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#Bro I love everyone and I can't for the life of me get truly invested in a Dazai ship for self-explanatory reasons-
kyouka-supremacy · 6 months
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Yeah having infinite alternative universes where the same two people love each other no matter the world no matter the time is nice but have you considered dedicating your entire existence to find the only universe where your loved one is happy, even if they're going to hate you in that universe, even if you yourself have to die in that universe, because their happiness always came before everything else? Because you never mattered as long as they were happy? Have you considered it??????
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divineerdrick · 27 days
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Homestuck: Beyond Canon Upd8 for 413
Happy 413 everyone! We knew we were getting something today, as James announced that earlier. This time, it's an extensive news posts with notes from the whole team. Looks like we've got a few comic pages as well. Let's see what we got!
James: I can definitely relate to what James is saying. Homestuck and its community helped me keep going when it seemed like there genuinely wasn't a path forward. Obviously it hasn't always been sunshine and rainbows, but I do still feel there is a lot of genuine goodness and greatness in our little corner of the internet.
And yay! James is an Aradia fan!
Kim:
Kim is one of the people who grew up with this comic. I honestly can't imagine what that must be like. Although I had a lot of media I enjoyed at 13, I don't feel like any of it had the kind of impact on me then that Homestuck had now. It's not like there wasn't anything good on, either! It was 1993 when I was 13, and WB and Disney were at their apex. But Homestuck hit different. I honestly can't imagine what it was like being able to relate to those kids like they could be your friends in another life, growing up along side them.
Miles:
A beautiful mindfuck is a great way to describe it. Honestly the somewhat over the top, trollish, insincere seeming way that Miles is writing shows a great love for Homestuck and the project in and of itself. The love honestly does come through.
Chumi:
Chumi appears to be even younger than Kim, though I could be wrong there. And she also grew up with it, if maybe starting a couple of years into its run. But it goes a step further for her. Homestuck is her formative fandom. And again, I can't imagine what that must be like, let alone now creating art for it.
Andi:
Andi is another member of the team to have grown up alongside Homestuck. It makes sense that this would create the most talented and passionate people to work on the project. Like many fans, though, they also had Homestuck influence their identity and help them feel safe in discovering who they were. It will always be important we have people like them keeping this fandom alive.
floralmarsupial:
While the way Homestuck inspired me was different, she too was drawn in and influenced by the very artistic questions Homestuck posed. Looks like James has managed to put together a team that has all been impacted by Homestuck in subtly different ways. And I'm totally here for it!
Haven:
Oh wow! Coming in on Murderstuck! Ouch! Still, the effect Homestuck has had on them is very obvious!
It's nice to hear more from each voice behind the project. I'm glad they took the time to make this celebration a bit more personal. But with all that said and done, it's time to read an Upd8!
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There is so much to talk about just from this image.
First off, this is the most like Bro that Dirk has ever looked. And it's not just the fact that we've just got a plain white silhouette with shades. There is a lot of chaos in this panel reminiscent of Bro's apartment. That outfit has absolutely never looked wackier. The anime ninja aesthetics combined with the pooffiness of those shorts is already crazy. But the Kamina cape in this looks more cliché villain than anime hero.
While we can't currently see one of the monitors, we absolutely can see that Dirk has been keeping track of our Meat crew. My guess is that the other monitor is Deltritus.
Also we get a throwback with some orange drinks floating about.
Dirk is, of course, being suitably condescending here. After all, in his mind this is the only way to make the narrative matter, to make anything that we'll give a shit about. He probably knows we still enjoy the "narrative kiddy pool" but he's counting on us truly getting invested in what he has planned.
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Wow! Nice frame break! Also this art slaps!
Apparently Rose and Terezi are still a thing. Dirk only seems to partially approve of this. From his perspective, the relationship is a very Rose thing to do. And Rose doing Rose things is important to him and his plans. He also appreciates that Rose doesn't have infinite patience for the finetuning that Dirk could spend a literal eternity on. It keeps him on something resembling a schedule.
So are we going to see these "scions" of theirs?
