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#no one has succeeded

turtleblogatlast · 5 months

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I will never be over Leo’s 4D chess play in “Many Unhappy Returns”. Like, just in general it is a spectacle to see this character who we’ve seen goofing around time and time again, who’s only sometimes decided to take things seriously, only to show him making a maneuver like that.

And here’s what gets me the most about his plan against Big Mama: he comes up with it on the spot. The second he sees that Big Mama has the solution they need, he’s already in game mode.

It is so satisfying watching the episode back when you realize his plan, because he literally sets the stage entirely for a decisive victory. He sees that the champion is a kraken, and comes up with both the solution to defeating it and a reasonable excuse to get that solution into the battle with them on the fly:

“Like your champ aaand those six guys. In fact, we don’t want this over too quickly. You should armor up those rookies. The whole shebang. Especially with these pointy helmets.”

And this is why giving him teleportation powers is perfect, too. He analyzes the battlefield and makes use of all the assets, moving pieces around to guarantee a win. It is honestly so impressive to witness and one of my favorite parts of his character.

#rottmnt #rottmnt leo #rise of the teenage mutant ninja turtles #many unhappy returns #Leo is SO GOOD AT THIS PLEASE #he can be a dumb dumb but when he uses his brain he is AMAZING #I love him so much #dude has the equivalent of Fire Emblem Awakening Robin’s “see the whole battlefield” ability frfr #all of this while not letting on his real plan at ALL #please he’s so good oh my god #and this imo is why he grows into the worlds best ninja #because subterfuge is one of the main abilities one should have as one #and Leo is SO GOOD AT SUBTERFUGE #*eyes Lair Games intently*#side note too but he does a bit of it in the movie as well #‘I missed on purpose’#it’s small but he had to make sure the Kraang didn’t suspect a thing and he SUCCEEDED #GOD I love??? this boy?????#he’s genuinely so insanely well written and has so much depth I could rant for days man #subterfuge as well so sooooo much fun to witness in action ESPECIALLY WHEN WE THE AUDIENCE IS ALSO MISLED AAA #SOMEONE MENTIONED IT IN THE TAGS TOO BUT YEAH ALSO HE HAD COMPLETE FAITH IN THE REST OF HIS FAMILY TOO #he knows them to a T and was able to accurately predict where they would be by the time he made it back to them #like that’s insane he’s so big brained and deliberately goofy about it I love him #his number one flaw is not letting his team in on his plans and that’s so interesting to me #we see it so clearly in the movie #he CAN accomplish things on his own honestly!!#he’s actually really good at it!#BUT it’s not about him - and not letting his family in on his plans can and does cause collateral damage to them #‘I’m nothing without them’ and ‘it’s not about me’ go hand in hand and can either work off each other for the better or for the Worse #could also go in on how his issues with letting his team in are constantly brought up over the series and how it ISNT just a one way street

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catsconflictscopicsandchamomile · 4 months

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Me: hey brain, can we think normal things tonight?

Brain: PALEONTOLOGIST!DEAN FINDS AN ANGEL THAT GOT BURIED DURING THE EXTINCTION OF THE DINOSAURS.

Me: *quietly* ...what the fuck

Brain: Dean is working on an excavation in a cave system when he uncovers this. fcking HUMAN BEING WITH *WINGS* AND *TOO MANY EYES*. PRESERVED IN ROCK IN THE SAME STRATA AS THE DINOSAURS. And ofc Dean is really freaked out and scared of this thing, but then he notices that the figure is curled forward over something, and as he looks closer he sees the skeletons of a nest of baby raptors that the "human" figure was holding tight to its chest, like it was trying to shield them from something. And he realizes that this... Thing... died protecting them.

Except the "human" figure isnt a skeleton, its preserved fully in the rock. Or perhaps...

