#and she stands firm in that

[zerozeroren]

Feeling wistful feelings over the fact that the form of Ahiru the majority of us viewers end up loving and rooting for the most (girl Ahiru) is also the most illusive and unreal of the three

#Hear me out on this #The Duck is true to reality. It's a living being. Princess Tutu is true to the fairytale. Same way Mytho is. #But girl Duck? She's completely fabricated. No firm ground to stand on #Quicksand of an existence. And yet. It's her we connect with #Her that we are rooting for #Her who builds relationships and bonds and her who does all the preliminary work for Tutu to take over later #she's the most real person for us emotionally #And because of that it's heartbreaking #Because if you look closer you'll know that she's doomed and destined to be forgotten #She belongs to no world #But you want so badly for her to pull through #princess tutu

[mylittleredgirl]

m*a*s*h set in present day: frank seduces margaret by gifting her flag-themed lingerie ($2.99 clearance at walmart) in a high-end designer shopping bag. she can't contain herself and drops hints all day about how ✨someone✨ is treating her like a queen and wouldn’t-you-like-to-know what he got me and from WHERE here's a hint it's on FIFTH AVENUE. it goes south when frank does something to inspire swamp rat revenge, so they stir up trouble by leaving evidence around that the original contents of the bag were for you-know-who instead. the last straw and last joke of the b-plot as she kicks him out of her tent is that "THESE ARE MADE! IN! CHINA!!!!"

#frank stands firm on AMERICAN MADE ONLY #unless it’s on sale #she can forgive a lot but some things are beyond the pale!!! #frank/margaret i love everything that's wrong with you never change #mashblogging #mash

[lucienarcheron]

The idea that some people still think Nesta’s main traits are supposed to be bitchy, mean, and a hater…idk what to tell you but the whole point of her healing journey is to not be those things because all it did was hurt everyone around her and herself.

#nesta archeron #nessian #she herself thought it was wretched of her to behave this way because of her unhealed trauma #that she’s STILL working through #SHE didn't like being that way. #sometimes it's strange to see how people will glorify those traits of hers like it’s a good thing. #it’s not. that’s the whole point of acosf #why reduce her to some of her worst moments? #let her grow damn it #she can be a badass while not being an asshole #especially to the people who love her #and I’m not inviting hate or rude comments with this post. #if you’re not going to polite - save it. I’m not going to argue with you #and before any of you get offended thinking this is about you #it's not lol. #It's something I've seen more on instagram/tiktok than here but still see it and it's weird. #She can be firm and stand up for herself and a warrior and all those amazing things without reducing her to just being a bitch lol. #gp #random monday thoughts #I love my girl Nesta SO MUCH but she's so much more than her mean girl moments. #also knock it off with the weird cassian hate #he's the love of her life and her literal soulmate #'she's better off without him' #actually no she isn't lol. he's one of the MAIN reason she's able to get better and help herself #have some nuance and calm down lol

[vampirepunks]

Higgs Monaghan, "Beach Babies," and mind control

We know that the Bridge Baby dolls that Higgs and the Homo Demens used function completely differently than the human BBs invented by Bridges. But did you know they're also otherworldly vessels of extinction itself?

The novelization of Death Stranding suggests that these BB dolls from the Beach ("Beach Babies," as my husband and I refer to them) warp the minds of their users and bend human will towards the goal of extinction.

So... how many of Higgs Monaghan's decisions after meeting Amelie are his own?

The first thing to note is that Bridges BBs react negatively to the presence of these Beach Babies, as seen here when Sam encounters terrorists using them.

Lou does not like these things. Perhaps that's why she points the Odradek at Higgs during their first encounter with him?

The novel introduces us to a porter who visited the Evo-Devo Biologist (referred to as EV in the book) while equipped with one, a couple years before Sam's expedition. He was polite and overall pretty normal at first, but then on his next visit things get... weird.

So... there are holes in reality that using a Beach Baby allows you to see, and that's how the tar leaks from the Beach into the world of the living. Speculatively, this might be how Higgs is able to DOOMS-jump so easily and frequently (and summon tar), without getting exhausted or needing much focus at all, in addition to his level 7+ DOOMS.

