Occasionally Snarky and Meta

My Own Netflix and Chili*

2026-02-08T17:50:19Z

dreamersdare | Stuff I Love: Top Ten Edition Challenge 2

Make a Top Ten list for your favourite series and tell people exactly why you love it. This can be in any format - tv series, book series, radio plays, movie sequels, something else not mentioned here. Your series can be as short as two vaguely linked pieces of media and as long as... well, the sky is your limit. Whatever you like!

Ahh, let's see. I feel like I've gushed about a lot of these before, so I'm going to use a template. I'm including "things you might like" specifically because so often, "watch these similar shows" lists tend to be random shows that have nothing in common with the one being talked about. I've tried taking a more critical approach. We'll see how that worked.

( Read more... )

Why I love it: It's a musical with amazing songs, the humor is great. They're very daring. They go much darker places in season three, and I wasn't sure about that, but I feel they did it well.

Did I Fic It? I've only written one. I've read a few, but not many.

Favorite Pairing: Heather/Hector.

Favorite Platonic Relationship: I know everyone stans Paula and Rebecca, but I think I'm giving it to Heather and Rebecca. Heather goes from seeing Rebecca as this chaotic spectacle to respecting her to loving her. I would actually compare it to Stevie and David in Schitt's Creek, in terms of their first meetings going from "what the hell is this" to "oh, I actually care about you and want to be your friend".

Random Headcanon or Meta: None.

Other Things Fans Would Like: Maybe Schitt's Creek, since Rebecca's kind of a combination of David, Moira and Alexis, and it's also about a town changing your life, and good-if-flawed people trying their best. The Good Place is also good for the latter, and there's a lot of character growth.

3. Crazy Ex-Girlfriend

Yes, they know it's a sexist term. The show's a lot more nuanced than that. :)

Discovered: 2015 or 2016.

Why I love it: It's a musical with amazing songs, the humor is great. They're very daring. They go much darker places in season three, and I wasn't sure about that, but I feel they did it well.

Did I Fic It? I've only written one. I've read a few, but not many.

Favorite Pairing: Heather/Hector.

Random Headcanon or Meta: I think I would get rid of the whole New Greg thing, but have Rebecca and Greg cross paths years later.

AND SPOILER: I also wish we'd had Rebecca's journey in songwriting be the plotline of season four, instead of the final episode. I don't really see the point of "Character Chooses Herself" when you don't see the character choosing herself.

3. Heartstopper.

Discovered: Um... 2023? 2024?

Why I love it: The first two seasons made me smile. The third season is darker, but I appreciated it for what it was. Also, as someone who was disabled, neurodivergent and acearospec in high school, I can relate to certain elements of the show. Sitting in a classroom eating lunch with your teacher, anxiety eating at you... yeah. I know that one.

Did I Fic It? I tried writing one. Couldn't get into it. I've read a few.

Favorite Pairing: Nathan Ajayi/Yusuf Farouk.

Favorite Platonic Relationship: Nick and Tori, though Nick and Tara are a close second. Maybe even a tie.

Random Headcanon or Meta: None.

Other Things Fans Would Like: Crazy Ex-Girlfriend would pair well, mostly for the mental health aspect. And many Heartstopper fans came from Schitt's Creek. (Myself included! *Waves*)

4. Schitt's Creek

Discovered: Technically whenever it was on Netflix in the US, but like many people, I gave up after one episode. I rediscovered it in 2020 when I'd exhausted the other quarantine shows. (If someone had shown me the Open Mic episode, I would've been hooked instantly. What is wrong with the people in my life? SMH.)

Why I Love It: It's funny, but has a serious edge to it. As a Millenial who came of age late in life, David, Alexis and Stevie spoke to me. (Although I disliked them at first for that exact reason. Projection's one of hell of a drug.) And it has a wonderful queer love story.

Did I Fic It? And how. I actually thought I was done with the whole fandom thing until I started watching SC. I risked spoilers by looking it up on TV Tropes while I was watching, and saw there were fics for it. So I finished the show as fast as possible so I could read the fanfic. LOL. Back then, there were so many fics. Sadly, the fandom's dwindled quite a bit. I miss when fandoms lasted longer.

Favorite Pairing: David and Patrick. They're a queer pairing that's open and affectionate, and their sexuality isn't really the focus. There's only one Coming Out episode, and it's very well done. They're a loving couple that actually acts like they not only love each other, but like each other. (I mean, there is a bit of teasing, but it's affectionate, IMHO.)

I'm also going to squeeze in Johnny and Moira. (RIP Catherine O'Hara.) After all, they are David and Patrick's mirror in many ways, and I also like seeing an older couple that still loves each other. (And older characters who aren't silly for still having dreams and aspirations.)

Favorite Platonic Relationship: David and Stevie. But I think Moira and Alexis are a close second, for their evolution.

Random Headcanon or Meta: I don't think we have all day.

Other Things Fans Would Like: Heartstopper, Heated Rivalry, Crazy Ex-Girlfriend, The Good Place... not sure what else. Maybe Parks and Rec, if you watch for the small-town humor.

Speaking of which...

5. Parks and Recreation

Discovered: I'm not really sure. 2011ish?

Why I Love It: It's funny. Makes me happy. However, I haven't seen it in a while, and... with everything going on in the US, I'm not sure I would still enjoy it. OTOH, it might make for a nice reprieve. See Headcanons.

Did I Fic It? Not really. I think I wrote one or two fics.

Favorite Pairing: Ben and Leslie, who were to me then what David and Patrick are to me now, for some of the same reasons. "I like you and I love you."

Favorite Platonic Relationship: At the time, it was Leslie and Ann, but I think on rewatch, I decided it might actually be Ron and Leslie and April and Leslie. Ann and Leslie are sort of the "fantasy" BFFship, I think, whereas with Ron and April, we really see the complicated evolution friendship can be. Maybe it's the difference between friends you make as young person and friends you make when you're older, even though I don't think Leslie ages that much.

Random Headcanon or Meta: It takes place in the same universe as Schitt's Creek and Red White & Royal Blue. Leslie worked under President Ellen Claremont and was lowkey obsessed with her. Also, Pawnee and Schitt's Creek are sister cities.