#also submitted for consideration: archeologist!Dean ends up in one of those “they found something they shouldnt have oOoOoOoO” scenarios #and unleashes a fallen angel #but instead of anything horrific and civilization-ending they're gay and in love and having gay sex now #...what.#destiel #deancas #supernatural #spn #???????#sorry someone let grade-school-me out of the subconscious for a sec. i was a Dino Kid #yes ik the extinction wasnt one big event but YOU GET THE VIBES #also funny concept: Cas actually succeeded at protecting the baby dinos and they were preserved along with him #Dean now has a VERY confused and sad biblically-accurate (hot) angel who doesnt know what humans are #AND a clutch of baby velociraptors

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essektheylyss · 9 months

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Honestly, I'm very excited to find out what happened to Caleb and Beau, but specifically because Ludinus's current status is WILD for Caleb's epilogue in particular. It means his boyfriend is basically free and clear of everyone who has explicit material knowledge of the deal he made. It means the goal he planned to dedicate his life to is basically complete within six years. It means that virtually no one left on the Assembly cares much what kinds of changes he makes to Soltryce from here on out.

Ludinus is on the moon and probably not coming back, given the general expectations of the heroic fantasy genre, and the rest of it is a whole lot of "not Caleb's problem".

What does this man even do with the rest of his life?

#also who succeeded vess. this is the real question. no one in that role isn't fucking evil.#I'm just thinking about it. I don't imagine they'll have the same kind of time in the one-shot to go through epilogues again but like.#I do hope there's a lil bit. I wanna know what caleb does knowing that this massive problem is no longer a problem for him.#I am admittedly also presuming that margolin was implicated in or at least disgraced by the scourger shit cuz like #that's just not an easy thing to claim you knew nothing about lmfao #and fuck 'im #but like. the rest of the group is just. whatever yanno. but does caleb keep pushing? idk #I think he should get to be headmaster he'd be great at that #but then I am a caleb as magical headmaster truther so #ANYWAY I just want to see it. I wanna see what caleb looks like when he has absolute freedom before him.#it's WHAT HE DESERVES DAMMIT.#critical role #caleb widogast

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butchniqabi · 8 months

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Nature became land, conceivable only in terms of property, laid bare of myth, custom, tradition. Land if it were to function as land, needed not men, nor communities, but so many units of labor-power. The Middle Passage, it must have been assumed, was wide and deep enough to exile the tribal African from all the social customs and traditions that defined him as a man rather than a labor unit.

-Sylvia Wynter, Black Metamorphosis New Natives in a New World

#quotes #this has been rattling around my head since i read it.#im actively reading this rn btw. so i may post more quotes as they pop up but this one...idk smn about it #shes talking about how 'culture is the expression of the relationship between man and his natural enviornment.' (senghor)#and how in order to create a labor force necessary for the undertaking of capitalist ventures they must be stripped of their cultural ties #she also denies that they succeeded in this btw. culture survives regardless!

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pandoratheprocrasticreator · 2 years

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The picture of edas friends as children, reminding us that all these adults, allies and villains alike, were once children. They were abused and indoctrinated by the same system that some of them are using to abuse and indoctrinate kids now. A few of them like alador and darius were able to see whats wrong and fight for a better world. But people like odalia sided with the emperor until it was too late because thats the only thing theyve ever known. And then it cuts to adult lilith and raine and shows how a lifetime of living under this system has sapped the joy out of them. How as kids they never would have thought to make their last stand against they system thats been there their whole lives. Its the lifetime of trauma and the perpetuation of the cycle of abuse for me

#the owl house #toh #shut up pandora #kings tide #thats why i dislike everyone saying that x character got redeemed or dont deserve redemption or smth #bc in toh redemption isnt the point its what belos has been doing with his christian guilt #the point is that everyone has fallen to the wiles of a cult leader #and many of these ppl would have grown up to be normal if not a little bitchy and dramatic #but because of belos they were manipulated into heinous things that they can never take back #and even though the world and their religious leader was the one to tell them to do these things #they still made their own choice to listen #because hard as it was to say no to these atrocities the choice was there as shown by the rebel squad #and if more people went against the emperor #especially the coven heads #he wouldnt have succeeded in the day of unity #but because belos was so persuasive and the coven heads and odalia were so obsessed with special treatment #they couldnt see the red flags and they almost caused a genocide

