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karl-raccoon-in-a-teacup · 5 months

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slams down characters

oda, ango, and dazai aaand akutagawa

Oh you just sent me an entire feast okay. We'll go in the order they're listed, so first: Oda

First impression

Oh hey it's a fairly reasonable guy. In Bungou Stray Dogs. How ni- oh he's so dead.

Impression now

He's a really well-excuted character for the role he serves in the story, and while I more appreciate his role than the character himself, his vibes are on point.

Favorite moment

God Dark Era's so fucking good as a whole but. Honestly. The moment after the kids explode- the line about how he only realized he was the one screaming when his throat started hurting absolutely makes me feral oh my god.

Idea for a story

A continuation(?) of this fic I wrote where I sort of elaborate on the relationship he and Ango develop, and what his life in the Port Mafia is like now that... well.

Unpopular opinion

Dazai and Oda are just platonic friends. It's not a one-sided crush, it's not a papa-son adoption, it's not a brotherly thing, it's a friendship. Maybe it's the aro-aceness but I really do think their relationship is at it's most powerful when it's percieved that way.

Favorite relationship

Buraiha Trio is iconic okay. The Oda-Dazai dynamic means so much to both of them

Favorite headcanon

Despite most assuming that the line in BEAST means Oda dies in every universe but BEAST, I take the line to mean that there are universes where he lives, he just doesn't become a writer like he wants to. And that is just as heartbreaking.

Now Ango...

First impression

Damn... that's rough buddy.

Impression now

Pathetic wet cat of a man and god there's so much sadness in him.

Favorite moment

Gonna be honest it's a tie between one of his most tragic moments (the trio's final time in Bar Lupin as he says he wishes that someday in the future they could come back here again) and one of his "Let me use my tragedy to move me forewards" moments (when in Anne's Space he tells Mushitaro to wait, that this is why he used the Seventh Agency's services, that he had to make amends to an old friend AAAAAAAAA-)

Idea for a story

A continuation of the PM Ango AU because the man is already so, so sad, and that AU just. Does not help make him any less sad.

Unpopular opinion

I like Odango as a ship and I like exploring it as such, but I don't think of as it as canon or interpret canon through that lense.

Favorite relationship

Do I even have to say the Buraiha Trio? (But Mushitaro and Ango's dynamic and the places it could go is a close second.)

Favorite headcanon

He has more moles than the one on his face, you just never see them because the man wears a full suit all the time. But he has them, I promise you.

Onto Dazai:

First impression

Gonna be honest a guy trying to off himself should not be this funny but like. It is extremely funny.

Impression now

A morally gray character I can actually comfortably call morally grey is so, so nice, and I do like that despite his awful past he's trying very hard to do good. Can't call him a good person, but he's doing good things, good for him.

Favorite moment

That one fairly early scene in the Ranpo episode where they have to pull him out of the river, probably.

Idea for a story

Hm, I don't usually write Dazai-centric stuff? (With the exception of the Copycat one) but either something focusing on him and Chuuya's dynamic in the Agency Chuuya AU, where Dazai has to reconcile the boy he met all those years ago with the man he's now coworkers with today... or a scene from a different AU, where Dazai meets a Port Mafia boss at a cafe, and the two of them talk about the tragedy that befell Mori Ogai four years before.

Unpopular opinion

SKK is a fascinating and dynamic ship, but I think the fandom is really sleeping on exploring his dynamics with other characters, especially in AUs that tend to center around SKK. It's not something I feel super negatively on, just a bit oversaturated with it.

Favorite relationship

I am once again holding up Buraiha Trio as my favorite canon example, but I also love to deconstruct the SKK dynamic in settings where they aren't Double Black

Favorite headcanon

...Y'know what I don't. Have one. Uh.

Well onto Akutagawa!

First impression

(Seeing how he treats Higuchi) Oh he's a misogynist okay.

Impression now

A silly little scrinkle boy who needs some work, but I do adore him <3

Favorite moment

Y'know that scene where he's fighting Atsushi and when he gets kicked back we get a flashback to Dazai kicking him back like that, and every moment prior gets recontextualized as we realize that Akutagawa is a direct victim of Dazai being at his worst while Atsushi is directly saved by Dazai being at his best? Yeah. Yeah that.

Idea for a story

I do want to continue his story from my Copycat AU one day, but I just... don't know how to, unfortunately.

Unpopular opinion

I don't ship him with Atsushi. I understand the appeal and say go on shippers! I just personally don't wanna explore their dynamic romantically speaking.

Favorite relationship

However shipping aside I do still find the Akutagawa-Atsushi dynamic very compelling, and I hope we get to see more of them in the future.

Favorite headcanon

Y'know that fish-eye look he does in Wan. With the blank stare. He does that in canon too.

#karl answers letters #bsd oda #bsd ango #bsd dazai #bsd akutagawa #thank you so much for the ask bestie!! I hope you enjoy my rambling

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bills-bible-basics · 7 months

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CRUSHING ROCK AND ROD OF IRON -- KJV (King James Version) Bible Verse List KJV Bible verse list compiled by #BillKochman for #BillsBibleBasics. Topic: "Crushing Rock and Rod of Iron". Visit https://www.billkochman.com/VerseLists/ to see all my lists. "Thou sawest till that a stone was cut out without hands, which smote the image upon his feet that were of iron and clay, and brake them to pieces . . . And in the days of these kings shall the God of heaven set up a kingdom, which shall never be destroyed: and the kingdom shall not be left to other people, but it shall break in pieces and consume all these kingdoms, and it shall stand for ever. Forasmuch as thou sawest that the stone was cut out of the mountain without hands, and that it brake in pieces the iron, the brass, the clay, the silver, and the gold; the great God hath made known to the king what shall come to pass hereafter: and the dream is certain, and the interpretation thereof sure" Daniel 2:34, 44-45, KJV "Yet have I set my king upon my holy hill of Zion. I will declare the decree: the LORD hath said unto me, Thou art my Son; this day have I begotten thee. Ask of me, and I shall give thee the heathen for thine inheritance, and the uttermost parts of the earth for thy possession. Thou shalt break them with a rod of iron; thou shalt dash them in pieces like a potter's vessel." Psalm 2:6-9, KJV "Jesus saith unto them, Did ye never read in the scriptures, The stone which the builders rejected, the same is become the head of the corner: this is the Lord's doing, and it is marvellous in our eyes? . . . And whosoever shall fall on this stone shall be broken: but on whomsoever it shall fall, it will grind him to powder. And when the chief priests and Pharisees had heard his parables, they perceived that he spake of them." Matthew 21:42, 44-45, KJV "And I say also unto thee, That thou art Peter, and upon this rock I will build my church; and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it." Matthew 16:18, KJV "And did all drink the same spiritual drink: for they drank of that spiritual Rock that followed them: and that Rock was Christ." 1 Corinthians 10:4, KJV "This is the stone which was set at nought of you builders, which is become the head of the corner." Acts 4:11, KJV "Wherefore also it is contained in the scripture, Behold, I lay in Sion a chief corner stone, elect, precious: and he that believeth on him shall not be confounded. Unto you therefore which believe he is precious: but unto them which be disobedient, the stone which the builders disallowed, the same is made the head of the corner," 1 Peter 2:6-7, KJV "And he that overcometh, and keepeth my works unto the end, to him will I give power over the nations: And he shall rule them with a rod of iron; as the vessels of a potter shall they be broken to shivers: even as I received of my Father." Revelation 2:26-27, KJV "And she brought forth a man child, who was to rule all nations with a rod of iron: and her child was caught up unto God, and to his throne." Revelation 12:5, KJV "And out of his mouth goeth a sharp sword, that with it he should smite the nations: and he shall rule them with a rod of iron: and he treadeth the winepress of the fierceness and wrath of Almighty God." Revelation 19:15, KJV "And the seventh angel sounded; and there were great voices in heaven, saying, The kingdoms of this world are become the kingdoms of our Lord, and of his Christ; and he shall reign for ever and ever." Revelation 11:15, KJV "For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given: and the government shall be upon his shoulder: and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace." Isaiah 9:6, KJV If you would like more info regarding the origin of these KJV Bible verse lists, go to https://www.billkochman.com/VerseLists/. Thank-you! https://www.billkochman.com/Blog/index.php/crushing-rock-and-rod-of-iron-kjv-king-james-version-bible-verse-list/?feed_id=102320&_unique_id=654df8b7a256b&CRUSHING%20ROCK%20AND%20ROD%20OF%20IRON%20--%20KJV%20%28King%20

James%20Version%29%20Bible%20Verse%20List

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torahtantra · 1 year

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"The Whole Nation." From Joshua, Chapter 3.

In Chapter 2, we learn the depth and breadth of adulthood are the found between over the wall- and commitment is the only way to climb it. Two Spies, the physical and the spiritual selves wonder what this is like and venture into the boudoir, and satiate themselves on some Jewish girl, who says there is more where that came from it they are willing to forsake all that violence that takes place on the other side.

They go back to the People of Israel and prepare to enter the City of Jericho en masse. It should not be lost that the penetration of the prostitute by the boys and that of the city by even more boys is just a matter of scale as you will see:

Crossing the Jordan

3 Early in the morning Joshua and all the Israelites set out from Shittim "acacia, harvested green and dried for use later" and went to the Jordan, where they camped before crossing over. 2 After three days the officers went throughout the camp, 3 giving orders to the people: “When you see the ark of the covenant of the Lord your God, and the Levitical priests carrying it, you are to move out from your positions and follow it. 4 Then you will know which way to go, since you have never been this way before. But keep a distance of about two thousand cubits[a] between you and the ark; do not go near it.”

-> The 2,000 cubits distance from the ark is about the size of one human being occupies in his own life, one he must not give up:

1There are authorities1 who interpret the verse,2 “Let every man abide in his place; no man should leave his place on the seventh day,” as a warning3 against [a person] departing beyond his Shabbos limits. According to Scriptural Law, the extent of these Shabbos limits is twelve mil;4this was [the length and width of] the encampment of the Jewish people [in the desert], which was twelve mil by twelve mil.5The Sages [extended that restriction], forbidding anyone from going beyond 2000 cubits,6 which is one mil.

The Levitical Priests, from Shof'tim are:

18 The Levitical priests—indeed, the whole tribe of Levi—are to have no allotment or inheritance with Israel. They shall live on the food offerings presented to the Lord, for that is their inheritance. 2 They shall have no inheritance among their fellow Israelites; the Lord is their inheritance, as he promised them.

also:

5 The Levitical priests shall step forward, for the Lord your God has chosen them to minister and to pronounce blessings in the name of the Lord and to decide all cases of dispute and assault.

The Levites are not actual persons but aspects of the Executive Decision Making Powers of the Holy Spirit:

17 These were the names of the sons of Levi:

Gershon, Kohath and Merari.

Gershon= “sojourner”

Kohath= “congregation”

Merari= “sad, bitter, or strong”

18 These were the names of the Gershonite clans:

Libni and Shimei.

Libni= “white”

Shimei= “that hears, obeys, also reputation or fame.”

19 The Kohathite clans:

Kohathite= care of the temple vessels

Amram, Izhar, Hebron and Uzziel.

Amram= “rising nation”

Izhar= “sparkles”

Hebron= “colleague”

Uzziel= “God is my strength”

20 The Merarite clans:

Merarite= “sad, bitter, strong”

Mahli and Mushi.

Mahli= “infinity, a harp, pardon”.

Mushi= “touches, withdraws, or takes away”

"Sojourners who congregate, who are strong, noble, and listen to one another rise into a nation of Godly colleagues. Nothing can take away their peace."

These were the Levite clans, according to their families.

21 To Gershon belonged the clans of the Libnites "purities" and Shimeites "fames"; these were the Gershonite clans. 22 The number of all the males a month old or more who were counted was 7,500. 23 The Gershonite clans were to camp on the west, behind the tabernacle. 24 The leader of the families of the Gershonites was Eliasaph son of Lael “belongs to God”. 25 At the tent of meeting the Gershonites were responsible for the care of the tabernacle and tent, its coverings, the curtain at the entrance to the tent of meeting, 26 the curtains of the courtyard, the curtain at the entrance to the courtyard surrounding the tabernacle and altar, and the ropes—and everything related to their use.

"Behind the Wall of Enlightenment are wise men who preserve the culture and process of sound government and protect the God Given rights of the people to speak and be heard."

27 To Kohath "The congregation" belonged the clans of the Amramites "enthralled", Izharites "He will produce oil", Hebronites "friends" and Uzzielites "strong men"; these were the Kohathite clans. 28 The number of all the males a month old or more was 8,600.[c] The Kohathites were responsible for the care of the sanctuary. 29 The Kohathite clans were to camp on the south side of the tabernacle. 30 The leader of the families of the Kohathite clans was Elizaphan son of Uzziel. 31 They were responsible for the care of the ark, the table, the lampstand, the altars, the articles of the sanctuary used in ministering, the curtain, and everything related to their use. 32 The chief leader of the Levites was Eleazar "helpful" son of Aaron, the priest. He was appointed over those who were responsible for the care of the sanctuary.

