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So I just saw a post by a random personal blog that said “don’t follow me if we never even had a conversation before” and?????? Not to be rude but literally what the fuck??????????

I’ve had people (non-pornbots) try to strike conversation out of nowhere in my DMs recently, and now I’m wondering if they were doing that because they wanted to follow me and thought they needed to interact first. I feel compelled to say, just in case, that it’s totally okay to follow this blog (or my side blog, for that matter) even if we’ve never talked before.

Also, I’m legit confused. Is this how follow culture works right now? It was worded like it’s common sense but is that really a thing?

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Stupid lil' separated AU idea I had floating around in my head where Mikey and Donnie were found by human scientists and raised together in a lab. I have ideas for Leo and Raph too- would anyone be interested in seeing more of this? I don't know if I'm very good at making comics/writing stories so we will see XP

#tmnt #rottmnt

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Haunting the Narrative Semifinals

Haunting the narrative means that the character’s absence heavily impacts the plot. They’re not present or active in the story when their influence is most strongly felt, whether they’re alive or dead!

#calebsweep

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#that tumblr lyfe #tumblr polls #curious

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In the whole of The Owl House show..

#s1 when luz comes home to the owl house and just collapses in tears after king asked where eda was #yeah that hurt

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twitter has apparently unverified the pope. i need a bishop in avignon to decide to be the funniest person on the internet

#you may not be verified on twitter but are you verified in the eyes of god?

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reblog this if your blog is a safe space on april fools and won’t have any jumpers, screamers, or anything scary or anxiety inducing

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We got a new screenshot from Watching and Dreaming, this is the YouTube Tv thumbnail

#theyre baby #toh spoilers

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"Once upon a time... a little collector came to this planet accompanied by their family."

This is a very big project I have done with the idea of retelling what I understood to be The Collector's backstory in a way that required no words at all: only visuals. Undertale fans may also recognize the style homage here, as well as relevance in music choice.

#this is sooo goooood! #please watch this if youre a collector fan the art and dedication is amazing!!! #the owl house collector #the collector toh #collector toh

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The Collector wants a decent parental figure so badly, it's painful to watch.

They're so happy when King mentions Eda and they want her to join them. (They even mention asking her really nicely, albeit following it up with the threat of turning her into a puppet). When King mentions her curse is still affecting her, they immediately go back to being upset.

(Just look at that face oml)

What's even more interesting is after this, the Collector asks for a promise and King obliges and they h

What's even more interesting is that the Collector asks King to promise. King obliges and they hook pinkies.

Later, when Belos is tricking Collector and Collector sees Eda is fine, they don't get upset about it even though King promised that they would check to see if she's feeling better and presumably they would play.

Maybe at that stage they're hoping after King visits Eda, he'll tell them that she's feeling fine. I'm not sure, but at that point they were fully in their rights to be upset with King before the miscommunication, but they weren't.

Either way the fact that they've been let down by every single parental figure we've seen them interact with (including the Titan that sealed them maybe), it just has to be a lot.

#im so normal about the collector #im sorry the brainrot continues to consume #toh collector #toh spoilers

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conducting an experiment

#based on your likes #yes i still have those on

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#shirt

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Tumblr Sexyrematch info

#cecil sweep!!!!!!

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The plush under Collector's bed: A totally necessary analysis, trust me

So, as a recap of this scene, before King leaves to visit Eda and Lilith, Collector asks King if he could sleep with François that night.

King reminds Collector that only himself and Luz can hold François, and Collector obliges but asks that he at least leave François there to "watch over him", claiming he "doesn't like being alone".

King does so, and Collector seems satisfied. It's very telling of Collector's development that they never touch François after this interaction, showing respect for King's boundaries.

... Except! This sweet little angel is actually a master trickster! A liar and a fiend!

He had a plush under his bed the whole time!!! In fact I'm pretty sure every shot of their little bedroom planet has the underside of Collector's bed obscured UNTIL King starts to leave and we pan to see the beds from an angle which reveals the plush!

You know what this means, right? Collector could have easily pulled his plush from under his bed and cuddled up with that if he hated sleeping alone so much, but he didn't. Why?

Well, I don't think he was lying about being lonely. Loneliness seems to be a prominent common theme for Collector, both declaring his loneliness back at the start of O' Titan, during a vulnerable moment where he didn't expect anyone to hear him, so he'd have no reason to lie there...

