#the narrative still gives him a pass tho....

[shallowrambles]

5x21 freeform rambling; that old "purity" complex again...

Pure = poughkeepsie

There's something jarring in Pestilence and the camera sort-of implying that Dean is driven by simple rules. Pestilence even steps on his fingers in a way similar to the image of cutting of the fingers off the Four Horsemen.

Dean is always fighting for and against becoming the "pure, good righteous soldier." (Despite the widespread applause of Dean being "a righteous man," for me RIGHTEOUS is also one of those Poughkeepsie terms, and almost never associated with good, not truly.)

Whether or not Dean succeeds in casting off the good soldier label and casting off the soothing feelings of "pure places" depends on his psychological wounds of the moment, really.

And yet...despite AIMING for the cold perfection of angels and Purgatory, he can't help but embody humanity.

Dean is fallible. He's wrong. He's weak.

He's violent and hypocritical at turns throughout the duration of the series, taking hard lines against loved ones: locking them away for their own good/detox, and hard stances against only the demons they choose to trust. Then getting mad when they later do the same to him. (Yes, even Sam in season 8-10; when you get down to it objectively, he's doing to Dean as Dean and Bobby did to him. Helping his family as he learned from his family helping him.)

As audience, we get really mad at Sam, because we just "trust Dean's judgment" more than we do Sam's. Uncomfortably though, the bones of it--that is, the structural components are indeed Sam going through the same motions of "not trusting your monster friend even though he/she saved your life and earned your trust in The War (hi Ruby)" AND "locking you up/detoxing you for your own good." That's just skeletal. IMHO, Dean made his own bed a little bit here, TBH.

In season 15, he even says: "I'm working with a demon. Again. You'd think I'd learn." (It's frustrating to watch him not learn. And yet, he's blown up over Sam and Cas repeatedly for doing the same thing. It's Different (TM) when it's Dean choosing to trust demons. It’s Different when Dean is the one running away/abandoning the Cause.

Dean's demons are lovable and trustworthy (even when they ofc they aren't; we see Crowley kill a crowd of innocent queer lovers as late as season 11, just to make a phone call; we see him let Lucifer out for the sole purpose of having a personal WMD).

Anyway, Dean is messy. He's human. He makes the wrong choices as often as any of the other characters. And he can be righteously self-destructive about it.

The "testing" characters like Pestilence, Lucifer want to tempt our mains to fall into despair and hopelessness.

But some of us keep the hope burning, even when the character has messed up really, really bad and made a bunch of wrong choices. And that's what I like the best!

I feel like Cas embodies this resilience so well!

Dean does keep trying. So does the rest of TFW.

#humanity #tbh i still think sam was wrong and i don't blame dean for running away in the later seasons #but the fact stands that sam learned from his family and dean not to trust demons #the fact that he defaults to it *under duress* is not unlike how dean defaulted to it *under his own duress* post-cas death with amelia pon #sam's *trying not to choke* #he's trying to be strong #and he's following the example that bobby AND dean made for him about how to proceed when the going gets tough #i want to shake them both #of note///the detoxes aren't presented as *all bad* in either case #and the narrative certainly doesn't give the macleods a pass as *good people* #it's so complicated dude #in s8-9 dean likes being *needed* so being a blood bank and being the moc/chosen one to end abbadon were very attractive for him at first #sam's attraction to his addiction/demon/chosen one was rooted in being special and STRONG and RELIABLE enough to not be at the kids' table #they had similar journeys tho structurally #sam's coming from the position of the covert narcissist wanting to be grand and special etc - sam is a failed gifted kid #dean's coming fr the position of the borderline idealizing ppl he can keep at arms' length & ensure they need him - dean's a failed everyma #anyway i have better thoughts but neither is THE RIGHTEOUS one most of the time yknow? they each got their own probs

[glouris]

About insomniac Peter’s possible retirement [Spider-Man 2 spoilers]

Wouldn't Peter passing the torch to Miles be kind of messed up? Peter thinks that Miles is doing much better than him, says things like “why would the city need me when it has you”, all that jazz. But it’s not like Miles is a better spider-man, better man, or anything like that - isn’t he managing better than Peter did because he has his support, his help? Isn’t doing what they do is miles (ha) and miles easier when someone has your back, when there’s someone that can pick you back up? Isn’t this why the slogan is ‘Greater Together’?

How does a game with such a slogan end with one of the spiders going off to fly solo, because he ‘can handle it’, make it make sense. Even if it’s for a while, it still irks me, because the implication of Peter hanging up the webs is still there. I didn’t like that he went on a ‘vacation’ in the end, it really wasn’t satisfying, and it didn’t make sense to me. It was cute, but this sure didn’t console me in the slightest.

The fact that Miles can handle everything on his own doesn’t mean that he has to, no? I know that we all want Peter to be happy, but is it in character for him to leave Miles to struggle in his place?

Like, remember 1610 Peter Parker from Into The Spider-Verse, how relieved he was when he met Miles and realized that he isn’t alone anymore. Spiders’ work is always taking everything they have, it’s just really, REALLY hard to manage on their own, mentally. But then, poof - there is someone that understands what it feels like, imagine how much easier to just BE it becomes. Look at the ATSV Miles, how alone he feels. He might not struggle with doing spider-man things, but is he okay mentally? Would insomniac Peter really let that happen to his Miles, if he could help it? Even when there is someone else to support and help Miles, would he really be okay with not bearing the burden together with him anymore?

And speaking of insomniac Peter again - didn’t he have severe issues with guilt and protectiveness, and didn’t want to drag Miles into all that in the first place? But THEN he has his ‘character development’ I guess, and now Miles is apparently ready to go be New York’s only spider-man? It’s just WEIRD to me - the last time Peter left Miles alone (immediately after his first real mission too), his best friend died, he himself almost died several times, tanked a nuke, probably got really depressed. It’s all the more reason for Peter to keep playing his old protective tune, not to decide ‘oh yeah, Miles is managing okay without me’ - NO HE DOESN’T, WHAT THE HELL. He’s strong, he can do everything on his own, but he DOESN’T HAVE TO. Imagine how much better MM events would have turned out if Peter was there! Either they would have prevented all the grief, OR Miles would have someone that understands him right there, and it would have been easier.

Peter is still very much terrified to lose his loved ones, and now with Harry in the coma, MJ and Miles is all he has left. If anything happens to Miles if Peter really does retire, someone will have to talk him off the ledge I fear. Even now, while Pete’s on his vacation, there’s damn Carnage running loose. Does anyone want to list everything he did to Miles in the comics? (it would be kinda cool if he turns him into a symbiote like he did there tho, I’d love to hear Miles’ suppressed thoughts on everything).

What’s with the need to separate them, I do not understand it. Give them time to shine on their own, sure, but don’t make a choice to lower the importance of Peter in Miles’ story, it’s dumb. Trying to show that Miles is strong because he can do things without Peter only continues to define him by Peter. And it’s pointless anyway, we all know that Miles is amazing (dudes that still disagree will just have to stay in their sad little corner).

So yeah, I really don’t enjoy the narrative seemingly building up Peter’s eventual retirement - this little ‘vacation’ of his in the end of the game, Cindy’s introduction. Maybe it’s all excuses and I just don’t want Parker to go, I don’t really care. I hate it, don’t let him go. It might be cruel, but shit, ‘great power - great responsibility’. He lets Miles do everything on his own today - tomorrow some villain arranges a canon event for him or (god forbid) kills him, and Peter sobs ‘it’s all my fault’ for the 1000th time. Even if they do introduce Silk, more help and support is better than less. They all really are greater together, it’s just how it is.

To quote Rio Morales, with a shoe ready this time - Go. Help. Him.

That was really long, phew, I didn't think that I had this many feelings about this. Anyway, what do you guys think about Peter possibly retiring? Do you think he would retire at all?

#peter parker #miles morales #spider man 2 #insomniac spider man #spider man #spider man ps4 #spider man ps5 #sm2 #spoilers #spider man spoilers #spider man 2 spoilders

[freyadragonlord]

As it seems clear that we’re going to have to wait several months before we get new content in the manga, I am going to cope with some more speculations, so here are the

Reasons why I believe that Sigma is going to be alright:

For start, Sigma is not dead yet. He absorbed too much information from Dostoyevsky and his brain wasn’t able to handle it all, causing him to pass out/go into a coma [we see this happening briefly to Atsushi after he exchanged information with Sigma in the Sky Casino Arc]. Fyodor seemed sure that Sigma will never be able to recover from it and wake up, but if Season 5’s finale made anything clear is that Fyodor underestimates people, and while he may have hyped Sigma up as “exceptional because normal” at first, he had already decided to eliminate him because he wasn’t useful to him anymore, and doesn’t think highly of him at all. But I believe that Sigma’s determination and strenght is truly exceptional, and characters in this manga have survived waaaay more unsurvivable injuries before. Which brings me to the next point,

Asagiri doesn’t like to kill characters in the main manga (that’s saved for the light novels), and it took him more than 110 chapters to kill the first recurrent character(s) [Fyodor and Fukuchi, tho we’re not really sure about Fukuchi are we. He apparently came back as a fairy samurai with horns and lasers]. I really don’t think Asagiri would kill another character in the same arc, especially since Sigma’s death would serve literally no purpose in the narrative, and he’s not close enough to anyone else that his death could be motivational for a life-change or revenge. Other series can have “shock-value deaths” were the point is that life is unfair and the bad guys win sometimes, but that has never really been Bungou Stray Dogs’ MO. Again, that is saved for the light novels.

