#｢✘ ｣ in character ／ debt is the worst poverty .

[prettyboykatsuki]

i saw a taking saying you’re meant to hate makima and not like her and though that reveal of what she really was (control devil)/wanted (chainsaw man and only him) was meant to be a shocker and the obvious moment of “oh fuck her” it disregards the fact that she was very much meant to be a liked character. and even after that reveal and despite everyone hating her she’s still meant to be liked as a really prominent character. people still find her attractive even after the twist because she’s always been an attractive character. it’s like people on tiktok attempt at nuance and no one succeeds. it’s like that video of dj khalid on the basketball course fumbling around with the ball but it’s people on tiktok. (this obviously wasn’t the worst take compared to a lot of others)

along with that it’s sort of weird how there’s a sort of fixation on how you shouldn’t like makima at all in comparison to evil male characters, which for some reason are fine to like compared to makima. still liking makima is not equal to being fine with what she did to denji. i hope that tiny rant made sense it’s just a lot of people saying “you’re meant to do this” and them not knowing what’s really happening

anyways i want to suck on that woman’s tits so badly

also none of that is meant in a negative way at all it was just an observation i made and obviously not meant towards you :-)

cw ; mentions of grooming, trauma, poverty, HUGE CSM SPOILERS HOLY FUCK SERIOUSLY.

i promised myself i would never write csm meta (mostly bc i dont think i have a good enough grasp on every element to give consolidated analysis on the series) but this ask reallllyyy resonated with me because makima is SUCH a fantastically written villain and i think that while everyone who hates her is mostly justified in said hatred because she is awful but it's like. never for the right reasons and never with any real nuance or genuine thought. makima is FANTASTICALLY written and we as the audience aren't meant to hate her because the story is told mostly from the perspective of denji.

to understand makima, you really have to understand denjis circumstance as a protagonist. denji is a character who's motivations are overly simplistic and that's because of his upbringing. not once in his life did he experience genuine love, especially not parental or motherly love. ontop of that he was in such deep shit and financial debt that he was destined for poverty. he was poor, hungry, and lonely. all main characters suffer from sort of tragedy but that tragedy is meant to feed into their motivations and trigger a particular action.

yuujis grandfather dying would translate into his integration into jujutsu society. the death of tanjiros family with only nezuko remaining would give tanjiro a reason to become a demon slayer.

"show me your dreams." is a very intentional line in the context of who denji is because at the start of the series he has none.

all in all when examining denji as a character - you'll first notice characteristics he lacks before you notice things about him. what can people say about denji other than calling him a horny teenage boy? denji is a character defined by poverty, both metaphorical and literal. his experiences have tainted his character so that he's relatively amoral without the guidance of aki later in the series. and he, in general, is a character who is strangely empty despite his yearning desire to live. who is denji really? what does he really want? he has no idea.

denjis lack of motivation and that sense of emptiness is also very directly written in the text in this panel. it's a huge issue that he has no internal motivation and that is due to his trauma.

and worst of all, denji despite his sexual urges or perceived sexual urges, is deeply innocent in many of his perceptions. fujimoto confirmed in an interview about a year or so prior that what denji sought from makima was motherly love. and that always throws people off because he clearly seems to want to sleep with her... right?

that's the thing though and that's what you have to understand about denji and makima. denji is naive. and makima, as a character, caught onto this fact early and made use of denjis utter naivety. that power imbalance between them where makima offers her body to denji in exchange for his obedience is like textbook grooming. much in the same that afo groomed shigaraki to become what he did, makima groomed denji for her own benefit.

and maybe you and me and the other people who are reading the story can recognize the multiple read flags that are very obvious about makima. the way she casually mentions making denji her dog for one, but also her clear lack of respect for his agency and strange possession. the way she dangles her attention over his head. all of these things, we as the viewers can see and understand. but this story is not about me and you, but about denji.

the way makima is potrayed is through denjis eyes is always exceptionally beautiful. denji views her with complete reverence and that's why saying she's meant to be disliked is absurd. because even to the bitterest end, where makima has effectively robbed denji of everything for her own completely selfish gain - denji admires her. he cares for her, in spite of himself and in spite of knowing how wrong it all is. he wants her approval and that is all in thanks to what makima was able to do in the time they spent together. the deep attachment that she had created to crush in the end. grooming, again.

this panel is one i often reference because its one of those scenes that shocking and a lot to see. but what i want to discuss is the framing because it's so relevant so intentional. the near holiness in which this deeply inappropriate action is framed. the light behind them like a halo, the hand in which makima guides him, their positions and the obvious line of the window frame that separates them.

makima makes it so that denji idolizes her. and for reasons denji can't wrap his head around, he does and always will. makima planned that.

i think there are plenty of reasons to hate makima but her villanous actions are without a doubt impressive and well-written to the point it's alarming.

but i think the biggest crime she commits is that she, not once in the entire series, saw denji for who he was. to me, the most painful thing to watch was that reality. to realize that she didn't care about denji in her own fucked up way either but that everything was a ploy and what denji experienced in spite. for denji to cannabilize makima in the end is an immensely powerful scene, and i do hope that much later in the series denji is able to reconcile with the abuse he suffered at her hands.

she is an utterly evil person. like truly what she did is inconceivable.

all that being said, i like her as a character. it's because i like evil women in the same way plenty of people like evil and fucked up men. and because makima is MEANT to be liked. that's the whole point. that's how she got control over denji and orchestrated the chain of events that was his happiness.

because makima was kind to him. because she was beautiful and graceful and nonchalant. because she appealed to the part of denji that yearned for admiration and praise and approval. the reason makima could commit such deep atrocities is because denji likes her. every single moment that we see her from denjis eyes potrays her as beautiful and unobtainable and she does everything in her power to make sure it stays that. so that she can give denji a reason to have her.

it's that from the very beginning. she is meant to be a very beautiful poison and i think pretending you're supposed to hate her from the beginning is stupid because that's not true. maybe you, as an adult with awareness, caught onto how awful she was and you disliked her for that. that's plausible for sure.

but she's always meant to be the thing that denji reveres and fujimoto makes the clear from the very moment she comes on screen. perhaps the most sincere we see her is in the first panel in which she hugs denji but not a minute after.

hate makima all you want. but to pretend that was the intent when really we as audience are meant to feel the extent of her betrayal along side denji is silly.

#return to sender #grooming cw #fang.csm #csm meta #csm spoilers #csm manga spoilers #i get annoyed when people get mad that people simp for makima. there are so many horrible men in manga #YES she is the worst character on her yes she is fucking awful. she's sexy what do you want me to say

[mariacallous]

BUENOS AIRES, Nov 19 (Reuters) - Argentina elected libertarian outsider Javier Milei as its new president on Sunday, rolling the dice on an outsider with radical views to fix an economy battered by triple-digit inflation, a looming recession and rising poverty.

Official results have not been released, but his rival, Peronist Economy Minister Sergio Massa, conceded in a speech. His candidacy was hampered by the country's worst economic crisis in two decades while he has been at the helm.

Milei is pledging economic shock therapy. His plans include shutting the central bank, ditching the peso, and slashing spending, potentially painful reforms that resonated with voters angry at the economic malaise, but sparked fears of austerity in others.

"Milei is the new thing, he's a bit of an unknown and it is a little scary, but it's time to turn over a new page," said 31-year-old restaurant worker Cristian as he voted on Sunday.

But Milei's challenges are enormous. He will have to deal with the empty coffers of the government and central bank, a creaking $44 billion debt program with the International Monetary Fund, inflation nearing 150% and a dizzying array of capital controls.

With many Argentines not fully convinced by either candidate, some had characterized the vote as a choice of the "lesser evil": fear of Milei's painful economic medicine versus anger at Massa and his Peronist party for an economic crisis that has left Argentina deeply in debt and unable to tap global credit markets.

Milei has been particularly popular among the young, who have grown up seeing their country lurch from one crisis to another.

"Our generation is pushing the presidency of Milei to stop our country being a pariah," said Agustina Lista, 22, a student in Buenos Aires.

Milei's win shakes up Argentina's political landscape and economic roadmap, and could impact trade in grains, lithium and hydrocarbons. Milei has criticized China and Brazil, saying he won't deal with "communists," and favors stronger U.S. ties.

The shock rise of the 53-year-old economist and former TV pundit has been the story of the election, breaking the hegemony of the two main political forces on the left and the right - the Peronists and the main Together for Change conservative bloc.

"The election marks a profound rupture in the system of political representation in Argentina," said Julio Burdman, director of the consultancy Observatorio Electoral, ahead of the vote.

Supporters of Massa, 51, an experienced political wheeler-dealer, had sought to appeal to voter fears about Milei's volatile character and "chainsaw" plan to cut back the size of the state.

"Milei's policies scare me," teacher Susana Martinez, 42, said on Sunday after she voted for Massa.

Milei is also staunchly anti-abortion, favors looser gun laws and has called Argentine Pope Francis a socialist "son of a bitch". He used to carry a chainsaw in a symbol of his planned cuts but shelved it in recent weeks to help boost his moderate image.

After October's first-round vote, Milei struck an uneasy alliance with the conservatives, which boosted his support. But he faces a highly fragmented Congress, with no single bloc having a majority, meaning that he will need to get backing from other factions to push through legislation. Milei's coalition also does not have any regional governors or mayors.

That may temper some of his more radical proposals. Long-suffering voters are likely to have little patience, and the threat of social unrest is never far below the surface.

His backers say only he can uproot the political status quo and economic malaise that has dogged South America's second-largest economy for years.

"Milei is the only viable option so we do not end up in misery," said Santiago Neria, a 34-year-old accountant.

#may god have mercy on argentina

[cere-mon-ials]

I heard a great many things about My Mister before I went into it: a masterpiece, a truthful portrait of everydayness, a vehicle towards catharsis for the parts of the self weathered by everydayness, a moving story that is strongly anti-patriarchy, an ode to parental love and a child’s love and a sibling’s love and a friend’s love and other love that comes uninvited—all true. But I was not prepared for this story to be packaged in an affair and internal corporate espionage.

