#it's just that their likableness and kindness are more notable

[loosesodamarble]

Why be liked when you can be sexy: Zora and Nacht.

Why be sexy when you can be liked: Morgen and Finral.

Why be liked or sexy: Augustus and Dante.

Why not be liked AND sexy: Yami and Fuegoleon.

#black clover #black clover memes #zora ideale #yami sukehiro #fuegoleon vermillion #nacht faust #morgen faust #finral roulacase #dante zogratis #i'm trying to be funny here not sure if it's working #it's not that it's impossible for morgen or finral to be sexy #it's just that their likableness and kindness are more notable #zora and nacht also are actually likable but... they got their attitudes that well... #yami and fuego being likable and sexy kings #also if you do find dante sexy... good on you #i'm too small brain for that

[yumeka-sxf]

My thoughts on Spy x Family: EYES ONLY Guidebook (English ver) - part 3

Continuing from my previous two posts, this will be my last post discussing the English version of the SxF manga guidebook "EYES ONLY." I'll discuss some of Endo's and Lin's comments on specific chapters, some of the included concept art for the series, all the Twiyor tidbits the book has to offer, and conclude with a couple things the English version of the book omits.

Endo's and Lin's comments on specific chapters

There's at least one comment from Endo and/or Lin on every chapter of the manga from when the book was originally published (up to chapter 61). Unfortunately I can't cover every single comment, but I did want to highlight a few (more will be covered in the Twiyor tidbits later on).

So Bond wouldn't have actually died from Yor's cooking then? Good to know her cooking isn't that bad, lol. Also that's a good question, Lin, maybe you should ask Endo? 😅

Lots of great info about the cruise arc. Makes sense that they had to plan it out many months in advance and keep revising it to patch up plot holes. All that work definitely paid off! Interesting that they almost considered not having Loid on the ship at all. Glad they didn't because otherwise we wouldn't have gotten one of his best outfits! 🤣 (can't wait to see this piece of work in color in the anime!)

Incidentally, the scene Endo mentions where he "managed to make Yor look pretty cute" is this one (she does look pretty cute here).

My favorite comment of Endo's about any chapter has to be this one for chapter 56. Never change, Endo 😂

And lastly, some good comments about chapter 59 (Becky visits the Forgers).

This is one of my favorite stand-alone chapters so I'm glad it was well received. Funny how they kept going with the joke instead of ending it "normally"...but when you have such great characters and setups, good comedy writes itself!

Below is Endo's commentary about Henderson, not a specific chapter, but thought I'd point it out since he mentions Henderson is the only character he's done a shower scene for...not anymore!

Also, while not related to a specific chapter, I do like what Endo says below about Loid and Yor's "dark sides."

He enjoys drawing them this way, which is cool, but he's also cautious about not overdoing it and saving those expressions for important situations.

Concept art

Most of the pre-serialization character designs included in this book were also in the exhibition pamphlet, which I already discussed thoroughly here (wish I had remembered these were in the fanbook so I wouldn't have put so much effort into trying to read Endo's scribble notes). So I'll just mention a few of the most notable things.

As I discussed in my post about the pamphlet, Franky was at some point intended to be the uncle of the family. Though I do think it would have been fitting to make him the uncle, I also like the main focus being on just the "nuclear" family, with the uncle and other characters having supportive roles.

An interesting note about the beta version of Yor is that she seemed to be more like Fiona - she was in love with Loid right from the start, to the point of trying to eliminate Anya! I doubt this is something she would be doing all the time as it would have been difficult to make her a likable main character if she was always trying to kill her daughter...in all likelihood, she would have tried to kill Anya at first before eventually learning to love her as a daughter. While I see how this could work for an intriguing character arc, I'm glad Endo decided to make Yor a loving mother to Anya right away, and not make her feelings for Loid an obsessive "love at first sight" kind of thing.

Twiyor tidbits

Being the shipper that I am, I tried to see if I could pinpoint any Twiyor subtleties throughout the book, as vague as they may be! 😂

Below are excerpts from Loid and Yor's character pages where we're given info on their current stance about each other.

Love the emphasis on their bond of trust ❤️

Below are excerpts from chapters 14 and 35, probably the most Twiyor-heavy chapter pages in the book.

This confirms that Loid did indeed interpret Yor's kick as her not having any romantic feelings for him.

Below are comments by Endo and Lin for chapter 30, where Fiona is introduced.

Endo's line is a little ambiguous here, but I think he's saying how people sympathize with Fiona because she's "doomed to lose," which is...telling 😅 (does Fiona's loss automatically mean a Twiyor win?)

Endo says he likes the "You're strong, Yor" conversation, one of the most Twiyor-ish scenes in the series so far! 😊 Lin also mentioned how they got to use that theme again during the Becky chapter.

Weird that he chose to highlight this line of all things as Loid's "Family Comment" for chapter 10. Could this and chapter 79 be more foreshadowing for an eventual "Twilight vs Thorn Princess" showdown? 👀 Or maybe he just likes teasing fans because he knows it's something they fantasize about.

English version omissions

There's an additional Endo interview that's missing from the English version of the book: an interview with him and Kazumi Takayama, a former idol of the group Nogizaka46.

At first it seemed very odd that they would leave out just this interview, but after discussing it with others on Discord, I realized it's because it has to do with an idol. Apparently getting licensing rights for anything that has to do with a Japanese idol group is very difficult, which is further hindered by the fact that Takayama isn't even part of that idol group anymore, which makes getting the content green lit for official release overseas even more taxing. So probably Viz decided it wasn't worth the trouble and just left out that interview. But thankfully u/Nemshi on Reddit posted a fan translation of it, which you can read here. They talk a bit about SxF, but most of it is just general questions they ask each other.

And the other thing missing from the English version that I really can't understand is the inside cover! Another great 4th-wall breaking joke from Endo (I added a quick translation of the Japanese version below).

Unlike the Takayama interview, I have no idea why they didn't include this. They include the inside cover as an extra page in all the English volumes, so why not here? Very weird.

---

And that's all I'm going to share for the "EYES ONLY" fanbook! Honestly, there's so much great content in the book that I didn't touch on, like info about East/West relations, about Eden Academy, Endo's comments on all the designer chairs for the volume covers...and lots more. So definitely get a copy yourself if you can! It's a must-have for any SxF fan 😁 Books like this aren't officially released in English very often, so the fact that Viz thought it was worthwhile to make this proves how much of a hit SxF is!

<- Return to Part 2

#spy x family #spy family #sxf #spyxfamily #twiyor #loid forger #yor forger #anya forger #bond forger #sxf manga #sxf manga spoilers #sxf spoilers #tatsuya endo

[tabithatwo]

i have kindve a rant abt jackie that id like your thoughts on. whenever people write fics where jackie is like. wholly a dumbass it really irks me. like the most we see of her is in the wilderness, of course shes useless?? shes a normal person, she wasnt trained in survival tactics. theres another rant in there abt how she very much could have adapted but she was depressed and suicidal and i think thats mostly why shes useless, but thats a conversation for another time! but yeah. when shes just ditzy and shit in fics it really rubs me the wrong way. like i follow the hc that shes autistic, and specifically the kind where shes very socially aware but still sometimes fucks up a little. like how usually when shes mean she has no idea that it came off that way. i feel like people took that and twisted it to mean that shes some useless moron thats constantly oblivious and needs to be babied. i hope that made some sense? idk, im just curious if thats something other people have noticed and have a problem w or if im too personally offended by it lmao

Here is part 2 that anon sent separately!

Honestly anon fucking preach lol, that’s my thoughts on it!! I don’t think you phrased anything mean, I get the passion behind it comes from an important place! I tend to really bristle at any women being portrayed as stupid, even when it’s done in a cutesy (read: patronizing lol) manner.

NOW I can get behind a one liner joke like “aww she’s so stupid” about any of the yjs bc they ALL have their dumb moments, usually around EMOTIONAL intelligence! But I know what you’re talking about and I’ve seen it too—portraying her or describing her as likable but fucking dumber than a rock is honestly more annoying to me than the evil genius mastermind take most of the time.

It isn’t supported by anything we have of her character. There’s even a BIG point made with Shauna’s hallucination of her, where Shauna recognizes this sort of unfair impulse to jump to diminishing Jackie’s intelligence. I think that shauna simply feels like she needs one thing that’s just hers, one thing that she’s better at, and in her mind intelligence is the only option. But even she recognizes that’s bullshit. I think that yes shauna is framed as more book-smart than Jackie (honestly shauna is framed as the most book-smart, probably tied with Taissa) but we actually know very little of Jackie’s academic achievement, so it’s sort of up in the air.

But as far as day to day intelligence, I don’t think we’re meant to think Jackie is stupid. If anything, I think the lack of woods participation (which, as you said, is fucking depression and suicidality and fear) can be interpreted negatively as laziness, if one is inclined to interpret it negatively, or a fear of failure, more so than stupidity.

To each their own, I don’t think sort of notably off characterization is malicious unless the person is being cruel about it, but yeah I get annoyed and tend to click away lol and I do think there’s a lot lot lot of misogyny that infiltrates some popular jackie takes.

#yellowjackets #jackie taylor #shauna shipman #asks answered #jackieshauna

[littlewestern]

Ducky

You spoil me!

Duck is probably my favorite toy to mash together with other engines during shipping playtime, probably as a result of him just having so many great interactions with some of the best characters in the series and enough material to work with to extrapolate what other relationships outside of canon might look like. He's just so complex and likable! Many thousands of words have been dedicated to everyone's favorite pannier tank engine. Here's a few more:

OLIVER:

Hi. I'm the problem, it's me.

I love this ship and my love only grows stronger every day. To me, this ship elicits the same kind of reaction as seeing a frog on a lily pad or a cat napping in the sunlight. Like, "Yeah, that's exactly how it's supposed to be. :)"

Outside of vibes-based ship assessment, and more to the point: I love this ship because it really highlights how differently these two characters approach their shared identity, how their experiences shaped their worldview and how that's impacted the way they feel about their old railway, their new home, and each other.

