrapta, after season 1. Definitely one of the more brazenly confident Scorpias. Refreshing.

I am always impressed by when stories write a closer Catra and Entrapta dynamic and, in a way that seems almost more inevitable than Catradora, probably cos these two in particularly are so... troubled????, they ALWAYS get too close and hurt each other. Catra has a tendency to lash out when she feels vulnerable, and Entrapta takes every social fallout as her own failure, because she has always been told as such and doesn't have enough experience to understand when other people are not treating her properly. There's a bit where Catra's inner Shadow Weaver tells her she's "dug her claws deep" in Entrapta and engineered this almost abusive dependency, and Catra feels so shit because this is, well, true to the scenes in that fic. But Catra is also growing attached and really does care about them, and she's fighting her inner battles and getting more nightmares because of all these feelings mashing together

Catra as a result decides if shes going to be a toxic girlfriend she will at least make some effort to make the others happy together and actively starts pairing Scortrapta, which is the most hilarious outcome possible. Catra pointing to her girlfriends happily cuddling: "Look what ive done!!! Those two have an ACTUALLY healthy relationship!!! Youre welcome!!!"

But basically the catrapta dynamic showing how easy it is to simultaneously depend on another person, and be hurt by them, i see that in a lot of stories and I think the learning curve for them is figuring out how to set healthy boundaries and stop that cycle, which is something that the SPT in general struggle with.

Entrapta going full crisis mode because her feelings for Catra have just completely distracted her from her science fixation is so funny, it's almost Hordak levels of overreacting and the way she tries to figure out WHY she feels that way and even sets fire to some things to "purge" the feelings and talks in a recorder for 30 minutes nearly blacking out from lack of oxygen, it is so unhinged. As is the scene afterwards where they. um. break the cafeteria.

10/10 lonnie catra fight scene

YES THIS IS THE MAIN ONE THAT I COULDN’T FIND AND I COULD NOT BE HAPPIER THAT YOU DID!!!!!!!!!!!!! :D

It allows me to re-read it for at least the fourth time :)

I know! Gosh, this is the fic, this is honestly my “if there was one fic you could magically have updates for again, what would it be?” It would be this fantastic one right here. Characterization is so well done in it, and the character beats are good. There’s light hearted moments to balance out darker moments and I just love it to bits and pieces. And you’re totally right, it picked up on a lot of groundwork that was put down in Season 1 alone and that’s a huge part of what makes it a stand out from a lot of other fics that came out around that time too.

I love brazen Scorpia, she makes so much sense for this point in the show. I think she doesn’t get too nervous or second guessing that much until later on. At first she is just a one train running kind of person, if she wants to get to her friend in the vents and can’t fit well the vents will bend under her big meaty claws instead!

And I really like that initial bit of conflict in this fic, where Catra is just in a bad spot already to hear Lonnie being a jerk like that, but then Entrapta just enthusiastically steps into a hidden trip wire for Catra. So the lash out is Big and Bad, and of course Entrapta doesn’t get why. And just one chapter later we see Scorpia literally using her positivity as a blunt instrument the way Entrapta did the previous one, but just with much different results because of who, how, and why. And that damn nightmare sequence with all the mixed up emotions followed by Catra kinda faking her own version of comfort 100% based on Adora and AHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!

I had totally forgotten about the Lonnie and Catra fight, agree 10 outta 10. :p

It’s just a smart fic, and a fun fic with a lot of hurt/comfort and I think it was one of the first I read where Catra started to realize some emotional touchy feely shit in a way that felt realistic. I don’t know how to end this except saying that everyone who likes super poly trio and especially catrapta since that’s the only one of the pairings that actually had screen time, should go read Super Gal Pal Trio on Ao3!

[rosieartsie]

Hey again! 6, 15, and 18 for the OC WIP ask game? 😊

Hello hello! Oh god, idk which OC ask game this is referring to cuz I've reblogged so many in the time since you asked this. I am A FOOL. But I'll pick one and make it interesting of course <3-- OH WAIT I THINK I FOUND IT lol.

6.Have any of your OCs had name changes? If so, why? LMAOOOOO Okay, so, Scythaline was originally called Scythilis. I bet you can guess why that shit HAD TO GO and it is still embarrassing and hilarious to me that I did not realize that this name I'd chosen, which I'd been so focused on getting a like... 'Scythe' related name? Sounds very much like a certain STI lmao. Needless to say when I did realize, I had to change it- but I'm happy with the chance, Scythaline's name is dope.

