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project-sekai-facts · 9 months

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do u know who each of the virtual singers r supposed to represent in each Sekai? I think some are more obvious than others (Saki and Ena for Rin), but I’m not sure about everyone

The general concept of the Leo/need Vsingers seems to be derived from Saki's idea of an "ideal high school experience", so there's a big focus on senpai-kohai dynamics.

Luka is pretty much entirely based on the ideal senpai that Saki wanted in high school. She's kind, responsible, mature. She's what you'd expect from a good senpai.

Miku takes some traits from Ichika. Both of them are somewhat insecure about their abilities, but nonetheless hardworking. Also both of them are easy to embarrass.

Rin is literally just Saki - she’s energetic, enthusiastic, and nicknames all her friends; they have similar interests, such as hairstyling, and Rin has even read some of Saki's manga collection.

KAITO seems to take traits from both Ichika and Shiho: he's shy and underconfident like Ichika, and introverted yet passionate about music like Shiho. However his introversion is dialed up from Ichika and Shiho’s, and he doesn’t think he would be able to handle the social life that the girls have.

MEIKO acts as a foil to Honami, being more confident and better at facing conflict, but she does have some similar traits to her as well, such as being the "team mom" figure.

Len is usually associated with Honami and is sometimes used to reflect her conflicts in stories. His personality doesn't seem to heavily influenced by anyone though.

MORE MORE JUMP!'s Virtual Singers seem largely inspired by Minori's idealistic view of the idol industry.

Specifically Miku seems to be based on the idea of a perfect idol, or, Minori's impression of Haruka before actually meeting her in-person. Also this Miku starts off as a pretty flat character and is gradually given more personality and character quirks, which might reflect Minori learning about the real Haruka.

Rin is based on Minori. They’re both amateur idols striving to be at the same level as their peers. They’re also both upbeat, optimistic and somewhat naive. Rin looks up a lot to her fellow idols, yet another trait shared with Minori. Huh.

Len is based on Haruka. He has her “princely idol aura” that is practically just his actual personality, as well as Haruka’s level-headedness and maturity.

Luka is based on Shizuku, she's the “perfect”, elegant idol who's actually more of an airhead than her image lets on. There's a reason she first appears in Color of Myself! and acts as Shizuku’s main confidant

MEIKO is more difficult to place, but I think she might be derived from Airi a bit - her speciality is interacting with the audience, something Airi is good at thanks to her TV work. Also both of them have a similar sort of peppiness.

KAITO is more of a composite character - he's a huge fan of idols, just like Minori and Airi, he has Haruka's workaholic tendencies, and Haruka and Airi's responsibility and organisation. There's probably something that links him to Shizuku that I'm forgetting.

next three are much longer because deeper lore and because i found a better writing flow, so they’re under the cut

Vivid BAD SQAUD's virtual singers are an odd case in which it's not extremely obvious which member they are derived from.

MEIKO is very clearly meant to be a Vsinger equivalent to Ken, instead of any of the members. She acts as a sort of guiding figure to them and has a sort of parental vibe similar to how Ken is with all the VBS kids. Neither of them are active as singers either. I also read an interesting theory that she's based on Kohane recently, which you can find here (near the bottom of the first section).

Miku has traits of everyone in VBS except Kohane: Akito's competitiveness and sore loser tendencies, Toya's more cool/calm demeanour, his love of coffee, and abysmal cooking skills, and An's passion for music (which all of them have but An’s is what unlocked the SEKAI). Someone also sent in an ask one time saying that she might be based on Nagi to some extent, which I think makes sense but is probably just coincidental since I think Nagi was added to the VBS story pretty late.

KAITO is derived from the BAD DOGS members, even if it isn't apparent at first because of how outwardly different he is. He's more of a foil to them, but has a lot of their personality traits. He has Akito's sweet tooth and tendency to be lazy about things that don't interest him, and Toya's air-headedness and strong skills in his field of interest.

Luka seems a lot like An, she's energetic and carefree, though I also believe that these could be taken from Nagi as well, since Luka was added after Nagi was first mentioned (but just before she first appeared) so they were probably written at the same time).

Len is a bit more obvious - he takes a lot of traits from Akito. Both of them want to be respected by the people around them, and hate it when people treat them as inferior. Akito has a lighthearted rivalry with An but has a lot of respect for Toya, while Len has both of these with his own partner, Rin.

Rin has traits from multiple characters like Miku does. She bickers with Len just like An and Akito do with each other, and she's the most affected by An's grief in Light Up the Fire. Both she and An are pretty energetic as well. On the other hand, she has Akito's stubborness and more tsundere-ish traits. As a third option, Akito and Rin's first kizuna title is "Speaking of pancakes" and their third kizuna title is "You remind me of...", suggesting that Akito might see Ena in her.

Also Rin and Len are usually used to reflect any conflicts that Vivids and BAD DOGS have, for example in the main story when Rin and Len split and then BAD DOGS did later in the story.

WonderlandsxShowtime's VSingers are fun for me to explain actually, because while it's explicitly stated that everything in the SEKAI reflects something from Tsukasa's psyche (#5 & 6 here), there's still the fact that fate might be real in the game.

Since everything in the SEKAI is a part of Tsukasa’s psyche, this has to extend to the Virtual Singers. They even have stars on their costumes just to make it clear. Think of it like in cartoons and comics when a character gets split into all their different personalities. Presumably: KAITO is his responsible older brother side, MEIKO is his creativity, Len is his curiosity and enthusiasm, and Rin is his more childish/playful side. The SEKAI is formed from things from his childhood (keep that in mind), which is probably why Miku acts like a kid (same applies to Rin. and Len. and a lot of things). Luka is from his desire to make people happy. Now in more detail:

KAITO is by far the most responsible and mature Vsinger in Wonderland SEKAI, and also happens to be their troupe leader. He's very caring in an older sibling-type way; Emu even calls him KAITO-nii-chan (big brother KAITO). That said, KAITO is sort of a foil to Tsukasa, being much more level-headed and humble than Tsukasa is. I think that may be to highlight the idea that he's created from specifically the reliable older brother part of Tsukasa' personality.

There's some older stuff on this blog where I wasn't sure exactly where Luka came from, but apparently it's explicitly stated in her debut card story that she comes from Tsukasa's desire to make people happy. My bad. She only sleeps when everyone is smiling, and will be wide awake when something is wrong. Makes sense, since she debuted in Tenma Household's Hinamatsuri, in which Saki and Tsukasa had a falling out, and Saki is the source of Tsukasa's drive to make people smile.

Now we get into weird fate shit and SEKAI physics. Miku is quite childish and is implied to be younger than the members of WxS, which makes sense when you consider that the Wonderland SEKAI draws from Tsukasa's childhood memories and the shows he put on for Saki. That said, she also heavily draws from Emu, with them both using the same type of speech, being very hyperactive, full of childlike wonder etc. Miku existed before Tsukasa knew who Emu was, so it could be that Miku is entirely based on Tsukasa's experience with childhood, but also Miku knows who Emu is when the SEKAI forms, so it could go either way. or both.

Len is very enthusiatic and loves learning new things. Out of everyone, Len is closest to Rui (while also being a foil to his personality, with Len being more energetic and open than Rui is). This makes sense actually, when you consider that although he acts annoyed at times, Tsukasa does gradually get more enthusiastic about Rui's stage directing and stunts. Another thing that occurred to me is that Len first spawns in not too long after the main story, and first meets WxS in Wonder Halloween, both of which involve Tsukasa and Rui getting into a fight followed by a look into Rui's past of being outcast by everyone for being "weird". So maybe Len was partially created because of Rui wanting people to not distance themselves from him and actually take an interest in his work. Maybe this is something Tsukasa picked up on as well, it is his SEKAI after all. I don't know whether this was intentional, but I think it could be. Most things in this game are lol.

Rin is very playful and childlike in a similar vein to Miku. She’s also closest to Nene out of all of WxS, and acts as a foil to her in the same way Len is one to Rui. Rin is extroverted and childish in comparision to Nene who’s shy and acts as the straight man within her group. Rin initially doesn’t understand Nene’s shyness, probably because of how different her own personality is. Considering that Rin first spawned in just after the main story, her relationship with Nene might reflect the differences between Tsukasa and Nene (and the fact that Nene’s social anxiety was something that Tsukasa snapped at her about in the main story). Also Rin and Len are considered as best friends in this SEKAI, which makes sense considering that they're foils to childhood best friends.

MEIKO is the most creative of the Vsingers and comes up with very imaginative and wacky ideas, much like Emu and Rui do. However her creativity probably stems from Tsukasa, who writes a lot of WxS’ plays, and then she gets the wild imagination on top of that from the other two. MEIKO is also known for her strength, which comes from Rui, and her good hearing (first shown in POP IN MY HEART!!), which comes from Emu.

And now you have to hear something similar with Mafuyu.

The 25-ji, Nightcord de. Virtual Singers are a bit more complicated than the WxS ones. While all of them draw from Mafuyu to some degree, some of them were created more by something that she needs than something that she is. There’s also far more obvious influences from the other N25 members.

Miku and KAITO are more obviously created by something Mafuyu needed, even though they both have traits of Mafuyu as well. Rin and MEIKO are more influenced by the other members, and Luka is a bit of both. Len is influenced by Mafuyu’s emotions alone. Now in more detail:

It’s very apparent that Miku exists to be a comforting figure to Mafuyu. The SEKAI manifested at a point when Mafuyu was extremely depressed and suicidal, and just needed someone to listen to her and understand. That said, Miku starts out quite similar to Mafuyu, rarely experiencing any strong emotion if any emotion at all. Both of them gradually start to feel more as the story goes on, and both are seen smiling more often than they used to nowadays.

Rin is very strongly influenced by Ena. She’s outwardly irritable and moody, but actually does care and enjoys the company of those around her, even if she doesn’t show it a lot. A tsundere, if you will. Despite her usual attitude, she does actually want to help the N25 girls, which she also shares with Ena. Rin’s connection to Mafuyu is less obvious, but I think it might be through her pretty blunt way of speaking and the fact she quite often just says whatever she thinks.

MEIKO is heavily influenced by Mizuki. She represents the distance that Mizuki puts between themself and the other N25 members, keeping herself away from the other Vsingers and from the N25 girls. She first appears in Secret Distance just to make it extra obvious. However I think she’s also influenced by Mafuyu’s very passive approach to her situation. MEIKO often just watches from a distance and sees how things go, which is close to what Mafuyu did at the time. Mafuyu doesn’t do a huge amount to help herself early on in the story, she does try to feel more, but relies a lot on Kanade. It isn’t until KAITO appears that she’s given more of a forceful push to actually face how things are, stop distancing herself from her problems, and take action.

Luka is derived from the people around Mafuyu who are trying to help her, particularly Kanade and Ena. In Luka's Doing Things My Own Way card story, Mafuyu says that Luka reminds her of Ena, specifically her perceptiveness and tendency to point out things about Mafuyu that she herself isn't aware of. She quickly takes this back though, and then says that Luka is more similar to Kanade because of her ability to understand what Mafuyu is feeling when Mafuyu isn't sure of it herself. In terms of personality, she is closest to Mizuki, being more on the playful and teasing side, mainly towards MEIKO. Luka is like a lighter version of what KAITO ended up being. She's not afraid to be honest and realistic, and is a bit firmer than the other vsingers are. She's not afraid to give them a push when she thinks they need it, as seen in her debut in Carnation Recollection.

Len spawns during Guiding a Lost Child to What Lies Beyond, where Mafuyu's mother starts to find out about Mafuyu doing music and taking action. He's sort of similar to the Wonderland SEKAI Virtual Singers, in the way he represents Mafuyu's emotions in a very childlike way. He's scared because Mafuyu is scared of her mother, he's sad because Mafuyu doesn't want music to be taken away from her, he feels lost and alone because Mafuyu feels that way too, he's close to Miku because Mafuyu is and needs her comfort. Some of this is stuff that Mafuyu doesn't even realise, which brings back the idea from Wonderland SEKAI that the SEKAI can create things on the basis of your subconscious.

KAITO definitely embodies that idea. He's Mafuyu's anger, yet she's never angry. He's from all her repressed anger. He appears when Mafuyu's mother makes her life well and truly miserable, attempting to cut her off from N25. Mafuyu hates this, but she doesn't want to admit that her mother is the problem, she doesn't realise just how angry it's making her, how angry her mother is making her. She's holding all of it back, but it manages to leak out in the form of KAITO. As soon as he arrives in the SEKAI, he wants to talk to Mafuyu, find out what's going on and what caused the Empty SEKAI to be, well, empty. As soon as he finds out this is Mrs Asahina's fault, he tells it to Mafuyu's face. Mafuyu was never going to accept it on her own, she needed a push, and a strong one. KAITO does what needs to be done, and he's similar to Luka in that way, he's just way more aggressive and unapologetic. He's almost... bitter, for lack of a better word. Like I said earlier, he's here to help Mafuyu, as well as represent her.

#this took so long to write i apologise for the wait #virtual singer #lore #theory #i guess #project sekai #asks #so many tags #also sorry that the ln and mmj sections are so poor compared to the rest. by the time i got to n25 i just wanted to get this done #and didn't go back to edit those parts beyong spag checks

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mypimpademia · 10 months

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— Hair

Benimaru x black! Fem! Reader, Shinra x black! Fem! Reader

Synopsis: Which hairstyles they like on you the most

TW: None

Note: pictures aren’t mine, all are from Pinterest!

— BENIMARU

⇶ Benimaru is a very simple man when it comes to the things that please him

⇶ So while he thinks you’re gorgeous no matter what, he swears you’re the only person in the world when you have Fulani braids, regular box braids, or French curl braids

⇶ Fulani braids are his absolute favorite, and he takes no action in hiding that

⇶ Compliments you a lot already, but when you come home from a day out with Fulani braids, the affection from him seems uncharacteristically endless

⇶ Loves them with wooden beads especially, and if you have his name spelled out that in the beads, he might lose all his composure

⇶ Can’t stop staring at them, and will just walk up to you and position them to where he can see his name in them

⇶ Especially when when he’s a little tipsy off sake, he’ll ask you over and over to show him while you’re sat on his lap and he has a dopey grin while kissing up the side of your face and neck

⇶ For box braids, he just loves how simple yet versatile they are

⇶ Always comes up behind you while you’re doing your hair and just watches you with adoration in his eyes

⇶ When you get done and ask him what he thinks, he always says “beautiful, as always, my love” and gives you a peck on the lips

⇶ While some may argue that French curl braids aren’t exactly simple, Beni just loves how the ends are so beautifully curled, and thinks you look so enamoring and elegant with them

⇶ Loves to fix your curls if they get tangled or one is out of place

⇶ And when you’re cuddling, he always gently pulls on the curls just to watch them bounce back up

⇶ Beni doesn’t care if your hair is long or short, but for styling he likes anything with claw clips, and half up half down. For colors he loves plain black, brown, or ginger

⇶ And for bolder colors, he likes dark blue or red (to match his eyes)

⇶ Beni is honestly a sucker for anything you do, but less really is more to him x

— SHINRA

⇶ Shinra LOVES locs

⇶ Natural or faux, it doesn’t matter to him

⇶ Just thinks locs are so beautiful on you, especially if they’re bright and colorful

⇶ For faux locs, he likes butterfly and distressed the most

⇶ Doesn’t matter if they’re long or short either, he loves it all

⇶ For natural locs, he helps you maintain them, with your guidance of course

⇶ Does your detox and wash for you, but he can’t help past that as much as he’d like to

⇶ He’s tried to watch retwist tutorials, and you’ve let him practice on you, but he just can’t get it

⇶ It makes him a little sad honestly, because he does wanna help but he just can’t do it

⇶ He’ll be able to with a bit more practice, but until then he just adds the clips onto your hair while you retwist

⇶ On top of his love for locs, he loves your natural hair

⇶ And again, especially if it’s dyed

⇶ Short, mid length, long, he doesn’t care!!!