Duck has never borne the burden of questioning his identity. His relationship to the GWR is uncomplicated. He loved it, he misses it, and espousing its virtues to these NWR engines is not only something he feels he has to do, it's something he enjoys doing!

Oliver - notably - does not behave like Duck. I have chosen to interpret this as a sign that his experience with the GWR wasn't the same as the one Duck had. To what degree it was different is up for debate, but I think it's reasonable to assume that it wasn't great, or at the very least, wasn't enough to engender that same loyalty in him that it did in Duck.

But here they are, together on Sodor, and Oliver isn't out here telling everyone about the two ways of doing things, but he *is* working very hard and wearing his colors (that he had no say in picking, because this was for Duck's branch line), because out here they're all each other has of their past life, and it clearly means a lot to Duck.

I like to imagine that Duck sees and appreciates the effort being put forth here, that it softens him on Oliver a lot after the turntable incident. And gosh that GWR green makes him look a lot like home...

In my ideal world, Oliver starts looking-looking at Duck when it becomes clear that Douglas isn't an option anymore (more on that in another ask, perhaps?), and Duck who has always sorta been looking-looking since Oliver got painted green starts responding to that attention with an acknowledgement that Oliver is doing his best. I think previously, Duck would have been reluctant to offer that kind of verbal affirmation considering what happened the last time Oliver got compliments, but I think it really does make Oliver feel good to be told that he's worked hard and done well - especially considering the adverse circumstances he's faced up to this point. One imagines that he didn't get that kind of praise on the GWR very often, and definitely didn't get it on the BR. It's enough to go to your head a little bit, except he's already learned that lesson once and doesn't want to lose ground by disappointing again.

That being said, I think this is a relationship that works best in the short-term. Duck and Oliver are both grown enough that they can satisfy a passing infatuation and move on without anyone's feelings getting hurt, which is one of my favorite things about them as characters. It would be good for both of them. Duck, I imagine, lacks experience with this sort of thing and Oliver is a very easygoing engine to practice your moves on, and Oliver gets to come away from it feeling better and more secure in his place on the branch line and in Duck's life in general. They get to have a nice Great Western Time about it and then move on, and I love that for them so much.

DONALD:

Alright, we all knew this one was coming.

Donald. Is so great. I don't think I've yet written why I love Donald so much, but that's more of a personal failing than anything since I know at least one person has asked previously and I definitely just forgot to reply in a timely manner. While we can't remedy that in full here, a quick rundown:

Donald is one of those guys who is in the enviable position of being everything desirable to other engines in one convenient package. He's clever, hardworking, funny, devastatingly handsome, whip-smart, reliable and wholly singular (despite being a twin). You like him and you want him to like you back just as much!

All engines love attention, and this one is no exception. And unlike his brother, I think this absolutely goes to his head at times. Donald could easily land any engine he wants, but he's enjoying the freedom too much to let the burden of choosing slow him down. He's having fun flirting with the rest of the railway, why should he have to commit?

Of course Duck is not immune to Donald's charms, but he's also not built to make a game out of his feelings the way Donald does. If you can have any engine you want, why would you settle for Duck? I've got time, Donald thinks. None of us are going anywhere. I like the way he looks at me, and I'm having fun so what's the problem?

Unfortunately, this comes across as Donald toying with his boss's affections, which... [Everyone disliked that.]

Douglas especially hates what's going on here. He's like, "You're going to get hurt or hurt him and then neither of us will be welcome back here. They'll stick us in Great Waterton or send us away like what happened when Duck was quibbling with that diesel engine."

Donald just rolls his eyes and tells his corny romantic of a brother that he's worrying too much, it's all just fun. Just a couple of friends having a good time, nothing to be concerned about.

And It becomes immediately concerning when Duck and Oliver start making eyes at each other across the yard and Duck stops looking at Donald at all. Sure, they're still friendly but Duck doesn't make those flush-faced little expressions at him anymore or laugh all sweet-like when Donald flirts with him. It's so concerning.

It's so concerning that Donald has to go reaffirm how desirable he is by scurrying to every corner of Sir Topham Hatt's railway and propositioning every pompous tender engine he can get in contact with.

He makes a pass at Gordon (who turns him down flat). He makes a pass at Flying Scotsman (who turns him down much more gently). he asks Mavis if she'd kill him for asking Spencer to double-head with him and she just laughs in his face. Donald's whole world is falling apart and Duck doesn't even care because he's having Great Western Hours with Oliver at the shed where they both sleep next to each other every night and this was NOT how this was supposed to go!!!!!!

Douglas can only tut gently and say, "I dinnae want to say I told ye so, but..." and Donald just tears off in a huff. Meanwhile every time Donald catches Oliver's eyes in the yard, Oliver just looks at him all smug-like. Just dreadful. 0/10 experience, completely humiliating.

Of course, because I am a hopeless sucker for romance, when Oliver and Duck have closed that brief chapter of their relationship, Donald gets to turn up, hat-in-hand, and apologize for everything. And Duck forgives him because he's a fucking catch and Donald should have seen that from the jump. Everyone gets their happy ending!

I'd go into why they're good for each other, except better writers than me have already done so and I've taken up so much of your time already. If you made it this far, you're a peach. Thanks for the ask!

#ttte #duck #donald #oliver #asks #anonymous #shipping meme #sorry for the long post! at least it's over now

[bluelightning16]

Serial Killer AU Headcanons

Sooo apparently I have more thoughts about this AU than I initially anticipated...

Lilia is a former general who defected, frustrated with all the rules surrounding permissible killings

Malleus is an aspiring politician who’s looking to make his rise to power as smooth as possible

They’re murderous besties <3

Silver is the son of their very first victims (a couple known for their corporation’s corruption + rampant bribery)

They take him as a special token or trophy of sorts, to commemorate the occasion

He grows up hearing stories of his birth parents’ crimes, and how his Papa and Uncle Malleus had been so noble to “take care” of them…!

Death is very, very normalized in his life (:

Malleus eventually settles down in a major city to pursue his career while Lilia and Silver continue to move between different towns and countries (though they still visit him often)

Silver first learns to fingerpaint with blood

His wardrobe consists entirely of whatever clothes Lilia and Malleus can salvage from their victims' bodies

His meals are provided via those murders, too (i.e. the meat), because they’re just so sustainable like that!!

It’s gotten to the point where his stomach can’t handle anything other than flesh

Silver keeps his hair long because it helps him maintain a more androgynous look, which is extremely useful for honeytrap missions

He often crossdresses, which the other children ruthlessly tease him for

Thus, his only true friend is his Papa :)

(Any other attempts to play with his peers results in yet another body to bury in his flourishing garden, courtesy of the quality fertilizer Lilia is constantly supplying)

The most notable murders Lilia and Malleus have committed so far are: the older boy bullying Silver, the teacher lusting after Silver, the girl attempting to court Silver…

In Silver’s eyes, death is something that only happens to people who deserve it—and his beloved family members are the best people to determine that

He comes off as mildly sociopathic at school when he displays zero empathy for others’ losses of grandparents and pets

Despite all that, however, he really does try his best to be kind and sweet and likable…!

He currently aspires to work under Malleus and become someone who can educate those around him about how to be virtuous and prevent some awful fate from befalling them

#twisted wonderland #twst #twst headcanons #silver twst #lilia vanrouge #malleus draconia #serial killer au

[ewingstan]

Alright, so a lot of characters are pretty good parallels for Taylor, some even to the extent that they’re acknowledged as such by the text. Basically every group leader gets this treatment: Satyr is noted to share Skitter’s creativity in power usage as well as her murky place in the hero-villain dichotomy. The similarity between Taylor and Jack Slash becomes an important plot point when it prompts Golem to realize Jack’s secondary power, letting him turn the tide of the fight. Weld commiserates with Taylor on the oil rig about not being able to turn away from the fight. And Teacher shares a place with Khepri in the highly specific “mind controller whose specific abilities give them the capacity to become exponentially dangerous” category.

But you know who she isn’t deliberately compared to as often? Trickster. Which is kind of weird, as Francis Krouse is startlingly similar to Taylor in a lot of ways, and their points of divergence are really useful for identifying what Wildbow is doing with these characters. 

Skitter and Trickster are both incredibly quick thinkers who use their wits to win fights they have no business winning. This sometimes feels like it gets forgotten, since the one team plan Krouse proposed with the Undersiders is the one that got Brian dissected, but Krouse was able to come ahead of the Wards, quickly dispatch a rampaging Cody clone with an unknown power set (once on-screen and multiple times off-screen), and substantially contribute to the fight against Leviathan. Hell, even his quick thinking on how to appease Accord after Sundancer interrupted their meeting shows a pretty amazing ability to stay calm and think on his feet in the face of extreme danger. The main problem is that he’s much better at working alone than directing a team—unlike the Queen Administrator. This is even specifically called out during his e-sport days:

 This is partially due to never really being on the same page as others—he doesn’t seem to genuinely care about many people, and will default to brutal tactics that his teammates won’t get behind. This is less of a problem for Taylor, both because she has a much stronger bond with her teammates and because they tend to match and exacerbate her more ruthless tendencies.

On the subject of teammates, its worth noting how both Taylor and Krouse are able to get others to follow them for reasons outside of any natural charisma. Skitter is a notably bad speaker, relying on people to follow her through shock-and-awe tactics. She cultivates an intimidating reputation to scare potential enemies off and keep her subjects on the Boardwalk in line. She gets old nemeses like Lung, Shadow-Stalker, and the entire Protectorate to work with her by presenting herself as mythically competent and necessary to the defeat of larger enemies. She makes herself a legend, someone you work with because you really don’t want to work against her. But she’s not a leader like Chevalier, or even Faultline; there’s very few people who follow her because she’s an inspiring presence or worthy friend. They exist, but they’re few and far between. As Tattletale notes, Taylor never really asks for help. She just maneuvers you into a position where you have no choice but to work with her.