"Men who awaken others in the congregation are strong, very friendly and produce oil. They help each other out."

5 Joshua told the people, “Consecrate yourselves, for tomorrow the Lord will do amazing things among you.”

6 Joshua said to the priests, “Take up the ark of the covenant and pass on ahead of the people.” So they took it up and went ahead of them.

7 And the Lord said to Joshua, “Today I will begin to exalt you in the eyes of all Israel, so they may know that I am with you as I was with Moses. 8 Tell the priests who carry the ark of the covenant: ‘When you reach the edge of the Jordan’s waters, go and stand in the river.’”

9 Joshua said to the Israelites, “Come here and listen to the words of the Lord your God. 10 This is how you will know that the living God is among you and that he will certainly drive out before you the Canaanites, Hittites, Hivites, Perizzites, Girgashites, Amorites and Jebusites. 11 See, the ark of the covenant of the Lord of all the earth will go into the Jordan ahead of you. 12 Now then, choose twelve men from the tribes of Israel, one from each tribe. 13 And as soon as the priests who carry the ark of the Lord—the Lord of all the earth—set foot in the Jordan, its waters flowing downstream will be cut off and stand up in a heap.”

-> the Hittites "who fears", Girgashites "thieves, infertile" , Amorites "talkers", Canaanites "Royals", Perizzites "rural villager", Hivites "tent villagers" and Jebusites "those trodden down", are "cut off" from the river of thought by the Ark of the covenant which dams up sentient thought in the mind. The goal of Crossing the Jordan and of being an Israelite is to come to the firm realization the self and civilization must be ruled by that which resides on the other side of the wall between darkness and light.

The 12 Skills, which are on the other side of the seven stages of the immature self, are:

Reuben "leadership" , Gad "teaching", Asher "happiness", Zebulun "honor" , Dan "judgement" and Naphtali "justice", Simeon "Law abiding" , Levi "unity", Judah "praise", Issachar "friendship", Joseph "prosperity" and Benjamin "righteousness."

14 So when the people broke camp to cross the Jordan, the priests carrying the ark of the covenant went ahead of them. 15 Now the Jordan is at flood stage all during harvest. Yet as soon as the priests who carried the ark reached the Jordan and their feet touched the water’s edge, 16 the water from upstream stopped flowing. It piled up in a heap a great distance away, at a town called Adam in the vicinity of Zarethan, while the water flowing down to the Sea of the Arabah (that is, the Dead Sea) was completely cut off. So the people crossed over opposite Jericho. 17 The priests who carried the ark of the covenant of the Lord stopped in the middle of the Jordan and stood on dry ground, while all Israel passed by until the whole nation had completed the crossing on dry ground.

-> "Adam" Redness, the color religious commitment is near the city of Zarethan, which means Fortress, They Vex, Place Of Oppression by the sea of criss-crossing, or Arabah, the Sea of Death.

As soon as the priests entered the Jordan and placed the ark in the path of the river, all the "water" running into the dead end stopped, and the people could continue their journey across on Dry Land, meaning they gave up their rebelliousness, violence and licentiousness, fulfilled Adam's commitment to God to become a man and entered the Promised Land as men themselves.

Also, if we stick close to my hypothesis of the Book of Joshua being a guide to the Fourth Day, the analogy of the "vaulting of the river" by the Priests, creating a consciousness above the "fertile plane" is consistent.

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seekfirst-community · 2 years

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Meditation: How do you approach the commandment to observe the sabbath as a day of rest to honor the Lord? The Pharisees were convinced that Jesus was a reckless Sabbath-breaker. The Gospels record seven incidents in which Jesus healed people on the Sabbath - the seventh day of the week set apart for rest and the worship of God. You would think Jesus' miracles on the Sabbath day of rest would draw admiration and gratitude from all. Unfortunately, each incident seemed to incite increasing hostility from the religious leaders who held an interpretation that went beyond God's intention for the Sabbath day of rest. They were certain that Jesus was a dangerous and irreligious man, a Sabbath-breaker, who must be stopped at all costs!

Is it ever lawful to refuse your neighbor in need?

Why did the Pharisees invite Jesus to dinner on the Sabbath, after he had already repeatedly broken their Sabbath regulations? Luke, a physician and keen observer of the human condition, notes the disposition of the Pharisees as they bring Jesus into their table fellowship. Body language often communicates more truthfully than words. Luke says the scribes and Pharisees were watching Jesus, no doubt with great suspicion. They wanted to catch Jesus in the act of breaking the Sabbath ritual so they might accuse him of breaking God's law and find some way to discredit him. Jesus' attention and affection quickly turned to a person who had a physical ailment called dropsy. How did such a pitiable person get into this dinner party? In the hot arid climate of Palestine, homes were open and people freely dropped in without much fuss or attention. For the religious minded it was considered uncharitable to exclude beggars. And if a rabbi came to dinner, it would be expected for him to speak a few words. So, famous rabbis obviously drew crowds of bystanders wherever they went.

God's work of love and mercy never rests

Jesus already knew that his hosts wanted to catch him in the act of breaking their Sabbath rituals. So when Jesus gave his defense for healing on the Sabbath, they treated him with cold silence. They were ensnared in their own legalism and could not understand or see the purpose of God in allowing a work of healing to take precedence over rest. Why did God give the commandment to keep holy the Sabbath and enjoined his people to refrain from work on that day? The "Sabbath rest" was meant to be a time to remember and celebrate God's goodness and the goodness of his works, both in creation and redemption. It was a day set apart for the praise of God, his work of creation, and his saving actions on our behalf. It was intended to bring everyday work to a halt and to provide needed rest and refreshment. It was not, however, intended to put a stop to love of God and love of neighbor. The law of love supersedes the law of rest! Jesus shows the fallacy of the Pharisees' legalism by pointing to God's intention for the Sabbath: to do good and to heal.

God's word has power to heal and to set us free from ignorance, error, intolerance, and prejudice. Do you honor the Lord's Day with appropriate rest and worship of God, and do you treat your neighbor with love and mercy in all situations?

"Lord Jesus, may I always honor you, both in my work and in my rest, and in the way I treat my neighbor. Fill me with your love and keep me free from a critical and intolerant spirit that I may always seek to please you and to bring good to my neighbor as well."

two too

“At daybreak He called His disciples and selected twelve of them to be His apostles: Simon, to whom He gave the name Peter, and Andrew his brother, James and John, Philip and Bartholomew, Matthew and Thomas, James son of Alphaeus, and Simon called the Zealot, Judas son of James, and Judas Iscariot.” —Luke 6:13-16

Jesus sent out His disciples two by two (Lk 10:1). When Jesus named the apostles, He listed them in twosomes (Lk 6:14ff; Mt 10:2ff). In Luke’s Gospel, Jude (short for Judas) is listed as the partner of “Judas Iscariot, who turned traitor” (Lk 6:16). In Matthew’s Gospel, Simon the Zealot is listed as Judas’ partner. Therefore, it’s quite possible that Jude and Simon were especially close to Judas. They may have sensed something missing in Judas’ relationship with Jesus. They may have suspected that Judas was a treasurer-thief, stealing from Jesus and the other apostles (see Jn 12:6). When Judas betrayed Christ and sold Him for thirty pieces of silver (Mt 26:14-15), what did Simon and Jude think? Did they feel guilty, deceived, depressed, or angry? When Judas committed suicide (see Mt 27:3-5), how did Simon and Jude take it? Did they feel even more guilt and confusion? In the upper room before Pentecost, how did Simon and Jude feel when Peter brought up the subject of Judas? (see Acts 1:16ff)

Throughout the history of the Church, Simon and Jude have become connected as partners, although never listed in the Bible as such. Possibly, Simon and Jude were partners in trauma, pain, and then healing. Possibly, this is why they can be partners as patrons of the impossible. Sts. Simon and Jude, pray for us.

Prayer: Father, continue to do the impossible in my life.

Promise: “You are fellow citizens of the saints and members of the household of God.” —Eph 2:19

Praise: Sts. Simon & Jude were both martyred by the Persians, having spread the gospel in Europe and Asia Minor.

Reference:

Rescript: "In accord with the Code of Canon Law, I hereby grant the Nihil Obstat for the publication One Bread, One Body covering the time period from October 1, 2022 through November 30, 2022. Reverend Steve J. Angi, Chancellor, Vicar General, Archdiocese of Cincinnati, Cincinnati, Ohio January 3, 2022"

The Nihil Obstat ("Permission to Publish") is a declaration that a book or pamphlet is considered to be free of doctrinal or moral error. It is not implied that those who have granted the Nihil Obstat agree with the contents, opinions, or statements

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bookofmirth · 2 years

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hey, about lucien though - and please tell me if I am being offensive or not thinking critically - but surely he would have to pass alongside his brothers, and also beron. it’s pretty obvious that no one has thought his appearance was any different to say, eris’s, and no other characters - characters who are shown to be incredibly wise - have caught on to the fact that his biological father is helion. so is he therefore not passing ?

Hello! Sorry this took me a couple of days, I wanted to give it my full attention and tumblr was a mess, as you likely saw 😅

So I totally get what you are coming from because in order for the story to make sense, Lucien needs to not have raised suspicion - at least as far as we can tell. SJM was inconsistent with his race because it just so happened that it made more sense for him to belong to Day, not Autumn, for... well, mating bond reasons. A lot of the confusion needs to be laid at her doorstep for creating this mess.

The way that we, the readers, choose to interpret and engage in the information we have been given is a different matter, though. And something that we should hold ourselves responsible for.

Before I get into the serious stuff, I have a few reasons for you about why Lucien could have those features, and his parentage remain unquestioned or at least unchallenged:

Lucien is the seventh son. No one cares about the seventh son when you have six in line before him who could inherit. No one is paying attention. Even if someone does notice, they don't care because they know that they need to be kissing Eris's ass first. Then Chad, then Charlton, then Beronica, etc. on down the line of sons. This, to me, is the most likely reason. He just doesn't matter enough (they think) to bother.

From what we can tell, fae culture is aristocratic, and it wouldn't be outside the realm of possibility for the children to have been cared for by nannies, tutors, wet nurses, etc. I can see Beron being the type to have a scheduled one hour a week in which he checks in on his sons' progress but then otherwise, whatever.

Beron is an asshole and probably never acted like a father a day in his life - again, meaning Lucien was overlooked until he was a convenient target for abuse.

Beron is also abusive, meaning that if others brought this to his attention, they could be the messenger who gets shot.

@gimme-mor pointed out to me that it's possible that Beron does know, and that's why Lucien in particular has been treated the way that he has. It's completely feasible that people know, they just don't care because Lucien doesn't matter enough to them to bother. He's not only the seventh son, now he's the outcast seventh son?

To follow that point, just because Rhys didn't know, doesn't mean no one else knew.

Were Beron a devoted father and Lucien's brothers caring siblings, then maybe. I know that some people headcanon that Eris does know.

I think the bigger issue is how we as a fandom talk about Lucien. Yes, race doesn't work the same way in Prythian as it does in our world. Yes, there are different power dynamics at work in Prythian that we don't deal with irl. However, our discussions are constrained by... who we are. We may be talking about characters in a world unlike ours (though not entirely, since discrimination and homophobia have been replicated there, but that's another issue), but that discussion is happening here, in our world, with white people and people of color and biracial people etc., and all the history that comes along with that.

Basically, the problem with erasing Lucien's status as a (disabled) man of color is that it then ignores the ways that we talk about him that may be problematic. For example, the whole discussion about him being portrayed as a stalker towards Elain. Literally no one was calling Elain a racist in that discussion, but we were saying that the way that people (readers) talk about a disabled man of color "stalking" or making "uncomfortable" a white woman plays into a super racist history in our world (I would link my post explaining this but um, what the fuck tumblr I can't get to my archive). It's important for us to be aware of how we might be contributing to that, whether we intended to or not.

The important thing here though, and the thing that I think the conversation over the last few days was lacking, is what Morgan @moodymelanist referred to in this post: race as we know it in the U.S. did not exist until the North Atlantic slave trade. It's a specific concept that was created not because it's natural, or has any basis in biology. "Whiteness" and "people of color" (or whichever non-white label we prefer at the time), was something that people came up with in order to justify the kidnapping, enslavement, and mass genocide of entire peoples in order for their own gain. Slavery existed before the U.S., but our ancestors really perfected it in ways that still resonate deeply today.

White = people in the dominant caste (I am reading Caste by Isabel Wilkerson and so I am borrowing her terminology)

Non-white = people who can be subordinated in some way

Making that distinction, and then coming up with all kinds of biological and religious "reasons" to support those distinctions, justified slavery, and continues to justify a shit ton of other stuff up to today.

