Tubatu playing that horror game but Beomgyu has Instagram

Okay I'm doing it. I'm righting my wrongs. I am finishing campaign 1 of Critical Role, which I abandoned YEARS ago somewhere in the mid 90s episodes because, idk, life happened and I lost interest.

I started back at episode 94, I'm up to episode 99 now and my two main takeaways are:

1) I'm never gonna love Vox Machina as much as I love the M9 or Bell's Hells. Part of it is honestly just personal taste: there's like, only two characters I truly love (Vex and Keyleth, my beloveds) and a few relationships that I care about (the twins, Percy and Kiki's friendship, Vax/Keyleth to some extent, obviously Vex/Keyleth), whereas in the M9 and BH I'm interested in almost everyone, and I love soooo many dynamics! Another part of it (which may also be subjective) is that in CR2 and CR3 I find the cast SO much more at ease with each other's play styles. Like the group dynamic has truly solidified and they all mesh together so well. There's less cross talk, less awkwardness, less moments of tension; there's more balance, more understanding and patience and open joy at everyone doing their thing.

2) That being said, watching Vox Machina is still a uniquely rewarding experience, because yeah they're still finding their footing as a production, but they're also all playing characters they visibly know and love so so so much, characters they created/played for themselves before they ever did for an audience... I don't know, it's less polished, but also when you get to the later VM campaign episodes, the characters truly are family in an organic way that comes, I imagine, from the fact that the cast has spent more time with them than any other characters, and from the fact that these were their first PCs. It feels very nostalgic, in the best way.

For that fandom ask meme, how about either Stand brainwormies, GoT, or our beloved Buffy? oAo

Thank you for the Ask!

(Fandom Ask Game)

I'm going to do all three, try and stop me! (As I have to wait until I get to a computer to answer instead of my shitty phone keyboard) And tagging @joeysjaskier, since I already started in on this after your ask with the Stand.

The first character I first fell in love with:

Depends on if we're doing specifically 2020 Stand or all around. If you asked me for Stands overall, I would say Nick Andros, because I saw '94 first. But 2020 didn't have me hooked until I saw Glen.

Tyrion Lannister always had my heart right from the start. I still want 'Never Forget Who You Are' tattooed at some point, and that was an episode 1 quote.

Willow was my girl from the beginning. The original do I want to be her, or be with her, questioning.

The character I never expected to love as much as I do now: 

If you told me before that I would be thinking about the Stand every day since I've seen the 2020 version for about two and a half years straight, I would have told you you were full of shit. That's all Glen Bateman's doing. Never anticipated this.

Jaime Lannister. I hated him at the start of it, and dammit if they didn't put him through the shit and make me care about him despite that. (And lets not talk about how pissed I am at his arc ending...)

Eh, it seems like a standard answer, but I didn't expect to like Spike either. But I think that was a surprise to a lot of people, show included, and grudgingly they went with it.

The character everyone else loves that I don’t: 

I like all Stand characters, so its like picking the least liked of something you'd still choose over most other things, but I never connected with Larry. I should have, he has qualities that I should have connected with, but I just... didn't?

Similar to the Stand, I like most all characters from this, but have to pick, guess I'm going with.... *crickets sounds in my head*... fuck, I really don't have an answer coming to me.... Bran?

I don't really like Angel. They played the love interest, and I was always 'meh' at best. I even watched Angel too, but I'm going to give credit to Wesley and Fred there (any surprise since I'm using Amy Acker as my main OC faceclaim.)

The character I love that everyone else hates: 

I don't know if this counts, cause overall Lloyd is a very much loved character, but I think '20 Lloyd gets some shit because he is definitely different from the book/'94, but I love him still. Does that count?

Who's hated in this fandom? I'm honestly not sure if I differ from general public opinion....

Season 6 gets a lot of hate, but overall, I think its my favorite. I also have a soft spot for Jonathan.

The character I used to love but don’t any longer:

Answering for all of them. I usually don't fall out of love for characters. More often than not (like I said with Jaime above), they tend to grow on me out of nowhere.

The character I would totally smooch: 

Glen Bateman

Tyrion Lannister

Willow Rosenberg

The character I’d want to be like: 

Can they all still be the same as the smoochies?

The character I’d slap: 

Randall Flagg. Please. Please let me do this thing. I want to do this thing. Please let me do the thing.

Cercei Lannister. God, this would be so satisfying...

Warren, although I would give this one up to slap Randall Flagg one more time.

A pairing that I love:

I approve of Stu/Fran time, and my mind has drifted to Flagg/Lloyd time as well.

Jaime/Brienne

Buffy/Spike

A pairing that I despise: 

Despise is such a strong word... I really don't disapprove of many ships period. I may not always seek them out, but eh...

Yu-Gi-Oh! 5D’s: Season 2 Watch Guide

Heyyyyy gamers, I’m here to provide a public service for those of you considering a 5D’s watch-through. This is a list of episodes that do not contain core plot information for the main story of Season 2, and can safely be skipped if you prefer. If you’re wondering why this is only for Season 2, it’s because every episode in Season 1 is important to its structure. So don’t go skipping those willy-nilly, or you’ll be confused!

I'll give brief, spoiler-free as possible summaries of each episode I list here so you can decide whether or not to watch them. These are generally* episodes** that aren't integral to the core plot of 5D's/do not contain any important details. If you enjoy watching these episodes, go for it! I am not in any way suggesting they all suck and have no value. However, if you’re eager to chase the core plot, this should make the process easier.

Let me know if there’s something I’ve forgotten/if I’ve listed an episode that does have significant information in it that I overlooked. I will edit accordingly. Thanks, and good luck!

67: Lua and Luca may get expelled from school; Yusei intervenes. 68: Crow duels a sad old man. 69: Jack duels a loan shark. 70: Luca vanishes into a haunted mansion in the forest; Lua duels to save her.

76: Jack Atlas takes on a gang of D-Wheel thieves.

NOTE: After finishing ep 80, you should go watch Bonds Beyond Time, a movie integral to 5D's canon. Have fun!

85: The gang's landlord is expecting a visit from her son, who refuses to repair her beloved clock. Crow duels him and finds out why.

86 - 92: These are the Crash Town arc episodes, aka the Yugioh spaghetti western. If you like Kiryu Kyosuke and want closure for his character, you can watch them, and if not, carry on.

94 - 95: Two-parter about a friend from Crow's past who was murdered; Crow duels someone for more information about the killing.

111 - 113: Three-parter about Jack Atlas visiting Bommer in Peru to uncover the secrets of his heritage and Red Dragon Archfiend.

*Other guides may suggest skipping the Team Taiyo duel episodes in the WRGP; in my opinion, these are some of the most creative and impactful duels in the whole show, and are worth the watch. You will be rooting for the country bumpkins, I promise.

That's about it! Happy watching!

I posted 583 times in 2022

That's 291 more posts than 2021!

32 posts created (5%)

551 posts reblogged (95%)

Blogs I reblogged the most:

@genderentvy

@madman-librarian

@definitelynotcecelia

@incorrectfmaquotes

@simply-a-void

I tagged 317 of my posts in 2022

Only 46% of my posts had no tags

#dimension 20 - 66 posts

#a court of fey and flowers - 53 posts

#acofaf - 45 posts

#d20 - 45 posts

#damien my beloved - 17 posts

#fantasy high - 16 posts

#black sails - 15 posts

#the owl house - 11 posts

#heartstopper - 10 posts

#captain kp hob - 9 posts

Longest Tag: 138 characters

#and the have a guy hiting on u with jokes about sex dolls and ignoring u when u tell them what names ur comfortable being called by 🙃🙃🙃

My Top Posts in 2022:

#5

Don't ask questions why but I'm just now watching szn 2 of stranger things.

And I love that the way steve becomes the mom friend to the party is that Dustin just forces him to hang out with him when all steve was trying to do was get his ex back. Dustin just hops in his passenger seat and is like: well, drive, dude i don't got all day. 🙄 Also do u still have ur nail bat?? We might need it.

And bam steves basically adopted 6 kids

6 notes - Posted July 8, 2022

#4

Guys there's only one more ep before young justice season 4 is finished and honestly I can't tell you how much this season has meant to me. I have been a fan of this show since right around when it started airing and I loved those 2 seasons alot and was sad when it got canceled but they have given us another two seasons after several years and I'm so happy I genuinely can't tell you what this season particularly means to me. But it feels like the show has grown with me and characters I have know since season 1 are facing struggles i understand and can relate to but also it now has so many queer characters being happy and accepted. That, I think might be the thing that means the most me. The introduction of violet as a non-binary person, kalder having boyfriend, lagan being in a poly marriage, all that means so much to me.

10 notes - Posted June 6, 2022

#3

Eating the egg with a broken yolk for a loved one (affectionate)

15 notes - Posted April 14, 2022

#2

Love confessions while soaked in water is something that should and needs to be done more in film

because i love them and I want more of them

19 notes - Posted April 26, 2022

My #1 post of 2022

In honor of a friend watching this ep for the first time, here's a shitty meme.

I'm not violently sobbing over this episode you are

94 notes - Posted November 6, 2022

Get your Tumblr 2022 Year in Review →

I posted 491 times in 2022

That's 447 more posts than 2021!

30 posts created (6%)

461 posts reblogged (94%)

Blogs I reblogged the most:

@snake-and-mouse

@iffervescent

@rythyme

@yeetlegay

@ravenpureforever

I tagged 467 of my posts in 2022

Only 5% of my posts had no tags

#kinnporsche - 256 posts

#the eclipse - 112 posts

#kimchay - 60 posts

#kinnporsche the series - 44 posts

#vegaspete - 34 posts

#porsche my beloved - 34 posts

#love in the air - 28 posts

#star wars - 24 posts

#akkayan - 17 posts

#i’m obsessed - 17 posts

Longest Tag: 138 characters

#lowkey laughing how they all apparently went ‘we can fix you i can make it better’ to kinnporsche and then created a cinematic masterpiece

My Top Posts in 2022:

#5

Porsche: Being married to a Theerapanyakul is great!

Porchay: So great!

Pete: The best!

Porsche: But they can be a…a tad judgmental

Porchay: Almost punitive

Pete: They are monsters

269 notes - Posted August 6, 2022

#4

Akk: I am responsible for the curse!

Ayan: I am Teacher Dika’s nephew and you drove him to suicide!

Teacher Chadok: I was in love with your uncle and we were engaged and I watched him commit suicide in front of me!

Thua: I have been manipulating everything from behind the scenes in a desperate bid to expose the truth so all this can finally end!

Kan and Wat:

269 notes - Posted October 27, 2022

#3

So I know we all joke about Porchay living his best Wattpad life, myself included, but I think we all kind of ignore how Kim just never dissuaded him from that notion and how we find that genre dissonance between Porsche & Kim’s view (and often our audience view) of Chay and how he actually acts, and we’re all sleeping on the mini character arc he’s gotten over the course of the series.

Porsche and Kim don’t want Chay to get caught up in the mafia world, and they both seem to view him in the same lense: he’s innoncent, sweet, incorruptible.

But Chay has fucking balls man, and he’s a lot more resilient than people give him credit for. He also ignores red flags like he’s color blind. We don’t get to see much of him, but the glimpses we do get show there is so much more beneath the surface.

