$LAYYYTER
⁂
★
🪼
pixel skylines
YOU ARE THE REASON
almost home
No title available
Sweet Seals For You, Always
h
i don't do bad sauce passes
One Nice Bug Per Day
Monterey Bay Aquarium
hello vonnie
sheepfilms
祝日 / Permanent Vacation
blake kathryn
if i look back, i am lost
Today's Document
2025 on Tumblr: Trends That Defined the Year
seen from Malaysia
seen from Malaysia
seen from China
seen from United States
seen from United Kingdom
seen from United Kingdom
seen from Malaysia
seen from Brunei
seen from United States
seen from Malaysia
seen from United States
seen from Canada
seen from Netherlands
seen from United Kingdom
seen from Canada
seen from Netherlands
seen from Trinidad & Tobago
seen from Malaysia
seen from Malaysia
seen from Brazil
@datrbdumpster
My experience watching Link Click so far:
S1E2, at the OP: "... So like... One of them died or is supposed to die, right? And that guy is Cheng Xiaoshi, right? That's why Lu Guang is so obsessed with the timeline and whatnot."
S1 finale: "So Lu's dead? Alright. Guess i was at least partially true."
S3 beginning:
Something I didn't think I would appreciate as much as I do now about X's personality is how much of a freaking ASSHOLE he can be.
Like, let's even put aside the whole "I snap my fingers and you already lost" "I put more effort getting down this bridge than fighting you" "You are my very dear friend but this is a competition so to the moon you go" stuff. He could have been nicer about all that but honestly he's just so ridiculously op that lowkey? You gotta respect it.
No no no.
I'm talking about some of the shit this man SAYS.
You have poor Smile pouring his heart out talking about how much he's faking being happy and how lonely he feels being strangled with his family and how his smile feels hollow and plastered on top of his face.
And freaking X is like. "Nah. You are lying. You are smiling right now, therefore you are happy. Boo, I say. Boo".
MY BROTHER IN TRUST VALUE DID YOU NOT HEAR A FREAKING WORD YOUR FRIEND LITERALLY JUST SAID.
And then with Ahu???
He calls Ahu dumb, straight up, to his FACE, *THREE* TIMES in the last episode.
TWICE in the same conversation ("For a dog you are a bit of a birdbrain" and Ahu: "I won't be manipulated so easily!" X: "With your capabilities? That's a little too unconvincing") and then AGAIN at the Tournament (the whole "all that information must have been a little too dificult for a dog to understand lmao" thing).
(And technically implied a fourth time when he teases Ahu about not noticing the big ball of attackers at the other side of the window).
I usually really really don't like characters like that. Characters that carelessly say or do things that might be hurtful to others and then don't bother to correct their affront.
But honestly? I think in this case his assholery makes X really interesting. Because I kept thinking -
If he is so borderline cruel to others, why am I so sure that he's actually a good person?
And I realized that that's because even while X can be a jerk with what he says, his ACTIONS are actually those of a pretty respectful and nice person.
He saves Ahu (at that moment just a random dog he had seen a couple of times around) and Nice (someone he probably suspected to be into shady business after that magazine article he read) just because they were being attacked by a more powerful opponent and were the innocent party during the fight.
He faces Dragon Boy, someone he either knows or strongly suspects to have seriously injured Smile at the LEAST and defuses the situation without hurting DB (DB got wet and arguibly humiliated. But X did not hurt a single hair on his head).
He is a loner and an introvert, but actually welcomes Smile into his home and offers him company even during the middle of the night (and we know X appreciates his sleep - this man is yawny af). He also lets himself be dragged to a coffe place by Tarot girl and listens to her tarot read.
Even if he thinks Ahu might be a bit over his head, he spends the night making sure he does not become a collateral of his assassination attempt, explaining the truth of the world to him and patiently answering all his questions - something someone who genuinely didn't care simply wouldn't do.
He gives a coin to Cyan and a hat to Ahu. He holds a private memorial to his friend Smile. He cushions Nine with his own body when he gets thrown into the pavement. He seems to be pretty respectful and polite to street vendors.
