The way they all claim that its not scripted isnt that even worst? I dont see it as a compliment. I mean how they all behave in front of camera, would you trust someone like that with a million dollar property? Hall with her lying about podcast, sean with his gossip,...isnt just sad at this point, hard to believe mature people behave this way. Imagine how their kids will feel when they watch the show someday. They are all bullies, even jarvis. The most cool and collected was rose. Alli with hall fighting at a open house and she doesnt even had her license yet. Immature and not profesionnal. If she isnt at og anymore, jason dodged a bullet with this one

This little rant is about something I've noticed in discussions usually about (but not limited to) live action media, and I wanted to see if other people have experienced it and if so, what your thoughts are on this.
I've noticed that whenever there is a character on who the popular opinion is that their portrayal was subpar, that fans of that media/characteactor always have a common retort that is parroted verbatim:
"It's not the acting that's bad, it's the writing and direction"
The most pop culture example I can give is Hayden Christensen's Anakin Skywalker in the Star Wars prequels. People like to say that he was held back by George Lucas' trash script and horribly vague direction. And not to say that isn't true, but it's also not mutually exclusive to Christensen's acting also being bad.
I've also noticed that these same people have a tendency to strawman all the detractors of the acting as the same people who bully and send death threats to actors, citing Jake Lloyd and Ahmed Best.
Just to be clear, it's not EVER ok to harass cast and crew over a piece of media you disliked. But this defense always felt incredibly disingenuous to me, and as an attempt to shut down any honest discussion that doesn't fall into the toxic positivity echo chamber that such fans like to create.
The rationale I hear behind it is that writers are obviously responsible for the story and dialogue, and the director is responsible for guiding the actor how to perform the scene, and the actor is just there to deliver the lines as directed. Sound logic on the surface, but when people often point to other characters in the same media being performed much better than the one in question, what then? If other actors are able to do an acceptable job with the shit writing and direction, what's the excuse? It's not like the director and writers are tag teaming out on the basis of characters, is it?
Because on the flip side, people are always quick to shower actors with praise when they've done a good job. It's having your cake and eating it too. Rarely will a director be recognized for being able to bring that performance out of the actor. Never will you ever hear about a writer being praised for writing exceptional dialogue for the character.
So if fans are so willing to give actors their flowers, they should be equally as willing to let them be criticized for their work. Why should a director or writer always be thrown under the bus by fans whenever actors are criticized?
Part of me wonders whether this counts as an example of the Halo effect, because I usually notice this a lot more with conventionally attractive actors. Or maybe because people feel much more comfortable criticizing someone behind the scenes (yk, out of sight, out of mind) than someone who has a visible presence and likely a wider fan following. Perhaps a bit of both.
It's quite an annoying thing that I keep noticing in modern discussions, because it feels like an agreement that, yeah the character WAS bad, but please don't say anything bad about the attractive multimillionaire. It just feels insane when other fans seem to turn off any sort of critical thinking or original thought and just regurgitate this just to infantilise actors and performers.

🪞
Welcome back to the Asylum write-up, where we explore the decade-long slow-motion car crash that is the Emilie Autumn fandom.
Sorry this installment took so long to upload! Just a heads-up, I may take some time to deliver the last one too – these posts take forever to format on Reddit's finicky-ass editor, and my dumb real life is currently keeping me from precious Internet time. Thank you for your patience! You have my word that everyone who pre-ordered the final installment will receive a PERSONAL, HANDWRITTEN letter autographed and illustrated by me, a list of the snacks I consumed while composing this write-up, some exclusive behind-the-scenes secrets, and a pony.
Part 1 Part 2 Part 3 Part 4.1 – Part 4.2 Part 5

Places, everyone This is a test Throw your stones Do your damage Your worst, and your best (...) And if I had a dollar For every time I repented the sin And commit the same crime I'd be sitting on top of the world today (“God Help Me”, 2006🎵)

Quick recap of where we left off. First, there were five to ten halcyon years of pleasant and meaningful interactions between EA and her blossoming fanbase, prominently by way of her official forum. Then, circa 2009-2010, EA's online presence shifted towards sudden anger outbursts, ban-hammering, and an increasingly top-down communication style.
This created a sort of primordial rift within the fanbase, between those who supported EA's right to speak her mind and regulate her own fan spaces however she pleased – and those who thought that her reactions were rude and inappropriate (at best), and that even fan spaces should allow for reasonable, non-abusive criticism of the artist.
Between a poorly-handled book release (see Part 3), the controversial (Part 2) or dubiously true (Part 4) contents of said book, and serious shade from various former collaborators (Part 5), more and more fans had pressing thoughts about EA's work ethic and choices. EA attempted damage control through drastic forum rules that made it virtually impossible to voice any “serious” critical opinion. It didn't work, of course: instead of squashing the mutiny, she created a schism.
Critical fans and active haters started congregating on unofficial platforms.

“WITH MUFFINS LIKE THIS, WHO NEEDS ENEMIES?”: TROLL LIKE A GIRL

So here we were, the early 2010s. The official forum (which had about 700 members in 2006, if you recall) was now thousands-strong, reaching just over 12,000 registered users in 2012 – not all of them active, but still. In terms of sheer numbers and content creation, the party was POPPIN'... but increasingly in parts of the Asylum that escaped EA's jurisdiction, such as Tumblr, where they could speak their mind freely.

You play the victim very well You've built your self-indulgent hell You wanted someone to understand you Well, be careful what you wish for, because I do (“I Know Where You Sleep”, 2006🎵)

In one wing of Asylum Tumblr, a smattering of call-out blogs emerged, which laid out EA's various lies, faux pas, shitty takes, and general deep-seated terribleness in detailed timelines and screenshots (or, short of that, long-winded bullet points). While many such blogs framed it as “serious” whistleblowing and did their best to remain as fact-based and neutral as they could, there was some genuine disgust, animosity and creepiness towards EA on that side of Tumblr; for some ex-fans, “exposing the truth” was mostly justify obsessive hatred, prying and verbal abuse. Some, for instance, felt the bizarre need to side with EA's mother in their estrangement. (One user, with the URL “emilyautumnfischkopf”, argued in a serious and down-to-earth tone - but with zero sources - that EA's upbringing had been nothing but peaceful and supportive until she ungratefully kicked her loving family to the curb for no reason at all. They were later revealed 🔍 to have an alternate handle as “eaisalyingcunt”.)
Either way, through these blogs, a number of potential drama bombs that had mostly flown under the radar were dredged up from over the years – some of which were hard to ignore, even for supportive fans. Where to begin?
There was that nonsense in-joke song, captured twice on camera during the 2009 tour (to very little outrage, at the time), crassly called “Manatee Retard”📺. Or EA's scathing response, in print, to a wheelchair user who found it insensitive that she used a bedazzled wheelchair as a prop to do sexy acrobatics on stage. (“Your offence taken at my hard-won self-acceptance proves that I indeed have something to fight against”, she wrote). Spoken word tracks where she made trivializing knock-knock jokes about serious mental illnesses she didn't have, like schizophrenia and OCD. Multiple instances of calling Britney Spears a “bimbo” and a “Hollywood fucked-up”, resentfully claiming that she only shaved her head because she was “hopped up on drugs” and certainly not because she was “bipolar”, a word the press liked to wield as an insult anyway. (“That's almost like calling someone a retard!” Yeah, heaven forbid.) The meanest, most distasteful paragraphs in the book. Basically everything problematic EA had ever said or written.📝 In retrospect, it had been a long time coming, but it was a lot to take in – and certainly more off-putting, even to less emotionally invested fans, than silly lies about her age and last name.
In another wing of Asylum Tumblr, some fans had had it up to here and just wanted to have fun. 🎵 If Plague Rats had learned one valuable lesson from EA, it was how to crack a joke in the face of absurd tragedy – and the general state of the EA fandom certainly warranted a few.
In 2012, Fight Like a Girl was released. After six long years, three of which had been peaceful, the Opheliac era was officially over. The new album and ensuing tour confirmed that the Asylum had entered a process of glamorous Broadway-style militarization. 🎵📺
The mood board was “Roman general meets Vegas showgirl meets Victorian street urchin”.🪞 The color palette was, to naysayers, “musty pink and rotten, stale piss yellow”. 🐀 The keyword was “REVENGE” (through the power of... self-expression! sorority! brutal assault with rusty medical implements!). The chorus of the title song had an intriguing run-on line about getting “revenge on the world, or at least 49% of the people in it” 🎵 – which seemed like an awful lot, and was widely interpreted (to cheers, boos, or uncomfortable sighs) as a misandrist jab at literally all men on Earth.
The show was essentially a demo version of the musical, in that the setlist vaguely reflected the order of events in the story – but prior reading was essential in order to get what the hell was going on on stage. This one Broadway reviewer had not perused the literature before seeing the show 🔍, and hated: the set, the choreography, the skits, the plot, the lyrics, the music, the concept. (Seriously, you should read the review. It's not even my show and I feel like quitting show business.)
Pre-show VIP encounters, now violin-free, were lorded over by EA's new manager🐀, whose official title was “Asylum Headmistress”. (Interesting choice – she sounds fun!) The swag bags were less substantial than before, and the “greet” part of the meet-and-greet was rarely more than a quick hug and photo op.
On Twitter, EA continued to embrace her “I am very badass” fronting attitude...

Often wonder if cyberbullies r aware they’re fucking w/ a girl who’s BFs w/ maker of the SAW films & is marrying a knife-throwing scorpion. (🐀📝)

...and her taste for needlessly inflammatory statements. About an aisle sign in a supermarket:

If this does not infuriate you, then you're a fucking potato.

(Again with the confounding crypto-ableism, EA! 🔍) She also went through a phase of raging against Lady Gaga 📝, who had stolen her idea of using a wheelchair on stage as an able-bodied woman. 🔍 That failed to convince anyone that she wasn't the histrionic diva that haters made her out to be.
Spurred on by EA's rallying cries and “us vs them” mentality, loyalists turned the white-knighting up to 11. On Twitter, some Plague Rats got into cat fights with Lady Gaga's Little Monsters (what a time to be alive). Others tried to balance out the Tumblr negativity with initiatives like “Spreading a Plague of Love” – a “positive-only” confession blog, whose extreme fangirling, comically drastic rules and hyper-defensive tone📝 did not debunk the increasingly popular notion that “true Plague Rats” were a bunch of authoritarian and hopelessly brainwashed fanatics.
EA truthers and other anti-fans started lashing out at anyone who dared express any positive opinion of EA, solidifying claims that the backlash against EA was just a conspiracy of bitter, hysterical bullies.
All this to say: every passing day brought new reasons for fans to get mad at EA and each other, and everyone in the Asylum was in need of a laugh. It's not easy having a good time.🦠
Leading up to Fight Like a Girl and in the years that followed, user-submission-based meme blogs took off, most notably “Spreading a Plague of Lulz / Troll Like a Girl”. A lot of the early submissions were absurdist humor and toothless, cheezburger-Impact memes (a style that was, oddly, already dated at the time). Those often originated in good fun, and from loyal fans, on the official forum. But there was also true snark, satirizing EA's questionable ethics, outrageous claims, and easily spoofed artistic gimmicks. A new slang of Asylumspeak emerged: Glittertits (slight NSFW), GAGA!!, EA Gusta and all its memeface variants, Get outta mah house!, Are You Suffering?, Fight Like A Goat, [Random celebrity] copied EA (a subgenre in its own right), ...
Most of the “trolling” was directed at unrepentant bootlickers and, to a lesser extent, red-in-the-face haters and creeps. Meme blogs would post joke comments under “serious” or gushing submissions on Wayward Victorian Confessions, and taunt loyalist accounts by tagging them in their posts. When a few people complained on WVC that almost all of the Bloody Crumpets to date had been thin white able-bodied women, and a few fans responded by sharing their dream-casts for a more diverse line-up, the blog was flooded for days with confessions that “X should be a Crumpet” (candidates included RuPaul, Mitt Romney, Nicki Minaj, EA's therapist, and the WVC admins). Farcical shenanigans like that.
Ah, but some people will always cross the line, won't they. EA threads popped up on merciless, bully-friendly snark platforms like Lolcow, Pretty Ugly Little Liar, and Encyclopedia Dramatica. Snarkers with a mean streak and obsessive haters mingled in some of the more aggressive, 4-chan-spirited retaliation against EA – which would be called “brigading” in modern parlance. This included flooding EA's Goodreads page with one-star reviews (see part 4), repeatedly editing her Wikipedia page to include her legal name and birth year, and ensuring that Googling said name would bring up current pictures of her.
All of this compounded agitation fragmented the once-united fandom beyond recognition.🦠 Through substantial disagreements among fans, personal bickerings, layers upon layers of inscrutable in-jokes, and cross-platform telephone games, the Asylum morphed into a booby-trapped Escher room.
Satire blogs were taken in earnest. Earnest fan blogs scanned as satire. Memes would get called out as abuse. Appreciation without attached criticism would get mocked as bootlicking. Obvious jokes made by EA would be taken at face value. One divisive confession could trigger days and days of debate, to the point that WVC eventually banned confessions in response to other confessions. New waves of infighting created a confusing web of rival sub-factions🐀, each accusing the others of being toxic, cliquish, and delusional.
The shared fantasy was broken, the collective vision had crumbled, no onez was speaking the same language anymore. Fans would jump down the throat of other fans who held almost identical views about EA, except for that one thing she said or did that one time. Everyone had differing thoughts on what should or shouldn't acceptable to discuss, question, excuse, make fun of.
War is hell.

