Polar Opposites Don't Push Away

Alrighty, folks. Time for another whinge. This time, about how we've made vampire pussies, and why that needs to stop.

I blame Anne Rice, personally. While Stephanie Meyer has done the most damage to the vampiric cred, Anee Rice's mopey, weirdly sexual drama queens are patient zero of this disturbing trend to show that vampires are people too, you guys. For reals.

Let's start with the obvious. Things that prey on humans, to drink their blood in order to sustain their own life are predators. It is natural for a prey species to hate its predators. Especially predators with so many advantages over normal humans. Anyone who seriously thinks that a for real vampire would be sexy is delusional. They're dead. They don't have a pulse normally, their flesh is cold and they lack that spark of life that we recognize in others. Vampires in real life would be firmly seated in the uncanny valley, and nobody would want to rub gonads with someone whose body temperature normally runs at room temperature.

Now, maybe you're thinking, "but the vampires in (X) canon aren't like that!" You're right. No vampires in any canon are like that. Because we've been sold on the idea that vampires are desirable, that they're human, and that they can love their food supply.

You know what? That's fucking boring. Does anyone dislike Buffy the Vampire Slayer because she slays all those poor. tortured souls? No. Everybody loves Buffy. Yes, Buffy does eventually wind up being in relationships with two vampires, but I feel that these relationships are the most realistic representation of what it would be like to love a vampire. Great at first, but you can't wish you partner into a better person, or into being a person at all.

I'm getting tired of the trend toward treating vampires like they're a persecuted race. It's like they're a few spandex costumes and one bald mentor away from being the X-men, but with better hair. I don't want vampires to be anti-heroes, except in very specific circumstances. Blade I can accept, because he doesn't pretend he's not a monster, and he works really hard against his innate desire to eat people. I could even accept the Cullens (minus sparkling), because it's made clear that most vampires are more concerned with making sure the food doesn't know they're around. If there was less baseball and Bella was never in those books, I'd be extremely interested in them.

One vampire romance book in a while is okay. It gives a new perspective, makes the general lore deeper. I feel that now vampires are just really strong super models who mope a lot, which is a disservice to them, and quite boring.

If you play a character from an enormous, sweeping canon with over 50 years of history, you need to at least have a good feel for a large portion of its history. You don't need to know the details of everything, but you should know more than what your character's Wikipedia says. Especially if you're bringing in a relatively new character, who is also relatively minor. Your character will know history that you don't, which will alter how said character is played.

It's okay not to be a fan of the canon you bring your pup in from, you need to do enough research to show that you're playing a pup for more than their powers, sexual identity, or pretty face. Remember, your pup has lived in this universe their entire life (unless they haven't, in which case you need to make sure you know about the things they should know), and certain elements of history will have effects on them, whether it's listed in a character bio or not. You can't bring in a Batgirl who doesn't know much about Superman or Wonder Woman. You can't play Cyclops but know nothing about the Avengers' history.

If all of this is too much to ask, bring in the minor character from a smaller canon. A lot of places will take speculative AUs (like bringing in Joseph from X-men: Evolution), which give you the chance to make this shiny character your own, and make the canon easier to follow/catch up on.

Since just listing Titan A.E. on this thing is kind of a cop-out, I will treat each supporting instance as a new occurrence, and link to the timing in my copy of the movie. If your timing is different, they should be in the same ballpark, at least.

(1)27:00

(2) Mutant X #1 for Alex, 15:28 for Cale

(3) X-Factor Verson 1 Number 71

Alex Summers and Cale are quite similar in characterization. The circumstances surrounding certain portions of their canon. There are even physical similarities. These may just be coincidental comparisons, but they are interesting to note.

We will focus on the physical similarities between Alex Summers and Kale first.

(2)

To be honest, I didn't even realize the close similarity between the characters before I saw them side by side. It's worth noting that Alex has a slightly longer version of Cale's haircut, but it's being obscured by the wind. They are both blond, both have slight tans (Which is especially interesting in Cale's case, since he couldn't have been exposed to direct sunlight in space). They have strong profiles, including large chins, slightly heavier brows, and while Cale appears to have broken his nose, it seems likely that it was at least similar in appearance to Alex's.

The only difference between the two in these pictures is the manly stubble that comes with being a comic book character trying to look cool, and the difference in eye color.

