#why is this dumb fictional show affecting me so much help | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

just-another-frender-blog · 1 year

Note

Out of curiosity, how would you say that Bender deconstructs toxic masculinity and robot tropes? 🤔 Bender having a "normal" human voice definitely applies to the second one. It was a brilliant decision because his character wouldn't have worked if he droned on like a typical robot.

This is a great question, thank you for asking it!

I want to preface this by saying that my interpretations regarding Futurama are unique to me. They stem from my love of critical analysis of fiction, and I really love overthinking fiction (my parents think I'm annoying af for this). I also think that all forms of interpretations of fiction are important and that I don't think my interpretations are canon or factual. They're just how I perceive the show and these characters.

Before I watched Futurama, I thought I would hate Bender. I usually don't like characters like Bender very much; I had this idea that he was nothing more than this stereotypical asshole. The only thing I knew about him was that he threw his son into Hell without hesitation and that alt-right people on Twitter use him for memes. When I actually started watching, I was really impressed because even though he is an asshole, the show takes great lengths to emphasize that he genuinely cares about people other than himself.

Bender works so well for me because he's so evil and awful, which is exaggerated to a comedic effect. He really doesn't have a lot of redeeming qualities, but he does have his friendship with Fry, and to a lesser extent, Leela. And his friendship with Fry is not only very genuine and played very straight, but it avoids a lot of "no homo" ideas I grew up with in fiction and irl. They're physically affectionate with one another on-screen, and they even say "I love you" verbatim (Bender says it twice).

Bender also goes out of his way to better himself for Fry or to help Fry, which isn't something he does for anyone. They confirm that Fry is the only person Bender cares about more than himself, and is the only person Bender would die for in the CC era. I don't often see this type of affection displayed in a canonically platonic male relationship, and I didn't expect this from a show that came out in 1999. And I really didn't expect this from a character like Bender, who's supposed to be the face of adult cartoon edginess.

There are quite a few hints that Bender has a more feminine side to him. He likes feminine things and he likes talking to Leela about her love life. He's incredibly sensitive and secretly cares for animals and children, despite claiming to hate them so much. But Bender has this tough guy, asshole persona he pretends to keep up, so he seems to be in denial about this side of himself. The infamous episode "Bend Her" (which I have mixed feelings about) provides a lot of evidence for this interpretation.

Now I'm really going to get into why I love Bender so much as a robot character, and why I think he subverts so many robot tropes. The show often jokes about how he's an emotionless, soulless machine, but he is the most emotional character by far. He's extremely needy, he's oversensitive, easily gets his feelings hurt, wants Fry and Leela's approval/attention, etc. I think he resents humanity because he's just as emotional as a normal human, but his emotions are constantly dismissed because he's a robot. We see this in episodes like "Obsoletely Fabulous," and "Beast With a Billion Backs."

Another thing I really adore about Bender is that he's a robot but he's dumb. He's all emotion and no logic. He's also super artistic. He has a lot of hobbies like cooking, folk singing, songwriting, and photography. And not only that, he's really pretentious about his hobbies. He gets into arguments with people about "real art" and he uses darkroom equipment for photography (even though he has a built-in camera... Bender is a very charming character lol). He's not programmed to have all these hobbies, he's not programmed to be best friends with Fry, he does it because he wants to do it.

Needless to say, Bender is probably my favorite robot character of all time other than Octus from Sym-Bionic Titan. There really is more to him than he appears on the surface. And kudos to the Futurama writers to make a robot character feel so human while simultaneously still having him deal with his struggles as a robot. I hope this answers your question about why I think he subverts traditional masculinity and robot tropes. And I apologize for writing you an essay; I had a lot to say!

#futurama #asks #bender bending rodriguez #long post #i could honestly go on longer #but the post was getting way too long already

47 notes · View notes

binalakai · 5 years

Text

im gonna be real with you its hard for me to separate art from the artist. i think someone’s art is someone’s soul and interest being put into a piece of work. it’s a way of expression and to me i refuse to just believe “it’s just a thing. its just colors slapped together. it’s just fiction”..really its the just i discredit because it’s not just, it is. it is what you made and what you made reflects on the type of person you are. how you see the world and how, in your work, you try to interpret it in a medium you create.

and it’s a beautiful thing really

#this is NOT meant to be a post where i talk about how fiction not only affects reality but is IS reality #because knowing this dumb shit site it's gonna start up children show discourse or some crap #this is meant to be a love letter to the stories i know #the friends that tell me their universes #and its a post the jumbles up the thoughts that make me remember why i care about trying to express my stories so much #theyre my experiences and expression put into something that helps me cope with events in my life #and i think even if its not intentional it goes the same way for others #readings from red

13 notes · View notes

aajjks · 3 years

Text

Yandere!BTS: The seven deadly Sins.

Disclaimer: This is yandere, it contains dark themes, such as obsession, sexism, sex, anger issues, abuse, the seven deadly sins. This is purely fictional and this does not represent bts irl, please do not romantacise this and I do not condone this behaviour irl.

note. hope you enjoy? Please share your thoughts. I’m tried? This isn’t edited. OT7 CONTENT WOHOOO

Jin:

I see Kim Seokjin as Pride.

have you seen that face? I mean come on! Seokjin as yandere is controlling, cold, arrogant and very much full of himself, he likes to think of himself as someone so much of worth, you don’t really deserve him, but the man sure as hell deserves a pretty face like you.

You should be feeling really lucky and grateful to him for loving someone as lowly as you, even though you’re pretty but in his perspective, you’re also dumb. naivety is your middle name, you’re like a little lamb.

You need him, and he knows that, he’s so proud of it.

“Y/N... sweetheart you can’t even sit like a proper lady... do I have to teach you that.. too..”

“I’m literally so much good looking, rich and intelligent unlike you... Y/N would be so lucky to be with someone like me. You’re shit.”

“I’m so proud of myself. I’m great. I’m the greatest lover out there. Isn’t that right, doll face?”

Yoongi:

I see Min Yoongi as Envy.

he is so insecure, unsure and so complexed of other people that he can’t help but feel envious of other people in love.

He wants that too. He’s so jealous.

He is incredibly envious of people that get to spend time with you before he kidnapped you, your parents watched you grow up. Your friends got to listen to all of your stories.

Maybe even of your dead ex lovers. Yoongi is convinced that he is unworthy of you. But others are too... and he’d be damned if someone else got someone like you so ethereal.

He’d die of envy.

“Y/N... my world... I feel so incredibly jealous of your family... they got to spend so much time with you, god... I’m so envious of them..”

“Why do you pay so much attention to our pet when it should be me... why Y/N...?”

“I’m so jealous of everyone around you Y/N... I can’t help it..”

Hoseok:

I see Jung Hoseok as Sloth.

He’s a very angry but lazy yandere, he’s too careless, he just doesn’t care about your feelings, what you want. He wants you with him, and he’s going to have you.

He’d punish you when you’d try to escape because he’s just so tired of your little pathetic antics to leave him, when you know so well deep down, you can’t escape him ever.

He isn’t necessarily lazy when it comes to having sex or punishment but he’s a literal sloth when it comes to showing affections, or that you mean something to him.

He is lazy to let you know that he “loves” you.

He isn’t the lovey dovey type. He’s a sloth when it comes to letting you know tha he cares.

“You can care for yourself right, baby? So I’m going to bed. You’re such a handful.”

“Not now..Y/N don’t test me.”

“I’m so fucking tired of your cry baby nature. Fucking shut up before I make you.”

Namjoon:

I see Kim Namjoon as Gluttony.

now hear me out. Gluttony (Latin: gula) is the overindulgence and overconsumption of anything to the point of waste. So, now that we have the meaning clear.

Let’s get to business.

Namjoon is a greedy man, he wants to devour you, you are someone he can’t enough of ever no matter how unhealthy his infatuation with you can get.

While he’s aware that his greed to be with you, is far from healthy or normal. He doesn’t care, at all. You’re so addictive that he could just eat you up.

And wouldn’t ever get enough.

“Y/N... you don’t need a career.. I’m here to provide for the both of us... just... be with me... I need you more.”

“I can sleep later... I need to get enough of your beauty... but I can’t.”

“No.... no Y/N... just stop trying to stop me... I can’t be stopped..”

Jimin:

I see Park Jimin as Greed.

Now, yandere Jimins a greedy greedy man.

He is so hungry for you, his greed to have more and more of you can never end. His greed to completely have you to himself can never be satisfied.

Jimin is also very greedy when it comes to sex, he’s awfully needy that it’s scary. But what’s scarier is that he can never be content with what you’re willing to give him.

He doesn’t understand limits.

Limits are not made for a greedy man like yandere Jimin. He needs your love, all of your love, all of your affections and even hatred.

All of it. Jimin wants to have all of you in every single way possible.

After all his greed can never be enough.

“Nooo Y/N... I let you visit the outside today... I deserve my reward... pleaseeeee.... I need you, fulfill our deal...”

“Can’t you praise me more? After all I do for you? Do you not see it? How much I love you? Just how much more I’m willing to do for you...?”

“No... you can’t leave me today... come back... I haven’t had enough of you yet.”

Taehyung:

I see Kim Taehyung as Lust.

He’s just so lusty. There’s not a day where his lust doesn’t intensify the more time he spends with you.

His lust became your dismay. He can get turned on by the littlest things you do, like even the sound of your breathing. Taehyung likes to blame you for just being such a sex goddess.

Your eyes are so damn sexy, your lips are so tempting, your body is just so beautiful that he can’t get enough of his burning desire, the way you look at him whilst anger dances in your beautiful expression gets him so hot and bothered.

You’re such a tease, it’s your fault that he’s so sex crazed.

It’s your fault that you’re so fucking ravishing. He could devour you whole if you’d let him.

“I wanna fuck you so hard baby... don’t make this harder for me.”

“Your legs are looking so sexy today... fuck.”

“Scream louder, let everyone know just how good I fuck you, baby... don’t shy away now.”

Jungkook:

I see Jeon Jungkook as Wrath.

Cliché, I know but hear this out.

Jungkook is chosen for wrath because he’s jealous so easily, given that he is pathetically insecure so his way of expressing his insecurities is by showing anger.

His wrath is scary.

He gets easily blind sided when anger takes over him. His wrath is triggered by his jealousy issues, basically.

He gets so so angry when someone’s stare on you lingers for more than five fucking seconds. He is angry when you put your family first when it should be him.

The one who literally worships you like a goddess. Jungkook is angry that you don’t know just how much he loves you.

He is angry that he can’t make you understand just how crazy he is for you.

Just how much you drive him mad.

Just how angry he gets when his fear of you leaving him threatens to come true. His feelings are aggressive.

You can’t understand his wrath, be careful.

“HOW FUCKING DARE YOU LAUGH AT MY DEAR Y/N?!? I WILL RIP YOUR HEART OUT!”

“FATHER YOU DONT UNDERSTAND THAT IF I WONT HAVE Y/N I WILL DIE!”