Meanwhile, Trickster actually has some natural charisma. He’s a good negotiator, and has a flair for the dramatic which could make him easily likable. But he’s not really using this to get the Travellers to follow him; most of them are in some stage of coming to hate him, even. He doesn’t make himself very pleasant to be around in the best of times; even before the Simurgh he “thrived on being annoying.” He just happens to be the only one with an idea of how to move forwards, so they have to follow along or risk getting left behind to deal with their strange new status quo. Even at the beginning, they didn’t follow Krouse because he was their friend—they followed him because they wanted to help Noelle, and didn’t want to be stuck in the walled-off city, and Krouse seemed to be pretty good at the whole “villain” thing so they might as well work under his leadership for the foreseeable future. This maps on pretty well to how Taylor’s eventual leadership role was largely due to being the only Undersider with an actual goal for the future—something she would carry into her de-facto leadership of the Chicago Wards.

But what moving forwards means isn’t very clear for Trickster, who up until Coil approached him seemed to just be going through the motions. There’s no actual way he can find to fix Noelle, he doesn’t care for his teammates enough to find contentment in their companionship. He’s convinced that he’ll always be hated, and decided that’s okay, he can take it, just keep using them before they hate you enough to walk away.

He’s convinced that he’ll  always be in danger and decided that’s okay, he’s good at getting out of scrapes and he doesn’t have much to keep him going anyway, so he might as well keep plunging into danger.

He’s convinced that the Simurgh has already doomed him and that no future is available, so he may as well doom himself for the person he loves.

This is, I maintain, the main substantial difference between Krouse and Taylor. Trickster is what Skitter would be without hope.

Taylor always has something driving her. She latches on to causes: finding the Undersider’s sponsor, rescuing Dinah, stopping Jack Slash. She is absolutely convinced that she can throw herself at any problem and find a way of overcoming it. It’s why she picks fights against people like Mannequin or Lung, and part of the reason she’s able to come away successful. Krouse has much less confidence; he doesn’t think his problems are actually solvable, and doesn’t let himself believe he can take on larger threats, even though his tactical abilities could actually be up to the task if he committed to them. So he runs, or settles for strategic defeats.

Same with allies: Taylor and Krouse faced similar problems in joining their teams. Rachel and Bitch both felt threatened by the new members’ introduction, resentful of their sway among the rest of the team. Both responded with violence multiple times before their conflict was “resolved,” one way or another. Krouse saw this as a problem he would work around until he couldn’t: he kept Cody on board without trying to patch things up, until he cut his losses, decided he was too much of a liability, and sold him to Accord as a scapegoat.

Taylor, in contrast, never gave up on Rachel as a potential ally: she made the effort to befriend her after facing nothing but cold shoulders and aggression, and then made the effort again after their relationship seemed completely unworkable in the wake of the data heist. And while Taylor certainly doesn’t give the same level of grace to most people, I think its a pretty clear indication of their differences that when presented with the same problem, Taylor made her strongest ally while Krouse made his biggest enemy. Taylor had hope that she could get to Rachel. Krouse never even considered making an effort to pacify Cody.

Finally, there’s the fact that Krouse has no real big picture he’s fighting for like Skitter. Not really, anyway. He goes through the motions of searching for a cure for Noelle, trying to find a way back to their home dimension, but he doesn’t really believe its possible.

As such, there’s no point in working hard for a future that’s impossible. He doesn’t ingratiate himself with his teammates because they won’t actually be helpful. He plays fast and loose with the unspoken rules because hey, its not like he can go on like this forever anyway, so he might as well get a death-on-sight order. The only thing he can do is live for the present—for Noelle. Keep her alive, safe and sated, even if she hates him. He lets himself hope for a real future after getting hired by Coil, but it doesn’t last—Coil makes no obvious attempt to follow through on his promises, and eventually Noelle goes on her rampage and the possibility of saving her is smashed completely.

And this is where it gets really interesting. At the beginning of Gold Morning, Lisa asks Taylor how she’d like to spend what would surely be her last days on earth. Doing anything but fighting barely seems to cross Taylor’s mind. It’s not clear if she actually thinks they have a chance, but she fully commits herself to it. At the end of the Echidna arc, the Travellers go to do what they’ve always promised: stop Noelle if she ever lost control.

And like Taylor, Krouse decides to go out fighting instead.

As with Skitter facing down Scion, chances of success are pretty much near zero here. He betrays his friends to do it, even pushing them into the line of fire, much like Taylor does as Khepri. The difference is that Taylor was motivated to save humanity, while Krouse was motivated by....what? A desire to stay loyal to the one person who gave him a chance to be decent? A need to help what’s left of his girlfriend go on a revenge-spree against the world? Maybe he just never stopped listening to what motivated him at the start:

Taylor made her play as Khepri because she saw a narrow hope, and took it. Krouse made his play because he’d lost all hope, and decided the only thing he could do was self-destruct spectacularly alongside the person he loved.

#wildbow #worm #parahumans #francis krouse #taylor hebert #trickster #skitter #khepri #noelle meinhardt #leo says #leo reads worm

[longitudinalwaveme]

Nerdy Pet Peeves

AKA things that people say about the Flash and the Rogues that bug me when found in supposedly-informative lists or videos.

"Barry/Wally is an inferior copy of Wally/Barry!" This one is usually just a lead-up to an internet flame war, and ignores that the two characters are both distinct, interesting, and likable in their own right. It's also just objectively not true (except when applied to adaptations, which have a bad habit of blending the two characters together). This isn't to say that people can't like one better than the other, or even dislike one, but to claim that either character is objectively unworthy of being the Flash/existing is a bit much.

"Barry was/is boring." I like Wally a lot (he is my favorite Flash, although by an extremely narrow margin), but I can't agree with people who claim that Barry is boring, or was boring before the retconned-in death of his mother. He wasn't. As white-bread as he seems, Silver/Bronze Age Barry Allen was a deeply weird individual. He had weird friends (like Albert Desmond, an ex-supervillain, and his 12-year-old neighbor), weird and dorky hobbies (collecting comics being the most notable), and did very weird things (like dressing up as a supervillain basically just to troll the Rogues, which @gorogues has some good scans of). He also has a solidly-written relationship with Iris (at least in the Bronze Age; not so much in the Silver Age) and actually has a number of really solid and emotional stories. I think a lot of the reputation Barry has as being boring stems from the fact that Cary Bates' run on the character, which did a lot to establish his more idiosyncratic character traits and emotional range, isn't published in reprints very often. As such, most modern fans don't know about Barry as he was written in that time period, and miss out on his more interesting character beats. Although I may be biased by the fact that I love Silver and Bronze Age comics.

"Captain Cold is a knock-off Mr. Freeze." Even setting aside the massive differences in their appearances, personalities, and backgrounds, Captain Cold debuted in 1957. Mr. Freeze didn't appear as Mr. Zero until 1959, and didn't become the Mr. Freeze most audiences are familiar with now until BTAS in the 1990s. So if anyone is a knock-off, it's Mr. Freeze, not Captain Cold (though the two are very distinct and I don't think either of them is a rip-off).

"Heat Wave is a knock-off Firefly." Again, the two are massively different in appearance, personality, and backstory, and, while Firefly does technically predate Heat Wave, he didn't start using a flamethrower until the early 1990s, at which point Heat Wave had been around---using his heat gun---for nearly 30 years. Before that, Firefly had light-based powers.

"Trickster is a second-rate Joker." Different powersets, different backstory, totally different personality, and different goals. Trickster is a barnum and a showman; Joker is a twisted comedian. Just because they're both vaguely humor-themed does not make them the same character.

"Heat Wave is boring/didn't age well." I've seen this opinion in a few different places, and it baffles me. Heat Wave is plenty interesting. He had a bit of a rough patch in the New 52, but other than that he's pretty consistently had good stories, his character has been firmly established, and his backstory is really interesting (and suitably grimdark for those people who think comics need to be "mature"). Is it just because his costume is mostly kind of monochrome? Or because his heat gun isn't as flashy as some of the other Rogues' weapons?

"Trickster is the Flash's Joker/a homicidal maniac." This one is basically entirely the fault of adaptations, which do keep turning the Trickster (specifically, James) into the Joker in all but name. In the comics, the Trickster is many things, but he is not a homicidal maniac. It's one of the things that separates him from the Joker. I love Mark Hamill (even as the Trickster), but he's not playing the Trickster from the comics, and it bothers me when people apply the traits of the TV Tricksters to their comic counterpart.

"Captain Boomerang is lame/stupid." Does it make total sense that a normal guy who throws boomerangs can fight the Flash? No. Does it matter? No. This is comics we're talking about; they're inherently kind of silly. That's what makes them so fun---and why Captain Boomerang is so great. Also, Digger is way more skilled, more deadly, and more ruthless than he gets credit for. He's actually one of the scariest Flash villains when his back is to the wall. @gorogues, you probably have some good scans of impressive Digger feats. Also, if you apply the logic used to judge Captain Boomerang as lame, then characters like the Joker are also, objectively, kind of lame.

"Ha ha ha, the Top spins! LOL! What a stupid villain." He has telekinetic powers and tried to blow up half the world in his first appearance. Plus, he's a ghost who can possess corpses, and can be downright terrifying when he wants to be. I don't know why people have such a hard time taking him seriously. It's not like his costume is that much weirder than Sinestro's. Or Lex Luthor's purple-and-green battle armor. Thankfully, this one does seem to have become less common than it used to be.

Similarly, "ha ha, the Golden Glider skates! That's silly!" In the Bronze Age, Lisa was the scariest Rogue of them all, and arguably came the closest to achieving her goals. The fact that she ice skates does not negate the fact that she was absolutely deadly, and would have fit right in with the darker modern era of comics. And her costume's not even silly looking! This opinion seems to have become less common of late, but unfortunately it has, in part, been replaced by....