Sigma is the only person who knows all of Fyodor’s secrets, and if he dies those secrets are lost forever. Now of course there is a slim chance that Fyodor also is miraculously still alive, but personally I don’t think so, his arc felt complete, he accomplished some of his goals [in aiding Fukuchi], failed miserably some of the others [killing Dazai], and he truly was defeated by his own presumption and need for absolute control. And even if he were alive, he wouldn’t ever reveal all his plans, his secrets, his past. That is why we need Sigma alive to warn the ADA and give us the Fyodor-lore we are missing.

Unlike Fyodor’s, Sigma’s arc doesn’t feel complete at all. We don’t know why he was created or by who, and he clearly struggles with his identity and with the desire for a place to just belong. He also risked his life in order to repay Dazai and help the ADA, and for him to die after failing to do so [cause again, if he dies now he cannot share that information] would be completely pointless and cruel.

Related to my last point, there is another character in BSD who had to overcome his struggles with his humanity [or lack thereof], with not knowing why he was created and how, and with the desire to belong and find a family that looks after him just as much as he looks after them: Chuuya. This is only my theory, but honestly Chuuya would be the perfect person to help Sigma with this in the following story arc, he’s already there at the same location as him right now, and it would also be an excellent excuse to animate Stormbringer before they make Season Six.

Dazai promised Sigma he will get him out of there alive. Can Dazai make mistakes? Sure he can! But not that many let’s be real. At the very least he is not going to leave the prison without Sigma, unconscious or not, and that will give Sigma a chance to recover in the time it takes them all to go back to Japan.

Sigma shared a moment with Atsushi in the Sky Casino arc and it would honestly be really fitting and sweet for them to meet again. Just saying. It would be cute.

I think we are about to enter a story arc where the Reality Altering Book is even more relevant. Like, it was very relevant already, but I think the Book is responsible for whatever madness was happening at the end of Season 5? Like Fukuchi’s appearance and powers, and Akutagawa’s High Fantasy-looking clothes, it really looked like someone heavily altered reality again… A person created by the Book would be really fitting and possibly useful right now!

And last but not least, I really love Sigma and I don’t want him to be dead, and I think that’s an extremely compelling reason. It’s the most valid reason.

#bsd #bungou stray dogs #bsd sigma #sigma #bungo stray dogs #bsd season 5 #bsd s5 #this worked for dazai so like to charge and reblog to cast

[jittyjames]

- Bensus

- 2012 bw Mary

- Bluedas

bensus

oh my beautiful bouncing baby boy. he has so much pressure on him, and it's from every source possible. every one wants or expects something from him, even the people who he loves the most. he doesn't really take the time to take care of himself. he's burning at both ends, and is just on the verge of burning out completely

plagueddddd by nightmares. that's how he knows everything about his identity and everything that will happen. kind of like a psychic ig? that's how he gets all of his foresights tho, so he refuses to ever let anyone wake him up from them

stealing @feerz's headcanon, but he's bad with technology. so bad. he's like a grandfather. he has to have the apostles handle those aspects of the movement. expanding on that though, he writes the loveliest letters to everyone. they're so sweet. they always make everyone melt. and... y'know... since he knew he was going to die, he wrote final letters to everyone he cared about. the apostles found them after his death. judas' was never opened.

VEGETARIAN. HE'S VEGETARIAN.

2012 bway mary

she comes from a big family. she takes to the apostles quite quickly, and knows how to deal with them. they remind her of home

ALSO bisexual. bway poly is bi/bi/bi. she had a very intense homoerotic friendship with a girl back in magdala. the girl was a prostitute, very charismatic, outgoing, kind of zealot-esque. she was everything she was taught she shouldn't be, but mary still loved her. it crashed and burned in the end, but mary knows if it wasn't for her, she never would have followed jesus. she opened mary up. it's why mary can specifically empathize with judas as much as she does. (this headcanon remains for poly and just friendship eras!!!)

she loves the rain. she finds it purifying and peaceful. cloudy weather >>> sunny weather to her

after judas' and jesus' death, she tries to keep both of their legacies alive. she sees jesus' movement becoming something he never wanted it to be— specifically with peter erasing her from the narrative along with all the other women (after everything), john painting judas as demonic and replacing him as if he were nothing at all to them, people who didn't even know them twisting jesus' teachings to be about control and damnation when it was never really about that. she even writes her own gospel, trying to set it all right, but no one wants it. she decides to break away from them, fearing the corruption, living with her trauma alone. it doesn't stop her from feeling the devastation when she hears of each and every one of their deaths. she lives longer than all of them. she almost wishes she didn't

bluedas (i could write ten pages of bluedas headcanons. you do not want to get me started) (where to begin. obviously i'm stealing josh young's headcanon. he was initially studying to be a rabbi himself when he heard jesus and decided to follow him. he was the poster boy for the torah. he's pious, and he's proud of it. he loves his religion, he loves his country, and that's why his love for jesus is so conflicting. i didn't make this one so I'm not counting it, but THAT'S THE PREFACE FOR MY WHOLE CHARACTERIZATION OF HIM)

at first he's wary of the other apostles. they're very rambunctious and loud, and he's an only child, so he's not used to it. he's stand-offish, shy, a bit judgmental. eventually tho, they rope him into their mischief— much to his dismay— and he ends of covering for them more often than not. they pull him out of his comfort zone. in the end, he considered them his family.

he's the mom friend of the group, but he's passive aggressive about it. if he notices someone hasn't eaten, he'll just pass and shove something into their hands without saying as much as a word. if someone hasn't drank enough water, he'll glare at them until they eventually give in. he lets them sleep in, even if he says he'll ensure they're awake because he's always up before the sun.

his own mom is dead as hell. it's even worse bc he was def a mama's boy. she died when he was a teenager and it wasn't goooood (not spoiling my own fic tho lol)

he doesn't like doing the miracles himself. jesus only let him have the ability once, and it made him dissociate and his skin crawl. he refused to ever do it again, and told jesus to stick to peter, and to never grant him that shit ever again

mary is his bisexual awakening. he never had a single hetero feeling or thought before her. in fact, the whole thing makes him have a bit of an identity crisis, and why he seems a bit snappy to her sometimes even tho he loves her and knows it's not fair

he's thirty years old when he commits suicide

also peaches. no explanation. just peaches. and birds.

#jesus christ superstar #my headcanons

[actualbird]

analysis: SSR Under The Milky Way, luke pearce, and dichotomies that make him a wonderfully contradictory mess of a character and make this love story one i really adore

(wow, thats a mouthful of a title. cuz this is a mouthful of a post)

wc: 2.7k

obligatory disclaimer that these are just my own thoughts and interpretations. spoilers for up to luke's personal story 4, his anniv card obviously, and other cards here and there too

-

luke is a mess

hes Such a Mess. i dont mean this in the "physical space organization" tho that is hilariously canon (pls whenever we're in the 2nd floor of his building i cant stop focusing on the papers on the floor, one of them literally under the leg of the table, MY MAN PICK UP UR FILES JHSDVFKJSDH), but i mean it in the emotional sense. and i also mean it so lovingly, cuz it's among the many things i love abt his character. hes so messy, he has so many character traits that i'd classify as flaws and faults that make him interesting to endlessly rotate in my brain, hes SUCH A MESS IN SO MANY WAYS and he even says this outright in his personal story 3 as a general statement

and after i read his personal story 4 and then his anniv card, his mess was at the forefront of my brain because it ultimately made his anniv card So Satisfying in terms of scratching certain story itches ive got, in terms of addressing his emotional messiness thru the crux of his romantic relationship with mc

and i'll get to that in different portions of this post. but first, i wanna lay down one by one what causes his mess; dichotomies in how he thinks and how mc acts as the other side as the narrative foil, and how all this adds up to a love story i really, really love

-

inevitability vs. hope

i’ll start with the most obvious one. ever since luke’s personal story 1 allllll the way up to this anniv card, the inevitability of his illness and his limited lifespan prognosis looms over and informs the decisions he makes. which, yknow, makes sense. thats a Heavy Thing to have to deal with, and luke for a large amount of his story doesnt want this to be anybody else’s problem but his exactly Because it’s heavy. it’s sad and upsetting and causes worry, and ever since luke was a kid, he was already beginning to harbor a guilt for hurting other people or bringing bad upon their lives (mentioned and shown in SSR Shape Of You)

even after personal story 4—after he’s made the decision to tell mc the whole truth—he is still convinced of this inevitability. hes so convinced that he sent the letter and skedaddled elsewhere to give mc time and space to think it all through without being clouded by the heat of the moment.

hes so convinced that once mc confesses back to him, he argues with her (sidenote: my GOD getchu a love interest who, in the Confession Card, is literally trying so hard to get the main character to pick ANYBODY BUT HIM because he thinks it’d hurt less. my heart aches SO MUCH). he throws the inevitability of his death in her face, as if to scare her away.  

while the whole inevitability thing is so obvious in luke like, Everywhere in his thoughts and stories, i also realized it’s subliminally communicated through even the settings and symbols that are linked to him.