SCORCHED EARTH SHENANIGANS: HONEY, I SHRUNK THE ASYLUM

Would you tear my castle down Stone by stone And let the wind run through my windows Till there was nothing left But a battered rose? (“Castle Down”, 2003🎵)

Haters vs sycophants is not really the kind of conflict where one side can come out on top (if you're participating, you've already lost). But in the long tug-of-war between “grassroots” and “EA-sponsored” fan spaces, the ultimate winner is obvious – in that the former is gasping in agony, a shriveled husk of its former glory, while the latter... is non-existent. This is due in no small part to EA's tendency, like the Czars of old, to settle conflicts by setting Moscow on fire.🔍)
That's not entirely fair: unlike EA, the czar only did it that once.
By early 2013, as EA was gearing up for her third Fight Like a Girl tour at the end of the year, the official forum was... not as lively as it once had been. Not just because of the stifling rules and disgruntlement towards EA, or because EA herself hadn't really posted anything on there in years; the Internet was also changing, and forums in general were fast becoming passé.
This made it difficult for EA to create a safe space where she could talk to fans, and fans could talk to and about her, in a way she deemed suitable (ie, a space she could gate-keep and regulate enough to keep it completely free from negative criticism). Social media was a minefield; she still posted regularly, but didn't interact very much. So EA and the Headmistress came up with a way to filter out the unbelievers: an official fan club📝, aptly called the “Asylum Army”, with a $100 entry price.
Joining the AA came with a dog tag, a sew-on patch, and a lifetime membership certificate signed by EA and – for some reason – the Headmistress. (Unlike EA's best friend and sound engineer back in the forum's heyday, I don't think fans ever really embraced the FLAG-era manager as part of the Asylum in-group. She came across more as a coordinator / businessperson / adult chaperone, at best.🐀) So, slightly better goodies than you'd get by joining the other AA 🔍 ... but not by much. The main appeal was that members would have access to exclusive content, special merch, giveaways, early bird tickets for future shows, and regular video chats with EA.
The concept itself drew a fair amount of criticism, as you can imagine. Between the name🐀, the price, and the inherent gatekeeping of a pay-to-join fanclub, many balked at the monetizing of a concept that had once (like, three years back) been significantly more DIY, grassroots, and inclusive. 📝🐀
Then again, many also longed for a positive, drama-free space where fans could just be fans. And while the creation of the AA was generally recognized as a quick cashgrab, a lot of people were surprisingly cool with it. EA was trying to finance her dream musical, after all – although a number of fans wished she had gone about raising funds in a less sketchy way.
So around 400 fans shelled out (which, according to the Headmistress📝, “basically cover[ed] the cost of running the fanclub itself – keeping the database up, website, etc.”). Enough for a close-knit, but sizable community. But already, there was a conflict of interest: a high fanclub entry fee essentially demands that you pledge loyalty to the artist over loyalty to your fellow fans, who wish to join but can't afford to. Sharing, caring, and ensuring no one felt left out were some of the more positive values cultivated in the fandom... but leaking exclusive content would surely piss off other paying members🐀, and make EA feel betrayed all over again. (And she had barely just started to mellow out on social media!)
...But then again, this is the internet. After the first month of secret AA drops (lyric sheets, some photoshoot outtakes – nothing too juicy, really), there were, yes, some leaks. EA was predictably miffed, and retaliated by... ghosting the fanclub for weeks at a time in its first few months of existence (great look!). She eventually found the “solution” to her problem, by providing something you couldn't right-click-save (and which had been part of the promised perks to begin with): live interaction.
Over webcam, she was her usual in-person bubbly, charming, funny self. Everyone seemingly had a good time during the fanclub video chat, and this gave people faith and hope.
There were a few more events, giveaways, etc. As promised, ahead of the fall 2013 tour (the last one to date, it would turn out), AA members got priority access to show tickets and VIP bundles. The latter were much pricier than before, and only included soundcheck, a photo-op, and three goodies: a tin of loose-leaf tea, a signed printer-paper setlist, and a small flag that said “F.L.A.G.”.🔍 Some stuff continued to leak – but, as some of the outlaws pointed out (scroll down to the Disqus comments), they were mostly relaying information that was relevant to the entire fanbase, such as updates about ongoing projects (the dragged-out recording of the audiobook, for one).
In early 2014, lifetime memberships were closed, and replaced with monthly, quarterly and yearly subscription tiers. Bizarrely, you ended up paying $3 more per month if you bought a $99 yearly subscription📝 – but it did include the patch, dog tag, and piece of paper!

Sometimes I kind of want to be part of the cool kids and register to the Asylum Army. Then I remember how it came about, what you could get for the same price a couple years ago, how the whole thing was and is handled, and that I won’t support any of this bullshit. (And then I roll around naked in all the money I’m saving.) (🐀)

Still, a number of fans rejoiced at the affordable monthly option, and joined – if not for the exclusive content and merch (which were... okay, but not much to write home about), then for the friendly, drama-free exchanges with an artist they actually did love, in spite of all the frustration.
For the still-too-poor or still-undecided, there was always the forum! It wasn't as active as it used to be, but a few die-hards still managed to keep the lights on... until, inevitably, Someone Did Something and Ruined Everything. (Once again: EA's wrath is spectacular, but rarely completely unprovoked.) The incident features one notable figure in the Asylum community. Let's call him the Collector.
OK, so maybe you remember the meme I linked to in Part 4, with Christian Grey and the ginormous EA hoard. Well, that's the Collector's collection. The “Violin” promo that I called the "Holy Grail of the fandom" in the same paragraph? Also his. The handwritten lyrics that went for $940? Guess who won that auction. Over the years, the Collector had probably spent five figures on EA merch and shows, and although that fact was a little unsettling, he was a very active, easy-going, and generally well-liked fixture of the fandom.
One day in 2012, shortly after the Headmistress had replaced EA's old Chicago BFF as main forum admin, the Collector's account got banned or restricted over something dumb. When the ban wasn't lifted as quickly as he hoped, he took it... the way one takes things when one is unhealthily invested: he started spamming Headmistress and the mod team with increasingly rambling and abusive emails (lost to time, probably for the best). When that didn't work quickly enough, he tried a different route.
One of the many auctions that the Collector had won, some years prior, was EA's old iPod Touch📝 – which contained all of her favorite tunes and, buried somewhere in the data cache... a phone number. Which the Collector tried calling. And wouldn't you know it: EA picked up. She congratulated him on his sleuthing skills, listened patiently as he made his case, apologized for any distress caused by the unfair account restriction, and then they got married.
Kidding! She freaked the fuck out, hung up, and banned him for life from the forum and all EA shows and events.
After his ban, the Collector allegedly still tried to attend at least one VIP pre-show (one source in the comments says he was allowed to buy some merch, refunded for his ticket, and escorted out). He joined the Reform forum to bitch about EA and try to rally people to his cause, possibly made revenge posts about her on darker snark forums, and continued to hound the Asylum mod team. So in June 2014, EA came up with a radical and unexpected fix to the Collector problem.

The official Asylum Fan Forum has been shut down permanently. I have personally paid thousands of dollars each year to keep the forum safe and secure for you ... Unfortunately, the forum has not been kept safe and secure for me, a truth which disappoints me greatly, instead becoming a place where people who have physically threatened myself and my staff prey upon forum members, pressuring them to contact me and my staff on their behalf. If the gullible wish to humor my stalkers (who live in their parent’s basement at age 30 something) and thus put me in danger, they may do it on their own dime. They may also fuck off, because stupidity can kill, and I won’t be your victim. To those who enjoyed the forum, you know who to thank for its closure. (“On the closing of the Asylum Forum”)

Voilà! This is how a decade-long archive of shared history ends: not with a bang, but with a dirty delete and a sod-off communiqué.
The obliteration of the forum took everyone by surprise...

I was actually on the forum when it was taken down. I was navigating between posts and when I went to click on a different board, an error message came up. I honestly cried a little, I'm not ashamed to say. (WVC admin on Reddit, 2024)

...and I do mean everyone:

Chicago BFF / ex-admin, the next morning: Whoa, EA forum shut down? Ex-mod: It turns out that if someone spends enough years actively “waging war” to destroy what they can’t have, eventually they’ll be successful. * eye roll * Not even mods got prior warning. Just all the sudden, poof, gone. BFF: Really? She did not let the moderators know?! This is sounding worse and worse. Uggh. I’m so sorry. Such a loss. (...) Ok, threats are serious, but why not just put it in archive mode so no one can post? (...) Sad. I shall light a candle in the forum's honor. (Facebook posts; scroll down for screenshots)

It was a gut punch, especially for people who had poured countless hours into the community, or could have used some prior warning to save years of their own writing from the role-playing threads. One last chance to take a look around the place that had meant so much to so many.

From the wording of the announcement of closing the forum and a number of other things, it sometimes seems like EA doesn't like her fans much. :/ (🐀)

Three months after the forum was nuked, Battered Rose (a venerable EA fansite, which had been around since the Enchant era and had one of the most complete EA galleries online) announced that it was shutting down too.📝 The admin, who had also been a long-time forum mod, cited a lack of “time, energy, passion, or money” to keep the website going... and being upset at the sudden disappearance of the forum. It was, truly, the end of an era for the Asylum.
...Well, no point in living in the past. For those who could afford it, and still wanted to talk to/about EA after that (not everyone did 🐀), there was always the Asylum Army fanclub!
Over the summer of 2014, EA held regular live chats and Q&A's, and... many attendees really enjoyed them, and thought the AA was well worth the money after all. She also quietly parted ways with the much poo-pooed Headmistress around that time.

Just spent over 4 hours giggling, drinking tea and playing guessing games in chat with EA and other Asylum Army members ... No griping, no downers, just lots of fun. I think I like the way the ‘new fandom’ is going and now I’m really glad I finally decided to join the Army. (September 4, 2014🐀; Battered Rose had closed the day before)

The forum was lost forever, but perhaps that was a chance for a fresh start. Could this fanclub thing really be the Asylum Renaissance that fans had been longing for?

...I have come today to a very difficult but necessary decision, and that is to discontinue the Emilie Autumn Official Fanclub. The site itself, and the community chatroom, will remain open to you indefinitely, but I will no longer be making updates to the site. (Newsletter, September 8, 2014📝)

...Never mind, then.
Turns out the fanclub had been the Headmistress' idea all along. EA had been reluctant from the start, and although she really enjoyed the live chats with a safe community of people “who are there for the right reasons”, she couldn't overcome her fundamental discomfort with the concept. Lifetime and regular members would receive a bunch of digital downloads and a -35% coupon on the Asylum Emporium for their troubles. EA said she would definitely pop back once in a while for live chats, for free, just for fun, but to my knowledge, she never did.
And so the most devoted fans were left standing in the rain...

She is happy, she made it. She is fulfilling her dreams, found love and happiness after all the pain. I understand that she now doesn’t need “us” anymore ... That doesn’t change the fact she broke my heart with taking the Asylum Army and the forum from me. Yet, I am happy for her. (🐀)

...while naysayers pointed and laughed, Nelson-style.🦠

I don’t feel sorry at all for the people that paid for the Asylum Army fan club. Most of them knew that EA is an atrocious business woman and has broken many promises before. In fact, I laugh at them. They seriously thought that EA would actually stay consistent with this? (🐀)

EVERYTHING MUST GO: THE ASYLUM WHOLESALE

EA fans were left without an “official” home for about three years. This gave them plenty of time to be annoyed at EA for: not releasing the audiobook on time, not materializing any new project for a while... and the new sin of peddling random, ridiculously marked-up AliBaba jewelry as “merch” on her official store. Think faux-antique cameo pendants and $30 Big Ben rings (...because the Asylum story is set in London, get it?).

The whole accessories section looks like a tacky overpriced English souvenir shop. (🐀)

The fanbase lost a lost of steam in those in-between years, because there wasn't much to stick around for. As evidenced by the positive reception of the AA live chats, even in the midst of unresolved drama, out-loud interactions in a friendly environment have always been EA's saving grace. Considering the amount of online hate, there are shockingly few accounts of bad IRL encounters with EA: most people say that in live conversation, she comes across as a fun, warm, and genuinely sweet person. Some report that their negative opinion shifted after meeting her.
But there were no chats or live shows anymore. There was only social media, where she ignored questions and vague-posted about overdue projects – and the newsletter📝, which was all saccharine love-bombing to promote bland dropshipped trinkets. For fans who remembered the handcrafted merch (and two-way communication) of the early years, it was a bitter pill to swallow.

