#THE WORSE OF TWO EVILS

[bonefall]

So, your Clear Sky post is absolutely horrifying, but it was very needed, so thank you. What are your general thoughts on tackling his abuse for the AU? Like you've said, pretending he's a good guy is not the way to go, but are you planning on toning down *some* of the situations, just to give some of the cats a break? Clear Sky is a very realistic depiction of abusers, but that seems to come across even without victim number 25, yknow? I'm very curious about how you'd like to go about this.

My most recent big change was bringing Slash back into the fold, because I realized that it was actually a disservice to not address where DOTC's themes dip into Colonialism. It's a hard topic, and I'm still trying to work out the details, but I realized it was important.

With how BB!DOTC is such a MASSIVE overhaul, to properly address abuse and the ways it impacts you, ableism and its violence, and xenophobia broadly, a huge reworking of Slash belonged here too. He's one of the greatest examples of how badly WC demonizes non-Clanborn cats. I shouldn't dance around it.

That's what I need to do with Skystar.

MANY of his victims have happier endings than canon, though. Bumble is one of the most famous, bumped up into a major character and directly responsible for the formation of ThunderClan. Bright Storm is taking most of Gray Wing's roles. Birch and Alder are getting examined, with either a father who wants his kids back or Milkweed as the mate of Misty.

A lot of people will die because of him, even more will be hurt, but I see BB!DOTC as a story about victims and survivors.

Others might grab POVs here and there, but as a response to canon which I feel is Clear Sky's story told in many parts, I center this rewrite around Thunder Storm. The path of kindness he marches down, with love and with anger, and the people he helps.

So BB!Star Flower...

Previously I was playing her as ENTIRELY just manipulating Clear Sky. She was loyal to One Eye and trying to get at Skystar to bleed him dry for 8 lives to sacrifice; but connected to Thunderstar over recognizing him as a victim who deserves her idea of justice. So, she offers Thunderstar the final kill, so her father will be grateful to him and he'll get power AND the death of his abuser.

(When Thunderstar looks upon Skystar, pathetic and neutralized down to one life, he thinks about the collateral damage that will descend upon the forest if he accepts the deal. He decides that he has found the line between Justice and Justification. Of course he wants the power to make his enemies cower, protect his people, and eliminate Clear Sky so he never threatens them again; that's not the problem.

He can still do these things. He wouldn't NEED the power of a war god to do so.

But if One Eye returns, he will be endlessly hungry, ruthlessly dedicated to revenge, and set out to devour the whole forest. Everything would get worse, and even more people he loves would die. It's where his desire to destroy a monster would lead to him BECOMING one.)

Even on its face, it was previously missing an element. There's a step between "Starf decides to bring One Eye back" and "Starf offers Thunderstar the final kill" that was bare. This is the piece that was missing-- That she, herself, is trying to reach out to the only person who's ever really understood her.

But more importantly... I do feel this topic belongs here, in BB!DOTC. Abuse is a MAJOR theme. SKYSTAR is a monster already. He's harmed two wives in BB (Bright Storm and Falling Cry) and played toxic games with all three kits (Thunder Storm, Pale Sky, Tiger Sky).

And I'd avoid Star Flower being abused... why? Because it's uncomfortable to confront the pattern that Clear Sky displays? That in-canon, he tries to cut all his victims into the same ideal shape, from Storm to Thunder to Star Flower? ...it should be uncomfortable. Everything that I described in Clear Sky Is A Monster is rooted in the same desire for control, power, and punishment most abusive people share, he just happens to be a severe example.

Yes. That includes how he treats his child and romantic partners. The parallels that are drawn between Starf and Thunder are there because he wants power in the form of obedience. Starf replaces the son as a narrative award for his "growth" of not killing random people anymore for a while.

A cookie cutter is an effective tool because IT ONLY MAKES ONE SHAPE.

You know what's more uncomfortable? Reading canon!DOTC and seeing someone who hurt you reflected almost perfectly in the character the writers think did nothing wrong. Because of "good intentions" that were not there.

I will say though, just to be clear; I don't see a purpose in being more than PG-13 about serious topics for this project. I promise none of my intentions have changed. Nothing will be more graphic or gorey than canon WC-- just more intentional.