And then also having this acknowledged by King in the current episode, who has been living with him for about two months now, so he would know Collector's state of mind better than most here.

So... what gives? Was Collector really only out to force King to give François to him? Why?

Well, my current theory about this is what François means in this scenario: a connection to King. We know François is very important to King and King does not hide this when he expresses to Collector how he won't let them hold him.

To Collector, being able to sleep with François is the ultimate foolproof way to ensure King won't leave them. First, if King eventually lets them hold him, it signifies King would trust them enough with this and hold them to a regard as high as Luz, which we know Collector seems to be jealous of. I... just realized I should probably analyze that too, huh. Well, all in its due time.

And second, even if King won't allow them to hold François, but leaves them close to Collector in their room, that already acts as a guarantee. A guarantee that King will come back for François eventually, that King won't leave them to sleep alone the entire night.

Whatever the case, François is a symbol, a meter to test their closeness for Collector and King, and considering how many times Collector has lost people they considered friends before (whether those were real friends - in the case of the titan babies - or not - in the other collectors and Belos' case -) and have been double crossed by Belos, it's no wonder they have trust issues and want to make sure King does care about keeping them company.

So... that's it, then? He probably threw his original plush under the bed and then lied to King he lost it and is now constantly trying to get King to let him either hold François or at least keep him close to him as a connection between him and King?

Well... yeah, but if you'd allow me, I'd also like to talk a little on the symbology of the plush here. You see, while we can't make out the full of what the plush looks like, it appears to be some sort of canine with pointed ears and a poofy tail. Maybe it could be a titan, even a plush replica of King, but... I don't think so. There seems to be no stitching around the neck to signify it has a skull like titans do.

See, I think this is a fox plush. And why it is important in a metatextual sense that it is a fox requires a look into lots of different possibilities, each enriching the narrative in a different way.

For one, in popular folklore, foxes are seen as tricksters, lying and cheating their way into what's most convenient for them. Villain or hero, the fox is always winning people over through tricks.

This would align with the very nature of the plush being thrown under Collector's bed: it calls back to the fact he's tricking King with this. And yes, while Collector does have his problem with "fibbers", I don't think he's above more harmless tricks, we've seen him joke around with King before, purposefully feigning ignorance to mess with him, and the very nature of how he splattered Belos was through him lying that he wasn't mad. He may dislike it when a major lie is told, but little lies and sarcasm are no stranger to him.

Another possible connotation is the fact that rabbits and foxes are naturally prey and predator. François is a rabbit, Collector's plush is a fox. King, the member of the species that was hunted by the collectors, holds the prey animal, while Collector holds the predator animal...

The position of the plushes is also important here if we go with this interpretation: François is on top of King's bed, indicating he does not conceal he is the prey here and is well aware of this. He says so as much: "this whole time I was scared of making him mad". In general he behaves like a scared animal around Collector, despite their efforts to put them in equal grounds and the fact they have spent so long together and made considerable progress in their friendship.

Collector's fox on the other hand is under their bed, signifying Collector has concealed their fox, or maybe more appropriately, buried and left the fox behind. They may be part of the species that wiped out all the titans, the predators that so mercilessly hunted King's species as prey, but they want no part in this. Their backstory seems to involve wanting to play with titans and denouncing the other collectors after all, likely being bitter at them for ruining everything and hunting their new playmates to near extinction.

Alternative readings also include a few possible pop culture references. A possible one is the prominent role of the Fox in the Little Prince. While Hunter is the one who has been nicknamed "little prince" by Darius, Collector still seems more thematically similar to the character, being a child who came from space:

The similarity also hands itself to the fact King does somewhat resemble a fox with his canine qualities and fluffy tail, and in the story, the Fox was one of the first friends the Little Prince makes on Earth, and the one to teach him how to approach someone who does not trust you yet, to "tame" them.

Yet another possible reference this could be is the Disney movie "The Fox and the Hound":

Which seems like something I should frankly make a whole separate post comparing the eerie similarities it harbors to the current dynamic Collector and King hold. But to summarize, if you don't know the movie, it follows a hunting dog pup and a fox pup that become friends at a young age, and their friendship must overcome advertisities unique to their species.

