The Ugly Monster (Oscar)
@theuglymonster.bsky.social
Scifi, horror, anime, comics, games, and other vile media
"A devil is a manifestation of a human fear of something, and the more people that are afraid of that specific thing makes its respective devil stronger." #manga #anime #NoPaywall medium.com/theuglymonst...
‘Chainsaw Man’ is a Raw Exploration of Male Victimization and Abuse
‘Chainsaw Man’ is a story about a boy looking for his way in life, only to be duped, groomed, and victimized at every turn
medium.com
"Cameos can make the city feel like a lived-in Marvel comic world without falling into the traps of being “too MCU” and overcrowded with needless fanservice moments — if they are managed correctly." #SpiderMan #Medium #movies medium.com/theuglymonst...
‘Spider-Man: Brand New Day’ Swings into an Exciting New Era
Spidey is going through a lot, but he’s not the only one
medium.com
"I was browsing the shelves of Half Price Books, I spotted the trade paperback of Thor: The Saga of Gorr the God Butcher and determined this was Odin giving me a sign, so I picked it up." #comics medium.com/theuglymonst...
I Finally Read ‘The Saga of Gorr the God Butcher’
Would mortals be better off without the gods?
medium.com
"Obsession doesn’t merely recycle the “Be careful what you wish for” trope... Rather, it contextualizes and develops the trope into a moral that reverberates throughout the story, which augments the film’s horrific charm (genre-wise)." #GiftArticle #horror medium.com/theuglymonst...
‘Obsession’ — You Get The Relationship You Deserve
You either check yourself, or you get exactly what you want, all the way to its logical conclusion
medium.com
"Due to Marx’s praise, Marxists — especially orthodox Marxists — would take Spartacus’s name and story as a symbol of a heroic revolutionary proletariat." #movies #NoPaywall medium.com/theuglymonst...
The Radical Political Origins of ‘Spartacus’
The story behind Stanley Kubrick’s ancient epic
medium.com
"What makes the show so timeless is this lesson; as much as we think we figure it all out by our later years, we are consistently growing creatures." #anime medium.com/theuglymonst...
Neon Genesis Evangelion: You Versus the World Versus the You Within the World
What does it mean to live? What do you give up to live?
medium.com
"CBS was the Darth Sidious of the Satanic Panic. They served D&D up to kids on Saturdays, then put the fear of God into parents on the occasional weeknight." #gaming #journalism #TomHanks medium.com/theuglymonst...
Tom Hanks, 60 Minutes, the Satanic Panic, and D&D
CBS was a moral panic profiteer
medium.com
"When the metafictional romantasy series I’m In Love With The Villainess made its setting a magic school plagued by monsters and classism, the author basically said that this is the default fantasy setting for YA novels." #anime #manga #books
Worldbuilding Wednesday@worldbuildingwed.bsky.social · 4w ago"In the generic magic school story, there’s only one kind of magic — whatever is being taught at the school — and only one aesthetic: a vaguely medieval Europe. The characters and the challenges they face must come completely from this more limited initial setup." #writing #anime #worldbuilding
"Rick thought he would eventually break free of the cycle by embracing evolution. Morty thought he could free himself from evolution with individual enlightenment. Instead they were both wrong. Community is what freed them." #GiftArticle medium.com/theuglymonst...
‘Rick and Morty’ — Let Evolution Die
The philosophy of the latest season of ‘Rick and Morty’
medium.com
"Is the sword too big? Does it work? I landed on, yes, it is too big and yes, it works!" Warhammer #NoPaywall medium.com/theuglymonst...
A Whole Lot of Bulls: My Warhammer Beastmen Army
I built a savage minotaur army for Warhammer: The Old World
medium.com
Happy Wednesday! Our monthly #worldbuilding newsletter is live! 👽🐉✨ #writing #booksky #fantasy #scifi #writingcommunity
✨The sword, the raygun, and the pen✨
July 2026 recommendations, resources, and rants for fantasy and sci-fi writers.
medium.com
"There are entire sections of the film where you almost forget about the film’s genre premise, as it depicts the most tortured, fucked up co-dependent relationship possible, before its even more crushing reality rears its ugly head once again." #horror #GiftArticle medium.com/theuglymonst...
‘Obsession’ Re-imagines Toxic Relationships and Selfish Romance Through a Horror Movie Lens
Curry Barker’s debut combines real-life horrors with familiar genre trappings, conveyed uniquely enough that the experience feels revelatory
medium.com
"The most chilling scenes in this film aren’t violent; they’re subtle. They’re the moments where Christy realizes she’s surrounded by people who benefit more from her staying dependent, exhausted, and afraid." #boxing #Medium #NoPaywall medium.com/theuglymonst...
