#I love them a lot and I think that their romance was absolutely authentic | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

hotvintagepoll · 1 month

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Propaganda

Ava Gardner (The Killers, The Barefoot Contessa)— She's so goddamn hot. Her and Frank Sinatra could've sandwiched me and I would've thanked them for the privilege

Anna May Wong (The Thief of Bagdad, Shanghai Express)—Wong was the first Chinese American movie star, arguably the first Asian woman to make it big in American films. Though the racism of the time often forced her into stereotypical roles, awarded Asian leading roles to white actors in yellowface, and prohibited on-screen romance between actors of different races, she delivered powerful and memorable performances. When Hollywood bigotry got to be too much, she made movies in Europe. Wong was intellectually curious, a fashion icon, and a strong advocate for authentic Asian representation in cinema. And, notably for the purposes of this tournament, absolutely gorgeous.

This is round 5 of the tournament. All other polls in this bracket can be found here. Please reblog with further support of your beloved hot sexy vintage woman.

[additional propaganda submitted under the cut.]

Ava Gardner:

Ava Gardner is one of my favorite actresses of all time. Although a lot of her roles in movies are about her being beautiful and nothing else, there are some films where her acting truly shines.

Gifset: https://www.tumblr.com/pelopides/721438308726603776/ava-gardner-as-pandora-reynolds-pandora-and-the

Gifset 2: https://www.tumblr.com/portraitoflestatonfire/731899355804598272/if-the-loustat-reunion-doesnt-look-like-this-then

HER FACE. LOOK AT IT. Also was a life long supporter of civil rights and a member of the NAACP, had lots of fun love affairs with other stars, bullfighters, married several times but was also happy in between to just have lovers and was unapologetically herself.

I literally gasp every time I see her.

Between 1942 and 1964, Ava Gardner was credited in no less 50 films, and is still considered by some to be the most beautiful actresses that ever graced the silver screen. Despite life-long insecurities regarding her talent as an actress, she weathered public scandal, industry hostility, and outright condemnation by the Catholic Church with fearless grace. She would later in life talk candidly about the reality and pain of living through two (studio approved!!) abortions during her short marriage to Frank Sinatra, and while the two of them could not make their relationship work, they remained in each other’s lives for nearly 30 years. She would forever describe herself as a small-town girl who just got lucky, but always felt like a beautiful outsider.

Really genuinely one of the most beautiful human beings I have ever seen. An autodidact. Had amazing chemistry with Gregory Peck to the point where I do think about watching On The Beach again sometimes because they're so good together even though that movie did destroy me. Was a great femme fatale in many movies.

Anna May Wong propaganda:

"She so so gorgeous!! Due to Hollywood racism she was pretty limited in the roles she got to play but even despite that she’s so captivating and deserves to be known as a leading lady in her own right!! When she’s on screen in Shanghai Express I can’t look away, which is saying something because Marlene Dietrich is also in that film."

"SHE IS ON THE BACK OF QUARTERS also she was very smart and able to speak multiple languages and is a fashion icon on top of the acting/singing"

"Paved the way for Asian American actresses AND TOTAL HOTTIE!!! She broke boundaries and made it her mission to smash stereotypes of Asian women in western film (at the time, they were either protrayed them as delicate and demure or scheming and evil). In 1951, she made history with her television show The Gallery of Madame Liu-Tsong, the first-ever U.S. television show starring an Asian-American series lead (paraphrased from Wikipedia). Also, never married and rumor has it that she had an affair with Marlene Dietrich. We love a Controversial Queen!"

"She's got that Silent Era smoulder™ that I think transcends the very stereotypical roles in which she was typically cast. Also looks very hot smouldering opposite Marlene Dietrich in "Shanghai Express"; there's kiss energy there."

"Hot as hell and chronically overlooked in her time, she's truly phenomenal and absolutely stunning"

"A story of stardom unavoidably marred by Hollywood racism; Wong's early-career hype was significantly derailed by the higher-up's reluctance to have an Asian lead, and things only got worse when the Hayes code came down and she suddenly *couldn't* be shown kissing a white man--even if that white man was in yellowface. After being shoved into the Dragon Lady role one too many times, she took her career to other continents for many years. Still, she came back to America eventually, being more selective in her roles, speaking out against Asian stereotypes, and in the midst of all of this finding the time to be awarded both the title of "World's Best Dressed Woman" by Mayfair Mannequin Society of New York and an honorary doctorate by Peking University."

"Incredible beauty, incredible actress, incredible story."

"-flapper fashion ICON. look up her fits please <3 -rumors of lesbianism due to her Close Friendships with marlene dietrich & cecil cunningham, among others -leveraged her star power to criticize the racist depictions of Chinese and Asian characters in Hollywood, as well as raise money and popular support for China & Chinese refugees in the 1930s and 40s. -face card REFUSED to decline"

#anna may wong #ava gardner #hotvintagepoll #fuck that old woman #ladies 5

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mystic-scorpio · 9 months

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THINGS I THINK YOU NEED TO HEAR

[ based on your 𝔟𝔩𝔞𝔠𝔨 𝔪𝔬𝔬𝔫 𝔩𝔦𝔩𝔦𝔱𝔥 placement]

𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷

[copyrights reserved ©️mystic-scorpio]

𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷

How to find your 𝔩𝔦𝔩𝔦𝔱𝔥 𝔭𝔩𝔞𝔠𝔢𝔪𝔢𝔫𝔱 ?

- Enter your birth data in the link give below:

𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷

♈︎ 𝔩𝔦𝔩𝔦𝔱𝔥 in 𝔸ℝ𝕀𝔼𝕊

You're ambitious, both in professional and personal life. You want to win. It's absolutely okay to be aggressive sometimes in order to achieve success. It's OKAY to show some teeth sometimes. You deserve to get what you want, don't be guilty for it!

Leave the guilt for them losers.

𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷

♉︎ 𝔩𝔦𝔩𝔦𝔱𝔥 in 𝕋𝔸𝕌ℝ��𝕊

You should pamper yourself more often.

No seriously, go enjoy a bubble bath, treat yourself to delicious food, cuddle up in a blanket or have a date night with your boo.

The Taurus in you craves a bit of love, romance and delight, give in to those cravings.

𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷

♊︎ 𝔩𝔦𝔩𝔦𝔱𝔥 in 𝔾𝔼𝕄𝕀ℕ𝕀

In your love life, you're looking for your other half but you're also very flirtatious . Make sure you are acting authentically in love.

Gemini is the chattiest zodiac but if your Lilith is in this sign, there's a chance that your hiding something or you're not letting something out.

Let it out!

𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷

♋︎ 𝔩𝔦𝔩𝔦𝔱𝔥 in ℂ𝔸ℕℂ𝔼ℝ

You need to love yourself as much as you love people around you. Don't give all your time, attention and energy to your loved ones, save some for yourself! Trust me, that doesn't make you selfish.

Also I feel like there is a lack of creative expression. I recommend going to your nearest drink and paint classes and let the colours and emotions flow~

I promise it'll be rejuvenating!

𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷

♌︎ 𝔩𝔦𝔩𝔦𝔱𝔥 in 𝕃𝔼𝕆

You are braver, stronger and more fabulous than you think you are!

I feel like you've been hated for expressing yourself at one point in your life, be it for gender expression, coming out or just embracing a new sense of style. Those people who gave you a hard time are just jealous, don't let them affect you.

You are fabulous, my love<3

𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷

♍︎ 𝔩𝔦𝔩𝔦𝔱𝔥 in 𝕍𝕀ℝ𝔾𝕆

Okay this gon' sound funny but, don't try too hard to be chill.

Yes, I feel like you need a lot of structure and order in your life and somewhere your not doing it just to appear chill, you know?

