#(underappreciated mythological creature)

[13skeletons]

Scorched Earth, aka The Map That Turned Me Feral

#THIS IS MY HOLE IT WAS MADE FOR ME #ark survival evolved #skeleton gaming 404 #404: ark #desert landscapes lightning storms giant mantises wyverns phoenixes jerboas #native american cowboy ANCIENT EGYPTIAN PRIESTESS #and they were in love! #the little musical stings that sound like a perfect blend of western and egypt (HOW) #MANTICORE BOSS #(underappreciated mythological creature) #bigass skeletons /everywhere/ #spread my ashes on scorched earth thanks #oc: neshny #the skeleton has ocs #edit: that last pic ended up in the sep 1 2023 community crunch wheeee #hi devs

[hoverboards-and-dragons]

My Hazbin Archangels;

Asks about them are more than Welcome

These are very developed OCs so at this point I need to make masterpost for how my interpretation of them works

Listing I'm using is;

Lucifer, Michael, Raphael, Uriel, Gabriel, Jophiel, Zadkiel |__________________| |___________| |__________________| ^ ^ ^ Elder Sister syndrome, Forgotten middle children, family babies

I don't include Azrael mostly cause weirdly intense and underappreciated job are covered by Michael and Lucifer and I feel it would undermine both of their supposed isolation, you can only have so many outcasts and loners in a group of seven that are also a team.

Yes I did make up all the titles based vaguely on translations and mythological roles, it felt weird for just Luci to have something like "the morningstar"

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Originally called Angels of Creation or Heirs of the Almighty; they were uniquely Imbued with powers of Creation and raised as His own offspring. (He kinda had to there was nothing else)

Each was hatched in tandem with a realm they were charged with overseeing the development of; in line with the Seven Days of Creation.

Later these seven were named the Archangels and designated the highest authorities within Heaven; however most their duties are distant from the rest of Heaven's hierarchy, the most involved they get is in delivering commands, as God is rarely willing to talk to anyone other than them.

While they were all hatched over the course of a single week, the order was still very important as it defined the chain of command; so much so that the oldest two were called twins just cause they were equal in power. (practically speaking, they're all septuplets)

They all call each other brother, only three have genders, only two are men and Luci's mostly doing it as a bit. They can be a child, a kid, a hatchling, or a fledgling of God but never a son or daughter, isn't gender fun?

Day 1: Lucifer

‘Let there be light’

Lucifer(he/him); the Morningstar, Herald of Creation. The fallen one the brother below Made to be incapable of worship so he could never be satisfied with God's perfection alone and would seek out other paths to take creation.

(which does count as a neurodivergency, angels are inherently creatures of worship)

He'd find flaws in his brothers' realms and expand them into something entirely unique. He was less in charge of anything and more excluded from the control of anyone else. He also regularly got into arguments with their Father for shits and giggles, giving his very reverent brothers fucking heart attacks. (they assumed he was allowed to do this because he was the favourite and not perhaps the other way around)

Day 2: Michael

"the Heavens are separated from the Earth",

Michael(he/it); the Divineblade, Archangel of Law and Truth, Highest of All Angels, Charged with the creation of the Heavens and all other angels.

Most devoted to the Father's will; Chronic workaholic and quite resentful of his own personhood, all he wants is to be God's perfect tool but he keeps having feelings. Well-respected as a leader by his siblings; relentlessly bullied by them (out of love) as a brother for being unable to comprehend 'outgrowing their first intended purpose'. Hes got a famous polite stoic demeanour that's equally infamous for being broken by Lucifer's anything and nothing else. He is getting steadily worse at his job and its going to break him any day now.

Day 3: Raphael

"the waters are gathered, the earth brings forth life"

Raphael(all/they); the Healingspur, Archangel of Life, Keeper of Balance, Charged with the creation of the seas and vegetation.

Mediator of the twins' constant arguments, most consistent voice of reason in any room; Michael's right hand and the only reason he remembers to eat(they don't need to but its good for them). Gentle and controlled but also quite stern. Very strong sense of empathy that is systematically destroying them as they face others on their worse days over and over again. They are the most aware of how Lucifer absence is tearing each of their brothers apart and how unwilling anyone is to even acknowledge it; they have pretty much resigned themselves to the approaching all-out breakdown, there's not much a healer can do before the injury.

Day 4: Uriel

"the sky is filled with signs of days, months, season and years"

Uriel(all/they); the Aflameword, Archangel of Knowledge, keeper of the sun, stars and archives, Charged with the creation of constellations and planets.

Likes things quiet and tidy. Ordinarily quite reserved; preferring to keep to themselves, focus on documenting and organizing and simply observe the others. But unwilling to be resigned, has stepped up as the only one willing to call Michael on his bullshit, like refusing to officially promote Raph to second in command despite them already taking up all of Lucifer old duties; and even hesitantly but directly questioning their Father on some things, which is a lot for any of them. Has an arrogance streak, doesn't enjoy reminders of what they don't know; especially that they are just as in the dark about God's big plan as anyone else.

Day 5: Gabriel

"the earth is filled with creatures"

Gabriel(all/they); the Herocue, Archangel of Order, Keeper of progress, Charged with the creation of creatures and their instincts.

Gabe is a somewhat of a Hermes figure, Michael’s left hand. Quick and always eager to provide their services to anyone who asks; especially known for getting last minute tasks down for Michael. Their wings buzz like a hummingbird at the speeds they fly. Always set on efficiency with a reputation for being deadly serious but is secretly bit of a prankster. A gremlin when they get their mind set on something and will regularly startle others out by clinging to walls or ceilings. In charge of most of heaven’s military and had A bit of a complex about being weaker than Michael despite being the soldier of the seven.

Additional; a Channel suited for Him also sometimes called a sockpuppet, they can be possessed as God's vessel to act as his direct body and voice (without the negative repercussions to their body and mind or discomfort to Him other angels or creations would cause)

Day 6: Jophiel

humans are brought forth as caretakers of the earth

Jophiel(she/her); the Ribbondance, Archangel of Passion, Keeper of Beauty, Charged with the creation of humanity

Highlight of every room she enters, quick-witted and an equal to Gabe, even a challenge to Michael on the battlefield. Always up for a good challenge, puzzle or debate. An open prankster, Gabriel is her hidden accomplice. Will defend the potential of humanity to her last breath, a more and more controversial stand; she's pretty upset at never getting to finish her masterpiece since she lost a lot of control of mankind once free will was introduced, she still tries to influence them probably more than she's really technically allowed. Knows about politics.

Day 7: Zadkiel

creation was finished, and the day was blessed

Zadkiel(all/they); the Righteouspeace, Archangel of Grace, Keeper of the Holy day, Charged with miracles and blessings.

