#recommendation post

Starting things off with @souloperatorpod which was created by our very own Marigold, @totcoc0a ! Soul Operator is horror and mystery and ttrpg inspire amazingness. Everything Tot has done with this show sings in the best of ways and @strautmaskreplica's editing is divine

@grottopod is liminal horror about grief and caving with original music and cover songs in each episode and it's absolutely fantastic. Our very own @taytayheyhey is one of the main characters and does amazing work! @athansmusic has ripped my heart out and honestly? Worth it.

@woebegonepod starts as a fictional game and becomes time travel, murder, and cowboys. It also has amazing original music its episodes and while most of it has been just Dylan's voice acting, the VAs he has in the later seasons are wonderful. This show defies genre and I love it

@tellnotalespod has ghosts! And grief! And convoluted science about ghosts and grief! It is the kindest show about ghosts you will ever encounter and has made me cry so much. Leon Egan poured his whole heart into this show and it shows in every facet of it

Would this really be a recommendation list from me if I didn't mention @ethicstownpod ? Imagine if moral quandries carried real world weight and then turn that guilt up to 11 and you have Ethics Town. I adore this show and everything that it has become and I cannot WAIT for S3

It also wouldn't be me without mentioning The Technomancy Project which is another genre mashup in the best of ways it's got horror it's got sci fi it's got magic it's made me cry it's great!

@thekilda is part of the reason that the Fringes happened at all. Seeing this dark fantasy cult stuff podcast from the ground up inspired me to finish writing the Fringes and I'm eternally grateful. It also introduced me to Michelle Kelly's work and then she became Alexandria!

@doyoucopypod is another show about grief (why do I love so many shows about grief?) with horror and fantasy elements and it squeezes my heart in my chest. @delaylays has created one of my favorite series of all time with this show and I know s3 will destroy me

@allatseapod is horror-ish microfiction about being stranded- you guessed it- at sea. Noah Bell's voice acting and writing are both phenomenal and i am desperate to find out how Feb got themself into this mess they're in

@audistorium is an anthology which runs all over the genre-sphere and has some of the best writing and sound design I've ever heard. It's got an episode for every kind of listener and Landon Lemon Whisnant does excellent voice work in it!

@thenightpost has cozy horror vibes and also respect the post office which is something we should all do more. The magic in this world is so intriguing and the characters are so engaging and all of the work in it is wonderful I cannot recommend it more

@hinaypod also falls into cozy horror for me but more along the lines of "Motzie Dapul has a very soothing and cozy voice and OPE NOPE THERES THE HORRORS!" Im very early on still but the weaving of magic and folklore and Filipino culture is fantastic (Also they're crowdfunding for season 3 on ko-fi and you wanna back it soooo bad https://ko-fi.com/hinaypod/goal?g=34)

And finally (for this post at least) we have @camlannpod which is the most hopeful post apocalypse show I've ever encountered. It has Arthurian legends, folklore, mythology, beautiful music, brilliant performances, excellent writing, and Paul Warren, what more could you want?

If you're looking for more from me to fill the void, then you're in luck as @forgedbondspod starts on the 18th!! If you wanna get access to that even sooner, it will be going like for crowdfunder backers and patrons over at patreon.com/pinetreepods on the 14th!

Odysseus has always been a man trying to outrun his fate, but seeing the way that this was Camlann-ified was even more heartpunching than I imagined. He mourns. He holds guilt in his chest til he explodes with it. He is determined to do the thing that the original Odysseus wasn't able to: change his fate. And with Ariadne by his side, I think he can actually do that. Their stories are being woven together so wonderfully and it's making my little Classics major brain sing.

1.) Beautiful Darkness by: Kerascoët

The novel tells the tale of Aurora, a girl who finds herself taking a leadership role in her community after a horrible disaster occurs... The story starts out with a whimsical tone, but rapidly devolves into a more morbid narrative.

Beautiful Darkness is wickedly good and creepy. Surreal, surprisingly disturbing, and well...dark.

The twists in this made my jaw drop. Especially the initial one. It acts as sort of an anti-fairytale of sorts. Complemented with its cute, cartoon- ish, and simplistic art style. Its pleasant watercolors and... super bloody deaths and graphic violence. Obviously!

There is so much to unpack in this gorgeous graphic novel. Themes of death and mortality, the innate savagery within humankind, and so much more than I can get into here.

(Although if you are curious... you can read a better deconstruction of the novel here:)(Hopefully after you read it).