First:

Man grew up with Porsche & a dead beat Uncle, you telling me he didn’t see some shit growing up? No matter how well Porsche protected him, Chay is the one dressing his wounds when he comes back from fighting, Chay still hears the loan sharks coming for his Uncle, he’s growing up watching his older brother as really the only source of income for his household. And he can’t do anything about it. Watching episode 1, when Chay asks Porsche to let him get a job and help out, it feels like they’ve had this conversation before, it feels resigned, it feels like a final quiet plea of “we’ve talked about this before, but please, please, please just consider it.” But Porsche says no, I’m going to take care of it and I can’t help but think of the impact that has, of watching the person he loves most get beat down again and again and not being able to do anything about it. I feel like Chay probably grew up being the peacekeeper, the one trying to keep the waters calm. Its clear he knows he’s his brother’s world, that his brother has done so much to keep him sheltered and happy, and I can think of Porsche teaching Chay manners, teaching him ideals of being kind to others and Chay just internalizing it and deciding “ah yes, so this is my role in the family, this is how I can help my brother.” Chay probably felt a lot of pressure, no matter how unintentionally and how unconditionally Porsche loves him, to be a reason why his brother is doing all of this, he’s probably hyper aware of how he’s Porsche’s motivation, that everything his brother does is for him. That does things to your self-worth, to how you view yourself. I get the feeling hasn’t had any agency over his own life before, he’s always been the princess locked in the tower, aware of the war but not allowed to participate. His happily ever has been chosen and now he just has to see it through.

Then literally overnight, he wakes up and his Uncle has vanished, and his brother has left with just a fairly suspicious note about pursuing his dream that’ll completely be able to fully support Chay. His entire way of living has transformed, and now he’s completely alone. He went from princess locked in a tower as a war rages on to a Queen of a decimated kingdom. He can not grieve, he can only have faith and move forward.

This is also how I realized Chay has practically been designed to ignore all red flags and interpret them as something else.

Enter Kim, stage right. Enter Chay’s wattpad fantasy come to life, also stage right.

When Chay meets Kim, he is someone who has literally nothing to lose throwing himself out there. My boy literally just recites an encyclopedia knowledge of “Wik, sir, you are my hyper fixation” all in the hopes of getting that T-shirt. And it works! His idol signs his T-shirt, he gets to talk to his idol, he has been rewarded for putting himself out there!

So go big or go home right? He might as well try asking for a tutor when asked if there’s anything he wants. And he’s shot down. No big deal, he moves on and has merch thats going to be the envy of the Wik fandom.

But then his idol calls him, and says he’ll tutor him. Wik remembered him, remembered his request, and then proceeded to hunt down a way to get Chay’s phone number and call him personally in order to tell him he’s decided to he’s going to help him get into the his dream department that he himself is apart of.

Its easy to view Chay from Kim’s perspective, as an excitable fanboy with a crush, but we forget how Kim looks from Chay’s perspective. So lets look on how everything seems from Chay’s perspective.

Chay put himself out there, made a decision solely for himself and what he wants and now his idol wants to tutor him. He’s been actively rewarded twice now, by the same person, for asserting what he wants and trying to get it. He’s gotten his cake and is eating it too. He has a celebrity crush like most people get, only his celebrity crush is now making the effort to genuinely get to know him.

Wik tells Chay his name is Kim, he’s being open and vulnerable to Chay, and he’s trusting him with his identity. Kim asks about his brother, even though Chay didn’t tell him, red flag to any normal person citing he saw Chay’s screensaver and made an assumption. Kim is taking an interest in his life, he notices little details about him, and is asking to here more about the coolest person in the world, his brother and even noticed how much Chay loves Porsche that he wants Chay to write a song about it! He even trusts Chay enough to ask for his phone when Kim’s phone has died, even though that’ll mean there’s important numbers in Chay’s call history, and he trusts that Chay won’t take advantage of them!

And maybe Chay starts to fall a bit in love with Kim. Not Wik, but Kim, who’s a little bit insecure, a little bit awkward, but is making all this effort for Chay.

For Chay, it isn’t anything manipulative or suspicious, he’s becoming friends Kim, they’re sharing information about themselves, they’re bonding now, and he’s been shown that if he pushes, Kim will stay. Chay is all alone now, he has to take care of himself, but if he makes an effort and keeps putting himself out there, if he makes his wants known, Kim comes to him. Kim trusts him, and as long as Chay takes the initiative, he also makes the effort to bond with Chay.

Then Porsche comes back! Chay isn’t alone anymore, and they’re happy and safe and Porsche isn’t getting beat up! And then Porsche once again immediately leaves without a word and few days later you get the first call you’ve gotten from him since he left the first time and now he’s back at work and doesn’t know when he’ll be back again. He’s all alone, and his brother has seem to get a new life that once again Chay’s not allowed to be apart of.

But then Kim shows up at his house! And Chay immediately throws his brother under the bus in a desperate bid to keep Kim’s good opinion of him, once again, gotta admire the sheer balls and audacity of that move. Then Kim gifts him one of his guitars! Porsche do you understand how easily your brother could be taken advantage of do you? Sure he almost gets the heart attack of Kim discovering his shrine, but what teenager doesn’t have posters on the wall of his favorite singer? Maybe it’s weird that he wants Chay to go get the food for them both, but he could have an important phone call to make, he could be nervous going out in public where people could recognize him! Then when he gets back Kim asks him about his love life! Kim ruffles his hair! Kim tells him to write a love song!

Kim is checking off all the boxes of my crush likes me back.

So when Kim ghosts him a little, Chay makes the obvious conclusion. Show up at his house and sing him the love song he wrote! He’s been shown time, and time again that if he reaches out to Kim, Kim will eventually grab his hand. Kim has shown to be awkward and a little of unsure of himself around Chay, but relaxes when Chay takes the initiative. So Chay does what’s always worked. With literally no fear or anxiety whatsoever.

And with episode 13, we see how close they were getting. We see how they went out to places together, romantically or platonically, and they took pictures together! They were friends, they were close, they had a level of trust and bonding and vulnerability for Chay to take photos with Kim and leave them around his house for Kim to find!

So Chay once again has nothing left to lose, and shoots his final shot and confesses to Kim. And Kim kisses him! They hug! Kim may or may not have come home with him that night but at some point in they’re relationship post confession, they fall asleep cuddling on the couch.

And Chay and Porsche are very similar. They fall in love quickly, they become very devoted and loyal to that love, and they are honest about it. Chay and Porsche are both the first ones to say I love you, but while Porsche doesn’t ask for a reply, Chay does. Because Kim has shown time and time again that Chay needs to take the initiative. So he asks Kim: I love you, do you love me?

But he stops at that and lets Kim take his time. Because that’s the song and dance their courtship has been taking, Chay flirts, Chay pushes forward and then Kim comes to meet him the rest of the way.

Chay is living in a Wattpad fantasy: he meets his idol crush, his idol crush becomes fascinated with him, he sees the real human behind his idol crush’s persona and falls in love with the awkward, sweet person underneath, he confesses his love and the feeling is mutual! And all of this seems to be fate, like this perfect love story and the happy ending he actually wants. He’s practically gotten into his dream department with the boy of his dreams who loves him back.

He’s confirming it is all real, and letting Kim know that it’s all real on his end.

And then he gets fucking kidnapped. And then he gets indisputable proof that his brother has been lying to him this entire time, and he was kidnapped because of that secret life his brother was lying about it.

The ultimatum may seem harsh, but it makes sense when you see it from Chay’s perspective. He probably feels essentially abandoned by his brother for the past two months, and he’s understandably pissed about everything thats happened in the last 48 hours or so. His brother can be part of his life and they can go back to the way things were, but Chay can’t be a part of his life if his brother is in the mafia, and its true. Porsche has spent all this time telling Chay he wants him to get into a good school and get a good job and be surrounded by good people with a good social life. You can’t have that in the mafia, and Chay knows that. So from Chay’s perspective, his brother has basically just been a complete hypocrite to everything his brother taught him.

And while Porsche has been shown the type of person to be willing to throw away his morals and beliefs when it comes to the people he loves, Chay isn’t. His entire life has been surrounded on those ideals of being a good, kind person who lives a good life. And he’s understandably terrified of the thought of losing his brother and truly being on his own. He’s basically lost his only emotional support system for two months, and if his brother dies, he loses him for good.

So Chay says him or me, because in his mind either way he could lose his brother, but this is Chay making his own decision, this is Chay fighting back and reminding Porsche that see you hurt makes me hurt too. This ultimatum reminds Porsche that his actions have conquenses on Chay too, and it shows how Chay has grown up in his absence. Chay in episode one was willing to just bow his head and listen to what his brother, but Chay in episode 10 is willing to speak out, he’s no longer willing to be simply passive in his brother’s plans for him.

See the full post

310 notes - Posted July 7, 2022

#2

From what I’ve seen in this last episode, we can all agree that Kim is like a feral cat yowling for Chay’s attention but then immediately hiding when Chay comes to check out what that noise is

704 notes - Posted July 11, 2022

My #1 post of 2022

I think the best part of KinnPorsche, and it really comes to mind with this latest episode, is that every character thinks they’re in a different genre and it’s the funniest thing watching it clash with the reality.

Kinn is just living his best rom-com life where he falls for his sassy but kind assistant bodyguard that he can no longer live with out.

Porsche is basically a YA novel where he falls for his sexy morally ambiguous love interest who’s secretly sweet but *gasp* his past has come to haunt him!

Pete thinks he’s in a dark psychological thriller where he must battle his inner demons and brooding but hot captor to maintain his humanity but it threatens to over take him at any moment as he is torn between his newly found dark desires and the reputation he prides himself on.

Vegas acts like he’s in gothic bodice ripper novel where his entire world becomes the kind, empathic heroine Pete and he will do anything to keep him to himself and Pete is going to help him overcome the truama of his past with his love.

Kim sees himself in this brooding noir style detective film where he must uncover the dark past of his family but oh no he finds himself falling for the pure and sweet ingénue Chay and must wrestle with the dangerous life he leads and the mission he’s devoted himself to and the love of his life

Porchay thought he’s living his Wattpad dream life where he meets his idol and gains his respect as he tutors him and they slowly develop a sweet friendship that turns into a heartfelt romance

They really demonstrate how all the characters are protagonists of their own story, and that’s how they make their decisions, based on the assumptions on the world around them. They think they know the story their in, and that’s the role they have taken, but the tragedy and the complications of these relationships is that they aren’t in a single genre story. They’re people, achingly human people, interacting with other complex people and what is salvation for one is a damnation for the other.

They aren’t in any specific genre (you know, beyond on the whole mafia thing) and that’s where the miscommunication happens, that’s how the drama unfolds, that’s how all these different romances keep missing each other, because they’re all operating on different wavelengths based on the story they think *THEY’RE* in and not stopping to really consider the other perspective.

It’s absolutely hilarious, it’s terribly tragic, it’s utterly beautiful and performed so well by the writers and the actors.

3,289 notes - Posted July 3, 2022

Get your Tumblr 2022 Year in Review →

Journeys Ep 94 Screenshots and Commentary, Part 1

Oof, this one's really late! The next episode's gonna come out in a couple of days and I still haven't posted my costumary screenshot commentary...

Well, here it is now! Hopefully the deluge of images (and gifs) makes up for the wait!

WARNING: EXTREMELY LONG

(ALSO SPOILERS FOR JOURNEYS EP 94)

Cerise Park has gained a new occupant in the form of Dredear Lilligant! All the pokémon fall in love with her about as quickly as people fall in love with Ash... er, what? 😳

Much wholesome fun ensues. Goh and Ash spend some time playing with the pokémon. Maybe seeing all these birds will remind Ash of that other bird he has a commitment with...

Meanwhile, a besotted maiden works hard at a flower crown for her beloved...

But forsooth! Betrayal! Heartbreak! Pinsir (Pindame? Pinlady?) has experienced the bitter taste of being abandoned the moment another, more attractive female comes along. What will she do about this?

...It seems she has decided to sulk and mourn for her sundered love. Poor Pinsir (Pindamsel?)

Ash, being Ash, is quick to provide a solution that has only ever applied to him and helps no one /lh

Goh is shocked at how easily Heracross has dumped Pinsir (Pin...waif? Ok, I'll stop 💦), though Grookey apparently has no idea what everyone else is paying attention to and is trying to fake it by looking in the exact opposite direction.