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I like that there's an obvious sea horse in that test tube. Also, outside of Hero mode Dirk is still sporting his character features at least. He hasn't slipped into being a full guardian yet.
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Well fuck. That might just be the hardest anyone has ever "spoken too soon."
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Hell yes! Adult Terezi is awesome! Also, she's not getting rid of her facial features any time soon!
I hope I didn't jinx that . . .
I'd forgotten Terezi can hear Dirk's narrative. She's also very much on the "Get on with it!" train. Dirk was planning to skip ahead anyway, but of course he wants to unveil his creation first.
So Terezi will be the one that actually makes sure the new session happens. I'm surprised Dirk is allowing that. I can definitely get why he doesn't want it automated.
I can honestly believe that Dirk really does care about his creation.
And I can honestly see Terezi playing the long game. I'm honestly curious why she wouldn't, beside Dirk's fuckery.
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Ouch.
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Also, damn this art is so fucking good!
We've seen the way Terezi can let what she sees as a mistake eat at her. We've seen how far she'll go to fix it. Is John's death doing that to her? Is even this older, seemingly more jaded Terezi unable to let something like that go even with what's at stake?
Or could she possibly be letting Dirk think that's what's going on? I really kinda hope that's it.
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Now that's just being mean pretending you don't know what she meant by being in her "CH4MB3RS", Dirk.
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Apparently Dirk still has a mouth when he needs to.
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FUCKING!!!
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DAMN!!!
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That's an interesting way of showing them speaking at the same time. Kinda like it.
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Okay. That is some legitimate Bullshit. I like that even Dirk calls it out as such. That is a ton of power to just flex like that. His reasoning is sound, but even he knows he's partly doing it because he can.
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Wow.
There is so much to potentially read into this moment. On the one had, this might be a genuine Rose moment. Even if Dirk has been manipulating her a lot, this version of Rose might genuinely be appreciative of what they're trying to do.
The other possibility is that Rose is manipulating Dirk this time. There've been hints, and I find it hard to believe otherwise, the Rose is aware Dirk has been manipulating her somehow. She may not have figured out how he's doing it, but I feel she knows. As an ascended Seer of Light, her ability to read the most fortuitous path is literally godlike. I can't imagine that definition of fortune including one where she keeps losing more and more agency. So this might be a moment where she's telling Dirk what he needs to hear to stop him from stealing more from her.
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The worst part is he genuine believes that.
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chaidrivenwhore · 2 years
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i'm haunted by this book it made me feel feelings
@chifuyuuuuuuu-simp suggested this book and i got amma to buy it (bc i'm broke) and i read the whole thing in one sitting and let me tell you- this book hit me in the right places.
now i'm gonna talk abt it and hope i don't fall into another rabbit hole of thoughts bc ffs this book MAKES SENSE.
kinda not spoiler free, emphasis on the kinda
the only spoilers are the things that happened in the ramayan (og)
fun fact: w karkidaka month (last month in the malayalam calendar) going on, my ramayan era is here and i'm thriving
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so the concept of this book is fairly interesting and as someone who ADORES different interpretations of hindu myth (looking at you, meluha), this is spectacular. SITAYAN bro, it doesn't get any better than that.
sita as a character who has conflicts in her mind, who works like all of us do, who isn't made out to be an untouchable goddess is p awesome to see. she's like so fucking strong, mentally, physically and emotionally and it makes me wanna cry istfg- she's intelligent, resourceful and you can see the love and care she feels for everyone and for her husband, the most. she didn't deserve the agni pariksha or the second exile fr
there's this running theme of different types of love. it deals the way love is felt by different people, how people react when in love, what different meanings can love take on, all of this. it resonates within you.
the author makes sita an introspective character and her thought process is glorious. love makes you afraid. love makes you hurt others and/or yourself and it'll blind you as much as it makes you see things that others cannot. love is powerful and scary and it'll make you feel like you're being drowned in the deep end and then set aflame.