Oh, but it gets weirder. And scarier, as soon as Extinction Entities are mentioned.

Wow... he sounds a lot like Higgs, doesn't he? Come to find out, Higgs gave it to him.

But surely this is just him echoing the party lines of Higgs' organization and repeating Higgs' same sentiments... right? Unless...

Important to note, this porter doesn't have DOOMS. He shouldn't be experiencing extinction nightmares, but his Beach Baby is showing them to him.

Whether directly or not, this thing talks to him. Like some eldritch call of the void or an element of a Lovecraft novel, it tells him that extinction is the only answer, the only solution.

EV is, understandably, instantly alarmed when she sees Sam with Lou, relating this story back to him. Sam is quick to connect the dots between that porter, the terrorists, Lou's terror at encountering these other BBs, and Higgs himself.

As they discuss further, a chiralgram recording from that porter begins to play, in which he takes credit for the voidout that killed Heartman's family and explains why he did it.

So then, how is Higgs affected by his own Beach Baby? From his perspective, it doesn't sound good.

We can infer a few things from this:

The Beach Baby acts as the vessel for Higgs' connection to Amelie and her Beach. By the nature of his powers, that's why he's able to DOOMS-jump constantly without getting exhausted, control BTs and timefall, and use telekinesis. Think of it like supercharging a battery; his powers are fueled by connection to the dead, and through Amelie, he's plugged into the dead of five mass extinctions, skyrocketing his DOOMS abilities to their maximum potential.

The Beach Baby (perhaps even Amelie directly, by using it) shows Higgs extinction nightmares beyond the scope of normal DOOMS nightmares, "speaking" to him and giving him forbidden knowledge that fills his mind with thoughts of extinction in terms of inevitability, even without Amelie telling him directly.

(Speculative): Higgs betrayed Fragile because of what the Beach Baby did to him, and perhaps doing so was Amelie's own will disguised as his idea. After all, he turned on Fragile immediately after connecting to the BB doll, severing his closest bond practically overnight. Further, Fragile states (at least in the book, I forget if she acknowledges this in the game or not) that it wasn't Higgs who prevented her from DOOMS jumping with the nuke in South Knot City, but "someone else," who she later determined to be Amelie. Amelie ensured that Fragile had no power in that situation, and that there was no way for her to escape without hating Higgs in the end. Personally, my reading is that Amelie wanted to be Higgs' only option and only remaining connection; she set herself up to be all he had left, the only thing he could focus on. It's easier to control someone who's isolated, scared, and alone otherwise, and would remove the risk of him having doubts about accepting extinction because he had nothing--and no one--left to lose.

(Speculative): The Beach Baby acts as a mind control utility. Whatever hopes, dreams, and beliefs a person has, this BB doll can override them and bend its user's will towards the goal of extinction instead, reshaping their ideology to fit the EE's goals. It's impossible to say how much of this control is direct and tangible, but it grants Amelie a high degree of influence over Higgs' inner world, removing any sense of rebellion against her or instinctive resistance to the concept of total human annihilation.

Established later in-text (too much content to cite and embed), Higgs experiences grandiose delusions surrounding his role in the extinction, falsely believing that he's the one in control, viewing himself as "the bridge that brings the extinction" and is destined to safeguard Amelie so mankind can meet its end. Despite the facts, he genuinely thinks it was all his idea, his plan, and he's the mastermind behind the whole thing, personally chosen by cosmic forces to deliver the apocalypse and usher in a new world after humanity is gone.

As soon as Higgs is disconnected from his Beach Baby by Fragile, his delusions completely shatter and he immediately reverts to cold, hard logic, albeit the kind steeped in self-hatred. His ego does an immediate 180 and he realizes, "it was all make believe,” and "a tale told by an idiot, full of sound and righteous fury. Signifying nothing." It hits him all at once: he was nothing but a pawn, a tool, a means to an end, played for a fool. Upon seeing the error of his ways, he can only lament how blind he was. The book decidedly doesn't kill him, instead leaving him on the Beach, "alone, without a person in the world to connect to," thinking, "this is how I'm meant to be," as he remains stranded "with nothing else to do but continue to confess his endless sins."

