#escxelle

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WE DID IT !!!! NOT A SINGLE TORY OR REFORM SEAT IN THE WHOLE COUNTRY !!! CYMRU AM BYTH 💪🏴󠁧󠁢󠁷󠁬󠁳󠁿 RAHHHH 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁷󠁬󠁳󠁿🫶

we will worry about the labour majority later but for now we ride !!!!

(fyi the green seats are plaid cymru not the green party)

[escxelle]

about astarion and love

"astarion would never buy flowers for you like wyll or wax poetry for you like gale" etc. etc. blah blah blah

i hear people say this all the time and they always say it as if that's a bad thing.

like have you considered that not everyone wants traditional grand romantic gestures? astarion doesn't offer a fairytale romance, declaring his love from the rooftops of a burning building but he does offer a loyal companionship, a soft gentle romance that's just as meaningful.

you can yap yap yap all you want but i got the line "i'll be here when you're ready. i'll always be here, my love" in the final camp scenes which, yes, does show his committment and loyalty to you. he doesn't kiss you in the epilogue but he does hold your hand and he says that whatever the future holds, you'll be facing it together.

because astarion needs a companion more than a lover and honestly if you say that he needs a friend more than a lover after he confesses to you in act 2 (before you defeat ketheric in moonrise), his reaction is so much more meaningful than if you select any of the romance options (imo at least). he cares more about your companionship than he does your romance so no, he doesn't do traditional grand romantic gestures that you see in fairytales but that does not mean he cares about you or loves you any less than any of the other companions do.

soft astarion does exist canonically in the game so it's not ooc. his softness isn't like the other companions because astarion's trauma is vastly different to any of the other characters in the game. and no this softness is not infantilising him.

if you choose to romance astarion then you've chosen a lifelong loyal companion, who yes, will sometimes most likely kiss and tease you, flirt and sleep with you but that is not the main takeaway from that relationship. he probably won't even tell you that he loves you that often (like in the actual game itself) but it will be in his actions and his other words.

even in the game, astarion tells you that he wants you to see him as more than sex because he has a very difficult relationship with sex and romance. hence why he will decline having sex with the drow twins, hence why he's fine with you sleeping with halsin and he even asks if it's because the two of you haven't had sex in a while etc. etc. there are so many other examples i can list here. and furthermore, if you do choose the "you need a friend more than a lover" option after his act 2 confession, he says that he's had countless lovers but he cannot remember ever having a single friend.

i personally headcanon astarion as demisexual and demiromantic (yes i'm largely projecting but shhh) maybe even aroace so that your relationship is more of a queer platonic relationship because his post-game scenes are focused more on your companionship than your love or sex life (and because of all the other examples i used). me having this headcanon does not mean that i am infantilising him either by the way, you don't have to have sex to be an adult.

anyway, i'm rambling at this point but astarion is so dear to my heart so it upsets me so much when people just boil his character down to "hot sexy flirty vampire" or say that his romance is boring compared to the others because he doesn't love you like the others do etc. etc.

soft astarion my beloved <3 and yes he does exist (and no for the third time, this is not infantilising!)

(fyi i am only talking about spawn astarion here, ascended astarion can go rot in a coffin for all i care)

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genshin and vocaloid fandoms (ik there are some of you that like both like me lol)

now here me out:

lyney and lynette as len and rin,,

pls see my vision T^T

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saw such a good mettaton ex cosplayer at pride today that i have revived my mettaton ex hyperfixation 😭

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astarion is a massive dork under that whole sexy and seduction thing he has going on btw and i firmly believe that's why he "dislikes" gale so much

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thoughts on even in arcadia

i know no one asked but here's my thoughts on the new sleep token album (ik im a couple days late because i've had a migraine for a few days lmao)

i'll put it under the cut so it's not just a massive wall of text <3

individual song thoughts

look to windward

absolutely in love with this track. i love how it sounds like a video game ost (i fw video game osts). as an astrophyscists, loved the the theme of the song of course. the opening line was fire "will you listen just as my form starts to fission? losing this war of attrition just as i drift away?" class. the switch to the heavier stuff? in love, more of that please. the layered vocals? yes come and take a seat please. i would eat this song for starter, main course and desert. 7:46 was weak, i needed it to be longer but because sleep token songs are at least 3 genres long, i was so excited for the rest of the song and whatever was coming next.