“YOU CANT LEAVE ME I WILL DESTROY EVERYTHING!”

474 notes · View notes

creatingnikki · 3 years

Text

What 2020 has taught me

1. Those things that seem like content for sci fi or pure fiction are actually things that can happen. To the entire world. Like a pandemic. And to you. Like a seizure.

2. Everyone is sad. Everyone is struggling. In different ways and in different measures. Makes no one special. But you still get to feel sad for yourself and be compassionate towards others. But it's also okay to draw boundaries because you're everyone too. Remember, not special? You're sad and trying to deal with it too.

3. Every job you have will not add value to your life. It will not teach you new things or give you people you'll want to stay in touch with. Sometimes some jobs will only be a season of your life. Even if the season lasts for over a year. It's okay.

4. You know how you thought picking a college and picking a major and picking your first job and picking a specific industry were all the career decisions you had to make? Yeah, no. It's never a one time thing. You could have a job as a marketing strategist for two years and then want nothing to do with it. And then you'll have to make another decision and work towards it. So I'd like to call it moves. It's like chess. You always have to make a move. And it always has to be strategic, yes. But the truth is in your 20s it probably won't. Even if you try. And as long as you're trying, you'll be fine.

5. You may have different sorts of friends like the one you only talk to about kdrama with or the one you met when you went book shopping alone and the friendship is all about books really. That's normal. But irrespective of why and how you became friends with them, if you consider them a friend then there has to be this basic sense of care, respect and empathy for each other. I don't care what people want to say. If you're faced with the worst trauma of your life, the least your friends can do is check up on you regularly. On text. And if they don't even do that then guess what? They aren't friends. They are acquaintances. Social media and quick promises make everyone seem like your friend. But they are not. They are just nice people who will be nice to you for specific periods and then wander away like you are a speck of dust floating in their journey.

6. You speak a lot and write and you express yourself and you’re emotionally mature but oh my god. You still hold in so much. You’ve known that at a subconscious level and over the last year people - experts - have told you that. You have also realized that you make your pain and sadness about pettier things because dealing with them, admitting about them, sharing that with your friends, is easier. You do that so that you don’t have to deal with the real stuff. Because it’s so damn painful. And you don’t know how to do it. Yet. Acknowledging is the first step anyway right? I know you’re confused about how exactly to let go of all this pain and sadness and feel lighter, and you know that talking to people really isn’t the solution, but I also know you’re smart enough to figure it out.

7. Talking about being smart...you know you’re different than others. Better. Special. Smarter. None of these are the right words. And you never voiced this out until this year because you knew it would make you come across as narcissistic. Some would say it’s because you’re an INFJ. But my mother once said that this may be the first time we are consciously living life but our souls are old and so our instinct and the things we know but can’t explain are because this isn’t the first time for our souls. The connections we feel with certain people, the reason we are so different from our siblings who grew up in the exact same environment with the exact same opportunities, our sense of right and wrong...it’s all because our souls learn and grow with each time and that’s why we are who we are. I think that’s probably how I can explain what I have always felt. That I am living in a different universe than everybody but I have to pretend to be in this one and dumb my emotions and thoughts down. Maybe that’s because my soul has lived through thousands of years while most around me are living their 100th life. Or maybe I’m just narcissistic, who knows?

8. You shift between talking in first person and second person but that’s because that’s how you think in your head and talk to yourself and live your life. You ask yourself things and you accuse yourself of things and you apologize to yourself and you comfort yourself. I think that seeps into your writing and the changing of the voices.

9. You always genuinely thought that you’d not be afraid of dying. And then what happened this October proved you shockingly wrong. I know it’s not so much being afraid of dying but the unbearable pain of knowing what that would mean to your family. So you have to be more prudent and less reckless with your life and the choices you make.

10. Regret is not something that plagued you but this year the realisation and pain of giving away your favourite books from your own personal collection to people you care about as a show of affection and them turning out to be ass holes or losers has hit you so hard. So, yes. No more of that shit. I really fucking want my copy of The Perks Of Being A Wallflower back. UGH. With the childhood picture of me inside it!

11. Sleeping at 5 am in the morning stops being fun or romanticised when you realise just how much harm it does to your body and mind. Literally every single disease and disorder can be traced back to a shitty fucking sleep schedule. It’s not just the hours you sleep but also the quality of sleep and the time you sleep at. So yes sleeping for 8 hours is healthy but not if that 8 hours is from 5 am to 12 pm. ‘Not a morning person’ is just another construct of capitalism and you don’t realise how many industries profit from having you believe that and staying up late or all night. Entertainment. Food. Alcohol. Pharma. Biologically and naturally you are a bloody morning person. And you don’t need 3 cups of coffee to begin your day or your phone notifications to get you to open your eyes and brain to wake up.

12. Sometimes you really have to stop taking people so seriously. I know the idea of treating people as casual friends or entertainment makes you want to fight that concept but you know what? Some people like Pineapple are ever only going to be good for that. No matter how much they ‘grow and change’. So keep them in the background for whenever you want some entertainment or drama. But please don’t clear up your busy schedule to meet them or send them gifts on their birthday.

13. If you don’t have the fruit juice or green juice within half an hour of making it then you are losing out on its most optimum health benefits. Or when you remove the white stringy stuff from oranges. That’s where all the actual nutrients are.

14. I am privileged and so are most of the people I interact with. The global pandemic has been hell for a lot of people around the world. Health wise. Financially. Losing people they care about. But I was blessed enough to be safe at home and have a job that I could smoothly do from home and not have a pay cut or 4-hour long Zoom meetings. So honestly when my friends tell me 2020 has been bad I have to stop and ask them why? Yes, the crippling uncertainty and anxiety is not something that can be undermined. But most people I know had very great positive life-changing milestones this year like moving away to another country for college or taking their first solo trip or getting married. So I have to ask them. Because I am not going to agree that everybody’s 2020 and pandemic narrative is the same.

15. Money gets spent really quickly. When I left my job earlier this year because of personal issues, I thought I had enough savings to last me a year. Full disclosure - I mean to last my personal expenses because I live with my parents. But it didn’t even last me 3 months. And so to use money wisely and buy things that provide utility than instant gratification is something to follow. Also buying one pair of really expensive but quality shoes is better than buying 5 pairs of affordable but low quality shoes that will have a very short life and force you to buy more. I know that higher price doesn’t always mean better quality but sometimes it does. And as an adult now I want to do the whole quality > quantity thing even with things and not just people.

16. Everyone in their 20s went through a crisis of what they should do with their lives and their careers and it’s not unique to the 21st century and the challenges of today. Whether it was Vincent Van Gogh in the 19th century or Sylvia Plath in the 20th, every single person, as brilliant as them went through the torture of making these decisions and living with their consequences. You may think I picked wrong examples for they both killed themselves but you know what? They were the people who really want to live more than anyone. They knew what life meant. And maybe if mental health help was more accessible back then their lives would be longer and more peaceful.

17. Telling people everything is overrated. You don’t have to talk about every single thing that’s on your mind or that’s going on in your life. The good and the bad and the mediocre. You have to be mindful about how much of yourself you’re giving away.

18. Re-watch Suits when people at work feel intimidating because the confidence + negotiation tactics that they show can actually work irl cos at the end of the day no matter in what position you’re dealing with people who have emotions and fears and insecurities and desires. You understand how to leverage that nobody can get the better of you.

19. You belong to yourself. No matter how much you love someone or how much they have done for you or how much you owe them - you belong to yourself. You can’t live your life for someone else. Everyone belongs to themselves first. No relationship, no promise, no circumstance should make you feel like you have to give up your life and make it all about them. If and when the time comes to die for them, go ahead. Take a bullet. Donate that kidney. Write them in your will. But live your life for yourself. And let them live theirs.

20. Twenty three was a challenging year. When it started you claimed the age 23 sounds boring and insignificant. Guess it proved you wrong. It hurt so much now. But that only means you’ll look back on it later and see how it added so much wisdom and resilience to your being. It doesn’t mean that it makes all the bad things that happened to you okay. Or that you should be grateful to them. Fuck no. It means that you should be kinder to yourself because at the end of the day, your mind and body find it in themselves to deal with whatever is thrown their way. They have your back. It’s time you learn to sit straight.

583 notes · View notes

impalementation · 3 years

Text

spike, angel, buffy & romanticism: part 3

part 1: “When you kiss me I want to die”: Angel and the high school seasons

part 2: “Love isn’t brains, children”: Enter Spike as the id

“Something effulgent”: Season five and the construction of Spike the romantic

Prior to becoming a romantic interest, Spike is everything I discussed in the last section. He is an id and a mirror for Buffy, he’s prone to both romantic exaggeration and cutting realism, and his liminality suggests ambiguity. But outside of “Lovers Walk”, the writing doesn’t actually delve too deeply into Spike’s nature as a romantic. If you stopped the canon at “Restless”, you’d probably think that Spike’s love for Drusilla was intriguing, but that the show hadn’t really gone anywhere with the implications of it, and for all you knew, that might not be an important part of his character anymore. So one of the most interesting things about season five to me, is that in this season in which the writers first consciously, deliberately decide to explore the sexual and romantic tension between Spike and Buffy, they also emphasize Spike’s romanticism more than ever. The choice to define Spike by his romanticism is a choice that follows naturally from everything established about his character, but it was also not an inevitable choice. Therefore, it’s a choice worth looking at in some detail.

Consider everything that “Fool For Love” establishes about Spike, especially the things that contradict what was supposedly canon at the time. It makes Drusilla his sire instead of Angel, meaning that he is sired by a romantic connection, and as a direct result of heartbreak. It makes him a poet living in the middle of the Victorian era, an age at odds with his previous ages of “barely 200” and “126”. Meaning that the writing specifically decides to ignore its canon in order to associate him with an era in which passions would have been repressed (rather than the Romantic era of the early 1800’s or the modern energy of the early 1900’s). Moreover, the episode reveals his entire aesthetic and personality to essentially be a construct. But most tellingly of all, it reveals him to be an idealist. Spike is not just a performance artist; he yearns for the “effulgent”, for something “glowing and glistening” that the “vulgarians” of the world don’t understand. In other words, he yearns for something bigger and more beautiful than life: something romantic. Later, he chases after “death, glory, and sod all else.” Spike may be a “fool for love”, who has a romantic view of romantic love specifically, but the episode is very clear about the fact that he is also a romantic more generally. When Drusilla turns him, she doesn’t tempt him by telling him she’ll love him forever. She tempts him by offering him “something…effulgent”. (Which, in typical Spike form, the episode immediately undercuts by having him say “ow” instead of swooning romantically). The fact that “Fool For Love”, Spike’s major backstory episode, is so determined to paint him as a romantic--and in particular, a disappointed, frustrated romantic--that it is willing to contradict canon to do so, tells you that this choice was important for framing Spike and his new, ongoing thematic role.