We'll never know how much of Higgs' mindset and atrocities were truly his own, while acting as Amelie's herald, and how much of it was solely based on Amelie's unseen influence. Just like Lady Macbeth, Higgs is both villain and victim to a greater evil, so to speak.

#the other thing is i don't think amelie fully understood the beach babies. just as bridges didn't understand BBs all that well #she just found them (the first one just Appeared to Bridget on the Beach. nailed to a giant crucifix. and she just. kept it) #but in conclusion i am obtaining a restraining order against amelie on my boy's behalf. i'm suing. emotional damage!!!!!!! abuse!!!!!!!!!! #poor higgs. he really didn't stand a chance. he could've been someone incredible but amelie really said 'i can make him worse' #i'm standing firm on the narrative that higgs is thematically an abuse survivor. not just regarding his uncle #amelie abused him emotionally and psychologically. but y'all ain't ready to talk about that :) #love love love higgs as the imperfect victim. trauma expression and survival is not always pretty or acceptable. it is ugly and violent. #higgs monaghan #death stranding #ds analysis #ds novelization #logan.txt

[shihoerusu]

They are too pretty to be petty love rivals

#rivals?For a man? when they are literally standing right there #selina kyle #and she has pearls #talina #she has gold #I don’t know what this color pallet has on me but it’s a firm grip #rivals to lovers #catwoman #selina x talia #talia x selina #talia al ghul #bruce x talia x selina #brutalina

[nikikikiko]

Angsty set of Morgana-opinion Headcanons for the GaGene family bc yk what they need a bad day. just a bit of a bad day.

• Conrad is an easy subject. Morgana is… a much more complicated topic of discussion for the family. She’s influenced a large part of Gavus’s life, and raised Liberta, and they both have varying opinions on her.

• Gavus is a lot more solid in his feelings, they’re complicated, yes, but he’s solid in that his disapproves of her actions. He’s had time to come to terms that what she is doing is not okay and that he cannot support her any longer. Gavus knows that Morgana is not as good a person he thought she was, but even then. He cannot truly bring himself to hate her. She hurt him, his kids, his husband, and yet he cannot find it in him to hate her. He still wants to plead with her and make her see reason, even after knowing she won’t listen. He does find it painful, even now, to think about the good times with her. It’s jolting to know someone you loved and respected turned out to be so horrible, and it taints everything, Morgana is no exception.

• On Liberta’s side, it’s quite a bit more complicated. Liberta doesn’t know how to respond to Morgana’s actions and horribleness. He doesn’t want to believe it at all actually. He finds himself, often, unable to process what he had actually went through and what is good and bad in his childhood with Morgana because he genuinely cannot tell. Not to mention she treated him nicely, like a son! She can’t be all that bad then, right? She’s still a good person deep down, because she has to be.

• He’s got a good ol’ case of Mafuyu Asahina basically

• Eugene, on his own opinions, hates Morgana. He despises her, and every single fake ass person on the Celestial’s faction. He hates that she messed up badly, that she betrayed Gavus and raised Liberta to believe that his feelings don’t matter. He hates that she did that to his family, and he hates how the situation is complicated. It’s not like everyone can agree she sucks as easily as they do with Conrad. Hell, it hurts him that Liberta even saw her as a parental figure at all! That fucking sucks, and he can’t do anything about it because she DID raise his kid, like it or not. He’s mindful about what he says about her around the kids, but next to Gavus he’s mouthing her off left and right as many chances as he can get whenever she comes up in conversation.

• This both amuses and irritates Gavus. It’s essentially like, “Raven, I know you hate Morgana but can we focus for a second??”. The amusement moreso comes from the fact at least one of them holds enough hatred in their heart for both of them for that woman, thank you Eugene.

• Lastly, Lucilla. Lucilla’s feelings are extremely simplified: Morgana = Conrad. Conrad = Bad, Hate that guy. Morgana = Bad, Hate that girl. She understands there’s more nuance to it for Liberta and Gavus, she’s not dumb, and she can, to an extent, recognize where Liberta is coming from. However, it frustrates her a lot whenever she hears words in Morgana’s defense, from Celestials or otherwise. It’s awful, terrible. Just what about Morgana needs defending? What could possibly be so good about her? She doesn’t get it. She doesn’t get any of it.

