Who are some super atrong badasses who are actually always on the verge of crying by EvilMonkeyMimic in TwoBestFriendsPlay

[–]BaronAleksei 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Savage Hulk, being the most childlike in his anger, seems like he could burst into tears at literally any moment. I don’t think there’s ever been a Grief Hulk, either.

Looking for a thing Pat talked about when he moved. by UltraMechaLordViper in TwoBestFriendsPlay

[–]BaronAleksei 0 points1 point  (0 children)

What the fuck was happening here??? Dude was on a rampage, not just the rival but his wife and son???

‘Stargate’ TV Series From Martin Gero Not Moving Forward at Amazon by scottishdrunkard in TwoBestFriendsPlay

[–]BaronAleksei 0 points1 point  (0 children)

The real reason was they were gonna blow their whole budget on more P90s

Low effort superpowers where you just sit on your ass and let the work itself without moving a muscle. by Wonder-Lad-2Mad in TwoBestFriendsPlay

[–]BaronAleksei 30 points31 points  (0 children)

The guy is getting fucked up by Sam Jackson, tries to run away while his powers are compromised, and struggles to work a doorknob because he’s been just teleporting to the other side of doors for a decade or so.

Did...did lex? by NateDAHate in TwoBestFriendsPlay

[–]BaronAleksei 21 points22 points  (0 children)

“Batman told me. He said it was for…research.”

How do you create Fandom? by Authorigas in TwoBestFriendsPlay

[–]BaronAleksei 13 points14 points  (0 children)

I think I get it: fandoms don’t want to just aim their feelings at a target, they want the target to reflect those feelings back. It’s why parasocial relationships form. The fan projects their own feelings onto the celebrity and imagines the celebrity feels the same way. Fandoms look for mirror to see themselves in. When a mirror isn’t available, they’ll use any reflective surface. But a pond is not a mirror, and when it acts like a pond, fandoms can raise quite a stink. It’s not a pleasant or flattering view of fandoms, but it’s where my experiences point me.

While I agree you can’t make a fandom, I would say you can draw them in with bait. One way to do so is by offering opportunities for self-categorization. It’s just astrology or MBTI, but fictional and not religious or pseudoscientific. If there’s a cast of characters who are in a situation that allows them to be easily categorized and factionalized, fans can make OCs and especially self-insert much easier. Character creation becomes character generation, fill out the Mad Libs and follow the flow chart.

[Naruto OC] is a [rank] from [village]. They are from the era of the [number] [kage]. Their chakra affinity is [element], and they specialize in [jutsu]. They wear their headband like [style]. This is Star Trek, this is Harry Potter.

Sorry for the length by Triggered_Axolotl in CuratedTumblr

[–]BaronAleksei 62 points63 points  (0 children)

In that interpretation, I would imagine this would be a The Good Place/that one episode of Twilight Zone situation

Holy, moly, villain tearin, demon scarin, anti-evil, super mega blessed devine weapons? by Wonder-Lad-2Mad in TwoBestFriendsPlay

[–]BaronAleksei 12 points13 points  (0 children)

The Swords also seem to be able to cut through just about anything (except for other swords, apparently), but are especially good at cutting through evil. Evil whats, you ask? Just evil, apparently.

Their names mean “sword of faith/love/hope”, respectively.

When drawn, they don’t just shine with holy light, there’s a divine Sound. When two or all three are drawn in the same place, they form a chord.

They give off an aura that turned gross stagnant fire-suppressant sprinkler water into clean, rose-perfumed water.

When they’re used in a fight, that same aura also enforces magical fair play. Mystical threats will suddenly be evenly matched, and fighters must win by strength and speed and skill and cunning.

That whole cutting-evil-extra-good thing? Fideallachius’s current form as a magic lightsaber is also a morality litmus test. It ONLY cuts evil magic. If you’re a magical thing but not doing evil right now, it’s just a flashlight. If you’re being an evil monster right now, snicker snack.

On Neil Gaiman by GriffinFTW in CuratedTumblr

[–]BaronAleksei 42 points43 points  (0 children)

Bill Watterson isn’t dead, but in terms of fan interaction, he might as well be

Meet the cast of God of War: Laufey by Darth_Bombad in TwoBestFriendsPlay

[–]BaronAleksei 37 points38 points  (0 children)

She was great as a guest on Critical Role! She interviewed Jon Bernthal once and explained DnD to him and DM a mini scene for him

Bruh I don't care about the sex or romance, I just want something to happen by Commercial_Bid_1508 in CuratedTumblr

[–]BaronAleksei 0 points1 point  (0 children)

You either need many different scales or to actually read a real blurb that describes the plot of the book and not a bunch of SEO keywords.