⇶ Shinra loves when you have it out in an afro, but puffs, claw clips, and finger waves are all close rivals

⇶ He’s actually fully capable of helping you on wash days, so you can relax while he gets to work

⇶ He’s also oddly fast when he washes it for you? Much faster than you are or anyone else when they wash your hair, you don’t know how but you don’t question it either

⇶ He can even blow your hair out for you, and when it comes to protecting it before bed, he’s pretty decent at braiding and twisting!

⇶ But don’t bother asking for flat twists or cornrows, he will try his best, but your hair will be left in a tangled mess

⇶ Shinra loves putting on your bonnet for you too

⇶ If it’s been a long wash day, or you started late in the day just to finish late at night, he always runs to get your bonnet for you and gently slips it on your head before kissing your cheek

⇶ Really though, he’s just in love with your hair. And if your hair is as bold as he is, he’ll love it even more

—

Taglist: @megurulvr @miirene @planetlunaa @kazuminari

Send in a ask or DM me to be added to all taglists, or fill out my form to be added to select ones.

—

Thank you for reading, comments and reblogs are appreciated!

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good-beans · 2 months

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Concept that just popped into my head: Milgram characters doing "get ready with me" videos

Aw, this was so fun!! I always love your hc style of normal au/everyone's chilling, and tried to go the same route -- it was so cute to think about :D

Haruka: Puts on his outfit for the day and explains everything in great detail. He has lots of comfortable items and fun colors. At the very end he speaks off-camera and you realize Muu was standing there cheering him on the whole time. He gets a lot of encouraging comments, and Muu and Fuuta keep an eye on the account to delete any nasty ones that may come in.

Yuno: Shows her outfit, makeup, nails, and bag she’s taking with her. She tries out a variety of styles (not just sticking to the more feminine looks we see in canon). She gives a bit of a tutorial and tips as well as showing things off. Has a main account for her daytime outfits, and a more private one for her nighttime looks. Mahiru is the only one aware of the latter account.

Fuuta: Layers. Lots of layers. There will be three sweatshirts laid out in front of him and you wonder which he’s going to choose before realizing he’s putting them all on. He focuses most on his sneakers and sportswear. He plays loud music over the videos, not knowing what to say. Has gotten into comment-section arguments over those yellow socks.

Muu: Also does a full look at her appearance: nails, accessories, etc. She mentions where you can buy everything, and it’s unclear whether she was sponsored by these brands or is just excited to talk about them. (Whether they’re actually together or not,) she’ll have Haruka on as a guest a lot to show off couple’s outfit ideas. She definitely has the biggest following, and loves recommending Haruka and the others’ accounts.

Shidou: He doesn’t really know what he’s doing, but his account is getting tons of views so the others keep encouraging him to make videos. He’s just glad to be connecting with the other prisoners as they show him how to do it. He dresses in a mix of the sleek patterned shirts and dad fits, and both types of videos are equally popular.

Mahiru: None of the serious-faced flirts or little pouty faces – it’s all smiles for her. Every video is basically a full tutorial – she has captions and a voiceover giving commentary on everything. She has the next biggest following, and interacts constantly. She loves getting questions “what should I wear on an x type date?” “How do I dress to impress x type of person?” because she always comes up with the perfect outfit to help.

Kazui: A bit confused as well, though he does know a lot about style. His interro question makes it seem like he wanted kids – I think he’d really get into the account as one of those “Dad How Do I” types. He talks about matching things, clothes upkeep, shaving/hairstyling.

Amane: Also wouldn’t have made the videos without prompting from the others, but enjoys it a lot. She usually talks about practical things instead of “vain” fashion: she’s excited to show off a new raincoat, sturdy shoes, useful pockets, etc. Over time, she leans into outfits that are more cute and colorful, gaining confidence in them.

Mikoto: He started the account as something for one of his design classes, and got really into it. He likes to challenge himself with unique styles and clothing articles, making pretty much anything work. He keeps everything professional in case an employer/coworker sees, but isn’t afraid to add some flirting and flaunting in there. If he’s open about his plurality, he’ll have some special videos, “choosing an outfit for John today!”

Kotoko: Like Amane, she’s more excited about practical outfits. She’ll show off clothes that have good flexibility, places to store and conceal objects, and heavy duty materials. She’ll rate jackets, boots, and other “military-grade” things for what has worked best for her. She’s very attentive to the accounts that follow her – she does full background checks to make sure her info is being used for justice, not more crime. Mahiru convinces her to do a special where she puts all her piercings in and talks about why she chose them/what they mean.

Es: Experiments with a lot of new styles, trying to figure out what they like. They also just play music in the back, not having much to say about each outfit. They'd rather focus on their series of dressing-up-Jackalope videos, much to his dismay...

#milgram #haruka sakurai #yuno kashiki #fuuta kajiyama #muu kusunoki #shidou kirisaki #mahiru shiina #kazui mukuhara #amane momose #mikoto kayano #kotoko yuzuriha #es #jackalope #thank you so much for the ask!! i didnt mean to take so long for a cute lil post but ah well #i kept getting caught up in canon timelines and relationships and finally tried to just vibe and it worked out #i love all your cast headcanons ;-;#it was still hardest for shidou and amane... i think theyd be the least likely to start/stick with it #but itd still be fun for them if they did :3 #kazui starts slow but once he gets the hang of it i think hed be really into the whole thing #i can see es running a real cute pet account #both pet care and just cute/funny videos #fuuta thinks hes slick using a fake account to secretly follow kotoko but she knows its him...#mahiru follows everyone and leaves sweet comments on every video <3 #though in canon im picturing yuno waking up every day to torment fuuta by going 'get ready with me' and explaining how she #puts on her uniform every. single. day. despite his protests

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berry-berry-blu · 4 months

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phantom and the stars

my gift for @fries-n-knives for the phantom truce !! you mentioned liking grayghost so i wrote a little pre-reveal fic of them being pals :] initially i had a hurt/comfort planned but i could not get this idea out of my head

ive never written valerie before this fic i hope i did her justice

AO3 Link: Here!!

Word Count: 824

Summary: Valerie encounters a Danny Phantom on a rooftop one night who seems more into the stars than she realized.

It was unusual to see Phantom quiet and alone. Oftentimes, he was trailed behind by Sam and Tucker or even that dang dog of his, wreaking havoc in his path. He was eerily quiet when she approached the spot he laid on the rooftop.

"Danny Phantom," the Red Huntress sneered, "what schemes are you involved in this time?" She kept one hand ready on her ectoblaster in case said ghost tried something.

At first he didn't even move to respond, laying motionless like a corpse on the ground. The closer she got to Phantom, the closer she got to a realization.

He was sleeping.

"You're kidding me. You are actually kidding me." Amity Park’s most well known ghost, taking a nap in the middle of nowhere in the middle of the night. She stared down at the white haired ghost who seemed far too comfortable here. Honestly, she thought to herself, how easy would it be for her to just ambush him? Usually she'd see him nearer to Fenton Works or the school, but he's a bit further away from all that this time.

She lowered her guard ever so slightly, hand no longer gripping the blaster. She didn't realize he needed sleep. Or that he even could sleep.

Valerie sat down on the roof, letting herself relax a bit. It was better here than going back home to work on homework at the very least. And she could keep an eye on that Phantom Menace, making sure he doesn’t get up to something bad.

She glanced down at her phone, briefly scrolling through social media, ending up just staring at her background of her and Danny on one of their dates. Time to time, she'd glance down at Phantom, watching the very slow rise and fall of his chest. Did he need to breathe? Or was it just part of his human mimicry? Either way it was drastically slower than hers.

The longer she stared at him, the more he reminded Valerie of her Danny. Both had subtle freckles, although Phantom's were glowing green and vaguely star shaped. Their hairstyles were practically identical even with the color difference. The amount of Fenton tech the ghost owned was also a little strange. There was also the subtle green scar running up his neck, almost like Danny's lichtenberg scar. She always did want to ask Danny about that, but it never seemed like the right time to mention it.

Her thoughts were pulled to a halt when Phantom's seemed to twitch in his sleep before sitting up and stretching. He rubbed his eyes, glancing around before settling on Valerie who had subconsciously reached for her blaster again.

"What are you doing here?" Phantom asked warily, subtly pushing himself back away from Valerie. His voice had its usual ghostly echo, reminding her that this is in fact not Danny Fenton.

"I could ask you the same," she glared.

Phantom sighed, stretching again, keeping an eye on Valerie while she did the same. "I fell asleep, I guess. I wanted to stargaze." The ghost stared up at the sky, a sad look on his face. "It's kinda sad."

"What is?" Valerie felt her skin crawl, slowly letting her hand relax to her side again. It was unusual having a conversation with Phantom. He's more conversational than she initially thought. Guess there’s more than just subpar oneliners.

"The light pollution. I have to go so far away from Amity to see even the brightest of constellations. And even then you don't get the full view," his voice grew quieter and the natural ghostly echo seemed to lessen ever so slightly. "Have you ever truly seen the stars?"

Valerie was taken aback by the question. Was he like this normally? When they weren’t fighting?

Was he really as bad as she thought? This gave some new insight on the ghost.

She shook her head. "I guess I haven't."

Phantom sighed softly. "I figured. They're beautiful. Maybe we could see them together." Valerie watched as a pale green blush spread across his face. "No- wait, that's silly," he laughed rubbing the back of his neck and looking away, "we're enemies."

"You blush green?" How has she never noticed that before?

"Ectoplasm instead of blood will do that."

"I see." It feels like she's seeing Phantom in a new light. A strangely more human side of him. "I'd like to see them at some point if a ghost like you says they're beautiful."

"Next week?"

Her eyes widened. "Huh?"

"Next week we see the stars?"

She could feel her face heat up behind the cover of the helmet. "Yeah. Yeah okay."

Phantom pushed himself up, stretching his arms high above his head. "Great chat then! Can't wait!" He gave her a cheeky wink before quickly vanishing from her sight.

Valerie stood there in shock for a moment, her face feeling like it was on fire.

What had she gotten herself into?

#phandom truce 2023 #danny phantom #valerie gray #gray ghost #dp #i could not stop procrastinating on editing this #i want to write a second part SO bad #but it literally took 5 days for me to start editing #i really hope you like this though :))!!

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queenelleee · 2 years

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Relationship: Miya Atsumu x reader

Summary: Miya Atsumu will always love you even if you change your looks. It’s just that sometimes, he doesn’t know if that change will satisfy his own personal agendas.

Content: fluff, a lil’ bit of angst, suggestive at the end. Brief mention of insecurity and self-doubt.

Warning: reader previously has long hair and now they cut it short (just above the shoulders)

Word Count: 0.6k words

From Elle: Welcome to the club, Miya Atsumu! This is the very first time I wrote something for him. Well, this isn’t actually the first storyline for him but I’m still trying to flesh that one out so here’s a short fic for starters. This is also the first time I wrote a slight suggestive content so please bear with my amateurish writing. Enjoy reading!

“Y-ya cut your hair?“ A little bit of disappointment and shock is written on your boyfriend’s face.

You touched the once long hair you have. Smoothing the strands and checking yourself in the mirror. “Why? You don’t like it?” you said, pouting while eyeing Miya Atsumu.

“Why would ya cut your hair? Baby, are you moving on from me?“ You laughed at his dramatic notion reminding yourself that when you started dating Atsumu, you also signed up to be putting up with his dramas.

“Atsumu, don’t you think you’re being overdramatic? I didn’t cut it too short, plus it is also summer, so it’d be such a relief for me.“

“But... but...“ you ignored your boyfriend’s whining. You don’t understand why he’s like that when he has always been supportive of your looks and OOTD. When Atsumu went to his practice, you decided to have a change of hairstyle, giggling every now and then at the salon while imagining your boyfriend’s reaction. Now that you’ve seen his response, a small part of you was discouraged, but you just shrugged it off.

“Know what? You’re not just used to seeing me in short hair Tsum, give it some time, and you’ll get used to it.“

♡

Except Atsumu is not getting used to it.

While watching your scheduled movie marathon, he would glance at you every minute and stare longingly at your hair. His hands run through those strands, and you hear him sigh after that. It went on for hours. You start to become restless, and insecurity begins to plague your thoughts.

Was my hair really that bad? Does Tsumu love women with long hair?

You were so busy thinking that you didn’t notice Atsumu seeing your distressed face. He knows what’s going on in your mind, so he’ll stop you before it gets to you.

“Y/n, I love your new look. I swear--“

Tears were threatening to fall from your eyes, “It doesn’t seem that way Tsumu, because ever since you saw me, I’ve noticed that disappointed look on your face.“ you said quietly. You don’t want to cry because when you do? You have difficulty speaking because it’s as if your throat tightens and your nose clogged easily, making it hard for you to breathe. So what you did is to choke back your sob and hug yourself tightly.

Even when he’s beside you, Atsumu is quick to press you on his chest and mutter a string of apologies reassuring you that it’s not what you think it is.

“I swear, baby, I love you and your new look with my whole being.“ he muttered while pressing a kiss on your head.

“Then, if it’s not what I think it is, what’s making you so restless about my hair, Tsumu?“your boyfriend started to open his mouth and close it again. Trying hard to form the right words to say. Then, all of a sudden, his cheeks began dusting pink hues, then it spread on his nose, then ears, and lastly, to his neck.

“I swear to god y/n... it’s just that...“ you stared at your Tsumu with confusion. His face and his body language look like someone punched his gut.

Atsumu closed his eyes and breathed four times, then he carefully grabbed a fistful of your hair and started bobbing your head... up and down... like he’s assessing something - hmmmm some of your hair are slipping from his hands. You did not understand what he was doing until it dawned on you a second later. All sadness disappears from your body, leaving you with nothing but embarrassment.

“MIYA ATSUMU, YOU HORNY FUCK!!!“

Likes, Reblogs, and Feedbacks are highly appreciated xoxo

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fille-de-skroa · 10 months

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I was in Twitter, which doesn’t happen really often, and I saw this:

At first I thought "Well, half of the replies to the tweets seem to think that a good female character designs is an over-sexualized one, so it’s not surprising that people think Hinata has a good design…"

But then I realized that the problem of Hinata’s design wasn’t just the fact that she was over-sexualized in the anime and official arts. The problem of her design is that it’s BLAND.

Let’s take a look at her Genin design first:

To be honest, her Genin design is okay. The pompons on her jacket accentuated her soft and childish side, it’s a nice touch to her outfit. Her hair looks good and it’s pretty original to not gave her a more "girly" hairstyle.