If you want more info about that history specifically, I'd recommend:

Stamped from the Beginning: The Definitive History of Racist Ideas in America by Ibram X. Kendi (long, but thorough)

Caste: The Origins of Our Discontents by Isabel Wilkerson

Between the World and Me by Ta-Nehisi Coates. This isn't as historical, but says a lot about whiteness.

Passing by Nella Larson. This is fiction, but it's pretty short and shows the precarious nature of passing as a white person.

In world, might Lucien be white passing aka Beron's son? Maybe, or maybe people just don't care enough to poke the Beron beast. But even in world, in Prythian, the second that Lucien loses that "status", he is fucked. Just like in our world, if a white person decides that someone else is not white, then suddenly that person is part of the subordinate caste. That disadvantage - that constant potential to be treated as part of the subordinate caste if a white person makes that decision - means something!

"White passing" doesn't mean much in a world where white people can - and will - decide not to see someone as white. At the drop of a hat. Whether that is for gain, or simply to assert their own dominance. "White passing" doesn't erase the fact that there is a perceived racial difference, and that if someone has been living that way their whole lives, that could be taken away in a second just because someone got bored and decided to be an asshole.

For example - I knew a woman from Jordan when I was in grad school. She was shocked to learn that despite her skin tone, she is not considered white in the U.S. It has nothing to do with race, and everything to do with power. Race is just an excuse.

If as readers we learn that Lucien is actually not white, then it's irresponsible for us to continue talking about him as if he is white, because again, that prevents us from thinking more carefully about how we discuss his character. It prevents us from considering the way we talk about a character of color, and yeah - we should be careful about that, just as we should be careful when talking about queer characters, and disabled characters.

*I got feedback on this post from a few people, but obviously I am open to additional thoughts or corrections!

#lucien #acotar #ask #anon #cw racism #lucien and race

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beneaththebrim · 3 years

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hi brim! feel free to ignore this if you aren't taking qiye asks but i've been kind of. wondering if this is something i missed while reading or if the reason for the invasion at the end of qiye getting sped up in the 7th life (compared to the 1st one) ever got clarified somewhere. have any thoughts? ty for putting together the qiye/tyk timeline it was really handy! have a nice day <3

Oh I like this question! And you’re welcome! Before starting, I just want to first say, please take my interpretation with a grain of salt, because I did read the novel using mtl (with some spot-checking), and all my excerpt translations are done via running the raws through an online dictionary, exhausting my scant knowledge of Mandarin, and comparing with mtl when I get confused. I definitely welcome corrections and/or additions by people who’ve read the novel as closely or closer than this.

Also, I’m going to be nitpicking some elements of the novel I felt were thematically unsatisfying, just warning you.

So I think it’s really a ‘butterfly effect’ sort of thing going on.

Throughout Qiye, there are mentions of how Helian Qi is the more dangerous of the two older brothers, and how facing off against him was the biggest challenge to Helian Yi ascending the throne in Jing Beiyuan’s first life.

In the first life, Helian Qi was the one to go down to Liangguang, and used the opportunity to totally rout Helian Zhao’s faction. Although this would have caused Helian Pei to be more wary of Helian Qi, it ultimately gave him a wide open path to the throne.

In the seventh life, Jing Beiyuan went to Liangguang, and although he destroyed a lot of Helian Zhao’s faction, he didn’t destroy Helian Zhao himself, because he wanted to keep him around to continue contending with Helian Qi so Jing Beiyuan could build Helian Yi’s faction in relative peace.

However! During the time Jing Beiyuan was away, Helian Qi took the opportunity to ingratiate himself with Helian Pei, and made him suspicious of Jing Beiyuan.

Jing Beiyuan realizes pretty soon afterwards that he has to nip the Helian Qi issue in the bud, leading to all the morally dubious scheming that dominates the second half of the novel.

In order to destroy Helian Qi, Jing Beiyuan and Zhou Zishu first target his faction in the Northwest, Zhang Jin and Zhao Zhenshu. They do so by abducting Zhang Tingyu, Zhang Jin’s only son, muting him, planting him among Helian Qi’s brothel boys, and arranging it so Zhang Tingyu, on the verge of death at Helian Qi’s lecherous hands, is able to run home to communicate what Helian Qi had done to him. This leads to Zhang Jin turning on both Helian Qi and Zhao Zhenshu and going to the capital to have various righteous members of court (including Jiang Zheng, who had already been investigating Zhao Zhenshu) petition before Helian Pei.

The fallout effectively destabilizes the Northwest. From Zhang Jin’s pov in Ch.49, we have:

Zhao Zhenshu had spent every day accumulating wealth and bribing officials for decades, to the point that the whole host of generals submitted to him. Just one secret and some money spent, and he could deal with it on the spot without involving the great and distant emperor.

When it came to hard power, he had a division of Wagela troops under his control, all of whom were raw-meat-eating brutes, would work for anyone who paid, and each of whom was strong as a small mountain, such not even three to five ordinary people could match one. When it came to soft power, from the Northwest Spring Market up to the capital, all stores and caravans, if they weren’t thoroughly suppressed by him, then they’d be owned by his people. In the Northwest, he was invincible.

So, this guy pretty much runs this entire area which acts as a buffer between the Wagela’s territory and the Central Plains, and Jing Beiyuan and Zhou Zishu’s scheming topples him.

Oops!

Turns out, simultaneously having a division of Wagela troops lose a big source of their income and replacing the—albeit corrupt—people with the deepest roots in the Northwest with fresh faces, maybe wasn’t the best idea, all at once.

[Well, at least it kills off Helian Zhao, I guess]

And in fact, this is an aspect of Qiye I wish could have gotten explored more, because Jing Beiyuan does talk pretty big about things being ‘for the greater good’ in that trolley problem lecture he gives to Liang Jiuxiao, and like, he and Zhou Zishu… probably should have seen this coming? And I mean, I don’t know how much blood was shed in the first life during the power struggle between Helian Yi and Helian Qi, but methinks the path of slaughter the Wagela wreak on their way to the capital prooooobably more than rivals it? But I don’t think it ever gets addressed that mayyybe there were some holes in their oh-so-necessary-for-the-greater-good scheming?

And where’s the sense of remorse over having ended up making things worse? Well okay, maybe remorse would be out of character, but what about some reflection on karma, or the futile nature of trying to manipulate the circumstances of the world?

Well, much like Wuxi’s entire character arc in the second half of the novel, it gets subsumed by the plot revolving around Jing Beiyuan’s goal of getting Helian Yi settled on the throne. No time for introspection or regret, we’ve got a final plot arc to finish, a heroic, patriotic battle to fight!

…I sigh

#qiye #七爷 #jing beiyuan #helian qi #qiye meta #ask brim #anon #okay look it's in priest's 'dark history' tag for a reason #it's flawed and she knows it #but every author's gotta start somewhere #and it's cool to see how her writing progressed over time #and I mean it is hard to write scheming without plot holes or hypocrisy #I definitely couldn't do it #by the way I *do* like qiye xD even if I don't show it here #If I didn't like it I wouldn't spend much energy complaining about its flaws #I'd just drop it and move on to something I liked

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emsvegetables · 4 years

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okay but like i screamed when i saw your requests are open, ( after reading the pregnancy hcs ) if it's fine with u - you can totally not do this if you don't like it - may i request headcanons with the same boys you did with the pregnancy hcs but with their father-daughter/son relationship with them headcanons? i'm a sucker for those HAHA. thank you again if you ever consider, love ♡♡

“okay but like i screamed when i saw your requests are open, ( after reading the pregnancy hcs ) if it's fine with u - you can totally not do this if you don't like it - may i request headcanons with the same boys you did with the pregnancy hcs but with their father-daughter/son relationship with them headcanons? i'm a sucker for those HAHA. thank you again if you ever consider, love ♡♡”

AHHH OFC!!!! hi @karasunology this is for you, you’re so sweet!!!!! hope you like these <33!!!! i’m not sure if i interpreted it correctly fifkfjrrj i rewrote this THREE TIMES FIEIDIFIF also i made the child a daughter haha hope that’s okay!!!

Oikawa:

* he’ll love his child SO much!!!!!!!!

* anyway he’s REALLY excited for little (Y/N) to come out!!!!!!!

* he’s with you throughout the entire birth process, and he tries his best not to cry when you curse him and say that you’re never having a baby with him again.

* AHAHAHAHA ITS SO PAINFUL BUT HE DOESN’T KNOW THAT LMAO

* and when she pops out of the womb?

* he is CRYING and calling Iwaizumi to tell him how cute she looks.

* “IWA-CHAN!!!!! SHE’S SO CUTE AND—“

* Iwaizumi hangs up on him LOL

* but afterwards he’s softly running his fingers through your hair after it’s all over, and telling you that he loves you.

* but anyways the Seijoh third years come to visit little (Y/N) every weekend and they always bring so much things for her to play with!!!!

* but it’s obvious Iwaizumi is little (Y/N)’s favourite uncle LOL

* she looks like she LIKES Iwaizumi more than Oikawa AHAHAH

* she’ll crawl to him and always reach for him and he’ll happily hug her!!! Oikawa is SO jealous lmaoooo

* but when little (Y/N) can start walking and talking, MAN.

* Oikawa is instantly teaching her how to play volleyball!!!!

* he’s teaching her how to set, and how to receive balls!!!

* her uncles come over to play with her every weekend and you find it really cute, when you poke your head out into the backyard and see four grown men cooing over your little girl!!!!

* but she grows up to love spiking more thanks to her uncle Iwaizumi!!!!!!

* Oikawa’s VERY salty about that LMAOOO but he’ll set to her all the time to practice!!!

* he and her are the total power team!!!

* he’ll go to ALL her games and he’ll happily point her out to you when you’re looking for her!

* and when she gets a spike in??

* “YOU GO GIRL!!!! MAKE YOUR FATHER PROUD!!!!”

* he’s also a super supportive father!!!!

* but he’ll draw a line at relationships AHAHA

* he’ll know how disgusting high school boys are (CONSIDERING HOW HE WAS AHAH) and he’ll gather the Seijoh third years and scare that boy away.

* Matsukawa is the scariest bc he actually is really intimidating HAH.

* and Hanamaki manages to scare them away bc he threatens MURDER AHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAH

* but anyway your daughter has to BEG him to stop after he scares the seventh boy away.

* you just laugh as he tries to make excuses to what he did.

Kuroo:

* aw this man!!!!!!

* i’ve said before in a previous hc, i THINK his parents had some sorta tension between them and hence he had to live with his grandparents.

* so growing up, he never really had active parents in his life!!! so he’s promising himself that he’s going to treat you and little (Y/N) right.

* and when little (Y/N) comes out of the womb!!!!! he’s SO SO SO happy, and he’s smiling so widely and tears are rolling down his cheeks.

* he’s praising you on how well you did during the entire process, and he’s kissing your forehead and saying how proud he is of you.

* but he’s SO SO SO HAPPY!!!! and he’s immediately telling Kenma and the third gym squad!!!!!!

* okay but Kenma occasionally pops over to your house every few weeks to give little (Y/N) toys and stuff, and you have to tell him to STOP bc he’s spending so much money!!!!!

* ZRIEOTKGK

* but Bokuto, Akaashi and Tsukishima also come over to play with little (Y/N)!!!!

* it’s obvious her favourite is Akaashi, bc he’s the most gentle with her, and she’s always crawling up to him and hitting his thighs.

* Bokuto always goes into emo mode whenever she choose Akaashi over him LOL

* anyway.

* he’s teaching little (Y/N) volleyball when she can stand up and walk!!!

* and he’s such a big influence on her life that she actually ASPIRES to be a middle blocker just like him!

* he always brings you to all her games when the both of you can make it, and occasionally the third gym squad will make an appearance too!!!!

* when she blocks the other team????

* there’s two people screaming on the second floor.

* “THATS MY DAUGHTER!!!”-kuroo

* “WOOOO GOOOO LITTLE (Y/N)!!!”-bokuto

* Akaashi and Tsukishima just exchange looks like: wtf is wrong with them.

* he’s also a really, really supportive father.

* he’s so close to her, and he really understands her so well, just like how he understands you.

* he’ll let her talk to him about anything, but he also knows when to give her space to work out her problems when she needs to!!!

* overall super supportive.

* REALLY GREAT FATHER.

* though he gets a TAD protective when little (Y/N) starts to talk about her boyfriend to the both of you.

* but he trusts her!!!! so it’s all good!!!!!

Kenma:

* ahhh!!! he’s actually prepared for little (Y/N) to come out.

* like.

* he’s already bought all the stuff needed for babies, and he’s already put it in the room.

* and when your water breaks??? he’s bringing you to the hospital, with a very calm face, because he’s researched on what to do and he made sure to get the BEST doctor on your case!

* and when little (Y/N) comes out?

* he’s so proud, and you see this lone tear slide down his cheek, and he’s pressing a soft kiss onto her forehead, before pressing one to your lips, and telling you that he loves you so much.

* anyway he immediately tells Hinata what happened, and after Hinata jokes about little (Y/N) not being named after him, he congratulates the both of you through the speaker!!