You NEED to take care of your mental and emotional well being. Procrastinating is just gonna make shit harder.

If you're life requires structure, give it that!

𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷

♎︎ 𝔩𝔦𝔩𝔦𝔱𝔥 in 𝕃𝕀𝔹ℝ𝔸

Hey you.

Yes you.

You're worth EVERYTHING, kindly embrace that shit.

Go out there, ask for a raise, go out on a date , demand a glamorous birthday party for yourself. You're totally worth it.

You don't realise how much people around you love you and it's time you start celebrating yourself just as much.

𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷

♏︎ 𝔩𝔦𝔩𝔦𝔱𝔥 in 𝕊ℂ𝕆ℝℙ𝕀𝕆

The moment you hear "scorpio", you know it gon' be about sex.

But it's kinda different for Lilith in Scorpio.

You need to embrace your true sexuality. Ensure that your getting what you want in bed, whether it be handcuffs and leashes OR complete asexuality.

For you, sexuality= spirituality

Therefore it's not selfish to be honest about your sexual nature. In fact, it's important to BE HONEST about it.

You also need a lot of privacy so allow yourself your secrets.

𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷

♐︎ 𝔩𝔦𝔩𝔦𝔱𝔥 in 𝕊𝔸𝔾𝕀𝕋𝕋𝔸ℝ𝕀𝕌𝕊

You NEED to keep expanding your knowledge and intellectual exposure, whether it be through a hobby, a kink or by some adventure or travel.

This placement requires that intellectual stimulation that you have to actively provide.

Oh yes, don't be afraid to dominate conversations in a group setting.

𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷

♑︎ 𝔩𝔦𝔩𝔦𝔱𝔥 in ℂ𝔸ℙℝ𝕀ℂ𝕆ℝℕ

We all know you like to work hard.

What we don't know is you like to party harder!

So give yourself that stimulation. Get your work done on time and then sit back and ENJOY your life. That way you'll enjoy as well as get everything done! It'll keep you motivated and happy.

𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷

♒︎ 𝔩𝔦𝔩𝔦𝔱𝔥 in 𝔸ℚ𝕌𝔸ℝ𝕀𝕌𝕊

You can change the world if you want to.

You just have it in you to fight for humanitarian causes. People will listen to you, you just need to speak up for what you stand for.

There's a chance you're not giving yourself the independence and alone time you deserve. Even in a relationship you might need to set boundaries.

𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷

♓︎ 𝔩𝔦𝔩𝔦𝔱𝔥 in ℙ𝕀𝕊ℂ𝔼𝕊

YOU DONT EVEN REALISE WHAT A BLESSING YOUR CREATIVITY IS?

Seriously, you've been putting your passion projects on halt just to be "responsible". Even when these passions make you happy?

Secondly, you are likely to want a spiritual connection with your romantic partner even if it's casual, so make sure you follow your heart rather than people's expectations on who YOU should date.

𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷𖧷

A/N: that's it for this blog, see you in the next!

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lurkingshan · 1 year

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I’m thinking a lot about the scene between Pran and Tian where they discuss the fight Tian and Phupha are having. Not the fake one about who liked who first, but the real one about Phupha refusing to travel home with Tian or change anything about his life to meet Tian’s needs. It’s a funhouse mirror image of the conflict Pat and Pran are having about how much Pran should let Pat help him, and their long-term dynamic of Pat letting Pran win every disagreement and always being the one to compromise or give in when their needs are in tension.

What I love about it is that Tian doesn’t know anything about their relationship, he’s just (drunkenly) talking about his own experience, and how frustrating and exhausting it is to be with someone like Phupha who never meets him halfway. And Pran is sitting across from this guy who looks like his twin, whose story he has already memorized and connected to, who he now thinks of as a sort-of friend, and he is self-aware enough to see the parallels instantly, and to feel a little embarrassed and ashamed that he is essentially the Phupha in his relationship. And you see him react, just a little, and maybe start to think for the first time about what it must feel like for Pat to yield to him on everything, and never have that reciprocated by Pran.

Reading this wonderful post from @waitmyturtles earlier where she mentioned how she empathizes with Pran, I was also reflecting a bit about where I see myself in this story, and let me tell you, I am such a Phupha. When it comes to how I want to live my life, where I want to be, and how I want to spend my time and with whom, I am uncompromising to a fault. I completely get where Phupha is coming from - I told you who I am, and now you’re telling me it’s not enough. He is frustrated by the idea that he has to change himself for Tian, and I get that, I really do. It’s something I am personally not willing to do. The key difference between me and Phupha, however, is that I am not in love and I do not desire to be in a romantic partnership. He very much is, and very much does.

So what might a guy like Phupha think, as he is struggling so much with the idea of yielding to Tian, when he is met with someone like Pat? Someone who is so like him in some ways - in his strength, his masculinity, his physicality, his confidence, his loyalty, his desire to help others - and yet so unlike him in other ways - his emotional openness, his vulnerability, his comfort with compromise, his absolute willingness to put his pride aside for his lover. Where Phupha is rigid, Pat is versatile, in every sense of the word. There is a lot Phupha might learn from talking to someone like Pat about how he sees his relationship, why he is always willing to bend to Pran’s needs, and why he ultimately feels it’s worth it, even if he sometimes feels some of the frustration that Tian does. Might Phupha have his own epiphany next week, opening up a path for him to finally compromise on something important to Tian?

@dribs-and-drabbles, I’m not sure how this might fit into your theory about the patterns playing out in these episodes, but I really hope we get to see this happen next week, and watch both of these couples learn from each other’s experiences and find a way to meet their partners in the middle. Because as @waitmyturtles said, this is the work of being in a long term relationship.

In the server with @bengiyo @shortpplfedup @kyr-kun-chan @wen-kexing-apologist we talk often about how amazing it is when romances address what happens to couples after they get together, and how exciting it is that we are starting to see more bl shows about the work of staying together, and I’m so glad that the genius minds behind Bad Buddy and A Tale of Thousand Stars took the opportunity of this special to dig into that so authentically. And to have done it in such a brilliant way, by mixing and matching these characters from beloved shows, putting them side by side and demonstrating how they are similar and also how they can learn from each other, creating a sense of community in this shared universe, and making it all so damn fun along the way, is just an unbelievable treat for us as an audience. Can't wait to see how it all comes together next week.

#bad buddy #a tale of thousand stars #our skyy 2 #thai bl #shan shouts into the void

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lilislegacy · 3 months

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i saw your post about percy and annabeth kiss in boo and how you think it’s ridiculous that people think percy and annabeth are better as friends. well guess what? i’m one of those people. i hate how the main male and female leads are always forced together and that’s exactly what riordan did too. percy and annabeth would have been so much stronger if they had stayed this super amazing platonic friendship where everyone thinks they are going to date but they are like nah we just besties. and i think seeing that is a lot more powerful than just another badly written teenage romance. their chemistry feels forced and unauthentic, they obviously get annoyed with each other way too easily to be in a relationship, and they become dangerously co-dependent. and fine, maybe they would date for a few years since everyone would make them feel like that’s what they are supposed to do. but then i think they would realize that they are better off as friends and don’t actually have romantic attraction for each other. and that’s exactly what i think would happen if the author was true to their characters and not just writing for himself. but honestly i think there is a solid chance that they are both asexual, which there is a TON of evidence of, and wouldn’t even want to date in the first place. so sorry not sorry but percy and annabeth are definitely better as friends, and the people who don’t get strangely obsessed and attached to a basic and forced romantic pairing can see all the evidence in the books as to why.

ok this has been sitting in my inbox for a bit. i have almost answered it in several different ways, one being just saying “that’s an opinion!” but i think im just going to react to it honestly.

