#like 'yes you like my favourite thing and uniquely get my bullshit yes i cannot stand you' is peak dynamic to me

[raayllum]

live footage of me rereading "older but just never wiser" in which both callum and rayla try to spare each other from dark magic use, callum helps her work towards freeing her parents, he asserts that he only did it the first time for her and she asserts that she only left to protect him, and he decides to lie to her in order to cushion a harsher truth:

“Even if it was messed up and wrong, I—I really did mean... I just wanted to protect you.”  He lets out a breath and squeezes her hands, standing closer to her than they have beneath Umber Tor by the lava, her forehead nearly brushing his. “Then let me protect you. If one of us has to take the risk, let it be me, this time.” They’ll still have to see if they need Viren’s staff, but that can be a problem for tomorrow. “It doesn’t always have to be you, Rayla, saving everyone else. And I’m—we both know that I’m already dead.” 

#just fucking end me #i feel like i'm looking at a parallel universe version of 5x08 and potential S6 specifically #my fic #fic: older but just never wiser #callum and lujanne being bitter mage besties #which now i think of it i think i just find it funny for callum to be #on bad terms / annoyed with every other mage he could long term interact with #(outside of ibis rip king u will be missed) #like 'yes you like my favourite thing and uniquely get my bullshit yes i cannot stand you' is peak dynamic to me #mine #dragons rambles #tag ramble #predictions achieved #[insert 'I GUESS' meme]

[sunriseverse]

get to know me 🌻

tagged by @killerandhealerqueen (thank you sass!)

do you make your bed?

i mean, i guess if you count "smoothing out my duvet" as making my bed, yeah.

what's your favourite number?

thirteen and eight :)

what is your job?

eternal suffering (working on my second uni degree).

If you could go back to school would you?

[laughs like a hyena] bold of you to assume i've ever left school. unfortunately i think i'm doomed to academic pursuits for the rest of my life. that said if i could i would go back and force myself to realise i cannot do applied maths, that would have saved me time.

can you parallel park?

yes :) i actually like driving, i find it calming.

a job you had that would surprise people?

i actually was an after-school tutor for elementary students for a year! it was terrible, because i get overstimulated very easily by children, who are loud and insistent, but they were all very sweet. i didn't get paid nearly as much as i would have liked, though.

do you think aliens are real?

i am an alien agnostic, by which i mean i haven't seen proof, but if i were to, yeah.

can you drive a manual car?

not at the moment but i could probably figure it out if i had to.

what's your guilty pleasure?

generally i feel no guilt for my pleasures but uh. i remembered i actively read the sci novel on purpose, so. yeah, that. (would not recommend)

tattoos?

not yet! i want a couple, though, when i have more time and money.

favourite colour?

black and purple! and gold. and...........green and blue. i actually like a lot of colours haha.

favourite type of music?

i have been known to like mandopop u_u but i also like darkwave, goth, and anything that makes a compelling amv.

do you like puzzles?

i do! people used to gift me thousand piece plus puzzles when i was younger, and while they've mostly been lost in moves, i do think of them fondly.

any phobias?

lack of autonomy, which i think is a reasonable phobia. aside from that, no.

favourite childhood sport?

swimming! i was actually a decent competitive swimmer for years, and placed a number of times in regional meets (i didn't go any further because i hated having to be in meets due to the unique horrors of being wet and cold and half-nude around large crowds of people. and also life-related bullshit stressed me out so much i had to quit).

do you talk to yourself?

yes :) not as much as i used to because i live with people i'm not close to at the moment and i tend to stim a lot if i'm speaking to myself and i'd rather not have that conversation.

what movie(s) do you adore?

pacific rim (2013), the old guard (2020), the diptych finale of dijia aoteman/ultraman taiga (1997????) which isn't a film but was formative to my childhood.

coffee or tea?

tea!!!!! tea my beloved.............i will drink a lot of different types but i am a black tea lover at heart.

first thing you wanted to be growing up?

fashion designer, actually!

tagging: @krownest @lesbianlanval @jaybirdsdelight @malewifefirestar @tatchling @impishglee and anyone else who wants to play!

#tag meme #c.txt

[vivithefolle]

Love isn’t a Deus Ex Machina thing, it’s literally the core theme of the series, hence why Love Magic exists

Love Magic is never a concept at any time in the series. It’s only about “Lily Potter’s spell”. But what’s so special about Lily Potter? What’s so great about her? She did the thing any halfway decent mother would do for their child: she gave her life for them. Molly would’ve done it for any of her sons. Narcissa would have done it for Draco. Mrs Granger the nonentity would have done it for her daughter had she not been lobotomized instead. Lily Potter’s sacrifice isn’t anything special. It’s only special because Rowling decided so, because the Plot needed it to be.

Love isn’t a Deus Ex Machina thing? Then how come Quirrel conveniently burned to death at Harry’s hands? How come Harry had to live at Privet Drive because reasons so he could be abused so naive readers like you could feel very sorry for the poor widdle orphan and pat themselves on the back because wow, aren’t you special for feeling sorry for the poor widdle orphan?

And I didn’t misunderstand Harry. I literally explained him to you

If you don’t like him, I don’t care. Just stop giving his uniqueness to other characters

And you literally showed me exactly why you don’t understand him.

Harry’s superpower isn’t teh special uniqueness of his luuuurve, or the absolute pure pureness of his heart, it’s that he has FRIENDS. Friends who’d die for him, friends who’d sacrifice themselves for him, friends who’d do anything for him. THAT’S the power of love, not some bullshit ~special pure pureness of the heart of Harry Christ our lord and savior~. Harry isn’’t unfailingly kind or uniquely loving or whatever the shit. Harry is a run-of-the-mill teenager who has such obscene luck I wouldn’t be surprised to learn he was conceived under the influence of Lucky Potion.

You just showed me you’re a member of the Church of Harry Christ and I’m not interested in joining. Dear God I thought I was too attached to fictional characters but wow am I glad I’m not at your level.

Also one more thing: “tortured” someone?

Sure. A painful stunner is DEF torture (that’s legit all his Crucio did; it acted as a painful stunner. It threw Carrow backwards and hurt him while it did. Crucio isn’t even close to that when performed properly)

............ you... you fucking little hypocrite.

You filthy, lying, little bitch cunt of a fucking hypocrite.

Remember when I said the next person who’d try to lie to me to pity poor wee widdle Hawwy would be sorry? You pathetic little piece of shit. If you’re so in luuurve with your precious cuntfuck of a camera archetype you’d accept EVERYTHING about him, wouldn’t you? Haha, but noooo. “Oh wee poor Hawwy only used a painful stunner :)))))))” you fucking little bitch. Oh you accuse ME of trying to “make Hawwy not special :(((” but you... YOU... Hahahaha sorry everyone. I have a slight aversion to people blatantly trying to gaslight me. You may find me getting a little bit angry if you happen to trod on this trigger of mine.

Let’s see that again shall we? Open your eyes and your chakras, bitch, we’re going for a ride.

“It’s not a case of what you’ll permit, Minerva McGonagall. You time’s over. It’s us what’s in charge here now, and you’ll back me up or you’ll pay the price.” And he spat in her face. Harry pulled the Cloak off himself, raised his wand, and said, “You shouldn’t have done that.” As Amycus spun around, Harry shouted, “Crucio!” The Death Eater was lifted off his feet. He writhed through the air like a drowning man, thrashing and howling in pain, and then, with a crunch and a shattering of glass, he smashed into the front of a bookcase and crumpled, insensible, to the floor. “I see what Bellatrix meant,” said Harry, the blood thundering through his brain, “you need to really mean it.” - Deathly Hallows

If I could reach through my screen to force you to look at the relevant bits, I would. And I’d also slap you in passing. Yknow, just so you think twice before being a stinking fucking hypocrite again in the future.

Now, let’s do some actual literary analysis that isn’t your ~wah hawwy puwe of heawt luuurrrve~ diarrhea you’re still trying to paint my poor innocent blog with.

Now let’s see that PaInFuL sTuNnEr in detail:

He writhed through the air like a drowning man, thrashing and howling in pain 

In bold so you can see it very well. Admire the curve of each letter, the angles and the lines. And most of all, interpret the meaning of each and every word. Watch how he’s compared to “a drowning man”, do you know how excruciatingly painful and distressing it is to drown? How the air fills your lungs as you claw desperately for the surface, trying to find something to cling to, anything, the feeling of your lungs filling with this foreign substance you cannot spit back out? The feeling of fading away as all your oxygen is consumed by the futility of your hopeless flailing, your muscles losing their strength, your panic dulling as you slip into unconsciousness and water claims yet another victim...

Of course, drowning people don’t thrash and howl in pain. Because all they’re focused on is trying to BREATHE. But Amycus’ focus isn’t on trying to breathe. Amycus is only focus on Harry’s Crucio and the pain it’s bringing him.

But sure Anon. A pAiNfUl StUnNeR. Fuck you.

and then, with a crunch and a shattering of glass 

Now I’m aware Dummywood has made you believe that glass can be traversed easy without any consequences but real glass doesn’t work like that. Real glass takes some force to shatter. Real glass shatters into hundreds of tiny pieces that embed themselves into your flesh and skin, kinda like... oh! Kinda like that glass chandelier that fell on Hermione, once. After she herself was Crucio’d if I remember well. Hmm, by whom exactly, I have it on the tip of my tongue...

“I see what Bellatrix meant,” 

Ah yes. By the woman who tortured to insanity Neville’s parents and whom Harry is literally acknowledging as having taught him this particular lesson.

Harry himself is TELLING US HE LISTENED TO BELLATRIX’S ADVICE. ON FUCKING TORTURING PEOPLE. But “a PaInFuL sTuNnEr He’S aN oRpHaN :’‘‘(((((”. Fuck off. Fuck off, Anon. Fuck off and learn to fucking read.

Ah but I got ahead of myself! We’re not even CLOSE to the point!

he smashed into the front of a bookcase and crumpled, insensible, to the floor 

So Amycus gets tortured - or, as Anon astutely put it, pAiNfUl StUnNeR - smashes through a sheet of glass, and gets knocked out.

Hmm. Now if Harry just took out a knife and brought it to Carrow’s neck, he’d be worthy of being called Bellatrix’s faithful apprentice.

And now I’m gonna quote one of my Quora answers again because my followers deserve better than to see me completely lose my mind at some anonymous cowardly cunt trying to lie to my fucking face.

On the topic of Harry’s Crucios:

This could mean that Harry is scarily proficient at casting Crucio, that Amycus has low pain tolerance or that he was knocked out when he fell, but regardless of the meaning, IT’S NOT GOOD. EVEN IF IT’S A DEATH EATER, EVEN IF HE PROBABLY DESERVES COMEUPPANCE - IT’S NOT HARRY’S JOB TO GIVE OUT SAID COMEUPPANCE.

(Like, can I please remind everyone that Harry is supposed to be the Jesus Christ of his story? In the Bible we never have Jesus Christ torturing the pharisees or any of those who didn’t believe in him. Just… you’re telling me Jesus “Peace and Love” Christ would torture people… what the hell, Joanne?)

“I see what Bellatrix meant,” said Harry, the blood thundering through his brain, “you need to really mean it.”