Other Things Fans Would Like: Schitt's Creek, The Good Place.

6. Buffy the Vampire Slayer (and Angel the Series)

Discovered: I mean, I'm a Millennial, so Buffy was always around. XD But I didn't really start watching it until c. 2007. We watched it in a English class after we read Dracula - we watched Buffy versus Dracula specifically. My friend at the time almost cried when I told her that was my first episode.** I struck a deal with her: I'd watch Buffy properly if she watched Firefly. Neither one of us ever looked back.

Why I Love It: I love the character dynamics, the found family, fighting the good fight.

Did I Fic It? I think I started a few fics for it. I never really found a fanfic community for it. Otherwise, I absolutely would've.

Favorite Pairing: Tara/Willow, and maybe Buffy/Faith.

Favorite Platonic Relationship: Giles and Buffy. I also think Anya and Giles are a little underrated. Over on Angel, I wish we'd gotten Fred and Cordy. We didn't.

Random Headcanon or Meta: There's a version of Tara and Willow thriving in another dimension, with Cordy's help. (Actually, in Schitt's Creek, there's a joke about "farm witches". I kind of want Tara and Willow to be the farm witches.)

Also,I think Buffyverse and The Good Place could be in the same universe. I don't want to say too much so as not to spoil, but if anyone's interested in a more detailed entry, let me know. If you took away all the comedy in The Good Place, I think you'd get something way closer to Angel, or at least Buffy.

Other Things Fans Would Like: Our Flag Means Death and The Good Place have similar themes of found family and fighting the good fight, plus what I said above. And Stranger Things, which is set in the eighties, so it references a few of the same tropes Buffy initially referenced. Plus, it's also about young people fighting the Big Bad.

**I don't think Buffy versus Dracula was as much a bad episode as it was a bad episode to introduce someone to. It's very camp and almost a parody OF the show. I definitely thought my negative impressions of the show were confirmed. It's like introducing someone to Jane Austen by showing them the BBC Pride and Prejudice, except it's just Mrs. Bennet screaming.

7. The Good Place (since I can't seem to stop talking about it)

Discovered: 2015? 2016?

Why I Love It: Ethics and philosophy, afterlife, found family... the show has it all. It also constantly changes the status quo. Constantly. I love it.

Did I Fic It? Not really.

Favorite Pairing: Chidi and Eleanor, as well as Janet and Jason.

Favorite Platonic Relationship: Tahani and Jason. Also Janet and Michael.

Random Headcanon or Meta: See above.

Other Things Fans Would Like: In addition to what I've said, Man on the Inside feels like a spiritual successor, even though it's thematically quite different. They make frequent nods to The Good Place, after all. Just be aware that it does deal a lot with grief. I'd also recommend Ghosts - I've seen the U and the original BBC, and I think both work, although the US version is a bit sillier. (I actually kind of wish Michael Schur had adapted Ghosts for the US. I think it would be a lot closer to the BBC.)

8. Man on the Inside

Discovered: 2024.

Why I Love It: It has a bit of mystery, found family, people working together.

Did I Fic It? I have an idea at the back of my head.

Favorite Pairing: Julie/Didi.

Favorite Platonic Relationship: Emily and Charles. I also love Charles's relationship with his grandsons.

Random Headcanon or Meta: I have this theory that Charles is a reincarnated version of Michael from The Good Place. I'm not alone in that.

Other Things Fans Would Like: Probably any Michael Schur show? It's very Schur, though less The Office. I think The Office was Michael's training wheels. Not saying it was a bad show, I just think that his later shows are more demonstrative of Michael Schur as we know him. Blah. Sorry for the ramble.

(Only two more? To think I didn't know how I was going to list ten when I started.)

9. Community

Discovered: 2009?

Why I Love It: It's meta AF.

Did I Fic It? No.

Favorite Pairing: I don't think I really shipped anyone, except lowkey Britta and Troy.

Favorite Platonic Relationship: Abed and Troy.

Random Headcanon or Meta: Part of me thinks that the show is actually Abed's show that we see in season one, and it's a slightly exaggerated version of everything that really happened. But only slightly, because it's still Greendale and it's still the Study Group. :)

Other Things Fans Would Like: .. I don't know. I think any "nerdy show" would probably be appealing. 30 Rock was very similar, actually, in that it had a lot of pop culture references and a lot of what I'll call "crack episodes". ETA: Actually, Stranger Things would work. It's a fantasy with a lot of 80's pop-culture references. Abed would have LOVED Stranger Things.

10. North of North

Discovered: 2025.

Why I Love It: I appreciate that it focuses on indigenous characters. There's lots of Canadian humour (it takes place in Nunavut). And again, people trying their best.

Did I Fic It? No.

Favorite Pairing: None, really. I think the romantic elements of the show are actually a bit cliche and weak. Sorry.

Favorite Platonic Relationship: Bun and Neve. :)

Random Headcanon or Meta: I don't want to spoil too much, but I think that Neve sees Bun as another daughter, which is why she's so quick to help take care of her.

Other Things Fans Would Like: This is tricky. I might recommend Little Mosque on the Prairie, actually. It's another Canadian show about a small community in Saskatchewan, in this case focusing on Muslim characters as they form a Mosque in the basement of an Anglican church.

*I first read the phrase as "Netflix and Chili". I think I like mine better.

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Stuff I Love: One Shots

2026-02-03T19:27:07Z

Doing dreamersdare 's Stuff I Love Challenge!

#1 - One Shots.

Make a Top Ten list for your favourite standalone media and tell people exactly why you love it. This can be in any format - movies, one shot dramas, novels, short stories, plays, something else not mentioned here. Whatever you like!

Let's see.

1. Nightcrawler

I've only seen this movie once, but it had a deep impact on me. It's about a rogue photographer who grows frustrated with his poor job prospects (IIRC), and takes matters into his own hands by taking crime scene footage in very unethical ways. I don't want to spoil too much, but let me just say it wasn't so much the turns it took as it was the turns it didn't. I thought the chickens would come to roost, and they really didn't. It's amazing and makes you think about what you see on TV and even social media.