15. Who is your oldest OC in terms of when you created them? Oh man... There's a lot of OCs that I don't use anymore that are utterly ANCIENT, like... made when I was 10 ancient, but the oldest one I still have in use for my work is Alluna-- She's a bad ass, she got more and more bad ass the longer I wrote her because at first she had sort of a helpless damsel who is secretly a wise, gentle lady vibe and more than that she has always had this magical element where she is so terribly poisonous that even touching her will kill a person. It's very cool, and long ago when we were first starting the The Bishop of Black with an almost entirely different cast of characters, we'd begun with her and another character, a Rook who Harrow wrote who was so in love with her he created an antidote for her poison. The war was about to get back on, and she and the Rook had met to discuss terms they knew they'd never agree with each other on, and as a like... last chance to do this sort of thing, he confessed his feelings to her. It was... SO GAY. 10/10- we have similar ships in TBOB but they're spoilery so I will not discuss them lol, but Alluna was one of the main characters in our first time playing AND our second time playing. She was scrapped for the third time and final time because we really wanted some fresh folks to play in this realm with, but I have no regrets cuz now the Queen of White is Setsulin and she's also a bad ass babe.

18.Do any of your ocs have any scars? A couple of them do actually! So, Dreigas has a lot of scars- you wouldn't think so when his whole aesthetic is like 'The Pristine Kingom of White' but in fashion terms, but it's kinda fitting in that way that you get rid of his sari and his long sleeves and you'll find LOADS of scars from before he was medically modified. The magic used to crystalize his bones bleached the hell out of his skin, but it didn't take away all of the damage that had been done from his youth, both after working in mines as a young child and being raised by a mentor that thought a good beating would solidify any lesson for Dreigas. Dreigas wasn't ever a rebellious child, but he wasn't always the right the first time every time person he became as an adult, so he's got lots of scars from when he was young.

Tajorinen has several scars because he's a close contact fighter- being a jaguar folk means he's kinda gotta leap in there and start bitin and scratchin, and that lends itself to getting torn up every now and then. His most prominent scar is a starburst shaped scar on his pectoral where at some point, he was shot clean through by magic that should have killed him. It didn't. For reasons. No spoilers lol. But the scar remains even if the effects of the magic were nullified and he lived through the encounter.

Setsulin has scarification that is cultural, it's on her left hip and down the outside of her thigh and it's not an uncommon thing for scarification to be done where she's from. Erato has a bunch of scars too (Erato is Harrow's character and Setsulin's older sister) but hers are on her face and neck and across her shoulders, so you see those more often than you get to see Setsulin's. She'd definitely show off more skin than she does if she wasn't the Queen of White, but there's an expectation of modesty and fully-dressed-ness to the position that requires her to cover a lot of her skin up and even veil her face. She's gotten around this by being intensely fashionable lol, all of her skin is covered, but the clothes are tight fitting and show off her shape- rather than wearing a classical veil, she tends to wear huge, dramatic hats with fringe or veils attached to the rim. She only allows herself to be caged by tradition because being as rowdy as she wants to be would look back on Cynevor-- it's bad enough as it is that they ran away and eloped when Cynevor was supposed to marry someone else lol.

#Ask games #Setsulin #Tajorinen #Dreigas #Scythaline #Alluna #the bishop of black #ask game #thank you for the ask!

[shayneysides]

if you're up for it, every odd question on the smosh question thing 👀

YESSS OMG IM SO UP FOR IT

1: Ian or Anthony?

You know it's gotta be single mom wet cat etc Ian. Honestly though that's mostly because I never really watched old smosh so I barely saw anything with anthony in it, I really do love them both now

3: What's your favorite channel between main/pit/games?

Easily pit, it has all my favorite series. Recently I have been enjoying games and main more, but I've always loved the unscripted content more than anything

5: Do you have a favorite Smosh video? What is it?

ohhh my god this is hard but I absolutely do. TNTL #9 feat. Damien, I rewatch it at least once a week. it's what originally got me into smosh, I clicked on it because the thumbnail had girls kissing and then my life was changed forever. the bits are genuinely so hilarious and I think really do it's one of the best tntls they've done. shayne's pizza place divorce and damien's detective stand out to me, when i was in middle school i would recite those bits from memory to my friends and it always went over like a lead balloon. 10/10 video i've loved it for years

7: What is your favorite series on Smosh (main channel)?