…………………….. Um. Harry, what the fuck are you doing???! He’s taken Bellatrix’s advice! He actually relates to the insane sadistic terrorist! He is capable of using a curse that literally requires sadism to work!

(Again, when someone tells me “Jesus Christ”, “sadism” isn’t the first word that would come to my mind.)

At least there’s some sort of reaction. “the blood thundering through his brain”. But that’s a very… nondescriptive reaction. Is it the “adrenaline pumping in my veins” blood? Is it the “holy shit what have I done” blood? Is it the “I could get used to this” blood?

We don’t know. We’ll never know.

Alright, skipping to the part that interests us -

She struggled to pull herself together. “Potter, that was foolish!”

Eh, I’d have said “tactically unsound” (what if Amycus wasn’t knocked out), “monstrous” (that’s Bellatrix’s favourite curse you’re using, Harry), “insane” (re: Bellatrix), but yeah, I guess “foolish” would also cover it.

“He spat at you,” said Harry.

Ever heard of Disproportionate Retribution, Harry? A few fascists regimes all over the world were especially fond of it.

Then I’m skipping over the one thing that causes the most outrage because I’ll go back to it soon, just let me finish with this:

“[…] but don’t you realize — ?” “Yeah, I do,” Harry assured her. Somehow her panic steadied him.

I guess we can imagine that McGee is saying “don’t you realize what you’ve just done?”

Harry “assures” her he realizes. Harry knows. Harry has just used the literal goddamn Torture Curse and he’s totally cool with it. Or, if he was uncool with it, now he’s cool with it. Because “her panic steadied him”. So seeing McGonagall panic makes Harry think “yeah, using Crucio was the right thing to do”.

Well then! Onwards then, Dark Lord Potter! First it’s just one Crucio, then it’s just three, then it’s just one little murder of one lowly little naysayer, then it’s only a little more murder…

And now we’ll go back a smidge, because how are we supposed to react?

How are we supposed to reconcile the idea of Harry, who’s supposed to save us all through his Power of Love, with the Harry that has just tortured a man into inconsciousness?

Even if that man was a Death Eater, Harry is supposed to be the Christ-like figure. He’s supposed to be love and forgiveness incarnate. Heck, not a hundred pages later he’ll offer forgiveness to freaking Voldemort! He forgives Draco Malfoy, he forgives Albus Dumbledore, he forgives Severus Snape!

So how do we reconcile Harry Potter The Forgiver with Harry Potter The Torturer? Tell us, O Author! Tell us how to navigate the murky, twisted depths of human morality!!

“Potter, I — that was very — very gallant of you — […]”

…

…………………

………………………………………………

That was… gallant?

Gallant?

Wait, doesn’t gallantry imply some form of honor?

As in, not taking your opponent by surprise -

Harry pulled the Cloak off himself, raised his wand…

As in, facing your opponent head-on instead of hitting them in the back -

As Amycus spun around, Harry shouted…

As in, not torturing your opponent???

He writhed through the air like a drowning man, thrashing and howling in pain

That’s… unless the definition has changed, nothing about this is gallant…

Let me just -

(of a man) polite and kind towards women, especially when in public

showing no fear of dangerous or difficult things

Alright, so, Amycus isn’t a woman, so Harry can’t, by definition, be “gallant” to him.

Still, being “polite and kind” to a woman didn’t involve “torturing someone who disrespected her”, last time I checked. Punching an asshole harrassing her, definitely *pats Ron*, but torturing that asshole… no, just no.

And well, I guess casting Cruciatus is a difficult thing to do… and Harry didn’t seem very afraid to do it… that’s not supposed to be a good thing, but apparently, now it is…?

What made that

As Amycus spun around, Harry shouted, “Crucio!”

more gallant than

“What else did you take, what else? ANSWER ME! CRUCIO!”

After all, they’re the exact same thing. Torture. Inflicting tremendous pain upon someone for the heck of it.

Why do people lose their heads over Harry using Crucio, when they seem to neglect the fact that Draco Malfoy cast it?

Well, easy enough - Draco Malfoy is an evil little cockroach. The guy wished death upon people, he bragged about the fact that his Daddy dearest was a terrorist who killed people. It’s not too surprising that an evil little cockroach like him would find it acceptable to torture someone he considers “not human”, isn’t it?

What’s more surprising however, is that the hero, Harry Potter, who has been subjected to the Torture Curse, whose only use of the Torture Curse previously was when he felt distress and pain unlike any other, that Harry Potter whom is supposed to be a hero and some sort of role model, would actually manage to use said Torture Curse even though it requires real sadism to actually work.

And what’s even worse is that Harry Potter casts that curse, that literal Torture Curse, and instead of being rightly horrified, instead of being terrified by the boy’s use of such a heinous spell, instead of saying “alright Harry, you’re not doing this again, ever, right?”, instead…

Instead McGonagall calls Harry “gallant”, instead of telling him off for using such a curse. She briefly calls him “foolish”, but it doesn’t register, really, since she ends up calling him “gallant”.

That’s what angers people. That the Torture Curse is the most horrible, awful thing you can do to people… unless you’re Harry Potter, in which case it is a little “foolish”, but mostly “gallant”.

......................

But of course, little Anon over here isn’t angered. Because little Anon is a faithful devoted member of the Church of Harry Christ Our Lord And Saviour. Little Anon can say enormities like A pAiNfUl StUnNeR and believe it with the whole force of their little Anon heart, because uwu Hawwy speshul orphan pure lurve uwu.

Little Anon, please get the fuck out of my blog and never, ever come back. I’m sure this arrangement will be beneficial for everyone involved.

#vivi answers #ask #harry potter #harry potter series #crucio #cruciatus #cruciatus curse #bellatrix lestrange #hp meta #lily evans #lily potter #tw: drowning #harry potter critical

[tepkunset]

Season One of The Legend of Korra Thoughts, Because a Lot of People Said I Would Probably Hate It and I Actually Really Liked it Overall

Before I even finished Avatar: The Last Airbender, I had a few people ask if I planned on watching The Legend of Korra as well. When I said yes, I received a lot of warnings that I probably would not enjoy the show very much. While I cannot claim I enjoyed it as much as A:TLA, without judging it entirely based on how it lives up to its predecessor, I thought season one of LOK was pretty good. It is definitely not without things I didn’t like as well mind you, but the same could be said for A:TLA in that regard.

What I Liked:

I love all the main characters, and almost all the supporting characters. I think Bolin is my favourite, (although I’ve been warned he gets done dirty in subsequent seasons, so I’m bracing for that,) with Korra being second. I like that instead of just trying to make "A:TLA characters 2.0″, they all have their own unique personalities and backstories. 

The relationships between the characters—aside from the gratuitous and dumb love-square (see, What I Didn’t Like)—were great. I especially loved the brotherly moments between Mako and Bolin; I’m a sucker for positive sibling relationships. Tenzin becoming a mentor figure for Korra also stood out... and surprisingly, Amon and Tarrlok.

Speaking of Amon and Tarrlok, I found them both to be interesting antagonists. Their backstory also pulled at my heartstrings despite everything, although not without complicated feelings on the implication that what they went through with their father made them into villains. In the end, it’s just plain a tragedy how things turned out.

Just like A:TLA, a lot of the fight sequences are simply beautiful to watch. There’s no other way to describe it.

What I Didn’t Like:

The love square bullshit between Korra, Mako, Bolin and Asami was just that: bullshit. Nine times out of ten I hate love triangles, let alone love squares, or whatever. What only made it worse was that between all of them, the only chemistry I really liked between characters was Korra and Bolin’s very brief dating. I found the entire thing only clogged up what already felt like a very rushed season, since there were only 12 episodes.

I hate Republic City. This is something I can’t help but compare to A:TLA - the fact that the entire show takes place in one location, and a boring city at that, is so. Boring. Is this or is this not supposed to be an adventure genre? One of the coolest things of A:TLA was Team Avatar travelling to different locations. Hell, I felt like Ba Sing Se overstayed its welcome by the time the season two finale came around, but an entire season of LoK in the same dumb city makes that look like a brief stay. 

I personally don’t inherently dislike the technological advancements in the world since A:TLA. What I do dislike is, what I feel like at least, lazy worldbuilding in the technology itself. There’s no creativity; it’s all just exact replicas of old fashioned cars, radios, etc. from real life. What happened to things like the vertical climbing tanks from the Fire Nation, and centipede tanks from the Earth Kingdom? But I kinda wanna make a separate post about this sometime, so I’ll leave it at that.

Of course there’s other things I liked and disliked too, but those are the big ones that come to mind. And the things I enjoyed outweigh the things I didn’t.

Now, I’ve gotten tenfold the amounts of messages saying season two of LoK is really, really bad. So even though I enjoyed this one, I’m still nervous to start the next. But we’ll see how it goes.

#lok #lok thoughts

[phoenixfire-thewizardgoddess]

For that ask meme (If you don't want to answer them all feel free to pick and choose): 3, 6, 7, 8, 12, 14, 21, 22, 24, 26, 30, 34, 35, 36, 37, 38, 39, 42, 43, 45, 47, 50, 51, 54.

3. Favourite thing to write? Well, I’m not sure. Mostly I just like found family type stories, or elaborate nonsense. (As you may have noticed, all my stories are nonsensical bs lmaooo).

6. Where do you usually find inspiration? My bed, or the shower, inconvenient times. Sometimes it will be music, or a weird what-if. But you can blame the lovely @grezzirossi for a lot of my fics, as they tend to come out of weird conversations and headcanon building we do in chat. 7.  Do you listen to music to help you write? Sometimes. I mean, sometimes you need a certain kind of music to help you think. Sometimes you need the background noise of youtube etc.

8.  What’s the biggest “challenge” for you as a writer? ...writing.

12.  What’s your favorite thing that you ever wrote? I’m not sure, I really like a few of mine. Mostly because there was one killer pun or joke in there the whole fic was based around. Maybe ‘Spy Is My...’ it’s not even good, but I remember how i felt when the headcanon came to life. 

14.  What’s your favorite character/person to write for? I love Scout from Team Fortress 2, but all the mercs really. They’re all unique and ridiculous and an excellent mass murdering found family.

Lot of others tho. I have a few half-written fics i will one day finish, and your minds... they will be, disappointed. 

Would like to do some Witcher or Overwatch fics eventually. Getting to it, promise.

21.  What’s your favorite AU trope?

+Nobody Died/Everybody Lived +Superpowers +Some sort of soulmate au? Or even Hanahaki? +Found Family/Fight to Protect FAmilies +When someone assumes no one is coming... and then everyone comes to save them. 10/10 yes. Thanks. Probably others, can’t recall anything else off the top of my head...?

22.  A fanfiction cliché you can’t help but love? Oh no... I cannot love them both! Surprise motherfucker! You can!

24.  Have you ever had an idea for story and forgot about it? ...yes. The ghosts of half-recalled fanfics past haunt me in the eerie hours of dawn...

26.  How did you find out you like to write?

Not sure if it counts but like, in grade 2 I wrote a harry potter fanfic with no idea of what fanfic was. Just a creative writing/short story thing, which apparently meant ‘me and best friend at time meet harry potter and fight vampires, and save people from vampires then go to hogwarts’.  Also wrote a version of ‘the chicken who made bread’ that was like, ‘the pale blue unicorn made barley sugars’ in the same grade.