luke runs an antique shop, he’s into photography and takes pictures as memories, he’s got his treasure box filled with things from the past, he’s Always bringing up fond anecdotes of his and mc’s childhood: all of these are things have the concept of the passage of time intrinsic to them, and time passing to luke is something that brings his inevitability closer and closer. so all these symbols implying time are also focused on the past specifically, when things were happier because he’s sure his future can only cause pain. 

and mc, of course, is the foil to inevitability. first, she focuses on a portion of time that isnt past or future: the present.

in luke’s personal story 4 when aaron not so subtly grills her about “dangerous professions” of somebody she loves, she says this:

and then when you pick the second choice here in the anniv card (which i did), she says the following lines

while there’s still time, she says.

this sentiment from mc doesnt just crop up here. cherishing the present is something she brings up many times across several stories (off the top of my head: SR Radiant Sunlight and luke’s personal story 2 during that whole story with Zero) and it’s clear that to her, yes, the past and the future are important, the former being a time none of them can return to and the latter being filled with uncertainty, but now matters so much as well. maybe it matters even more, taking into account how uncertain tomorrow will be.

the second thing mc brings to face luke’s inevitability shtick is related to uncertainty: hope.

luke’s prognosis is dire, but as long as he’s alive now in the present, theres still a chance. theres still hope. going back to that scene in luke’s personal story 4 where aaron is grilling mc, she says:

and then immediately after this she cites wedding vows which luke secretly overhears outside still holding the fucking kettle, oh my GOD, i CANNOT TAKE THESE TWO…

back on topic tho, this bit shows that mc’s view of the uncertainty of a future with a lover in constant danger (and “constant danger” in this specific scene is in regards to luke’s job, yeah, but also has pretty obvious parallels to his illness as well: pain can and will happen) skews towards something more balanced than luke’s concept of inevitability. her view is more of like…we can’t ever be sure. and that doesn’t just make space for pain, but it makes space for hope too. 

and this view isnt only for his illness to be treated, but for his and mc’s relationship as well. 

which brings me to this line, the line that Broke Me and also made me think “OKAY EVERYBODY, PACK IT UP, GO HOME, THE WINNER OF BEST CONFESSION IS NONE OF THE BOYS, IT’S ACTUALLY MC!!!” this is what she says:

i know, it seems simple at first but listen. Listen. this is….so good and so perfect for them. this line has two key parts, the verb and the subjects, and i first wanna talk about the verb: believe. 

belief is not rooted on things that are sure. believing in something, anything, is acknowledging there are things that cant be controlled or fully known but taking that chance anyway. belief is faith, belief is hope, and these things as a cornerstone for love is so important to luke/mc cuz it shows how much they matter to each other and that uncertainties arent a dealbreaker but a call to hope and believe and love. mc believes and pleads luke to believe too, believe in her and in them together

which now brings me to the next dichotomy

-

luke vs. mc

luke, when bringing up his fear of inevitable grief hurting mc, words his feelings in a very particular way. in the anniv card, he says

worded another way, this could go “i could follow my heart, but at the cost of her happiness.”

this is what he thinks the price of his happiness is: mc’s own. and it’s indicative of something i noticed about luke wayyy back in lost gold, that he has the habit of pitting him and mc against each other, particularly his desires against mc’s emotions. 

if he is to indulge in what will give him joy, he will rob mc of hers. if he is to value his life, he will ruin mc’s life (actually to bring up SSR Shape Of You again (SORRY IT RLLY IS JUST SUCH A FAVE CARD OF MINE) this is taken further to the (past childhood) implication of like…if he even just exists, he will ruin mc’s life). if he “wins”, she “loses”

this kind of thinking is cuz he is still, up till now—even after he had said in personal story 4 that he said that the secrets he’s got concerns them both—not seeing himself and mc as a team. he’s seeing himself and mc as two people on different sides and only one of them can get out of this with their heart intact.

and of course, as is usual with luke pearce, he’d always rather the winner to be her. 

so now i wanna go back to mc’s line which Broke Me™. “You have to believe in me…In us.” awhile ago i was talking about the verb but now i shift to the subject. 

mc wants luke to believe in her, which is already in itself something that would hit luke emotionally. afterall, every single argument hes saying is supposedly for her own good, yet he also told her that he’d respect whatever her decision was. if he really, truly does love her, she should listen to her, trust her, and believe in her. going further, she wants him to believe in her and him together. 

because thats what a relationship is supposed to be, even a platonic one and doubly so for a romantic one. the people are still individuals, yes, but theyre not on different teams, theyre not supposed to be with one more important than the other, theyre supposed to be side by side as equals, together. 

in the verb and subjects of “You have to believe in me…In us.”, mc asks luke to rethink inevitability and indulge in faith, she asks him get rid of the divide he’s put between them that says both of them being happy is impossible. 

and in response to this, luke says “...I do.”

cue kiss scene of the anniv card. of course, the crowd cheers, crowd goes wild (the crowd is me) as they kiss. it is so SO satisfying because these two things that luke has struggled with are met with an equal and kinder force coming from mc. the buildup is sublime and crests towards this moment and it is so sweet and tender and amazing.

and then luke’s self-deprecation busts through the wall again. which brings me to the last dichotomy 

-

“how can i ask anyone to love me” vs. “when all i do is beg to be left alone”

the prior dichotomies all had luke as one side and mc as the other, but this last one is different. these are both two sides within only luke and i wanna talk about it not through narrative foils but through the lens of how characters change. 

but first lemme explain: the above bits in the quotation marks are lyrics from the song Left Alone by Fiona Apple and theyre really neat lyrics that succinctly articulate a super common contradictory experience, one luke lays out in full with his depressing explanation for his depressing song choice for the music box

after he says all this, mc reassures luke that she loves him and understands that his contradictory actions we are stemming not from cowardice but from the fact he loves and cares about her (and that it all just got mucked up with mixed signals and actions like this because of //gestures at aforementioned two dichotomies). and mc is right wonderful, i love that, shes wonderful!! 

but what im drawn to here though is less of the resolution of this issue but the fact that this speech from luke made me realize one thing ive adored about his character ever since the beginning: because of his love manifesting into contradictory desires, he not only goes through character development, but moments of character regression as well. he not only changes for the better, but he has moments where he backslides and relapses into old bad habits. 

“why, zak, why do you love this in a character??? are you a SADIST???” yeah, i am. but i do also have valid reasons JHVJKSHDVFS.

on a personal level, i find it’s more realistic and genuine as to how stuff happens with real people. i cant speak for everyone, but as somebody with [redacted mental bad times], seeing a character have moments of going back to bad habits feels great to me cuz in real life, the road of recovery or being a better person isnt always linear. sometimes it’s like this, it’s 1 step forward, 1 step back. 

on a story level though, character development and character regression both happening does two things:

1) it highlights just how strong the motives and rationale of the old ways are, which increases the depth of the character and their traits

like, luke has several regression moments in the anniv card alone. first one is one he mentions, he said he’d accept whatever mc’s decision was but his first instinct that he Did act on was to argue with her because it is so ingrained in him to think of her choosing him as the Wrong choice to make, the choice that will lead her to sadness, and he loves her so much that he doesnt want her to go through that. 

another smaller backslide moment is that he Runs Away in this card. remember luke’s xmas partyland card, SR A Star in the Palm? the card luke word for word tells mc “I promise that from now and forever, I’ll never try to run from you ever again.”? well, while luke explains in his anniv card his rationale for lying to mc that he’s out of town the moment he sends the letter, that rationale doesnt trump the fact that he still ran away and gave her no information on how to find him (thank u aaron for immediately fessing luke’s location, god bless)

also, he lied to her. ding ding ding, pretty sure he said he’d stop doing that!!! but him running and lying once again highlights how much he once thought his absence in mc’s life would be better for her, he has to be Not There when she reads the letter so his presence doesnt lead her into a choice thatd result in her sadness.

the second thing character development and character regression both happening does is

2) ensures change

brief segue, but for the longest time, i had always known that i personally get bored with perfect characters. characters who always succeed, who never doubt, and whose flaws (if theyve got any) are largely minimal and do not affect the story. and only when i started writing this analysis did i realize why i get bored with perfect characters: there’s nowhere else to go for them.

if theyre perfect, they wont backslide. and if theyre perfect, they cant get any better because theyve already Gotten There. theyre stagnant, and what i personally love to see in stories, among many other things, is a character changing. 

luke is so flawed and imperfect and this delights me to no end. his faults ensure theres room for him to improve, and he does. he makes promises, he changes for the better. and once hes done that, theres space for him to regress and fuck up all over again, which emphasizes his traits, beliefs, and what matters to him. 

and once hes a step back, theres space for him to take a step forward again because if theres one thing so sublimely clear about luke, it’s that he tries. he keeps on fighting even if it looks like an impossible fight, and in this card, he does this because he loves mc, because he believes in her, because he believes in them together. 

-

so. luke is a mess for so many reasons, and to me, that makes him one hell of an interesting character with some fantastic stories. it makes his and mc’s love story one that focuses on hope, togetherness, and change.

and these kinds of stories, messy ones that have room for characters to fail and also have room for characters to get better, are ones that i really love a whole bunch.