2. The Importance of Being Earnest

I'll be honest, when we were assigned this play in high school, I had a visceral reaction because the name Ernest made me think of the Ernest films in the 90's. Obviously, it is not that. I've read it and scene it several times since, though it has been quite some time. It's a master satire with fun twists that, thinking about it, really shouldn't have worked, but works very well. "A handbag?" indeed.

Interestingly, I read a few of Cecily's part out loud for fun once, to test my acting skills. I actually got a very different impression of her doing so, playing her as less ditzy than she let on.

3. Kindred

The bare-bones description is that it's about a black woman in the seventies who ends up going back in time and unknowingly saves the life of her ancestor's enslaver's son. The son continues to call her into the past. It's very much about black trauma, and also a critique on how time travel would be different for black characters versus white characters. (No apologies are made for any of the enslavers.)

I first heard of it when it was on Hulu. I decided to read the book before watching the show. From what I've heard, the show does a disservice to the novel, so I'm glad I made that decision.

4. The Lizzie Bennet Diaries

While marred by learning that the creator, Bernie Su, was terrible and continues to be terrible to the cast, I love the webseries itself. It's a modern retelling of Pride and Prejudice, wherein Lizzie Bennet is a grad student vlogging for her thesis. I unfortunately missed the show while it was being released, so I didn't get to enjoy this part, but it was very interactive. You could follow the characters on what was then twitter and tumblr, along with other social media pages. You could ask questions in Q&A's. All that aside, I think the story itself was adapted well. Lydia's character is actually far more sympathetic (even if Lizzie is scathing at first), and she's allowed to rise from a bad situation. Charlotte's modernized storyline is actually very clever. All in all, it's clever and a lot of fun. I just wish Bernie Su wasn't a terrible person.

5. Funny in Farsi

Funny in Farsi is a memoir I wish everyone would read, that I may re-read myself. It's Firoozeh Dumas's account of growing up in the United States as an immigrant from Iran. While the story does touch on sad subjects, it's mostly fun (hence "funny"), focusing on friends, family, and culture.

6. I'm Thinking of Ending Things

This is a movie I shouldn't love so much, as it's very grim and pessimistic. But it's such an amazing mindfuck that gets me every time I watch. The supposed premise is that it's a woman traveling home with her boyfriend to meet his parents, all the while thinking of breaking up with him. As the movie goes on, however, you realize there's a lot more to the story than that. All I'm going to say.

7. North By Northwest

I love that it starts out as a comedy of errors, then becomes so much more than that. It's also fun to recognize so many tropes in the film.

8. Lamb: The Gospel According to Biff, Christ's Childhood Pal

Lamb walks us through not only Joshua's childhood (and later adulthood), but what are known as the "missing years". Biff and Joshua spend those years globetrotting, and their trek includes a study of Buddhism. The book also has very interesting depictions of various Biblical figures, including Maggie - AKA "Mary Magdalene".

The author has said that he is "Buddhist with Christian tendencies".

9. Persepolis

A graphic novel and memoir about a girl growing up during the Iranian revolution. It's a story of how fast your world can fall apart, but also of resilience. You watch Marjan see everything through very innocent eyes initially, though she isn't so naive as not to notice contradictions between her parents' wealth and their claims of being socialist. We grow up with her as her world becomes scarier and she better understands the darkness, but there's still a lot of love in the pages.

The second volume is also very good, though she's older completely void of that innocent optimism. (Or as Satrapi once put it, "in the first book, I am cute. In the second, I am not cute.")

10. Jane Eyre

(I know some of you really don't like Jane Eyre. Sorry.)

Jane Eyre was a quarantine read; I somehow managed to get through high school and college without reading it. One of my friends and I wanted something to do while quarantining, so we started a two person book club, She'd already read Jane Eyre, I never had.

I'll grant you, Jane Eyre didn't age particularly well, and parts of the novel lost me entirely. But I was still enthralled with it; the main character isn't wealthy (unlike many contemporary female heroines), although she does live among the wealthy for much of the novel. While her abusive childhood is heartbreaking, it rang true, including the part where she feels she has to reconcile with her abusive stepparent - only to learn the stepparent only ever wanted to gloat. In that way, it actually felt quite modern. The mystery is worked in quite well, and not at all how I was expecting. And while Jane had some problematic views (again, it didn't age well in a lot of ways), I still enjoyed following her story.

Oh, and Helen Burns would definitely sell CBD oil today..

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author_by_night @ 2026-01-29T20:08:00

2026-01-30T01:09:06Z

How Did the Fandom Snowflake Challenge Go? Post your answer to today’s challenge in your own space and leave a comment in this post saying you did it.

Include a link to your post if you feel comfortable doing so. Also, feel free to entice engagement by giving us a preview of what your post covers.

Did you get all you wanted to get from it? Are there things you're going to carry with you for as long as you can? Are you going to continue to challenge yourself? Continue to connect? We can't wait to hear.

I enjoyed it! It's always nice to connect with other fans. I didn't do all of the challenges, but I enjoyed the ones I participated in.

The timing of the posts did throw me off. I understand that everyone's in different time zones; also, life happens. Technology happens. I get it. But I wonder if it might help to post challenges ahead of time, and/or schedule the posts?

I'm not sure how else I might challenge myself per se, but I post frequently and plan on continuing. I try writing something every day, and DW is a great place for that. I would certainly love to continue making connections.

Thank you to all, and I look forward to the friending meme on the 31st!

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author_by_night @ 2026-01-17T13:36:00

2026-01-17T18:36:13Z

Snowflake Challenge #9

Talk about your favorite tropes in media or transformative works. (Feel free to substitute in theme/motif/cliche if "trope" doesn't resonate with you.)

This list is a jumble of tropes and themes.

- Found Family, in both media and transformative works.

- AUs that play with how the changed context changes the characters and/or setting(s) in turn.

- Likewise, Body Swaps - both fic and in the media - that really show how the swapped characters learn about each other.

- I don't know what the term for this trope or motif is, but basically a HUGE number of fics that explore a major canon event, whether something only alluded to in backstory, or an extension of a canon event. It's basically a trope exclusive TO that fandom, since it's that specific canon event or backstory people keep writing about.