Detached, muted and kinda smug but well meaning. They try but they don't really know how to interact with those of their equals. Their devotion rivals Michael’s but they’re quieter. Insecurity about having such an unclear purpose next to the other seven has let them entirely give themselves over to faith. If it happens, Father means it. Spends by far the most amount of time on earth(Gabriel is a distant second) and has strong opinions on every individual sect of Christianity and how they build their churches. They are continually surprised by how out of touch their brothers and rest of Heaven is to the religion that worships them, come on guys at least Our Brother Down Under has an excuse.

Additional; also a Channel suited for Him

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The youngest three are very close on account of being shut up out of important arguments and being left to gossip upon themselves

Michael tries really hard to convince himself Lucifer is The Enemy (he can't live with the alternative) but the other five are of the opinion "He transgressed, he got punished, still being angry at this point is just petty" and still want to be in his life. However, they still don't really get what he was trying to do, Lucifer is also hung up on how none of them came to check on him.

He didn't see any of them for 5 000 years and when he did it was Michael holding a sword to his throat and demanding to know why he was on earth.

From Luci's perspective; the fall very nearly killed him and only didn't because the Sins found him before he bled out; it was then years of painful recovery that never quite healed right. It wasn't like there was anything in hell that could hold a candle to the power of an Archangel, he would know. There was nothing stopping them, he was always there for them when they needed him, but when he was scared and hurt, they just abandoned him.

From their perspective; archangels were, and still are, assumed unkillable, and practically indestructible. This was the first time Father had ever punished like this before and they were terrified. No one was willing to risk it now that Falling was on the table; now that they saw He absolutely was willing to sacrifice His children for the Plan, whatever it was.

#hazbin hotel #hazbin hotel lucifer #hazbin hotel headcanons #hazbin hotel michael #hazbin hotel raphael #hazbin hotel uriel #hazbin hotel gabriel #hazbin hotel jophiel #hazbin hotel Zadkiel #hazbin hotel god #hazbin hotel archangels

[xerxeswitch]

My Companion, K.H.

I have been itching as well as been hesitating on making this post, since I am very protective of my bond with him. I have high respect for him to the point where I get possessive of our bond to keeping it mainly a secret in most cases. Only two people knows his true identity. This post is mainly to show him my deepest appreciation. I was going to make a post about him -- his true identity and spreading his name in appreciation for he is an underappreciated known psychopomp in mythology, but he told me that our bond is sacred and it shouldn't be showcased with his name. Other than he said he rather have the focus on how our bond developed, not focusing on his name or legends since he said it holds no worth in our relationship but the relationship itself. So, his name here is K.H. ... I had dreams since I was a toddler. It'd be in a dark cavern with luminescent water emerald green. The caves were gray and had a texture that I do I recognize, but it has subtle carvings of the dead, as if they're embedded in the surfaces. In the water was filled with frightening aquatic creatures that could swallow a person whole, as I recall a huge black frog eating something decayed. There were decaying bodies in the water as well, or people asleep. Not quite dead but not alive. There was a boat in the emerald waters. On that boat was a large man with muscles as big as a normal-sized human head. He has intense, yet stoic dull blue-grey eyes. His gray skin looks to be in decay but it does NOT affect his strength. He wore a big black, aged trench coat. He was bald too. He looked like he could be a bouncer if he wanted to. In his arms was me as a baby. He would be cradling me in his arms as he stood in his boat with a giant, spiked oar. As I grew older around 5-7 years old, I would have dreams nearly back to back returning to him and that cavern and his boat. I would enjoy his rides around that boat, demanding with my childish, bratty demands to keep rowing me back and forth around the area. He doesn't seem to mind too much -- he told me he found it amusing. I tried to get in the emerald water before, but he scolded me saying, "The waters are poisonous, stay out of it, child." He would continue to row me around keeping him company. -- I never forgot those dreams. Ever. It was engrained in my memories as fresh as the day I had them. Suddenly, I had a dream again of seeing him after all these years when I turned 24 -- around the time I accepted my psychic senses and opened myself to the spirit world again. And...well...here we are. I just want to say: Thank you for being there. Somehow, your energy always kind of helped me when you did your work in the shadows. You wanted to make sure I was safe.

I don't know why you care about me so much to the point of acting like a father figure, but I thoroughly appreciate it. I really do. No matter what, you are Family. ---- (If anyone adds up to which mini "deity" figure I am talking about later on, then I'll edit it to make it more discreet. I'm just that protective) (And no, I do not worship "deities," nor believe in the concept that they are "deities" but that doesn't mean I don't like a handful of these beings)

#spirit work #spirit companion #witchblr #witch #spirit companionship #spirit companions #deity #psychopomp

[floette777]

Me and Amy Need your Help rebuilding Twilight Sparkle’s Castle we need you dmyo donate ALLLLL of your money all the underappreciated

Mythological and Mystical Creatures , Animals and Entities ever

(This is a joke I was asked by somebody to tell 7 people I’m I was notified 3 random facts about myself and Those that I love Amy Rose and Queen Twilight Sparkle Then I’ll post My VERY OWWWWNNN Handmade Artwork About this Beautiful Creature in My Blog)

LOL! Oh ok, I was confused for a moment!

Amy rose is a great character! She is my 2nd favorite Sonic character, mlMy favorite is Big the cat! (He's such an adorable chilling fluffy goofball!)😆

Twilight Isn't my favorite MLP character (Fluttershy is) but she is definitely in my top 5.

Also good luck with your handmade artwork!✨

[man-eatingtree]

This it~ the inspiration for my blog name title 😈😈😈🥰🥰😈😈😈😈😈😈🥰(yeah I’m Morbid)

This is my Main account

This Mythology account,Here we give attention,Love,Respect,Remembrance,Representation,Generosity,Gratitude and more lesser-known and underrated /unpopular/Unappreciated Mythos,Cryptids,Legendaries,Legends and more, Along side Lesser-known,underrated,unpopular and unappreciated versions of more popular ones

My other Blogs~!🧺😉😜

🛖🗿I’m The AfricanManEatingTree🗿🛖

👑But my Real name is 🕊️🐚🍄🌊🔮 🪸

Ava Chloe-Marie Currie 👑

🐌🦄🦋I’m Just To give love The 🦑🦕🐲🦜🦚Underappreciated and UnderLoved Mythos of The 7 Worlds 🐍🪼🐞🐉🦢

💝🌹💐📿🏵️Me Amy and Twilight need YOUR help We’re Raising ArtWorks for under-💖✨🌑🌕appreciated Mythological & Mythical Creatures, Animals,Entities,Figures,illusions and More🐜🦗🪳🐞🐝🪱🦆🪿🐒🦅🦉🐴🐛🪰🐙🐠🐋🐅🐊🐮🐄🐕🌒🌜🌚🌝🌛

🦋So We need you Beautiful-Butterflies 🦋

🤑💰💵💸🧧💴To give ALLL the Money in your Banks 🏦 💶💳💲🪙💷

If you want to live 👜🧘🏻‍♀️🔫(This a JOKE)💷

To make this Possible and after Twilight’s Castle 🏰 had Been Rebuilt you can live in the Mystic Resort , live here and work as a 🪸🏖️Zookeeper(or just Keeper for short cause it’s Mystical)here when you go broke 🏝️