#tears of themis #luke pearce #tot luke #lukerosa #tears of themis analysis

[silviakundera]

Ok I'm trying Legend of Fuyao again. This time perhaps I will triumph! I left off like 2 years ago on ep 26 or so.

Refreshing my memory by skating thru ep 16

oh look, it's sidekick bro I never cared about. Pretty sure his role in the narrative is to be a drag on FL. And fighter guy! He's much more useful.

This period is where I previously began losing my patience with the show. A lot of story time and 16 episodes had passed and I wanted to see FL taking center stage, being a powerful threat. I wanted her to be saving her love interest approx as much as he was saving her. The opening in ep 16 is right back to a situation where I want to see FL beating ass and not Wuji to show up to save the day. Scram, future boyfriend! Ladies are FIGHTING. 🙅

(past me may not have known exactly what I wanted but the answer was A Journey to Love)

It was the whiplash - Oh cool, she's fighting alongside him! ...and then he's knocking her out to be his pawn again :/

But rewatching now, I think I was in the wrong mood. I am older & wiser! I can be patient. I have been promised a battle couple and Fuyao being awesome. I can wait. ��

Watching the prime minister character be manipulated is entertaining. Fuyao is handling situation pretty well, actually. "The Earth Abdorbing Bell is back to its rightful owner. I've also found Xiaoqi. Why do I need to stay here?" THANK YOU for asking this very pertinent question, protagonist! Her rationale to stay.... doesn't make much sense, unfortunately. Because the narrative (er, the servants) requires it!

"Rest assured? I have been in this office for thirty seven years and I've never had a restful day." idk Mr Prime Minister, maybe u need a new job.

Ok, sneak out and leaving a fake corpse. Not a terrible plan. I especially like the part where u set the mansion on fire.

Prime Minister's foster son is so good looking he's making everyone else in this drama look bad. I like his sullen murder son vibes. Very Hao Du of Long Ballad. MDL says he's basically done nothing since. He was the ML in a 2020 drama that never aired. 💀

I really don't get Wuji. Why is he even involving Fuyao in things. I don't believe he has any romantic feelings at this point. If u can control this nation but can't control her, then... why? I suppose we have to go with ✨fate✨.

Dragon scale armor! Makes me think of the dark tale behind such garb in c-novel Heart Protection.

Why was the doctor randomly lurking around the PM mansion in this dark with a face mask? eh, a man's gotta have hobbies.

Ep 17

So Doctor had a secret mission, ran into Fuyao burning shit down out of happenstance. and now he's dragging her along. I vaguely recall this.

So. Many. Robes. Curtains. Twirling. the twirling I caaaaaaaan't AHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA

Hope I wasn't expected to find any of that sexy. It was extra and hilarious as hell, though. I 100% understand why FL is so done with this dude and ready to go home.

Actually, one moment had real dramatic tension and sexual tension for me. The scene where the prime minister shows up with his soliders and ML is sitting on the bed, acting unbothered, and she's hiding under the blanket. Then slides her hand out and sighs to complete the act. 👌 👌

Then things get INTERESTING as they embark on misc mission things in secret tunnels.

She's like holy shit exploitative royals are trash.

And he's all.... well if I'm Like That would you still be hanging here with me. She sidesteps the question (as she should, since he has all the power). But then, could YOU give me what I want? And he seems intrigued, I presume because then he has something over her.. It feels like a TEMPTATION MOMENT.

Fuyao: nah j/k I'll get whatever I need myself

@dangermousie mentioned to me that Fuyao is very complete in herself. That's really intriguing to me, considering how so many of the characters seem tormented & controlled/restrained by a need to live up to a legacy or another person's expectations.

that CGI magic hamster tho

Totally forgot the reveal of them being ~fated enemies is this early. So she is supposed to break the seals and go to five kingdoms to do it. But he has a mission to STOP the girl w the 5 colored stone. Now he has a character & plot reason to keep tabs on her! ✔ (actually he has those reasons to simply KILL her lmao but protagonist halo, sorry my friend)

Love that she's not a sucker and won't agree to a bet where she has to be an obedient servant if she loses. Just take reasonable requests. But I wish she didn't just take him at his word that he's the one who can help her break her seal. He's a lying liar who lies!

I like that he's a bit uncertain/dubious about the legend that this girl will Bring About The End. Because that certainly sounds wild. Especially since he met her and she seems pretty normal.

#legend of fuyao #cdrama #spoilers #silvia drama reactions

[jess-the-vampire]

Jess. help me out. do you recall anything the svtfoe crew might've said about trans girl Marco ever being an actual thing in the show?

*Cracking Knuckles*

Good to put my svtfoe crew knowledge to use again

Alright, so obviously when St O's Aired back in s1 that whole headcanon started gaining traction and was getting pretty popular, and the crew did take notice of it.

Apparently it's popularity had a lot to do with the Princess Marco episode tackled later on (Princess Turdina i believe), y'know, the one that ended up making the fans more angry then anything?

Apparently it was written with that heacanon in mind and the crew was open about this, it seemed they wanted to confirm it kinda but obviously it got muddied and considering the plot of that episode was that marco was "Lying" about being a princess because "He was actually a boy" it didn't really hit with the princess marco peeps, giving off the impression they were leaning into the false and rathewr offensive narrative that trans ppl are just lying.

Some ppl did like it as a trans metaphor tho, like how the princesses didn't care and told marco he could be whatever he wanted.

But also like, the ep ends with him complaining about the dress and being happy to remove it (For now)

I don't have the tweet on hand obviously, but the initial backlash did get some apologies from the team who clearly realized they may of not tackled the subject the best of ways.

truth be told if the ep hadn't been written with the trans marco theory in mind it might of come off better but it clearly was, so if it doesn't work for you i can see how it came off how it did.

as far as other occurances, i think the most came from Crew Member Sabrina Cognitio (I am probably spelling that wrong, super sorry), who not only was outwardly supportive of it, but constantly was responsible for trying to sneak in pride flags into the show for characters.

Obviously marco was one of them, he was supposed to have a turdina doll with a trans flag dress, but disney ("We totally support the lgbts but we're also gonna cancel and cut all lgbt stuff we make" Disney), naturally, caught on and made her change it, even when she apparently had reduced it to just the purse that was still too much for them.

As far as i've seen the crew was pretty supportive of this headcanon and it seems they really tried to lean into making it a thing, even if through metaphors and subtley to get passed censors, but it never got as far as you see here.

marco's va i have never seen comment on it personally tho.

i don't know if daron personally considered it canon, tbh the lgbt headcanons the crew threw out into the show (Like giving tom the pan flag for example, or star the bi flag in some shots) seemed to be their personal ones for the characters, but granted for all we know daron could have agreed to them and was not allowed to be outspoken on them (I do remember her approving of bi star).

As far as trans marco goes, marco being a trans girl to sum it up feels like something maybe originally unintended, but when the fans picked up on it and saw themselves in marco, they wanted to lean into it and try and semi make it canon, but it never went far enough to really be considered canon to most of the fans.

Personally i've written marco to be genderfluid in my sky au because i like to lean into him being somewhere under the trans umbrella, but marco being trans never got to be as universal as bi star or pan tom, and maybe if they actually got that flag through it'd be a bit different.

it is a shame tho, they had good intentions, but it didn't work out.

There are still trans marco fans out there tho who still enjoy that headcanon and on occasion i still see art for it, so hey, good for them. They're great stuff

#svstfoe #svtfoe #star vs the forces of evil #marco #marco diaz

[familyagrestefanblog]

Oh screw it, I’ll risk it: About the fan reactions to Gabriel not having known that wearing several Miraculous’ is fatally dangerous

I honestly don't vibe at all with the current attitude going around that in "Evolution" Ladybug did a 'not required act of mercy' when she informed Monarque about the dangers of wearing 15 miraculous at the same time (clarification tho: Marinette saying it IS worthy of due credit, she is upholding a moral responsibility of her hero job and its something noone else has done. It's the Fandom reaction I see over and over again I absolutely don't fuck with).

It just really doesn't sit right with me that seemingly so many people legitimately think that any of our HEROS are entitled to withhold such a crucial information from the villain when it literally regards a human beings sanity, humanity and LIFE. No matter how god damn awful he is and that he was the one starting this war. He’s the villain, HIM acting like one isnt the moral standart, that should be the HEROS.

But just to clarify first: Its not the takes of people who just enjoy to see Gabe (the fictional character) get fucked up for an episode, but still treat the situation with at least SOME of the appropriate gravity, that I’m criticizing here. Its the ones who legitimately think this is rightful and moral justice our heros are entitled to, and that even so much as having mentioned it towards him was a saint-like deed that didnt needed to be done- THATS where all my alarm bells go off (AGAIN).

Because that's just morally despicable to me and in my opinion it's not only VERY MUCH an automatically obligated responsibility of a hero (so not just Ladybug, this regards ALL the heros. Chat Noir, Rena Rouge and everyone else) but truth be told.. in my eyes, this information being mentioned to Hawkmoth from our heros side is already loooooooooooong overdue since the beginning of s4.