I'm keeping the sacrifice because it's dope. No one is taking this from me. Girl Moment: Killed her awful husband 8 times to count as 8 sacrifices and offered the last life to her buddy as a show of good will. How else do you make friends outside of high school

But I know now that Star Flower NEEDS to keep the canon fact she has very little agency, UNTIL that moment she snaps.

She's sacrificing one abuser to try and bring back a bigger, badder one, because in spite of everything, her father One Eye always made her feel safe. Even though he promised her off to Skystar, and expected her to be willing to die for him. She's followed every command, every order, past the death of his mortal vessel.

The first, and only, selfish choice she's ever made was in reaching out to Thunderstar to offer him the power of her father.

Thunderstar's Justice is a story about a Thunder Storm at the pinnacle of his arc, how the survivors of his Clan are settling into the new normal after the carnage of The First Battle, how Skystar's arrogance brings a violent god to the Forest... and the connection Thunderstar makes with the daughter of a monster.

#Kronk meme: ''Oh Yeah. It's all coming together'' #I'll be making the fragments in another post #Just because this one's getting really long #It works well as an explanation of my intentions #I think I had been making a mistake previously to conceive of BB!Starf as a femme fatale who seduced Sky #Again: I'm not perfect! As I analyze and re-read with a more critical eye. My art changes. #Tho I will admit I do like the idea of a Starf who is totally cognizant of how she can manipulate a villain #Into doing what she wants. I do love myself a powerful and scheming woman #It's that it didn't fit my story or my themes OR even the purpose of BB as a fixit that addresses canon #Better bones au #BB!DOTC #BB!Star Flower #BB!Skystar #BB!Thunder Storm #Also imo this philosophy will let me make BB!One Eye what I think he deserves and works best as #THE WORSE OF TWO EVILS #The Tyrant of Tyrants #And man.... the idea that Skystar becomes the Clan patron of war... #The God of Summer laughs at him. #''Outdone and reeling your wounded pride speaks the words your tender mouth can never say'' #''That you were outclassed and now you obsess over the bigger monster you aren't good enough to become'' #''You fell into the step of a lion and think you can replicate what my paw does without effort.'' #Cw abuse #Tw abuse #Abuse #Child abuse

[i-know-the-endss]

i think the most frustrating part about tbosas is the fact that you want to root for coryo. you want him to be a better man for lucy gray. you want him and sejanus to become closer, to become the best friends sejanus believes them to be. you want him to run away and find a way to relearn all the oppressive and tyrannical ideals the capitol instilled in him.

but that’s not what happens.

coriolanus isn’t necessarily a good person. he’s not a bad person either, not yet, but he’s no where near good. and rather than try to be good, he gives up, he lets himself “go bad”, he rats out sejanus, he lets his anger get the best of him and loses lucy gray.

the idea that coryo could be a good person but chooses not to be is exactly the reason this book and this character are brilliant.

#idk if this comes across the way i wanted it to #i am in no way excusing his actions at all please do not think i am #he has done unimaginable things and damage and has caused so much horror #but the idea isn’t that he’s evil because there’s nothing else to be #he CHOOSES it #that’s what makes him even worse #the ballad of songbirds and snakes #tbosas #coriolanus snow #suzzane collins #lucy gray baird #sejanus plinth #i’m pretty sure people have made this connection but #i just wanted to add my two cents #suzanne collins is a genius

[utterdrip]

i have so many feelings about this conversation. the grief and guilt for the lives he took. how he’s able to sympathize with the gur and acknowledge what he’s done to them as well as what they did to him.

#frankie posts #bg3 spoilers #astarion #bg3 #astarion acunin #bg3: vid #baldurs gate astarion #baldurs gate 3 #i feel like i don’t see anyone talking about this. #like okay yes astarion is evil and selfish and amoral OBVIOUSLY #but when it comes to those that are disenfranchised #in acts one and two he hates them. bc he sees them as reflections of himself #but in act three there has been so much growth #like as long as it doesn’t have any effect on his own life (making it better or worse) he always approves of you helping kids #although he doesn’t approve of giving money to the refugees i think he approves of donating supplies?

[justafriendofxanders]

call buffyverse the bermuda triangle because no ship made it out of that shit alive. no marriage finale, no kids, no epilogue. the ideal ending for me where it's just a whole bunch of exes and dead exes in a world where people are constantly coming back to life. multidimensional divorce FOREVER.