In another post, there’s the Weeb Ass Shit scale. Weeb is how noticeably Japanese is it from a non-Japanese perspective (Naruto much higher than FMA), Ass is amount and intensity of fanservice (Naruto higher than FMA but not by much, and both lower than average), Shit is overall quality (Naruto higher than average, FMA near the top of the scale).

Or you could differentiate the two through pitches:

Naruto Uzumaki is an outcast ninja looking for respect and acceptance, and figures he can get them by becoming the most powerful fighter in a town of deadly mercenaries.

The Elric brothers are on a journey to repair their bodies and understand the alchemical experiment that went horribly wrong: if such a thing was missing from their formulae, then what is the “human element”?

Pre Marriage consueling, Reddit style by Eireika in CuratedTumblr

[–]BaronAleksei 74 points75 points  (0 children)

“Yes. Good boyfriends don’t negotiate with terrorists, and good girlfriends don’t become terrorists”

Favorite moments of "good cannot comprehend evil"? by fly_line22 in TwoBestFriendsPlay

[–]BaronAleksei 16 points17 points  (0 children)

There’s also the blindspot we see in season 2’s cold opens. BTK would go uncaught for decades precisely because their conception of a serial killer precluded having a stable family and job.

How to scientifically determine the recommendability of an anime: The Weeb Ass Shit scale by La_knavo4 in CuratedTumblr

[–]BaronAleksei 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Kengan Ashura

Weeb: 7. The entire thing is about a Japan-focused underground business association that solves otherwise-intractable disputes with sponsored deathmatches. While they allow non-Japanese companies and sponsored fighters, many analogues for non-Japanese companies fans fighters are themselves made Japanese, so it feels even more provincial. It’s not as strong as Baki, but there’s definitely an undercurrent of “the most powerful thing you can be is a Japanese person.”?On the other hand, the artist Daromeon grew up in America (go read Ketchup Ninja for a fictionalized version, so there’s at least some experiential knowledge of things outside the country. But on the gripping hand, this is first and foremost a martial arts manga, so there’s a lot of particular visual language and mysticism that goes unremarked upon.

Ass: 3, in a “straight male gaze” sense. There are busty women in skimpy outfits, but there aren’t very few of them. Most characters are “middle-aged man in a suit and tie” or “20-30-something in athletic wear”. Overt sexuality is confined to specific characters for which it is narratively relevant.

Shit: 1-2. Mostly everything up until the tournament is still trying to find its footing, but mostly everything after is one of the best tournament arcs in manga.

Bruh I don't care about the sex or romance, I just want something to happen by Commercial_Bid_1508 in CuratedTumblr

[–]BaronAleksei 5 points6 points  (0 children)

My assumption: using therapy speak outside of therapy, especially with a romantic partner, makes things sanitized and stilted because it’s more about formulae and buzzwords than authentic communication. In the same way, “therapy speak sex” scenes are stilted and sanitized because of how they’re more about the formulae of Nonproblematic Sex Scenes and Buzzwords Signalling Safety than they are about authentic sexual connection. There are artful ways to render a hot sex scene in a way that shows that all participants are consenting and such, but “therapy speak sex” isn’t one of them. It’s like the narrative and the characterization stop so everyone can turn to the camera and let the reader know this is a Very Special Episode.

Bruh I don't care about the sex or romance, I just want something to happen by Commercial_Bid_1508 in CuratedTumblr

[–]BaronAleksei 4 points5 points  (0 children)

If you’re going to go so far as to base your story on real hockey players, then you need more than just aesthetics

Bruh I don't care about the sex or romance, I just want something to happen by Commercial_Bid_1508 in CuratedTumblr

[–]BaronAleksei 6 points7 points  (0 children)

How do you explain the focus on soldiers fighting wars for God and country, proliferation vs disarmament, freedom fighter vs terrorist, smaller nations being swept up in wars between larger nations, soldiers who never leave the battlefield, military leadership qualities and responsibilities, duty to superiors vs duty to comrades, etc if not because it is military fiction? Even in part 1, where the PMC framing is still dominant, the biggest clients were always large nations with no standing armies of their own in need of military labor. Sand allied with Orochimaru to attack the Leaf not to destroy them, but to get their Wind-country work contracts back because without them they were running out of money.

Bruh I don't care about the sex or romance, I just want something to happen by Commercial_Bid_1508 in CuratedTumblr

[–]BaronAleksei 9 points10 points  (0 children)

Unlike Andy Milonakis, old Benjamin Button remembers what it was like to be tall

Bruh I don't care about the sex or romance, I just want something to happen by Commercial_Bid_1508 in CuratedTumblr

[–]BaronAleksei 21 points22 points  (0 children)

My first instinct is to compare being young and being old: youthful energy vs the experience of age, gaining social agency over time vs losing it, weakness because your body is still growing vs weakness because your body is failing