I’ve talked in the past about how season five is all about the tension between the mythical and the mortal--between big, grand, sweeping narratives, and the reality of being human. Buffy is the Slayer, but she’s also just a girl who loses her mother. Dawn is the key, but she’s also just a confused and hormonal fourteen-year-old. Willow is a powerful witch, but she also just wants her girlfriend to be okay. Glory is a god, but she’s also a human man named Ben, and finds herself increasingly weakened by his emotions. And Spike embodies this tension perfectly. He’s a soulless vampire with a lifetime of bloodshed behind him, but he’s also this silly, human man who wants to love and be loved. He wants big, grand things, but every time they are frustrated by a Victorian society, a rejection, a chip, a pratfall, or dying with an “ow”. Furthermore, his season five storyline is all about the tension between loving in an exalted, yet often selfish way, versus loving in a “real” or selfless way.

There was a fascinating piece a ways back that discussed how Spike’s attempts to woo Buffy in season five almost perfectly match the romantic narratives of Courtly Love. In the words of the author:

The term "Courtly Love" is used to describe a certain kind of relationship common in romantic medieval literature. The Knight/Lover finds himself desperately and piteously enamored of a divinely beautiful but unobtainable woman. After a period of distressed introspection, he offers himself as her faithful servant and goes forth to perform brave deeds in her honor. His desire to impress her and to be found worthy of her gradually transforms and ennobles him; his sufferings -- inner turmoil, doubts as to the lady's care of him, as well as physical travails -- ultimately lends him wisdom, patience, and virtue and his acts themselves worldly renown.

You can see for yourself how well that description fits Spike’s arc. He fixates on the torturous, abject nature of his love, and has it in his head that he can perform deeds and demonstrate virtue, and this will prove to Buffy that he is worthy of her. But despite Spike’s gradual ennobling over the course of the season, I think it would be a mistake to see the season as using the Courtly Love narrative uncritically, or even just ironically. The same way it would be a mistake to see season two as using the Gothic uncritically. Spike is as much Don Quixote as he is Lancelot. He is a character that deliberately tries to act out romantic tropes, giving the writing an opportunity to satirize those tropes, including the tropes of chivalric romance. In particular, the writing criticizes Spike’s (very chivalric) fixation on love as a personal agony, something that is more about pain--and specifically, his pain--than building a real relationship. Over and over in season five, he is forced to abandon these sorts of flattering romantic mindsets in favor of a more complicated reality.

So at first, Spike’s “deeds” tend to be shallow and vaguely transactional. He tries to help Buffy in “Checkpoint” even though she doesn’t want it (and insults her when she doesn’t appreciate it), he asks “what the hell does it take?” when Buffy is unimpressed by him not feeding on “bleeding disaster victims” in “Triangle”, he rants bitterly at a mannequin when Buffy fails to be grateful to him for taking her to Riley in “Into the Woods”, and he is angry and confused when Buffy is unmoved by his offer to stake Drusilla in “Crush”. While these attempts to symbolically reject his evilness are startling for a soulless vampire, and although Spike certainly feels like he is fundamentally altering himself for Buffy’s sake, none of it is based on understanding or supporting Buffy in a way that she would actually find substantial. Moreover, he lashes out when his gestures fail to win her attention or affection. He has an idea in his head of how their romantic scenes should play out, and reacts petulantly when reality fails to live up to it.

But these incidents of self-interested narrativizing are also continuously contrasted with scenes in which Spike reacts with real generosity, or is surprised when he realizes he’s touched something emotionally genuine. When Buffy seeks him out in “Checkpoint”, his mannerisms instantly change when he realizes she actually needs real help (“You’re the only one strong enough to protect them”), rather than the performed help he offered at the beginning of the episode. At the end of “Fool For Love” he’s struck dumb by Buffy’s grief, and his antagonistic posturing all evening melts away. He abandons his romantic vision of their erotic, life-and-death rivalry in favor of real, awkward emotional intimacy. In “Forever” he tries to anonymously leave flowers for Joyce, and reacts angrily when he’s denied—but this time not because he wanted something from Buffy. Simply because he wanted to do something meaningful.

This contradictory behavior comes to a head in “Intervention”, the episode in which Spike finally begins to understand the difference between real and transactional generosity. Up until that point, Spike has been reacting both selfishly and unselfishly, but he hasn’t been able to truly distinguish between them, which is why he keeps repeating the same mistakes. Although he touches something real at the end of “Fool For Love”, for instance, he goes on to rifle through Buffy’s intimates in the very next episode. And so “Intervention” has Spike go to extremes of fakeness and reality. He gives up on having the real Buffy, and seeks out an artificial substitute that lets him live out his cheesiest romance novel scripts. It’s important that the Buffybot isn’t just a sexbot, even if he does have sex with her. She’s a bot he plays out romantic scenarios with the way he played them with Harmony in “Crush”, allowing him to almost literally live within a fiction. But then he “gives up” on having Buffy in a way that’s actually real, by offering up his life. He lets himself be tortured, and potentially killed, for no other reason than that to do otherwise would cause Buffy pain. The focus is on her pain, not his. For the first time, he acts like the Knight he’s been trying to be all along. He performs a grand, heroic deed that causes the object of his affection to see him in a different light, and even grant him a kiss. Yet ironically, as part of learning the difference between real and fake, he ceases to press for Buffy’s reciprocation. Through the end of season five, Spike continues to act the selfless Knight, assisting Buffy in her heroism without asking for anything in return. Which culminates in his declaration that he knows Buffy “will never love him”, even after he’s promised her the deed of protecting Dawn, and even though she allows a kind of intimacy by letting him back in her house. He proves that he sees those gestures for what they are, rather than in a transactional light. The irony of the way Spike fulfills the narrative of chivalric romance, is that his ennobling involves letting aspects of that narrative go.

In a Courtly Love narrative, the object of the Knight’s affection is fundamentally pedestalized. The Knight himself might be flawed, but the woman he pines after is not. She is “divinely beautiful” and “unobtainable”, something above him and almost more than human. This is why it’s so comic that in Don Quixote, which was a direct satire of chivalric romance, Alonso Quixano’s “lady love” is a vulgar peasant farmgirl who has no idea who he is. (Think of the way Spike asks if Buffy is tough in “School Hard” or threatens to “take her apart” despite “how brilliant she is” in “The Initiative”, followed by scenes where Buffy is acting like the teenage girl she is. Or how Giles in “Checkpoint” says that Buffy has “acquired a remarkable focus” before cutting to Buffy yawning.). Although it’s true that Buffy is beautiful, and supernatural, and profoundly moral, she is also very human, and the writing is very concerned with that humanity. Season five in particular, as I’ve mentioned, is preoccupied with the duality of Buffy’s mythic and mortal nature. Thus it becomes significant that Buffy is assigned such a heightened role in Spike’s chivalric narrative. Just Spike is at once Lancelot and Don Quixote, Buffy is at once Achilles, Dulcinea, and a coming-of-age protagonist.

And part of the “lesson” of Spike’s arc is for him to see both sides of the roles they embody. One of my favorite things about the scene in Buffy’s house in “The Gift” is how adroitly it conveys the dualities of both Buffy and Spike with simple, but poetic imagery and language. Buffy stands above Spike on her steps, conveying her elevated role, and Spike honors the way her heroic status has inspired him by physically looking up to her as he explains that he expects nothing from her. But by expecting nothing from her, and promising to protect her sister, he also honors the fact that she is a real person with no obligation to him, and a younger sister she cares about more than anything. He also honors his own duality by at once making Knightly promises, and acknowledging that he sees through his former delusions: “I know that I’m a monster, but you treat me like a man.” In “Fool For Love” he tried to acknowledge the same duality of realism and romance, by declaring to Cecily that “I know I’m a bad poet, but I’m a good man.” But at the time, he was an innocent, whose desire to be seen, and whose romantic avoidance of “dark, ugly things”, left him unprepared to understand how Cecily really saw him (similar to Spike’s insistence in “Crush” that what he and Buffy have “isn’t pretty, but it’s real” just before Buffy locks him out). Spike is a character defined simultaneously by continuous disillusionment and dogged aspiration, which is why he makes perfect sense as a character to embody a season torn between the pain of being human, and the wonder of the gift of love.

Fittingly, the season ends with Spike’s most devastating loss of innocence of all. He fails to be the hero for Buffy or Dawn (note that Knightly language he uses on the tower: “I made a promise to a lady”), and he loses the woman he loves. He may have become more virtuous, but unlike in a chivalric romance, that virtue wins him neither Buffy, nor something flattering like “world reknown.” The climax of the “The Gift” is full of romance—a god, a troll hammer, a damsel on a tower, a heroic self-sacrifice, a vampire transformed into a Knight—but the end result is that Buffy is dead, in part because he wasn’t good enough, and all that he and the Scoobies can do is grieve. Stories got Spike nothing, even when reality finally lived up to them. It is a swan song to the myths of childhood, and on the other side of Glory’s portal, Spike and the other characters will have to confront a world where those myths have been left behind.

part 4: “But I can’t fool myself. Or Spike, for some reason.”: Buffy and Spike as a blended self

#romanticism series #s5 #gen #buffy #spike #this section is deliberately focused on spike's arc #but not to worry #the next one focuses on buffy's side of things and the role of spike's arc in supporting buffy's in the last three seasons #they just needed their own sections to breathe #btvs

192 notes · View notes

robininthelabyrinth · 3 years

Note

This is a very vague plot but I would love to read an Emperor or very powerful WWX fic from you. I enjoy Boashan Sanren’s Emperor!WWX AU and I also love fics where WWX really is powerful and free to kick ass and just wreck shit. I really think your take on these tropes would be an interesting one and enjoyable read for all. Thank you for all the fics and your efforts in the fandom so far. Take care yourself. ☺️

fictional 18th century France in which the entire century is happening at once - part 2

- for part 1 see: ao3 or tumblr -

Wei Wuxian came to Nie Huaisang for advice.

Well, technically, that’s not quite right, Nie Huaisang reflected. Wei Wuxian, when faced with a situation that exceeded even his formidable talents, reverted back to his old ways in times of severe crisis. Namely, he ran back to ask for advice from his adopted family – which by this point consisted only of Jiang Cheng, what with the majority of the Jiangs having perished in the infamous massacre.

(The newspapers had dubbed it “le massacre des lotus”, a poetic way to elide the horrific mess of blood and death and despair that it had actually been.)

Naturally, Jiang Cheng didn’t have any idea what to do with the hot potato he’d been handed, and so he, and Wei Wuxian with him, came to Nie Huaisang, who always knew what to do. Who else did they have to ask?

Sure, Nie Huaisang supposed they could have gone to seek the advice of Lady Jin, formerly Jiang Yanli, Jiang Cheng’s older sister, but luckily Jiang Cheng was self-aware enough to know how much of a political disaster that would have been. Regardless of her personal merits, of which Nie Huaisang was certain there were many, the former young lady Jiang had married into the Jin family, a move that was widely viewed with suspicion.