#sorry i'm like one of those conservatives obsessed with a particular idea of traditional heterosexual marriage but it's for divorce #to be clear i'm not talking about real divorce just like the people obsessed with Marriage are not actually talking about real marriages #but the IDEA they think it represents #real life is largely too boring and variable to talk about in sweeping terms #but i think the IDEA that two people once in love can fall out of it. unevenly. wretchedly. for the worse. is beautiful. #me watching buffyverse: wow these people are terrible to each other not because they're 'evil' but because they're incredibly human. #hedgehog's dilemma.... just like in my animes.... #no resolution!! only the Struggle of Living forever!!! #whooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo #buffyposting #btvs

[spookberry]

Uhh heres some Frozen doodles

#there are only two things i would change about frozen #1 id give Anna a sword #2 i would change Hans #the same narrative arc would happen of hans revealing he wasnt in love with anna blah blah blah but id make him more human #i think the realization that he doesnt love her but was using her hits worse when he isnt just some evil dramatic edgelord about it #it makes the story more human i think #my art #frozen

[quietwingsinthesky]

it ever hit you out of nowhere that castiel is living in a dead guy's body and the show just does not care. it does not care. jimmy novak might as well not exist the moment he or claire is out of sight. cas stole a guy's body and his face and his life, and we can't ever talk about it or discuss it in detail because of how fucking horrifying it is that sam and dean's best friend just walks around in a dead guy suit. there's not even a human soul in there anymore. it's just a corpse. stone-cold body snatcher indeed.

#castiel spn #spn #this is not like a Castiel Crime (tm) to be clear. this is more me being (un)surprised that the show is Like This. #castiel is a horror story he is so much a horror story in the rapture #and then they just uh. never bring up again how horrifying and fucked up this is for another like 7 seasons #and when they do its to briefly go :( claire lost her dad :) but its okay! she forgives cas for it! #which!! NO SHE SHOULD FUCKING NOT!!! #but we can't have that discussion. we can't talk about that. because to acknowledge that it's fucked up would mean making cas kind of. evil #in a way that would vastly improve his later character arcs btw. if we had to reckon with not only this massive transgression #but with the fact that cas himself STILL DOESN'T SEE IT AS ONE. #that on a lot of fundamental levels. he is still functioning as he did in s4. a lot of that base programming is still there. #something something how cas never changes out of his suit under his trenchcoat #but it's like. jimmy said yes. so it's fine. that's what it is to him. #anyway. i wish they hadn't been scared of making all three of the boys more fucked up in later seasons. #thank GOD for dean being interesting in how he becomes Worse <3 because they were not bringing that for castiel. #again. good version of spn where jimmy's bloodline is an off-shoot of the lucifer vessel bloodline. explaining a) how lucifer Got In There #and b) letting lucifer possess claire later so that the two of them can have daddy issues together. #something about cas being the monster-not monster that jimmy let in that destroyed his life. #something about lucifer being the monster-not monster that castiel lets in later. the cycles. they are cycling.

[the-rookinator-3000]

oh, gary!

theyre kiiinda weird idk

#club penguin #gary the gadget guy #club penguin oc #jester of dreams #hiii me again #rookies doodles #just incase Yes JoD still circles around my mind 24/7 shes so funny to me #made her worse too ahabahhAHAHAHA #evil malicious grin #ok enough ramblin #this was p good! #gizmodreams #<- thats their like. pair ship name #the two rnt romantic in any way JoD is aroace but like yahh

[sincerelymarner]

this video changed lives (mine)

#quinn hughes #josh norris #sorry to the other umich guys i do not recognize u and i will not hunt down the rookies from 2017 #mere.gif #i meant to gif this two weeks ago but then i was dealing w a week long hangover and a final #also this is poorly giffed but the other version was worse so. lesser of two evils

[is-the-owl-video-cute]

Iran is bombing Israel apparently, FAFO moment truly.

Both Biden and Trump are vowing to defend Israel with harsh military force against Iran.

If they follow through with it and the US moves against Iran, this will actually become a war.

Do not stop pressuring politicians to support Palestine. Do not stop advocating for Palestine. Do not stop protesting Israel. Do not stop protesting genocide.

From the river to the sea.