But proper fanfic? I can’t recall the exact moment... but it also involved harry potter and fanfiction.net. And I would rather die than relieve that terrible mess. Gods I thought I was SO GOOD and now it’s so YIKES. Lmao.

30.  What would you say it’s the most “famous” fic you’ve ever written? Not sure... I don’t think any are really that well known?

34.  What’s your favorite font to use when writing? The default. It legit never occurred to me to change it.

35.  Which do you prefer to write: longer or shorter fics? I tend to aim for shorter and always get longer. I aim for longer, and never finish them because I am a disaster of a human being.

36.  How do you keep yourself inspired?

a) write it in one sitting; b) re-read it a million times and occasionally type an extra word; c) have a lovely friend telling you that You Can Do It! or d) despair at being a lazy bitch with no time... ugh

37.  Have you ever written something you didn’t like but posted anyways? Yeah, most of it lmaoooo. I never feel its good enough to post?  It’s silly, but like, that’s the Mood I have.

38.  What is your “strong suit” as a writer? Being able to just like, bullshit my way through anything I guess.

39.  What’s your favorite trope? Found family / Supernatural as Normal Everyday Shit (Like oh god dammnit i phased into the 6th dimension again and i’m gonna be late for work’) / HORROR

42. What is your weakness as a writer?

Not good at describing certain things, like kissing or postures or whatever. Feels like I’m often repetitive. I dunno, it just feels repetitive, I guess? Often., even.  Also lack of time and motivation to write, after work, where constant typing is a Thing.

43.  Have you ever cried or felt any emotion while reading something you wrote? Yes. Also occasionally blindside myself with dumb jokes i’ve hidden in the fics. AS if my brain erased their existence after I typed them out, so it’s Always Fucking Funny when I read them.

45.  One thing you love about fanfiction.

That it can hold shitty canon at knifepoint and demand a better ending. That there is no real limit to the whole thing... you want to rewrite Lord of hte Rings in space? Fucking GO FOR IT. 

47.  What’s your favorite thing about writing? It feels like painting with words? Just getting lost in the story in your head, realising character A was holding a sandwich three paragraphs ago and now its a gun so you have to swear and find a part to slide in where they switched it, etc. lmao.

50.  One thing you don’t like about fanfiction.

People who are like Super Into inc*st, p*doph*lia and r*pe fics, but get defensive when people are like The fUck? Or people who ship REal Life Actual People, and get weird, or even frightening about the whole “Well these two actual human beings MUST be together so I will send death threats to their real life partners” thing. 

Also what the FUCK was with the wattpad fic phase where everyone’s mothers were selling them to 1Direction. Lmaoooo.

51.  Least favorite trope? Violently out of character fics. Where it’s straight up, ‘author has removed their personalities and added in generic uke/seme personalities from like 2009 or some shit’. And everyone’s acting super weird. (M/m and f/f/ and m/f fics alike). 

Very frustrating. Just... learn about the character, use it, it makes things way more fun to write and read. 

Also A/B/O. It’s weird, lads. I love Teen Wolf but some of you got WEIRD Weird. 

54.  Do you usually like what you write?

I get stressed that it’s never good enough. Sometimes, yeah; mostly nah.

#Anonymous

[theharellan]

dragon age positivity meme | accepting

i’m going to be answering these in one post for the sake of simplicity and cutting down ooc posts!

✾ your favourite da:o main quest | sent by @cuervocanto

my actual favourite quest is paragon of her kind, but i talked about why i love that one here. and yes, i don’t even rly mind the deep roads.

my second favourite is probably the landsmeet, especially taking into account that it has some sub-main quests that are grouped together under the umbrella of preparing for the landsmeet. such as resucing anora, breaking out of fort drakon, and solving the unrest in the alienage. i find returning to the alienage as tabris second to aeducan returning to orzammar, but it’s still very interesting coming back to a place where you grew up with no power, suddenly having power. and regardless of origin the worldbuilding is good, immediately the fact that you’re barred from the alienage upon initially entering denerim tells you a lot about the state of elves in ferelden. the choice at the end isn’t particularly difficult, “slavery is bad” isn’t a controversial opinion even in ferelden and so even the warden i created with the intention of being That Kind of Human couldn’t choose that option, BUT it does make for an emotional choice when playing tabris

as for rescuing anora and breaking out of drakon, i just love the humour in the quest. i never have my warden break out themselves just so i can have the companions bullshit their way in. my personal favourite combination is zevran and oghren, although i do enjoy morrigan-leliana and sten-dog, as well. i think my fave thing about oghren and zev tho is that iirc they’re one of the most successful combinations.

as for the landsmeet itself, it’s not particularly challenging, but i enjoy the variety of options you get and how it changes the game going forward. like, in every game anora is queen for me in some capacity, but beyond that i’ve had a bitter king alistair working with a warden who recruited loghain, loghain and the warden alone, etc. i enjoy the politicking and making an alliance with anora. it’s enjoyable even on replays.

❄ your favourite da:i personal quest | sent by @pentaghasted

my actual favourite personal quest is cole’s, which i talked about here. instead i’ll talk about iron bull’s b/c i’m glad they committed to what they started in trespasser and i also appreciate how the choice is set up. most of us save the chargers b/c the lot of them stole our hearts in the two scenes they were in, but unlike some other choices in the series choosing the sadder/arguably worse option doesn’t require you to be roleplaying as an evil bastard to choose it.

so like, most games i save the chargers, but my playthrough where i’m playing a practical trevelyan-- she goes with the qunari dreadnought. the chargers were assets, but a qunari alliance could have been more beneficial in the long term. heck, even my inquisitor who saves the chargers feels a lot of guilt about it-- because even if she didn’t know the people on the dreadnought, there were a whole lot of them, and her decision got them killed. she needed to show she cared for her own people first, but that doesn’t mean they didn’t matter.

which contrasts this personal quest for something like... say, fenris’s third one, which don’t get me wrong, is very emotional. but i cannot fathom why a hawke how kept fenris around for all that time and clearly spent time talking to him would just say “yeah you can take him” its just kinda over-the-top cruel. so i am glad when i can roleplay the alternate decisions i ordinarily wouldn’t make.

and i love seeing the quest’s differing effect on bull. he adjusts either way, but one puts him on a path where he’s going to be facing you, one way or another. and he pays the price for that.

♦ your favourite piece of lore | sent by @felandaristhorns & @sephirajo

i’ve answered this before the last time i reblogged this meme and answered the dalish mage lore from da:i and rivain just. as a whole. i’m going with the lore regarding elvhenan, though, b/c i think the games do a good job of subverting what we were told in da:o and da2 while also explaining how those misconceptions happened. i love going back to the previous games and seeing new angles to the lore and the places where they were building up to it. i love seeing the foreshadowing within inquisition itself.

and i just love how elvhenan is characterised, as a hyper-magic society where reality and dreams aren’t necessarily different things. and where feelings are just as physical as every other aspect of a person. it explains so much about the fade, spirits, solas, it makes even comments like merrill’s-- someone with a pretty nuanced view of spirits-- kind of sad. she calls the fade “another people’s land” not knowing that it was her land, and her people.

while i’m on that spirits in general make me sad. how perception screws with them, and how i think that just further isolates mages. for once i don’t think this is a plot by the chantry, i don’t think they’re lying about how they think spirits are, they’re just wrong to characterise them as they do. but at the same time i don’t think they’d disapprove of the effect is has on mages. it’s cutting them off from potential friendships, and not only that but friendships the templars would have 0 way of regulating given they could potential happen in dreams.

but i’m off-topic. the point is i find the worldbuilding surrounding elvhenan, to be some of bioware’s best. it makes sense, it’s nuanced and varied and doesn’t make elvhen characters wear one single hat. clearly it was a heavily flawed place, but it had a lot of merits and you can see why solas misses it or why cole, upon learning that the veil was never meant to be, feels validated by the idea that he was never wrong to want to be a part of both worlds.

♬ your favourite part of the da:i soundtrack | sent by @daggersandpoison

da:i has the best soundtrack in the series and i don’t think this is a controversial opinion. i do love inon sur’s work, and i was a little worried when i heard morris was composing inquisition b/c i found me3′s soundtrack to be overall a step down from me2′s (it lost a lot of what made the mass effect series unique). BUT with inquisition he managed to keep dragon age’s unique sound while also improving upon it. the inquisition theme gives me chills when i start up the game and even while i’m walking around in the field and a few chords play while i’m picking up my 100th elfroot.

but it’s always hard to choose my favourite. it’s honestly a tie between journey to skyhold and the dark solas theme. both of these give me specific solas feelings, the former b/c you have solas entrusting a lot of hope and faith in the inquisitor (it’s esp poignant if by that point you have a burgeoning friendship with him). and b/c it comes off one of the strongest moments in the dragon age series, aka the battle of haven and encounter w/ corypheus. also i love the dawn will come, fite me. and from my inquisitor’s perspective, esp my main inquisitor, thora, this is probably the first time she’s felt like she was worth all this herald talk. even if she doesn’t believe it, the song beginning with a soft, unsure sound and rising to a triumphant end when skyhold is unveiled encapsulates what i love about the inquisitor’s story and my inquisitor’s personal feelings.

dark solas theme i love b/c it conveys so much of the sadness and loneliness of his character. i would talk more about it b/c it makes me so sad i literally can’t listen to it unless i’m writing post-trespasser solas and even then it’s risky. it’s just a good track ok. and it caps off my favourite dlc.

ღ your favourite da:i banter | sent by @renaudtrevelyan

i talked about some banter i love here between bull and solas. i have to admit i have a hard time choosing my favourite in da:i b/c i just love so much of the banter in this game. i always tell myself not to choose solas banter, and i’m going to... choose one solas and one non-solas.

Solas: I do not understand you, Sera. You have no end goal for your organization. Sera: Nobles get rattled, and people get payback. I play in the middle. Solas: Why not go all the way? You see injustice, and you have organized a group to fight it. Don't you want to replace it with something better? Sera: What, just lop off the top? What's that do, except make a new top to frig it all up? Solas: I...forgive me. You are right. You are fine as you are. Sera: You hurt my head sometimes, Solas. Solas: Yes, I have been known to do that.

this banter is great to me (and all the banter leading up to it) b/c it informs so much about both of their characters. solas is trying to help sera, in this string of banter. he’s trying to give advice so that the red jennies could potentially become an organisation that does more than makes little people’s lives better with pranks or the occasional knife in someone’s back. it’s a conversation between two characters who are, in different ways, absolutely sick of the system and have different ways of dealing with it.

solas wants change. sweeping, societal change. sera isn’t sure change will help any, and would prefer the relative stability of a pre-breach world where she knows which way’s up. neither is wrong to deal with it the ways they are, and solas just has to look at the top he lopped off to see that, yes, they grow back just as bad. idk i just love solas and sera a lot and i love seeing what they have in common and how they handle their frustrations differently.