Ah, the pangs of heartache. Ash has no doubt seen that expression on the faces of many boys and girls after bluntly telling them he considered them "good friends" /hj

(Continued in Part 2)

The Sunnydale Herald Newsletter, Saturday, January 15th

FRED: Hi, Lorne. LORNE: Hi. What do you say we put away your little sci-fi toys for a little bit, huh? And maybe we could talk about something a little more important, like my monster mash? FRED: Oh, yeah, your party. LORNE: Our party, tweety bird. Which, by the way, is dying on the vine. I could really, really, really use some help from you guys— some backup? FRED: I wasn't really planning on going. LORNE: Wes. Do you hear this crazy talk? WESLEY: Uh, well, I really hadn't given much thought to going myself. LORNE: Et tu, Brutuses? Why is it so hard to get anyone to have any fun around here?

~~Life of the Party~~

The Sunnydale Herald is looking for at least one new editor! Contributing to the Herald is a great way to get your Buffy on! Find out more here.

[Drabbles & Short Fiction]

Fever Dream, Chapters 1-2 (Buffy/Angel, M) by Janis70

Beloved (OC, Black Widow crossover, T) by Vashti (tvashti)

your bed is a confession booth (Giles/Oz, M) by Gilesbian (jackandthesoulmates)

Aurora's Diary (OC "Aurora Dawn Summers", T) by fatalfae

Something Old, Something New (Buffy/Spike, PG-13) by madamcreature

[Chaptered Fiction]

Jojo's Bizarre Adventure: Shadowed Suspicion, Chapter 228 (Ensemble, Jojo's Bizarre Adventure crossover, T) by madimpossibledreamer

Honest, Chapter 4 (complete!) (Buffy/Tara, M) by Stranger_In_Town

The path to redemption, Chapter 94 (Scoobies, T) by Aragorn_II_Elessar

Yvette, the Vampire Slayer - Arc 2, Chapter 36 (OC Slayer, Castlevania crossover, G) by TheSovereigntyofReality

You Can't Fight Fate - But You Can Decipher Him, Chapter 31 (Dawn, Batman crossover, not rated) by Hermione2be

After Buffy Left, Chapter 5 (Dawn, not rated, warnings: Rape/Non-Con Underage) by Violet_valentine

A new Quest, a new Fellowship, Chapter 7 (Ensemble, Tolkien crossover, T) by Aragorn_II_Elessar

Healthier Choices, Chapter 4 (complete!) (Faith, The Haunting of Hill House crossover, not rated) by BuffyBot3000

Who we are [roleplay], Chapter 3 (Giles/Oz, E) by Gilesbian (jackandthesoulmates), jackandthesoulmates

Gargoyle (complete) (Xander/Graham, E) by sabershadowkat

Come Back to Me, Chapter 14 (Buffy/Spike, NC-17) by honeygirl51885

The Sound of Her Voice, Chapter 11 (Buffy/Spike, M) by Myrabeth

[Images, Audio & Video]

Artwork/discussion piece: Faith and Spike (worksafe) by toyhdgehog

Artwork: Buffy and OC twin across BtVS seasons (worksafe) by annyankers

Artwork: Tara and Dark Willow (worksafe) by malvymary

Artwork: Spander (possibly not entirely worksafe) by punksouthie

Artwork: Buffy in "The Body" (worksafe) by slayersandprivateinvestigators

Artwork: Spike in his stupid goggles (worksafe) by sunnyhellcalifornia

Artwork: Buffy/Faith (worksafe) by toyhdgehog

Gifset: Hush | Season 4 Episode 10 by andremichaux

Fanvid: Buffy and Spike | Monsters [S1-S7] Buffy the Vampire Slayer (spuffy) "I Love You" by comeandgEDIT

Videos: Buffy promos (S4-S6) upscaled to HD by BuffyPromosHD

[Reviews & Recaps]

Rewatching Buffy the Vampire Slayer by ashesandhackles

Podcast: Episode 69: Wild at Heart by Myth Taken

[Recs/search]

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you look bizarre, in the apricot

Summary: Thomas Sanders and Nico Flores VS The Town of Night Vale: An Epistolary from the outside.

Pairings: Pintoverts, Cecilos and Gen friendships otherwise

Read on AO3

Word count: 976

Warnings: Unreality, reality being really weird, sparsely described body horror. I am not as good of a surrealism writer as Min, this is my first foray even remotely into the genre, but I hope to make more stuff like this sometime! Stay Safe

Other notes: For Min! hope you enjoy <3

Tagged: @sometimes-love-is-enough

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 

Joan: u there yet?

Me (15:03): yes!! Sending a photo real quick

Me: (IMAGE.png)

[Image description: Thomas and Nico, both fairly suntanned, facing the camera with some parts of their faces awkwardly cropped off. However, it’s easy to see that they are both grinning wildly in front of a new house, reminiscent of fifties suburbia behind them, with a small pile of boxes near the door.]

Me (15:94): we’re gonna be unpacking now

Me (15:94): byeeeeee!!

Joan: Wait what’s up with your clock thing?

Me (15:95): dunno looks fine to me

Joan: yea prolly a glitch

Joan: see ya

…

Google Search History:

What foods cause hallucinations? Should you listen to hallucinations? Should you listen to hallucinations of fictional characters you created? Should you listen to hallucinations trying to help you? Why are writing objects banned in night vale Why does internet explorer work better in night vale Internet freaking explorer why Night vale Night vale news What is wrong with night vale What are the secret police

delete history?

...

“And now: Traffic.

Today on traffic, as we can see, the formerly fictitious aspects of a newcomer’s personality, Mr. Thomas Foley Sanders are currently running amok, amongst the many vehicles in today’s commute. However, Thomas is a rare case of someone who has enough internal strife that he feels the need to regularly bring out his aspects. For the rest of us, we either live in blissful, absolute ignorance, or neverending guilt.

Props to Mr. Sanders for trying to find his way through the deceptive caverns of the conscious and subconscious mind, but I would really rather get into our real traffic report, instead of talking about the state of vehicles in the city. This is boooooooring!”

...

Call history:

Joan Sticks (45:15) Tally (28:10) Nico my beloved (10:59) Joan Sticks (10:12) Joan Sticks (1:19:34) Nico my beloved (11:102) Carlos ? (???) Carlos The Scientist Palmer (???) Carlos The Scientist Palmer (???) Cecil Palmer (???) Cecil Palmer (???) Cecil Palmer (???) Nico my beloved (???) Patton (???) Logan (???) Virgil (???) Roman (???) Janus (+Remus) (???)

…

Group Chatroom with: Joan Sticks, Tallycat, Nico my beloved

Nico: @Joan @Tallycat I think something’s wrong with this town

Me: yes why is there a secret police

Me: why

Me: frickin w h y

Me: and the sides? Real

Me: i have pictures!! Evidence!!

Me: [IMAGE.png] [IMAGE2.png]

[Image Description 1: the sides and Thomas in a large cuddle pile. They are toppled together and making obvious contact, with fabric becoming creased under contact points.]

[Image Description 2: The Sides, Nico and Thomas are cooking together. It is going badly.]

…

EXISTENTIAL CRISES! | Sanders Sides

“And for today’s sponsor, we have a minor switch! Today we are sponsored by Big Rico’s Pizza!” says Thomas, a bunch of pixels on hundreds of thousands of screens.

“Now in two more flavors- one with vegan pepperoni and cheese, for anyone to enjoy, and of course, for all our eternal scouts, void. Simply void .Nobody does a slice like Big Rico’s! No one.” Thomas seems surprised at his own nonchalance at what he’s saying, but he gets a thumbs up from a hand just barely in camera view, and continues.

“Anyways- go to the checkout, enter the promo code thomassandersAAAAAAA and order some Big Rico’s Pizza today! Now, on to the episode”

Comments (3,030)

CosmicAce 1991 Why is the last thing on Thomas’s twitter from a month ago and WHY IS THIS VIDEO SIX MONTHS LATE?

Berry-Blast Ngl love the hugging- care to share a process reel? Aren’t Joan and Talyn too far away to work on this anymore? Let's Go Ghost When are we getting a new cartoon therapy?

Patton-Patoff WHERE ARE THE CORNERS?? THIS DOES NOT WORK WITH GREENSCREEN?? HOW DID THEY JUST… DO ANYTHING IN THIS VIDEO??

Minute Where is the checkout? Can’t find it. Also hi nico!

Cecil Jaws Stan All hail the glow cloud

DreadfulZombie19 These existential crises are… uncomfortable to say the least. Thank you for at least adding trigger warnings. Speaking of which, where are the SVS redux epilepsy warnings?

…

Google Search History for: Joan Stokes

Plane tickets to night vale Plane tickets to night vale, usa Which state is night vale in Where is night vale Driving map to night vale What is a delta airlines flight 27 Why is my friend from night vale acting so weird Night vale radio How to get friend out of night vale

…

Sanders Jaws! @ThomasSanders

Video is going to be delayed by about a week- Tuesday got cancelled, you see. No worries! As soon as it’s back, there will be a new Cartoon Therapy!

Replies

Min-Ding-Ding-Ding @arealsword Hope Tuesday’s doing alright

I really like flowers @sodoroses

What is actually going on is Thomas okay what is happening

…

Using Gravity Falls to cope with strange events in life! | Cartoon Therapy

Comments (1,048)

Minerva

Dang wonder what’s been going on.

…

Call transcript: Thomas Sanders, Joan Sticks, Nico my Beloved (xx:xx:xx)

“But here’s the thing- it used to be really scary-”

“Terrifying.”

“Yeah, but now? I guess we just have an all-powerful glow cloud (all hail) on the school board.”

“And we also have a sentient hand as my swimming coach. She’s cool.”

“How- How are you so cool with all this?”

“Stockholm syndrome?”

“I mean, the sides are real people here, so I get to have my crises off camera for once, which is nice.”

“Joan!!!” “Joan!” “Joan <3”

“One sec guys, I’ll give you the phone in a minute!”

“Okayyyyy” “How did Roman pull off pronouncing the heart emoticon?”

“Don’t ask me.”

“Well, if you’re happy…”

“Don’t worry too much about us, buddy. We’ll be fine.”

“Yeah! Carlos and I are going to be at a Slap-Poetry contest against Thomas and Cecil!”

“Mmhm. Well, goodnight then. Love you both.”

“Love you too!”

“Yeah! Love you too, Joan!”

I posted 4,409 times in 2021

248 posts created (6%)

4161 posts reblogged (94%)

For every post I created, I reblogged 16.8 posts.

I added 240 tags in 2021

#long post - 83 posts

#ask to tag - 34 posts

#hazardous - 33 posts

#discworld - 19 posts

#lotr - 16 posts

#cr spoilers - 15 posts

#hazardcore - 13 posts

#cr3 spoilers - 10 posts

#star war - 10 posts

#critical role spoilers - 7 posts

Longest Tag: 140 characters

#the fact that the only diet related things ive seen so far are anti diet things means ive done a pretty good job controlling my social media

My Top Posts in 2021

#5

a month ago I got spoilers for the sheepleb episode and now im just cackling because its so much better than I imagined

16 notes • Posted 2021-06-22 08:24:02 GMT

#4

pokes evolution* hey I think humans are due a software update can we get advanced sleep please

16 notes • Posted 2021-12-01 09:07:27 GMT

#3

started nautilus ark bc space!!! even though I'm positive I will have to stop halfway due to big baby but Nomen,, my beloved,,,,

25 notes • Posted 2021-09-14 13:52:29 GMT

#2

me: ugh I'm so bored of doing the same thing every day

also me: if you touch my routine I'll stab you

27 notes • Posted 2021-02-16 01:10:26 GMT

#1

wait so like. do people actually get attracted to other people like, romantically, without getting to know them super well first or is this just a fiction thing

42 notes • Posted 2021-09-11 09:53:27 GMT

Get your Tumblr 2021 Year in Review →

I posted 105 times in 2021

21 posts created (20%)

84 posts reblogged (80%)

For every post I created, I reblogged 4.0 posts.