There are two things that unite Alex and Cale both, personality wise. Both are stubborn assholes. Examples of Kale's stubbornness are everywhere in the movie, but I think these qualities are best highlighted by the following scenario. Cale, while talking to the man who rescued him from the evil aliens in the movie, the Dredge, is still reluctant to take part in the mission to recover the Titan. When the pilot says, "When the Dredge destroyed Earth, they figured life in space would break us down, wipe us out." The pilot is talking about the human race. It is important to note, for emphasis's sake, that Cale is human. His reply is, ". . .About 15 years too late to save the humans. But it's not like we didn't have a good run." (1) Not only is this displaying a certain amount of stubbornly clinging to pessimism, but it's also, quite honestly, a real asshole thing to say.

Stubbornness is one of Alex Summers's most glaring traits. It permeates every action. The most obvious example of this trait is the fact that it takes three people, two of them being people Alex respects a great deal, to convince Alex to take more than a low level construction job. When called upon to be a leader, he says no at least three times. In this same issue, when Pietro announces that his powers have been turned again him, and he is slowly dying, the most compassionate thing Alex can say is "If you ask me, I blame society" (3). The fact that no-one else calls him out on being an asshole is a topic for later in this paper.

The only thing that spurs both these men into action is the chance to be with an attractive woman with impossibly colored hair. Cale is eager to show Akima that he's not a stubborn asshole (however counter-intuitively), and Alex only agrees to join X-Factor on the promise of seeing Lorna again (and then commences to be kind of an asshole to her). While this is understandable in most cases (and a common heroic flaw), it is also worth noting.

The circumstances surrounding Alex and Cale are similar as well. Cale's father dies in space, unintentionally abandoning his son. Alex's father seems to die, and is captured in space, unknowingly abandoning Alex. Both attract stubborn women who have unusually colored hair, but have difficulties in their relationships. Both have been in space, and captained space ships with alien crews. The Starjammer is very analogous to the ship Cale and Akima cobble together to find the Titan. There are even common flaws in the physics of space that are used around them.

The most interesting surrounding factor for both men is the way they are perceived by those around them. Despite the fact that they are less than polite, and often not even nice to those around them, everyone continuously looks to them for help, and for leadership. It's as though neither young man can avoid being put in charge of something. Both are also good, if unconventional, leaders. Alex managed to take over the crew of his father's space ship, and even received compliments on his ability to lead from his father's best friend. Cale managed to turn a traitor into an ally through the force of his renewed hope for humanity, to the point where the former traitor was willing to sacrifice himself for the cause.

Their genetics also play an important role in their perception. It's Cale's father's genetics that make him able to find the Titan, and it's Alex's link to Scott that makes people think he'd be a good leader, and it buys him a lot of trouble. Cale is hunted by the Dredge because of the map that's coded to his genetics. Alex is hounded by Sinister because of the powers that are coded into his genetics.

In conclusion someone, somewhere, owes someone else some money. Of course both these characters are similar to others that came before (There's a lot of Luke Skywalker in both, for example).

Panther's Cast List

So I've put my game ad up everywhere. I've spent more time on this game than I have on actual RP.

Why did my pup brain die when my mod brain got a chance to do stuff?

Today was an excellent day. I haven't posted here in a long time, so a lot of you don't know the trouble I've been having at work. Basically I took a huge dose of 'I don't even care anymore', and my work took notice. I've been disciplined a bunch of times recently, but I think I just rubbed the new manager the wrong way. Probably she got told I'm a trouble maker or something, Idek.

Anyway, I've just graduated (to use the term loosely), college with a certificate in Network Security. So I'm out there, hunting for a new job. I accidentally let this slip to a manager at my current job. Not so smart.

I got written up for giving bad customer service a month or so ago, because the customer complained to the management about the fact that I sent her to returns rather than void her transaction. Last week I was presented with a similar situation, and chose to void the transaction rather than risk getting fired over a customer complaint.

Today I got fired for that, since voiding our own transactions is against the rules. It's kind of bullshit, but let's face it, Home Depot and I stopped being good for each other a while ago. I was just collecting a paycheck and they were still requiring me to do more and more work with less and less motivation.

So I've got some money in my savings, a possible job offer on the horizon, and free time to sew clothing, update my pup tables, and take a brain break. I can now devote more time and energy to my job search, which will ultimately result in me having a way better job, anyway.

I hung out with some friends tonight, and I'll do so again with a different set tomorrow. On top of this I've got to get the apartment clean (please pray for me), and hopefully finish at least one article of clothing for my friend Tina.