Sera: I don't get it. If you want to change, just change. Why this "fake Warden" rubbish? Blackwall: For one, people wanted me dead. Being someone else kept me breathing. Blackwall: And then, knowing that people thought I was good made it easier. Sera: (Laughs.) You needed them to think you could, so you could think you could! Sera: You're smart, but you're sort of stupid.

i’m picking another sera banter b/c i love her. i love sera b/c she’s smarter than ppl give her credit for, she cuts through why rainier did what he did the same way cole does. their relationship on the whole is very sweet and it was hard choosing one banter. but i appreciate her ability to both love and support thom while also calling him out on his bullshit. the two of them are good for each other and im so glad they’re friends. my only regret is i’ve never seen thom as sera’s best man in wedding art. or sera as blackwall’s for that matter. their friendship needs more love-- actually, sera just needs more love period.

☄ your favourite da:i codex entry | sent by @chantrysworn

i love this codex entry, describing wisdom (solas’s spirit friend):

When the summoning ritual was complete, the spirit appeared. Both spirits and demons have no gender as we understand it, but this one, much like the rare and dangerous desire demon, presented as female. Although its form was not threatening, the spirit carried itself with a confidence, an awareness, I suppose, that I have seen only in the most powerful of demons.

This spirit of wisdom was polite and courteous. It answered our questions about the Fade, even acknowledging the difficulty when we could not understand what it meant. There was none of the bargaining one normally associates with a summoned creature, save that the spirit sometimes asked us questions as well. Heras shared a mathematical formula he had recently proven, while Etrenne explained her study on magical themes in the Chant of Light, and young Rhys talked a little about his mother.

When we were finished, the spirit thanked us for the conversation and then vanished, although none of us had dismissed it. We soon discovered that the summoning ritual we had devised was critically flawed. The spirit had been under no compulsion to come or remain. All the time it had talked with us, it had stayed of its own volition. Heras was greatly concerned that such a powerful spirit remained free, and has updated the ritual to correct for the weakness in the binding enchantment. I understand his caution, but I also confess that I quite enjoyed the conversation. I am not certain the spirit would have talked so freely had it been shackled at the time.

—An excerpt from Spirits of the Spire by Senior Enchanter Francois

you can see so much of why they were friends in this codex. the politeness, answering and asking questions, no bargaining just a nice conversation where both parties learn things. and then you find out it never had to show up in the first place, it just wanted to-- and likely would not have been as accommodating had it not been free.

it’s great for informing us on a character we tragically don’t know all that well. and also? it’s incredibly sad when you think about what happens to it, it almost makes you wonder if the mages who ultimately bound and killed it would have had better luck simply asking for its protection. solas says something along those lines, but he also says it prefers remaining in the fade (interesting in itself, given that the chantry pushes the agenda that all spirits want beyond it. contradicted by multiple spirits we’ve met tbh, including cole, who actually quite likes the fade).

this codex is also interesting b/c it tells you some about what mages study and do with their time. and it goes back to what i mentioned previously, w/ chantry attitudes depriving spirits and mages of one another’s company.

anyway i love wisdom and it deserved better.

#( positivity ) #( positivity meme ) #( ooc ) #( long post ) #[ i love da / da:i sm #cries softly into hands ]

[kpoprambles00-blog]

Spring 2019 comeback review [Part 1]

I don't give a shit if it's the middle of summer, there were way too many good comebacks in the spring. I can't NOT talk about them.

Seriously, I don't know who was in charge of the scheduling for this comeback season, but good LORD they were out to kill me. Every other day it seemed like we had a major comeback, or at least a comeback I personally was interesting. And while that's great, because it gives me a lot of material to talk about here... it also gives me a LOT of material to talk about here. It's one of the main reasons why this is so late; there were almost TOO many damn comebacks and reviews. This review nearly ended up being three parts long. That's how intense it got.

But in the end, I've narrowed it down to 20 songs I wanted to talk about. (I say that as if 20 is a small number...) Now, keep in mind, I have already done some reviews of spring comebacks; namingly, Dreamcatcher, MAMAMOO, TWICE, BLACKPINK and (G)I-DLE. They won't be mentioned here (because that would be overkill at this point), but if you want to read my reviews and find out what I thought of each comeback, they're all on this blog!

Anyway, that's enough rambling. I'll be here for another two months at this rate. Spring comebacks, let's go!

EVERGLOW (에버글로우) - BON BON CHOCOLAT (봉봉쇼콜랏)

~ MV link ~

I didn't think I'd be able to say this after (G)I-DLE, but... this might just be one of the most promising girl group debuts of the 3rd gen. If not THE most promising.

Like. Wow. This sounds like a song that a pre-established artist would release mid-way through their career, only to be received with critical acclaim and everyone calling it "their best song". BUT IT'S JUST THEIR DEBUT SONG. WHAT. There are very few debuts that leave me speechless - (G)I-DLE impressed me, yes, but they didn't drop my jaw or anything. Everglow DID. If you've been seeing a lot of hype around this song, then trust me when I say it's for a fucking good reason.

"Bon Bon Chocolat" is one of the most intense and powerful girl group songs I've heard in the past year or so. I had no clue what to expect going in, admittedly, but man this was a fantastic surprise. The instrumental, for starters, is fucking nuts. It's got this phenomenal 808 bass line that permeates the entire song, along with some really interesting bass drum beats and some gorgeous, vibrant synths to help boost the melody. It's a tour de force of momentum that just does not fucking stop, and I for one am in for the ride. The vocal samples are another standout, as well; the minute you hear those fast-paced adlibs at the beginning, that's when you know that this is going to be something special.

Speaking of vocals, that's probably my only gripe with this song. Each of the members' performances are layered with quite a bit of autotune, which I'm not the biggest fan of. But the more I listen to it, the more I feel like it works in the song's favor. Sure, it does make their voices less distinct and makes it harder for you to get a feel for the members' charms (which is important for a debut, in my opinion), but the song is so damn good that it actually ends up working. In a weird way. The fact that the girls are able to pull of this sound and concept without sounding like they're trying to be the next BLACKPINK is... amazing in my eyes. It's a trap so many rookie groups can fall into, trying to sound like a hugely popular and successful artist. But Everglow have their own charm, and it shines from start to finish.

Lyrically, this song is certainly invocative of a debut. It's got that sort of "you can do anything if you believe in yourself" message to it, but it's a very confident and fresh take. The charm and personality of the lyrics actually works, and is boosted by, the girls' performances and that amazing instrumental. They honestly elevate what would normally be some pretty standard lyrics into something more interesting and worth your time.

You, straighten up your shoulders and get up Look at the world outside the window That's been trapping and hiding you

Oh, and guess what? The choreo is phenomenal as well. WHO WOULD'VE GUESSED, HUH.

~ Dance practice link ~

And that brilliance makes a lot of sense when you realise that that was choreographed by Lia Kim. Yeah. Lia Kim from 1MILLION. Only one of the most successful and celebrated dance companies out there right now. She is really fucking good at what she does, and that mastery comes across in spades here. This routine ebbs and flows in all the right places, and you can really tell how considerate she was when choreographing it; you can tell she wanted it to match the song perfectly, and she really fucking nailed it in that regard. It also helps that the girls of Everglow themselves are all great dancers, too; they've got so much power and finesse to their moves that helps them flow excellently from one move to the next.

Overall, this was fucking fantastic. I absolutely cannot wait to see where these girls go next, because if it's anywhere near as good as "Bon Bon Chocolat", these girls are going to go far.

STAN TALENT, STAN EVERGLOW.

DAEHYUN (대현) - YOU'RE MY (너는 내게)

~ MV link ~

Alright, I'll admit that this is a very indulgent pick for me. But shhhhh let me have my moment okay.

For those of you who haven't been keeping up with the latest bullshit going on over at TS Entertainment, you might not know that B.A.P ended up basically disbanding a few months ago. All of the members gradually left the label - thank FUCK - and now they've all gone their own separate ways to follow new paths. Although, as a BABY since debut, I really do think they'll come back at some point. The boys are all incredibly close, and I don't feel like they'd just want to stop being B.A.P just because they're not under TS anymore.

But the first thing a lot of the members have been doing is pursuing solo projects, a lot of which actually dropped in springtime. Yongguk released "Hikikomori (히키코모리)", Youngjae released "Another Night", and Daehyun released "You're My (너는 내게)". And while all three songs are fantastic - you should seriously go check them out if you get the chance, they're hidden gems that more people should know about - I decided to review Daehyun's for this comeback review. I'd love to do all three, but I've got enough songs to review as it is.

And that's mainly because... well, Daehyun's my ultimate bias. (Well, at least my ultimate male bias; Hyosung from Secret is my ultimate female bias). He was my first ever proper bias in K-Pop, and he's been my favourite in B.A.P since day one. So it was inevitable that I was going to be interested in whatever he releases. And it turns out that he really decided to play to his strengths here, because "You're My (너는 내게)" is a mid-tempo ballad that really gives his amazing vocals room to breathe. Now, whilst ballads are not generally something I seek out, I'll make certain exceptions if I really like the artists. And yeah, I was always going to make an exception for Daehyun.

This actually reminds me a lot of one of Kyuhyun's solo songs, "At Gwanghwamun (광화문에서)", and considering that that's another ballad I really like, that's a great thing! Both songs are relatively chill, relaxed and pleasant to listen to, with their own instrumental swells where it's deemed necessarily. But I do honestly prefer "You're My (너는 내게)" a little more in the end - mainly since I feel like it has a bit more impact. The instrumental really suits Daehyun here, and the strings and piano lines are perfect for his vocal tone. They're very warm and welcoming, which is one of my favourite qualities about his voice. Whereas Kyuhyun always goes for a slightly breathier tone, Daehyun is very well able to lean into full-on belts every now and again, and... yeah. I do prefer this overall. Daehyun's voice is just killer for me.

And yeah, as is to be expected from a ballad like this, the lyrics are quite sweet and emotional. They're even a little bit pensive in places. But with Daehyun, I have absolutely no doubt in my mind that some of these lyrics are aimed at BABYs as a whole. He's always been very clear about how much he loves and supports the fandom as a whole; seriously, go look at his Twitter and you'll see what I mean. He's a very grateful, very kind person, and that's reflected in a lot of these lyrics. Yes, they can be about romance, too, but considering this is his first time really venturing out on his own outside of B.A.P... it makes a lot of sense. It's very heartwarming. 😊

When things were hard, you were always by my side That's the reason I was able to live I won't forget, I'll always remember

While "You're My (너는 내게)" is probably going to feel like just another ballad to some people, to me - and probably a lot of other BABYs as well - it'll stand out as a big moment for Dae. Wherever he decides to take his solo career from here, you can bet it'll be good. He's a genuinely great guy with some real talent, and I hope both he and the other members of B.A.P do well in their solo careers. They honestly deserve it. 😊

ITZY (있지) - DALLA DALLA (달라달라)

~ MV link ~

...where... the fuck... do I start with this.

Okay, so JYP. One of the big three. Of course, going into the next gen of K-Pop, they'll have TWICE and GOT7. But they're mainly 3rd generation groups. Stray Kids are going to need a sister group of sorts to go with them into the next generation, right? So they debuted Itzy! And adorable name aside, these girls had a lot, and I mean a LOT of hype around them coming up to debut. Need I remind you that Shin Ryujin won MIXNINE? Yeah, that's just the start of it.