I added 46 tags in 2021

#original writing - 7 posts

#shitpost - 7 posts

#worldbuilding - 6 posts

#oc: maxie - 5 posts

#maxie - 4 posts

#inscryption - 4 posts

#time bokan - 4 posts

#inscryption spoilers - 3 posts

#one piece - 3 posts

#horror - 3 posts

Longest Tag: 94 characters

#emmy ascended into an eternal recurrence of a reincarnation that sometimes shares all memories

My Top Posts in 2021

#5

My current hyperfixations(MotU2021 and Inscryption) are bleeding into each other. Read my previous Inscryption post for a summary of my crappy sequel/AU idea. Also this is post Season 1 for MotU2021.

-Basically, after Grogal(and after The Student collects more cards including The Stinkbug(Grimora), and The Second Stoat(a brand new character made for this AU/sequel) and beats up the planet's resident darklords in the card game), The Student accidentally turns left at Abucurky(The Star Station was named as such by the Star Humans as an inside joke) and enters a hole in time space. One that goes to Eternia.

-There, they(all pronouns for my child) screw around and make the big mistake of using an Archfiend. Archfiends warp reality slightly to show off their power.

-The Snake Mountain gang get winds of this.

-The Student gets kidnapped and has to play tutorial man to a group of losers on power trips(Skeletor is the biggest and strongest, but, for whatever reason, he's merciful towards The Student. The real scariest is Kronis. Everyone else can play the game just fine, but Kronis cannot get the rules to stay in his head too long).

-The Stoat, The Stinkbug, and The Second Stoat are perpetually on the edge of losing their minds every time something goes wrong.

-Which is often.

-Like holy shit man. Skeletor keeps trying to steal the masks The Student puts on to try and enhance the experience, Evelyn always wants to summon an Archfiend, R'Qazz keeps sacrificing the animal cards, and Kronis is a trainwreck.

-I have no idea what else to do with this idea.

5 notes • Posted 2021-10-31 22:10:39 GMT

#4

Balan Wonderworld is a bad modern game.

This kinda essay is exactly what it says on the tin. Balan Wonderworld is a bad modern game because of dated controls, a lack of non-book story, and the lack of ability to keep up the vibe. In the olden times of Platformers, this stuff would have been partially O.K. The controls wouldn't be dated, the story would have had some explanation of stuff(Fun Fact: The game is based on Broadway musicals. Did you know that until you saw a post on the subject? I didn't. The game only hints at this stuff.) and back then, games had to keep the vibe visible or else perish. The Cutscenes are a 10/10. Character design has *T H O S E* vibes

7 notes • Posted 2021-04-11 01:03:16 GMT

#3

*slaps desk* Tell me what you like about Yatterman.

Yatterman is, from an outsider's perspective, batshit insane. It has such a simple looking premise(two superpower-less kids, their toy robot, and their mech robot go and fight a trio of bad guys with their own mech made for the episode and an unknown bad guy), but then you watch the episodes, and dear god. It's ridiculous, and oh no I've gotten attached to these many dumbasses(I'm looking at the Dorombo gang, as respectfully as I can at a bunch of idiots who look completely ridiculous and YatterKing, yatterking my beloved) and also, What The F*** just happened. Have my offering of Youtube subtitled Episodes of Yatterman(1977) in hopes of Dorombo gang fanart: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yjeizKaIPOo&list=PL8X1q_TwRdmfRJAzVrhawKlyOAtF6e5jC

Also, watch other Time Bokan series.

12 notes • Posted 2021-08-29 01:16:08 GMT

#2

Weird Inscryption AU/Sequel Ideas Part 1

-We start with a 'friendly' duel between The Student and The Teacher. The Student is featureless beyond wearing a hat and a cloak. The Teacher is a many eyed being with many arms and hands. The Teacher is the worst mix between Leshy and P03 personality-wise, but they still attempt to teach you the game.

-The game is changed slightly. There is still Blood, Bones, and Energy. The mechanics on energy have changed(drain the health of an animal/undead thing/another robot/rememory to summon a robot). The element that replaces Mox is Memory. Memory is a resource acquired turn by turn to be used when you call upon a rememory(basically a character card). There are multi-resource super cards that are divided into Archfiends and Archangels(They all speak! all other cards that can do this are seen as anomalies)

-Your starting deck is mainly blood based cards with only high bone/1 blood/3 memory cost card Kraken as an outlier. It also has your(the player's) old friend, The Stoat(there's another non-P03 Stoat later on).

-The Stoat's a curiosity to The Teacher. The Stoat does not think likewise. The Stoat is less abusive towards The Student compared to his/their/it's antics in the previous game. Kraken and The Stoat start bickering the second their ideas on how to play clash. Kraken loves The Student as a friend.

-After you win two direct battles against The Teacher, he basically forces you out with the excuse of 'see the world, fight better card players, get a better deck'(the real reason is that The Teacher is being 'fixed' and his personality will change and he doesn't want to be seen suffer).

-This is where Act 2 gameplay returns.

-please don't kill me. I have fun world building.

-In the White Spiral Galaxy, the card game is a hobby! A massive hobby, but a hobby none the less.

-The Student cannot fight. They need someone/something else to get them between settlements. The Stoat almost calls The Student a little bitch at one point(involving a trio of crappy raiders, a lich who loves the card game and is also a Darklord matching minds with you(5th return of Act 1 style), and one hell of an exit).

-There are 8 major planets in the White Spiral Galaxy.

-They are: Lero(the Green Planet), Grogal(the Desert Planet), Tormental(The Water Planet), Glisenglim(The Ice Planet), Gigantula(The Giant Jungle Planet), Tinkadink(The Fountain Mine Planet), Zeus(The Cloud Planet), and The Unnamed Planet(The New Planet).

12 notes • Posted 2021-10-30 23:08:33 GMT

#1

Happy Nintendo Direct

Splatoon is one of my joys just b/c worldbuilding. Clothes and Weapon based Worldbuilding that ties into biology worldbuilding.

There is going to be a Splatoon 3. Ya’ll need to get ready b/c while 1990s throwback stuff is fine, I’m ALL here for the post-apoc type outfits. Maybe, Nintendo could make hybrid outfits where it’s both post-apocalypse and 1990s outfit, b/c that would be the best aesthetic.

13 notes • Posted 2021-02-18 01:32:48 GMT

Get your Tumblr 2021 Year in Review →

DuckTales 2017 - “Quack Pack!”

Story by: Francisco Angones, Madison Bateman, Colleen Evanson, Christian Magalhaes, Bob Snow

Written by: Bob Snow

Storyboard by: Vince Aparo, Kristen Gish

Directed by: Tanner Johnson

TGIHD. Thank God It’s Hump Day.

Our episode begins with Huey preparing his Uncle Donald for his big family photo opportunity, an opportunity he never seems to have due to various mishaps. He hired a professional photographer, and even had him practice his million dollar smile. Huey says that nothing is going to stop this day from being ruined, and then Dewey, the one-liner-spewing stand-out sibling, shows up. We know he's the stand-out because the laugh track cheers as soon as he comes in. Yes, a laugh track, just like this series always had.

Some other characters show up, mostly to reintroduce them to the audience. We have Louie, the schemer who is currently trying make his mother jump off the roof and get people to pay to see it. Said mother is Della, a former moon-dweller who is perfectly fine with because she used to be on the moon, and will seemingly bring that up with almost every line of dialogue she has. Finally, we have Scrooge, the relatively down-to-Earth, no pun intended, person who knows this is ridiculous, though he does ponder if he can make a lot of money from that dangerous stunt before saying "no".

Instead, they have to get the study ready for the photo, something Scrooge promised he would have done already. Though he tells Donald that he would never break a family promise, the sweat he's wiping off his brow is telling a different story. He, Della, and Louie slowly back away into the office, and nobody is the wiser. Oh Scrooge, I’m sure he has some money related reason for it.

As they back away into the office, we get two more stand-out characters: Mrs. Beakley, who constantly has to deny being a spy despite coming in through one of those wires on the roof, and Webby, who introduces her grandmother as a professional spy. She's the quirky one!

At this point, Huey starts to think that something is very off with everything around him, and asks his Uncle Donald if he feels the same way. Donald turns to Huey, and responds in the familiar way we all know and love.

Donald: (clears throat) Well, everything seems perfectly normal to me!

Ah, Donald, with his distinctive voice by Don Cheadle; perfectly normal, and yet suave enough to make the laugh track cheer. See, everything is normal, from the way Donald Duck talks, to the laugh track laughing at even Dewey's cheesy one-liners, to the 90's TGIF sitcom-like establishing shot this scene started with. Nothing wrong at all...except for everything.

Yeah, if this is the first episode of DuckTales 2017 somebody watched, they're going to be very lost. I mean, people are saying this is an adventure show where they go all around the world, using their wits to fight criminals, monsters, and aliens, but this is a sitcom with a laugh track! There are some ways people could figure it out already, namely that cartoons would never use laugh tracks unironically, but it's good that this originally aired right after a normal episode.

After a really short version of the usual theme song that consists solely of "DuckTales, woo-oo" and a commercial break, we get the theme song showing off the cast of characters. This includes Launchpad McQuack, who even has his own rock band, the Crash Happies. In we end, we get our title screen: Quack Pack. Yes, this is what the show's called now, taking the name from the infamous DuckTales spinoff where they decided to age up Huey Dewey and Louie to teenagers.

Outside of the title and a very similar pose for the title shot, it doesn't take anything from that show, just the 90's sitcoms it was trying to ape. Huey, Dewey, and Louie are still kids, and the plot for this episode is kind of pedestrian compared to the teenaged siblings turning into superheroes and battling a planet-sized Uncle D who just wants them to clean their rooms while his rage makes him destroy the galaxy. Even the theme song is just instrumental soft rock. It is possible they felt lines like "I feel like quacking, so I think I will, I'm gonna quack quack quack until I get my fill" are too cheesy even for a parody.

As our episode truly begins, we meet another soon-to-be-beloved character, and one that isn't one of the familiar ones: Knox Quackington, that photographer Huey hired. He's an artiste, as described by Huey and himself, and he has the accent for the kind of stereotype that term was made for. Unfortunately for him, he describes himself as someone who uncovers the world's secrets, and Webby knows that could only mean he's a spy. That quirky character ends up taking him to a dark room, where she beats him up. Oh, Webby!

While this is happening, Scrooge decides to try to ready up that study.

Unfortunately, the study is in even worse shape than he imagined. Scrooge didn't want to pay for actual repairmen to fix his problems, and the problems just got worse and worse. I'm sure there's a metaphor in there somewhere. Louie responds that Scrooge's lack of responsibility legally makes him liable for his own lack of responsibility. He didn't really change much at all for this sitcom plot, huh.

Huey and Donald show up to see Scrooge's study in ruins, and Donald explains why he can't just go to a different room: this is the only room where the buttons glint in the way he wanted! Louie says, with sarcasm, that the button glint issue is so much more of an unsolvable problem than a broken room, and everyone just makes an "oh, Louie" pose as they pause for the laugh track. Huey is a bit more optimistic, as he happens to have a Junior Woodchuck Guidebook...

...a Guidebook that is completely blank. Donald speaking like a regular duck and the blank book makes him notice that the mysterious laughter that happens constantly doesn't seem to be coming from anyone in the room, and realizes something is very, very wrong. He runs out of the room as everyone else makes an "oh, Huey" pose as they pause for the laugh track.

This episode definitely gets the sitcom parody down to a T. They even have transitions where they're just dancing or flicking hearts from their smartphones. It reminds me of That 70's Show, and I don't watch enough sitcoms to know if there's an earlier example than that.