Man. X might be an asshole, but he's such a NICE asshole.
I love him so much.
I wanna just add some extra stuff, if you'd allow.
X's asshole-ishness, also never actually comes off as something he genuinely means, instead it usually feels like banter and nothing more. Context is what plays the main role in all those instances.
The smile confession and reaction to it happened in an informal setting with both being very much drunk atm. People always say things they don't mean when drunk. And the way he said was more "poking fun" than straight up "nah you lying".
At the end of episode 24 X's words about "this is too much for you" were also followed with "for anyone, really", which made them mean less of "haha dumb dog" and more "Yeah, no one would get it on the first try, is cool."
And the others while, i admit were kinda rude with making Ahu the butt of the joke, but also they're just friendly banter, in a lot of ways similar to what me and my coworkers use on a daily basis.
Sure, he calls Ahu dumb, but then immediately follows it with a an explanation of what exactly Ahu didn't understand, despite X himself thinking the answer obvious.
Dress the insect?
@littlegrayram
At some point, we should probably start talking about the ableism that surrounds TFP Bumblebee not only in the fandom, but also in the show itself. Like, the infantilization in the fandom or the fact that I have never seen such a blatant, "disabled people need to be fixed/can be fixed," storyline in my life than what's in TFP.
And please don't use the fact that they're giant alien robots to ignore/defend this.
A good point by @datrbdumpster!! Hopefully you don't mind that I reblogged this instead of replying to the comment because I think this is important. Hopefully I explain this in a way that makes sense cus I just woke up.
NO HATE TO THE ORIGINAL COMMENTER, BTW!! I just want to explain my thought process.
I personally don't think that his arc was about learning to be okay with his disability because we never see the show directly confront Bumblebee's problems ever. TFP Bumblebee, as much as I love him, doesn't get a lot of focus in the show. Maybe it's due to the fact that the audience can't understand him, or they had bigger fish to fry - honestly, idk. The only time we really dig deep into him as a character and how his disability affects him is Operation: Bumblebee, and, even then, he shares these episodes with Ratchet, so his already small focus becomes even smaller.
But, from these two episodes, we can see how much Bumblebee sees his disability (both the loss of his T-Cog and voice) as a hinderance, as something needed to be fixed. He literally outright states that he feels useless, which leads him to go into a car chase without a cog and fall off a cliff. He argues with Ratchet, making a comment about Ratchet 'fixing' him again (I know we can't tell what he's saying, but this is just what I'm gathering from what Ratchet responds with), revealing Ratchet's guilt and Bumblebee's own anger at not being able to be 'normal'. And, by the end of the episodes, this view of thinking (Bumblebee thinking that his disability makes him weak/useless) isn't really challenged by the narrative? He gets his T-Cog back, Ratchet's happy that he got to 'fix' Bumblebee, and the show never really mentions how he feels about his voice box again until Minus One (ep 10, s3). Smokescreen makes a comment about Bumblebee's voice box: he says, “Wait and see; the claw will be his signature! Y’know, like the way you own that voice box Ratchet slapped in your throat?” and Bumblebee storms off, saying something along the lines of, "I would give anything to hear my own voice again" (again, I know we can't understand him, but this translation comes from Raf). Of course, this is a set up for what happens in the finale, but it shows that Bumblebee STILL wants his voice box back and that the larger narrative hadn't done anything to challenge/focus on any of Bumblebee's problems.
If his arc was about learning to be okay with a disability, he wouldn't have gotten his voice back at all - the narrative would've forced him to work through his problems with losing his voice and showing him that he's not useless, and that his disability doesn't make him a failure. Now, I understand that if the magical cybermatter hadn't 'fixed' his voice box, then that would've been a plot hole, but I think my point still stands. Bumblebee's happy that he gets his voice back, and that's how his arc wraps up. He never really deals with his self-esteem issues, or his internalized ableism, or anything. He gets his voice back, and the narrative treats that as the end of his arc.
The writers treat Bumblebee getting 'fixed' as the solution to all his problems, and that's ableism.