CONTINUED IN COMMENTS

​

I'm gonna miss WHAT'S YOUR FIRE.
List of the Chemy Ride Cards currently owned by the characters as of Episode 36

• The first skit of the Rinne/Sabimaru duo was arranged into a dance skit by the actors themselves. Their second skit wasn't in the script, Reiyo Matsumoto and Rikiya Tomizono came up with it themselves. Director Tasaki asked them to create a second skit and they used their lunch break to think about it.

Fun fact: Lachesis' actress Alisa Sakamaki burst out laughing the moment they stopped filming that scene

• Abysallis King Gigist is the monster from the fairy tales that was sealed behind the Door of Darkness 120 years ago by the Alchemist of Dawn. The Alchemys Union leaders were pretty shocked, as they thought it was simply a fairy tale. Speaking of fairy tales, we also learned of another one in this episode:

Golden flowers bloom on the golden hill, that only chosen alchemists can access.
Its pistils make the best spice.
Anyone who eat dishes made with these spices will smile.

• Gigist is a being that transcends humans, which is why he can use Space Relocation Alchemy at will without any problems (while Shiori Harima was destroying her arm every time she used it). He can also use the same black flames as Spanner (the space transfer ability and the black flames were both referred to as "Abysallis Power" in the producer blog of episode 24).
• According to Gigist, the egg inside of Houtarou was born from a clone of himself that was destroyed 120 years ago when he was sealed by the Alchemist of Dawn. For some reason, the egg transcended time and ended up in Houtarou's body.
• Gigist created the Chemies of Origin Dragonalos and Gaiard. The 98 other Chemies were created by alchemists who replicated that feat, over the course of the next 120 years. He also revealed that Chemies are not pure beings like Houtarou thinks but are inherently harmful to humans (it's not like we really know how the Chemies were behaving before meeting Houtarou anyway). But that's okay because, to borrow the words of Producer Minato: "Born from evil, denying evil, and speaking of justice: that is the essence of Kamen Rider inherited from the Showa era. If that's the case, it would be no exaggeration to say that each and every Chemy is a Kamen Rider!"
• A new insert song, THE SKY'S THE LIMIT, performed by BACK-ON × Beverly, will be releasing on streaming platforms on May 26th! (The song was first unveiled and performed at the Gotchanko FESTIVAL on May 4th)

Gotchard never misses on the music!

• Next episode (Episode 36): Hopper1 and Treasure

Scriptwriter: Akiko Inoue
Director: Ryuuta Tasaki
Houtarou is saddened by the loss of Skebows after having defeated the Skebows Malgam himself.
Moreover, Antrooper Malgam also appears in the city, and so, out of concern for the disheartened Houtarou, Rinne goes to fight in his place but... if she defeats it, Antrooper will suffer the same fate...!?
Renge and Sabimaru also join in to support the wavering Rinne.
Meanwhile, Hopper1 remembers the fairy tale of "The Golden Flower" after seeing Houtarou depressed.
Get the golden flower to bring back Houtarou's smile!
Now, Hopper1's greatest adventure begins...
Daigo Matsuura

From what ive researched this is a plasma KDE crashing issue. But ive set up a restart script for plasma using the alt + f2 menu which didnt work, I then tried the manual terminal method, but it also didnt work. Neither alt f2, nor terminal would even open. But I can still interact with things, if im in a game i can walk and jump and its perfectly responsive atleast sound wise.
I am using x11 session mode
Link to system info (Yes im using discord to make it into a lnik do not bully me)
https://cdn.discordapp.com/attachments/1197039650724921375/1241231219132334151/image.png?ex=66497227&is=664820a7&hm=bbae438152da5e9b4fb2f8e0d2a32b6e23a96d21824b50e7b705147f0cb7f42c&

So, a few people online said they wouldn't totally hate the idea of some kind of continuation to a certain storyline, and...hey! Sometimes, that's all the encouragement your friendly subreddit scriptwriter needs!
This is an unofficial sequel to another script. It makes sense as a part 2, but also works as a standalone audio. It's up to you what you choose.
Script length: About 1.5K words
As always, monetization, making minor edits to the script and genderflipping it are all okay. The sound effects are optional. If you have any questions, my chat is always open! Feedback and cat pictures are welcome and appreciated!
Now, then....
For the listener:
Your stupidly attractive bully invited you to a party last night, but sensing some kind of devious trap, you bailed. Frustrated, she got really drunk and sent you a voicemail where she confessed her feelings for you. And now, things are awkward. Some kind of invisible divide seems to have taken shape between the two of you. She thinks you’ve been avoiding her all day. When you finally meet her afterschool, she seems upset. You really don’t know what you did, but it’s time…
...
SCRIPT:
(Rain SFX)
(Softly) Nerd? Is that you?
Well, took you long enough. Were you flirting with every girl along the way or something?
Uh huh. Normally I’d say you don’t have anywhere near enough skill points for something like that, but I-I can’t tell anymore. You seemed awfully intimate with that girl this morning. Who is she?
Why are you quiet? I asked you a question.
So now you’re going to ignore me when I’m standing right in front of you? Who is she, nerd?
What, so you....have a girlfriend now? Is that it?
She’s not your girlfriend? Okay.
Okay, yeah. I totally believe you. It’s not like you were talking with her for 20 minutes straight before class started or anything.
Oh, so she’s your cousin now? Really?
Well, then one of you has to be adopted, nerd, because I see no family resemblance whatsoever!
Don’t change the subject. You stood me up at the party last night and you’re fifteen minutes late. I deserve answers.
Why am I acting this way? Gee, I don’t know. You’re supposed to be the smart one here. Tell me. Why. Do. You. Think?
(Whispers) Jealous? You’re going to accuse me of being jealous?
Why, I- you get one terribly drunk confession over voice mail and that makes you forget all about what a loser you are? Do you need a reminder of who I am? Of what I can do to you? Of what I have been doing to you since the beginning of middle school?
You think you’re so brave because you’ve grown a backbone overnight and you now have a girlfriend?
Cousin. Right. Seems awfully convenient for your ‘cousin’ to suddenly transfer schools at this freaking point in time.
Oh, your personal life IS my business. How dare you tell me what to do?
(Slamming him into a locker)
How dare you? How dare you....try....to fight back? You don’t get to tell me what to do. You don’t get to tell me to back off. You don’t get to accuse me of being jealous because- (voice turning to a pained whisper) because you’re mine.
(Faintly) You were supposed to be mine.
(A longer pause. It continues to rain.)
Maybe I am jealous. I am jealous of that girl, and....and all those other girls in our class. How you talk to them so easily and how you smile at them. How come you never smile at me like that, nerd?
Why would you? I’m just your bully. The girl who’s been slamming you into lockers and forcing you to do her homework. Being....mean to you. Even though you don’t deserve it. Any of it.
You....You deserve the world. You deserve someone who’s nice to you. Kind to you. You deserve....better than me.
Why are you apologising, huh? And here I thought you’d toughened up a little. You’re not the one who should be saying sorry.
I never meant to hurt you, you know? I was just having fun. I wanted your attention. I didn’t care if it was good or bad attention. I don’t have the nicest life at home. My parents used to fight all the time before they decided to separate and I...I just thought I could endure the yelling when I got back if you were with me. Everything would be just alright if you were with me.
I don’t know what it is about you, nerd. You....confuse me. You’re so frustrating (sighing).
I kept all these feelings bottled up inside me for the longest time. But last night, I just couldn’t help it. I was really drunk- absolutely hammered! And so I-I sent you that voicemail.
I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to turn your entire world upside down. I don’t blame you for avoiding me all day.
What?
Of course you’ve been avoiding me. You wouldn’t meet my gaze during any of the classes, and I couldn’t find you in the hallways. It’s okay, you don’t have to make up excuses. I already said I don’t blame you.
You were just busy?
Nerd, why- why do you even try, huh? Do you not know you absolutely suck at lying? And I shouldn’t find that as adorable as I do but you- you suck, alright? Yeah, you suck.
Why are you blushing all of a sudden? What is it?
Look, I’ve always suspected that you secretly enjoy it when I’m being mean to you, but now’s really not the time for-
I’m sorry?
You wanted this to be....special?
Um, nerd? I’m lost. You lost me. Whatever do you mean?
(A longer pause)
So you felt you couldn’t tell me properly during the day, with everyone listening in? That’s why you asked me to meet you here after school.
But what difference does that make? It wouldn’t have taken long. Your answer was always going to be no. Your answer is no. Right?
Right?
Nerd? You’re...you’re kind of weirding me out here. Are you alright?
(Softly) No. Don’t do this.
Don’t. I get it if you want revenge on me for all I’ve put you through, but please don’t do it this way. Seeing you with that girl was bad enough. I’m not sure I can take this.
You....like me? Like, like like me? But....how?! I can’t believe this.
You have a crush on me? On me? Your bully?
Are you being serious right now? If this is a prank, nerd, I swear to God I’ll whip your ass so hard you won’t be able to sit for a week!
You are being serious, aren’t you?
(Softly) Why did you never say anything?
You were afraid I wouldn’t feel the same way?
Yeah. I-I want to punch you for being so silly but I can’t. I was doing the same thing myself for so long, wasn’t I?
What is that? What are you taking out of your bag?
Hey, this is....this is a copy of The Merchant of Venice! You tutored me on this because I was struggling with the text. And these scratches and doodles on the cover- oh gosh, this is my copy of the play! I thought I lost it after the exam, but then why do you have it with you?
Yeah. I did write that little letter on the last page thanking you for all your help. With the, um, glittery little hearts and all. It nearly killed me to put all that stuff down on paper, you know?
But that was over two years ago. You can’t have- nerd, you’re not telling me that you’ve kept it with you all this time.
So that’s why you were late. You ran back home to get it. You wanted to....to return this to me on the day you finally mustered up the courage to confess?
You utter doofus! I felt like reading that play again, you know? You owe me. Big time.
Come here.
(‘Aight. This is where the two of them share several kisses. Seeing them kiss makes me happy.
No, it’s not weird.)
(Panting) This isn’t a dream, right? I did wake up after getting absolutely wasted last night. Right?
Kiss me again, loser.
(More kissing)
Why didn’t I (kiss) do this earlier? Could’ve (kiss) shoved you inside a locker, or a closet any time and (kiss) had my way with you. (Kiss)
(panting) Yeah, I think we should (panting) stop for a while (giggling happily). That was....wow.
Where did you even learn how to kiss? Wait. It’s the girl from earlier, isn’t it?
Yeah, I heard you the first time, dweeb. She’s your ‘cousin’. Sure. I’ll believe it when you show me her birth certificate.
Why are you laughing? Did I say something funny?
Yeah, I am being serious. You better bring her birth certificate tomorrow or I’ll....hmmm. I think I’ll let you ponder over the consequences.
Oh, you thought I was bad enough as your bully? Just you wait....babe.
Now that I’m your girlfriend, you’ll find out how much I was actually holding myself back all this time. You’re mine now, so....watch out (giggling).
Awww, babe, don’t look so worried! I’m sure you’ll be fiiiine. (Just a little too quickly) As long as you listen to me. Of course.
What is it? Why are you looking at me all funny? I mean I don’t mind you gawking or anything, but-
Say that again?
(Softly) You think I’m the most beautiful thing you’ve ever seen?
Eeeeew! You’re such a perv! Aargh! (Bursts into a fit of giggles)
Hey now, don’t storm off by yourself! It’s still raining!
Nerrrrd! Wait up.
Because I’m carrying an umbrella, silly. I don’t want my boy toy to catch a cold.
Walk me home?
Yay! (Pecking him on the cheek) Good boy.
Oooh, you seem to really like that! What’s the matter, babe? Do you feel all mushy inside when I call you a good boy?
(Sighing contentedly) You’re precious, you know that?
Don’t worry. I’ll make sure to reward you when you’re being good for me. And I...I won’t be mean to you from now on, okay? Not unless you ask for it.
No need to get embarrassed. I love you. Every bit of you. Now snuggle up a little closer. You’re getting drenched.
Good boy.
(A longer pause)
So....how about we do something together this weekend? You know, to celebrate?
(Coyly) Like what? Oh, I don’t know.
How about a date?....Will you go out with me?
(Rain SFX fades out)