Two forms this can take are AUs (as previously mentioned) and fix-its (which I also love).

- I don't think there's a trope name for this, but I appreciate storylines where conflict isn't about miscommunications, but instead the simple fact that one conversation can't resolve the issue. I enjoy the complexity.

- Don't think there's a name for this either, but I've appreciated the rise in supportive female exes and former love interests (sometimes one-sided) in M/M fiction. Thinking specifically of Our Flag Means Death, Schitt's Creek, Heartstopper and Heated Rivalry.

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author_by_night @ 2026-01-15T08:16:00

2026-01-15T13:25:20Z

Snowflake Challenge #8: Talk about your creative process.

I don't know that I have a set process, but here are the things that help me:

- Music. I actually can't listen to music while writing, though I sometimes listen to it when doing other creative tasks. But I get a lot of inspiration from music.

- Stress. Yes. You read that right. I think it's that creative projects help me unwind and recalibrate, so it's easy to be creative when I actually have zero time to be creative, because I need that brief outlet.

Though sometimes I really am just too busy, and there's nothing to be done.

- When it comes to writing specifically, I would say that I ask myself questions. I also try allowing the story to tell itself. I have set out to write funny stories, ended up with tearjerkers that left me sobbing. I think in both cases, on the surface the ideas were fun, but as I really delved into what those situations could potentially look like, I uncovered darker and sadder things.

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More Snowflake

2026-01-12T02:04:39Z

Challenge #6

Top 10 Challenge. Post your answer to today’s challenge in your own space and leave a comment in this post saying you did it.

Include a link to your post if you feel comfortable doing so. Also, feel free to entice engagement by giving us a preview of what your post covers.

The category(ies) you choose are up to you. You can give top 10 Fics you read last year, the top 10 songs to create to, the to 10 guest stars on your favorite show, top 10 characters in your favorite book series, top 10... well, you get the idea.

Let's see.. how about Ten Takes?

1. From what I remember of The Hunger Games, I never understood people saying there was a "love triangle". It seemed clear to me that Katniss was never into Gale, and she only played into the concept of love triangle because of the reality TV show District 13 had them doing.

2. Given everything that was supposed to happen to Inara, I'm actually kind of relieved there was only one season of Firefly. Kind of. There's a good chance the network never would've allowed half of it anyway.

3. I'm kind of surprised there don't seem to be many former Firefly fans in the Our Flag Means Death fandom, from what I can tell. I think they're actually quite similar. (Even the second season of OFMD being darker mirrored Serenity being darker than the original show. Funny how that worked.)

4. Buffy: I wish that Willow's descent had actually focused more on her going to drastic extremes to fight the good fight, as well as her trauma, rather than "magic as a drug metaphor". The fact that Willow originally became a witch to honor Jenny Calendar is huge, and that's what I think they could've worked with.

5. I don't like either Spike or Angel for Buffy. Sorry! I kind of wish she'd ended up with Faith. I saw chemistry between them when I watched S3 for the first time, without any exposure to Fuffy whatsoever. (Which is interesting, because I was spoiled for practically everything except Faith.)

6. I have a headcanon - which I may eventually turn into a fic - that Cordy, Fred and Tara banded together and are kicking ass in an alternate dimension. Maybe a parallel version of Willow is also there.

7. I think Kevin Can Fuck Himself is woefully underrated, and if it had received half the recognition it deserved, it would've sparked a lot of interesting conversation.

8. I think David and Patrick from Schitt's Creek are one of the best couples on television. No pun intended re: "the best". Also, I see a bit of myself in David (I just told a friend I'm David Rose in a Ted Mullens costume), so I appreciate seeing him finding love and friendship, even if he is basically the inside of a roasted marshmallow.

9. But as much as I love David and Patrick, I think Alexis deserves more love in the fandom. She changes so much over the course of the show.

9. I don't want to spoil anyone for Heated Rivalry, so I'll just say I love how the third episode dealt with an extremely complicated situation. Lani Diane Rich once said that a great love story is when a conversation can't fix a problem, and that episode was an example.

10. There are two scenes where Ilya opens up in different ways - again, wording this carefully so as not to spoil. I love both of them.

Also, "Canadian Wolf Bird" will forever live in my head rent free.

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Snowflake

2026-01-07T18:06:10Z

Challenge #4: Rec Your Last Page

Any website that you like, be it fanfiction, art, social media, or something a bit more eccentric!

I would like to defend two sites I think get a bad rap: Reddit and tumblr. (I say this as someone who rallied against tumblr for years.)

Don't get me wrong, the criticisms are not without merit. There are a lot of weirdo incels on Reddit, and a lot of the advice subs are pretty much, well...

Q: My aunt and I got into an argument over her rosebushes. What should I do?

A: Your aunt is a malignant narcissist. You should immediately cut all contact.

Yet sometimes, you'll get...

Q: AITA? My aunt started chasing me with hedge trimmers.

A: YTA. You're a malignant narcissist.

And of course, half the stories are probably fake.

AITA for robbing a Build-a-Bear during an orphan's birthday party?

I mean.

Tumblr has similar flavoring when it comes to people having very disproportionate responses. There's a lot of "how dare you say we piss on the poor". Then there's weird fandom drama, and my sense is that I've only seen the milder weird fandom drama, so I can only imagine what the rest of it is like.

That said, I've been Very Online for a very long time. Most spaces have things like what I mentioned above. Overreactions, gatekeeping, really bad advice, fandom drama. (fandom_wank existed for a reason.)

Moreover, I've found community for things that I'm interested in. I've seen people actually get a lot of support. Cliche though this advice is, you really do need to curate your experience. I stepped away from a fandom I felt was becoming too toxic. I stopped reading the relationship advice and AITA subreddits, although I do like BestofRedditorUpdates.

And I like that where tumblr is concerned, it reminds me a lot of old school LJ. Probably because a large portion of the populace are former LJers. I mean sure, that's also why the drama can be beyond, but it's also very quirky and fun and SLIGHTLY CHAOTIC.

So yeah. Reddit and tumblr are definitely imperfect. Lots of pissing on the poor to be had. But curating my experience has helped a lot.