* Kuroo finds out a few minutes later, after Hinata hangs up and Kenma texts him, and he also congratulates you happily, and berates Kenma over not telling him first AHAHAH

* N E WAYS

* Kenma. is literally and figuratively A SUGAR DADDY TO LITTLE (Y/N).

* this guy???

* a new toy shows up in a parcel outside the house EVERY day, and you have to PLEAD him to stop buying little (Y/N) presents when the drawers start to overflow AHAHA

* Kenma merely shrugs, and gets another cupboard built in the room to store more toys, and shoots a small smile at you when you sigh.

* “i have money to spare, babe.”

* “WE HAVE TOO MUCH TOYS, KO.”

* tbh he won’t teach volleyball to (Y/N), bc he’s lazy AHAHA

* BUT when she inevitably picks it up thanks to her uncles Kuroo and Hinata, he’s cursing them silently in his head when your daughter asks him to play with her.

* he will not be able to refuse her and he’ll actually play with her until SHE’S tired, bc he loves her so much!!!!

* she ends up wanting to be a setter, and he teaches her all his hacks and techniques to get out of practice if she’s tired AHAHA

* he’ll try his best to make it to all her games, and he won’t shout whenever she scores, but instead grip your hands really tightly and mumble a cheer under his breath.

* he’s a really chill dad, tbh.

* like, he’ll never scold your daughter if she’s in the wrong.

* all the discipline is up to you AHAHAH

* he also doesn’t get worked up over her having her boyfriend over for dinner, and instead asks the boy what games he plays.

* the protectiveness gets handed over to uncle Kuroo!!!!!!! who’s instantly firing a barrage of questions at the poor boy.

* “stop it, Kuro.”

* “BUT KENMA, this boy is trying to make his moves on little (Y/N)!!!!”

Sugawara:

* aw HES SUCH A SWEET GUY.

* he’s so PUMPED for little (Y/N)’s delivery.

* and when your little baby pops out???

* this guy is CRYING.

* tears are rolling down his cheeks and he’s SMILING so much as he holds little (Y/N) in his arms.

* he’s SO happy, and he’s telling you that straight to your face as you lie back down on the hospital bed.

* he’s pressing a soft kiss on your cheek before he’s texting the Karasuno group chat WIDIFIFIR

* they’re all so happy!!! and they swarm into the hospital like the maniacs they are to see little (Y/N).

* but when your baby can walk and talk???

* you BET that the entire team is coming to your house EVERY weekend to play volleyball with her.

* little (Y/N) ends up loving Nishinoya the most, and he excitedly teaches her the ROLLING THUNDER move, but Sugawara scolds him when she rolls wrongly and ends up with a gash on her cheeks.

* Nishinoya is BANNED from returning to your house AHAHA KDG

* okay she ends up being a libero like her favourite uncle!!

* and whenever she has a match?

* the ENTIRE team is going there to cheer her on.

* i’m not even lying.

* she’ll save a ball, and all her middle-aged uncles start screaming and cheering, causing her to blush in embarrassment.

* Sugawara and Daichi have to calm them down AHAHAHAH.

* but when she undergoes changes and starts getting male attention???

* man Tanaka and Nishinoya are NOT going to let that happen.

* they’ll be protecting her like how they protected Shimizu AHAHA

* but the most scariest is HER DAD, SUGAWARA KOSHI.

* he’ll smile widely at the boy who your daughter brings home, and that smile is the scariest you’ve seen on his face.

* AHAHAH the poor boy’s TERRIFIED of Sugawara LMAO

Asahi:

* OH!!! this pure, sweet man.

* he’s so SHOCKED when your water breaks.

* he’ll be running around the house and freaking out AHAHA and you have to call the ambulance yourself LOL

* and when little (Y/N) pops out????

* he’s CRYING.

* he’s SOBBING.

* he’s SHAKING.

* he’s so scared!!!! what if your baby doesn’t like him?????

* he’s instantly texting the third years at Karasuno for help LOL

* but they tell him to chill and just hold the baby in his arms!!!

* and he starts to cry again AHAHAH

* but anyway your baby will have the CRAZIEST UNCLES.

* literally your baby is showered with LOVE AND AFFECTION by the entire Karasuno team!!!!!!

* your baby’s favourite is Daichi!!! bc he’s the gentlest with her, and she’ll always wiggle out of Asahi’s arms to go to Daichi.

* ANY WAY

* she ends up being a wing spiker like her father!!!!!

* Asahi’s so proud he starts to cry AGAIN.

* but whenever she has a match????

* the entire team is going AHAHAH

* Nishinoya and Tanaka ARE SCREAMING when she gets a spike in.

* Asahi will just tear up bc he’s so PROUD.

* oh and Asahi’s the MOST SUPPORTIVE DAD.

* he’s always letting her do whatever she wants!!!!!

* and he supports everything that she does!!!!!

* and when she brings a boyfriend home???

* tbh he’s totally fine with that, bc his baby is all grown up, after all.

* but the boy’s scared bc of Asahi’s LOOKS AHAHAHAHAHAH

* your daughter has to tell him to smile more bc her boyfriend is scared of her father’s face AHAHAHAHAH

JRRKFKFK HI IM SO SORRY IF THIS ISNT WHAT YOU WANTED FIRIFIFI i tried my best to write this!!! i hope it’s okay!!!!!!!!

#oikawa x reader #kuroo x reader #kenma x reader #sugawara x reader #asahi x reader #haikyuu hcs #haikyuu headcanons #haikyuu!!#haikyuu x reader #oikawa tooru x reader #kuroo tetsuro x reader #kuroo tetsurou x reader #kenma kozume x reader #sugawara koshi x reader #haikyuu headcanon #haikyuu hc #haikyuu #haikyuu scenarios #haikyuu imagines

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mysticalmusicwhispers · 3 years

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Ramblings on Roman Names

Nyo Rome’s name, Cornelia, is a reference to the family of the Cornelii, an exceedingly influential and powerful patrician family that produced some of Rome’s best statesmen and generals. It also refers to Cornelia, the daughter of Scipio Africanus (a hero of the Second Punic Wars) and mother to the Gracchii brothers, a pair of radical (compared to the Roman elite) reformers that were unfortunately murdered. Cornelia (the historical figure) was pretty invested in literature and writing, which was usually out of women’s roles, and she also played a role in her sons’ political careers. Both fit my interpretation of nyo Rome as one of those unusually powerful women who are more involved with “male” affairs of the state. (the only cons are that a) the name just means “horn” and b) Cornelia (the historical figure) was also pretty modest, dressing plainer than her status, and saying that her sons were her jewels; my nyo rome is a fair bit glitzier and likes her wealth and silks lol)

also thinking about giving her the name Lucretia as well, because a) the rape of Lucretia ushered in the Republic Era, which I see as a time nyo rome was more prominent than her 1p, b) the name means to succeed, and I think that fits her, and c) it just sounds nice

2P rome’s name is Tarquinius, named after the last and 5th kings of Rome; the last one especially was a really bad ruler (tyrannical, killed anyone he thought was a threat, son was the perpetrator of Lucretia’s rape :\ etc.).

Rome’s name is either going to be Octavius or Septimus (as a reference to the 7 kings of rome and the 7 hills; the cons are that it means “seventh” and also isn’t very popular, since it doesn’t have an abbreviation). Octavius feels a little too close to Augustus, but it sounds nice and could just be Rome’s family/clan name (nomen) since it’s assigned to him instead of given

#under the cut because this is just me thinking out loud #trying not to be goddamn lazy with the names and just make rome 'romulus' because that feels like sacrilege #literally like naming america 'george washington' lol #hetalia #aph rome #tw rape #tw rape mention #hws rome #nyo rome #2p rome #nyo!rome #fem rome #2p!rome #musings #hetalia headcanons #headcanon musings #nyotalia #aph rome headcanons

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richmond-rex · 4 years

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Many of you might remember Elizabeth of York speaking Spanish in The White Queen’s sequel, The White Princess. At the time, I had brushed it aside as just another fantastical invention Emma Frost & co had added to the series with no historical basis whatsoever. You can imagine my surprise when I was reading Lisa Hilton’s Queens Consort: England’s Medieval Queens and I saw her claim Elizabeth of York knew how to speak Spanish—not only that, but the surviving letter asking Catherine of Aragon to learn French so they could communicate was a sign of Margaret Beaufort’s domineering intervention. According to Hilton, Elizabeth’s mother-in-law could have been the only one to make such request since not only Elizabeth of York was completely powerless to assert her wishes, she also knew how to speak Spanish. If in The White Princess Elizabeth of York speaks Spanish as a sign of her girl boss attitude, in Queens Consort she does it as a show of her weakness. Which interpretation is the right one?

That’s an easy answer: neither of them is true. No other author has ever claimed that Elizabeth of York knew how to speak Spanish because there is no historical evidence for such. When it comes to the matter, the letter asking for Catherine to learn how to speak French wasn’t even written by Elizabeth (or Margaret Beaufort, for that matter). It was actually a message sent by Rodrigo de Puebla, the resident Spanish ambassador at the English court at the time. De Puebla sent Ferdinand and Isabella the following request when Princess Margaret of Austria (sister of Archduke Philip) was visiting the Spanish court in July 1498:

The Queen and the mother of the King wish that the Princess of Wales [Catherine] should always speak French with the Princess Margaret, who is now in Spain, in order to learn the language, and to be able to converse in it when she comes to England. This is necessary, because these ladies do not understand Latin, and much less, Spanish. They also wish that the Princess of Wales should accustom herself to drink wine. The water of England is not drinkable, and even if it were, the climate would not allow the drinking of it.

You might say: oh, but the letter does mention the King’s mother! Yes, it does, it also says that these ladies, meaning, the aforementioned ladies—the queen and the mother of the king—do not understand Latin, and much less, Spanish. There might be evidence that Queen Elizabeth knew at least how to read Latin (even if she did not understand spoken Latin), so maybe we could give Emma Frost and Lisa Hilton the benefit of doubt?

No, simply because three years later there was another letter written to the Spanish Kings:

The King, the Queen, and the Prince of Wales . . . have great pleasure in hearing that the Princess Catherine is beginning to speak French. The Queen, especially, rejoices at the progress the Princess is making in the French language.

The letter makes it explicit that out of the royal family, Queen Elizabeth was the one most rejoiced upon hearing that Princess Catherine was learning French, which makes me think that de Puebla’s claim in the previous letter, that both ladies did not understand Spanish, is true. Why would Elizabeth of York be especially happy about Catherine speaking French if the queen and her future daughter-in-law already spoke a common language?

It doesn’t surprise me that Emma Frost & co would write Elizabeth of York speaking Spanish to make her seem more impressive than her historical counterpart (there’s a whole issue about this point which I won’t have time to address it here), but why would Lisa Hilton, an author writing a (poorly) sourced nonfiction book, say Elizabeth of York knew how to speak Spanish? Wilful misinterpretation of de Puebla’s letter?

I got a clue when I was writing this post about Henry VII wearing black and came across this passage in The Most Pleasant Song of Lady Bessy: the eldest daughter of King Edward the Fourth, and how she married King Henry the Seventh of the House of Lancaster (click on the image for better resolution):

What actually made me laugh was Lord Stanley’s response, though:

The Earle said, You are a proper wench.

All jokes aside, it is a bit shocking to see an author writing a nonfiction book claiming as evidence a ballad—a fictional account—so they could use it as part of their argument that Margaret Beaufort was a mother-in-law from hell and dominated every single aspect of her son’s court. Hilton goes as far as making the following venomous commentary: “Margaret Beaufort did not speak Spanish, and she was not prepared to be left out.” I would argue that ideally no member of the royal family should be left out, but I digress.

Hilton’s Queens Consort, although not without its merits, is a book full of easy-to-spot factual mistakes and tries to sell a narrative of queens consort gradually losing their power during the late Middle Ages. Obviously, for her claim to be true, Elizabeth of York—arguably the last medieval queen and the last one to feature in her book—is the epitome of powerlessness.

Using fictional accounts as historical evidence might sound outlandish, yet Lisa Hilton was not the first author to do it when it comes to Elizabeth of York. Alison Weir’s biography of the queen also uses The Most Pleasant Song of Lady Bessy as evidence that Elizabeth of York was an ambitious, do-whatever-it-takes princess who would even sleep with her uncle to become queen—nevermind the fact that nowhere in the text of The Most Pleasant Song it says that Elizabeth of York wanted to be queen. On the contrary, if you actually read the ballad, Elizabeth acts as if she’s in love with Lord Richmond and wants to crown her love over the sea.

When it comes to The Most Pleasant Song of Lady Bessy, I think we should use the same approach advised by Arlene Okerlund in her biography of Elizabeth of York: as a reflection of the English subjects’ admiration for the queen. Okerlund begins by saying that the ballad, “though more fiction than fact, credits Elizabeth with considerable writing ability”. In the text, Thomas Stanley laments his inability to write to the earl of Richmond because he has no scribe he could trust, but Elizabeth readily saves the day by saying she was ‘a clerk full good’ and proceeding to take dictation from Lord Stanley for five separate letters. Okerlund concludes:

Pure fiction though this ballad may be, it reflects the popular view of Elizabeth of York’s abilities and the sentimental affection of her English subjects for their accomplished and beloved queen.