The funeral roasts! My favorite series are always the ones where they kind of just let the cast loose to do fun characters and bits and I like the semi-scriptedness of it where everyone gets to write their own script. They're always a good time and somehow they never feel too mean to be fun

9: What is your favorite series on Smosh Games?

I feel like current Smosh Games has way fewer running series, so if we're talking current SG it's the trivial pursuit TNTLs but if we're talking old SG uhhh probably maricraft?? specifically the superhero series they did

11: What's something you want to see come back?

SMOSH AND ORDER!!! AND SUMMER GAMES!!!! the cast is finally big enough again that these could totally come back and it would be such a fun time, and it would also feel less like just some reboot of their old content bc the new cast would make it so that it's not just the exact same thing again. please i need them back

13: Do you ship anything/love any friendship pairs?

I am very much not one for RPF but I do care so much about shayne and damien as friends!! Their bits always just work off each other so well and their history is so obvious when they're joking around with each other, it's just so much fun to watch them onscreen. I do also love shayne and noah's friendship bc it's genuinely just crazy to me that shayne fully watched noah grow up, i just think they're very sweet

15: What castmember do you think you are most like?

So my name is shayne . If i'm being actually honest though probablyyyy damien or olivia? It's honestly hard to say though bc to be a youtuber it's kind of required to have a big personality and be very charismatic and i'm like?? not crazyyy quiet irl but also definitely not either of those things

17: What do you want to see now that Anthony's back?

Honestly??? I kinda want to see not much change? the only big change i want to see is in the main channel sketches, but i've been enjoying pit and games so much recently i honest to god hope they don't change that much.

19: Is there a video/series you really loved when you were younger?

Uhhh not?? really?????? I started watching when I was like 12 or 13, but my favorite series then were like. TNTL and Board AF or whatever, stuff I still really enjoy now, so??? I guess Squad Vlogs since those aren't really a thing anymore

21: Did you ever watch Smosh the movie?

NOPE!!!!!!!!

23: Tell me an unpopular Smosh opinion.

Uhhh. uhhh uhhh i honest to god can't think of any? or at least any that i would be willing to put on here? bc i have unpopular opinions along the lines of like . i don't personally find this cast member that funny. but those are fully just like my personal tastes and feel too mean spirited to just say on my blog? and I really can't think of any else sorry

25: It's food battle time. You picking a pink frosted sprinkled donut, or some stick-shaped food?

uh uh uh stick shaped food obviously <- has never watched food battle

#thank you for asking!!!!!!!! i had so much fun with these

[macgyvertape]

BSD spring '23 season liveblog

The most annoying thing is in some places eps 38-50 are season 3 and are season 4 in others 

Ep1 has phenomenal use of color where its greyscale and basically monotone except for a few details, but its done so well that there’s depth and contrast with the grey on grey. The full color showing up from Ranpo’s PoV then is a shock and drives home the different viewpoint. Even the fight choreography of Oda vs Fukuzawa comes across clearly and better done than most full color fights in other shows 

Living for this Ranpo serious character focus. The glasses transition as the world shifts into color. I’ve said it once but its so fucking good

Fukuzawa being featured in the flashback arc makes me appreciate him so much more, like I hadn’t paid him as much attention as other secondary characters because he got so little spotlight and seemed to have his shit together

Oh shit, there’s Fyodor Dostoevsky! I was expecting the Port Mafia but not him 

What the name of the music that plays post credits ep 3

Thrilled by Poe getting to star in a 2 episode plot, his focus episode was one of the things that made the Guild arc my favorite current day arc

Lmfao Poe being filthy rich and Ranpo having such a bad reaction was hilarious

The mysteries in the show are such fun

Tripping out on Poe’s ability synth wave room 10 hours

Lmao what did Rampo expect, that Mushitaro wouldn’t immediately be killed?

Nikolai’s psycho showman killer routine is super annoying and the episode isn’t even halfway

Love to see the trap build up very obviously with viewer knowledge

Great dark with red color pallets with ep7

Damn the hunting dogs get a cool music intro (they get it twice!)

From the word criminal i expected the Port Mafia to show up, but damn Chuuya has a great entrance

Kunikida is really going through it ever since the tunnels, i love when good writing stresses a character’s ideals hard, so this plotline where things build and build and build has been great.

Kunikida made what looks like a sacrifice play, time to stay up to watch this. He has such plot armor that I can’t believe he’s dead.