Here’s the premise: Do Jun-young, the young and haughty CEO of a successful building & engineering company, is in a power war with other senior members for the attention of their ailing, but still sharp, Chairman. Caught in between is a general manager, Park Dong-hoon, a decent, generous-to-a-fault man. Dong-hoon is the darling of the other faction in the office, and the task at hand for Jun-young is firing Dong-hoon. To Jun-young, who used to be his junior at university, Dong-hoon’s rise would amount to Jun-young's fall. Jun-young has little by way of a brain, few spineless right-hand men by way of brawn, and lots of money. For Lee Ji-an, the cold 20-year-old temporary worker with fortitude that comes with abject poverty and mounting debt and being a social reject, this is jackpot. She promises Jun-young that she could get Dong-hoon fired in exchange for money. In the process, Ji-an finds out that Dong-hoon’s wife has been cheating on him with Jun-young.

Here’s the heart: Dong-hoon and Ji-an embark on a relationship where they see in each other a reflection of themselves and then some. They are empty, broken people who constantly wonder why life happens to them, with neither the strength to ask what matters nor the inclination to face the music of the answer. They protect each other, from themselves and others.

Age has caught up to both of them—Dong-hoon, literally, he’s pretty much lived the same way for four decades; Ji-an, metaphorically, because at 20, she has already lived through the trauma of being an abandoned child, the disillusionment of a teen shunned by faux meritocracy, and the role of a care-giver without money or support. She is a child who had to grow up too soon in the worst way possible—taking the life of an abusive elder, who should have taken care of her, in self-defence. She is 30,000 years old, she thinks. He is 40, and that’s old enough, he thinks.

Ji-an’s survival instincts jerks Dong-hoon to a life that feels more urgent. Dong-hoon’s rule-abiding spirit shows Ji-an how to secure a life that could afford her space to breathe. It is Ji-an who protects Dong-hoon from being fired. It is Dong-hoon who tells the clueless Ji-an how to move in the world of adults, above ground.

Every other relationship in this show has a name. Sibling, friend, neighbour, parent, spouse, office senior, officer junior. But this one, of Dong-hoon and Ji-an, with their 20-year age-gap, has none. ("Platonic" does come close but I am still wrestling with that one.) They go out for dinner, witness each other at their worst and saddest, and tell each other what the other needs to hear the most. 

The choice of this age-gap inevitably gives rise to the question of another affair, and this is where writer-nim Park Hae-young has me by the collar. My Mister feeds off the casual, crude, often-infantalising narrative of why young women are attracted to older men. That stereotype is bait, for those so easily bought into too many stories of the kind, to interrogate what about relationships outside the norm in civil society—relationships that do not have a name—terrifies them. The characters in the show who accuse Dong-hoon and Ji-an of having an affair are those assigned as antagonists.

PHY believes and says “Every relationship is fascinating and precious,” so why do we say no to making more of them as we age? The norms in civil society is a good reason, but maybe a superficial one. She maintains it's the simple act of being vulnerable that leads to building and treasuring relationships; one of those things we tend to lose as we "age". The facade to maintain as a successful person is at odds with being vulnerable so we have to fragment the contours of our love and maintain boundaries. It’s why the relationship between Dong-hoon and Ji-an is—and has to be—cemented on wiretapping and surveillance and the ugliness of baring your soul, against your will even. 

At their workplace, Ji-an is only privy to Dong-hoon, the structural engineer working a desk job without many promotions under his belt for a man several years his junior. It is because Ji-an snoops around that she learns of the affair that sets the story in motion. It’s how she finds out that he is a husband who goes back to an empty house often. He is the middle child, bearing the weight of providing in the absence of a financially-independent elder brother and a younger one trapped in his own insecurities and failures.

But it’s also how she learnt of the love and grace he enjoys otherwise. He plays soccer with friends he has grown up with, he drinks with his siblings whom he has loved all his life, he is the favourite son to his mother. This kind man is the beating heart of his neighbourhood. There will be at least two dozen people who will chase around the streets of Seoul seeking vengeance should he have a scratch on his body. If he is in pain, his brothers will give up other responsibilities to be with him all night until blue hour. These scenes, and the ones in Jeong-hui’s bar, are brimmed with warmth, of love freely taken and given. It’s how Ji-an begins to fantasise having people to go back to, and to call your own. Her love for Dong-hoon is also a love to the world he brings to her, a world of community that sticks together. 

When I watched My Liberation Notes, I sensed that PHY does not give a hoot about green flags and healthy relationships. She might look at those tweets and posts, laugh with her whole chest and mumble: cute but no. This is so very stark in Gi-hoon (Dong-hoon’s younger sibling) and Yu-ra’s relationship, one that is marked by the intimate act of cleaning up vomit. Love comes from unfiltered, almost disgusting, honesty, picking at things the other would never think of sharing to another being. Love is a muscle you have to use everyday. You have to be talking all the time; and somebody should be listening. 

The scene that is tattooed in my heart is Dong-hoon whispering “Call me,” into the phone he knows she is listening to. This is after he learns the truth of everything, of her initial plans to betray him, of her surveillance. But as he tells her later: “Once you know someone, there comes a point where you don’t really care what they do. and I know you.” He knows her and now, he knows everything. That's all that matters. 

In the final act of the show, loving truly as knowing fully is reinforced on a very unlikely character: Gwang-il, Ji-an’s abusive cousin, son of the man she killed for abusing her and their grandmother—and also the loan shark Ji-an owes to. It is through those surveilled tapes that we find out that before he was the son of a father who was murdered by a cousin he loved, he was kind. Ji-an was speaking to Dong-hoon, who knows this before us, the audience. That submission, those words she could never say to Gwang-il’s face, pushes the plot which began with a discreet affair to its conclusion.

When My Mister ends, things are slightly better for the characters than when we see them but it’s left ambiguous. The last 15 minutes of the show goes like this: four minutes of Dong-hoon, in his empty apartment after his wife has left for the US to join their son, engaged in chores and a snotty breakdown; Gi-hoon and Yu-ra’s fracturing relationship leading to a break-up; Dong-hoon's new company; Ji-an in her new job and friends she has started making there; Gi-hoon picking up a pencil to write a screenplay; and a final reunion between Dong-hoon and Ji-an one year after their last goodbye. I think PHY needs her characters to be people who find peace and who love and look out for one another, even if they remain broken.

That love doesn’t need to be forever. Ji-an stops listening to Dong-hoon’s phone after he finds out that she does. When she is about to uninstall the app from her phone, she registers the way his shoes hit the asphalt on the road, that dignified stride despite the hunched shoulders, and his steady breathing one more time. The footsteps recede; she isn’t listening anymore. Then they come back; love can also be a powerful memory, a fuel to someplace else to love more and be someone else. PHY’s thesis is so devastatingly haunting because she dares to tell you, with a jerk first and then gently like a goodnight kiss, that loving is both the very least and the most you can do while you’re here.

#my mister #my ahjussi #kdrama #lee sun kyun #lee ji eun #iu #one of 57 thoughts that has plagued me #i can't think of another writer who is so fearless in answering hard questions as much as in asking them #phy is very good at knitting nuance through the broadest range of characters and that's why you can't take away a single one of them #watch this show for dong-hoon and ji-an #but also watch it for all the others who will live with you long after it's over #(forgive typos please it's sunday and i am tired from feeling) #notes

[itsahotminuteinbetween]

okk so for my boys being from 1940s, anything related to music I have down but I have NO IDEA how life operated back then and since you mentioned it I haven't been the same since please talk to me all you want abt the '40s

imma be honest, most of my knowledge on the 40s is either about the war or the precursor to the war, so probably not the most helpful of info-remember to do your own research for extra information!

with that, some quick bullet points cuz I can’t sort thoughts concisely:

Okay so to get into the 40s we gotta go at least 10 years before that cuz that’s also important: the Great Depression hits in 1929-not just in America, but the rest of the world as well-the US supposedly suffers the worst (aside from Germany, which was in debt from the first world war and their crippled economy as a result of the treaty of Versailles). I’m assuming your story takes place in the US?-otherwise I’d probably have to do some digging to find you some facts. But yea, with the stock market crash in the 20’s, tons of people were placed out of jobs, banks closed, people started living out on the streets. Government started creating random corporations to give people jobs after 1932-FDR’s presidency.

Fun fact, the radio was around at this point, so if you wanna listen to tunes, there’s your ticket. TV was a thing, but it became more popular in the mid 40s because it was used to showcase propaganda-televised entertainment became a thing in the 50s.

Anyways, some laws were passed and stuff to give people jobs-not all of them would be considered important for you, I think, cuz most of them were environmental or economical-the Workers Progress Administration was a thing though, and it hired artists and actors and others for their talent, if that’s of any importance.

Corporations weren’t faring much better either, especially the entertainment industry. The 20s were their peak years, with film being introduced and festivals or carnivals brought in cities-but with the crash of the market and extreme poverty, not too many people wanted to spend money on amusement over food. So a lot of those industries lost money and laid off a lot of people before either shutting down or being extremely poor.

Nother fun fact-ovens and stoves existed at this time, similar to how they are today-just in case one of your guys needs to make their human pal some food on their possibly outdated technology. Telephones were also available to the public by the 20s, the landlines.

Games like Monopoly (kinda ironic that it was made during the Depression), Scrabble, Sorry, and the Game of Life (originally made in 1860) were popular at the time-plus actual sports. Yes, kick the can was a thing around this time, you can make that reference.

If you want literature, I'm told island adventure stories were pretty popular for kids at the time (you'd have to double check that one, though, cuz I'm not too sure)-Superman and other heroes were a thing in the late 30's early 40s-Donald Duck comic strips were early 30s. Comedies and dramas/romances were popular in both literature and theatre (Charlie Chaplin was pretty funny), though they had this trope of things magically working in their favor until sometime in the 20s (you're gonna need to check that one cuz again, this isn't really my strong suit).

The Depression really only evened out with the start of the war-the US needed to militarize and stock up on their artillery, which meant a ton of job openings in that department, and other ones related-car companies (yea cars were a thing-you'd have to check how accessible they are though, that's not really my strong suit in history-only thing I remember is Ford releasing a model in the 20s) started building tanks, film productions started making propaganda videos (donald duck was a common character in Disney's anti-nazi propaganda for some reason), toy companies sold toy soldiers and guns to kids to convince them to support the war effort. Propaganda had advanced after ww1, which meant bigger, more eye-catching headlines in the media and clever usage of poster layouts and formatting to persuade people. The US stayed neutral up until 1941, though it did provide resources for the Allies who were fighting Germany.

That's basically all I have about the 40s-again, most of it is about the war and the economy, so not sure how much that would help. Maybe FazCo went bankrupt during the Depression and prompted your carnival to shut down?-I can see it trying to start more locations in the MidWest or something (the Plex is in Utah, if I remember correctly, though I don't know how important that is to your plotline) and scrapped it after the Depression and the War? I dunno, take your story in whichever direction you'd like, it'd be interesting any way you make it! Thanks for the opportunity to ramble, by the way-I hardly ever get to talk history or philosophy on here, so it's pretty refreshing! Hope this helped, thanks for droppin by!

