ive just read the entirety of Cultbashing 101 and i cannot stop thinking about this story, so i drew mal! my rambles under the cut
firstly, i just want to say if there is any description of mal that doesnt match what ive drawn thats because when i say i read the entirety of cultbashing 101 i mean i read it all in one night and skipped over a few bits in my sleep deprived haze to see what happens next...
anyways in my mind i felt mal would be different aesthetically from the usual mizar, in my mind that became that her style is more alternative, (mostly because the concept of raccoon tails being back in style like hundreds of years later was funny to me, and it just looks so cool i cannot lie).
i decided mal's old shirt would be a misprinted band tee, and because she needed to be able to run and fight easily i gave her cargo jeans (or pants? what is the difference anyway..) and combat boots. i feel like this look is probably not what was envisioned for mal.. but i still feel like it fits her.
now onto the fic itself; having already read how to not get away with murder, knowing this was written by the same author had me excited because i really enjoyed that fic, the writing quality, the balance between the dark subject matter and the humor of the fic was done so well, the humor in general was just great. i have yet to read most of the tau fics but this is still really high up there for me, personally.
cultbashing's worldbuilding is immaculate, i really had alot of fun reading and understanding the lore of the way the world works even if it got a bit confusing at times to my sleepy brain. the descriptions of, like, everything were great because i could very clearly imagine each scene in my head. honestly, just the worldbuilding alone makes me want to gnaw on the bars of my enclosure..
i loved the first few chapters of getting to know mal, as a character and realizing oh so she knows Nothing. also fun fact i forgot mizar was tagged so i did guess that maybe this is a stan reincarnation for a while, the deal scene definitely was so stan-coded to me, but at that point i had already realized this is a mizar.
and speaking of deals- mal's anxiety and incredible amount of self-loathing in the immediate aftermath of loosing gael was so well written. her spiral as she panics about what to do was again, so well written. i feel like many times it can be too easy to make these sorts of moments feel stilted and forced, but here it flowed so easily and felt natural. i generally really like how mal's personality was shown in the fic. i feel like theres alot of room for expanding on her character here and i am so excited to see where it goes from here. like how long has she known gael? how many times have they used the dual magic powered trick? why the motorbikes anyway? so much about mal's past. the way shes so harsh on herself has me thinking because there has to be a reason for that..
alcors portrayal in the entire fic was amazing, i could already tell something was up at first, but the reveal of alcor's deal (was that lucy ann who suggested the deal? if true there are some Implications there) was something i did not predict. in retrospect it does explain why he didnt immediately recognize how mal's bareboned ritual worked or that she was mizar, he was still more alcor than dipper.
i really like how he takes pity on mal and becomes more human for a bit, until he has to actually be a demon and make the deal, the fact that he could use this as an opportunity to fight another demon and let out his congealed bloodlust probably didnt help. i also feel like alcor was almost using this as an excuse to get lost in the nostalgia of cultbashing with mabel again, in a more unhinged sort of way (but then again, most cultbashings werent very hinged anyway..) but im more unsure of that, ill need to reread for sure. there is just so much set up here for him as well... so many ways his character arc could go !!!
i know gael and farley's inclusion in the fic were more to act as plot devices, but i really enjoyed what we got to see of these guys and i cannot wait to learn more.. in general i enjoyed the fic alot, i mean i yapped about it so much that if anyones reading this they can tell LMAO. this fic trumps how not to get away with murder for me, but these are both so good !!