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astrobei · 1 year

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cringefail mike truther in that he is not always good at flirting On Purpose (but luckily will loves it anyway) and gets flustered easily and says the most out of pocket shit and cracks bad jokes to lighten the tension and has a train wreck of an internal monologue and is so well practiced at running mental gymnastics to avoid his issues that he could win gold at the olympics. NOT a cringefail mike truther in that he is bumbling and useless and incapable of holding a weapon without killing himself and screams like a little girl in the face of danger and is a total damsel in distress and, for some reason, wins every poll asking “who’s the worst at ___” even if it’s something he’s canonically good at

#like seriously #why does everyone think he’s the worst at everything #he’s smart he’s funny he’s resourceful he’s quick #reminds me of that pill asking who would die first after being stranded on an island #and mike was winning by so much #as if he has not been the reason every plan the party makes (+ extended party ofc) succeeded #and what happens the one week he’s not there? yeah. the fucking apocalypse #are we talking abt the same character here #the curse of the word cringefail i swear #it has gone too far #HE IS LITERALLY JUST #A NORMAL TEENAGE BOY #THESE ARE NORMAL TRAITS TO HAVE why does everyone make him out to be so incompetent at everything #mike wheeler #/astro posts

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loveandthings11 · 1 year

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Brian Cox for Variety 3/17/23

!!!!

“Four seasons to prove it! And they simply haven’t proved it.”

The sibs aren’t going to Logan’s birthday party!

#so none of them are succeeding him #I guess!#this article has so much in it!#Logan’s opinions of each kid!#more Jeremy drama #🤦🏼‍♀️#that aside this is a good one #go read it!!#succession #Brian cox #Logan roy #succession season 4 #succession spoilers

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carpetbug · 2 months

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guys. I kinda wish adrien had been akumatized in season 5 in the short periods he wore an alliance (or ephemeral type shit where Gabriel fuckin breaks him solely to akumatize him) and had been given the essence of the miraculous of the dragon. THE MIRACULOUS OF THE DRAGON. THE MIRACULOUS OF PERFECTION. AKUMATIZED ADRIEN WITH THE MIRACULOUS OF PERFECTION. and it’s not from Maribug! if it had been the ACTUAL miraculous from the actual guardian, it ties back to her, it almost functions as a connection between them two. but when it’s only the essence it leads back to Gabriel! It’s another way his father is holding him under his thumb, pulling all the strings of his life and just having complete control over Adrien. so yeah i need dragon!akumadrien content and i need it now

#carpetbug talks #i don’t know man I just want the show to do something with adrien and the dragon miraculous #THERE IS A WHOLE THEME! AN ENTIRE ASPECT OF ADRIENS EXISTENCE IS THE IDEA OF PERFECTION #AS A SENTI #AS A SON #AS A MODEL #there’s even like. a perfection to chat blanc? the whole concept of white representing purity and gabriel’s whole fucking thing with it in 5 #and him being one of the most powerful akumas??? he is the PERFECT akuma not because he actually succeeded but because he was such powerful #enemy! in terms of both actual physical fight but also emotional! he BROKE a part of marinette!#she has NIGHTMARES ABOUT HIM. IT FUCKS WITH HER AND CHATS RELATIONSHIP #THAT IS WHAT GABRIEL WANTS. THATS THE IDEA OF A PERFECT AKUMA #one that defeats his enemy? oh that would be awesome. one that eats away at his enemy and tears them apart emotionally? shit dude that’s #PERFECT #GRAEARAGAEAAFEAFAAF #anyways i’m super normal about akumadrien and akumanette #akumadrien #akumanette #sorry y’all these tags kinda turned into chat blanc brain rambles

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whaliiwatching · 9 months

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What if Deadpool and spider punk met?

(Not like in a romantic way I just picture pure chaos taking place)

aight i’ll give it a go..

something very Important To Me in the spider-man and deadpool relationship (gen) is the theme of voluntary change for the better. deadpool’s morals don’t match up with spidey’s, but spidey matters enough to him to want to be good. redemption arcs my beloved

in 616, deadpool is a mercenary, and that doesn’t jive with peter parker’s no-killing policy. hobie, however, has no such qualms, thus the flavor of 138 dp’s divergence must be altered; i’m thinking he might’ve been a retired/fired police officer, or he took government-sponsored merc jobs without caring who the target was—somethin a little fucked up like that idk

then he meets spider-punk. initially, deadpool is obsessed the way you’re obsessed with your friends’ favorite celebrities—loudly, annoyingly, facetiously. hobie at first dislikes him, but doesn’t consider him a big enough player to hate, and since punk’s core moral of radical kindness allows for second chances, he offers dp the opportunity to turn his back on the State. slowly deadpool acclimates to punk values and community, finds himself upholding core tenets of the revolution even when it means he loses out on big fat wads of fascist blood money, and becomes a scene kid