🗿💸💰🤑🏰🦋

🌺🌈💫🌸✨🔥🙈🌹🌚🎄💐💦❄️🦋☀️⭐️🙊🐶🌞🌷🌟💫🌻🐷🦄🌝🐐⚡️💨🍀🐾🌲☃️🌙🥀🌴🌼🐍🐸🌊🐱🐝🐒⛄️🦍🐼🐻🌿🦅🐥🌎🐣🍃☁️💧🐕🙉🐭🐟🦆🌱🐢🐞🦖🐠🐯🐰🐴🦊🐓🐽🐀🐀🐅🦁🌍🦀🐖🐙🐔🦃🐛🐈🌵🐬🐘🌳🐨🐹🦎🌛🦌☄️🐵🐎🐺☂️🦉🦔🐳🍂🍁🍄🐮🐜🌠🦇🐇🦕🌑🐧🌅🦗🐌🦒🦜🌖🐗🐤🦠🐡☔️🐁🦞🦘🌕🦙🐄🦐🌄🐦🌌🐊🦟🐲🦓🐂🌋🎍🌘🦏🦑🦂🦛🐏🌾⛅️🦈🪵🪻⛰️🪶🪷🪱🪳🦥🦝🦫🪽🪸🪼🗻🦨🏜️🪨🪹🫏🎋🦬🌫️🪰🌪️🐩🦣🪲🪿🦧🌓🦩🌗🐃🕷️🌬️🌔🌔🐿️🌒🐻‍❄️🦭🦚🪺🦤🕸️🦡🏝️🪐🌏🐉🦮🐦‍⬛🏞️🐕‍🦺🐆🌨️🦢🐫🏔️🌩️🌤️🌥️🐈‍⬛🦦🌧️🌜🐋🪴🌦️🐚⛈️🕊️

#Mythology Man eating tree African Mythology

[honorarycassowary]

my hot take on the set animal: it is a cetacean

reasons:

1) imo drawing the set animal as a dog with an evil head is boring. it is just a litle creacher. if you think it is a purely mythological creature (as I do), live a little! think outside the box!

2) carnivorous ungulates are fascinating and underappreciated; the terrestrial relatives of whales were quite unlike any living animal today (perfect for the animal that has inspired centuries of arguments to the tune of “what the heck is that?”)

3) it is the funniest and most chaotic option. a group of early whales deciding to unevolve this aquatic nonsense and go back to the desert? wonderful. the idea of modern cetacea being whales and this dog-looking thing? amazing. perfect for the god of chaos.

#speculative biology #set god #egyptian mythology #spec bio

[iz-star]

Personal rambling about my writer feelings. Feel free to skip this post!

Some years ago I wrote a Saint Seiya fanfic based on one of its spin offs: The Lost Canvas. I've been recalling that fanfic a lot while watching Dr. Stone for lots of reasons and I just can tell that this show is hitting me so hard.

One of the things I love about Saint Seiya is that, due to its endless spin-offs and multiverses, it leaves the door open for writers to explore a bunch of situations that can easily stick to the in-canon verse events.

So, this fanfic I wrote was basically about how one of the main characters got chronically ill (surprise, it was tuberculosis, yeah, yeah, I know) so with other two characters, the three of them start a trip to find a cure on time since this universe is settled in 18th Century, so antibiotics haven't been created yet.

During said trip, there are a few times where characters recall their past, for example: one of them tells the other two of how once when he was younger (16? yro, I can't remember ahaha) he had to fight Scylla in one travel to Italy where their ship got stuck in her maelstrom. I remember that scene with lots of love because I had so much fucking fun plotting how the characters involved in it would get out of it. I think it was also one of the longest chapters I've written so far.

(Oh, I also forgot to mention that Saint Seiya is a series that uses both mythology and science as real things. In one chapter you have the Aquarius Saint explaining to you how absolute zero works or the Leo Saint explaining the speed of light and the next moment they talk about Athena, the greek goddess and real one there, of course is not explanatory as Dr. Stone but that's not the point ahaha).

Anyway, there is another scene where the girl protagonist recalls one of her reading classes with another character, since in those times, where Greece was still under the goverment of ottoman empire, to be able to access to education wasn't as easy as it is nowadays, so she literally was learning to read. In this chapter, her teacher tells her that to learn is a brave task in those times where critical thinking skills were so badly underappreciated and poiting out that naive/ignorant people is always easy to govern, so in order to motivate her to keep learning, her teacher shows her his telescope.

For those who had watched Dr. Stone, you've probably seen some similarities though not exactly the same thing, I can't help but feeling nostalgic. This anime/manga is bringing up all the things I was passionate about when I was younger and less tired.

Oratio de hominis dignitate - Oration on the Dignity of Man.

Nec the celestem neque terrenum, neque mortalem, neque immortalem fecimus, ut tui ipsius quasi arbitrarious honorariusque plastes et fictor, in quam malueris tute formam effingas.

We have made you a creature neither of heaven nor of earth, neither mortal nor immortal, in order that you may, as the free and proud shaper of your own being, fashion yourself in the form you may prefer.

Oration of the Dignity of Man was an essay written by the italian philosopher, Pico Della Mirandola and in it, he talks about the way God gave the man the mission to conceive himself and find their true shape, since God had already given all the others part of his creation their true form, man's mission in this world was to find their own.

In this essay, what Pico della Mirandolla wanted to do is to reconciliate all the different physophies and religious beliefs, saying that men's nature is chameleon due to its long travel to discover themselves. This position he held was something judged terribly because for the church it implied heresy.

What I loved about it at the moment was that these basements could be something taken as an impulse to discover new ways of thinking, to learn and explore science despite the obscurantism that prevailed in his time.

I of course had to add it to my fanfic and since I'm a fan of languages, the chance to include a quote of it in its original language (latin) didn't escape me ahaha.

So, watching Dr. Stone I've loved deeply the way Senku has talked about Chrome saying that it doesn't matter what the situation or age is, there will always be a person curious enough to discover things, which is so true. Senku sees in Chrome the future and the course of the nature of humanity.

It was pretty much what I wanted to write with this scene of the protagonist seeing a telescope for the first time in her life. I feel my own self of some years ago waking up with this show, and all this excitement is making me want to continue this fanfic.

Because, yeah, I didn't finish it.

128 pages (I'm counting the last two ones of the chapter I left unwritten and unfinished) and then I deleted that fic from Fanfiction dot net and until now, it's only saved on my folders with the tons of fics I've written/deleted/never got to post. It's been years since I last read it. I'm looking through the document and lots of feelings are awakening inside of me, thinking how was it possible I was able to write all of that when nowadays I can barely think.