I had my procedure on Monday. I got a script for 15 Oxycodone 5mg every 4 hours, as needed (3 day supply). I don't do pain well. Tuesday and Monday I took it by schedule. Yesterday and today I tried to space them out. But by hour 5/6 I was hurting bad then had to wait for it to kick in. In the mean time I was miserable. Even with heat. I'm scared I'll run out and be hurting over the weekend - but they'll be closed. I want to request a refill, but I don't want them to treat me like I'm seeking. Is it common to still be in a lot of pain and request more?
The thing is I complain of pain to doctors a lot. Started with the kidney stones, got sent to a urologist who INSISTED I had NONE. I'd call saying I hurt really bad, she even straight out accused me of just wanting pills. I ended up switching Urologists, come to find out I have A LOT. At that time I had 7 on one side and 9 on the other. So idk what that lady was smoking lol. This guy has been great. If I want to go in and zap he does it no questions asked. Which is GREAT. If I'm complaining about pain I WANT YOU TO SOLVE THE ISSUE, IM NOT ASKING FOR A BANDAID OF NARCOTICS. But of course they assume that :/ but that other lady put it on my charts that I am "seeking"
I went to urgent care in April, they did a CT. Said I have "a large amount of stones, none obstructing" then sent me home. I called my Urologist and just asked if I can schedule Lithotripsy. So, he did. Then he gave me 10 Oxycodone a week "until the procedures are done" (still don't know how many I had) Monday they did my left side, which rarely ever hurts. My right side bugs me 100% more. Yet, there WAS an obstructing 6mm stone. The girl who did it wasn't my Urologist, just had the soonest opening. I guess she pushed it back into my kidney and lasered it. Leaving it for me to pass.
I want to just use mychart to request a refill, bc I don't want to hear them accusing me. It really makes me feel small and unheard. Like I shouldn't be feeling this pain. They say you should "go back to normal activities after a few days" but not me. I literally took a Narcotic and made my bed 2 hours later and was quivering from pain. Would it be a common occurrence to just request more? Or will they just treat me like some idiot?
I have another lithotripsy on Tuesday. I'm wondering if part of the pain I'm feeling is from it possibly irritating my other kidney stones on the right side? I'd imagine that one's worse since it's the one that I really wanted done.
I have 2 other pain meds, non narcotic. One that's for bladder spasms that I can't take bc I can't see when I take them. It blurs my vision so bad. It scared the shit out of me. They told me to stop taking it. The other one is the one that turns my pee orange. Which I've been taking but it don't do much for the kidney pain I'm feeling. I take Tylenol and ibuprofen but I've taken them so much in my life I think I have a tolerance for them. I take them like candy bc I had teeth problems, and back problems, and endometriosis, so I'm always in pain. That's what's making me so paranoid 😅 bc when the doctor can't easily see your pain, they don't dig deeper they label you. Also, I use to smoke weed as a teenager, and I did smoke Meth for like 4 months at 16. Which they have on file bc I told them thinking it was part of my heart problems. What they don't realise is I hated that shit, I only did it bc I was severely bullied into doing it and I was young and stupid and wanted to make people happy even if I was miserable. I haven't touched, or thought of it since I was 16.

Welcome to KDRAMA, a community where kdrama watchers gather to discuss their favorite dramas!
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Weekly Scheduled Posts	-	-	-	-	-	-	-
	Monday	Tuesday	Wednesday	Thursday	Friday	Saturday	Sunday
AM	-	-	Who, What, Where Is It?	Throwback Thursday 2.0	-	Late To The Party	Eun Sang's Sleepy Sunday Soliloquy (FFA)
PM	Monday Madness (FFA)	Kim Tan's Talk Time (FFA)	What Are You Watching	Kim Tan's Talk Time (FFA)	Weekend Wrap Up (FFA)	Things I Spotted This Week	-
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Monthly Scheduled Posts	Top 10 Kdramas (7th)	Kdramas Made Me Do It (10th)	Refund My Time (14th)	Yes, No, Maybe (21st)	Dramas I Have Dropped (28th)	-	-
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:-:	:-:	:-:	:-:	:-:	:-:	:-:	:-:
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:-:	:-:	:-:	:-:	:-:	:-:	:-:	:-:
Biannual Scheduled Posts	Share Your Kdrama Related Resource	-	Check Out Our KDRAMA Resources	-	SPOTLIGHT ON	-	-
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Ethan was very surprised about the gold-buying aspect of Modern WoW but the 'Classic' version of the game that was re-released in 2019 is on a new level.
Some quick background: The "WoW Token" was added in 2015 with heavy criticism as it allowed players to pay real money in exchange for gold, or gold in exchange for a 30 day subscription. This came after Activision acquired Blizzard 7 years prior, with every expansion released post-acquisition having lower and lower subscription numbers. The consensus in the community is Activision gutted the Customer Service and Moderation teams so illegal gold-buying was rampant and the WoW Token was just a way to make more money at the expense of the game instead of actually fixing the problem of gold buying.
When 'Classic' came out everything was great for a while until the end-game scene really started going. Rare herbs that were used for flasks (powerful raid consumable) were camped by bots so it was basically impossible to get one, and if you did the bots would fraudulently mass report your character for a 2-week ban. This lasted through the duration of Classic until the first expansion was released.
In addition to this, the Devilsaur Leather crafting reagent was locked down by the "Devilsaur Mafia" for a time, this consisted of 4 Massive Guilds and a few "Mercenaries" that would collude cross-faction to lock down the market and supply in the only zone you could get the leather from.
Some groups started doing 'GDKP' raids, in which when a piece of gear drops players get to bid gold for the item and whoever pays the most gets it. At the end of the raid the gold pot gets distributed to the raid (usually with an organizer cut of 10-20% to whoever made the raid, and an extra % or two for tanks). This system is pretty fair in that if you show up to a raid and don't get any gear you make money that you can spend towards your next gear piece regardless to what group you play with, however with rampant illegal gold buying it quickly became an unbalanced system where those who bought a lot of gold would have first pick at any items they want and competing non-gold buyers would only get the leftovers. This also really inflated the economy to the point where I had to GDKP on a second character to afford raid consumables to play with my guild that didn't GDKP as I didn't want to buy gold.
With GDKPs came GDKP scammers, guys who would make a raid and log off with the pot before distributing so they could sell the gold. When you consider classic raids were 40 people, this was often a LOT of gold. In response to this Discord servers were formed per server to have approved GDKP runs that reduced the number of scams significantly.
These servers became a hub for everyone on the server where player chatting, guild recruitment, and guild master collaboration could take place. These servers also often had a court system with judges and juries, if you were taken to court you had a chance to defend yourself and the judges would make a verdict. The judges had the power to place you on the Blacklist or Brownlist. If you were on the Blacklist it was basically over for your character, guilds would not recruit you and GDKPs would not roster you. The brownlist was more of a warning and would definitely make your life more difficult. There were even addons you could install that would filter out anyone on these lists so you couldn't even see them chat in-game.
When the first expansion re-release was announced (The Burning Crusade), there was significant amount of pushback against the 'deluxe edition' that came with a free mount and a level 58 boost, this was the first time in Classic that you could pay real money for an in game 'advantage' without violating the Terms of Service. The pushback was in general out of fear of the WoW Token and other micro-transactions coming that would negatively impact the game even more. There was a decent amount of bullying of those who bought the deluxe edition, a script went around that would make your character automatically /spit on a player using the deluxe edition mount whenever you were in range. In response to this, Blizzard changed the emote so it couldn't be directed. To this day in classic you can /moon other players but if you /spit you just spit on the ground.
With the announcement of the second expansion (Wrath of the Lich King), a similar deluxe edition was sold with a level 70 boost and significantly less pushback, as many of the content creators/community members behind the outrage had either quit or tired of complaining and sure enough the WoW token was added before the end of this expansion.
That's all the community drama I could recall so far, but the next expansion (Cataclysm) comes out this upcoming Monday so it'll be interesting to see what happens next.
Bonus - Guild recruiting in classic wow:
There's a website called warcraftlogs that you can upload the combat logs of your fights to and it will analyze your damage and give you a 'parse' (0-100, 0 is the least damage done to a boss in the world and 100 is most). When recruiting we'd use that as an indicator, personally I wouldn't take anyone lower than 95th-99th percentile depending on the content but my guild was a little more intense than most.

So, in the last couple of months I've been in a safe enough space to begin healing from some of my past trauma and building my self esteem and self-love as a neurodivergent person. Honestly, it's been some of the most peaceful months of my life, but there have been, as I expected, moments when some events from my past and my childhood would resurface. I just remembered something that happened when I was around 12, so I wanted to share, because even though it's something that hurt me, there's a voice in my head that's telling me it's not that big a deal. So I'm hoping to get some outside perspective.
So basically, my class was preparing some sort of play. A few of us were chosen to act in a skit. However we weren't given a script, we were told to improvise. I cannot improvise at all, I've never been able to. I also always have bad social anxiety. Regardless, we all had to do it. When it was my turn to say something during the first rehearsal, I froze and just stood there awkwardly. It happened every time we rehearsed. And when it happened the teacher would turn it into a learning experience for others. While I stood there on the edge of tears, other kids would discuss my behaviour and why this would happen. Eventually, the teacher saw that I couldn't participate in the skit, so she gave me a different role - to help backstage. I was the only person who did this. My teacher had a rule where everyone had to participate, so I guess she had to find me something to do. While everyone was performing on stage and showing off their talents, I was delegated to carrying chairs. I ended up not showing up to the play at all. Figured they wouldn't miss me.
I don't know how it's affected me honestly. I didn't even remember it until just now, but the moment I did, the whole memory really started hurting. Everyone acted like it wasn't a big deal back then, so I believed it too, but now I can't help but feel like I was treated unfairly. Instead of giving me a chance or helping me find a way to participate, I was put on a spotlight in my scariest moment to be scrutinized by others and then cast aside.
If you have any opinions or advice, I'd love to hear it. But please don't be mean 🙏😭

Will be dropping the name somewhere sa gitna ng post. Pero recently my friend saw a hiring from her previous work. Isang SG Law firm ito. Pero nawala din yung hiring post. Probably meron na siyang nakitang for interview na potential candidate. Sorry kung super haba but I want to want people na hindi worth it yung sweldo kung sobrang bulok ng management and parang hindi ka tao itrato.
I really don't know where to start kasi sobrang redflag ng firm na ito and even though hindi ako ang directly nag work for this firm, I saw first hand kung anong nangyayari sa firm. From internal problems sa firm hanggang sa kind ng service na na pprovide nila sa mga clients bagsak na bagsak.
Simulan ko siguro dito...MICROMANAGER ANG LAWYER (MAY ARI NG FIRM). He constantly reiterates na he's not a micromanager and he doesnt like to meddle in the work of his people. Boy you're in for a pleasant surprise. Micromanager na napaka OC. Sa sobrang pagka micro manager niya, bubusisiin niya pati message na issend mo sa client. "We'll get back to you soonest" sabihin mo sa client, he will call you out and say "we dont say soonest. We say 2-3 days." Tapos only authorized to stick to the "script" ng auto replies sa clients, do not deviate daw. (so kahit hindi appropriate hanap ka nalang ng close) And then when you do send that holding message to the client he will say "Use your brain and think if it's appropriate"
Delayed sweldo. Ang sabi papasweldo tuwing katapusan, you'd have to follow up pa sa kanya para mag pa sweldo siya. Tapos magagalit siya na nag follow up ka. next time no need to follow up daw. Pero same pa din sa susunod na month delayed pa din and mahihiya ka mag follow up.
If I remember correctly, my friends said he only started hiring PH remote paralegals last october 2023, 4 initial hires and by january parang 5 or 6 na sila daw. Ung isang kasamahan nila, bigla nalang daw inalisan ng access sa outlook and sa dropbox without even saying anything sa tao na yun. Tapos nung kinausap bakit walang access, ang sabi matigas daw ang ulo kaya tatanggalin na siya.
He isn't just a micromanager, bully din siya. Ilang beses ko nakita umiyak ung friend ko sa sobrang pagka frustrated dahil pag sumunod ka (which mali mali naman ang utos kaya ang pangit ng firm) tapos pangit outcome galit sayo. And pag d ka sumunod and ginawa mo ung tama kahit ok outcome galit pa din sayo kasi hindi ka sumunod. Ang hirap lumugar. Sobrang trauma na ung friend ko bago mag message sa client mag tatanong pa muna saming barkada if tingin ba namin appropriate ung issend niya tapos sobra anxiety niya everyday kasi baka bigla siyang icall out. Nakakaawa mga tao don. Even their on site staff nakakaawa. That's just scratching the surface. Sobrang daming BS sa Tembusu Law na yan. Jonathan Wong ang poster sa OLJ.
As to the services they provide sa clients, Una sa lahat, bulok ang services nila. Sa sobrang sabog nila they miss deadlines and meetings and court hearings and then proceed to blame the paralegals who didnt "remind" or put the hearing dates on the calendar. When in fact these paralegals don't even have access to those dates. Kung saan makikita or mahahanap. How the hell will they know diba. Bukod dyan, I remember one story about a client na nag terminate ng service nila. Crim client daw ito and may investigation ata na naka sched na kailangan humarap sa police ng client. Sa sobrang sabog ng firm d nila alam ano uunahin so the weren't able to prep the client for that scheduled thingy. You know what the lawyer said? "Fake an illness get a certificate" para daw ma excuse and siguro ma resched. Nagalit ung nanay nung client anong klaseng advice daw yun.
Bukod diyan, since ang gulo nga internally, the don't respond to clients. They usa whatsapp and have GCs with the clients, it takes them days - weeks to respond to a simple yes or no questions. Pag nagalit ang client ang sisi nasa paralegals bakit hindi nag ssend ng "auto messages".
The pay sa OLJ na nakalay is 35k-45k, pero they're only actually offering 20,000 pesos lang as compensation sa Advertised rate sa OLJ is 35k-65k pesos. Scammer tlga. May inalis ata sila eh tapos papalitan kasi para mas mababa ang ipapasahod kaya ata nag hahanap.
Also found out he'll be interviewing someone tonight. Good luck sayo. Mag isip ka maigi and wag magpadala sa narcissist na yan.