• Pretty much, the overall opinion as a family is, well, it’s complicated. Her actions run a bit deeper because of her emotional hold on two of their family members, and Conrad at least made it easy by acting like he doesn’t care (because, well, he doesn’t! Mans is as straight forward as he sounds: he just wanted power and destruction.), but Morgana? Morgana acted like she cared, and maybe she did at one point. For Gavus. Maybe she cared a lot about Gavus, and maybe she got attached to Liberta as well. But it doesn’t erase what she did, just simply complicates it further for the ones she hurt, because they loved her.

#afk arena #afk gavus #afk eugene #afk liberta #afk lucilla #morgana too #i have a LOT of feelings with morgana and a lot of it is like a #its a whole analysis kind of thing ??? #i dont feel shes as cut and dry as conrad is with this family #i think shes a much more complicated subject bc like #plain as day shes lied to and betrayed gavus and manipulated him #she emotionally abused liberta #and yet she also goes personally out of her way to try and get gavus redeemed for celestials and herself #when he stands firm to his grounds she doesnt kill him she simply leaves him in a prison #so like #she does care a tiny bit about them #her evilness however overshadows her care bc shes not willing to change her ways at all even when its hurting the people she claims to care #about #DO YOU SEE WHY THIS WOULD BE A COMPLICATED SUBJECT #THERES SO MUCH THAT HAS TO GO INTO THIS GOR LIBERTA AND GAVUS ESP BRO #anyways i hope she dies #make it uncomplicated and just die evil wench #bah

[gogandmagog]

“(…)There was an American sitting behind Jane and me—such a romantic-looking man, with coal-black hair and eyes. Josie Pye says he is a distinguished artist, and that her mother’s cousin in Boston is married to a man that used to go to school with him. Well, we heard him say—didn’t we, Jane?—’Who is that girl on the platform with the splendid Titian hair? She has a face I should like to paint.’ There now, Anne. But what does Titian hair mean?”

— Anne of Green Gables, Lucy Maud Montgomery

A(nother) modern AU (you know, the kind I loathe so wholly), except in place of an American painter, a ‘famous’ American photographer comes to the White Sands Hotel for this concert. After Anne’s moving Noyes ‘the Highwayman’ recital, he seeks her out and asks her if she’s ever been ‘shot’ before (he wants to, and he tells Marilla this is a paid gig when she scoffs)… his sunflower compliment is yes, of course, about her Titan hair, but he also adds that her face is ‘high fashion/old money’ – which gets an unexpected ironic laugh from the orphan of two very poor teachers. The payment associated with Anne being photographed is too generous to sensibly say no to, even if Marilla is worried of the impact on Anne’s vanity, and two months afterwards, Anne is offered a contract with one of the biggest agencies in the States… Ford (😅) models. Over the next four years, her success grants her all the necessary funds for a B.A. from Redmond… without relying on burdening Marilla’s ‘slim purse.’

"Red hair is very fashionable now," said Anne, trying to smile, but speaking rather coldly. Life had developed in her a sense of humor which helped her over many difficulties; but as yet nothing had availed to steel her against a reference to her hair.

"So it is--so it is," conceded Mrs. Harmon. "There's no telling what queer freaks fashion will take.”

— Anne of the Island, Lucy Maud Montgomery

#mrs rachel is sure it’s a ‘scam’ #at first anyway #later she might take on a near momager role that stands so firm even kris jenner couldn’t withstand #josie doesn’t think it’s ‘christian or respectable’ to make money this way #‘no one born and bred in avonlea’ would ever consider being a big city model #the making of a crack fic

[heckinggno]

(NOTE: just to be clear I'm not bashing any of the three characters I mentioned. I just found it interesting how she's been pushed away from the family members that she has a lot in common with.)

Isn't it crazy how Mirabel is connected Alma, Bruno, and Pedro? All three of key figures in the Madrigal family plotwise?

Mirabel has Alma's loyalty and love for the family, which emboldens her to have the courage to make hard decisions that no one might agree with, and yet this trait that she shares with Alma is—ironically enough—what drove them further apart from one another throughout the length of the movie.