But SP decided to gave her a more conventionally attractive and feminine face, and to sexualize her even though she’s 12.

After the time’s skip…

Her design isn’t extraordinary. Hinata’s outfit doesn’t have pompons on her jacket anymore, which seems logical since she grew up. But her outfit is now pretty bland, it just looks like a regular sport outfit. Her haircut is really classical and doesn’t have anything special to it except the two bangs that shape Hinata’s face.

Nothing interesting to say except that Hinata’s design is generic and kinda boring.

The Last design:

With time, Hinata’s design just get more and more generic. Her round face was changed for a pointy chin, and she even completely lose her bangs in her design for The Last. We can’t really tell if she’s a ninja or not, since she doesn’t have her hitai-ate anymore, and that her outfit doesn’t look very… practical for fighting.

The worst part about her design is that it’s OOC. A comment that Kishi made in the first Databook makes us know that Hinata isn’t interested in fashion, and that she was apparently not the type to wear clothes that reveal her skin.

(Kishi even tells us that she looks bland)

But making Hinata’s clothes shorter to make her more appealing to the audience is more important than the coherence of the story I guess… The black socks she wears are similar to the ones that girls in hentai wear, but in the design Kishimoto had previously drawn of Hinata, we can see Hinata was wearing the usual fishnet socks that shinobi wear (and she still has the shape of her bangs)

At first I thought that SP decided to replace the fishnet socks by the black socks because it was easier to animate, or just because they wanted to change of art style to distance themselves from the original anime. But then I noticed that Tenten was wearing fishnet socks on her The Last design… So there’s not other explanation for this change except the fact that it makes Hinata looks even more hentai-related. Great.

And finally, the Boruto Design:

Hinata’s design in chapter 700th was… decent. Her outfit look like an "adult" outfit, and I think her tied up hair looks pretty good. Her design is still bland and forgettable, but it’s fine. But for some reasons, her design was changed for the Boruto movie:

Kishimoto designed it, so there must be a reason for the changes. So, Hinata now has shorter hair and shorter clothes. And frankly, it looks like she’s wearing the clothes she wore when she was a genin, even the pompons are back. Not only does the color palet makes it hard to look at Hinata without laughing, the shape of the outfits is also pretty weird.

I don’t know if Kishi redesigned Hinata to make her more childish in order to show us that her wedding with Naruto only accentuate the fact that she’s still a little girl in love, but if it’s the case… well played I guess??

#naruto #anti hinata #anti hinata fandom #antihinata #kishimoto #anti the last #anti boruto next generation #my post

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ccoffii · 1 month

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Eleceed Redeisgns

Don’t get the wrong idea I’m not trying to fix anything (despite my issues with 75% of the bestie crew having the same hairstyle) ZHENA-nim art did really well on this series and I can definitely see her improvements!!

I find redesigning characters I like as a good exercise for me since I’m trying to practice my character design skills! I’ve also added headcannons so strap in.

First victim, istg he doesn’t even look like the same person lol.

- gave him the :3 mouth bc he has the little shit potential especially after wrapping everyone around his finger

- Longer hair comes from the hc that he is the kind of person who would hide behind it and to match his dads

- changed his hair to brown bc the blond colour blended with his skin too much (helps with contrast)

- The bag is to help him carry cats and more cat food

- Oversized clothes to wallow in, also to hide himself or something

- While Jiwoo and Kayden are implied to wear the same size clothing I still think Jiwoo’s clothes would be tight on Kayden

- It helps Kayden learn about Jiwoo as a person since he would question why his clothes were so ill fitting on him

- Colour palette was hard af, but I mostly went with warmer colours and added blue as an accent so he could match Kayden

- As u can tell the only thing that fits him perfectly is the school uniform, even then he likes to size up the blazer

- His bag would start with no buttons and over time more would be added based on where he’s been and the friends he makes

- Glasses are up for debate but they look nice on him

- gave him more down turned eyes so he could resemble Kang Daniel a little more

barely changed, basically the outfit was the only thing to go

- He looks like the kind of kid that would wear headphones all day

- His glasses fucked off to somewhere and I brought brought them back THEY R HERE TO STAY

- The dress shirt in his casual outfit is the same one from his uniform

- Bc of his upbringing with the doctor guy I would think he doesn’t have that many clothes to begin with and sees little point in getting more

- Ofc that will change later with his friends

- His name tag says his last name is Park but he doesn’t rlly have one and the wiki says so too, so it’s just something he had to give the school or somethin

- More lanky build? Basically a bean pole.

Again who the fuck is this

- gave him his melanin back, like all of it

- He seems more the varsity jacket type guy than Wooin

- Hair is based off Yeonjun’s lover loser era

- Tried to give him that international student type of beat vibe bc his sister is the big boss of the SK awakener scene

- i feel like with this hairstyle it’s easier to imagine him with black hair but I digress

- His jacket starts off with no patches and they’re slowly added on when he spends time with the bestie crew

MY GIRLIE!!

- Changed her uniform to be more fancy based off of the reaction of other students in Jiwoo’s school, the pendant on her bow is her own addition.

- No respectable Gen Z wears ripped skinny jeans… Controversial

- a converse girlie for sure

- Her hair is kinda based off the Mafuyu White Day card, either way she has to give gender

- Are they called arm warmers? They give her an interesting silhouette and very distinguishable from the guys

- Alternatively she wears a turtle neck and a sweater/large T-Shirt when it’s too cold + arm warmers just cause

Some other stuff:

- yes, all the redesigns will eventually include some element of blue like Jiwoo to help connect them and signify how close they are

- a lot of them were made with a go out shopping episode in mind to help us learn more about them

- maybe I’ll write a fic but finals r chasing my ass rn so eventually

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jlushie · 2 years

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Some General Fluff for the Stardew Valley Bachelors! <33

Here are some fluffy and romantic headcanons for the beloved Stardew Valley bachelors! I wrote some general headcanons for Elliott, but I wanted to write some more fluffy things for all the candidates. So if you see some things from Elliott’s general headcanons, I’m sorry! </3

I have some drafts for the bachelorettes coming soonish. So don’t worry if you love the bachelorettes, because I love them too :,]

But I do hope you enjoy!

Elliott:

I’ve said this in my general headcanons, but Elliott is one of, if not, the most attentive lover in Stardew Valley. He’s always paying attention to every detail about you, since he adores you so!

He’s also very understanding of wanting affection, he’s pretty affectionate himself. He doesn’t mind you getting affectionate with him any time of the day.

And I personally imagine him to be pretty lovesick when it comes to you, and very open about it to essentially anyone.

He loves kissing your hands and forehead, no matter the height. However, if you’re taller then him, then he’d also enjoy kissing your jawline.

And his hugs are so warm and sweet. It might sound weird, but he has a lovely scent, and that seems to make hugs and cuddling up all the more comforting.

His nicknames include darling, my love, sweetness, my treasure, etc. It might sound extra to some but he loves those types of nicknames! <3

He leaves you romantic poems and letters pretty much all over the place. I guarantee, even if you’re the type that can’t get flustered easily, that you’ll be a flushed up tomato after reading them.

He’d love if you played with his hair, maybe even put it in a certain hairstyle. It’s just very comforting to him.

And I’ve said this before too, he’d love to read to you. If you guys have children, he’ll read to them too. He’ll even read to your animals, he just wants to read :,]

Sometimes he has a hard time finding inspiration for his writing, but you always come at the right time and fill his mind with the most romantic thoughts that he’d turn into an entire novel.

At the end of the day, when you return home, he’s always there for you with open arms. He lets you eat while he gets a bath ready for you. After such a relaxing and caring welcome home, its off to bed with the both of you.

“My love, you look exhausted! Here, let me take care of you…”

Shane:

Shane was a little awkward at the start of the relationship. Not in a bad way, of course! I imagine he hasn’t really dated many people, so he’s not quite sure how to go about some things. He really loves you, and he doesn’t want to ruin anything. But after a bit of reassurance and some time, he’d be pretty relaxed, with occasional worries.

He sometimes worries that he isn’t good enough for you, so please assure him how much you love him :((

He really tries his best to make you happy in anyway he can. He holds you to such a high regard and just wants to help you like you helped him so many times.

He enjoys helping you take care of the animals (mostly the chickens), and it makes your life a bit easier to manage.

I think he’d love to kiss your shoulders and cheeks. And I know people always think he’s rough or something, but I actually think he’s very gentle, especially with you :))

He has warm hugs. And he’d probably enjoy hugging you from behind.

I think he’d have oddly sweet nicknames, like pumpkin, sweetpea, and buttercup. He doesn’t usually use them a ton, mostly because he sometimes get’s a little flustered just how soft he can be.

He would really like if Jas could come visit the farm, maybe play with the animals, or spend time with your kids if you have any.

I’ve also seen a cute headcanon of her just living there in general instead of living with Marnie. Either way, he really cares about Jas, since she is practically his adopted daughter in some way, and he wants to spend time with her.

He’s all smiles when he sees you playing with Jas, or just showing her any sort of kindness at all.

Speaking of smiles, he’s a lot happier now. When he looks at old pictures of himself, he thinks it’s pretty bizarre how far he’s come. Any picture from the past, even just a little bit before you came into the valley, he seemed a lot different. Even if he’s a bit self conscious at times, he is definitely proud of who he’s become.

As you fix up a dinner for the both of you, he comes up from behind you. It one of his sentimental moments, he wraps his arms around you and rests his chin on your shoulder.

“It smells great sweetpea… Can’t believe how lucky I am to have you.”

Sebastian:

Sebastian is just so sweet- oh my goodness… I might be bias, but he is just so loving.

He just melts like putty when it comes to you. He’d pretty much do whatever you want (like when he dances with you at the flower dance after you’re married even when feeling embarrassed from being watched). Like Shane and Elliott, he just wants to make you happy and to feel loved.

He says it in game, but he wasn’t really appreciated at home, and essentially casted out of certain things. But you include him in everything, and you don’t treat him unfairly or make him feel bad about anything. It makes him fall even more in love with you.

He has a lot of anxiety, but you’re always there to comfort him, and you never judge him for it. It’s really comforting to him.

He also quits smoking for you. It takes awhile, so please be patient with him. But I promise you he’s going to fulfill his promise and quit. He loves you so much!

As for kisses… I think he’d kiss you anywhere. I suppose the main places he kisses you are your lips and your head. I didn’t really include these for the others, but he loves it when you kiss his neck. It makes him flush up and shiver.

He’s likes to switch it up when it comes to cuddling up together. He loves it when you’re laying on his chest, but he also loves to lay on you too.

His nicknames are probably pretty casual, like babe, darling, beautiful, etc… But there’s also a part of me that wants to say when he gets really soft, a nickname like honey might slip out.

I think it’d be adorable if, when he’s on the computer, you’d just sit beside him, or in his lap while he’s working or playing video games.

Sam and Abigail would be pretty shook to come visit one day and see the usual quiet Sebastian suddenly become lovesick and talkative around you. They probably think you’re a god tbh

But don’t get me wrong, he isn’t big on PDA. Sure, he’d hold your hand, or do some small affectionate things, but he gets pretty embarrassed about it. But when you two are alone, he’s all over you.

If you two have kids, he talks about renting a car and having a little roadtrip. And he also makes sure his kids get along, since him and Maru don’t get along. He also wants to be the best dad he can :DD

And he’s always there in the morning, a cup of coffee prepared for your sleepy self and nothing but admiration written on his face.

“Morning beautiful, did you sleep well? I made you a cup of coffee to get your day started.”

Sam:

Your relationship started like a teenage love story, with you literally sneaking into his room through the window and hiding in the bed sheets when his mom came into the room.

And, to be honest, Sam kinda acts like the generic love interest at the start of the relationship; super flustered about being with the person he’d been fantasizing about while trying to act super cool about it.

Eventually, like Sebastian, he relaxes, but he still has his moments of being super flustered and trying to act like its no big deal, despite being so in love he felt lightheaded.

He also likes to show you off, or brag about you. Sebastian and Abigail constantly hear about how amazing you are and all the great things about you.

He is quite tall, and I’m pretty sure he’s the only person who crouches down to kiss you. So by default, his favorite place to his you in your head/forehead. But he’ll be more then happy to bend down to give you a kiss on the lips.

Since we’re on the topic of him being a tall lad, hugging him is essentially just hugging a tree. But it is pretty comforting!

And his nicknames are pretty generic to many, but his go to is usually babe. He does sometimes call you sunshine. :)))

He also likes to give you piggyback rides, and if you have kids, he’ll put them on his shoulders.

Sam also does anything and everything with a lot of energy. Sure, he can have his chill moments, but with you, if feels like he has even more energy than usual.

I also imagine he hums a lot. Most of the time, the music he hums is pretty upbeat, and even gets you pumped up. But when you’re curled up together, maybe sharing a sentimental moment, he starts humming something slow, and more lullaby like.

And I oddly imagine him getting pretty good at cooking. He would beg his mom to teach him a few things just so he can make you some nice food.

He offers to teach you how to play guitar. He sits behind you, gently guiding you to each string.

“There you go, babe! You’re a natural at this. You might even get better at this then me!”

Harvey:

He’s a very, very loving husband.

Like most of the spouses, he will do anything to make you happy, and will cater to your every want and need.

He gets pretty good at cooking, and often makes whatever you’re feeling that day.

That being said, he’d definitely make you a romantic dinner, its literally a heart event for him. He’d like to have a dinner at least every week if you’re up for it.

He is a soft and vanilla man. His favorite place to kiss you is definitely on the lips. Even after you guys are in a relationship, he gets flustered anytime you kiss him on any part of his body. He turns bright red.

He sometimes gets flustered when hugging or cuddling too. He’s also very gentle with you, almost as if he’s afraid to hurt you in anyway (even if he’d never hurt a fly).

He usually calls you by your name, but his nicknames are adorable, especially coming for someone like him, who’s still a little shy about it. He likes you call you dear, darling, and honey whenever nicknames do slip, and every time he calls you a nickname he smiles shyly and flushes up once more.

Like some of the others, he’s pretty self conscious. He fears he won’t be enough, similar to Shane, or he may be holding you back. And he worries that him becoming flustered over every romantic thing may bother you. Please assure him, he’s just so shy and sweet :((

He is also constantly worried for you. You going into the mines and facing off monsters is dreadful to even think about.

His fears amplified when you would come home, your health dangerously low as you pass out on the floor upon coming inside.

He knows it isn’t really possible to stop you, but he begs you to be careful every time you leave for another dangerous place. He’s so worried he may even start tearing up.

The first time you had come home covered in wounds and such, he patched you up with misty eyes, making sure to gently treat you fully, no matter how small some of the wounds may be.

“Please be careful, dear… I know you’re strong, but I can’t stand to see you come home like this. The thought of losing you just makes me so scared!”

Alex:

He is oddly super flustered when you guys get together. You may not expect it since he seems so confident to most people, but he is super surprised you feel the same way about him.

He’s kinda like Sam where he tries to play it cool, even if the smallest thing can make him a tomato.

