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hollowed-theory-hall · 2 months

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what's the one harry potter pairing u like that u mentioned in the tags of your hinny post?

Anonymous: Can I ask who that minor character you ship with Harry is? For some absurd reason my mind jumped to Stan Shunpike lol but it's probably not him.... Or is it?

Okay, so this is kind of a funny story. Like, my pipeline through hp pairings was a weird one. Like, I used to read a lot of Harry pairings, still do on occasion (some make more sense than others). None of them were ones I would point at and say: "that should've happened in the books"

One day, I was innocently writing a fic (canon divergence of GoF), and it was just for me, for funnsies, never posted it anywhere and not planning to. And I planned to pair Harry with someone there (honestly, I don't remember who because I didn't write the plan down) but when writing, Harry ended up with a different character. And it was so strange to me because that never happened.

Like, how do you write a ship accidentally?

But I did. I wrote Harry into a ship by accident. So I went back to the books to try and figure out why the hell would my subconscious decide that's the way to go.

I'll also preface it by all this being my subjective opinion and I do read other Harry ships in fics, this one just quickly became my favorite to write (and the only one I write). Also, I don't actually think this is a pairing that should've happened in the books, it's place is in fic and that's where I like it.

So, the character I accidentally shipped with Harry is... *drumroll*

Stan Shunpike!

Not really, it's:

Theodore Nott

Now, you might look at the name and go: "Who the fuck is that?"

And you'll be correct. Theo has 0 speaking lines in the entire book series. His name appears twice. He, himself, as a person, only appeared on page, like, 3 times in the background. The scene that gives the most information about him is other characters talking about him. He isn't even present.

That being said, I'm very good at extrapolating a lot of information from very little evidence. So allow me, to walk you through who is Theodore Nott and why I ship him with Harry.

Basic Information

So, let's start with the most basic overview before I pull out the quotes and go any deeper.

We know Theo is a Slytherin student in Harry's year. So he likely shares a dorm with Draco, Blaise, Crabbe, and Goyle.

Theo's father is both at the graveyard at the end of GoF and in the Department of Mysteries at the end of OotP, so we know he is a Death Eater. We also know Thoe's father was one of the first and closest Death Eaters to Voldemort, who waited for him during his interview with Dumbledore in 1967:

“Then if I were to go to the Hog’s Head tonight, I would not find a group of them — Nott, Rosier, Mulciber, Dolohov — awaiting your return? Devoted friends indeed...”

(HBP, page 444)

We also know the Nott family is "as pure-blooded as the Malfoys" according to JKR in an interview. We also know Theo's great-grandfather (maybe? the family relation isn't clear), Cantankerus Nott, is suspected to be the one who wrote the Pure-Blood Dictionary, the book that coined the term "Sacred 28" and made that list (which the Nott family are on).

The name Nott is potentially to be derived from the name Nótt, which is the personification of the night in Norse Mythology. So it has been theorized the Nott family have a Nordic origin. Possible, but it doesn't really matter for this post.

What does, is that he comes from a dark, Death Eater, blood-purist family similar to the Malfoys. Even so, Theo never took the Dark Mark and never joined Voldemort in the books.

Now, that we have the basic information out of the way, let's look at Theodore as a person.

All the details I could gather from the books

Alright, now we get to the fun part. That is, me going through all the relevant scenes that mention Theodore Nott and actually creating a character psychoanalysis out of basically nothing.

So, the quotes aren't organized in a particular order. I'm just going to explain Theo and then explain why all this makes me ship him with Harry.

“Well, I pity Slughorn’s taste. Maybe he’s going a bit senile. Shame, my father always said he was a good wizard in his day. My father used to be a bit of a favorite of his. Slughorn probably hasn’t heard I’m on the train, or —” “I wouldn’t bank on an invitation,” said Zabini. “He asked me about Nott’s father when I first arrived. They used to be old friends, apparently, but when he heard he’d been caught at the Ministry he didn’t look happy, and Nott didn’t get an invitation, did he? I don’t think Slughorn’s interested in Death Eaters.” Malfoy looked angry, but forced out a singularly humorless laugh.

(HBP, page 150)

This is a part of the conversation between Draco, Pansy, and Blaise, Harry overhears when he is hiding in their compartment at the beginning of HBP. I have a few things to note regarding this scene.

Firstly, throughout this conversation, Pansy, Blaise, and Draco all call each other by their first name. This shows closeness, they are all friendly and familiar enough to use their first names with each other. Theo, though, is referred to as "Nott" by all three in the compartment.

He doesn't actually sit in their compartment which is in itself a sign about how he isn't really friendly with Draco's group. Considering the group is most of his year from his house, Theo is likely very lonely, and it will be apparent from other scenes I bring up later.

Secondly, Theo's father is in Azkaban. We know Draco is bothered about his own father's predicament. He mentions it to Harry and bothers him over it, Theo doesn't though. Theo doesn't seem to be bothered by Harry or his father's incarceration.

The only conclusion I can draw from this is that the relationship between Theo and his father is not a good one.

(I know some fics like to have Lucius be abusive towards Draco, for some reason. But the books really don't back this up. Lucius loves Draco and Draco adores his father)

Theo, though, Theo seems to be the one with a very strained relationship with his father. Strained enough that he isn't bothered the man is in Azkaban. What I'm saying is that Theo's father likely abuses or mistreats him in some capacity.

If anything more was needed to complete Harry’s happiness, it was Malfoy, Crabbe, and Goyle’s reactions. He saw them with their heads together later that afternoon in the library, together with a weedy-looking boy Hermione whispered was called Theodore Nott. They looked around at Harry as he browsed the shelves for the book he needed on Partial Vanishment, and Goyle cracked his knuckles threateningly and Malfoy whispered something undoubtedly malevolent to Crabbe. Harry knew perfectly well why they were acting like this: He had named all of their fathers as Death Eaters

(OotP, page 583)

This is a scene at the end of OotP after Draco, Crabbe, Goyle and Theo's fathers were caught at the ministry and sent to Azkaban because they are Death Eaters. There are a few important notes about this scene.

The first, Hermione knows Theo, while Harry and Ron don't really. This means she likely knows him from the classes she takes and Harry and Ron don't — Arithmancy and/or Ancient Runes.

The second, he is sitting with other Death Eater children, but I don't think it's by choice. I mentioned in the previous quote how he isn't close to Draco and his crew. He sits with them here mostly because he doesn't have another choice. Theo doesn't seem to really have any friends, so he sits with the closest people he has to friends — kids he has known since he was young because their fathers were in the same circle.

The other note about this is that Crabbe, Goyle, and Draco are all mentioned as being threatening and malicious towards Harry because they don't like that their fathers are in Azkaban. Theo, though, Theo doesn't threaten Harry, he isn't part of their whisperings. As I mentioned above, he's likely happy his father is in Azkaban.

A pair of blank, white, shining eyes were growing larger through the gloom and a moment later the dragonish face, neck, and then skeletal body of a great, black, winged horse emerged from the darkness. It looked around at the class for a few seconds, swishing its long black tail, then bowed its head and began to tear flesh from the dead cow with its pointed fangs. A great wave of relief broke over Harry. Here at last was proof that he had not imagined these creatures, that they were real: Hagrid knew about them too. He looked eagerly at Ron, but Ron was still staring around into the trees and after a few seconds he whispered, “Why doesn’t Hagrid call again?” Most of the rest of the class were wearing expressions as confused and nervously expectant as Ron’s and were still gazing everywhere but at the horse standing feet from them. There were only two other people who seemed to be able to see them: a stringy Slytherin boy standing just behind Goyle was watching the horse eating with an expression of great distaste on his face, and Neville, whose eyes were following the swishing progress of the long black tail.

(OotP, page 445)

“The only people who can see thestrals,” she said, “are people who have seen death.”

(OotP, page 446)

The stringy Slytherin boy mentioned here is Theo. This scene proves that:

He takes Care of Magical Creatures

He saw someone die

Let's explore the second one for a moment. The fact Theo can see Thestrals means he watched someone die and was old enough to comprehend what he was seeing. We also know Theo's mother is dead. So it's likely the person he watched die was his mother.

I also want to draw attention to Theo's distaste towards Thestrals. He could likely see them carrying the carriages every year since 2nd year, it's not his first time seeing them. But it doesn't stop his displeasure with their sight from showing. Which says something about him. It means he likely recalls his mother and her death whenever he looks at the Thestrals. and these are memories Theo rather not experience.

We don't know how his mother died, but I'd hazard a guess it wasn't natural. After all, wizards have long life spans, they are more durable to illness and injury, and don't usually die from accidents unless very extreme or magical. And there was no epidemic of dragonpox (a disease that does tend to kill wizards) in the time since 1980 and the books. So, she was more likely killed at some point between 1985(ish) and 1991.

“No, I don’t think so, sir. I’m Muggle-born, you see.” Harry saw Malfoy lean close to Nott and whisper something; both of them sniggered, but Slughorn showed no dismay; on the contrary, he beamed and looked from Hermione to Harry, who was sitting next to her.

(HBP, pages 185-186)

First, Theo is an O student in potions since he is in the potions NEWT class, and was probably meant to be there even if Snape was the teacher.

Second, again, Theo doesn't really have friends. He sits next to Draco as the only other Slytherin in the class. Also, they share the circumstances of being sons of Death Eaters currently in Azkaban. Although both of them seem to deal with it quite differently.

Third, Theo joins Draco in making fun of Hermione's blood status, but he does not initiate it. Considering the environment he was raised in and is in, it makes sense he would make fun of it. Whether he's a blood-purist or not, he would want to keep his image considering he doesn't have many allies. Hanging out with Draco is survival, not friendship. They aren't even on a first-name basis with each other.

“Amortentia doesn’t really create love, of course. It is impossible to manufacture or imitate love. No, this will simply cause a powerful infatuation or obsession. It is probably the most dangerous and powerful potion in this room — oh yes,” he said, nodding gravely at Malfoy and Nott, both of whom were smirking skeptically. “When you have seen as much of life as I have, you will not underestimate the power of obsessive love. . . .

(HBP, page 186)

The final quote I have about Theo is from the same potions class as above. Both he and Draco are portrayed here as underestimating amortentia and its potential damage. It makes sense for their upbringing in the Wizarding World, which has no real laws or regulations regarding love potions that are seen as harmless fun more often than not.

I'll add Theo likely didn't witness a healthy romantic relationship. Considering his father is a Death Eater who is likely abusive and may or may not have killed his mother. With this as his reference to a marriage, it's clear why he'd look down on love and love potions.

Why I think Theo and Harry have potential

Okay, so now that we know who Theodore Nott is, let's talk about why I ship him with Harry.

I think Harry, in general, would get along best with a clever partner with the ability to be ruthless (Slytherins or Ron fall into this category). Because Harry isn't some golden savior; he casts unforgivables, and is very willing to poison Umbridge or Crocio Snape if he could get away with it. He needs a partner that won't be horrified by these thoughts.

Also, Theo literally never speaks on page. Even when spoken to, his reactions are silent. I think this quiet and no need to talk, the ability to be comfortable in silence, is something that would be comfortable for Harry. Harry in the books finds himself annoyed with Ron and Hermione's constant banter on occasion, so I think it fits well.

Theo would also be comfortable around Harry without a need to play a certain part. Because Harry wouldn't care about that. He would honestly rather Theo forgo the pure-blood Slytherin act.

I feel like Harry and Theo, have a good potential to understand each other. Theo lost his mother and likely experiences abuse from his father. It makes them very likely to trauma bond over their crap life and shared experience. Two out of three only ones who could see the Thestrals in the entire class.

The other thing I feel they could connect over is being lonely. Harry spent all his childhood until Hogwarts basically being on his own. Theo stayed on his own. Draco at least has his parents, he has other students he's closer to, not that he shares everything with them, but he has some support network. Theo has none. And this is something Harry knows well.

Theo, I think, wouldn't expect anything specific from Harry. He doesn't even interact with him, not to mock him, and not to idolize him, he doesn't care at all. And we know how much Harry appreciates being thought of as Harry and not as the Boy-Who-Lived. Theo would allow Harry to be himself without some mold he wants him to fit in.

The fact Theo never becomes a Death Eater, even though he was in Draco's year and his father was a Death Eater before Lucius (and in better standing than Lucius with Voldemort) is so interesting. It's somewhat surprising Theo wasn't marked. It means he didn't want to be. It means that Theo Nott didn't want to torture and kill muggleborns or blood traitors, or anyone really. And he didn't want to swear his allegiance to Voldemort. This is just a fascinating fact to me and something I enjoy considering. What life experience made him come to that conclusion? Was it just his dislike of his father that pushed him away? Could he have been another Sirius Black (Gryffindor in a Slytherin family) under slightly different circumstances? I mean, Voldemort likely wouldn't force him to become a Death Eater, but would his father? I don't know what at all went down there, but I like that potential story.

We also know he wasn't part of Umbridge's Inquisitorial Squad, even though some minor Slytherins were mentioned to be part of it. He just seems to be an actually decent guy (I don't care what Cursed Child says about him, I know he's there but I avoided almost anything to do with Cursed Child so I barely know the plot).

Finally, this is a character Harry doesn't have as much drama to get over with. Yes, sometimes I want to read overcoming drama between characters before it becomes a romance, but sometimes I want something chiller than that. And Theo is a really chill, safe, Slytherin option for Harry.

#harry potter #harry potter thoughts #hollowedtheory #hollowedheadcanon #hp #hp thoughts #harry james potter #asks #anon asks #anonymous #theodore nott #theo nott #nottpott

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knightsteapot · 1 year

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☆ﾟ.*･｡ﾟ TALKING ABOUT WANDERER

Kabukimono, Kunikuzushi, Scaramouche... And finally Wanderer, this character has been around since the very beginning, but not until the release of Inazuma we could comprehend more about him. Once I finished Sumeru's Archon quest I found myself so so curious that, of course, I had to do a small and very unprofessional research.

Everything I'll point out here is based on his voice lines, story and illustrations, everything I consider canon and a small portion of my own assumptions. Of course this is my opinion, I can be wrong. THIS IS AN ANALYSIS OF HIS ANATOMICAL STRUCTURE AND FUNCTIONS.

☆ﾟ.*･｡ﾟ DOTTORE AND HIS FASCINATION FOR KUNI

I couldn't quite understand why Dottore was so fascinated for Kuni, I even dare to say he was obsessed... I don't condone his actions (that man is crazy, sorry Dottore fuckers, he is.) But I understand the reason, Wanderer is such a wonderful and perfect divine creation. A delicate, almost fragile appearance yet unimaginable resistance and strength.

Dottore's experiments are, canonicaly, brutal, cruel, painful, he did things far from our imagination and still Kuni survived. From this I'll point out the first things:

Wanderer has pain and touch receptors but an extremely high pain and weather conditions endurance. That's why the experiments were performed without any issue.

His low HP line gives an idea about it : "I'm used to this"

This means he can get hurt, he can be in pain and understand when his body is at it's limit, but as a puppet he's not fragile. In a more positive note: he can feel your touch, your warmth.

His skeleton contains divine objects, it must be similar to a human's because his appearance is humanoid, however, since he doesn't have normal bones he is probably heavy, at least heavier than someone his size.

His skeleton has joints, they don't need to be Daka's bell but pretty similar, however, his skin covers everything, that's why he can be perceived as a normal human and his movements are natural.

Remember the puppet strings and the liquid inside? Well, Wanderer must have some sort of liquid that gives him energy. In general, not in his boss form.

Despite the creative description and the "he's being manipulated" obvious hints, the last part makes me think of what happens when a human has a significant blood loss. Kuni might not have blood, but something similar runs inside him, providing the energy he needs to function without water, food or sleep. Positive note: he can blush, yes, I'm taking this chibi as canon. If not blood or some similar fluid, then no rosy cheeks!