Ah. I used to read a lot too, books and fanfics. I constantly used to find inspiration from my books and I would always read them everytime I ditched classes because I was quite bit the problematic student. My mom would always say how was it possible I could read lots of things and then fail my subjects and nowadays I understand that what I did back then was to get hyperfixated on certain topics. I could read a lot of books about topics I got hyperfixated instead of putting attention to my classes ahaha. It was always easier to learn on my own anyway.

That's why I also love Senku a lot, too!

So, the point here is that learning is always such an amazing process. We, humans, always find something we want to sink deeply our noses in and drink, drink, drink all that knowledge. I've recalled lots of things that used to lift up my mood when my grades at school weren't that good just because I wasn't good at learning in the same way others did.

I'm trying to go back there, though. Life and shit happens and my adult brain became something useless at some extent due to lots of things and my freeze response to some events. I can't even read something for more than 30 minutes and it takes me days to even finish to read something I like.

But I'm getting more and more conviced that I want to be able to write all the ideas I want to write without feeling that my brain is broken lol. So, it might be a looong and slow process but I'll do it. I've thought about this unfinished fanfic and even though I'm not sure if I can finish it (I don't remember what the next part of the plot was about) I seriously want to go back write long stuff and enjoy it. Even if this fanfic is unfinished is probably one of my favorites. I loved to write every single line of it.

It's time to adjust the nuts and bolts and make this thinking machine to work again. We can always try, can't we?

#personal ramblings #Personal #Writing

[sukunasrealm]

Thank you to the wonderful @justalarryblog and amazing@loulovehome for tagging me!!! This was HARD!! lol!

📆 If I were a month I’d be: October - I love fall weather and everything Halloween

💐 If I were a flower I’d be: Tulip - theyre my favorite!

💿 If I were an album I’d be: Electric Light - James Bay - very underappreciated album (people just didn't get it!)

💎 If I were a mineral I’d be: Pyrite- I just like it!

👂 If I were a sound I’d be: The sounds of the ocean crashing against rocks.

🎨 If I were a colour I’d be: Teal or Lavendar

🍹 If I were a drink I’d be:  A Paloma - My favorite tequila drink

🍎 If I were a fruit I’d be: Mango

📜 If I were a quote I’d be: “There was right, there was wrong, now there is you." - quote from Murder On the Orient Express

📺 If I were a tv series I’d be: Dexter - Just because I'm excited about it coming back for a final season.

🎬 If I were a movie I’d be: (I'm going to cheat and put two) When Harry Met Sally and Hable Con Ella (my two all time favorite movies)

🛍 If I were a fashion brand I’d be: (Again two) Vans and Converse - which is what I wear the most.

🦄 If I were a mythological creature I’d be: Unicorn - because theyre pretty and horses are my fave!

👅 If I were a taste I’d be: Guatemalan Rellenitos - I miss them so much its a plantain and sweet bean pastry.

👃 If I were a scent I’d be: Marc Jacobs by Marc Jacobs - my favorite perfume

🧵 If I were a fabric I’d be: Cotton - its soft and versatile

🫀 If I were a body part I’d be: Eyes - I think they're so telling in people's true nature.

🎶 If I were a song I’d be: (Again two) Just A Little Bit of Your Heart sung by Harry Styles, and Abrazame Muy Fuerte - Juan Gabriel

💫 If I were a goddess, my 4 attributes would be: love, creativity, energy, kindness

(This one was very hard so I won't take offense if I tag you and you don't do it!!!)

@softfonds @halohamilton @evilovesyou @peachbootylouis @jaanwangji @justapayneaway @harrylouis @lp1tour @louismyantidote @merrrrrrrrry

#tagging game #no pressure anyone i tagged #JD post #this one was hard #I cheated on some and put 2 because I can't pick

[alish-artie]

I choose Eilonwy, Ariel and Belle!

Thank you again😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊

You’re welcome !! :D

"Name an underappreciated film you love."

I don’t know if it’s underappreciated, but since each time I talk about that movie people don’t know it, I’ll talk about it here : song of the sea !

I love the beautiful animation and the story about a broken family, and also…it’s a movie about selkies !! This movie is the one that made me love selkies so much !! There’s also other mythical creatures and I love all the mythology in it so much !! I definitely recommend !!!

"Favorite mythical creature ?"

I have a lot of favorite mythical creatures, but again I'll go with the selkie as my top favorite ! They’re seal that can take a human form while wearing their seal skin as a coat ! It’s simple but I love them so much !

"Why is your favorite book your favorite ?"

I don’t read many books (I can never finish them), except for books like "the Suicide shop" (I promise it’s about happiness-) which has a lot of dark humor that I frankly love, and I really like the characters, like the boy Alan who will do anything to make his family happy ! Also the universe is super interesting, and that’s what got me into this book at first !

#ask #thank you for your ask ! #ask game ! #that’s why Oliver is a selkie in the monster au x) #the suicide shop also got a movie that I like but I prefer the book #mostly because the ending is too fast and not very believable !

[unnursvanablog]

1. 2. 6. 10. !

Thanks :)

1. A popular drama you didn’t like.

So many, but the ones I turn my nose up at when people talk about 'omg, this drama was so amazing, totally flawless, one of a kind' sort of thing are Goblin and Strong woman Do Bong Soon. I really don't get it, tbh. Like, when I see people recommending them or saying they are their all time fav I kinda go ugh whhyyyy. 

I don’t know why, yet I kinda do. I just don’t like being that... mean? I don’t like having that reaction to someone's favorite thing, if that makes sense. Because I have had that sort of thing thrown in my face a lot of times for my interests. But then again, I am not going ugh why over people liking to read YA or watch kdramas, so I guess that’s different? I am basing it on a particular thing within that genre or... yeah idk.

2. An unpopular drama that you like

Circle (Sci-fi drama with Yeo Jin Goo and Gong Seung Yeon) and Tamra the Island (sageuk that was airing way back in the day... in the same time slot as Boys Over Flowers if I recall correctly) come to mind.

I am basing it on underappreciated dramas that people just never really watched at the time, not dramas that lot of people loathed but I enjoyed. Because I can't really think of a drama based on that criteria.

6. A popular pairing that you didn’t like

I have been impartial to a whole lot of kdrama pairings, like the main couple from It's Okay to Not Be Okay, for example. But pairings I actually dislike? The pairing from Goblin. Nah, just creepy for me. I can't get into it at all. I prefer the women to be the lonely, cursed, mythological creature tbh. I don't think I have seen a show where the man is the god/immortal being and the woman is not that has done it for me. But I have examples of the woman being immortal and the man not... and it has worked for me.

More women as cursed immortals with tragic pasts and soft male leads that have to nurture them into loving the world again. Give them some manic pixie dream boys.

I want to say the mr. sunshine couple... because thinking about Lee Byung Hun with Kim Tae Ri kinda makes me 🤮 but I never watched it, so I don't think it counts.

10. A drama you liked in the beginning but ended up dropping

*looks over the dropped dramas on my Mydramalist page*

A lot of the time if I really liked a show and then it goes south... I often begrudgingly stick with it through the bitter end while it's the ones I am was just 'eh, this is fine' on that I drop when they just don't hold my attention any longer.