Distracting us from Huey slowly figuring out what's going on is Dewey doing what he does best: giving himself and Donald mohawks. Oh, that rascal, that's going to be a real problem for the photo op. Huey shows up only to see that they paused in place, because it's time for a commercial break. Of course, Huey is the only one aware enough to realize everything is getting darker. Plot important forth-wall jokes is this episodes forte.

After all the real commercials, because it would have been a missed opportunity if they didn't do a real commercial break there, we get a commercial for the fictional Pep, featuring a guy who's clearly played by the same actor as the photographer. If Disney XD didn't require "now back to the show" bumpers, this would have caught people a little off-guard. This ad specifically features him opening up a can of pep, causing a tidal wave of Pep. This actually becomes important later, though I won't go into detail.

We then cut to the channel ID, which is exactly like the old and current Disney Channel channel IDs. The big difference is instead to drawing Mickey ears, Dewey, the lovable breakout character everyone loves, is drawing a lamp. It's the kind of lamp that would hold some sort of djinn, and not the djinn that looks for found lamps, either! Also, it's the Baba network...hey, just like that Baba guy the show is now credited to! Hmm...

Huey, of course, managed to notice all of this, and he runs back to the study after Donald tries to convince him to get some rest. Meanwhile, Mr. Quackington is all tied up by Webby, thinking he is some sort of suspicious special agent, and has Launchpad keep an eye on him. This leads to Launchpad and his band thinking he's a different kind of agent. Those are all about as far as they get with those plots, to be honest; it mostly focuses on Huey's plight and a plot with a certain other character that will appear in a few more paragraphs from now.

Huey's plight is about why he's in this strange realm where people are constantly laughing at him. He then sees tiny versions of Randy and Johnny from the Ottoman Empire. No, I'm not going to do the joke this time. That's in the past, much like 3 tiered rating systems. Huey figures out that is is an ad, and the dominoes just drop from there as he realizes the guidebook he was holding was a prop, the room doesn't actually have any pipes, and one of the doors just leads to a brick wall.

Nobody is convinced, and they're just thinking he's going coo-coo. However, he does have a fool-proof plan: point to the fourth wall, which they only now notice is missing.

They see some lights and some strange creatures that look sort of like those hairless apes Ludwig Von Drake was warning us about, but that can't be it! This is definite proof, and they all take it. Glad they won't take the entire episode to realize this.

Meanwhile, Donald shaves off the mohawk, only for him to have a bald spot. What's only slightly better is that Webby, who wants a meat tenderizer for some "cute girl stuff", still doesn't want to tell Donald where the photographer went. What else could go wrong?, says Donald, clearly signalling for something to go wrong. Though, if anything, something is going to go very right for us, because what would a sitcom be without a guest star?

Appearing for the first time in DuckTales is Goofy. This is heavily based on the Goofy from Goof Troop and A Goofy Movie, even wearing the same outfit and making the same pose he does in the former's intro a few seconds later. Donald doesn't seem to think too highly of him, though, and the way he "borrows" some ketchup by squirting it into what I hope is his pocket is not helping matters. Nonetheless, his appearance is just like one would imagine an appearance of Goofy would be like in DuckTales.

He does fit into the photography plot pretty well, as his job in this appearance is a photographer, but I'm more willing to focus on how Goofy is also someone who notices a change in Donald. Maybe it might be something else, but I'd like to think that Goofy is more familiar with Donald's usual voice. As in, he's a real person and not just a construct of whatever this is. There's hints of this throughout the episode, and we did get to see Roxanne and Powerline before, so it's not that much of a stretch.

It doesn't take long for the A plot of Huey dealing with this strange realm he's in and the B plot of the kidnapped photographer to crash into each other. I mean that literally, too, as Team Believes They're In A TV Show collides with Team Gotta Impress The Agent as the floor of the study collapses right into the room the photographer was kept in.

Slowly but surely, Huey convinces the rest of the people that something is wrong by simply saying that they should be going on an adventure. This is supposed to be an adventure series with an adventurer, and the biggest adventurer of them all, Scrooge McDuck, realizes it, too. However, he has no idea what would happen to get them into this realm.

Dewey: If only I could remember... (scratches his chin)

Everyone notices the world around them swirl around, and they panic until it stops. Huey tells them that this is a flashback, and they could use this power to try to figure out how they got into this mess in the first place.

At this point, Donald is the only one that thinks trying to get out of this world is just a waste of time, even stating that they should get back to the plot, er, photo. Yes, in that way. At this point, it was pretty obvious who is the culprit, but this scene in particular reveals a different co-culprit.

Finally, we get to see what was really happening: during an adventure to find the lost lamp of Collie Baba, they were stuck in a trap involving a ton of scorpions. Donald, in the barely comprehensible voice we all know and remember, decides to wish to himself that he would have normal family problems.

Donald's actions in this episode do make sense. Even though one of the main reasons why Donald Duck gave up on adventuring has been resolved, one cannot help that Donald just wants to be with his family, doing family things, and not getting into adventures that may risk his and his nephew's lives. I'd imagine being kidnapped by Moonlanders would do that to a guy.

After they get out of the flashback, they notice that the photographer is slowly trying to leave the room, and everyone knows at this point that this guy is not who he says he is. I mean, we got to see him quite clearly in that flashback.

The photographer is revealed to be Gene the Genie. We managed to get two rebooted characters out of Treasure of the Lost Lamp, and somehow they're completely separate from each other. He's here to make his master's wishes come true, and that master happens to be Donald. Donald still has two more wishes, and he could use his second to undo the first. One problem: he loves it here.

We also learn the reason why this show is dated: he hasn't been out of the lamp since 1990. This is another nod to Treasure of the Lost Lamp, as that was its release year. Goof Troop was a few years after that year, but I'll let that pass. What I might not let pass is the sheer amount of internet references, something that wasn't too widespread in 1990. Huey sure wouldn't have his emoji hat, also. Maybe their modern technology combined with Gene's sitcom world, but I felt that was a little missed opportunity to see some time-related shock.

Anachronisms aside, I have to mention this particular scene when the siblings ask how long they're going to stay in this realm if Donald decides against ever letting them out.

Gene: Probably at least three seasons, plus spinoffs. And I assume they'll reboot the show eventually!

It's pretty obvious why that line stood out. He really must be stuck in the past; most reboots are softer and rounder nowadays. I'd say more, but I'm trying not to fill that "YOU-KNOW-WHAT potshot" jar.

They want to go home, forget the three seasons, the spinoffs, and the dark and gritty reboots. Not speaking of softer in any sense of the word, that line does not go too well for those fourth wall dwellers...

...and we get our answer to how the ducks would react to hairless apes in the same universe as they are. Granted, when they're all grinning these horrifying open mouthed grins, it would make even people in this universe shudder. I know I am!

We get this big scene where they beat up the humans while they wait for Donald to come to his senses and wish them out of here. I'm not going to describe this scene in detail because there's just so much here. The mentioning of different episodes, the realm trying to fix itself, and a big rotation scene, pictured, that was put to good use in the trailers.

Another line in particular that stood out for me: Louie says that the episode where his pet snake gets loose isn't a well written plot. Gene tells him everyone's a critic. I can't help but feel that one.

I will mention that we do get to see Goofy have a parent-to-uncle talk with Donald, and, yes, this leads to even more for the Goof Troop/A Goofy Movie fans. This is a very pivotal moment in the plot, and it's all because of the guest star. Honestly, even if they're trying to get out of the sitcom, that is a very sitcom thing to do!

It shouldn't be much of a spoiler to reveal that they do manage to get out of the sitcom universe. We got a F.O.W.L. plotline to get to. How exactly do they do it? Does Donald get his two other wishes? Go watch the episode and find out for yourself, but I'll say that it is satisfying.

How does it stack up?

This is a very interesting and very funny episode. Purists may be a little upset by this episode focusing more on mimicking the 90's than take any inspiration from the comics, but this is a good tribute to the era. It all hold up together, and I enjoyed every minute of it. Fantastic episode, 5 Scrooges.

Next, we finally get to that F.O.W.L. plot, not so oddly enough!

← Challenge of the Senior Junior Woodchucks! 🦆 Double-O-Duck in You Only Crash Twice! →

The Island of Maravu - Chapter 2

The Island of Maravu

Chapter 2 - The Bunker

Pairing: Starker AU (Peter is 22)

Rated: Overall: E / Chapter: T

Status: WIP

Summary: The Avengers are in shambles and Tony Stark just needs to get out from under the fallout. So, he does what every genius, billionaire, playboy, philanthropist does - he buys an island. Maravu is just the escape Tony is looking for until one morning a beautiful young man arrives with secrets and a smile that makes Tony’s broken heart beat again.

Some Tags: AU, A little angst, Smut and Fluff is the goal here people but I can’t just do that apparently without backstory and plot. No real trigger warnings that I can think of unless water or storms are an issue for you. If you run into something I didn’t think of, let me know.

Chapter 1

~~~~~~~~~~

The birds hated him. They were in cahoots. Thirty-three days on Maravu and the birds woke him up before the sun every freaking morning. Tony stirred, rolled over and scowled at the open window. They were at it again.

He groaned and put a pillow over his head.

"Friday, play something loud."

"Playing your Something Loud playlist," Friday said. Tony rolled his eyes, noting the amusement in her voice before the opening guitar riff of Def Leppard's Photograph blasted through the speakers.

The cabin, a simple, but cozy one-room affair with a fireplace, sofa, kitchenette and dining room table, suited him perfectly. One of the two luxury items he'd insisted upon, besides Friday and the technical upgrades he'd made, was the queen-sized bed that dominated the bedroom area of the cabin. He'd have flown in a king if it would have fit. But even the queen was pushing it.

The cabin came equipped with an attached bathroom and shower. But Tony had grown accustomed to showering in the original, outdoor shower that ran using accumulated rainwater. Something about showering outside in the sun brought out the hedonist in him.

During his first week on Maravu, Tony installed a self-sustained arc reactor to solve the electricity problem and ensured they’d had fast reliable wi-fi. The plantation resumed operation the following week with Mr. Umbari as manager. Tony liked the huge mountain of a man. They worked well together and at the end of a long day, he often sought out his calming presence at the community fire that burned in the village's center courtyard most evenings.

They would talk about the day and share a drink before retiring. Tony liked to watch him talk, his expressive, deeply lined face and white, wiry hair and beard that stood up as though it had a mind of its own. Mr. Umbari had learned to speak English by watching episodes of old American shows like MASH and Happy Days and Tony found himself smiling when now and then he recognized a familiar phrase. When the reactor went live, Mr. Umbari had celebrated by giving Tony the double Fonzie thumbs before dragging him into a chest busting hug.

For the most part, the islanders didn't intrude on Tony’s solitude. Mr. Umbari was a fair and able leader, so Tony didn't get involved in the day to day operations unless they needed him. But periodically he'd be working in the lab he’d set up near his cabin and hear someone call out "Turaga Ni Kaukamea!" Tony would look outside to see someone emerge from the trees and request his assistance at the plantation.

Mr. Umbari addressed him as Mr. Stark even after Tony had invited him to call him by his first name. But the rest of the islanders called him Turaga Ni Kaukamea or sometimes just Kaukamea. Friday had translated it as basically Man of Iron.

So, they were aware of who he was. But no one ever asked to see the suit or wondered why he'd chosen to live on the island when it was clear his own house was in such disarray. They didn't bring it up at all. They expressed their gratitude in humble ways and treated him like anyone else on the island, which was perfect with Tony.

He peeked out from under his pillow to find that the sky has lightened into a midnight blue with the faint orange glow of dawn creeping up behind the windowsill.

"Okay, okay. Stop the music and start the coffee," he said, giving in. "And play me something tropical.”

"You do realize that the current temperature is 76 degrees with a humidity of 94%?" Friday asked as the sound of steel drums and ukulele began.

"My body still thinks it's December in New York, don't judge me," Tony snarked back, smiling when the coffee pot came to life. The rich aroma of the local blend infused his little cabin as the sun crested the horizon.

Tony threw back the sheet and stretched. He drew a deep breath and padded naked across the wood floor to the little kitchenette that consisted of the smallest stove he'd ever seen, a microwave, and a refrigerator that was straight out of the '70s in avocado green. The fanciest thing in the kitchen was his second luxury item – his beloved Concordia espresso machine.

He poured a cup into one of the chipped mugs that had come with the place and took it outside to the fire pit he'd built in the dooryard. His cabin was far enough away from the beach to be safe from the tide but close enough that his view from the fire was the perfect place to watch the sun come up. Tony lit the fire and settled into his camp chair with his coffee to do just that.

Although he tried to focus on his plans for the day, his mind wandered down paths he preferred to avoid. He tried not to spend his time worrying about the wayward Avengers, Rhodey, and the countless ways he had and continued to fail Pepper. But in those quiet moments when it was just him and the traitorous birds, Tony let it in.

He rubbed his chest. Like a phantom limb, it ached as it had for months after his last meeting with Steve.

And Barnes.

Tony sighed. Pepper had insisted he see a shrink after everything went down. He'd gone - a couple of times. But he still couldn't talk about it. Hell, he couldn't even think about it without igniting the flame of resentment and hatred. Logically he understood that Barnes had been brainwashed by Hydra. He was no more responsible for his actions than Clint had been for what he'd done when under the power of Loki's scepter.

Nevertheless, here Tony was. If Barnes were to materialize before him, Tony would probably try to bash his head in with a coconut.

Probably. Maybe.

Barnes may have the benefit of Tony’s doubt, the mind-controlled pass. But Steve...Cap…he’d made his choices all on his own. Tony oscillated between hope and fear that the big, stubborn man would get caught. He had no idea what he would say to the man if he ever saw him again. But he had the little burner phone Steve had mailed to Tony Stank tucked into his sock drawer nonetheless.

The temperature had risen just a little. On the horizon, Tony spied a rain cloud, one of those slow-moving clouds you could watch approach with its sheets of rain that blanketed the island at least once a day.

He frowned.

"Friday, what's the weather supposed to be like today?"

"Fair in the morning with severe thunderstorms rolling in at approximately 1:34 P.M."

"I suppose I should get started then," he said, gulping down the rest of his coffee. He put the mug in the sink and fished a fresh pair of shorts and a t-shirt from his dresser. It was time to check on the arc reactor.