His brain is incredibly human-like. I'll explain further in a second part (there's too much to talk about his precious brain qjdhjdja) but for now let's focus on trauma caused by Dottore. Wanderer is a deeply wounded individual, he has different traumas and a natural answer for each one (I'll explain later)

What you can read in his voice lines is his natural answer after being traumatized, but how the heck a puppet, a mere puppet can be traumatized? In order to create trauma you need two things: adrenaline and an amygdala in your brain, which is the part in charge of your traumas, fears. It helps you to be protected, to run away from danger. I'm not saying Kuni has an amygdala, he's not human but hey, people, he must have a complex brain with enough capacity to process traumatic events and create fear, then a violent/aggressive answer that can be manifested in words or actions.

Okay, I'll leave this here. If I see positive answers I'll write the second part, I still have more to say about psychology in terms of his trauma, his basic functions, how I think he works, some details about his body and why Kuni is more human than he thinks. I hope you've enjoyed this analysis, I'm so so so biased hahaha.

#☆ﾟ.*･｡ﾟpeony analysis #Scaramouche #Kunikuzushi #Wanderer #genshin impact #scaramouche genshin x reader #wanderer genshin impact #wanderer x reader

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bbq-potato-chip · 7 months

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HI HAI HOPE IM NOT TOO LATE FOR TH ASK GAME BUT ✨ your silly lil green guy. yknow the one. ulquiorra. please please tell me about him ive been spectating from afar and i need to know abt him so bad. as silly or as serious as you want, say anything, ijust wanna hear abt him from a certified Appreciator(tm). be free :]

Aaaaaag!!!!! SHAKING FOAMING AT THE MOUTH !!!!

At last I am enabled HE IS MY FUNNY LITTLE GREEN GUY AND I LOVE HIM I am honored to be chosen as a certified appreciatior ANYWAY SO UM let me just explain like. What he is rlly quick because there are so many different types of guys in the whole bleach world

you have humans, who live in the world of the living and souls (dead people) who also live in the world of the living and then you have hollows which are like corrupted souls that the soul reapers gotta defeat to get them to love on to the next life (which is in the soul society)(the soul reapers also live there)(the soul reapers are also dead people)(it’s like a whole reincarnation thing)

the hollows live in this other dimension called hueco mundo they look like this (the guy on the left- hollows are more “monster-y” looking whereas arrancars are more human looking but they still have the holes where their hearts should be-hence the term hollow)

So these guys called arrancars (that’s what ulquiorra is!!!) they’re hollows that have been modified to be kind of…like a cross between a soul reaper and hollows because they have swords (soul reaper thing) but are also hollows. Basically like. You have a bear and your like let me give that bear a gun. Like that. The main antagonist is responsible for all that for reasons™️ but that’s a whole other thing in it of itself. But yeah he’s like an an evil henchmen.

but onto greater, more important things

ok completely on a surface level his charcter design is like. 10/10

I don’t know much abt charcter design but since his colors are limited he really like stands out (it’s part of the reason why I think kny characters have such good designs because they stick to the two main color plus accent color)

He’s mostly black n white with accents with green which is just so striking and the green tear makeup is just *chefs kiss* PLUS the combination of the traditional Japanese hakufu pants combined with the almost (not rlly sure how to put it) like European tail coat kind of deal he’s got going on really is such an interesting combination of two different cultural fashions. Ichigo (the guy on the right) has kind of a similar deal going on with the pants and the more western looking tuxedo looking deal and they’re design are supposed to Parallel each other for thematic reasons but PERSONALLY I think ulquiorra does it way better . But idk Maybe I’m biased!!

And there’s his other powered up forms which are just so cool

He’s so edgy. I love him this slaps so hard I cannot deny he’s so creaturecore

ok so now. Plot stuff

so basically his whole deal is that he’s a nihilist. Throughout his appearance he’s always like oooh nothing matters I don’t care blah blah blah despite the fact that he has emo make up. He does NOT put the emotion in emo. (Which, at least my impression of emo is about wearing emotions on your sleeve. I don’t know much abt emo as like a whole but if anyone has any like critique on my definition please let me know I’d love to learn more) My man is emo in style but is like yeah whatever I don’t feel emotions I don’t have a heart I’m not human don’t think of me as a human I’m a logical emotionless creature yadayada.

it’s such an interesting design choice to me because it really highlights how…hypocritical his worldview is. As the story goes on you can see his whole nothing matters deal kind of crack, towards his finally battle we see him get angry and surprised and then (spoiler alert) love right before he dies.

And you really can’t talk about ulquiorra without talking about orihime.

orihime was kidnapped basically by orders of the main antagonist because she has powers that he needs for reasons™️. It’s kind of a long explanation why so I’ll just leave it at that. But the whole reason Orihime is there was because she loves her friends, and she goes over to the side of the enemy because she didn’t want her friends to get hurt (basically the “bad guys” were like come with us or we’ll kill your friends and she was like. Well I guess I have to go because I love my friends) which is like the complete opposite of ulquiorra because he’s all like whatever friendship love and bonds are all bull. But as he interacts with her he gets (upset?curious? Not sure of the wording) about what it means to have a heart (or a bond with another person really). I just love how as we move through the arc we see him gradually more humanized, partly as a result of orihime being all like. You’re wrong things DO matter but also because he IS human in a way.

specifically there’s a scene in his backstory one shot where orihime catches him sleeping and brings him food and it just shows that yeah maybe he’s not technically a regular guy but he gets sleepy and needs a little snack!!! He’s grumpy about it but I just love how it portrays him in such a different way than we usually get to see him. (He’s embarrassed he’s so funny. “Ooooh I take naps and eat snacks 🙄so embarrassing” He’s so silly)

As he talks to orihime throughout this arc he gets CLOSER to understanding as his whole nothing matters deal keeps getting shut down by her when he tries to convince her that nothing matters. But he really doesn’t GET it until right before his death when he realizes what “the heart” is. Because orihime showed him humanity and kindness he’s like oooohhhh I get it now. But at the last second which just is so…cries

anyway. He finally realizes what it means to care about something as he dies and it’s so tragic because this is the first time he’s ever felt anything and now he’s going to die reaching out to her. It’s probably THE most tragic anime scene I’ve ever watched it kills me literally Everytime I watch it screaming crying throwing up. You know the deal!!!

Then after that whole arc is finished the author published this art . And look at him. He’s so silly look at him

Anyway. *does jazz hands 👐 * that’s my guy!!!

!!!

Also!!! Fun facts(tm)

-Ulquiorras name was based off of Spanish architect and the castle that he lives in is based off of abstract Spanish architecture . Which I just think is really neat

-His birthday is on December 1!!!

-i just think he’s neat!!!

Anyway thank you so much for the ask I am so sorry this took forever to respond to I jus have SO many thoughts and typing on my phone takes FOREVER anyway I hope I did him justice!!!

#Anyway. I am so happy to get to talk about MY FAVORUTE GUY EVER!!!THANK YOU SO MUCH!!! AAAAH!!!#I rlly hope this was coherent and makes sense but LONG STORY SHORT #me when the character who is inhuman gets shown love and kindness understands love and kindness 🥹#Also he just looks so cool I love how much care has been put into his charcter design I just love how much the visual aspects of #His design and environment say so much about him #I have got to rewatch it again and do like . An official(tm) analysis about this arc because there is so much to say about the visual #Storytelling ALONE it makes me crazy.#Ahem. Thank you for listening I just love him so much he’s my funky little guy!!!#Ulquiorraposting #Rlly hoping that this is coherent when I first was answering this ask all I could think of was #OMG ULQUIORRA I GET TO TALK ABOUT ULQUIORRA DAJLAQLAGAFAGAVAJAKAM *broken computer noises*#I just think he’s neat!!!#Anyway. Ulquiorra #Edit: the images are formatted weird and the read more is not where it’s supposed to be but we’re fine we’re fine it’s fine!!!

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joe-dayton · 6 months

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Psychoanalytic Theory in The Boys

In his article titled ”Ideological Effects of the Basic Cinematographic Apparatus”, Jean-Louis Baudry concludes that “cinema [appears] as a sort of psychic apparatus of substitution, corresponding to the model defined by the dominant ideology” and that its ultimate and “primarily economic” goal is to prevent any form of deviations or exposure of the dominant ideology as a model.[1] Referencing Freud, Derrida, and even Plato, Baudry dissects and examines the ways in which the cinema works as an ideological tool for the dominant narrative of the culture that produces it, both in its mechanisms and its results. Through this same psychoanalytic lens, I will analyze how the narrative structure and ideological messaging of The Boys others characters through their respective identities while simultaneously upholding and sternly reinforcing the dominant ideology of American society. The Boys, an Amazon Prime original adaptation of the 2006 comic book series of the same name, follows a wide cast of characters; many of which are othered in some way, whether they are a superhero or a normal human being. Therefore, in order to keep this post in scope I will only be discussing one of the main characters, Starlight, examining her othering in the show and the ideological effects it creates.

In order to properly examine how Starlight is othered by the narrative and ideological structure of the show, we must first discuss the ways in which the cinema as a whole is a tool of ideological reproduction. To clarify, when Baudry refers to the term cinema he is discussing the literal structure and composition of a movie theatre, regarding both the presentation of reality in front of the audience and the origin of that reality being projected from behind them. However, I will be referring to cinema as the general idea of an abstract and presented reality—such as The Boys television series—through which all of the same concepts of the representation of the self apply. Baudry argues that “The ‘reality’ mimed by the cinema is first of all that of a ‘self.’ But because the reflected image is not that of the body itself but that of a world already given as meaning, one can distinguish two levels of identification.”[2] The first of these two levels is attached to the image itself, the relation and identification that we feel with the characters presented to us on the screen. While it is not a literal or physical reflection, we can still deeply relate and empathize with them as they go through the trials and tribulations of the story, such as Starlight’s sexual assault and her fight to get justice. And this action, the events, and the problems that the cinema presents us with is the second identification that the reality of cinema mimics. Baudry goes on to argue that what constitutes the images on screen, such as the mise-en-scene or stylization of a work, is of “little importance” as long as the capability of identifying with them is still possible.[3] The question is not one of form or mise-en-scene but one of ideology; of whether or not the camera will permit the subject (the self) to “constitute and seize itself in a particular mode of specular reflection.”[4] As such, cinema becomes an “apparatus destined to obtain a precise ideological effect,” as we inherently relate to and relocate our sense of self in relation to the events that are controlled by the cinema.[5]

Therefore, despite having lost the literal spatial similarity to Plato’s cave that movie theatres have, television series such as The Boys are no less of an illusion than the movies projected from behind our heads to in front of our eyes. Speculative media is a projection of ideology made into a representative form of reality. What this mechanism produces in the case of The Boys is a carefully articulated reality in which those that are othered, such as Starlight or A-Train or Maeve—characters that we place our idea of self into—are never allowed by the camera to fully seize their (our) hopes for morality or justice, thereby disallowing the viewer to ideologically “constitute and seize itself” in specular reflection.[6] This is particularly true with Starlight’s character arc. Despite being one of the most powerful characters in the show, Starlight is the first in the show to be othered by the structures and dynamics of power in the show. This othering of her gender and sexuality—as well as her ideas of morality and right and wrong—happens on her very first day of work at “Vought”—the international conglomerate responsible for both the creation and management of superheroes—when she is sexually assaulted by her coworker and subsequently reprimanded by her boss for speaking out about the issue. While this is an important event for both her character and the dominant narrative of the show, in the ideological and psychoanalytic sense it is only the beginning of a much larger and more concerning narrative. Throughout the episodes that follow this event, we see an eerily familiar story play out. Her assaulter, The Deep, goes on an apology publicity tour and is suspended for a brief amount of time only to eventually be brought back onto “The Seven” over other, more diverse, and far more qualified superheroes. In spite of her objections to this and to the overall corruption present throughout Vought, Starlight is othered by the rest of “The Seven” and Vought executives for her sexuality, gender, and ideology and is barred from having a say. In the structural narrative of the show, Starlight and characters like her who are othered for various reasons are unable to act, to seize any sense of control over the dominant narrative of the world unless they act immorally. This is evident throughout the show, particularly in the episode after Starlight is assaulted, when she speaks out about the assault and is almost fired, which she only avoids by blackmailing her boss with the threat of loss of profit for Vought.

Although there are flashes and brief instances of morality and humanism in the show, such as Starlight’s relationship with Hughie, another one of the main characters, these moments are few and far between and are becoming increasingly rare as the show is reaching season 4. I would argue that these moments of humanity are small cessions made in spite of the dominant ideology in order to maintain the illusion of self-reflection, allowing the show’s characters to maintain a level of humanity that we can relate to while simultaneously maintaining the dominant narrative that humanism and morality fail to defeat the capitalist powers that be like Vought or Amazon itself.

By delineating the viewer’s self to a character like Starlight—a subject upon which we can reflect ourselves and our desires—and creating an overall narrative that then stifles that sense of self from seizing any form of control or creation of change from the current power structures and ideology of the reflected reality, The Boys is able to effectively portray a speculative reality that has a deceiving duality, hiding it’s ideological message while ostensibly presenting another. The viewer is given a work that allows them to identify with the characters extremely well as they go through hardship and othering while also making those characters incredibly powerful and self-reliant through means of superpowers, such as Starlight. However, this reflection of the powerful and virtuous self that the viewer is presented in the show is at some point, without fail, corrupted or shown to fail when faced against the power structures and dominant, capitalist narrative of the world within the show, ultimately reaffirming and strengthening the dominant, capitalist realist narrative of America and Hollywood.

[1] Baudry, Jean. “Ideological Effects of the Basic Cinematographic Apparatus” Narrative, Apparatus, Ideology, 296.

[2] Baudry, Jean. “Ideological Effects of the Basic Cinematographic Apparatus” Narrative, Apparatus, Ideology, 295.

[3] Baudry, Jean. “Ideological Effects of the Basic Cinematographic Apparatus” Narrative, Apparatus, Ideology, 295.

[4] Baudry, Jean. “Ideological Effects of the Basic Cinematographic Apparatus” Narrative, Apparatus, Ideology, 296.

[5] Baudry, Jean. “Ideological Effects of the Basic Cinematographic Apparatus” Narrative, Apparatus, Ideology, 295.

[6] Baudry, Jean. “Ideological Effects of the Basic Cinematographic Apparatus” Narrative, Apparatus, Ideology, 296.