Think of it this way: Imagine there's a gay character that experiences internalized homophobia and hates themself because they're gay. It would be weird if this type of internalized thinking was never challenged by the narrative and, instead, the character 'turns straight' in the end and the writers treat that as the end of their arc, right?
Of course, TFP is a show that was made in the early 2010's, so I'm not expecting it to be this masterclass on how to write disabled characters, lol. AND I'm not saying that you can't enjoy TFP because it has these problems!! TFP is one of my favorite itterations of transformers, and I really love the aligned continuity as a whole. All I'm saying is that it's important to recognize the shortcomings. TFP is a flawed show, and that's okay!
And the fact that I got hate comments in my ask box, saying I suck and that I'll never be 'fixed' enough to matter to anyone, kinda proves my point in why it's important to discuss these things.
Well, i said "correct me if i'm wrong" and you did just that. I see no reason why i would be mad.
Those moments did happen, didn't they... Thanks for reminding. I'll be honest, it's been a while since i rewatched the show. Seems like my memory has warped some facts.
I see why the point stands now. Yeah, not the best way to handle it.
I do stand by some of my points still (namely the "network probably had a lot to do with that" and "this probably wasn't the intention" points), but i see why you said what you said and said it the way you did. If something wasn't intentional - doesn't mean it didn't happen.
Also, returning to the og post, i'm not protecting the fandom in the slightest here. Call me controversial opinions guy, but in general i feel like TFP fandom is going overboard with far too many things to the point where i just don't want to be associated with it at all.
having a job is very weird bcos by and large your coworkers will be a variety of ages and you will not all be at the same stage of life. your coworker will be like, well I’m off home to spend time with my husband & child, what are you going to do with your evening? and you’re like, well, I plan on playing Rollercoaster Tycoon for as much as it as possible
Kinda sucks the Ahu fandom is non-existent cuz I love drawing that fat nugget of a dog
Ain't that exactly what the creators are doing in the merch?
Erased generation of heroes, Rock's "family business" and why Nine matters, actually.
Aka "Nine Inheritance theory".
Brought to you by: My sleep deprived ass running on nothing but tea and spite.
Okay, so i was thinking about Nine and his possible relevance to the story, as one does, and i realised that... we actually don't have much.
From the things we know for a fact, the only one that makes Nine relevant is the fact that he's acquaintances with X. Nothing more and nothing less.
We know nothing about his motivations, ideals, circumstance or even HOW he managed to get to know X and TG.
And the things that we know about him only end up raising more questions.
Why is he rebelling against the Commission?
Why don't they have information on him, despite seemingly having several paragraphs of description which likely includes biography?
Does he know the Commission's secrets?
How did he find out about them?
Why is he so cheerful amidst all that?
How come his design looks like it came from a completely different series?
Why are his powers so OP?
Why is his name like that???
Why haven't we heard ANYTHING about him outside of the DOS conspiracy board, despite him supposedly being around the same level as top 15? (Wreck, who is on the same level as Nice, was ranked as an "A" in terms of power, where as Nine got a higher rating of "S-")
So i did a bit of digging and analysing and came up with something that would answer all of those questions and give Nine some much needed plot relevance.
A "lost generation"
So we all know how in canon heroes are roughly seperated into two generations.
But i also noticed something interesting... Hero names change from generation to generation as well, not to mention the scope and specifics of their powers. This serves to showcase what is used to define them too.
Old generation heroes are more often than not named after their powers with characters like E-Soul (electric soul), Blazing Fire and Matchstick and even Vortex having their names be basically an explanation of their powers/gimmick. There is also not much personality attached to the names. Only powers.
Which is a BIG contrast with the newer generation, where names would often be much more personal and only tangentially relate to the powers of a hero, if at all. Prime examples of it would be The Johnnies, Ahu and Loli, who's names are literally just their names, or Queen, Ghostblade and Dragon Boy who's names are only somewhat representative of their powers.
And yes i can already hear you screaming about Nice, but he is a wholly fabricated image, so i'm not counting him.
The powers also change from generation to generation. From simple stuff like fire, electricity and aerokenesis, to more abstract and restricted "setting rules", "return to sender" and "knife proficiency".