But... as we all know, this was originally supposed to be a six-member group. Of course, Somi was originally going to be a part of Itzy. But she left, and recently started her own solo career (which will be in the summer comeback review). So that leaves the remaining five members of Itzy to push forward as a beacon of what K-Pop can be, of how different and unique and memorable it can be, right? They might end up being the face of the next generation!

...with a song like this? God, I... kinda hope not...

Yeah, this is going to sound harsh. But JYP, this is NOT how you debut a promising girl group. I'm sorry, but it needs to be said - if you like the song, good for you, I'm glad you can find things you find enjoyable here. But I cannot listen to "Dalla Dalla (달라달라)" and think of it as anything else other than a raging dumpster fire. The only way this song is even listenable for me is if it's rearranged. Which, yes, that's the version I've been listening to since the day it came out. The original version is just... awful. AND THAT'S SUCH A GODDAMN SHAME.

Say what you will about me hating on Itzy for doing something different, but I really do love the image and concept that they're going for here. They're not trying to blend in; they're their own thing, and they make that clear from moment one. But... jeez, "Dalla Dalla (달라달라)" rams that message into your face so hard that it already feels stale. What the fuck happened, JYP? You have five of the most talented trainees out there in K-Pop right now, and you give them this as their debut song?! Don't get me wrong, it has its merits - the verses and choruses are nice. They're fun, upbeat and are great examples of bouncy bubblegum pop. They sound lovely! And the "don't care what people say" bridge is gorgeous as well.

But... the rest of this song... it doesn't even sound like music. It sounds dissonant. It sounds messy. It sounds downright atonal. It's like a rollercoaster that's going way too fast because of a fault in its engineering. It's got this awful mess of synths and blaring samples that just... doesn't mesh. At all. and it ruins the song's ending ENTIRELY. It's so bad. Seriously. I can't imagine a world where I listen to it and find it entertaining. Who let Skrillex lose in JYP's studio?

And the lyrics... yeah, they're fine, I guess. For a concept that was trying to be so different and distinctive, you could've had your songwriters come up with some more interesting lyrics, JYP. They're nothing we haven't heard before. They're spunky, yes, and they suit the girls' age, but... are they really all that different?

Just pretty but not attractive at all I'm different from the kids, I'm different Don't measure me by your standards alone I love being myself, I'm nobody else

Thankfully, there are two good things about this song in the end: number one is the girls themselves. The hype around the members was certainly justified if you ask me. Every single one of them has their own charm and personality, and they seem like they're going to develop into amazing performers; if they're this good now, then I can't wait to see where they are in five years' time. But the second good thing about "Dalla Dalla (달라달라)" is THAT. MOTHERFUCKING. DANCE.

~ Dance practice link ~

Now THIS is how you debut a rookie girl group like Itzy. This is one of those routines where I watch it and can't help but wonder how the fuck they're even alive after such an energetic routine. It by no means negates the fact that the song is a mess - I don't think anything could at this point - but damn, this is about the best choreo we could've gotten here. It also helps that all five girls are excellent performers, and they pull off each move with so much finesse and clarity that it's awe-inspiring. And yes, the hairflips are equally as amazing. ESPECIALLY Yeji. Like... goddamn girl, Ariana Grande called, she heard how much her ponytail suits you and wanted to say you can keep it.

So while the routine is possibly one of the best this year, the song... couldn't be further from that. Yeah, if I make a worst list this year, this'll be on it. I sure as hell hope JYP actually give Itzy a song that shows them some respect next time, because this goes down as one of the worst debut songs in my memory. Yeah. I dislike it that much. These girls deserve better, full stop.

TAEMIN (태민) - WANT

 ~ MV link ~

Debuts aside, someone who's had my attention from day one of their solo career is Taemin. I remember hearing "Danger" for the first time and being blown away at just how well he handled himself outside of SHINee. And he's never really let up that momentum; "Press Your Number" was fantastic, "Move" was one of the biggest songs of last year, and now he's released his follow up to that, "Want". And even though I liked "Move" for what it was, I think "Want" might just be its slightly better cousin.

Taemin's established an image for himself that is frought with sex appeal. I mean, seriously, just go watch this man dance if you haven't already. You'll see what I mean. It suits his vocal tone, too, since he's got this very breathy yet charismatic whisper of sorts that just sounds really damn unique. That image was pretty much perfected with "Move", but "Want" evolves on it in a few interesting ways. The instrumental takes advantage of this strange, distorted sample that sounds super different and mysterious; it's not something you can describe easily. But then there's also a thumping bassline and some really interesting, deep synths that work beautifully alongside it. Everything in the instrumental is masterfully crafted, and it all plays into that main image Taemin is going for - this song is dirty, and it's not afraid to show that.

That says a lot about Taemin as a performer, too. He uses his aforementioned breathy tone in some places, but then dips into his lower range and full-on belts in others. It's a really damn clever mix of the two, and it only serves to further the song's tone. The vocal distortion effects used here and there are goddamn great, too! This sort of sexy image is not something Taemin's ever shyed away from; he's embraced it, and "Want" makes that message loud and clear. It's so damn well put together, and carries out its concept with such elegance and poise (and a hell of a lot of charisma to boot).

Don't even get me started on the lyrics - you thought the song was sexy? Hooo man, that's nothing. These are straight up FILTHY. They really play into the Adam and Eve concept shown in the video, too. It's very reminiscent of Gain's "Paradise Lost" in that sense, and I really, REALLY like it.

You'll want it more, you'll burn up more I'm your eyes, I'll make you open up new eyes I'm your toy to make you innocent

But, of course, it's Taemin. He doesn't just have a reputation for being sexy. He has a reputation as one of the best goddamn dancers to come out of K-Pop, period. And yeah, watching the choreography for this song shows exactly what I mean by that.

~ Dance practice link ~

I feel bad for anyone who attempts a dance cover of this song. Damn, I even feel bad for the fucking backup dancers here. Taemin is just THAT good. He's got such a fine sense of poise and finesse to every movement he has, and you can really tell he doesn't just dance for the sake of it. Taemin is one of those rare people that really feels whatever routine he's dancing to; this is a masterclass in that. And yet, it's as if he's holding back; he knows we're going to want to see him go nuts and blow us all away, but the choreography is restrained... which links perfectly back into the theming of the lyrics and music video. Honestly, the dance makes this song a near masterpiece in my eyes; it's flawlessly executed and masterfully put together.

To think I was nearly going to leave this song off this list because of having so much to cover... I'm glad I didn't. Taemin's one of the strongest solo artists in K-Pop at the minute, and he delights with each and every single comeback. He can step on me and I'd say thank you, and that just about sums up how phenomenal "Want" is as a song.

HWASA (화사) - TWIT (멍청이)

~ MV link ~

When I found out that Hwasa was going to get a full-on solo, I can't begin to tell you how happy I was. She's been my bias in MAMAMOO since day one, and her solo projects on past albums have been great. So to see her get a promoted solo was awesome! Yes, it was cut short to actually let the girls breathe between promotions for this and Gogobebe (as well as preparation for their concert), but that's completely understandable. And yet, the song doesn't feel rushed or undercooked at all - it's a full-on solo effort from Hwasa, and a very successful effort if you ask me!

Outside of the debacle with the girls' schedules, I feel like RBW are doing a good job managing MAMAMOO, and that's clearly evident here with Hwasa. They noticed how popular she's becoming, especially after her viral MAMAs performance last year, and decided to capitalize on that by giving her a solo. And not gonna lie, "Twit (멍청이)" is just about the perfect song for Hwasa. It is LITERALLY her strengths and personality condensed into a song. She gets to show off her sultry, confident side that she's known for, whilst also showing a lot of vulnerability and tenderness in the lyrics; she's got a charm that's so damn hard to place, but this song does it perfectly. I couldn't imagine anyone else singing this - it just wouldn't suit them like it suits Hyejin.

The song itself is certainly memorable, too. The instrumental is more reminiscent of standard pop, with some interesting flute elements that make the melody incredibly catchy. The trumpet synths in the second half work really well in contrast with the more natural guitar tones in the verses, too; "Twit (멍청이)" is very good at building and maintaining its momentum as a song. None of it feels forced or shoe-horned in at the last minute, and I really like that! It feels very complete and distinctive.

Like I mentioned, though, the lyrics are much more emotional than you'd expect. Yes, the song itself is confident and in your face (and Hwasa's voice is powerful as all hell, let's be real), but the lyrics are... certainly surprising. Hell, there's even a goddamn reference to Korean folklore, and the story of Simcheong. There's more to the relationship here than you'd initially think, that's for sure. Hwasa admits that because she's so confident and independent, she's often the driving force in this relationship. And yes, she can bring out the best bits of her partner, but at the same time, they're very reliant on her, and she tends to resent them and push them away because of that. They're... surprisingly complex. I seriously didn't expect that sort of emotional gutpunch from a solo project by Hwasa of all people, but damn, I love it! It's super effective.

You're a twit, a man who knows only me Like delicate Simcheong* Look around once in a while You don't realise how hurt you are

* = this is the folklore story I was talking about; DKDKTV did a great explanation of it here.

Following on from that, if there's anyone who knows how to have fun in a dance, it's Hwasa. And damn, does she have fun with the routine for "Twit (멍청이)".

~ Dance practice link ~

Not only can you tell that she's really getting into the choreography itself through her facial expressions and movements, but the relationship she has with her backup dancers is nothing short of amazing. It adds so much electricity to the routine, no lie. Every single person here shines, Hwasa or not, and the routine itself is pretty great to boot! The position changes are really fun and interesting to watch, and they certainly do a great job of keeping your attention. They do a great job of letting Hwasa shine, too; you really get the sense she's the star here. Regardless, it's a surprisingly solid routine that suits her perfectly.

That's how I'd describe this entire debut, to be honest: it suits Hwasa perfectly. RBW made a great decision in giving her this opportunity, and it's something I hope she keeps up with in the future. Hell, this was successful enough to warrant a solo comeback in the future, right? I even heard it in H&M one day. That was very surprising, but... also absolutely amazing. Just like the song!

ATEEZ (에이티즈) - SAY MY NAME

~ MV link ~

Man, we were speaking of B.A.P earlier, right? And I've seen an awful lot of hype going around for ATEEZ; apparently they've just really caught on and people see a lot of potential in them.

WELL IF SOMEONE HAD TOLD ME THEY WERE A MODERN B.A.P I WOULD'VE JUMPED ONTO THE HYPE TRAIN WAY FUCKING SOONER.

Seriously, I've been discussing this with a friend of mine, and this sounds pretty much exactly like something B.A.P would've released back in late 2012, during the "No Mercy" era. I can literally imagine what member would sing what part. But don't think that that's a bad thing - "No Mercy" is still a fucking phenomenal song, and "Say My Name" is just as good. Dare I say, a little bit better in some ways?

Like I said, I hadn't listened to ATEEZ before this - but damn, the hype is real. The potential these guys have is astounding. The instrumental here is big, it's bombastic, it's what you'd expect from a boy group. The trap snares and blaring trumpet synths are nothing new. But it's the little touches here that make it truly special, like the whistle melody, or the natural acoustic guitar line. On top of that, ATEEZ are some of the strongest rookie performers I've heard in a looooooong time. They impressed me about as much as Everglow did, and that's saying something. A killer vocal line plus a really fucking great rap line is just the perfect recipe for a boy group in my head, and ATEEZ are the definition of it. They have so much effortless charisma that a lot of boy groups will strive to achieve, but will never quite get. These guys just have it ingrained in them from the word go, and that's hard to find.