Lovestruck in the City in the city was the most recent one I dropped, like only today, because I just kept reaching for my phone to scroll through some other social media site, update by goodreads, washing the dishes etc while watching it. And I do think it's the shame that I am just not clicking with it, because I thought the first episodes had potential and the actors were great... but the main guy is just so annoying. I don't care if he has JCW's gorgeous face... he is so clingy and I just can't stand him. Or most characters on that show tbh.

#thank you #god I suck at answering this #brainless-out

[ranger-report]

Review: IMARO, by Charles R. Saunders

Originally published in 1981, then revised and rereleased in 2006, Imaro is a tale of swords-and-sorcery featuring African-inspired mythology. The tale of a wandering warrior named Imaro, the story draws influence from Robert E. Howard’s Conan, but to simply refer to Imaro as “the Black Conan” is both completely undeserved and thoroughly dismissive. Saunders work in the fantasy genre with these stories created a new subgenre called sword-and-soul, fueled by African mythology and culture. Imaro’s impact cannot be stated enough, but do the stories still hold up today? Impressively, they not only hold up, but maintain a riveting story that rivals other entries in the low fantasy genre.

Imaro himself is an interesting character. While carrying many similar traits to that of Howard’s Conan -- ie, fierce warrior skills, indescribable strength, indomitable will -- Imaro is a man who is also defined by his trauma, anger, and fear. As a child Imaro was an outcast from his tribe, the Illyasai, because his mother disappeared then came back pregnant with an outsider’s child. Facing banishment, his mother bargained to raise her child to training age before being forced to leave, her last words being “I have given you a warrior.” This defines Imaro for his early life as he struggles through bullying and torment to live up to his mother’s prophecy, and also to prove himself to his tribe. Ultimately, Imaro’s journey is not one of proving himself to others, but proving himself to himself.

Originally released as a series of short stories, the novel is tightly edited together to present a seamless tale of journeying towards fate, and possibly defying that fate altogether. Imaro’s story takes him from the plains of his home, to a jungle-dwelling water tribe, to a band of thieves on the outskirts of society. Facing adversity from the natural and supernatural, Imaro bests everything that comes his way over and over again, but even though his physical body shrugs off the most powerful of attacks it is his mind which retains the deepest scars. Imaro is a haunted man, both running away from and chasing a dark force which has an interest in him beyond his understanding. Eldritch, Lovecraftian forces come into play through various creatures and sorcerers, one of my favorite aspects of the story. Saunders understands how to create dread and invoke terror. As this weaves into the story, Imaro also journeys into self-discovery, love, and leadership. At every turn it seems that something conspires against him, which becomes the underlying narrative of the work. It reads well, moves quickly, and crafts heavily Africanized imagery that is both familiar and unique. While the African-influenced names may be jarring to some white readers, they are no different from various stories with Elven and other fantasy languages thrown in. For those who desire a little extra assistance, the book even comes with a glossary.

For the most part, Saunders’s writing succeeds in pulling the reader forward. If anything, the second act is the one that suffers the most, getting bogged down as close to half a dozen important named characters are all introduced simultaneously, but this is forgivable as each of them play roles throughout the rest of the story. And as the novel races into the final, inevitable act, the reader is left breathless wondering how everything will play out, leaving us hanging on both a cliffhanger and a resolution. Saunders released two more books in the Imaro series, which makes finishing this novel even more intriguing, as the ending provides a salivating preview of what Imaro’s next adventure will be, and I, for one, am aching to get to it. Imaro is interesting, thoughtful, thought-provoking, and just plain fun to read, and it’s a shame that this underappreciated classic hasn’t reached more readers.

Final Score: 8/10

#Imaro #Charles R Saunders #novel #fantasy #sword and sorcery #sword and soul #African influence #Robert E Howard #Conan #low fantasy #ck burch #rubyranger #review #ranger report

[hwsrarepairweek2022]

Time to appreciate all of our underappreciated ships! The fourth annual APH Rare Pair Week this year will be the week of June 2-8 and will be dedicated to making content for ships that don’t see enough action in the fandom! Each day of the week will have a different theme for you to make ship content around!

The rules are pretty simple:

Follow this blog so you can stay updated!

No ship bashing. Period.

Avoid popular ships from the ban list.

Check the FAQ before sending in questions about ships.

You do not have to focus on the same ship for the entire week.

Break up long posts using a read more.

Use proper warnings for sensitive content, NSFW, and common triggers.

You may submit any medium in place of art or fic.

Please see blog description for links to the banlist, taglist, and FAQ since tumblr is not showing posts with links lately.

Tag your work with #aphrarepairweek2019 in the first five tags so it can be reblogged here!

Prompts:

Day 1 – Magic: Love is a magical thing. Explore your ship through magic, whether in a fantasy setting or by simply noting small moments of every day life that seem magical.

Day 2 - Language: Does your ship share a language or is there a language barrier? Do they teach each other, or have special terms of endearment in their native language?

Day 3 - Night Sky: What a wonderous thing! The night sky, full of stars, nebulas, planets, and things beyond. Let your ship feel small together as they gaze out across the universe.

Day 4 - History: Many of our favorite rare pairs have history together, whether obscure or rarely discussed by the fandom at large. Does your ship have a specific historical event that caused you to ship them? Not sure if they have history? Head to google and see what you can find! You could even discuss alternate history or “what ifs” if you wish!

Day 5 – Myths and Legends (or, Free Day!): What sort of mythology is common in the cultures of your ship? Alternatively, what sort of gods, goddesses, or mythical creatures would they be? What about if they were in a fairytale setting? You can also use this day to write ANY AU or other topic unrelated to this prompt!

Day 6 – Flowers: Bouquets to proclaim their love for one another, gardening together, or simply walking through a field of wildflowers!

Day 7 – Nostalgia: Many say that a lazy summer day can bring on a feeling of nostalgia.

Happy shipping! Please reblog this post to help spread the word!

#hetalia #aphrarepairweek2019 #aph rarepair week 2019 #aph #aph england #aph america #aph russia #aph china #aph france #aph norway #aph sweden #aph denmark #aph iceland #aph japan #aph germany #aph italy #aph romano #aph spain #aph prussia #aph austria #aph switzerland #aph hungary #aph ukraine #aph belarus #aph korea #aph hong kong #aph taiwan #aph vietnam #aph cuba #aph lithuania

[shinonart]

POKEDDEX YOUR CHOICE! VOL 2 - DAYS 4-7: MANECTRIC, SYLVEON, BRELOOM AND ARCANINE

Looks like I forgot to post these here! My bad! To avoid spamming you I thought I’d just put them all in one post. I’ll try to keep up better from now on!