you have every right to believe whatever you want to believe. your imagination is your own. go crazy. or don’t. but it’s your own opinion and you have every right to have it.

however, to openly claim that the author isn’t staying true to their characters is not your right, because he is the one who invented them. they are his creations, so he’s actually the only one who knows exactly what’s right for them. the characters are based off of him and his wife who he has been married to for many many years - who are still very much in love with each other to this day - so i think percy and annabeth are actually one of the most authentic romantic pairings of all time. i am sorry that you don’t pick up on their naturally written chemistry and attraction for each other, because i think it’s a very important part of the story. it’s a very important part of their characters and their actions.

and you are absolutely right about one thing: they are best friends and love each other very much in a platonic way, and we DO see that a lot! it’s very clear that they are best friends first, and have that as a strong foundation. but they also have more there. they have strong romantic, and some implied sexual, feelings on top of it. and that’s okay too. it’s possible to have both a strong friendship and a passionate romance. that’s what makes them such an incredible pairing, in my opinion. they grow together. they start off as platonic friends and turn into young adults who are very much in love. it’s very natural, especially given everything they go through together.

so you can totally hc them as being just friends. thats okay! but i don’t think it’s okay to call other people wrong or blind or “strangely obsessed and attached” for believing in a romantic pairing that is very much supposed to be romantic.

thank you for the ask. have a nice day :)

#how did i do guys?#this one was hard #anon ask #answered ask #percabeth #percy jackson #annabeth chase #percy jackson and the olympians #heroes of olympus

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nee-biter · 9 months

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I need more stuff about Miguel x Peter x MJ x Reader😭😭 (fills my need for a polyamorous relationship :') )

Poly relationship Headcanons | Miguel x Peter B x MJ x Reader

a/n: Me when I accidentally became a polyamorous relationship promoter/advocate 🫣 Thanks for the requestttt <33

SFW

MIGUEL IS IN LOVE WITH YOU

He always has been, ever since you first mumbled an 'I love you' while half-asleep and cradled in his arms that one morning. He woke you up just to tell you he loves you too.

Marrying you was only natural, since you complete him and he was the only one to understand you, too. When Miguel looks at your eyes, the only thing he wants is to get lost in them forever. You being his wife is something he'd always boast and mention in the PA system in Spider Society tbh (not because he was a lonely oldie before u 💔) but because he's happy you're with him in everything he does. Your presence as he works, as he hyperfixates about the multiverse, as he eats, as he sleeps, has made his life ultimately better.

MJ HAS A CRUSH ON YOU

She started having butterflies in her stomach for you at such an inconvenient time—before getting married (for a second time) with Peter B. You were there beside her, helping her breathe in and out when she doubted Peter B would even be at the end of the aisle.

She could've sworn that your eyes sparkled in that blue dress you wore as her maid of honor. She almost made the stupid move of kissing you as you were comforting her, but that must've been the wedding jitters, right? Right? (She realized she was wrong when she returned from her honeymoon and palpitated when she saw you in a dazzling outfit).

PETER B THINKS YOU'RE COOL

Not as cool as his wife (obviously), but he absolutely enjoys your company. When you visit his and MJ's house to babysit Mayday or to have a chat with his wife (or him, though not as often), your good vibes spread throughout the house. Peter considers you a reliable confidant.

When him and MJ were running out of ideas on how to feed Mayday vegetables, you came up with a solution to hide them under a heap of rice. When Peter was having trouble thinking of what to give MJ after an argument, you suggested he just apologized clearly and authentically, and everything would work out. Peter starts getting suspicious of you, though, and why you know so much about his wife.

How did you four decide you wanted to be in a relationship with each other?

Honestly, you have Peter to thank for that. He realized that his wife's feelings for you were getting stronger by the day and that your feelings for her were getting harder to ignore every double date night. He didn't think it was bad—on the contrary, he just wanted you two to confess, so you could talk negotiations.

At one point, Peter just asked outright, "Do you guys have a thing for each other?" And you two laughed like crazy while him and Miguel were like ??😫??

The answer was yes.

For Miguel and you, it didn't affect your relationship in its entirety. But he was a bit pouty. "Am I not enough for you? Is there something I'm lacking?" was his mantra at the start of it, but you had to reassure him that this wasn't true. You're always open and transparent with him, which made him trust your judgement. Also, you give him more kisses to stop him from sulking a lot 🫶

For Miguel and Peter, it made them a bit awkward at first, before Miguel realized that no other spider-person checks up on him or dotes on him as much as Peter B does. Peter B always left small offerings for Miguel when he worked late at night in the 2099 lab. "I brought you a blanket me and Mayday crocheted. Don't forget to rest, big guy! Sleep on the floor if you have to. Better than not sleeping at all." Miguel keeps all the notes Peter leaves him.

For MJ and Peter, it was more of a 'how-to-explain-this-to-Mayday-thing,' Especially, if Mayday was at that stage where she would be able to tell what kissing, what romance, and the like could look like. Neither of them were that worried though. "I mean, honey, Mayday sees a lot of insane stuff in Spider Society all the time~!!" Peter B would argue.

For MJ and Miguel, it brought them a bit closer, considering they had more in common now. MJ hoped that it wouldn't be so weird for Miguel, but every now and then, she says something like this: "So, your wife tastes good— I mean, your wife's cooking tastes good! Her pork carnitas are amazing. Yes, that's what I meant. Sorry." "Be honest, that's not what you meant."

For you and Peter, it definitely opened up more bonding opportunities. Despite you four dating, you and him always think of each other as besties; which is why you both peer pressure your two lovely, more reserved spouses to stuff like kayaking, boat rides, halloween trick-or-treating. "Hey, do you think MJ and Miguel would be cool with going to an adult playground for brunch?" "IDK, Will there be brunch?"

For you and MJ, it was basically extending your already-intimate friendship to even more intimacies. She cuddles!! A lot!! And you kiss her on the forehead, just as many times as she needs it!! Your relationship with her was an understanding one; she always initiates touch with you. "Baby, stay here for longer, please." "MJ, you're so cute, but Peter's like... right there"

RANDOM STUFF

In terms of cooking skills: You > Miguel = MJ > Peter B

MJ would bake for you! Cookies and bread for you to take home so you can munch on them when you and Miguel would watch movies and cuddle at the sofa at night.

Peter B would invite you and Miguel to picnics or beach outings with him and MJ!! He would always bring Mayday to play frisbee with him and Miguel, if ever it was a 👁family-safe👁 occasion

Miguel would ask MJ for help when it comes to surprising you for your birthdays. He understands that you're BIG on birthdays, so he needs all the help he can gets to make sure the day is extra-special for you!!! He'll dress up as a bunny just to make you smile 😞

SUPER MARIO PARTY and Peter B always chooses Bowser Jr.!!!! Miguel likes Donkey Kong "just because" and MJ picks Yoshi because he's silly-looking.

The first one in Spider Society to find out that the four of you were dating was Gwen. Because she was about to drop off the hair-dryer that she borrowed at your doorstep, only to see that Miguel and Peter kissed as he and MJ were leaving your house.

Gwen tried keeping the secret, buuuuuut she told Miles, who told Pav, who told Hobie, who told Margo, who told Noir, and at some point, Lyla just had to inform Miguel that the secret was out 🤓

In terms of who gives the best back massages: Miguel > Peter B = MJ > You

For everyone's sake, do not give a back rub.

The four of you love each other 🫶 and it's so evident in the way all four of you stay supportive in everything you guys do and in the way that you're all tender with each other's presence

Thank you for reading ✨ I'll upload an nsfw version if it's in demand (feel free to request)!!