#spider man: across the spiderverse #spider punk #hobie brown #deadpool #wade wilson #sadly im not a multishipper lol this wouldnt have been romantic anyway #i love spideypool but Hobie Has Noir in my heart #i saw one or two other interpretations of 138 dp!! love em!!!#he’s a scene kid though and no one can change my mind #technically scene came around during the 2000s and was influenced by emo culture (1990s)#but fuck it. scene deadpool canon. he even time travels in the comics #or so the wikis tell me #btw he is STILL CANADIAN its just funnier that way <3 #drawing his scars was pretty difficult—i tried to model off of fresh burn scars #idk if i succeeded. but i tried my best :’)#cw eyestrain #scenecore #it hurts MY eyes and i DREW IT

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feroluce · 10 months

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Extremely in love with the idea of a time loop scenario for submas, because PLA made it just so PERFECT for them. ♡♡♡

I love thinking of it from Ingo's POV because that would be so confusing. Like he goes to bed with Emmet totally normal and fine one night, and the next morning, the change is just so. STARK.

Emmet looks exhausted, in a way that Ingo has no idea how to deal with, because it doesn't look as simple as Emmet not having slept well. He's tired in a way that sleep won't fix, he's listless, he's quiet, all of his energy and chipper attitude that Emmet usually displays even in the early hours of the morning has been completely sucked away and left him looking hollow and empty.

Emmet seems resigned to something, and Ingo has no idea what it is or what to do about it.

Ingo himself has had a strange anxiety lately, something he's left unspoken so as not to worry his darling brother, an odd ominous sensation that haunts him constantly, but all of it goes on the back burner immediately. It's probably nothing. It's certainly not his main concern anymore.

His day only gets weirder as it goes. Not only does Emmet evade Ingo's questions trying to figure out what's wrong with him, he also refuses to explain odd things that he shouldn't have or know. Ingo finds a pokeball that doesn't match any of their team, it's one he's never seen or even heard of before, gold on one side and silver on the other-

Emmet lays his hand over Ingo's, carefully takes the pokeball from him, quietly tells him not to worry about it. Everything will be ok. Emmet will explain everything, he promises. But later...ok?

Ingo doesn't push. Emmet goes back to cooking breakfast. He somehow manages to make exactly what Ingo's craving.

÷÷÷

When they get to Gear Station, Emmet asks to do the multi train instead of running their own separate lines, and Ingo is so distressed about Emmet's behavior so far that he doesn't have it in him to refuse. Ingo would do just about anything right then to see Emmet actually smile, not the crestfallen, stitched-on expression that's been fooling everyone else all day.

Emmet goes on to correctly predict every single pair of trainers they face that day, to the point that it becomes uncanny. He's always been an extremely able battler, Emmet has excellent intuition and he can quickly adapt to almost anything thrown his way. Ingo has always admired and been so, so proud of him.

But that's a little different from Emmet adjusting to a trainer's attack pattern before they even toss out their pokeball.

Over their lunchbreak, Emmet doesn't leave Ingo's side for even a moment, much as he's done for the entire day. They normally stick pretty close together, they prefer to function as a pair after all, but there's a strange desperation to it today. Emmet pulls out the lunches he'd made that morning; it's all of their favorites.

Ingo watches Emmet savor it like a last meal.

And then, that night, at the end of their shift, well after dark when the hour is closing in on midnight. Ingo gets a message that a bright light was seen down in one of the abandoned subway tunnels. Must be a flashlight; a trespasser, probably. Ingo turns to tell Emmet to go home without him; Ingo is the night owl between them and Emmet has had an off day. He deserves to go home and rest, Ingo will be home as soon as he's done with some more work.