#Why do I have to live in a country that’s always on the wrong side of history #Why are both candidates on the ballot this election war mongering freaks #can these old white men just both get a fatal stomach ulcer and go septic #surely there could be literally ANYONE ELSE #I would rather vote in a literal dog #but no I have to choose between a far right conservative and trump who wants to wage war with Mexico and China AND iran now #Great #anyway focus on the other seats on the ballot this year everyone #Biden and trump are legitimately identical on half of their stances I truly cannot tell who the worse one is because they agree on everythi #frankly at this point I’ll just vote Biden because the trump voters are actively dangerous when he’s in power #they are either way but he has a lot more power over them during his presidency #but since both Biden and trump love to abuse immigrants and support genocide #there isn’t even a lesser of two evils here #it’s solely a matter of keeping the trump cultists in line

[demon-of-the-ancient-world]

no ok but in part 1 when paul first has his vision of the holy war and quietly says "someone please help me" ---my heart is BROKEN . This is a kid who is terrified of what he might become and then Becomes It. And was doomed to always become it. this is why i'm not fully on board with the "paul is 100% a villain" discourse -- because he never wanted to be. still haven't read dune messiah i just Know Stuff but sure he BECOMES a coked up religious figurehead dictator responsible for billions(?) of deaths, but I will never forget that he absolutely did not start out that way. Paul is a tragedy. And the child he was deserved so much more than what he was made to be later. Whatever crazy bullshit he pulls next, a part of me will always be sympathetic to some degree. this is the horror story he's the killer and the final girl all at once. Never forget the kid who, when able to choose whatever name he liked for himself, named himself after a mouse.

#dune #dune part two #paul atreides #okay NOW I'm done #i think #i can't articulate this well at all but you catch my drift? #it's not 'uwu he does nothing wrong' but it's also not 'welp guess he's evil' no no it's so much more complicated and so much WORSE #doomed by the narrative to become an intergalactic war criminal #never would i imagine how tragically haunting the space sand worm drug movie could be

[whumpypepsigal]

me watching LOTR the rings of power for the plot :

the plot :

morals be damned i am supporting his rights and his wrongs

#charlie vickers #halbrand #the rings of power #haladriel #yes another obsession my friends! #screaming crying throwing up #hear me out guys… #HE JUST WANTED TO BE LOVED!!! #HE WANTED TO FORGET HIS PAST EVIL-DOING AND LIVE THE REST OF HIS LIFE IN PEACE #HE LOVES GLADRIEL AND SHE LOVES HIM OKAY! HE WANTED TO MAKE TWO RINGS TO PROPOSE TO HER AHHHHHHHHH #SHE ACTUALLY MADE HIM BELIEVE HE CAN TAKE OVER THE WORLD AGAIN SHE GAVE HIM THE CONFIDENCE LMAO IF THAT ISNT (LOVE) I DONT KNOW WHAT IS #like someone said on twitter… it’s about making each other worse. love and devotion turning into corruption #is that my takeaway? yes YES IT IS #he so handsome and TALL #how can they make us hate villains when they make them this hot sexy and angsty ahhhhhh #morals be dammed i am rooting for sauron/halbrand #lotr the rings of power #the rings of power spoilers #3rd gif… rewatched that part countless of times. IT WAS SO HOT *faints* #my gifs

[fivekrystalpetals]

I find it really funny that Dazai has, if my memory serves me right, has swore only two times in the whole manga (he seldom swears even at his enemies, he an annoyingly polite boy) and both times coz of Fyodor... like this man made Dazai-annoy-everyone-around-me-to-death-Osamu go WTF at his antics

I bet if Fyodor drops his mask of the perfectly-in-control mastermind and let loose, he's gonna be weirder than Dazai + Gogol combined. Sigma hasn't seen the worst of this gang yet...

#bsd #bsd fyodor #my-bsd-posts #funpost #dazai rarely swears iirc unlike chuuya who is a cursing machine #if at the end of the story maybe twenty years down the lane lol #if fyodor gets to be friends with the ada #friends as in he hangs out in the building uninvited and jobless coz his world changing plans are all finished #or he changes sides or something #in the beginning maybe atsushi goes from demon fyodor to fyodor-san the way he went for sigma #but then he comes to know his real personality (which is trash worse than dazai) and he regrets the decision #and ranpo realizes he was wrong #this isn't like going up against dazai but his eviller twin #as for dazai he'd be like if u can't beat 'em join 'em #so it's two dazais for ada now #plus one clown free pass #and one hardworking ex manager who is the only one kunikida atsushi and co respects #i kind of wanna see this demon trio 2.0 go loose on yokohama haha #also please don't take this seriously #i don't write it as a dazai character analysis or anything #ig translations for the first panel are different in the official ones #but i like the fan translations' dazai went hol' up hold' up wtf on fyodor hehehe