In my opinion, the moment our heros found out at the beginning of season 4 that Hawkmoth has been starting to wear the Peacock miraculous himself it automatically became a moral obligation for any of them to make sure that ShadowMoth to 100% KNOWS that even wearing TWO miraculous fucks badly with your mind. For me this is not up for debate. Villains being fuck awful doesn't give heros a free pass for acting amoral themselves. This is also not a situation where “but they assumed” is excusing anything since the consequences are too fatal for that and too many people (besides Gabriel himself) end up in the crossfire.

Look, I'm not going to hold a speech now on ✨seeing the best 🤩 in everyone! ✨giving second chances 🤗 ✨out of the purness of our hearts 💖✨ because that's the right ✔️ and good💁🏼‍♀️✨ thing to do! 💪✨

And I'm also not going to tell you that I think that our teenage heros are obligated to ✨save✨ this toxic garbage can of a grown ass man. No of course fucking not.

Our teenage heros are NOT horrible people because of this - in fact, in my eyes the context of s1-s3 may have had our heros unfortunately assume too much that Hawkmoth KNOWS about the danger. Because of Mayuras involvement, and the heros not knowing that there was a DIFFERENT reason for why Hawkmoth hasn't worn the Peacock for so long himself - but this simply highlights one factor in the narrative that “Multiplication” interestingly enough even brought up:

The question of why tf children are fighting this war against the grown ass man. Because of course are children more likely to look at the way the evil side used their miraculouses and think “Well, apparently Hawkmoth knows about the danger and is now just risking it”, whereas an adult would perhaps have approached this like: “ ...IIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIII am just gonna mention it just to be sure or just throw it in his face that he isnt as invincible as he thinks he is when he continues like that. I’m gonna clarify this at least for the record so whatever happens afterwards is that asshats own fault, my responsibility is done”

So when Marinette asks Monarque in “Evolution”: Didn’t you know that it was dangerous to use a bunch of Miraculous at once?” (and I hope this line also is a question in the french original) this is not one of our heros “being boundlessly merciful, doing a good deed she didnt HAD to do”, this question hightlights one seriously neglected moral aspect that just wasnt taken care of because children are made to fight this war against an adult, so its no wonder they’d never concidered needing to tell Hawkmoth. Doesnt mean its something positive now that he never knew! That’s not comeuppance, thats just sadistic in the way people celebrate and glorify this (as per usual).

The villain was stripped off his choice and agency regarding if he really wants to risk turning himself into a full blown monster with no way to return. Gabriel was stripped of his agency and choice to do the right thing, something “Evolution” ALSO brought up again from the Heros Day:

Thats NOT good! He and Nathalie were at another crossroad of destiny but couldnt make the choice if risking him possibly ending up becoming so unhinged by the miraculouses influence, his plans crossing lines he previously hesitated or refused to cross, or him ending up taking it out in his civilian life which doesnt have a miraculous ladybug cure, is actually still worth their mission (all things that btw happened with s4). Because I would definitely make the argument that, if they had known, NATHALIE at least would have had insisted on him not wearing it all the time to take care of himself.

There were absolutely a couple of choices here these two could have made in this regard and while it isn't our teenage heros fault per se that this agency was taken away from the villains, it still doesn't change the fact that the villains HAVING this information could have very much have been a game changer. Gabriel and Nathalie are humans, that can't just be disregarded from the moral question. Especially not when disregarding that puts other INNOCENT people in even MORE danger!

No, villains aren't owed jackshit, but if the danger situation they create can be solved more peacefully and civil then in my opinion it is anything but "rightfully justified" for the good guys to instead rather insist on sending them to hell consumed by madness.

At the Heros day Ladybug gave illusion Hawkmoth the choice to redeem himself but it wasn't actually Gabriel it's was an akumatized LILA (once again, a CHILD) and now the villains never had the needed information to make the proper choice if they wanna continue their path, under these VERY DIFFERENT circumstances. Yes, they're fuck awful people but this ain't right either.Not even in the slightest. Nathalie at least made the choice of wearing the Peacock while KNOWING that it would harm her, and the show properly acknowledges that accountability:

And yes, Gabriel decided against his mission in “Evolution” and AFTER Ladybug told him of the dangers. And by all means, for that he can be dunked on however this fandom likes since then he DID have the information and could at least still somewhat properly put that in perspective. That's fine by me, roast away.

But there’s also a hook in the situation now isn't there? Cause Gabriel has already worn TWO Miraculous for an entire season without knowing thats harmful AND he is already wearing 15 (!) Miraculous for a bit when he is finally told.

So for all it is (and tbh, thats ALOT), this information is simply, already too late to not have affected Gabriels decision in "Evolution".

One entire season too late that sealed this man’s and his FAMILY’S fate.

Yes, he did it himself and noone put a gun on his head, but that isnt the moral aspect in this im talking about. If Gabriel hadnt crossed that line without this excessive Miraculous mind influence he wasnt aware of, then I’m sorry, I can hate this man however the fuck I want, in my book this influence nooone warned him about in an entire season is to be taken into concideration. Yes, I would also be saying this about any other villain because I’m not demanding for them to be saved, I merely want the unfortunate morality factors in their fates to be acknowledge (Like, if you think Azula from Avatar the last Airbender is merely a one-note evil and NOT a tragic villain, or Catra and Hordak from She-Ra deserve no ending towards redemption, I can give you a solid piece of my mind)

Immense harm upon a human being out of control has already been done through this assumtion of him having known. This has made him even worse and now he’s walking right into his damnattion, lost in his madness and willing to drag the world with him. I see nothing good or morally RIGHT in this:

Gabriel is done for in the most dehumanizing, painful and awful way; and no matter how much I agree that this man is a toxic, abusive scumbag and deserves to be locked up in a prison cell for the rest of his life, the punishments people are talking about are STILL no fate to be celebrated with such... genuine entitlement for self-proclaimed “rightful” vengeance/ comeuppance in the form of just letting him spiral down even further, ending up a broken and deranged shadow of a person and all alone with nothing and noone left. 

So yeah, I don't fuck at all with the continously returning take that Ladybug, Chat Noir (aka any hero) apparently held the RIGHT to act as moralities harsh fist of justice/vengeance and let it happen that this other human being maybe even unknowningly screws his own mind up, turning himself into a monster to a degree not even HE might ever wanted to become. This is NOT a suitable punishment and its very clearly reveange porn on an extreme level that is just more tolerated fandom-wise after s4 because its the white, male, adult villain, even though the initial GOAL in the show is to defeat Hawkmoth so Paris is safe once more.

Taking the man who has become a monster and taking joy in letting this human being fall into the darkest pits of his madness while undoing his personhood as “deserved punishment thats supposed to LAST” is disgusting. Just put a bullet between his eyes, empty 10 more rounds of ammo in his corpse and let his fashion empire vanish into the lost pages of history, that would be more merciful and heroric then the former.

Its beyond unethical. Heros are not supposed to be executioners or torturers and the way some people are genuinely straight-up serious about that is just.. something to behold (And I purposfully didnt even touch upon the morality behind what people are making ADRIEN do. Of course, once AGAIN without Adrien even being allowed to know that Monarque is his FATHER). Heros aren't justified or entitled to let their villain destroy themselves in such a long-term, painful and dehumanizing process of undoing their sanity. Heros are supposed to be good people and BETTER than the villain they have defeated.

#ml spoilers #miraculous ladybug #miraculous #Ml Fandom salt #ml fandom critical #Ml season 5 #Gabriel Agreste and his jewelry collection of madness #It's fine that he wants to have it so we can insult him for being a damn fucknugget #But neither him nor Nathalie having had the knowledge to know what they are doing to his mind isn't SOMETHING GOOD #This fandoms morality has always been fucked and s4 absolutely didnt help in that ONE bit but stil #PEOPLE

[frodo-with-glasses]

More friendship asks! If you haven't already done them, then 1, 3, 5, and 13 for Beregond and Faramir. - Princess of Words

YOOOOO MY FAVORITE PERSON AND HIS FAVORITE PERSON LOL Let's go!

1. "When I think they became friends"

Listen, if you learned that somebody put his life and honor and reputation on the line to save your butt from being flambéd while you were passed out with a fever, there is no way you wouldn't automatically like that person.

Sure, it probably took some time before Beregond and Faramir were speaking more as friends than as lord and servant—since Beregond would doubtlessly be too humble to expect any special treatment, even after everything he did—but Faramir has a canonical superpower of putting people at ease around him, so after the whole arrangement in Ithilien got settled, it probably took no more than a few weeks of a polite fight between Beregond's sense of duty and humility and Faramir's obvious gratitude and good favor before they started to ease towards a relationship with a shocking resemblance to Frodo and Sam. Does Beregond still call him "my lord"? Yes he does. Is Faramir technically in charge? Yes he is. Are they besties tho? Oh abso-frickin'-lutely yes.

3. "A random headcanon I have of them"

Okay this might be really dumb but imagine:

Faramir goes to Beregond for parenting advice.

THIS IS VERY SELF-INDULGENT BUT also??? It's right there tho?? Beregond is canonically a great dad and Faramir canonically uhhhh didn't have the best role model and even if Denethor wasn't The WorstTM by the end of it, it's not like he's still around for encouragement and advice.

So I'm. Just seeing. Faramir calling Beregond in to the fantasy equivalent of his "office" to talk in private, and Beregond thinks this is gonna be something to do with the bodyguard (because that's his area of authority) and Faramir finally shyly being like "so uhhhh...you seem to be pretty successful with the whole 'raising kids' thing....and I'm new at this and really over my head so....help??"