@theuncannyprofessoro

#oxyspeculativetv #speculativetvanalysis

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szczekaczz · 10 months

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Who are your dog ocs ?

i will gladly tell you all about them <33

first i will briefly explain the universe in which my beloved doggie ocs exist, because otherwise their roles and actions may not be understandable, and then i will actually describe them :]

the project is called the lantern dogs and it’s story is divided into five acts. there is also a sequel, but it’s a rather rough work in progress and i will get to it later.

in this world there is a plague killing the dogs, which can be transferred to humans. it kills people much more quickly and painfully than dogs, so the canines are no longer being kept as pets. they now live in forests and fields without direct contact with people. they are also killed instantly if in sight of humans. the plague outbroke around 1,5-2 years before the start of this story.

the only way to keep the symptoms of the illness subdued in dogs is to keep some source of light near their head, so they carry lanterns in their muzzles as long as the light is lit and guard it. not all dogs know how to light the lantern anew and they are usually at the mercy of an appearance of those, who possess this knowledge.

the story is set in an unspecified place and time; events take place in some taiga-tundra setting where winters are dominant.

dogs have a mixed and rather loose approach towards names. some of them are named by their parents as young pups, some come up with a name themselves during some point in their lives, some adapt nicknames from their friends and family, some simply don’t go by any name at all. and some change their names a few times during their lifetime if they feel like it.

there are two main characters: Gwizdak and Nobody. Gwizdak, the lurcher-like mix, possesses the knowledge on how to light the lanterns once they fade out. they travel the land in search of dogs needing help with that, thus saving, or rather prolonging their lives. first act of the story begins with Gwizdak encountering Nobody, the second main character – an abnormally huge, almost non-verbal at first, livestock guardian dog. as Nobody seems like a fish out of water in the dogs’ reality, Gwizdak decides to help them getting on their feet, and the lantern dogs is the very story of their mutual journey.

basically i wanted to create a story with an aesthetic of dogs with lanterns in the winter settings and here we are. for the first few months i didn’t even know who the main characters would be…

Gwizdak

their name can roughly translate into “the one who whistles” and is pronounced like this. they have a very shrill, high-pitched howl that sounds kind of similar to a human whistle. when they were young, some dogs jokingly called them that, and they just went with it lol

they’re a medium height, lurcher-like mix (in terms of body structure). they have long, gray fur with two darker spots on the left side of the body and another one around their right eye. and they also wear a blue bandana :)

first and foremost, Gwizdak wishes to create no conflict. they act in a very submissive manner as their main goal is to show the freshly met dogs that they are not a threat. because of this, their body language can sometimes look quite exaggerated. they keep their movements slow, tail and body lowered, and they often lay down when meeting strangers

Gwizdak believes that their knowledge of how to light the lanterns makes them highly responsible to save as many dogs as possible, also at the risk of their own health and safety. to them, this is simply the order of the world

and they generally believe that many of the things of the world are determined from the very start. sort of “it is what it is” approach

a control freak. not towards the other dogs, but rather in a “i need to come up with every single possible outcome of everything i do, predict everything that will ever happen and highly control all of my words and actions” sense. it does not end well when they finally find themself in a situation they have absolutely no control over…

interacting with other dogs doesn’t come to them naturally, but they looove spending time with dogs nevertheless. would be considered to be an extrovert, they suffered bad from loneliness before Nobody became their travel companion

from early puppyhood they found themself drawn to any sources of light. it started with being extremely focused on observing light reflections on grass or water, then keeping a close eye on how the humans light up lamps or make a fire. their mother didn’t approve of this “interest” and Gwizdak doesn’t like talking about it with other dogs, Nobody being the only exception <3

they’re a dog so they can’t be autistic but yeah my experience with being autistic is present in this character. special interest in light, taking everything literally (i talk about it later in Nobody’s section), somewhat awkward with their words and body language, exaggerated aversion to texture of the water… these kinds of things

Gwizdak feels the deep, unspeakable connection to both Nobody's mind and heart, and they trust them with their whole life. they are lovers and soulmates and everything…

in the fourth act they suffer from a brain injury and a huge mental breakdown due to some hehe happening. from now on, they sometimes get temporary paralysis of the right limbs. and they are also going through an neverending breakdown (but let’s now dwell on the reasons because that would need a lot of plot explaining - let’s stop with Gwizdak simply being my stress ball for venting haha)

Nobody

some sort of a livestock guardian dog, most similar to a caucasian shepherd. their fur is light fawn in color and very thick, masking the general lack of fat and (at first) muscles. because of their unnaturally big size they most often look very intimidating in eyes of unknown dogs

Nobody comes from a shabby puppy mill, where they were kept separately from other dogs in a single kennel. all of the dogs were chased out when they were around one year old, once the plague broke out, and many were killed in the process. Nobody was lucky to escape and survived alone for a short time before meeting Gwizdak

although they had no contact with other dogs in the puppy mill, meeting Gwizdak gave them an opportunity to observe many canines on their mutual journey. during the second arc, Gwizdak and Nobody are separated, and Nobody lives with three different family groups, spending a lot of time with all of them and learning how such groups exist. they are quick to learn dog-dog communication and their ways of living <3

they don’t speak for most of the first act. later, they are a dog of few words - they talk thoughtfully, but in a simply laconic manner

a calm, very stable dog. for me they are an embodiment of the balance and equilibrium that free-ranging/feral dogs possess - free of human influence and conditioning, knowing how to exist peacefully among other dogs and their surroundings, and to be confident of their own skills and knowledge. much inspired by the work and words of Michele Minunno, who has my highest respect…

anosmic - fully lacks the sense of smell, which is the most important for the dogs. i find it interesting and eye-opening to think about how a dog lacking the smell navigates the world and interactions with other dogs, as olfactory communication plays a big role here. as humans mostly think in words and images, dogs in this universe think in smells and words - so i ponder Nobody’s thought processes a lot. also influenced by my own dog whose sense of smell is very weak

they have a special connection to the sea. during the second arc, they briefly reach it and have a hmm sort of spiritual rebirth? i don’t really know how to word it but they then feel a bit like a clean state and their mind becomes calm and quiet

best puppy nanny in the world and i mean it. they love pups and are loved back, because c’mon, the biggest dog you’ve ever seen that very gently lays down and has endless patience for everything you do? where are you gonna find a better playground…

but they also feel much more at ease while interacting with pups than adult dogs and they are damn good at it! i’ve personally been quite into pedagogy for a few years now and yeah i needed a character that is good with kids. anyway, Nobody navigates pup’s needs and feelings both intuitively and based on their experiences of living with very stable and balanced family groups in all of which the puppies were present; they are stable and balanced themself, so they can be a great support for all the troubled youngsters (see later: Nettle…)

oh yeah and the deal with their name. while locked in the box stall and overhearing short conversations from the dogs they could not smell nor see, Nobody didn't truly grasp the concept of names. during the time between being chased out and meeting Gwizdak their sense of identity was so fragile and nearly non-existing that they didn't ever really think of coming up with any name for themself. in the current timeline they still don't spare much thought to this matter as they simply don't consider it very important. in the first act, once they started speaking, Gwizdak once asked them who they were, and they replied they were nobody. and Gwizdak, being their painfully dense self, took it literally and thought it was a real name. and it just stuck from then…

Nettle

an adopted daughter of Pietruszka (Gwizdak’s friend)

just a regular plain black dog. a tiny bit shorter than Gwizdak, has short black fur. right ear is prick, left is button…

if not for early-life malnourishment they would grow up to be huge. not anywhere to Nobody’s level but they’d be a very big dog

starts as an impetuous, alert and noisy pup, always trying to show the world she is not afraid of it. then develops into angry and short-tempered adolescent that is not always very nice to interact with

has gone through a lot of shit in her youth, influenced by both other dogs and humans. she spends the fifth act under Nobody and Gwizdak’s care (but mostly Nobody’s as the fifth act is one big ongoing mental breakdown for Gwizdak) being very irritable and always on the verge of exploding, not the most pleasant travel partner… but thanks to Nobody’s patience and Understanding™ she manages to somewhat get her shit together by the end of this story

to me she is a very complex character and probably the most developed one but to truly explain what’s her deal i would need to explain the whole storyline of the lantern dogs so ughhhh you have to take my word for it. she is a mess and a bitch but she has her reasons!

learned how to hunt humans at some point… she met a certain group of dogs while traveling with Gwizdak and Nobody, who agreed to share food if one of them helped with the hunting. Nettle, who has had Very Bad experience with people before, felt a great fulfillment and satisfaction in doing so. this skill comes in handy in the sequel for sure

very distrustful towards males and holds them all at bay

forever haunted by a story she heard from Gwizdak when they visited her pack once she was very young. they said that the sky is inhabited by two dogs, who live their lives during the day and curl up to sleep at night - that’s them during the full moon that shines bright their safety and happiness. however, one of them is very curious and lively, always having so much to do, so it often runs out into the dark night, and the moon starts to crest. its companion worries in its absence and sets out to seek the mate. it runs far and wide, searching the whole sky, leaving behind paw prints that are called stars and the new moon is the absence of dogs. fortunately, the dog manages to find its companion, and they come back to lay, their paw prints fading again once the moon wanes and becomes full again, two dogs cuddling together at last, before the vagabond runs out anew. through her life, she often thinks back to this story and feels like the dog who always ends up alone and has to chase anyone that is close to her

and some less developed ones…

Pietruszka

her name means a parsley and is pronounced like this. again, it just sounds cool and that’s the only reason why i’m keeping it in polish lol

on the bigger of dogs and fairly muscular. dark brown and white bicolor fur, plus has spaniel-like ears

named by her parents, who previously lived with their owners in a different country with a warmer climate. the owners had grown various vegetables and some of their names had stuck in dogs’ memory, and the whole litter was named in the same matter…

she was also the one to come up with Nettle’s name! she remembered her parents mentioning a plant that stung humans, but they decided to still keep it in their garden. and Pietruszka thought that yeah that pup is bad-tempered and her words may sting but i still love her and will definitely keep her forever <3

first met Gwizdak when she was just a puppy still living with her littermates and parents. Gwizdak saved their lives with freshly-lit lanterns and she never forgot them. unfortunately, all of her family passed away from the illness when she was barely over six months old, but she managed to find a family group of other dogs quite soon and decided to join them

she is now a leader of that group and its well-being is one of her highest priorities, and she doesn’t hesitate to let anyone know about this. while groups free-ranging dogs don’t have a strict hierarchy, this one is an exception - Pietruszka possesses natural leadership skills and makes a good use of them

in the story, she meets our main characters in the first, third and fifth acts. she respects Gwizdak very highly and has a great trust in them, while staying quite suspicious towards Nobody

Maeve

a belgian malinois shepherd with notable black feet <3 called “dirt paw” by Nettle in response to Maeve calling her a “flop ear”

in puppyhood she went through some harsh training and managed to escape during an oversea travel after so long

british because i thought it might be funny.. no other dog really knows how she got here and she lives alone

at least until she meet Nettle and they hit it off very quickly. they also become mates very fast, as they are both aware of the fragility of their lives, so why temp the fate and time?

possesses a particularly sharp tongue and is, generally, a huge bitch. a match made in heaven with Nettle tbh… they bond over their shared hate towards humans lol

has a very strong bite and (unfortunately to Nettle’s ears) shows affection by biting

dies early, maybe a month or two after meeting Nettle. she is shot down by some hunters and dies instantly :( sorry Maeve, no happiness for you two

Nuku

rescued by Nobody in the fifth act when he was a young pup and his mother and littermates passed away. their motherly instincts could only go unmet for so long…

named by his mother <3

i have yet to fully come up with his design. a bit scrawny at first as a pup, he grows up to be a rather big dog. fur is thick, thinking about some sort of grayish-brownish brindle

has a mild intellectual disability

the sense of freedom is very important to him and he prefers the wandering life over the sedentary one

Nobody is like a mother to him. Gwizdak however is horrible with pups and is no parental figure, just a close adult, but he loves them both very much

a lot more developed in the sequel tbh

episodic character, appears in just once scene in act three

lives with a pack of wolves, Gwizdak and Nobody are the first and last dogs he actually talks to. he is weary with the illness of the plague and his biggest wish is to share his life-long conclusions about his species to another dog

through his character i talk about about domestication syndrome, ethics of owning dogs, their welfare and other related things

and some final thoughts regarding them in general or their relationships :)

Gwizdak and Nobody fall in love somewhere in the first act because i don’t like the trope of prolonged pining… besides free-ranging dogs don’t live very long lives, not to mention the plague in this universe, so why wait for no reason if their time is limited

they are very gentle with each other and groom themselves all the time. i mean licking and cleaning mate’s ears, eyes, muzzle, neck, snuggling while laying down or sleeping ect. i personally love observing dogs who are fully comfortable with each other so these two are an embodiment of that :)

Nettle and Nuku’s relationship is akin to siblings’. they are the protagonists of the sequel and it is explored a lot more in there, but yeah, sibling feels. they are pros at playing mock hunts (poor Gwizdak once fell prey to them and they both got hit with Nobody’s “i’m not mad just disappointed” gaze lol) and spend lots of time at friendly biting each other

Nettle and Maeve thrive and spend their lives together in every other universe that can exist. it’s only the canon where Maeve dies. i like a good tragedy so sorry girls…

speaking of alternative universes. it’s Gwizdak who stays kind from the bottom of their heart in each and every story i can think of, while there are universes where Nobody turns out to be morally gray at best. which brings to…

Gwizdak’s kindness is the core of this story. Nobody, the stable and wise and reliable dog, saves and enables many characters to live, both explicitly and indirectly, only because Gwizdak decided to help them. upon their meeting Nobody was in such a condition that they flatly wouldn’t manage on their own and would pass very promptly. Gwizdak was under no obligation to help the half-dead stranger they met on pure accident, but they did it. and damn it did matter so much…

there aren’t many characters here because Gwizdak and Nobody are in a constant travel, the dogs they meet just come and go. and i think they are interesting! but their “screen time” is very limited and they will never be as developed like Gwizd, Nbds, Pietruszka and Nettle (and also Nuku but he appears very late in the story)

oh yeah and the sequel. i have yet to decide on the canon ending of the lantern dogs, but i’ve been thinking a lot on this particular follow-up. let’s say that in short Gwizdak, Nobody and Pietruszka disappear and Nettle and Nuku are left alone. these two are the sequel’s main characters and i put a big emphasis on their relationship here, as they need to quickly learn to manage on their own. they travel for the first part of the story and then decide to settle with a pack of other dogs. finally some secondary characters i can actually develop!

sadly i have no drawings of any of them, just some quick sketches from 2019.. and i know their descriptions are quite short here but i didn’t want to make essays about all part of their bodies (maybe in another separate post)

i generally just find lots of fun merging real-life dogs’ psyche with some anthropomorphization (because come on they carry lanterns to subdue symptoms of the illness and can think in very abstract ways), but it is also the reason i won’t ever publish this story for the larger audience, i worry too much about people mixing actual dogs’ and humans’ psyche like, for example, Gwizdak’s interest in light (cuz ppl think dogs suffering from ocd are funny and playing so often..)

in short i love them and i’ve been working on this story since late 2018 (it will be 5 years soon!) and these doggos from my brain bring me sooo much happiness

#dogs from my brain i love you #and thank you so much for asking!! had lot of fun writing this down :)#🏮🐾

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justcallmealt · 11 months

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So, if you remember that anyone who Hokma hired to work in Lobcorp has the *potential*, when placed in the Well and cultivating the right conditions, to become an anomaly symbolizing the history, sins, fears of this human, then I suppose we can talk about Fau, Devona and Rogan. Unfortunately, due to practice in botany Fau's analysis will be later.

And this information with the help of knowledge extracted from Garion's brain. And also mostly people from the Backstreets, who accept the terms of the contract, have no other choice for a normal life, and have *potential* to become abno, so...

Let's start with Rogan, as one of the very first agents that I remember by name and appearance. What could it be if this high level agent who hates it was placed in the Well to extract the anomaly? Basically I can point out a few parts of his life: history - he hails from the Backstreets that took over District 23 (including how Fau learned enough to hide his history at a decent level), has the trauma of having to eat people (well, not really people, but dishes of them, well, culture of District) to survive in his teens, after his father, the Fixer, but the homophobe (maybe it's part of my story but in him...) who taught him to fight, died on a mission.

Also, very important friendship with Devona can be attributed to the story, who showed Rogan that there are other, more pleasant people, and that it is not necessary to be ashamed of their orientation (Rogan bi with a preference towards men. But he can also fall in love with women, do not forget, do not forget. ..(don't pay attention, it's for a friend rather)).