I picked this song to review over "HALA HALA" in the end, mainly because I did find "HALA HALA" a liiiiiiittle cringey. That's mainly because of the lyrics - the whole Suicide Squad thing kinda pulled me out of the song. (Jongho's vocals didn't though, good LORD.) But as for "Say My Name", the lyrics are actually VERY different than what I was expecting! I was expecting some sort of uplifting message about how we're going to overthrow society's self-inflicted patriarchy (although Stray Kids did deliver on that front with the MV for "Miroh"). But it's more about how they gain strength from their fans and their success, and how it encourages them to keep pushing and moving forward. They're surprisingly sweet, actually! There are some nice little details here and there that make them really heartwarming.

Say my name, my name is in the search results I have my name tag that I wanted so badly I have friends all around me

Another thing I'd heard a lot about ATEEZ is that their choreographies are top-class; these guys are apparently fantastic dancers.

~ Dance practice link ~

And, uh... do... do they even have a main dancer? Or is that just something that's applied to the group universally? I'm... pretty convinced they don't have one at this point...

These guys... these guys are scarily good. Like... whoa. They don't have a single bad dancer. Every single one of them looks like they're into it, they're feeling the vibe of the song, and they just... proceed to murder every move given to them. Like... I only get this kind of vibe amongst groups that are KNOWN for their dance skills, like BTS or SHINee. But even then, they admittedly have their flaws... I'm not seeing one with this routine. It's... freakishly perfect. So much so that I'm kind of disturbed by it a little? I honestly didn't know who to watch during this dance practice. It's the definition of captivating. I would fucking KILL to see this done live, good lord...

(Also Jongho looks fancy as fuck, I love it.)

Yeah, so, um, bear with me while I go buy this album. These guys are going to be huge. I can feel it. Not to be THAT person, but I felt it with BTS when they debuted, and look where they are now... I haven't had this kind of gut feeling about a boy group for a hot fucking minute. You bet your ass I'm following ATEEZ from now on. Every single ounce of hype around them is real.

SUNMI (선미) - NOIR (누아르)

~ MV link ~

I remember mentioning on this blog before that "Heroine" was my favourite Sunmi song. It was just the song that stood out to me the most, since I liked "Gashina" but admittedly got a teeeeeensy bit tired of it after how much it blew up, and also since I... really didn't like "Siren" that much. So as far as solo Sunmi songs go, "Heroine" was the standard as far as I was concerned. But I couldn't be any happier to say that "Noir" IS that new standard, and it's by far my favourite song Sunmi's put out yet.

The song itself is actually quite interesting; it's got a very dark tone overall, with its deep synth line, echoed backing vocals, and the striking minor chord progressions. And yet, it's all anchored with what I can only describe as an 80s drum line, full of snappy bass beats and really memorable rhythms. It's a very interesting song musically, but where "Noir" REALLY shines is the messaging. The lyrics, the music video, even the live performance she did on M!Countdown - all of it ties back into the overarching theme.

That overarching theme is one that's very goddamn relevant, actually. In an age where social media is so prevalent, a lot of people get hung up on the attention. A little bit of popularity is never enough. That's what Sunmi thinks "Noir" is, as she described in an interview; we're in an age where people are so addicted to attention that they disregard their own safety in order to get it. It's a trap far too many people fall into, and Sunmi touches on it in a way that's simultaneously candid and very haunting. She even gave us an example of it in real life, too - remember that picture she posted leading up to this comeback? A picture of a hand full of what seemed to be Advil?

Everyone immediately started to panic, and freak out over her well being... but that was the point. We gave her the attention because she implied she was going to do something dangerous. It's a fucking ingenious way of promotion, that's for sure, but it really does show that the themes "Noir" touches on are still alive and well. (KPOP Junkee did a fantastic explanation of this on their YouTube channel.)

In terms of the lyrics, though, they seem to be a bit more cryptic; at first glance, they seem to be about a tumultuous relationship of some kind. BUT that's not the only way you should look at this. DKDKTV made a fucking great video explaning "Noir", alongside an interesting theory - what if we're meant to be looking at these lyrics from more of a Jekyll and Hyde point of view? Sunmi's trying to convince herself to embrace the dangerous lifestyle "Noir" describes, i.e. putting yourself in dangerous situations to get other peoples' attention.

I've already seen this before, I feel so high Everything goes blurry, 1, 2, 3 Now I'm blind, I don't know why I know what it is even if I don't see it, a bad ending

So while there technically isn't a dance for this song (I mean, there will be soon, since EAST2WEST won the #NoirChallenge & that's going to become the official routine - which they deserve, they're amazing!), there's still a hell of a lot to look at here. And overall, this is a serious contender for one of my favourite songs of the year as a whole. Sunmi knocked it out of the goddamn park with "Noir", and I would LOVE to see her try a concept like this again some time. It really shows how much of a professional she can be, and "Noir" is straight-up my favourite thing she's done. I love it. 👏👏👏

MOMOLAND (모모랜드) - I'M SO HOT

~ MV link ~

I find it very ironic that we're going from a song that's pretty serious to one that's... not serious at all. Not even in the slightest.

I won't hide the fact that I liked "Bboom Bboom" quite a bit last year, and I found "BAAM" to be even better. (No, I don't think they sound the same.) So going into MOMOLAND's comeback, I was curious to see if all the hate they had been getting would affect their sound; would they change it up from what they'd found success with to appease the haters, or would they stick with something more light-hearted and fun?

They ended up doing the latter, and I'm very much happy with what we got! Honestly, "I'm So Hot" might be tied with "BAAM" for my favourite MOMOLAND song yet. It's incredibly reminiscent of some of what T-ARA released back in their prime; a simple yet fun song with some interesting elements to make it memorable. The trumpet sample in particular is something I really like; I've seen some people say it's fairly grating, but I can't help but love it. The ragtime pianos and old-school vibes here and there really sell it for me, too! It's just an upbeat, fun pop song that you can really just enjoy yourself with.

But what I DON'T get is why people hate on this song simply because they find it "boring" or "nothing new", or even just because it's MOMOLAND. (Yes, rant incoming.)

Since when have songs like this lost their place in K-Pop? To bring back T-ARA as an example, everyone adored "Roly Poly", "Bo Peep Bo Peep" and "Lovey Dovey" when they came out because of how fun they were. Those songs didn't try to take themselves seriously; MBK just wanted to give T-ARA fun, bouncy songs that would stick in everyone's minds. And they did. So why are MOMOLAND getting hate for doing the same thing? These sorts of songs deserve to be here just as much as anything else does. People need to get over their goddamn hate boner for MOMOLAND and just move on. If you don't like the song, that's completely fine! If you hate on the girls for "copying themselves", "never doing anything original", and saying that "they're just trying to repeat the success of Bboom Bboom", fuck you. You're part of the problem. K-Pop isn't a contest, in contrast to what some Twitter stans might believe. Grow up, stop wasting your energy sending needless hate to artists, and move on. Rant over.

In terms of "I'm So Hot" though, it's nothing too insane lyrically - which is what you'd expect going in. Or at least you should. The title alone tells you that this is going to be pretty face-level and superficial. But hey, you need something to turn your brain off to every once in a while, and when the song's as fun as this, I can't really complain!

Why I'm pretty, why I'm cute Why am I not tired of hearing that over and over? People say that I'm pretty, that I'm cute

There's not a lot to go through here in terms of the dance, either - but again, I don't really mind it that much.

~ Dance practice link ~

To be honest, yeah, this routine is quite basic. But a major upside to routines like this is that the idols get time to breathe properly when they're performing. And considering how fucking balls-to-the-wall energetic "Bboom Bboom"'s choreography was, yeah, I'm okay with this. (I still have NO clue how they kept their energy during those stages, that dance is exhausting.) Of course, people are going to hate and say that this dance was designed purely to go viral. How, may I ask, is that a bad thing? How is having a dance that's simple, fun and easy to pick up bad? Not everything has to be mind-blowingly hard. Sometimes it just needs to be accessible, and that's probably how I'd describe this routine overall. It's got some nice elements to it (particularly in the position switches), and it's very easy for anyone to look at and join in with. It's also a hell of an arm workout. 💪

In the end, I really like "I'm So Hot"! It's fun, it's funky, and it's one of my favourite MOMOLAND songs so far. I'll admit that I do miss Daisy and Taeha, though - hopefully they come back soon so we can see an OT9 performance of this!

IZ*ONE (아이즈원) - VIOLETA (비올레타)

~ MV link ~

Alright, I've wanted to talk about this song since it came out so let me just get this out of the way:

THIS IS HOW YOU HAVE A NON-REPETITIVE STRUCTURE AS AN ARTIST.

"Violeta" has pretty much the exact same structure as "La Vie En Rose" - a relatively quiet intro, nice verse, chorus, rap and second verse, next chorus, final bridge with adlibs, final chorus and final drop to really add emphasis. Their layout is exactly the same. But to say that those two songs are the same is SO goddamn wrong that I might just punch you. Yes, they have the exact same structure. But that works in "Violeta"'s favour, because it's a structure that works. It's a way for IZ*ONE to keep a style and sound whilst still having the freedom to change it up a bit. It's really fucking clever.

In terms of the song itself though, it... actually really surprised me! I certainly didn't expect IZ*ONE to lean into deep house, but here we are. That flute melody is really damn effective, since it's often layered over some interesting percussion snaps and some goddamn angelic synths and melodies. And yeah, the deep house aspects really work here - it all builds up to an explosive conclusion that left me very impressed. I wasn't sure about it on the first listen, if I'm being honest, but it really grew on me!

Lyrically, this song is kind of what you'd expect from a girl group like IZ*ONE. It's one of those really sweet lovey-dovey love songs, full of wonder and charm. That sort of stuff just doesn't appeal to me, but I don't mind it when the song is so distinctive.

Your smile that's drawn in the sky is shining so bright The beautiful flower in your heart You're my Violeta

But, of course, what I was looking forward to the most here was the choreography. And considering "La Vie en Rose" had my favourite routine of last year - and one of my favourite K-Pop routines I've ever seen - my expectations were admittedly very, VERY high.

Buuuuuuuut yeah, they fucking killed it. AGAIN.

~ Dance practice link ~

Okay, admittedly, I don't like this as much as "La Vie en Rose" in the end. But that's perfectly fine by me - routines as good as "La Vie en Rose" are a real fucking rarity. "Violeta" is still fantastic routine, and one that's just a goddamn spectacle. It's a lot more graceful and monumental in a few places, which makes sense considering how powerful the instrumental can be here and there. It's beautifully put together, and expertly performed by all 12 members - Chaeyoung in particular really stands out here. Her skills are NO JOKE. Overall, the transitions are gorgeous, the moves are diverse and delightful to watch, and this routine is still fucking amazing. IZ*ONE are probably one of the best girl groups out there right now in terms of choreography. Yeah, I mean that.