#spiderparents #across the spider verse #spiderman atsv #miguel o'hara #mj parker #mary jane parker #peter b parker #peter benjamin parker #sfw fic #miguel o'hara x reader #i love them

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panlight · 6 months

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I'm not sure if its possible to get something like pigs blood from a butcher in the US, but i feel like someone like Esme would prefer that over hunting animals.

And maybe Carlisle and Rosalie would work on a blood alternative, kind of like TruBlood, for vampires.

What are your thoughts on that?

My understanding is that it's tricky in the US to find it, but with the Cullens' money they could probably pay off some local butchers to save blood for them. Just imagining Esme being like "oh I make authentic black pudding and sell it online!" as an explanation and they make like a fake online store front for it and then people start trying to actually order it and she's like, oh crap I guess I have to make some now? Like when you read stories about restaurants that were really fronts for mob activity but someone wanders in and the mobsters have to get their mom to cook some pasta for the oblivious customers.

But, really, if SM were more interested in 'vampire slice of life' stuff AND if she had more room in her story for the secondary characters to have desires and motivations outsides of either facilitating or resenting the main romance, of course Carlisle would have been trying to make a blood substitute, and of course Rosalie and Edward, with their various STEM degrees, would be helping him. And OF COURSE they would have researched the myths surrounding vampires having children long before Bella got pregnant. It's absolutely impossible for me to suspend my disbelief to accept that the Cullens and especially Carlisle were just like 'wow we literally never thought or wondered about this until just now' when Bella gets pregnant. Esme and Rosalie LONG for children! SURELY they've researched this before!?!? I could accept that they researched it but found no concrete evidence and thought it was just a myth made up by the Volturi or whatever but just the 'literally no idea . . . even though apparently there are books in our library about it, and our groundskeepers on Isle Esme know about it, and there are websites online about it' does not make sense to me unless the Cullens have just literally been standing around like unplayed Sims waiting for Edward and Bella to need them for something.

I also think the Cullens probably should have been working on some kind of sparkle-suppressing vampire make-up. I've seen people asking why they don't just use make-up to hide the sparkle or look older, but since their skin is so different from human skin, normal make-up probably wouldn't work that well. But again, you've got Alice the fashion maven and bunch of other vampires with backgrounds in biology and they can't put their heads together and come up with some kind of vampire-friendly, sparkle-proof foundation?

Again, I get it: at the end of the day Twilight is a romance, and romances generally and understandably have a narrow focus on the central relationship. But romances don't usually have so MANY side characters, either. Realistically, I would expect the Cullens, with their various medical and scientific studies, abundant free time (no sleep!) and unlimited wealth, would have already solved a lot of living-as-a-vampire problems by the time Bella showed up.

Assuming they can be solved, of course. Maybe vampire venom on the skin really just makes any make-up lasting for more than a half hour impossible. Maybe a blood substitute just doesn't work because there's some magical 'blood is the life' thing going on here. Maybe pig's blood is just too impractical to get from a butcher in the volume they need it. Maybe the act of hunting helps them release tension and they realize they miss it.

But yeah I'd have loved to have seen more of this. There's some stuff in Midnight Sun that hints at the stuff the Cullens get up to, but it's more like, Emmett and Jasper's complicated chess game with multiple boards, or Alice and Rosalie designing clothes on the computer. I don't think SM really thought about 'what would a vampire doctor who wants to be as human as possible be researching in his spare time?' and so we missed out on some of this stuff.

#asks

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celtic-crossbow · 1 month

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Hey there, first time anon here! I wanted to review blood ties properly, since i binged it in like a few hours some time ago (oops) and let you know that i truly believe it is a masterpiece of writing, i’m talking good enough to compete with many published novels out there. I really love how this fic dives deep into one of the most interesting (unexplored!!) eras of the group, the winter, i also adore how its developed through the quarry and farm eras (i’m so excited for the prison as well) and how the real romance develops and is strenghtened by time.

Daryl is a really hot’n cold guy just like i imagine him being in truth, i love the romance so much and the way the relationship between Daryl and our reader is the backbone of the story as it should be, it pushes the plot fowards and even affects characters that aren’t them in funny (and sort of sad) ways, your depiction of Daryl is so authentic he’s truly amazing, a bit of a dick sometimes, and so true to canon he’s not all self loathing, he’s got a lot going on and you can tell just by the reader’s POV, that even with all his flip flopping she can read him like an open book most of the time. I’m really really looking foward to how thumper being there will affect his development from now on, we know he has a Strong sense of responsibility and so now the whole prison arc (if that is where we go next, i don’t really know, you work in mysterious ways Murda) will have a bigger impact on him beyond Merle being present, also thumper too, i’m counting on her being much like him from what we’ve seen of her during the pregnancy, very smart and perceptive, you could even say... observant, but also an absolute menace (thats what i got from all the moving around at least) and i look foward to seeing all the ways she’s going to change Daryl’s brain chemistry every day, for better or for worse she will torment every minute of his day, i hope she is a true daddy’s girl that will make Daryl pay for for his every sin on this Earth by being a brat just like he is.

Most of the reason why i didn’t really comment on it normally instead of writing this freaky text is to comment on the development of secondary characters on this fic, i think they are very Strong and all feel true to the show as well, there is one relationship i absolutely love in this fic, only second to Daryl and reader really, its Lori and reader, maybe its my nerd brain overanalyzing but they almost feel like narrative foils in this fic (or is it parallels? let us know if it is intentional or not please!!).

I really love the interactions with Lori and reader, i’ve Always felt like she is overhated in most fics (sure she kind of messes up, but only wants the best most of the time) and here she feels really close to how it truly is in the show, and its so sad, especially contrasted with the reader. They both start in different positions/ -reader is in a very casual relationship with Daryl- Lori is commited to Rick (and somewhat casual with shane, but not really) - Reader knows the ins and outs of survival out there and is not completely vulnerable - Lori relies on the men around her for everything including emotional support, - Daryl is initially cold towards reader as usual with him - Lori has the full attention of both Rick and Shane/. But slowly the places of these two in the world are reversed, not completely but still, Reader gets sick and vulnerable, she doubts herself and her destiny in this world and needs a lot of emotional and physical support, she is no longer that huntress in the woods and needs to rely on a man ( still very Strong on her own tho, that birth scene is seared in my brain forever) and others to survive.

Meanwhile we have lori, and her journey is what it was in the show, she starts off with support from a lot of people, especially Rick and even Carl, but loses it and ends up sort of lonely and the presence o our reader only makes it more apparent, reader IS what Lori wants to be now relationships wise, her pregnancy was not all well but she had the support of Daryl most of the way, while Rick is distant, Can’t imagine what its like from her perspective, seeing reader and Daryl together, him keeping her warm Always looking out for her, meeting her needs. Meanwhile Rick is out there doing thangs y’know, stuff. But she never resents reader for it, not visibly at least, she is a good friend who reassures and comforts her, and has to mostly make do on her own (and with Carol’s help, i imagine) and is really a wise figure during this pregnancy, i think in this fic her develpment really shows how she got to her s3 form. And yeah, i really love the interactions between them very much, it’ll be even sadder to see reader’s perspective of that day...

I also adore Carol in this fic very much, i think it shows how much of a caretaker she is in canon as well, we forget that everything she does, she does for someone else, Always looking out for others before even thinking of herself and really being the rock of this group ( a rock that can easily bash some skulls in) Also love Hershel having to stick his hands in places he wouldn’t go with a gun, bless his heart for not being mad af at Daryl in That scene, i know i would have lots of opinions about having to touch the man’s fluids y’know. He’s also a guiding light though this whole pregnancy, which is depicted in such a realistic way i’m in awe every time i think about it, things i had no idea could happen, how it really makes you feel the passage of time during this winter with both dread and wonder (especially with thumper rolling around in there, kid really is a menace) and with the birth scene, i knew Daryl would be the first to fold he was Always the weak link in that van, i’m sorry. Also sure Maggie is also coming out of the van with at least one new trauma, but she can handle it, Hershel will Always be God’s strongest soldier bless him twice. Also its really funny thinking of this whole thing on Rick’s perspective, it must all be one long ‘’TF is going on back there???Omg walkers!!!What do you mean Daryl passed out???Omg herd!! What do you mean its stuck???where am i going??!!’’.