Now, turning to his work in L corp. At first, he was simply apprehensive about such a lucrative job, and for good reason, and since he was one of the first agents, he had to see many deaths of colleagues, which each time beat to his heart until he closed himself off from others, except Devona. And along with the closeness of character from the newcomers came a hatred of anomalies, which allowed him to attack with force those whom he was ordered to suppress.

But that's not all, as he could feel a certain oddity, a sense of deja vu associated with the flow of time and the TT2 protocol used by the manager to restart the day (even if in the canon X had to start all over again, and not restart the day like this).

Further, there are fears - the main of which is the loss of Devona, whom he did not see when Devona was transferred to the department of Hokma, but he knew that they were alive. The second is to allow others to die from hateful anomalies. The third is being unable to protect others from death. And to become attached, which can be attributed to the fourth fear.

Next come the sins. The main sin, the basis of Rogan, can be considered wrath, fortunately directed at anomalies, not people, but unfortunately not at unfair situations, despite the fact that his highest stat is justice. The second would be lust/protectiveness(/the fact that he still blushes if someone nice compliments him, ehe~). The third one can probably be called gloom, caused by the fact that no matter how much he tries, his efforts will still be mostly useless, because this cycle of death will continue again and again.

Thus, the anomaly extracted from Rogan will most likely be something similar to the Army in Pink / Black, or have completely different traits - hatred and rage towards everything that can be attributed to enemies, but at the same time allies help and protect them, or absolute blind rage towards all living things/ something to do with stopping this senseless loop of suffering and death, allowing his colleagues to survive on their borrowed time at the expense of something else (similar to the Price of Silence?¿)/ Or is it the pain of losing acquaintances and comrades, destruction of oneself, disappearance (something similar to a ghost / that anomaly in Limbus, whose gift is called "Phantom pain") / the desire to leave forever, fall asleep and not wake up, give others freedom, even if in the understanding of others this freedom will end in a worse situation than death (similar to Empty Dreams, even if he didn't work with this anomaly).

***

I place Devon next for this analysis. They also grew up in District 23, but their main difference is that they are more optimistic and light hearted. They learned to find at least a drop of something good in life so as not to go crazy. They try to be friendly to others, which is why most of their younger colleagues are drawn to them. Devona were literally the heart of their Lobcorp team.

They also had a girlfriend named Diana shortly before their employment, for whom they accepted a job offer, a desire to secure a good life, and possibly even move to the Nest. Which unfortunately didn't happen. At work, they were also among the first agents and were glad to see Rogan - their friend. Over time, when other agents either died or started using Enkephalin, Devona tried to somehow help others, noticing that these deaths also affected Rogan. The Devona tried to cheer Rogan up, not letting him drown in despair.

But like him, Devona too was affected by the deaths. And because they did not try to close themselves off from new acquaintances, each death hit them, allowing a feeling of depression and helplessness to gradually accumulate in their heart. Even if these attempts end in nothing, it is better to try to take even the slightest step to avert disaster, isn't it? Sometimes the encouragement from Devona helped, planting hope in their hearts before some died from abnormalities.

Those who survived had the potential to become captains with the same warm hearts and desire to help. The Devona understood that they were trying to feel a little better by doing something. And when Fau appeared in the middle of the road to day 50, they noticed his resemblance to Rogan, how each death affected this strange newcomer, who had too much Temperance, but still held back emotions and tears inside. That is why they felt patronized to some extent.

In the Lobotomy Corporation, they had the highest Prudence and wore the Blue Star ego armor and weapon. They could quickly understand what was needed for this or that anomaly, but most people were no exception.

However, this did not stop them from attacking the escaped anomalies, protecting their crew and other agents, and even clerks. Devona did not like death and fights, just as they did not like to fight, dreaming of the impossible, that one day the day would come when they would not have to fight anymore. Therefore, the strongest weapons, when used by them, always had white damage. Do no harm, only help your own.

After the execution of the Seed of Light plan, they had to fight against anomalies together with everyone, and at one moment all these deaths became redundant, something inside clicked, the accumulated tension allowed tears to pour about all the dead before they decided on this, selfishly escaping, turning neck. What Fau saw.

But Devon's story doesn't end there. Since they were in the department of Hokma, they were among the first to awaken on the Religion floor in the Library, accepting everything and returning to hope.

I can attribute the first one to Devona's rhinestones, and the one that disappeared the fastest - losing Diana when they realized that they would not return after being transferred to the main building. Over time, this fear became different - to lose those they cared about, including Rogan and their team, whom they cared about. The second is that they will all have to fight all their lives with no chance of a break, and that these battles will always be meaningless, blood for blood's sake. The fact that from this blood people will forget what they once came here for.

Sins. The main ones include the gloom that has accumulated over the years, slowly sabotaging their work and self-esteem. The second is lust/desire. The desire to change for the better, no matter how small they are. The third - Gluttony, in the context of Limbus is perceived as a thirst / hunger for something (for example, knowledge, but in their case it is a thirst to help others, not to see other people's suffering and not to suffer themselves. Also thanks for other people analysis they are soooo cool and sexy brains) or a desire for life, which they also possess. I could call it a thirst for the impossible, closely intertwined with their desire for change.

Thus, an anomaly extracted from Devona is something, or rather something, most likely similar to an animal, most likely even associated with a fish, possibly similar to Headless Ichthys, but instead of anger, there is desolation, empty tears in which there are no emotions except for the maddening emptiness, with tears forever flowing for those who could not get out. Or, here you can draw a parallel with the Eye from Wing K.

Or, it would be an anomaly that gives away parts of itself, even if in fact these parts only make the situation worse, perhaps similar to that anomaly of the Nurse, but an aberration (? Anger does not find a place here). Or, there may be a resemblance to the Thearesia (sorry can't look at abno info rn, so can be called wrong) anomaly from the Lobotomy Corporation. Something similar, but an excessive number of uses leads to destruction, so that the anomaly will be reborn again, continuing the cycle of suffering, but not wanting to break this ring, not knowing how to do it without victims, except for itself. Or it could be an anomaly related to Trauma, something that hates combat and reacts to the death of clerks, but also brings some benefit. Or it could be something similar to Blue star, with how it ends human lifes.

Anyway, abno that could be extracted from Devona Always will have white damage.

(also translation ate some parts so if something missing please tell me)

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treesap-blogs · 1 year

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Review for “A Blade So Black” by L.L. McKinney

Hello, Tumblrians! I thought I’d end up publishing my reviews in order of the date I finished them, but that’d mean I have several months of reviews to catch up on and…that’s as exhausting as it sounds.

So here, a book I just finished! While on that dreaded trip I was telling you guys about, too. No BDB, I just really like to add to my StoryGraph TBR with books that make it onto queer reading list posts, and the sequel (“A Dream So Dark”) was one I kept finding.

And I like retellings too, so there’s that.

A Blade So Black follows seventeen year-old Alice Kingston, meant to be a monster-fighting Buffy-esque interpretation of the titular character from the Alice In Wonderland story(as this is a retelling). Besides keeping gnarly creatures in the dream realm known as Wonderland at bay, she has to juggle her problems in real-life Atlanta—think a slipping GPA, best friends and coping with the ever-present grief following one year since the death of her father. But when a nasty encounter means that her mentor (and possible love interest) Addison Hatta gets poisoned, she has to go find the antidote deeper within Wonderland than she’s ever gone, before she can literally lose her head.

As you can see, it has an interesting premise! I like the darker reimagining of this story—although I know that’s been done before, famously with the American McGee’s Alice video game series(rest in peace, Asylum). Alice In Wonderland is a favorite of mine too, as a kid with a wild and vivid imagination (and a tendency to daydream) I loved the weird and nonsensical nature of it. And I haven’t watched Buffy before, but I liked the promise of it emanating a similar vibe! However, the execution of this was…so-so.

Firstly, because we didn’t spend as much time in Wonderland as I’d hoped (Allison got exiled, so there’s only so far you can go really), the worldbuilding was mainly through exposition and not in a more organic way. That got pretty tedious, such as in the case of an entire chapter showing Maddi explaining mirror images of the three queens of Wonderland. Combined with it taking a while for the plot to kick off (Allison didn’t get poisoned until halfway through), the actual structure of the plot didn’t feel solid. I have heard in that regard though, the second book is stronger, and I hope it delivers! A Blade So Black is L.L. McKinney’s debut novel, hence some of the hiccups in storytelling and pacing (and she likely has a better understanding of the story’s structure in the second book because now she has some experience to go off of).

Most of the aforementioned plot revolves around a MacGuffin, too. I’ve never been a fan of those, although I don’t think anyone is considering the term’s existence, and it basically made up the plot for when the Black Knight didn’t have nearly enough on-page time. (Not that I’m really complaining though, I had a visceral reaction to the “pet names” he’d use on Alice! Creep. Miss me with that “kitten” shit, I thought Discord didn’t exist here.) (the creepiness was intentional though, he was never paired with Alice thank god)

Secondly, I didn’t like the romance! Alice juggles a lot of crushes, as teens who get crushes do, and that’s perfectly normal and okay, but it results in this weird pseudo-love triangle existing? Like, she almost kisses Chess, but then spends the entire book thinking about Hatta. At least pick somebody, damnit! (And she had a crush on Xelon, the knight from the white queen’s kingdom, which I thought would culminate to something but nope. Xelon got paired with the princess. Which wasn’t totally surprising, I’ll admit, but I just wish they had more time together. They were kinda cute.) But also, Hatta and Alice have a mentor-student dynamic (which seemed to be weirder to a Goodreads reviewer who was also a Buffy fan and made some connections with the characters in the show?). While they’re the same age appearance-wise, Wonderlandians are semi-immortal, and I don’t know how the aging process works at all for them so it…makes this a little weird? It can’t be just me thinking that.

Anyhow! So what are some things I did like about it, though? Well. I did like Alice’s balance of badassry and vulnerability. She definitely struggled with the latter, but she had some solid moments of dealing with her own grief surrounding her father’s death, and throughout it showed her struggling with the pressure and stress of her circumstances. Not many black female protagonists get to have that in a novel, or in any media, really! I appreciated that detail.

I wish the side characters could’ve been more developed. Being that the plot only kicked off halfway through, a third in was when most of them were introduced, so the time we had with them was limited towards the end. I really wanted to enjoy the Wonderland group’s antics and adventures, even if the cast fell under certain archetypes. But alas :(

The real-life and Wonderland stuff felt a little unbalanced in their time, too. There were important social justice issues brought up in the real-life parts(racism, police brutality), although they were only touched on and the story never went in-depth about them. Wonderland also felt pretty empty a lot of the time, mostly due to it literally being just that because of Hatta’s confines to travel within, but another part the worldbuilding.

It wasn’t a bad read, but I was still left with mixed feelings on it.

Book rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️/5 stars. Finished 06/06/23.

(Book content/trigger warnings: Violence+blood, grief, death of a parent(off-page), racism and police brutality(mentioned), child death(mentioned), mild body horror.)

-Paz, signing off!

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bookandcover · 11 months

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I grabbed a copy of this from my school on the very last day because I felt such a longing to start summer off with a light-hearted read. That feels like the definition of summer to me: lounging on the lawn, reading some silly fantasy romance book that is both mindless and deeply engaging.

I got out of the habit of reading this genre, so I'm wildly behind the times. This was a fun and perfect choice to kick off my summer.

Basically every trope of “fairy lore” that I could think of appears in this book, including...

~The poor girl protagonist (with no mother) is snatched away by a magic man, who is a blend of beast/human (reminiscent of Beauty and the Beast, particularly in terms of the time limit on Tamlin’s curse and the conditions for breaking it: a human needs to tell him she loves him, unprompted).

~In spite of the curse, Tamlin lets Feyre go on the verge of breaking the curse because he loves her.

~All Tamlin’s servants and the members of his court are bound up in the curse too, unable to speak of it.

~The concept of mates (fated loves) hovers on the fringes of the novel with the promise that perhaps Feyre and Tamlin are mates (as Tamlin’s parents were). Tamlin’s heart of stone, which is hinted at and, later, becomes pivotal in the plot seems a familiar echo of the logic inherent in faerie magic.

~Faeries cast glamours (a form of magic), so that all is not as it appears to the human eye.

~Faeries and humans coexist according to the rules set down in an ancient treaty that keeps the peace between them, although stories abound among each group about the cruelty and inhumanity of the other. ~In his effervescent spring court, Tamlin draws Feyre in with his glorious study/library, and he gives her a place to paint, pursuing her passion.

~Each spring, Tamlin restores his lands and the magic of the earth through a passionate lovemaking ritual. While this type of faerie lore might not coexist with the logic of, say, Disney’s Beauty and the Beast, it feels familiar to faerie lore that encompasses earth magic rituals and the permeable boundary between the human and faerie realms (like Wildwood Dancing). Unlike the spring festivities, Feyre is fully welcomed into the midsummer’s solstice festivities, which—as she danced and Tamlin fiddled—put me in mind of the beloved book The Folk Keeper.

~As I read, I was also reminded several times of the book East, which draws on the Norwegian myth “East of the Sun, West of the Moon,” particularly when Feyre must complete three tasks or solve a riddle in order to win Tamlin back and break his curse.

Yes, this book is overflowing with tropes. It feels familiar, like a scrambled recombination of stories you’ve heard before. Yet, in this familiarity, it is joyful and energetic. The writing is good, not in a literary sense, but in the sense that the words themselves fade into the background and I inhabit the world, particularly that of the Spring Court, which felt tangible in every scene. Hunting and patrolling with Lucien, the woods with the Naga and the Suriel, the pond of starlight, the expectancy of Fire Night, the luscious joy of midsummer’s eve—all these depictions of Feyre’s experiences felt real and inhabited. I love the luscious descriptions in this book; the 400-layered cake effect and the scene-setting is sensual and powerful—I felt swept up in the momentum, tone, and visuals of this book, even though it is not literary writing.

In a similar “fading into background” effect, Feyre is an innocuous heroine. She’s spunky, generic, and practical enough to feel partially invisible, like a vehicle that allows the reader to directly experience her world (a kind of reader “self-insert”). But she is also caring, reasonable, and sympathetic as a character, and so we readers hope for her triumph and long-term happiness. In the final section of the novel when Feyre is Under the Hill, battling through Amarantha’s seemingly impossible tasks, she felt the most embodied and individualized as a character. Interestingly, this dovetailed with a pivot in the book to the development of Rhysand’s character (as Tamlin fades into the background, stoically trapped by Amarantha’s side) and Rhysand’s interactions with Feyre took center stage as he played a key role in discreetly helping her through the tasks, redirecting Amarantha’s attention at critical moments, and—setting up the next book in the series—introducing the agreement between himself and Feyre in which Feyre trades him a week at his court every month for the rest of her life (later, eternity, as she is saved by being granted immortality, which put me in mind of the faeries in The Two Princess of Bamarre) in exchange for his help healing her.

This was funny timing in the plot because right as the Under the Hill section of the book began, I’d wondered what could possibly happen in a sequel (even though I knew there were several more books in the series). It seemed that this plot was headed toward such a “neat” ending of Feyre rescuing Tamlin and restoring the power balance among the High Lords of Prythian. I supposed that there was more to play out with the threatening king across the sea in Hybern, but it seemed that Feyre would have resolved the heart of her romance plot line, as she maintained her “established relationship” with Tamlin. And then Rhysand suddenly received his screen time. I can imagine that Rhysand must be a fan favorite…who doesn’t love a morally-grey mysterious hot boy who seems strangely helpful, yet with motivates we can’t yet explain? Tamlin and Feyre’s romance does seem best fit to the “Disney” end of the faerie lore spectrum (despite a few steamy scenes) with a kind of “fated mates” perfect couple energy. I know I would be intrigued by a Rhysand love plot line, yet I wondered if Feyre’s simple characterization would continue to feel better fit for Tamlin? It’s not that she’s not strong and fierce; it’s that she’s somehow deeply normal (even in spite of a troubled youth, which she has responded to with self-sufficiency and selflessness) and forthright. I wonder how she will continue to evolve as a character.