Unlike Sam, he gets a little less flustered farther into the relationship. He even starts teasing and flirting with you (which he could barely manage before).

His favorite places to kiss you are the lips and your neck. He doesn’t really have a specific reason for why he likes to kiss your neck, but it might be because you sometimes get flustered over it, which makes him feel like he accomplished something.

I am apparently alone with this but I think he leans more to being a little spoon when you cuddle. But he’s be a big spoon if you desired.

And hugging him is like getting invited to… m u s c l e s

And his nicknames may be considered generic, like angel/angelcakes, babe/baby, beautiful, etc.

He’d probably be like Sam where he likes to pick you up, but leans towards picking you up bridal style.

And he’d definitely be the type to pick up up and spin you around when you two hug.

He also tries to seem calm when you leave to go into the mines, but he always panics right after you leave. He’s horribly afraid of losing you, and his act of being calm and relaxed breaks so quickly the moment you step into the house injured or something bring you to him.

His grandparents also love you (mostly Evelyn). Before you two got married, Evelyn would constantly ask when the wedding would take place.

As you two are heading off to bed, tucked into the sheets, Alex gives you a kiss on the neck as he hugs you tightly from behind, as if he’s afraid that you won’t be there if he let go.

“I really love you, ya’ know? I hope you let me be here with you for the rest of our lives.”

#x reader #stardew valley x reader #stardew valley bachelors #stardew valley headcanons #x you fluff

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aromantic-misguide-to-romance · 1 year

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Hair headcanon - the new three

Mephistopheles

his hair looks smooth and nice but if you’d ever touch it, it’d turn out actually much rougher than you’d expect – blame the fact he dyed it without the needed practice... but with a suspicious potion of very dubious quality

btw yes his hair was originally black and one of the reasons his hair never gets to fully recover is his persistence at never letting any roots show

the damage isn’t that bad – mostly normally barely noticeable since his hair is good at keeping appearance

his hair also knows better than to try to curl in humid weather. And also after all the potion abuse it isn’t in the mood anyway to cause trouble

in general it’s a very obedient mane that takes styling well but excessive attempts make it finally lose its shine so he doesn’t try too hardit gets tangled and knotted a lot so he has to carry a hairbrush with him – not a comb since individual hairs are usually quite thin and even fragile if handled roughly

in general it’s pretty average… just like Lucifer’s actually

Raphael

his hair looks spiky and rough but it’s actually surprisingly soft

not the softest hair ever, but gives a pleasant and quite smooth sensation if you touch it

he never really brushes it though. Maybe once in a century I guess? But it’s not like it needs it much – yeah, it’s messy but not tangled and it’s enough for him to run his fingers through his hair to keep it from getting knots

usually it stays in its place once left alone, but any intervention and it’s incredibly messy

mess with his hair and it will stay like you left it with hairs sticking out left and right

on the other hand, run your fingers through it once and its orderly again

it catches all dust, dirt and whatever else very easily though

he isn’t particularly interested in hair care, he does what he needs to keep it clean

doesn’t react to weather much – if anything, it just seems heavier and flatter in humid weather, but won’t curl

Thirteen

that one that actually knows how to dye her hair properly

she knows how to keep her hair in a good shape while keeping it look exactly as she wants it to

but note, it’s not Asmo’s level of self-care obsession – she definitely likes to like her own reflection but her approach is actually pretty practical, so she’s not going to star in a Panthene’s ad anytime soon

the closer to the end of the hair, it gets slightly rougher and more worn out but the change is more or less marginal thanks to the proper hair care

she knows how to brush it to keep it from tangling, from drying from getting dirty fast and what brush straight hair needs for which task

she doesn’t style her hair much – normally she just keeps her hair down, but it’s not unlikely to see her with her hair tied

has plenty pretty accessories and ties her hair in various ways – most often it’d be a side ponytail, but sooner or later you’ll witness other options as well

if she needs to be more formal, probably a loose side braid

generally keeps it rather practical and doesn’t try any elaborate but fragile and time-consuming hairstyles

does her hair curl in humid weather? Yes. And she absolutely rocks that look

#obey me headcanon #obey me #obey me!#obey me raphael #obey me mephistopheles #obey me thirteen

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the-raging-tempest · 3 months

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💌, 😡, + ✂️ for lariel if you'd like 🥺

Of course I’d love to Ferne!!! Thank you so much!!!!! 💕💕🥺💕💕 Love to talk about my girl!

Romance themed!! You know Lariel is a romantic. I think one of my favorite things to imagine is that she likes to make small gifts and things. I love the idea of her making a bookmark, by either painting one or pressing a flower… and giving it as a gift. I think Lariel tries to be very considerate of whatever her partner enjoys. Very much a ‘if this matters to you. It matters to me’ If they are into something she’s getting them. Pens? Herbs? Potion bottles? Books? Jewelry? Anything. Even more practical things like she saw their backpack strap looked warn out so she goes and gets a new one… Not related to that but I imagine she treasures a close and causal intimacy. Because she never got that and always longed for it growing up. I don’t know why I went on for that long.

Angry hc! Lariel is hard to make angry. Though it’s not impossible. She really doesn’t like to see others be treated cruelly or unfairly. She gets actually angry when she sees others being trapped or exploited. She is very sensitive to that. She will speak up or take a fight in those situations. Also just whenever someone is mean for the sake of it. Like they seem to enjoy others suffering. She’s a little more sympathetic if she understands it as just lashing out or being upset as opposed to enjoying hurting others.

Hair themed!! In my mind I wish I drew Lariel with more hairstyles because I think she’d actually like doing her hair once she’s out and about. No longer trapped. She’d feel more inspired to do different looks. I also just think she’d look cute with her hair pulled up. Though most of the hairstyles she knows aren’t very practical.

#oc: lariel #ask #ask game #I am like not sure what to tag I’ll think of it later lmao #THANK YOU FERNE #Lariel lore

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miscelliteeous · 8 months

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Decided that since I can’t get Werewolf!Teddy out of my head, then I might as well write some headcanons. A good chunk of these are not worksafe, which means MINORS DON’T INTERACT.

Contains: Brief mention of violence/injury, breeding kink, mild werewolf smut.

Werewolf!Teddy Lobo Headcanons

During a vacation, Teddy partied a bit too hard and wandered away from the group. He was found mauled and barely conscious, but with no sign of his attacker.

He healed very quickly, and within a week he looked like he didn't even get scratched. His trip is still cut short, and he returns home.

Teddy doesn’t seem too bothered or different at first. Sure, as the month goes on he’s eating a bit more meat, his ears look a little more pointed each day, his teeth a bit sharper, but all that mostly goes unnoticed.

Until about a month later, when one night he has a vivid and intense dream that he's transformed into a monster and trashed his room, unable to get out. When he wakes and sees his room actually IS trashed, he's convinced something's going on.

Tells his mom and Mandy later that day, and Mandy suggests chaining him up downstairs to check. Bellafrancesca agrees that's the safest way to be sure, and the poor guy is left chained up in the torture room all night, though he does get some bedding and his phone to keep him from getting bored.

When they check the recording the next day, Teddy cheers when he is proven to be right. He knew something had to be going on, and now he was a freakin' werewolf? With his family name, he feels it was just meant to be.

He’s still locked up every full moon though. While he’s got a kinda decent level of control, he’s still way more destructive and instinct driven than normal. He’s unpredictable and dangerous, and will have to work on getting that under control.

The cage he’s confined in is nice and comfortable though, lavishly decorated to fit his style while also being sturdy and secure.

Goes even more overboard with the wolf theme than he already did. I'm talking wolf phone case, wolf shirts, big embroidered wolf on the back of his jacket. Teddy is the least subtle werewolf imaginable.

No more silver jewelry, but that’s alright, he’d swear up and down he looks better in gold.

Only a few months in and he comes up with an idea: the Lobos would be way more powerful and ferocious if they were all werewolves. Bellafrancesca and Mandy decline the offer, but soon there’s quite a good amount of werewolves in the Lobo gang.

Werewolf!Teddy Lobo Relationship Headcanons (Not worksafe!)

You’re by his side the entire time he’s recovering from being mauled, and it’s hard to not feel guilty for letting him wander off by himself, despite him being a grown man.

You’re not there the first time he transforms, but you’re one of the first people to find out exactly what’s going on with him.

You’re not allowed to be in the same room with him while he transforms. Even though he’s chained up in a cage.

But you can’t keep yourself away from him for long, and one day you sneak past the guards, disable the cameras, and make your way downstairs to the torture basement.

He’s big, with dark fur, a bushy tail, massive claws, and a long snout. If it wasn’t for his hairstyle and the slight hint of tattoos still visible through the fur, you wouldn’t have recognized him. But he recognizes you.

He gets so excited you’re there and gets loud, his tail wagging the whole time. Practically ruts against the bars with his tongue hanging out. If he could whistle like a cartoon wolf, he would.

The more frequently you keep sneaking down there, the more bold you get around him, moving closer to his cage every time until he’s able to give you a sloppy wet kiss through the bars. He never even attempts to bite you.

Much to your surprise, even as his regular self Teddy starts talking a lot about wanting to have kids with you, finishes inside you whenever he can, talks about how good a dad he’d be. This behavior ramps up the closer the full moon gets.

He also seems even more responsive to being called a 'good boy' than ever before.

Eventually, you get bold enough to unlock his cage and he almost tackles you. He’s more rough with you than normal and with his stamina increased he’s able to keep you pinned beneath him until the sun rise.

He calms down a lot afterwards, but you’re sore for a few days. Of course, that doesn’t stop you from returning every full moon.

#teddy lobo #tedward lobo #renfield 2023 #renfield movie #not worksafe #werewolf #selfship #lite work #Teddy

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freaksheats · 1 year

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Silly slow burn ghost x soap au where they both retired early and also don’t know eachother! A retired Ghost bored out of his mind decides to adopt a child. You’d think a type of animal would be his first choice but ig he’s simply built different. Bring in you the reader, ghosts child, who has been looking for a nice man or woman that might be able to look after you and your dad as a mother and wife! This is your self appointed mission and no ghost doesn’t know that their child has been asking random people that fit their criteria as options to be their mom:

Your history teacher for this year walked in with a smile. He began to greet the class with excitedness that could tire out a puppy. As he talked about himself you took mental notes of all the notable things about the man. He was pretty big, not as big as your dad, but it was still note worthy. He practically glowed with that blindingly white smile and those soft heart stopping eyes, and all around a total contrast to your dad.

But you’ve heard that opposites attract so why would that stop you?

His hair was buzzed at the sides but there was a thick line of brown hair forming a mohawk. You’d normally have to stifle a laughter at such a hairstyle but the man somehow wore it so well. You noticed the beginnings of a beard forming on his face, along with a couple of scars scattered around his features. ‘Must be a retired vet or something’ you think to yourself. Even with all those it didn’t take away from the man’s fun charm.

This is going to easy if it all works out!

You squint at the name tag plastered on his shirt. “John Mactavish…” you whisper and engraved the man’s name into your brain.

‘Would he really be able to help me fulfill my mission?’ You hum a made up tune as you think.

You ended up lost in your own thoughts and stared deeply at the man. Taking in everything about him. Snapping out of your thoughts as you feel your arm being tapped. It was another classmate, they said the teacher was calling to you. You look over to your teacher and quickly apologize, shifting your gaze to the floor in embarrassment.

You hear him laugh but it didn’t sound anything like mocking. Not like when you accidentally tripped over your shoelace in the halls and 2 girls started laughing at you. It was an open and light laugh, it didn’t sound like he was mocking you at the very least. You look back up and see him smiling at you. This smile was different from when he greeted the whole class, it was more warm. “Mom..” you mutter to yourself. The teacher seems to hear as he answers you with a curious ‘hm?’

‘This man is probably way out of my dads league…’ you think as you feel a sweat drop down your temple.

But…it wouldn’t hurt to try right?

You get up from your desk and make your move, not before apologizing to your seatmate as you rattled the desks of course. With determination your classmates have probably never seen before, you walk right up to the man. You steel yourself and quickly grab both his hands to hold.

“PLEASE BECOME MY MOTHER!!!” You yell at an embarrassingly high tone. Forget dignity you will not allow your father to be bitchless his entire life! “…Eh?” He answers back, not fully grasping the situation. You begin calming yourself down, breathing in and out, and with enough resolve you start up once more “hi sir, my name is ____ Riley, I’m currently 15 years old, I love all types of sweets, thai food is my favorite. I also really love horror movies, any of them great -have you seen any of the conjuring movies? Oh- my dads name is Simon Riley, he’s a middle aged man, 6’4, pretty tall right? He’s dirty blond, and golden eyes that I’m sure you will love, he’s a muscular man, bigger than you I think, and most often then not emotionally stupid but I’m sure once you get to know him you’ll love him! SO PLEASE THINK ABOUT IT AND BE MY MOM!!”

#ghostsoap #ghoap #john soap mactavish #simon ghost riley #ghost x soap #codmw2 au #reader insert but you’re ghosts kid #forced reversed adoption?#cod mwii

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zenixromeave · 1 year

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review of aphmau’s mcd skins/designs! (season 1)

original skin

this one doesn’t really count, given it was just Jess’ usual Minecraft skin and it wasn’t really meant for the world which would be established for MCD, but I’ll talk about it anyways for funsies.

I actually prefer this hairstyle for her. It’s not a big change, but the more side swept fringe she has later is used in basically all of her character designs, so this slightly more blunt hairstyle that covers more of her forehead is a nice change of pace. The shading on her hair has always been weird, but again, it’s a nice difference compared to how many of the female characters have very similar hair.

The colors in the outfit obviously don’t fit the world, but they’re not terrible on their own. The lack of shading is a little bland though, and her shorts are so short they’re practically unrecognizable as clothing on a Minecraft skin. Otherwise, I think these colors go well with her character. They’re colorful and stand out, but they’re also actually pretty unsaturated and let her skin, eyes, and hair stand out.

iron armor

Okay, this isn’t even a change in skin, but I think she looks really good in her armor, and she wore it for a long time. Again, the greyer tones of the outfit really let her character pop, and since this is actual iron armor (with small bits of leather), the lack of color or saturation makes perfect sense. I would say that maybe, in a perfect world, her eyes would be hue-shifted to better match the brown in the leather (or vice versa), and her hair would be slightly darker to enhance the contrast, but it makes perfect sense why that couldn’t be done in actuality. The armor is thanks to her texture pack, but it’s really cute and gives a sense of it being hand made, which makes sense for her character. She looks cute in it.

diamond armor

She doesn’t start many of her videos by doing an f5 view for this outfit, so it’s less instantly recognizable and iconic to me personally, but it’s actually pretty cute! The clunkiness of it makes her look cute underneath, and gives it a cool, bulky, strong appearance. I can greatly appreciate this texture pack not going the route of making the diamond armor just armor fully made of diamonds, because while it is iconic in the game, it is tacky looking and doesn’t make a whole lot of sense. Another props to the texture pack artist for giving different designs to the different sets of armor. The helmet is a little strangely shaped and comes across more like a hat in it’s silhouette, and the gap between the leggings and boots has always been confusing and off-putting. I have never been able to tell if the armor is genuinely supposed to look like that, or if the boots and leggings weren’t designed around each other and the boots cover a large part of the leggings and make what would be normal armor look like iron bootyshorts. Otherwise, I think this looks pretty good, actually.