~~~~~~~~~~

"Boss, the Fiji Meteorological Society has issued a tropical storm warning with potential for rotation in this area and is expected it hit earlier than expected," Friday warned.

Tony crawled out from under the arc reactor's electronics panel and adjusted his glasses.

"How bad?" he asked, wiping his hands on a towel. He peered up at the doughnut-shaped reactor housing. The walls of the cave in which he'd built it flickered blue and purple as it purred softly.

There was a certain amount of poetic justice in this, he thought. He'd started this in a cave. And now here he was again, minus the car battery and armed guards. And this arc reactor was designed only to help.

Tony climbed a small set of metal stairs, freshly painted safety yellow, which led to the ground floor. He opened a set of doors and entered the circular antechamber where islanders could look through the reinforced glass at the arc reactor below. They'd installed bunker doors at the mouth of the cave for emergencies. But they were usually left open to the public. The reactor itself was locked and protected by Friday. No one entered without Tony's knowledge.

Outside, the palm trees swayed and here and there little puffs of dirt from the path twisted into the air with leaves and rocks. Tony had been in the reactor bunker for a few hours and the wind had picked up considerably.

"Radar indicates wind speed of approximately 22 miles per hour. No active rotation," Friday said.

Tony chewed his lip and considered the news. When he'd moved in, Mr. Umbari had gone over their storm preparedness plan. The island had a storm bunker for its inhabitants. As though he'd summoned the man, Mr. Umbari and his orange menace of a golf cart sped around the corner. He slid in next to Tony's red cart, barely missing the tail end as he turned the sharp corner. Tony chuckled and shook his head as Mr. Umbari unfolded his long legs and climbed out from under the orange and white striped canopy.  He hurried toward the bunker as the first drops of rain plip-plopped against his yellow rain slicker. As soon as he saw Tony Mr. Umbari grinned and waved. Tony ushered him inside and hit the button to close the bunker doors.

"Mr. Stark. The boys said you were here," Mr. Umbari said, entering through the single door.

"Yeah, I was just checking on the reactor, giving her a tune-up. Friday says we've got a storm on the way?"

Mr. Umbari had been introduced to the AI and he seemed completely charmed by her.

He smiled at the ceiling. "Hello, Ms. Friday. Thank you for keeping Mr. Stark so informed."

"It's my pleasure, Sir," she answered in her pleasant Irish lilt earning a grin from Mr. Umbari.

"Unfortunately, Ms. Friday is correct, Sir. Since this is your first storm on the island, I wanted to make sure that you were safe."

"Thanks for your concern. I'll finish up here and go down to the cabin, batten down the hatches and be in the bunker in time for dinner, Dad." Tony smiled at the large man as he put away his tools."

Mr. Umbari laughed, deep and genuine. "Good, good. I'm glad to hear it. I hear that Skillet has already begun a pot of lamb stew for the occasion."

Tony's stomach growled at the thought of food and he realized he hadn't eaten yet today.

"Skillet's cooking?" Tony asked and Mr. Umbari grinned.

"If Skillet's in the kitchen I'm not gonna miss it," Tony said.

Kitchen wizard and culinary school dropout, Skillet worked the plantation to help pay off his student loans. But one meal at Skillet's table told Tony that the young Fijian was wasting his talents.

Tall, whip-thin, with long black curls he kept up in a messy bun most days, the kid could cook rings around the overpriced chefs at any of the five-star Manhattan restaurants. Tony had offered to pay his debt and set him up in a spot of his own, wherever he wanted. But Skillet turned him down every time.

Tony, being Tony, had been trying to come up with a loophole that kid would accept to no avail. But he had one final trick up his sleeve he planned to save until the right moment. As Tony's chef, Skillet would both pay down his debt and have his talents recognized by the top critics around the world at the events Tony threw. It was a win-win for both of them.

Mr. Umbari nodded, evidently pleased with Tony's response.

"Good. Good. I should go to make sure the animals are safe. I will see you there, my friend! Goodbye, Ms. Friday," he said.

Tony smiled, amused at the way the islanders treated everything with a relaxed acceptance. Even in the face of a potentially damaging storm, they prepared for a gathering of families.

"See you there."

~~~~~~~~~~

Tony stepped into the storm bunker and was immediately enveloped in the delicious aroma of stew and fresh bread. He breathed in deeply and looked around the room, impressed by the setup. The bunker looked like a basement with concrete walls and floors. A bar and small kitchen stood on the right side of the room where Skillet was working his magic. The left side was lined with padded seats. They'd made the cold, grey room into a warm and comfortable place to gather with tapestries on the walls, and woven rugs and pillows on the floors.

"Turaga ni kaukamea!" several children called and swarmed, reaching up to be held and tugging him toward the group of adults who sat at the tables lined up end to end in the center of the room.

"Oh hey!" he exclaimed when a little girl who couldn't be more than four climbed him like a palm tree. The adults laughed as she wrapped her arms around his neck. He sat down in one of the folding chairs and held her on his lap.

"Kaukamea, what are you building in your lab? Filipe says you have a ghost and you talk to it. Does it help you build things?" she asked.

"Who told you that?"

The little girl pointed to a boy with bronze skin and wide, curious eyes. He looked up at Tony in fascination from the safety of his mother's arms.

"Filipe?" Tony asked with a raised eyebrow. The boy nodded dramatically.

"And what's your name?" Tony asked the girl.

"Sara," she said.

"Nice to meet you, Sara and Filipe. It just so happens that I am currently working on some upgrades to the arc reactor technology that runs the island. Have you seen the new bunker?"

All the children nodded in unison.

"So, if...and Filipe, I'm looking at you here… IF someone were sneaking around my lab, they may have heard me talking to Friday, who is not a ghost. She's more like a really, really smart computer who can talk."

"Is she smarter than you?" Sara asked, wide-eyed.

"Well...technically, yes. I built her. But I taught her to learn. She has access to all the information on the internet. So, she knows like...everything."

"Woooow," the children chorused.

"Right? She’s crazy smart.”

"Kaukamea, can we meet Friday?” Sara asked. "I have a computer at home. But it's never spoken to me before. Do you think if I brought it over, Friday could teach it how to talk?"

The children murmured their agreement, each of them wanting Friday to teach their computers to talk too. Tony noticed that the adults had stopped what they were doing to listen to the conversation.

Tong chuckled. "Unfortunately, your home computers aren't quite as smart as Friday. But if it's okay with your parents, you can come by the lab to meet Friday. But listen, it's super important that if you come to visit me that you don't go into the lab by yourself. You never know what I'm working on. And it could be dangerous. Do you all understand?"

The children agreed and ran off to play. The adults chuckled and resumed their conversations. Sara wiggled down from his lap and grabbed Filipe's hand.

"I told you there wasn't a ghost," she said.

"Well, it sounded like a ghost," he said.

"Sorry about that," one of the women said, taking a seat next to Tony. "The children are so curious about you. I'm Delana, Sara's mother." She held out her hand and Tony shook it with a smile. Delana was a little younger than Tony with caramel skin and sleek black hair she wore swept up in a ponytail.

"It's okay. I'm used to it. I just wanted to make sure they don't get hurt."

"Thank you for looking out for them. And for everything you've done for the island. When Mr. Umbari was forced to sell, we thought that everyone here would be forced off the island. But you swooped in and allowed us to keep our homes, brought reliable electricity and Wi-Fi, and helped us keep our jobs. You have truly been a blessing."

Tony nodded, swallowing a lump in his throat. "I'm glad I could do some good," he said.

Delana tilted her head; she studied him a moment before smiling and patting his hand. "Let me get you some stew," she said finally before getting up and heading to the kitchen where people had begun to get in line.

Tony tuned in to the conversations around him. The people spoke in a mix of English and Fijian. Friday helped by providing translation on the lenses of his glasses and he followed the conversations. Delana returned with a big bowl of stew and a plate piled with roti, a flatbread the islanders seemed to have at almost every meal.

The storm hit late in the evening with everyone gathered around a large pot-bellied stove as Mr. Umbari told stories to the nervous children. They invited Tony into one of the wooden rocking chairs by the fire. He'd refused several times because although he owned the island and everyone had been more than welcoming, Tony couldn't shake the sense that he was still an outsider, merely a means to an end for these people. But eventually, he accepted and as the wind howled outside and Friday fed him updates about the storm, Tony drifted off to sleep in the warmth of the fire.

~~~~~~~~~~

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Thelma Houston

Thelma Houston (née Jackson; born May 7, 1946) is an American singer and actress. She scored a number-one hit in 1977 with her recording of "Don't Leave Me This Way", which won the Grammy for Best Female R&B Vocal Performance.

Early life and career

Houston was born in Leland, Mississippi. Her mother was a cotton picker. She and her three sisters grew up primarily in Long Beach, California. After marrying and having two children, she joined the Art Reynolds Singers gospel group and was subsequently signed as a recording artist with Dunhill Records. She isn't related to the late Whitney Houston.

In 1969, Houston released her debut album, entitled Sunshower, produced, arranged and composed by Jimmy Webb except for one track. In 1971 she signed with Motown Records but her early recordings with them were largely unsuccessful. Her most notable single during that period was "You've Been Doing Wrong for So Long" which peaked at No. 64 on the US Billboard R&B chart in 1974. However Houston's vocal prowess on that track secured her a nomination for a Best Female R&B Vocal Performance. In 1973 Motown Productions announced a projected biographical film of Dinah Washington which would star Houston; however the project was dropped due to difficulties in getting clearance from Washington's relatives. In April 1974 Houston joined the cast of The Marty Feldman Comedy Machine, playing various characters during the show's skits. The show was canceled in August and for the next several years her work was limited to demo recordings and performing at small venues.