Ingo has no more opened his mouth when he realizes Emmet already has all his things gathered and is taking his hand. "I'm going down with you."

Ingo hadn't told him about the message yet. He shouldn't have known.

÷÷÷

The whole way down the tunnels, Emmet has a vice grip on Ingo's hand, fingers laced tight together. He barely even seems to investigate, he just kind of walks with Ingo, pace slower than usual, always watching their steps.

Ingo sticks his head around a corner to check for intruders, and hears a quiet intake of breath behind him before the hand in his suddenly redoubles its grip.

Ingo turns around. Emmet is looking down. Ingo follows his gaze.

There is light. Bright, searing, white light, that is not Emmet's flashlight, not Ingo's flashlight, but is wrapped around Ingo himself, coming up from the bottoms of his shoes.

Ingo tries to jump back but finds that he can't move, he's rooted to the spot, there is light pouring out of him and flooding the ground, spreading outwards, lapping at Emmet's ankles who is suddenly right up against Ingo and holding onto him like he might disappear.

"I am sorry. Ingo, I am so, so sorry." Ingo pushes at Emmet's arms, but he won't budge, he won't get out of the way- "I tried. I really did!" the light wants Ingo, just him, he can feel it, Emmet needs to get away from him- "Many, maaaaany times!" he has no idea what he's talking about but he can't let Emmet be collateral, he can't, he can't, Ingo shoves at him again, harder, Emmet stubbornly clings on, Ingo's panic is rising like the tide, like bile in his throat, only growing more desperate in the face of Emmet's disarming calm, the light is obscuring everything, warping it, twisting it- "But I could not keep you here with me."

Everything, all of it, his entire world turns violently on its head, and when the light finally lets him go, Ingo sees bright blue sky all around him. Emmet looks up at him, the force of the shift having put them at arm's length, but unable to break their grip on each other. He can see the entire expanse of the landscape sprawled behind his brother, far far below. Pinpricks of tears bubble up from Emmet's eyes and spatter against Ingo's cheeks as they hurtle like a comet towards the ground.

"So let's Fall together."

#blankshipping #submas #pokemon ingo #pokemon emmet #subway master ingo #JUST. OUGH #that gap between Ingo having no idea what's going on while Emmet knows exactly what's happening #the implied horror of Emmet going through loop after loop after loop trying so so hard to keep Ingo with him Unova and never succeeding #and realizing that. he's never going to succeed. he wasn't meant to. he won't be allowed to.#and now he has a decision to make. Emmet can either let Ingo go- make his peace with the loss of his brother and try to live without him-#-or he can go with him. Emmet can give up everything and everyone he's ever known and throw himself into the rift with Ingo to follow him #and maybe it's an easy decision. but it is not one he makes happily or without agonizing. but he still makes it.#Emmet knows exactly what he's doing and that it will be the most horrible thing he will ever experience in his entire life #and still he does it because Ingo is worth it. Ingo is worth EVERYTHING to him- even the loss of their home.#so all that's left is to try to get in one last good day before they lose everything #Emmet makes Ingo his favorite foods and savors his own last meal because he doesn’t know when he'll ever be able to eat it again #Emmet gets them to do one last run on the multi line because that was always his favorite- getting to battle as a team with Ingo at his side #and he sticks by Ingo's side all day so that he'll be ready #because whatever wants Ingo is going to have to take him too #ingo #emmet #time loops #my fics

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asideoftrashplease · 1 year

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Detangling JC, his motivations, & his feelings on WWX (i)

JC and WWX have a very fraught history, and while WWX’s role as the narrator makes it very clear what his feelings towards JC are, JC’s feelings towards WWX and motivations seem a lot murkier. He goes from treating WWX as a brother, to mounting a siege in a concerted attempt to take his life. His actions and motivations in the aftermath of WWX’s resurrection are also subject to interpretation. This meta provides argument for my interpretation of his feelings and motivations throughout these events.

LOVE AND BROTHERHOOD

It is clear from the outset that JC cared deeply about WWX (I wish I did not have to make a case for this because it should be obvious, but there are some who believe that JC did not love WWX). Although he holds bitterness and resentment towards WWX due to his family situation and their rivalry, he cares about WWX and is protective of him. This shines through especially in times of mortal peril.