This was such a good choice for my first summer read because it made me feel young again—sprinting through a book, I could read the whole series! The infinite imaginative spin out, the slowing down of time…dream-like summers, like those in this book. As I read, I felt aware of my enjoyment of it, a bit ironically engaged, but also genuinely engaged, thinking about the plot when I was not reading. This book became the backdrop to my early summer adventures, as I flew to Peru, up to Cusco and the Andes…I am the mobile summer creature…another side of me blossoms. I become me again.

#a court of thorns and roses #feyre #tamlin #rhysand #sarah j. maas #summer reading #fantasy romance

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nextlevel-hq · 11 months

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GAME MODES

For the group, the different types of plots and events we’ll have will be referred to as different “modes” in the game. The type of mode you choose to make your character participate in will anticipate how many exp they receive.

TUTORIAL

STARTING OUT

This is just extra information to help provide context for how the game works and to give everyone a semi-mutual experience to talk about. You will not be asked to actually rp this when you first join. When first starting the game, players will be submerged into the tutorial mode. This will consist of an empty training room with JOCASTA, an ai android being your mentor. Tutorials will be 15-20 minutes in length and the character will gain 5 levels from doing them. In order to beat the tutorial, they must prove that they have mastered the basics of their character via a battle. After winning the battle, the player will be transported to the streets of Manhattan with a new mission. This mission will be the main one depending on the on-going event, but they can also start picking up side-missions.

MAIN

THE PORTALS

One of the main features/stories is that of the portals plaguing the universe. This mode is the slowest and has an indefinite conclusion as the main point is for characters and their allegiance (villains, heroes, antiheroes, etc.) to gain control of the portal similar to a capture the flag situation. In some cases, portals will be aggressive towards players forcing allegiances to team together to take down the common enemy before capturing the portal. Portals are captured by finding the KEY which is imbedded within the realm. Keys bare the appearance of an actual key with only cosmetic differences. Gaining control of portals provides your allegiance with more locations for bases, items exclusive to the portal and extra experience points for any enemies defeated within that land. New portals open every so often and will be considered a “portal event” in our group which will explore the story of the portal, any characters, etc.

STORY

The second main mode is a story mode that is based on or inspired by actual comic/movie/tv show events with some tweaks to fit the group. Some of these stories will affect your character’s personal arc in some way or another. These will be referred to as “story events” and certain sections of the game’s map/locations will be isolated for the event. Both main modes will be announced by the admins and will have their own category, these will last from 3 days to 2 weeks depending on how much participation we receive and how quick the plot progresses.

SIDE-QUESTS

SIDE QUESTS/ SUB-MISSIONS/ SIDE-MISSIONS

Referred to as Side-Missions or Sub-Missions, sidequests can come from players themselves or npcs. In terms of our group, these will be in game plot requests from our members that do not affect the main storyline but they can affect your character. You can consider the world of the game as an open exploration game, where your character can go anywhere and sometimes these places will have things like specific beasts, paranormal entities, small rebel groups, etc. Therefore, feel free to do whatever you want for these side quests/plots, you can even adapt your character’s storylines from the games/movies/etc. as long as they are not huge storylines. (So you can’t make something like infinity war, house of m, flashpoint, secret invasion, etc as a side plot as those would be considered main story material) Side-quests/missions can be found and posted in the mission board.

OTHER

These will be short little events such as holiday events that can expand to your characters “reality” such as a player mixer, holiday festivities, etc.

#nlhq:mbi #nlhq:modes

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dubaibrillmindz · 2 years

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Mobile Game Development Process - An In-Depth Overview

Mobile games are one of the most popular pastimes among smartphone owners. Smartphone usage has expanded rapidly. Within the first week of purchasing a smartphone, 62% of consumers install games. The mobile game trend has surpassed traditional games in terms of technological advancements.

Thousands of mobile apps are released every day on the Google Play and Apple App Stores. There are games, social networking apps, and eCommerce apps among these mobile apps. If developed by a mobile app development company in Bangalore, all of these apps should follow a similar mobile app development process.

Although each app is unique and approaches are constantly improving, there is a fairly standard mobile game development process. The idea, strategy, design, development, deployment, and post-launch phases are usually included in the mobile app development process.

This statistic demonstrates how popular and effective Smartphone games are. The success of games like Candy Crush, Subway Surfer, and PUBG has demonstrated the financial potential of mobile games. Many people are entering this area because they have taken the world by storm. Do you, however, understand how to create mobile games? The techniques outlined here will assist you in effectively developing a mobile game.

A Step-by-Step Guide to Developing a Mobile Game

1. Fantastic Game Concept

Almost everything big begins with a vision.

The concept is the cornerstone of your entire game. The better the concept, the more likely your game will be a success. Idea generation, on the other hand, is a creative process that cannot be taught. You must come up with a brilliant concept on your own. It doesn't have to be original; it might be a simple notion, but it should be something no one has thought of before.

Read More Blogs:

E Learning app development companies in Hyderabad

13. Start a Mobile Game

Now that you've created the game, tested it, and decided on a monetization strategy, it's time to put it out there.

However, launching the game is not an easy procedure. Your game must meet the requirements of the various app stores. The respective app store's review team will evaluate the game, and if they are satisfied, they will publish it on the app store for users to download.

14. Maintenance and Support

Launching the app does not complete the task. You must assist users and keep the game running smoothly. You must maintain the game in order for it to stay up and running. To keep the programme interesting, you must update it and include new modes, levels, features, and so on.

Users want new content every day, and weekly and monthly events can help keep them interested.

It's difficult to turn your gaming concept into reality. Along the journey, you'll have to put in a lot of effort and deal with a variety of challenges and detours.

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psychee92 · 3 years

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Why ACOTAR 5 Is (Without a Doubt) Elain’s Book

Warning: This post will be a long one, and will analyze the series as a whole (including ACOSF). As you read it, please consider taking your shipping goggles off, as none of this has anything to do with shipping and everything to do with character development/plot/the overall narrative of the series/good storytelling. Thank you!

Main points:

Elain’s role in the ACOTAR series

Elain’s character evolution throughout the series

The foreshadowing in ACOSF (+ bonus POVs)

The overarching plot

SJM’s own words

The ACOTAR Series and Elain’s Role

We have multiple interviews of SJM saying that Nesta and Elain’s role started off as a fairytale trope: that of the evil sisters. Then, Nesta surprised her when she decided to go after Feyre in ACOTAR, and the rest is history.

The sisters went from being a trope to being an instrumental part of the series. In ACOMAF, they were a link to Feyre’s human life (a final thread that she needed to let go of), as well as a means to an end (first, by being a bridge between the IC and the Queens, and then, as leverage, or weapons that were used against Feyre in Hybern). The final scene in ACOMAF was the catalyst for everything that happened in ACOWAR—and everything that is yet to come—but, most importantly, it also opened the door to two new character arcs/journeys—two new protagonists.

The protagonist exists as a sympathetic device to drive a story. To be effective in this role, they are usually there from the inciting moment to the end.

The similarities between their journey and Feyre’s are astounding: human made into something that she was raised to fear; coming to terms with trauma; letting go of the past; accepting her new condition; and the list goes on and on.

Now, who had more to lose by becoming fae?

And who lost more than anyone else?

Elain lost a future.

She was happy, content, in love.

Then, everything was ripped away from her in the span of a few minutes.

She was turned into something she had been raised to fear, something that her own fiancée had been raised to hate.

And, if that wasn’t enough, she was also forced into a bond neither her, nor Lucien, wanted. Mated to a man who participated, even if unknowingly, in the loss of her life—of her future. A man who did not know her, want her, love her.

This, right here, is good storytelling. It sets the stage for what is to come—for Elain’s future story and character arc.

ACOWAR is centered around repercussions:

For Elain, this book is one of healing, at least on the surface. SJM built the foundation of Elain’s journey, evidenced by:

Elain hitting rock bottom

Erasing any hope of a future with Graysen

Severing the last thread to her human life (with the death of her father)

This book also emphasizes Elain’s vital role in future books by:

Making her powerful (a seer)

Making her instrumental in the war against Hybern (due to her visions)

Having her save both, Nesta and Cassian (the protagonists of ACOSF)

Creating a connection between her and Vassa (and, ultimately, between Lucien, Vassa, and Jurian)

Having her introduce the next big bad (Koschei)

Hinting at her being the only one who can locate the one thing that can kill Koschei (the onyx box)

So, when you add everything that we know from ACOMAF and ACOWAR, what do we have? Potential.

We also have a character whose journey has been building since ACOTAR. The most significant hint is the constant use of the “dirty hands” imagery in reference to Elain. But more on that later.

Once the ACOTAR series wrapped up, we learned that, while Feyre and Rhysand’s journey was over, Sarah had more stories to tell—specifically, Nesta, Elain, and the ICs. As such, ACOFAS had two purposes:

To wrap up Feyre and Rhys’s story.

To introduce the future plot/main conflict and, with it, the next couple.

ACOFAS, however, also served to set up the stage for future protagonists, as well:

We saw some progress in Elain (her keeping busy with gardening and baking, her still having bad days, her friendship with Nuala and Cerridwen, and her slowly finding her place within the IC)—all of this was brought up again in ACOSF.

We got hints about Azriel and Elain’s growing feelings for each other (a storyline that was present throughout ACOSF, and confirmed in Azriel’s Bonus POV).

We learned about Azriel’s estate—Rosehall.

We got Mor’s POV, and learned some new things about her which will probably factor into her future book.

Again, SJM spent time focusing on Elain, fleshing out her character (while still giving Nesta and her journey center stage), which only solidifies the fact that she will be getting her own story soon.

It’s interesting to note that Azriel was not given a POV like Mor, and had very little character development (in comparison to Elain).

Now, let’s look at ACOSF. We have:

New conflicts—with the Queens and Beron

A new villain—Koschei

An overarching plot that connects the conflicts with the villain—the alliance between Koschei, the Queens, and Beron

A secondary, but related, plot—Vassa and, with her, the Band of Exiles (Lucien and Jurian)

Potential weapons—the Made objects

A potential solution—the onyx box

What do all of these have in common?

Elain.

She is directly tied to both, the Queens and Beron (and the Autumn Court). She’s had ties to Koschei since ACOWAR (she was the first to tell the IC about him, after getting visions about him). Her visions, in turn, led to the introduction of Vassa, which created a link between them both (and Lucien, because of their mating bond). She is the only one, apart from Nesta, who can find the Made objects (and a 4th one was introduced in ACOSF). She is also the only one, apart from Nesta, who can Make an object. Finally, she is the only one who can locate the onyx box (an image she’s been seeing since ACOWAR).

As a seer, Elain is arguably the most valuable character in the NC. She has been having visions about both, Koschei and Vassa, since ACOWAR.

Most importantly, however—her journey has been hinted at since ACOMAF:

Her role in future books having already been established, what about Elain as a character, as a protagonist?

Let’s begin by looking at what a character arc is:

While main characters might face big challenges, character arcs have to do with internal, personal change. Characters will find their strengths and weaknesses tested over the course of the story—so that by the time they arrive at the story's end, they are a changed person.

When the protagonist overcomes external obstacles and internal flaws in order to become a better person, it becomes a hero’s journey.

At its core, this arc is made up of three points:

The Goal: Every character needs to have a goal. It might be to fall in love. Or it might be to make as much money as possible. Either way, their journey will be hindered by...

The Lie: A deeply-rooted misconception they have about themselves or the world that keeps them from reaching their true potential. In order to reach their goal, they’ll need to acknowledge and overcome the Lie, by facing…

The Truth: While the character may have their own plans, the positive change arc has its own goal: self-improvement. This is achieved when they learn to reject The Lie and embrace The Truth.

Now, let’s look at what we know about Elain:

The Goal: To defeat Koschei/the Queens/Beron.

The Lie: That she doesn’t have what it takes. That she is not as strong as her sisters. That she is the weak link, too gentle and sweet to get her “hands dirty.”

The Truth: That she is just as powerful AND capable as her sisters, and that she can do anything she puts her mind to (find the 4th object, discover the location of the onyx box, fight against Koschei/the Queens/Beron).

We already see SJM start to break down the Lie in Feysand’s Bonus Chapter:

This is followed by Feyre saying:

So not only is Elain not afraid to get her hands dirty, she’s also not afraid of getting hurt in the process.

ACOSF is filled with moments that hint at Elain becoming just as powerful (if not more so) than her sisters. She has a very important role to play in future books, because she is the only one who can locate Koschei’s box and the 4th object. Her visions have been instrumental in the series so far, and there is a big hint that she might have more than just seer abilities:

Powers. Plural.

It makes sense for Elain’s book to be next. SJM has been scattering crumbs for her story since ACOTAR, and she is the character who would add the most to the plot—the only character who can move the plot forward.

You cannot ignore all the foreshadowing:

= a literary device that writers utilize as a means to indicate or hint to readers something that is to follow or appear later in a story.

Clear foreshadowing in ACOSF (it would take too long to list all the passages in previous books, as well):

These are just a few examples but, for me, the one that gives it away is this passage (that can easily be overlooked) in Feysand’s Bonus POV:

SJM is basically telling us that, once Nesta’s journey ends, Elain’s will begin.

And it makes sense!

This series is about the Archeron sisters. About human women turned fae.

The first three books were about Feyre. The fourth about Nesta. It would not make sense to skip Elain, only to return to her story in the final book. Why?

Because, in order to defeat Koschei, all three sisters need to have reached their full potential. All three need to be healed, and strong, and fully in control of their lives and powers. You cannot cram everything into one book: Elain’s healing journey/character arc, Vassa’s own journey (because there is no way that SJM will NOT write a Swan Lake retelling—just look at her Pinterest board!), finding the 4th object, finding the box, and, ultimatly, defeating Koschei.

Feyre had a whole book to heal—ACOMAF

Nesta had a whole book to heal—ACOSF

Elain will have a whole book to heal, as well.

No other character adds as much value—or has as much untapped potential—than Elain.

Also, there is no way that SJM will postpone telling her story in favor of a male character (Azriel). If you’ve read any of her books, you know that it is always the female characters that eclipse the male characters.

Also, if Elain will become dark or even a villain (temporarily), then this will take place in her own story, and will not be used as a plot device for angsty!Azriel or for another couple to make sense/be pushed together.

If we look at the pattern in ACOTAR, we have:

The first book ends with a happily ever after. The MC has defeated the big bad and has walked off into the sunset with her LI. There are hints about a future conflict, but nothing is fleshed out (in ACOTAR, Feyre’s bargain with Rhys + a potential conflict between the courts and with Hybern).

The second book is all about development (both, character development, in the form of the MC’s healing journey, and plot development). The scene is being set for the final conclusion (the war/battle), and everything that takes place serves to bring the characters closer to the main conflict resolution. The book ends on a false happily ever after (Feysand’s mating bond, having what they need to annul the Cauldron’s powers), followed by a cliffhanger (the sisters turning fae, Feyre returning to the Spring Court).

The last book is centered around defeating the big bad and ends on a happily ever after for (almost) everyone involved. It brings the main players together in a final showdown that ends with good ultimately defeating evil.

If we are to look at this pattern, then:

ACOSF - Ends with a happily ever after (Nesta has healed, reconnected with her sisters, found her place in the IC, and has a family outside the IC—Gwyn, Emerie). She has defeated Briallyn, but the biggest threat—Koschei—has barely made an appearance, and there is no ending in sight.