And lemme tell ya, the way that Beregond's face would go from 0 to 200% SoftTM in the span of half a second might just keep me going for the next WEEK bruh

5. "A scene I wish we had of them"

Okay I exaggerated a little bit last time I said this but SERIOUSLY, give me the moment Faramir learns about what Beregond did for him or give me DEATH.

Again, this is only the second time I've read this book, and last time I was a kid and hardly paying attention, so I could have missed a lot. But I've just read "The Black Gate Opens" (you'll see my chapter review later today!) and skimmed "The Steward and the King", and so far as I can tell, the narrative basically forgets about Beregond altogether until he's pardoned by Aragorn.

I need to know how and when Faramir learned the truth. The Warden was instructed to keep it from him for the time being, and Beregond and Pippin weren't allowed to say anything, but he can't have been kept in the dark forever!

We know that Beregond and Bergil stayed behind in Faramir's room after Aragorn woke him up. What happened after that? Did they talk at all? Did Bergil run around helping Ioreth prepare some food and something to drink? Did Faramir say anything that made Beregond get a strange look on his face, but he kept silent, not wanting either to brag about himself or inflict the pain of what had just happened on his lord yet?

"I know your face. Tell me, whence before have I seen thee? For I cannot recall your name." "I am no one of great consequence, lord. Beregond son of Baranor is my name, if your lordship asks for it; and I am but a man of arms of the Guard of the Citadel." "Ah, there is the answer to my riddle. But here is another! Does not a Guard of the Citadel have his duties other than playing nursemaid to an invalid? He is needed elsewhere, I am certain." "...Nowhere more than here, lord."

Did anyone even tell Faramir the truth until Beregond had left for the Black Gate with the rest of Aragorn's company? Who would there even be who knew the full story? I imagine only the Warden would have any of the details, since he's the one who met with Aragorn and Gandalf at the end of "The Houses of Healing".

"It is only the plain truth that I seek, Warden. Three days now have passed, you tell me, since the evening I was admitted into this House, and my father has not yet come to call after my health; nor am I permitted to leave this place and go to him. What has happened? For I feel weary, and there is a great foreboding on my heart." He bowed. "It is regrettable that the truth needs be kept from one so far-sighted. But your lordship has already guessed the nature of it, I deem." "Yes; and it grieves me. My father has passed. He has joined my brother. Alas! Dark are these days! And heavy is my heart. Yet how this came to be is a mystery to vex me. No orc or troll or foul folk of the Enemy has breached the upper crown of the City, and my father would not go down to contest them. How comes it that he was slain?" "Ah! To tell the whole tale would multiply your grief, my lord. I know it only in part, but what little I was told would be a great burden." "My burden could be no greater. Yet I think I can guess what you disguise. Dark have been my dreams of late. I thought I heard my father's voice, marred with great anger, and uttering evil words. I had hoped it were not true, but there seems no other answer." "Then as your lordship has guessed so far, I must relent. Your father was taken by madness, and sought to escape thralldom to the Enemy through the only recourse he still knew; and to take you with him." He was silent, his head bowed as if with some great grief. At length, he spoke, and his voice was troubled. "So the Enemy assaults us from both without and within. Alas for my father! For he was a noble man, and proud in bearing, and good of heart once. To take me with him! How was it that I was spared? For I knew nothing of it, and certainly was not saved by my own hand." "By your own hand! No, my lord. It was the doing of Beregond of the Guard. Did you not know?" Then the Warden was called away to other duties, but Faramir stood still under the pavilion, deep in thought, and turned his eyes to the darkening East.

Anyway I just. Yeah. I need to know how Faramir found out. Sure, he could have learned it when Beregond was pardoned, but what's the fun in that?? I'm starting to think it would be even better if HE approached Aragorn to plead on Beregond's behalf. "I know he committed treason, but he saved my life." "I know, I'm not going to punish him. I've got this great idea for a prank tho—!"

13. "What I think would've happened if they had never met"

Faramir is McFrickin' Dead. Crispy crunchy roast Faramir.

FRIENDSHIP ASK GAME!

#ask game #beregond #faramir #lord of the rings #lotr #my writing #it is 2 AM and i went way too hard on this post

[darethshirl]

For the WIP game - 1, 3, and 4 👀

aaa thank you for the ask! 🥰

bloodweave >:)

honestly!! pretty self-explanatory! 😌 its a bloodweave smutty oneshot but NAUGHTY cause I'm basing it on my Astarion Origin Evil Playthrough >:)

I'm actually super excited about this!!! 👀👀 literally cant wait to finish this and post it im chomping at the bit akjsdh. im only gonna tease the start of it tho 👀

Goblins were disgusting, wretched little creatures, but even Astarion had to admit they knew how to throw a party. Booze, blood, and a charming inclination to cheer for him when he walked by; truly, what more could a recently-freed spawn want? Astarion had been witness to much worse engagements than this. His night was claimed by Minthara, whatever that meant—oh, he knew perfectly well what that meant, Astarion thought with a sneer and an eyeroll—but that was a problem for later. He could still enjoy himself in the meantime, for what passed as enjoyment in these circumstances. The goblins at least seemed happy.

3. plague :(

OKAY SO 😂 last week i got obsessed with Plague Tale: Requiem and binge played and finished it and IM STILL REELING 😭😭 FROM THE EMOTIONS 😭😭 so i had to exorcise them with a post-game fic where i explore Grief and Depression :( the sad smiley is cause theres a lot of ANGST :( :( :(

(also to anyone who hasnt played the Plague Tale games PLEASE give them a try if you enjoy games that actually take their narrative seriously, have good characters, and also take your heart and squeeze it into a bloody pulp of emotion)

4. zuko???

OKAY i probably shouldnt have added that to the list cause its teeechnically for an exchange, maybe. I was looking through the Candy Hearts exchange in case I wanted to write a treat, and some of the atla prompts caught my eye so I sat down and wrote 1k words in one flurry of inspiration

...except then my strength abandoned me and i realised i wrote 1k words and i hadnt even gotten to the Main Scene of the fic yet 🙃 so I honestly dont know if I'll ever finish this?? Candy Hearts is supposed to be a low stakes exchange so maybe eventually I'll turn off my inner perfectionism and churn out the rest, but I'm no longer feeling super excited about this. we'll see!

[wip title game]

#ask meme #you know what fuck it i'll tag this as #bloodweave #now that im making this public i HAVE to finish it 😤😤 IT WILL BECOME A REALITY SOON THIS I PLEDGE

[kittyandco]

📝❤️💘 w hans <3

OHHG LET'S GOOO (i have put so much thought into this) THANK YOU

📝: How would your story in canon go? How would you influence the events of the original story?

SO. i thought of my story prior to reading "a frozen heart," but it helped me contextualize some things. it basically made my s/i "purposeful" (for lack of a better term, all our s/is have purpose). in passing, hans laments that he hasn't courted anyone (this is approximately 3 years before he goes to arendelle); meanwhile, his brothers are married, engaged, or courting, and his family didn't seem to plan to set him up with anyone. (probably to keep him fully indebted to them forever i'd fight them if i had the chance)

THAT'S WHERE I COME IN! hans and my s/i actually have a long history, because our families want us together for political reasons. we didn't really understand at first... but as i got to know hans & his family, i began to resent it. i hated them for many reasons, but especially because of how they treated him. and i eventually realized that our joining would only be for their benefit, not ours. i didn't want to live in servitude to them, and i didn't want hans to live like that anymore either.

narratively it just made more sense, because at least for appearance's sake, he would have a betrothed. the westergaards are all about appearance, so this way no one raises questions about hans. not a single one. they've kept their secrets very well, and i believe that they wouldn't risk it by leaving him single. AND it gives them another outlet to use him for their gain. like always.

anyway, his love for me changes his motivations a bit. it isn't only to unduly seize power, or only to prove himself to his family, it's also his last-ditch effort to keep me with him. to escape. with me. one of my grievances for a long time was that we would never be free so long as we went through with our arrangement. but it hurt terribly... because i love him. i wanted to be with him, but i couldn't bring myself to. this way, we'll have everything all to ourselves.

also it simultaneously humanizes him more and makes him seem Worse because on the one hand, aww he's doing this for love (partially)! on the other hand, he led another girl on while engaged 😭

❤️: How popular is you x your f/o? Are you a rarepair?

in the larger fandom, i still don't think we'd be very popular. the frozen fandom essentially excises hans fans to our own space, so... meh. i'm used to it. among hans fans tho, i think it would be kind of an even split between people who ship us and people who ship him with anna (which i totally get, i love them too 🥴)

💘: Why would people love your ship? Why would people dislike your ship? How might it start debates?