Like Bruno, she's treated as the black sheep of the family due to her lack of gift. This shared connection of being the "dirty secret" of the family causes Bruno to go into hiding for her safety, but despite his best intentions, him hiding away is actually what makes Mirabel's situation worse in the long run because he disappears on top of everything else that was going on with her.

And with Pedro, she is referred to as his "gift" to the family, their one last miracle from their savior. They share the same courage that urges them to protect the family, but it is this same courage that causes Pedro to lose his life.

What I'm trying to say here is, despite having so much in common with these people, they almost always end up leaving her behind. And while it's true that Pedro's death isn't directly connected to her, Alma feared the implications of Mirabel's giftlessness because it could be a sign that the Miracle is fading—that the thing that gave Pedro's death meaning would one day disappear. In the end, this causes her to isolate Mirabel from the family due to her strange lack of connection to the Candle, which Alma connects back to Pedro.

At this point, Mirabel has already been disconnected to three key figures in her family from childhood. If Encanto had been a different genre, Mirabel would've been a character doomed by the narrative 😔

#encanto #character analysis #mirabel madrigal #i love her a normal amount #but i cant stop thinking about the implications of her every interaction with these characters #(except for pedro) #like??? all of the baggage that they carried has been passed down to her #she was the one who had to bear the brunt of their trauma and grief #she didnt even stand a chance from the beginning #im firm in my belief that her story wouldve ended in tragedy if this wasnt a kids movie #cause her place in the narrative practically solidified when she didnt get a gift #what could a little girl do against all that? :((

[brittie-frog]

Quick thought that I can't get rid of: the headcanon that Luke/Andre/Cate were in a thruple before isn't canon but when I saw that scene my brain immediately went - Jackie/Shauna/Jeff where someone is sleeping with their best friend's partner because they can't be with their best friend except that their bi instead of lesbian so can actually like the partner

#this was the first thought i had about the episode #i stand firm in my belief that Shauna is a heavily repressed lesbian and that her feelings for Jackie are why shes still with Jeff #but in this situation Andre is bi so can actually like Cate afterwards #i want to scream about these shows so badly #gen v #cate dunlap #andre anderson #luke riordan #yellowjackets #shauna sadecki #shauna shipman #jackie taylor #jackieshauna #gen v episode 6

[incomingalbatross]

I have my quibbles with the Day of the Doctor novelization, but the single best line in the book is when the War Doctor refers to Ten and Eleven (in the narration I think) as “Thomson and Thompson.” Reasons this is unshakably canon in my head forever:

EXCELLENT Doctor-to-Doctor insult. SAVAGE. Very efficiently gets across the idea that he considers them both hopeless buffoons.

Also very clearly established that the Doctor has at some point read Tintin, which is important to me.

It suggests that he considers them idiots who are also nearly visually indistinguishable, which is great fodder for the “Time Lords are naturally face-blind” argument.

#sarah introduced the doctor to tintin and i stand firm in this #when sarah was a kid she wanted to be tintin and then she grew up and... basically acheived that #capped off years later by the doctor giving her a TALKING DOG FRIEND #i've connected the dots #doctor who

[schmweed]

Succession | S02E06

#Roman Roy #Gerri Kellman #Do you see the beautiful golden halo across the room from his right hand? That's her. His beacon. #The utter trust when he glances at her at the end of the first gif to see whether he should agree. And all she has to do #is give the minutest shake of her head and he's ready to go to war. #Roman who is unbelievably easily cowed by Logan finds the courage to argue ARGUE against Logan because she shook her head. #I mean right after she shakes her head he schools his expression to look like this was ABSOLUTELY his firm opinion DUH of COURSE. #The faith and trust is insane even though it's absolutely warranted. She IS Gerri Kellman after all. Still. Whoa. #The beautiful vulnerability in his fleeting glance at her in the third gif. Checking what she thinks of his performance. #Glancing at her to summon the courage to KEEP defending his opinion against Logan's. AGAINST Logan's! #It's a miracle that glaringly blindingly beautifully visible invisible thread didn't snap and slam them into each other's arms. #The smartest kid. The absolute smartest out of them all. The one with the most potential. It explains the bullshit comment in the finale. #Sigh. I love them so much. All of them. Every single person even the couple of characters I can't stand! #But Roman and Gerri... Sigh. No words. No words! #Succession #my gifs

[cloverkingsmith]

Nita steeled herself, knowing that she was the final line of defense between Damnatio and hope.

