Snowflake Challenge 2025 - 11a

[shadowhive]

Snowflake time! Alas I don’t have the energy to do the ones I need to catch up on but

Challenge #11

In your own space, share your love for a trope, cliché, kink, motif, or theme. Post your answer to today’s challenge in your own space and leave a comment in this post saying you did it. Include a link to your post if you feel comfortable doing so.

So I’m gonna split this into two posts. The first being general stuff the other being kinks (since the challenge mentions it) so that those that come in from the challenge can avoid my kink rambling unless they choose to.

So first off is tropes. The first one that comes to mind is investigation type horror which I guess has a more proper term but I dunno what it is. I think my love of it first started from The X-Files, which I love dearly. To me the show is at its best when it’s the team (whoever it is, but usually Mulder and Scully) is investigating some sort of paranormal happening. The standalone ones are some of the best (the myth arc, while good, could get a little much sometime) and I could rattle off a list of them but I’m not going to right now.

It really is a shame there’s not anything like that. Torchwood is the only thing that was like that, but the last seasons back event arcs so there was no room for standalone stuff.

But the type of investigation stuff horror films tend to do is more amateurish. Look at Ring, the investigator ion isn’t done by someone that’s trained or expects it, but a reporter doing a story into mysterious deaths. I really love that sort of stuff (and if anyone has recs I’d be curious to see more). Noroi is another really great example, which, like ring is Japanese and it’s also found footage.

Since I mention Ring I also love the concept of haunted technology. Ring is about a cursed video tape and I just love that sort of thing as a concept. I dunno why, maybe it helps that I grew up with them. Again if anyone has more recs along those lines I’d be interested cause it feels there’s not enough.

I did see on iplayer there’s something called Video Nasties the other night, which has caught my interest, but I’ve not had chance to watch.

One trope I also love is a story told from multiple narratives. I guess I’m thinking of that because I’m currently reading Five Little Pigs, which has exactly that: five people giving their narratives about a murder. It’s interesting what each person focuses on and, of course, what they leave out.

Again The X-Files has one of the best examples of this, in the episode Bad Blood where we see both Scully and Mulder’s accounts of the same investigation. (And damn now I wanna rewatch it!) it’s interesting to see how they see each other as well as the people they meet along the way.

In general I do love sci-fi stuff. I do love Star Trek (though im behind on the newer stuff, damnit Paramount+ locking it) and Star Wars (again there’s some stuff I still need to watch, mostly the animated stuff) and Doctor Who which is awesome for the most part. I dunno why I just do love that sorta thing. I love space stuff in general so anything to do with that I just love.

And I love cryptozoology. I just love the possibility that there’s some strange and mysterious out there. Especially if it’s water based, because of how often people say ‘we know more about the surface of the moon than the deep ocean’. I do have a deep love for Nessie and I’m. Looking forward to watching a thing about them Sunday. Again if anyone has any recs with shows or films with cryptids (especially water based ones Jill be very interested.

And damn that feels like more than I expected and I feel there’s some idea I had that has completely left my brain. I guess I’ll leave it there for now though!

I’m gonna have some noms then do the part 2 (with kinks) and add a link here before posting this over on snowflake.

Edit: part 2 is here

Comments

[fleshdoll]

in terms of investigation horror i loved as above, so below. the tension it builds up is amazingly well done. i would also say insidious but the investigating part only starts over halfway through, the beginning is more of a standard haunted house type of thing before it shifts

ahhh i love multiple points of view as well!

haunted technology? repeated from your jhorror recs i gave a little while ago but definitely pulse and one missed call.

[shadowhive]

Ohhh I’m not sure if I’ve seen As Above, I think it was a trailer on one of the saw DVDs but I’m not sure I’ve seen it (there’s one other film set in the catacombs and I’m not sure which one I’ve seen) but I’ll have to see if it’s up anywhere! Ohh I’ve definitely watched some of the Insidious films! Lin Shaye is so great in them

Yay! There really needs to be more with it!

I’ll have to check pulse out! I know I’ve seen One Missed call but I really wanna watch it again

Thanks for the recs🖤

[flo_nelja]

OOh I love cryptozoology too!

For investigation horror, it's interesting, supernatural investigation is one of my favorite tropes, but I never thought to sort them into horror/not horror. ots of it sure has horror elements, but isn't horror.

[shadowhive]

Oh yay! I really need to watch and read more stuff about it I’m so glad here’s that Nessie thing Sunday

Ohh that is a good term for it! I guess cause the last things I watched with it (like Ring and Noroi) were horror my brain cell focussed on using that. (Despite mentioning X-Files which while it had horror elements at times it wasn’t the focus)

[flo_nelja]

I think supernatural investigation with horror themes is a more common thing, from Twin Peaks to Lockwood and co (and it happens in anime too!)

[greetingsfrommaars]

for investigative horror, what I think of is the Korean movie The Wailing?

and for haunted technology, I would recommend the short story "each thing i show you is a piece of my death". it's sort of about a cursed short film!

[shadowhive]

Ohhh thanks! That name sounds familiar but I’ve not seen it so I’ll have to check it out.

Oh that sounds so cool! I’ve opened the link and will look through it soon!💜

[vendettadays]

Investigation horror is such a good descriptor for it! I've never considered it in that way but it works as a way to describe the things that happen in X Files and Torchwood.

Oh, cryptozoology and Nessie! You're so right that we probably know more about the moon's surface then we do about our oceans and seas. I've not watched it, but a film that immediately comes to mind is "The Shape of Water". I may just have to watch it.

Thank your for sharing this! It was so interesting to read your thoughts!

[shadowhive]

It is! I know it doesn’t fully work for x-files/torchwood cause they’re not horror centric most of the time (someone suggested supernatural investigation which certainly works better for them at least!) but some of the episodes are so scary (I’m looking at you Chinga and Countrycide!)

Yeah I love them so much! It’s so mysterious down there it gives me chills whenever anyone says that. That’s something I have seen when it was on tv, I remember it being pretty good

Thanks for commenting too!💜