With all that being said, there are a few who don't fit this narrative. Their names give you absolutely no information about the persom bearing them and/or their powers. Three, to be more specific. Zero, X and Nine.
And since X is somewhat understandable, his name is because no one knows his true identity, hence they cannot connect him to anything, and his powers suppousedly stem from the viewers. We'll disregard him for now.
Zero is one of the original heroes, yet his name gives absolutely no insight into what his powers might be. And from what we saw his powers have something to do with the sun, given the imagery associated with him. An abstract concept, opposing the old generation's specificity, as broad as it is. But yet a limitless one, opposing the set rules of the newer generation.
Nine is young, clearly being from the newer generation, yet his name is in no way connected to his personality or identity. And his power of creation is basically only restricted by his imagination, not to mention that you can hardly get more abstract than "creation".
AND both of their names are numbers. Do you see how they're awfully similar in the concept?
So i raise you... What if Zero was an experiment? Not necessarily an artifically created human(probably not), but a child who was used as a test subject. We already know that Zero was 15 when he became a god. And accumilating people's trust takes time, meaning he most likely became a hero the same year trust was discovered, when he was 13.
No kid would be able to do something like that, unless they're actively guided into HOW. Which is where Rock's father comes into play. (Guess grooming children runs in the family-)
He's referred to as the "person who made Zero". An interesting turn of phrase isn't it? Almost as if Zero was never really seen as human... As if the whole image was a fabrication from the very beginning.
But here's a thing. Experiments are never done on just one subject. Especially if we're talking about early experiments with something that had JUST been discovered. So it would make sense that Zero was one of a whole line of those "numbered" heroes. Children who were used to observe how Trust affects humans.
The true first generation of heroes, that had been lost to time.
It would make sense that the Commision would want to erase the fact that there were experiments on humans. This isn't just a bad look for the Commission that needs people's trust more than any hero does, but also just think what would happen if people found out that there were more heroes like Zero. People are already terrified of him alone. I can't even imagine the sheer amount of fear that would appear if there were more like him out in the open. The Commission wouldn't be able to afford that.
It's fair to assume that most heroes of that first generation were either cast aside or rebranded to cut any connection with the experiment.
But i can already hear you say "Wait, but Nine is YOUNG! What do you MEAN he's a part of the first generation!?"
How does Nine fit into that narrative???
And yes, Nine is indeed young and CLEARLY doesn't present himself as someone who was present to be traumatized by the Dawnfall.
So how can he have the same powers and name as a hero of the first generation?
Well, i think the answer lies in the first two arcs of the series.
TRUST IS INHERITABLE
Lin Ling was able to inherit Nice's trust value because he adopted Nice's identity. He was still a different person, but people didn't know that.
And Yeng Cheng inherited E-Soul's trust value because that's who people associated him with, meaning that, even if there is a clear distinction between two heroes that bear the same name, their trust is still shared. And we were shown that ALL of og E-Soul's trust was transferred to Yeng Cheng after the duel because at the end of the day they both had the same name.
So... What if Nine we know went through something similar? Except in his case it was a voluntary passing on of the legacy from OG Nine.
Here's how i see it:
Zero was one of a whole line of "numbered" heroes, that served as test subjects in research of trust value and its effects.
Among those heroes was Nine, who survived the Dawnfall, but was cast away since the Commission aimed to bury the past.
But something so fresh is not so easily erased from people's memories. Nine retained a certain amount of trust value, now staying more on the subconsious as opposed to active trust. (Like Smile was before the incident)
Nine has their own reservations about the Commission after being cast aside, so they shared the story with present Nine.
The relationship can be either a familial one or simply a mentor/mentee. All that's for certain is that OG Nine trusted the kid enough to open up about their reservations. (i personally lean into the idea that Nine was taught about the Commission's wrongs from childhood, because changing the world seems to be more of a subconsious motivation, than an active pursiut, hense affecting his action in indirect ways. But any interpretation is valid until proven otherwise)
OG Nine steps down from the position with our Nine fully adopting the persona. The reason for the stepping down can be age/illness/loss of motivation/death.
