#imaginin g a version of the movie arc that properly centers ai and ties everything back to that mission statement

[aihoshiino]

this is more of a thought project than an actual question, but what do you think it would've been like had aqua's decision to reveal the identity of his past life to ruby backfired upon him? i'm not sure if the possibility would've even existed in the first place given how much sarina idolizes (haha. idolize.) goro, but i like to think about it sometimes because ruby has known the man as "aquamarine hoshino" (guy who is unfailingly stubborn and even frustrating at times) longer than she's known him as "goro amamiya" (a mostly well-adjusted guy from her perspective) and also because ruby has always been my favorite of the hoshino twins and i'm trying to cope with her characterization as of late. sobs

NGL, I do kind of think that Aqua's decision here has already been backfiring even if it doesn't seem quite as apparent on the surface. As Kana points out, while Ruby is acting fine and happy now, her leaning on Gorou-through-Aqua hasn't really addressed the core issues that are impacting her mental health. That relationship is kind of her single point of failure right now and the moment it's taken away from her, she's going to collapse.

This is why Tsukuyomi described Aqua revealing himself to Ruby as a 'bad move'. Sure, it got her back on her feet and ensured the movie would get made with her in the lead role but it has also made her incredibly reliant on the supposed promise that Gorou would marry her when she turned 16 (which, uh, isn't even what he said…!) and his presence in general. But Aqua's plan has been all but textually stated at this point to end in his death which, as I'm sure you can imagine, would be probably not great for Ruby's mental health to begin with but especially now she knows he's Gorou…!!!

That said, it is interesting to roll around a scenario where Aqua drops that reveal and Ruby rejects him… either out of not believing him or because his behavior as Aqua has shattered the pedestal she had Gorou up on. The idea of a version of the Movie Arc where Ruby is still in black hoshigan mode, playing a version of Ai who comes across as flawed, bitter and unsympathetic as a result of Ruby's own inability to be vulnerable… ouughh now we're fucking cooking….

That could be a really fascinating parallel to how Ai was rejected by everyone who saw her as she really was under her idol persona and you could have a lot of fun tying Ruby's gradual understanding of and empathy with Ai and her growing anger with regards to her exploitation to her realization that her all-or-nothing view of Gorou is similarly dehumanizing. Holy shit, now I'm imagining a version of the Movie Arc where Ruby keeps her black hoshigans all the way up to 134 and it's that moment of connection with Ai as a human being that finally breaks her out of it.

Like, holy shit. This is already an incredibly powerful and moving series of pages, but can you imagine just how much harder they would've hit if this had been when Ruby's white hoshigan had blazed back to life? WE COULD'VE HAD IT ALL.........

#oshi no ko #oshi no posting #onk asks #onk spoilers #imaginin g a version of the movie arc that properly centers ai and ties everything back to that mission statement #of understanding her and humanizing her #honestly makes me feel so fucking rabid. akasaka please.