"The Golden Glider is the nicest of the Rogues/nicer than her brother." This one is the fault of the comics themselves, since they've been writing her this way for about a decade at this point. So this one is less a criticism of people online and more a criticism of DC's writing decisions for the Golden Glider. Lisa is more than Captain Cold's cute little sister. She is capable of functioning on her own, and this perception of her as being nothing but generally cute and nice (and led into crime by her brother!) kneecaps her as an independent character. The fact that Cary Bates, who was writing during the 1970s and 1980s, is still Lisa's best writer is a little sad.

People who confuse/conflate Eobard Thawne and Hunter Zolomon, or describe Zolomon as though he's the version from the 2014 TV show rather than the more nuanced character from the comics. This happens more than it should, especially in lists and videos that are supposed to be explaining the Flash, and it just adds fuel to the fire that is people confusing them.

"The Rogues were lame until Geoff Johns started writing them." Geoff Johns was a great writer for the Rogues, and did develop a lot of their backstories, but the Rogues were just as great in the Silver and Bronze Ages, and Roscoe and Lisa were actually much better in that era than under Johns' pen (especially since Johns hated Roscoe). There are tons of good Rogues stories from earlier eras, and I think that they're vital to understanding the characters (especially poor Sam, who has had maybe three good stories since he was brought back to life in 2011).

"Captain Cold is the only Rogue that matters." This usually isn't stated precisely in this way, but I see this general sentiment quite frequently. This idea seems to assume that the Rogues are Len's henchmen, rather than his teammates, and therefore that they aren't interesting or important in their own right. Some of this can be laid at the feet of Geoff Johns, who really, really, really loved Len and seemed to not put as much time or effort into characterizing the other Rogues. I also think Joshua Willaimson's run was rather bad about this, as it portrayed Len as a pretty absolute, selfish leader and seemed to imply that the other Rogues were evil primarily because of his orders/influence. Even Johns' run didn't do that!

"The Rogues are only a threat to the Flash as a group." Again, this one can probably be attributed at least in part to the fact that most modern comic runs never show the Rogues operating independently, but historically they were all threatening and capable in their own right when fighting the Flash. Teaming up made them more threatening, but they were capable on their own.

"Sam (the first Mirror Master) is boring." This one is kind of true, but only if it's in reference to the post-Flashpoint version of the character. Pre-Flashpoint Sam, who also frequently gets called boring, was the most dynamic Rogue in the entire Pre-Crisis era, and was anything but boring. He was showy, cocky, dynamic, clever, and extremely entertaining. Silver/Bronze Age Mirror Master is the most fun you can have reading Pre-Crisis Flash.

People who confuse Evan and Sam, or Axel and James. Admittedly, DC hasn't been helping matters any by combining them into weird hybrids so much, but when writing an informative list about Sam, one should make sure that you're not including backstory elements than only apply to Evan, and that you're not attributing some of Evan's more violent activities, addictions, or eldritch powers to Sam. Similarly, when talking about the Trickster, make sure that you don't give Axel's backstory to James (or vice versa).

"The Rogues are lame/joke villains/aren't capable of fighting the Flash." This opinion isn't nearly as common as it once was, but it still pops up from time to time. It's as though the Rogues' costumes and names are preventing people from realizing that they're very capable combatants.

#flash comics #flash rogues

[toon4thought]

Got to see "Wish" yesterday.

I had no real strong feelings going into this celebration of a film going in. I just knew that it all was a culmination of Disney's history with fairy tales. And watching it... admittedly gave me more mixed emotions than I hoped.

Starting on a positive note: the visual presentation. The psuedo-watercolor look to the backgrounds really makes them pop with pretty detail, and while it would've been preferable to also have the characters hand-drawn, the cinematic screen really shows how many 2D sensibilities are actually in their linework and movements. Color work can really stand out in places too. It's not the most storybook-like animation nor most effective blend I've seen, but it feels about right for how I'd expect Disney to handle that.

The plot is, by design, very tropey - pretty much going off the checklist of what is expected from Disney fairy tales - and while it wasn't the most interesting thing in the world, I could certainly wrap my head around the thought process. However, I do have to criticize parts of the writing, in that it often felt like the dialogue was just over-explaining the plot details to the audience. It felt like there was little room for subtle depth when there easily could've been.

Similarly, characters are standard but likable. Asha - while not a new character type for WDAS - is charming and rootable. Her Seven Dwarves-referenced friends do a good job at getting involved in the action and all have their moments to shine. Star is cute, Valentino... eh, I can give or take. And King Magnifico is, of course, a villain you love to hate - starting out with the illusion of generosity, only for his true colors to become more exposed over time. He's not going to make many top 10 lists, but his animation and Chris Pine hamming it up pays off.

The songs - not the best, to be honest. They're catchy enough, are generally brought to life well, and many may well find a standout (my fave was "This is The Thanks I Get"). But you're not going to find a new "We Don't Talk About Bruno" here. I think part of the issue is that the approach to them felt fairly modern-leaning, which I think was a mistake when this is meant to be presented as a classical fairy tale. Though I will say, the actual orchestral score fares notably better on this front.

I think the big saving grace of the film, besides the presentation, is how thematically tied it is to it being Disney's centennial. Not just in how many easter eggs get littered in, but also how the whole heart of the picture is about following your dreams and to not let a higher authority take them away from you. Sounds simplistic, but they litter in enough nuance for it to feel relatable. And apart from it being something people really need to hear sometimes, especially in our late-stage capitalism world; recall too how Walt Disney himself first built this empire by taking chances on utilizing animation that no one else in Hollywood would. There's even precedent to this with a few bits seen in the film, but I'm not going to give that away here. It hits pretty hard, and serves well as a metaphor on its own merits.

I'd say if you weren't intrigued by the trailers, you're not going to be swayed by the film. But the kids and others wanting something to lift their spirits are unquestionably going to eat this up, as it really is the exact kind of tale that made Disney the titan we both love and hate today.

#disney animation #disney wish #wish movie #walt disney animation studios #wish

[midnightactual]

We have here Viz, an English fanlation, and the original Japanese. The Japanese is:

夜一サンは普段から気分屋つスけどあの姿の時は更にブレッブレで 霊圧もそのアオリを直に受けてブレッブレになるんス

A full translation is something like:

"Yoruichi-san is usually a moody person, but when she's in that form, it's even more jumbled. Her reiatsu is also affected by that directly and becomes jumbled too."

Kisuke is using an interesting term here in ブレッブレ, which has been described as:

Originally, an adjective to describe "blur" of a photo from a camera-shake, but it is also used flip-flopping of a person's opinion or such like things, as in ボスの計画について見方はブレブレだ。昨日とったケーキの写真はブレブレだった。[Opinions about Boss' plan are mixed. The photo of the cake I took yesterday was blurry.]

In this context it would be the former case, so "mixed". But in context it's more like "jumbled", which does suggest "random" or "erratic", so you can see where the fans came up with "capricious" ("given to sudden and unaccountable changes of mood or behavior").

The Japanese basically agrees with both in overall gist and really in implication, and while I settled for "jumbled" above, I think the fan translation use of "capricious" is actually a good word choice and that in this case, the fanlation is better. It's also notable that 気分屋 means exclusively "a moody person".

So, now that we know what he said, we can talk about it.

First of all, it's kind of weird for Yoruichi's good friend to be describing her as "a moody person" in front of her (even if she's supposedly "indisposed" mentally; the fact she knows the hybrid form is, in Viz's words, "that half-assed grotesque form", means either A. she remembers being in it, so she's still conscious throughout or can at least parse those memories, or B. Kisuke recorded the first run somehow, which isn't really his style) to an enemy...

... but to intensify it further by suggesting she's typically capricious, with an "even more" construction is also a strange choice, given routine capriciousness is viewed as a negative.

This is also at odds with what we know of Yoruichi. We know from SS arc and EBTR that she's not a particularly impulsive person. She prefers to approach things thoughtfully, rationally, and with a plan. We see this from her constantly berating Ichigo's recklessness, her inner thoughts on how to handle his Bankai training, and how she approaches the Hollowfication Incident.

Yoruichi is generally methodical. The person she's far and away the most capricious toward is Kisuke himself, followed by Ichigo, and that's because they both irritate her, and the former goes out of his way to do it. (It's worth remembering that in CFYOW, she's essentially described by Shinji, Kensei, and Shūhei as good-natured and the only likable noble, meaning this behavior is only really observed by Kisuke and Ichigo.)

Look carefully. Notice he's smiling here?

And here in the top-left?

And look, he's doing it again here.

Now given Kisuke absolutely knows he's riling her up because he routinely takes delight in doing so, isn't it interesting that he decides to talk shit about her right in front of her only when she's finally not in a position to do something about it—something he did to her against her will—when every other time she's either dressed him down, glared at him, or hit him for his troubles in provoking her?

Between all this and her calling him "Urahara" for a spell, I'm not really feeling the simplistic, "Teehee they are just the best of besties!" narrative that almost everyone in the fandom seems to want to buy into. (If they don't just reflexively ship them because a man and a woman just being friends? Unheard of!)

It's more complicated than that.

#Out Of Character #Bleach #Yoruichi Shihouin #Meta #Long Post

[witch-of-ruby-syzygy]

Kyubey, Puella Magi, and other Basic Concepts

This post is about what is known about magical girl concepts from Madoka Magica and Magia Record, and is just a basic introductory to those concepts. This is also a pop culture paganism and magic post rather than a fandom one.

This post does include spoilers, so if you haven't seen Madoka Magica, Rebellion, and Magia Record, keep that in mind before reading.

last updated: 11/15/2022

note: the sections about Kyubey, Contracts, Wishes, Karmic Destiny, and Soul Gems are more about practice, while the parts about the Law of Cycles, Doppels, and Homuraverse lean a little more into the belief/pop culture paganism side of things, while they can also have a place in practice.