Regardless of the reason as to why OG Nine stepped down, one thing is for certain - our Nine took on the role willingly and knowingly, making this his first step in rebelling against the Commission.
Nine becomes active and it takes time for the Commission to realize that it's a different Nine from the one they know, hence having an understanding of his powers and background, but no understanding of the actual strengths and weaknesses of this new Nine. It also couldn't have been too long since he started to be active, because the Commision still lacks information about him by the time X makes his first appearance
TG probably seeked out Nine in order to join forces. Some time later she also seeks out X and arranges a meeting of the two, kickstarting their relationship and cementing the rebellion.
Nine could've been how X gained a deeper understanbing of the state of the world and grew more interested in the truth beind all of it, pushing him to explore the posibilities of his own powers in order to gain more insight.
It's only after this that X makes his appearance in the tournament
This idea would explain all the questions posed at the beginning.
Why is he rebelling against the Commission? Does he know the Commission's secrets? How did he find out about them?
He knows what the Commission is hiding, because he was told about it by an eye witness of what happened back then.
Why don't they have information on him, despite seemingly having several paragraphs of description which likely includes biography?
Because they had information on OG Nine, but not the new one. They could make conclusions as to how Nine got his powers, but they couldn't possibly know about the physical abilties of the new guy.
Why is he so cheerful amidst all that?
Nine was most likely told about the Dawnfall's story ever since he was a little kid. While those stories affect your worldview, they rarely affect your actual personality. For him the Commission hiding stuff is just the truth of the world, not a revelation. It would also make sense that OG Nine wouldn't have dumped ALL of the information on a fragile mind of a kid using something like "I'm just too old to do something about it" as an excuse as to why they couldn't have done anything personally. If you tell a kid who looks up to you that you can't do something because of "age" they will get motivated to do that thing in your stead. Hence taking on the persona later in life.
How come his design looks like it came from a completely different series?
Because the identity that he bears quite literally DID come from a different era, making him look distinct when standing next to modern heroes. Nowadays heroes' outfits are heavily "designed". They all carry a certain concept to them (Queen being a "Valkyire", Johnny's "catboy" thing and Cyan's "Lucky Angel" idea), where as older heroes (specifically ones from E-Soul PV) were often shown wearing outfits comprised largely out of something that can be found in a closet. Not tailored outfits.
(The person on the left is literally wearing sneakers and what seems like sweatpants or jeans.)
((We are not talking about the body bag on the right-))
Why are his powers so OP? Why is his name like that???
Because they came from a time when heroes were still an unknown force and had no limitations on what they might be. He simply took on the identity.
Why haven't we heard ANYTHING about him outside of the DOS conspiracy board, despite him supposedly being around the same power level as top 15?
Because he's unaffiliated with any agency OR the Commission at large, bearing trust that is still holding on from the people who survived the Dawnfall and those who have seem him act in present day. NOT from publicity.
Conclusion
I find this theory to be a great way to deepen the world's lore, give Nine some much needed plot relevance and motivations, as well as explain why he would become friends with X and TG. Not to mention the fact that this would also give more insight into Rock's past and why he considers what he does to be normal.
With that being said, i am fully ready to be proven wrong by season 2 or to hear any opposing opinions and have discussions.
But for the time being, this is my theory about Nine and Zero's lore, based solely on what was shown by the end of reason 1.
Borgar
Don't tell you guys don't see it
Also participating in this one trend, because i feel like it deserves to be shared.
X AND DJ SHINDIG ?!??!?!?! THOUGHT I WOULD NEVER SEE THE DAY
Wh- Mate that's not-
That's Nine. Not DJ Shindig. Sorry to break it to you, but you still haven't seen the day
... Also, isn't DJ Shindig black? People would hang me if i drew him like THAT
Also participating in this one trend, because i feel like it deserves to be shared.
Everywhere i go...