2.) The Bunny Suicides by: Andy Riley

Over The Top and hilarious. This is a series of feel good comic strips with no solid plot lines except for featuring cutsie creatures, (bunnies in this case) attempting a single goal: to die in the most brutally and over complicated ways imaginable. As a depressive person myself… I found this hilarious. As the name suggests, this was exactly that. A bunch of bunnies “ “unaliving “ themselves in a darkly humorous fashion. And somehow there was humor to be found in its gruesome yet, not gratuitous pages, unlike *ahem* some other shows with similar punchlines…

For me, this was what “Happy Tree Friends" was trying to be… Slightly edgy, fairly dark, outwardly innocent, and weirdly—fun?

3.) Dead Weight: Murder at Camp Bloom by: Terry Blas

✨Camp✨ is in the name and in the game for this graphic novel. When a group of misfit kids staying at a fat camp for the summer find out that one of the councilors have been brutally murdered, it's up to them to find out who did it, and if the killer plans on striking again… There's a nice diversity to the characters here, and their sleuthing reminded me of the Mystery Gang meets Sleep Away Camp. The art style was round and soft, and was somewhat reminiscent of the Gravity Falls art style to me.

5.) Stray Dogs by: Tony Fleecs

Stray Dogs, written by Tony Fleecs and illustrated by Trish Forstner follows a group of canine friends that wouldn't be out of place in a G-rated movie. But instead of discovering the power of friendship, they use their limited detective skills to uncover that their new owner is, in fact, a serial killer. Stray Dogs, is a strange mix of a cute Disney movie, meets "Silence of the Lambs." The overarching mystery pulled me in instantly, and the hits keep coming.

6.) I Kill Giants by: Joe Kelly

I Kill Giants is the story of a loner at school escaping into a fantasy world. But all is not as it seems with Barbara, and Barbara is not what they think she seems to the children at school that torment her, her family, or her only friend. Because Barbara has a secret: She kills Giants.

Saturday spotlight

So, I recommend that special fic and fanart...

@hiptoff´´s "Confined" (kristanna modern AU, Covid19 pandmic AU - on AO3)

This fic hooked me from the moment I started reading. So tender, passionate, and funny. So... you, my friend! And then, there are soooo many more!

Thanks for all the beautiful fics you have written, and the lovely fanarts and cover arts that you have created!

************* Saying that, I want to share the beautiful fanart-gift you have created for me by that spontaneous impulse about one year ago (for my own kristanna fic "the boat ship", modern summer vacation AU - on AO3)!

I can finally make this post!! These are P2 community chambers that I really love and think everybody should play:

Gelocity Time Trial - Track 1, 2, 3, by Radix: It’s a multiplayer race :D It has a singleplayer map too, which is good because I don’t have friends to play with. It’s a three map collection at the time of writing this, and the three maps are epic!!

One door opens (abstract), by Unusual Developments3001: This map is not Portal related. It’s about... opening doors. And looking for ways to open said doors. It’s good, believe me!! It has an eerie aura. There’s a secuel, R-G-B, which is equally good.

Neurotoxic disaster, by Tewan: One of my favourites! Your objective in this one? Escape alive. It’s a bit confusing at some moments, but without that, it’s very easy. 

Steins;Cake, by Gezzabeast: My second favourite!! It’s about reapiring an elevator. With portals<3. It’s fun, and I really enjoy playing it over and over again.

The lone future starter, by Sejievan: It’s a seven map series. And it’s excellent!!!! It has a story and two endings!! I want to talk about this one but I don’t want to spoil anything to anyone. The only thing I will say is that you are a time traveler :0 epic.

P2MA, by Antek1234: “Portal 2 Main Aesthetics” is a 5 map series. It doesn’t have a storyline (I think), it’s more of an exposition of, well, P2 main aesthetics. It’s super well done.

Power mugs, by Shinval: Is a three map series at the moment of writing this. It’s so good? The attention to detail put by this dude is excellent. 10/10. I mean you guys can’t imagine how happy I felt when I opened the community chambers to see what to put here and found out there was a new map of power mugs!! Go play this one!! Do it now!! Finish reading later!!

Unseen Aperture, by Shinval: Yeah, Shinval again. Everything made by this person is good, sorry. Go check them out, they have more maps. Anyway, this is a four map series (+ an interlude). The difficulty is medium, but I mostly played it for the aesthetic. Hmm. Actually I play everything for the aesthetic.

The office prank, by Allison Ghost: Ohhh a horror map! And a three map series. Is it scary? Yeah. Yeah. Is it good? FUCK yes. I played it a long time ago, I don’t remember exactly how it was, but I remember it was one of the best!! Maps!!