Will be dropping the name somewhere sa gitna ng post. Pero recently my friend saw a hiring from her previous work. Isang SG Law firm ito. Pero nawala din yung hiring post. Probably meron na siyang nakitang for interview na potential candidate. Sorry kung super haba but I want to want people na hindi worth it yung sweldo kung sobrang bulok ng management and parang hindi ka tao itrato.
I really don't know where to start kasi sobrang redflag ng firm na ito and even though hindi ako ang directly nag work for this firm, I saw first hand kung anong nangyayari sa firm. From internal problems sa firm hanggang sa kind ng service na na pprovide nila sa mga clients bagsak na bagsak.
Simulan ko siguro dito...MICROMANAGER ANG LAWYER (MAY ARI NG FIRM). He constantly reiterates na he's not a micromanager and he doesnt like to meddle in the work of his people. Boy you're in for a pleasant surprise. Micromanager na napaka OC. Sa sobrang pagka micro manager niya, bubusisiin niya pati message na issend mo sa client. "We'll get back to you soonest" sabihin mo sa client, he will call you out and say "we dont say soonest. We say 2-3 days." Tapos only authorized to stick to the "script" ng auto replies sa clients, do not deviate daw. (so kahit hindi appropriate hanap ka nalang ng close) And then when you do send that holding message to the client he will say "Use your brain and think if it's appropriate"
Delayed sweldo. Ang sabi papasweldo tuwing katapusan, you'd have to follow up pa sa kanya para mag pa sweldo siya. Tapos magagalit siya na nag follow up ka. next time no need to follow up daw. Pero same pa din sa susunod na month delayed pa din and mahihiya ka mag follow up.
If I remember correctly, my friends said he only started hiring PH remote paralegals last october 2023, 4 initial hires and by january parang 5 or 6 na sila daw. Ung isang kasamahan nila, bigla nalang daw inalisan ng access sa outlook and sa dropbox without even saying anything sa tao na yun. Tapos nung kinausap bakit walang access, ang sabi matigas daw ang ulo kaya tatanggalin na siya.
He isn't just a micromanager, bully din siya. Ilang beses ko nakita umiyak ung friend ko sa sobrang pagka frustrated dahil pag sumunod ka (which mali mali naman ang utos kaya ang pangit ng firm) tapos pangit outcome galit sayo. And pag d ka sumunod and ginawa mo ung tama kahit ok outcome galit pa din sayo kasi hindi ka sumunod. Ang hirap lumugar. Sobrang trauma na ung friend ko bago mag message sa client mag tatanong pa muna saming barkada if tingin ba namin appropriate ung issend niya tapos sobra anxiety niya everyday kasi baka bigla siyang icall out. Nakakaawa mga tao don. Even their on site staff nakakaawa. That's just scratching the surface. Sobrang daming BS sa Tembusu Law na yan. Jonathan Wong ang poster sa OLJ.
As to the services they provide sa clients, Una sa lahat, bulok ang services nila. Sa sobrang sabog nila they miss deadlines and meetings and court hearings and then proceed to blame the paralegals who didnt "remind" or put the hearing dates on the calendar. When in fact these paralegals don't even have access to those dates. Kung saan makikita or mahahanap. How the hell will they know diba. Bukod dyan, I remember one story about a client na nag terminate ng service nila. Crim client daw ito and may investigation ata na naka sched na kailangan humarap sa police ng client. Sa sobrang sabog ng firm d nila alam ano uunahin so the weren't able to prep the client for that scheduled thingy. You know what the lawyer said? "Fake an illness get a certificate" para daw ma excuse and siguro ma resched. Nagalit ung nanay nung client anong klaseng advice daw yun.
Bukod diyan, since ang gulo nga internally, the don't respond to clients. They usa whatsapp and have GCs with the clients, it takes them days - weeks to respond to a simple yes or no questions. Pag nagalit ang client ang sisi nasa paralegals bakit hindi nag ssend ng "auto messages".
The pay sa OLJ na nakalay is 35k-65k, pero they're only actually offering 20,000 pesos lang as compensation. Scammer tlga. May inalis ata sila eh tapos papalitan kasi para mas mababa ang ipapasahod kaya ata nag hahanap.
Also found out he'll be interviewing someone tonight. Good luck sayo. Mag isip ka maigi and wag magpadala sa narcissist na yan.

If u think about it....jerma is essentially what u would call a tv or radio personality....or in this case a media personality on twitch. people tune in to listen to them talk and their dialogue and the interesting things they have to say, what they actually do is not of any particular importance,its just gives them some content to talk about or serve as an inspiration while they are doing it..... although it does contribute to the entertainment at the same time.
I'm pretty sure more than anything jerma enjoys being a personality..the greatest proof being some of the skits he put up, the elbertson family dinner for one thing,I'm pretty sure that's his real family, they have to be extremely familiar with one another to behave like that with each other for an hour and no way someone could have scripted a dinner conversation like that and even the best actors in the world could adlibbed such a scene.....u could tell right away something was fake or off,u can tell when some people are pretending to be someone they are not, Like the skit where people auditioned to be jerma.....u can tell it's a fake made up persona instantly...people just aren't creative enough to craft an entire persona and how they would act or think instinctively with great nuance it would take months of writing and carefully crafting and great imagination like Hannibal lecter from Westworld and hundreds of takes to act out hundreds of scenes that make up a one hour long dinner...and even then the movie persona is a part of the actors personality,Anthony Hopkins in Westworld can only act out roles that is like him or suits him. It's insane to think that u can get a bunch of random people to pretend to be ur family members without a script for an hour on such levels of familiarity and insanity yet so normal. It's crazy to think about it but that was probably his real family and brothers...but in some high level meta chess game he's pretending it's not But the most importing was that was one of the most insane comedy gold ever,
Being a personality ..is not just something they have done for nearly all their adult lives and it's part of who they are being entertainers to give it up is mind boggling it would literally be giving up their identities....like Cedric the entertainer or Dave Chappelle or that guy on family feud whose been clinging on to television since forever
There are many personalities that had incredibly long careers,for example David letterman has been hosting late night for nearly 35 years, bob parker the price is right also for 35 years,or Howard Stern also had a 4 decade long career and is still going,even people like Alex Jones has been on air since the 2000s..I used to be obsessed with Howard Stern and jon steward back in the late 2000s and early 2010s and binge watch or listen to years of episodes..the fact is people tune in to watch or listen to these people because they are entertaining personalities.
There is nothing stopping jerma from having a career as long as that, especially when considering he is still in his prime and peak of popularity,its not like he's dragging and beating a dead horse for years like dsp.
I'm sure jerma enjoys being a personality and would easily do it for decades given the appropriate format and also maybe audience.
I mean why would he quit jerma 985?I'm pretty sure part of it could be he's been doing this for so long....and a huge part of it is his audience, If it wasn't for the fact that most of the audience he attracts the last few years are young,and getting younger,but as a man approaching forty, no matter how young and childish jerma acts sometimes which is part of his appeal to the younger kids and connects him to them,there is alienation and disconnect not only generational and cultural difference but young people talk very differently,like very young people,and think and act very differently,while jerma is just an tired old man and old soul inside..as old as asmongold exterior already looks...I don't envy him imagine being an old man already in ur late twenties or thirties and having to deal with a bunch of teens and early mid twenties in chat, not to mention the generational conflict in thinking and styles of logic not saying jerma is the eptiome of logic but he is an example of a thirty something year old male.interacting with such a chat and a certain level of toxicity for years on end can wear u down psychologically and mentally.
If he had the right platform and format of content and maybe a slightly different audience, slightly older and more matured like jon steward tonight show or Howard Stern back in the 2000s maybe jerma could have chugged on for a while more.

Link to original Twitter thread and script of the video
"I was in a class setting recently at the teacher wanted to share a YouTube Video with the class. The sidebar was filled with harmless, but slightly embarrassing related videos. I just kept thinking about how awkward and funny that was.
I was talking to the other boys about how I wanted to make a really dry skit, kinda inspired by Safdie Brothers movies. I just kept talking about how the sidebar should be filled with really incriminating stuff and Rocco blurted out "Yeah, like how to fuck dogs" I died laughing.
I originally wrote this thinking it would be for me and Shawn, but Shawn said Garrett should take the role. Plus Garret had a dog, so if he was willing to bring the Dog in, he'd be the best actor to work with the little buddy.
Originally the sidebar was filled with a bunch of weird political crap, but when it came time to make the thumbnails (I made them on Canva) I just used the basic template thumbnails they recommended. Seemed like generic videos ALL about dogs would be way funnier.
When we were editing this, I put most of the video together. But originally the opening video Garret shares was silent. Rocco said we should add clown music and "BOINK" sounds... which was a good call. made the whole opening way weirder and a LOT funnier.
The confrontation in the office was filmed with 2 cameras, and me and Garrett acted through the scene in 1 go. We wanted it to be as natural and awkward as possible, so we just ran the scene and filmed both actors at the same time. Took about 4 takes to get it right.
Johnny was behind the camera for the coffee pot scene. He REALLY wanted me to put my head against the door like Jack Torrance in the shining. I'm glad he did cause that scene was a lot longer, and we ended up needing to cut to an alternate shot to make it go faster.
I ended up creating an entire fake YouTube page for the opening "Funny Video" including fake info and a fake pinned top comment. These sections tell the story of a Youtuber who got dumped days after his parent died. He went to a convention and had a "Level 17" coronary event.
While editing, I cut a few jokes out to make the conversation go by as fast as possible. I was really nervous what the reaction would be to this video, but people seem to like it so that's great! Glad people like the new video!!"

Recommended watch: Liquid vs Secret game 1

Meta

https://preview.redd.it/ru0v1scdon0d1.png?width=500&format=png&auto=webp&s=97c679c35818a7c74b9bbc31a3c0ae13c1d2e182
https://preview.redd.it/3m1z3l6eon0d1.png?width=500&format=png&auto=webp&s=b688607f9537ea9843b73eb831fc7ca3c2423f5e
Data source: datdota.com

2-2

Boom vs Shopify Rebellion

Boom: 0-2 vs XG, 2-0 vs Heroic, 2-1 vs Secret, 1-2 vs GG
SR: 0-2 vs BB, 2-1 vs VP, 2-0 vs Liquid, 0-2 vs Aurora
https://preview.redd.it/4adinqdlon0d1.png?width=500&format=png&auto=webp&s=e0da20b52e5e291926586a551081f3df0c71ddf1
Boom were in a downward spiral post-laning stage. After back-to-back fights where the Morph was caught in a Static Storm and killed (the first time was almost griefing when he was agi shifting), Shopify barreled down mid and continued their aggression. SR fearlessly dove their enemies past tier 3s. Boom no longer wanted to be part of the game after 27 minutes. SR with the convincing opener. SR 1-0 Boom.
https://preview.redd.it/qflrlwuoon0d1.png?width=500&format=png&auto=webp&s=598e5d94842e8487b68c09ab9caf9dcf85776156
The Bristleback became too much of a problem for Shopify. Boom's cores had considerable damage over time so SR needed short fights but there simply was no bursting the tanky cores on Boom with an Io backing them up. A lot relied on the Black Hole of Saberlight but a game-altering opportunity was never presented to Enigma. The final high-ground siege came with a Refresher on Brewmaster who bullied his opponents. The Dire couldn't even get close and even if they did, Kunkka's Water Park was too much of a nuisance. The Dire had to use their BKBs to run away. The Weaver with his BKB on cooldown got decimated in the aftermath. Enigma had to buyback and he forced a desperate Black Hole with no spell immunity which lasted less than a second. It was all Boom at the latter stages and they did a brilliant job forcing a game 3. Boom 1-1 SR.
https://preview.redd.it/0omalm9son0d1.png?width=500&format=png&auto=webp&s=b1d9caa7dda0cfab15a22d4585617405e72c7f7c
The two sides were fairly even early on but the lack of any impactful Chronos as the game progressed meant Boom had an easier time taking over. This is not an attack on Artour but that was a very lacklustre performance in an elimination game. Boom grew in confidence as the game got late (which shouldn't be the case against a Void). Boom had no trouble controlling and destroying the Void in fights. The final nail in the coffin came in the 40th minute. Void and his 2 supports get a kill on a solo Hoodwink. Void carelessly sticks around in the mid lane. Gets caught by a Grip. Dies for 90s with no buyback. On his respawn, the game is over. As a result of this loss, NA will be the only region not present in the playoffs and Boom will be the flagbearers of South America. Congrats to Boom. Boom 2-1 SR.