song rating: 10/10

emergence

the first single released for the album. i listened to this at work on the same friday it was released. i had to control myself from jumping up and dancing, the people around me in the office did look at me. im not a musical expert so i have no clue how to describe it but those noises in the back ground??? in love with them. this was my favourite single before damocles came out. i also am a massive fan of the last "go ahead and wrap your arms around me, arms around me, arms around me (huh, woo)" tbh the saxophone (i think that's the instrument?) at the end didn't really do anything for me but i do love when musicians get creative and explore with different instruments that aren't in their usual rotation.

song rating: 9/10

past self

we knew these guys were video game nerds but the zelda track??? that threw me completely lmao. i could hear the build up but ngl i was expecting something heavy to follow, it did take me by surprise when it wasn't the heavy rock though. so i guess i can't mark it down for that??? i really loved the beat and the vocals were amazing as always. i do love it when they are their own backing singers <3 the layered vocals again i absolutely loved (as i always will lol). this is a song that i NEED to hear the instrumental for. i know sleep token haven't released an instrumental album in a hot minute but I NEED the instrumental to this song. (side note: i just know ppl are going to make commetns about the pavement usage in the line "walking an ince above the pavement" </3 - as you should though. dirty bri'ish people need to be bullied) i didn't like this song as much as the others so the rating is kinda low sorry </3

song rating: 7/10

dangerous

i hope you have your black eyeliner and your black fringe in your eyes for this emo banger. idk i just feel like this would go hard in the early 2010s emo scene. again, idk how to explain it but the noise in the background (yk the kinda pounding)??? i love. sleep token once again prooving that they need at least 3 genres in a song and im here for it. i do wish this song was longer though :(

song rating: 9/10

caramel

the start of this song to how it ends needs to be studied. this song was my 3rd favourite single (yeah ik there were only 3). i love the vocals in this song. and the lyrics. hmmmm. some of you really need to listen to them and then listen to them again please <3 they are pretty clear and obviously saying that they're musicians and make bloody good music at that so leave your weird parasocial relationship at the door if you go to a concert or engage with the band directly because it's weird! you're weird! respect musicians and their boundaries because they are just human like you and me at the end of it! and they don't owe you anything just because you know their real names. you're not special! you're just a creep!

song rating: 8/10

even in arcadia

yo yeah hey what did they put in this song???? i was tranced from the start, the kind of wind chime sound at the start???? got me hooked. the piano???? hello??? i was not expecting at all but it was so goddamn gorgeous. and the vocals, girl. the lyrics??? i loved them so much, they were edgy af (this is a good thing dw). idk what else to say, it felt like nothing really happened, yk no dramatic genre shifts or anything. i just really love this one. i was so confused because i had no idea where this track was going to go and it went nowhere, yet this is my top 5 from the album. and don't get me started on the violins??? i LOVE string instruments (cello, violin, guitar) so the violin was such a wonderful beautiful finish to this song. this song 100% needs to be in a video game like for the scene where you're watching the main character look back one final time at the town that they fought so hard to protect? but then they walk away from it knowing that they're not needed or wanted anymore. then it all fades to black and the credits roll in? idk this song needs to be studied under a microscope and please send me the results afterwards.

song rating: 10/10

provider

if you liked this song, might wanna skip this one... my thoughts are uhhh not positive. i saw loads of people talk about this on social media... but i think yall just need to go to horny jail. im sorry this one just made me cringe o.0 now i feel like i should be honest and say that i'm aroace but all their over spicy songs i do really enjoy (i listen to sugar a lot). the beat is interesting and the vocals always serve but the lyrics... "i found it breathin' through a tube in the ICU. yeah, i see you." i'm sorry no. made my whole body cringe and recoil. the booktok girlies are gonna eat this one up for sure. the line "the only good girl in this side of the moon" is going to be particularly well received by the booktok girlies. i hope yall enjoy your food. i do actually like the hard parts and everything which is a shame o.0 and im gonna say this. this had no right to be 6:05 long when masterpieces like even in arcadia and damocles were not :( sorry hard no and will probs skip whenever i listen to the album. im just so sorry that this one is before damocles too :(

song rating: 2/10

damocles

the piano???? the progression and build up???? i love LOVE this track. the lyrics too??? this was my favourite single that came out and i have been obsessed with it since it came out. ate and left no crumbs i don't know what else you want me to say. i had an ear infection when this came out so i couldn't listen to it the day of release. i still had a lingering infection when i decided fuck it and i have no regrets <3 did it make me ears kinda worse? yeah bc i listened on full volume in the hot ass uk but i would 100% make that same choice again.