Chell commits tax fraud, by Allison Ghost: Allison Ghost again. This person makes some really goos maps sorry!! I can’t explain this one. I can’t explain what Chell commits tax fraud is about. If someone can, please do it. That doesn’t mean it isn’t enjoyable. Because it is.

Triple horse phase, by Allison Ghost: I wasn’t going to include this one but I need someone to explain me how not die every time. Why do the horses hate me??

Wheatley style hacking, by Lord Von Adel: The first one I ever played! Instead of a cube, you have... Wheatley. And Wheatley hacks the door open for you :0 Wheat orb lovers can get close and kiss him, Wheat orb haters can drop him on the ground >:)

The Duke, by Jofish: This one is not Portal related. The setting is white, very bright, it can be eye straining. It has music playing in the background, there is not a clear objective I think. I love it anyway.

Stay, by KazerLight: I love this dude maps, go check them out. This map is not Portal related. It does have a storyline, and it’s weird. It has the eerie vibe I love so much. Go play this one.

Cold, by KazerLight: KazerLight again! I like this one specially because it has different endings depending on the dialog you choose :0 It’s not Portal related btw.

Throw it!, by KazerLight: This one IS Portal related. It’s a simple test :) Fun and easy. :).

Pinball PORTAL2, by tuleby (CZ): It’s literally Portal 2 pinball!!!!!! What else do you want??? You win when you kill Glados. I think. I never finished it because I suck at pinball and nothing can get my attention for more than three minutes straight.

Odyssey, by SkyFerret: It’s a three map series. I can’t tell if it has a storyline or if I just made one in my head :) Anyway, the visuals are excellent!! And the test are really fun, not that difficult but it can get confusing at times.

After hours, by ABNT: This is a 14 (!!!) map series. It has a storyline and custom voicelines!!! Like!! There’s cool characters with custom voicelines aaaaaaa play it !!!

Lemonade, by Annabortion: It’s a destroyed aesthetic test chamber!! I finished it once and then forgot how to do it again. Sad. The visuals are really good I love it.

sp_outlast, by Anachronist ALLOS: You are trapped in an asylum, look for the way out. It’s a fun map :) The only thing, the lighting it’s very low and it’s difficult to see, specially if you are playing in a very lighted room. I recommend playing it with the lights off.

re:Escape from Aperture, by Anachronist ALLOS: :) It’s a five map series, and as title says, your objective is: Escapr Aperture!! You make the mistake of putting Wheatley in charge of the facility, and now GLaDOS has to help you get out.

And the abyss gazes back, by Osko: Visuas. Aesthetic. I love this one. I really do. Sadly it has only one part, which was uploaded in 2016. I’m sure there wont be a secuel :(

Shooting stars, by SunnyOst: :). It’s good.

Watch your step, by SunnyOst: This map is short, but is hilarious. If I said more I would spoil it. Check it out.

Escape the office, by Batcat: It’s a maze!! An epic one. It’s difficult, I couldn’t complete it :(

Diverse Remastered, by Skairul: This map uses a mechanic that wasn’t in the game. It’s very fun, and I play it all the time!! The chambers are easy :)

Basement horros, by kyloX: Another horror map! It’s not Portal related. The position of the jumpscares changes everytime you die!! The surprises never end. 

Gnome story, by jp: This map is not portal related. I don’t know what this is about and I don’t know how to finish it. Please help me with this one. It’s hilarious.

Fluid, by MisterLambda: It’s a short test chamber!! It’s difficult, too. But I really enjoyed playing it!!!!!

Timetravel concept, by DaMaGepy: It’s a time travel map! It’s just a concept, I’m sure this person other maps have this too. It’s easy and short.

Behind the waterfall, by Lord_kardok: I’m in love with the visuals!! This one has the same problem that sp_outlast had, it has very dark parts that are hard to see. But other than that?? Very epic.

The corrupted core room, by Murugo: This map is :00. Thats my reaction. :0. It’s simple, you pick a core, it start speaking. All the dialogs!! There’s a bottom somewhere to shut them up. Don’t commit the same mistake at me and make them talk at the same time!!

Ensiferum - For Sirens

This song is actually the standard sailor-caught-by-a-siren narrative, but it’s so easy to hear this as about someone on the aromantic spectrum who’s confused, upset and angry about experiencing romantic attraction!

(No reason it can’t be about an aro caught by a siren and has been forced to experience romantic feelings, something I personally find more interesting than the standard “a-spec folks are immune to sirens” approach.)