#random #asks #mutuals #silly stuff #not my au #yes I'm a history nerd #here's this #sorry if it's not very helpful #i can try to do extra research but I don't know what exactly you're looking for so not sure how good my info would be #anyways props to you for looking for historical accuracy! #i applaud you! #anyways #rambles

[chibivesicle]

End of GK thoughts

I feel like I’m going back to the mindset I first had when I was reading GK and writing meta and going more with my gut. 

So, what did I think of the end of GK?

It was disappointing to say the least. 

Okay, I said it - moving on to other things . . . or you can read more reasons why it was disappointing to me.

What got me to lose interest as a reader (besides all sorts of IRL stuff) was that the last story arc was sloppy.  It had a vibe of it being far to rushed with too many loose threads and plot points that never got resolved. First off - the endings for the characters.

1.) Sugimoto and Asirpa return to Hokkaido - this was the one ending that I absolutely did not want to have happen.  This is further emphasized that indeed, Umeko never needed Sugimoto’s help which makes his entire premise - just dumb.  She took care of herself buddy and you ran away from things, just like you ran away from your burnt down house.  The MC’s entire rationale for the entire story was - utterly pointless.  To think that @goldenkamuyhunting and I wrote lots of metas about how Sugimoto was making a huge assumption that he needed to do this and never spoke to her in the flashback. . . .

2.) Many character deaths fell short or felt meaningless (and not in the futility of life sort of way).  Ushiyama, Hijikata, Ogata, Sofia . . . they all just sort of pathetically happened with very OOC moments for everyone except for Hijikata but it was still - meh. 

3.) Shiraishi using the gold he got to live out Boutarou’s dream - which seems OOC for him as well seeing that he was good friends Kiro and understood what he was fighting for.  To instead side with a Japanese convict’s more selfish dream was just weird.  Dude, Shiraishi was the one who really took the time to mourn Kiro’s death and thought of him in his youth on the river in a canoe . . . he was your friend man and you had a better understanding of his rationale than Sugimoto ever did. 4.) Tanigaki returns to his home in Akita with Inkarmat and they have lots of kids.  What about his debt to Huci?  We never saw that resolved, instead he lives happily ever after with a family that is even more marginalized due to the Matagi-Ainu combo?

5.) What happened to the tiger curse?  Not only with Tanigaki but Koito and Tsukishima.  Instead, Koito goes on to get that leadership position he wanted with Tsukishima in the 7th until is will be dissolved due to the end of WWII. 6.) Anyone who had a strong political/social justice opinion died - specifically non-Japanese charas.  I’m looking at Kiro - the native who died fighting the system while Asirpa and Ariko take on the more integrated native way to survive.  I’m sure they had a great time dealing with discrimination, poverty and all that stuff.  Watch the Indie film Ainu Mosir to see what that looks like in present day Hokkaido. I’m also looking at Sofia who never got full potential as a character.  Or even Wilk - who I’d still nominate as the worst father of the year for many years.  He may have been misguided with his plans e.g. people don’t behave like he does but he was still working for something for the native peoples.  I continue to waffle back and forth if this is a case of a Japanese creator not wanting to capture them well and thus doesn’t try or that he’s using the excuse of not being of those groups so he can’t depict them. 7.) The ending was all about Japanese people fighting over the future of Hokkaido with no input from those who live there.  And that was what made this really disappointing for me.  Asirpa lost most of her agency, deferring to follow whatever Sugimoto did.  Ariko was absent having been heavily wounded previous in the plot.  Kirawus was just there with Kadokura in the background. 8.) No one cared about Vasily - honestly, really - he was useless to the overall plot.  Again, a foreigner who’s continued existence was just not doing much of anything.  It would have been better if he died when Ogata shot him at the Japanese-Russian border. Now that I got that off my chest, I can drop my second point in no particular order.

The last story arc was meandering, unfocused, and wasted potential.  What I mean by this is that before the final arc, the manga had much tighter pacing and control.  The plot moved forward in such a way that things tied in neatly and kept the readers guessing what would be important to remember and what might be foreshadowing.  It really lost me at a time when it was hard to put in the effort.  I’m not sure what Noda and his editor were thinking - or not thinking, but it showed.  I know we can get tired of things and it makes it hard to focus on them or give them the love they deserve.  If Noda were having creative burnout - something that could totally have been worse due to the pandemic - than he should have gone on hiatus and restructure things.  The elements of the story that I really enjoyed were lost in the last arc - the sociopolitical element and the nuanced approach to characters who became very disposable at the end. 

As story like this needed to breathe at the end and it never got a chance to come up for air.  It just got smothered in a murder/kill fest of violence souring things for me.  I had entertained the thought of writing about how bummed out I was at Ogata’s ending, but I’ve realized it isn’t even worth it.  Noda, if you wanted Ogata to die, you should have stuck to your original plan on the ice floe.  Thanks.

The Karafuto arc had me hooked to read each new chapter.  I loved it and how much it made me think about the historical and political context of things as a reader on something I knew very little of.  The last arc could not follow that up.  At. All. What this means is that if GK ended in a more cohesive manner - I’d rate it one of the best manga series that I’ve read.  However, it didn’t.  So, I’ll have to bump it down to a better than average manga that was good until the last arc.  Was this a terrible manga?  No, I still see it as better than most with themes and ideas that really started to make you think.  The problem is that it stopped doing that in the last arc and it shows.  Do I hate Noda?  Of course not.  He still put lots of effort into making the manga good for a long time.  I just expected him to do more and it didn’t work out that way.  Would I recommend this - sure, but I would do so with the caveat that the last arc falls in quality.

And I’m going to leave things here.

#golden kamuy #Golden Kamuy manga #golden kamuy meta #gk meta #ending of golden kamuy

[cassynite]

🍀🍎💀 for Vonzi?

Aaaah thank you so much Harper!!! I love talking about Vonzi these were great questions for her.

Questions are from this ask game!

🍀 - What originally inspired the OC?

Vonzi was originally inspired by me thinking too much about time traveling as a narrative device! I've always really liked it and I play around with it a lot when I'm bored, so eventually I came up with "You can go back in time, but staying in the new timeline WILL kill you, so you either have to undo anything you've changed and live with your mistakes or die to fix what was broken." I thought it was a cool idea so Vonzi was basically the character answer to how I could use it!

🍎 - What is the OC’s relationship w/their parents like?

Vonzi only ever knew her mother, Zapphine, and their relationship was. Complicated. Zapphine was a zealous follower of the Star Bearer, the mysterious entity that gave Vonzi her oracle powers. To keep Vonzi (and, to a lesser extent, her sisters) safe, Zapphine left the stability of the commune she'd lived in most of her life and moved them around throughout the Inner Sea region, never staying in one place too long at her deity's direction. The Voness family was never able to find any kind of stability for more than a few years, and Zapphine wore herself ragged to provide for her children, fighting and even killing people who would threaten to harm them. She instilled a strong sense of togetherness among all of her children, making sure they knew that whatever their internal squabbles were, the Voness family stood as one unit against the world.

However, she also was a harsh and angry woman who seemed to openly resent her children. Vonzi specifically occupied a very strange place in the family dynamic, being both the golden child and the scapegoat. She was literally chosen by Zapphine's god, and therefore everything that the Voness family went through was in the name of protecting Vonzi--which also meant that she was the source of all the Voness family's strife and had to repay them all, but specifically Zapphine, by using her powers to help keep them safe.

Vonzi took on that role and internalized the idea that she had a debt to pay to her family, and saw her mother as a strong woman who struggled unfairly because of Vonzi's existence but also as someone to be feared and respected above all things. Zapphine's death devastated Vonzi and drove her to commit the worst act of violence she ever did, but in time Zapphine's death would also be in many ways a relief.

💀 - Does your OC have any phobias?

Yup! Vonzi's dealt with extreme poverty at multiple points in her life and from it has developed a fear of dogs and flying bugs, specifically scavenger bugs like cockroaches. Not necessarily a phobia but she also has an ingrained anxiety over spending money as well because of it.

#cassy answers #camelliagwerm #oc: vonzi #pwotr pals #thank you so much again for the ask!!!!

[strykingback]

G5 Iguazu vs Cinder. One Casts The Die While the other doesnt...

So. I just recently finished up Armored Core 6: Fires of Rubicon, amazing game by the way~! Well there was one villain that just came to mind when one of the characters from AC6 stood out to me the most and how I realized that he was more like another CERTAIN character from RWBY but written a lot better.

Now before we begin!

Warning! There will be Spoilers for Armored Core 6's True Ending Path! If you have not played AC6 or watched a playthrough of it PLEASE LEAVE THIS POST NOW.

1. Backstory

So we might as well get the bullshit out the way for Cinder's past. Basically she was a random orphan that was picked up by some random ass hotel and was abused by the proprietress and her two daughters that look like they got rejected from the Shining. However, Cinder would find comfort in a Huntsman who would train her and even show care for her like an actual father figure. To which Cinder would put in an application to one of the academies in Remnant.

But the two Shining rejects basically end up finding out....somehow and burns her application which pisses Cinder off as she kills both of them and the proprietress of the hotel.... and thats it? I mean we dont see how she is later on adopted by Salem.... we dont see anything else... I mean. For fucks sake... this is why RT needs to put more effort in this shit. Like I get it you have to do fairytale allusions but if you're doing a twisted version of it atleast make it more twisted than going the generic "Cinderella" route.

Now onto G5 Iguazu. Oh and fun fact. Iguazu's name actually comes from the Iguazu River in Brazil and Argentina! Anyways, Iguazu was once a backstreet gambler always betting big and trying to go for anything that would go his way. However, he would usually bet big and lose, which he consistently did until his misfortune landed him in debt which he had to undergo generation 4 surgery making him part of the C4 Augmented human series. Which he would pilot an AC making him part of Balam Industries, Redguns which is commanded by G1 Michigan.

However, Iguazu being a prideful little shit, would try to fight Michigan but would lose.... like LOSE BADLY. Which ended up permanently disfiguring him. However he would find camraderie in the Redguns through Volta as both sported beetles on their AC's (Armored Cores) and would even have quarrels sometimes..... But the two seemingly made a pact with eachother to punch the crap out of Michigan and leave the Redguns to go where the wind will take them.

Now with Cinder and Iguazu it is kind of understandable where both came from. Both had shitty upbringings but, one of them was trying to bet big in order to win (Which will play A HUGE part later on in Armored Core 6's story) and Cinder just had the worst luck ever and could not find her freedom leaving one shitty family to enter in another.

Now while not much is known about Iguazu's upbringing but by the means of a backstreet gambler, I can only assume that he lived in a place that was in poverty (judging by how the Armored Core franchise is mostly but dystopian) and the only way he could escape it was by gambling.

For Cinder it was to escape her abuse only to be once again sent to another place to face abuse... but with merits.... thus do we enter their motivations.

2. Motivation *Cue the Vergil Voice!*

Cinders motivation is pretty simple, she want power. Thats it. Power to stand above those who stood above her. Even made worse with how she is 0-2 in getting Maiden powers just like a Cleveland Browns 0-16 record back in 2018(?) Even how though she "tries" her motivation is just waaaay too simplistic man. Like I get it. You want power so you can be all powerful just like what Salem said yadda yadda-fuckin' yadda.

Instead, Cinder keeps getting bodied and tricked up and even she got owned by Watts for her stupidity and willingness to NOT LEARN and use strategy! Like seriously how you just gonna be a villain that I feared in Volume one and become the most cheapskate wannabe Vegeta that I know!

Now for Iguazu, his is kind of simple but it is VERY well done. Both 621-Raven (Basically you) and him are both Generation Four Augmented Humans. You would think he would be a bit excited or interested in 621, but no. He's not simply calling him some freelancer that would get blown away immediately.

Instead, this would earn Michigans ire and even as 621 exceeds Michigans praise and honor. Which would make Iguazu pissed off that some independant merc got more praise than Iguazu the same person who fought Michigan and lost. Which would become a recurring theme later on in New Game++

However.... we dont see him until the Ice Worm mission because when we climb the wall during the mission briefing we find out thatG4 Volta died. And his final words were all but depressing.

Volta wanted Iguazu to change and listen to Michigan and its true. Michigan does care about his soldiers and despite his Drill Sergeant attitude towards the Redguns, he really does care about them. I can only imagine the sorrow and the anguish, Iguazu felt knowing his only friend in the Redguns had died....in combat and when he even teased 621 about being the first to climb the Wall in the mission Operation Wallclimber.

Only for him to lose a dear friend and partner in crime, I can only imagine him getting pissed off and now having a motivation to try and beat Raven (NOT RWBY's RAVEN!). Yet, him being a little shit as always he would end up stating how he wont participate in the Ice Worm mission only to be nominated. and if you hit the shot with stun cannon on the Coral Weapon...

Iguazu is left in shock and awe...but this does not last forever as he is taken down FIRST and adding salt to the wound he would made fun of by V.II Snail and Michigan, while Raven would take down the Ice Worm

Raven, an augmented human from the same Generation as Iguazu was, hit something harder than what he can hit. This only added fuel to the fire (Ha get it....since the title is Fires of Rubicon..... ahaha. Screw you Im funny....) as when you are exploring the depths of Watchpoint Alpha you get a final encounter with him...and beat the crap out of him but. He makes some interesting points.

That he is just being laughed at for his failures and how he wonders why Raven is more special than he is. But behind his jealousy and vitriol is someone who wants to shine as bright as Raven as they are just carrying out orders.

However his inferiority complex and pride would lead to his final defeat. To which it is solidified in the mission Intercept The Redguns that he would desert the Redguns and is possibly killed offscreen by Arquebus.... which would continue in the New game+ route until hitting the Alea Iacta Est Route... is where we see some differences in Iguazu and the payout for these two characters.

3. Payout *KACHING!*

Cinders Payout was definitely her getting the powers of the Fall Maiden, via Volume 3. Now you would expect her to become the biggest threat in Volume 4....nope. It was bit of her learning how to train with those powers. Which is understandable you have a new power that you need train and get more familiar with now that you have it at its maximum output. In Volume 5.....ahh.. you know what time it is. DJ! Play the music please!

Cinder ends up getting her shit rocked!!! Not once by Raven, but even is made into a STRAIGHT BITCH by the Winter Maiden who was about to pass away and then into Ruby following up with a Silver Eyes blast and then in Volume 8 she gets ROCKED AGAIN by Penny!!!

Like this is just embarassing and only for Watts to tell it straight to her face like: "Bitch you AINT SHIT!" holy fuck some RWBY stans expect me to feel bad for her. I DONT. cause once again Volume 1 I expected her to be queen badass here. Only to be made Queen of gettin' packed up! GOT PACKED UP SO DAMN MUCH THAT THE ONLY WAY SHE WAS ABLE TO "Win" was to have Neo do all the heavy lifting for her and when she finally was needing to throw her die.... and yes she did "win" but to me she took her chance to gamble and it failed. I do agree with many people and I wish Salem killed or possibly tortured Cinder right there and then for her wasting the last question on petty vengeance rather than taking a strategic standpoint.....

Yet she rolled the die and "won" but in reality lost.

Now... with Iguazu it takes a dark dark turn. By the time you are exploring Watchpoint Alpha, you come across the boss room where you are supposed to fight Iguazu only to find it littered with destroyed MT's and one of which holds an archive log....

And it is revealed that IGUAZU WENT AS FAR AS TO HIRE AN ASSASSIN AFTER YOU BACKSTABBED HIM AT THE DAM , BODIED HIM DURING A SECRET DATA BREACH, FLAUNTED AGAINST THE ICE WORM IN STYLE BY THE WAY.

only for this man to literally call you at saying that I should have went easier on the poor lad , which you didnt. You basically gained fame as an independent mercenary after climbing the wall in turn was a jab at Iguazu's pride which was only becoming more and more fragile by the second. Especially with the insults being shot at him by his commander and other Redguns.. something was about TO SNAP.

And when we finally beat him during an alternate mission of Reach the Coral Convergence.... and reach the final boss of the Alea Iacta Est ending......

Iguazu Casts The Die....and decides to make one LAST gamble.

Iguazu.. in a desperate and insane need to restore his pride. Sacrifices his humanity to Allmind and becomes one with the very machine..... and actually puts up an INCREDIBLE fight. Even so during the second phase....

Iguazu goes balls to walls crazy! Even in some cut lines that those C-Weapons are also being piloted by him because of his hatred and how salty he is that the Coral (the sentient fuel) resonates with him! (due to how Armored Cores own orbits also need to be piloted by the AC pilot as well!)

Yet even with all that power, he still cannot kill Raven because he gets outclassed by them and even better is how his AC in the second phase has "wings" when he is flying meaning that he is also flying on "Borrowed Wings" unlike Raven who had to prove himself to the predecessor to claim that name.

And even to the point where ALLMIND calls Iguazu a mistake and Irregular.... which sets him off EVEN MORE, and when he is finally defeated...

He simply admits he always envied Raven... a freelancer who had all the skills and weapons necessary to outclass him and in the Japanese dub.

Iguazu begrudgingly ADMIRED Raven. Going to show that he actually did have a soft spot for Raven even if he didnt want to admit it. Because Raven was brave enough to face off against all odds and come out of it either unscathed or on the verge of defeat. Even how Iguazu during the final bits of health you have states that "This is where that grit of yours comes in"

Which Iguazu admits defeat and passes away peacefully while ALLMIND states one last time about their plan for Coral Release..... that finally Iguazu is at peace...

Thats why I think Iguazu was a better villain than Cinder. Even with many AC6 fans being surprised with Iguazu being the FINAL BOSS of the true ending rather than ALLMIND. His pride, his backstory, and his motivation all outclasses Cinders....

Because whenever we think of Cinder we think about her drive to be powerful and to stand above all else. While for Iguazu it is a need to prove on why he is strong and going as far as to hire an assassin, fight Raven four whole times, and still be outclassed only to admit defeat and attempt one final attack only for it to blow up in his face....

Gun Five Iguazu is a definition of a Tragic Villain done right... and there is enough evidence supporting this as well.

Now I know that I may have made some mistakes in this and if I did please let me know and the two videos I linked above this does a much better job explaining this than I did. Anywho... get in that AC pilot... and I'll show you how to pilot it and cross the Rubicon.

#RWDE #Youtube

[heretherebedork]

i really finished the episode and then ran straight to your blog like a kid running home after getting bullied bc i Knew there's only one spot on tumblr to find a logical reaction to that dumpster fire <3

i mean. where?????? to begin francis????????

do i want to be bitingly mean about kinn's awful fucking decisions this entire episode (nvm the rest of the show)??? do i want to tear apart the entire nonsense spectacle of what they did with these plot twists???? do i want to physically scratch someone's face for the shitshow with the mom???? i mean what year are we in what genre is this what's going on??? where's the bad editing to match the awful plot choices???? i've lived through indian tv serials and i would rather rewatch the worst of those than ever have to do this to myself again

that entire scene with porsche's mom reveal was so disgusting i literally couldn't stop saying 'ew' everytime kinn did/said anything. how do i send them a fucking fruit basket for crafting the world's most insufferable character. i know you're always making fun of how he can't do anything wrong but holy shit. like holy shit dude why did they do that

and WHY did porsche accept the fucking position as the minor family mafia head???? why on god's green earth did they make such a huge deal out of porsche's dream of a beachside bar when it was going to be sidelined this hard??? why is their mom literally a paper doll who can't even speak and looks the same as twenty years ago????

on a less angry note: why did they give us rich, deep, vibrant vegaspete scenes only to put them in bright hospital lighting and make them candy-sweet????? i'm not complaining (much), vegaspete basically got me through the second half of this show but god. God

i'm so sorry to walk in here and just rant but holy shit we all saw that right? like im not hallucinating? that really happened?

anw thank u for being so vocal abt your true feelings for the show i need to start a support group before my blood pressure hits the roof

–🌻

I will never, ever, be able to forgive the scene with the reveal of Porsche's mom. Ever. That scene is burned into my soul with pure anger at the handling of that. I mean, fuck, seriously? That's just the... what a damn nightmare. What horror. I really, really wish that Porsche had shot Korn earlier in the episode.

Imagine if that reveal had happened with Korn already shot by Porsche. Everyone thinks he's dead. Porsche thinks he killed him and then it's revealed that he's not just not dead, but he's also been hiding his mother and let Porsche spend his entire childhood being abused and in poverty?

Also, like, why did Korn allow Porsche and Chay to end up in so much debt and in danger of losing their home at any point?

I refuse to think about any of the things that happened, honestly. Like... it was just beyond me. Entirely beyond me.

Glad to be vocal. Glad to speak up, even if I stopped tagging things. Glad to be a comfort to people who have realized that the show just... wasn't what we hoped.

But also yeah we got some VP cotton candy. I'll take it over nothing but it was not what I wanted.

Much love to you anon. Go watch something better for a few hours, we'll both feel better.

#no tags here #spoiler #spoilers #negative #criticism #dead sea levels of salt #i hate it here

[stupendoussoulinternet]

Didnot steal my brothers bike ,

Something that was all but intentionally staged ,

No one leaves their garage door open overnight 6 times a month ,

Bet it hasnt been done even once since then .

Nor did i take the money paid in debt back for some odd reason ,

If it was a problem ,i wouldnt have done it at all .

The entirety of the circumstance for the most part , seems to be a judgement rooted in arrogance , indifference and condescension.

Im not interested in opinions , or perspectives ,

For 18 years i was treated like a burden ,

An inconvienience , and no matter what the situation was , it would ultimately express in that way.

If my Ex. Wanted to believe random lies told by jealous aquantainces

Thats ok,

But deciding she wasnt going to be the one alone at home with 2 kids , was more than i ever would have expected ,

I never said i was a good parent ,

I just tried to be there ,

Because , substitiutes are not the worst thing that can happen ,

But thats not the point ,

I asked to be a father, and ensuring i was there for him , was not open for debate .

All this rediculous obsessive fixation on a narrative of the absence of character , and addiction ,

When self medicating is a symptom not the issue ,

The problem , since its such a mystery

Was after being emotionally abused for 18 years by a person unwilling to hold herself accountable to her own standards

And struggling to minimize the impact of a broken family

Whatever shameful , arrogant conceit responsible for sending a n exotic dancer , to literally attack me for no reason , telling me i should kill myself in consideration of everyone else ,

You fostered a narrative of need , to shatter the falicy of stupid lies threats and both emotional and physical violence , that to this day has centinued without apology or explanation .

I told you to stop

And you decided you could do as you pleased

There is no way , anything plays out as you intend or hope ,

Because , id rather die on the streets ,

Than be victimized by cowards ,

600k in liabilities so far ,

And not the smallest of legal justification to speak of yet

But it is curious that the random stranger who defrauded me out of close to 70k

And implored me to open social media accounts to send inconspicuous messages ,

Was the ONLY , reason

for an endless daily assualt on my mental , emotional and physical well being ,

Perpetrated by

Fred Tretter ,Ryan Didio, Corey ond Casey foster ,Robert Russell, Rose Tafoya, and Katerina Di melo

Engaging in a extensive and criminal organized gangstalking effort , that somehow manipulated the VA, MHA and US vets

undoubtably with lies ,

To be complict with a 5 year and on going effort to force me to commit suicide or die in poverty in the street

[mickules]

Ok, but the way Taka’s eyes light up when he discovers flavors and is just like, “what have I been missing out on my whole life?!”

Imagine if Mondo just proceeds to take Taka around to try a bunch of different foods. The looks of wonder and innocence in his eyes is almost enough to cover the hole in Mondo’s wallet

[from this ask] It would absolutely be one of Mondo's favourite things, but soon the class find out, and they all want to get in on getting Taka to try their favourite food.

[one of the minicomics this ask dump] Some have been privy to seeing Taka eat a sub sandwich in 3 bites, and they would not like to repeat the experience.

---

Junko was incredibly disappointed when it was discovered Taka is a SPICE FIEND. She has yet to find a food he actively dislikes, and so far no amount of threats from Mondo has made her give up the search.

---

Taka doesn't like to dwell on his upbringing as part and parcel of his whole ethos of determination, so wouldn't bring it up voluntarily. Taka tends to unconsciously avoid eating around people so it's a long while before anyone notices his habits, and even longer for them to get him to recognise it as unhealthy and not 'efficient'

Eventually, in frustration, he points out that: "Akane eats like me, does that mean she has unhealthy eating habits too?" to a chorus of blank faces and the gentle explanation of: " . . . Taka . . . Akane's got the worst eating habits" From there it becomes a simple matter for his friends to join the dots between Akane's childhood poverty - Taka's family debt - and their shared defensive eating. When he finds out about Akane's background it does give Taka some piece of mind to know there's someone who understands some of his struggles and lost childhood - Akane and Taka don't always see eye to eye, but they do end up bonding tremendously over it and their efforts to get healthier.

[from this group of asks!] Whilst Byakuya almost definitely has employees to undertake such tasks, I can see a busybody like Taka, only intending to drop off some study notes for Byakuya, inadvertently insinuating himself onto the organisation committee. Taka, completely by accident, ends up with a paid position on Byakuya's staff (since you know Byakuya couldn't just ask for a favour like a normal person)

---

Byakuya has an eye for theatrics; imagine the optics! Fellow attendees scoffing at the young, clearly inexperienced heir, I mean look at his woeful choice of guest from that disgraced family! Only to discover that the elaborate evening they've been enjoying was completely organised by said guest, and then seeing that same guest yeet a man twice his size out of the convention hall. That'd definitely add to the notorious Togami reputation.

---

Business spokesmen aren't always strictly at business events; they're usually also patrons or donors to societies, charities and political parties, so there's a slew of different events it could be. In fact it'd be even more poignant if it was a political fundraiser, or something of that nature. Since Taka is an unwelcome reminder to his maternal family of their previous failed foray into gaining more political leverage; it's even funnier if Byakuya is actively trying to shove that in their faces.

--

Taka can't catch a break - both his grandfathers are pricks. Righteously indignant Taka is excellent, but I have to admit I have a soft spot for bitingly petty Taka, even if it's it's a little out of character for him: "I cannot imagine your embarrassment then Chairman; as it is an Ishimaru who had to remind you to behave in a manner befitting the dignity of your station."

Taka might have a resolve of steel when it comes to remaining civil in difficult negative situations; In positive situations however? He's not as well practiced. . . Or: Taka finds out he rather likes adrenaline really.

He was blinded by his morals and nothing else.

@starlightmedow It's got to be easy to catch some parental feels when it comes to Chihiro. You know Mondo and Taka wouldn't be down for the babying kind - but rather the nurturing, too loud cheering on in the crowd kind. Think the muscle improvement club from Mob Psycho 100

---

"One of these things is not like the others ~ one of these things just doesn't bel~ong!" (It's mothman; he's the only cryptid) In all honesty a rabbit works well for Chihiro. Adorable, but when faced off against a predator? Rabbits can be FIERCE!

I like the idea of all the programs interacting with each other! Alter ego as the more experienced and proactive learner helping the others, Chiaki being hesitant but smart and willing, whereas Usami is very enthusiastic but the least knowledgeable. Chihiro watching over all of 'em It's a fun dynamic! (I have to admit I do prefer Chiaki as a completely fabricated AI rather than based on an actual person, which I know is how it ends up shaking out in canon; her slow yet intelligent demeanour reminded me of an old desktop resolutely chugging along)

@starrygatorr aka: Taka is gaslit by a child That certainly sounds like an AU with a lot of juicy potential to it! Taka doesn't seem the sort to be well liked by children due to his strict nature and perma-scowl. He'd be delighted to be approached by any of the children - it's a shame it happened to be the emotionally-manipulative, mini-megalomaniac! That being said, flipping it on its head, Taka's sheer bullheadedness and obliviousness might act as a natural counter-agent to Monaca's stratagem of picking at insecurities, making him someone who doesn't get side-tracked by her normal tactics (but also making Mondo a much more attractive target for her schemes . . .) All in all, there's a lot you can play with there! Noice!

---

[from this comic] You know what; Junko pretty much canonically just goes around nicking other people's ideas and smushing them into her killing game anyway! Hell I don't think she even came up with monokuma on her own

"smoothie of ambiguous content" is a true Mukuro mood

---

[from this ask again] Mukuro's not one to mince her words after all XD

@spacepaprika The idea of the Ultimate Moral Compass just flat out admitting to a criminal record is unironically hilarious to me - especially given Makoto 'I pissed the bed' Naegi's "dark secret". However I think a criminal record would probably kill any chances he had of becoming Prime Minister. I do have my own idea of what that secret might be, and I plan to put it in a comic . . . 👀 without context - it involves him having been expelled from his middle school *sows seeds of intrigue*

---

@darkephantylight191 Mondo never pulled any pranks himself, but he certainly didn't stop anyone else from doing it. He was the most vocal and blatant about breaking the few rules Hope's Peak actually has and basically constantly found himself in Taka's crosshairs, and Taka wouldn't let even the smallest infraction go. Essentially they both riled the other up, sometimes completely intentionally as they'd both assumed the other was exactly the type of person they hated, without actually finding out if that was true or not.

(next set of asks [about daiya’s accident]) (previous set of asks [about the parent trap AU])

#danganronpa #kiyotaka ishimaru #mondo owada #chihiro fujisaki #sakura ogami #byakuya togami #yasuhiro hagakure #leon kuwata #authordgaster #starlightmedow #starrygatorr #darkephantylight191 #spacepaprika #chiaki usami and alter ego just chillin' #don't ask why rantaro and kirumi are busing tables I don't know either #it's been a hot minute since I've drawn animals - do not look closely at that 'bear' #long post #anon #ask #food #disordered eating mention #dangan-minicomic-ranpan #dangan-answer-ranpan #danganronpa spoilers #dangan/mainAU

[ghinanotlinetti]

Squid Game (2021) is good, not the greatest, but better than anything in the dystopia genre produced in Engl*sh

Have you ever had a Netflix movie or series follow you around, it was almost impossible to get away from? You simply have no choice but to watch it to see what everyone’s on about? That was Squid Game (2021) for me. I already like watching shows and movies that are in the dystopia genre, so I was intrigued to watch this Korean show from Netflix. I knew enough about the premise to watch all surprises and twists unfold. In short, I was pleasantly satisfied with this one!

I believe in Asian cinema and TV supremacy!

This show is very intense, and had my heart racing! I got so into it, and felt like I was competing in the games. I’m somewhat of an adrenaline junkie when it comes to the things that I watch so I love thrillers, and I enjoyed watching Squid Game. The world-building in the plot really pulled me in, though I hate gore I can stomach it when it’s important to the logic set in the world-building. The creator, Hwang Dong Hyuk, did a great job in making a fantastic show, so praise-worthy, and I hate how people think it’s just a “Korean Hunger Games” when he invented this idea for a TV show before Suzanne Collins created HG. Hwang Dong Hyuk’s Squid Game is set in Seoul, and the plot works almost like a Narnia if Narnia were Hell, so the players each open the door to Hell but no one believes them when they try to explain that it’s real. Although there are elements of world-building, it’s very much is based on real life events and crises. The common enemy is Cap*talism. Everyone fights for themselves in this rat race, the VIPs have more than enough money to spare for each person to live a better life or pay off their debts, but they choose to pool all the money to give to one winner. It’s very clear here that characters like Deok-su and Sang-woo are not the real villains, because each character that’s playing the game has layered reasonings for the decisions they make, and it’s simply not that simple. Sure, gambling is bad, betraying someone who trusted you is bad, but it’s not as bad as hoarding wealth in the billions and resources which creates scarcity. Honestly, the worst part about seeing a good Asian TV or movie “go viral” in the West (derogatory) is seeing none of the Westerners get it. This isn’t the same like HG wherein that book and movie franchise is made in the US, and the Am*ricans saw that piece of fiction as what would happen if Communism took over the world - ??????????? - but everyone else saw it as a retelling of what’s currently being experienced by people in the Global South. SG, on the other hand, is an Asian-produced fiction that’s rooted in Asian storytelling and experiences, so it’s a completely different storytelling to HG which requires unlearning Eurocentric knowledge. Overall, I’m not taking any commentary from W*sterners on Squid Game seriously, and I expect Squid Game to be winning multiple Emmys.

The Characters

careful for spoilers!

Let’s talk about the characters! The characters are probably my favourite part of the show, and that’s because they’re nuanced, layered, and played brilliantly by the actors. I even enjoyed hating the “bad” characters like Doek-su, and the actress who played Mi-nyeo did a fantastic job playing the “annoying” character, every time I saw those two onscreen I was like “oh god here we go again!” and that’s intention which they really nailed. My heart broke for the two purest characters in my eyes: Ali and Sae-byeok! Ali is a Pakistani migrant worker who just wants to get him and his family out of poverty, and Sae-byeok wants to take care of her little brother and bring her mother from North Korea to South Korea. I really rooted for those two, and each of their stories broke me in the best way. I know how it meant for the South Asian community to see Ali’s character onscreen, so I’m very happy for everyone, this is a big win for diversity in Korean TV! Asian cinema and TV has a colourism problem, known fact, so this was a very meaningful win for a lot of us. I couldn’t help but like Sang-woo’s character. He’s not bad like Deok-su, he has his moments and he’s intelligent so the way he thinks is very interesting, which is exciting to see because it’s a fresh take on the smart character with a dark side. I saw quite a lot of people not like Gi-hun, which is understandable, though I personally like him. I can’t say too much because that character archetype, the tragic hero, has been done before but I thought it was played very well by the actor, so I enjoyed it. I personally saw the cast as an ensemble, I think it would’ve worked really well as a fully fleshed ensemble instead of playing into the chosen one / main character energy. I get that they’re supposed to invest a lot in Gi-hun’s character, but there were some missed opportunities with other character plot lines, for example: Ha-joon, my king! I enjoyed Ha-joon’s character a lot, loved his plot line but hated how it ended. I thought the brother reveal was a cop-out (get it?) and felt kinda lame because they did the most without doing a whole lot. It was a lot of build-up but the pay-off wasn’t quite hitting; I have more questions that I did before: how is In-ho involved so heavily in this? how did he start being involved? why did he have to shoot his brother? where does his loyalty lie? From Ha-joon’s perspective, it looked like he had a loving relationship with his brother, so I couldn’t see In-ho shoot his brother, or at least make them have a proper dialogue before it happens. Ha-joon had a lot of potential, he could’ve formed an alliance within the red suits to overthrow Front Man, and Front Man didn’t have to be In-ho, I would’ve liked it if they introduced a head detective character who has Ha-joon’s trust and respect then let this character be revealed as the Front Man (or Woman?), and then In-ho could’ve been a red suit worker who feels conflicted between Front Man and Ha-joon. Il-nam was another character that I felt need more context even if it’s purposeful to hide as much of his character’s true intention’s for the big reveal, they didn’t really address that in the pay-off finale. I thought it was rushed and didn’t really add to what I already knew about him. Il-nam is an old man who’s dying, and he genuinely wants to play games but has no one play play with, until he finds the most insane way possible to get people to want to play children’s games with him.

The Plot

I enjoyed watching the first three-quarters of the show more than the last quarter. The build-up of the plot was very well done, but the pay-off was rushed, and the ending wasn’t as satisfying as it could’ve been. The ending wasn’t even bitter-sweet or frustratingly good, it was more like why though? I think this is part of the Netflix formula which is a shame that they followed because I would’ve loved if they came up with something else away from that particular formula. The Netflix formula to me is: work really well on the build-up, focus on the build-up but not the pay-off, add a splash of chaotic plot reveals, and that’s how you make people beg for another season! There’s at least two Netflix series that I haven’t continued watching after the first one or two seasons specifically because I fear they’ll get cancelled, and I don’t want to spend a lot of my time and energy on something that could potentially be pulled from the plug. That’s sad because I know they have enough resources to support all projects to see them through the end, but they choose to select the few that are profitable to them for investment. Although SG is a good show, it’s still a Netflix show, the McDonald’s of content providers. And that’s not to say it’s horrible, there’s a lot to like about the build-up of the plot, very intriguing, so exciting, and thrilling! My compliment’s to the creator!

Very happy to see a Korean director get the proper production funding that he deserves (which was way overdue!). Congratulations to everyone who put their all into creating this show 👏 10/10 production, 10/10 acting, 9/10 characters, 10/10 plot build-up, 4/10 plot reveals. Needs work, but good nonetheless 👍

#squid game #wi ha joon #netflix #netflix korea #asian tv #jung hoyeon #dystopia #series review #park hae soo #lee jung jae #tripathi anupam #gong yoo #oh young soo #lee byung hun #anti capitalism #hwang dong hyuk #heo sung tae #kim joo ryung

[bethanydelleman]

Worst Men in Jane Austen

I’ve already covered the worst Jane Austen women so for all fairness, here are the worst men. Again, I am focusing on people who do real harm through their actions or neglect. Mr. Collins and Mr. Elton, therefore, will not be on this list. Both of them are annoying and immoral, but relatively harmless. Snubbing a woman at a ball and suggesting that death would be better for Lydia are not the sort of things that can rank with this cast of characters…

 1. Mr. William Elliot (Persuasion) - This man must top the list because the language used to describe him is past anything in Jane Austen’s other works. He is “hollow and black” according to Mrs. Smith. She is biased, but she does provide a heap of evidence in her favour. I don’t blame Mr. Elliot for disliking Sir Walter, he has good reason to, but he is cruel to the woman he married for money, he encourages the Smith’s to live beyond their means, and worst of all, he refuses to help Mrs. Smith when she is both sick and in poverty. Remember, he is the executor of the will and duty bound to do so. Let us all be glad that Anne was never induced to marry him.

2. General Tilney (Northanger Abbey) - He might not have murdered his wife, but there is little else I would not put past this man. General Tilney has no interest in his children’s happiness and tries to force them to marry for money rather than affection. He screams at his eldest son for being late for breakfast in full view of a guest, he turns a young girl out of his house and will not even send a servant with her for protection. His children act so differently around him that we can be fairly certain that at least verbal abuse is something they regularly endure. Poor late Mrs. Tilney could not have had a happy marriage.

 3. Mr. Brandon & his father (S&S) - We hear of Mr. Brandons Jr. and Sr. from Colonel Brandon, who is very biased against them, but these are not good men. Mr. Brandon Sr. betrayed his duty as Eliza’s guardian by forcing her to marry his son and stealing her fortune through the marriage. This is despite knowing that Eliza wanted to marry Colonel Brandon. Mr. Brandon Jr. treated his wife with cruelty from the first and “his pleasures were not what they ought to have been” which is a super ominous line. Later, when Mr. Brandon divorces Eliza, he leaves her with a tiny allowance which is not enough for her maintenance. They destroyed this happy young girl and stole her money. Detestable. They’d be first if they didn’t both die before their book began.

 4. John Willoughby (S&S) - Obviously the foremost sin here is seducing, impregnating, and then abandoning Eliza Williams. He also admits that his flirtation with Marianne was originally meant to simply be for fun and he had no intention of marrying her. He is also incredibly selfish, forcing the distressed Elinor to listen to his huge sob story and wishing for Marianne to never be with anyone else. Unfortunately, he never really pays for his sins, beyond having to marry an out-of-humour Miss Moneybags *ahem* Grey.

 5. George Wickham (P&P) - The list of sins here is pretty long, starting with trying to seduce a fifteen-year-old girl and ending with running off with a different fifteen-year-old with no intention of marrying her. Wickham also slanders Darcy, racks up gambling debt that he will not pay, and seduces an undisclosed number of tradesmen’s daughters. Let’s just assume he’s spreading some STIs just based on sheer statistical probability at this point. How many Wickham babies are scattered around Derbyshire, Cambridge, and Hertfordshire? Wickham is slightly better than Willoughby because he does marry Lydia (after being bribed) and therefore she is saved from the fate of poor Eliza Williams.

 6. John Dashwood (S&S) - A lot of hatred for this man’s actions goes towards his wife, but he is the one who actually did the deed! John Dashwood, despite making a deathbed promise to his father to provide for his half-sisters, is convinced by his wife to give them nothing. No matter what Fanny said, John is the one who has the power to provide and he does nothing more than allow a grieving widow to stay for six months in her former home and then hope that the daughters will marry well (but not to Edward!)

 7. Mr. Bennet (P&P) - A surprise contender! Mr. Bennet exposes his wife to “the contempt of her own children”, which is bad enough, but he is also an extremely lazy parent. Jane and Elizabeth both try to correct Kitty and Lydia’s behaviour, but having no support from the only parent who knows better, they fail. Mr. Bennet should have gotten out of his library years ago and actually done some parenting. He should have listened to Elizabeth’s warning at the very least and not allowed Lydia to go to Brighton, but he values peace above his daughter’s safety and his family’s respectability. Lastly, he did nothing to financially support his family after his death. Even fifty pounds each per girl, saved since their births, could have been a big help.

 8. Henry Crawford (Mansfield Park) - Yes, he had an affair with a married woman that led to her divorce and ruin and yes, he’s a bad flirt, but Henry did not prey on young women in the same way as Willoughby or Wickham. His MO is to flirt, make a girl a little in love with him, and then skip town before he is expected to propose. There is no evidence that he ever ruined any of the girls he flirted with. He does have an affair with Maria Rushworth after she followed him to Richmond, but the narrator tells us that the exposure and ruin was a result of “her imprudence”. She exposed herself hoping that he would marry her. He’s not a good person, but he is not the worst of the bunch.

 9. Sir Thomas (Mansfield Park) – He takes over the care of his niece with all these high-minded notions of providing for her and then does nothing to actually provide. Yes, she is educated, dressed, and housed, but when it comes to introducing her to the world so she can marry, nothing is done. It seems like the long-term plan is to make Fanny into a permanent unpaid companion for Lady Bertram. He neglects his own daughters and allows Mrs. Norris to spoil them rotten. And then we have the rampant child abuse that Sir Thomas somehow doesn’t notice…

 10. Admiral Crawford (Mansfield Park) – He does not appear on page but his vicious propensities are widely discussed. The Admiral did provide a comfortable home for his orphaned niece and nephew. However, we do not know how altruistic this was since they are both rich and therefore not a financial burden. When his wife died, he took a mistress under his roof, which drove his niece, Mary, from his home. Mary also says that her aunt was miserable while married to the Admiral.

 11. Fitzwilliam Darcy (P&P) – Not the worst offender but there are some sins to atone for. Darcy, knowing Wickham’s true character, does not even attempt to expose him or warn the good people of Meryton about his gambling and profligacy. He could do something, you must imagine, without exposing Georgiana. Darcy also separated Jane and Bingley, knowing that Bingley was in love with Jane. He might have excuses, but one suspects that he might have really done it to get away from those alluring “fine eyes”

12. Mr. Price (Mansfield Park) - I have some compassion for Mr. Price. He is disabled in some way (we are not told how) from his former profession in the marines. According to some commentary I read, this means he is at least missing a limb, maybe worse. While he is certainly a drunk and a negligent father, we might imagine that he suffers from PTSD or chronic pain as a result of his military service and injury. So while I cannot forgive him for making his daughter the object of a crude joke, he is at least somewhat sympathetic.

 13. Robert Ferrars (S&S) – this is a borderline case, because Robert ended up doing more good than harm, but stealing your brother’s fiancé is pretty low. We know that Edward was by now in love with someone else, but Robert didn’t know that and from what we know of his character, he was probably trying to complete his theft of Edward’s life by taking both his inheritance and his woman.

 Honourable Mention: Captain Frederick Tilney (Northanger Abbey) – He flirts with an engaged woman and this leads to her engagement being broken off. I’d dislike him more if he wasn’t doing James Moreland a HUGE favour and opening his eyes about Isabella Thorpe’s true character. There is also no evidence in the book that he actually slept with Isabella, that was all the 2003 adaption.

Honourable Mention 2: Edmund Bertram (Mansfield Park) – He’s supposed to be Fanny’s defender but he’s just so darn bad at it. Everyone else is worse, no doubt, especially Mrs. Norris, but I blame Edmund because he knows better. He knows Fanny has no fire and does nothing to fix that. He knows Fanny wants to see the avenue at Southerton but he wants to flirt with Mary instead so Fanny misses it. He even tries to tell her that she’ll be happy living with her abusive aunt! And he sits back and pretends to read a newspaper while Henry harasses Fanny. You need to do better Edmund!

Honourable Mention 3: John Thorpe (Northanger Abbey) – He’s so slimy that you want to have a nice shower after his sections of the book, but John Thorpe doesn’t manage to do anything worse than kind of kidnap Catherine for a carriage ride and tell her a ton of braggy lies. He’s the worst, but luckily, he’s not dangerous.

Honourable Mention 4: Sir Walter Elliot (Persuasion) – He is a bad father (shocking I know, Jane Austen never has those…) but Sir Walter does not have any glaring sins like the other men. He’s described by his late wife as “a conceited, silly father.” Unlike General Tilney however, he is not actively unkind, he just tends to forget that any of his daughters except Elizabeth exist. He is also deeply in debt and this must be hurting the people he owes money to.

Honourable Mention 5: Frank Churchill (Emma) – I have a hard time with Frank. He flirts a bit with Emma but she is helped rather than harmed by his attention (it finally brought Mr. Knightley to the point). Jane is made physically sick but we aren’t sure if this is because of his behaviour or because she hates lying about her engagement. His biggest sin, in my opinion, is clearly only visiting his father to see Jane, which is a scummy thing to do, but Mr. Weston immediately forgives him. So I don’t know what to do with this guy.

Honourable Mention 6: Mr. Henry Woodhouse (Emma) – This one is again tricky. Emma doesn’t seem to really mind being stuck at home and taking care of her father. However, Mr. Woodhouse has kept Emma from living her life which is the opposite of good parenting. He can hardly allow her to have a ball he has so many concerns about drafts. Despite living very close to London, Emma has never visited her sister even for a few days! Whatever his health problems, real or imaginary, Mr. Woodhouse has clipped his daughter’s wings and I have a hard time forgiving him for it.

Honourable Mention 7: Edward Ferrars (S&S) – Only Colonel Brandon and Sir John are safe from me! Edward is a difficult hero, he showed Elinor enough attention that even her rational heart had expectations and for his sister Fanny to become worried. Yet, he was engaged the whole time. Even if he no longer loved Lucy, that isn’t an excuse to start hitting on another girl.

#jane austen #worst men #pride and prejudice #northanger abbey #mansfield park #sense and sensibility #emma #persuasion

[ufonaut]

objectively the worst part of modern comics' insistence on the superhero identity taking precedence over the real self is the sense of stagnation it inevitably brings about

between 1960 & 1990 hal jordan had a promising job as a test pilot that he quit after environmental concerns regarding some experimental jets ferris aircraft was building, he proceeded to drift around the country in near-poverty living off unemployment checks until he found a series of jobs (insurance investigator, toy salesman, truck driver, etc) that he couldn't hold down and eventually got back on his feet with immense amounts of debt when he started his air-taxi business. without even counting the tragedy he'd eventually suffer with the destruction of coast city, he'd undergone tremendous personal development. since 2005, he's been endlessly stuck in that first stage of his life & all that remains of his real non-hero life is the occasional reminder that he's a test pilot.

the same applies to alan scott, whose career progress in radio & eventually television can be quite literally traced issue by issue from 1939 to 1998, and the way he & countless other characters have been left bereft of a civilian life. it's completely ridiculous

#personal

[the-al-chemist]

Ophelia Amy Burke

Having grown up in abject poverty thanks to her father’s gambling addiction and later abandonment, Ophelia Burke dreams of riches and nothing but riches. After reading a bust of Jane Austen novels in her fourth year at Hogwarts, Ophelia set her Slytherin ambitions high: make herself into a fine young lady and marry well. She went on to do just that, enjoying a life of luxury as the wife of wealthy Malvolio Nott, however, she left it all behind in order to protect her Squib daughter from her husband’s family of pureblood fanatics.

Profile

Born: 30th August 1881 (Virgo)

Hometown: Quedgebury, Gloucestershire, U.K.

Nationality/Ethnicity: White British

Blood status: Pureblood

Gender identity: witch (she/her)

Sexuality: aromantic/ace-spec

Personality

Myers-Briggs Type: ESTJ (Executive)

Strengths: Determined, Self-Disciplined, Strong-Willed, Ambitious, Protective of her Loved Ones, Cleverer than she is given credit for

Weaknesses: Jealous, Manipulative, Scheming, Over-Zealous, Insecure, Shallow, Liar

Interests/hobbies: Needlework, Regency Era Novels, Floristry (at least, she would be if it didn’t make her hands dirty), various endeavours that may prove fruitful when it comes to her search for a wealthy husband

Appearance

Height: as an adult, 5’4”

Weight: as an adult, 56kg

Hair: naturally light mousey brown, she later lightens to blonde using Colovaria

Eyes: naturally brown, she later uses Colovaria on these as well, turning them green

Skin: prone to tanning, she makes sure to not spend too much time in the sun

Defects: none.

Style: Ophelia likes to dress like a proper lady, up to date with all the latest fashions. Her finances do not allow this, but she becomes adept at tailoring what she has to try and keep up with the girls around her.

Faceclaim: Mia Wasikowska

Witchcraft

1st Wand: Yew and Unicorn Hair

(this wand was leant to Ophelia by her mother to use in her first year)

2nd Wand: Chestnut and Dragon Heartstring

(Ophelia’s mother repossessed this wand from a house she was cleaning. The former owner had been a champion duellist who had kept all the wands he’d won as trophies)

3rd Wand: Cedar and Dragon Heartstring

(Whenever I meet one who carries a cedar wand, I find strength of character and unusual loyalty. The cedar wand finds its perfect home where there is perspicacity and perception. I have never yet met the owner of a cedar wand whom I would care to cross, especially if harm is done to those of whom they are fond. The witch or wizard who is well-matched with cedar carries the potential to be a frightening adversary, which often comes as a shock to those who have thoughtlessly challenged them.)

Animagus form: None

Patronus: Owl Butterfly

Boggart: Losing the people she cares about - manifests as her younger siblings’ lifeless bodies

Riddikulus: Ophelia has never been able to conquer a Boggart successfully.

Amortentia (what does she smell?): Ophelia doesn’t smell anything.

Amortentia (what does she smell like?): Fresh flowers, clean linen, silver.

Magical abilities: none.

At Hogwarts

Hogwarts House: Slytherin

Best subject(s): Arithmancy. Ophelia would be good at Herbology if she didn’t refuse to participate in the practical aspects of the class.

Worst subject(s): Anything involving wandwork.

Third year options: Arithmancy, Divination.

N.E.W.T.s: None - leaves Hogwarts at the end of her sixth year in order to work and earn money.

Quidditch position: none.

After Hogwarts:

July 1898-June 1900: Seamstress, Gladrags Wizarding Wear, London

June 1900-August 1917: Housewife

September 1917 onwards: Independent Seamstress and Washerwoman

Relationships

Family:

Eliza Burke (mother) - Ophelia’s mother works three jobs in order to support her family

Midas Burke (father - missing, presumed dead) - Midas deserted his family having lost all their money and become seriously in debt to a number of goblins, leaving them in abject poverty

Charmian (deceased), Julius, Desdemona, Romeo, Tamora (younger siblings)

Gordius, Dahlia and Marguerite Nott (children)

Friends:

Marigold Sterling (@that-scouse-wizard), Carolyn Nyberg (@lifeofkaze), Adelia Selwyn (@thatravenpuffwitch) - Ophelia is envious and admiring of her roommates. She wishes she could be them, but will settle for being around them. Friends is a strong term for what these girls are to Ophelia, and what she is to them.

Love interests:

Bradford Pendleton (@kc-needs-coffee) - Ophelia has no interest whatsoever in love, but she is interested in making an auspicious match. She knows that the Pendleton family have money, and was determined to win the affections of Brady. This did not come to pass, though they remain on good terms.

Malvolio Nott - Ophelia met the wealthy Pureblood widower Malvolio Nott after leaving Hogwarts. The two married in 1900, shortly after her 19th birthday, although she later abandoned her marriage on discovering that her youngest daughter was a Squib.

Pets:

Ophelia has no pets. Her mother can’t afford another mouth to feed and, besides, animals are dirty, smelly, and hairy.

Rivals:

Marigold Sterling (@that-scouse-wizard), Carolyn Nyberg (@lifeofkaze), Adelia Selwyn (@thatravenpuffwitch) - Ophelia is a firm believer in keeping your potential enemies close. She desperately wants to be friends with the other Slytherin girls. That doesn’t mean she likes them all that much.

Leila Hellebore (@whatwouldvalerydo) - she’s not really a rival, but Leila does terrify Ophelia.

*Ophelia is a deeply flawed person but if you have a character who would like to be her friend, or a potential suitor (note: must be wealthy) you’d like her to make a fool of herself trying to woo, let me know*

#hogwarts legacy #hphl oc #Ophelia Burke #the hexley family #oc profile

[mascaramills]

Wwk s2 finale spoilers and a pro-Rita rant ahead, because I have a lot of feelings. Don't read if you haven't watched and are avoiding spoilers... also probably don't read if run-on sentences annoy you.

For the sake of full disclosure, I'm a Lana fan, and no, that isn't the sole reason I liked or defended or became attached to Rita Castillo. The depth she brought to her portrayal of the character certainly helped, but I would argue that's fair game.

I can only speak for myself, but beyond her early entertainment value and wit, I appreciated Rita Castillo because she was a strong, complex woman who survived poverty and an abusive marriage, grew up witnessing firsthand how having money and beauty and power could change the way people treated one another, and when she found a way to gain those things through Carlo (which, side note, isn't an entirely fair comparison to her relationship with Scooter and his infidelity, because Carlo's offer to her was very much transactional from the start, whereas Rita had feelings for Scooter), it ultimately came from a place of wanting to be treated like a person and believing riches were the way out of the hell she'd been living in. In some ways, she wasn't exactly wrong about that, but being married to Carlo turned out to be a (not-so-)different kind of hell.

I'm of the opinion that, even at her worst, she was redeemable. She could be mean and spiteful, and she explosively misdirected her anger when she initially learned who Dee was to Alma, and there's no denying that.

On the other hand, she was also capable of the kind of selfless love (Isabel) she came to admire. She was capable of softening at the "other woman" in her relationship upon finding out she was pregnant, and then having what looked like a genuine desire to help her financially. We saw glimpses into what she truly wanted and knew mattered in life before any of her jail-time musings broke through her facade.

What stings about her death is that we had also seen her pay the cosmic debt for her actions tenfold already in episodes 7-9. I know she wasn't a saint, but... to recap, she was framed for murder, became penniless after holding up her end of a transactional marriage a decade longer than was promised (+ in spite of Carlo's canon verbal abuse and drinking), and lost the one person who truly loved and looked out for her. I'll never believe that was what she "deserved" when her crimes consisted of... making bitchy comments and humiliating people.

To rub salt in the wound - and this part is what makes me feel unsettled with this story in a way I can't adequately put into words - Harry, her abuser was one of the 3 men who apparently had enough sheer luck to survive a fucking gunshot in the 1940s, outliving her (granted, I think the matter of whether or not she's actually dead was left ambiguous, probably unintentionally, but that's a post for another time). So... yeah. I'm upset about the way her story ended and wish she had gotten a chance at happiness, and I absolutely will argue that there are valid reasons for Rita fans to feel this way.

#rita castillo #tw mentions of domestic violence #tw mentions of abuse

[fremedon]

Brickclub 3.5.1, “Marius in Penury,” and 3.5.2, “Marius in Poverty”

We gloss over several years in these next two chapters: years in which Marius, through difficulty and very hard work, becomes self-sufficient--remarkably so.

This is not a good thing for Marius.

(Everything here is riffing off the discussion @everyonewasabird started in his writeup, so go read that first, it’s quite good.)

The language in which Hugo extols the beneficial effects of poverty for Marius is so much like some of the worst contemporary bootstraps rhetoric that it’s very easy to miss the places where that praise turns ironic. But look at this, from the end of the first long paragraph of 3.5.1, detailing the hunger, evictions, and social embarrassment and humiliation Marius endures:

Awesome and terrible test from which the weak emerge degenerate, the strong emerge sublime. Crucible into which fate casts a man whenever it wants a villain or a demigod.

Marius is becoming a Great Man.

In this book, that’s a terrible thing to be. (And it says something about how radical a message that still is that I miss it almost every time it comes up.)

Hugo continues,

For many great feats are performed in small struggles. There are dogged deeds of valour, overlooked, that hold out step by step in the darkness against the fatal onslaught of destitution and depravity. Noble and mysterious triumphs that no eye sees, no renown honours, no fanfare salutes.

Life, adversity, isolation, abandonment, poverty are battlefields that have their heroes, the obscure sometimes greater than the illustrious. 

This is Cambronne at Waterloo; this is the barricade; this is Fantine’s descent, and the narrator means every word here--but between this and the villains or demigods of fate’s crucible, there’s a contrast it’s easy to miss. These aren’t the struggles of great men; they’re the struggles of good men--of people. Being a demigod isn’t a goal in this book. Enjolras starts as one and his endgame is becoming more human and more vulnerable.

And the next paragraph:

In such a way are steadfast and rare natures created. Almost always a stepmother, poverty is sometimes a mother. Deprivation begets strength of soul and of mind. Hardship is the wetnurse of pride. Adversity is a good milk for the noble in spirit.

Marius was offered the chance, two chapters ago, to take the Republic as his mother. And he took the other choice--here, poverty; there, glory and war. Being a great man; pulling himself up by his bootstraps; going it alone, without accepting help or charity. To lend money to his friends from time to time, but never accept anything but Courfeyrac’s old green coat. It’s as much a mistake for him here as for Madeleine in M-s-M.

And to compound it--hat tip to @pilferingapples--he cloisters himself, going out at night so his clothing looks black, and pulling away from social connections to maintain his pride in a way that is also reminiscent of Valjean, in another of the book’s inversions:

Some formality of expression or behaviour that in any other situation would have seemed to him polite, now seemed to him servile, and he bridled at it. He venerated nothing, not wanting to back down. There was in his face a kind of austere flush. He was shy even to the point of rudeness.

In other words, he feels his position of social inequality so keenly that routine social kindnesses or friendly give-and-take would feel like charity on others’ part or scraping on his own, so he avoids them. It’s the opposite of Valjean’s habit, of eating those abasements and feeling proud to the point of hubris of how much of them he can swallow, but it has the same result--both men end up almost completely atomized and alone.

The horrific thing is that Marius probably thinks he’s taking Combeferre’s advice. What could be greater than to be a Great Man? To be free, Combeferre says. And, welp--

He had suffered everything in the way of privation. He had done everything except contract debts. He said in his own favour that he had never owed anyone a sou. To him, a debt was the beginning of slavery. He even told himself that a creditor is worse than a master, for the master is master only of your person whereas a creditor is master of your dignity and can give it a beating.

Hugo goes out of his way to distinguish Marius’s ideas from the narrator’s here, and that’s often a flag that the character has gotten something wrong. Marius isn’t entirely wrong here--for Fantine, debt was the beginning of slavery. He has, correctly, sensed and avoided a pitfall that we have seen swallow Fantine--consumer debt, debts of the sort that Thenardier has fled so thoroughly that Marius can’t track him down in three years of searching (more on that in a moment), would have been a terrible thing for him.

But Fantine didn’t have friends offering her a loan or a place to sleep. Mutual aid isn’t debt--and Marius gets this on some level, because he’s willing to be the source of the rotating ten francs the Amis trade back and forth. He lends Courfeyrac sixty francs once, and he doesn’t think less of Courfeyrac for taking it! But he’s not willing to accept it.

And accepting help, being vulnerable to people who matter to him, is the quest he should have taken. Having been brought up by Gillenormand, it’s not something he knows how to do. But that’s a lot harder and scarier than isolating himself and learning to live on one mutton chop for three days--and, Bonapartist as he is, he’s determined to do everything himself.

And then there’s his debt to Thenardier. “It was the only debt the colonel had left him, and Marius felt honour-bound to repay it.” This debt is his entire patrimony. If human interconnectedness isn’t a matter of debts--if this debt doesn’t need to be discharged--then his father has left him nothing tangible. And that’s also a hard and scary idea, and not one he’s ready for.

(And now we’re back to Marius’s internalization of that word ingrate. I have no doubt that Gillenormand played the patriarch and drummed into Marius’s head constantly how much Marius owed him.)

This got hugely long, so just a couple more short observations:

Marius’s food budget (365 francs/year), when he gets to a low but stable income, is more than ten times his rent (30 francs/year). He pays 36 francs--20% more than his rent--to the concierge for some basic housekeeping and shopping. One of the privations we are told he endures before he achieves this stability is “sweeping his own landing.”

Marius is having his mail sent to Courfeyrac’s address, which presumably is how Aunt Gillenormand keeps tracking him down. I would love to read a fic about Courfeyrac’s occasional conversations with Aunt G.

“While all this was going on he qualified as a lawyer.” Which, for someone with no connections and no professional wardrobe, opens precisely zero doors--he continues to support himself on the basic literacy that’s part of his class inheritance and his self-taught language skills.

“This Rousseau restaurant, where so few bottles of wine and so many pitchers of water were emptied, was palliative rather than restorative.” Nice. Restaurant, meaning ‘restorative,’ was originally the beverage one drank in a restaurateur’s establishment, as one drinks coffee at a café--an expensive, highly concentrated bone broth, which was a health food craze in the 1760s and 1770s. (I am currently reading Rebecca Spang’s The Invention of the Restaurant: Paris and Modern Gastronomic Culture. Highly recommended.)

#brickclub #lm 3.5.1 #lm 3.5.2