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To The Fandoms I've Only Observed

2026-01-06T12:51:28Z

Snowflake Challenge 3: Fandom Love Letter

You know, I struggled with this one, because I've already said so much before. Then it hit me.

The poem below isn't my best poetry. It's more vibes I'm going for.

To The Fandoms I've Only Observed

I was very lost when it came to LOST
An island, a guy named Locke
"Stop comparing it to Survivor, I beg of you"
Every day saw new userpics, tags, memes
Then cries of rage when the final episode aired
I listened and nodded in sympathy

Supernatural: This one I sometimes watched
Hopping in the Chevy Impala
With Sam and Dean
Bobby, John, Castiel
I kept a quiet distance, true
Yet even I shipped Destiel

I learned it was Downton Abbey, not Downtown Abby
(Sweet summer souls)
Stranger Things happened, and the internet
Excitedly gabbed and wrote about Mike, Will, Steve and El
MCU took center stage, with its heroes and villains
What We Do in the Shadows remained a mystery to me
But it certainly sounded entertaining

Now Heated Rivalry's the talk of the town
Fans declaring their love for Ilya and Shane
We mustn't forget Scott and Kip's smoothies
Hockey might be on ice, but there's plenty of heat
According to the folks on tumblr

No, these fandoms are not mine
They may be one day - but also
May never be of further interest
Yet I have a soft spot for them
Or at least, what I know of them

I love ships I've never set foot on
I love blorbos I've never met
I love that I can know these people
The joy, excitement, heat is infectious
Making me smile, giving me light
It's a pleasure to come along for the ride

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Not a Fuckton of Cats: Pets in Canons

2026-01-03T18:24:24Z

Challenge #2: Pets of Fandom

Loosely defined! Post about your pets, pets from your canon, anything you want!

I'm going to talk about pets as portrayed in fiction I have consumed from childhood to present.

I think that pets can play an interesting part in fiction. Let's take a look. I'm going to cover a few fictional pets I remember, from my childhood to more recent years. Obviously, this is a very short list; I'd be here forever otherwise.

I'm also going to try avoiding spoilers to the best of my ability.

Chance, Shadow and Sassy, Homeward Bound/The Incredible Journey: Two dogs and a cat. From what I remember, Chance is silly yet skittish, Shadow is wise, and Sassy is... in the name. But she's never mean, IIRC, and has a lot of empathy towards a lost little girl (likely reminding her of her own human).

(I rewatched the ending of Homeward Bound for this part, and now I'm sobbing. The things I do for you people.)

Miss Kitty Fantastico, Buffy the Vampire Slayer: Willow and Tara's cat. I mostly remember that she dies offscreen, and her death is noted as accidentally being killed by a crossbow. Which is actually pretty brutal. I don't love when cats dying is treated as a minor inconvenience. (And it's always cats.)

Buttercup, The Hunger Games: Prim's cat, who Katniss hates and frequently mistreats, especially after a certain spoilery event. However, after a very long time, she does take slightly better care of Buttercup.

Awful through Buttercup is treated, I feel it's meant to show how hardened Katniss is. Also, as a hunter, I think all animals are food to her - she would never eat Buttercup, that would devastate Prim, but she doesn't see Buttercup as family, either.

Little Sebastian, Parks and Recreation: A ~~pony~~ mini horse. We actually only meet his handlers in a very short scene, but he's absolutely adored by most of Pawnee's residents. Save for Ben Wyatt. Even Ron and April get tickled over him. Ron and April.

(Oh God, guess what song's in my head now?)

A Fuckton of Cats, Crazy Ex-Girlfriend: Technically, no cats are ever purchased. But Rebecca briefly considers it in this song.

Points the song brings up include that cats sleep most of the time, which is true. However, they also claim they're not that friendly, and I have to disagree. Cats can be very friendly; they're just not friendly on command. That's what people don't like.

Song's hella catchy, though!

Louie, This Is Us: I can already feel the anger rising. Louie is initially beloved, but his main human, Kate, blames him for Jack's death. (That's not a spoiler, we learn that Jack's gone pretty early on in the show, although not how.) That actually really upset me on several levels, though it sadly makes sense. Still, I wish Rebecca had been in the headspace to find a temporary home for Louie, at least, while Kate worked through her feelings. But it's a drama, so. (And in Rebecca's defense, she was reeling from losing her husband. But still.

Karl, Our Flag Means Death: Karl is mostly Buttons's pet, but the rest of the crew respects him, more or less. His death is the last straw for Stede.

Nellie, Heartstopper: Nellie is Nick's dog, and absolutely a member of the family. Charlie takes to her quickly, too. Nellie is very much family.

Artie, Fisk: Helen's dog. He doesn't do much, but he's sweet. When he appears to have been taken, Helen is devastated, and works through her grief by relating it to the loss of a human.

So, there you go. Most cat portrayals I can recall are either negative, or potentially negative (with redemption). I think Sassy is the most positive. Dogs are portrayed with much more positivity, although how much the characters consider them family varies. Pet birds and horses are also beloved and seen as important, often family.

Something to note as well is the transition from pets in children's stories being used to help us connect with humanity, and pets existing as pets in stories for adults.

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author_by_night @ 2026-01-01T13:28:00

2026-01-01T18:24:08Z

The Icebreaker Challenge: Introduce yourself. Tell us why you're doing the challenge, and what you hope to gain from it.

Post your answer to today’s challenge in your own space and leave a comment in this post saying you did it.

I'm doing it because I do it every year, and I stick to things. That's why I've been in fandoms for almost 26 years, albeit not the same ones. (I probably would if I could.)

What do I hope to gain? Hm. I think I'd like to just connect with others here on DW. Maybe make some new friends. I'd also like to find a little inspiration.

I don't get too deep into my personal life publicly (or even privately, to be honest). But I'm a woman in my forties, and I live on the East Coast of the US. I feel like this is where I mention going on nice morning walks with my dog, but I don't have a dog. ;) I do write, though. I actually write at least a little bit each day. Not necessarily for my WIPs, alas.

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Friday Five

2025-11-21T13:44:05Z

From The Friday Five.