G2.iG vs BetBoom

G2.iG: 0-2 vs Liquid, 1-2 vs Secret, 2-1 vs AR, 2-0 vs Nouns
BB: 2-0 vs SR, 0-2 vs Aurora, 2-0 vs Mouz, 0-2 vs Spirit
https://preview.redd.it/ssuwi7dxon0d1.png?width=500&format=png&auto=webp&s=89d1d1e1cd551c5c654af9893b1c31f4476e82b0
BetBoom were trying their best to make things happen around the map early on but iG were reacting accordingly and made sure the opposition didn't get much. As the match progressed, iG's grip on the game only became tighter. The Chinese greedy strat of the pos 4 becoming a core was in full effect. Boboka's Clinkz was phenomenal. He ended with a higher networth than Brew & Timber. The Bone Fletcher provided great scouting for his team and was an incredible source of damage during the fights. Along with Luna's toolkit and Slardar's control + minus armor, BB dropped like flies in the fights. It got one-sided real quick and the Eastern Europeans had no way back into contention. G2.iG 1-0 BB.
https://preview.redd.it/di9r67r1pn0d1.png?width=500&format=png&auto=webp&s=8eee1106951766acc1bd23ec6d10676a63689395
The scripts were flipped for the second game. This time, it was BetBoom's turn to give a drubbing. G2.iG were spanked in the lanes. Boboka looked like he was trying to end global hunger with the way he was feeding in the laning stage. BetBoom snowballed and G2.iG got trampled on. We go to game 3. BB 1-1 G2.iG.
https://preview.redd.it/2hra7y86pn0d1.png?width=500&format=png&auto=webp&s=c916f5945628cd62a79033de622be9613fa5b16f
The Slap Fighting Championship continues and it's G2.iG's turn to slap. BetBoom couldn't really get anything going. During the fights, they had to commit so much to take down 1 core target. TA became such a monster that even Sven didn't want to trade hits with her. The Zeus paired with the TA Traps gave great vision which complemented the long-range disables the supports of G2.iG had. Shoutout to xNova for the spectacular display on Disruptor. 0 deaths! A rushed blink dagger meant BetBoom had to be extra careful with their positioning. He gave his opponents hell with his Glimpse plays and gave his team an easy victory. After finishing 2nd in Birmingham, BetBoom continue to show their inconsistent end product and will bow out in the groups. As for G2.iG, after losing their first 2 series to start the tournament, they have woken up, won 3 straight series, and will be the second Chinese team to play in the playoffs. Congrats to them. G2.iG 2-1 BB.

Liquid vs Secret

Liquid: 2-0 vs G2.iG, 0-2 vs XG, 0-2 vs SR, 2-0 vs Mouz
Secret: 0-2 vs GG, 2-1 vs G2.iG, 1-2 vs Boom, 2-1 vs VP
https://preview.redd.it/o5z8ai9apn0d1.png?width=500&format=png&auto=webp&s=6783172e3d7fbe659d272df43296538dce04e502
Secret looked like they were going to run away with the game. They had a great lead and a Sniper who looked untouchable with an Io backing him up. But Liquid had other plans. An Aegis siege for Secret at the 40th minute would be the beginning of their downfall. The Sniper's first life was the first casualty and chaos would ensue. Micke was incredible in weaving in and out of the fight while dishing out extreme damage to take out the opposition. DK would end up as the lone survivor for Secret as Liquid had a successful defense with no buildings lost. Secret's undoing continued in the Rosh pit. Secret were taking out Roshan but they only finished him once he was already in front of the twin gates. A brave 33 who went through the twin gates got rewarded as his Water Park secured him the Aegis. Secret would get decimated in the ensuing fight with only Engima surviving. Secret would continue to crumble. They could not offer the same high-ground defense as their opponents. Bane and Batrider were able to secure valuable targets before a defense could even be done. A lot was on the shoulders of Enigma's Black Hole but Insania understood the assignment. The Grip was patiently used to cancel Enigma's ult and dash any hopes Secret had. Liquid pulled off another incredible comeback. Liquid 1-0 Secret.
https://preview.redd.it/bqxqd0sfpn0d1.png?width=500&format=png&auto=webp&s=8e1cf4c23ef2d36bb54c96aa03c5b7e7561ce8e0
The second game had a completely different script from the first. Secret were the ones who did the chasing but this time around, there was no catching up. Liquid accrued an insurmountable advantage. Secret did show a lot of fight despite the hole they were in but they had zero answers for Nisha's Timbersaw. Rizzrack was beyond dominant. He was completely untouched for the second half of the game and it all became too much for Secret in the end. Nisha takes his team to the next round. Liquid 2-0 Secret.

It comes with a spoonful of distrust for the self.. when you attempt to seek relation and comfort from others, even when that thing comes from a "negative" place.. and when i use the word negative I don't mean bad, I mean negative in the way a battery has a positive and negative side, there always needs to be a place for both sides of things
In the pursuit of being understood, trying to "improve" things for people, trying to spread joy and happiness by fixing as big and unattainable problem and solution that is possible, thereby forcing myself into a state of perpetual procrastination, the pain of meaning well, and hurting others in the path to try and heal people.. it does not feel good yet it seems people think I get joy out of it
I realize.. when people misunderstand me, misunderstand my rants or even on the fly statements, on the internet or real life.. if I start using more words, and more complex or abstract words it does NOT make you easier to understand.. it makes it harder for people sometimes.. being louder and more passionate and more detailed.. these things can be nuanced and just cause more problems, people just default to seeing rage, and associate rage with stupidity, which is understandable yet undesirable
People cannot read my mind, they do not know I assume they know what I know, i assume all people are intelligent to a degree, that I do not hate or discriminate any kind of person, they see my rage and assume I hate everyone and everything, where it is the complete opposite.. people cannot read my mind, they don't know I think highly of strangers and consider anyone I talk to a "friend", I speak too freely and get myself in trouble, I panic and defend myself sometimes, Ironically people saying normal statements come across as an attack to me.. i don't ever purposefully participate in hypocrisy
and god forbid, like me, you attempt to do all these things at once, having a loud passionate rant, using unnecessary words and complex theories to try and explain a simple feeling, accidently being a hypocrite, all while spewing a paragraph to a complete stranger, and despite wanting to express it, I do not relate to or seem to understand certain feelings or simple straight forward feelings, things either work, or they don't, and when something says "I work, I work like this" and then it doesn't work.. its a spiral
Even in the past, conversations and disputes, "losing" debates where I was objectively correct, and I mean socially losing because I accidently used an insult too soon, or showed I was angry, and by insulting someone I declare a loss? because I shake when I upset I lose? I'm not discussing bullying right now, but it will always exist because it is apart of the social game. Even I have bullied in an attempt to be like others.
its like the pain of having a wifi connection that -kinda- works, and the 'movie' freezes.. but you keep trying.. wait to buffer.. freeze again etc..
yet if there is no wifi.. a book or a painting is an easy task. at least for me personally..
I have been criticized and taunted and bullied into following rules my whole life any time i am different, yet when I try and get others, be like others, in this system, like people who make and accept the rules, it makes me wish they would to do as they do and not just as they say, its like I am the crazy one no matter which way I function, whether that be with or against the current
Government and bureaucracy (I hate spelling that word T_T ) ... easy to criticize these concepts as they function in reality, but on paper, if things really work both ways in the sense that between entity and individual things are always fair and spoken for, then life in this "Late neo capitalist nightmare", even communism on paper works, or would work or could be better.. I dunno, maybe it is just human error.. or maybe nature has a way
I find it hard to accept that "things do be how they are"
I don't think "regular capitalism" is bad per say, ex; two people make chairs, one person makes higher quality chairs, and one person makes lower quality chairs, they compete in prices and quality, contention is natural, and its good for the consumer to have choices, there is a reason competing brands are often across the road from one another, not across town. (think fast food chains all huddled up) its not a coincidence (can look up the ice cream stall on the beach dilemma for similar phenomena)
Advertisement.. truly one of the poisons that is connected to every issue I swear I have ever complained about..
Anyway, despite appearances, and my past, or my future, i don't actually smoke meth or and amphetes.. I do have a heavy past with EVERY drug. I have travelled many places, been many people, lived amongst many subcultures, from farm to city, analog to digital, I've done a lot, but I don't party or do drugs anymore, I live with my partner and build my life alone, a ways away from strangers theses days
I honestly thought -everyone- did things to the same extreme degree I have, everyone had extreme views, extreme trauma, and extreme attitudes they were just masking, but maybe I am just a little extreme at times.. sex workers.. drugs.. parties.. fast cars.. i thought that shit was NORMAL.. I don't know what normal is.. imitating others lead to a wild life
I am NOT mentally ill... I'm just Autistic.. I don't think that means I "need" to see a therapist anymore.. already done that. Everytime I am frustrated by something that is objectively and subjectively frustrating.. and well it is frustrating, years ago I was mis-diagnosed with BPD, it ruined my life and only added to my "meth head" behavior, I done healed my brain, I done my rounds in therapy and with doctors, psychologists, psychiatrists and meds, been in and out of mental wards, arrested, convicted, you name it, I've done it. doesn't mean I'm proud of it just because I am proud of who I am now
I do not want to brag. or be a victim. or come across as a crazy. none of this is for attention, i actively hide from attention, I literally cannot avoid it, but I also still have thoughts worth sharing, all people do
I just want to share my thoughts and experiences in a passionate and honest way, to help others, I know people like me are out there.. not even just people who are like me, but anyone and literally everyone.. so sick of groups that "accept everyone" when they reaally mean "Accept everyone who is exactly like us".. social scripts and other forms of what I call "Toxic Positivity" which to me, is worse than just being toxic half the time
it doesn't bother me if no one ever reads this, or anything I write, I have novels of notes I don't know what to do with, either way, I appreciate you, I appreciate your time, even if you are here just to read the rants of a crazy, then well.. I love you for simply existing.
I know you are out there, and everything.. -something- just doesn't feel "right", you know?

I can understand that people dislike the show, I mean, it's okay not to like it if the narrative doesn't appeal you, it's so easy to just not watching it. However, I will never understand the active hate thrown not only to the show but also to the cast. The actors are not responsible of the flaws of the script and they work with what it's given to them. And I feel bad for them, because after all, they are working in the show with enthusiasm and illusion to deliver from their side, and yet, they keep being trashed and even bullied online by a ruthless "fandom" that somehow do not find anything positive in the show.
Why that joy in trying to humiliate everything involved in the series?

A friend of mine started playing Fates for the first time, so once again I got bitten by the “complaining about Fates” bug. In particular, watching chapter 18 of Conquest again after so many years really got me going, and while the general consensus I’ve seen online about this chapters writing was negative, I wasn’t that satisfied by any of the overviews of it I read. I decided to give it a shot myself.
Dissecting why something doesn’t work is fun and all, but I think it’s also important to be constructive which is why I wanted to rewrite this chapter alongside my criticisms. I really do think there’s a lot of potential here that could have been the highlight of the entire story, and so I’d love to try my hand rewriting this chapter to be what it could have been rather than what we got. I have most of it done already, but Reddit only has so many characters before it cuts you off and this post is plenty long enough as is, so I’ll save that for another part coming up soon. This will be part 1, explaining what the chapter is and elaborating on my issues with it, while part 2 will be rewriting it along with my thought process and explanations.
Recap: https://fireemblem.fandom.com/wiki/Black_%26_White/Script
Corrin and Co are traveling when they decide to rest for the night at the nation of Izumo. They are greeted by Izana, the archduke of the kingdom, who seems to be a real goofball. After introducing himself, the levity is ended when it’s revealed the entire Hoshidan family has been invited here as well! Before any swords can be undrawn, Izana tells both parties that the kingdom has a strict neutrality pact neither of them can violate.
The scene cuts to later, where Ryoma enters Corrin and Xanders room to talk with them. Xander and Ryoma’s argument is cut short when Ryoma is dragged off by Nohrians. Turns out “Izana” is actually a Nohrian mage named Zola, who disguised himself to trick the Hoshidan royal family into a trap. Corrin and Xander don’t approve of such dishonorable methods to win, however, and fight to rescue their captives with Xander saying “we’ll win this war with honor or die trying”. After Leo kills Zola, the game cuts to later where we see Nohrians and Hoshidans alike having a meal, much to the delight of the real Izuma, who turns out is exactly as bizarre as the fake impression. Xander and Ryoma confirm with eachother that their fight will continue as usual, but Corrin states that no matter what happens they’re grateful they got to see both families eating together even if it’s not under the best circumstances, and the chapter ends with them saying they’ll revel in this feeling.
So on paper, I think this chapter is a great idea. Despite being at war, when one family is at the total mercy of the other, they lend a hand instead of kicking them while they’re down. This highlights how the two nations could accomplish so much together if only they weren’t at war with eachother. If utilized well, this could have been a great “eye of the tornado scene” emphasizing how tragic it is that these two families who share so much in common are forced by fate to fight eachother, making it all the more sorrowful when that’s brought to it’s conclusion through bloodshed. This would also encourage Conquest players to buy Birthright in a natural and subtle way as well now that they’ve had a nice sample of the other side. Of course, I don’t think this chapter was utilized well, and after reading the script again I believe it boils down to three major problems.
-Problem 1: The Lack of Worldbuilding Causes the Conflict to be Driven by Contrivances.
This is one of the many instances where the lack of fleshing out the world and it’s rules out really hampers the weight of the scenes. Unlike Awakening where there was a general cause-and-effect outlining the level structure, all of the Fates routes are much more individual and self-contained when it comes to chapters. This means the game has to really stretch itself to justify this elaborate setup being brought up and solved in one single chapter of regular length, and it’s very apparent when you write out the summary of events here.
Corrin and his army are just walking by when they happen upon the capital of the country. Corrin decides this would be a great place to rest for the night at and are instantly welcomed by its leader, who is also the only person in the game of that country. The entire Hoshidan family also just happen to bump into us because they coincidently came here at roughly the same time, with somehow neither party noticing the other until they were staring at eachother in the same room.
The only thing we know about this new nation we’ve never seen or heard about before is that it’s a peace-loving land with some sort of neutrality pact which means the two nations can’t fight here. What is the importance of this place that would entice all the Hoshidan royals to come over for a banquet in the middle of their country being invaded? Never explained. What exactly is this pact and what power does Izuno have to enforce it, if any? Never explained. Xander, prince of a nation at war and frontline general, has never heard of it. How does Garon or Iago never figure out or look into what happened here, considering the royals walked through their trap unharmed and everybody in charge of the trap vanished? Never brought up.
How many times here was this supposedly major event dependent on coincidences, seemingly important details left completely unexplained, and characters not knowing things that should be basic information of the world they live in? Things like all this quickly build up and make the world feel small scale and artificial, as if nothing truly exists until it’s in the peripheral vision of main characters. In a vacuum, this could all be excusable if the main meat of the chapter was just so dense and important that they just want a convenient excuse to delve into it. But about that…
-Problem 2: Nothing happens, either character-wise or plot-wise.
This is the only scene in both Birthright and Conquest where all eight of the royal families are together in one spot, and they’re unable to fight eachother. What a brilliant idea! How many great scenes could you come up with from this setup alone? How many directions could this move towards?