[volant-endeavor]

Hahahahhahaha

#just gals being pals #rick and morty #evil morty #space beth #<-- these two need to fucking meet #im pretty sure it would fix e morty (so many conditions apply tho) #my art #i need a new tag for that. idk. #confounding #previous me is wrong. it would make him much worse

[nessypanda-art]

After seeing an ask GB answered yesterday (this one) I had an idea that turned into a brain worm that wouldn't leave me alone. It's a surprise so it's under the cut (it's not the fact that I'm half surprised how easily it came to me like some black magic). I am not accepting any criticism at this time.

I'll just leave this here.

I'm happy to have made something that literally no one asked of me <3. Feel free to suggest other characters if you want :)).

(I might be smiling but there is terror in my eyes. I am afraid of the thing I awoke in my brain)

#there was a moment where I considered emailing this to GB without context #then I realized that emailing it to him would have been much worse xd #consider this the lesser of two evils <3 #goodboyaudios

[enlichened]

The thing thats consistently bothered me the most in the fallout show is the racism. I would hesitate to recommend it because of that alone. And there was obvious love that the set and prop designers, actors, costume department, and even maybe the writers put into the show! There are themes and characters in fallout that i'm certain would resonate with fans of color!

It KILLS me that so many of the fallout entries are damn well unplayable/watchable in this regard because the writers simply Don't Care how the people in their work are presented. That this like hugely popular world with a lot of worldbuilding and thought behind it does such wrong to so many people, fans and otherwise, that you cannot find any game in the series that does it right or well. It alienates a lot of people who might've been fans just because the majority white creators and fanbase don't give a shit, and I'm sick of it.

it's not enough to say "in the fallout in my head that racism doesn't happen," you actually have to put some things into PRACTICE. Allow space in your head, your games/show, your fan spaces for people of color! notice and say something when you see racism coming from media, yourself, and others!

#like its not AS bad as other fallout media but isnt that the fucking kicker. that its not AS bad #and in fact the games im thinking of that are most egregious in their racism ARE interplay/obsidians games. #bethesda is NOT free from criticism or racism. just look at the elder scrolls. #all of the fallout games have been terrible to different extents to their black characters #the games are TERRIBLY sinophobic. the great war being pinned on china allows for SO much racism in the writing and in fan spaces #but fallout 2 and new vegas specifically have awful and degrading representations of indigenous people. to the point where i wont play 2. #and now this show treating maximus nearly one to one with how star wars writers AND fans treated finn? its not okay #personal / #fallout show #fallout blogging #racism #antiblackness #colonialism #fallout #if not for this i would have thought that the show was GOOD. surprisingly compelling. anti capitalist messaging. but its just. all the time #and this is coming from a white person! i can only listen and imagine how painful it is to play these games or watch the show #and be the butt of the joke every time!!! or the villain or the fool or the one who dies or the nameless entry. #maximus gets to have Some time in the light as a protagonist but for the beginning half of it he's treated SO awfully by the writers #and the latter half does not do enough to make up for it #EDIT: I JUST FINISHED THE SHOW AND THEY FUCKING MADE IT WORSE.... #taking max out and having lucy leave him. for what exactly. why did they have to undermine him and make him look stupid at every opportunit #AND. two of the more major black women being evil capitalists juxtaposed by some white guy who opposes? ......................... #like im glad moldaver was there. i guess. but even she is posed as the villain for the good majority of it and kills innocent people #for no reason and. UGH

[andi-o-geyser]

To answer your question, it's trending because of a new leonard bernstein movie- and how the actor playing him (not Jewish) wears a prosthetic nose 😐

oy vey

#thank you kind anon for informing me <3 #not good news but also not as bad as it could have been! #im seeing the synagogue bomb threats post going around too so at least this is the lesser of two evils #still. TERRIBLE antisemitism and i am so tired of this bullshit but i was expecting it to be way worse #judaism #jumblr #sire we have revived trebuchet thoughts from the front #release the weapons and send our response with haste!