I SEE THIS MOTHERFUCKING POST
This is your daily reminder that, according to the timeline, the whole ass world put their trust in a
FUCKING 15 YEAR OLD
Zero's crashout is valid, imo. I would too if i had the weight of the entire civilization put on my shoulders while i couldn't even pass my chemistry class
My only not sad tbhx au is an actors au. They had to retake Nice's suicide scene so many times because L0 couldn't keep a straight face at the finger guns. Behind the scenes footage of all the wacky trust/fear effect makeup and props. Every single one of them has absolutely stolen one of said props. X wears a shitty wig. I don't actually know enough about real life actors to come up with more, someone else add some funny heartwarming scenarios.
I imagine X to be a "star cast", making it highly ironic for him to be portrayed like "some rando" in his civilian form and lowkey breaking the immersion for the audience, except it's a master narrative move by the director.
This also keeps X's appearances be the most expensive part of the whole series, just like in canon-
Lin Ling and Nice look canonically the same, so there are two possibilities for that: either they hired twins to play two roles, or there is one actor playing both. I lean more into the twins idea because that would grant endless possibilities for jokes. And make more sense given how they will obviously be interacting in the future.
They had to make Ahu mostly CGI, so whenever Ahu is on screen - the actor is talking at a green prop. Same with Big Johnny. The cases where Ahu IS a real fog, however, are also present. Ahu is the absolute star among the cast... Would be funny if X's actor spent so much time with Ahu that at the end the dog just started thinking of him as family... Would be nice if X adopted Ahu after filming was over.
The anthology format lands itself great of the actors' schedules, but is actively killing the rest of the crew.
X's soda addiction could've very well been taken from the actual actor's preferences. It's possible that they took his favourite soda and just shrink wrapped a bunch of them to mask the brand (unless it was an actual brand deal, which would be more likely-)
As such, there's a non-zero chance X kept sneaking the sodas out of the studio during breaks.
Imagine if X's actor doesn't actually know how to snap and every interview is just everyone bullying him over it.
In every interview with Lin Ling and Nice's actors they'd have to specify who is who every single time, because no one recognises Nice without the wig and lenses.
There's a pretty big chance that X broke and then was allowed to keep the broken X pin from his tie.
The coin tricks are either entirely cgi, or were inspired by actor's real life affinity for them and there's no in-between.
Rock is probably the SWEETEST person irl and one of the very few people actually capable of handling the insane amount of children actors on set.
Dragonboy got so in-character that he actually did start helping out with traffic control outside schools.
Lin Ling and Nice's actors, as well as Yeng Cheng's actor could very well have had a dance background.
As such, Yeng Cheng's actor can very well be a stunt man who got a raise, since YC only really appears without the mask in his arc.
Queen actively takes care of the actress who plays her child self.
Lin Ling and Nice's actors are probably rising stars and were awestruck at the sight of X on set and ended up actually bonding with him (Think: Tom Holland and RD Jr.).
X is on set far more often than he needs to be for how small of a role he plays. He says it's to "keep track of how he should play". He actually just likes the sodas and hanging around "the kids" (younger actors, for whom this project could've been the first major role).
Ghostblade's actor is an enigma. Always on time, does his job perfectly, never complains... But the moment he's off set - there is NO way to get a hold of him in a way that he'll give a proper response to. Director is losing his absolute marbles in attempts to get anything more out of him than a "👍" as a reply.
Contrasting with that, Luo Li's actress is always on call, but is never on time.
There's a non-zero chance that Ghostblade is actually two actors - one for visuals and one for voice acting, since all his words are an inner monologue.
Big Johnny was animated using Little Johnny's actual cat as the main reference, because he wouldn't stop sending videos of it to the crew.
Somebody cried during the first screening. Probably Queen, Wreck, Zac and Cyan.
Oh, Cyan might be an actual irl idol/pop-star cast for the role (Two birds - an actress and music licensing - with one stone!). Bet Luo Li's actress was like the one person not scared to approach Cyan without being weird about it, hence befriending her.
I CAN keep going, but i feel like the post is already long enough as is.
Just lmk if you want more, ig-
Lin Ling making ads for Moon is basically him feeding himself some Moon content as her fan (with an addition of salary). Relatable.
*Looks at X's squad*
So like... X's whole social circle consists purely of extraverts who adopted him, huh...
So... did the whole fandom end up joining the dead wife club because season 1 ended?