-The families bonding over their memories with Corrin (X)
-Calling eachother out for uncool actions, like Ryoma refusing to help Elise or Nohr siccing monsters on farming villages (X)
-Working together to defeat some threat they’d have trouble taking down on their own (X)
-Some cultural exchange (X)
-Some melancholy scene where, even if there’s a lot of resentment, they acknowledge how this may be the last time they ever get to have a meal with Corrin. (Somewhat?)
-Corrin sits down and has a mature conversation with his birth family elaborating on their choice to stay with Nohr (X)
-Some negotiation or debate between the two families about the future of their countries relationship, successful or not (X)
-Corrin being formally declared by the Hoshidan royals as a Nohrian, officially cutting them out of the family (X)

So what does Conquest do with this prompt? It does the unexpected route where all of them but Ryoma are shuffled out as soon as they’re introduced, captured offscreen, rescued offscreen, most of their dinner is offscreen, finishing their meal and leaving is offscreen, all of them sans Ryoma have barely any dialog, and none of them are even present in any of the CG’s.
We actually start off strong, Ryoma and Xander naturally puff out their chest and don’t get along when they’re in the same room, but seem to calm down when Corrin elaborates on how similar they are to eachother. But the game is so eager to get to fighting that it drags Ryoma away kicking and screaming before he even gets to share what he had to say to Corrin, let alone explore what having common ground means to the two of them.
1) I understand this is the Nohrian route so it makes sense the focus is mostly on them, but Takumi only gets three lines here, one of which is “…” Hinoka also only gets three lines, which I think is still more than she got in Birthright, and two of those lines are “You!” and “What are you doing here?”. Sakura lucks out as she’s the only sibling on either side who has anything to say whatsoever when Corrin says they’re grateful they could share another meal with the Hoshidans. That’s a start, but the fact remains Ryoma is the only sibling in the chapter whose remotely relevant, the rest could be omitted and nothing would change. They are only here to be damsels in distress heightening the stakes of defeating the local bad guy rather than providing any character development, checking up on how they are doing without Corrin and Azura, comparing and contrasting their differences between their counterparts, sharing any new information about them, foreshadowing Takumi’s possession, any notable interactions with their counterparts, etc. But no, nothing happens.
2) I also understand this is a video game and they don’t have all the time in the world before the next fight has to happen, yet Conquest is oddly completely uninterested in it’s own set-up. Zola, a minor chapter boss introduced and killed in this chapter, has more screentime and relevance here than any of the siblings, something you’d think would be the actual meat of the chapter they’d want to delve into.
The implications and weight of two dueling nations and families obligated to pause their fighting and dine with eachother could easily take up two or even three chapters as a pivotal arc, yet it’s completely blazed through as if the game considered it a cute novelty rather than a potential life-changing or history-changing moment. Simply put, it’s wasted potential, as if to say “Oh both of the two families meeting in a game about choosing between mutually exclusive families? Eh whatever.”
I wanna stick with just this chapter and not rewrite a good chunk of the entire story, but I can’t stress enough that in any other game this chapter would be the plot-defining moment paving the new way forward rather than chapter 15’s “we’ll expose Garon as a monster by helping him invade an innocent people.”
Neither of the two families are fighting because they outright want to, this isn’t a war about irreconcilable differences or mutually exclusive goals, the only reason for any conflict whatsoever as far as the game has shown us is that the guy in charge of Nohr is a sociopath who threatens to kill his own children at the drop of a hat. Sure, they probably won’t hold hands singing kumbaya after one extended conversation with eachother, but when all of them are in a truce far away from Garon’s authority having a meal together, nothing significant comes out of it plot-wise?
In fact, at the end of the day what significance happened here at all?

• -We learned about a new country, but we know very little about it and (other than Izama potentially joining the party later) absolutely none of it will be relevant after this chapter anyways.
• -Well, maybe this place is just set dressing so we have an excuse to meet up with our siblings again, but then nobody has any meaningful interactions, new info to share, planning ahead, or character development resulting from sharing scenes with them.
• -Then is the primary focus supposed to be on how this situation affects the Nohrian family? The antagonist and the conflict he brings is introduced and quickly solved without any consequences, with all the siblings instantly in agreement about stopping him. They don’t really talk amongst eachother about their feelings or how to go forward.

If there’s no juicy character interactions or exploration, and no setting up future events, then presumably the point of this big moment of Corrin and Xander leaping to save their enemies was made to show off that despite working in the same army, our heroes are indeed better than the swarms of war criminals under Nohr’s name we’ve seen and would never tolerate such things under normal circumstances. They’ve talked the talk about disagreeing with their father’s cruel methods, now here’s proof they’ll walk the walk, aren’t they such noble people? The way this is done however, opens up another can of worms…
-Problem 3: Protags come off as dicks
While our heroes are indeed more likeable and moral than blatant monsters like Garon and Hans, liking peace and disliking war crimes is not enough of a reason for a pat on the back. Our protags might not be burning villages for fun, but it’s difficult to take their proclaimed goal of peace seriously considering both the context of working for people who DO burn villages for fun and they way they handle themselves when presented with an opportunity to work on this supposed goal.
Corrin and Azura

• This is not seeing things under the worst possible interpretation to be a stick in the mud, Nohr is indeed invading Hoshido for no apparent reason and leaving war crimes wherever it’s armies go. Everybody in the building is aware of this to some extent.
  
• Azura and Corrin’s grand plan to expose Garon as a slime monster to his family indeed involves directly helping Garon conquer Hoshido, which they acknowledge will bring destruction and suffering that the nation and royal family have done nothing to deserve.
  
• Corrin and Azura are indeed presented with a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity here to sit down behind closed doors and communicate anything, just anything significant at all, to the royal family that still seems to value them, but our heroes don’t even try or seem to acknowledge that. Corrin doesn’t have any interactions with them that last more than a sentence or two, and Azura is never acknowledged nor speaks to them.
  
• And yet despite, all this, both Corrin and Azura are quite pleased with the turn of events here, with Corrin acknowledging they’ll “probably try to kill eachother next time they see eachother” but that they’ll “revel in this feeling.”
  

Azura in particular is problematic here. During Odovakar 's excellent overview of the problems with Fates writing, he goes into detail about how Azura’s line about “this is all quite heartwarming. We're like one big family...albeit, a dysfunctional one.” in particular comes off as incredibly tone deaf and tasteless given the circumstances of Azura and Corrin marching on one family’s homeland for the sake of the other family. What I think was also worth noting is the context leading up to that line…

Sakura: I was just, um...th-thinking...it's really nice to finally see you again. I'm glad you... I'm glad you f-found a way to be happy... Corrin: Sakura... I'm happy to see you too. Sakura: R-really? You mean it?! Oh, Corrin! Elise: HMPH! Back off, you! He/She's my brothesister! MINE! Sakura: Ah! I'm s-sorry! Corrin: Elise! Mind your manners, little one. Elise: But she's trying to take you away from me... She's my archnemesis

Whether intentional or not, this is actually a very clever microcosm of the family’s conflict acted out by the youngest and most innocent among them who probably weren’t even born when the conflict started. The Hoshidan loves their sibling, but their time with Corrin is interrupted by the Nohrian shoving them away and declaring Corrin for themselves. This is a great way to challenge our protags to some introspection about themselves.

Azura: Heehee! Corrin: Azura? Did you just...giggle?

Instead, Azura just finds this a real knee-slapper. I understand maybe this is just meant to be a cute image of imoutos fighting over oni-chan Corrin and nothing more, but the context makes it very hard to swallow the narrative’s insistence that all this is “heartwarming” as Azura puts it. Keep in mind that all the Hoshidan nobles are sitting at the same table watching all this. Do you think Ryoma also finds it funny that his little sister is scared off and declared an archnemesis by the daughter of the man who killed his father in cold blood? Do you think Hinoka also thinks it's like one big dysfunctional family when Corrin is preparing to march on her homeland with an army?
I get it, I totally know what they were going for, and in a vacuum it could be a great line making for a properly bittersweet moment. “Even if the two are at eachothers throats and the future is bleak, me and Azura are grateful we get to have at least one big normal dinner together like a real family.”
But the future is bleak because of Corrin and Azura participating in an invasion, the families are at eachothers throats partially because Corrin and Azura haven’t accomplished anything to reform Nohr. If anything, Corrin should feel great shame here. Elise just unintentionally reenacted the history between the nations where Nohr was clearly in the wrong, and Corrin is sitting directly across and staring at the family who’ve done nothing wrong to him yet are going to be hurt because of Corrin’s decision. Grateful they could spend time with them again? Maybe. But cheerful and laughing?

ProZD: D-did an alien write this game? blows gently

But at least Corrin doesn’t show outright contempt for the family they’re screwing over…
Xander and Leo

Xander: Corrin! There's no need to insult me like that. I could not possibly be anything like this sorry excuse for a prince. … Xander: We will win with honor or die trying. Come, Corrin. Let us go set free our sworn enemy. … Corrin: Heh, sorry... It's just that you and Ryoma really are so much alike. If you weren't on opposite sides of a war, I think you could have been great friends. Xander: Yeesh... Do me a favor and keep that nonsense in your head where it belongs. … Xander (to Ryoma): We only acted as Nohrian royals should. When we leave this place, you'll be nothing but an enemy to be defeated once more.

Okay, but why? Ryoma is not the one Xander overheard laughing to himself about how much he’s going to make Corrin suffer. How are the Hoshidan royals “nothing but enemies to be defeated” here when they’re just trying to defend their homeland from somebody who assassinated their king at a peace meeting? Where is all this contempt from Xander coming from?
It’s perfectly understandable he doesn’t get along super well with Ryoma because of the tensions between their nations, that makes sense, but I see no reason for why Xander is making several petty insults to his face unprompted, let alone so nonchalant and even somewhat eager to get back to waging a war Xander himself calls “a senseless war of greed and madness” in the epilogue.
He doesn’t treat his own people much better this chapter, declaring Zola and his henchmen as “traitors” to be “dealt with” for their dishonorable methods when ironically Zola taking over the country by disguising himself as the archduke is actually one of the least evil and self-destructive things we’ve seen the kingdom do so far. It must be emphasized that every sibling was in the same room watching Garon demand Xander kill Corrin if he interferes with killing POWs for his amusement, and half of them were in the same room when Garon ordered his henchmen to murder every singer they can find in a neutral country. So a few hundred or thousand innocent people, most of whom would presumably be young woman, murdered to snuff out potential assassins. Or Garon directly ordering the deaths of unarmed civilians in chapter 13 with Hans relaying “Villagers are just soldiers who haven’t picked up a sword yet.”
Xander talks a big game in this chapter about how “we’ll win this war with honor or die trying”, but how do you honorably win a war when your nation is constantly and openly rushing to pointless overkill brutality like this at every turn? What moral high ground does this country have that Xander is so determined to preserve he kills loyal soldiers over what he sees as sullying it, when at no point in the game does the influence of Nohr ever do anything but make life significantly worse? His sudden fervor towards doing the right thing is completely contrasted later on when Xander is the one telling Corrin there’s no justice to be found in war and you just gotta do what you gotta do rather than what’s morally right, in response to Corrin being upset the Nohrian army is killing woman and children who looked at them funny.