After all, the spectacle of yet another wealthy noble marrying another wealthy noble in exactly the sort of thing the Revolution and the abolition of noble privileges had been meant to stymie – and this particular marriage especially suspect given that everyone knew that the Jin family’s politics leaned heavily monarchist, having only just barely refrained from becoming émigrés themselves by the thought of the financial advantages they thought they could get following the fall of the Sun King.

For the Jins, the marriage had been a coup, giving them a claim to legitimacy in their new era; for the Jiangs, it was far from being the best move, politically speaking, no matter how much they swore that it was a love match.

It must have been, for the normally astute Jiangs to make such an unforced stumble.

The marriage itself was bad enough, but if Wei Wuxian, grand (if highly unorthodox) hero of the foreign wars, was seen consulting with the Jins, allowing them to influence him…well, it wouldn’t end up good for anyone, except maybe the ones who wanted to overthrow the Revolution and reestablish the rule of the Wen dynasty on the basis of the divine right of kings.

Apparently, chopping off the heads of the last set wasn’t enough to warn the rest of them off.

Fucking émigrés.

At any rate, that was how the whole mess had ended up in Nie Huaisang’s lap.

“I’m not sure what you’re looking at me to tell you,” Nie Huaisang said, idly fanning himself. That wasn’t exactly in fashion either – fans were very much seen as an affectation of the previous political order – but it was garnished with the appropriately patriotic rosette and anyway, everyone knew he liked fans, useless self-indulgent dandy that he was. Good only for throwing parties and keeping an active salon for his own entertainment, albeit one very in vogue and coincidentally very popular with all the famous revolutionary thinkers of their day.

Besides, no one in their right mind was going to claim that Nie Mingjue’s little brother wasn’t sufficiently revolutionary.

“Don’t pull your good-for-nothing stunt with me,” Jiang Cheng said, rolling his eyes at him. “I was there when it all started, remember?”

Jiang Cheng had lucked in to being there when it all started, since unlike many of the other people Nie Huaisang had so carefully invited to his salon, Jiang Cheng had been invited purely on the basis of being an old friend from school. That he’d become a hero of the Revolution instead of being imprisoned and executed after the massacre of his family by the increasingly paranoid and dictatorial Sun King was his own good fortune and hard work, naturally, but he wouldn’t have even known where to start if it hadn’t been for Nie Huaisang and his connections.

“I remember,” Nie Huaisang said. “I also recall that you and Wei Wuxian broke ties long ago, isn’t that right?”

Obviously that little façade had been entirely political.

It would have been awkward for Wei Wuxian, darling of the armies and terror of the continent, inventor of a brand new form of warfare and at least half a dozen new pieces of artillery, to be so closely tied to any one noble family, no matter their history together. It would have led to accusations that the Jiang family was seeking to take advantage of the Revolution to strengthen their own power, no matter how passionate a revolutionary Jiang Cheng was personally - the Jin sect had already started spreading rumors, casting allegations, implications, smears...

Their show of very publicly disowning each other had put an end to that.

“Don’t play dumb,” Jiang Cheng said impatiently, because he knew that Nie Huaisang knew that it was all bullshit, even if the newspapers Nie Huaisang bankrolled pretended to swallow the bait down whole. “Are you going to help us or not?”

“Of course I will,” Nie Huaisang said, rolling his eyes at him. “We’re friends. But because we’re friends, I’m going to tell you flat out that you already know what the choices ahead of you are and you know which one is the best move. What you want is for me provide you with any other options, and I’m not going to be able to do that.”

“This is just insane!” Wei Wuxian exclaimed. He was pacing around the room, face pale and cloak black, as looking dashing as always. Nie Huaisang wanted to get out his paints and force the man to pose for him and maybe a dozen or so of his closest artist friends; it would be stunning. “I can’t – why would they ask me? A few years ago, I was just an artillery captain! Son of a servant and a runaway novitiate!”

“The whole point of the Revolution was to favor merit, not birth,” Nie Huaisang reminded him. “And anyway, who cares that you were an artillery captain back then? You’re a general now. The Lion of Yiling.”

“The Menace of Yiling, the Fiend of the Burial Mounds, the Nightmare of Europe…” Jiang Cheng murmured, recounting some of the less polite versions. Nie Huaisang waved his fan at him – he wasn’t helping.

“Your brother is a general, too,” Wei Wuxian pointed out, a little desperately.

It wouldn’t help him.

“Mm, he is. He’s also nobility of the sword - well, saber - from a line that has existed for generations, even if we did have rather ignoble origins,” Nie Huaisang said. He was not without sympathy for Wei Wuxian’s predicament, but really, some things were obvious. “We all know he’s the incorruptible and all that, but it’d be far too easy for the newspapers - and our enemies - to paint him as having done it all for his own selfish interests. There’s a reason he announced all the way back at the beginning of the wars that he wasn’t interested in political power when he was done, that he’d retired like a modern-day Cincinnatus. Who would have trusted him as commander-in-chief if he hadn’t?”

“Me,” Wei Wuxian grumbled. “Sane people, if they’re thinking straight! Your brother is incorruptible. He doesn’t even like war, even if he’s damn good at it. People should be chomping at the bit to get him to be the one – the one to – !”

“They are,” Nie Huaisang said dryly. “The innocent ones and the ones egged on by the Jin family both. They know the only way to tear down his influence is to get him to make a mistake.”

“And you won’t let him do that,” Jiang Cheng said knowingly.

Nie Huaisang snorted. What did Jiang Cheng know? “I didn’t need to say anything. He was offended on principle by the very thought of it.”

All three of them sighed in unison – Nie Huaisang a little long-suffering, Jiang Cheng and Wei Wuxian a bit dreamily.

It was a good thing Nie Huaisang had long ago accepted that every young man in France between the ages of twelve and thirty four, at minimum, was at least a little in love with his brother, or else he would have found it all far more aggravating than he did.

“To get back to the point,” Nie Huaisang said a moment later. “There’s simply nothing for it: you have to be the one to take it. No one else will suit half as well as you.”

“Why does someone have to take it at all?” Wei Wuxian demanded. “The principles of the Revolution -”

“Because we can’t function with these endless wars on our borders, as well as within them,” Nie Huaisang said, losing patience, and both Jiang Cheng and Wei Wuxian scowled, not wanting to accept the truth of what he was saying. “We need a stronger executive than we have right now, simply put. As for the form of that executive, well, the Revolution simply happened so fast that people are refusing to accept it without at least the trappings of the ancient regime - even if it’s not quite the same as the last time around. And as for why you, that’s because you can be trusted to shepherd it, to let it grow to the maturity it requires, and we will not fear you clinging to power when the time comes for it to return.”

Wei Wuxian scrubbed his face. “You trust me too much.”

“Not really,” Nie Huaisang said with a shrug. “You’re upright, moral, selfless…it helps that you’re exclusively interested in men, of course. No heirs means no dynasty.”

They both started spluttering.

“Oh, I’m sorry, had you not realized that yet?” Nie Huaisang barely bothered to hide his smirk behind his fan. “I thought it was obvious. You flirt with women for sport, not profit, and of course there’s your taste in pornography…”

“Back to the subject!” Wei Wuxian shouted, his normally shameless face flushing bright red. “Back to the subject!”

Nie Huaisang snapped his fan shut, making them both jump.

“All right,” he said. “Back to the subject: you have to become emperor, Wei Wuxian, or else someone else will, and they’ll be worse. I’m not saying that you’ll be good at it, or that you’ll enjoy it, or that it won’t end up with you exiled to some island in the middle of the ocean for thirteen years before making a miraculous return to save the country from itself –”

“Oddly specific.”

“Be quiet. What I’m saying is that you have to do it. The army supports you because you’re their darling, the people support you because of your victories in the war, the Jin and the other aristocrats support you because they think they can manipulate you through Jiang Yanli, the Lan and the other members of the Church…well, to be frank, most of them think that you’re a horrible blasphemer, which they think about all of us, but if you agree to let them crown you they’ll get over themselves and endorse you anyway. Even the foreign nations that we’re currently at war against would support your ascension to the position because the greed for power of a single man at least makes sense to them and accords with their understanding of history, as opposed to our Revolution, which is new and makes them afraid of what they might lose if it’s allowed to live. In short: it has to be you.”

Wei Wuxian sat down heavily on the couch. Jiang Cheng went over and put his hand on his shoulder.

After a few moments, he cleared his throat. “What about the rest of them?”

“The rest of them?”

“The other revolutionaries. What will they think? Your brother – he’s one of the most ardent proponents against the institution of the monarchy. How can he be happy with an empire?”

Nie Huaisang went and sat next to Wei Wuxian, pressing a nice pastry into his hand. “You went to the same classes I did, Wei Wuxian. You know that in ancient Rome, the position of Emperor - the imperator power - was originally established in the form of the ‘dictator’,” he said. “A magistrate granted absolute power in extraordinary times, for a limited time, for the purpose of rescuing the Republic.”

The most famous example of which was, of course, Cinncinatus, the man his brother was so often compared to.

He thought Wei Wuxian would be a good example of that selflessness as well.

“I did attend class, and more often than you did,” Wei Wuxian said with an uncalled-for amount of snark. “And I remember very well that in ancient Rome, the institution of the position of Emperor meant the death of the Republic.”

“But not this time,” Nie Huaisang said confidently. “That’s what all our enemies will think, yes, but in truth you’ll be a dictator in the old-fashioned sense of the word: you’ll take the power, you’ll do the work, and then, when the Revolution has progressed enough to continue on its own, you’ll step down. My brother would support something like that. They all would.”

“But what if I don’t step down? What if the power goes to my head and I start to see myself as – as essential?”

“Three things,” Nie Huaisang said. “First, you’re an arrogant piece of work who already sees yourself as essential, and it hasn’t made you go crazy yet. Second, you’re fundamentally lazy and indolent at heart – take it from someone who knows – and while you’re very industrious if you think it’s your duty or the right thing to do, if given a chance to do the right thing by not doing work, you’d jump at the chance.”

Jiang Cheng looked as if he would protest the characterization, but Wei Wuxian nodded. He’d always loudly dreamed of retiring to the countryside to be a farmer or a mad scientist or something, and if Jiang Cheng had always thought he was joking then Nie Huaisang, at least, had not made that mistake. “And the third thing?”

“If you really do end up fucking it up, my brother will turn Baxia on you.”

Jiang Cheng choked, and Wei Wuxian snorted.

“That’s oddly comforting, actually,” he said, and smiled. “Okay. Fine. You’re right – I’m the only one that can do it and do it right. And since that’s the case, I’ll accept: first the position of Consul, and then, as necessary, the position of Emperor. But you have to help me – you, your brother, Jiang Cheng…even Wen Qing. I insist on it; I won’t let her get executed just because of her name.”