Really enjoying how many other characters than Danzai and Atsushi get to be in the spotlight this season

Soon as I say that Danzai shows up as a plot twist. His intelligence is very much a plot device, which is why (IMO) fandom Danzai fic falls flat a lot of the time where its “he would not fucking say that/he’s not this much a woobie and is smarter than this”

I've been playing a drinking game for the number of anime eyeglass flashes this season

Yosano gets a PoV episode, and peak example of how this shows can explore darker themes even with a healing ability, and also nail the emotional impact with the camera pan on the medallion and suicide note

Into my drinking game and I’m really noticing and appreciating the little bursts of music for 10-30 seconds  

Hmm Hirotsu is the 2nd character where it seems the hunting dogs have got a kill but body isn’t shown to the viewer 

Was not expecting Tachihara to be the last Hunting Dogs member. I better rewatch earlier seasons

Glad Mushitaro is alive, he’s a fun character haunted by the death of his best friend

Ango is getting some fun reveals this episode

Wtf is this sky casino, this helicarrier looking thing

“Most terrifying thing is a mediocre man who’s desperate”. Unfortunately true

I thought it was obvious that Sigma and Sky Casino came from the Book, but they’re making sure to spell it out 

Wow the Hunting Dogs have to go through fucked up surgeries every month or they’ll die horribly. It explains so much. (Wish I could find more fanworks that are this quality of “the limits these characters will go for their objective” and less shallow fluff)

The good outro music is back again in ep 13

Cliffhanger nooo! This ranks as new best season of BSD really enjoyed the amount of angst this season. 

Once again I wish this fandom would stop spam tagging things especially when I want to find secondary character focused works.

#liveblog #mac watches anime #bungo stray dogs #very excited for next part of the season this summer

[mcdingaling]

I'm FINALLY doing my Sakuatsu fic rec MASTERLIST

I love finding these so i've wanted to do this for such a long time.

Without further ado, here we go: (there will be NO smut -mostly- so its ALL FLUFF AND CRACK AND AMAZINGNESS)

SOCIAL MEDIA CONCEPTS

I adore the premise of social media in fics, so these are my ABSOLUTE favorite ones

The MSBY Black Jackals Take a Lie Detector Test by sifuhotman

i THINK this is my favorite sakuatsu fic ever. like. ever

i've read this so. many. times. And im in LOVE with the concept bc i LOVE the try guys and the build up is SO GOOD and there is so much TENSION and hinata and bokuto are little shi*s. THE CONCEPT OF A LIE DETECTOR IS JUST GREAT OK?? IT JUST IS

MSBY4's Lockdown Survival Guide by minthalo

THIS MOTHERFRIKING FIC OMGKSDHGKLA. idk what it was laced with but you cant. put. it. down

It's SO GOOD, it's based on tiktok and the #sakuatsu stuff is AMAZING dfjskhf only they would realize they love each other bc of HASHTAGS

AND ITS ALSO SUPER FUNNY

MSBY's Miya Atsumu and Sakusa Kiyoomi Take a Friendship Test by msbypr

AjSDBAJFASÑK THIS motherfriking FIC. omg. ITS SO GOOOD

ITS BEST FRIENDS TO LOVERS, and the amount of LOVE they have for each other??? and the TENSION??? ITS AMAZING

Miya Atsumu & Sakusa Kiyoomi Answer the Web's Most Searched Questions by sifuhotman

"SOCIAL MEDIA INTERVIEW AND PRIVATE CONFessoon YASSSSSS"

that's literally what I wrote as a bookmark. It's amazing

Famous V-League Players Make Fools of Themselves on Twitter dot com by crone_zone

my bookmark after i read it was "This is the closest thing to reblogging a fic I could think of 🤍 HILARIOUS" and i STAND. BY . THAT. YOU SHOULD READ THIS FIC. its a crack fic and its SO WELL DONE I LITERALLY LOLed OK??? I LAUGH OUT LOUDED

Channel JACKAL by Aka_aKa_akA

It's literally a video series made fanfic about the jackals being dumb and awesome and lovely and sakuatsu bc yea everyone loves sakuatsu so just enjoy the ride

its a kinda? slow burn. long but WORTH IT

a posteriori by SugarHighs

hsksafhkla competitive atsumu ftw

Subtle Inarizaki Crushes by sifuhotman

ok so, this one is a second part? or first part? of 2 fics. One is Subtle Inarizaki Dating which is SUNAOSA and sakuatsu in the background, but this is SAKUATSU with sunaosa in the background. It's really good, you should definitely read both

in the light by Ann1215

HEAR ME OUT OK???? Sakusa as a SUGAR DADDY???? and atsumu being all cute and hot and collegy???? OGAKGAHLDSKJFH i love this and its a FAKE DATING au so yea its perfect dont judge just read

re: chat by aalphard

Do emails count as social media???? who knows

anyways, this fic is SO FUNNY and i LOVE atsumu so yeah, its reading into his conversations with his brother gushing about sakusa