moving on
ram is duty bound, loves his wife, but he's selfless to a fault- he can't be selfish and he believes the same extends to sita, but while ram is still pleased if his subjects are satisfied (and he isn't), sita wants everyone to be happy and content by meeting in the middle. this is a huge point that's seen throughout the pre-second exile arc (your relationship includes you and your partner(s), please do not bring in random citizens into it- remember, communication is key)
LAKSHMAN (sorry, he's my fav) slays. he's devoted to ram and that extends to sita but their dynamics are intriguing. a protective younger brother and the older brother's wife- quite fascinating, if you ask me
urmila the real mvp, gives edwina sharma, bc sita is literally adopted and is amazing in general. supportive sisters bro i'm in love. the concept that she was in a 14 year long sleep instead of her husband is dope asf i've read it somewhere before
dasharath is a good king and a shitty husband. partiality isn't good, he does that only. four kids you have sir, you can't just give all your attention to one. three wives and he can't respect them equally pshh
kaikeyi is one character that i've been huuuugely invested in, considering her part in the whole 14 years of exile in the forest and all. she's a powerful woman, by herself and in the eyes of her husband. she's spoilt (?) and rather malleable opinion-wise- ergo manthara could formulate most of her opinion. kaikeyi was flawed and it showed, but somehow, it was alright.
hanuman is sooo unproblematic and i love him sm (both as a character and a god to be worshipped). he's literally called the perfect devotee and he's legit too good to be true vibes. he's my life and that's all that there is to it
the author stated in her a/n that she'd been heavily inspired by the adbhut ramayan than the considered og and by virtue of that, ravan and mandodari make it into the major character list
mandodari is a p important character in this book. she's a queen, through and through. she endures, she listens, she loves, she's lost and her spirit's taken so much but she's never truly broken, or atleast until the plot twist
like clint, i did NOT see that coming.
but like i said, this book makes a whole good lot of sense and PLOT TWIST, once introduced, is very easy to digest. once you've understood the whole scenario, the lanka arc gets a million times worse and you're stuck overthinking abt the why and how and what the bloody dingle bottom fuckity fuck ever
it's beautiful.
now to the main antagonist. ravan. he's so complex, makes me wanna throw him under a microscope and study his nuances. he's terrorised gods, he's humiliated and vexed them, including his half brother kuber. he's also a great devotee/follower of lord shiva, he's a scholar and one of the most intelligent people on the damn planet.
he was brought to his knees by greed.
the first time i found out abt ravan's entire story, i was shocked fr. i mean, someone this accomplished and he pulls off shit like this?? but then greed has the potential to be one's undoing and that's what happened. it's like watching a train wreck in slo-mo. gah the character is so fucking complicated and i love the way he's been written.
the whole 'ram-sita are incarnations of lord vishnu-lakshmi devi' and 'ravan and kumbhkaran being jaya and vijaya, the dwarapalakas of vaikuntha but reincarnated' is seamlessly added into the story in the forms of visions and dreams and it's amazing.
lanka arc is painful and hits you in the feels bc sita's stuck there, sad and alone and she's not given up like ma'am, hat's off.
the whole 'society's opinion is important' is all well and good and the way the author shows the effect of that in the lives of our main characters is wonderful and honestly, while reading that part, i thought i'll have more time before the dhobi makes ram rethink his decisions.
then the second exile arc arrives and everything's back to shit again.
COMMUNICATION IS KEY.
please talk to your partners, everyone.
if only ram had talked to sita, if only lakshman had succeeded in convincing his brother, if only, if only-
lav and kush are the only kids i like bc irl kids are a hard pass (i'll take toddlers and babies but 9 y/o and up? i'll giggle if they fall down)
they're the sweetest kids okay? they're precious, and even though they didn't know their dad or aunts or uncles or other family members in ayodhya, they had valmiki, they had the people in the surrounding ashrams and they grew up w their found family. it's really sweet.
then the ashwamedha yajna and subsequent drama.
ram was like "one more agni pariksha so that the people of ayodhya would be satisfied for good" and sita was like "i'm done, we're done, no more." she's done seeing women being blamed for things that aren't in their hands, she's done seeing all the struggles that women go through that could've been avoided had there been better circumstances created. she's done giving in and compromising.
she's been wronged against and she'd proved herself once before and in this situation, there are no winners.
sita in this part feels emotions viscerally and everything is INTENSE and dukh dard peedha and then she's just so angry and sad and the firewood kept around her starts to burn, the ground splits and she knows this is the last of her that anyone will see.
lav and kush were held back by their uncles bc i think somewhere, even they realised that sita needed to do what she did.
the last lines of the book slapped me and said poignant.