Elizabeth of York was tremendously popular in England during her reign. Despite Hilton claiming that Elizabeth of York was deliberately pushed to the side, it can’t be denied that Henry VII—if out of love, respect or cunning (or all three)—made his queen the central point of attention of several public events, going so far as displaying her coat of arms on the armour of his English knights during tournaments. But this point, I’m afraid, is a topic for another post.

#elizabeth of york #historian: lisa hilton #(this is a tag convention; she's no historian)#historian: alison weir #historian: arlene okerlund #show: the white princess #the most pleasant song of lady bessy

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universejunction · 3 years

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Midwayers, and problems of intended belief

A discord conversation (at first about fae and spirits)

Me:

I feel so far behind on learning about fae and spirits and such. When I thought The Urantia Book was more than a well-intentioned hoax it was easy to think fae and such are all just what it calls "midwayers". Now I'm... wide open to new interpretations. I know I'm not behind, I'm just where I am, but still...

I would love to give you more of an idea, but I don't know a ton about the Urantia book or what you mean by midwayers.

Me:

Oof, okay. I don't expect much in the way of answers, I know I'll get what I get in time. But I will take this opportunity to share.

In the Urantia Book, it make a lot of distinction between spirit and matter, as you might expect. Mind is the means by which Spirit rules over matter, yada yada. It also has a ton of details on angels.

There's a ton of history in there too, which I'm now interpreting as metaphor at best, because it's sure as shit not factual with its racial skeletal types and what not.

Anyway... Y'know, I'm gonna give the summary and then see if I have the energy for the story, because I'm worn out.

Basically, midwayers are midway between material and spiritual (but they're not, like, pure mind), covering the gap between angels and humans. They're native to the world, but descended from super-humans. They're immortal and stick around until the "age of light and life". And there's 1111 of either all of them or that might just be the first group of them.

Midwayers also get attributed cases of demonic possession (but so does mental illness), though they're not supposed to be able to do that anymore since Jesus completed his experience of life and earned his sovereignty (which was... before his public work) as basically god of local creation.

There's so much in this book and I carved it into my brain and now I don't trust it but it's still so quick to mind 😩

Innkeeper:

Woof okay I just read this

This is....so much not correct at all but also weirdly accurate

Which makes sense considering my personal theories on bleedthrough but thats another topic for another time

Me:

"Bleedthrough" sounds so very likely correct even without knowing what you mean exactly. That's pretty much my theory on how the Absolutes stuff seems so probably accurate despite everything else

I'm just going to offer that whenever you hear "superhuman," in a spiritual tome, your hackles should probably raise.

Like, it sounds like this is coming from the same branch of angelic and Christian occultism that recognize the Nephilim, but uh, just be mindful that rhetoric about "ancient superhumans" is almost ALWAYS used to sell bullshit about magic indigenous people

It sounds like you're mindful of that, but, heads up

The midwayer concept is ringing alarm bells between "Magic White People From Outer Space" to "Eugenics"

Innkeeper:

The idea of a liminal concept, something that exists in between those two states, I feel that holds water

The idea of literally everything else is uh

Worrisome at best

Me:

I'll add more in a sec but y'all right

Me (later):

To be clear, I was raised on the Urantia Book and am now moving away from it. For reasons mentioned above, among others.

It does come very close to "magic white people from outer space" and definitely is like "eugenics is a good idea but no one is qualified to direct it".

Me (replying to A):

Adding on, yes, but it's like... Fix-it fic. There's this spirit prince for the world who rebelled with Lucifer (who was like... a local administrator, not a god or angel), but when he arrived they like... called 100 natives [of Earth], cloned them with power-ups, and put people from other worlds like ours into the bodies who served as the prince's staff in the task of cultivating culture. Those staff, through essentially spiritual sex, created the first midwayers. After rebellion, the staff split and the ones who stay loyal to the prince are called nephilim and start a line of (acknowledged in the text) big ol' nasty racial supremacists. They're also called Nodites (c.f. "Land of Nod")

Later, Adam and Eve show up to "upstep" human evolution (disease resistance, humor, art... yeah, magic white people) but because the prince rebelled and shit's fucked, they're having a hard time. Eve bangs a local tribe leader to get an alliance and fucks everything up (that results in Cain. Able is Adam and Eve's next kid). So now should-be-immortal Adam and Eve only have a few hundred years to live and their (already many) kids get the choice to leave and most of them do.

A while later, their first son, Adamson, goes off to start a new cultural center, meets a woman named Rata who "claims" to be the last pure-line Nodite. [They] have a bunch of kids, every 4th of which is invisible(???), and they make those kids get together (yikes!) and that's where the secondary midwayers come from.

And it lampshades all this like "many things in the spiritual development of a world are hard to understand." Uh, yeah! History is weird, sure, but as it's fan fic, it's creepy.

So, I'm saying this with all the love in my heart, but you can only portray things as fiction which are not intended to be believed.

That's not a fanfiction, that's a religious text. That is a religious text with a fully realized theology and metaphysics, complete with creation story. I think it is harmful to approach it as anything else, or as a "generic" metaphysical practice. (Relatedly, there is no such thing as "generic witchcraft," which is a main point of this history of the occult book club).

Doing a little bit more research, it's a religious text associated loosely with the Urantia Foundation and written in 1955. I'm not seeing any indication at the moment that there's a formal power structure associated with the movement, which lessens the chance for cult behavior.

What I will suggest to you is that you need to approach this work like you would any other religious text. Set aside questions of whether the text is "accurate" or "true." If you are honestly interested in the metaphysical, you should be able to separate empirical reality and history for the metaphysical. If you can't do that, take five steps back in your practice and come back once you can.

So, setting aside questions of truth, does this cosmology reflect the things you believe about the world? Does it encourage a way of thinking about people that you think is good, virtuous, honorable, etc? Can this text be used to uphold values that you hold, or do the natural extensions of this text lead to certain conclusions? Are those conclusions harmful?

For instance, I believe that eugenics is totally and morally abhorrent, and that there is fundamentally "no such thing" as a person who could pull it off "correctly." There's no way to do eugenics "right," just like I believe there is no morally correct way to, I don't know, punch a baby.

As such, even your acknowledgment that the text accepts eugenics makes it worthy of rejection in my mind.

Maybe you are interested and capable of doing the apologetics to make this into a compassionate religious movement. I don't know. I am not interested in doing that. But I do not think you can "move away" from this text, in the same way that you cannot "move away" from the bible, only from interpretations of it.

At some point, you have to believe in a basic assumption. If there's something that "feels right," there's only so far you can push it without that basic assumption.

If you think there is a separation between mind, body, and Spirit, wonderful. I would recommend you find another text and another basic set of assumptions. For instance, one that doesn't involve angels making angel-possesed magic native people for the point of preparing the world for the "good races."

Me:

Yes, you've got it right. Except that my interpretation has moved from "I think this book is what it claims" to "I think this was (probably well-intentioned, but still) a hoax perpetrated by ex-Seventh-Day Adventists". But for whatever good intentions may've been involved, the fact that it's intended to be believed makes it very harmful. I talked about it today as a way of saying "wow, look at this crazy shit" and talking through the changes involved in my different interpretation / loss of faith.

I don't believe in midwayers anymore and don't know what to believe, I'm trying to do the work, as you say, of finding what parts are good and what's harmful, comparing with empirical stuff, etc. But, however ready I may've been to walk away from the Urantia Book, it's still a process of recognizing what ideas I have based on it and examining them in turn to see what's salvageable.

Innkeeper:

I think that's an incredibly respectful way to go about it, Toph.

When something is that formative to you as a person, it's rarely as easy as learning it's harmful and then moving on, entirely separated from the source material. There's a long process of digging up every assumption you know you have--and many you don't know you have, or don't have at all--and needing to challenge them in a newer, healthier framework. One of the most potent aspects of the danger of cults is that they're incredibly difficult to challenge that base assumption, and it can take years if not a lifetime to walk a path that steadily heads away from what was taught.

So to acknowledge something formative's deep capacity for danger and harm, and go through the long process of picking it apart piece by piece to ensure you don't retain its harmfulness as you separate from it, I think that's the best possible way to go about something.

#urantia analysis #behold my eloquence #long post

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bills-bible-basics · 1 year

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CRUSHING ROCK AND ROD OF IRON -- KJV (King James Version) Bible Verse List KJV Bible verse list compiled by #BillKochman for #BillsBibleBasics. Topic: "Crushing Rock and Rod of Iron". Visit https://www.billkochman.com/VerseLists/ to see all my lists. "Thou sawest till that a stone was cut out without hands, which smote the image upon his feet that were of iron and clay, and brake them to pieces . . . And in the days of these kings shall the God of heaven set up a kingdom, which shall never be destroyed: and the kingdom shall not be left to other people, but it shall break in pieces and consume all these kingdoms, and it shall stand for ever. Forasmuch as thou sawest that the stone was cut out of the mountain without hands, and that it brake in pieces the iron, the brass, the clay, the silver, and the gold; the great God hath made known to the king what shall come to pass hereafter: and the dream is certain, and the interpretation thereof sure" Daniel 2:34, 44-45, KJV "Yet have I set my king upon my holy hill of Zion. I will declare the decree: the LORD hath said unto me, Thou art my Son; this day have I begotten thee. Ask of me, and I shall give thee the heathen for thine inheritance, and the uttermost parts of the earth for thy possession. Thou shalt break them with a rod of iron; thou shalt dash them in pieces like a potter's vessel." Psalm 2:6-9, KJV "Jesus saith unto them, Did ye never read in the scriptures, The stone which the builders rejected, the same is become the head of the corner: this is the Lord's doing, and it is marvellous in our eyes? . . . And whosoever shall fall on this stone shall be broken: but on whomsoever it shall fall, it will grind him to powder. And when the chief priests and Pharisees had heard his parables, they perceived that he spake of them." Matthew 21:42, 44-45, KJV "And I say also unto thee, That thou art Peter, and upon this rock I will build my church; and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it." Matthew 16:18, KJV "And did all drink the same spiritual drink: for they drank of that spiritual Rock that followed them: and that Rock was Christ." 1 Corinthians 10:4, KJV "This is the stone which was set at nought of you builders, which is become the head of the corner." Acts 4:11, KJV "Wherefore also it is contained in the scripture, Behold, I lay in Sion a chief corner stone, elect, precious: and he that believeth on him shall not be confounded. Unto you therefore which believe he is precious: but unto them which be disobedient, the stone which the builders disallowed, the same is made the head of the corner," 1 Peter 2:6-7, KJV "And he that overcometh, and keepeth my works unto the end, to him will I give power over the nations: And he shall rule them with a rod of iron; as the vessels of a potter shall they be broken to shivers: even as I received of my Father." Revelation 2:26-27, KJV "And she brought forth a man child, who was to rule all nations with a rod of iron: and her child was caught up unto God, and to his throne." Revelation 12:5, KJV "And out of his mouth goeth a sharp sword, that with it he should smite the nations: and he shall rule them with a rod of iron: and he treadeth the winepress of the fierceness and wrath of Almighty God." Revelation 19:15, KJV "And the seventh angel sounded; and there were great voices in heaven, saying, The kingdoms of this world are become the kingdoms of our Lord, and of his Christ; and he shall reign for ever and ever." Revelation 11:15, KJV "For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given: and the government shall be upon his shoulder: and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace." Isaiah 9:6, KJV If you would like more info regarding the origin of these KJV Bible verse lists, go to https://www.billkochman.com/VerseLists/. Thank-you! https://www.billkochman.com/Blog/index.php/crushing-rock-and-rod-of-iron-kjv-king-james-version-bible-verse-list/?feed_id=64850&_unique_id=645c6a8e949ee&CRUSHING%20ROCK%20AND%20ROD%20O

F%20IRON%20--%20KJV%20%28King%20James%20Version%29%20Bible%20Verse%20List

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theoracleparadox · 3 years

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WIP Wednesday: Andromeda gets caught in her lies... again

The elevator soon came to a stop and Ackers led the way out. Andromeda presumed it was the same floor where the king's office was, although there was nothing different about this floor compared to any other. It was when she spotted two sentry Glaives standing at attention outside of a door that she knew they had arrived. They barely acknowledged Ackers before he knocked on the door, then opened it for Andromeda to walk through.

She entered cautiously, letting Ackers take the lead again. No one sat at the large desk; it was only when she glanced about the room that she spotted Regis standing by one of the large windows. He had taken notice of them when the door had opened. His Shield wasn't present.

Ackers bowed to the king, and Andromeda followed his movement. She still felt awkward with this formal etiquette, but at least she had the privilege of not speaking unless spoken to.