1. What's your favourite TV network?

Don't think I have one, at this point? There was a time I did well with NBC. Really well, actually. The Office, Heroes (if only the first season), Parks and Rec, Community, 30 Rock, Now they have shows I probably would watch on Peacock.

Oh, and I liked TGIF in the nineties, although that wasn't a network.

2. If you could create your own channel, what would it be?

Not sure...

3. What TV show did you watch as a child, that you wish they would bring back?

I would kind of like to see shows that weren't direct spinoffs, per se, but in the same universe. I think that's what The Paper did. Or modern takes on older concepts, without being carbon copies. Although you could argue that media already does this. People talk about writers turning fanfic into original novels now, but while I think it's often less subtle and even advertised these days, there've always been clear inspirations. For instance, I believe Step-By-Step was the 90's answer to The Brady Bunch, and arguably, so was Full House.

4. What show have you always hated, and wonder why they ever made such a dumb show?

I don't think I have any examples.

5. What TV show's seasons would you buy on DVD?

Anything I can no longer get on streaming. I wish we hadn't killed the video ~~star~~ store.

Also, I love this parody.

--

Speaking of television: Is talking about your favorite shows and movies small talk? I recently saw it listed as an example of small talk people hate. I actually use TV shows as an example of the type of conversation I prefer to small talk.

OTOH, you could argue there's a difference between talking about a given show for twenty minutes, and spending twenty minutes listing every show you've ever watched. Is that what people mean?

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Sunshine Revival: Life is a Rollercoaster

2025-07-25T17:23:17Z

Journaling: Life in fandom goes through ups and downs. Reminisce about the "wild ride" of your time in fandom or in other online communities.

Creative: Create an image or a photo with the theme "let's go for a ride".

Well, I was in the wizards we don't talk about fandom. That fandom was bonkers. In fact, while I definitely knew it was... out there at the time, it's only recently that I've realized just how out there it was, compared to other fandoms. People have talked about how fandoms used to be nice, and that was not my experience. But it wasn't all bad; I made lifelong friends, after all. And the enthusiasm. I don't think I've been part of a group of fans quite as enthused as those fans, although Firefly and Our Flag Means Death fans came close.

The second of my first two fandom was ostensibly one website. There were a few others, but this was the one that lasted longest. It was for the Earth's Children book series. The admin founded in in 1996. The website/forum was interesting because while it was technically a fandom, it was really its own thing, a one-of-a-kind community. We talked about the books, we wrote fanfic (not just for the series, but other fandoms as well), however there were threads for gardening and discussing politics and all this other stuff. We talked about our lives. I felt close to those people. The site's still around, though not nearly as active as it once was.

I'm currently in the Schitt's Creek fandom, and I've also dabbled in 911, Heartstopper and Our Flag Means Death in recent years (among other fandoms). Let's be honest, SC was a gateway to 911, Heartstopper and OFMD. :) I've enjoyed them, too, even if current fandom works differently. Actually, most of my Heartstopper activity is one group, in a way harkening back to my days on the aforementioned website.

A lot of wild things have happened in my years of being in fandoms. I've seen friendships form, people fall in love, getting through traumatic situations; I've even seen lives saved. I also remember how we came together during bad global events, in some cases taking headcounts to make sure we were all okay.

It's really a rollercoaster, for better or for worse.

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Sunshine revival Challenge: Love

2025-07-05T14:15:46Z

The romance of summer! What do you love? Write about anything you feel sentimental about or that gets your heart pumping.

I posted about this on tumblr, but I've said in the past that I don't really care about romantic storylines. Except I've come to realize, that's not true at all. There have been a lot of pairings I've loved, both in canon and in fanfiction. (Sometimes more in one than the other.)

Since this is meant to be a positive entry, I'll focus on what I love in my romantic pairings. I love seeing two people working together - perhaps in the sense that they're coworkers or have intersecting jobs, perhaps in the sense that they have a common mission, be it something major or minor. I love when the story is less about whether or not they'll be together, and more about what happens once they are. I love seeing them connect with one another's friends and family. I love seeing them help each other be their best selves. I love when conflict isn't about whether or not they "truly" love each other, but how new information or a miscommunication has - temporarily - rocked the boat. I love physicality. The way they hug and kiss, the way they move together, in a natural tandem.

Don't get me wrong - I'm here for some UST and other things you often see. I love a little drama. :P I just prefer all of that as the starting point, and I lose interest if it drags out for too long. I love even more when none of that happens, and the couple just... comes into being.

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Snowflake: First!

2025-01-19T18:10:15Z

This could be your first fandom, your first fandom friend, the first fanwork you created, the first fanwork you interacted with... The options are endless! Leave a comment in this post saying you did it. Include a link to your post if you feel comfortable doing so.

Hm.

Fandom nonsense under the cut. I've made it a combination of fandom specific and more general "fan" stuff, to even out the playing field a little. I would LOVE to hear your thoughts!

ETA: Sorry the cut's weird, guys. There actually is a full entry under here, I just don't want to have to repost this all over again, so I'm not tinkering too much.

( Read more... )First niche hobby/interest: I went through a very brief rock collecting phase, around the same time as my astrology phase.

First favorite band or artist: Sarah Mclachlan.

First celebrity crush: Jason Mraz.

First time meeting a celebrity or public figure: Never have.

First unpopular opinion (that you can easily recall): In general, I liked Twister. In fandom, I didn't like a character a lot of people in my fandom adored. TBH, I can actually see it now.

First news-related obsession: Heaven's Gate had me obsessed with cults for a short period of time.

First convention: Don't do conventions,* but leaving this here for those of you who do.

*I hate crowds.

First Star Wars movie: Star Wars: A New Hope. But I didn't see any other movies from the original trilogy until I'd seen all of the prequels.

Okay, I gotta stop somewhere, guys. Like I said, feel free to snag, and/or add your own!

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Snowflake Challenge 5: In Every Possible Way

2025-01-09T17:18:28Z

Talk about what has improved in your life thanks to fandom. Post your answer to today’s challenge in your own space and leave a comment in this post saying you did it. Include a link to your post if you feel comfortable doing so.

Ironically, I had "Dreams" by the Cranberries in my head right before seeing this prompt. Make of that what you will.