No comment on the sword that’s the size of her whole body.

flower crown dress

I would prefer to use an in-game screenshot rather than a thumbnail, but I couldn’t find one (I didn’t care enough to go into a video and take my own screenshot). The colors between Aphmau’s actual skins and her in the thumbnails seem pretty consistent though, so I don’t think it changes much this time.

I know it has to be purple. I know. But it can’t be. Purple is historically tied to royalty because it used to be incredibly hard to make. Even in Minecraft, purple dye is one of the dyes more difficult to obtain, as it requires blue and red dye to make and isn’t acquired from any flowers. Specifically, during this time in Minecraft, blue dye was lapis lazuli, and therefore was only obtainable through mining or maybe loot chests, so again, it was slightly more difficult to obtain.

As seen here, the end of her dress is certainly not magenta. I wanted to say that maybe we could pretend it was magenta, a dye which is much easier to obtain, at least in Minecraft. However, that’s definitely purple.

Despite the historical/world building inaccuracies, this outfit has some visual flaws, but it isn’t too bad. The most glaringly obvious flaw to me is that the “white part” of her dress at the top is a light purple, while the “white part” at the bottom is perfectly white with no purple undertones. As I understand it, these are meant to be part of the same garment, but if not, it’s still a bit noticable that the ends of her dress are pure white, despite how it reaches the floor and she wears this outfit for a while, going in the dirt and grass plenty of times. Making this part of her dress shorter or more off-white probably would have avoided this, knowing of course she wouldn’t want to edit her skin to have literal dirt at the bottom of it. If it were less white initially, (could have just been the same light purple as the top portion. I don’t like it myself, but I can’t really identify any legitimate problems I have with it. I just don’t like it.) dirt wouldn’t show up quite as much as on the pure white, and therefore it wouldn’t be so weird that it looks so clean.

princess (?) disguise

The silhouette is nice, but that’s all I can say positively about this one. There’s no consistent shading, even on her hair, which is usually consistent between her designs. I guess Nicole dyed her hair, but that doesn’t mean she couldn’t have shaded it the same way as usual... This is also the only skin of hers, to my knowledge, where even her eye color is changed. Maybe it’s just because it’s a disguise, and she’s supposed to look different, but it’s weird considering she never changes characters eye colors like that, and it’s not like Nicole gave her colored contacts.

The yellow/gold should have been slightly more orange, and it’s tone is far too similar to her skin, and almost blends in at some points. The purple, too, is too light and doesn’t fit the medieval fantasy world very well at all. It definitely doesn’t give her the appearance of someone who should have been in the mines for weeks(?) at this point (that was a story that was part of her disguise.) Additionally, why the hell would Nicole have had this on hand?

On top of al that, maybe I’m just imagining things, but this outfit is very reminiscent of orientalist belly dancer stereotypes/tropes(?), with its small top, draped sleeves and gold accents. It’s very much giving “recolored princess Jasmine,” who might have been a sincere attempt at good representation, but was really an oversexualized, generalized orientalist caricature.

Don’t like this one.

That outfit Dante gave her

This one slays bitch!!! I think it’s adorable. The colors are soft and wintery but don’t take away from her own warm colors. If I’m remembering correctly though, this outfit had a skirt or shorts, which doesn’t make sense for Dante to have had and doesn’t make sense for the occasion in the first place. However, I can’t find a different picture of this one, so take that with a grain of salt. I love this outfit.

tailored by Cadenza

Another day another slay!! This outfit doesn’t make PERFECT sense within universe considering the short shorts and purple, but it looks great!! Cadenza is a professional tailor and at this point Aphmau has made her way up in the world pretty significantly, so it’s not a terrible stretch to have this purple color. The dark purple provides a similar color to all the black to make this outfit mostly dark, with a hint of white, and it mixes really well. The white is fully bordered by black (her hair and her sleeves) so it stands out a lot, and the purple is a more subtle pop amidst the black. The color coordination is great. It looks cute. 10/10 I don’t care if it’s not incredibly practical because it slays. What a good note to end the season with! I sure hope the next two seasons can match this quality. (Spoilers, I think it does, actually! With maybe a few exceptions.

#aphmau #minecraft diaries #aphblr #mcd #aph tag #outfit review #mine

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kalosxyz · 1 year

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Team Flare Scientist Design Analysis

9 years later and these guys are still living rent-free in my brain so here’s a rough analysis from a non-professional about their designs, what works, what’s odd, what I like.

Under the cut because... oof is this long.

First a rough overview of details present in all the scientists’ designs:

1. Red as the main colour, with white and another select accent colour

2. Lipstick in their accent colour

3. A high-tech visor

4. A tie

5. A Flare-logo belt

Conclusion; these elements serve to create cohesion between their designs, whilst still allowing for each scientist to retain some personal flair ;)

Aliana

Coded as the orange scientist, a colour complimentary to the red Flare is branded with

Practical, slicked-back/well-maintained hairstyle that won’t get in the way

High-collar and gloves; almost no skin shown in upper body; very conservative

Short skirt, seemingly without shorts underneath; more risqué

Orange thigh-highs with a cutout at the knee, minimising protective value

Platform boots, impractical for running or physical activity; though theoretically better than heels, they appear to fit her very loosely

Conclusion: she’s unsuited to physical activity when it comes to her outfit, and unsurprisingly you first encounter her supervising in the Power Plant, an industrial setting, and she’s not doing any of the manual work. She seems to prioritise her appearance, as she’s picked a colour that goes well with her uniform, as well as making choices that make it more aesthetic-minded than work-minded.

Bryony

Coded as the green scientist, which is the opposite of the colour wheel from red, and quite a shocking contrast at that. It’s quite a bold statement

Her hairstyle is feminine, but in a way that appears to be natural; her hair seems to be messier than Aliana’s.

Her visor is in a different style than the other scientists, appearing to be made of some sort of glass, rather than metal, and being a single flat piece

She’s wearing gloves, which are quite practical, as well as her upper body being wholly covered Her short-shorts are not strictly practical, but they allow for more freedom of movement than a skirt would when it comes to physical activity

Her knee-high boots are very practical, having no heel (the image presents her stepping forward, in her model it’s easier to see that she has no heels) and providing an ample amount of protection to her leg, as well as allowing for maneuverability by leaving hte knee joint free to move.

Conclusion: overall her design is less complicated than Aliana’s, and more suited for physical work. We first encounter her in the pokéball factory, which has a lot of stairs and moving assembly belts, so it makes sense. The shocking accent colour she’s chosen suggests more of a need to stand out than the muted orange or purple, as well as the unique visor, to differentiate herself from her fellow scientists.

Celosia

Her colour is a light, unobtrusive purple that doesn’t majorly clash with the red, suggesting a more reserved nature. It’s closer to grey than to bright violet

Sensible hairstyle that doesn’t get in the way

Shoulder pads; this is the best defence that any of the scientists have, she’s ready to ram down doors and protect important joints from damage. It also serves to give her silhouette some breadth

She’s not wearing gloves, but she appears to be wearing armguards, so still relatively defensive, whilst allowing for greater dexterity and grip strength than gloves would allow

Her legs are covered! This makes her the most practical scientist by default, because your legs are not in danger of being severed at the thigh. Additionally, she has knee-pads

She is wearing platform boots, which is impractical, but their shortness allows for more flexibility at the ankle.

Also, the bottoms are purple like her; we don’t get this view of any other scientist’s boots, so I’m going to assume it’s a piece of customisation unique to her. Additionally, there are tracks under her boots, for greater grip strength

Conclusion: she’s the best-protected admin, and the one most ready for all types of terrain. We encounter her in the pokéball factory, so it’s good that her hair won’t get caught in any machinery, and she’s equipped like Bryony to maneuver around that difficult space. The short hair, shoulder pads, and short boots give her a more masculine angle than any of the other scientists, suggesting a tomboyish nature.

Mable

Her colour is blue, pretty contrasting compared to the red, though not quite as opposed as Bryony’s green

Her hair is in rings, suggesting attention to detail in her appearance. It might be a long shot, but it resembles the curled horned of her Houdoom

Like Celosia, she’s wearing no gloves but armguards

She’s wearing a skirt, but has practically put shorts on underneath, suggesting a compromising and reasonable nature; she can’t sacrifice practicality for her appearance, but neither does she feel compelled to abandom the skirt altogether.

Her boots are knee-high, and with knee-pads, providing her protection.

She is wearing outright heels, the only one of the scientists to do so. This is very impractical, though it’s chunky, not a stiletto, suggesting a compromise again

Conclusion: she’s in a better state than Aliana, but falls short of Celosia and Bryony, especially considering the environment she’s encountered in: Frost Cavern. In light of that, the exposed thighs present a temperature problem, and the heels on ice are a… suboptimal decision, as well as the choice to forgo gloves. Despite her being willing to compromise between beauty and practicality, she’s unable to adapt that to environments that would require her to lean more on the practical side.

#pokemon #pokemon x and y #pokemon team flare #team flare #team flare aliana #team flare bryony #team flare celosia #team flare mable

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jackiestarsister · 6 months

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OUAT Rewatch: Season 4

Episode 4x01 “A Tale of Two Sisters”

~ While the inclusion of Frozen may have been a questionable direction overall, there is no denying the brilliant casting and in-character writing of Elsa and Anna. Kristoff, though, is underwhelming.

~ Regina’s light-colored outfit suggests that she is still ultimately good.

~ Regina and Robin having their conversation in the same room where they were so romantic and intimate two episodes ago is so awkward and sad.

~ I like Belle’s yellow dress in this episode much more than the one she wore when first introduced!

~ It seems that Gold gave Belle the dagger before they began their honeymoon, possibly before they even consummated their marriage. His actions in this episode seem to ring true for the image of him being “addicted” to magic, trying to quit and maybe succeeding for a while before giving in to temptation when presented an opportunity.

Episode 4x02 “White Out”

~ The episode starts with Anna knocking on someone’s door!

~ How do David and Kristoff know each other? Neither of them seem like the sort to travel much, and apparently there is an ocean between their lands. Did the rock trolls take Kristoff on a trip to the Enchanted Forest?

~ Henry is the Anna to Regina’s Elsa in this episode. Oddly enough, Emma seems to understand Regina’s point of view, because pushing away the people she cares about is her own tendency.

~ Emma and David’s conversation in the car is a sweet and realistic moment between them as father and daughter. And David talks about walls as they’re on their way to a literal wall!

~ Grumpy/Leroy’s assertion that Snow/Mary Margaret is now the ruler sounds kind of like fanservice, like the writers listened to fans who said that should be the case.

~ Where did Anna and David get their swords? He made it clear that swordfighting was not something he practiced; did she bring them with her while traveling?

~ For David to have such a detailed backstory with his father, it seems like it should have been mentioned at some point earlier in the show. It could have tied in with his insecurities about being a good father in the previous season—especially since he turned to secretly drinking in order to deal with his nerves, when drinking was what caused his father’s downfall.

~ Out of all the dwarves, why is Happy one of those spouting complaints?

~ Why isn’t Leroy using the blackout as an opportunity to sell the nuns’ candles, like in the blackout he caused in season 1?

~ Since Snow wasn’t really present in the previous episode and has a minimal role in this one, it’s nice to see her have an outburst and stick up for herself! They really shouldn’t be bothering her when she is getting used to caring for an infant for the first time.

~ Emma and Elsa’s level of connection is great, only it seems to escalate very quickly, along with Emma’s freezing.

~ When did Emma mention Henry to Elsa? Did they talk more between scenes?

~ Despite apparently being aware of her situation, Emma doesn’t seem very concerned about the fact that she is in danger of death. I would imagine her having more fear and concern about her family, asking Elsa to tell them that she loves them and that kind of thing.

~ After lamenting that Henry would not hug her earlier, Emma gets a hug from him in the end!

~ David saying that the people in their family “really don’t like to give up” is even more significant after seeing what he was like before Anna changed him!

Episode 4x03 “Rocky Road”

~ This episode’s title is pretty apt: multiple pairs of characters are on both physical and metaphorical roads.

~ The name of Ingrid’s ice cream parlor, Any Given Sundae, is not only a pun but also refers to how she gives away Marian’s ice cream.

~ Snow and David had a court jester named Rupert?! He couldn’t have worked for them very long, since they seem to have been married for less than a year before the Dark Curse was cast.

~ Regina’s outfit and hairstyle in her first scene are way more casual than anything we’ve seen her wear before! And she’s suddenly in short sleeves though just days earlier it seemed to be winter.

~ I think Operation Mongoose and Operation Cobra together allude to “Rikki-Tikki-Tavi” by Rudyard Kipling. In that story, the hero is a mongoose and the villain is a cobra. So both names refer to Regina, first to expose her as a villain, then to prove her a hero.

~ The bird painting is funny, and in line with Mary Margaret/Snow’s interests; but how is Regina so indifferent/accepting of Snow taking over her mayoral office, like she did her kingdom?

~ If they wanted Elsa to keep a low profile, the least they could do was get her some clothes from this world. Why is her only outfit the one from the movie, when this show gives so many outfits to the other characters in each world?

~ The scene of Hans and his brothers is so horribly written; the only good thing about it is that it is short. But it could have been omitted since Kristoff recaps it to Elsa.

~ How can Granny be part of the mob blaming Elsa, after everything Red/Ruby went through? If Ruby were still in Storybrooke at this point (her absence isn’t explained until later), she and Elsa could have bonded over their experiences as magical beings whose powers are spurred by fear.

~ It’s nice to see Elsa and Kristoff interact so much, since they don’t in the movie.

~ Will Scarlet must have been in Storybrooke (or elsewhere in the Land Without Magic) for some time before this curse, if he knew that blackouts were the time for a thief to go to work.

~ What was that scene with Archie about? The decent thing for him to do in that situation would have been to offer to help Mary Margaret get the carriage into the car, and/or tell her about the danger Elsa was in from the townsfolk. It doesn’t seem to me like Snow needs to let go of her newborn; what she needs is support from other people, instead of trying to handle everything about mayorhood and motherhood herself! And they gave Archie a “Let It Go” reference?!

~ Regina and David’s words to Emma, and her saying she doesn’t feel able to save anyone, seem like telling rather than showing a conflict. There’s no real support for it onscreen.

~ Elsa and Hook’s conversation is great!

~ Ingrid does the same thing to Elsa that Cora did to Regina, framing her in order to make people turn on her so she’ll think she can never have their trust.

~ Regina casually sending Henry to fetch something from her vault shows that they’ve come a long way from the time Henry almost got himself killed while sneaking in there.

~ Why is Emma at Granny’s at the end of the day? She seemed to be living with her parents again, not staying at the B&B. Did she go there to get dinner by herself, or to talk to someone?

~ Throughout the show, Hook and his acquaintances refer to his knack for survival, yet he has many close brushes with death. This kind of goes along with how the ticking crocodile, a symbol of inevitable death, stalks him in Peter Pan.

~ This episode has some good storylines in it, but there are extra scenes that make it feel scattered or convoluted. It could have been streamlined by deleting some scenes, like the ones about hunting for Elsa and Archie talking to Snow.