“Thank you, Ackers,” Regis moved away from the window and towards his desk. “Please wait outside.”

The Crownsguard left silently. The king sat at his desk as the door clicked shut, leaning his cane next to his chair. Andromeda sank into one of the chairs in front of the desk. As expensive as the chairs must have been, they were very uncomfortable.

“I hear you've had an interesting night so far,” Regis began, giving a gentle smile. It didn't make her feel any better.

“So far,” Andromeda mumbled.

This was going to be different from the previous meeting. It already was different without Amicita present—that fact made her feel just a little bit better. There was something about him and Leonis that only made her more guarded. They could tell truth from lies, but wouldn't believe the truth. Andromeda had no desire to be honest with them.

As it was, the night's events must have gotten Elshett in trouble with Leonis, and therefore it was what this meeting would be about. Andromeda felt her actions had been innocent enough. Regardless, she had left Elshett's sight for five minutes. A lot could happen in five minutes. It had clearly bothered the Crownsguard, and no doubt her superiors. None of them would understand why it was necessary.

“I've thought over what you said,” Regis went on. “Of course, it's only made more questions. You haven't been straightforward with us.”

This had nothing to do with the gathering. It was must worse than a chastisement for attempting to run away (which she hadn't been). Andromeda had been more honest here than she had ever been in Niflheim. The punishment for her lies would be worse here: she had lied to the king directly, rather than just his underlings. The Imperials had always threatened to hurt Linda if Andromeda wouldn't cooperate, but the Lucians actually had the power to do so. Linda was safe and happy here; the king could take that all away from her, because of Andromeda's lies.

“You know more than you say,” The king's smile faded. At least the cordial pretenses would be dropped. He had been able to see through her lies, too. “More than you should know, and about things you couldn't have found out about on your own. What do you know of the Accursed?”

Andromeda looked at the desk rather than him. “Not much. Just that he possesses magic, and he has some control over Ifrit.”

Ardyn was also full of the Scourge, so much so that he shouldn't be surviving. Andromeda had felt only a little bit of it—two winters ago, he had passed some of that infection on to her. She had gotten a glimpse of just how infected he was, yet he was somehow able to hide it. The only reason he could be alive at all was due to his status as the Accursed, a title Bahamut used that alluded to Ardyn's part in the coming prophecy. The Scourge had nothing to do with Verstael's experimenting.

Mentioning all that would create too many of the wrong questions. The Lucians didn't even have a clue that Andromeda could also heal Starscourge. Knowing how they revered the Oracle here, admitting to that power would cause a backlash. They would accuse her of being an impostor.

“He has a lot of power in the Imperial government,” Andromeda added. “He does whatever he wants.”

“So you were close to him,” Regis noted.

“I saw him once or twice before the final encounter,” She lied, despite being caught in her previous lies. “He was upset when I used my power. But he's just Bahamut's pawn.”

“You have also spoken with the Draconian more than either of you will admit,” The king acknowledged, moving on. Andromeda thought that would upset him, as only he was supposed to communicate with Bahamut, but he only seemed more curious. “He was the one who told you about the Accursed. But why?”

She didn't answer. Regis ought to have known that was a question for Bahamut. She didn't want to go into what had been spoken between her and the god. It mattered little at the moment.

“He's not the only Astral you have encountered,” He continued. “You must have seen others, for the power you possess and how much you know.”

Andromeda still remained silent. He wasn't wrong, but he also wouldn't know of Etro. Even if she had once been the patron deity of his family, countless generations ago. She had never found a book that mentioned her.

“You're protecting someone,” Her silence didn't deter Regis, but he always waited for a response. Unfortunately, they were on a topic she couldn't easily lie about. “No one outside of the royal lines is supposed to possess magic, unless a king bestows magic onto them, of course. Your magic is not something I've sense before. It's old, dark, and intense.”

It was the first time anyone had claimed to sense Etro's Blessing. It made sense that one magic user should pick up on another's power, though. Regis was onto something, and Andromeda didn't particularly like it.

“I am not your enemy,” He insisted when she still said nothing. “I want to help. I am not bound by Bahamut's will.”

“I don't need your help,” Andromeda asserted. The last thing she had wanted was the king involving himself. He didn't look as though he could offer much help: he was old and used up. He was just a prattling fool, only a little smarter than the Emperor.

Yet Regis was one of the few people that knew the prophecy so well—much more than the Imperials thought they knew, and they were not involved in it. Which reminded Andromeda of one facet she didn't know anything about: who was the Chosen King?

It was the king's turn to be silent for a moment, taken aback by her quick remark. Something seemed to dawn on him as he thought for a moment. “There's a seventh god, isn't there?”

Andromeda was silent again. How had he managed to guess in three days what took Niflheim months to witness? It was surprising that the thought would even occur to him; it went against everything the world was taught about its origin in the Cosmogony. Only a fool would consider there to be a seventh Astral, but apparently Regis was not enough of a fool to blindly believe what the canonical Six have asserted for eons.

She wouldn't confirm nor deny his question. Either option was dangerous.

He interpreted her silence as a confirmation of his theory. “You did die that day in Tenebrae, and the god resurrected you. That is who you're protecting.”

Whether she was honest or told a lie didn't seem to matter; Regis knew he had it figured out. Yet if Andromeda kept quiet, he wouldn't be able to think of more questions to ask. At least, that was what she hoped.

“You're safe here in the city,” He assured. He must have known she wanted to leave, and soon—she hadn't exactly been hiding that. Andromeda knew better than to believe the city's walls were impenetrable.

“It's just another cage,” She commented. The king wanted her to remain in his city and never use her powers again. A couple of years ago, she would have been content with that, but it would have just as soon been proven impossible. She wasn't afraid of her powers anymore. They were too useful to not be used at all.

“The Empire will never stop in their pursuit of you,” Regis warned.

“I know,” Andromeda was unbothered by it. “Keeping me here will only cause them to target the city directly. Your walls aren't enough to keep them out. Besides, like it or not, Bahamut has made us enemies. He won't tolerate my being here much longer.”

Especially not so if Etro tried to reach her. The goddess would not enter the city unless it was very important. The last they had spoken, she had warned that the days of the prophecy were quickly approaching. Andromeda felt she had already given all that she could to the king.

Regis hadn't spoken deliberately about the prophecy, but he had alluded to it enough times. The Chosen King had come from his line—he had a son somewhere in the Citadel. Did Regis know that his son was going to be sacrificed?

“We have nothing to do with the prophecy,” Andromeda stated directly, rather than the alluding they had been doing thus far. “We won't help one way or the other.”

Her tone had a finality to it as she revealed just how much she knew. Was that what he was hoping for? Did he think the circumstances around Andromeda's survival would alter the events to come? As much as Etro despised Bahamut's prophecy, she had once admitted that she was not powerful enough to do anything about it. It was best she stayed out of it—the Six had already banished her once.

“You make a strong argument,” Regis acknowledged once he was over his surprise at her sudden confidence. “Though I assure you, we are not enemies. I understand why you may think that. It's clear to everyone that you are not comfortable here. But if I release you, you will not be protected from the Empire.”

“I can handle it,” She wondered if he would truly consider letting her go. Lucis had its own magic, and therefore no need for hers. There wasn't any Scourge in the city. It wasn't as though they had protected her before.

“What of your family?”

“All I wanted to know is that my aunt is here and happy. She's the one that needs protecting.” Andromeda explained. She still did not expect to see her again, and was content with that. It was for the best.

Regis thought for a moment with a frown. “I'll consider it. You may go. Officer Ackers is waiting outside.”

Trying to keep her relief from showing, Andromeda stood from the chair. She bowed, recalling what she had seen Elshett and Ackers do. “Thank you, Your Majesty.”

Not a moment later, she was closing the door behind herself. The Glaives stirred slightly and Ackers was surprised by her sudden appearance. She assumed they had all stood guard the whole time. From the looks of it, Ackers was not a very interesting person. He began leading her down the hall, towards the elevators again.

“Coffee?” He offered.

Andromeda shook her head. “I'm ready to call it a night.”

She had been ready before the king decided that he needed to speak with her immediately. It had already been late when she and Elshett came back to the Citadel; she didn't know how long that meeting had gone on for. It didn't leave much time left for Andromeda to dreamwalk. She already felt too exhausted to accomplish much.

Once at the elevators, they went down a couple of floors. It wasn't a long walk before they came across a door guarded by a Glaive, which Andromeda was beginning to recognize as her room. She hoped she didn't have many more nights left of her stay.

After a brief good night, she was finally alone. As much as she wanted to just crawl into bed, she took a shower first as a way to relax after everything that had happened.

Andromeda still expected some trouble from the gathering in the Galahdian neighborhood. Why else did Elshett have to rush off to speak with Leonis as soon as they returned to the Citadel? She hoped Elshett wasn't in too much trouble with her superiors for her little stunt. Leonis and Amicita weren't pleasant men.

In speaking with the king alone, Andromeda had been more honest with him than she had wanted to be. At the same time, though, she had to admit that it hadn't been as bad as she had thought it would be. Lucis wasn't Niflheim. Regis might listen to her—even if she had said some things he hadn't wanted to hear.

Keeping the shower short, Andromeda finally flopped down onto the bed. She felt her exhaustion even more intensely. Still thinking back to her meeting with the king, she decided to just go to sleep.

#wip wednesday #my fanfic #I already finished this chapter #I can finally go over what's already written and fix up the rest of the fic #hmmm why does this scene feel so familiar?

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stevenuniversallyreviews · 5 years

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Episode 120: Storm in the Room

“Sometimes I wonder if it’s even you up there.”

There are certain episodes of Steven Universe that act as culminations to multiple stories from the past. Pseudo-finales like The Return and Earthlings rely on tons of backstory to show how far we’ve come in the series, and big showstoppers like Mr. Greg that do likewise for specific characters rather than the show as a whole. But as our saga continues, we’re blessed with stories that have the same vast reference pool as these payoff episodes without the finality; at this stage, so much has happened that “regular episodes” can also be riddled with nods to how small elements of Steven’s overall journey have shaped his universe. Storm in the Room isn’t about solving problems, but acknowledging them, and because the problem at hand involves the past catching up with the present, I love how much this episode looks back.

We start right as The New Crystal Gems ends, making this the seventh episode in a row documenting a very long day in Steven’s life (granted, one of them is him listening to what his friends were up to on Earth, but he’s still stuck in the Zoo uniform). Connie, glad to relinquish her guardian duties, gets nervous when Dr. Maheswaran doesn’t answer her phone, and Steven tries to relieve the tension in a way that seems insensitive at face value. His insistence on playing games when she’s clearly upset is awkward as hell, but he eventually acknowledges Connie’s feelings in a way that shows that in his own flawed way he was trying to help. The problem is that his version of help involves ignoring problems instead of facing them, and if this seems familiar, Connie completes the reference by practicing a calming breath from Mindful Education: she learned that episode’s lesson, but just like his mother, Steven’s instinct is to push his issues away.

Connie’s reunion with the good doctor evokes the ending of Nightmare Hospital, with Steven gazing from a distance at a mother and child embracing after a scare. But this time we don’t get the bittersweet imagery of his big smile slowly fading as he hugs Rose’s sword; he’s just alone, a background character to something he’s never experienced, all bitter and no sweet.

The tonal shift when Connie departs is stark and sudden. So far the episode has been full of Steven’s chattering, Aivi and Surasshu’s subtle score, and the ambient sounds of crashing waves as Steven says goodbye, but as soon as he shuts the door we’re met with crushing silence. It’s not hard to guess that his cheer has been forced, but it’s still brutal to see the act drop all at once before an extended and largely wordless routine of taking care of himself because nobody’s around to take care of him. We might not know it until A Single Pale Rose, but just like his approach to problem solving, his double life as an outwardly chipper hero that’s secretly suffering is another way he’s his mother’s son.

From the start of this quiet period, we see his discomfort with the portrait of Rose that’s graced his room for the entire series. The last time it’s been this prominent was Rose’s Scabbard, another eye-opening episode about her past, but now it haunts Steven as he makes his way through an empty home, magnified to show how small he’s made to feel by the cosmic scale of his burdens.

Steven briefly heads outside to avoid the picture staring at him through closed eyes, and we get a moment of pleasant rain that earns some murmured approval, but it morphs from the baptismal drizzle of The Answer and When It Rains to the harrowing downpour of Alone At Sea. Only when he’s back inside, with his dinner ruined and nowhere else to turn, does he truly speak. And for the first time in ages, since the era of An Indirect Kiss and Lion 3, he speaks to Rose.

It might be enhanced by the silence preceding it, but Zach Callison’s performance here is tremendous, even for him. Steven doesn’t even have the energy to be angry, he’s just cold and weary as he finally starts verbalizing his negative thoughts. They’re enough to make his mother’s door glow, and he knows as well as we do by now that Rose’s Room is a place of horror as well as wonder, but he steps inside anyway.