“I can work with that, and really, no matter what the Jin say, I don’t think that’ll be a real issue. Having a daughter – well, cousin, but who’s counting – of the former dynasty working for you is a good move,” Nie Huaisang said. “Set her up with something that’s both important and yet non-political so people don’t feel threatened…revitalizing the hospitals and improving public health, maybe. She’d like that; didn’t she always want to be a doctor instead of a princess?”

“Anyone else I should make sure to add in?” Wei Wuxian asked. His eyes were avid and serious, which he rarely was in peacetime; Nie Huaisang looked forward to the day when he could be frivolous and light-hearted again.

Still, it was good to see that he was committed.

“Jin Guangyao is the least objectionable of the Jin family, even if he is a belatedly recognized bastard,” Nie Huaisang said. “He’s more treacherous than a snake, but since we know that, we should be able to manage him appropriately. Put him in charge of the police and the spy network; he’ll do wonders with it.”

And probably end up assassinating his father, but in Nie Huaisang’s opinion that wouldn’t be that bad of a thing either. He resolved not to mention it to the others.

“Jin Zixuan isn’t objectionable,” Jiang Cheng put in.

“No, he’s very pretty,” Nie Huaisang agreed. “Your sister can hang him on her wall as artwork.”

“…he really doesn’t have many other talents, does he?”

“I’m given to understand that he spends money very well,” Nie Huaisang said dryly, and both men winced: as a dandy, Nie Huaisang had the most experience in such things. “You should also take Lan Wangji into your administration.”

“Lan Wangji?” Wei Wuxian’s face was a bit red. “Doesn’t he hate me?”

“After all the polemics he’s written in your favor, you still think he hates you? Just because of your little tussle back at school? Please get over yourself.”

“They’re in the Revolution’s favor, not mine…”

“Actually, no, he’s right,” Jiang Cheng said. “There are definitely some explicitly in your favor, and he wouldn’t do that by mistake - not with how eloquent a writer he is, even if he’s practically a mute in person. But...Nie Huaisang, what role would you put him in? He may be from a family that’s closely affiliated with the Church, but he’s not actually a priest himself – and anyway, if we were going to have to appoint an archbishop to help support us, I’d rather it went to someone like Xiao Xingchen. Everyone likes him.”

“And the fact that Xiao Xingchen is beholden to no one and interested in charitable works to the exclusion of all else is an extra bonus,” Wei Wuxian said, showing that he did, in fact, know some politics underneath his thick-skulled appearance. “But that’s a good point. What role did you have in mind for Lan Wangji?”

“I mean, ideally he’d be Empress,” Nie Huaisang said breezily, and enjoyed seeing Wei Wuxian’s face heat up and Jiang Cheng start spluttering again, “but since that’s at least ten years out, might I suggest appointing him as your chief of staff, and his brother as your foreign minister? That way you can keep Lan Wangji nice and close by, his aura of righteousness and habit of policing everyone around him will help stop the flow of corruption, and it’ll appear as though you’re using him as security against Lan Xichen – nice and distant and not at all corrupt, even as his writings continue to make the populace swoon over you. Jiang Cheng can continue to lead the navy, as he does now, and my brother the army; we can work out peacetime posts for them later on.”

“Hold up,” Wei Wuxian said. “Go back to why he’d be the Empress…? He doesn’t even like me!”

“That’s not the problem with that idea,” Jiang Cheng squawked. “Wei Wuxian..!”

Nie Huaisang went to pour drinks.

His work here was done.

#mdzs #nie huaisang #jiang cheng #wei wuxian #wangxian #briefly #my fic #my fics #belles lettres #okay this is DEFINITELY not the prompt #but I was inspired #also please please please ignore the timeline here #Anonymous

205 notes · View notes

ambiguousdisorderken · 3 years

Note

in your expert opinion what are some of the most destiel-heavy episodes of spn? i stopped watching around season 7 and have no interest in engaging w the plot of the show at all but i’m in the mood for some gay yearning ykwim

Hi anon! Thank you for reaching out to me about this, I’m, no-joke, very flattered. I’d seen a couple posts on this same question, very thorough and detailed lists on Destiel-centric episodes, but at the moment I cannot find any of them, that would’ve answered your request much faster. So, in advance, sorry, my reply is probably coming in extremely late, but I did write this from scratch, so yeah.

Even though storylines in SPN can be very shitty and hollow, I do feel that to get the full Destiel experience -that long-drawn yearning- one would have to watch the entirety of the show, even if Cas isn’t in the episode or if there’s no explicit mention of their relationship/bond because it gives you a better understanding of them as characters and of how their relationship affects the narrative.

Now, you mentioned you stopped around S7, which is completely understandable and justified given the Dick plot game was very weak and, in my opinion, annoying (so little Cas!). I’m going to start listing from S7 in case you want to refresh your SPN before jumping straight into unseen episodes. Also, since you mentioned no interest in the plot and are specifically craving those sweet crumbs of gay yearning, I’ll skip most one-sided / too subtle episodes and cut to the chase.

Lastly, I hate spoiling things, but you’ve probably seen it all on Tumblr. I tried to keep the episodes’ descriptions short, as it might come in useful. Stuck to key words, quotes and/or little comments.

Season 7

7x01 – Meet the New Boss: Godstiel, sincere apology. Cas: “I'm gonna find some way to redeem myself to you.”

7x02 – Hello, Cruel World: Mourning. Trench coat melancholy. The heart-wrenching eulogy: “Dumb son of a bitch.”

7x17 – The Born-Again Identity: Emmanuel!Cas, reunion, longing, hurt.

7x21 – Reading is Fundamental: Honey!Cas, hug, hurt, reunion, that painful SORRY (board game) scene.

7x23 – Survival of the Fittest: Honey!Cas, forgiveness, adorable, wified Cas. Dean hits us with: “Nobody cares that you're broken, Cas!" but also “I'd rather have you, cursed or not.”

Season 8 (this season is so good and Destiel is the driving motor of it, I swear. If you can, watch it complete.)

8x01 – We Need to Talk About Kevin: Dean in Purgatory looking for the angel. Cas is referred to as “your [Dean’s] angel.”

8x02 – What’s Up, Tiger Mommy?: HUG!!!, Purgatory reunion, face touch, very romantic. Monster: “ You'll find your angel there.” // Dean: “Let me bottom-line it for you. I'm not leaving here without you.”

8x05 – Blood Brother: Cas vs. Benny cat fight lol. Dean: “Cas... we're gonna shove your ass back through the eye of that needle if it kills all three of us.”

8x07 – A Little Slice of Kevin: Cas comes back from Purgatory, but before that Dean starts seeing him in places. Very tragic; hallucinating your dead significant other trope. Has That boner scene. Dean: “I did everything I could to get you out! EVERYTHING!” Cas helps Dean see what truly happened in Purgatory and not his self-altered memories. PACKED!

8x08 – Hunteri Heroici: Hilarious, romantic, intimate. Dean and Cas have an heart to heart. They actually communicate. Cas “I’ll watch over you.”

8x10 Torn and Frayed: They work a case together, and when I say heart eyes…

8x17 – Goodbye Stranger: THIS. EPISODE. Dean “I need you.”

8x19 – Taxi Driver: Separation. Naomi to Dean: "You're hoping Castiel will return to you. I admire your loyalty; I only wish he felt the same way."

8x22 – Clip Show: Lack of trust, hurt, tense interactions. Romantic too (basically, Cas gets Dean an apology basket).

8x23 – Sacrifice: Meaningful conversation and a gay couple hit by Cupid parallel. Dean “So this is it? E.T goes home?"

Season 9

9x01 – I think I’m Gonna Like it Here: Dean prays to Cas IN.A.CHAPEL. Worry, longing, separation. Dean “Please, man, I need you here.”

9x03 – I’m No Angel: Human!Cas and jealous!Dean.

9x06 – Heaven Can’t Wait: Human!Cas TEXT-BOOK LONGING. GAY AS FUCK. Gazing, touching, they even TALK (for real).

9x09 – Holy Terror: Adorable Cas, flirty vibes, happyish, funny. Cas: “Cas is back in town!”

9x10 �� Road Trip: Cas comforts Dean, Cas and Crowley bitching at each other, overall protective!Cas.

9x18 – Metafiction. Cas finds out about the Mark of Cain.

9x21 – King of the Damned: Hug, strong boyfriends vibes.

9x22 – Stairway to Heaven: Cas gives up an entire army, for Dean. Metatron about Cas “He's in love………………………. with humanity.”

9x23 – Do You Believe in Miracles?: At this point, it’s canon stated that Cas will do anything and lose everything if that means saving Dean. Metatron to Cas “You draped yourself in the flag of heaven, but ultimately, it was all about saving one human, right?”

Season 10

10x01 – Black: Demon!Dean and sick/brokenhearted Cas in a slutty robe missing his man.

10x03 – Soul Survivor: ICONIC. Angel on Demon action! Cas turns down Hannah because he’s too gay and in love. Intimate Deancas talk.

10x05 – Fan Fiction: No Cas, but Destiel references.

10x09 – The Things We Left Behind: That.Lunch.Date. Deancas introduction to co-parenting.

10x14 – The Executioner’s Song: We get Daddy Murder aka Cain. This is a Pivotal episode to understand Dean’s character development. Plus, it has Deancas interactions.

10x16 – Paint It Black: No Cas, but Dean opens up in confessionary; repressed BISEXUAL AS FUCK.

10x18 – Book of the Damned: Charlie meets Cas. Gay energies everywhere. Cute domestic little scene.

10x20 – Angel Heart: PARENTING! Essential to understand Cas from this point forward.

10x22 – The Prisoner: Just… just watch it. One of THEE Destiel episodes.

10x23 – Brother’s Keeper: No Deancas interactions but it’s the finale, and I recommend watching it because next season takes off literally right from here. No time jumps.

Season 11

11x02 – Form and Void: Could skip to the very end which is when Cas comes back.

11x03 – The Bad Seed: Cursed!Cas. Dean takes care of him, even wraps him in a blanket. He also cradles his face. Extreme Hurt/Comfort. Jacting joices rejoice.

11x10 – The Devil in the Details: Could skip but has Casifer in it. Interesting to see his dynamic with Dean.

11x18 – Hell’s Angel: Casifer. Dean "It? It's not an it, Sam, it's Cas!"

11x23 – Alpha and Omega: Huggg! Cas willing to go on a guaranteed suicide mission with Dean. Very tender and sad.

Season 12

12x02 – Keep Calm and Carry On: ANOTHER HUG! Dean presents his boyfriend to his mom<3 Soft and romantic.

12x09 – First Blood: Reunion hug<3, Cas pining… as in he counts his every minute without Dean.

12x10 – Lily Sunder Has Some Regrets: Direct parallel with canon couple. Crystal-clear mutual affection. One of the best. Angel Ishim to Cas about Dean “I'm gonna help you. I'm gonna cure you of your human weakness same way I cured my own… by cutting it out.”