And oh my God this ‘’review’’ is more than one Thousand words long, its time to stop i sound like a stalker, so sorry but i’m a Nerd with an overactive brain, i’m almost at the point of sending fanart attached, but yeah I REALLY REALLY love this fic like many do, i hope you receive all the love you can for it and are Always succesfull with everything you do, its really one of the best finds in modern fandom i’ve seen lately. Sorry for the mistakes, i’m not even near being good at formatting and punctuation in english lol. So yeah have a great night, we’re all really excited for the next chapter, i hope you’re also taking some time for yourself as well, its very important, Thanks for everything Murda

(PS: is it weird i forgot to talk about all the smut? Its really good, one of the best i’ve ever ready, sorry lol)<3

Okay, here we go!

This review was just… I cried. Hard. I mean, I love everyone’s reactions and replies but this just… wow.

Exploring the missing months was something I was so excited to do. Especially in this sense. To have him going through these months not just growing closer to his survival buddies, slowly finding them to be more of a family, but also exploring something we didn’t see on the show at all: being a partner and a soon-to-be father. I wanted to test those waters and see if I could stay true to who he might be had this all happened in canon.

One of my biggest concerns with every chapter is the struggle of keeping him in character while being with reader. I’m so happy that you feel like I’ve done that! The story will likely always be from reader’s prospective so to know that I am articulating what is happening with Daryl through her eyes is encouraging. I want to make sure that their struggles and victories are equally explored.

Thumper is already a daddy’s girl. She calmed when he was around, they had a connection which is 100% a thing. My daughter was slightly the opposite. She was calm and never moved much; to the point I would go to the ER to make sure she was okay. But then I found that when my sister was around, my daughter would wiggle and kick and roll. I just started calling my sister to come over if I got worried. That’s where the inspiration of having them connect like that came from.

Thumper is going to challenge both of them. I won’t say much more than that but they will definitely struggle as new, first time parents.

Merle will appear. I also won’t say much more about that.

I don’t dislike Lori. I think she made some impulsive choices to ease her pain and fear. I also think that sometimes she was more blunt or yappy than she needed to be but it came from a good place. I wanted to incorporate that, like when she wanted everyone to leave Daryl upstairs. She meant well, but spoke out of fear. Reader adores her. They had their moments but I wanted reader and her to be close, like Lori being a guide for her and just a good friend. Lori does see the changes in Daryl, really showing when she’s whispering advice to him. When she’s in the van with reader and they talk, I hope I really expressed Lori’s solemnity. Just “I’ve done this before” but you can tell that she’s carrying a burden and it’s not the baby. She’s yearning for what she’s seeing. That’s why she steps in to help. She wants to see in them what she’s missing. Yeah, that scene will be difficult.

Carol is my queen. I love her so much. She will always be the biggest cheerleader for Daryl and reader. In every story I write. Here, she wants to make sure reader had the support that she never had with Sophia. There are going to be some really deep moments that involve Carol in the next chapter. Or it may be the one after that. I also love to show Carol’s growth from the sidelines. She’s a secondary character in this series but not by much.

I honestly wish I had included more of Rick in the birth scene. Maybe I’ll do a “deleted scenes” series lol.

Omg, fanart. 🩵 @bananafire11 has done two. One for The Dixon Chronicles that was a surprise and it’s attached to the chapter. And then one for my birthday that I’m printing and hanging on my Daryl wall. I will never ask for art from my stories unless I’m going to pay for it but I will never turn it down!

This was such an inspirational review and it really allowed me to think about the way I’ve constructed this story so far (not in a bad way). I appreciate every word and I’m so so happy that the series is getting love like this. I am always so hard on myself. I’m still learning to write for myself and be glad that others like it but as a bonus and not something that defines my writing. If that makes sense.

Thank you so much for this. I hope I answered your questions and gave some insight on where my head is with certain scenes and characters.

Whoever you are, thank you. I love you. 🩵🩵🩵🩵

#anon #answered asks #i will never get over this #thank you for this #i love you #murda writes #daryl dixon #blood ties #daryl dixon x reader #the walking dead #daryl dixon fanfiction

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littlewestern · 4 months

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I must inquire about your feelings on douglas and oliver 👀

(Tags by @mean-scarlet-deceiver)

Absolutely! These tags are fantastic, and I think this is a great time to talk about a phenomenon I've noticed in certain fandoms. I don't have a word for it yet, but something that can happen, especially in cases like this where a ship is sort of a foregone conclusion (either for lack of options for the characters or - in this case - because there's one really compelling point of shared development), is that it can often feel like we are *supposed* to ship something, and that there aren't any other options.

I think 10x11 is absolutely one of those ships, and I can totally understand why it might not work for some the same way it does for others. It's easy to fall into the trap of complacency or to feel like there's not actually anything there and the rest of the fandom is just shipping cardboard cutouts. And because everyone treats the ship as default, there's no one out here really up on their soapbox for it or making any groundbreaking content. It runs the risk of feeling stale.

Luckily, I'm here, and I do this shit for free. In point of fact, you couldn't pay me to stop. So let me make the case. Hopefully by the end of this we'll all come away with a better understanding of the characters, their relationship, and ourselves. (I like to aim high.)

So there are a few major pitfalls that this ship can succumb to right out of the gate that I think can frequently make this a harder sell as a romance specifically:

First, the rescue. The foundational text. Everyone loves Escape!, and for good reason. It's an extremely rich vein to mine for drama and feelings and having these characters bond in a way that feels complex and authentic and real... And it also can make a relationship founded on romantic love between them feel compulsory on the part of Oliver. This is not at all cool or fun or sexy or even really in-character, and I expect it's one of the reasons this ship can be hard to work with at times. To put them in a romantic context without any kind of examination of what is desired vs. what is owed feels rushed and disingenuous to me. If your only reason for shipping Oliver and Douglas is that one of them saved the others' life - full stop, no further examination required - this ship is going to be quite boring and a little iffy besides. This is a fantastic foundation, but it can't be the only thing holding them together, or else you've just reinvented the booktok romance novel.

The second pitfall is one that isn't the fandom's fault but is definitely worsened by years of fandom dilution: Oliver lacks a lot of direct and explicit characterization as a result of showing up late to the RWS party. He has this great origin story, fucks up once, gets a few funny scenes, and then about drops off the page. This leave shippers in a bit of a predicament, because really compelling character romance needs really compelling characters in the first place. Oliver has such a great backstory and that immediate bond we talked about with another well-developed character who also has a great backstory. It feels like it should be very easy to make this work, but it just... doesn't. Because Oliver in-canon is often a role-fill character. He's great, but no one (least of all the later season TVS writers) can seem to agree what his personality actually is, so he ends up being written to slot wherever he's needed or to achieve a specific narrative beat. The resultant 10x11 content which is informed by this feels flat and boring because if the only goal is for them to end up together, you simply have to write that happening and it occurs. Fandom Oliver often has no desires or wants outside of getting together with Douglas, his knight in shining paintwork, and it makes for dry reading.

So how do we reconcile this? What can we do with this information to make it work in favor of our desired outcome instead of as a hindrance to it? How do we use the facts to enhance our fiction?

