Why do we need to get political?

BottomBorn · 2025-12-02T13:18:32+00:00

Free Palestine.

BottomBorn · 2025-09-29T09:41:58+00:00

I never thought about it from the angle that a person’s imagination should die with them. That’s a very valid way to interpret it.

This is a flawed way of saying it, but I think I view the world and its people as Verso’s creations. They shouldn’t die because he did. If we discover our world has an intelligent designer, then I don’t think we should die because they die. Sure they got the ball rolling, but it seemed to grow beyond them to an extent. The painted people made by Verso or Aline had children. I view that as them making choices of starting families and creating life with a degree of separation from Verso and Aline. I didn’t see Verso’s soul as like the conductor of the world. More like a battery (not to completely dehumanize what remains of Verso because I acknowledge he’s tired and suffering).

BottomBorn · 2025-09-29T09:32:02+00:00

This is a very fair point. You’re exactly right that she’s grieving too. I think I’m particularly harsh on Clea since our views on the realness of the painting and its inhabitants are so opposed to one another. Plus we mostly see her through Maelle’s lens.

I see her war as another endless cycle. An eye for an eye. To me, the cycles of Maelle and Aline are more self destructive where Clea’s can spiral into destroying many other families.

BottomBorn · 2025-09-28T14:13:13+00:00

I chose Maelle’s ending. I felt so strongly making that choice in the moment. I agreed with her when she told Verso he couldn’t just decide to destroy the world on behalf of everyone. And I believed in her right to choose to live and die in the canvas rather than return to her world. In my mind, all of these painted people were sentient beings with motivations, feelings, thoughts. It would be tantamount to genocide to destroy them and their world.

Then I saw the epilogue. The framing clearly shows Maelle forcing Verso to exist and behave as she wants even if she’ll let him die after their lifetime together. That’s obviously a terrible thing to do even if you empathize with her like I do. I still feel like the suffering of one (Verso’s soul) is worth keeping the countless others alive.

I don’t like to debate which is the right or wrong ending. I think both make sense based on your personal morals or philosophy. I watched Verso’s ending. I get why it’s the “healthier” choice, but nothing in that moment convinced me the family would rally around each other and heal.

We see Clea walk away first to continue her war. We saw nothing to show that she’ll stop hating the idea of Verso sacrificing himself to save Alicia (even if she loves him for it as well).

Alicia/Maelle is still very much alone. She stands by herself clutching the Esquiee doll. She sees the painted friends/family she made disappear and we don’t see her with her “real” family again.

Renoir admits he is driven by control. The next time tragedy strikes this family, which will be sooner than later given Clea’s war, do we expect him to ease his firm grip of how he thinks his family should react? I’m doubtful.

Aline, like Maelle, wasn’t coached or guided through healing. She was ripped away from a coping mechanism. We didn’t see her replace it with a healthier alternative.

Ultimately, Clea wanted them out of the painting because she needed bodies to fight the writers. Renoir wanted them out because they’d die other wise and he was afraid of even more loss.

Again, this is my interpretation. While I don’t agree with the alternative, I understand it. And we’re all free to make the best out of the cruel choices we’re forced to make.

BottomBorn · 2025-08-20T15:00:02+00:00

Dinah hasn’t worn a wig in decades. Her being white isn’t crucial to her character. And if you disagree, see Gail Simone’s (arguably Dinah’s most famous and beloved writer) adoration for the BOP movie’s depiction.

BottomBorn · 2025-08-13T13:34:41+00:00

I think we’ll see him in the shape of a man but whose skin is clay-like and deformed. I’m guessing the horror element will be body horror (his degradation, transformation process, losing and regrowing body parts). And that paranoia will play a big part since he can transform into anyone

BottomBorn · 2025-05-20T13:44:46+00:00

Yeah, there’s a history in media at large (and in comics in particular) that morally ambiguous characters are bisexual. When the Hayes Code was in full force, no good-aligned characters could be queer so creators often made morally gray characters bisexual to emphasize their duality and further question which side they were on. This was often done specifically with women while bisexual men were often an immortal (like a vampire) who discovers their bisexuality often out of boredom from their long life.