So "Violeta" ended up being a pretty great comeback! I did see a lot of people saying that maybe this should've been the debut song instead of "La Vie en Rose", but I disagree - I feel like this is the perfect follow-up. It keeps IZ*ONE's momentum going steadily, and I really hope they keep up this standard, because I might just end up stanning them if they do. I'm THAT close to becoming a WIZ*ONE. I just don't want to have my heart broken when they inevitably end promotion. ;-;

KARD - BOMB BOMB (밤밤)

~ MV link ~

...y'all mind if I just fangirl for the next 5 minutes? I hope so, because that's inevitably what's going to happen here.

I mean have you SEEN this motherfucking video. KARD just... decided to do That. Like they fucking WENT there. (BM and Somin in particular. Hoooooooooooly fuck.)

But let's be honest, this is the song KARD have been destined to make since they first came about. For those of you who were complaining that all of their songs sounded the same, and that you were sick of that California junkee vibe they had going on, then HERE YA FUCKING GO. They didn't come to mess around this time.

If I'm being honest, I'm a huge Hidden KARD, and this is straight-up one of my new favourite songs of theirs. It sits up there for me alongside "Rumor" and "You In Me". It's big, it's bombastic, it's in your face, and it's the kind of song that pulls you in from the get-go. Yes, I'm not the biggest fan of the slightly wet percussion that's used here and there in the verses - I think it sounds a little off - but everything else is just gorgeous. The pre-choruses have this echoey, atmospheric build-up to them thanks to the percussion and harmonies, but then the choruses themselves have this... almost wiry synth that's very reminiscent of something like Yezi's "Anck Su Namun." It fits that sort of Middle-Eastern vibe beautifully. And yet, while that's the sort of instrument that I'd normally despise, it really works here - and I think that's in large part to how much pure charisma the members have.

I'm not going to mince words here, BM absolutely runs the fuck away with this song. He's made for stuff like this, where his energy is naturally called for, and he can do what he does best - being hype as fuck. But that doesn't mean the other members fall short; J.Seph singing is always something I'm happy to hear more of, since I like his singing just as much as his rapping. Jiwoo's lower, slightly rough vocal tone sounds fantastic no matter what she sings, and Somin? Somin BODIES this song. It's stuff like this that make me happy she left April - just think what would've happened if she didn't. Her vocals are absolutely killer here, and from how confident she appears in the live stages, she knows it.

And yeah, with a song like this that's meant to be hype and fit for a party, the lyrics aren't going to be all that special. But since that's not the focus, I'm more than willing to let that slide here. They're fun and catchy, and that's all a song like this really needs if you ask me. (I also like how BM straight-up knows how thirsty everyone is over him. Can he BE any more self-aware?)

Don't try to sober up Just get drunk with the vibes [...] I'm dizzy, why are you messing with my heart?

Of course, one of my favourite things about any KARD comeback is seeing the choreography, since there aren't that many male/female groups out there right now. I always love seeing how the routines work around having both male and female performers, and I've got to say, "Bomb Bomb" might have one of KARD's best choreographies to date. You thought their vocal performances were charismatic? HOOO BOI.

~ Dance practice link ~

This shit right here is why I stan KARD the way I do. The thing I said before about creating a routine for both male and female performers is done excellently. There isn't a move that feels out of place in this routine, and every single member gets their chance to show off - well, apart from J.Seph, who's stuck behind 6 foot tall BM for most of the choreo. Which is a crying shame, he's really fucking good! But aside from that, Somin and Jiwoo are probably at their best with this sort of concept; you can tell that they're not only looking good, but they're really getting involved with the choreography, too. They're into it, and it shows. And then there's BM, who I don't even think I need to explain at this point. He's a fucking dancing machine, and if you've seen KARD before, you know exactly what I'm talking about. But all in all, no member (for the most part) overshadows or outshines another here, and this gives a routine that's both very well balanced and REALLY fucking fun to watch.

Basically, a great song and great choreography makes for a happy me. KARD fucking killed it with this comeback, and I'm so glad to see them shut down the hate they've been getting with something like "Bomb Bomb". I get the funny feeling this is going to be one of my songs of the summer this year - I've certainly had it on repeat enough to warrant that. 😅

•••••

...and that's only part one of this comeback review. This one took long enough to get out as it is, so no promises as to when part two will be up. I'm going to try my best to get it up soon-ish, but I'm also working on two album reviews right now, sooooooooooo God knows when that will be. Someone kill me pls. K-Pop has been too good this year so far... 💀

SOURCES FOR THE ENGLISH LYRICS I USED IN THIS REVIEW:

Bon Bon Chocolat (봉봉쇼콜랏)

You're My (너는 내게)

DALLA DALLA (달라달라)

WANT

Twit (멍청이)

Say My Name

Noir (누아르)

I'm So Hot

Violeta (비올레타)

#k-pop #comeback review #ITZY #everglow #MAMAMOO #jung daehyun #taemin #ATEEZ #momoland #sunmi #IZ*ONE

[itsybitsylemonsqueezy]

11 Questions

**RULES ** · Always post the rules · Answer the questions given by the person who tagged you · Write 11 questions of your own · Tag 11 people (or however many you want)

Stole this from @slashyrogue​ because I thought it looked fun X3

1. Favourite fantasy book? Or favourite book if fantasy is not your kind of thing? Oh mannnn... the books of my childhood ^^; I mean... yes? All of them? As a standalone, Beauty by Robin McKinley is one of my favorites and my favorite retelling of Beauty and the Beast.

2. Where do you most want to travel to? In general? A lot of places. There’s a lot of beauty in the world, it would be a precious treasure to see it. Specifically? House on the Rock, Wisconsin. Looks FABULOUS. MUST SEE.

3. A fic or story that impressed you deeply and why? Uhhhhh... fuck me. 

Reaching DEEP into my past Odalisque by Bailey was probably one of the most influential fics of my coming of age. Not the first slash fic I ever read, but one of the best. I learned new words from it! Hell, this fic single-handedly created Faramir/Eomer as my favorite LOTR crackship. And it STUNNINGLY, ABSURDLY WORKS. (Yeah, this is SO OLD, I originally read it on a geocities website. YEAH. Yeah. Let that just... sink in.)

My Fine Feathered Friend by Lixxle is still one of my all time favorite comfort fics in the whole goddamn world. I don’t think I can go more than a year without rereading it. It’s just so pure and good and gives me the warm feels. And, you know, it’s impressive on its own to have a fic who can do that for you perpetually, no matter what happens to you. That’s impressive. (Also presented to you in its original deviantART format. I have stared into the abyss, friends. And the abyss stared back.)

Speaking of fics I will never get over and always return to, The Crane Wife by x! Not only did this fic introduce me to the beauty that is Five/Ainley, it introduced me to The Decemberists, which was life changing, and it has forever embedded in my mind how EXCELLENT a slave trope can be. I mean... this fic changed me. And in my opinion, it is x’s best work, which is no small feat as one of the greatest Best Enemies writers I’ve ever read. (Also also presented in its original livejournal format. I’ve been doing this a LONG fucking time friends. A long. long. fucking time.)

Honorable Mentions: A BloodRed Rose for Legolas (long... long embarrassing story from the bad old days of FF.net when I was about 13. It has since been taken down, I’m sure, for similar embarrassment on the part of the author. Although I distantly remember the title being changed... but no, I am not spending my evening tracking it down, sorry ^^;)

Alis Grave Nil by ombredelarue (even unfinished, it stands as a tremendous work. Before I had Hannibal, I had Doctor Who. And I had Doctor/Master. And I had TenSimms. And, let me tell you, Hannibal is not the first fandom nor will it be the last to ship the actor’s characters from other fandoms. Before I had Spacedogs, I had this. And it’s beautiful.)

The Pull of One Magnet to Another by ellie_hell (I’m no longer in the Sherlock fandom for Every Possible Reason. But, this is a very sweet, very well-written fic that if you ever cared for the character of John and Sherlock, I’d recommend reading. It can’t be any worse than the show at any rate)

4. Favourite show character? I mean... j-just one? You’re... you’re kidding right. You’re kidding.

There’s... Hannibal and Mad Sweeney and Frank Castle and Count Olaf. There’s Garnet and Annie Edison and Jane Eyre and Martha Jones. To name a few.

5. If you could only save one book in the apocalypse, what would it be? I’m gonna play by Fahrenheit 451 rules and assume that EVERYONE gets to pick one book to memorize. And I would take Moby Dick and the reason I would take Moby Dick is because 1) now no one else has to suffer trying to memorize it, 2) if you forget the past, you’re doomed to repeat it and I AIN’T DOING THIS WHITE WHALE BULLSHIT TWICE, and 3) it’s a genuinely good book about the impetuous folly and tragic pride of humanity. And given this is the apocalypse, I feel like humility is a lesson humanity could stand to remember : |

6. If you could change one thing about yourself or the world what would it be? Clean energy. Instantly. If there was one thing I could fix today, overnight, that’s what I would do.

About myself, uhhh... motivation to exercise ^^; Also A Job.

7. What do you do for inspiration if you’re feeling blocked or low? I get some musics. Musics is good for my mental state, especially new stuff. I find radio stations imperative for this because I don’t know what I’ll get. And even if I hate it, that will give me inspiration, something to think about, a new stimulus.

8. What would be your patronus / dæmon / spirit animal? I always like to think of something perfectly harmless that just wants to make its way in the world. Like a whale or a butterfly or a pangolin. I’m extremely protective of creatures who are uniquely ill-equipped to defend themselves against humans. And the whale is fantastically intelligent and develops strong familial bonds, they are long-lived and sing to each other, they’re just majestic ocean giants who do their best to regulate their home. Or butterflies, who are beautiful at no cost to anyone and are vital to the continued existence of pretty much everything on the planet. Or pangolins, who just want to be left alone to eat bugs at night and otherwise hide in trees. All precious sweethearts who are just doing their best. I’d like to be one of them.

9. What trait to you value in a friend more than any other? Understanding is a pretty good answer, really, I’m gonna steal it.