THE UNDYING DEVOTION AND ANGST AND THE SHARED TRAUMA AND THE LOVE THAT IS SO CLEARLY THERE BUT TOO MANY THINGS HOLDING IT BACK IT'S PERFECT...

on the other hand. the rest of the fandom (those who don't rlly associate with us) probably wouldn't love it because they would either feel bad for me or think that i should have left him after what he did (because i didn't. our story ends very differently from canon, but assume it was the real canon: i break him out of jail and it's kind of up to interpretation what happened after that but it's clear that i still want him)

they'd probably be the types to say that i'm "enabling" and that i "don't know better" (i.e. trying to give progressive critique while actually undermining my s/i's autonomy and Completely Missing The Point), and that i shouldn't be so soft on him. but that's TOO BAD

not to mention the ab*ser discourse surrounding him like ugughhh give it a REST

so yeah it'd probably be the hansanna discourse but Worse. <3

‘Imagine Your S/I Was Canon…’ Self-Ship Asks

#me? going off about frozen? it's more likely than you think! #extremely likely. guaranteed or your money back #asks #💕 love is an open door

[semi-imaginary-place]

Trigun manga

I thought the Vash ass was a one time thing but Nightow gives us an ass shot panel like 3 times every chapter.

As someone who entered the franchise through Stampede it's interesting to see what Stampede changed (I mean besides the obvious timeline stuff). Like Stampede left out Vash getting a vent cover dropped on him while using a urinal and that whole subplot. It really is a rewrite, reminds me of the Evangelion movie series in that way, a reinterpretation of the major concepts of the series.

Vash's Stampede design better matches my sense of aesthetics. I never liked the BDSM leather harnesses and straps aesthetic but I gotta give it up for manga Vash's design, it is the most iconic and unique Vash design, it really stands out. 10,000 leather straps with a sleeveless leather harness with cutouts isn't my thing (seriously what the hell are you wearing Vash!) but it is definitly a Thing. Gotta recognize Nightow's dedication to giving Vash long shapely legs.

In stampede the Plants look like bulbs with roots or when unfurled Avatar alien plant people, in the manga there resemble living cells with amalgamated human faces and wing things and are feathery when unfurled. Trimax has stronger angel/demon imagery while Stampede sets up a stronger dichotomy between terraforming vs. Plant technology as the future of humanity. Manga plants are also giant in comparison

Milly is peak character concept. Bigg woman with a giant gun who loves her family, I'd go cafe with her and eat cake.

Oh hey Gunsmoke has pigeons.

Vash Legato telepathy?

I was wondering just how delusional vashwood shippers were. I mean shippers WILL see something when there's nothing this always happens. Wolfwood and Vash have no chemistry in Stampede season 1. Manga tho? Vash is instantly smitten when Wolfwood 3 way splits his last 3 coins with some street kids. And then they start flirting immediatly, yeah this is what chemistry looks like, "Your smile itself is a compliment", "a smile suits your face" damn.

Interesting interesting, in the manga its Vash's fleshy right arm that merges with the gun, in Stampede it's his mechanical left arm that merges with the gun. Although given Stampede is pre-July the right arm could also still happen.

I can see why people like the manga. I can also see how Stampede is playing a longer game planning farther ahead and has a more constructed narrative. The manga was always in jeopardy of being cancelled and then it was and you can see Nightow writing like every few chapters would be the last. Stampede has the advantage of knowing everything and being able to reconstruct the series while having the whole picture. I do like Meryl and Milly in the manga better than Stampede's Meryl and Roberto, but I like Stampede's Vash better than the manga's, he's cuter. In terms of story and format I like both, the more meandering episodic and the more straightforward story.

Maximum! So Knives blew Vash's angel gun again and now there's a hole on the moon and that dyed half of Vash's hair black… somehow I rather how with the artstyle you can't tell if the black is because his hair color changed or if its dramatic shading. I do think Stampede made the right call with the July incident leading to Vash's Eriks phase and 2 year gap instead of having another moon hole incident. The original 3 volume manga almost feels like a gaiden.

Wait wait. 2 year timeskip as Eriks and then we jump another 11 years!! Year 113 Meryl is 23, moon blast was on year 100. No way Meryl was 10 and a senpai insurance agent. Huh?? Between year 100 and year 113 2 years passed. Is this a translation error??

I need to go rewatch Stampede, Vash was able to keep far less secrets like Meryl and Wolfwood found out about him being a plant much earlier

#Trigun

[antiloreolympus]

5 Anti LO Asks

1. 191 spoilers: so Hebe basically grew into Hera 2.0, Persephone basically said nothing was her fault when a lot of it really was her fault, she thinks her green hands are a turn off (can she stop being hypersexual for one minute please), and she lives in a treehouse now??

What the fuck happened in that four month hiatus, seriously

2. Reading episode 191 was somehow rage-inducing and depressing at the same time.

We're still on the "Persephone did nothing wrong and shouldn't be punished"-train. Everyone, including the narrative, gives Zeus crap for doing what every sensible authority figure in his stead would have done. We're somehow supposed to pity Persephone for....being sent to a safe environment with supportive friends to clean up the mess she made and refused to fess up about until literally being forced too.

Like jfc Peresphone isn't even doing any work??? The first time we see her she's creepily hitting on an inanimate object and hiding away from her responsibilities??? The bare fucking minimum and she's too lazy and self-absorbed to do even that???

Oh, and we get zero news about how Demeter's feeling or doing meanwhile, because who gives a shit about her, she was just there in the first place to be an obstacle for hxp to overcome.

3. How come nobody's eyebrows are ever normal in LO. Why are they always pitch black blobs

4. The new chapter is just confusing . Hebe is a Hera clone. Like I was literally so confused why Zeus and Hera would on decent terms. I get she’s older to show time has passed, so why right now is Zeus thinking Persephone? What’s special about today? She still hasn’t done any of her tasks, so why after so long would we even question it?

Flash back to the trial: I’m sorta confused what the importance was to the freak out. Are they freaking out because they can’t go to the mortal realm, losing Demeter to a less qualified goddess to handle her job, or as Poseidon puts it “you lost the closest thing to the queen of the underworld” (are we forgetting that hades planned on proposing to Minthe but never got the chance)

Persephone: “hey guys I’ve been banished for a long ass time, but at least my ears as pierced am I right??”   I also hate how she goes “some of it’s my fault but not all of it.” She’s had 0 growth I feel, she killed a bunch of people and she’s more focused on the whole “well if my mom was just cool about my fertility powers/if I was just zeus’ kid he would have let me off the hook”

Is that nymph Daphne? Persephone was able to save her tree form but not Minthe? Or is Persephone just choosing not to save Minthe as a whole “I don’t need to help out the people who’ve hurt me” idk

Artemis, Thanatos, Eris: aren’t they not allowed to see Persephone or have any contact with her or they’d be heavily punished.

Why is Helios there? He’s been pretty indifferent about Persephone.

Prediction: the next couple chapters is gonna be a failed meeting with Zeus and then a flash back catching everyone up to speed, but it’s gonna take so long at first to get there.

-----FP Spoilers/Mention-----

5. Okay so I read the new chapters bc why not and tbh I was pleasantly surprised with how the characters were drawn in the premiere. Idk but they felt like they had more time put into them and their hands especially were really nice and looked like they came from a reference. That all changed in the next chapters tho ofc.:/

Fast Past Spoiler:

The time skip in itself is not bad, but oh my god it feels like none of the characters have actually changed except Artemis’ relationship with Zeus. Like they’re all the same characters just grown up a bit, but only characters like hebe actually show that. And of course everyone is so up in arms over Persephones punishment. I can get why Hades would be mad and why Poseidon would be upset because his brother won’t talk to him anymore, but everyone else is wayyy too upset over some random girl. Like everyone but Artemis hates Zeus rn and EVERYONE loves Persephone. And god the whole Minthe and Daphne thing? The point of their stories were that they were the victims of a tragic circumstance. In the case of Minthe, because of her own doing, and Daphne, because of Apollo. It’s like there are no consequences for anyone who Persephone likes. Daphne and Minthe should’ve stayed as plants. It would be the end of their stories and would equate to actual loss for Persephone. I see Rachel hasn’t gotten any better at writing. So much wasted potential to turn the story into a chance for growth in both the characters and writing. The only thing I liked out of the four new episodes was the touching moment between Zeus and Artemis. Why has their relationship grown  and changed but no one else’s? This story feels more about Zeus and his actions and consequences and growth than Persephones tbh.

#anti lo #anti lore olympus #lo critical #lore olympus critical

[pentechnics]

I completely agree with what you said about mando. I have seen all the SW movies (including the newer trio loft) but I really don’t remember anything but was able to follow mando s1-2 with no problems. I also wasn’t really watching because it was SW but rather because the relationship between Din and Grogu is so special

YES.

Let’s talk about it!!

I feel like the real magic of Mando, the thing that made it stand out so much, was that Din was just a dude. A random guy trying to live his life and help support his covert. He wasn’t part of the greater star war — no force, no jedi/sith, didn’t even live on one of the major planets — just dealing with the fact that his existence lies within the results of those bigger actions.

My introduction to Star Wars was The Force Awakens and that is still my favorite movie and is near and dear to me (that one and TLJ were the only SW things I’d seen by the time I watched Mando), but I really wasn’t sucked into the SW universe until Mando came out because I just didn’t vibe as much with the bigger picture elements, if that makes sense. There was too much going on and too many strands of the story to keep up with and too many people who just had to be right about everything—

but as we know, DIN DIDNT KNOW SHIT ABOUT STAR WARS. and therefore, WE could know no shit and we’d be right where we need to be to follow his story! What a beautiful concept!