When WWX was trapped in the Xuanwu cave, he travelled without stopping to find people to rescue WWX. The trip should have taken 10 days, but because he drove himself to exhaustion in his desperation to save WWX, he only took 7 days.

When WWX is in danger of being discovered by the Wens after the burning of Lotus Pier, he uses himself as bait to draw them away from WWX despite the risk to his own life, which eventually leads to his capture and the loss of his core.

SO WHERE DID THINGS GO WRONG

Things started to take a turn after the Sunshot Campaign. I believe a few key events caused resentment and confusion to build and grow in JC over time:

WWX’s refusal to carry his sword, which put political pressure on YMJ

His decision to break out the Wen Remnants, without consulting or informing JC, with put more pressure on YMJ

His decision to defect from YMJ, effectively (in JC’s mind) picking the Wens over YMJ and his brotherhood with JC

His actions at Qiongqi Path which killed JZX — while we know from WWX’s POV what happened, JC and JYL have no idea what went down except from the claims of the surviving Jin cultivators

His attack on the 4000 cultivators at the Nightless City, which ultimately cost JYL’s life

It’s evident that JC is increasingly bewildered, angered, and hurt by WWX’s actions. It’s clear that he’s confused, and just CAN’T UNDERSTAND WHY WWX IS ACTING THIS WAY. All the while, resentment is building in him that he has to clean up WWX’s messes, all while WWX’s actions undermine him as a leader and brings up childhood insecurities and jealousies. But his love for WWX drives him to continually stand by WWX and believe in him — even grudgingly, complainingly, and with growing resentment. Even up to the attack at the Nightless City, even after JZX’s death, he still seems to believe in WWX.

This last event, the attack at the Nightless City, seems to be the turning point where he stops believing in WWX, so I want to cover this particular event in more detail:

A “pledge conference” is being attended by QHN, GSL, LLJ, and YMJ. This conference is a ceremonial affair, centered around their pledge to eradicate WWX and the Wen remnants. It begins with them honoring the fallen with a toast, but while the other three sect leaders make the toasts, JC goes through the motions of the toast with visible unhappiness, and then conspicuously says nothing to honor the dead.

I feel this action needs to be understood in the context of the ceremony. They are standing in the Nightless City, where their comrades died in the final battle to take down QSW, a battle which WWX contributed to greatly. They are pouring the wine on the ground where the bodies lie to honor the fallen: “Here we honor our fallen. Rest in peace.” (Uncontroversial) “Now in the name of our fallen, we will eliminate the Wens who killed them — and the Yiling Patriarch!” (Controversial because WWX was brother in arms to these soldiers, and JGS is stirring shit because he wants the Yin Tiger Seal.)

JC knows the controversial bit is coming, so while the other sect leaders one by one say things like “rest in peace” and “may they live on” he dumps the wine on the ground and refuses to say anything. He is the only one, of the four with cups, who does not speak.

When WWX appears, the others all draw their weapons, but JC reaction is different: “JC’s pupils shrunk. Blue veins lined the back of his hand.” From this sentence alone, it may not seem clear what he’s feeling, but based on the rest of his actions in this scene, I would guess that he’s shocked and appalled that WWX would dare to appear before such a large and hostile mob, A MOB THAT IS CURRENTLY PLEDGING TO KILL HIM AND SCATTER HIS ASHES, thus recklessly and what seems like arrogantly endangering his own life.

After an increasingly hostile exchange between WWX and the mob, JGS calls for everyone to set up the battle arrays to seal WWX in, with the intention of killing him there. But when WWX calls up the corpses buried under them to defend himself, it’s stated that all the sects were in disarray, except for YMJ, which seems to indicate that WWX’s corpses were not attacking the YMJ delegation — and the YMJ cultivators were not fighting the corpses either.

This all seems to indicate that despite JZX’s death, despite the fact that JC has NO FUCKING CLUE what the hell happened at Qiongqi Path, despite the fact that he’s no doubt been fed lies and biased reports from the surviving Jin cultivators, and despite the fact that WWX is currently unleashing an undead army on all of them — he still believes that there’s another side of the story. He doesn’t even know WHAT that story is, but he believes in WWX— grudgingly, and with growing disbelief, confusion, and incredulity— he still believes, BLINDLY, in WWX.