10/10

Dress to Impress by matchumu

Sakusa just malfunctioning because of a picture of atsumu is GOLD

i keep a window for you, it's always open by volchitsae

I'll just say this is social media bc SAKUSA is a YOUTUBER <3<3 love it. Never understood the title tho hehe

People Will Say We're in Love by tirralirra

yea remember THAT author i said i wouldn't put another fic of? well...

so THIS ONE is so cute bc people ship sakuatsu on twitter and they try to deny it. as IF they werent like in love

SIMPLY VERY GOOD ONES

Again, until it's perfect by fairycake

It's SUCH A GOOD FIC bc the concept of them perfecting a quick is SO COOL and the love story progression is SO AMAZING and yeah, AND THE PINING???? 10/10. I wish I'd read this one sooner

Too Unwise to Woo Peaceably by tirralirra

THIS.FRIKING.FIC omggggg THE CONCEPT??? amazing. THE PLOT??? hilarious. THE CHARACTERS??? wonderful

ITS LIKE OMG AJKJKLAJKL EVERYTHING YOU EVER WANTED AND MORE. LIKE SHAKESPEARE???? AND HAIKYUU???? SAY LESS

as you can see, i like this author sO.MUCH

ATSU101: how to fall in love with your fake boyfriend by solyn

OK SO THIS ONE DOES HAVE SMUT (((kinda tho they make out)))) but hear me out ok? i branched out for a good reason. ITS LIKE ZERO ANGST. minous a THOUSAND angst. all fluff. IDIOTS TO LOVERS which they are, your honor. and at this point it's a classic in the fandom just read it ok? just enjoy loving atsumu even MORE than you ever thought you could bc, as i said, he is the man of everyone's dreams. thank you and goodnight

If you're ever sad just read this fic. plz.

Matchmade by tirralirra

OMG THIS ONE IS SO ADORABLE like best friends sakuatsu is like the best thing EVER to me and this is the CUTEST friends (idiots) to lovers

Love Me, Love My Dog by tirralirra

this is the last one from this author i promise

IAHSDGKL SAKUSA BEING A DOG DAD???? and atsumu falling for him?? the progression is so cute?? and healthy?? and natural?? im in lov

ink blossoms by entrechat

WHO doesn't love a good flower / tattoo shop AU amirite?????? and its very VERY good

The Dos and Don’ts of Loving Sakusa Kiyoomi by liliapocalypse

THIS is AMAZING and the TENSIONNN and the PININGGGG MAJKDFAKLNF. Everyone just wants to make sakusa smile :) and atsumu pisses him off, so yea he's not winning that competition

Sakusa Kiyoomi's Matchmaking Questionnaire by soylatte17

Its SO CUUUUTE <3 i lov this. sakusa is a matchmaker and atsumu is his client, basically. CaN yOu gUeSs whAt could PoSsIbLy hApPeN????

i’ll do anything you say (if you say it with your hands) by liliapocalypse

the slight touching cuteness is too much i cant even

touch me (i want you to) by melstar

PRACTICE TOUCHING??? say LESS

its really really really really really really -and yeah i typed really all those times instead of ctrl-v ing it bc im an idiot - cute

COLLEGE AU

Mostly college Aus, just the ones that focus on that bc there are many college AUs that are important bc of other stuff

don't think too much (i only fell when i gave up) by w0ndrlnd

I didnt knOw i needed a SMART ATSUMU fic until this one. LIkE its ACADEMIC RIVALSSS BUT DONE SO WELL??? HOWWWW

the perfect college AU where atsumu is the man of everyone's dreams. I read this twice... in a row

the posterior probability by izayas

JHSJDH i lOVE this one and its another SMART atsumu and i LIVE. FOR THAT

on the basis of instant noodles by auvelli

Let's say it's enemies to lovers. and its COLLEGE and its pining and crushing and using a microwave so what else can you even ask for at this poing

A Second Truth by tumbleweedfarm

This IS a college AU but like KYIOOMI BEING A SINGLE DAD?? AND ATSUMU FALLING AND BEING THERE FOR HIM??????