"Because this is the most important aspect of love, whose other face is compassion: It isn’t doled out, drop by drop. It doesn’t measure who is worthy and who isn’t. It is like the ocean. Unfathomable. Astonishing. Measureless."
guide to wtv different language(s) i've used:
karkidaka month: karkidakam is the last month in the malayalam calendar during which people read the ramayan in their homes, it's going on rn i'm having fun
agni pariksha : trial by fire (like literally walk through fire to prove chastity and purity)
dwarapalakas of vaikuntha : according to hindu myth, vaikuntha is the place where lord vishnu resides and jaya and vijaya were two heavenly beings who guarded the gates (dwarapalaka is a gate-keeper) of vaikuntha- now their story is really interesting
dhobi : washerman
ashrams : group of hermitages
ashwamedha yajna : a ritual in the vedic period where a horse accompanied by a king's warriors would be released to wander for a year, if the horse is stopped, it is seen as a rebellion against the sovereignty
dukh dard peeda : dukh is sorrow, dard is pain and peedha is suffering (there is no english phrase that can give the same effect as this phrase in hindi- this is also a meme)
i didn't know i could write this much abt a book that i've read ONCE.
feel free to ask me abt shit and lmk if there's anything that's wrong? bc i really don't wanna spread wrong info sjhdjdjs
alr thankyou if you've made it till here, go read this book now <3
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asongofhopeandjoy · 2 years
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When I eventually do my Free! re-watch (as in re-watch the entire TV show and most of the movies, not including the recaps) - it's going to smack me in the face that a TV show I have loved for almost a decade is truly over. ;-;
Yes I'm still mourning after watching the final Free! movie, don't look at me!!!!
But you can look at my thoughts about the final film. If you haven't seen the final Free! movies, don't click the read more button, as I'll be talking about spoilers / giving away the ending. Proceed with caution if you want to watch the final Free! movies with zero knowledge of what happens!
I only have TWO complaints and then I'll get to the things I really enjoyed:
I maintain that Free! season three added way too many new characters who I don't care enough about to feel that their inclusion justified how bloated the final movies felt sometimes. They're cute! And I'm not hating! But I'm glad we didn't get a season four because that may have meant less time for the characters I felt truly invested in.
I really, really missed Hiroko Utsumi's direction in this movie and can't help but wonder what it would have been like if they were still in charge of the Free! franchise, because I felt like her artistic flare was really missing in this film. I think the final Free! movies could have been so much artsier and visually memorable under her direction, but alas, I'm glad she has moved onto other great projects and is doing really well. She deserves the success! (That skateboarding anime everyone loves? She's in charge of that baby and she's THRIVING.)
Okay, now some happys! :3
I'm so delighted that Makoto's happy ending is getting to coach and support others because I feel his character arc was all about realising "I'm not like my friends, but I don't have to be to find success or feel content or feel close to my loved ones." It's so rare to see a main male character who looks like Makoto have an arc like that so good job writers, good job!
I'd have also made Sousuke a coach in my ideal version of this movie, but I also love the choice to have him on the final swim team with Rin and Haru because he's one of the characters I really became invested in during season two. Glad to see he recovered from his injury and used what he learned in season two to make sure his friends don't make the same mistakes he did. His character arc feels really complete now.