Houston took acting classes and received her first role in the 1975 made-for-television film Death Scream. In that same year Sheffield Lab released "I've Got the Music in Me" a Direct to disc recording by Thelma Houston and Pressure Cooker that went on to become a benchmark vinyl recording for audiophiles. The following year she recorded songs for the soundtrack of the film The Bingo Long Traveling All-Stars & Motor Kings starring Billy Dee Williams and James Earl Jones. In 1975 Houston appeared on the Golden Globe Award broadcast performing the nominated song "On & On" and also was featured in a tribute to Berry Gordy on that year's American Music Award broadcast singing "You've Made Me So Very Happy". That year Houston's version of "Do You Know Where You're Going To" was being set for single release when it was pulled and the song given to Diana Ross to serve as the theme song for the movie Mahogany. In 1976 Houston sang backing vocals for Motown labelmate Jermaine Jackson on his album My Name Is Jermaine.

"Don't Leave Me This Way" and Departure from Motown

Houston released her third solo album Any Way You Like It in 1976. The first single released was her version of Harold Melvin & the Blue Notes' 1975 song "Don't Leave Me This Way". In February 1977 the track hit Number 1 in the U.S. on the R&B and Club Play Singles charts, then in April 1977 on the Billboard Hot 100. "Don't Leave Me This Way" won Houston the Best Female R&B Vocal Performance at the Grammys for 1977. Besides its US success "Don't Leave Me This Way" became a hit in at least twelve countries, including the UK where it reached Number 13 despite the concurrent single release of the Harold Melvin & the Blue Notes original, which reached Number 5. Also in 1977 Houston teamed up with Jerry Butler to record the album Thelma & Jerry and that November 1977 she co-starred in the film Game Show Models. It was announced in February 1977 that Houston would star as Bessie Smith in a filmation of the play Me and Bessie, to be produced by Motown; after an announcement that December that Houston was set to portray Bessie Smith in a biopic to be produced in 1978 by Columbia Pictures nothing more was heard of the project.

The second single from Any Way You Like It was Houston's rendition of "If It's the Last Thing I Do", a standard written by Saul Chaplin and Sammy Cahn; the track had been recorded and prepped for single release in 1973 but canceled. The impact of "If It's the Last Thing I Do" was far less than that of "Don't Leave Me This Way", as the former fell short of both the R&B Top Ten and the Pop Top 40. With the lead single from her 1978 album The Devil in Me: "I'm Here Again", Houston returned to the style of "Don't Leave Me This Way" without recapturing the earlier single's success. Houston did enjoy considerable commercial success in 1978 via the inclusion of her track "Love Masterpiece" on the Thank God It's Friday soundtrack album which sold double platinum but her own album release that year Ready to Roll again failing to consolidate the stardom augured by "Don't Leave Me This Way". The album's second single: "Saturday Night, Sunday Morning", gradually accrued airplay entering the national charts in March 1979 and ascending as high as #34 (#19 R&B) that June. "Saturday Night, Sunday Morning" was issued on a new album by Houston: Ride to the Rainbow but the track's relative success was not enough to forestall Houston's planned departure from Motown.

1980s

Houston continued recording music into the 1980s, beginning with the RCA release Breakwater Cat which reunited her with Jimmy Webb who produced her debut single Sunshower and which like their earlier collaboration was a commercially overlooked critical success. During the December 22, 1984 Billboard magazine interview, Houston admitted to "'no real commercial success' since the single 'Don't Leave Me This Way' broke on the Pop charts in late 1976" indicating that the disco backlash had left her with "no real base of audience support" and that her current album Qualifying Heat, executive produced by Houston herself, was a concentrated initiative to restore her as a viable chart presence; the album featured three cuts from Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis – including the single "You Used to Hold Me So Tight" – and production work from Glen Ballard, Dennis Lambert, Cliff Magness and – in his first known recording work – Lenny Kravitz (then billed as Romeo Blue), who each produced a cut apiece. "You Use to Hold Me So Tight" became Houston's most successful post-1970s release with a No. 13 R&B peak, but its parent album was a comparative failure – charting No. 41 R&B – and Houston would not cut another album for six years.

The constant ranking of her 1980s releases as moderate or minor R&B hits led Houston to concentrate on alternate exposure. After appearing in the independent film The Seventh Dwarf in 1979 Houston made guest-starring appearances into the mid-1980s in several popular television programs including Cagney & Lacey, Simon & Simon – a January 1986 appearance that featured her performing "You Used to Hold Me So Tight" – and Faerie Tale Theatre. Houston also appeared in the 1987 CBS after school special Little Miss Perfect (1987) – as "Prison Singer" – in the 1988 film And God Created Woman.

On the May 19, 1985 NBC broadcast Motown Returns to the Apollo Houston performed "What a Diff'rence a Day Makes" in the guise of Dinah Washington. Houston continued to contribute to movie soundtracks, recording "Keep It Light" for the 1985 film Into the Night and she remade Bill Withers' "Lean on Me" for the 1989 film entitled Lean on Me. Houston also co-wrote and sang back-up on the song "Be Yourself" for Patti LaBelle's 1989 album of the same title.

1990s

The Fall of 1990 saw the release of Houston's first album in six years, Throw You Down, a long-planned collaboration with producer Richard Perry which briefly extended Houston's career as a minor R&B chart presence. The title song reached No. 5 on the U.S. dance chart. A remix of "Don't Leave Me This Way" was released, and once again charted on the Hot Dance Club Play chart at No. 19 in 1995. Subsequent singles include "I Need Somebody Tonight" and "All of That".

In 1994, Houston participated in an AIDS benefit at New York's Algonquin Hotel, performing gospel music with Phoebe Snow, Chaka Khan and CeCe Peniston as "Sisters of Glory". Intended as a one-off performance troupe, the Sisters of Glory remained together – with the addition of Mavis Staples and Lois Walden, and without Chaka Khan – to perform at Woodstock '94. Houston performed with the Sisters of Glory for the Pope in Vatican City and in 1995 Houston, Phoebe Snow, CeCe Peniston, Lois Walden and Albertina Walker recorded the Warner Brothers album Good News in Hard Times as the Sisters of Glory.

Houston provided lead vocals on several tracks of guitarist Scott Henderson's 1997 Atlantic album, Tore Down House, and in 1998 she made cameo appearances in two films: in 54 Houston portrayed herself singing "Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas" supposedly at Studio 54, and in Beloved Houston played 'One of The Thirty Women'.

Recent career

In 2000, Houston toured successfully throughout Australia in the stage musical version of Fame. In 2002 she again guested on a Scott Henderson album, providing lead vocals for two of the tracks on Well to the Bone. Upon returning to the U.S. Houston toured with Nile Rodgers and Chic, and was among the opening acts of the originally intended finale of Cher's Farewell Tour in Toronto on October 31, 2003. Houston regularly performs at Teatro ZinZanni in Seattle and San Francisco.

Her version of "Don't Leave Me This Way" continues to be popular today. In recent years she has been invited to sing this song on dozens of TV shows and specials including NBC's Today Show, ABC's Motown 45 and The Disco Ball...A 30-Year Celebration, and PBS' specials American Soundtrack: Rhythm, Love and Soul, Soul Superstars, and Old School Superstars. "Don't Leave Me This Way" was mentioned by VH1 as being among the greatest dance songs in 2000, and was ranked number eighty-six on the channel's countdown of The 100 Greatest One-Hit Wonders. She won an episode of the NBC show Hit Me, Baby, One More Time with her renditions of her own hit and "Fallin'" by Alicia Keys. On September 20, 2004, Houston's rendition of "Don't Leave Me This Way" was inducted into the Dance Music Hall of Fame in New York City.

On August 14, 2007, Houston released her first studio album in seventeen years, A Woman's Touch. The album was produced by Peitor Angell and features cover versions of songs by male artists such as Luther Vandross, Marvin Gaye, and Sting that Houston had been inspired by. The first single from the album was "Brand New Day". On August 20, 2007, Houston's 1984 album Qualifying Heat was reissued as an import title in the U.S. with a bonus track.

She sang "Don't Leave Me This Way" on American Idol on April 22, 2009, and on America's Got Talent on September 16, 2009.

On July 29, 2013, a collaboration between Thelma and Los Angeles-based producer Janitor, entitled "Enemy", premiered on SoundCloud. Several tracks followed, culminating in the release of an EP, "Forty-Two", in September. This is the first new material from Thelma Houston in six years.

On June 25, 2019, The New York Times Magazine listed Thelma Houston among hundreds of artists whose material was reportedly destroyed in the 2008 Universal fire.

She is featured on British singer songwriter Morrissey's new single "Bobby Don't you Think They Know", released on streaming platforms on 10th January 2020 from his album I Am Not a Dog on a Chain.

Discography

Albums

Dunhill release

1969: Sunshower No. 50 R&B

MoWest release

1973: Thelma Houston

Sheffield Lab release

1975: I've Got the Music in Me – with Pressure Cooker

Tamla (Motown) releases

1976: Any Way You Like It Pop No. 11, R&B No. 5

1977: The Devil in Me Pop No. 64, R&B No. 29

1978: Ready to Roll R&B No. 74

1979: Ride to the Rainbow Pop No. 204

Motown releases

1977: Thelma & Jerry – Thelma Houston and Jerry Butler Pop No. 53, R&B No. 20

1978: Two to One – Thelma Houston and Jerry Butler

1982: Reachin' All Around

RCA releases

1980: Breakwater Cat Pop No. 201

1981: Never Gonna Be Another One Pop No. 144, R&B No. 51

MCA releases

1983: Thelma Houston (1983)

1984: Qualifying Heat R&B No. 30

Reprise release

1990: Throw You Down

Italian-only release (Fonit Cetra CDL378)

1994: Thelma Houston (1994)

Shout Factory release

2007: A Woman's Touch

Other

2010: Divas of Disco: Live (with CeCe Peniston, Linda Clifford, A Taste of Honey and France Joli)

2013: Forty-Two (EP, with Janitor)

Singles

Filmography

Films

1975: Death Scream — Lady Wing Ding

1977: Game Show Models — Dana Sheridan

1979: The Seventh Dwarf

1988: And God Created Woman — prison singer

1998: 54 — herself

1998: Beloved — one of The Thirty Women

Television (guest)

1969: The Price of Fame – Guest singer, singing "Jumpin' Jack Flash"

1971: The Marty Feldman Comedy Machine — various characters

1975: The Golden Globe Award — Guest Singer

1980: The Two Ronnies - Guest singer, singing " The Candyman"

1985: Cagney & Lacey (5,11: Play it again, Santa) — Ellie Hendricks

1986: Simon & Simon — Venutia

1986: Tall Tales & Legends — Edna

1987: Little Miss Perfect — Ms. Bonner

Soundtracks

1976: The Bingo Long Traveling All-Stars & Motor Kings — "Steal on Home", "Razzle Dazzle"

1976: Norman... Is That You? — "One Out of Every Six"

1978: Thank God It's Friday — "Love Masterpiece"

1984: Getting Physical — "Hot Dance", "To Be Free"

1985: Into the Night — "Keep It Light"

1989: Lean on Me — "Lean on Me"

1:6 – Protect the Melody of Love! Usagi is a Cupid

[Original Pose Made 25/08/2013]

Alternative Title: This Would Never Work With iPods

First Aired: 18th April 1992

Jadeite’s latest ploy is to use an evil cassette tape (totally retro) to gather energy for Queen Beryl. He entrusts this tape to the bat monster Kyurene, who immediately fucks up and loses the tape at a record company. The poor sucker whose tape it is happens to be one Amade Yusuke, a jazz pianist very much in love. After being stalked by the monster, Yusuke runs into Usagi in the street (what are the odds) and our heroine takes it upon herself to protect Yusuke and his beloved record-producer Akiko.