?????????? IM CRYING????

three roses and a smile by strawberrycitrus

I meann.... its a college AU but they're both professors. and enemies to lovers. its SUCH A COOL PLOT, like really, trust me, it IS

SHORT ONES:

love and all the wrong answers by tirralirra

This one is SO CUTE and sakusa is SO.DUMB i love it so much

ROAD RAGE by mcbeefy

THIS ONE'S JUST HILARIOUS SAFJKHAKF plz read it it's a great crack fic

Current Predicament by fandomverse

You know when you read sth and you thing hOW did someone come up with this?? well, this concept is AMAZING and the EXECUTION TOO, *chef's kiss*

How to Acquire a Romantic Partner Using Reverse Psychology: a How-To-Guide by Sakusa by awkwardedgeworth

This one is very short, but like.... it's about them COMPRESSION SLEVES... yeah... just read it

pick me by ely_su

A good read, very cute ending

if you want even MORE, here you have ALL my Ao3 bookmarks with comments on them bc yeah

#sakuatsu #sakuatsu fic #sakuatsu fic rec #sakuatsu masterlist #fanfic #haikyuu #fanfiction #sakusa kiyoomi #miya atsumu #atsumu #haikyuu atsumu #we STAN atsumu in this house #kiyoomi #atsumu x kiyoomi #fanfic list #fanfic link #fic recs #sakuatsu fic recs #you're welcome

[sickadelia]

ALL OF THEM LETS GO!!!!

welp i rbed both so lets do em all!! fuck it!!

pop - share an unpopular opinion you may have austin powers 2 is better than austin powers 1 by a looooong shot im sorry the first one is such ass. but the second? literal art. felicity shagwell could easily own vanessa whatsherface

punk - last movie/tv show you watched baz luhrmann great gatsby- i liked it... mostly!! hard to get into at first, but i enjoyed it as a hater of the book <3

classical - describe yourself in three words kooky, creative, caring (idfk?)

country - what are you passionate about? LOTSA THINGIES!! Art/creating stuff is my main passion since it's the thing I'm best at, i love coming up with concepts for movies, comics, etc. I also like to collect stuff, like records, comics, and toys! I also like to go out and take photos I guess?? Just experience the sweet city lyfe

indie - what fictional character do you relate the most to & why? joker– LMFAOOO KIDDINGGG- i wasn't a huge fan of mitchells vs the machines but i really hashtag related to the daughter, katie mitchell. She’s the same flavour of quirky outsider as me, and just as vibrant and insane!! we need more fictional girlies like her

edm - have you been to a concert? if so, what concert was your favorite one? yesss!! Ariana Grande and Gary Numan (weird combo ik) are the only ones i've seen SO FAR, they were both really good for different reasons.

rap - whats your favorite meme? cupcakke remixes forever and always

jazz - what is your birthstone & star sign? amethyst n pisces :)

hip hop - whats your favorite food? CHOCOLAAAAATE. Any candy, actually. But if we’re talking actual food, i love pepperoni pizza w/ xtra cheese and chicken sammies <3

latin - do you believe in the paranormal? nawwwwwwww when u die u die

r&b - describe your best friend hilarious, willing to do anything, good listener, passionate, intelligent

gospel - are you a morning person or a night person? Morning person fer suuuuure. I wake up at 6:30 and like to start my day as quickly as possible. I don’t think i’ve ever willingly stayed up past 12:30

opera - how do you know when you have a crush? I dream about them as i fall asleep. So stupid but it's trueeee

k-pop - what is something you never understood? pre-calculus. HATE that shit. idk how mathematicians enjoy themselves

reggae - give me a song recommendation do i make you nervous by serena isioma :D

aaaand the next one!!

0: Height 5’3 (i think??)

1: Age However old Betty White is now

2: Shoe size 7 ½-8

3: Do you smoke? nauuuur

4: Do you drink? NAUUUUUURRR

5: Do you take drugs? NNNNNNAAAAAAUUUUUURRRR (hysterical laughter)

6: Age you get mistaken for Seems to vary: either a young teenager or early 20s. idk what that says about me, but i don't think it's good

7: Have tattoos? nopeeee

8: Want any tattoos? been thinking about it? i'm kind of a wuss, but it would be nice to get a tiny non-visible one

9: Got any piercings? used to. I got my ears done at Claires and then the earring started fusing into the ear and then– yeah.

10: Want any piercings? I would love to piece my ears again but aagghhhh so much work. i was thinking about doing it before the end of the year, i want to wear funky earrings again </3

11: Best friend? yeeeeeeessssssss !!!!