The first key is remembering that Oliver is actually a little badass who, for 95% of his time on the run, did not actually need any help. The only reason he got to the point at which Douglas could come rescue him was because he fled under his own power from the southern part of the country all the way up to Barrow. His journey only ended there because they ran out of coal, which probably wouldn't have happened if Oliver hadn't also elected to take a coach and an unrelated break van along with him. Because, again, he's a badass. When the big engines say that Oliver has "resource and sagacity", they're absolutely correct. There's material to work with here, we just need to spin it out.

So let's start there. Let's give Oliver that plucky spark back, and have him be a wee bit peppery as a treat. A guy doesn't outrun packs of rabid diesels only to come out the other side a meek and obedient little bore. Let's really lean into his loyalty and bravery too, since an engine willing to risk his own life to save the lives of some lowly rolling stock must be both. And finally, let's also have him really appreciate that second chance he's been given! My favorite Oliver characterization is one that swings at every wild pitch just for the joy of feeling and moving and being alive.

What Douglas has given him isn't a debt, it is a gift, and paying him back doesn't mean feeling like he owes him anything, it means hitting the rails every day with as much enthusiasm and excitement and verve as a little engine possibly can. I like an Oliver that works hard and plays hard and - crucially to the relationship in question - I think Douglas likes this too. Here's a pair of guys who are both brave, loyal, adventurous, quick-thinking, generous, and god damned happy to be alive. Their experiences in Escape! shouldn't make them rescuer/rescuee, it should make them some of the only guys on the railway who know what it's like to look death in the face and laugh. They're equals, and more importantly, friends.

And maybe I buried the lede a little bit there, but I think this really is the crux of it. To me, this relationship is one that starts as a very long, very close friendship with that little bit of extra complexity always simmering below the surface and the little bit of weirdness of falling in love with the guy who saved your life isn't something that should be swept under the rug, it should be an active part of the core relationship conflict.

Oliver looks at Douglas and thinks: He's my best friend. I love him. He saved my life. I don't know whether that last thing is influencing the other two and I'm worried that trying to find out will ruin everything.

and Douglas looks at Oliver and thinks: He's my best friend. I love him. I saved his life. But I don't want him to think he owes me anything just because I did.

So Douglas is waiting on Oliver, and Oliver is waiting on his complicated feelings to resolve themselves. In the meantime, in Ray world, I like to imagine them carrying on a very raucous and boisterous friendship/working relationship involving a lot of pranks and good-natured ribbing, because I think the Little Western being the most efficient branch line while also being the one comprised nearly entirely of chucklefucks is hilarious.

I also like the idea that during all of this, Oliver is constantly going through romantic partners because, again, just happy to be alive here! But also because maybe if he finds the right engine those sticky feelings he has towards his bestie will go away. And all the while Douglas looks on and smiles and plays his cards very close to the chest.

Maybe even gets himself a girlfriend in the meantime.

I have this whole arc plotted out for a story I will never write where Douglas and Emily become an item and everyone else loses their minds because oohh it's just so cute and they look so great together.

Very suddenly Douglas has a girlfriend and also very suddenly Oliver does not have a best friend anymore. And (much to Oliver’s surprise) he’s kinda upset about it!

At first he thinks it has to be jealousy, because like... On one hand, he’s over the moon for Douglas. Douglas seems happier now, quicker to laugh and more easygoing (not that he wasn’t always). But on the other hand, they’re not hanging out as often anymore and it’s not really fair that Douglas lands the perfect partner on what is ostensibly his first attempt when Oliver’s been trying and failing at it for so long. He writes it off as him being jealous of Douglas and tries to put it out of his mind.

Except he sees them together, and he sees how happy Douglas is in-person and how Emily is nice enough but all wrong for him. For one thing, she’s the *safety* engine, which– ha! Douglas? Not the most risk-averse engine to ever grace Sir Topham Hatt’s Railway. For another thing, she’s not willing to go on any of Douglas’s more adventurous errands. Too, her more staid nature doesn’t seem to be rubbing off on Douglas at all, so it’s a source of friction in their relationship. Oliver delights a little bit at that, and goes out of his way to tell Douglas he’d be happy to see how fast they can get the goods train to the harbor, speed limits be damned, just because Emily won't like it.

When Oliver explains this to Mavis later (the third time they’ve rehashed this subject this week) she pauses to fix Ollie with a Look.

“Are you sure you’re not jealous of *Emily*?”

“That’s ridiculous,” Oliver scoffs, dismissing it before the words have really sunk in. “If I were jealous of… of her, I’d– I’d be–”

And then the other shoe drops.

“Oh.” “Mhmm.” “Oh no.” “MmHMM.”

Oliver has fucked another of his relationships, the only one that actually mattered in his estimation. And now he’s stuck, because this is the happiest Oliver’s ever seen his best friend. And a real best friend wouldn’t try to sabotage that just because he was too stupid to see what was plainly obvious to everyone. No, he has to be cool about this, and it’s going to nearly kill him.

But hey, look who else in the yard is single and pining over a Caledonian engine. You wanna have a Great Western Time about it?

Again, because I am a sucker for true romance, this sorts itself out in time. Douglas and Emily realize they're not actually that great a fit for one another, Oliver and Duck get as much out of their time together as they like before moving on, and Douglas and Oliver get to have a long overdue conversation about what they mean to each other - no jokes, no bullshit. I'm sure it would all be very cute and romantic, if I were the type to write that sort of thing.

In the meantime, I hope I've at least made a case for why this ship tickles me and where I think everyone can improve in their writing of it. Thanks for the ask, sorry it was so long!

#ttte #oliver #douglas #duck #theflyingkipper #asks #shipping meme #transmissions from the little western

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mafaldaknows · 1 year

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I just don't understand what his team was thinking when they agreed to this stunt. Exactly how does he benefit from it other then being seen as an uber straight grade-A douchebag? Is this really the image his team wants for Timmy? There's just too much talent and potential there to be shamming with a Kartrashian/Jenner.

Hello, Anon:

It’s absolutely mind-boggling what having more money than God can buy in the United States of America these days: New lips, new hips, and a sparkling new image with a shiny new man who apparently doesn’t even need to be present to win.

The KarJenner PR team has been hard at work for the last few months for a classy reboot of baby sister Kylie, complete with a romance with the internet’s boyfriend, style influencer and fashion icon Timothée Chalamet, who also happens to be the greatest actor of his generation. At face value, it certainly does seem like an unlikely match, given the imbalance of (dare I say it?) intellectual curiosity and preternatural talents between them. But anything is possible, when one has more money than one can ever spend in several lifetimes and the other has greater goals and ambitions than his power and influence will allow at this point in his career.

Both parties involved, however directly or indirectly, can find benefit in being in each other’s orbits driveways, taco restaurants, tarmac, in an image-conscious culture ravenous for juicy content just like this.

One of the pair has received a decidedly more positive boost from it.

The other, not so much, perhaps by design.

He may have extremely valid reasons for wanting to promote that particular “douchebag” image, if he really is willingly participating in what appears to be yet another PR romance. His handlers and PR team probably assume that he must do this in order to continue to level up in Hollywood as the next Leonardo DiCaprio. And they are probably right, given the current wave of puritanical bigotry in the USA and elsewhere in the world. There is far too much money riding on the success of his next three potentially blockbuster projects and too many people with a vested interest in his success for them to allow his image to be seen as anything other than “normal” in order to appeal to the mainstream sensibilities of a global audience. His own ambitions most likely make it impossible to refuse.

Can’t knock the hustle. ✨💃🕺🏻✨ And both of them are hustlers. Maybe that’s what they have in common.

If this were truly an authentic romance, we already know that all they would need to do to keep it private is to KEEP IT PRIVATE: Say nothing to the press, don’t call the paparazzi to meet you in the parking lot, don’t alert the media at all. They both have the means and resources to disappear from public view whenever they want, if they really wanted to do that. It’s not a requirement to begin a new relationship with a press release, not even for celebrities.