ACOTAR 5 - Elain’s healing journey. Finding the 4th object. Knowing exactly what has been happening behind the scenes with Beron, the Queens, and Koschei. Finding the 4th object and uncovering the location of Koschei’s onyx box. Cliffhanger: Koschei has been freed/has found a way to free himself.

ACOTAR 6 - The journey to find the onyx box or a way to destroy whatever is inside. The repercussions of Koschei’s freedom. Vassa’s story coming full circle. Now that all three Archeron sisters have reached their full potential, they will most likely join forces/powers to hold off Koschei long enough for Vassa (because she NEEDS to have the killing blow) to finish him off.

This post is already long enough, but here are some honorable mentions that I haven’t spoken about because I wanted this to be a mostly character-driven argument:

The mating bond—Elain needs to either accept it or reject it, and I cannot see this happening in the last book because it would lose its effect (considering that they need to defeat Koschei in this book)

Elriel—The unresolved feelings between them need to be addressed/dealt with.

The Blood Duel—There is no way this isn’t happening. SJM wouldn’t mention it without it playing some sort of role in Elain’s book.

I might make another post (because I still haven’t addressed everything I wanted to), but Elain’s book is (without a doubt) next.

As a reminder: SJM has recently said that writing about characters that are hated/disliked is something that she loves doing. I think it’s safe to assume that, given the recent wave of hatred/dislike towards Elain, we are in for an epic journey.

#acosf spoilers #acotar 5 #acotar theories #elain archeron #pro elain #badass elain #elriel

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cryptidmads · 4 years

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alright, so i went through the ama with wan hazmer and daim dziauddian on twitch and picked out every little tidbit i could about the megastars bc i knew you guys would want to know. this is a long post and i’m on mobile atm so i can’t put it under a read more — sorry about that! bosses are in chronological order, starting with DJSS and ending with Eve!

DJ SUBATOMIC SUPERNOVA

- djss took the least amount of time to develop out of all the bosses (haz says his fight took about half a year.)

- daim purposely tried to make djss' name as long as he could. he was specifically looking at negasonic teenage warhead from deadpool for inspiration.

- haz and daim do have the briefing/kliffnotes for djss. they discussed sharing them at some point, but idk when that would happen.

- related to the above, daim says that dj is in his mid thirties. EDIT: his kliffnotes were shared on twitter and they say he’s 41. daim must have goofed haha

- when asked if djss actually has a face and how he eats, daim compares it to kenny from south park and how you never see his face. he thinks dj does have a face in there, but that we just never see it. as for the “how does he eat” part, daim says that sometimes they don’t have to show everything.

- daim is a djneon/neonnova shipper, and it’s one his favourite pairings alongside zuke/mayday.

- daim said that uncle ali basically instantly landed the role as djss. he was that good.

SAYU

- sayu was obviously inspired by hatsune miku and other vocaloids, but haz brings up one particular commercial involving miku and google chrome, which involves a bunch of people collborating on songs and concept art for miku, similar to how sayu started as a collab between remi and tila in-universe.

- someone asked about the models for sayu's crew's apartments. there wasn't much on that, but haz mentions that one of his favourite nsr fanfics (yes, he reads them) is "Road to Redemption," and there's a scene that takes place in a studio where the crew works on sayu, and he really likes that.

- the devs wanted sayu's name to sound both malay and japanese at the same time (as well as a nod to miku). haz says it means “warm water” in japanese.

- akusuka is a direct copy of akihabara in terms of locale.

- sayu’s shellfish commercial is a homage to a real snack in malaysia named mamee monster, which is hugely popular with kids. the format of the commercial itself was inspired by a pocky commercial that featured hatsune miku.

YINU

- her game design (for her boss fight) was partially done in ms paint by music director falk (who made the base version of her boss theme)

- yinu's mom doesn't have a name. she's just mother/mama.

- haz confirmed that yinu's father is, in fact, dead.

- daim thought yinu’s name was a nod to yuna (a popular malaysian artist). it’s not.

- natura is daim’s favourite district. he likes how calm it is compared to the others.

- daim said that they wanted a hint of hope in all three of yinu’s backstory photographs, to show that no matter how bad your life gets, there’s always that glimmer of hope and that good things can still happen.

1010

- the members of 1010 do not have any official names.

- the assets for the autographs were made by the artists at one of the partner companies working with metronomik on nsr. haz and daim didn't really have anything to do with making them, and while daim did approve them for the final game, he was sorta skimming through a bunch of assets along with the autographs, and he didn't realize what they really were at the time until later. haz is impressed with how the fans managed to decipher them.

- 1010's fight was purposefully put between yinu's and eve's as a break from the emotional stuff.

- michael jackson was used as a reference for 1010's animations/moves.

- the Bio Tactical Shield that you get for zuke after beating 1010 is a reference to BTS.

- tangibly related, but the collectable figurines are supposed to serve more as a backstory to vinyl city as a whole, rather than 1010 or neon j. daim describes the figures as what events were going on and what people were doing before the events of nsr.

- 1010’s appearance from older trailers (where they all looked the same) were actually placeholders. 1010’s actual designs weren’t finished yet when those trailers were released.

- parts of 1010’s designs (for their bodies/outfits) were inspired by tron uprising, a project that daim worked on.

- somebody asked why 1010 and neon j have sculpted butt plates. daim and haz have no idea, but daim suggested that ellie (who designed 1010) and jan (who did their character models) put them there to up the “sexy robot” factor.

- daim’s favourite member of 1010 is purl-hew/blue, and haz’s favourite is eloni/green.

- the members of 1010 were designed based on popular tropes in boy bands. rin/white is “the main guy,” zimelu/red is the “bad boy,” purl-hew/blue is the “cool guy,” haym/yellow is the “young/innocent one,” and eloni/green is the “weird/funny one.”

- eloni/green not getting fan mail was based on how the “funny guy” of kpop bands/idol groups don’t seem to get as much attention as the rest of the group.

NEON J

- haz and daim didn't expect neon j to become so popular. haz joked about blaming it on ddaddystar, who did that doodle of djss and neon j from the credits.

- when asked about neon j’s age, daim said he’s definitely older than djss, and that he could be in his forties.

- related to the age thing, someone in chat said he should be older if he went to war in the sixties. haz replied by saying they never mentioned what year the game takes place in, so it doesn’t necessarily take place in the present/2020.

- a lot of people asked about the border wars, and daim and haz said they like leaving the bulk of it up to fan interpretation.

- daim said that neon j’s organs were preserved in a robotic shell after the war, and that’s why he’s considered a cyborg.

- as stated above, daim is a djneon/neonnova shipper, and it’s one his favourite pairings alongside zuke/mayday.

- neon j’s monologue was slightly longer, but it was cut down because zul (neon j’s va) didn’t do very many takes for the monologue, and the takes he did do didn’t have the comedic punch that daim was looking for, so it got shortened.

- the singing parts of neon j’s lines were ad-libbed by zul in his audition, and daim liked it so much that it stayed for the final game.

- neon j’s monologue had to be altered in the japanese dub so that the jokes/comedy would make more sense.

EVE

- the color changing paintings from her boss fight were created by accident.

- eve was put as the last boss because of how emotional her relationship with zuke was and how complicated and intricate she is as a whole compared to the rest of the bosses.

- daim considers eve to be the "final boss" for zuke, while tatiana is the final boss for mayday.

- eve took the longest to develop out of all the bosses. she was orignally a lot more complicated, and daim said they had to "filter" a lot of things about her in order to tone her down and fit her into the game.

- eve was almost scrapped from the game. daim said her concept as an eccentric artist wasn't as well known as the other four bosses’ concepts, and combine that with how long it took to finalize her... yeah.

- none of the artists have set in stone heights because of how the gameplay works, but eve is the tallest one. the closest scene in the game that has them at their actual heights is the ending.

- her name was originally eva, but it was changed bc there’s already a popular artist with the same name.

- daim explains that a big part of eve’s concept and theme is her embracing herself. he uses the example of eve’s backstory where she starts out hating herself and trying to cover the pink half of her face, but then starts doing less of that overtime. he also mentions that all the body parts (hands, arms, legs, etc.) from her fight also come from her embracing her body and using it in her artwork.

- dream fever is haz’s favourite district.

- daim didn’t originally think of zuke and eve as being an actual couple until later down the line when the story heavily implied it.

- eve’s younger designs were done by lzbros, who did all the 2d animation for the game.

#long post #no straight roads #nsr #dj subatomic supernova #nsr sayu #yinu nsr #1010 #neon j #eve nsr #madison speaks #this was fun! good stream good facts #nsr ama #1k

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samwisethewitch · 3 years

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Everything You Need to Know About Pagan Deity

As you’ve probably guessed by now, there are many, many, many different approaches to deity within the wider pagan community. While it would be impossible to summarize all of these different perspectives in a single blog post, this post contains some common themes and best practices that are more or less universal and can be adapted to fit whatever system you choose to work with.

In my Baby Witch Bootcamp series, I talk about the “Four R’s” of working with spiritual beings, including deities: respect, research, reciprocity, and relationship. However, when it comes to gods and goddesses specifically, I think it’s important to include a fifth “R” — receptivity.

If you’re completely new to this kind of work and want to avoid making rookie mistakes and/or pissing off powerful spiritual forces, sticking to the Five R’s of Deity Relationships is a good place to start. The Five R’s are:

Respect. It’s always a good idea to have a healthy respect for the powers you choose to connect with, whether you see those powers as literal gods and goddesses or as archetypes within the collective unconscious (see below). While not every ritual needs to be incredibly formal and structured, you should always conduct yourself with an air of respect and reverence when connecting with deity. There’s no need to humble yourself to the point of cowering before the gods (and in fact, this kind of behavior is a turnoff for many deities), but you should strive to be polite and follow your system’s proper protocol for things like cleansing, offerings, and prayers.

Research. I am of the opinion that you should do serious research into a god or goddess before any attempt to make contact with them. This can be controversial, but in my own experience things seem to go more smoothly when I know what I’m doing. Books are really the way to go for this — the Internet can be useful for connecting with other worshipers and hearing their stories, but it isn’t a good source for nonbiased factual information. I recommend starting with academic sources written by secular experts for a purely historical account that won’t be colored by personal religious experience. Once you have a decent understanding of the basic historical context, look for books by pagan authors who have experience working with this deity. These sources will give you a framework for your own interactions with them.

Reciprocity. As we’ve discussed before, reciprocity is a core value of virtually every pagan tradition. Reciprocity is a mutual positive exchange where all parties benefit in some way, and this quality forms the backbone of all healthy relationships with deity. While we benefit from connecting with the gods, the gods also benefit from our worship. Upholding reciprocity in your relationships with deity means making regular offerings to show your appreciation as well as living in a way that your god or goddess approves of.

Relationship. At the end of the day, connecting with a god or goddess is about creating a healthy, fulfilling relationship. Like any relationship, it takes time and effort to keep the connection alive. The gods are living, thinking, feeling beings just like you and me, though on a much larger scale. Just like you and me, they have likes and dislikes and require certain things from those who want to work closely with them. Try to approach the gods as individuals, and connect with them as you would with another person. This will naturally lead to much more authentic and organic relationships.

Receptivity. To be receptive is to be open and ready to receive whatever comes your way — this is an essential quality for anyone who is serious about connecting with a god or goddess. Connecting with the gods means allowing them a place in your life, whatever they choose to bring with them. It means forming a relationship with them on their terms, and that requires us to give up a certain degree of control. While you should never feel afraid or completely out of control when connecting with deity (if you do, stop contacting that deity immediately), you may very well experience things you did not expect or ask for. Be prepared for these surprises, and understand that when the gods surprise us in this way, they do it in order to help us grow. Let go of any preconceived ideas about what a relationship with this deity “should” look like, and instead let it unfold naturally.

Though there is much more to working with deity than just these values, keeping these values in mind will get you started out on the right foot in your relationships with the gods.

Deity or Archetype?

As odd as it may sound, not everyone who connects with the gods through study and ritual believes those gods to be literal spiritual beings. Some pagans (I would even say the majority of pagans, based on my personal experience) connect with the gods as individuals with their own personalities and agency, but others connect with them as symbols that represent different elements of the human experience. This latter group is working with the gods not as deity, but as archetypes.

The term “archetype” comes from academia, particularly the fields of psychology and literary analysis. An archetype is a symbol that embodies the fundamental characteristics of a person, thing, or experience.

Swiss psychoanalyst Carl Jung argued that archetypes are powerful symbols within the collective unconscious (basically an ancestral memory shared by all of humanity) that arise due to shared experiences across cultures. For example, Jung would argue that Demeter, Juno, and Frigg all represent the “Mother” archetype filtered through different cultural lenses, reflecting the important role of mothers across Greek, Roman, and Old Norse culture. For Jung and his followers, archetypes allow us to connect to latent parts of our own psyche — by connecting with the Mother archetype, for example, you can develop motherly qualities like patience, empathy, and nurturing.

For comparative mythology expert Joseph Campbell, archetypes represented types of characters that appear in some form in most or all global mythology. In his book, The Hero of a Thousand Faces, Campbell identified the “hero’s journey” as the archetypal narrative framework on which most stories, from ancient myths to modern films, are based. (If you’ve taken literally any high school literature class, you’re probably familiar with Campbell’s work.) Like Jung, Campbell has been hugely influential on modern pagans who choose to connect with the gods as archetypes.

Working with an archetype is a little different than working with a deity. For one thing, while archetypes may manifest as gods and goddesses, they can also manifest as fictional characters, historical figures, or abstract symbols. Let’s say you want to tap into the Warrior archetype. You could connect with this archetype by working with gods like Mars, Thor, or Heracles — but you could just as easily do so by working with superheroes like Luke Cage or Colossus, literary figures like Ajax or Achilles, or the abstract concepts of strength and honor.

When pagans worship a deity, it’s because they want to form a relationship with that deity for some reason. But when pagans work with an archetype, it’s usually because they want to embody aspects of that archetype. In our above example, you may be trying to connect to the Warrior archetype to gain confidence or become more assertive.

The biggest difference between worshiping a deity and working with an archetype is that a deity is an external force, while an archetype is an internal force. When you connect with a deity, you are connecting with a spiritual being outside of yourself — a being with their own thoughts, feelings, and drives. When you connect with an archetype, you are connecting with a part of your own psyche. Because of this, archetypes tend to be more easily defined and behave in more predictable ways than deities, although some archetypes can be very complex and multi-faceted.

On the surface, worship and archetype work might be very similar, but the “why” behind the action is fundamentally different.

If you choose to worship the Morrigan, for example, you may have an altar dedicated to her, make regular offerings to her, speak with her in meditations and astral journeys, and/or write poetry or make art in her honor. If you choose to work with the Wild Woman archetype, it may look very similar to an outside observer — you may have an altar dedicated to the Wild Woman energy, speak with manifestations of Wild Woman (perhaps including the Morrigan) in meditation, and write poetry or make art dedicated to this archetype. However, these actions will have a very different intent behind them. Your Wild Woman altar is not a sacred space but a visual trigger to help you connect to the Wild Woman within you. Your meditations are conversations with different aspects of your own personality, not with a separate being. Your art is an expression of self, not a devotional act. The result is a deeper connection to yourself, not a relationship with another being.

I hope I’ve made it clear that archetype work and deity worship can both be very worthwhile spiritual practices, and that each serves its own purpose. Many pagans, myself included, work with both deities and archetypes.

There is some overlap between worshiping a deity and working with an archetype, and many pagans start out with one practice before eventually ending up in the other. Sometimes working with an archetype leads you to encounter a deity who embodies that archetype, which can lead to a relationship with that deity. Likewise, your relationship with a deity may help you become aware of a certain archetype’s influence in your life, which might lead you to work with that archetype.