12x12 – Stuck in the Middle with You: A dying Cas confesses his love. “I love you. I love all of you.”

12x19 – The Future: We find out Dean gave Cas a MIXTAPE!!! Very romantic and full of yearning, also worry and what could be seen as a betrayal (ish…).

12x23 – All Along the Watch Tower: Hands down, one of the most distressing Destiel episodes. Cas dies.

Season 13

13x01 – Lost and Found: This is the worst because you have Dean trying to assimilate Cas’ death. Core of Dean’s widow’s arc. Jack introduction, that’s their new kid.

13x02 – The Rising Son: Widow’s arc (you could skip it, but why would you?).

13x03 – Patience: Widow’s arc (you could skip it, but why would you?). Dean to Sam “He manipulated him, he made him promises, said, ‘paradise on earth’ and Cas bought it and you know what that got him? It got him dead! Now you might be able to forget about that, but I can’t!”

13x04 – The Big Empty: Continuation of widow’s arc and Cas wakes up in the Empty. The Empty to Cas: "I know who you love. There's nothing for you back there." // Dean to Sam “I need you to keep the faith, for both of us. ‘Cause right now, I… Right now, I don’t believe in a damn thing.”

13x05 – Advanced Thanatology: Suicidal and hopeless Dean gets his win. Cas comes back. Gives me the chills.

13x06 – Tombstone: COWBOY BOYFRIENDS!

13x14 – Good Intentions: Happy and fun Destiel scene. So Very Married.

13x23 – Let The Good Times Roll: Season finale, Dean talks about retiring (plans include Cas of course) and just very nice to see them interact.

Season 14

14x03 – The Scar: Reunion.

14x08 – Byzantium: Deanand Cas dealing with their child’s death, then bringing him back by Cas making a deal with the Empty. IMPORTANT EPISODE.

14x09 – The Spear: Cas uses the royal We – married behavior.

14x10 – Nihilism: Dean is stuck in his own mind, and Cas and Sam try to bring him back. Cas “Please, you have to -- you have to try to remember, because the people in your life -- in your real life, out there -- we need you to come back.”

14x12 – Prophet and Loss: Dean gets his very own Dr. Sexy, aka Dr. Cas.

14x14 – Ouroboros: Basically another date (their kid tags along) and They TALK. Very intimate and established marriage vibes.

14x18 – Absence: Shits starts to go south. [ Dean: “Who cares what Jack said? We don't know what happened! But I swear, if he did something to her, if she is -- (points to Castiel) Then you're dead to me. (Castiel looks crushed after Dean says that).]

14x20 – Moriah: Tense and very upsetting. Relationship very damaged.

Season 15 (I would advise watching the entire season because it relies heavily on Destiel. They’re the heart and the emotional motor leading the plot onwards.)

15x01 – Back and To The Future: Deancas’ in the aftermath of their kid’s death. Tension gets worse.

15x02 – Raising Hell: Tension rises, this is very intense. Cas “Dean. You asked, "What about all of this is real?" We are.”

15x03 – The Rupture: Breaking point ends in divorce.

15x06 – Golden Time: Painful phone call which speaks volumes about the current state of their relationship at the time. Also, good to see where they’re standing and how they’re coping.

15x08 – Our Father Who Aren’t in Heaven: Strained relationship so obvious they’re offered couples’ therapy.

15x09 – The Trap: MASTERPIECE. Back to Purgatory. Can (and is) taken as Dean’s love confession (because it is).

15x12 – Galaxy Brain: So married. Little domestic date, you can see LOVE written in their faces.

15x13 – Destiny’s Child: AU!Dean and Sam. Not a yearning episode per se, but AU!Dean? SO GAY.

15x17 – Unity: God reveals that the only act of free will in any universe he ever created has been Cas choosing Dean.

15x18 – Despair: Cas confesses his love to Dean.

#Anonymous #thanks for coming to my ted talk #im posting this at 2:30 am so i'll most likely reblog it at a more reasonable hour ..in case anon is closer to my time zone #why am i even saying this..im sleepy #destiel #answered #destiel episode guide #there might be number/name mistakes because again sleepish.forgive me #long post

119 notes · View notes

shades-of-stony · 3 years

Text

Stony Getting Together With The Help of Magic Fics (Love Potions, Spells, etc.)

The Love Spell by Annie D (scaramouche)

Summary: Tony wakes up in love with Steve. This is an alarming turn of events, because he wasn’t in love with Steve when he fell asleep the night before. That said, it’s sort of nice? To be in love? He’s enjoying it, anyway.

All Talk by Crematosis

Summary: When Tony gets doused with some of Loki's potions, Steve is pretty sure Tony's sexual interest is all the result of a love potion. But they're soulmates and Tony's more than happy to prove to him that he's had feelings all along.

You're the Bun That I Want by CrimsonBlueMoon (Navybluewings)

Summary: When Tony angers the wrong sorceress, he gets bit by a bunny infused with her magic. Steve is sure something's off, but the genius knows best, and Captain America's worry is pushed to the side.

That is, until Tony shows up the next morning with Bunny ears. And that's just the start of the problems. Can Steve manage to hide his own feelings while handling each new 'symptom' or Tony's curse? Or will he end up showing his hand to the only bunny he wants?

a universe emerging from a wish by jelliebean

Summary: everyone magically falls in love with tony. everyone except steve. sort of.

please let me get what I want (this time) by theappleppielifestyle

Summary: He wants to run a hand through his hair, bite down on his lip, rumple his shirt, mess him up a little and pull the Stark away until it’s just Tony, who doesn’t need to fake anything.

And there’s two minutes and fifty-three seconds left, according to the clock, and Steve hears it in his throat, and his heart is rattling around in his chest, and he feels like he’s going to overflow.

He looks over at Tony, and it bursts: IwantIwantIwantIwant, over and over, beating a rhythm at the back of his eyes.

Want You So Bad It Hurts by Aria_Lerendeair

Summary: Inspired by the wonderful fiction "please let me get what I want (this time)" written by theapplepielifestyle.

Loki has unleashed Asgardian magic that is going to destroy the eastern seaboard. The only way to stop it is for whoever the magic has focused on to get what their hearts greatest desire is. The curse chose Tony Stark, who wants the one thing he could never have. Captain Steve Rogers.

it's a feeling that won't disappear by IronSwordStarShield (SweetFanfics)

Summary: “I can’t tell you how much of a relief it is to hear that. I was a little worried you wouldn’t want to help.”

Blinking, startled, Steve asks, “Why wouldn’t I?”

They’re almost at the medbay but Sam pauses. He stops and shoots Steve a mildly confused look. “Because it’s Tony? And you guys haven’t really made up after everything that’s happened.”

“That doesn’t mean I won’t help him when he’s in trouble,” Steve neatly argues around the point that Sam’s just made. Sam gives him a disappointed look but Steve ignores it and resumes talking towards the medbay.

-- Tony gets hit with a unique kind of love spell and Steve's forced to question every assumption he's made about Tony and their relationship for the last many years.

Spin the Spell by Comicsohwhyohwhy for laireshi

Summary: Tony inhaled deeply, enjoying how peaceful everything felt. After all, it wasn’t often that the Avengers got a quiet morning, just sitting – There was a flash of green light that seemed to burn right through his skull.

A magic attack makes things for the Avengers rather complicated. For example, Wolverine just won't stop clinging to Spider-Man. Might it be some sort of love spell? Tony is sure that him and Steve aren't affected, though. Everyone else disagrees.

Where Credit Is Due by Bearixt

Summary: “The spell should be in effect as soon as he wakes up.”

“And who is he supposed to fall madly in love with, then?” Tony raised an eyebrow. “You?”

“Of course not,” Loki said, sounding mildly offended. “It will be you.”

made to make you blue by gottalovev

Summary: Steve, drunk for the first time since the serum, hits on Tony. It's everything Tony's ever dreamt about, but he refuses to have sex with a drunk Steve who can't truly consent. They do kiss, though, and Tony stays the night. The morning after brings a misunderstanding of disastrous proportion, where both men wrongly assume the other is uninterested. Life gets extremely complicated when Enchantress, mad at Thor, casts a spell that links people who love each other together, letting them feel the other's pain.

Matchmaking for Professionals by Perlmutt

Summary; Tony is pining. Steve is pining. Natasha and Pepper are so done with this shit and plan to set them up. But it seems that Tony and Steve are just too dumb to get it, until the most unexpected person shows up to help the girls out of their misery...

#steve and tony #stony #stevetony #stevetony fic #stevetony fic rec #stevetony fanfic #stony fics #stony fanfic #stony fic #SUPERHUSBANDS #steve tony fic rec #stony fic rec

45 notes · View notes

aeondeug · 3 years

Text

Ok so I made a post about why I didn’t like Gideon initially and I’ve talked to others about it. And I’ve seen a lot of people having the reverse experience. Which is cool, I think. And one I’m not surprised by if I think about how the two characters are introduced initially. Like, maybe Gideon’s humor is dumb but also she’s not the one being like “Oh man, it is time to systematically destroy this woman’s hopes that she has finally done it and escaped from me and my hell planet,” at the start of the book. Harrow is though. Harrow’s intro is very...Harrow. It’s very fitting for what is learned about her later on.

Anyway. I feel a desire to like. Write about the other half of this equation. And why it was that I instantly latched onto Harrow so hard. So like I said in the first post. Harrow’s got STYLE. She’s got like bone jewelry and wears all black and has skull face paint. She uses her own blood as ink for her fountain pen (it being a fountain pen matters) and she gets said blood by stabbing herself in the cheek. Also she’s a necromancer, which is just icing on the cake. Harrow’s entire fashion statement appeals to me as someone raised by a goth who ended up like...Never goth fashion or subculture wise, but someone who was a kid that Dreamed of being goth fashion wise. Alas, I went to a boring uniform school and also was too nervous of such things.

Harrow just LOOKS cool. Harrow is the sort of person that a dumb 13 year old me would have found the coolest and have viewed as like. An Aspiration. Even though she’s kind of a dumbass and also a dick. I was an edgelord of a kid and an edgelord who knew who Bauhaus were before I could read.

So Harrow’s instantly got fashion on her side. And she’s got her attitude. Which is also important. She does things for style and looks. The narration, which is from Gideon’s perspective, describes the fountain pen filling thing as “one of Harrow’s favorite party tricks”, I believe is the quote. When asked about why there are suddenly skulls all over their room her sole answer to this question is “Ambiance”. And she clearly cares about how she looks. Her paint is often described and a point is made that Gideon’s is not as well put on hers. Also? Her outfit? She’s got like. The bone wrist circlet thingies and her bone studs and her bone choker and the fucking bone chest thing that I am forgetting the word for right now. Harrow cares about appearances.

Which also shows in like...She makes a good show of how well read she is. Takes pride in that fact not just privately, but lets people know it. She runs off and tries to stubbornly do a puzzle on her own. The thing to wake her up from her near death stupor from failing in that is something insinuating they are better than her. And she’s still half dying but takes the time to state that, no, SHE is the best necromancer. Harrow’s got an ego and that shows from early on. Through things like how she dresses, how she talks, how she treats Gideon...