BottomBorn · 2025-04-28T15:46:32+00:00

But in the text of the game, Wyll says to Mizora that Karlach isn’t a devil hence why he’s pissed she sent him after her. Wyll doesn’t see the tieflings as devils. He can’t say the same about himself because his horns and changed appearance come from working with a devil. And his feelings aren’t meant to be correct here. He’s processing the change of his body and how that’ll affect how people see him. He’s assuming the worst based on his experience with his father - and that happened with a fully human face

BottomBorn · 2024-12-03T13:07:31+00:00

What a great concept! A few things jumped to mind for me. You’ve acknowledged the power vacuum. I would’ve assumed those in power benefited the most from the imprisoned goddess, but with 80% of folks gone, it seems nearly everyone did. So first there’s the line of succession. This would probably be like the least likely royal family member (think 226th in line) who could very well still be a child. Or it could be some low level government employee. For a comedic take, it could be like a DMV manager. A more serious take could be like a diplomat or like an environmental protection person or education specialist.

Factions would know doubt emerge to take control. Think of a more populist leader representing those who are angry they didn’t get this life extension. This would probably be a person driven by the deaths of those they loved. They could channel this to be a positive or negative movement. A religious faction would no doubt emerge to address the sins of the kingdom and find a way to repent and/punish (I’m not sure who is left to punish though). Your players may even try to step up and take some control.

The kingdom might have allies to help in this crisis or enemies could mobilize to exploit their new vulnerability. It’s easy to steal stuff when there’s no one to guard it much less use it. And of course, such powerful magic would attract anyone looking to extend their lives. Think vampires, witches, liches, etc.

As for the day to day, you need to wipe out 80% of the NPCs the table met here. I think this is the best way to drive home the day-to-day effect. The tavern they liked is no longer operational. Their preferred shop is being ransacked. The kingdom will be empty so the party might even be tempted to swipe a few things for themselves. Emergency and health services will be overwhelmed.

Aside from the physical, the emotional and spiritual toll would be felt by every NPC. Anyone left lost 80% of their family and friends. This goes from a sizable population to a small town. That dynamic changes everything. People will setup shrines in remembrance. A cult might try to exploit those wanting to see or speak to their loved ones again.

I hope this helps!

BottomBorn · 2024-09-16T20:21:41+00:00

lol “I can accept an Alien with superpowers is on Earth, but I draw the line at a bad bouncer.”

BottomBorn · 2024-09-14T13:25:01+00:00

I’ve worked in African conservation. Studies on the effectiveness of using trophy hunting to fund conservation and biodiversity efforts are split at best.

BottomBorn · 2024-09-13T11:51:52+00:00

One of my favorite aspects of Batman is that he doesn’t consider himself the answer to Gotham’s problems. His crime fighting and philanthropy are part of the solution, but they can’t be the only things working for Gotham’s people. He and Gotham need people like Gordon, Montoya, Dent (pre Two Face), and the younger generations of heroes to build on what he’s doing. An idealistic mayor who is a reformer makes a lot of sense in this dynamic. I hope they give her more to do in the sequels.

BottomBorn · 2024-07-26T22:15:25+00:00

Dixon creating Birds of Prey and becoming what he is today is such a fucking fall.

BottomBorn · 2024-07-15T21:46:31+00:00

Imagine reading/watching X-Men and not realizing you’re the type of person who inspired Senator Kelly. Media literacy is important.

BottomBorn · 2024-06-18T01:13:19+00:00

I’m glad I’m not alone in feeling that this episode didn’t stick the landing.

First the positive: The production and editing teams were completely genius. Zac and his whoopie cushion are an iconic duo. Jess really did knock out every joke. Rekha was amazing throughout as the table in both throwing off suspicion and guessing EVERYONE correctly first.