And that doesn’t necessarily go away once Grogu enters the picture — he just has several questions. As do we. And we go with him to find the answers! And that’s where weaving in Ahsoka and Luke made perfect sense and now that Grogu has chosen to not pursue that branch of the narrative we don’t have to be as involved with it, y’know?

And here’s where I get beefy with how Jon is portraying the next arc of Din’s story. It seems — we won’t know for sure until we see the season, but it SEEMS — like they’re going full-on into him becoming the Mand’alor and reuniting Mandalorians. The second part is lovely, we know he lost his covert and needs to figure out for himself what being a Mandalorian means to him now. And finding more of his kind will definitely help him do that. Shared trauma. Group therapy. Love that for him.

I have no doubt that he’ll still be my simple guy. I just don’t wanna have to know all of TCW to be able to understand this season or ‘get the most out of it.’ I wanna not know shit and learn alongside him again.

But more than anything, knowing him as a character, I just don’t think being Mand’alor fits. And that’s just my opinion and I recognize that but listen our mans has lived his life in quiet corners and secluded alleys by his lonesome (covert and Grogu excluded) by choice. Do we really think he’d want this?

And hey, maybe my interpretations are wrong. Maybe he won’t do it. Maybe he’ll go as far as to help reunite the scattered clans into a more cohesive people and then pass off the reins to Bo-Katan or whoever else might show up (not Paz, tho. We know he would never lmao) and then go back to being a simple space dad and raising his kid. We’ll see.

I know some diehard, lifelong SW people that aren’t as into Mando because it’s not ‘classic Star Wars.’ And I know others, including myself, that love it the most for that very reason. It has a little bit of give for the classic fans, like those cameos and mentions of greater things. Those just aren’t the forefront. Which I love!

Plus, at the heart of every Star Wars story is found family, which is exactly what Din and Grogu are. Like you said, my love, their connection is just so unique and special! They and their dynamic are the driving force behind this show — it doesn’t need anything else to carry it. They are why we love it so much. Bigger SW is a pile of puzzle pieces of things that get put together to form a narrative and Mando is more like a poster. It’s all already there, created by a few key elements and has some of those in common with the puzzle, but can stand alone. You don’t need to do the puzzle to enjoy looking at the poster. (Idk if that makes sense but it’s all I can think of rn lol)

The force is just Grogu’s little quirk. The empire’s just the bitch that made Din’s life harder and made it personal when they tried to hurt his kid. He took names and kicked asses, and then he was done with them. Mandalore’s gotta just be the current thorn in Din’s ass that he needs to tweezer out.

Side characters. Assist trophies, if you will. But not the driving force. That’s them:

also I hate the whole ‘repenting for his sins’ dialogue but tbh I think they’re just using that for hype I don’t think it’ll actually be that deep and he’ll instead take the time to come into his own and explore other types of mandalorian life that feels much more like what he’d do but that’s just me. Also I’m still very much recovering from what they did to BOBF so I can’t help but be anxious in general about how this is gonna go. Wouldn’t put it past Jon to shoot himself in the foot with his best work.

Double also, after seeing that thing Jon said I am just pissed that there just seems to be no effort or forethought being put into the timeline of the narrative!!! Hire writers, Jon!! Give Din and Grogu the intent their story deserves, in every way!! Or I’ll bite your face!!

ok rant over thank you for this ask darling!! ❤️

#buckle up babes I have a RANT #the mandalorian

[mlchaelwheeler]

The only way an I love you confession would even be semi realistic imo would be if he clarified that he loves her regardless of her powers and actually explains why he loves her rather than giving generic phrases like 'you mean the world to me.' But so far he hasn't had one moment of realization that even hints that this will happen. For it to make sense narratively in vol 2 we'd need to have moments that show how much he loves her romantically (even tho I don't think he does) that doesn't include her powers or her being a 'super hero', and he'd need to have a moment or two of realization. A big speech about how he loves her so much regardless of her powers without any kind of hints to that in vol 1 and 2 would feel super out of knowhere lol, especially because I'm not even sure if he understands that the argument wasn't just about him not telling her he loves her, it's also because El feels like he doesn't love her without her powers. At the rate we're going, I can see him telling her he loves her because that's what he thinks he should do (I feel like there have been enough hints at that), but El rejecting him especially with what Doctor brenner said about super hero's being of legends.

EXACTLY!!! i think if the storyline was building up to mike confessing his love to el for reals, this would've been the emphasis of his character in vol 1. instead, he doesn't seem to be seeing el in a new light or making any sign that he loves el more than ever. instead, he seems to be pulling further away from her and gravitating more towards will!

el's problem seems to be that she thinks having powers is the only reason why mike loves her. which </3 el my poor girl, powers shouldn't be a factor in whether people love you or not! i think that mike's biggest mistake during their fight was calling el a "superhero." this is a direct callback to her having powers, so for her to ask him if he still loves her and for him to tell her that she's a superhero, that cut a little too deep. bc el doesn't feel like a superhero, she feels like a nobody. she doesn't think that mike loves her anymore, so when the opportunity arises to get her powers back, of course she immediately agrees. she even tells mike that she's "gone to become a superhero" again, really nailing the point home that she equates worth with having powers.

i think that if the writers had wanted to salvage mi|even's plot and show that the story was building toward mike loving el regardless of powers, he shouldn't have thought up superheroes during their fight. instead, he should've said something like "el, i love you regardless of whether you have powers or not" or "your powers aren't the reason why i love you." yet the storyline did not include this, which makes me think that this truly is a fight they can't come back from.

i think that el figuring out that she's important with or without her powers is pivotal to her storyline, so once she realizes this, hopefully she and mike can come to an understanding that mike never really loved her in that way. idk, we'll have to see how vol 2 develops this

the time has passed imo for mike to salvage this fight. now that el does have her powers back, it would seem cheap if mike suddenly admitted he loved her regardless of powers. if this argument was to be made, it should've been done before el got her powers back, except that it didn't happen. so i think that's important to the overall development of this story line!

#all the superhero and powers stuff is SO interesting tho #like the fact that they chose THAT to be a main line in the mi|even fight speaks volumes imo #ask sarah #anon tag

[rmorde]

The Husky and His White Cat Shizun (2HA, Erha) delivered everything I wanted in a story plus everything I never knew I would actually want in a story.

When I consumed all four books and realized there was more, I was horrified. So, I ventured to all fan translations I can get and practically lost sleeping hours to finish it. It is that good imo.

First off tho, it is not for the faint of heart. Do not be fooled by the cover with pretty art. The premise barely scratches the surface of how dark the story is. Book 4 is also a fucking trap that lulls you into bringing down your defenses before giving you an upper cut in the face then pummeling down your soul into tiny little pieces.

It promised me a cute albeit dark-ish story of two men falling in love. However, what it delivered was a narrative with a thin veneer of fluff to hide tons of absolute brutality concerning racism, classism, elitism, generational trauma, body horror, genocide, rape, mob mentality, gossips, and so much more.

At its core tho, it is still a love story. You just need the patience of a saint and nerves of steel to power through all the pain and agony after the Farming Arc (Basically, be like Chu Wanning as a Reader). ----> I guess you can summarize my feelings as "Went in for the BL. Stayed for the plot. Surprised how underneath that pain, horror, and tragedies woven in the story - it was always about love."

Sure, there were asspulls here (Nangong Bloodline Mo Ran) and there (Butterfly Boned Beauty Feast Mo Ran). There were attempts to set up those reveals tho but they were a bit clunky. However, it is not too detrimental to the overall appeal of the story for me. There were weird phrasings and word choices too but I gave them a slide since it is a light novel after all.

The gore in the story is unexpectedly top notch tho. The fights and monsters are interesting. The stakes in the plot really ramps up the suspense. While some Reveals are fairly obvious, they were still rewarding because they were set up quite nicely such as the reveal of 0.5 Chu Wanning's soul being implanted in the current timeline Chu Wanning, Taxian-Jun appearing, and Shi Mei not being as nice as he presents himself to be.

I also like how redemption was explored in the story. A lot of characters, like Mo Ran, were presented with second chances to fix their own fuck ups. While the villainous characters were sympathetic, they were not given a pass. All of them have to work hard and make the right choices to achieve true redemption.

Just for example: Mo Ran. He feels remorse for everything he had done as Taxian-Jun. He did his best to make up for it. Chu Wanning even forgives him. However, it was not enough. Because the wrongs he had done are not just againstbWanning after all. He still had to pay for his sins with his peaceful life as Grandmaster and earn his happy ending through zombie Taxian-Jun.

There are many more characters trying to seek redemption in the story but I think it would be better if that is in a separate post instead.

Now, another recurring theme featured in Erha is kindness. In the story, Kindness can both be a blessing or a curse. A small amount of it can have big repercussions. Also, contrary to what most people think, kindness is a choice that requires a lot of (mostly thankless) hard work and sacrifice.

Anyway, Erha is my first danmei and I love it. It is dark but with a nice satisfying ending. I'll check out others. Scumbag Villain Self Saving System seems to be a good follow up but from I have read so far about it, it's kind of a parody/comedy type of story?

Maybe I'll check out Heaven Official's Blessing first instead.

#finally finished speed reading the novel #wow was it roller coaster #will be reading it a second time for further analysis #but i like it overall and its definitely my cup of tea #a horror-romance dark story that puts characters and readers thru the wringer #but is rewarding in the end if you pulled through everything