THE TURNING POINT

In the ensuing chaos, JYL is killed, and WWX finally snaps in his grief, unleashing a hellish and completely uncontrolled bloodbath upon the assembled cultivators. It is estimated that this killed three thousand people, severely decimating the cultivation world’s population.

The siege begins after this attack, and we know from the prologue that the siege was headed by JC, and that he was the one behind key tactical maneuvers (designed using his intimate knowledge of WWX’s weaknesses) that allowed them to eventually sack the Burial Mounds. In the aftermath, he was the main person credited by the cultivation world for the defeat of the Yiling Patriarch. When WWX meets JL at Dafan, he corroborates this by revealing, through the narration, that JGS was the second-biggest contributor to the siege — after JC, who was the biggest contributor.

I know that there are other popular interpretations of JC’s motivations here. I will name two:

He participated in the siege only due to political pressure — after what WWX did at the Nightless City, he couldn’t NOT condemn him or the cultivation world would have turned on YMJ too

He participated in the siege hoping to take WWX alive and bring him back home to discipline privately

But I don’t subscribe to either of these interpretations. I believe he FULLY intended to kill WWX. Firstly, if he was only participating in the siege due to political pressure, why contribute so vitally to the siege, why take a leading role and design tactical maneuvers to bring WWX down? He could have just done as he’d done previously, which was to participate perfunctorily in “opposition” against WWX, but contributing as little as possible, or nothing at all.

Secondly, some may argue that he was trying to capture WWX alive. But before this, he had always given the impression of being extremely cautious, to the point of inaction when maybe action would have been better. JC is VERY risk-averse. His characterization before the siege is that he’d rather do nothing than do something even potentially risky. The intention of everyone else was to kill WWX, NOT to capture him. As such, the risk that WWX would be killed in battle is extremely high. Even if by some miracle, he managed to capture WWX alive despite the best efforts of everyone else to murder him, it would be really difficult to stop the other sects from executing him, and getting permission to take him home and keep him under house arrest. It would be a safer bet to try to sabotage the siege from the inside, which is not what he did. In fact, he did the opposite. He was leading the siege viciously and with intent.

So I believe that he fully intended to kill WWX, which means the turning point was JYL’s death. Up to her death, JC still believed in WWX. After her death, however, the very last we see of him is him clutching JYL’s body, completely in shock, having not yet processed her death. I believe his last words to WWX should hint to us what caused the snap from blind faith to blind hatred. These words were: “Didn’t you say you could control it?! Didn’t you say it would be fine?!” To which WWX (who is having 99 fucking breakdowns all at once) finally admits that he was wrong, and that he can’t actually control it.

My belief is that this incident made JC realize that JYL’s death (and JZX’s as well) was largely caused by WWX’s loss of control over his demonic cultivation, and IMPORTANTLY, JC’s inaction re: WWX’s method of cultivation and his seeming descent into violent radicalism. Despite all the warning signs, the growing escalations, the increasingly violent confrontations with increasingly large death tolls— he continued to believe in WWX, even when he could no longer understand or predict WWX’s actions. Everyone told him “you need to reign him in” “he’s going off the rails” “he’s a danger to us all” and JC didn’t take them seriously because he BELIEVED IN and TRUSTED WWX.

And now his sister is dead, his month-old nephew is an orphan, and WWX has massacred three thousand people in a single night, likely including members of YMJ, in a total loss of control and conscience. I think that was the turning point, the crux of the betrayal.

I believed in you. I defended you. I stuck my neck out for you. But you scorned my help. You rejected and discarded me. You betrayed my trust.

You don’t give a shit about me.

You don’t give a shit about anyone else.

I BELIEVED in you, and YOU BETRAYED ME.

—

NOTE: Right now this meta is getting a little long, so I think this is a good place to maybe cut it in thirds? Part II should cover the siege, WWX’s death, and the 13 years in between, and Part III should cover JC’s actions and motivations after WWX’s resurrection. As the next parts have not been written, I can’t link it! But when Part II is done, I will edit the post to include a link below the cut:

[Part 2 is still in progress!]