Kyubey

From a magical perspective, Kyubey has similarities with Fae, as his primary purpose is to make contracts with humans (primarily girls to make them magical girls, while there are possibly some exceptions) and is frequent to lie by withholding details and other ways that are perceived by humans as tricks.

This is because the Incubators are an emotionless alien race, considering emotions a defect, and Kyubey only emulates emotions and other traits as a means of communicating with humans in a way that will increase the chances of becoming magical girls. As such, Kyubey is genderless despite having a masculine pronoun of being referred to as he/him, which is likely part of the ruse of being a likable animal-like companion that makes wishes to be appealing to to-be magical persons.

Think about Kyubey as a Magical Girl/Person's sales representative, giving the magical girl pitch and acting all cute and friendly as a front to get people to sign up, but once they learn about the truth, Kyubey's nature as a part of an emotionless species is revealed. With the front gone, Kyubey usually won't bother to emulate emotions such as caring about the well being of others, apologizing, etc., so I wouldn't get your hopes up about that since it's all fake to begin with, and Kyubey and the Incubators can only emulate emotions at best.

Contracts

At the center of each contract is a wish, which needs to be made for someone to become a magical girl, and can be anything that an individual wants.

Though in exchange, a person's soul is removed from their body, and made into an object/vessel referred to as a soul gem. Inactive soul gems are an object that can be carried, or can even changed into more wearable forms like rings.

Along with their wish being granted in the anime, magic is given to the individual, and varies based on their wish (ex. Sayaka receiving healing magic after wishing for someone to be healed)

There's also apparently a rule that means Kyubey can't suggest what wish to make, but the reasoning for which and if that's true is unclear aside from how he's never seen making suggestions on what to wish for. This could be so that wishes are made by humans by choice and of their own free will, so that when they learn the truth, the Incubators can't be blamed for any of it.

Karmic Destiny

Another aspect of wishes is karmic destiny, which in short, is kind of like what and how much influence you have on the world around you, or what specifically it affects and to what degree. Like with Madoka, all of the timelines Homura went through converge around Madoka because of her wish to save her, giving her more potential/karmic destiny because her actions now affect the world and those around her on a more grand scale.

So, the more personal or involved the the things you want to affect as part of your wish are, the easier it will be to make things manifest. Ex. Sayaka wanted to heal Kyosuke, and since the two of them are close, this was relatively easier to do compared to things like Madoka's wish.

Homura's wish was also relatively simple, though it was able to overcome entropy since the grief output amounted to more than her wish when using her ability in succession to live the same month over and over, giving Madoka a more notable karmic destiny because she became the center of several major events, and everything she does then affects all of it.

In short, that's how she has such a major karmic destiny, and with this concept, should consider what kind of wish you most want to make, and how easy or difficult it will be to manifest. In short, a wish that can't be manifested easily or in general won't be of much help.

As long as your wish is within the scope of your karmic destiny/influence, then it should be easily to manifest after making a wish. Just be sure to word it exactly the way you want, and that it's something that you want, so that there isn't any misunderstanding or regretting your wish later.

Wording it wrong can have unpredictable or undesirable effects, and if there's something you might want more, you should rethink your possible wish and why you want to make it.

It also isn't recommended to wish for something temporary/small (like passing a test or relatively minor things like that) or that you might want to go back on later, since this will lead to regret.

Your personal reason for it is just as important as everything else, and the possible after effects that might happen as a result of your wish.

A contract with Kyubey is no small or inconsequential matter, as hope and despair balance each other out, just as the show emphasizes, and you should make sure you're doing it for a reason that does right by you so you won't have any regrets later.

The Law of Cycles

As a result of her wish, Madoka successfully prevented the birth of all witches, including her own, which effectively rewrote the universe and “ascended” to be more like a magical girl deity, being forgotten by most of the world in the process, spare for Homura and a few others.

Also because of this, the Law of Cycles is the new system she made that prevents the birth of witches. In this new universe, magical girls disappear when their magic is used up, as turning into witches is now impossible. The grief also instead manifests as Wraiths, also appearing in larger numbers, which is what magical girls must then fight, receiving cube-shaped “Grief Seeds” after they are defeated.

At the same time, Madoka has also become a concept, and can also be responsible for the Law of Cycles first hand, with new abilities like being able to see all of the timelines that were, are, and will be as they are related to magical girls. This doesn't make her omnipotent, as when it comes to universes and timelines, they are something that she can personally look through rather than be completely aware of, such as how she finds the Magia Record timeline, and that there's a metaphor about how each timeline/universe is like a record that she can listen to.

With being responsible for the Law of Cycles, as it is part of her wish and something she made, it has also been described as “omnipresent,” but not self-aware, ex. the concept isn't present in pocket dimensions such as the one in Rebellion, and can't influence it unless it's allowed to.

This concept/The Law of Cycles can be split from Madoka, and Madoka can split from the Law of Cycles in turn, as she is where this concept originates from because of her wish. This kind of thing takes place in the Rebellion movie, and the Law of Cycles was entrusted to Sayaka and Nagisa until it could be returned to Madoka as part of her plan, and when Homura separated Madoka from the Law of Cycles later.

To put it simply, the Law of Cycles is a creation born from Madoka's wish, and is something that she can “pilot” now that she has also become a concept that's forgotten by most of the universe.

In Rebellion, Madoka and the Law of Cycles are treated as separate, with Madoka assuming a place within the Law of Cycles at certain times, which allows her to personally see to the erasure of witches.

Lastly, those taken in by the Law of Cycles have overcome their grief in a way, which can be harnessed as their Witch Forms as a separate entity from themselves, as seen when Sayaka and her Witch form are both present in Rebellion, and she can use it to fight.

This concept is comparable to shadow work, as those that achieve this have overcome/come to terms with their grief, despair, and overall negative sides, and as such, are able to use/work along with their Witch Forms.

“Homuraverse”

Though by the end of the Rebellion (the movie that takes place after the first anime), Homura separated Madoka from the Law of Cycles, rewriting the universe where the Law of Cycles presumably operates separately so Madoka can live a normal life. By doing this, Homura becomes a “demon” relative to Madoka in that she rebels against the system of the Law of Cycles by rewriting the universe, where in this metaphor Madoka is seen as a magical girl deity because of her wish.

After doing this, that universe is rewritten again, where Madoka lives a normal life for the time being until she will eventually remember the truth and regain her divinity, and makes Kyubey and the Incubators bear the curses of the world.

Magia Record and the Doppel Effect

The events of Magia Record as a side story presumably only occurs once, meaning that Doppels don't exist in any other timeline.

This is also the only timeline Iroha makes a contract, her wish being to cure Ui, and Ui and her friends make contracts to protect Iroha by taking Kyubey's power (thinking it will prevent the creation of witches) which doesn't work, and the events that follow lead to the creation of the Doppel system.

This system ultimately fails because they tried to change the Incubator's system by using Kyubey's powers, and is only a temporary solution since magical girls require regular coordination of their soul gem so that they don't fuse with their Doppel. This leaves two major outcomes, where magical girls attempt to avoid turning into witches through Doppel use, which is dangerous because of the risks of fusing with Doppels, or turning into a Witch anyway.

In short, Doppels are a manifestation of a magical girl's despair that happens instead of a magical girl turning into a Witch, cleansing a soul gem of impurities in the process. Though if they use their Doppels too many times, too often, or without coordination, they fuse with their Doppel and get out of control.

Overall, the Doppel system is incompatible with the Law of Cycles, as it is an alternative purification system where there mostly aren't Witches, and is dependent on regular coordination to prevent fusing with a Doppel, posing a risk to those that use Doppels, and has negative effects for normal humans as well.

Though as shown at the end of the anime, this timeline is one that Madoka is aware of as the Law of Cycles, hence the name of the show and the book being given to her by Iroha being called Magia Record, whether it's metaphorical or literal, Madoka does seem to know about it.

Contracts Part 2

Before making a contract, there are some things to know and consider, and just as is done in the show and with more information to a certain degree.

Be sure that what you want to wish for is important enough to you to be worth the risk, just as the characters usually don't make a wish right away, and motive and other factors are also important, not to mention the rules of your contract.

For that, I would refer to other posts on how to make Fae Contracts, as they are useful if there are some things you want personalized about a contract with Kyubey for your own safety. This can be done with whatever medium you prefer, and some examples are on paper, a digital document, etc., and how and you go about the timing and some of the other specifics of a contract is also up to you.

Rules and conditions to keep Kyubey in line are useful, though as a ground safety rule, making sure that the contract can't be altered without your permission is recommended. This doesn't change the aspects of being a magical person, it just binds Kyubey from overstepping in ways such as lying or interfering in ways that affect your well being or that of others you're close to.

Before making a contract, some things to keep in mind are that no matter whether you follow/the center of your practice is the Law of Cycles, Doppel Effect, or the “Homuraverse”, and etc., despair is part of the deal and process, and you'll likely have to deal with magic use resulting in soul gem corruption, and fighting with witches, wraiths, or other entities, as previously described.

In this process, such entities are typically fought via means of astral traveling, projecting, and etc., though if you have another way to perform magi activities that is unique/better works for you and does work, then that's okay too.

To track or find labyrinths in general, your soul gem can help to do that, glowing to indicate a trail is found, and the amount or brightness of the glow can indicate how close or far it is, though you will still have to do some astral searching even with this method.

Also, like with others in the Fae category, it may be a good idea to come up with a name for Kyubey to call you, which is mostly a good magical practice anyway, as the more personal/true name you have should be kept to yourself, especially when it comes to fae, so that other people don't have that window for control over you.

If such risks, despair, and other possible consequences are worth making this kind of contract (which you should be thinking carefully about anyway), then this should be a decision you make with full awareness of what it will be like, as there are dangers/risks even if you do get a wish out of it.