If this is a reference to this particular movie, this once again has a different reading: Collector is clearly the hunting dog here, not the fox. For him to keep a fox under his bed would signify he wants to keep King close to him, safe under his bed and protected. This could even be a call back to the very last scene the titular fox and hound in the movie share: Copper, the hound, positions himself above the fallen Todd, the fox, protecting him. The plush being under the bed to mirror this would make sense.

Whew! I think that's everything that I had in mind to comment on this particular tiny easter egg. Whatever meaning you take from this about Collector's mysterious plush, I hope I could at least inspire something in you!

#the owl house spoilers #toh spoilers #its definitely about the connection aspect/king returning for sure but i love all the other analysis and allusions to other stories! #im sure the collector could easily find another plush

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Collectors and Collectivism / Titans and Individualism

Collectors are born into a collectivist society based on the context we are given.

First, "bedtime stories" are literally rulebooks for Collectors on how to be a "good Collector". This is Collector's first choice of a story and potentially only choice.

Some traits for Collectivist societies include (I left out traits I do not have enough evidence for, but the full list is in the link):

Individuals define themselves in relation to others (for example, “I am a member of…”).

Collectors are referred to as Collectors simply. So far, they do not appear to have names of their own, they are a member of the Collector group

Group loyalty is encouraged.

Decisions are based on what is best for the group.

Working as a group and supporting others is essential.

Greater emphasis is placed on common goals than on individual pursuits.

The rights of families and communities come before those of the individual.

Most of these are described within the rule that King reads "Collectors live long, we watch things pass. To preserve, to observe, we must amass what flies, what swims, be it predator, or prey, we seal them up so they never fade. But should they meddle in our affairs, we'll clean the planet and scorch the air."

Collectors work as a group for their common goal of preserving beings with shorter lives than them and destroy what could interfere with those plans. I think that Collector, being a child, probably does not have the maturity to best help the society (or perhaps their neurodivergence also makes them less suited). In the images, it appears the Collectors are all adults that work together. The first image gives off a very "children should be seen and not heard energy".

Titans on the other hand, I believe had a more individualist society. Some traits include:

Being dependent upon others is often considered shameful or embarrassing

Independence is highly valued

Individual rights take center stage

People often place a greater emphasis on standing out and being unique

People tend to be self-reliant

The rights of individuals tend to take a higher precedence

As seen with King, young Titans are very self-focused and place a lot of importance on themselves. His behavior early on leaned toward being a tyrant and ruling his stuffed animals and the playground. He wants to be taken seriously and is nervous about asking Eda to adopt him. Consequently, I think a lot of traits Collector learned from the Titans he grew up with.

Such as when the Collector demands Pizza Bagels from Odalia for the Owl Beast, giving a nod to King's appetite for snacks early on. The Collector is also loud and boisterous and happy to play a main character like this post by kindestegg mentions.

With these new more "loud" and "selfish" desires, I can see how Collector may have ostracized himself further from their own society.

#the owl house spoilers #toh spoilers #toh collector #king clawthorne

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Someone sent me this image. So far the dates have been accurate. Until it's confirmed, we don't know for sure, but I trust it

Is the TOH finale confirmed for April 8??? Because it sucks if so; that’s Easter weekend and I won’t be able to scream and watch it live because I’ll be with family whyyyyyy

I don't think confirmed necessarily, but it's almost definitely going to be sometime in or near April, and I think the rumors that were floating around said the 8th. I could be totally wrong of course, but that's what I remember.

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What's so fundamentally horrible about Philip (what isn't amirite?) manipulating Collector again (besides the continued gaslighting and abuse) is that it's leading Collector toward a path of loneliness (literally their greatest fear). Of course the end game is most likely and hopefully that everything will work out for everyone, but if/when they go too far during this new game a lot of worst case scenario options include:

Wiping everyone out

Alienating themselves by making everyone else scared/angry with them

On top of it, once Belos gets what he finally wants, he's also going to abandon Collector again. It's just so heinous to me. On top of it, we don't know if the other Collectors are still alive and it's heavily implied that Collector was isolated from them as well when they were around, so this kid would literally have no one. On top of it, he's also convinced Collector that they never had anyone to begin with. Prior to that, they were convinced that Philip was their friend for centuries, so already this kid is caught between wanting so badly to have genuine connection and being hurt every time Philip convinces them they don't have a genuine friendship. I saw someone else say this too, but oml give this kid a break.

#toh spoilers #toh collector #toh philip wittebane #the owl house spoilers