12: Relationship status Single and not vibing :(

13: Biggest turn ons Knows my weird animation stuff, really well dressed, intense eye contact, nice laugh, sense of humour

14: Biggest turn offs obsessed w/ Tarantino or Disney movies (ppl who like them in a normal way are cool), gloomy, smells like old shoes, only talks about themselves, rude

15: Favorite movie three-way tie between Mad Monster Party, Who Framed Roger Rabbit, and The Haunted World of El Superbeasto

16: I’ll love you if… you listen to me talk about my weirdo interests!! or if you like my art. that’s cool too <3

17: Someone you miss my cat, who just left the room and abandoned me here

18: Most traumatic experience the time i thought a bowl of grapefruit was watermelon and then ate it all. hated grapefruit ever since

19: A fact about your personality I’m either super upbeat and giggly or sarcastic and mega judgy. Depends on who i'm with

20: What I hate most about myself Kind of a doormat, afraid to take risks, stubborn, procrastinator, cares too much about what others think

21: What I love most about myself Clever, outgoing (mostly), creative, always laughing, always looking for new things to be inspired by

22: What I want to be when I get older Storyboard artist!!

23: My relationship with my sibling(s) Haha imagine having siblings

24: My relationship with my parent(s) ahmazziinnnggg!! They’re my favourite people in the world <3

25: My idea of a perfect date movies and then dinner. or shopping and then dinner. I just like dinner ok???

26: My biggest pet peeves messing up something i was really excited about, the sound of that type of plastic packaging they put popsicles in, talking/humming while i'm trying to focus, cashiers who don't stop pestering you about joining their rewards program, man buns

27: A description of the girl/boy I like David Spade. just David Spade. we literally have 96% zodiac compatibility or something its meant to be

28: A description of the person I dislike the most HAAAAA UMMMM loud, obnoxious, self-involved, always needs everything to be about them, outraged

29: A reason I’ve lied to a friend to look like i knew a cool band

30: What I hate the most about work/school wasting my time on something that i'm not passionate about and, in the end, will not benefit me at all

31: What my last text message says probably something like “LMAOOOO”. that's all i know how to type

32: What words upset me the most Failure. Literally just FAILURE. terrifying word.

33: What words make me feel the best about myself smart, talented, inspirational idfk

34 &35: What I find attractive in women AND men colourful makeup, huge shoes & thrifted fashion, nice laugh (again), always interested in what you're talking about, intellectually stimulating/always wanting to discuss stuff, good taste in music, kind and understanding

36: Where I would like to live I like where I’m living now, but it would be cool to live in LA!

37: One of my insecurities my teeth, which are getting better, but instead of being all sad boohoo about it, i play them up for laughs in my art

38: My childhood career choice fashion designer, pop star, sitcom actress, voice actor, bass player, film director, screenwriter... yea it's a lot

39: My favorite ice cream flavor neapolitan or birthday cake

40: Who I wish I could be Mia Regan, my beloved </3

41: Where I want to be right now amoeba records in LA! i haven't been to the new location yet and i really want tooOOOOO

42: The last thing I ate timbiebs baby!!!

43: Sexiest person that comes to my mind immediately YOU, VEZ!

44: A random fact about anything Todd Rundgren (my fav musician Ever) worked on Donda, but got so sick of Kanye’s shit that he quit and Kanye probably removed all of his work.

tysm for asking vezzziIIEEEEE

#ask game #bella vez

[a34trgv2]

Why It Worked: Kung Fu Panda 2

Introduction: Kung Fu Panda 2 is an animated action comedy and the sequel to Kung Fu Panda. Released on May 26, 2011, the film stars Jack Black, James Hong, Angelina Jolie, Jackie Chan, Seth Rogan, David Cross, Lucy Liu and Dustin Hoffman reprising their roles as Po, Ping Tigress, Monkey, Mantis, Crane, Viper and Shifu respectively. Additionally, this film features the voice talents of Gary Oldman, Michelle Yeoh, Danny McBride, Dennis Haysbert, and Jean-Claude Van Damme as Lord Shen, the Soothsayer, the Wolf Boss, Master Storming Ox and Master Croc. The film recieved positive reviews, though generally critics prefered the first one over the second. According to Rotten Tomatoes, 81% out of 182 critics aggregated gave positive reviews with an average score of 6.91/10. Even still, the film was a box office success, earning $165.2 million domestically and $500.4 million from other countries, bringing the worldwide total to $665.7 million. Since the films release, the film has been hailed as one of the greatest sequels ever made, animated or otherwise. Having rewatched over and over for the past decade now (feel old yet?), I definitely agree that this has all the hallmarks of a great sequel and definitely stands toe to toe with the likes of Terminator 2, The Dark Knight, and Toy Story 2 when it comes to outstanding sequels. So without wasting any more precious time, let's dive in to what makes Kung Fu Panda 2 even more awesome than the first one (leave a comment if you remember when Jack Black made that promise at the 2009 Kids Choice Awards).