Of course, I'm still a mess, as one would expect, but not as bad as I would have been three months ago. My time with them has ended, but the beginning that's happening is far more optimistic, anyway. Home Depot is still a good company and I won't boycott the store I worked for, except for the obligatory cooling down period so they don't have loss prevention follow me around the store or something. I'll still shop there if I have to, and I don't hold this against management. Even if they were just looking for a reason to fire me, I know that I gave them ample reasons to do so, and they could have been much nastier than they were.

Panther's Cast List

Alright, guys. I need a fun game to play in. A bunch of the ones I've joined recently have just been fall back plans, rather than places that seem like they'd actually be fun to play.

Well, except maybe brightlightcity, but that's the only one.

So, I have begun down the slippery slope of open source software.

( For those who don't give two fucks about free, easy to use operating systems, feel free to skip )

No, the real craziness comes from the product description, which touts both its "deathly pale flesh tone reminiscent of the moon's soft glow" and the fact that it "retains hot and cold temperature," so you can "toss it in the fridge for that authentic experience," thus selling it on the strength of how accurate it is to a corpse's wang. That's right, folks: This may in fact be the first sex toy to be marketed directly to the amateur necrophiliac.

SFW, I promise.

The One True Roxbury

You see, the Roxbury, the greatest club in any world, is actually, the greatest club in all worlds, and outside of them, too. Every door to a Roxbury leads here, to the one true Roxbury. Taken Characters Wanted Characters Reserved Characters Application Premise Rules FAQ Contact Information (Friends Locked) Job List Suggestion Box Behind the greatest Club in any world, is the greatest club in every world, and out of them. The Roxbury, the True one, is a club outside and inside of every universe, everywhere. Every city has a door to it, every world had a place for it, every time has a version of it. To get there, you simply have to know the right door, and the right words to say. Common Sense rules in the Roxbury, and if you piss off the management, you get booted by the bouncers. And you really don't want that, because the Bouncers don't care what world or time they boot you out in, so you can end up lost somewhere far from home, before you were born, or long after you died. Dance, drink, have fun, stick around even. There are jobs to work, a hotel to crash in, and strange people to meet. There's even a world beyond the club doors, if you're interested in exploring. Just remember, this is a club, and strange things happen when you spend a night at the Roxbury... This is a panfandom rpg in the journal style, a place for your characters to encounter beings from all worlds and times. They step through a door and find a club where the rules are simple. Don't cause trouble, and you wont get trouble. onetrueroxbury onetruehotel otr_lobby thegreyroom

code thanks to ReversesCollide

So, what do you guys think?

( Table under construction )

If you have the opportunity and enjoy anime, you should definitely see Ponyo. It's a perfect kids' movie, and I loved it to little pieces.

( Picture heavy. Will append a photoshop tutorial once I get it loaded on my computer again. )

http://www.wired.com/geekdad/2009/08/5-hacks-you-can-explore-with-your-kids/

WHY IS IT SO EARLY IN THE MORNING?

I would like some more sleep, please.

At least I get off early today. But school until eleven followed by getting up for work at four thirty do not help at all with the curbing of homocidal impulses.

But! I can nap, and then do my Linux homework, because I totally forgot it existed until just now.

The One True Roxbury

You see, the Roxbury, the greatest club in any world, is actually, the greatest club in all worlds, and outside of them, too. Every door to a Roxbury leads here, to the one true Roxbury. Taken Characters Wanted Characters Reserved Characters Application Premise Rules FAQ Contact Information (Friends Locked) Job List Suggestion Box Behind the greatest club in any world, is the greatest club in every world, and out of them. The Roxbury, the true one, is a club outside and inside of every universe, everywhere. Every city has a door to it, every world had a place for it, every time has a version of it. To get there, you simply have to know the right door, and the right words to say. Common sense rules in the Roxbury, and if you piss off the management, you get booted by the bouncers. And you really don't want that, because the Bouncers don't care what world or time they boot you out in, so you can end up lost somewhere far from home, before you were born, or long after you died. Dance, drink, have fun, stick around even. There are jobs to work, a hotel to crash in, and strange people to meet. Just remember, this is a club, and strange things happen when you spend a night at the Roxbury. This is a panfandom rpg in the journal style, a place for your characters to encounter beings from all worlds and times. They step through a door and find a club where the rules are simple. Don't cause trouble, and you wont get trouble. onetrueroxbury onetruehotel otr_lobby thegreyroom

code thanks to ReversesCollide