And yet here we are, a love story loudly announced in a tale of two cars, maybe three, long driveways but park at the bottom where everyone can see, and taco dates with paparazzi who take photos but only with his wingman.

A story which has made it abundantly clear that at least one of them wants to

MAKE SURE EVERYONE NOTICES their super-duper-uber-private budding romance 🚘🌮❣️🌮🚘

I’m not entirely convinced that he’s even an active participant in all of this, TBH. Many of the details thus far don’t add up to much of anything except a lot of black cars being shuffled around in his driveway published by the trash gossip press with sensationalist headlines and articles intended to plant the idea in the minds of those who want to believe it or need to know it’s happening.

For reasons.

And all of this accomplished without a single decent photo as concrete evidence of this alleged romance between two people famously well-versed in the art of the selfie in the golden age of Instagram.

Not even a fan photo or one “leaked” by their team. Nothing, except some extraordinarily grainy outdoor shots in someone’s backyard where the only easily identifiable person is Kylie Jenner and only because of her unusual proportions, in a town teeming with Teemo lookalikes who would happily stand in for the real thing for nothing but the chance to say they did it.

The Devil works hard but Kris Jenner works harder.

Seeing might be believing, but only if we can actually see what we’re seeing.

Thanks for your comment. 🤔🥔📸🎪🫤🤷🏻‍♀️

#hello anon #timothée chalamet #kylie jenner #range rover rodeo #photos with potatoes #public private romance #douchebag #climber #a tale of two cars maybe three #tacos but bring your wingman #better photos from bigfoot sightings #bigfoot family bbq #kyliegate #seeing is believing #rah rah oh ma ma a #ro ma ro ma ma a #mafalda needs a disco nap #tales from the charmiesphere

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wishcamper · 1 month

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loving acovav and your family systems posts, it puts into words and pulls together so many problems that exist within the ic and relationships in the book xx

though i just have to say it absolutely KILLS me that sjm somehow accidently created such interesting and complex character dynamics (even though there is still a fair amount of inconsistency)

Thank you so much! I was glad to find I wasn’t alone in being baffled/infuriated by the books lol

I think sjm does have the ability to identify the conditions for conflict, but kind of all of us do. Blending families can be hard, involved power struggles. Entering a new world creates cognitive dissonance and grief. People react to trauma differently, and don’t always understand others’ reactions. Romance inside a friend group creates tension. These are things we all know if you think for a moment. But her weakness is that she’s often bad at predicting how people would react to these conflicts, and she definitely doesn’t understand why and how people change.

On the whole, the “themes” she explores are pretty universal. That’s why her premises have so much potential but don’t go anywhere emotionally satisfying. And universal stories are satisfying, that’s why we tell them over and over a la the Hero’s Journey. ACOTAR is Beauty and the Beast. ACOSF is essentially The Taming of the Shrew with more push-ups. But where a different telling like 10 Things I Hate About You says something new about that story- that we are more than stereotypes and can find authentic connections when we transcend them - her conclusions are straight up weird. Like, ACOSF says: be who everyone wants you to be and life gets better. Uh?? In what world is that a hopeful takeaway??

That’s why even her own characters seem out of character, because the inciting events and the reactions they elicit don’t make sense half the time. I think it’s because she doesn’t have equal compassion for her characters (some none at all) so the ones she likes get every motivation for their actions upheld as worthwhile, and the ones she doesn’t like are either two dimensional or have to suck up to the characters she likes for redemption. But she doesn’t recognize that this communicates something, even if it’s unintentional. It’s like she doesn’t realize there’s a subconscious story underneath the surface one, that we can see her thought process through the choices she makes AND the ones she doesn’t.

I know she’s talked about how she puts a lot of her own experience into the books and I think that shows but mostly through her internal and external biases, unfortunately. She only ever affirms her own beliefs through the text, and ultimately says something obvious or straight up distasteful without meaning to (I hope). Other people have detailed her misogyny more thoroughly than I can here, but the disdain for her female characters is so obvious. And that’s not even starting on the racism. There’s a very clear thread of personal responsibility that ignores all the systemic, identity, and cultural factors that make us feel, think, and behave in certain ways.

All this is to say: agree, it’s so annoying because it’s like she had all the ingredients for a cake and somehow made a pizza instead because she likes it more. It doesn’t make sense. I don’t know how you got from there to here Sarah, and you seem happy but I still want cake!

Anyway, thank you for the ask, and letting me indulge in affronted literary criticism, which is my favorite thing to do 🤓

#sjm critical

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hotvintagepoll · 23 days

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Propaganda

Hedy Lamarr (Samson and Delilah, Ziegfeld Girl)—Look. I'm sure someone has already submitted Hedy Lamarr because she was spectacularly beautiful, and a very strong lady too: she fled both an abusive marriage AND nazi persecution at a very young age and rebuilt a life for herself pursuing her love for acting all on her own!! Her career as an actress was stellar; while she began acting outside of Hollywood (her very first movie, Ecstasy, won a prize at the Venice Film Festival), she conquered American hearts very quickly with her first movie in the US, Algiers, and then just kept getting better and better. If all this isn't enough, she was also an inventor: her invention of the frequency-hopping spread spectrum radio transmission technique forms the base of bluetooth and has a lot of applications in all kinds of communication technologies. I think that deserves a prize, don't you?

We are in the quarterfinals of the Hot & Vintage Movie Women Tournament. All other polls in this bracket can be found here. Propaganda is not my own and is on a submission basis. Please reblog with further support of your beloved hot sexy vintage woman.

[additional propaganda submitted under the cut.]

Hedy Lamarr:

The only person you can find both on the Hollywood Walk of Fame and in the Inventor's Hall of Fame--her radio-frequency-hopping technology forms the basis for cordless phones, wi-fi, and a dozen other aspects of modern life. She was also passionate in her efforts to aid the Allies in WWII (unsurprising for a Jewish-Austrian Emigree to America), and her name served as the backbone for one of the best running jokes in what is possibly Mel Brooks' best movie. Look, Louis B. Mayer apparently believed he could plausibly promote her as "The world's most beautiful woman". Is an entire website full of people going to be less audacious than one Louis B. Mayer? I didn't think so!

Described as "Hedy has the most incredible personal sophistication. She knows the peculiarly European art of being womanly; she knows what men want in a beautiful woman, what attracts them, and she forces herself to be these things. She has magnetism with warmth, something that neither Dietrich nor Garbo has managed to achieve" by Howard Sharpe, she managed to escape her controlling husband (and Nazi Germany) by a) Disguising as her maid and fleeing to Paris or b) Convincing the husband to let her wear all of her jewelry to a dinner, only to disappear afterwards. Also she was particularly clever and helped develop Frequency-Hopping Spread Spectrum (I can't really explain it but anyway...)

Her depiction of Delilah and Samson and Delilah just lives rent free in my head. The woman was gorgeous.

One of the most beautiful women ever in film, spoken by many critics and fans. Beautiful shapely figure, deeper seductive voice, and often played femme fatale roles. She was also brilliant and an inventor. Mainly self-taught, she invested her spare time, including on set between takes, in designing and drafting inventions, which included an improved traffic stoplight and a tablet that would dissolve in water to create a flavored carbonated drink, and much more.

Gorgeous and brilliant pioneer of modern technology and the middle part.

Anna May Wong propaganda:

"SHE IS ON THE BACK OF QUARTERS also she was very smart and able to speak multiple languages and is a fashion icon on top of the acting/singing"

"Hot as hell and chronically overlooked in her time, she's truly phenomenal and absolutely stunning"

"Incredible beauty, incredible actress, incredible story."