The Plot: Lord Shen creates a new weapon that's capable of taking out kung fu masters with a single blow. As Po and the Furious 5 set out to stop this dastardly villain, Po learns more about his past and how to find inner peace. After the opening done in the style of Chinese shadow puppets, the film takes its time setting up the main conflict of the film, which goes much deeper into the vulnerable side of Po than the first. The film explores the feelings of pain, anger and trauma in a blunt and honest manner, letting moments such as Po's confrontation with Shen or him discovering his old village marinate  without breaking the tone of these scenes with a needless joke. That's not to say there aren't any funny moments in the film. This film is still packed with alot of funny moments of slapstick, clever one-liners and hilarious gags. The entire scene in which Po and the 5 don a dragon costume and devour wolves only to poop them out still has me in stitches. The best part about tge film's story is how it uses it's animation. Specifically how it utilizes 2D animation for Po's flashbacks as well as the really funny dream sequence. They also outdid themselves with the action set pieces, with Po and the 5 using great teamwork and comerodery with one another. Also, Hans Zimmer and John Powell deserve major props for their excellent score for this film.

Cast and Characters: I've said it before and I'll say it again: Jack Black is the ONLY man who can do Po justice. He really outdoes himself when portraying Po this time around. In addition to still being his lovable goofy self, Jack also sells Po's frustration and anxiety. The best moment for Po is easily when he finds inner peace in his old village. When the Soothsayer asks him who he is, he says this line: "I am Po...and I'm gonna need a hat." This line fits so well with Po and Jack Black delivers it with such confidence. This film also gives more screen time to the Furious 5, which I very much appreciated. Each of the members is given more time to express their unique personalities and share a bond with one another as a team. Monkey is smart and has some fun moments as well as funny lines (delivered by the one and only Jackie Chan). Crane makes good use of irony and is pretty chill generally speaking. Mantis is also given some unique quirks such as not like being called cute and nonchalantly mentioning that if he meets up with a lady mantis, she'd eat his head. Viper is also sweet and is always willing to catch Po when he falls. Tigress, though, shares the most screen time with Po, which makes perfect sense as she's very much everything Po isn't interms of fighting style. Tigress is strong, fierce, agile and when she wants to, she can be merciless. She also has a soft spot for Po, even if she doesn't always show it. The Furious 5 are all essentially Po's brother and sisters; they may not always agree with him, but they always look out for him. Then there's our main bad guy for this film, Lord shen. In contrast to Tai Lung, Shen has a more calm and calculated demeanor, and utilizes weapons such as knives, spears and canons to get the job done. He also has an army of wolves at his disposal to do his dirty work. What makes him one of DreamWorks Animation's best villains is how he doesn't hesitate to try and kill our heroes or innocent civilians, yet he realishes in taking what he wants even if the Soothsayer says he's wrong time and time again. He's also the catalyst for Po being found and raised by Ping and sealing his own fate.

Where It Falters: While I wouldn't change a thing about this film, I do think it's still unfortunate that Masters Croc, Ox and Shifu were given limited screen time, particularly Shifu. I 100% understand this decision though as the film needed to focus on Po and any additional scenes with these 3 masters would take away from the film's main story. Still though, Dennis Haysbert, Jean-Claude Van Damme and Dustin Hoffman all gave really good performances as these characters and they more than serve their purpose in the plot, so it's not a true deal breaker.

Conclusion: Kung Fu Panda 2 does everything a great sequel should do and then some. In addition to having a well written story, a strong cast of characters and very funny moments, it doubles down on what worked the first time around an includes more character development, outstanding actions scenes and stupendous vocal work from Jack Black. This is indeed one of the select few sequels to an already great film that surpasses it in terms of quality. If you haven't watched it, definitely check it out next time you're in the mood for some laughs and intense action. Skadoosh!

#kung fu panda #reblog #share #like #follow #why it worked #jack black #animation #action #comedy #dreamworks animation