Protect the witches and Finral. Buy them enough time to get Asta through the door of fate. Act as their shield if the other Bulls failed. That was it.

Nita’s fungi soldiers chanted behind her, ready. Spores poured off of them, creating a thick cloud of poisonous, paralyzing, sleep-inducing danger. She prayed it would be enough to slow him down.

Then, there was an explosion.

#black clover #black clover oc #amanita indigon #DO YOU KNOW HOW EMOTIONAL THIS PIECE MAKES ME FEEL #ITS JUST HER. JUST HER AND HER SOLDIERS #she was going to be fighting outside with magna nacht luck and the rest of them #but her specialty is defense so she’s better placed as guardian for the witches and finral #knowing how quickly he took out her other teammates who were working TOGETHER #and yet she stands alone and stands firm #extra weight added to the situation knowing finral is behind her #I like to think she put up a good fight before eventually getting atmosphere slashed like the rest of them #anyways go listen to Survive from Epic the Musical if you want to know what inspired this piece

[shredsandpatches]

Was just reading about this production of Gounod Faust and while it otherwise sounds pretty cool, I have decided I very much hate it when productions add a Rosemary's Baby element to the whole doomed-illegitimate-baby plot. Although this one had a less offensive approach to the matter than the Paris production with the same singers playing Faust and Mephistopheles, I guess.

(It was a demon baby in that one, I guess because it would be really hard to make that aspect of the plot work in 21st century Europe, but still *grinds teeth*)

#hot faust summer #gounod faust #i think it's important to marguerite's characterization that she actually did what she's accused of #albeit out of diminished capacity and desperation #but that she is able to have faith anyway #like that whole finale is about her standing firm #and it's so much more powerful if she did the thing #btw i also hate it when she already has the baby with her in the church scene #also: #the 'meph just straight up yoinks the baby' approach #given that faust is in fact still alive and kicking at the end of the opera #looks like the setup to an incredibly warped sitcom or sth

[championsofthegate]

//I feel like one of the things that tells you a lot about Elysia is she flirted with Cullen in origins so much that he ran away from her lmao

And then felt really guilty about it when she came back to the tower and found desire demons had been torturing him using his crush on her

Like she knew he liked her but didn't realize how much he liked her

#stand firm outlast we won't be beaten by the past || elysia amell headcanon #//she was like oh you really really liked me OKAY

[cryptidafter]

told my mom I couldn’t afford to replace the fridge and she’d have to put it on her credit card and that was the most nerve wracking part of my morning

time to lie on the couch for the rest of the day lol

#cryptid’s thoughts #partially joking but my anxiety has been so high since yesterday #telling my mom no even though it’s reasonable is still a challenge for me #that guilt is deep-rooted 😮‍💨 #like I bought her a brand new washer and dryer when I moved in because hers had been broken for at least two months #cleaned up the rooms we’re using and repainted (didn’t ask her to help) #pay rent every month! #and yet my mom still doesn’t have money or pay the bills on time #and whenever anything goes wrong she expects me or my sister (who doesn’t live here anymore!) to pay for it #like I’m thankful for my job but I’m not rich lol - I can’t just drop thousands of dollars at a moment’s notice #and my mom likes to make us feel terrible and guilt us and it’s not easy but I’ve been working on standing firm #our relationship has been so strained since I moved in #same thing happened with my sister #like we love her but my mom is unwell and she’s done us a lot of harm 😞 #dealing with trauma is hard lol

[cloudsmovelikeawraith]

transgender my chemical romance fans talking about the fabulous killjoys

#gerardwaygirlmoments i love ur idea of girl jet star and transmasc kobra #and tbh my hcs for killjoys genders change and are not concrete and depend on the weather etc #Only thing i stand firm in is they/she party poison + neopronouns user fun ghoul #so im also a fan of transfem jet star #ANYWAY send post