Also, I can't believe Sousuke and Haru casually went from foes to bros. I'm here for it! ;-;
Some of you may be surprised to hear this because I'm rinharu shipper, but I'm really glad Haru and Rin had one last final fight to iron out any lingering insecurities the two may have had about their relationship friendship. Poor Haru was scared he was going to lose one of his best friends again and even though he was mean about it at first, I'm glad he didn't keep those feelings bottled up, because it gave him a chance to work them out with Rin. It made a great plotline for part two because Rin and Haru's friendship is the heart of Free!, and I'm really glad the director and writers honoured that.
Now to act unhinged about rinharu... Omg... The flirting... The pining... The lover's tiff... The breaking up and making up... Haru's coach telling Rin to get it together and tell Haru how he feels!!! THE HUG!!!!! RIN HOLDING HARU TENDERLY IN HIS ARMS FKEIPAFFKOPAKFPEAFPAKEFPOAKEFPOAEFPEAEAPAAAEAAKFPAFPAFPEAPEOEAKFPFAFPAKFPEKAFPOEAKPEOK!!!!!!!!!!!
Rinharu shippers ate good, thank you Kyoani!
Seeing Soumako go from crack ship to bonafide fanon ship that enjoys each other's company and support each other through life's hardships was also a treat. <3
There were even some Nitori and Momo crumbs too!
Seeing Nagisa charm the mean new character was amazing, I love him. <3
Seeing all the official art that I've geeked out about over the years in that final montage... hoo... man... I'm not crying, you're crying!
So yeah, those are my thoughts about Free!, the original beautiful sport boys doing sports beautifully anime. She was iconic, she was the moment. I thank her for bringing me a lot of joy over the years and I couldn't be more grateful.
If anyone needs some tips about how to mourn an almost decade old show, I recommend listening to the opening song and reading fanfic to numb the pain. <3
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flying-elliska · 5 years
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This is really random and I'm kind of a new follower, but from what I could gather you have such a strong opinion on different topics, which I kind of admire bc I find that so important but can't really apply that to myself oftentimes idk. Is it part of your personality or are you trying to be consciously aware to not just 'consume numbly'? Hope that makes sense. And you're giving such good advice?? But an anon has already stated that correctly. Have a lovely day 🎃✨
hey new follower, welcome to you then, glad to have you around <3 that’s a very beautiful compliment, thank you. idk if you were looking for advice too but here it is because it’s late and i can’t help myself apparently lmao. (with the caveat that I too am a moron frequently like anyone)
...
i am sort of a chronic overthinker, so maybe it’s natural. that said, i used to think i didn’t really have an opinion for a long time. i found it difficult to express myself. and i looked up to people who i thought did it well for guidance. so i feel you 
i went to a school where we prided ourselves on being able to talk convincingly about things we had zero knowledge about so eh (not that this is a good thing lmao) but i grew past that 
i think i realized at some point i just tend to have opinions that are very long winded because i like looking at different sides of an issue. i think part of that is me being a contrary bitch, i don’t like going for the obvious meaning (maybe it’s residual trauma from being raised by someone who had a quasi cult leader type of approach to parenting lol). we are so easily tempted to disappear into the group, or a relationship.  i feel like knowing your own mind, defining your own self image, seeing past the easy judgments and surface meanings, being able to understand reality on your own terms, is one of the deepest, most urgent forms of freedom. also empathy - which does not automatically mean endorsement - and trying to understand things and people from their own logic. 
we tend to assign error or folly or bad intentions very easily. but it’s often because of the limits of our own understanding. and well, i have a weird brain. i grew up feeling like some sort of alien, often misunderstanding people, social habits, my own mind. so constant overanalysis is to me, the survival strategy that came the most naturally. and so as not to let my brain eat itself, i have gotten pretty good at figuring out what’s relevant and what’s nonsense ( i still could get better at it tbh). but part of me is constantly checking myself so i don’t do something terrible or terribly embarassing. wouldn’t wish that on anyone tbh. i am increasingly learning not to oversimplify myself for public consumption. my mindscape is a jungle, so be it. what’s the shape of yours ?