The fourth Pokemon is Manectric! I was hoping I'd get to draw this one! Manectric is such a neat Pokémon, kinda underappreciated if you ask me. My approach was a pretty straightforward mix of maned wolf and a regular wolf. I was considering brown hyena for a second but it didn't feel right so I just took inspiration for the long fur from it. Mega Manectric on the other hand would be a different challenge to tackle.

Sylveon was the only Fairy type that was suggested so it automatically won the spot! I have drawn Sylveon multiple times before and I didn't see a reason to change the design much. I just made this version more sugary and fluffy. I like drawing the Eeveelutions, it's always fun to play around with the different features and try pushing and pulling things. Weird feline-fox things. And there's more of them to come!

Breloom won the Fighting type poll by a mile! And for a good reason, it's such a cool Pokémon, one of my personal favourite concepts. Those of you who have been following me probably know that I have drawn Breloom a few times before so this isn't a new design, but rather a refined one. Once again the DrawDinovember challenge and its teachings came in handy!

I knew it was only a matter of time that you guys choose Arcanine. It's one of my favourites to draw, despite being so overly popular. To me it was never a question wether Arcanine is a canine or a feline because the features from both are so clearly visible. Arcanine's main inspiration is a lion/dog creature that has many names in different Eastern mythologies, take shisa for example. The fun part about Arcanine is to explore how much and which canine or feline features are shown ann how they manifest. Previously my designs have been more feline but this time, for variety's sake, I tried a slightly more canine approach (while still keeping some of the lion features) and it turned out pretty nice!

#pokeddex #realistic pokemon #pokemon #pokemon fanart #pokemon art #arcanine #sylveon #eeveelution #manectric #breloom #pokeddex challenge #watercolour #watercolor #artists on tumblr #traditional art #traditional painting

[kxtsukibxkugou]

@robertwstanion SOMEHOW I LOST YOUR ASK BUT I CAN STILL SEE IT IN MY NOTIFICATIONS SO I’LL ANSWER HERE

10. Favorite Planet?

mercury! she’s small, she’s hot, she’s underappreciated. she’s dangerously close to the sun and probably experiencing a lot of anxiety. i love her.

12. Favorite Mythological Creature?

fairies! i was a tinkerbell nerd as a kid and i still build fairy houses in my backyard lmao. for easter my grandma literally gave me fairy garden figurines to set up in my yard.

14. Favorite Word?

sister, thicket, ruby.

25. Most Ravenclaw Thing I’ve Ever Done

it’s a tie between learning how to read while walking to finish the percy jackson books quicker back in fifth grade, or writing essays three pages longer than necessary out of spite.

(hi tara! i love you!)

#ask me things! #please #tara

[softponyboy-blog]

kinda wanna do a post on the outsiders characters as mythological creatures, kinda wanna do moodboards for their modern fashion sense, kinda wanna write fics about all the underappreciated dynamics

kinda wanna do everything

[roxannepolice]

Help me, Carl-Gus Jungobi, you’re my only hope

[prolonged deliberation on Goethe’s Faust effing up his task of achieving symbolic individuation equated with redemption by inserting himself for Paris with Helen I would love to know what CG would have to say about self insert fanfiction] 

This is probably the deeper reason why Faust’s final rejuvenation takes place only in the post-mortal state, i.e., is projected into the future. [Psychology and Alchemy]

Taste that. Rejuvenation in the post-mortal state

Projected into the future

Hi, this here is Anakin’s son, daughter and future father of his grandson in one shot while Anakin appears as a force ghost.

Anakin’s redemption did not take place, it is taking place through his offspring – his future – and I’m afraid Ben is very much a part of it.

I’d argue that the main reason why the frequent belief that Anakin’s redemption needs a counterbalance in form of Ben’s ultimate fall is based on the fact that the redemption story most influential in western culture – that of humanity through death and resurrection of Jesus Christ – does have an unredeemed counterbalance – Judas (and a disclaimer: I do not refer to The Second Testament for any sort of religious agenda, I treat it as an influential cultural text it is – and a manifestation of collective unconscious, that’s why I can compare it to ancient mythologies). But that assumption is based on a false belief that Anakin’s redemption was complete rather than projected into the future. Redemption of humanity through Christ is complete as Christ’s resurrection is in soul and body.

Let’s take a look at two other mythical resurrections/redemptions – though I’ll allow myself to omit most of the context (I’m still sticking to the western world, because I believe it’s the most influential for most of SW audience but also because, confessedly, I cannot claim proficiency in other myths, if someone can share some themes, please do). An example of future resurrection balanced by damnation is Baldur vs. this handsome fella

For causing Baldur’s death Loki is condemned to lie under venomous snake’s fangs until Ragnarok and it’s only thanks to Sigyn, definitely the most underappreciated character of any mythology, that we don’t have permanent earthquakes. Now, this isn’t a damnation of the same kind as Judas’s, since Loki’s actual fate is the same as all other gods’ – to be destroyed during the Ragnarok you have to give it to the Nordic people, coming up with a mythology and ending it with everyone killing each other. BUT Baldur’s resurrection also isn’t as complete as Christ’s as it will only happen in the renewed world after Ragnarok, right now he’s sitting underground with Cate Blanchett. So, maybe Osiris vs. Seth? I would argue that’s the best parallel to Star Wars – Osiris is resurrected but stays forever in the underworld, but Seth also doesn’t suffer any eternal damnation. He’s an ambiguous deity in the fact that despite being an “antagonist” to Horus, after their fight is over he supports pharaohs’ rule and helps Ra keep away the monster of chaos (a hundred StarKillers anyone?). Granted, he becomes infertile in the process (attractiveness of force deprivation theme?) but that’s for trying to kill Osiris’ son, would make little sense if he was Osiris’ only offspring (btw, I’d argue that’s exactly why old EU gave Han and Leia two children, a good one and a bad one).

One could argue of course that Anakin’s redemption through the future can be done on the ideal level only – he saved Luke and Luke has now passed on the jedi tradition onto Rey. Yeah, that sounds attractive. But it wasn’t a jedi knight Anakin saved, wasn’t it? When fried by Palps Luke didn’t call upon Anakin’s jedi code only yelled Father, please. What’s more Anakin had two children. Luke has a sister Anakin asked him to tell he was right about him. And I believe Luke told this to Leia. But did she accept that? Confessedly, she had every reason not to. Oh, she could detach Anakin Skywalker from the sith lord who mind probed her and held her in place to watch the destruction of her home planet, but to accept Luke was right about Darth Vader? 

In a way, Leia did the most epic Nooooo in Skywalker story.

Meme should continue through a meme and only can through a gene, but gene needs to continue through a gene, something the Skywalker twins did not accept and thus ended up with galaxy and their family again in turmoil. Luke – for it was Luke who’s the original Vader fanboy of this saga albeit unknowingly, not Kylo – badly wanted to continue the jedi meme (in its simulacric form, btw) through his nephew, the mighty Skywalker blood, which could be, can still be, but never had to be. Leia, on the other hand, thought she can have a child of Anakin’s meme and not Vader’s gene, which simply can’t be as it’s based on a lie.