10. A quote you always loved and want to share? I know a lot of good ones... hard to choose. But there’s nothing wrong with a classic:

“We cannot choose where we will love.” -- Susan Kay

11. What is your favourite thing about yourself (don’t be shy!) Uh, well, today I took a quiz that told me my Homeric epithet is a “great teller of stories” and I’m always touched when people like my stories and tell me I”m a good story-teller. I value the ability to tell a story quite highly and if I managed to meet that qualification some of the time... that’s pretty great c:

Tagging: anyone who wants to do it, seriously, it’s a good time, you should do it and tag me if you do c:

#long post #fic history #THAT was a lot of fandoms #Come with me on a literary journey friends #about me #about Lemon

[dogjaws2]

Orange Peel

the strange thing about drawing or painting or shooting photography or dancing or singing is that you are basically operating under a pretext that states "other people will want to see this, or hear this or read this" that has always been the hardest part for me, about art work. i even hate the word art, or artist. i hate it. i feel like it immediately implies that i care about what you think. that i think you need to pay specific attention to me, and what im doing. that artwork only exists if there is an audience. and so i tend not to refer to anything i make as art, and i will never call myself an artist. i see a bed of soil, with rows of green plants. they could be flowers un bloomed, or they could just be weeds, i honestly cannot tell the difference sometimes. but they are growing, and they are green. all about the same height. someone has clearly intended to plant these in this fashion. the brown dirt looks soft, and dry, but not too dry. the green streams of leaves that rise above the dirt are flimsy, but collected and the fact that they are in these rows makes me think now yes, yes they must be flowers that have not yet bloomed. and so again, here we have a bed of dirt, and rows of green on top that someone has taken the care to prepare and water and feed and whatever else one must do in order to successfully grow some rows of green things. what i have failed to mention is that there is also a foreign object laying in the corner of the 'garden'. it is an orange peel. it is bright. this orange must have been eaten within the last day or two. this orange peel is my favourite thing to look at within this vicinity of dirt. and i am fascinated by just how well the colour of it feels on my eyes. it is entirely possible that i could have put an orange peel here, to look at. but there is absolutely no way i would have enjoyed it as much. i feel like if art could be anything, it should be a perspective that appreciates an intentional observation. finding a way to see the beauty or the magic of something that was never intended to be beautiful or magic. i feel like it is a skill you hone your entire life, and so that when things become difficult you can open your eyes and use them like telescopes to see past the bullshit and focus on tiny little orange peels. the harder i try to draw or paint, or write about this sort of thing, the further away i get from actually wanting to draw or paint or write about this sort of thing. almost like i want to keep it a secret. like i could jinx this realization if i say it out loud. so perspective is what i'm after. i'm after a consciousness that will allow me to see art anywhere, and to not have to explain it. so then art is a reaction to a piece of intentional creativity. what is the reaction to the natural existence of creativity. i like the idea of using my own life as a sort of a calculator for this. and so when i see something orange, it triggers my memory bank to search for orange. it allows me to have unique experience, operating solely on the basis of my nostalgias, and my realities. when someone else sees this orange, a different thought process is triggered. a process that may go no further than recognizing it as a piece of garbage. it is of no importance to that person and so they pay it no attention. and so now we each look at the mona lisa. we have both been told this is a beautiful painting, that it is indeed a master piece. but we both feel completely different about it. when someone asks us what we think about it, we both reply with, its magnificent. but that magnificence differs. we only reacted similarly to it because we were taught that was the proper conclusion. if you had no idea what the mona lisa was, or who leonardo da vinci was, or what the renaissance was, would you still marvel at the mona lisa? in this age? i highly doubt it. this appreciation has to be taught. the admiration you feel for certain things is not always a natural reaction and i think its extremely important to recognize the difference between allowing yourself to feel something organically and reacting how you think you should. and so my memories and my nostalgias and my realities have led me to this exact moment in time where i feel like this orange peel is interesting. i can only see it, but in my mind i can smell it and taste it. i flashback to the last time i drank orange juice, i can see images of oranges hanging on trees in my head, i think of big breakfasts, i think of mimosas, and all within the first few seconds of seeing that orange peel. it is a reaction that i enjoy, and it is completely individual. nobody else living or dead will ever experience the sight of that orange peel that way that i just did. nobody ever. some may have similar memories of oranges yes of course, but the perspective is completely unique. why oh why would you ever want to a predictable reaction to something you have created. what does that do. i have made this thing, now look at it. tell me what you feel when you look at it. its magnificent. oh thank god. a sigh of relief. my hopes and dreams had all hung in there momentarily as i awaited for audience to react. who is this audience other than myself, which is worth my effort. i will forever adore my own perspectives, and while i acknowledge that it may be a lonelier endeavour, it is important to me that i stay true to this philosophy. that i never allow myself to confuse an organic feeling, with some rehearsed reaction.

[raobazil-blog]

I have acquaint a lot of people in my life but none like Her. Her name is really weird but the story beind is spectacular. She is atypical in every way possible but I mean that in a good way. A girl with a boys soul in her, who wears a gun in her necklace, unique taste in music and enjoys taking about guns, helicopters etc. She  never wears makeup and most of the time her clothes aren't even ironed. It's like she comes to college in the same clothes she sleeps in. The same white dupatta, perfect shiny hair and her face full of pimples. She is full of kindness, litrally too kind. The first time ever I saw her dressed and groomed was our colleges "Welcome", and she wouldn't had made the effort of looking alluring unless her mother hadn't force makeup on her face. She is different than normal girls because when you tell a normal girl that she looks beautiful , she normally blushes or say thank you but she gets cross and thinks that the other person is making fun of her because she THINKS that she is not worthy of the complement. Yeah, she is zany alright. Hers smile is unorthodox, as she is mostly trying to suppress it, probably because she thinks that the infinite amount of canines in her mouth look weird (or I might be wrong and that just how she smiles). But her smile and the way she laughs can turn your day around. Her smile is like a resurrection stone but even better. It can bring the dead back to life and they will be happy with being alive (Yes I read Harry Potter). She is possibly the most perfect being I have ever met in my entire life: original in every way possible, very simple, is happy with things that cost less (her favourite food is FRENCH FRIES), extremely kind, well groomed, talks like a foreigner (As most of the time we don't understand what she is saying), probable not so pretty (because she rarely washes her face). The way she talks is like listening to James Bay. You might not like what you are listening to but you will want to listen too more. There are three types of girls: 1. The extremely simple one who is happy with what she has and feels weird when she starts getting more, as she thinks it's way too much for her. This girl can lead a very simple lifestyle happily. 2. The girl who can live a simple lifestyle but will prefer more in everything and when she doesn't get more she will get mood swings and is not happy most of the time. 3. The girl who cannot survive without expensive things like iphones, branded clothes, and pointlessly expensive fake jewellery. She is the first catagory and she has no comparison. She gets excited for everything and the way she talks can charm anyone (everyone = My sisters). She is filled with innocence and that is the best thing about her. She is always happy and is one of the people who always attends my calls. She has a high tolerance level for my bullshit and when I am depressed, talking to her is the pinical point of the my day and makes me feel better. She is the perfect friend (as she too likes too look at girls) and the perfect company, because once you start talking to her you don't want that moment to end (I meant that in a good way). She is probably the only person who can properly convince me into doing anything.

Bazil Taimur

[foundcarcosa]

clxxii.

1. Are you more likely to “suck it up” when something is difficult or to give up? >> It depends on what the thing is. Sometimes I’ll let myself give up on something if it’s of little consequence -- like trying to play a video game without cheats, or something. But if I think it’s worth persevering, I’ll try to keep pushing for it. Or give up for a little while and then come back to it when I’ve had a break.

2. What was your very first day of your very first job like? What’d you do? How long did it take you to get the hang of it, and feel comfortable with working? >> I don’t remember. I was sixteen and medicated.

3. If you have a dog, are they friendly to strangers or other dogs? >> ---

4. Whether you like it or not, do you tend to get into drama with girls? Or do you just let that stuff roll right off your back and have nothing to do with it? >> I get into very little drama as a whole -- I just refuse to feed into it. It’s fun to watch from the sidelines, sure, but I get nothing out of actually participating in it. Mostly it just saps energy I could be using on something else.

5. Do people ever comment on or joke about your driving? >> ---

6. What was something little that made you smile or cheer up today? >> The fact that my tooth pain has abated enough that I can actually think straight.

7. Would you say that the people you hang out with most are kind of weird or unique? Or do you think they’re just regular chill people? >> I don’t hang out with anyone at current...

8. Have you ever had absinthe? >> Yes, and I love it. I keep forgetting to go back to the place in GR that sells it, but I gotta go back there soon.

9. Have you ever been accused of trying to steal someone’s significant other? Were you trying to? >> Yes. From my perspective, I didn’t see why we couldn’t... share. But what I thought doesn’t matter, because my thoughts are only mine. I can’t expect others to share my thoughts just because I think they’re reasonable.

10. Have you ever resented someone for something that is out of their control? Has this ever happened to you? >> Yes to both.

11. Was there anything that you thought would never happen to you, but it did? >> Yes.

12. Do you tend to try to avoid drama or do you kind of like a life filled with drama? >> I don’t have to try to avoid drama, I just straight-up avoid it. When I get into bullshit, I generally know what I’m doing ahead of time and it’s kind of like when you drink a day after a bad hangover. Like, you know what’s going to happen, but your selective memory is like, “oh, it’ll be fiiiine... ~”

13. Do people often describe you as a sweetheart? Or maybe there`s another word people are always calling you? >> I don’t know. “A dick” is usually what my friends describe me as.

14. What was the last thing to move you? Are you easily moved or inspired? >> That story I reblogged earlier about the guy who fosters terminally ill children. I am easily moved, yes -- just not necessarily vocal or maudlin about it. It’s considered something like a handicap in this society to be easily moved, so I keep it to myself.

15. If you`ve ever seen your very favorite band, did you cry when you saw them? Was it like a dream come true? If you`ve never seen them, do you think you would? >> I didn’t cry at the Volbeat concert, or the Coheed concerts, and I’m not sure if I’ve ever cried at any of the Sevendust shows... not sure whether I cried at Steve Vai or not either. I’ve never seen Pearl Jam live but I’m pretty positive I’d cry if I saw them. I have a lot of favourite bands but not all of them are favourites that make me cry. Like, Fleshgod Apocalypse moves me, but not to tears. Their music is just very stirring. Maybe I’d cry if I saw Wardruna. Hmm. Anyway, I think I cried when I saw AFI, so there’s that.

16. If you write stories, have you ever come across a person in real life who looked weirdly similar to one of your characters? Or maybe acted just like them? >> No.

17. What is something a girl you`ve just met/seen can do to make you instantly dislike her? What about a boy? >> I don’t instantly dislike anyone. I think it would be easier for me to experience love at first sight than it would ever be for me to experience dislike at first sight.

18. Is it hard for you to get along with people that have different opinions than you? Or can you ignore all of that stuff and be friends with just about anyone? >> It’s not hard at all. I don’t believe in the sanctity or infallibility of my own opinions, so there’s no rational reason for me to use them as litmus tests in my relationships with others. I am always grateful for opportunities to be exposed to different opinions.

19. When you get fast food are you ever rude and impatient? >> No. I try to be as pleasant as possible to food service workers.

20. What is something you can do to calm yourself if you’re nervous? Is there anything you do to boost your confidence when you need it? >> I’m so rarely nervous that I don’t have any go-to coping skills.

21. Do you have any of those Jac Vanek bracelets? How about any friendship bracelets? >> No.

22. Have you ever said you were going to become a gypsy? Have you ever thought about it? >> No. I also prefer not to use that word, as it doesn’t seem to have friendly connotations and I can easily just say “wanderer” or “nomad” or just about any other culturally-neutral term.

23. How do you let go of petty things that are bothering you? Is it easy for you to let things like being insulted by a stranger go? >> I remind myself that they’re petty and wait for the irritation to pass. It has to eventually, after all, especially if I don’t feed it. It’s not always easy, but it’s important to me, so.

24. Of all the reality competitions you’ve watched, who are some of your all time favorite contestants and what shows were they from? >> I don’t remember the contestants on any reality shows except American Idol (because you usually saw a few of them in the media for a while afterward).

25. Do you like to read/hear spoilers about your favorite shows or new movies? Or would you rather know nothing until you actually saw the show/movie? >> I don’t mind spoilers. I don’t watch things to be surprised, I watch them to be immersed in a story. A story cannot be spoiled. A story can only be revisited.

#surveysofsamedi