i also grew up in a lot of different social spheres. i met people from all sorts of social backgrounds, from billionaires who owned private beaches and designed jewllery for fun to people living in trailers without electricity or in the street, from prissy heiresses who believed using the wrong fork was a sin to best friends who had to work since middle school to help their parents. from all sorts of creeds, from wayward soldier priests baptising people in streams to new age ‘shamans’ whose houses smelled of pee, from staunch atheists to adorable nuns living in stone villages in the mountains and wild mama bear witches. from all sorts of politics, from faithful anarchists to political exiles fleeing dictatorships to crypto-royalists and decrepit neo-colonialist conservatives. from all sorts of cultures too.  i think that’s the fave part of my childhood. people are just so interesting. but everyone operates within their own specific world, and you can’t judge people from your own perspective. of course there are things that are universally right or wrong but beyond that, you have to get into the world in which they move, understand its rules. see how it intersects with others. a lot of social interactions are role play. once you get that, you get the codes, you can move in any circle. (also : very rich people can be so unbelievably boring. they buy into their own hype so much, like spoiled babies. nothing to be very impressed about.) People wear façades and play different roles to different people; that’s not always a bad thing, after all parents have to be strong for their kids even when they’re scared. But now you’re an adult (or getting there) don’t let yourself be too mystified
 also : power. dynamics of power are everywhere all the time. if you’re not aware of them, that’s a mark of privilege. ( in the end, who profits ? is this building empowerment for people and communities or is it stripping it away ?) but they’re not totally all consuming either. there’s also always agency, and chaos, and possibility. and compassion.
i think it’s important to accept that it’s okay not to have an opinion on everything. and also that it’s always growing, evolving, deepening. it’s possible you taught yourself, out of survival instinct or habit or something else, not to trust your own heart/brain/intuition/experience. I don't think it's anyone's natural state to just consume numbly. i’m sure you can step beyond that, everybody can. also ; learn how to embrace being destabilized. there is always this one moment between knowing something, learning you don’t really, and then getting a deeper perspective, that is scary, but it’s okay. you can come back to your center. like any sort of growth, really engaging with difference implies discomfort ; bear it, it’s worth it. 
 i think any opinion that is too static is likely to turn into bullshit in the long run. like a good wine, it should gain in complexity with age. also : read up on sociology/anthropology if you haven’t already there’s just so much good stuff in there (and a lot of bullshit too lol) about what it means to be human and cultures and how minds work and symbols and etc etc. and find good news sources because it can be very easy to feel disgusted by the world otherwise. and read as much and as diversely as you can
find things to love about thinking ? for me it’s ; i don’t believe in this binary between mind/body, feelings/reason etc, i think it’s bullshit and they all influence each other. and so does our environment. we learned to think by looking at and interacting with nature. some of our neurons are in our stomach. we’re made of star stuff. we grow by engaging with others. and not to sound like a hippie but that shit is breathtaking bro. we encoded the world with stories and symbols and use them to tell ourselves and each other stories and built community and we’re all the time engaged in this web weaving. so i see and i want to see more and more thinking like this organic, tangible process. 
in the end, what is it important for you to have an opinion about ? i think it’s about passion, and love, and justice, and truth. what do you want to be moved by ? what do you want to honor with your possibilities for learning and knowledge ? where you invest your energy and time, you invest your life.when you have something you are passionate about, it will be much easier to express the subtlety and depth of a meaningful opinion about it. and then you can apply that to other areas of your life. 
personally i want to (i have to) live like a diplomat, as a balancing act, with elegance and the ability to make tough decisions with grace, moving between all the layers of life and bearing gifts from one to the next. and i want to be able to move people, and give them the kind of stories and knowledge that are tools for them to heal and be happy and make the world better. 
 i have my work to do, like everyone else, of sorting through my shadows and making the dream stuff intelligible. in the end it’s all about finding an authentic life. your own inner logic. the bonds that nourish it, and what you want to give. 
and i think once you find that is for you, i think finding your voice, an opinion that is truly yours and not copy pasted from some one else, will be much easier to start weaving. but don’t worry ; it happens in small steps. i bet you’re already on your way. 
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