Episode 4x04 “The Apprentice”

~ Why is the Sorcerer’s Apprentice so old? Is there no way to graduate from that role?

~ If the Apprentice has faced other Dark Ones before, he should know that a sword would not kill them. So either his sword was enchanted, or it was just an act to stall him.

~ This is the second time anyone has asked Henry what he thinks about Emma’s love interests, and both times, he prioritizes her happiness over his own feelings. This is even more impressive now, since he just recently lost his father. With both Walsh and Hook, he encourages Emma to pursue love and happiness.

~ Did Henry go off somewhere else while Emma asked Hook out?

~ Anna in the flashbacks and Hook in the present both make deals that they shouldn’t with Rumplestiltskin.

~ What I want to know is, what did Emma and Hook talk about over dinner? Was he able to calm down enough to carry a normal conversation? What do they talk about when they’re not solving a mystery or handling a crisis? Evidently they enjoy each other’s company enough to want more of it, but it would be nice to see them connect when they have time and space to themselves.

~ The scene of Regina and Henry … doesn’t really make sense. It’s like they chose him at random to verbalize what Regina and the audience are thinking, and then she just dismisses it based on his young age.

~ The Storybrooke radio mentions Rip Van Winkle wanting music “to wake up to”!

~ Did Hook spend the whole night drinking and/or sleeping on the docks? Poor guy!

~ How would someone in the Enchanted Forest know the phrase “fully charged”? Did Rumplestiltskin have foreknowledge of this world’s technology?

~ The fact that Henry doesn’t simply ask Gold directly about the Author suggests that he does not actually trust him.

Episode 4x05 “Breaking Glass”

~ Is Emma the judge and jury for all criminals in Storybrooke? It’s a bit autocratic to have her be the one person to decide someone’s sentence, and for it to be so arbitrary.

~ When Hook says he is taking Henry sailing, he obviously doesn’t mean the Jolly Roger since he no longer has it. What kind of craft do they sail instead, and to whom does it belong?

~ I’m glad to see they at least got Elsa a decent cloak … or maybe she made it for herself with her magic, since it’s the same style as her signature dress.

~ “You screw someone over, there’s no getting them back.” This sounds contrary to some of Emma’s experience: she and Hook ended up together despite all the times they betrayed each other.

~ When did Regina and Robin have time for someone to take their picture?!

~ Josh Dallas’ character mentioning Asgard offhandedly is hilarious, since he played Fandral in Thor!

~ This episode almost feels like Frozen II in that most of the characters end up lost in the woods.

~ Lily soliciting that promise from Emma feels pretty contrived, considering they’ve only known each other for about a day. I guess the reasoning behind it was that Lily didn’t want Emma to think badly of her if they were caught and her secret was revealed.

~ “I’m going to build a snowman” never sounded so ominous!

~ It makes sense for Snow to suspect that David set up an adventure for her, because that’s exactly what he did in Episode 3x2.

~ Regina says “before it’s actually winter,” but it seemed like they were in winter just a few weeks earlier.

~ It’s great to see Sidney finally stand up to Regina’s abuse, but it happens at the least convenient time for Emma!

~ How is Elsa able to break her chains of fear so easily?

~ Part of what I dislike about Emma’s backstory with Lily is that it kind of lessens the importance/impact of her backstory with Neal. It means that Lily was the first person she was on the run with and who let her down, rather than Neal.

~ Force choking? Really?

~ It’s a bit odd that Regina’s bad feelings toward Emma are now fixated on Marian, when she had plenty of grievances prior to that.

~ What Elsa says to Emma about never giving up on people sounds like how Hook never gave up on Emma despite her friendzoning him and trying to leave.

~ “I don’t want to kill you.” “See? That’s a start.” That’s actually a great bit of dialogue, only it might have done better for an enemies-to-lovers storyline like Emma and Hook’s.

~ When did Emma learn about Will’s escape, and how did she react? I’m guessing David probably told her via text or phone call.

~ Why does Emma have her box of childhood belongings at the sheriff’s station? Is the loft too crowded with Elsa staying there?

~ Where was the box when Emma was on the run with Neal and serving time in Phoenix? Did she bring it with her to New York, or did it disappear and reappear with the curses?

~ “Reflective today, are we?” is more true than Hook realizes, considering the mirrors in this episode!

~ “I’d love to know more about your beginnings.” Funny when you know the name of their song in the musical episode!

Episode 4x06 “Family Business”

~ David said they searched Ingrid’s business and home. If Ingrid wanted Emma to find that file, why didn’t she simply leave it in her home so they would find it sooner?

~ That lacy version of Belle’s blue and white outfit is so pretty!

~ Belle is doing the same thing to Elsa about Anna that Hook did to Ariel about Eric in Episode 3x17, withholding information about a newcomer’s missing loved one because they are ashamed of what they did to them.

~ Anna’s suspicion of Ingrid is similar to Amethyst’s suspicion of Bismuth in Steven Universe: they both question why a long-lost relative was never mentioned by their family’s leader.

~ It’s a little odd how various princesses in this show meet and become friends without even mentioning to each other that they are princesses!

~ It seems that Belle learned about Rumplestiltskin’s existence and power from Anna, but Anna did not reveal his name, so Belle “did some reading” and learned more about him before returning to her home.

~ In the scene where Belle pulls out Rumple’s (fake) dagger, her scarf has a pattern of daggers printed on it!

~ Emma saying that the longest she ever stayed in a foster home was six months contradicts what she said in Episode 3x05 about counting the days in each new home until it seemed pointless.

~ Looks like Emma has had fair artistic abilities since she was a kid. Does that make art something she had in common with Milah and Baelfire?

~ Did Emma start her file of Henry’s projects in Storybrooke, or during their time in New York? The latter would probably make more sense, but the former would have been a huge sign of growth in her relationship with him.

~ Why does Belle not even tell Gold that she met Anna? He can probably piece it together since Belle mentions the hat, which Anna took from him.

~ Why does Belle need to go to the rock trolls to get her memories back? Why not find someone more local to make her a remembering potion, like the one Zelena made?

~ Watching Belle and Rumple’s scenes when she is so emotional and trusting of him is downright painful.

~ How could that heraldry record exist if the royal family wiped out all records of Ingrid’s existence?

~ Hearing Ingrid’s plan laid out at the end really makes her seem like a psychopath. Is she supposed to be mentally ill, like a stalker going after someone they’re convinced they are in love with?

Episode 4x07 “The Snow Queen”

~ The opening flashback is way too saccharine, and the dialogue in the second half is way too fast.

~ Is Regina’s vault just open for anyone to walk into now?

~ What went wrong with Emma and Elsa testing the candle? Did they mean to neutralize Elsa’s powers as a test?

~ It’s canon that Emma babysits her brother!

~ I love that the local princesses—Snow White, Sleeping Beauty, and Cinderella—are all in the same mother-baby group! And I love Aurora’s modern outfit!

~ Ashley making a joke out of the “Cinderella” story is a bit odd since Rumplestiltskin was the one who served the role of fairy godmother. Did she even have a pumpkin carriage?

~ The dialogue and drama in that scene is just so contrived. Up to this point, Emma hasn’t expressed anything like jealousy or anger toward her parents for wanting/having another kid. It seems random for it to come out now, without any prior setup.

~ Emma telling Elsa not to let emotions get the better of her, when she is about to do just that …

~ Emma jokingly/casually calling Ingrid “sister” really isn’t appropriate given the context!

~ I love the scene with Regina and Henry, but why has it taken this many episodes for him to begin his job in Gold’s shop?

~ Emma says her family spans three generations in 400 years. Where does that number come from?

~ David and Hook look at each other as they reach the same conclusion and realize the danger Emma is in. Like in “White Out,” they are on the same page when it comes to Emma’s safety.

~ Robin Hood missing his target? Even if it’s darts instead of archery, that’s hard to believe!

~ Robin and Will’s conversation is … interesting. It sounds like it could fit multiple characters and relationships in the show, which makes me wonder how much it needed to be them.

~ The story of how Robin and Marian met sounds like it could have been its own flashback episode.

~ Gold shows a lot of trust in Henry’s self-control. Putting that particular kid in a shop full of magical items is like having an ordinary kid watch over a candy shop!

~ Young Ingrid’s fear of hurting others doesn’t hold as much weight as Elsa’s. Ingrid is only shown losing control when a bad person was threatening her loved ones; it was self-defense. Elsa on the other hand hurt her sister because they were careless while playing.

~ Did Emma even realize that she was trapped inside the sheriff’s station? Did she not hear the others calling out to her? And why was she left to interrogate Ingrid alone, without any other witnesses or magical backup?

~ Ingrid taunting Emma is totally like Satan, playing on people’s deepest insecurities, talking them into despair. Her words are probably things Emma has thought herself, only she might not have let herself dwell on them.

~ Emma’s internal, emotional conflict about struggling to control her magic seems to come out of nowhere. She and the other characters have talked about her need to learn more about it and/or embrace it, but that has usually been about her underutilizing it, not being able to tap into it. There has been little to no setup to establish her not being able to keep it in check.

~ David pushes Hook out of harm’s way! But Snow … how could you say “Emma” in such a “how could you” tone?

~ Why is young Ingrid dressed in that over-the-top sparkly outfit in this flashback? It visually conveys her ice magic, but at that point she is still trying to suppress her powers.

~ Ingrid barely displayed any of her magic in front of Wesselton. Why does he automatically assume everyone would hate her for her magic? Do they not have any good practitioners of it in Arendelle or the surrounding lands?

~ Helga’s end is pretty horrifying. Is it supposed to have happened more quickly than Anna’s freezing because Ingrid’s powers are greater?

~ How can Gerda suddenly slap such a dehumanizing label as “monster” on Ingrid? She must realize that it was not ill will that caused the accident. Maybe Ingrid giving up the ribbons made her think Ingrid did not care as much about their bond as she once did?

~ Overall, the relationships between sisters in this show—mostly Ingrid, Helga and Gerda, but also Elsa and Anna, and Zelena and Regina—feel shallow, like they were written by men who don’t really understand the dynamics of sisterhood.

~ Robin’s conclusion, and his decision to throw his morals to the wind and go to Regina, doesn’t really make sense.

~ That shot of Ingrid admiring her magic mirror—or admiring her reflection in it, I can’t tell—isn’t needed. It would have been a more fitting transition to show Emma alone and guilty, then cut to young Ingrid alone and guilty.

~ What does “we’ve looked everywhere” mean? Even for a small town, that would be difficult to achieve and would require a coordinated search with many people.

~ This whole episode feels somewhat haphazard. Then again, so does this half of this season.

~ The absence of the usual supporting/minor characters is also noticeable. Why doesn’t Archie offer his services to help Emma work through her sudden fear of her powers?

Episode 4x08 “Smash the Mirror – Part 1”

~ It makes sense for Henry to be the one to approach Emma, have no fear of her, and even deny the significance of any injury she causes. But him running away without a word doesn’t sit right; he would have at least said something like “I’m not giving up on you.”

~ Why couldn’t Emma ask Gold for something like the cuff that neutralizes one’s magic temporarily? That would be a much better way, since she does occasionally (but with increasing frequency) need her powers in order to protect her loved ones and defeat her enemies.

~ Even if she trusts Gold now due to him being Henry’s grandfather, Emma should know better than to think he would help her without asking something in return.

~ Why is Elsa wearing her gloves (apparently given to Ingrid by Rumplestiltskin) in these flashbacks? She didn’t have them in the earlier ones.

~ Cool use of the broken mirror in the cinematography, having Anna and Elsa appear in different pieces of the glass.

~ Why is frozen Hans still intact, whereas frozen Helga disintegrated?

~ This is the second time Robin has mentioned Friar Tuck. I want to see this Merry Man! On that note: Sundays would be the least likely day of the week for a Christian to be sober, since Sunday is a day of celebration like Easter; even people who are fasting may break their fast on that day.

~ Did Hook ride in the back of David’s pickup truck while they searched for Emma? That’s kind of amusing to imagine!

~ David couldn’t have taken that picture, because he’s in it!

~ Is “Anton the Giant” an homage to Andre the Giant? If so, I approve!

~ While Emma is trying to get rid of her powers, Henry bemoans the fact that he has none. He really should have had a larger role in trying to convince her to embrace her magic rather than run from it; that has been his role ever since he came into her life.

~ What kind of queen has to sneak around her own castle? Does Elsa not have as much political/legal power as Ingrid now?

~ Hook’s phone message scene is heartbreaking, in the best way possible! His emotions are so raw, yet his integrity and good heart shine through. And I loved the way his music theme played at the end as he realizes where he has to go!

Episode 4x09 “Smash the Mirror – Part 2”

~ Does Elsa just walk in those high heels everywhere? Even over a distance most others would drive?

~ Snow and Regina’s conversation is interesting, but it feels wrong for them to be discussing that when they should be urgently searching for Emma.

~ “If you do good hoping to be redeemed, is it really good?” That’s a very good question, probably one of the better points of reflection in this show!

~ Of course Will “gets” the Evil Queen type!

~ Gold and Emma’s scene is fascinating, but also painful to watch. There’s so much vulnerability but also so much manipulation. They are much like Pan and Henry in season 3, with the villain trying to convince the hero to give up their power to them. Gold seems to be making a confession to Emma, since he thinks she won’t be around much longer. Emma actually thanks him, something she’s never done before.

~ The scene of Elsa talking down Emma and explaining the necessity of self-love is so beautiful and powerful.

~ It’s great to see Elsa being proactive and heroic, rather than just being the cause of a crisis as in Frozen and the first few episodes of this season.

~ “I’ll take that risk if you will.” That scene has way more sisterly love than all the mentions of “my sister” between Elsa and Ingrid and their respective siblings.

~ This is the second time Rumple attempts to take Killian’s heart; the first time, Milah stopped him. He also experienced Cora controlling him via his heart.

~ I don’t really buy the worldbuilding they tried to make around the storybook, but Robin and Regina’s scene in the library is quite good, especially as she says she owes Snow a quarter!

~ Emma’s smile after she makes the fireworks is so sweet: she’s proud that she was able to use her magic that way! That’s a great shot of the five of them looking up at the fireworks. The only odd thing is that Emma does not notice Hook’s absence from that lineup.

~ How could the Sorcerer’s Apprentice just conjure a doorway to the Land Without Magic? If it were that easy, why did it take Rumplestiltskin centuries to create a Dark Curse for the same purpose?

Episode 4x10 “Fall”

~ A whole episode is a pretty long time between a curse being enacted and taking effect, especially since they keep looking at the coming cloud.

~ It’s a small thing, but I like how Emma delegates everyone’s tasks, and finds one for Hook that is suited to his area of expertise.

~ What was it that caused Arendelle to thaw out in the present day, after being frozen for 30 years?

~ Gold’s words about choosing himself over everyone else sounds exactly like Hook’s attitude up until the end of season 2. That probably makes it even more detestable to Hook, because it reminds him of how he used to be.

~ This episode totally rehashes the stakes and twist of the season 2 finale, where the heroes have to decide whether to risk the town to save one person, and someone does a sleight-of-hand/bait-and-switch passing off an empty pouch while withholding the item that their fates depend on.