So what, Anakin can get a redemption and other characters not because, what, he had children? Well, yeah. That’s a redemption through love at its symbolic best.

To cut a long story short, Ben Solo doesn’t have a husk of legacy to upkeep (that’s what he thinks, you know!), he has grandfather’s redemption to make real.

 Master Skywalker or how I learned to nourish meme and love a gene

Battle of Crait is one of the most epic moments in Star Wars and I’ll fight anyone who’ll tell me otherwise. It is the most Luke Skywalker thing that could have happened, as it is Luke doing for himself what he has previously done for his father, if only temporarily – reattaching the meaning to the simulacrum, thus resurrecting the symbol. And symbols have great power, as they give us inspiration, hope and strength when we fall down. Luminous creatures we are, not that crude matter and to erase the symbols or identify them with simulacra is to make everything material only.

But there’s an extremely important thing – Luke could only rescue the Resistance and symbolically inspire new fighters, bring back the inspiring legend, because he reattached this legend to the man who failed his nephew – and that by admitting this failure, not denying it, as he tried to just a day earlier. To all out there who believe Luke was right to consider killing Ben, that the darkness he saw in him was a decided plan – why would he lie about it, to himself much more so than Rey? If he knew that what he considered was right and faltered by the softness of his heart, why not just come clean about it? But he knows that what he did was wrong and therefore, just for a moment, believes the only way for him to go back to rescuing the galaxy is to base it on a lie and hope for the best. Only Rey has already learned that what he told her wasn’t the truth and confronts him about it – notice that Luke is aggressively sending her away even though he wanted to go with her a moment earlier, precisely because he realises he’ll have to come clean. Now, Rey has no problem reconciling what he’s done with what she believes him to be, unlike both Luke and Ben – because they believed in a simulacrum and she believes in a symbol. Failures happen. But when she stretches Luke’s ls to him again – and remember right now she’s decided to go to Kylo, so I’d say what she’s actually doing isn’t asking him will you rejoin the fight? only will you go and confront him about what happened? it’s his legacy she’s stretching out to him in that moment! – he still can’t do this. In his eyes, he now gave up on the legend completely, it’s time to let the old things die, so he’ll go and burn the jedi tree along with the texts. But because his anger directed at the jedi simulacra is simply overclinging to them gone sour he can’t bring himself to even burn the tree. And it’s a nice tree isn’t it? So Yoda has to effing call a thunder from the afterlife to do that for him – but don’t forget, the books aren’t there already! It’s highly symbolic that Luke never bothered to read the texts, as exhibited by the most realistic padawan moment in the saga as he channels a student who was too lazy to do his homework for six years of having nothing else to do, he was sorta expecting them to have magic powers of their own?

But, in the end, he understands that his legend isn’t something inherently wrong but also that it doesn’t have to be infallible. His failure towards Ben and the way he apologised for that failure are his legend and legacy – just as the legend of Anakin’s fall and redemption he let start all those years ago. But again, Anakin’s redemption isn’t complete – and neither will be Luke’s (he dies in that moment after all) if his apology will have no influence on Ben.

Allow me to draw a timeline of Star Wars message:

after ot they become an inspiring story of hope and redemption

after prequels they become an overly selfconscious myth of redemption as the fall has been tailored exactly for the payment

right now they are a simulacrum of redemption as it became clear Anakin’s redemption was half-assed

It can be argued that the message can be carried on despite being false at a core. And does that sound like Rey growing to be a healthy good person basing on her denial of the truth about her parents? Yes, I think it should. There are characters like Galen, Bodhi or, again, according to some idiots, Finn – but they’re all incomplete too. Finn... really, his story isn’t a redemption, he’s not an evil man in need of paying for his sins, he’s a goddamn hero whose moral sense wasn’t killed by years of indoctrination and I want to punch anyone who thinks this beautiful jewel needs to get redeemed for anything. But Galen’s and Bodhi’s “redemptions” aren’t complete either – they both die, in Galen’s case so does his daughter, their redemptions are purely ideal in helping destroy the Empire. And complete redemption is in life, in soul and body. To say those other diamonds of souls needed redemption is a result of lie around Anakin, thinking his redemption was complete.

And that’s why I think there’s epic – though far from permanent – fall in store for Rey. But also that the sand castle of lies Snoke built around Ben can’t last.

The message of hope and redemption Star Wars are associated with doesn’t have to be carried by a Skywalker. But only a Skywalker can give them the message of hope and redemption, make it true. Meaning needs to be reattached to the simulacrum, gene to a meme, light to dark, ideal to matter and I could b*tch for hours about how they’ve been associated to male and female for thousands of years and their unison by marriage.

 A rose is a Rose is a Tico – some reflections on symbolism in postmodern era

Sequels are also a great occasion to reflect on use of symbolism in modern epic (pop)art. Symbols have become so widespread, so conventionalised, that – again – it seems the right thing to do is throw away symbolic language as a dead husk or leave them be only as empty conventions. Now, there are some things which are conventional enough to be purely conventional and throwing them away gives them more value than they’re worth – think French revolutionists trying to do away with a seven day week or ask yourselves how many people you know still worship thunder on Thursdays watching Thor doesn’t count. But those are pure conventions of everyday life and epic storytelling should appeal to deeper levels of our psyche. There’s a danger in overreliance on symbols – for example, violence in the originals was symbolical to the point of seeming banal – but they’re still a useful way of expressing that which in conceptual terms would be too difficult or plain impossible. Nowadays there are loads of symbol dictionaries so it’s easy to think of them as something to be decoded – but symbols aren’t to be decoded only to be interpreted, depending on their context. “A bird” can’t mean a lion but it can mean swallow, sparrow, pigeon, eagle, vulture, etc. alike. TBH, that’s why I’d say reylos seem like we’re “reaching” – we’re interpreting, debating with the text, asking it questions rather than decoding separate elements I don’t want to be indiscriminate of course there are non-reylos who do interpret and many reylos just see two hotties to be together, but  the latter aren’t accused of reaching. Intrepreting means asking a question of the meaning, not thinking the meaning is obvious. I don’t want to make another huge elaboration, so I’ll just take some examples of use of symbolism in Star Wars and how they should and shouldn’t be treated, as well as two simulacric husks which still need to be dug beyond.