It’s so important that Steven admits right off the bat that none of what he's about to see is real, not just because it’s been a while since young viewers saw this place, but to preface the emotional illusion with his mental awareness of its fakery. He isn’t being fooled like he has in the past, but he’s so desperate for this connection that he’s willing to take questionable means to get it. When he asks to see his mom (rather than asking to see Rose Quartz), the clouds form into another image of her with her eyes closed, but unlike the portrait, she can open them right up.

Steven is already nervous when he enters the room, and gets even more flustered at the voice of his mother coming out of the simulacrum. But the illusion is so real that he composes himself, and despite his earlier nod to reality, he’s clearly drawn in no matter how much his head might tell him not to be.

There are tells, of course. Fake Rose Quartz Rose Ersatz is all about what Steven wants to do, lets him win at his video game with a patronizing “Hooray,” and gives a dramatic speech about the value of sports because the only reference point Steven has to her voice is the similar tone of her message from Lion 3. But beyond the appearance factor, there are tricky ways Faux Quartz seems more real than Connterfeit from Open Book: she’s inquisitive about the video game, she’s willing to pull pranks on her kid, and she provides a compelling rebuttal to Steven’s anger that suggests that maybe, just maybe, her room has a good enough grasp of the genuine article that this is more than a simple fake. After all, back in Rose’s Room, the most detailed deception was Greg, the person Steven encounters that Rose knew best.

But before we get into that conclusion and rebuttal, let’s look at the prank. There’s a certain mythological power to yanking a football away from a kicker: Charlie Brown isn’t that different from the likes of Tantalus or Sisyphus in this metaphor for futility, and while it’s obviously a funnier gag than trying to push a bolder up a hill, the inherent sadness of classic Peanuts is inextricable from the laughs. The glimmer of hope has to be built up every time, only to be dashed when Lucy betrays Charlie Brown’s trust, and it’s not hard to see the parallel with Steven trying again and again to understand the truth.

(While I loved my Peanuts growing up, my favorite iteration of the football gag is this spoken word reenactment starring Paget Brewster as Lucy, John Moe as Charlie Brown, and two of my comedy heroes, Paul F. Tompkins and “Weird Al” Yankovic, enjoying the show between them. It’s brilliant both as a tribute and a deconstruction of Charles Schulz.)

Given the setting, it’s inevitable that the situation turns dark. But despite the turmoil Steven endures, there’s a sense of catharsis as he unloads all his angst after spending so long bottling it up. As with Joy Ride and Steven vs. Amethyst, our hero reveals new insights into what’s going on in his head in a way that can’t be done right without saying it outright. His anger is sold by its specificity, and Callison again proves his chops in a damning monologue about all the ways Rose failed the expectations that have been built for him.

Out of the gate he connects her lie about bubbling Bismuth with the hypocrisy of her shattering Pink Diamond while punishing her friend for suggesting it. It’s a problem that was at the forefront of my concerns when the news of the shattering was first told, and while I felt vindicated in the show talking about it at last, it sucks that this didn’t lead to freeing Bismuth to continue the conversation. He’s just getting revved up, but I’m not sure I’ll ever get past how Bismuth was left high and dry for so long when I assess the show as a whole.

The real meat of the rant involves Steven isolating Rose’s biggest flaw. It’s visible from the second episode of the series, which revolves around Steven looking for a cannon that Rose could’ve told her friends about before passing: she has trouble telling the truth. Sometimes it’s negligence, as with the cannon, but often it’s deception. It was so ingrained that Pearl interpreted it as a sign of great leadership in Rose’s Scabbard, and Garnet’s obfuscating attitude before her character development kicks in could be read as an influence of the old boss’s style. So it’s about time that Steven out and calls her a liar.

I love that after so long worshiping Rose, Steven does a full swing in the opposite direction when forced to confront her imperfections. He’s not interested in seeing anything from her point of view, but assumes the worst possible intentions: we go from her causing harm (which is certain) to her intending to cause harm (which is probably not the case) to Steven worrying that he only exists as the ultimate escape option (which is definitely not the case). Even though Rose Quack counters this last point with calm grace, and Steven seems to accept that the tape was telling the truth, it’s hard to trust a character defined by mistruths. We’ll see in Lion 4 that even though he lets her off the hook at the end of the conversation, his doubts persist.

Regardless of the details, Steven’s fate is set. Whether or not she meant for it to happen, he did inherit Rose’s messes, and because his martyr complex has taken root, he’s all set to sacrifice himself at the end of the season. He took the big step in addressing how awful his situation is, which is better than letting it fester the way it’s been doing for sixteen episodes, but the step is perhaps too big. There’s a balance he has to reach for him to truly be happy, but it’ll be a while yet before he finds it, because he’s a fourteen-year-old kid.

After such a heavy episode, it makes sense that we end with some hope. Steven sorta oversells a sense of surprise that all four members of his immediate family have returned, but he’s been through a lot so I’ll cut him a break. We get pizza with the wrong topping, but as Greg predicted in Keystone Motel, Steven has learned to accept all pizza.

Perhaps the most important aspect of Storm in the Room is that it actually sticks. Mindful Education seems to be the start of a new outlook, and Steven does start looking for more answers after futzing around for a bit, but a more apparent shift takes place here that it’s gonna take a while to pull out of. He’s not trying to find the truth anymore, because the sheer scale of untruths surrounding Rose makes real answers seem impossible; plus, the last time he tried his dad was almost stolen forever. So for now, he’ll have to settle with sulking. Thank goodness the show makes it interesting to watch.

Future Vision!

Steven’s discomfort with Rose’s portrait never really goes away; after a couple of years, he decides to store it in Lion’s mane at the end of Rose Buds.

We’re the one, we’re the ONE! TWO! THREE! FOUR!

A heavy episode, gorgeously paced and directed, but honestly it’s such a bummer that I don’t watch it that often, and the conclusion with Steven’s living family feels just a bit too cute for this to crack the top of my list.

Top Twenty

Steven and the Stevens

Hit the Diamond

Mirror Gem

Lion 3: Straight to Video

Alone Together

Last One Out of Beach City

The Return

Jailbreak

The Answer

Mindful Education

Sworn to the Sword

Rose’s Scabbard

Earthlings

Mr. Greg

Coach Steven

Giant Woman

Beach City Drift

Winter Forecast

Bismuth

Steven’s Dream

Love ‘em

Laser Light Cannon

Bubble Buddies

Tiger Millionaire

Lion 2: The Movie

Rose’s Room

An Indirect Kiss

Ocean Gem

Space Race

Garnet’s Universe

Warp Tour

The Test

Future Vision

On the Run

Maximum Capacity

Marble Madness

Political Power

Full Disclosure

Joy Ride

Keeping It Together

We Need to Talk

Chille Tid

Cry for Help

Keystone Motel

Catch and Release

When It Rains

Back to the Barn

Steven’s Birthday

It Could’ve Been Great

Message Received

Log Date 7 15 2

Same Old World

The New Lars

Monster Reunion

Alone at Sea

Crack the Whip

Beta

Back to the Moon

Kindergarten Kid

Buddy’s Book

Gem Harvest

Three Gems and a Baby

That Will Be All

The New Crystal Gems

Storm in the Room

Like ‘em

Gem Glow

Frybo

Arcade Mania

So Many Birthdays

Lars and the Cool Kids

Onion Trade

Steven the Sword Fighter

Beach Party

Monster Buddies

Keep Beach City Weird

Watermelon Steven

The Message

Open Book

Story for Steven

Shirt Club

Love Letters

Reformed

Rising Tides, Crashing Tides

Onion Friend

Historical Friction

Friend Ship

Nightmare Hospital

Too Far

Barn Mates

Steven Floats

Drop Beat Dad

Too Short to Ride

Restaurant Wars

Kiki’s Pizza Delivery Service

Greg the Babysitter

Gem Hunt

Steven vs. Amethyst

Bubbled

Adventures in Light Distortion

Gem Heist

The Zoo

Enh

Cheeseburger Backpack

Together Breakfast

Cat Fingers

Serious Steven

Steven’s Lion

Joking Victim

Secret Team

Say Uncle

Super Watermelon Island

Gem Drill

Know Your Fusion

Future Boy Zoltron

No Thanks!

6. Horror Club 5. Fusion Cuisine 4. House Guest 3. Onion Gang 2. Sadie’s Song 1. Island Adventure

#storm in the room #steven universe #su #steven universally #review

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amplesalty · 4 years

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Christmas 2019: Day 7 - A Christmas Carol: The Musical (2004)

On the seventh day of Christmas, my true love gave to me...

Seven dancing bankers!

This has always stood out as something of a sore thumb amongst the prospective Christmas Carol choices I could watch and, given some of other films on this year’s list, this is as good a time as any to look at it.

Directly comparing it to those, it doesn’t get close to that same feeling of a total tonal shift. But, it’s perhaps not massively out of place anyway given that there are moments of song and dance in a traditional Christmas Carol, be it Fezziwigg’s Christmas Ball or the fun and games at Fred’s house.

For a story all about instilling the Christmas spirit in one person in particular, it’s not just Scrooge lacking in it as the film begins; street urchins are pickpocketing the wealthy, kids are stealing from the cart of the rag and bone man and blind beggars are wilfully ignored.

Well, the joys of Christmas might be lost on the filthy but at least the filthy rich at the exchange are celebrating and enjoying the season. That is until that miserly old Scrooge turns up.

Whilst the casting of Kelsey Grammer as Scrooge is a good one, especially when it comes to the singing parts, it almost feels like his performance early on is bordering on parody. He just has this permanent sneer and eyes that seem to be welded nearly completely shut like this is Mr Magoo’s Christmas Carol. Yeah, that’s still on the list somewhere...

Still, that sneer lends an extra layer to his interaction with the charity collectors who catch up with him much earlier in this version. Rather than just talk to him normally, they sing their intentions to collect for the needy and it makes me interpret his contemptuous look less as him not wanting to be philanthropic and more that he’s confused as to why these weirdoes are singing to him. No one in musicals ever seems aware that all their conversations seem to take place melodically.

It does take a bit of the sting out of some of Scrooge’s wicked remarks to hear him speak in rhyme. “I abhor how they whine, how they want whatever’s mine. Why should I give a thing for free? Let them beg til they’re blue, it has nothing to do with me. I say, let them die and decrease the surplus population.”

On the reverse though, the Marley scene is really strange and takes what is usually dramatic and adds some humour, mostly from the casting of Jason Alexander who brings comedic tone to the whole thing through his delivery and physical performance. There’s a degree of comic mischief going on as he summons these other spirits to scare Scrooge and the odd lyric that seem to poke fun at his fettered situation:

Stacking up my silver and my bits of gold, filling up my vault when day was done! Well, vaults are made of lead and cash is very cold! And around your neck they weigh a bloody ton!

Still, there’s some sense of humanity to it I’ve not seen in other versions. For instance, I think it’s the first time I think I’ve seen Marley actually hug Scrooge even if Scrooge isn’t receptive to it. It speaks to the friendship they had before and the relief that Marley must feel now that he’s been able to finally appear to Scrooge after his many attempts before.

It’s a fun song and perhaps one of the few standouts throughout the whole film. Maybe that’s just my tastes or maybe it’s that most of the other songs feel really generic talking about your standard happiness and festive cheer type of stuff.

Or, in the case of the Cratchit’s, a number about how Bob doesn’t need a fortune, all he needs is his family. Looking at Tiny Tim makes him feel as rich as a king and he means more to him than anything. And he sings this in front of his whole family! It’s like Bob Cratchit is just destined to say well intentioned things but ultimately demean the rest of his family.

I didn’t think it was possible to make Tiny Tim any more sympathetic but adding a leg brace manages to do the job.

They show him and his father head out to buy the bird for Christmas dinner, not the prize turkey in the poulterer’s window and not the traditional goose. Just a chicken, a small one. There’s something amusing about the fact that they actually took the time to foreshadow the turkey as if it’s not surprising enough just that Scrooge buys it for the Cratchit family come the end of the movie. They have to be teased by it first, shown what they could have had if only things were different before having to settle.

Jane Krakowski shows up as the Ghost of Christmas Past, I didn’t touch on this but she played the teacher in the Christmas Story musical so that’s just another link.

She’s really good and looks very glamorous here but is it weird that I find her more attractive in the newsie look she has when she shows up earlier in the movie, filling in for her sick husband in his job lighting all the street lamps in town? Maybe it’s the sense of coyness with her slightly obscured behind the brim of the cap or that whole women in men’s shirts sorta thing.

The gimmick here is that Scrooge runs into the spirits at the start of the movie in the everyday world, Present is advertising a show and Yet to Come is a blind beggar woman. To me, this throws in this shade of grey element to proceedings. It’s a very fantastical idea for some other worldly power to send these three spirits to help Scrooge redeem himself but having the three spirits be entirely different actors locks them into being that. But, Scrooge has always talked about how his run in with Marley might just be a trick of the mind; a crumb of mouldy cheese or an underdone turnip. Maybe the negative run ins Scrooge had with these three earlier in the day triggered something in his mind and it’s projecting their images in order to help him process these feelings of wanting to better himself.

