Harsh Repose

this place is not a place of honor

no highly esteemed deed is commemorated here

nothing valued is here

what is here is dangerous and repulsive to us

the danger is in a particular location

so in 1993 a report was developed by two panels of materials science experts, linguists, anthropologists, architects, geologists and astronomers to create a marking system for the site. they proposed different levels of messages to be placed in the area. and the language part of the report is amazing because they’re really trying to cover everything. my favorite parts:

should we just design the whole structure to look ominous and scary and not put any messages on it? no, because when has that ever stopped humans from doing anything.

but also some facial expressions are universal and have been basically since we’ve been around, so there should be pictographs of faces conveying horror and sickness, as well as ‘what is here is dangerous and repulsive to us.’

we have to explain what we buried here and what would happen if they went looking, because if we don’t they’ll absolutely go looking. so the expert panel suggested including both a detailed message where we explain in scientific terms what radioactivity is, and one that says: ‘the danger is to the body, and it can kill. the form of the danger is an emanation of energy.’

star maps will be used to convey the passage of time, and we’re including instructions on what they mean and how to use them.

we have to explain that this fancy structure isn’t actually hiding anything interesting. i.e. the tomb of some great leader that’s filled with treasure. hence the part of the message that says: 'this place is not a place of honor. no highly esteemed deed is commemorated here. nothing valued is here.‘ 

but also we shouldn’t make it not interesting because there’s a lot of potential in designing the site so it develops deep cultural significance for future humans:

‘a monumental, intellectually stimulating system would enhance performance with higher probability than would a less energetic design based on minimal investment, thought at creativity. an oral tradition tethered to the marker system would emphasize (1) that it was designed to be the world’s longest lasting human artifact, (2) that it was intended as a gift to guard the health of future generations, and (3) that it is the world’s largest celestial ‘clock’ marking the millennia. hyperbole and altruism are strong themes in the world’s folk tales, songs and myths.’

X/Twitter might have actually hit the final nail in the coffin this time. It's no longer a safe space for artists to post art.

X-Men #98

I like the way Claremont initially establishes their relationship - Jean's flirtiness, Scott's hesitance. This isn't their first on-panel kiss, but it is one of the early ones, and I think it's really sweet. I love how Scott and Jean have changed as people in-universe and I love how they've changed as characters over the decades.

X-Men #132

I'm including this one mostly because two of the other kisses will reference it. Which isn't to say that I don't like it, because obviously I do, but I have nothing new to say about it. It's like THE Scott/Jean kiss.

X-Men #137

I think this kiss tends to get overshadowed by other parts of 137, which is fair, but there's something so tragic about the last kiss -- especially considering that Jean is possibly already planning for this to be their last kiss.

X-Factor #26

I was debating between the one in X-Factor #25 and this one, but the paneling here is unmatched. The 3 beats of the panels of her initiating, her explaining, and then him initiating is so good, especially with how expressive Simonson's body language is. And then that long pan out, so you just get the whole page really lingering in this moment.

X-Factor #53

I'm cheating and putting two kisses from this issue because I just love the range of Scott/Jean we get in this issue. The first one is so playful and fun, reminiscent of the kiss in X-Men #98, except Scott is no longer hesitant. And then the passion and romance of Jean "sweeping him off his feet," soundtracked with "As Time Goes By." And then Jean immediately getting caught in remembering the kiss in Arizona from X-Men 132 and Scott deciding that this playful and romantic evening is a wonderful time to propose, which Jean declines because she feels like she's being pushed into it. This issue is so good for the range, and these two kisses (plus the flashback one) really capture the complicated emotional journey of these two.

The Adventures of Cyclops and Phoenix #2

Nothing says romance like your son being totally exasperated by how often the two of you make out. The joys of parenthood. :)

Phoenix Resurrection: The Return of Jean Grey #5

The "stolen moment" quality of this kiss is so good. Scott is only alive so very briefly here, but they're both real and alive together for the first time in years (both in universe and in real world time). Like the 137 kiss, Jean may have some knowledge about the brief nature of the time they have left, but I think in this one, they're more on the same page -- Scott knows that he will have to die.

X-Men: Hellfire Gala (2022)

I like when they have sex!! I like when writers don't assume Jean is a virginal prude when she's been forward about her desires since at least X-Men #98. I also like when they have sex after planning how best to help the future of mutantkind together. This set-up deliberately invokes the 132 kiss, so it's especially noticeable how different the circumstances are and how much has changed for Scott and Jean since then.

Buffy and Angel comics will return with publisher Dynamite and writer Kelly Thompson

Sigh. I remember after DD s2 when it was "kastle shippers who think there's anything between Frank and Karen don't understand the character at all. His heart died with his family. He can never have romantic feelings for another woman after Maria"...

And yet, here we are 3 shows and 9 years later and Frank Castle canonically has romantic feelings for Karen Page. LOL

What's so difficult to understand about the fact that mcu/netflix Frank is a different iteration of the character and so doesn't necessarily have to have the same fate as his comicbook version?

No one's expecting Frank and Karen to ride off into the sunset or relocate to the countryside to live on a farm. But if you don't see how Karen was framed as a possible potential "after" for Frank, then maybe you weren't paying attention.

Frank is older, weaker, using pills for his pain and for the first time in Frank Castle history, he's fallen hard for someone after Maria (please don't mention him & Elektra in the comics, it was hot but not the same or close). Everything about him having romantic feelings for someone post tragedy is new. It's never happened before with any other version of Frank, comics or screen. There's no benchmark to hold it to. So quite literally, anything could happen. It just depends on what the show runner decides to do. The character has to be retired at some point and they're not killing him off. He can't remain static forever, that works for comicbooks, not for tv. There's also only so many times they can have him reject Karen and choose war over her. Been there, done that. Next.

The comics are designed to go on forever + and that's why they need stories that can't be resolved. That's how superheroes end up with the endless cycle of fridged girlfriends/wives and why every nation the x-men start for mutants gets destroyed eventually and why no one stays dead: In comics, the story can never end. In the comics, giving Frank a romantic storyline could never be the final end of his storyline.

TV-shows and live action actors cannot go on forever. They need to come to a satisfying conclusion for the characters we've come to care about. So they actually need to be able to undergo permanent developments for that. So saying "Frank Castle falling in love/quitting as the Punisher would be a bad adaption" - ignores the fact that an adaption actually has to adapt.

And I would argue that this is especially true for Frank because unlike the Defenders, he occupies a much darker role - he's not a superhero. He also doesn't have a life to fall back on the way Matt or Danny or Jessica do (I think it's a bit more complicated with Luke with how famous he is and the way season 2 ended but I hope we find out what he's up to)

The spammer assumes that any given fanfiction author is "unemployed" and will be insulted and consider themselves a failure for being such.

Oh my fucking god it got another one, this is so funny 🤣🤣🤣

This one doesn't make any sense either, and seems to be trying to attack the author for posting for validation instead of because they were inspired.

Here's the thing. In the US.

DO NOT TALK TO LAW ENFORCEMENT IN THE FIRST PLACE.

If you are in a situation where you're lying to law enforcement, you are already interacting too much. STOP TALKING.

You can ask if you are free to go. You can keep asking.

Per the National Lawyers Guild, ESPECIALLY do not lie to the FBI. Do not say things to them that could be construed as lying. Those are serious charges. The best way around that is NOT TALKING.