Soul Gems

Post-Contract, soul gems are typically an external construct that exists outside of your vessel, but if you have an object you would like to make linked to or representative of your soul gem to make astral travel or cleansing it easier, that is possible, and can do this during or after making your contract, while if this is something you want to do, it could be easier to do when the contract is first made or better established from the beginning.

Overall, whether it's linked to an object or not, it should be kept close to you at all times, and conversion to a more portable form like rings (or even simultaneously being linked to or given a physical ring as a form/holder/vessel) are also some options. These are all just some ideas, and you're free to decide how to carry your soul gem/keep it with you however you like and create your own methods for achieving this.

The Magia Record game also provided this insight on elements of soul gems and how they relate to each other, while it's primarily a game mechanic, it also has some uses. Though this should not be an exclusive chart, as there may be some exceptions or other elements discovered in practice.

Void is an element that doesn't have much combat uses for some reason, and is one primarily used by coordinators in Magia Record.

The other elements are Light and Dark, and then Fire, Forest, and Water, each of which have relative advantages and disadvantages to each other.

ex. with the Holy Quintet:

Madoka - light

Homura - dark

Mami - forest

Sayaka - water

Kyoko - fire

Wishes

Lastly, seeing as magic is complicated and not something that usually acts instantly, from a magic perspective, wishes should be considered similar to a spell in that it makes something more likely or manifests something specific in your life, all depending on what you wish for. In short, you should still put in personal effort and actions like usual anyway, just as you would with a spell instead of expecting that the spell will do all of the heavy lifting for you, just in case.

Territory

Also be mindful of where you go to hunt witches, as there are territories claimed by others, and not all of them will let you off easy. Sometimes there is neutral ground that no one has a sole claim to and/or anyone is allowed to hunt on, but having your own territory marked out can make it easier for yourself and others, and the rules for that area would then be up to you.

When it comes to others, fights do happen, and should be wary about that as well. If someone doesn't accept the rules you put in place or enters your territory without permission, or even the opposite, it's up to the “moderator” how they want to respond or if they want to do anything about it.

Useful Skills to Know

• Energy work/manipulation (primarily for soul gems)

• making contracts with Fae, Fae communication, etc.

• spirit/astral communication in general

• astral travel, projection, lucid dreaming, meditation, etc. (primarily for the purpose of hunting witches, though this can be done however you prefer)

• self-care; this is the most important skill to have, as hope and despair work in a balance just as elements of nature and other things do. Be mindful of the state of your soul gem, and your mental health as well. If things are getting difficult, reach out to others for help if you can, and take time and breaks for yourself as often as possible/as needed.

Sources

Puella Magi Wiki - Madoka Magica

Puella Magi Wiki - Rebellion

Puella Magi Wiki - Magia Record

a magia record summary from reddit (1)

about Iroha and Magia Record - reddit (1)

about Iroha and Magia Record - reddit (2)

#witchblr #pop culture paganism #pop culture witchcraft #puella magi #pmmm/magia record #I apologize if this post is scuffed asdfghjkl #proceed with caution /gen #my posts

[oodlyenough]

the last of us 1x06: kin

surprisingly don't think i have a ton to say about this ep of the last of us but i feel like i should continue posting for posterity at this point lol. (eta: i said that, then started writing my thoughts, and wrote a gazillion words anyway.)

side note: any canadians watching on crave? isn't it fucking terrible. trash service

anyway: 1x06!

continuing to enjoy joel and ellie a lot. the further we get into the show i think the more they've come into the roles and evolved into their own versions of the characters, which is fine. good even. i think bella ramsey and pedro pascal have very fun chemistry together, and i think bella carries the comedy beats really well, which means i've been enjoying seeing more and more of those. i also really like those scenes because they feel familiar without being complete retreads of the game dialogue (which inherently invites me to make comparisons on delivery, etc)

so this joel is much more openly vulnerable. i think this change works to go with what we've seen in the show so far and places where the show is presumably going. and, i'll be honest, i find show joel a much more likable character. 🤷🏼‍♀️

the "not my daughter" scene hit differently... tbh i think it hit less, but not really through any fault of the show's, if that makes sense. it's just one where beat by beat i know the words as delivered by troy and ashley and my brain is super imposing them

loved the opening with the Indigenous couple, they were so funny, and the idea of florence seeing joel puffed up like an angry bird and identifying zero threat and making him soup lmfaoooooo hkghlkg. honestly w game joel i don't think that would work, lol, but w show joel it did. such a funny way to use the map easter egg, and the "there are firefly people?" followed by the couple laughing at their own joke killed me lol

also loved ellie's indignation about how they probably don't know anything because they're "a thousand" and they don't even know the fireflies, who are probably a total nonentity outside select QZs. extreme kid energy. they haven't even HEARD of paw patrol can you believe it. what do they know. also, congrats to them escaping joel and ellie mostly unscathed... minus a rabbit. (rude, ellie.)

show maria was great idc. imo game maria is not much of a character, so the show had plenty of room to expand, and i liked how they did it. i see some people reacting badly to her skepticism of joel and forgiveness of tommy, but we also don't really know what exactly she's been told by tommy. maria being pregnant is also a more solid reason for why tommy can't take ellie than we got in the game.

i can't really evaluate tommy or maria as characters without factoring in part 2 and at this point there's enough difference that who knows where the show will go with tommy and maria in s2, so, it's all kinda fair game imo

the university scene felt a bit rushed but i guess there really isn't that much to do there when you're not rearranging dumpsters and killing infected. it was the first time the show felt notably rushed to me, and i suspect that feeling will get worse in the back third of the show. ah well.

joel's injury and the fight felt anticlimatic compared to the big action set piece of the game, BUT i think it worked much better in context (joel's explicit fears in this ep becoming manifest), and also, game joel's injury is sooooooooooo ludicrous and video game it just wouldn't work on tv lmao. i kind of wish we'd seen ellie land any of her shots on those guys, but i have my theories as to why we didn't. tbd

misc other thoughts:

diva cup scene... excellent. was worried about those musty tampons.

SALLY FUCKIN' RIDE lmaoooooo ellie. u lesbian. ilu

like everyone i was beyonce.gif DINA?!?!?!? in the cafeteria scene. 100% that was dina, there's no way it wasn't. it might not be the final cast actress (i can see them not wanting to cast a major role so far in advance for a cameo, and they have a time skip to justify any appearance changes), but as a character that was surely meant to be dina. ellie that's ur WOMAN

we're 10000% getting some other cameos in the finale. i'm ready 👀👀👀👀👀

lastly: can't wait for this weekend's episode. the one i've most anticipated. left behind DLC my beloved...

#the last of us hbo #the last of us

[hopelesscalico]

blue lagoon, pina colada, gin rickey for mj and aurelia :) also not on the ask game i think but immm wondering, what kind of music tastes do they have??

𝗯𝗹𝘂𝗲 𝗹𝗮𝗴𝗼𝗼𝗻 〜 what does your oc wear to sleep? do they have a dedicated set of pajamas or do they just wear whatever?

aurelia owns various cute sleepwear sets but she doesn’t really wear them unless there’s an Occasion! usually she ends up wearing some combination of pajama pants/shorts/tank top/t-shirt depending on the temperature. she sleeps shirtless or in a bra sometimes if she feels the vibe .

mj as of current exclusively sleeps in like a full shirt and pants no matter what. she has barely gotten to the point where she’ll take her shoes off. you have to coax her into it like a baby animal. eventually she can get to the point where she wears comfortable clothes to sleep. i believe in her

𝗽𝗶𝗻𝗮 𝗰𝗼𝗹𝗮𝗱𝗮 〜 if your oc has a bag or a purse, what are five things that’d be inside?

oh let me just list things out from both of their canonical bags. aurelia has gel pens, a hairbrush, a poorly embroidered baseball hat that says “COOL GIRL” on it that was gifted to her by zoey, a fake id, and cherry chapstick.

mj has a lighter, advil, her beloved emergency hat/sunglasses combo, a mysterious fork of unknown origin, and nintendogs for the ds. thanks mj

𝗴𝗶𝗻 𝗿𝗶𝗰𝗸𝗲𝘆 〜 what does your oc consider to be their best feature? alternatively, what’s something they’re most self conscious about?

aurelia considers her best feature to be her likability. she finds it very easy to make herself appealing to other people and can make friends or at least be friendly with most people she meets. on the flip side, she is extremely self conscious about her own appearance due to her extreme body dysmorphia and self image issues. sad! she will heal one day 🕊️

mj believes her best feature to be her general competence. if she’s anything, she’s capable of Getting shit done! she of course is notably self conscious about Having emotions and struggles a lot with emotional vulnerability because she doesn’t want to be perceived as embarrassing.

BONUS!! what kind of music do they like?

aurelia loves 2010s pop music, sad girl indie music, and girliepop rap music. she loooooooves britney spears more than life itself

mj listens exclusively to like kind of trashy edgy rock music produced by garage bands. her favorite band when she was younger was a band that a guy she knew was in called mutant fetus birthday party. she would be confused upon being presented with like spotify because everything she likes is weird and obscure and self produced

#THANK U FOR THIS ASK this was fun #my little mailbox #ilycilycic #nonsense.txt #cjocs

[dearestones]

Twisted Wonderland Matchup: Jade Leech

Warnings: Fluff.

Anonymous Request: hello! heard you were doin' character matchups :D surprise me with the fandom, but if you don't feel comfortable with that, then please ignore this ask if i had to choose one word to describe myself, i would pick kindness. i care deeply about everyone, especially my friends and family, and i find it hard to hold grudges. i am quite shy and not much of a talker. i'm also a big animal lover :) cats and possums are my favorite little guys! you wouldn't know it by looking at me, but i love horror movies, rock music and goth fashion, and i have a occasionally dark sense of humor that only springs up around people i'm really close with

my favorite color is purple btw and i like pasta

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After going through the information given, I believe that you are best paired with Jade Leech!