~ Shouldn’t Tinker Bell be among the fairies? She was in Storybrooke after the second curse, and after that no one could leave due to the flying monkeys. There was only a small window of time between Zelena’s defeat and the appearance of the ice wall; might she have left Storybrooke then to take her chances in a Land Without Magic?

~ Hiding and crawling on her hands and knees seems unbecoming of the Blue Fairy. Even if her magic is not comparable to that of the hat, I would at least expect her to fight in defense of her fairies. As Mother Superior, the other nuns are her spiritual daughters.

~ Hook feels so guilty and ashamed of doing that to the fairies and having to hide it from Emma!

~ Hook is so genuinely indignant and disgusted with Gold for Belle’s sake, seeing how dishonest he is with his loving wife. I think it may point to their different priorities: Hook is self-sacrificing and would choose love over power any day, whereas Gold either chooses power over love, or tries (and fails) to have both.

~ Gold explicitly goes against his own advice to Regina in Episode 2x17, that “You can’t have everything.”

~ Snow’s “both of you” means she was addressing both Emma and Elsa about their magic!

~ When told that he is going to die, Hook’s last voluntary action is to see Emma again!

~ Regina telling Henry “I wish I was as brave as you” is beautiful!

~ If Regina really wanted to keep herself contained for others’ safety, her vault would not be the best place, as she would be surrounded by powerful objects there that she could then use.

~ That montage at the end, showing the various ensemble characters waiting/watching in different places, is great!

Episode 4x11 “Shattered Sight”

~ They completely gloss over the fact that Ingrid made a life for herself in the Land Without Magic. What was it like for her to finally be like other people, without the powers she had feared for so long? And why did she expect Emma’s magic to come out in such a land?

~ In a show where the power of love is so often the solution to problems, it seems dissonant for the heroes to seek out strong hatred as a means to counteract such magic.

~ Emma compares her relationship with Hook to the relationship Regina could have had with Robin!

~ Hook’s fall is so fake!

~ Even while under the Shattered Sight spell, Mary Margaret and David still love their baby!

~ Did the sorcerer’s scroll allow Ingrid to get past Storybrooke’s magical protection?

~ One of the biggest plot holes: Why did Ingrid wait so long after Emma came to Storybrooke before enacting her plan?

~ Is David still trying to help Mary Margaret when she fights Regina?

~ That letter is waaay too long and too neatly written for Gerda to have drafted it in that scene of the storm at sea.

~ The role Anna plays in this climax is similar to that of Frozen: when the magical sister cannot stop the storm, she comes in and risks her own life to show love.

~ The fact that the spell can only be broken by killing the person who cast it … just doesn’t sound or feel right for this show. Ingrid’s death is completely unnecessary, and even contradictory, from a thematic standpoint.

~ Ingrid’s “conversion” moment and her decision to reverse the spell are way too rushed.

~ The fact that Snow White and the Evil Queen can laugh at themselves for fighting each other is pretty remarkable, considering their history.

~ The reunion scene is lovely, but why doesn’t Emma think of Hook? The last she knew, he was going to chain himself to the docks; shouldn’t she think to check on him?

~ Did Belle just sleep through the entire spell?

~ Gold’s parting words to Hook make him realize just how terrible a scourge the Dark One would be on that world.

Episode 4x12 “Heroes and Villains”

~ Emma sounds like a Jedi saying “I sense …”

~ Regina is back to wearing vivid primary colors! I love her blue coat and cable-knit sweater.

~ When has Marian had time, since waking up, to see the way Robin and Regina look at one another?

~ Hook speaks as though he believes in reincarnation, while Gold alludes to Hell and/or the Underworld.

~ Is that a Winnie-the-Pooh bear that Henry picks up in Gold’s shop?

~ Why did Henry bring the book to Gold’s shop, other than to remind the audience of Operation Mongoose? Was he finally going to ask Gold directly about how it works? That interaction with Belle really feels like it doesn’t have any foundation.

~ An animal leading a heroine off the path, into the woods, feels very fairy tale-esque.

~ Emma’s surprise at Hook makes sense: while he is resourceful, magic is not his area of expertise, and the idea of Gold helping his old enemy without a price is bizarre.

~ Hook wants so much to warn Emma, or just to hold her one last time, he manages to squeeze her hand despite Gold controlling his words and most of his actions!

~ When Rumplestiltskin looks for Belle in the flashbacks, was that the first time he called her by name? And was that message in the shell the first time she called him “Rumple”?

~ This probably wasn’t intentional, but Rumplestiltskin’s outfit in this episode is similar to Hook’s old style, with a black coat and red vest.

~ Until now, Gold and Regina have hardly seen each other this season! They’ve had maybe one scene where they were in the same place with a bunch of other people, but this is their first one-on-one. It may have been primarily to find out why Henry was snooping in his shop, but it also seems evidence that on some level he truly cares about Henry and Regina. That hand squeeze at the end is sweet.

~ Gold’s hubris is on full display in his monologue to Regina.

~ How can Robin leave behind his Merry Men? Are they disbanded now? The Sheriff of Nottingham is in Storybrooke, but are there poor people to steal for? Would Emma let them?

~ Regina ripping up the page underscores her despair of her happiness. Yet, she still chooses to do the good/right thing. Her willingness to do what’s right despite still having a “villain’s fate” may make her one of the most heroic characters in this show.

~ Cruella being in the Enchanted Forest and allied with Maleficent and Ursula makes no sense whatsoever. She came from a 20th-century Land Without Magic, not a magical medieval land.

~ “If anyone’s going to crush your heart, it’s gonna be me.” Such sad foreshadowing!

~ Emma should be thanking Elsa, not just the other way around! Elsa helped her learn to love herself and embrace what makes her unique.

~ Rumple/Gold did choose Belle over power when he exchanged the gauntlet for her.

~ Gold is left in a pretty pathetic condition, without even a cane to support his now-returned limp.

~ The “chocolate” in unison is a cute tribute to Frozen, but feels out of place in that conversation.

~ It seems strange for Anna to be wearing gloves as part of her outfit. They’re a symbol of Elsa’s repression, and Anna has always been openhearted.

~ They cut from a wedding to Emma restoring Hook’s heart!

~ Considering how much time was spent on Gold having Hook’s heart and planning to kill him, and what a big deal Emma made about the possibility of losing him, their recovery of his heart and their reunion kiss are way too fast. And how can Emma leave him behind so quickly to hang out with Regina and Henry?

~ If Emma truly believes that “everyone deserves their happy ending,” why was she just drinking to Gold’s misery?

~ I imagine Henry, inspired by movies like Young Frankenstein, must have tried turning every sconce in the manor in order to find the secret passage!

~ How could the fairy-tale characters be aware of their being in “stories” even in the Enchanted Forest as their stories were still unfolding?

Episode 4x13 “Darkness on the Edge of Town”

~ I really don’t like how the characters suddenly own up to labels of “villain.” It would make more sense, and not change the script much, if they instead said “people consider us villains.”

~ Throughout the show, it seems as though the writers reinforce the labels of “hero” and “villain” even as they try to transcend them. It’s confusing and inconsistent.

~ The montage at the start of this episode is a nice way to show what the characters have been up to during the six-week time jump. This, apparently, is when Regina and Snow go back to being mayor and teacher respectively.

~ I wish more of the show took place during periods of peace, just showing the characters’ lives and mini-adventures when they aren’t being threatened by “big bad” villains.

~ Where is David in the first half of this episode? He’s the only main character not shown in the opening montage. If he’s not working for the sheriff’s department or taking care of baby Neal, how is he spending his time?

~ While I like both scenes, there isn’t much emotional transition from the peace and happiness of the montage to Hook’s intense frustration in the following scene.

~ While some parts could have been better written, I really like that Hook and Belle have a scene together, talking about the guilt they feel in connection to Gold. Despite their messy histories, they’ve actually become friends, who understand and encourage each other.

~ What does Belle think Gold could possibly have found, after being stripped away from her and from his power?

~ That scene of Rumple and the trifecta was really unnecessary. No new information was given, nothing developed in the plot or relationships.

~ After all that talk about needing a translation, Regina doesn’t even speak any incantation. And why is she trembling so much while clutching the Dark One dagger afterwards?

~ How do none of them notice the dark thing that comes out of the hat/box?

~ This episode suggests that Rumple didn’t make the Dark Curse himself, just modified one that already existed.

~ Rumple in flashbacks sounds less like his old, impish self, and more like his Gold counterpart.

~ It makes sense for Hook to be shown harboring insecurities, uncertain of whether he belongs with the “heroes,” even after the fairies are freed. While it is not resolved in this episode, it shows continuity throughout the season (and into the next two).

~ It seems a little insensitive to have the welcome-back party for the fairies in the same place where they were captured.

~ I really like Regina’s line about “what’s killing property values this time.” They’re so used to magical mayhem, it’s no longer a complete shock when something happens!

~ It is funny, and fitting, that they all have their roles figured out for when crisis strikes. Mary Margaret’s line about “getting everyone to safety” makes me wonder if they have actual evacuation plans in case of emergencies.

~ Why was Ursula needed for Rumple’s heist? Just to reach over a distance with her tentacles?

~ Trust is a big theme in this episode, but it’s murky when the villains are the ones throwing the word around. Emma also says “Trust me” to both Hook and Regina.

~ There should be some kind of system or protocol for when a “villain” wants to enter Storybrooke. No one is really held accountable for their past crimes, and there could be people already in town who have history with newcomers. Maybe there could be some sort of probation process?

~ Mary Margaret’s lines at the end of the episode are blatantly out-of-character. I know that’s the point, but … come on.

Episode 4x14 “Unforgiven”

~ I can’t decide what’s more OOC for Snow and David: the fact that they did something horrible in the first place, or the fact that they are so focused on hiding it after the fact.

~ I don’t like it when drama is pinned on characters hiding some secret, and there is too much of that going on here.

~ Flashback Snow and David already show their willingness to compromise their values, when they don’t do anything about Maleficent killing those guards.

~ Hook is so sweet and supportive, bringing Emma the lunch she was craving! Oddly, their music theme plays over the ending of the scene, when they’re in an awkward stalemate over him not wanting to share about his past with Ursula.

~ Honestly, given Hook’s reputation and his evasiveness on the subject, I’d expect Emma to suspect him of having a romantic history with Ursula sooner.

~ “Is this really the right thing to do?” David’s response doesn’t actually answer the question. Keeping the truth from Emma is their goal, and may be in their best interests, but that doesn’t mean it’s the right thing to do. And Snow asks another version of the very same question in the next scene.

~ Regina and Marco’s scenes are great! It’s a wonder that she hasn’t had more interactions like that with the various townspeople. And when she apologizes, showing empathy and humility, she receives kindness and encouragement in return, just like a heroic protagonist would.

~ Does Belle now run both the library and the pawnshop? How does she balance both jobs? And why would she keep the pawnshop running? I can understand having a sort of custodian since it’s full of magical objects, but aren’t many of them really the belongings of other people in the town?

~ It’s great to see Belle immediately assert herself when her former enemies show up! She wants so much not to be a pushover. I just wish she succeeded more often, instead of so easily being hoodwinked by other characters.

~ I’m not a fan of the whole trope of the heroes playing into the villains’ hands through an elaborate ruse. In this case, Cruella had no guarantee that David would search her car, find the trinket, and decide to go after Maleficent’s ashes.

~ “I only care about one thing: your pain.” The following episodes disprove this.

~ Emma shows a lot of maturity and growth in her second scene with Hook. It’s heartbreaking that that newfound optimism and confidence in her loved ones is what prompts her parents to persist in lying to her, in order to preserve that image.

~ Mary Margaret’s voiceover monologue overlapping scenes of various other characters feels like one of Jenny Lee’s voiceovers in Call the Midwife.

~ Where the heck did Belle and Will’s romance come from? The only time they saw each other before this was when she found him passed out in the library. And how can she be so quick to open herself to a new relationship after her short-lived marriage to Gold?

~ Mary Margaret asking Regina to keep a secret from Emma could have been a real test of friendship and integrity, but it doesn’t really amount to anything over the later episodes.

Episode 4x15 “Enter the Dragon”

~ The timeline of this episode does not fit with what Aurora described in Episode 2x01.

~ Does Storybrooke have its own railway system? Or did Cruella drive them somewhere outside the town to find that train crossing?

~ The whole test seems like something out of Rebel Without a Cause.

~ It’s interesting to see Regina have a “never meet your heroes” storyline with Maleficent in the flashbacks. Usually that kind of interaction is used for heroic characters who need to be called back into a fight.

~ The question that seems to be emerging from this half-season is: How far are the characters willing to compromise their values in order to preserve their reputation (either for good or for evil)? Snow and David cross lines in order to protect Emma’s goodness and their own image; and Regina goes along with the witches’ schemes, even going so far as to kidnap Pinocchio, in order to maintain trust with them.

~ Did King Stephen not recognize Regina as King Leopold’s wife?

~ It’s interesting that Gold uses a ruse that relies on Belle trusting Hook, who he hates. It’s so sad to see Gold take advantage of their newfound friendship.

~ I wonder if Gold/Rumple impersonating Hook is meant to show how similar they are. The cinematography cutting between the two of them is great, conveying the transformation without any special effects.

~ Gold (disguised as Hook) and Belle echo the vow they made when she agreed to stay with him: “You have my word” / “You have mine.”

Episode 4x16 “Poor Unfortunate Soul”

~ This show basically splits the (back)story of The Little Mermaid in half, giving the romance to Ariel and the father-daughter/human-merpeople conflict to Ursula. It’s interesting that Hook betrays both of them in some way, but reconciles with them later.

~ It seems that Hook and his crew didn’t just stay in Neverland for however many years; Pan allowed them to leave in order to pick up supplies for him.

~ Hook is justifiably angry about how Gold used his likeness and deceived Belle.

~ (Spoiler alert:) The episode drops the first hints that either Hook or Emma could become the Dark One!

~ I LOVE the version of “Fathoms Below” that Ursula sings! As fun as it is in its sea shanty version, it sounds beautiful as a ballad, and could even be a lullaby.

~ It took me a long time to figure out that Hook finding the Jolly Roger in a bottle was a nod to Jack Sparrow finding the Black Pearl in a similar condition! I guess that’s what happens when Blackbeard takes over your ship.

~ You can see the shift in young Ursula’s demeanor when she and Hook strike a new, less charitable bargain.

~ Hook’s decision to take Ursula’s voice … doesn’t really make sense.

~ Snow White pulled a Rapunzel, using a frying pan to knock out Cruella!

~ Emma looks at Hook with such pride, like, “You did that! You caused a happy ending!”

~ Hook’s final conversation with Emma is so beautiful! He is still full of insecurities about his past, his hero/villain identity, and his future. Him telling Emma that she is his happy ending is just like Flynn Rider telling Rapunzel that she is his new dream. For as long as it takes Emma and Hook to say “I love you,” they find many other wonderful ways to make their feelings clear to each other.

~ If Ursula and Ariel never met, how did Ursula gain her reputation as a villain? Did she ever do anything actually bad?

~ Does Ursula keep her tentacles, or return to a mermaid tail after reconciling with her father?