Making First Contact

First impressions are important. This is true for making new friends, for job interviews, for first dates — and for your first meeting with a god or goddess. In many cases, the way you behave in your first meeting with a deity will set the tone for your relationship with them.

That being said, don’t overthink (or over-stress) about your first impression. You aren’t going to be cursed or punished if you mess this up — at the very worst, the deity might lose interest in connecting with you, and even that can often be remedied with an offering and a polite apology. While it’s always best to get off on the right foot, don’t feel like you need to be perfect.

So, how do you make a good first impression on a god or goddess? Honestly, the rules are largely the same for making a good first impression on any other person. Make sure your physical appearance is clean and tidy — some systems, such as Hellenismos and Kemetic paganism, have special rules for cleansing before contacting the gods, but it’s always a good idea to take a shower first and make sure you’re wearing clean clothes. Likewise, make sure the physical space you invite the gods into is relatively clean — it doesn’t need to be spotless, but take a minute to tidy up before beginning any ritual. Be polite — there’s no need to be overly formal, but you should be respectful. Don’t immediately ask for favors — how would you feel if you met someone at a party and they immediately asked you to do some sort of work for them?

Beyond the basics, it’s wise to make sure you have an idea of who this god is and what they are like before you reach out to them. This will keep you from accidentally doing something offensive. For example, you wouldn’t want to invite them to an altar dedicated to a deity they have a rivalry with. Likewise, you want to avoid offering food or drink that would have been taboo in their original worship. (Of course, there are exceptions to every rule, but when you’re just starting out it’s a good idea to follow the historical framework as closely as possible.)

At the risk of sounding like a broken record: this is why research is so important. Knowing who you are dealing with allows you to deal with them respectfully, gracefully, and competently.

Callings

There’s one aspect of deity worship that is controversial in modern paganism: the idea of being “called” by a deity. This is a question you’ll find many, many heated discussions about online. Do you need to be called by a deity to form a relationship with them? Do deities choose their followers, or do we choose them? How do you know what a call from a deity even looks like?

As I said, this is a controversial topic, but I firmly believe that 1.) you do not have to feel called to a deity beyond being interested in them, and 2.) feeling drawn to a deity’s image, symbols, and myths is a form of calling.

Many pagans do feel like they were called or drawn to the deities they walk most closely with. They may have encountered myths of that deity as a child or teenager and deeply resonated with them, or may have always had an affinity for that god’s sacred animals. They may have dreamed of this deity before knowing who they were, or may have felt a spiritual presence around them before identifying it as a god or goddess.

Many people first encounter the gods in fiction, only for this fictionalized depiction to spark a deeper connection that eventually leads to worship. In the modern era, it’s entirely possible for someone who worships Loki to have first encountered him (or at least a character loosely based on him) in Marvel comics and films, or for someone who worships the Greek pantheon to have first discovered them through the Percy Jackson books. As far as I’m concerned, this is also a valid “call” from deity. The gods are very good at communicating with us through the means available — including fiction.

That being said, just because you don’t already feel a strong connection to a god or goddess doesn’t mean you can’t or shouldn’t worship them. The connection will come with time and effort, just like in any relationship.

Dedication, Patrons, and Matrons

In online spaces such as Tumblr and TikTok, a lot of inexperienced pagans parrot the idea that every pagan needs to have a designated matron and/or patron god and/or needs to be formally dedicated to a god in order to have a close relationship with them. Not only is this untrue, but such restrictions can actually cause harm and/or stunt spiritual growth.

Let’s address dedication first. To be dedicated to a deity means to outwardly declare yourself a servant of that deity, usually with a formal dedication ritual — think of it as the pagan version of joining a convent or going to seminary. It is an outward expression of your devotion and loyalty to that deity. Dedicants are held to a higher standard than the average worshiper by themselves, their communities, and the god(s) they have dedicated to.

Dedication can be a powerful and fulfilling spiritual experience (it’s the backbone of many peoples’ spiritual practice), but it should not be taken lightly. Dedicating yourself to a god or goddess should be a sign of your commitment to them and a deepening of your relationship — it should not be the beginning of that relationship.

Dedication is a lot like marriage. Just like you wouldn’t marry someone you’ve only been on a handful of dates with, you shouldn’t dedicate to a deity just because you’ve had one or two positive experiences with them. Like marriages, dedication can be difficult to get out of — ending your dedication to a deity is possible, but it’s a messy, complicated, uncomfortable process that is sure to shift the foundation of your entire spiritual practice, and not always for the better.

My advice to new and inexperienced pagans is not to even consider dedication until you’ve been practicing for several years. As you begin your journey, your focus should be on exploring your options, forming meaningful connections, and developing a practice that works for you and your unique spiritual needs. Now is the time for experimentation, not lifelong commitments.

But let’s say you are an experienced pagan, and you feel like you are ready for dedication. How do you know if you should dedicate to a given god or goddess?

Dedication may be the logical next step in your relationship with a deity if:

This deity has been an active part of your spiritual practice for at least 2-3 years, with no major gaps in contact with them

You are comfortable upholding this deity’s values for the rest of your life — and are willing to face consequences if you fail to do so

You are willing to dedicate a significant amount of time and effort to the service of this deity

You are willing to face major changes in your life outside your spiritual practice — dedicating to a deity often leads to major shifts that may affect our career, family, and/or relationships

If you answered “yes” to all of the above, dedication may be appropriate. This may seem overly cautious, but remember that dedicating to a deity is a serious, lifelong commitment akin to joining the clergy. For context, it takes at least five years of study and practice to become a Catholic priest, a similar amount of time to become a Jewish rabbi, and three years to become a high priest/ess in Traditional Wicca. If you don’t have the patience to maintain a relationship for a few years before dedication, that is probably a good indicator that dedication isn’t for you.

If you are dedicated to a deity or are planning to dedicate, you may actually choose to attend seminary or receive some other formal religious training. This training will help you to better serve your deity in a public capacity, as you will learn skills like religious counselling, leading ritual, and building community. If your program of study includes ordination, it will also allow you to perform legally binding religious rituals like marriage ceremonies. Depending on your path, attending seminary or training may be your act of formal dedication.

Finally, let me make it clear that dedication does not make you a better pagan than someone who is not dedicated. The choice to dedicate or not dedicate is only one element of your spiritual practice, and it is possible to have a fulfilling and life-affirming practice without dedication. Some of the people who do the most work in the service of the gods are not dedicated to them. You may be one of these people, and that is totally okay.

Patron/matron relationships are a specific type of dedication.

The concept of patron deities comes from Wicca and related neopagan religions. As we’ve previously discussed, Wicca is a duotheistic system with a God and Goddess, whose union is the source of all creation. However, because Wiccans believe that all gods are manifestations of the God and all goddesses are manifestations of the Goddess, some covens choose to work with the God and Goddess in the form of other deities (say, for example, Osiris and Isis), which are referred to as the coven’s “patron” and “matron” deities. In these covens, initiation into the coven’s mysteries (traditionally in the form of first, second, and third degree initiations) typically acts as a form of dedication to these deities.

As Eclectic Wicca has gained popularity in the last few decades, there has been a growing trend of individual Wiccans and eclectic pagans choosing personal patron and/or matron deities. Some Wiccans will have a single god or goddess they are dedicated to, while others feel that it is very important to be dedicated to exactly one masculine deity and exactly one feminine deity. This second model is the one I see most often in online pagan spaces, especially Tumblr and TikTok.

The patron/matron model can be useful for some pagans, but it is not one-size-fits-all. As I mentioned, this model of dedication comes from Wicca, and is a very modern concept. In ancient pagan religions, most people would not have been dedicated in this way. That does not mean that this isn’t a valid form of worship (it absolutely is), but it does mean that those who practice reconstructionist paths may not be inclined to interact with deity this way.

The guidelines for patron/matron relationships are similar to the guidelines for dedication in general, but these relationships often (but not always) have a more parental nature. For some people, having a divine mother and/or father figure is ideal — especially for those who are healing from parental trauma or abuse. If you feel drawn to this type of deity relationship, I encourage you to explore it.

On the other hand, you may not have any interest in the patron/matron model, and that’s totally fine! It’s called polytheism for a reason — if you prefer to maintain less formal relationships with many gods, you should feel free to do so.

I hope this post has helped clarify some of the murkier aspects of polytheism and deity work. Obviously, this is only the tip of the iceberg — I could write a book about this topic and many, many authors already have. However, I think the information here is enough to get you started, and I hope that it will provide a first step on your journey with your gods.

Resources:

Wicca for Beginners by Thea Sabin

A Witches’ Bible by Janet and Stewart Farrar

The Spiral Dance by Starhawk

Where the Hawthorn Grows by Morgan Daimler

The Way of Fire and Ice by Ryan Smith

Jessi Huntenburg (YouTuber), “Dancing with Deity | Discovering Gods, Goddesses, and Archetypes,” “Archetype, Deity, and Inviting Transpersonal Experience,” and “10 Ways to Bond with Deity”

Kelly-Ann Maddox (YouTuber), “How to Have Deep Connections with Deities”

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thevindicativevordan · 3 years

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On Livewire

You know Leslie is probably the most popular and well known female Superman Rogue mainly because they use her so heavily in outside media.

Which makes sense given her debut in Superman: The Animated Series, but it still kind of fascinates me. They didn't bring her into comics continuity until 2006 apparently, with Gail Simone and John Byrne (Byrne of all the creators!) being the ones to finally fold her in. Even after they brought her in, they still have never given her that much attention or focus which is a disappointment for me frankly, because Livewire is honestly fantastic in Scott McCloud and later Mark Millar's Superman Adventures runs, and I would say with complete sincerity that those two are probably her best writers. "Millar writing a female character well?" you scoff at in disbelief. I know, I was shocked too! But she's funny, clever, and a huge pain in the ass for Supes. Reading how she was used there, and rewatching her STAS incarnation recently, really made a big realization for the character hit me like a lightning bolt (couldn't resist):

She's basically an evil superpowered Lois Lane! I know I can't have been the first one to realize that, although I haven't seen anyone else actually outright state it anywhere, but c'mon it's so obvious! She's a reporter of a sorts as well thanks to being a disc jockey, her debut in STAS even has her interviewing Lois and Clark! She's got strong opinions on Superman that conflict with the general opinion about him (Lois being pro-Superman when everyone else is more hostile towards him at first, Livewire being anti-Superman when everyone else has embraced him as their hero). She's rude and abrasive, and doesn't care if her opinions offend people, which sure does remind me of Lois at her meanest.

Livewire to me is an examination of what Lois would be like if she abandoned her morals or never really had them in the first place. Leslie doesn't care about the "truth" which is the big difference between her and Lois. Lois can be headstrong, willful, and outright rude, but it's all in service of her pursuit of higher ideals. Livewire doesn't care about that, she carries about getting people to pay attention to her, and getting the recognition and wealth she believes she's owed.

What I'd Do With Livewire

It wasn't until I had that big realization about Leslie that I figured out what role she should play with regards to Clark: She should be Clark's old college ex who was the one who got him into journalism in the first place.

Clark's college years are unexplored territory narratively, typically we jump from his childhood in Smallville right into his debut in Metropolis. Now I know Clark dated Lori that mermaid back in Pre-Crisis during his college years, and while that's a fun bit of trivia, it doesn't really add anything meaningful in the same way that I think Leslie and Clark dating could. So I'd rather go with Leslie because I think she makes for a better foil for Clark and because the two of them would benefit from having a deeper connection established, plus Leslie could get fleshed out as a character more.

I like the explanation that Clark chose journalism in part because it challenges him in ways his powers can't, but in the comics they've rarely bothered to explain how he chose that field in the first place. I would have meeting Leslie at college be that big moment where he starts to figure himself out. She's assertive and confident, and Clark is attracted to that for similar reasons he's attracted to Lois. Leslie would start out as an optimist and idealist in the same way Clark is, and the two would bond and go into journalism together, with Leslie being the one who really believes in the field initially. They'd both be big believers in the duty of the press to inform and the presses ability to shape public opinion, with Clark attracted to investigative journalism and Leslie attracted more to broadcast and digital journalism. They start to date and for a moment, Clark seriously wonders if this is the one.

The big break between them comes when Clark and Leslie go on a trip around the world during their senior year of college. That trip would be where both of them learn how crappy the world is. Clark always had some idea of how bad things were because of his powers, but the trip is where he really starts to realize that there is a real need for someone of his powers to step up, and that there are hard limits to just how much he can accomplish as a member of the press. That same realization is what shatters Leslie's idealism and optimism. She loses faith in the ability to make a difference, to punch through the wall of public indifference, and as a result she gives up that dream. Instead she decides that if you can't beat them, join them: she switches instead to telling the masses what the powers that be want them to hear in exchange for money, to saying whatever the masses will give her attention and prestige for, embracing tabloid journalism that prioritizes clicks and engagement over information. Ultimately it destroys the relationship between Leslie and Clark with her viewing him as a sap and him viewing her as a sellout.

I think that origin really would help flesh out her worldview and motivation a lot more. She's a former idealist who has been broken by the world in a similar way to Poison Ivy. Leslie thus acts as a foil to Clark and Lois in that she's someone who let the world rob her of her idealism and sold out on the truth in exchange for material success. She's what Clark or Lois could've been if they took Lex's offer to work for him, and they should recognize that to some degree. Clark should have conflicting feelings for her, not romantically that relationship is dead, but in terms of sometimes he wonders if he's just wasting his life trying to fight for truth and justice. So few people seem to care about those principles, why hold on so tight to them? Why not just look out for his own self-interest the way everyone else seems to? It's the refusal to give up even when it looks pointless that makes the two of them different, and makes Clark a hero and Livewire a villain.

How I'd Like Livewire To Operate

There's a lack of imagination in how Livewire is used on the comic side as I see it.

Like most Superman Rogues the typical Superman writer doesn't seem to have a clue what to do with her beyond generic "villain" stuff, but that does a disservice to what Livewire brings to the table. Livewire does want to fry Superman to a crisp, but that's not what her daily goal is to accomplish. More importantly, she wants respect and she wants money, and the way she gets both is not by trying to rob banks, it's by leaning into her background as a media personality combined with her new powers. Unleashing electric bolts is honestly the least impressive part of her powerset in terms of her ability to manipulate anything and everything technology.

The Internet? Livewire can crash the entire thing with ease, or restrict access to portions of it. She can do the reverse and smash through firewalls and encryption like it's made of paper. Imagine Livewire shutting off the power grid or causing it to explode, secretly using your "smart" tech to record your every move, uploading ransomware to every piece of technology in Metropolis, emptying the bank accounts of anyone who annoys her, or bringing Metropolis to it's knees thanks to the "City of Tomorrow" being a test ground for the Internet of Things, so everything is connected and thus easily manipulated. Smart cars crash into each other, elevators randomly drop, trains are unable to stop and simply accelerate onward unceasingly, plans attempting to land find their instruments on the fritz, anything and everything is Livewire's to control. But terrorism, while entertaining and occasionally profitable, isn't Livewire's main focus either.

One of my favorite Superman Adventures stories with her had Livewire manipulating TV broadcast signals so that any time there was a male news reporter on screen, the signal wouldn't come through. Stuff like that, where Livewire is making life hell for people in a way that isn't immediately life-threatening is what I envision as her day to day operations, but her bread and butter is fake news. What Livewire is REALLY good at doing is manipulating the public due to her journalism background plus her powers. She can make fake videos that look totally authentic, fake articles that seem to come from credible sources, fake voice recordings, she can make anyone appear to do or say anything through the Internet, and then she can upload that to the devices of every single person in Metropolis.