I won’t lie to you… but Jade will. Nine times out of ten, he will use your kindness to his advantage and make it seem like he has no idea that he is doing so. When he first meets you, he’s somewhat surprised by how likable and easygoing you are around others. As one of the merfolk from one of the most dangerous parts of the ocean, he can say for certain that kindness such as yours only breeds naivete and eventual death. It’s not recommended that you be so kind and open! 

Eventually, however, as he gets to know you better and he realizes that no matter how many times he screws you over you will always act charitably towards him, his feelings towards you will change. He will no longer think of you as an easy mark, but as someone who is worthy of his interest and attention. He won’t call it friendship, but he will refrain from taking advantage of you too often on the off chance you actually do form a grudge against him.

Since Jade is an observant sort of person, he realizes right away that you’re shy. Oh, my. You know what that means? Jade is going to have a field day with you. Not only are you so kind and generous and everything he’s not, but you’re also helpless in social situations! What a find! Instead of taking advantage of you in favor of his interests, he will either gently tease you or put you in situations where you have no choice but to speak up for yourself. If you ever ask if he’s doing it on purpose, he’ll either feign surprise that you think so little of him or he’ll tell you the truth. Just flip a coin; you’ll lose either way. 

Cats and possums are such interesting creatures, Jade thinks. And you like other animals as well? Well, Jade can’t quite say the same for himself, but he can see the appeal in small furry mammals. They are soft and have several notable features that would make them adorable in most humans’ eyes. That said, a question burns in the dark recesses of his mind and he has no choice but to confront you directly. Do you happen to like eels? What about moray eels? What about merfolk who just happen to be moray eels? Would you like to pet one? (Depending on how brave and/or masochistic you are, just say no. You get to have another coin flip toss on whether or not Jade will be placid about being pet in his eel form or if he’s going to bite you… and you’ll lose both ways because it’s Jade).

Your other interests and idiosyncrasies amuse Jade. You, a shy, kindhearted individual like yourself, love horror movies? Allow Jade to ask you a couple questions and gather more intel on the matter. Don’t look so shocked, dear, friends are allowed to ask about their friends’ interests, correct? Please ignore that suspicious grin on his face and the fact that his eyes are more predatory than usual. He’s an eel and eels can be mischievous.

If you find yourself in a dark room with nothing but the world’s most terrifying, spine tingling, bone chilling horror movie ever, just know that Jade is taking notes in the corner. (No, they’re not about you; he’s just interested in what human entertainment is like). 

Jade will never admit it, but he likes how your interests skew towards things that he thought he would never associate with you. Again, it’s your initial surface personality that has him stumbling over other aspects of yourself that he may have overlooked. Then again, it takes one to know one. He has quite a few diverse hobbies that no one else would have guessed upon meeting him. 

With the above said, Jade is floored when he realizes that you have a dark sense of humor. At first, he might think that he may have misheard or perhaps you’ve said something that may only be apparent for land dwellers, but nope! You really can be quite dark when you want to be, my dear. If you catch him at the right moment, you’ll find that his polite facade fades into a moment of shock and true mirth before he covers it up with a light cough. (Do it again. As much as Jade hates to admit it, he doesn’t think he’ll get used to your dark humor).

Oh my, purple is such a lovely color! And pasta is a great dish! You know what’s better than having one or the other? Having both, of course! For the cheap price of working two weeks in Mostro Lounge, you can enjoy wearing the custom Octavinelle dorm uniform while carrying trays of pasta to hungry customers! How does that sound? No, you’re not interested? How about a discount on that pasta? He can promise that you won’t owe him anything in return… for now…

May whatever higher power out there have mercy on your poor soul because Jade sure won’t. Honestly, it’s on you for getting Jade’s attention like this. However, even if you do get teased a lot and get subjected to many of Jade’s dark whims, what you’ll gain in return is a friend who will take down your enemies and torture your tormentors. That’s a fair and equal exchange, yes?

(Before you ask, yes, Jade absolutely does like you for you and thinks of you as great friends. He’s not going to admit that, though). 

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If you want to donate a Ko-Fi, feel free https://ko-fi.com/devintrinidad.

TWISTED WONDERLAND MASTERLIST

#twisted wonderland #twst #twisted wonderland jade #twst jade #jade leech #twisted wonderland jade leech #twst jade leech #twisted wonderland octavinelle #twst octavinelle #octavinelle #matchup #matchups #character matchup #jade leech matchup #twisted wonderland matchup #twst matchup #twst jade matchup #twisted wonderland jade matchup #dearestones #devintrinidad

[cooliogirl101]

oh my gosh, on one hand i love the powerpuff trio but on the other, i kind of wonder what reina being on the same team as minato would be like

They were already friends in the Academy, Reina being one of the very few people to realize that the quiet blond boy who always had his head in the clouds was actually terrifyingly intelligent. As such, she always made sure to ask his opinion on things and it wasn’t long before she went from merely listening, with an occasional interjected comment or clarifying question, to actively challenging his theories and sharing her own (she has quite a few. It’s not like she had anything else to do those first few months after being reborn, trapped in the body of a baby who couldn’t even walk).

On Minato’s part, well, even as a child he was naturally charismatic enough, likable enough, to be friendly with most of his class (Uzumaki Kushina being a notable exception) but Reina’s the only person he’d really consider a friend. He’s smart enough to realize she’s hiding something, that there’s more to her knowledge than natural intelligence (no, there’s wisdom and experience and all the things a 6 year old shouldn’t have), but he respects her enough not to pry (and he’s patient enough to wait for her to open up on her own). When genin teams are assigned, he doesn’t exactly hope for her to be on his team— after all, that would be unprofessional, as a shinobi he should have no preference who his teammates are— but he can’t help the automatic relaxing of his shoulders when her name is called all the same.

Honestly, they were never supposed to pass, which was the only reason Jiraiya had agreed to take on a genin team in the first place. They consisted of Namikaze Minato, an orphan from a civilian family, Yamada Haru, a remarkably unremarkable boy with two career genin parents who’d just barely passed the genin exam, and Kobayashi Reina, a civilian girl from a long line of civilian bakers. The odds were stacked against them from the start, and yet—

They’d passed with flying colors. And once his arm recovered function from that short one trying to paralyze him, he might even admit to being impressed.

Jiraiya’s not quite sure how it happened, but somehow, somewhere down the line he finds himself cajoled in attending family dinner night at the Kobayashi household at least once a week (his female student, he’s discovering, is remarkably good at getting what she wants when she sets her mind to it).

(“Here,” Reina said, thrusting an envelope at him. Jiraiya glanced at it, confused.

“What is this?” He asked, noting his name written on top in what looked like a neater version of Reina’s handwriting.

“An invitation to dinner at my parents’ house at 6 this Saturday. I gave one to Minato-kun and Haru-kun earlier,” she explained.

“Ah, I don’t know about this, Reina-chan,” Jiraiya said, rubbing the back of his neck. “I might be—”

“Just think about it?” Reina interrupted. She looked up at him pleadingly, eyes appearing almost unnaturally luminescent behind those thick glasses of hers. “I understand if you can’t make it, of course, but I’d really love to see you there, sensei. It’d mean a lot to me.”

Which was how he’d found himself frantically digging through his closet for his nicest shirt (one Tsunade had bought him a few years back) at 5:52 p.m., cursing up a storm. He’d shown up at exactly 5:59 with a bottle of wine in one hand, palms sweaty and feeling slightly nauseous (which was completely ridiculous. He was one of Sannin, an S-ranked ninja, he’d fought and won thousands of battles— he had no idea why he was feeling so nervous about attending a civilian family dinner, of all things).

“I—” He cleared his throat when the door opened, revealing Reina with Minato at her back. “I brought wine?”

“Sensei!” She broke into a beaming smile at the sight of him. Jiraiya felt something alarmingly warm fill his chest. “You made it! Come in, come in!”

“You didn’t need to bring a gift, although I appreciate the thought,” she added, before glancing at him, a teasing glint in her eyes. “Just…don’t hit on my mom, okay?”

Jiraiya choked on a laugh as Reina reached out to grab his wrist, pulling him inside.

“Wouldn’t dream of it,” he promised.)

As for Minato, Reina decided that him going home to an empty apartment was completely unacceptable and so he ends up having dinner at the Kobayashi house almost every day. Reina’s mother dotes on him and her father sneaks extra pastries into his coat every time he visits. To Minato, Reina will always be the person who gave him a family— and he will always, always be indebted to her for that. After they become chuunin they decide to move into an apartment together (where Reina discovers to her exasperation that for all his genius, Minato is astoundingly dumb at basic, household common sense things like turning the stove off after he cooks). She’s somewhere between best friend and sister to him, and as such, he’s extremely protective of her (which complicated the Hyuuga matter somewhat. He knows her well enough to see through her fury at the Caged Bird seal to the sheer sadness underneath at witnessing what family members could inflict on one another. Had it been just anger, he could’ve dealt with the issue more rationally, but sadness? He’s never been able to stand seeing her in pain).

#powerpuff girls au #sort of #an au of that au anyway

[dans-den]

Velma Review

How's it going everyone? Happy MLK Jr day, unfortunately what I'm gonna be talking about today is anything but happy. Today I'll be giving my review for the...much anticipated disaster that is...Velma.

I honestly did not think I could find something even worse than the Fairly Odder show.....but once again, life finds a way.....to prove me wrong. While Fairly Odder is the worse variation of a beloved franchise in the form of a kids show, Velma is definitely the worse variation of a beloved franchise in the form of an adult show. There is so much wrong with this show that I don't even know where to start, guess I'll dive into this dumpster fire and hopefully come out the other side with my sanity intact.