This episode is amaaazing! The first really great episode since the first. The story is interesting and breaks the normal formula, the animation is beautiful (it is the A-Grade Studio after all) and there are some really good comedic moments AND some decent action!

Jadeite is playing a tape for Queen Beryl. For anyone born in the late 90s, this will seem horribly antiquated from the get go, but the image of Queen Beryl playing a tape in a floating sphere of water is both novel and nostalgic at the same time. She gives an emphatic “OOH”, which is the most animated we’ve ever seen the yellow-eyed dictator.

Jadeite’s plan goes wrong immediately – he gives the energy-sucking tape to the monster Kyurene with the instructions to spread the tape’s powers in a record company. The tape is taken by Akiko, a record producer, under the impression that it’s the demo tape of prospective artist Amano Yusuke. Kyurene has the opportunity to murder Akiko and retrieve the tape, but decides not to since there’s also a random fat guy in the room. My advice? You probably should have just killed both of them.

“I could kill them, but then I run the risk of breaking these stupid nails”

The unfortunately living Akiko hands the evil tape over to Yusuke in the building lobby, which is the start of all his woes. Yusuke is besotted with Akiko, but can’t bring himself to confess his love.

Incedently, the method in which the evil tape is meant to extract energy is by infecting stereos with a high-pitch frequency. The fear that subliminal frequencies would rewire our brains and make consumer zombies of us all lived on well into the 90s, although it’s a rather old-fashioned trope nowadays. In fact, all studies show that subliminal advertising doesn’t work, but that’s not to say an evil infected Justin Bieber song couldn’t one day suck energy from the human race as a sacrifice to the Dark Kingdom.

Usagi and Naru, meanwhile, are listening to a CD of Amano Yusuke’s piano music, which is awfully futuristic considering it’s 1992. Why is Jadeite using a tape? Maybe the Dark Kingdom can’t afford a CD player yet, those things were pricey back in the day. Usagi has to walk home in the rain in a new outfit (with a matching umbrella, no less. Either she’s coordinated or the colouring artists couldn’t be bothered to change paints.

Get your fashion tips from a 1992 Japanese cartoon, ladies

Usagi is just about to play video games in the middle of the night (a fictitious woman after my own heart, here) when a frantic and sodden Yusuke comes barrelling down the street knocking her over. Usagi is understandably upset that her new outfit is ruined. Actually, she’s not so upset as she is, uh, homicidal. 

If you have to die, this isn’t a bad way to go

Yusuke is cowering in fear under Usagi’s threat of death, which sort of takes her back a little. As it turns out, Yusuke is being stalked by the creepy bat-flavoured Kyurene. There’s a brilliant flashback of Yusuke spotting the monster down a dark alley and being chased by something just horrifying.

Yusuke leaves Usagi, saying he has a gig at a jazz club, but Luna urges Usagi to follow after him lest he be brutally murdered. Usagi is more concerned that Yusuke is something of a celebrity. Honestly…

He’s just been running around in the rain screaming about monsters, but now he seems pretty chilled out

At the club, Usagi’s age becomes an infiltration problem yet again, so she busts out the trusty Transformation Pen to turn herself into a “cool grown-up musician”. Apparently this means funky green hair from the 80s, a miniskirt (WOO!), purple leggings and a corset that leaves most of her torso bare. It’s AMAZING. 

This is what all musicians looked like back then. It was a simpler time

Usagi solves the problem of getting Luna into the club by forcing her to pretend that she’s a fur scarf. Our poor long-suffering Luna, eh? Inside the club, Usagi is doing her best to blend in. A waiter approaches her for an order, and we get this beauty:

“Would ma’am like anything?”

“Hrmmm… cream soda!”

“Uh, I’m sorry we don’t have that here”

“Oh OK, nothing then.”

“Now piss off, you’re harshing my mellow”

It’s a simple exchange, but it makes me laugh every time, especially since Luna, still pretending to be a stuffed scarf, is shaking her head in disbelief.

After the performance, Yusuke is set upon by bat-face Kyurene again (she pops out of a glowing red elevator), and Usagi has to run to his rescue. The monster has made off with Yusuke’s precious tape! There are apparently no copies of it in existence! It’s the one that has all his feelings of affection for Akiko in the music! Whatever the excuse, Yusuke is pissed, and Usagi joins him in his attempt to track Kyurene down.

There’s a great car chase in which the pair speed through Tokyo after the bat-bastard. It’s beautifully drawn, and really shows the animators put a lot of effort into this episode. Yusuke is a great character, switching between a mysterious artistic whisper to embarrassed squawks when the subject of Akiko is brought up.

A confrontation at the record company takes place, with Kyurene finally revealing all of her sexy batness, before taking Akiko hostage, demanding that Usagi hand over the tape. Usagi throws the tape high into the air, when this happens:

LOOK! ACTION! Luna is always saving Usagi’s ass

That’s actually a pretty good move! Usagi is really getting the lead out today, and she’s not even transformed yet! Even though Luna destroys the tape so that there’s no risk of an energy-sucking attack anymore, Usagi goes to hunt the monster down. This episode is just packed!

The monster flies to an outdoor amplitheatre, where the final showdown takes place. Kyurene is kicking Sailor Moon’s ass with her high-frequency attack until Luna throws a microphone, amplifying the monster’s attack back at her so that Sailor Moon can deliver the final Moon Tiara Action death blow. OK, so the idea that speakers can fire energy blasts make no sense whatsoever, but this is a great fight!

“OK when did you install those energy-blasting speakers, because that’s just not fair”

In the final scene, Yusuke and Akiko are reportedly married, and Usagi and Naru are listening to his latest album. This time the CD’s front cover has a rather familiar silhouette and the title “Moonlight Lady”. I think? My Japanese kind of sucks.

All in all, this episode is one of my favourites, even compared to later seasons. A menacing monster, a tidy little love story, a jazz club, a corset (THAT CORSET, GUYS), a brilliant supporting character, this episode exemplifies why I love this show.

Episode Score: 5/5

Monster Freakishness Level: 5/5

Corset Score: 94%

Celebrating Unoriginality

"CELEBRATING UNORIGINALITY" Many people love to praise FOX science-fiction series, “THE ORVILLE” to the sky. Many praise it for being the epitome of the "traditional aspects" of the STAR TREK franchise. Even more so than the latest entry of the latter, "STAR TREK DISCOVERY". I have my suspicions on why so many love to praise "THE ORVILLE" to the detriment of the CBS Access series. I suspect that both sexism and racism are two of the reasons behind this sentiment . . . especially in regard to the leading lady of "STAR TREK DISCOVERY". However, there is some aspect or style of "THE ORVILLE" that makes me understand why many others would make this claim about the series being "traditional Trek". Unfortunately, I do not think this aspect has proven to be beneficial to the FOX series. How can I be anymore blunt? To me, "THE ORVILLE" is basically a remake of the second Trek series, "STAR TREK NEXT GENERATION", but with a touch of leading actor Seth MacFarlane's style of humor. I just wish the series could be different. Offer A DIFFERENT STYLE in its presentation of episodes. It had recently occurred to me that "NEXT GENERATION" reminded me a lot "STAR TREK THE ORIGINAL SERIES" than any of the other Trek shows. In terms of format and the style of shows, it is almost seems like a remake or continuation of the 1966-69 series. Perhaps this is not surprising considering that the 1987-94 series, along with "THE ORIGINAL SERIES", was created by Gene Roddenberry. This could be a reason why it seems more beloved by the franchise's fandom and producers, save for the first series. My recent viewing of "THE ORVILLE" made me suspect that it pretty much repeated what "NEXT GENERATION" had done in terms of storytelling and format. Although both shows were willing to explore the different quirks and minor flaws of its main characters, both seemed hellbent upon portraying Humans as generally more superior than other alien races. Both shows seemed willing to put humanity on a pedestal. The Moclus race, as personified by the Lieutenant Commander Bortus character, bears a strong resemblance to the Klingons of the 24th century. And Bortus seems to be another Lieutenant (later Commander) Worf. Even the relationship between MacFarlane's Captain Ed Mercer and Adrianne Palicki's Commander Kelly Grayson almost seems like a re-hash of the Commander William Riker and Counselor Deanna Troi relationship, as portrayed by Jonathan Frakes and Marina Sartis in "NEXT GENERATION". And yet, the Trek shows that followed "NEXT GENERATION" seemed to be willing to offer something different. "STAR TREK DEEP SPACE NINE" was set on a space station and possessed a narrative structure that very slowly developed into a serial format by its third season. "STAR TREK VOYAGER" featured a crew traveling alone on the other side of the galaxy that comprised of Starfleet officers and crewmen, Maquis freedom fighters, an ex-convict/former Starfleet officer, two aliens and a former Borg drone. Superficially, "STAR TREK: ENTERPRISE" seemed a lot like "THE ORIGINAL SERIES" and "NEXT GENERATION", but it was set a century before 1966-69 series - during the few years before the establishment of the Federation, and it featured a serialized narrative about a major war during its third season. "STAR TREK DISCOVERY” proved to be a Trek series that has been serialized since its first episode. More importantly, its main character IS NOT a star ship or space station commander. The Trek shows that had followed "NEXT GENERATION" have been more willing to explore the uglier side of the Federation, Starfleet and Humanity; than the first two series. This has been especially apparent in "DEEP SPACE NINE", "VOYAGER" and "DISCOVERY". And aside from "VOYAGER, the Trek shows that followed "NEXT GENERATION" have been willing to utilize a serialized format - something that many fans seemed to lack the patience to endure lately. Most of this criticism toward a serialized narrative has been directed against "DISCOVERY". However, I personally find this ironic, considering that the other Trek shows have used this narrative device with the same quality as the other shows. At least in my eyes. I suspect that this heavy criticism toward "DISCOVERY" has more to do with the show's lead than its writing quality. Even "VOYAGER" has been willing to serialized some of its episodes on a limited scale, especially during its mid-Season Four. Officially, "THE ORVILLE" is not a part of the Trek franchise. Why does it feel that it is? And Why does it have to feel like it? Because its creator and star, Seth MacFarlane, had this need to pay homage to "NEXT GENERATION"? Or even "THE ORIGINAL SERIES"? Why? Some advocates of "THE ORVILLE" have pointed out the series' style of humor and the fact that it features a LGBTQ couple. However, "DISCOVERY", which had premiered during the same month and year, also features a LGBTQ couple. And previous Trek shows and movies have featured or hinted LGBTQ romance and/or sexuality in the past - namely "DEEP SPACE NINE" and the 2016 movie, "STAR TREK BEYOND". Even television series like "BABYLON 5" and "BATTLESTAR: GALACTICA" have featured or hinted LGBTQ issues. But more importantly, both shows, along with "FARSCAPE" and others in the science-fiction genre have managed to be completely original both style and substance. Why did MacFarlane feel he had to literally copy "NEXT GENERATION" when other Trek shows have managed to be more original? The only aspect of "THE ORVILLE" that I truly find original is its occasional use of twisted humor. And even that has appeared even less during the series' second season. This is what I find so frustrating about "THE ORVILLE". One, I feel that it is basically "traditional Trek" disguised as another science-fiction franchise. Even worse, it seems like a close rip-off of "STAR TREK NEXT GENERATION". I see nothing complimentary about this. I find it sad that so many people do. And I find it even sadder that so many people are willing to put "THE ORVILLE" on a pedestal for . . . what? For the series' lack of originality? Because these fans want to cling to the past? This is just sad. No . . . not, sad. Pathetic. At least to me.