“Justice is an illusion, a fairy tale…Letting innocents die is a tragedy, but so is letting the chance for peace slip away. This is war. There is no such thing as a clean win when lives are on the line.”

“Justice is just a fairy tale, innocent people getting screwed over is something we have to accept in war because there’s no such thing as a clean win! But also we better win this senseless war of greed and madness with honor or die trying!”

• If “justice is an illusion”, how is killing Nohrian soldiers to free people who are apparently “nothing but enemies to be defeated” so you can fight them later on terms you prefer, directly prolonging a war which will lead to much more deaths on both sides, for the benefit of Nohr? By Xanders own logic, is this not letting the chance for peace slip away since there’s no such thing as a clean win? Forget Garon and Iago, I’m confident the citizens back home whose loved ones got conscripted would be the ones demanding his head if they found out about this. A very charitable interpretation is that ending the war this specific way will cause more chaos and fighting in the long-term compared to if they conquered and oppressed an innocent nation fair and square, but that’s nowhere to be found in the script whatsoever.
  
• If Xander believes in “We’ll win this war with honor or die trying”, why is he still following Garon? Garon is winning the war in part thanks to honorless and extreme acts of cruelty like blackmailing the Ice Tribe or making an example out of Scarlet’s body, yet instead of taking action against him like he does with Zola, Xander is instead the most loyal sibling to him to the point Corrin decides the best way to get him on his side is to expose Garon as a literal slime monster? Where’s Xander’s zeal of “Come Corrin, let’s go save our sworn enemies” when his father orders Hans is go through killing injured and surrendering foes who were promised they be spared? Where’s his conviction shown here about “not letting treachery go unpunished” when his father outright says he couldn’t care less about the welfare of his people and he’ll just kill anybody who complains to make an example?
  

I understand one might get the impression I’m going off topic or selectively picking and choosing quotes here from all over the game, but no matter how you look at it Xanders beliefs, morality, and priorities are just all over the place depending on what the plot needs him to do. This means not only is his motivation for helping his enemies here faulty no matter how you look at it, but it also makes the extreme lengths he goes to do so, killing his own subjects who won him victory on a silver platter because it wasn’t a “proper” victory, come off as baselessly self-righteous at best and outright cruel at worst.
I’m sure the game would assure us Zola and all his mooks are terrible people who had it coming, but the issue is no matter how virtuous you portray Xander and creepy you portray Zola, Xander is still directly managing the war for a megalomaniac and helping him achieve his goals in spite of his long history of open sadism and public crimes that make Zola look like a saint. By ignoring the clear root cause of Nohr's dishonor while going this hard against random goon's participating in dishonor, instead of being a gallant preserver of morals, he comes off like a bully who selectively picks and choices punishment.
On the topic of punishment, it particularly rubs me the wrong way how Leo just casually mercs Zola at the end, keep in mind Birthright confirms for all his faults he actually isn’t a complete monster like Garon and dies trying to help the protag.

Leo (smiling portrait): You’d probably rather die than live with the shame, correct? In that case…
Zola: Eek! No, please! M-m-milord... I was wrong! S-so wrong! I have seen the error of my ways! P-please...spare my unworthy life!!
Leo (still smiling): Make peace with it, Zola. Perhaps on the other side you will find forgiveness.

Leo makes a fair argument that the stakes are too high and Zola can’t be trusted not to snitch, but this is bit sadistic, no? One of the most powerful people in the country is smug and sarcastic as he’s getting ready to execute somebody whose bleeding on the ground begging for his life and genuinely confused as to why we’re upset with him. I know the intent of “I was wrong! I have the seen the error of my ways!” is supposed to be him saying whatever Leo wants to hear to weasel out of punishment, but that’s exactly the thing, he’s fully cooperating and doing everything he can to appease this guy. And then he’s just killed like a dog without trial or final words, presumably using the spell that skewers you with tree branches.
Didn’t the game use killing defeated foes like this to establish Garon as a bloodthirsty monster? Why is Corrin just standing there watching this happen? This exact same scenario in Birthright has them jump to spare Zola, but here their disapproval is very meek and only voiced after the deed is already done. It’s still apparently too much for Leo though, who chastises Corrin for being “too soft…I envy your innocence.” And then he declares the matter settled on their behalf.
I’m sure this scene was meant to show off Leo’s pragmatism and strategy skills, but it just makes him look like a sociopath and Corrin look spineless. And that’s the biggest issue with this chapter to me, more than the plot being driven by contrivances that aren’t explained or the lack of any character development or interesting scenes taking advantage of the setup, the actions and dialog of our protags don’t match the noble heroes the narrative insists they are:

• Corrin is openly enjoying spending time with innocent people they’re throwing under the bus so Corrin won’t have to risk their relationship with the Nohrian siblings by directly fighting Garon. They then clearly disapprove of Leo executing a surrendering foe begging for mercy but stand idle watching it happen.
• Azura sits directly across her former family who’ve been very negatively impacted by her decisions and actions, and will continue to be so in the future, yet she’s giggling about the conflict and doesn’t seem to be taking the fact that her two families might kill each other seriously.
• Xander insults Ryoma as a sorry excuse for a prince, and afterwards kills his own subjects to prolong a war of aggression so it can be won the way he personally wants it to be won.
• Leo seems to be having a good time killing somebody who’s surrendered and begging for his life. He then chides Corrin for being “too soft” when they wish that didn’t have to happen.
• And again, for no apparent reason, neither Corrin or Azura do the bare minimum to clue to the Hoshidans about what’s going on or even have a meaningful conversation with them despite claiming to care for them. This is the golden opportunity they were hoping for, yet they apparently spend the entire dinner instead talking to eachother about how happy they themselves are.

These are not the actions of heroic characters.
Summary: Overall, this is a very bizarre chapter. It feels like something meaningful happens here at first glance, your brain sees what’s going on and knows that this is supposed to be a huge moment. Peaceful music playing, a very well-drawn CG of dozens of individual units, liberating a country from Nohrian control, Corrin and Azura are happy and say some lines that sound like they should be deep and impactful.
But when you step back and analyze the bigger picture and context, you find that more or less embodies all of Fates writing, both good and bad. It has a brilliant premise that gets your mind going, excellent presentation to accompany it, and some individual scenes or dialogue in a vacuum are very welcome. If you’re a casual player who just wants context for your favorite characters fighting, it’s easy to feel satisfied at first glance and move on thanks to those factors, especially since the gameplay and MyCastle are very fun. At the same time, there’s no denying the severe flaws that hamper the experience.
Despite being the hyped-up main draw of the chapter, our exciting premise that opens so many doors is almost completely neglected in favor of (once again) exposition on meaningless settings and characters that aren’t relevant anywhere else and also reminding us how evil Nohr is, to the point the chapter title is Black and White. The context makes it very difficult to take the plight of our heroes seriously due to their lack of action (both before and in the present) to achieve their proclaimed goal despite ample opportunity, the proaction they do have being unnecessarily extreme and self-serving, and a narrative that insists they are in the right at every turn despite the results clearly showing us otherwise. There’s definitely bits and pieces of something great buried in all this teasing us, otherwise I wouldn’t be interested enough to write this much all these years later, but as is it’s just a mess. An enjoyable mess, but a mess all the same.

But what do you guys think of Conquest Chapter 18: Black and White? Do you also consider it a wreck, or was there something positive here you believed I missed? What would you like to see in a potential rewrite of it?

Need feedback.. I am apparently banned from a medspa.. I have been going to for about a year & have had many expensive treatments.. the last one in question was the most expensive $2500.. We had a consult & because its a Procedure i haven”t had before had her write me a script for valiuum to have just in case it was too painful which ive done at other medspa”s with no issue, in fact they encouraged it… Well the day came & she gave me 6 of the most painful shots Ive ever experienced in my life.. I was litterally screaming & the procedure had not even begun… there was zero empathy shown to my discomfort more like angry that i dared to feel pain.. everyone has a different Pain tolerance…more of a feeling like let”s just get on with it i have other patients.. felt like an assembly line…so she started the Procedure & even with the numbing certain areas felt like my skin was being carved off.. so I had to stop & take the valuum which enraged her & she said now it will take 25 min to kick in to which i said no it will take 5 min which it did.. I even apologized profusely which I seriously regret..& I was met with stone silence… anyway we continued on 5 minutes later no more issues the valium kicked in & we finished.. now Im banned … I am not seeing something.. I know she is on a schedule but I had discussed this ahead of time & told her this is what i would do .. so confused & really beating myself up over it.. i do like the result i should add.. but I felt bullied & it was such a mean girl vibe.. Please be kind as I already feel bad enough..

Hello. Please keep in mind this is a throwaway. My friend is on Reddit but I am praying he won't see this. Anyways, I thought this might be the best place to put this. If not, it's ok. I'll put this somewhere else.
I am very concerned about my friend.. let's call him "Gem". He's a 16yo trans male, and from what I know about his past, he's been bullied a whole lot, ever since kindergarten, from what I know. In our school that we're at now, he gets bullied constantly, yet he is the therapist friend (Which from what I know, has been a thing for a LONG time. Since he was 13, I think?) . If we're having issues, he'll immediately text us. He will quite literally drop everything to help anybody in our friend group and out. Whenever we thank him, he just says "It's what I'm here for." He is also a content creator and he overworks himself constantly and makes a TON of stuff without taking breaks. He's also making a movie and stuff like that, but he's been doing this for a while so I'm worried he's getting too worn out and working himself too hard.
Just recently, he's started going quiet, and bringing a small plush to school, which he calls his "Anxiety Buddy". The quiet part is totally unlike him, because he's usually very talkative, and kind to everyone, no matter what they've done to him. But he's just- gone quiet. He will wave and talk sometimes, but most of the time he hugs his little anxiety buddy or writes in his script book and just looks honestly depressed, and I'm getting really worried about him. Is he getting depressed/possibly more depressed?? What does this mean, and what can I do to help him??

https://www.sltrib.com/religion/2024/05/14/no-easy-answers-lds-parents-wonder
Might be behind a paywall, I have JavaScript turned off on the page so I can read it anyway 😅 I'll put up some quotes and give a tl dr: basically tons of research shows that waking up early as a teen is extremely bad for your mental health, but the church doesn't care.

A mounting body of evidence indicates that teens not only need more sleep than adults but also that hormonal shifts make it harder for them to go to bed before 10 or 11p.m. At the same time, researchers have gained a clearer picture of the risks associated with teenage sleep deprivation, among them serious mental health issues and substance abuse.
Tired teens, recent studies have discovered, are more prone to major depression and risky behavior, including drug experimentation. One study, published in 2023, found that sleep-deprived adolescents were about twice as prone to suicide ideation and consideration, even when adjusting for sexual identity, trauma, bullying and other related factors. Another, published the year before, suggested a possible link between poor adolescent sleep and an increased risk of schizophrenia.

The church won't make any changes, and the parents and kids are brainwashed into thinking it's worth the "sacrifice". They have other options, like online or late night classes, but since they're not the norm kids and parents still feel the pressure to keep the status quo and do regular seminary. It's a classic "cultural" problem where the church refuses to acknowledge the influence it has on the problems it causes.
My two cents: I definitely don't have any lasting sleep disorders exacerbated by seminary /s 🙄 Jazz band at my high school was before school, my freshman year I just went to seminary instead, but then we tried having seminary just for a handful of band kids after school. For whatever reason by my junior year we switched to extra early seminary at 5:45am (I know a ton of people that had it that early as well in other districts and states). I slept through every class that wasn't active (like band or drafting) every single day of that year and the next. I even had to drop out of honors pre-calculus because I just couldn't stay awake.
The kids in most classes referred to me as "that sleeping kid". Though to be fair it was pretty funny when I got the second highest score on the practice AP physics test and the guy who sits next to me was like "what?? He's asleep ALL THE TIME" (I didn't do as well on the actual test though 😅).
And now in my thirties it's almost impossible to even get out of bed without Adderall or a large amount of caffeine, and it's impossible to get to sleep without Ambien or a large amount of weed (and yes, that includes days where I didn't take stimulants, and vice versa). This research on how much sleep teens actually need is almost a decade old, and some high schools have even pushed back their start times because of it (and consequently saw a noticeable bump in their test scores). And the church still won't address this issue that's actually harming kids. They either don't care about the kids outside of Utah or really appreciate how much easier brainwashing is when you're sleep deprived.