Names and pseudonyms – a name is always symbolic of identity, though it should be remembered that they aren’t given like eye colour, they belong to the order of meme that becomes one with our identity as we grow. I think it’s pretty clear that Han has been literally baptised by the Empire and more importantly, never had a problem with that. He accepted this surname as it was an abstraction of what he was – alone, he didn’t have to throw it away because of being given by the bad guys I also think it’s not insignificant the imperial official is actually a pretty human character but that’s another matter. What I want to focus upon though, are the characters with two names, one for their selves and one for their shadows: Sheev Palpatine – Sidious, Dooku – Tyrranus, Anakin Skywalker – Vader, Ben Solo – Kylo Ren. I don’t want to delve into their ethymologies, but rather into their use. The difference between the two latter and two former lies in difficulty of switching between the two personas. Vader gets angered when Luke calls him Anakin, Kylo does react when he’s called Ben but doesn’t refer to himself this way – according to the novelization, in the throne room, while offering Rey the galaxy, he reasserts that it’s no longer his name. Now, one’s willing to view this as a manipulative play on his side, they think I should keep those names apart but I’m actually one and okay with it, but, just like with everything else in the throne room, he’s lying to himself not less than Rey, like a good setient simulacrum should. His manipulation is essentially innocent because he believes what he’s saying – compare it to Snoke who knew perfectly well Ben’s family loved him – and when he offers himself to Rey he offers her Kylo Ren, the simulacrum believing itself to be reality, just as he doesn’t say he’ll rescue the Resistance if she stays with him. What would be terrifying is if he wanted to be referred to as Ben, because that would mean his identity is as malleable as he’d like it to be. Such is the case with Dooku, who barely refers to himself as Tyrranus and why the hell should he, he’s a politician first sith lord second and more importantly, Sheev. Palpatine has no problems jumping between Palpatine, Sidious, Emperor and of course he’s all time favourite, The Senate.

Masks – I already explained how I think the bridge scene should actually be interpreted, but I bring it back as an excellent case of decoding vs. interpretation. Removal of the mask is decoded as revelation of the true persona and this is exactly what Kylo Ben thinks he’s doing. And yes, he reveals his true persona – only this persona is one feeling remorse for what he’s done.

Another good decoding vs. interpretation scene is Crait showdown – Kylo Ben is fighting a ghost, a shadow. Decoding is that it’s an expression of how ungrounded his anger is. But neither he nor anyone other than Leia and Rey (and possibly Chewie and porgs?) know Luke to be a shadow and that shadow has very real effect, this time positive in saving the Resistance. I would say Luke letting Leia know that he’s a projection is a symbolic explanation to his sister of what happened to her son. Of course, Leia still doesn’t know that Luke considered killing Ben, but now she knows he wouldn’t have actually done it – and I would argue before the scene is over, Ben himself gets a glimpse of this fact.

There’s also Anakin’s parthenogenesis to be reconsidered. To see that as a simulacrum of divine bloodline is the simplest thing to do – as well as one raising the most resentment, especially among those who think parthenogenesis is culturally exclusive to Jesus. But that’s avoiding the question of what actually took place. An embodied hierophany isn’t an origin of a special hero only an act of divinity’s direct intervention in linear historical time – thus, Anakin stops being the chosen one, one to bring balance to the force, but neither is it a concept to be rejected as some esoteric bs, but rather his birth sets in motion a series of events leading to that balance.

And lastly, decoding Snoke as an abuser isn’t equivalent with interpreting a twenty year long abuse, something which cannot be shaken off by killing the abuser. In this way I could argue Kylo Ben at the end of TLJ could turn out to be symbolic for oversimplified attitude towards stormtrooper rebellion – free them before they’ll want freedom and you’ll end up with them rebuilding the cage they’re used to.

A general rule I would apply is that non humanoids (moons, suns, planets, porgs) are rather reliable symbols. Characters may be trying to deceive each other and themselves but I don’t think creators are trying to deceive the audience. So if a kyber crystal cracks, either because of how difficult it was to make it bleed or because two characters who should be in tune are far from it – there’s a good chance things are not the way they should be. Again, symbolic language isn’t bad in itself.

Evil eyes – one of the arguments most frequently raised for bendemption is that Kylo has never had evil sith eyes. Now, you could say, neither had Dooku and he died but that’s another thing showing Kylo’s death would be a rehash, not his redemption. Another argument could be that Disney simply felt that effect was cheesy and decided to never use it again. But what should be done is to ask ourselves what do those evil yellow eyes actually mean. The way eyes look is symbolic of the way eyes see. Siths have venomous yellow eyes because they see the world through their hatred and lust for power, not because EVIL. Snoke has empty black eyes in TFA because he can see no depth in the world, sees only emptiness, and cold blue in TLJ as everything is coldly subjugatable to him. It has also been pointed out that the closest we got to sith yellow in the sequels is Hux during the destruction of Hosian system.

And I agree, it was a conscious move. As was this. 

But lightsaber refelected in Kylo’s eyes is red, associated with anger – and anger is but a path to the dark side, not dark side itself. So, do I expect Armitage to get actual sith yellow eyes? No, not really, because it was a bit cheesy what matters is the visual effect, so it could be another light reflection. It could also be argued that force sensitives do perceive the world in a slightly different manner than others, there is a difference in their very souls which finds manifestations in their bodies. What could happen and make me totally flip if the trailers greeted us with evil yellow eyes... by Rey.

One of the husks I think Star Wars still has to shed and why I can see dark!Rey happening is that femininity has become overidentified with good. The only more or less fleshed out female villain in the main story so far is Phasma and she sure has room for improvement. Alternative, and that’s another thing which would make me flip, is epix giving us Rae Sloane, an evil matriarch, an anti-Leia, if you like. Preferably, both. And I want to underline I write that as a feminist, I’m just tired of watching infallible or driven to villainy by men female characters, I’m a woman and I effed up in life, Padme’s patience gave me more complexes than Barbie’s waist ever could.

And another husk to be shed is... democracy. That sounds bad, I know, so let me elaborate. Democracy has become an empty word, on Earth and in GFFA alike. It became an equivalent of good rule, interpretable to preference. You know what is a “Democratic People’s Republic”? North Korea. And if you tell me there has never been a good emperor, I call bs on your knowledge of history whereas if you stammer sth about SW being a metaphor to be abstracted from history then at best I ask you sweetly then what’s wrong with a good Renperor and at worst sue for calling me a nazi apologist over that abstract metaphor. Now, I’m not saying a point should be made that authoritarian rule is anything good – rather, seeing Renperor’s labour’s lost should make us reflect why democracy is the best regime anyone ever came up with though still the worst there is. Rise of sympathies towards authoritarianism (usually going by the name of “enlightened despotism”) is another phenomenon visible around the globe and not always among uneducated people in want of agency only those who see how mishandled democracy can go astray. Again, there have been good emperors, so alternative sounds better than trying to fix the fallible regime. To show such people how their symbols get vanquished by good democrats will only fuel their resentment as they will feel misunderstood (that’s not what they meant by their enlightened despotism) – remember, they’re the romantic rebels fighting globalist empire. To show them how such regime fails at establishing a lasting welfare could actually make them think.

Well, that sure was an experience. I have many thanks to those who have actually gone through all of my ramblings, congratulations on your patience. Hopefully, they provided you with some insight into postmodern popculture and how it doesn’t have to be husk running away from itself only can be actually a living organism

#star wars #luke skywalker #anakin skywalker #redemption #bendemption #postmodernity #symbolism #episode ix speculation #rey #kylo ren #ben solo #reylo