Episode 4x17 “Best Laid Plans”

~ This is the episode that is most self-contradictory about the theme of free will.

~ The fact that Snow refers to their child as “it” instead of “she,” even after seeing that the baby will be a girl, is very telling.

~ Parents afraid of their child growing up to be a threat to them is very mythical. In Greek myth this happens with Ouranos, Kronos, and Zeus, as well as Laius, the father of Oedipus.

~ Putting a whole town under a sleeping curse seems to be Maleficent’s MO

~ What makes Isaac’s introduction so convincing is that he seems to serve the kind of role that is typical of folk tales and episodes alike: the guide providing exposition and offering advice to the protagonist(s).

~ “We’ve gone too far own this path.” = The rationale for most characters who start down a dark path and persist because they think the can’t go back.

~ How did they not see any potential danger in banishing darkness into the offspring of a villain/part-time monster? Wouldn’t that make them an even more dangerous threat?

~ Maleficent is far too nice in this show. She’s supposed to be the mistress of all evil, but she seems like a softie.

~ I find it hard to believe Maleficent couldn’t overpower Snow and Charming as they fled. And why would she not go after them during the months remaining before the Dark Curse was cast?

~ Gold and Belle’s scene is so bittersweet. What else does Gold refer to as “changing”?

~ Although they throw around semi-religious terms rather clumsily, the scene of Snow and Charming resolving to do better in the future is pretty beautiful.

~ It’s nice to see Mary Margaret acknowledge that Regina is becoming their friend. That has been increasingly evident this season, mostly in small moments like that one.

~ How long was that sleeping spell in effect? Did David and Mary Margaret come home to find Emma asleep on top of Hook?

~ Mary Margaret saying “I’m your mother” is kind of out of nowhere.

~ Even though it’s a small thing, it’s nice to see Hook have an arc of accepting August as Emma’s friend. Being comfortable with your significant other having friends of the opposite sex shows trust and maturity.

~ Is no one concerned about Regina apparently missing? And where is Henry when his grandparents come clean?

~ Why are none of the Authors that August alludes to female? They could have easily included Scheherazade, which would have provided a connection to Aladdin and the other Arabian Nights tales.

~ Apparently despite all the time they’ve spent looking for the Author, none of the heroic protagonists considered that he might have his own agenda, and that it might not align with theirs.

Episode 4x18 “Heart of Gold”

~ A title with multiple meanings—I like it!

~ This is the first episode that really focuses on Robin Hood as a protagonist, apart from Belle, Baelfire/Neal, or Regina (though she is still very much present in his thoughts). I wish we got to see more of him in action like this.

~ How would Marian have known so much about Baelfire?

~ For all that I dislike about this episode, Robin Hood chasing a thief on horseback down the streets of New York is pretty hilarious!

~ Apparently Robin knows this world’s emergency procedure: call 911. Maybe he learned this when they brought Little John to the hospital in Storybrooke?

~ Robin and Will met in Oz? Just how many lands/realms/worlds did Will traverse? If Robin’s mission were in Wonderland that would make more sense.

~ Walsh turns out to be relevant for something! And there’s a Hidden Mickey in his drawer!

~ Perhaps the biggest plot hole: Why did Zelena’s shapeshifting stay intact when they left Storybrooke and entered the Land Without Magic? That lifted the impact of the Snow Queen’s magic.

~ Zelena is basically playing the same role that Walsh did, trying to ensnare a hero into a false marriage.

~ Will’s backstory is kind of huge, and his words, “Doesn’t seem fair to ask somebody for their heart until I can fix me own,” holds a lot of truth; yet they seem to gloss over it.

~ I totally thought Will was playing up the nice act and trying to pick Robin’s pocket; having Robin instead slip the potion to him is a good twist!

~ The Genie poster for Aladdin is visible behind Robin outside the hospital!

~ The scene of Robin and Gold outside the hospital starts out so sweet and sincere, but then becomes so twisted and manipulative. Gold’s advice sounds like it would actually be good in real life, but he’s using it to play into Zelena’s deception.

~ Robin doesn’t really make the distinction that he only steals from the corrupt, unjustly wealthy. The way he talks about stealing for yourself or for others makes it sound like any kind of thievery done for others is morally justified. That could be taken in dangerous directions.

~ The real Marian is so sweet and supportive when Robin becomes an outlaw! No wonder he was so surprised by her apparent reaction to his behavior in New York.

~ There is a very plausible reason for Robin to have Regina’s number: she helped them get their start in New York, and she could help them again if they were ever in need.

~ Does Robin find a way to make a living in the modern world? What jobs would he qualify for, outside of crime?

~ Regina being protective of Emma is beautiful, and a sign of true character growth. Instead of wishing for Emma to share the same horrible experiences she did, she wants to spare her from them.

Episode 4x19 “Sympathy for the De Vil”

~ I get that Gold threatened Regina’s love, but for her to take Belle’s heart, like Belle isn’t even a person with agency of her own, is such a regression back into darkness.

~ “A person obsessed with vengeance is easy to manipulate.” Gold knows this because Hook demonstrated it earlier this season.

~ It’s nice to see Emma and Regina interact as concerned friends. Emma wants to protect Regina just as much as Regina wants to protect Emma.

~ Light brown is an interesting color on Regina. It’s one of the lighter colors we’ve seen her in.

~ I like Emma’s conversation with Hook and Regina, but searching for Henry seems like an odd time for them to get on her case about forgiving her parents.

~ This whole episode seems to stigmatize mental illness. Or maybe it’s supposed to be a commentary on poor treatment? The way it’s written off at the end as Cruella just opening herself to darkness is … unsettling, and not in a good way.

Episode 4x20 “Lily”

~ Who arranged Cruella’s interment? And why is Emma just watching Gold and Isaac from a distance, neither of them hiding from the other? Are they at a stalemate in terms of power?

~ Why would the Storybrooke library have microfiche records of births in Minnesota? Or did Lily enter this world closer to Maine, like Emma?

~ Abby Ross does a great job playing teenage Emma. It could also be a directing thing, but she seems to mimic Emma’s way of talking and moving very well.

~ Regina implicitly criticizes Snow and David for “messing with” fate, but then encourages Emma to push against fate.

~ Hook and Emma’s conversation is nicely placed at a time in between the major ups and downs of their relationship. He confirms what the audience could already deduce about how she influenced him to change.

~ I love Regina’s purple dress!

~ Emma seems to blame herself a lot for pushing Lily away, but Lily was a pretty awful friend to her.

~ Regina says she “went to the trouble to create Storybrooke.” That raises a lot of questions I’ve wondered about: how much of the town did she design, and how much was Rumplestiltskin’s handiwork?

~ It’s weird and ironic to see Regina be the one restraining Emma’s temper.

~ It feels like the show’s writers are using fate as an excuse for tropey, formulaic writing. Like, of course the wolf is fate intervening. The funny thing is how self-aware the characters are about it, even as Regina tries to deny it.

~ Lily really asked Emma to put herself in danger, approaching her gun-owning boyfriend.

~ Did that kid’s parents never warn her about strangers luring her with food? That is so creepy for Lily to do!

~ Was that even Lily’s car that Emma stole?

~ Even though Emma is mad at her parents, she still fiercely wants to protect them.

~ While the script is painfully unsubtle, Lily’s monologue raises a big real-life question: if it seems like the world is against you, and bad things happen no matter what you do, what is the point of trying to make better choices?

~ Lily’s tirade at gunpoint is confusing, like Palpatine urging Anakin or Luke to kill him. Does she really want Emma to kill her?

~ The fact that Regina gets to talk down someone about to make the same kinds of mistakes she made is beautiful.

~ Was Regina talking to Maleficent, Lily’s mother, practically standing next to her, without even telling her?

~ Emma and Regina don’t actually tell Lily that they want to introduce her to her mother. That could have changed her whole attitude toward them from the start. If she wanted to go to Storybrooke, she should have just heard them out and gone along with them.

~ Gold finally shows some contrition for deceiving Belle, and enough selflessness to let go of her and let Will take his place.

~ I don’t have words for how messed up the Robin/Zelena thing is.

Episode 4x21 “Mother”

~ Motherhood is a central theme of this entire show, but this episode zones in on it in both old and new ways: Snow reconciling with Emma, Maleficent trying to bond with Lily, Regina contending with Cora, Regina destroying her own fertility, and Zelena expecting a baby. That’s five mother-child relationships being juggled in this episode!

~ It’s interesting to see Regina at a stage on her way to becoming the Evil Queen.

~ It's so good to see Cora this season! She is my favorite OUAT villain, because she is the most frightening. She is so convincing, it's always tricky to tell when she is sincere and when she is lying or manipulating the truth.

~ Is the color yellow significant for the rose? As the Queen of Hearts, Cora would have favored red or white roses.

~ They use a forgetting potion as an easy solution for Roland, whereas when Snow White used it to forget Charming it had a huge impact on her personality. This is one example of the show losing its “All magic comes with a price” theme.

~ Bringing the Wicked Witch back to Storybrooke, where she would have more access to magic, is a questionable move. And why doesn’t that ice curse resume its course when she returns?

~ When they’re shown together, Maleficent and Lily really do resemble each other!

~ Where and when could Cora and Tinker Bell have met? That would have been an interesting interaction!

~ The Queen of Hearts and the Sheriff of Nottingham are actually allies in the Sisters Grimm books, another series that sets fairy-tale characters in a modern-day town.

~ Lily and Maleficent are oddly similar to Emma and Henry at the start of the series, except this time it’s the parent that wants the child to stay in town.

~ “Things could change in a week.” This is true: a lot can happen quickly in Storybrooke!

~ Cora and Zelena both tried to use imposture to trick someone into having a child with someone they didn’t love.

~ Snow corrects David by calling Lily “she” instead of “it,” a nice callback correcting the way they talked about her in the egg!

~ The look David and Hook exchange carries a whole conversation. “You did this, didn’t you? Thank you.” “No problem, mate.”

~ Why/how did Lily calm down enough to revert to human form?

~ Isaac is right about Regina being self-destructive, and it’s most evident in this episode! Sterilizing herself in order to keep Cora from using her (or her future child?) to get more power is so painful to see. But Regina being infertile, and immediately seeming to regret it, helps to explain why she has such a soft spot for children and tried so hard to get one of her own in earlier seasons.

~ “My happy ending is finally feeling at home in the world.” That actually sounds like every person’s happy ending, the final step in the Hero’s Journey.

~ Is Isaac just playing Regina the whole episode? Did he ever intend to help her?

~ The series really goes in the direction of the Inkheart trilogy, with the Author able to conjure or alter realities simply by writing a few sentences.

Episode 4x22 “Operation Mongoose Part 1”

~ I’m confused about Isaac’s true motives. Is he just out for himself? Does he really care who gets a happy ending?

~ The characters really can’t seem to decide whether “villains getting happy endings” is a good or bad thing.

~ The intro/teaser about Isaac becoming the Author is cool! The test to identify the Author is much like the test to identify the Avatar in The Last Airbender, which is based on the search for the Dalai Lama in real life.

~ Probably the most unrealistic aspect of the Author is how quickly he can write a bestselling novel!

~ Henry seems to be going back to his first-episode roots, running away to find his family. The only difference is that this time someone tries to call the cops on him!

~ I wonder if Isaac’s press tour event resembles actual Once Upon a Time fan events. It looks like there are Disney cosplayers in the audience, including Jack Sparrow!

~ I love Henry in this season finale! After being absent or on the sidelines for a lot of this season, he finally gets to be a protagonist and hero. I only wish there had been a little more setup for his arc.

~ I think this is Henry’s first time in the Enchanted Forest, or at least some version of it. No wonder he is so excited when he arrives!

~ What an amazing, hilarious, unexpected yet fitting callback to Henry’s famous line to Emma!

~ Dwarves serving as Black Knights is so funny and disturbing at the same time!

~ Snow’s hair looks like it might be Ginnifer Goodwin’s natural hair, only styled differently!

~ This two-part episode is basically like the show’s own fan fiction of itself, and it’s hilarious!

~ Henry refers to “his plan.” Was he the one who sent Robin to rescue Regina? Was there some deleted scene of them?

~ Was Emma really locked up for years, as Regina says? Or did she just wake up in that tower and start screaming, as shown onscreen? If it was the former, that could have had a huge toll on her mental state from then on.

Episode 4x23 “Operation Mongoose Part 2”

~ It seems that in this reality, Baelfire has been replaced by his namesake baby Neal. His presence with Belle and Rumple could also be foreshadowing of them having a baby of their own, something first hinted at by Peter Pan in season 3!

~ Isaac says Baelfire died because of Rumplestiltskin’s cowardice, but that’s not really true.

~ It’s so good to see Hook and Henry working together, Henry demonstrating how much he learned from Hook, and Hook learning about the ways of Star Wars!

~ Emma’s dress is beautiful, but way too extravagant for a prisoner.

~ “My schedule’s pretty clear.” = subtle callback to Hook telling Emma “I’ve all the time in the world” at the start of this season.

~ I hope Snow apologized to the dwarf she killed (I’m guessing Doc due to the glasses) after they returned to Storybrooke!

~ I LOVE Emma’s new Enchanted Forest outfit! Not that her dresses aren’t lovely, but the vest and pants fit her style and personality much better.

~ Even in this adventure, Emma shows hints of darkness, yelling at Grumpy and threatening him. She also shows how fiercely protective she is of Hook in that moment.

~ In the background, Hook picks up the sword and holds it up, so clumsy and uncertain, yet ready and willing to fight for Emma.

~ “Is she worth your life, pirate?” “I’m willing to find out.” That’s really been Hook’s attitude since becoming Emma’s ally at the start of season 3!

~ After all their animosity in seasons 2-3, which gave way to friendship and alliance in seasons 3-4, it’s strange to see Hook and David have an all-out duel.

~ I think the writers/directors specifically blocked that scene so Emma would see Hook’s face as he died!

~ Belle paraphrases Mrs. Potts in Beauty and the Beast!

~ “What does your heart tell you?” = another Star Wars reference?

~ I bet Emma has wanted to cross blades with Rumplestiltskin for a LONG time!

~ Regina choosing to protect Henry, even at the cost of her supposed happy ending, is completely in-character, yet also shows how much she has grown since the first season, where she put Henry in danger while pursuing her goals.

~ It’s hard to believe that after everything that happened, Emma is still too afraid to tell Hook “I love you.” Colin O’Donoghue’s acting in that scene is incredible. And apparently Hook finally considers himself a hero!

~ Great lines from Snow about what makes a hero or villain!

~ “The best way to show your love for those that are gone is to tell their stories.” True words!

~ Henry is a lot like Harry Potter in his scene with the Apprentice: he wonders about the possibility of resurrecting a dead parent, and he breaks the Author’s quill the way Harry breaks the Elder Wand in the film version of Deathly Hallows. But how can he still be the Author if he does not have the quill?

~ Apparently Will is Roland’s baby-sitter! Not sure how wise that is, but it could make for fun shenanigans!

~ Why does the darkness target Regina? It can’t be because she has the greatest potential for darkness, since that was shown to be Emma earlier this season. Is it because she is now so full of light, as Henry and Emma hint?

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