I guess we should start with how Scooby Doo started. This property goes all the way back to 1969, All the characters have been established since 1969. Now I don't have a problem with modernizing the characters, I honestly don't. There have been several attempts to make them up to date and each decade has had one iteration or another of the Mystery Gang. Now some can argue those old direct to video Scooby Doo movies from the 80's with Red shirt Shaggy and Scrappy Doo is a notable exception where the gang wasn't present and that's true. Some argue that they're great some argue that they go against the source material it's kind of mixed. I personally thought they were entertaining despite that the gang wasn't whole and that it focused on wacky monster adventures rather than solving mysteries. While that is the case, they at least kept the main character Scooby Doo in the movies and they kept in spirit of the franchise. It is a Scooby Doo project that's trying to mix up the formula. Velma feels completely opposite, it feels like it was meant to be something else, but someone at WB decided to slap the Scooby Doo characters names on it because no one had faith in the show. This is the exact same reason the Halo TV Show failed. They made something generic and used a beloved property to make sure its watched to a certain degree. Velma pays no respect to the franchise its "supposedly" based off of. All the characters are different and given either architypes that don't fit them at all like Shaggy (or Norville as he's called in the show. guess they wanna use Shaggy's real name to make him less stoner...idk it doesn't work) or cliché architypes like Fred who of course was given the rich white boy who's dumb and slightly racist. Velma and Daphne are basically self inserts of Mindy Kaling and Constance Wu.

Now the characters/cast, no disrespect to any of them they're all just doing their jobs. However, it does not excuse how the direction given to them is nothing short of a...not so much a slap to the face of the Scooby Doo fandom, but more of a sledgehammer to the face. Mindy herself is an executive producer and I really feel she wanted to make this show something else but someone told her "Use the Scooby Doo franchise, that'll make your show great!". As I mentioned, the show is so far from the source material that it doesn't feel like Scooby Doo. In fact, Scooby Doo, the main character and mascot of the Mystery Gang, is not in the show. To be honest that is probably for the best so they don't ruin him. How can you have a Scooby Doo show without Scooby Doo? It's not a spinoff it's its own thing. I mentioned what types of characters they are, and each one is just...unlikable, especially Velma. Again, no disrespect to the cast for doing their jobs but none of the characters are likable in any way shape or form. Velma is cocky, know it all, rude, mean spirited, a basic bitch. Daphne is a cliché popular girl who is just inconstant yet has her moments of character development but it feels so forced that it's hard to enjoy it. Norville (aka Shaggy) is suppose to be the opposite version of Shaggy where he anti-drugs, bland personality, he's a literal simp for Velma (who treats him poorly), and is just boring to watch. Fred is the preppy rich white kid who looks down on everyone under him and his gag is that he has a small penis...no jokes its a gag that just doesn't go away. Daphne is by far the least bad but that's not saying much. I can't enjoy any of them, they're just hard to watch and mean spirited overall. As I said, I don't have an issue with reimagining's of characters, I'm not bothered by the fact that they're different ethnicities and backgrounds. It's a bit jarring because why not just make original characters with these designs? If you want representation then created new characters that can set that trail. But even if you change these established characters backgrounds, it wouldn't been an issue if you were able to maintain the key aspects of those characters. This show just straight up replaced their character aspects with something different. All the lovable traits of the gang are all gone, they've all been replaced with just generic high school tropes.

Damn, I'm barely getting to the actual episodes just now? That should be a telling sign. I tried to watch the first episode and I could not make it pass the ten minute mark. I have not raged out of a show that fast since Fairly Odder last year. The first episode tried to real Meta and poke fun at movies/tv shows tropes but it doesn't land. The humor feels so forced and nothing builds up to it. A show can at least be watchable if the humor makes it so bad its good, but the humor is such a miss 99% of the time and its so bad...its just bad. They make fun of tropes and try to be meta but none of it works, there's no real set up for the humor and the jokes feel more mean spirited like the 420 joke they told in this show, jabbing at adults who like animation. It doesn't feel like it was made for fun, it felt like it was meant to resent the audience and alienate the fandom. The locker room scene with the dead girl had the joke "She has no brain!" that joke felt like it was AI generated or something a 10 year old could have made. I also find it odd how they talk about the nudity tropes while there's high school girls nude in the shower. If this is meant to appeal to an adult audience...why have high school girls naked? This show is trying to be woke and PC yet you went with a cliché that I strongly feel is outdated and unnecessary as well as just alarming. I understand these are fictional characters, but it doesn't make it any less creepy and unnerving. They also make plenty of pop culture references that just feel....lame. None of it is funny or delivered in any fun or funny way.

Do I think a Scooby Doo show with more mature themes can work?

Yes! It can work and its been proven to work. Mystery Incorporated proved it can work with dark mature themes and fleshing out the characters for modern times. If Velma took a page out of Mystery Incorporated, it could have actually been an entertaining adult cartoon. The Velma show had the potential to be good, I'll admit the animation isn't half bad at times. For the most part it looks average, but the animation has it's moments especially when Velma has her ghoulish anxiety episodes, the animation is actually pretty cool I wish it was more like that style. Even if they didn't want to take inspiration from Mystery Incorporated, I still feel that they could have gone about this show in several ways.

First off, age the characters up. Make them like young adults in college or just in general that way the nudity and raunchiness has more justification to stay rather than sexualizing high schoolers (which has been done to hell and back and is just outdated).

Secondly, there should be more focus on Velma's mom. That may be the one element that could save the show. I don't know if they're saving it for later on or as a finale type deal but I feel that had they established Velma's mom as a main plotline in the show, it would make it more interesting, more of a Mystery/crime solving show.

Third, why couldn't these characters be their own characters rather than the actual mystery gang? I think these guys would have done better if they were a new batch of meddling kids that would be successors to the original mystery gang. In fact there is gonna be a Scooby Doo show about that for preschoolers called Scooby Doo and the Mystery Pups coming soon. It is exactly what I'm suggesting for the Velma show. This should have been new characters brought in to take on the mantle of the mystery gang rather than being cheap imitations of the actual gang.

Final suggestion, DONT MAKE A SCOOBY DOO SHOW IF THERE IS NO SCOOBY DOO!

Overall, This is yet another show that was trying to build off the name of a beloved franchise and failed completely. This I feel is yet another instant of handing beloved properties to people who do not like or respect the source material in the slightest and made whatever they felt like and alienated the fanbase. Velma is down there with Animaniacs (2020), Powerpuff Girls (2016), Teen Titans Go!, and Fairly Odder. There's talks of a Season 2 coming out and I encourage everyone to not watch it. Don't give it the time of day because if you do, WB will continue making shit like this and the only way for them to stop is to hit them where it hurts, profit. If you wanna give Velma a go then by all means but I'm not gonna keep watching it. If something happens that makes it suddenly good then I'll be pleasantly surprised, but I highly doubt that.

Rating Velma I am giving it:

0.5/10

I know this may seem premature to rate it this early on in its run but I do not believe it will get any better. If by some miracle it does, I will come back and reevaluate it with a firm apology. I'm open to be proven wrong but I stand by that this show is beyond saving and I do not recommend anyone watch it whether its Ironic or Unironic. Never thought there could be a show that would beat out Fairly odder.

First review of 2023, off to a good start....Hopefully the next pieces of media I cover won't be as horrendous.

See Ya!

#dans den #velma #velma dinkley #hbo max #tv show review #warner bros

[inflamearc]

i'd never rec anyone read the diary, for lots of reasons, BUT. talking to dana about how best to introduce laura as a character (media-wise, not rp-wise) has really kind of highlighted what the movie (which, make no mistake, i love) falls short of doing - which is to say, as i more or less have before, it's not a character overview. it's about the last week of laura's life, and only about that, and that's fine, BUT it leaves a person who might not be inclined to seek out Extra Material quite grievously lacking in context about laura's motivations, not just in dying but also in her general behavior.

most notably that she's often pretty cruel to the people close to her.

firstly, i'm not concerned with laura's 'likability' or lack thereof: there's a difference in a blatant lack of empathy/sympathy for what someone goes through and in, like, enjoying dealing with that person, and only one of those things is an actual problem. i don't think anyone should be held accountable for seeking out All The Canon Material before reacting to it (not least because a lot of it is frankly incredibly dull, not even mentioning the potential trigger-fest) but i do think a lot of people would feel a lot differently if they understood what's going on in her head.

“...and he swore his love to me again and again until he finally realized that I cannot love anything right now. Falling in love is like holding a white flag out to your enemies and saying, 'We give up, we're in love, love is surrender.' I can't do that until I know for certain that BOB is really dead. Until there is a corpse that I can kick as many times as I please. God, I hope that day comes soon." - April 7, 1987

mainly that her abuser is perceived as being actually omnipotent. he's not, of course, even if you're very into the Bob As Literal And Singular Entity of it all, but laura doesn't know that. why would she? she sees him all the time. she's seen him appear in places no regular person could just Show Up. she thinks on some level that she's crazy, yes, but it's the 1980s AND it's in the middle of nowhere. she has no support and she has no concept of what she's actually dealing with.

like many abuse victims, laura comes to realize that bob is threatened by other people's influence over her, and 'lack of impulse control' is pretty much his entire thing. unlike many abuse victims, laura isn't capable of being, like, "i care about x, so i simply will not talk about them in front of y, so we will all be safer": she thinks he is always able to see her (eventually, due to The Hallucinations, she suspects that he can even read her mind). this leads laura to take a kind of very "you always hurt the ones you love" approach to all of her relationships. she genuinely believes that the more callous she is, that the more cause she gives others to doubt her and even hate her, the safer they will be. she's entirely aware of this, too; like, it's a very conscious decision that she makes when she's fourteen, and that volatility increases in severity parallel to... well, everything else. she would rather die knowing that some of the people she cares about most in the world might never understand that than risk any of them --- or anyone at all, really --- being hurt due to her propensity for Caring A Lot. and it's something she has to train herself to do, very diligently, because it is laura's natural inclination to connect with people! take care of people!

(i fling these capped pages to you from the original entry About It --- august 3, 1985) and then i go take a nap, or have a cry, or both)

#the film also plays down laura's feelings for ronette but i think people expect THAT at least. anyway. #study.