‘Christy’ — A Boxing Biopic That Isn’t About Boxing at All
Womanhood, danger, and the cost of surrendering control
medium.com
"A writer cannot break their own rules without extreme care and purpose. To do so is to undermine their entire universe." #fantasy #worldbuilding
Worldbuilding Wednesday@worldbuildingwed.bsky.social · 6d ago"This is why we squeal and say ‘I knew it!’ when a character starts acting odd, because it’s been promised through repeated word choices that a betrayal is likely imminent." #writing #worldbuilding #booksky #fantasy
"There is a meanness to Shinji that is often bulwarked from criticism by his dreadful situation, but he is resentful, and harsh, and — by the End of Evangelion — suitably fucked up." #anime medium.com/theuglymonst...
Neon Genesis Evangelion: You Versus the World Versus the You Within the World
What does it mean to live? What do you give up to live?
medium.com
RIP Bram Stoker, you would have wasted all of your time and money on tabletop gaming
Anthony Oliveira@meakoopa.bsky.social · 3d agoI am going through Bram Stoker’s earliest notes on DRACULA today - they include a list of the powers and features of the Count (then named “Wampyr” before Stoker stumbled on “Dracula”), many of which are never elucidated in the book…
"DENSHATTACK! acknowledges that you can’t place the act of resistance in one box. It celebrates the unique fighting spirit each individual person has and the beauty in the fact it’s different from everyone else..." #gaming #NoPaywall medium.com/theuglymonst...
‘DENSHATTACK!’ Is a Masterpiece. Is This the Ultimate ‘Jet Set Radio’ Successor?
A revitalization of the genre I hold closest to my heart
medium.com
"I used to be a dyed-in-the-wool Tarantino fan. Although, in the past few years my love for his movies has soured." #movies medium.com/theuglymonst...
Tarantino’s Foot Thing
You can’t excuse everything as ‘good direction’, Quentin.
medium.com
"Not every story needs to be this methodical, but in watching these first two seasons, it really puts into perspective the importance of letting the audience “inhabit a world”, so to speak." #Wakfu #gaming medium.com/theuglymonst...
‘Wakfu’ — The Anime Masterpiece That Transcends Genres
Ankama’s ‘Wakfu’ transcends the realm of video game adaptations as one of the best fantasy anime I’ve watched in years
medium.com
"Evangelion isn’t merely interested in the ‘why’ of life, it’s interested in the complications of proving your own existence — mathematically, biologically, metaphysically — to yourself." #anime #philosophy medium.com/theuglymonst...
Neon Genesis Evangelion: You Versus the World Versus the You Within the World
What does it mean to live? What do you give up to live?
medium.com
"As any description of Spartacus will tell you, the historical record has only a few lines about him, which has led historians to speculate that the Romans were embarrassed by the incident." #movies #NoPaywall medium.com/theuglymonst...
The Radical Political Origins of ‘Spartacus’
The story behind Stanley Kubrick’s ancient epic
medium.com
QRP with your most popular piece on bsky ~ From this year, at least. Rather fond of this design.
Kathryn Reynolds 📚🎨@cozykathryn.com · 5d agoQRP with your most popular piece on bsky ~
"The third act is uniquely overwhelming. You’ll be in awe of it afterwards. It’s somehow taxing on the body." #TheOdyssey #GiftArticle medium.com/theuglymonst...
‘The Odyssey’ is Chaotic and Sensational
Christopher Nolan’s adaptation of one of the world’s most famous stories is undoubtedly one of the most exciting movies of 2026
medium.com
"In my looting of my family home, I found a couple of Leman Russ tanks. Yessss. Now they serve the four-armed emperor!" #Warhammer40K #wargaming #NoPaywall medium.com/theuglymonst...
A Leman Russ for the Four-Armed Emperor! | Warhammer 40,000
I looted my childhood
medium.com
"Put in an impossible position, tired to her very bones, Penelope is unrelenting. She does everything within her power to preserve her family’s place in Ithaca with her own brand of cleverness." #movies #mythology medium.com/theuglymonst...
‘The Odyssey’ is Chaotic and Sensational
Christopher Nolan’s adaptation of one of the world’s most famous stories is undoubtedly one of the most exciting movies of 2026
medium.com