And I saw that and I just kind of instantly latched on. While reading early in the book and seeing her do a bitchy thing, I once joked that “Has anyone ever hugged Harrow?” and then jokingly decided that “No. No one’s hugged Harrow before.” This was a joke that I had made as someone with a rather neglectful family in several respects. And as someone whose general well being in their home was decided by how good I appeared in comparison to the other kids. In that sort of situation, not having much else, I took great pride in my being well read. In being Smart. This eventually made me insufferable as hell and that was crushed into the dirt. Either way, depressing story time aside. I made a joke that indicated that, early on, I had pegged Harrow as someone similarly neglected. As someone with a similar lack of anything going on.

Turns out I was right. Her situation’s very different from my own because of course it is. This is a book about space necromancers, after all. But she was a neglected child. One who had to grow up far too fast and who had a very strict and overbearing religious upbringing. Does that sort of thing cause that sort of concern for aesthetics and bitchery? I dunno. But I made a guess, as a joke, and the guess appeared to be right.

Another thing that I made a bet on with this early on was like...The nature of the relationship. They are the only two of their generation on that planet. Gideon is made out immediately to be like an indentured servant of the family. While Harrow is immediately revealed to be a high status fancy nun queen with a fancy title. Harrow’s parents are dead by that point and had been dead for a while. But, I knew, that theoretically they were not dead at some point. A point which Gideon had to be old enough to remember, given some of the comments made. Based on their antagonism towards one another and this set up...

A part of me wondered if like they had in fact had like a Favorite and Unfavorite dynamic as kids. Or I guess not actively wondered but like. The thought was in mind. Because I had grown up as The Favorite in a terrible home which had an Unfavorite. And this makes you a terrible person as a kid. So I saw these very small signs at the start of a book which hides most of the cool Harrow facts and interactions in its latter sections. And was like, on some level like, “Ah. You’re a bitch to her because you’re The Favorite. In part.”

I am kind of always looking for abused and neglected Favorites in fiction. One of my favorite characters is Azula. And I’m very fond of Gamora. I have a tendency to find them and latch onto them because like...I am still working through things. A lot of things. Sometimes seeing it in the things I read makes the stuff I am working through less terrifying. Sometimes it gives me a sense of hope. Either way, seeing a thing that is at least somewhat similar helps. And I look out for it. And Harrow apparently just gave off. The Aura. From the very start.

Because lo and behold, she was neglected as fuck and, indeed, the Favorite while Gideon was an Unfavorite so unfavorited that she was viewed as basically cursed and horrifying. And then Harrow was a mean bastard of a child towards her. And then it turns out that Harrow has like 10,000 weird guilt issues. Some of which involve her treatment of Gideon now because...How on earth could you even like her when you grew up with her? Like. How.

But even before those reveals later on...I had been making my guesses. Enough so that one of my earlier jokes about the book was about how no one ever hugged Harrow and how she is out doing this shit for some sense of fucking acknowledgement for once. Because maybe if you’re acknowledged that like...Will count. As your Actual True Affection quota for the day. Harrow was not just stylish and mysterious. She also had little bits and bobs, either that she revealed herself in her few appearances in the early portion of GtN or which were revealed by way of how Gideon talks about her and acts about her, which hinted towards the basic idea of what Harrow’s deal even was.

I did not guess the exact specifics of Harrow’s deal because who the hell could divine that from the first act of the first book. But I did guess at the core idea laying behind the specifics of that deal. And the deal was that she was the neglected but favored child in a really shitty home, who has ended up with an ungodly amount of guilt issues for her behavior and general existence. And it made her mean, guarded, and protective of her image and it gave her an ego sky high. Which you can all see in the first portion of the book to an extent. Even though she is very scarce in said first portion. Which I think is either a tantalizing mystery of “What the fuck is even your problem, Harrow?” or like just enough info in just the right way for people with a similar experience to go “lol no one hugged you when you were a kid” with a knowing prescience.

#the locked tomb #harrowhark nonagesimus #my experience was basically my instantly pegging her for having the same sort of damage #and making fun of her for it #and then realizing i was right and feeling progressively sadder for her

60 notes · View notes

hyper-super-clover · 3 years

Text

I am thou, thou art I - Levi pact story

A oneshot about how making a pact with Levi could look like with a little more emotion, drama and depth than in the game.

With gender neutral MC!

Enjoy :>

Envy. It's ugly, painful, disgusting. The cause of many conflicts, with others, and within oneself. And there's one, the avatar of Envy, who knows every little shred of feeling behind this emotion. Leviathan, thrid-born demon of the rulers of the underworld. A shut-in, an otaku, barely interested in the real world but rather indulged in fictional ones. Why, you might ask? Well, when the human exchange student came to the Devildom, Levi was about to experience once again as to why he fled into his fictional worlds. The first weeks after the human's arrival, he did not notice the change they would bring to all of them. He didn't notice much about the exchange student at all, to be frank. MC seemed like a boring human being, no sorcerer, nothing special about them. A Normie. So Leviathan never bothered to interact with them more than necessary. He had way more important things to do in his room, gaming or binging his shows. However, as they lived in the same house, they were bound to interact sooner or later. Thus, over time, Levi found out that MC knew a thing or two about his interests. Their knowledge was miserable in comparison to his, of course, but a few times, it actually seemed like they were listening when Levi was talking. They replied to his texts in the group chats when his brothers kept ignoring him. They thanked him for making dinner when it was his turn to cook. They seemed to not mind... him. Of course, that was probably nothing more than human courtesy. There was no way they were liking him. HIM, out of all. And Leviathan didn't care. He had no interest in real life friends. He didn't need them. So he let MC be, let them hang out with his brothers. He watched as MC grew closer and closer to the second-born, Mammon, until one day, they had formed a pact with him. So MC really had to be a dumb Normie, Levi thought, as no one would be stupid enough to make a pact with that money-grubbing scumbag. Levi could only give a huff when Mammon kept bragging about it, over and over. He could only huff when, a few weeks later, he heard that Beel made a pact with them, too. "Because I want to protect MC" Beel had said. "They feel important to me." How stupid. They were stupid. All of them. What were they making pacts for? MC was a weak human, a Normie with no special talents that could impress powerful demons like the brothers. Certainly, Levi wasn't interested in any of this. What a pain it must be, he laughed, to forge a bond with someone. Because that meant duties, like you have in friendships. You have to hang out, care for the other, waste your precious time for a being other than yourself. Stupid, Levi huffed. And watched as MC kept living through adventures with Mammon, how they laughed and kept going out with Beel. And somehow, he couldn't take his eyes off their stupidity.

---------

More time passed, and MC had grown accustomed to the Devildom. They have made friends in school, also with Asmo, Belphie and even Satan now, too. Lucifer seemed happy with their achievements. Levi's brothers kept being around MC all the time. Mammon kept dragging them into his bullshit, Beel got them to do workouts with him, Satan lend them his favourite books, and one night, Levi had heard MC and Asmo coming home from a party, all tipsy and giggly. Levi's stomach had turned hearing them. How much fun they were having. With a stupid Normie, a human. He imagined their happy faces, their joy, And his own face curled in a disgusted frown. Friends, huh? No, he didn't need anything like that. He had his games, his anime, after all... ... Right?

----------

Over the weeks, his contact with MC would naturally increase. Mammon forced Levi to play games all together, Lucifer assigned them to do kitchen duty together. Levi disliked being outside his room or with other people, but MC was good at asking just the right questions, at talking about topics that Leviathan would give an answer too. One time, Levi made them laugh. He dropped a comment that wasn't supposed to be that funny, but it resulted in MC chuckling for quite a while. And Levi was in shock. They had such a pretty smile. For a moment, the two of them had locked eyes, and theirs were filled with sparkly joy, as they looked at him. His lips couldn't do anything but curl upwards. He wouldn't get this sight out of his head for a long time.

Events like this kept repeating themselves. Even though he wanted to be alone, the human kept being in his life, a little here, a little there... ... And kept making him smile. So, dizzy on this weird, fuzzy feeling, Leviathan started being funny on purpose. To see more of their smiling face. It worked, and he felt like watching his favourite anime show over and over again. He felt happy.

---------

But as mentioned before, envy is a disgusting emotion. It's a sly, dirty feeling, that can creep up inside you without yourself noticing it. An emotion that would keep haunting the third-born forever. At first, Levi wouldn't understand what was causing him to be in distress. He kept noticing MC's smile, but it was directed towards his brothers. They were having fun, but while going out with his brothers. They lived, but without him. And he should have been fine with that. He was a busy demon, had his duties within his games and blogs. A mere Normie shouldn't ever change anything in the lifestyle he was perfectly fine with. But it just wouldn't leave his consciousness. How Mammon was so obviously falling in love with MC, how Asmo made a pact with them, too. How everyone seemed to experience changes, to the better, with MC around. They were all so happy, such good friends... While Levi was sat in his room, alone. I am a shut-in, he thought. I want to be that way. I'm too good of an otaku to waste my time with a human, he told himself. Then, an ache pierced through his chest. "... And they wouldn't like someone like me, anyways..."

From that point on, Leviathan wouldn't return their smile anymore. Whenever he saw MC smiling because of him, he would ensure himself that, in fact, they weren't smiling because of him at all. They were probably amused by something his brothers had done. There was no way someone like him could make another person happy like this. It wasn't that special to see them smile anyway. Because they did that around his brothers, too. A lot, even. Probably more than around Levi. Who would laugh about a disgusting shut-in's joke in the first place? No-one, not if they had six other brothers to choose from. They are probably laughing ABOUT you, a thought once crossed his mind. And so, he distanced himself more and more.

---------

At some point, Levi had stopped coming out of his room almost completely. He enjoyed his games and manga, was so productive in his hobbies! But he didn't quite feel the same joy as a few months ago... ... Before MC had come to the Devildom. Sitting at his desk, re-playing one of his favourite games, Levi gave a bothered huff. Stupid MC, he thought. It's all because of them. Because they came here, invaded his perfect life like this. Because their joy was so captivating. Because they liked his brothers more. Because they kept changing them, kept making them happy, but Levi was all on his own. It was so unfair. But then again, it really was his fault, wasn't it? Because he was miserable trash. Levi's lip began to shake. Yeah, he was miserable, the thought. In comparison to his brothers, he was nothing. Just a creepy shut-in, nothing more. He wasn't as funny as Mammon, as smart as Satan, as handsome as Asmo, as strong as Beel, as laid-back as Belphie, not even a shred as perfect as Lucifer. They were all so likeable, but him...? He had nothing to offer. "It's... It's fine...", Levi mumbled to himself. "Who needs friends either way? I don't... I have Henry... And my games... That is all... I need..." He pressed a button to continue his game. He had stopped in the middle of a conversation between the protagonist, Joker, and his best friend, Ryuji. So Ryuji spoke:

"Hey, this ain't like me, but... I managed to change 'cause you were here, helpin' me."