- Over the last 25 years (...holy shit), I met a lot of people who left a deep impact on me. Some are still friends, some have gone their own way, some are somewhere in between. Either way, I'm glad I met them.

- I traveled to places I may never have been to.

- I met people from all around the world, learned a lot of new perspectives, and continue to do both.

- Writing fanfiction improved my writing and helped me gain clarity on the kinds of stories I like writing.

- I discovered Buffy, Firefly, and Doctor Who, and Our Flag Means Death much later on. :) I suppose those weren't really life-changing, but those shows do mean a lot to me.

- Going back to my humble beginnings, I think fandom was a godsend in high school specifically. I used to say that I wasn't really in any activities, but I was. It was fandom instead of marching band or cheerleading. Fandom was the thing that I couldn't wait to get to every day after school.

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Snowflake Challenge 3, Part 2

2025-01-06T14:46:29Z

This is a reflection of my last post. I realized after making it that my fandom experience is different from a lot of people's, and I think that counts as a changed perspective, if not opinions.

First, this does mention the Harry Potter fandom. I am not talking about it to condone JK Rowling's views, I'm talking about why I think my perception of fandom is a little skewed in relation to other people's. If you do not want to read about a JK Rowling property, I completely understand.
( Read more... )

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Snowflake Challenge: Oh My Bob. Becky, Look at Her Post.

2025-01-05T21:24:34Z

Day 3: In your own space, talk about a fandom opinion you hold that has changed over time.

First, for transparency's sake, I actually struggled with this question as I've held a lot of misconceptions over the years. I've been in fandom since 2000, after all. I'm also not entirely sure what I've covered before.

But I think one, which was touched on in sarajayechan 's post, is the strict standards a lot of the internet held people to. Fanfic writing in particular - as their entry points out, it was considered fine to criticize or even openly mock a fic because "you posted it, it's fair game now". Which I don't think was fair. But it was also acceptable to make fun of how people typed on forums and on LJ comms. The kinds of things people said.

I even corrected people on forums I belonged to, and when I say I didn't see anything wrong with it, I really mean it. I thought I was saving them, the way terse forum mod sonce "saved" me. Except what were mods saving me from? What was I saving those people from? Nothing. Absolutely nothing.

It was also common to make fun of individual fandomers, whether their fics or just who they were in fandom. Often the comments were way too personal, especially when it came to fic writers. Even when it came to people who deserved personal criticism, sometimes comments still went way too far.

It's interesting. This isn't really fandom, but stick with me here. I was thinking about the site STFU Parents, which made fun of the way parents (usually moms) talked about their kids on social media. I remember feeling like the blog was very harsh, and I recently gave it a re-read. While there were certainly awful posts that deserved to get sporked, a lot of them were just... people daring to talk about their kids instead of whatever was "cool" to like on the internet at the time. Sometimes they'd USE ALL CAPS or word something a little awkwardly. Okay? It happens. And no, I didn't care about people's kids either, I was online to geek out about stuff, but I also realized Facebook wasn't where geekery was happening. (I'm not saying that people necessarily thought that, either, I'm just. Saying.)

Even the reaction to Rebecca Black's "Friday" is arguably part of this idea that the internet had to be protected from... something. You're Wrong About (I think) had a whole episode about that, where they pointed out that those kinds of videos were outliers on YouTube back then. I get why Rebecca Black stood out like a sore thumb, but let's maybe not make fun of thirteen year old girls? That bothered me too. (And can I just say, Party in the USA, released around that same time, wasn't a whole lot better? Miley Cyrus just sings like, well, Miley Cyrus, whereas Rebecca Black just sang like a teenage girl. Because she was a teenage girl. Maybe Glee made us forget how most teenagers sing.)

So yeah. The internet is a lot worse in many ways, unfortunately. But I'm glad I can read YouTube comments now without losing my faith in humanity, I'm glad people aren't flamed on Ao3 as frequently as they were on fanfiction.net. (At least in my experience.)

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Snowflake Challenge #2

2025-01-03T10:18:06Z

In your own space, talk about your fannish origin story. Post your answer to today’s challenge in your own space and leave a comment in this post saying you did it. Include a link to your post if you feel comfortable doing so.

I have already talked abouty origin story many times, so the short version is that was always very fannish even before I found online spaces. Once I did, I was part of a very large fandom (Harry Potter* - that fandom practically had its own fandoms) and a microscopic fandom. I'm no longer really in either, but have fond memories and several friends. (As well as bad memories, of course.)

Something I have learned is that every fandom is different. And, if the fandom is big enough, sometimes the fandom itself depends heavily on where you go. Especially in the days of forums and websites. Like I said, or alluded to, websites indeed could basically be their own fandoms within a fandom.

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Bunny: A reincarnation story

2024-07-20T14:21:23Z

Note: I decided to write about reincarnation for LJ Idol's "Without You" prompt. As a heads up, this does deal with grief.

( Read more... )

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The Real LJ Idol

2024-07-01T21:06:13Z

I will be participating in LJ Idol as best I can!

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Snowflake: Fandom Wrapped

2024-01-29T16:17:31Z

Your top 5 fandoms for 2023 were: Schitt's Creek and Our Flag Means Death, though much more Schitt's Creek than Our Flag Means Death. I also dipped my toe into 9-1-1 and Red, White and Royal Blue, but not by much.

Your top 5 fandom spaces (Discord, Twitter, etc.) in 2023 were: Dreamwidth, tumblr and Ao3.

The top 5 things you did to contribute to fandom in 2023 were: Wrote fic, read/commented/left kudos on fic, took part in conversations on DW and tumblr.

Your top 5 most appreciated fandom contributions were: As in, people appreciated me, or I appreciated other people? I don't know what the answer is to either. Someone did rec a fic that hadn't gotten much traction, so I really appreciated that.

Bonus questions:

Your fandom personality in 2023 was: I'm not really sure. Maybe more of an observer than active participant.

In 2023, you discovered: I'm a little picky about AUs and canon divergence. (No shade. It's me, not fandom.)

On a more positive note, I started considering whether I should try reading more romance.