You can get stories about the mayor being framed for taking bribes, local activists cast as grifters, and supposed upstanding citizens such as Lois Lane and Clark Kent appearing to take orders from criminals like Intergang on what stories to run. Basically you lean into the journalism aspect for Livewire stories where Clark and Lois have to investigate to see whether what Livewire is putting out there is fake or legit, with peoples lives and reputations at stake (including frequently their own).

And when Superman and Livewire actually do clash physically? I don't care how it gets justified, Livewire simply being that powerful, her lightning being "special", she has the ability to manipulate Superman's bioelectric field, whatever: she can hurt him. When she hits Supes with lightning, it burns. It's painful as all hell. Livewire needs to be a threat and I'd like her to be treated as a powerhouse since I don't see a reason why that shouldn't be the case. Livewire is a really cool Rogue, there's a reason she's managed to keep getting used long after the DCAU ended. I hope the comics creators start utilizing her to her full potential.

#superman #livewire #lois lane #dc comics

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thewhizzyhead · 3 years

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a non-filipino's guide to trese: ep 1

So some of my mutuals decided to check out Trese aka the Netflix adaptation of the Filipino horror comic book series that I keep rambling about here and then since well um most of my mutuals aren’t from the Philippines fshfs I decided to make a long-ass post that basically consists of me rambling about the cultural context present in Trese with fun little tidbits about Filipino folklore. I’m not an expert on Filipino mythology so um I just typed out the stuff that I know and the stuff that I looked up on Wikipedia so um take this with a grain of salt aaaaa I’ll save the extensive google scholar research ramble on folklore present in Trese for another day.

I’ll try to find the sites where I got some of the information from cause um yea I kinda had a bit of a hard time finding the other shit so um once again, take the stuff here with a grain of salt. Also, feel free to add more info if you guys got any!

SO ANYWAYS ENJOY ME RAMBLING ABOUT EPISODE 1 OF TRESE WOO

+ MRT and LRT (Manila Metro Rail Transit and Light Rail Transit) are train systems in NCR (the capital region) and yea them suddenly stopping and malfunctioning in the middle of the goddamn rail is a daily occurrence and we have been trying to deal with this bullshit for years but alas, corruption and negligence are sweet sweet drugs.

+ When the MRT broke down, you'd see a red bee in the flashing billboard right? Well that's Jollibee and that's probably the most well-known fast food restaurant chain here heck there are even branches of it abroad!

+ According to many youtube comments along with other social media posts that I am way too tired to link here, the opening theme is an Ifugao ethnic song called Balluha'd Bayyauhen but with modern accompaniments and I think the song is about a fruit called a balluha that the character in the song tries to it but cannot swallow. (someone please correct me if I’m wrong here fjkfs)

+ The first um monster that we see Alexandra interact with is the White Lady of Balete Drive. White Ladies or “Kaperosa” are a type of female ghosts typically dressed in ghostly white dresses or similar garments. According to legend, she died in a car accident while driving along Balete Drive (a two lane street formerly lined with Balete Trees which are said to be a home for spirits and mysterious creatures) in Quezon City while other accounts say she died waiting for the arrival of her lover; others also say that she was a teenage girl who was run over and killed by a taxi driver at night and then buried around a Balete tree while another variation of the tale claims that a student from the University of the Philippines was sexually assaulted and killed by a taxi driver nearby and so said ghost haunts the street in search of her murderer. There are many other variations but according to local rumor, the legend was fabricated by a reporter in 1953 in order to make an interesting story. What remains consistent in many variations is that apparently taxi drivers would be stopped by a beautiful lady asking for a ride and if one would look at the rear window, they would see that the white lady in question is bruised and drenched in blood.

+ There are a lot of mentions about "lakans" and stuff in reference to Alex and her father right? In precolonial times, the term is used to refer to the paramount ruler or the highest-ranking political authorities in Tagalog communities (so um NCR and some parts of Region 4). In Muslim communities, they are called sultans while communities with strong trade connecitons with Indonesia or Malaysia called them Rajah. Datu is umm the more generalized term though when it comes to discussing the leaders of the precolonial Filipinos.

+ So, Alex’s mom is a babaylan and back in the pre-colonial period, each barangay (which a native filipino term for a village or a district; said term is still used today to describe um divisions in municipalities like) had them and these are basically Philippine shamans and they specialized in communicating with the spirits of the dead. To my knowledge, the role of babaylan went to women and yea people assigned male at birth but then identified as female were also allowed to become babaylans and they would be treated with the same respect given to any woman back then (honestly I dunno much about lgbtq+ stuff back in the precolonial times but all I know is that precolonial Filipinos were much a lot more welcoming towards trans identities bUT THEN THE SPANIARDS CAME AND UM ERR RUINED THAT); also the writing Alexandra's mom did in that one scene with the dagger is in Baybayin - preHispanic Filipino script. I dunno what she wrote down though. .

+ Also I kinda find it funny that the people here esp those who were at the White Lady scene are um,,, not at all surprised? Like yea quite a number of filipinos have their own superstitions and beliefs and all that but um yea the people in Trese seem very used to the bullshit,,,which in retrospect, isn't at all inaccurate fsdfd I MEAN WE DEAL WITH UNSURMOUNTABLE AMOUNTS OF BS ON A DAILY BASIS SO I DON’T THINK DEAD GHOSTS WOULD EVEN FAZE MANY FSKJDS

+ The one that appears right before Alexandra talks with the duwende (the one in the manhole) is called Laman Lupa (which i guess translates to um "What is in the earth"? just um YEA THEY ARE DIRT CREATURES). normally this is an umbrella term for duwendes and nunos but in Trese they are servants of these aforementioned creatures.

+ Duwende (which came from the Spanish phrase "dueno de case" which means "owner of the house") or dwarves in Filipino folklore are known to be mischievous and magical environmental guardians. They are believed to reside in trees or under earth mounds (those that live in the latter are called nuno sa pundo or old man of the mount) which is why quite a lot of Filipinos say "tabi tabi po" or “excuse me” when wandering around a forest or earth mounds as a sign of respect and in the hopes the duwende won't torment them. If the person is friendly, the duwende can also be friendly in return and will bring that person good lucl; otherwise, those who destroy their homes by stepping on them will face their wrath in form of heartless curse and predictions of ominous and disastrous fates. A duwende's color also depends on their budhi or conscience: to my knowledge, white duwendes are kind, red ones give protection amulets, green ones are firnedly with children and the black ones give nothing but trouble.

+ Chocnut aka the snack Alex bribes the nuno with is a very yummy chocolate snack made of coconut milk, crushed peanuts and cocoa powder. They are umm about an inch in length and maybe half an inch in width so it's fairly small; that being said I WANT THE CHOCNUT THAT ALEXANDRA HAS CAUSE HOT DAMN THAT'S A BIG CHOCNUT

+ In Trese, the creatures in the MRT scene and in the warehouse Alexandra visits after she talks with the duwende are called "aswang". In Philippine folklore, it is an umbrella term for any kind of monster so um an aswang in Luzon would be very different from the aswang in Mindanao. According to what I saw on wikipedia, they can be classified in 5 categories: the vampire (self-explanatory um they drink blood), the viscera sucker (the manananggal, i'll get to that next time), the weredog (cats and pigs are also possible but um yea they target pregnant women), the witch (self-explanatory boom curses and stuff) and the ghoul (they gather near trees in cemeteries to feast on human corpses). Aswangs are often described to have a long, hollow tongue, sharp claws and sharp teeth, although they do also have human forms.

+ To my knowledge, Ibwa, the leader of the aswangs in the warehouse, is a creature from Tinguian or Itneg mythology (they, like the Ifugao, are an indigenous ethnic group in northwestern Luzon) though I could be wrong about this dksfsf Ibwa seems like an ethnic filipino term tho wah I can't remember where I once read that. But anyways, Ibwa often stalk sthe house of a dying person to steal its body. In order for the ibwa to NOT succeed in that, some people burn holes in the garments of the dead and put a sharp iron object on top of the grave since those are most powerful weapons against aswangs which is what Alexandra uses to subdue the Ibwa and kill all the other aswangs (the knife alex uses is named Sinag which means "ray of light".)

+ ALSO I AM SO SO GLAD THEY KEPT THE FILIPINO SWEARS IN THE ENGLISH DUB YES YES THIS IS A VERY GOOD JOB so lemme discuss the versatility of tangina-

+ Also umm Bossing is a nickname of Vic Sotto - one of the three pioneer hosts of Eat Bulaga! which is the longest running Philippine noontime variety show. Over time, most probably due to the show's popularity, the term "bossing" then became um slang for "boss" or "chief"

+ Translation of what Alex says when she's stirring the eye inside the cup: “In the eyes of others, secrets will reveal themselves.”

+ Sidenote: The English dub's pronunciation of many of the tagalog lines are um yea they r pretty good but they could use a bit of work but then again I'm really not that good in speaking in Tagalog so who am I to judge gkdkf sorry po guys conyo po ako-

+ Maria Makiling is arguably the most famous of all the diwatas (ancestral spirits, nature spirits, or deities) in Philippine Mythology; she is associated with Mount Makiling in Laguna as the guardian spirit of the mountain. Mount Makiling is said to resemble a profile of a woman and people associate the profile with Maria herself. She is also known as a goddess by the name of Dayang Masalanta and people would pray to her for safety and to stop storms and earthquakes. That's the goddess Alexandra's mother mentions right when she tells Alex to hide. (Translation to what she said there: Maria Makiling, goddess of the mountain, bless us.)

+ ALSO YEA THAT MAYOR IN THE MRT STATION IS UMMM RATHER REMINISCENT OF MAAAANY POLITICIANS AND PUBLIC SERVANTS HERE LIKE BELIEVE ME I CAN THINK OF SO MANY NAMES RN. THEY WOULD FLAUNT THEIR MACHISMO AND PROMISE THAT THEY THEMSELVES SHALL PUNISH THE PERPETRATORS HARSHLY BUT IN THE END THEY DONT MEAN SHIT AND ARE IN OFFICE TO SERVE ONLY THEMSELVES AND TO SHIT ON THE REST ESP THOSE OF THE POORER SECTORS AND *NOTHING IS DONE ABOUT IT*. WE LIVE IN HELL OKAY. also hmm how the police are represented here is umm,,,interesting,,, like i know there are sOME good police officers like the ones alexandra assists but like,,,our current sociopolitical climate + the many cases showcasing the corruption in the police force + tHE SHEER AMOUNT OF POLICE BRUTALITY HERE would ummm beg to differ. but um anyways-

+ Also Mang Inasal posters can be seen in the MRT station backdrops and um it’s a very famous restaurant chain here and they serve lots of barbecue and other filipino stuffs and i miss them a lot God their halo halo is very yummy

+ Santelmo - oki so this is the fire face thingy that Alexandra summons inside the ruined train. This is the shortened version of the term "Apoy ni Santa Elmo" or "St. Elmo's Fire" - this is a weather phenomenon wherein plasma is created from an electrical discharge from a rod like object in an atmospheric electric field. This phenomenon was used to warn of imminent lightning strikes or storms (there is a chapter in Noli Me Tangere where Pilosopo Tasyo talks about that bUT I'LL SAVE THE NOLI ME TANGERE RAMBLES FOR ANOTHER DAY). But according to Philippine folklore, santelmos - which are said to be souls of people lost as sea - are balls of fire that appear where accidents or big arguments happen. In Trese, santelmos (alex's santelmo being "The Great Spirit of the Binondo Fire") can be called to assist in supernatural investigations

+ Translation of what Alex says when she draws the circles to meet with the purple ghosts: "Souls, where are you off to? I'll be entering too, so please open the door."

+ Remember the scene at the train with all the purple ghosts and the woman in a veil? Yea the woman is an emissary of a goddess named Ibu and she is the Manobo (again, another indigenous ethnic group but this time they're from Mindanao; fun fact we have around 134 ethnic groups) goddess of deceased mortals and the queen of the underworld; she also serves as a psychopomp and guides the newly deceased souls to the other side (having an MRT be the ride to the underworld isn’t in the legends tho so fkkjsf)

+ The aswang in the top hat is called Xa Mul and according to the Isneg/Apayao people (yay another ethnic group but this time in northern Luzon - the Cordillera regions to be specific), they are an evil spirit known to swallow people whole.

+ Alex has two henchmen right? Yea they are named Crispin and Basillio and No I still don’t know who’s who and I'm really sorry about that fsfjs so anyways the names Crispin and Basillio are actually those of two brothers featured in the Noli Me Tangere and El Filibusterismo novels (Crispin is younger and Basilio is older) which are basically the national novels here cause um yea written by national hero Jose Rizal as sociopolitical commentary about the Spanish regime here. I don't know if I want to spoil this cause I kinda want other people to read the novel too fskfs BUT ALL IN ALL, ONE OF THEM DIES IN LIKE THE 10TH OR 11TH CHAPTER OF NOLI ME TANGERE (and the novel has 64 chapters btw) AND UM YEA-

+ OKI SO TO ADD MORE CONTEXT TO THE SQUATTER STUFFS MENTIONED IN TRESE (we r gonna use the tiny font here because holy shit this rant is long): So,in the Philippines, especially in the capital region, there are lots of slum areas called squatters. These are dense urban settlements made of compact makeshift housing units that aren't really officially recognized by the government. This is um very reflective of the poverty situation here and there are maaany factors that come into play here and if i were to go into depth about this topic, that rant would probably turn into an academic paper so for the sake of brevity, let's just say that Things Are Fucked Up Here. Oftentimes the poorer sectors are being ignored and left to their own devices despite tons of campaign promises to make things better and easier for them. The communities that live here are incredibly vulnerable to floods, fires, and the like and afaik no concrete solutions have been in effect to protect these people and their settlements. There have also been many times where squatter areas are dismantled or demolished despite protests of people living in those areas and yea I understand the need to make space and the need for renovation but the people should still be offered some sort of temporary settlement or financial compensation thingy that doESN'T fuck them over but alas, we have an anti-poor government. That being said, I really like Trese Ep 1's portrayal of governmental negligence, but I also have some thoughts, especially in regards to the mayor being arrested THAT FAST which um believe me, NEVER FUCKING HAPPENS BECAUSE MANY MAYORS AND A LOT OF POLITICIANS HAVE THE POLICE IN THEIR POCKETS SO UM ERR YEA JUSTICE IS RARELY A THING HERE BUT UM ANYWAYS YEA THE GOVERNMENT LIKES TO SHIT ON THE POOR WOO LET'S SAVE THE USE OF SOCIOLOGICAL LENS ON THIS MATTER FOR ANOTHER DAY

+ The news channel reporting the arrest of the mayor is ABC-ZNN WHICH IS AN OBVIOUS REFERENCE TO ABSCBN aka the top media conglomerate here (that has been fucked over by the government so many times to the point that they had to shut down operations last year which is all sorts of unfair so seeing them being referenced here kinda made me happy gksfks)

#HI PATROC I HAVE A GIFT #IT'S A VERY LONG AND CONVOLUTED GIFT #BUT IT'S A GIFT #I WISH YOU THE BEST OF LUCK IN TRYING TO UNDERSTAND THIS #this is literally 2813 words long AND IT TOOK ME 12 HOURS TO TYPE THIS OUT OH GOD #AND THIS IS JUST EP 1 #here's to hoping the following eps are gonna be much easier for me to like ramble about considering that i explained quite a lot here gfsfs #please do take this ramble with a grain of salt tho cause obviously I am not a mythology expert so um feel free to add more info!#i'd really love to see more info about trese so yay!#trese #trese netflix #alexandra trese #trese spoilers #ask to tag

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