song rating: 10/10

gethsemane

i loved the vocals, as always. the guitar is one of my favourite instruments and this song prooves why, like you can hear the emotion through the strings, i don't care if i sound crazy but i could. the heavier parts too? slapped so hard and almost bordered on grunge-like? yk like deftones vibes. love loved that. this did kinda give off old sleep token vibes. the genre shift?? to die for. i rated this 9.5 because i didn't think it was as good as damocles and the others at 10/10? idk it was very very close though.

song rating: 9.5/10

infinite baths

i love this video game soundtrack vibes!! yes keep them coming please. i love the vocals (ik im saying this for every one but come on can you hear this man sing?) this one gave old sleep token vibes. the length of it sure but it was also very slow paced that i associate with old sleep token tracks. also how the song was very instrumental heavy? another thing i associate with older sleep token songs. and the screaming? like hello girl yes take a seat. this song fucks hard. enough said.

song rating: 10/10

overall

overall, i loved this album. filled to the brim with bangers. personally, there is one song i'll be skipping... the booktok girlies though can go ham with it so im letting them have it because it clearly was not written for people like me. that's fine and cool. i'll be having look to windward, even in arcadia and damocles on repeat though xx through in an infinite baths and a gethsemane when im feeling emo and edgy. have emergence and the rest of the crew as my backups for diversity <3 anyway. good album, though nothing beats the peak album this place will become your thomb.

overall ranking: 9/10

song ratings

because why not?

even in arcadia - 10/10 no notes

damocles - 10/10 no notes

look to windward - 10/10 no notes

infinite baths - 10/10

gethsemane - 9.5/10

emergence - 9/10

dangerous - 9/10

caramel - 8/10

past self - 7/10

provider - 2/10 sorry...

album ratings

eh who can stop me? (not including the eps/singles due to the fact that they are not albums btw)

this place will become your tomb - 10/10 no notes

sundowning - 9.5/10

take me back to eden - 9.5/10

even in arcadia - 9/10

[escxelle]

just so that we're all on the same page, the lack of wyll content is not astarion's fault because he's a fictional character with no choice over his content.

the lack of wyll content is not astarion fans' fault either because they also do not make the choices for wyll's content. you can't blame people for enjoying and liking a character and making him popular. this also just causes unnecessary discourse and fighting within the fandom. just leave them alone and focus your anger and upset to where it could make a difference.

the lack of wyll content is not even neil newbon's fault because again, he doesn't decide wyll's content either. also i've seen people use this argument to just shit on neil's performance and acting which is just???? i saw someone say that they didn't think he should have got the game award for best performance 😭 no idea how that is relevant to wyll having no content (and also you're wrong).

the lack of wyll content, however, is larian's fault because they do make the choices over wyll's content and choose to listen to astarion fans over wyll fans. larian don't have a backbone when it comes to astarion so when astarion fans voice their opinions about astarion's content, larian will be at their beck and call but if wyll fans voice their opinions, they're completely ignored. you can't blame astarion fans when it's larian that's the pushover. instead of taking your anger on astarion, his fans or his actor, take it to larian who are the only ones who are responsible for the wyll drought and could do something about it.

in the meantime, keep giving wyll all the love he deserves and showing larian how much we love him so that hopefully they can do their job and actually give him content.

also, i thought i'd mention that some wonderful modders, Magnetuning and Aimryax, are making a series of mods to give wyll more content called the wcu (the wyll cinematic universe) on nexus mods seeing as larian can't do their job 🙄 it reuses voicelines from early access and some other parts of the game and it looks amazing :) i'm going to be downloading it for my next playthrough! hopefully, if loads of people use this mod, larian will finally take notice and think about adding official content for him. you can find the first mod in the series here: https://www.nexusmods.com/baldursgate3/mods/12174

tldr: the lack of wyll content is not astarion's fault, his fans' or his actor's fault but larian's fault so focus your attention on them and in the meantime play all the wyll extra content mods!

edit: i won't be responding or replying to people looking for an argument because, as you can see what i put above, arguing over this is just unnecessary discourse that diverts from the real problem which is larian not respecting wyll, theo or wyll fans. if you're angry, argue with larian, not me because i don't make wyll's content. neither do astarion or astarion fans or astarion's actor.

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i recently started playing date everything! (and by recently i mean, yesterday and i only played for an hour) i already have a favourite so happy world book day to him <3