#anna may wong #hedy lamarr #hotvintagepoll #fuck that old woman #ladies quarterfinals

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nanowrimo · 2 years

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Black Joy Is Revolutionary or Why Writing Black Doesn't Equal Trauma or Pain

It’s important to talk about what kind of stories get represented in mainstream media. NaNo Participant Kymberlyn Reed tells us why stories centered around Black joy are necessary. As a little Black girl who loved reading, it always saddened me that there was never a Babysitter's Club or Sweet Valley High series in which Black kids were centered (not sidekicks or best friends lacking a backstory) just having fun, going through typical teenage stuff and hanging out with cool friends. The fantasy genre, as much as I loved it, also seemed to have no place for Black people to had amazing adventures in far away worlds.

That's why — as a middle aged Blerd — I have been on an absolute roll with so many wonderful stories about Black people just existing and I think there needs to be MORE of them. There is room for Black joy in a society that devalues Blackness as a whole (while co-opting and/or misappropriating the aspects it finds marketable).

This isn't to say there's no need for stories centered around the very real issues of social justice. There's a reason Angie Thomas' The Hate U Give resonated with so many readers of all races (and why so many school districts are trying to ban it). However, not everything about Blackness is about pain and suffering.

And that's the problem. The idea of a single black experience — mainly centered around our suffering —has far too long dictated what people want to write and/or read about us. If there had been more books about Black mermaids in the past (despite the fact that many African cultures have myths about mermaids), people probably wouldn't be losing their minds over Halle Bailey right now.

Not every book about Black people needs to be a "teachable moment" for non-Black readers. Black people should not have to exist or expend unpaid emotional labor just to "teach." Our historical and current traumas should not be the only way to create "empathy.”

Black joy seems to upset people or has some of them believing it's not "authentic Blackness." One of my all time favorite romance authors — Beverly Jenkins — once received a letter from a white reader who was SHOCKED that Black people actually fell in love and had committed relationships! She long believed that Black people just had indiscriminate sex and children out of wedlock.

It took a historical romance featuring a Black hero and heroine to open this woman's mind.

Reading and writing about Black people doing the mundane (as we do everyday) in made up worlds shows us just being, that our skin in all of its glorious hues, is just a part of who we are. We have many intersecting identities, and limiting us to the "poor downtrodden Black person in need of saving" deprives us of our individuality.

Black LGBTQ have coming-out stories and meet-cutes.

Black girls can be princesses.

Black men can be cowboys (and in fact were some of the original cowboys).

Most importantly, Black people exist in every walk of life, even in places and spaces where the media at large ignores our presence. For example, there are Black surfers who teach free courses at The Inkwell, a historic stretch of beach located in Santa Monica, California.

When you read or write about Black people living fully, you are changing the narrative and in a lot of ways, changing minds. Not only that, but writing Black joy is fun too. It's inclusive and it's telling Black readers our stories matter.

All of them.

Kymberlyn Reed is an author who's been published in two countries--Germany and the U.S. No, she doesn't speak a bit of German, but her writing "sister" does.

She's been doing the NaNoWriMo thing for a long time now and will always be a pantser because her characters refuse to behave otherwise. She owns more books than clothes. She's also a lifelong Blerd, fountain pen and Japanese stationery aficionado, lipstick junkie, and an unapologetic metalhead who can do a pretty good death metal growl with enough absinthe in her system. Photo by Junior REIS on Unsplash

#nanowrimo #writing #amwriting #black joy #black stories #by nano guest #kymberlyn reed #Black Writers

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anyaharveyii · 16 days

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imagine if Rhysand from the ACOTAR series met Jude from the TFOTA series?

don't get me wrong, I love Feyre and I love Cardan, but hear me out. I think both Feyre and Cardan improved as characters as the series progressed.

with Cardan, he eventually learned to lean into the role of a leader. initially, however, he never wanted to be a ruler, and a lot of his life revolved around causing mischief with his friends. (I'm not saying his upbringing was easy—how could it be, when his family was so shit—I'm just saying he was more mature by the end of the series than he was at the start).

with Feyre, one of the reasons I struggle so much to re-read the first book is because she undergoes so much character development. in the later books, she also learns to embrace the position of a ruler and stand on her own two feet. before she goes to rescue tamlin under the mountain, however, she feels very dependent and almost short-sighted, focusing on her immediate situation instead of thinking five steps ahead.

which brings me to my question: what if Jude and Rhysand met each other first? would they do well romantically, or would they just be very good friends?

I think the friendship part would happen one way or another. they've both experienced similar hardships with betrayal and responsibility. I think the same way that Rhysand admired Feyre's cunning and determination during Amarantha's trials, he would admire Jude's. the difference is that Jude would absolutely refuse to accept any help or show any weakness.

and although Rhysand and Cardan are similar in how they think and how they can both be very manipulative, I think there's a certain maturity to Rhysand's actions that we don't see in Cardan until later in the series. Rhysand makes a lot of poor choices, but then those choices are revealed to have the motive of protecting his people. I think that's something Jude could definitely respect.

as for the romance, I'm honestly not sure. I think maybe Rhysand and Jude could eventually learn to love each other, but they wouldn't have the immediate chemistry with sparks flying and fireworks popping that they do with their respective love interests. if they were to get into a relationship with each other, I think it would start as some sort of obligation—maybe an arranged marriage that benefits them in a political way—that eventually becomes authentic.

ultimately, I think the two book couples are perfect for each other. still, it's fun to wonder what-if?

#acotar #acotar series #acotar fandom #feyre archeron #rhysand #feyre x rhysand #tfota #tfota series #tfota fandom #jude duarte #cardan greenbriar #jude x cardan

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cordeliawhohung · 1 month

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hihi core!!! i hope you’re doing great! can i get 🍉, 🍒, 🍎, and 🍓 for that ask game? if any of them have already been asked feel free to sub or skip <33 MWAH

hi glossy!! sorry i'm getting to this late lmao.

Do you prefer to write short fics or long fics? Multichaptered works or single ones? Why?

i prefer to write short fics for the sake of time management. the brain worms force me to write multichaptered works ): jk! depends on the type of story! i prefer both, and realize there are some ideas best left as one shots, and others best expanded into multichaptered. though, the one shots def are a lot less stress lmao

What’s your favorite character dynamic to write? (Can be romantic or platonic, specific or general!)

ugh i always love writing traumatized older sibling figure protecting younger sibling figure. i don't think i've written anything like that here, but i have a few og works and other fanworks where i do this. and protecting can mean anything, like saving them from the horrible truth, or just from overall discomfort, etc.

Is there anything you straight-up won’t write?

i can't think of a specific thing off the top of my head, but honestly anything that seems too corny to me i just... hate writing lmao. like anything that seems non-authentic. actually, wait, i also hate writing cheating. like i don't mind writing it if it's not like, between main characters/main romance partners. like, in Where Your Feet Pass reader gets cheated on by her husband, and that's fine to me because that's more of a plot thing that pushes her into Kyle's lap. but i can't stomach writing/even reading cheating in other types of settings.

What’s a fic you’ve written you feel is underrated?

hmm, i don't know! i always feel like soft spot deserves more love; like, proper love. i have a handful of people following that series who are an absolute joy to interact with! but i feel like a lot of the beginning part of the story was misinterpreted. had a lot of people sort of... demanding what i should be doing with the series and the note fall off once i made it clear this wasn't going to be a complete kink/smut fic was very obvious a;ldkjf. hell, even on ao3 i remember reading a bookmark where someone was like "this fic is good, too bad the smut doesn't start until here tho" and i was like damn, okay then. it's honestly my pride and joy though, and i'm forever grateful to the people who do show it love! they're the reason the series is even close to finishing (145k words later lmao)

thank you so much for the ask! had a joy answering them (:

#core responds #ask game

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