For all the sweetness and light on the exterior of Past, she really goes in on showing Scrooge the trauma of his earlier life. It’s like an origin story of his miserly ways as we go all the way back to his childhood and a day in court as his father is sentenced to prison for failing to pay his debts. As he’s ushered away, he urges Scrooge to learn from his mistakes, to earn his fortune and to keep it.

Plus we actually get to see the death of Marley who complains of feeling faint and needing to retire early for the day but not even managing to make it to the front door of their offices before collapsing. Again, even in this morbid way, it brings some tenderness to see Scrooge’s sadness at having to relive the passing of who he describes as his only friend. Plus we can’t forget the one constant of these flashbacks, his fiancé calls off their impeding nuptuals due to him becoming obsessed only with money, a fiancé played by Jennifer Love Hewitt no less. Combine all these together and maybe Scrooge isn’t the way he is because he thinks only of himself and his own wealth, maybe he’s just scared to let anyone is because everyone he ever loves seems to leave him. Father in prison, Mother dies shortly after, separated from his sister and she dies too, fiancé ditches him and his only friend dies as well.

I always saw Present as the more uncharacteristically mean spirited one but Past is pretty cold here to show him all these things. But, as she points out as Scrooge extinguishes her light, these are only the shadows of things that once were, they are what they are, don’t blame her. Aside from his usual rant at the end, Present is a little more mischevious here, his links with the Christmas show coming into play as she shoves a hapless Scrooge on stage amongst a bunch of dancing nutcrackers.

Casting a black actor in this role is a bit of a departure from the norm though. Part of me kept thought it was someone in blackface at first.

Yet to Come is a strange one as well, seemingly playing against the usual shadowy, cloaked figure you normally see. If anything, that’s what she looks like normally before she transforms into some sort of white, raggedy affair. It’s like if you were dressing someone as a snowflake or something.

We go into a graveyard scene where a number of grave diggers are singing a warning of Scrooge’s future; the sounds of hammers on his coffin, the voices of the people he never tried to save and the footsteps of them dancing on his grave. Quite chilling lyrics combined with an almost ritualistic scene of all these gravediggers working in rhythm and hooded figures leading the coffin procession. Along with Marley’s song, it’s a highlight of the soundtrack but they’re both well staged as well with lots of interesting imagery.

That whole shared misery thing at the start comes back with a vengeance when Old Joe shows up to buy Scrooge’s bed curtains. Scrooge’s house keeper promptly has her earnings wrenched from her hand, truly there is no honour amongst thieves.

Not quite as miserable as seeing the whole Cratchit family around Tiny Tim’s freshly made grave. The Muppets version with Piggy and Kermit mourning their dead son is pretty grim but this might potentially top it. I don’t think I’ve ever seen this portrayed in any of the other versions, you normally get Bob returning from visiting the grave himself.

Poor family can’t even afford the T on the cross marking his grave. Or is that just the name of the impeding Christmas Carol shared universe origin story of Bob Cratchit; I’m Cratchit.

And whilst it lacks the out of body experiences what Patrick Stewart and Alistair Sim went through upon awaking back in the real world, the lack of dancing can perhaps be forgiven in the face of what has been an hour and a half of singing and dancing. Instead, we reflect back on the start of the movie as Scrooge has now learned to keep Christmas in his heart and that ‘it all has to do with me!’. Having experienced similar in the Christmas Story musical, I guess this is traditional to reprise certain songs throughout the show but at times it gets a little tedious to me. That might just be some bad examples here though because in Christmas Story it was just adding to the feeling of it dragging and here it’s using songs that aren’t the best. This specific example I liked though, it wraps up the arc that Scrooge has gone through and underlines the change in his character.

With the musical aspect being it’s selling point and most of its musical numbers not being very entertaining, this probably ranks amongst the weaker of the Christmas Carol adaptations I’ve seen but as these things often do, it’s added its own little elements to the story that have made me look at Scrooge in a different way.

#Christmas 2019 #A Christmas Carol #A Christmas Carol: The Musical

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thetygre · 6 years

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30 Day Monster Challenge 2 - Day #14: Favorite Invisible Monster

Some of the monsters on this list are so good at being invisible that I couldn’t even find a good picture of them.

1. Killer Brain (Fiend Without A Face)

The charm of any invisible monster is proportionate to how bizarre it is when it is inevitably revealed, and there are few monster that can compete with the killer brains from Fiend Without a Face. Even their explanation is unique; killer telekinetic thoughts that possess human brains and feed off nuclear radiation. These things are simultaneously adorable and grotesque; they’re slimy and have the eye tendrils of a slug, and even the way they move is creepy. They use their spinal cord tails to move around and strangle people, making more of their kind. These guys made it into Pathfinder where, frankly, I wish they had replaced Intellect Devourers in terms of being the game’s designated brain monsters (since the Mind Flayer is copyrighted). The killer brains just nail that perfect kind of creeping horror where I don’t want to touch one but I also kind of want to keep it in a tank as a pet. They do not disappoint once you finally get a look at them.

2. Monsters from the Id (Forbidden Planet)

The artist Francisco de Goya once stated, “The sleep of reason produces monsters.” The Monster from the Id from Forbidden Planet is the living embodiment of that phrase. On the alien planet of Altair IV, advanced aliens used incredible technology to make their very thoughts manifest into beings. But in a single night, the entire race was driven to extinction when their own subconscious thoughts manifested and killed them. Years later, a scientist by the name Dr. Morbius finds the aliens’ technology and uses it for his own, and the cycle begins to repeat itself. The monster is only briefly seen, and even then it’s only by the light of laser-blasts and electricity in what is frankly a perfect embodiment of raygun gothic.

Design wise, the monster isn’t particularly innovative, but I really think that’s to its credit. The id is the primal, brutish part of our minds; it would make sense for a monster based on the id’s subconscious desires to be a bulky, angry brute. And of course there’s also the classical element to the Monster as well; Forbidden Planet can be interpreted as a retelling of Shakespeare’s The Tempest, with Morbius as Prospero. If Robby the Robot, as a product of high intellectual science, is the spirit Ariel, then the Monster is Caliban. Caliban of course represented the elements of water and earth in Prospero’s miniature cosmos, and just as Caliban represented the primitive state of the world, the Monster from the Id is representative of the primitive state of the mind. Both monsters play to humanity’s earlier states. The Monster from the Id is, put frankly, a spectacular monster. Its invisibility reminds us that no matter how much we try to suppress our darker feelings and desires, there is always a monstrous part of us just underneath the surface.

3. Ghost Wolf (Fables)

Realistically speaking, all air elementals should be invisible, but so far Ghost from Fables is the only one to step up to bat. Ghost is of course the lost seventh son(?) of Bigby and Snow. He’s essentially an air elemental by virtue of Bigby’s father being the North Wind; it’s complicated. At first nobody even knows Ghost is around until he starts asphyxiating people to death. As an air elemental, air is his food, and the air in the inner city is polluted while the air in certain peoples’ lungs is nice and clean, which I think is a neat urban fantasy detail. After his mom sends him off so he doesn’t get killed, he joins up with his dad for some guerilla terrorism. It’s fine, trust me. I like Ghost first and foremost because we just don’t get a lot of air elemental characters, and when we do they tend to stick to the stock elemental character archetypes. But Ghost is an innocent kid, just a child trying to navigate around the mother of all handicaps. He doesn’t mean to be a monster, he’s just trying to survive. All Ghost wants his to be with his family; like all invisible monsters, Ghost’s is confronted with an issue of presence and acknowledgment. Ghost can’t be seen, but he can be felt, and his character makes us question how much that is worth is terms of bonding.

4. Griffin (The Invisible Man)

There have been a lot of invisible men through the years, but Griffin is still my favorite for his blend of insanity and sadism with a bit of underlying tragedy. Griffin achieved invisibility by use of a special chemical that also drives him insane with its prolonged usage. With that said, it’s hard to know whether Griffin is cruel because of the drug, or if that was always some part of him; both prospects ultimately play in Griffin’s invisibility.

First, while Griffin’s insanity is attributed to the chemicals he uses, it really derives more from his lack of recognition from other people. As an invisible being, people don’t attribute to Griffin all the dozens of minor cues a person receives every day that reassures them that they exist; glancing at them, saying hello, moving out of the way, etc. An invisible man would have to cope with the fact that outside of their own ability to sense the world around them, they don’t really exist. They are a total non-person, dehumanized in the most profound way possible.

This leads to the second point; a person treated inhumanly will begin to act inhuman. A lack of recognition is also a lack of responsibility, a state where you don’t have to be held accountable for your actions. That kind of freedom gives a person the chance to show who they really are. That is the tragedy of the invisible man; Griffin already felt inadequate before he was invisible, and was a complete non-entity with his power, so he used that power to hurt people and lash out, further alienating himself from humanity.

5. Prisoners (Silent Hill 2)

There’s a prison cell in Silent Hill 2. It’s not unusual to go to prison in Silent Hill; at this point it’s practically standard. And it’s also not unusual for the cells in that prison to have horrible monsters waiting inside. What is unusual is when you can’t actually see the monsters, and they don’t really do anything. They’re just… there. Existing. If you listen closely they seem to be chanting the word ‘ritual’, or maybe ‘are you sure’ backwards; it’s unclear. Like most monsters in Silent Hill, especially 2, all sorts of meanings and symbolism can be attributed to the prisoners. But more than anything, they’re there just to be creepy and add ambiance, and they’re disturbingly effective at it.

6. The Dunwich Horror (H.P. Lovecraft)

We don’t get enough abominable half monsters anymore. Not enough deformed masses of flesh that were simply never meant to be. The Dunwich Horror is where you can really see Lovecraft drawing from The Great God Pan in terms of influence. Growing up in rural country, I was always fascinated by the concept of the family monster in the cellar or the barn. The Dunwich Horror is too great, too terrible to be in our world. Its invisibility stems from the fact that it simply isn’t meant for our meager reality. Like Lovecraft says, it has more of its father than its mother in it. The Dunwich Horror reminds me of a storm or some other kind of natural disaster, the kind of thing the ancients would say a god was behind. But it also brings to mind the original definition of monster; ‘monstrum’ were omens in the form of deformities in childbirth, given by the gods. The unnamed Whateley brother is just such an omen; a portent of forces beyond mankind.

7. The Blair Witch (The Blair Witch Project)

Frankly, the Blair Witch could have gone on the witch list, and probably would have if I was doing a solely pop culture list. But I don’t think that should discredit the Blair Witch as an invisible monster, and there are angles to her absence that would be lost if she suddenly just showed up at the end of a movie. Most obviously, of course, is that the witch is supposed to be an ambiguous entity. Her existence could be entirely fictitious, and she might be nothing more than insanity. The Witch being invisible makes her manifest as a kind of madness, an insanity that appears solely through environmental cues. I would suggest that the Witch is invisible because she is a historic figure; specifically, she is a historic evil. She is something terrible that happened in the past, and even if that evil isn’t seen anymore, it’s still there, a part of the landscape. It’s a very basic horror reading, but I still think it applies to the Blair Witch as a monster.

8. Stealth Sneak (Kingdom Hearts)

I have a lot of good memories of beating up this guy in the Olympus Colosseum. I mean it’s utterly pointless for it to be invisible; the monster’s so huge you can even jump on top of it. But I just love this chameleon monster design! Chameleons don’t get enough play as monsters; they’re always getting upstaged by komodo dragons and iguanas. And obviously the superior color palette is green. I know that shouldn’t matter for a monster that can change color at will, but a line has to be drawn somewhere.

9. Death Sword (The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess)

This guy almost looks like he belongs on the evil weapons list until you actually get to see him. Then when you finally get a look at him, he’s one of the coolest designs in the game! Just look at this horrible thing. What was he? Why is he locked up in this musty old desert tomb? And what did he do that he had to be bound with all these amulets? There’s a lot of mysteries for this mini-boss, and we’re probably better off not knowing. Just appreciate his design and respect the cleaver.

10. Intangir (Final Fantasy VI)

This is just sheer nostalgia. When I was a kid, my cousin let me play her copy of Final Fantasy VI briefly, and I kept running into an invisible monster. Whenever I would attack it enough, it would appear and reveal this giant cat-dragon thing. For years, it became my default to assume that any invisible monster was a buff cat-dragon-man. Blair Witch? Cat-man. Cattle mutilators? Cat-man. Forbidden planet monster? Cat-man. This is Schrodinger’s Cat-Man, where every invisible monster is potentially a cat-man until proven otherwise. Years later, I can see now that this thing is a Behemoth palette-swap, but I like to think of it is a lesser subspecies.

#30 Day Monster Challenge #30 Day Monster Challenge 2 #the invisible man #silent hill #kingdom hearts #final fantasy #h.p. lovecraft #the legend of zelda #long post

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