Levi's eyes widened. Change...? Help...?

"I got you all wrapped up in this shit, but you stayed with me 'till the bitter end."

Here... Here, as well? Two people, not even real, but still they get to share such a bond together?

“... You didn't abandon me."

Levi felt his eyes watering up. Their friendship... It...

"So... Thanks man."

It was so unfair. Levi's face frowned and wrinkled in burning frustration. A growl escaping his lips, he smashed his controller on his desk, pushing himself away from it to stand up. However once on his feet, he was tumbling, holding his head while his body was shaking. It hurt. It burned. He hated all those happy faces. Hated how good everyone else had it, with their bonds, their affection... And he was all alone. Gasping in-between his pained sobs, Leviathan couldn't stop himself from what he called an "envy-attack", so he had to endure how his own brain flooded him with all the times he had been envious of MC being with his brothers, every single moment where he had felt left out, or not good enough. And in addition, his toxic mind kept making him at fault. Near to hyperventilation, Levi sunk down on his knees, desperately trying to get a hold of himself again. But it hurt too much. He was so jealous, so lonely, so miserable. "It's not fair..." He mumbled, embracing his legs with his shaking arms. "Not fair, not fair, not fair..." His sobs slowly changing from pained to sad, his head sunk to rest on his knees. "I don't need friends... I don't... Need them... I..."

Envy is an ugly, painful, disgusting feeling. It devours you from inside, and once you are too focused on what others have, you lose sight of what you have yourself. ... But that's what friends are for. And it was about time that someone showed Leviathan what he could be proud of. The demon didn't register the knock on his door, being to immersed in his feelings. "... Levi?" Only MC's voice was able to make him raise his head. However they flinched slightly, seeing the state that Leviathan was in. "Are you okay?" MC asked. Multiple thoughts rushed through Levi's head, all at once. Could this be his salvation? MC! He was so glad to see their face! But they must be grossed out by him... Maybe they came to laugh at him. He shouldn't be happy. He shouldn't get close to them. They would hurt him anyway. "... What do you want?" Levi asked. MC gestured at the full plate in their hand. "You missed dinner today again, so I thought I'd bring it to you." Levi's expression flinched in confusion. "... Why are you being nice to me?" He asked instead of reaching for the plate. "Should I not be?" The demon bit his lip. "... There is no point in being friendly to me. So go be with my brothers or something..." Irritated, MC tilted their head before crouching down in front of Levi. Putting down the food next to him, they kept mustering the demon. "Well..." MC mumbled. "We were going to watch some movies now, would you like to join u-" "Why would I want to watch you have fun with my brothers!?" Levi interrupted them. "Also, it's not like anyone would want me to be there anyway, so you don't need to ask me to hang out out of pity..." "L... Levi, that is not true-" "OF COURSE IT IS TRUE!" Levi cried out. "Who would wand a gross, lousy failure like me around them?! I'm just a worthless otaku with no friends that isn't good at ANYTHING, so quit trying to cheer me up, I know you're only saying this because you feel sorry for my miserable self..." But MC wouldn't leave his side. "Levi, I'm not lying. We're all worried about you." For a second, Levi met their gaze, however he would only shake his head. "No... So I am THAT pathetic, huh? All of you are talking behind my back, about what a hopeless piece of trash I am..." "No, Levi, it's-" "STOP TRYING TO TELL ME I'M NOT WORTHLESS" Levi shouted, his eyes bearing so much pain. "I'm not good enough for anything, not compared to all you others... So leave me alone, and go have fun, go smile your pretty smile to all those other people, I don't care!! I'm used to being alone, I don't need my brothers, or you, or friends or anything pathetic as that...!!" His eyes filled with tears again. "I-I've seen you have fun with them, so don't waste your time with me... You are a nice person, so I'm glad to see you... Get along... With... Everyone..." His face wrinkled as if biting into something bitter, pressing out those words. "So just ignore me... I don't need you... I... I don't need anyone. Don't need to laugh with others and go outside and live through adventures or talk to people or anything... pathetic as that... I don't need... A friend..." "But I want to be with you." Levi stopped his miserable ramble. He looked up, into their eyes. "I would like to be friends with you, Levi" MC said, looking back in determination. Levi seemed dazzled. "N... No..." He mumbled. "You're lying. You must be... There's no way that-" "I am not lying." Levi flinched. "B-but... I told you, I'm pathetic, gross, a LOSER! You'd be better off avoiding me, hating me! There's nothing likeable about me..." He would stop ranting, spitting out insults and words dripping with self-loathing. MC took a look around his room, thinking about a way to stop him... Their gaze stopped at his monitors. "Hey, this is Persona 5, right? I know that game" They said. And then, they gave a contemplative nod. "And I think this game is the best example of what you need right now." "... Huh?" MC turned to lock eyes with the demon. "A confidant." Levi seemed troubled. "... A confidant is nothing other than a friend, and I told you, I don't need th-" "The confidants in the game used to have a deal, right?" MC gave a smile. "They give each other something in return. And I think what you need is someone to show you positive sides of friendship... And of yourself." Levi's eyes widened. "I'm... I'm not great in any way-" "I personally don't know you enough to say, yet" MC continued. "But I'd like to know you better. So, if you let me be closer to you, without trying to push me away... I will try and give you self-confidence in return." A blush painted Levi's cheeks, but he remained unsure. "... That is a stupid deal. You're not gaining anything out of being closer to me." MC gave a contemplative sigh. "Then, how about you lend me your powers?" "... You want to form a pact with me?" They gave a nod. "Would that make you feel less... Left out?" The demon averted his eyes, but slowly gave a nod. "Maybe... B-but what if you'll regret it? I'm really not worthy of your time..." "Levi" MC called out. "Let me be the judge of that. We won't be immediate best friends... But we'll start at confidant rank one, and work our way towards becoming friends... Okay?" Standing up, they reached out a hand. And with glistening eyes, Levi took hold of them. "... I will probably be a nuisance, but if that's what you want, then... Yes. We have a deal." Hesitating, Levi had yet to speak the words to seal the pact, but, gathering all the courage MC had given him now, his lips curled in his excited little smile. "Let's... Let's do the pact the Persona way... To really be confidants." Clearing his throat, he began channeling the magic to form a pact with the human. And he spoke:

"I am thou, thou art I.

Though hast acquired a new vow.

It shall become the wings of rebellion

That breaketh thy chains of captivity.

With the birth of the Envy Persona,

I have obtained the winds of blessing that

shall lead to freedom and new power."

While Leviathan cited the game's words, MC felt an incredible power rushing through them. For a moment, their heart was filled with endless passion and creativity, flooding her soul in strong waves. But they could also feel a deep hole of fear and self-loathing piercing through their heart. When Levi had finished, they stared into each other's eyes. To MC's surprise, Levi's were filled with tears. And he smiled. "... Thank you, MC... For giving me a chance."

#obey me #obeyme #obey me shall we date #obey me leviathan #obey me lucifer #obey me mammon #obey me satan #obey me asmo #obey me beel #obey me belphie #obey me diavolo #obey me barbatos #obey me simeon #obey me solomon #obey me fanfic #oh my god i love levi so much #protect him at all costs #persona 5

63 notes · View notes

dexiao · 4 years

Text

Unprofessional (m) | Mark Lee

Synopsis: Mark and Y/N work together on writing songs and it flows perfectly fine - until Mark realizes how attracted he feels. Also, Y/N has a crazy thing about Mark’s thighs.

Pairing: Mark Lee x reader

Words: ~1.9k

Genre: angst, smut, coworkers!au, idol!Mark, lyricist!reader

Warnings: slightly dom!Mark, slightly sub!reader, thigh riding, blowjob (male receiving), masturbation (female), spit kink, safe sex, one slap or two.

A/N: sooo after a whole month (I guess?) without being able to write, here it is. Most of this fic was inspired by this fancam. This is not proofread until this moment. Any feedback is welcome, hope you enjoy :)

This is a work of fiction. It does not portray the real personality of the member.

Working with your boyfriend was both a blessing and a curse.

As a lyricist, it was a dream coming true when Y/N signed her contract with SM Ent. She worked with NCT since the beginning, but mostly with Taeyong since Mark was focusing on promotions with NCT Dream.

When she finally got to know Mark, she was mesmerized by the dark haired man. It was great to work with him, the compositions flowed so well and he seemed to be just a great person in general – until he became weird.

Out of nothing, Mark became quiet and things were strange. It became difficult to work with him.

There was a day she had to stay until late night at the studio, waiting for an order to be delivered, since it was the deadline of the delivery time. Y/N was sitting reclined on her desk chair as Mark walked into the room, his face showing he didn’t expect Y/N to be there.

“Hey”

“Uhm, what’s up” he answered quietly.

Mark sat as far as he could from me, lowering his head to write on his notebook. After half an hour of pure and plain silence, Y/N was bothered enough.

“Is there anything going on?” she asked. Mark raised his head, confused.

“Sorry?”

“It used to be so great working with you” she began, turning her chair in Mark’s direction “but recently you became all quiet, I feel like I’m disturbing you when I talk to you. Did I do something?”

Mark sighed heavily.

“Aah, I’m sorry, Y/N. I really am.”

Mark seemed nervous, staring at his hands.

“See, I am terribly attracted to you. I only knew you through work and this is the only string that keeps us attached.”

He pondered a few seconds before continuing, looking at Y/N’s face.

“I know that we’re both professionals and that what I’m saying is completely unprofessional, but I thought I could handle it and just get over without bothering you or affecting our jobs” he took a deep breath. “I don’t want to be disrespectful, I’m sorry if I made you uncomfortable.”

Y/N’s heartbeat was uncontrolled and she felt her face heating while listening to Mark.

“You didn’t, Mark.” She got up, walking towards Mark, bending in front of him and holding his face between her hands.

For a while, Y/N gazed into Mark’s sparkling eyes, feeling as if the man could listen to her heart. When Y/N realized she was holding her breath, she closed her eyes and exhaled. Mark closed his eyes as well, slightly brushing his nose against Y/N’s.

Then, they kissed.

Y/N and Mark’s relationship was being kept a secret for a few months now.

From the way it all began and from what Y/N knew about Mark before, she couldn’t imagine how dominant and how much of a tease the man could be.

Similar thoughts roamed through Y/N’s mind as she gazed at Mark’s appetizing thighs, evidenced by the fabric of his black sweatpants, feeling herself salivate.

Y/N shook her head, trying to focus on the meeting. The final touches of NCT 127’s next release were on discussion, so it was the last time to express her opinions on the songs they had so far. Crossing her legs tightly, Y/N paid close attention to the debate between the half dozen people in the room, including her boyfriend, whom shoved her warm gazes and smirks from time to time.

By the end of the reunion, