#(Did i pick the most tragic character to be my favorite)

[quikyu]

*Hands you a spider* *Hands you a spider* *Hands you a spider* *Hands you a spider*

#kirby #kirby triple deluxe #taranza #sectonia #joronia #quikyu artiste #Please do enjoy the white dot at the bottom of the last image. I spent a very long time on it #(Did i pick the most tragic character to be my favorite)

[gamercats-fight]

[REDACTED] from Ghost Trick: Phantom Detective vs Judge from Off. Vote for your fav!!

Need help picking? Check down here!

[REDACTED] - CAPCOM - 2010 - Magic black cat:

-He is DEAD and has GHOST POWERS. He can TIME TRAVEL. He has a LOVING CAT DAD as his OWNER and the only family they have left is EACH OTHER. I would go into detail but that would involve spoiling the best mystery game ever written. You should play Ghost Trick. This stupid cat has not left my brain in months. He's haunting me. Which is fitting because he is a ghost. Did I mention he's a ghost cat what is cooler than a ghost cat.

-most special little guy in the world. hes HUGE spoilers for the game btw but um. yea <3

-Because [REDACTED] is the true Schroeder’s cat, he is both dead and alive at the same time and has really cool ghost powers. Also, he can’t read!

-If you haven’t played Ghost Trick, I tragically cannot tell you the spoilers, but this cat is sweet and determined and got a sad man through some rough times.

Judge - Unproductive Fun Time - 2008 - White cat:

-Idk his teeth fucked up tho “I am meowing at my lung’s fullest. I would even argue that the voice that reverberates back to me is the voice of someone I know… have you seen my dear brother?”

-adding some extra propaganda for the judge [non-spoiler]

-He speaks like you gave someone thesaurus for the first time ("Nevertheless, I will introduce myself. I am the Judge, and I am aching to know your name, dear elusory interlocator."

-in some parts of the game it can be read as him making fun of the batter ("Oh, so you can read?" - in response to the batter reading aloud the ad for cat food he was admiring)

-his real name is Pablo

SPOILERS AHEAD FOR THE ENTIRE GAME-- BE WARNED

-His only family is his brother, who he watched as a bird came out of his mouth and revealed his brother was long dead and the bird was puppeteering his corpse around. While you fight the bird the only thing he can say is calling out his brothers name.

-after you kill the bird he stays at the rooftop where it happened and calls out his brothers name (with real sad cat meows) and says the meowing at his lungs fullest line in the original post. he isnt seen again until the very end of the game

-At the end of the game he reappears to berate you (the player) for helping the batter kill eveyone else in the world, and you can choose to side with him and kill the batter. All his special attacks are named after neck, spine, and brain injurys (Anyurysm rupture, Staggering sclerosis, ect)

-with your help he can easily kill the batter with three of his special attacks.

-after you kill the batter he is seen roaming the now empty world, seeming being one of three(?) people left in existance

hes a silly guy basically thanks for coming to my ted talk

-

-ALSO The Judge was most likely the inspiration for SANS HIMSELF,

since undertale is highly inspired by OFF and both characters have a part in the game where they judge the players actions, and weigh their morality.

#gamercats tournament #polls #ghost trick #ghost trick phantom detective #off game #ghost trick cat #judge #edit: updated propaganda for judge under the cut

[absolutebl]

This week in BL - I am all over the place, But Laws of Attraction is Phenomenal af

July 2023 Wk 2

Being a highly subjective assessment of one tiny corner of the interwebs. Organized by which ones (in each category) I’m enjoying most.

Ongoing Series - Thai

Laws of Attraction (Thai Sat iQIYI) 1 of 8 - Icky picked it up but it’s not airing for me until Sundays so I held this post specifically to watch and talk about this show. Stars the pair from To Sir With Love with the same production team. IT’S SO GOOD Y’ALL. A morally corrupted trickster lawyer with a tragic past, sad eyes, and a beautiful smile that he uses like a weapon. Meets paladin martial arts instructor from other side of the tracks (who is out, at least to his baby sister). Corrupt police. Spoiled rich kid evil. Ambitious politician. Tragic death. Terrible subs.* This show is very like Manner of Death but so far it is a much better/tighter story. It’s NOT BL but it is fucking phenomenal. And you shoudl watch it. Not wait to binge it. WATCH IT. On a global scale this might be the best thing currently airing featuring gay romantic leads. Its really fucking good. It’s Lawless Lawyer but more complex character motivation and gay af. Fuck yes please and thank you. FINALLY. Triggers for violence, beatings, death & torture depicted on screen. Like MoD they are not holding back.  (* A lot of the familial names they are using are not gendered in Thai but translated as such, like “nephew”. This one is gonna go down a lot easier if you know some Thai.)

Step By Step (Tues WeTV & Gaga) ep 12fin - 2 years pass and no one’s hairstyle changes? Srs. Them meeting again = hella AWKWARD. Both still pining & hurt. NO SINGING. The reconciliation scene was great. I enjoyed that on the “do over relationship” they went with phi/pom (instead of the super formal khuns). So cute and so much more relaxed. Also lots of neck kisses! Charming final ep. It’s only flaw being they dropped the side couple, but I wasn’t really into them anyway. Ultimately? This is what Boss & Babe should have been and could we please have Up lead out another BL? I miss him and he only gets prettier. Full review below.

La Pluie (Sat iQIYI) ep 12fin - I adore the tiny little baby GL thread that we almost got. And I wish we had had more of it throughout the show. The side couple turned out to be good too. Emotional crying kisses are my favorite. Sunshine netted himself an earnest serious romantic boy, we likey. As for the main couple? Well... Tai’s search story arc was dull and dragging in a final ep and it felt bloated and slow as a result. It was a good confession reunion with Tai figuring all of his shit out, not surprising but fine. Kind of a a weak final ep. Full review below. 

Hidden Agenda (Thai Sun GMMTV YouTube) ep 1 of 12 - JoonDunk are back and we have all seen this a million times before, but Thailand never executed a successful formula it didn’t want to repeat a million times over, drunk bathroom and everything. Welcome (back) to Thai BL (and back and back and back). Basically they just added glasses, a new 1-shared-brain-cell friendship group, and different uni departments. Ah GMMTV, forever trying to recreate the magic of 2gether. But also I’m enjoying it. I’m a simple person. (Hi Jamie! Still in college since 2018 I see.) Anyone else notice that Chinese phrase that they did not translate for us? Mmm hum. Cute. Still... NO SINGING. 

Low Frequency (Sat iQIYI) ep 2 of 8 - Thames is in coma and getting slagged off on the socials. It’s moving a bit slowly but the premise is interesting despite the poor quality of the execution. 

Dinosaur Love (Sun iQIYI) ep 3 of 8 eps - Major trigger for self harm depicted on screen in part 2/4. I skipped it. Then there is assault and verbal abuse. I told you Ultimate Troop is NOT to be trusted. 

Be Mine Super Star (Mon Viki) ep 2 of 12 - Look, I don’t really mind this show but I also don’t like second hand embarrassment and I sense a metric butt ton incoming.

Be My Favorite (Fri YouTube) ep 8 of 12 - I was not best pleased with this episode. Ya’ll round the tumblr-sphere seem to be enjoying it but I have officially hit the wall on Kawi. There is not enough booze for me to cope with his shizz. I may be alone in this. But gotta say how I feel... Unlike him. Trash watch here.

Ongoing Series - Not Thai

Tokyo in April is... AKA Shigatsu no Tokyo wa (Japan Thurs Gaga) ep 5 of 8 - Poor Ren, he feels compelled to take on the burden of protecting everyone from sexual assault because he blames himself. And he can’t even talk to his boyfriend about it. Oh fuck me the pair of shoes at the door. And neck kisses? TOO MUCH. Argh. Japan. Why must you hurt so good? 

Stay By My Side (Taiwan Fri Gaga) 3 of 10 eps - It’s a very cute show. All the tropes and archetypes with no fuss or attempts to be clever, just executing them (sometimes over and over again). Even hiccoughs as a result of flirting! I haven’t seen that one in ages. The show feels old fashioned as a result. Nostalgic. I’m good with that. 

Tie The Not (Pinoy YouTube) ep 6 of 8 - Sad boys still sad now drunk. (Noooooo shoes on bed! Argh.) Finally kisses! Also good ones for a large portion of this ep. Plus hair pulling. And verse rep! And after sex convo. Then side dishes have a whole proper gay ax covo about top/bottom. Everyone say thank you Philippines! get down with your queer selves! 

Stupid Genius (Vietnam Fri YouTube) ep 6fin - I believe this was the final episode. It was cute. This is a standard sort of semi-crappy VBL high school drama. Enjoyable in its floppy friendliness, weirdly like a queer after school special promoting education. Dead fish kisses but fine for what it is. 7/10 

Minato's Laundromat Season 2 AKA Minato Shouji Coin Laundry Season 2 (Japan Thu Gaga) 2 of 12 eps - Activate cohabitation trope. They okay bfs. Minato not as frustrating this week, but still frustrating for me and Shin. Next week = cute outfits and dumb miscommunication yay!

Vian the series (Vietnam YouTube ) ep 11 of 12 - again it didn’t show up on my dash in time for this. I’ll pop it into next week. 

It’s airing but ...

House of Stars (Thai Mon iQIYI) 12 eps - I bounced at ep 3. Will binge if told it is worth it at end.

Stay (Pinoy YouTube) 7 eps - It’s mostly English & set in LA (shudder) so I’m not bothering.

Stay With Me ... NO I WILL NOT! And you can’t make me.

Ended This Week

Step By Step Series Review  

This was Thailand’s answer to The New Employee, and everything I loved about that show I loved about this one. This was an office romance between stern boss and sweet subordinate that felt more authentic to an office environment than previous Thai BLs of this ilk. And that authenticity added tension to the narrative and character development (how novel). Now that might be because it has western source material, or it might be because it is actually kind of old-fashioned (it’s been years since I worked as an office grunt). I also really enjoyed the brothers’ relationship, and kinda wished they hadn’t attempted (and failed) to give said brother his own side BL. That one flaw made it a 9/10 for me. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED.

La Pluie Series Review

This BL takes to task the fated mates trope and what it means to have love chained intimately to predestination. It’s about how faith in destiny before choice diminishes the authenticity of emotion, relationships, and connection. This is a high concept to examine through the lens of a BL. By activating + examining the soulmates trope this show is challenging a foundation of romance: the idea that there is one person meant to be your one romantic partner all your life. This means that we, as viewers, spend much of the show worried about it having a happy ending, and that’s the source of both its brilliance and tension: would the narrative have the strength to truly challenge its own romantic core? But, ultimately, all this elevated complexity was executed in a somewhat shaky manner with the narrative derailing into some serious pacing issues and characters manipulated by miscommunication. However, with good chemistry and decent acting all around, plus some excellent high heat and representation of consent and a few other rare tropes, this one has to (like it’s sibling show My Ride) earn a 9/10. I enjoyed it even as it made me think, so despite its flaws: HIGHLY RECOMMENDED.

Next Week Looks Like This:

Starting:  

7/19 Wedding Plan (Thai Wed YouTube & iQIYI)  - It's Mame and she's coming for our GL. She's such a misogynist IMAGINE what we will get with a GL side dish? It's going to be absolute carnage. To crane your neck as you drive by the car wreck or not? That is the question. Me? I'm wallowing in the guts. Trying to decide to trash watch or not... 

7/20 Jun & Jun (Korea Thu Viki) - From 2022 I CAN’T FUCKING WAIT! So excited for this one. 

2023 forthcoming BL master post (see comments, some are inaccurate, NOT KEPT UPDATED)

THIS WEEK’S BEST MOMENTS

FYI roselle juice is made from hibiscus (a flower) so technically neither a tea nor a juice. (Hidden Agenda)

Tie the Not = all the verse rep this ep. I love this for them. 

The giggling was SO DAMN CUTE (Step by Step, na?) 

We all guessed it but it was still fun. (Stupid Genius) Also miracles of miracles, two actors who actually look like they could be brothers play brothers. 

First time I’ve seen faen translated as significant other. (Laws of Attraction)

THE PAIN! (Tokyo) 

(Last week.)

#this week in BL #BL gossip #bl news #upcoming BL #July 2023 BL #BL reviews #korean bl #japanese bl #thai bl #Vietnamese bl #pinoy bl #taiwanese bl #live action yaoi #Rakutan Viki #gagaoolala #GMMTV #Laws of Attraction #Step By Step review #La Pluie review #Stupid Genius review #Hidden Agenda the series #Low Frequency the series #Dinosaur Love #Be Mine Super Star #Shigatsu no Tokyo wa #Stay By My Side the series #\Minato Shouji Coin Laundry Season 2 #Tie The Not #Manner of Death #Lawless Lawyer

[controversial-blorbo-bracket]

Controversial Character Tournament Round 2: Gamzee Makara from Homestuck vs Maeglin Lómion from The Silmarillion/The Fall Of Gondolin

(remember that these characters are fictional and your fellow tumblr users are real. i will block you if you harass others in the notes, please consider sending your unhinged harassment to my inbox instead)

Propaganda under the cut, may contain spoilers:

Gamzee Makara:

LOVE: - "Okay, so Gamzee is such a divisive character that I even hesitated on choosing "love". Sad clown with an absentee father raised in a fascist dictatorship. Was mind controlled into killing his friends and then mind controlled during a toxic relationship (or two). Suffers from addiction so fandom likes to go "Oh, how scary his withdraws are. Clearly being drugged up was the only thing keeping this THIRTEEN YEAR OLD from murdering his friends (who largely ignored him, insulted him, demeaned him and acted like they wanted nothing to do with him). Having one such friend gently touch his face didn't cure him of his issues (or the mind control) so obviously he is an irredeemable monster and an abuser. This is genetic." I know you've gotten tons of Vriska, so basically insert any of Vriska's apologists' points here." - "Gamzee is a complex character who is used as a puppet both by the other villains of Homestuck and by the arthur. Once someone takes a deeper look at him they might find a tragic character who had lots of chances where he could have gotten onto a better path but those chances were not able to be given or taken. On the flip side Gamzee suffers from some poor writing that leaves aspects of the character to based off poor stereotypes, he also lacks chances to show his internal character as thr story goes on and is treated like a tool by the story. He also killed some fan favorite characters and has a version of himself (homestuck is a multi timeline story) that abused a different fan favorite character." - "I know Vriska is the obvious pick for controversial HS blorbo, but consider: He is the world's shittiest boy. No one knows why he does the things he does he might just be a murderclown but he might be mind controlled or something no one knows and people have really strong opinions on him based on what they believe. He makes me very sad because I did think he was a cool character before he snapped." - "He was written so poorly 💔" - "when i was 12 i had a crush on him i was like a gamzee apologist and i was probably right i dont remember homestuck. i used to listen to icp and think wowww this is just like my clwon boyfriend and giggle and blush and kick my legs and i still do that with my fake boyfriend but hes not gamzee and its not icp and im not 12 but he kind of sounds like gamzee but thats because hes a smoker and he wouldnt listen to icp he likes techno. anyway i used to get so sad when people said they didnt like him because of the killings and i brought him up to my old therapist a couple times thats kind of funny looking back but i would do it again (but not with gamzee. with my fake chain smoker boyfriend who likes techno). anyway anyway my mom listens icp because her old friend from highschool who died was a juggalo and whenever i hear her listen to it i think about gamzee so i havent forgot about him yet. hes wasnt my favorite character thouhg my favorite character was the gemini one (i also had a crush on him when i was 12 i tried to lucid dream to see him once) (it didnt work). ok love you bye." - "-Funny clown -Cares about his friends -Absent parental figure :( -Did some murder but it wasn't his fault really he didn't have all of his mental faculties (see next point) -Got brainwashed by a universe-destroying god that is everywhere and nowhere at the same time through the form of a rapping marionette -The author(s) fucking hates him for some reason and retconned his previous characterization to make him a one-dimensional shitty villain and used canon text to make fun of fans who like him and no I'm not exaggerating -If I don't make him my blorbo who will"

Maeglin Lómion:

LOVE: - "LISTEN okay so he DID betray the city of Gondolin to the guy who literally invented evil, and that DID result in it getting destroyed and a whole bunch of people dying or being taken prisoner (which is probably worse in this instance), and also he DID attempt to throw his cousin's seven-year-old son off the city walls to his death during the attack. BUT. I love him. Also, and more substantially, a) he didn't go out of his way to betray the city, he was taken prisoner and threatened into it, b) he had an incredibly painful history with Gondolin involving both his parents' violent deaths happening like ten minutes after he arrived there, and he was legally not allowed to leave, and c) he was SO YOUNG (only 180! that's hardly anything for an elf!) and he is SO ANGSTY and INTERESTINGLY GOTH and SELF-HATING and I LOVE him. So." - "First of all he was LITERALLY CURSED TWICE OVER so there was NO WAY he was coming to a good end okay. Sure he had a crush on his cousin but he canonically didn't say anything and she only knew because she read his mind and he wasn't able to hide it from her. He had a major éowyn moment (iconic) and was trapped in cage after cage all his life and tbh after what he saw in the Nirnaeth I'm NOT surprised he voted to stay instead of go. Or just told the king what he wanted to hear. Anyway the POINT is that breaking under mental torment to morgoth, whose force and victory he'd seen firsthand, is NOT a moral failing, and idril started conspiring against him before he'd actually done anything wrong. The attempted murder was, admittedly, not great though. But he didn't even SUCCEED like c'mon he just got homoerotically yeeted from a cliff about it. In conclusion: maeglin did nothing wrong except all the things he did wrong, and the version in which he's most openly evil is also the one where both the narrative and the other elves are racist to him so like they had it coming"

#poll #round 2 #maeglin #maeglin lomion #the silmarillion #lord of the rings #gamzee makara #gamzee homestuck #gamzee #homestuck gamzee #homestuck #6 submissions #2 submissions

[rorah]

Yallo!

A bit random, but do you ever think about how potentially tragic of a character Byleth is, and how it's all dependent on if they get to forge bonds and a new path in life as a professor as we can see from both games?

They get to stray away from the mercenary lifestyle, albeit it was forced at first, and the label that was forcibly placed on them(Ashen Demon) that caused them to be negatively perceived for most of their life. Nobody besides Jeralt, their father, bothered to understand them, because their lack of emoting well would just scare people and make them think they're some emotionless husk. No friends, no support system, just the sword and Jeralt.

Like it's really telling how their first dialogue option in 3Houses is "I'm a demon" factored in with Byleth being surprised in Hopes that people weren't treating them as less when recruited.

Honestly I'd argue Byleth is rather complex in a behavioral sense.

Ah, sorry for the little ramble. As you can see, I am obsessed with this autist.

OOh hello! Not random at all. And if it's random you're coming to the right place because I love randomness 🙌 Thinking about Byleth makes me SOOOOOOOFFFFFTTTTTTT 😭 ngl, they have become one of my favorite characters in the process of trying to figure out their character throughout the several gameplays. And Hopes made it a punch in the guts 💔 but also give us voiced Byleth YAY. Yes, I think about the potential tragic of their character, their past and specially in Hopes that wrecks my heart and makes me cry like a baby in some random dark corner of my room. That notion of their first dialogue with Shez when recruited about everyone in the camp being nice breaks my heart a bit because it implies that even when working for the opposite faction you choose, they didn't get to interact any of the other characters we know. Not Jeralth fault by actively isolating them since he tells them to "try to fit in" when finally joining our ranks and yet, if they're with the "enemy", their mercenary group is still isolated from the main army and don't get to interact much. And if they do, is just the random average soldier who gets freaked out by their unnerving-ness as it's been implied. Byleth haven't grown and developed like they did in houses, so they still struggle.

You're so right about their complexity of their behavior. In my way to discover the Byleth, I found myself relating to them A LOT. But also had to be careful to not "project" too much into them. I like to look at the game's options and considering part of something Byleth would say either way (because there's really not many options to pick, most of them go around the same), character reactions to them, hopes, and also heroes' dialogues. I think Byleth is a beautiful character that deserve more credit and more focus It'd be great for the Autism representation and bring hope to the autists out here lol

#ask #fire emblem #byleth eisner #my little autistic mew mew #fe3h #few3hopes #But there's more than just autism to their character tho I must add ☝️ #the autism topic is complicated in its own

[walkawaytall]

I am very stressed about a thing that I can’t discuss right now that I have literally no control over, so here’s some

fanfic writer asks

that I came up with all on my own. Ask ‘em, share ‘em, do whatever.

Have you pulled inspiration from media sources other than the property your fic is related to (a plot point from a TV show that has nothing to do with the characters/setting of the fic, a line from a book, etc.)? If so, for which story? Why did you find that media source compelling?

What is your favorite paragraph from (insert story title you want to know about here, or leave it blank for writer’s choice)? Is there a reason it’s your favorite?

What is the most amount of research you’ve done for the smallest detail? What was the detail and how much time/effort went into researching it?

Share a headcanon about (character name) in (story title)!

Is there a tiny detail in one of your fics that you feel goes tragically unnoticed?

What is your favorite type of feedback to receive (favorites/kudos, comments, DMs, complete and utter silence in the pursuit of remaining unperceived?)? If comments or DMs or anything else involving a reader writing, do you have a particular type of feedback that excites you more than other types?

Share a line or paragraph you’ve written that you don’t think will ever actually be posted in anything! (Or, if you don’t hoard cut sentences and passages like I do, share anything you want that has yet to see the light of day!)

Is there a story idea you have that you would love if it could appear fully realized but that you do not think you’ll ever write yourself?

Do you prefer to read angst or fluff? Which do you prefer to write?

If you could banish a single trope to live at the bottom of the ocean, never to be seen again by any human eyes (or at least your own), which trope would that be?

Conversely, if you had to pick a single trope to read for the next seven-and-half years, which trope would that be?

What are your thoughts on slow burn romances?

Are you secretly Tara Gilesbie aka XXXbloodyrists666XXX aka author of infamous Harry Potter fanfiction serial My Immortal? (you can trust me; I won’t tell anyone, pinky promise)

Has anyone ever created anything (art, a podfic, another fic, etc.) inspired by your work? Which work? How did you feel about that?

Is there any genre, trope, or style that you find particularly challenging to write? Do you enjoy the challenge or prefer to avoid it?

Is there a commonly held misconception about one of your stories that you’d like to correct for the masses?

What does your editing process look like?

Share a headcanon relating to (insert desired theme here)!

What was the very first fanwork you ever created? (I’m talking like maybe you made a little book out of construction paper and staples with your favorite Disney characters drawn in it when you were five years old or you drew a comic about a movie you saw when you were a preteen. That sort of thing.)

Is there anything about any one of your fics that you have been dying to discuss but haven’t had the chance to?

#my asks #fic writer asks #fanfic writer ask game #fanfic writer asks #fanfic writer ask #ask away

[cowboyshit]

If I remember correctly, I think Evil Uno said something along the lines of Adam still not being happy even when he was champion. What are your thoughts on that?

oh, you don't even KNOW how excited I am about this ask. I'm going to have to tuck my answer under a readmore. this was honestly a change in hangman's character that I LOVED and always wished could have been more fully played out.

firstly, yes! evil uno told adam specifically: [The Dark Order was] there for your big moment when you won the championship, but you weren't happy. You never seemed happy. I don't know if you thought this was going to be your big moment and it wasn't enough. I hope you find what does makes you happy, but I don't think that championship was it.

I felt like this was a subtle piece of story that most people did NOT pick up on until it was a little too late, because adam lost the belt and couldn't continue telling whatever character arc he'd been working on - which I will ALWAYS BE UPSET ABOUT. some of his best work is in the subtlety of his long-term storytelling and in the brief time he had the belt we saw him go from happy to have it, to feeling the pressure of carrying the belt and the matches he was having to go through, to these brief moments where he would act like the weight of it felt burdensome. there's even a shot (one of my favorites) where he's walking down the ramp with it on his shoulder and he looks over at it and seems upset that it's there.

which is so FASCINATING for a character who chased after it for years with such a hunger, it oftentimes blew up years-long friendships. for a character who proclaimed at the very start of the company that they WOULD be the champion, to finally hold it, and not actually feel satisfied? TRAGIC! the story wasn't the chase for the belt, the story was that he needed to believe IN HIMSELF. he thought once he was holding it and he was champion all of those insecurities that had berated him for years would magically disappear, but they didn't. In fact, the insecurities stuck on even stronger, because now he had to prove that he was capable of holding it, capable of representing this company. the spotlight was front and center on him.

also, shortly after he became champion, adam added one of my favorite songs to his playlist: heavy crown by trixie matel

Heavy head and a heavy crown Had a few since you came to town Where are you gonna keep them still? Winning's losing with a couple strings It's a choosing between two things It's a two-piece suit or all the frills Did you ever think that if you got everything All the records, they don't play the same?

take into account that it was kenny he won the belt from? that added on so much more pressure!!! I honestly was fascinated by the turn of his mood toward the belt and the way he was beginning to lash out again because of it. it was such an intriguing turn of events, versus "he won the belt and now he lived happily ever after"

there was so many avenues of storytelling that I could see adam building up when he held the title, and I will always find myself a little curious to know how that story might've kept playing out. even if he (when he) gets the title again, it won't be this story again, since his character arc has grown in too far of a direction.

although I am curious what that story will be - a lot of people don't pay close enough attention to understand the stories adam is trying to tell. I think he's sorely overlooked as a storyteller in this business and I wish I could scream from the rooftops how much of a mastermind he is.

#ashley answers #you happened to ask something thats one of my favorite things I dont often get to talk about

[loupy-mongoose]

i know its not entirely related to the series in general but more towards the author ofc.

do you have a top 3 or top 5 favorite characters In pokemon? (game and anime included if you wish to have 3/5 of each) and if so any reason for those characters? :0

Interesting question! I'll try to pick based on their canon selves, and my own opinion of such, rather than the fandom's or my own portrayal of them.

They're listed in no particular order. Just tacked on as I settled on them.

Now, I'm super basic (a lot if not all of these are fan favorites, honestly) and can easily include N in my top 5. Growing up I was one of the peeps who subscribed to the "N is a Zoroark" theory, and I fell in love with the mystery of it all. (I may have had a slight crush on him as well lol) I will say that I recognize that accounts for most of the attachment I have toward the Gen 5 era. X3 (Music being another big factor.) (Cheren and Bianca are honorable mentions. I also had a crush on Cheren. XD)

Another top of mine is Zinnia, mostly because she reminds me of one of my oldest and favorite ocs. (We'll be meeting said oc at some point. :3) She's such a wild, thrilling character!

I'm gonna have to include Arven in the list. He's one of them gruff-but-secretly-sweet guys. Also, tragic backstory ftw. XD

Rika can be included, I suppose. I like stringbean characters, and she's as stringbean as they come. XD Plus her actual character is pretty cool.

Hmmmm... Who's my last one...? I might go with Jacq. I liked him from the moment he was revealed, and just find him a fun, comfortable guy to be around in the game. He makes me happy. ^^

I'm aware that three of them are S/V characters, but... I like S/V, darn it, and they did a bang-up job on the characters! XD But anyway, those are my top picks, at least for the time being. ^^

#peppercosmos #ask

[dragons-homebrew-hoard]

A general reminder to gms to never turn a recurring or tag along npc into a plot device as your players will notice and it will piss them off (rant incoming)

The last dnd game I was in as a player I wound up leaving due to this exact thing. My character’s whole deal was protecting and caring for a child npc that shared their tragic backstory. Unfortunately for me, this npc became the gm’s favorite new toy and not only did they make this npc more powerful than every one of the players and more intelligent than all of us, the dm used them to facilitate literally almost every plot point from the moment I joined the team.

I spent so much in game time dealing with this npc’s bullshit that I barely had any time to actually get to know the other characters or make any meaningful bonds with them. This npc was constantly dragging me away from them and derailing the story because the gm used them like a carrot on a string to create drama. I don’t even know what our goal as a party was other than collect the macguffin and take down the government because every plot after I joined revolved around finding this npc because they ran off or protecting them from their own idiocy or having a crisis because this npc wants to kill themself.

I cannot describe to you how annoying it was walking into every session expecting this npc to act in any consistent way. One session they would be moping about how they don’t belong in this world because they are too smart for their own good and the next they are being manipulated and kidnapped like a normal 5 year old by someone plot convenient so the party gains plot relevant information. One session they don’t want to use their insane power because it’s too much and the next they want to practice by torturing people and animals and the next they leave the fortified base to go flower picking to drag the party to learn more plot relevant information. Every single session I was dealing with an entirely different character whose levels of intelligence and emotional maturity changed on a dime to suite the gm’s needs. It was exhausting and this on top of a few other things made me leave the group.

If a player hands you something like this, show some restraint. Please. Especially right after they join the crew. I’d say restraint is one of the most important aspect of being a story teller in general.

I gave this gm two big red buttons with my character and they pushed both of them immediately. The dm brought in my characters personal antagonist session 2, before I had any kind of bond with the crew and was at the point where when I had the option to have my character lose their memories of this antagonist I took it just to remove that button because I could immediately tell this gm has zero restraint.

I talked with the dm out of session and asked them to tone it back because ever since I joined literally every single plot had my character at the center and she kept pushing me/my character to drastic measures that were preventing my from actually interacting with the rest of the crew or even learning what our goals were. For fuck sake I removed my character’s memories of their antagonist because they were nearing the point of saying fuck it and leaving the group just to escape this person.

Did the gm listen? No. Not only did they continue dragging my character’s antagonist into the plot, they kept using this npc to create drama and push the plot forwards in inorganic way.

If you have to use an npc as a plot device, then at least keep their characterization consistent. If story is the main focus of this campaign, it’s like watching the gm reach into the game and tell you directly: hey, hey, players, go here for plot. It breaks the immersion. If it happens on occasion, that’s fine it’s bound to happen eventually. But when it’s happening every session… oh boy is it extremely annoying and hits one of my biggest pet peeves in writing: seeing the hand of the author. There are a million ways to make a plot hook feel in congruence with the story and the world. If you need to take an npc out of character to make it happen, your players will notice.

Tldr. If you are running a long form campaign- use restraint. I promise you that holding back and waiting to push the big red buttons your players give you will be so much more rewarding for everyone if you wait. Don’t force the story. Let it breathe.

#thoughts I fall asleep to #it’s 5 am #I’ve been awake since 3 #I keep think about this so blah #out it comes #maybe I can get some sleep now

[shifuaang]

Conglomerate thoughts about Guardians of the Galaxy: Volume 3 under the cut. Please do not read if you don't want to be spoiled! TLDR: I loved it.

I suppose I should preface this by saying Guardians Vol. 2 is my favorite MCU movie and that I hold no real affinity towards installments outside of the Guardians in the Marvel Universe. I used to be a pretty active and engaged fan, but Endgame swiftly put a stopper on that. I was very worried about how this film was charged with the task of picking up the pieces of a fractured and, frankly, careless and poorly written conclusion to Phase 3.

Long story short, I should have never doubted Gunn.

Gunn did an expert job at navigating the perimeters that Endgame thrust on him, ensuring that the plot didn't linger on what happened without neglecting the catastrophic weight of Thanos's actions. Bringing alternate universe Gamora into the fold seemed like a monstrous and difficult task. I have expressed before how much I hated the idea of Quill chasing down someone who isn’t even ‘his’ Gamora and trying to win her back, but Gunn handled this with absolute grace, assuring that everyone stayed in-character in their reactions and interactions. There was no backpedaling or continuity with how the Guardians were written in Infinity War and Endgame as I feared there would be. Gunn picked up from where we left off in Vol. 2 while still allowing us space to mourn Gamora's loss. Rocket's trauma and character development was taken seriously again. Every member of the Guardians had a well crafted arc and was given the appropriate amount of time to explore said arc.

The animal and child abuse was hard to watch. It felt way more violent than anything we've ever seen in the MCU, but I'm almost glad that it was. I feel that loss and violence is almost glossed over in the superhero genre. We don't quite get the full scope of devastation and impact that villains have caused in their quest for domination, colonization, and perfection. We've been desensitized to death and torture to a degree. Even the snap™, which most would site as the most evidentiary form of brutality in the the MCU, did not hold nearly as much weight as the actions of the High Evolutionary. Thankfully the plot never seemed like a hit over the head with a message of EUGENICS BAD! It was more a tragic exploration in what eugenics can do to an individual, how it desecrates the environment, and how the quest for perfection is gratuitous and futile.

In spite of the heavy subject matter and darkness of the film, Gunn still maintained the thread of humor that we love from the Guardians. I laughed out loud more than a handful of times, and every laugh came at a point in the film where it was necessary. There were no quips or jabs there to deflect from the seriousness of what was occurring, just enough to give the audience time to breathe. I am so glad that Guardians Vol. 3 was the first MCU movie to get the green light in the 'fuck' department. I can think of no franchise more deserving, and the way it was used was perhaps the funniest joke in the whole film.

I could write an entire essay on Mantis's arc and her development and how much she means to me as a character, but maybe (probably) I will save that for another day. To keep things short, I appreciated her continued empathy and sense of humor in such a bleak situation and after such a hard life. I see so much of myself in her, and it's incredibly moving to have someone represent aspects of yourself that you thought would never be portrayed in the superhero genre because they are more difficult to express emotionally and cerebrally. She's so important and so brilliantly acted by Pom, and I adore how much agency and confidence she was allowed.

As for people who say they didn't like the ending because it 'destroyed' the found family aspect of the Guardians, I never got the impression that these characters weren't going to meet up again and that they stopped being family. There was no discussion on how they were 'bad' for each other or that they'd be better off individually, which is normally the consensus when groups split in media. Quill should spend the remaining time his grandfather has with him. Mantis should go explore herself and her independence after years of captivity and compliance. Drax and Nebula should rebuild, and create, and love on the new occupants of Knowhere, as they've been forced to spend most of their lives being destroyed and being destructive. Rocket and Groot should carry on the legacy of the Guardians, protectors of the universe. And Gamora has clearly established a loving family of her own with the Ravagers, which is what she deserves. Everyone's ending felt pertinent and cathartic, and we were left with a sense of hope and a twinkle of potential for what could come in the future.

Thank you, Gunn and the cast and crew of this film, for making me cry the hardest I have in a theater since Toy Story 3, and for ending my favorite MCU series so beautifully. I honestly couldn't have asked for a better conclusion.

We'll all fly away together, one last time, into the forever and beautiful sky. 🚀

#guardians of the galaxy #guardians vol 3 #james gunn #anti endgame #just in case lol #review #gotg #gotg spoilers #gotg vol 3

[fluffypichu876]

Wolf from Sekiro for the character ask?)

my boi wolf, the only traditional protagonist in the soulsbourne games :DDDDDD i love him so much and honestly people don't talk enough about him

* favorite thing about him: i absolutely love how wolf can either represent the end or the perpetuation of the cycles of suffering (depending on your actions and the ending you get). to start off, he is an undying shinobi who can rise back from death no matter how bad his injuries get. thats is an obvious play on the cycle of life and death, but its just the surface of it. the endings tell us way more about this tragedy that is immortality.

get the shura ending and this cycle perpetuates on the worst way possible: wolf becomes a blood-lusted immortal demon who possesses the only two blades capable of severing immortality a.k.a japan may just as well be gone forever.

immortal severance ends in a lighter note but its still very tragic in a subtle way. with his lord dead, wolf no longer has a purpose and now follows the steps of the late sculptor, which implies that one day wolf will still end up consumed by shura (and pass on the prothestic to another shinobi, just like the sculptor did, repeating this cycle once again). his master's death was meaningless, since immortality was severed but not returned to where it belonged to, and someday eventually another divine heir will be born (you get it by now: the cycle continues...).

purification is good but still not the best ending, in my opinion though it sure is the most beautiful and poetic one. you see, wolf is also part of a cycle of abuse and trauma. he was an orphan in the battlefield, adopted by an abusive foster father (the great shinobi owl) who saw him as a mere tool to help him achieve his grand schemes. wolf was raised to strictly and blindly follow the iron code, which stated that the father's will was absolute, above even the will of one's master (i won't explain more because that'd be the entire story really xD)

and so there's kuro, the young divine heir, a mere child. mostly importantly, he is wolf's master. by the code, wolf is obligated to follow every order that his master imposes, no matter what, without question. and so wolf does that. but kuro sees wolf as much more than just a guardian and tool. he sees him as his loyal shinobi, his friend, and quite possibly the only person he can absolutely trust after the death of his parents.

and at first this only rings true because wolf is too afraid of breaking the code, his only purpose and belief (owl you motherfucker). but as you progress through the game, especially if you take the path of the two better endings, wolf himself starts to realize that he sees kuro as much more than his lord. he genuinely cares about the boy and his safety, and the moment that kuro approaches him with the proposal of severing immortality (which will eventually end with the heir's death), wolf begins to branch away from his lord's wishes and even breaks some of them, all so that he can find an alternative way of ending immortality without prematurely endings his beloved lord's life.

hell, he even dares to break the code in front of his father, who he feared his whole life, choosing to stay loyal to kuro instead of following owl's will, which ends in a duel to the death between father-son where wolf comes out victorious :D

fuck, you, the player, ends up sacrificing something for kuro, since picking any ending other than shura (a.k.a forsaking owl) means you have to go through and beat the much harder final third of the game, even though you had the option to finish the playthrough much earlier by obeying the code. and to get the purification/return ending you have to go even further and beat father owl, who is to many the hardest boss in the game, a legend in his prime, as one final fuck you to that absolute asshole who calls himself a father.

all of that simply because kuro treated wolf with all the care and compassion that owl could only ever hope to show. (fromsoft's choice of having a traditional protagonist really pays off here. the story in this game just feels so, personal y'know?)

and that's why purification is so beautiful, because here wolf goes through all of that shit and eventually decides to take his own life to sever immortality, allowing kuro to live on with the happy and carefree childhood that neither ever got to experience. just, oh god... a cycle of abuse broken by the pure sympathy and love of someone that truly cares about you...

sadly, like in the IS ending, another divine heir will eventually be born again, but this time, there's the hope that it will finally end for good.

then there's finally the return ending, which is the happiest and most hopeful ending fromsoft will ever give to us in a souls game xDDD. i'm not sure how the whole returning the dragon's blood to its origin and kuro being like carried by the divine child (apparently in her womb in the og japanese text?) works, but it is the ultimate end of all the terrible cycles mentioned above (and a great opportunity for a sequel huh fromsoft wink wink nudge nudge)

umm, this came out more as a explanation of the endings honestly but it also essentially explains my favorite thing about wolf as well so yeah xD sorry for all the text lol

* least favorite thing about him: hmm, i will admit, as great as all the subtle storytelling is, wolf is quite honestly an absolute brick of a character xD he barely expresses emotion in his dialogue.

* favorite line: "i hereby condemn the last immortal. may you live on, and embrace what it means to be human." the last thing he says to kuro in the purification ending. excuse me i will go cry.

"a code must be determined by the individual... this is what i've decided. just as my master did." is gold too. spat right in owl's face too hehe.

* brOTP: focusing more on the platonic part than the bro part, definitely 100% his whole relationship with kuro. the way these two care for each other is simply too sweet.

like how kuro decides to prepare a rice ball for wolf, after seeing him eat it raw (because owl abused him by starving him out of food, giving it as a sparse "reward" for obeying his will GOD I HATE THAT GUY)

and also how in that one scene kuro kneels to wolf's eye level to speak to him, instead of standing in the imposing and dominant manner expected of a master....

now, if i where to focus more on the bro part, i really appreciate the camaraderie that both the sculptor and hanbei show towards wolf. sharing a drink with the old hermit and having him share a story of his time, or just practicing your parries with hanbei, it all felt very nice :))

* OTP: i will admit i'm not really into shipping xD i usually only care about canonical or highly implied (to the point of obvious) pairings. that being said, in my eyes wolf has zero romantical chemistry with pretty much every character in the game honestly xD

* nOTP: aside from the obviously problematic ships, none really.

* random headcanon: i have read a fic where wolf has a severe case of sweet-tooth and now i kinda carry that with me xD completely justified in-game too, where you consume stat-boosting sugars.

* unpopular opinion: hmm none? i mean, people barely talk about sekiro nowadays (much to my dismay)...

* favorite picture of them: this is my personal favorite promotional render:

#wolfie wolfie my traumatized boi #thank you mutual for the ask! #i will be answering the other three later (mostly because i like already exhausted all my brainrot power in this post xD) #sekiro

[roccinan]

How do you feel when you watch the spin off? What do you think of it? And do you like it? For me, I sort of like eps 1-4, the rest are just meh, I couldn't bring myself to care for the other characters, I tried. And I was very confused, what year the spin off?. It started off good and... Idk. All I can say is that Andres truly belong in the asylum. That man creeps me out. If I were Camille, I ran away the second I saw that creep. Lol.

Hello anon! I couldn't answer you earlier because I didn't get to watch it. But now I've finished it and, hum, I certainly have a lot of thoughts that I'll probably post later LOL.

For now, here are the most fresh on my mind. I agree with you- eps 1-4 were surprisingly good, last one was pretty cool too, ralicia supremacy. I was mostly just surprised I didn't dislike it. Can't say I loved it, or that it's my ideal berlin spinoff, but for all the "factors" against it that Pina chose of his own free will asdfasdf, it turned out surprisingly OK.

Spinoff takes place around 2013, according to Pina. Which messes with the canon timeline so much we'll just have to see it as a parallel universe where time doesn't matter.

I now call spinoff!Andres my wife. I don't know if that's a good thing or not. So unfortunately, I cannot slander my bride like that.

But I liked that he was still a freak. The show didn't try to make him a better person thankfully, but I think a lot of the reviews were complaining about him being an asshole or complaining that he was ruined for not being enough of an asshole, missed the mark a bit. The main problem, if we have to pick one, about him, is that the context around him is too shallow to take seriously. His speeches about love have no substance (and they actually did in lcdp) because the circumstances have no substance. He's putting romance above the heist because well, why shouldn't he lmao? There's no personal stake here, and it's not like he'll get capital punishment for getting caught.

And that "problem" extends to everyone else. Their motives and actions are just very shallow and There for the sake of being there. Like Roi and Cameron could have had a moving romance, but instead Cameron made me cringe very badly with how much she felt like Alex Pina's idea of "hawt gurl with sad past!!" And said "sad" past was actually really fucked up but the story didn't seem to think so!? It wasn't a tragic romance--it was a 20-something musician sleeping with a 15yo fangirl, abducting her, and then traumatizing her so badly she entered the asylum and ended up hanging out with berlin. Like????

I'll say I misunderstood Keila though. Liked her a lot better in the show than the trailers. But everytime I went "oh, I like her uwu" she'd do something that makes me GAG like inhaling Bruce's sweat or licking his spoon asdfasdf Also the part where she confessed her love for him after the snake bite gave me secondhand embarrassment. None of the love stories felt lasting, believable, or touching to me. Probably because there were too many of them and it was even more convenient than lcdp proper!

Bruce was different than I expected. He's insensitive, but not "dumb" like the character descriptions made him out to be. Same as Keila. Everytime I thought "I like him uwu" he'd do something like talk about pubic hair or cover himself in oil/water, instantly making me die.

Damian is Sergio 2.0 and also Martin 2.0, but straight and old. No strong feelings for him either way. But it was funny that Andres got so mad about sharing a bed with him, when he was willingly hopping into bed with Martin LMAO. Also ngl, it stung my little berlermo heart to see Damian and Andres sing karaoke and go on a lover's bike ride together.

Roi was my favorite new member. He felt like a real original character, and his relationships with Cameron and Andres were nicely fleshed out even if they both confused me. Cameron because the romance was shallow to me. Andres because Roi never told us how they met or why Andres took him in. Andres giving Roi advice on temper control is also hilarious. We'll just have to assume that Andres is willing to raise everyone's kid except his own. He even took that one boy to the bathroom asdfasdf

But overall, I agree anon. I just didn't care for the new characters the same way I did the old gang or the cormorants. Maybe because the stakes were too low or because they were always beautiful and perfect (except Damian lol) no matter the situation. I personally think the producers were trying very hard to create new stars with this show, so they aggressively showed off Pina's flashy new blorbos (cameron, keila, bruce, and roi) but you can't force popularity. This is also my conspiracy theory for the lack of Sergio- they knew having the profesor here would take too much attention from the flashy new blorbos.

Not much to say about Camille. Was hoping she'd be cooler/smarter than this, but what kind of smart woman would not see the red flags in Andres LMAO. Wasn't surprised when Polignac turned out to be an asshole either- man just has the face of a jerk. Was disappointed that they didn't have a threesome with Andres. And the smartest person was Camille's friend.

Lastly, SAME ANON LOL Andres was an insane stalker, off the wall crazy and so annoying about it too. I wish Camille would have slapped him in the end, but oh well- at least their storyline didn't end as stupidly as it could have. She got her money at least XD Hopefully she's not dumb enough to reunite with him (and if she's wife no. 4 we know it didn't work out already).

Does the show deserve a season 2? No. Will I watch season 2? Yes LOL

Main takeaways:

Romance 1/10 Heist 7.5/10 Pedro's face 11/10 New characters 2/10 (not sharing all of their backstories or why/how they ended up in berlin's gang was a major weak point imo) Story 5/10

A solid 7/10 if we don't compare it to lcdp.

#anonymous #berlin 2023 #will answer the other spinoff questions in my inbox soon! thanks for the patience anons! #大家好柏林是我老婆 #再见了冷酷帅大叔 #嗨，斗M美人受

[twistedtummies2]

Gathering of the Greatest Gumshoes - Number 12

Welcome to A Gathering of the Greatest Gumshoes! During this month-long event, I’ll be counting my Top 31 Favorite Fictional Detectives, from movies, television, literature, video games, and more!

SLEUTH-OF-THE-DAY’S QUOTE: “There’s an old saying: ‘Don’t change anything. Ever.’”

Number 12 is…Adrian Monk, from Monk.

“Monk” premiered in 2002, at a time when I often feel good old-fashioned detective shows were on their way out, at least in the United States. Classic series like “Murder, She Wrote” and “Columbo” were nearing the end of their respective runs, and more and more people were gravitating towards what might be termed crime drama rather than Whodunnit storylines and Sherlock-Holmes-esque antics. With that said, it’s remarkable that Monk lasted as long as it did. The show ran for seven full years of straight television airtime, and was even briefly revitalized for a TV movie spin-off just last year: proof that the show’s legacy has not faded away, even after it ended nearly 15 years prior. Considering the final episode of the series broke the world record for the most viewings in cable television history at the time (a record which has, I should clarify, since been surpassed), it’s clear the series struck a chord with audiences.

I think a big part of the reason why comes from the title character: Adrian Monk himself. Monk is one of the funniest and most interesting detective characters in television history, in my opinion. He was a very different kind of sleuth, some would argue, compared to many popular detectives of the past. The humor of Monk, you see, is different from that of characters like the aforementioned Columbo or Sherlock Holmes. In those cases, these were characters who, for better or worse, everyone knew could get the job done. If they did have a silly side, it was usually either a façade to hide their inner steel, or it came from their own passions creating chaos for those around them. Monk is slightly in the latter category, but in a different way. Monk, you see…is a man who lives in fear of his own shadow. And I don’t think I mean that entirely figuratively. Sometime before the start of the series, you see, he lost his wife in a mysterious car bombing incident. The event caused an already mentally fragile Adrian to have a complete nervous breakdown, and he still hasn’t quite come out of it. As a result, Adrian Monk has become a man who is paranoid about just about everything around him. He’s a hypochondriac, has severe OCD, and his mind contains more phobias than you can really list in any concise way. Some are rational, but many are completely unfounded. He’s scared of snakes, needles, heights, enclosed spaces…even MILK he looks at with a sense of dread. Milk, I say! And that’s just to name a few!

The humor of Monk, as a result, comes from watching this man battle his own constant fear of the UNIVERSE, as he panics his way through every situation, fretting and fussing and cowering even as he scopes out scenes and picks out clues. It’s not surprising that his enemies underestimate him or that others around him get annoyed, because he’s not just pretending to be a buffoon: he’s legitimately just a constant wreck! However, through all the goofiness this setup presents – and there is a LOT of goofiness to be found – Monk is NOT an idiot. All of his overwhelming fears and nervous habits come from a very sad and fundamentally broken place, and there are times, throughout the series, where Monk shows not only a tragic vulnerability, but also a sort of inner fire and strength. When the situation calls for it, Adrian can be brought out of his shell, and shows there’s a lot more to him than just a whimpering clown. I think this is the crux of what makes the character so much fun to watch: we know he isn’t faking all this lunacy, but we also know that, at the end of the day, Monk will make the right choice, and will find some way of bringing the criminals involved in any case to justice. Many actors were considered for the role of Monk, a lot of them really big names. Some include Alfred Molina, Stanley Tucci, and the late John Ritter. In the end, the role went to Tony Shalhoub, who was sort of an actor-on-the-rise at the time. It was Monk that made Shalhoub recognized nationwide, however, and is the role he is likely best known for to this day. It’s not hard to see way: Shalhoub handles every scene absolutely perfectly, making Adrian just as sympathetic and heroic as he is absolutely ridiculous. The result is one of the most wonderfully comedic, but still competent and fascinating, characters in detective fiction, in my opinion. From battles with Tim Curry to solving the case of his late wife’s murder to trying to figure out if he’s scared of blankets or not (yes, really), Adrian Monk may not be the bravest of super sleuths…but he's certainly one of the greatest.

Tomorrow, the countdown continues with Number 11!

CLUE: “It really is very dangerous to believe people. I never have for years.”

#list #countdown #best #favorites #top 31 fictional detectives #gathering of the greatest gumshoes #number 12 #monk #adrian monk #tv #television #mystery #murder mystery #tony shalhoub

[foryoupeko]

My favorite ship for each SDR2 Character

***Hard mode: I cannot double up on the couples. So each character must have a different ship***

*Note: I did not fact check any of this so forgive me if some areas are wrong*

Akane: Akane x Nekomaru

Considering Akane’s past, I think Nekomaru is the only male character that could ever make Akane feel comfortable. I headcanon Nekomaru as ace so whenever he would give Akane a massage, there was not an ounce of perversion. Any time Nekomaru looked at Akane’s body it was as a team manager who honestly cared about her. Meanwhile, Nekomaru appreciates how lively Akane is. As someone who was bedridden for most his life, he loves to watch Akane jump around. He loves laughing with her with all his heart.

Imposter: Imposter x Ibuki

I like the idea of someone who can’t be themself with someone giving up everything to be themself.

Chiaki: Chiaki x Peko

I think a lot of wlw ships involve Person A trying to fix Peko. But Chiaki x Peko is sweet because I can see Chiaki accepting Peko as she is. Chiaki is very patience and only wants Peko to change if Peko WANTS to change. Meanwhile Peko is enamored by Chiaki. Chaiki is very chill and not overwhelming. But she’s not boring at all, she can get passionate when she wants to be. Peko loves learning more about Chiaki and her interests. While Peko can’t understand other’s people life experience such as a normal childhood, she can easily understand Chiaki’s video games. These two take turns looking out for each other.

Fuyuhiko: Fuyuhiko x Hajime

Their relationship is based on being equals. They’re each other comfort. They’re both caregivers who wants to take care of everyone but themselves. They understand even after all the crazy things they went though, at the core of everything: they’re both hurt men clinging to any resemblance of normalcy. They know when it’s important to pick up their titles/responsibilities, and when to throw it to the side. And if they ever slip, they know they have someone who has their back. And it’s only thank to that safety net, they know they can be vulnerable.

Gundham: Gundham x Peko

This one is cheating because I only see them as platonic. It’s Sondam or bust. But these two can be so interesting if you just look past their love of animals as their only common factor. Gundham, thinking he’s this dark entity of lord and evil. Meanwhile Peko comes in and is actually a tragedy. While he was born between the unity of a demon and angel, her birth was shunned by the entire world. Her piercing stare that scares man and animal alike. Her sword always sharp enough to take a life. Oh what is Gundham to do? A worthy challenger has come for his title of tragic anime character. The only way to rectify this is to obviously lift Peko up to the point where he alone stands on this solitary platform. Anyways, I have a lot of scenarios where Gundham tries to cheer up Peko for not feeling normal.

Hajime: Hajime x Chiaki

Hands down, this is the most domestic/vanilla ship on the list. Everything is tragic because these two can’t be together. Chiaki, this Ultimate that has what Hajime wanted, turns out to be a really relatable girl. Her talent, video games, is the great equalizer. Anyone can play video games. It can bring people together. Chiaki is on the same wavelength as Hajime. She brings the title of Ultimate to his level. These two truly get along and have great chemistry. Everything is tragic because these two can’t be together.

Hiyoko: Hiyoko x Mahiru

(Warning: Ship Negativity)

This is the only ship on this list where I have no love whatsoever. But you would be sorely mistaken if you think I would give the time of day to Hiyoko’s character. Hiyoko x Mahiru wins by default. Hiyoko being entirely reliant on Mahiru whilst Mahiru ignores all of Hiyoko’s incivilities does not sit well with me. I do like the fact that Hiyoko wants to change for Mahiru, the story does not develop it well enough and I do not have the mental capacity to explore it. I would love to see Hiyoko and Fuyuhiko have a conversation akin to Tanjiro and Zenitsu about Nezuko; where if Hiyoko keeps getting babied by Mahiru then Mahiru will never see her as more than just a sister.

Ibuki: Ibuki x Peko

(Warning: Ship Negativity)

I know this is a good ship. For personal reasons I do not like this ship but if I can look past my biases, I know this is a good ship. I hate how most Ibuki x Peko shippers mindset towards this ship is “Ibuki deserves a hot sword girlfriend” and ignores Peko in the long run (Please don’t say, Ibuki can teach Peko to be more outspoken. That just inherently demonizes Peko for being a quiet girl, WHICH ISN”T A CHARACTER FLAW). I also hate how most of the fanart I’ve seen of these two highlight the sexual aspect of their relationship. The most common trope I see is the two stare at each other with sexual desire, which makes Peko feel OOC for the most part. I haven’t really seen anyone develop these two platonically (mind you, I haven’t been looking). I think it could be cute if they were each other’s cheerleaders. Ibuki vocally exclaiming how cool Peko is. Peko silently support Ibuki at all her shows. If you focus on the fact they’re complete opposites but mesh really well, the ship could work. But people don’t, and it pisses me off.

Kazuichi: Kazuichi x Ibuki

These two loud idiots should kiss. They give me vibes that they both crave attention so the two love being the center of each other’s eye. Both of their love language is Act of Service (as evident to Kazuichi making Mini Mechamaru and throwing a concert). Eventually they would tire themselves out trying to out do each other. After bouncing on the walls, these two can easily transition to just chilling in each other’s present. They’re also the power couple of questionable fashion taste.

Mahiru: Mahiru x Kazuichi

DON’T GET ME WRONG. I know these two would just end in a messy divorce but they can also get some true genuine moments with each other. I don’t like ships where it can only work if both character changes for each other. But I do see the appeal of Kazuichi cleaning up his act for Mahiru and Mahiru lightening up for Kazuichi. Mahiru learning slowly that it’s unfair to expect Kazuichi to be brave because he’s a man. But all ways to Sunday I think these two would break up because Mahiru is a giant lesbian who has bad comphet ideals. BUT UNTIL THEN, I would like to see Kazuichi trying his hardest to impress Mahiru. And Mahiru giving Kazuichi little kisses and taking a picture of his flustered face.

Mikan: Mikan x Ibuki

They have a cute ship name: Band-Aid. I think fanon Mikan x Ibuki works really well. If you try think about how Ibuki does not stand up for Mikan at all in canon, the ship get murky. But forget canon, lesbians are forever. Imagine Mikan going from manipulative Junko to transparent Ibuki. Imagine Mikan getting all the attention she ever wanted from Ibuki! Now Imagine Ibuki shunned by her old group for her radical ideals. Mikan would never shun Ibuki like that.

Nagito: Nagito x Hajime

I’m not the biggest Komahina fan (sorry) so sorry if this is off based. I think these two are great foils for each other because they both want the same things. The only problem is that these two take vastly different approaches to get to the same goal. Everything about Nagito confuses Hajime. Hajime can’t comprehend why he acts the way he does, why Nagito makes him smile, why Nagito puts him at ease? Hajime is constantly trying to understand Nagito. Meanwhile Nagito is trying to make a connection with someone. He thinks too lowly of himself to make a genuine connection. He lost everyone who should’ve loved him. He sees comradery in Hajime, both being nothing special. But what’s special is that they’re both so desperately want to make a connection. These two add new perspective to each other’s thoughts. I think the appeal of the ship is that they’re traveling the same path but does it dramatically different.

Nekomaru: Nekomaru x Nagito

HEAR ME OUT. The ship started when I got sad at the fact that Nagito was just tied up for most of Chapter 2. Think of the muscle athrophy! Unless... Nekomaru secretly went to visit Nagito. And Nagito was only allowed out if he exorcised with Nekomaru. That way he would never leave Nekomaru’s sight but get to stretch his legs. I also like the one anthology where they bonded over being sick kids. Oh and in the DR3 anime where Nekomaru lifted him up like a sack of potatoes.

Peko: Peko x Fuyuhiko

Peko loves Fuyuhiko so much. Everything she did was for him. And she’s such a good driving force for Fuyuhiko. She gives him space so he can grow, she’s proud of his kind heart, she is genuinely cares for him. She loves him so much, but she also accepted the fact that he doesn’t need her (or so she thought). Everything Peko does for Fuyuhiko is so selfless and pure and she literally doesn’t ask for anything in return. In her dying moments she only request that he remembers her. AND THEN TO FIND OUT THE LOVE WAS RECIPROCAL? FUYUHIKO NEEDS HER THE SAME WAY SHE NEEDED HIM? The only way to reward this selfless love is a lifetime of bliss!

Sonia: Sonia x Gundham

I love these two weirdos so much. Imagine these two being outcast for their interests their whole life and then finding someone who fully accepted them. And I love how at their core, they’re both very caring people. Two kind people, battered by the world, find someone who does not shy away from them. Sonia, not phased by Gundham’s dark persona. Gundham, doesn’t let Sonia’s title affect how he treats her.

Teruteru: Teruteru x Imposter

He was a chef, and and he was a food connoisseur. Could I make it any more obvious? I just think it’s cute, the Imposter could be anyone he wanted, and he chooses to be this country bumpkin’s husband.

#danganronpa #sdr2 #happy valentine #for the 14 ships I didn't shit on

[bluesadansey]

Top 5 fairytale remakes!

•Blanca & Roja by Anna-Marie Mclemore I highly reccomend all the books I’ve read by them, When The Moon Was Ours and Wild Beauty aren’t directly inspired by any one fairytale as far as I know but are fairytale-esque magical realism tales and Dark and Deepest Red is a retelling of  Hans Anderson’s “The Red Shoes”. I also did just start reading Lakelore but it was a library book and my flight to move back to college is tomorrow so I had to return it. But I love all the books I’ve read by theknand this is my favorite one it’s a Snow White and the Red Rose retelling. I absolutely loved the two sisters and how their dynamic was written and explored, the writing is gorgeous to me. 

•Deathless by Catherine M. Valente I read this book in high school and at the time it was a challenge so I definitely need to reread it however despite me maybe not being mature enough at that point to grasp everything in the story what I loved about it, specifically the main heroine Marya Morevna and how much I adored her and her arc really stuck with me. And again, beautiful writing style I need to read more by this author (I did read her book Refrigerator Monologues but it didn’t land for me in the same way and other sff things she’s written look more my speed so I should get on that ). it’s a Koschei and the Deathless retelling and I would say out of the death and the maiden related stuff I’ve read it’s one I’d recommend above others. 

•The Lunar Chronicles by Marissa Meyer hard pivot xd, these are very popular so I’m sure you’ve heard of them sci-fi futuristic fairytale retellings of Cinderella, Red Riding Hood, Rapunzel and Snow White primarily. It’s been literal ages since I read these (I remember anticipating the release of Winter in 8th grade and then lending it to my irl friend after I was done with it that long) but at the time I was so into them. I would definitely want to reread these before the animated series comes out (which I hope is successful not just because I’m fond of tlc and would like to see it adapted well but in a long-game sense I think more ya series adaptations should be animated series. More specific long game the tlc series doing well is how I eventually get a faithful Daughter of Smoke and Bone animated adaptation (delusionalcoded). Also, want to state for the record I thought Fairest slapped. 

•Girls Made of Snow and Glass by Melissa Bashardoust I remember really enjoying it’s a Snow White retelling. I remember picking it up because I heard it was wlw Snow White but it was the Queen and the Princess character’s fucked up mother-daughter dynamic that made an impression on me over anything else in the book, and I remember they made me cry in a scene towards the end.

•When Water Sang Fire from The Language of Thorns by Leigh Bardugo. This was a collection of grishaverse fairytales she wrote and most of the stories I read and forgot about but this is the last one in the collection and it’s lived rent free in my mind since I’m not joking, I think the anthology is worth reading (if you like the grishaverse) solely for this one story. It’s inspired by The Little Mermaid and the character it’s most focused on is the Ursula character Ulla Morozova (yes Morozova as in half-sister to the Darkling) who is a song-caster/siren of sorts and it’s about her codependent homoerotic best friendship with another mermaid that ends tragically and is her villain origin story it had no right to make me feel as many things as it did, again after the previous stories were relatively mid (Leigh’s my bestie so I can slander her works that aren’t as good as what she’s capable of I have a right <3)  I was so caught off guard by how good it was. 

Tysm for asking <3

(ask me top 5/10 of anything)

#s speaks #asks #sergeantpixie #mutuals #to tag #anna marie mclemore #tlc #deathless #grishaverse #girls made of snow and glass

[hamliet]

thoughts on aemond and daemon, respectively?

Two of my favorite characters. Those that say Aemond is a one-note cartoon in the books are absolute fools, I tell you. He's so incredibly complex and tragic. (My other two faves are Rhaenyra and Alicent.)

I've already spoken about Daemon being a Byronic hero: mad, bad, dangerous to know, traumatized but driven by love. Aemond is himself another Byronic hero. But there's another difference: Aemond is Daemon's Jungian shadow in the classic sense.

I'll also say that while a lot of people think of the Dance as bad people hurting bad people, I actually find it much like Othello or Hamlet: a tragedy, to be sure, but the tragedy is because the characters have so many great points that seeing them fall is painful. I don't think anyone involved is a "bad" person besides perhaps Aegon the Elder.

Some thoughts in what follows are taken from @linkspooky

Love: Daemon and Aemond

Daemon's love is defined by love, both given and received. Aemond's is defined by duty and the lack of receiving love.

You silly girl! cry the twitter mobs. Stop seeing this as a love story! To which I slide Wuthering Heights, a classic work of Romantic literature, over to them and say, please read. A love story is not always #goals.

Also, yeah, I said it. Aemond is the opposite of a cartoonish villain. He's actually pretty defined by love too.

Daemon and Love

Daemon did not love his first wife, and he definitely had Rhea Royce murdered. No doubt there. I'm not excusing him but talking about complexity.

Then, enter Laena. And I think this is a tragic aspect of the show that they cut: the book says Laena taught Daemon to love. And she did. Rhaenyra loved her too (as more than friends, by the way).

Did Daemon kill Laenor in the books? Very possibly, yes. Did he want power? Yes. Do I think he loved Rhaenyra for more than just her claim?

Yes. I'm not getting into the grooming aspect; I'm talking after Laena. Laena taught him to love.

If he only wanted the crown, he could have killed his brother. But the books make it clear that despite their issues, Daemon loved his brother. He won wars for him.

The book also directly states Daemon named his children after loved ones: Rhaena after Laena's mother. Baela after Daemon's father. Viserys after his elder brother. Aegon after his younger brother. Yes, I see the common name being taken as a slight by Alicent, but it was also out of love for a brother who died while still a baby.

The man is an emotional wreck and lashes out at others because of it. That's what a rogue is. Hence, the title "The Rogue Prince." I'm not saying he's a good person, because "a son for a son" was nauseating. I'm just saying that the story indicates Daemon is driven by love, but where he's driven to isn't always a great place.

Aemond and Love

Listen, Aemond is the most overlooked of Alicent's kids. Not Daeron, who is well-loved by the common people along with Helaena. He's also not the heir.

As a boy, Aemond just wanted to prove himself. Him taking Vhagar at the funeral of Laena was hurtful, but it was the innocent work of a child who didn't fully grasp what he was doing. He's not a monster for it. Luke taking Aemond's eye is also the work of a kid who doesn't fully understand what "permanent blindness" means. He's only just experiencing death. These are children's squabbles with greater consequences than intended.

He wants to prove himself because he lacks love. Viserys is a neglectful dad, and it's not wrong to say his neglect is abusive towards Alicent's kids. But Alicent, while I don't doubt she loves her kids, also fails her kids. I'll discuss this below.

When Aemond kills Luke in the book, it's not "oopsie." It's framed as the lashing out of a boy who had no love, and it's explicit in this framing.

Aemond literally arranges a deal with Storm's End to agree to marry a girl he does not love. Love is a transaction for the Hightowers. The sister he does not pick then taunts him about his missing eye, so he kills Luke to prove to a girl he doesn't even love and isn't even promised to, that he is strong. If he has not love, he'll at least have respect... right?

Alicent Loves Her Kids (Just Not Well)

Like Cersei, Alicent can both genuinely love her kids and fail them all the same. Again, like Cersei, it's the trauma of having their bodies and love sold to a king for a transaction of power that cripples their understanding of love. In other words, Tywin and Otto are the blame first and foremost.

The show's adaptation of the "eye for an eye" scene is good, because it makes the novel's subtext actual text. The scene had nothing to do with Alicent requesting justice for her son and everything to do with lashing out at someone else and hurting them because she was hurting.

Viserys was a neglectful dad, but taking his grandkid's eye? No. Who would that have helped? Ned Stark, the most loyal and moral character in the entire series besides perhaps Davos Seaworth, literally begs Robert in a parallel scene not to kill Sansa's wolf. It's seen as a turning point for Joffrey becoming worse, and it's a turning point here too, for Aemond turning to cruelty.

Alicent, because of the lovelessness of her environment where her father sold her and she's treated like less than a person, turns to violent retribution lashes out at people who are innocent (violence against children, almost like that's a theme). She cuts Rhaenyra and Rhaenyra's line "now they see you as you are" is meant to point out the reality: Alicent's issue is with Rhaneyra, not with Luke. It's not about Aemond. It's about Alicent.

When Alicent dies in the books, her last words are about wanting to see her kids again and to see Jaehaerys. But the context is everything here.

When Alicent dies, she has a granddaughter left, and spends her time traumatizing the girl by telling her to slit her husband's throat so the girl was sobbing and refusing to visit her. Her remembered Jaehaerys is not out of fondness or truth but regret and delusion, because Jaehaerys died thinking Alicent was Saera, the daughter he disowned, come to forgive him.

It is a scene that is filled with regret about how she failed her kids and grandkids, and dying choosing to believe a kind lie (that she was someone else) over reality, because at that point she doesn’t want to acknowledge what she knows: that she wishes she had become someone other than who she became. Still, the complexity enters in that she hurt her granddaughter up until the end. It’s regret but not honest regret—it looks everywhere but inwards. Alicent saw Rhaenyra as her Jungian shadow, and destroyed her instead of reconciling it.

Aemond and Duty

Aemond always tries to do the right thing by his family. But it gets him absolutely nothing. Even when he kills Luke, Alicent tells him he's accursed for slaying his own kin. Just like Alicent targets Rhaenyra and lashes out at her continually for the lack of love in her life, so Aemond lashes out at others. But neither of them are lashing out at the right people.

Aemond always lashes out at those weaker than him. His victories are pyrrhic. He doesn't want to fight those bigger and better than him despite his boasting not because he's craven, but because he wants to prove himself worthy because what else does he have? When he eventually does fight Daemon, he loses.

Aemond goes to war for his brother, Aegon, but there's no remarks of love between them. It's duty Aemond cites all the time, and while I do think he acted out of loyalty for Aegon, it's certainly not reciprocated. Compare that with Daemon and Viserys. For all their flaws, I do think they genuinely cared about each other. Aegon must take the crown because of duty. Even in the show, he is open to wedding Helaena if "duty commands it." It's the classic duty vs love, that age old tragic trope.

Aemond settles for duty, even though he wants love. But Martin's books are never so simple as to paint love or duty as good or bad, black and white. No, it's much more complex. So love doesn't make anyone better inherently, but without it there's no hope at all.

Daemon and Nettles

But if Daemon really loved Rhaenyra, why was he cheating with Nettles?

I... genuinely am not sure the intent of the story is that Daemon was cheating with Nettles. Before you accuse me of rose-tinted glasses, please here me out.

The book made it seem like two options: he was cheating or she was his daughter. However, when the text mentions rumors (which I've been paying attention to as I reread ASOIAF), it's usually NOT one or the other, but usually a mixture of the two with some unknown third component there.

The problem is that both of the two options severely weaken a different theme.

Like, if Nettles is his daughter, that reinforces the idea that magic is only for a certain bloodlines, and while there is some truth to this in ASOIAF, it's not fully the truth, and it seems very very odd to me that George would stick to this one fantasy trope and not deconstruct it like he usually does. Tyrion is most likely a dragon rider in ASOIAF alongside Jon and Dany, and it is much more powerful if he is not a Targaryen.

As for the more likely option--cheating--also weakens the themes because again, a queen is not paranoid and losing everyone if she's right. I've seen some speculate Rhaenyra didn't write that letter, but it is most likely that Rhaenyra did write that letter, because in a tragedy, she must bring about her own downfall. The problem is that it is a lot less thematically powerful if Rhaenyra is right about Daemon cheating on her.

The most powerful thematic option is if Daemon just saw a kid who had power and tried to protect her from the war. Maybe trying to get some insight into her powers, maybe not. But he loses Rhaenyra in the end because of her own inability to trust, and then what does Daemon do? He decides to essentially die tragically defeating Rhaenyra's most formidable enemy: Aemond and Vhagar.

When there's no love left, there's still duty towards a queen.

Like, no, of course that isn't "couple goals." I'm not saying it's some great fantastical romance that we should all swoon at. But I'm also saying that it is true that Daemon's life was defined by love, which is way more thematically consistent with Martin's works than "bad guy do bad thing."

Aemond and Alys

Aemond is Daemon's Jungian shadow, like I said above. He's Daemon with all the duty and none of the love... until Alys Rivers.

Alys is literally the aunt of Luke, Jace, and Joff. A bastard, worth little in society, still, he loves her, I genuinely think the books leave no question about this. She finds Daemon for him. He kisses her before he battles Daemon. She has his child. He takes her on dragonrides with him. It also clearly parallels Sara Snow and Jace.

But because of events set in motion by Aemond, his end comes and love can't save him anymore than it could save Daemon.

When he finally faces Daemon, Daemon's lost Rhaenyra's trust, but he's determined to go out taking out her most formidable foe. And he does. But the tragedy there, too, is that in the eye for an eye point of view in the battle above the God's Eye, he takes Aemond from Alys and his unborn child.

Of the Greens, Aemond is the only one with a potential heir left by the end of the book (after Jaehaera is murdered and Gaemon too). Wonder why that was (love).

#ask hamliet #hotd #hotd meta #house of the dragon #aemond targaryen #daemon targaryen #daemyra #rhaenyra targaryen #nettles #alys rivers #alicent hightower #fire & blood meta #fire & blood