Your fandom home in 2023 was: I'm a wandering bard. I have no home. Just my wool and my harp.

Seriously though, I'd say evenly split between Ao3, tumblr and Dreamwidth.

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Snowflake: Ask A Longtime Fandomer (Public Post)

2024-01-20T15:40:33Z

I had trouble thinking of five things for the Snowflake prompt, and I've settled on Five Fannish Things I saw online to respond to. I basically just punched "fanfic" and "fandom" into AskReddit.

I tried to balance negative/positive discussion points. Fandom has a lot of ugly. It also has a lot of good.

What book looks like a fanfic?

I think they mean "reads as a fanfic", and I would say Red, White and Royal Blue. There are even rumors that it's based ON a fanfic. This is a compliment, by the way. I love that book. The characters are great, the romance is great, and I wish I lived in an America where Ellen Claremont was President.

What's the worst fandom experience that you've had personally?

I found out a bunch of fandom "friends" hated me once While a lot of not nice things were said by people, one of the things that stung the most was a friend saying that he dreaded talking to me on MSN. I never made him message me. He could have taken me off his contacts, could have said he was busy, could have done... anything but have long conversations with me that he apparently hated.

What fandom do you regret being a part of?

I regret being in the Twilight hatedom. I still have my criticisms of the books, but I think the hatedom took it way too far at times, and while I pulled away when it did, I still think I was a little too biting at times. I remember making a snarky comment about Twilight fans to a librarian, and she looked hurt. I felt pretty bad. I also had a friend who was a little offended by my remarks.

Something else that bugs, and I realize this is an extreme example, is that a woman defended the books on YouTube and got meme'd bad online for it. Her tantrums were meme'd, and she was fat shamed. Videos were made about her. This was mostly YouTube, being what it was at the time, but she got made fun of outside of YouTube too.

Again, I know most Twilight critics weren't fat shaming YouTubers, I'm just saying this was the worst of it that I saw.

What was one of your earliest fandoms you were a part of?

*Blushes* The Baby-Sitter's Club. It was a small forum, and IIRC we were all preteens who'd outgrown the series, but still wanted to talk about the books and write fic for them. Claudia/Stacey was pretty popular.

But I was always playing games and telling stories based on things I loved. BSC was just the first time I realized there was a name for it.

What was a fandom you missed out on?

This is actually my own question, because I thought of it while scrolling. I really wish I hadn't seen Firefly so late in the game. I loved Firefly when I finally watched it, but by the time I did, most of my LJ flist was into SuperWhoLock or not into any fandoms at all anymore. The only active forum for Firefly I found was very critical of the show, they basically hated everyone except for Mal. I settled for userpics after a while. Part of the problem is that I was boycotting fanfiction.net because censorship, and I had trouble finding fic on LJ, even though I'm sure there was still fanfic being written.

Ao3 was probably a better bet, but I used LJ for most of my fandom needs at that point. Which is another regret; in the case of Firefly, I think Ao3 was still new, so there might not have been much there anyway. But I kind of just left fanfiction.net and stuck with fic archives on fan websites and LJ, so once those stopped being a thing, that was that. :/

Going back to Firefly, I will say I now like OFMD better, even if it has also been unceremoniously canceled. Also, I think I feel the same way about season 2 that I feel about Serenity.

Really interested in hearing your thoughts!

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Snowflake 4

2024-01-07T20:00:36Z

IceBreaker Challenge! Tell us about yourself. Post your answer to today’s challenge in your own space and leave a comment in this post saying you did it. Include a link to your post if you feel comfortable doing so.

Personal: My pronouns are she/her, I'm in my late thirties, and I live in the US. I'm probably a combination of Jessica Day, Ben Wyatt, and a smidge David Rose. I'm politically liberal, and my religious beliefs can best be described as "it's complicated". That's all the personal stuff you're getting in a public entry.

Fandoms and fannish interests: My most active fandom used to be Harry Potter. I very occasionally interact with fannish things, but not too often. I've pretty much left that world behind completely, though every so often I get a random plot bunny. I'm currently considering one where Buttons is a wizard (thanks, delphi ).

Speaking of "Buttons" though, one of my fandoms is Our Flag Means Death. I haven't actually written any OFMD fic, but I've read some fanfic and have consumed a lot of meta. This includes a podcast - I actually need to see if they've begun covering S2 yet, they were supposed to be back on the fifth. While my feelings about S2 are mixed (what an unpopular opinion /s), it's still easily one of my favorite shows.

Then there is Schitt's Creek. I found the fandom when I thought I'd pretty much given up on fandoms in general. I'm pretty involved with it, reading and writing fanfiction.

Other fannish interests (past and present) include:

- Doctor Who (though I stopped watching during Capaldi and never got back into the show after that - and haven't seen the recent special due to not having Disney+)

- Parks and Recreation

- Crazy Ex-Girlfriend

- Buffyverse

- Firefly

- 9-1-1

- Red White & Royal Blue (the book more than the movie)

- Community

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Snowflake Challenge #2 (Public entry)

2024-01-03T15:22:51Z

In your own space, set yourself some goals for the coming year. They can be fannish or not, public or private.

I think one all-encompassing goal is to not let myself get wrapped up in other people's lives. Here's the thing: I'm both obsessed with keeping the peace and making sure everyone's comfort level is at the maximum level, and highly opinionated. (Though ironically, sometimes just wanting everyone to be happy is why I'm irritable and/or opinionated. It's interesting.) So outside I'm going "yeah girl, you do you!!!", inside I'm grappling with whether or not to say something. I've gotten much better, but I do need to work towards just letting things be.

Fannish goals, I think maybe giving more fanfics a chance when I have the time. I can be pickier than I like to admit, again on being opinionated, but I think that's meant I've missed out. Honestly, the same is true of all media. I've almost missed out on things I ended up loving because I was dismissive. And fanfic is free. It's a little more understandable to want to hold off on buying something if I have mixed feelings, but it costs nothing to give a fanfic a shot.

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OFMD Review Take Two (Public)

2023-10-06T11:09:25Z

For some reason, the cut wouldn't work on the first version, then when I tried editing, it put everything in one paragraph.

Anyway. Spoilers.

( Read more... )

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