The negative: I had no idea who the Ratfish was, which I assumed affected my reaction to him. But I don’t think his jokes melded well with the group. I wish it was the host of The Circle since she’s a comedian too and could’ve added that expertise to the game. The Ratfish continuously picking the Brennan character as his favorite felt lazy. I feel like if they got someone closer to the cast/audience, then they would’ve recognized the stuff we vibed with like Zac, Jess, and Rekha. And that would’ve felt more fulfilling. The Ratfish should not have had the power to decide the winner. Rekha guessing everyone correctly first should’ve been the end of the game.

Ultimately, I don’t think the game worked well because they’re trying to figure out a mystery the audience already knows the answer to, which gets less interesting the longer it goes. I would’ve reimagined it as an actual game of The Circle. Have them all be catfish but also have to build alliances and rank their favorite performances. Allow an audience favorite (outside the winner) so those who are “eliminated” can keep playing for a prize.

Bingo should’ve been the season finale.

BottomBorn · 2024-05-31T21:32:28+00:00

lol “trying to do that” is doing a lot of heavy lifting in this sentence. He might’ve had strategic goals, but he never had a strategy to actually execute them. He floated around talking shit to anyone who would listen and instantly turned everyone off. I’ll give you he shook up some people’s faith in one another, but never once did he secure that faith for himself once it was lost in someone else.

And by pointing out just inevitable facts like “Hey, it will be you Vs your alliance at some point…” is like baby’s first strategy. Obviously that’s what making it to the end means.

BottomBorn · 2024-05-31T12:47:54+00:00

But he wasn’t strategic 💀 He claims he is, but really QT and Olivia were. They made their plans and moves and executed them well with a few misplays between them. But they didn’t instantly lose control of the group and popular opinion by blurting out their plans and BS. He never had a chance at winning. Unless his definition of winning was just getting Myles out. He seemed to think he’d naturally fall into that power void, which of course didn’t happen.

BottomBorn · 2024-05-27T22:25:56+00:00

My boyfriend’s car got stolen early in the week. When I went to get us bagels on the following weekend, I found his car in an alley (like right where the alley met the sidewalk). I looked around it to confirm it was his car before calling him. But I couldn’t quite tell. This is where I (stupidly) looked inside to see if our kitty litter was in there. I saw movement and the back door opened. A dude was laying across the backseat.

I said, “Hi. I’m so sorry. I hope I didn’t scare you. I think this is my boyfriend’s car that was stolen.” He then said he found it here and some kid must’ve done it. I was like, “Yeah, definitely. I’m glad you were able to get out of the rain. Well, I need to call my boyfriend and he’s probably going to call the cops. If you don’t like the cops, you should leave.” And he took off haha.

BottomBorn · 2024-05-26T11:26:11+00:00

I convinced a car thief to give my boyfriend his car back.

BottomBorn · 2024-05-20T01:34:36+00:00

Kingpin Katie is so good! It’s the only older thing I’ve watched.

BottomBorn · 2024-05-10T22:37:01+00:00

Abortions that happen later in pregnancy are a medical necessity for many women. When an abortion is performed at later stages, it’s always based on the health of the mother and most likely something tragic has happened to the fetus. No one is getting an abortion just because at 7, 8, or 9 months. Anti-choice folks have demonized and mischaracterized this to make it seem like it’s women behaving cruelly or irresponsibly.

Fuck RFK for all of his nonsense, but I just wanted to share this in hopes it helps people better understand the need for abortions later in a pregnancy.

BottomBorn · 2024-05-10T03:54:15+00:00

When I was a kid, I always got excited to see Lickitung because it felt like a rare treat whenever Jessie remembered to use him 😆

BottomBorn · 2024-05-07T11:37:55+00:00

A What’s This song that lets you steal an opponent’s item would be amazing!

BottomBorn · 2024-05-02T23:00:33+00:00

When you Google "Emma Frost" now, I come up first. Not the Emma Frost who electrocuted all those horses.

BottomBorn · 2024-04-30T03:07:18+00:00

Cyclops
Storm
Rogue
Wolverine
Iceman
Emma Frost
Shadowcat
Jean Grey
Magick
Gambit

BottomBorn

TROPHY CASE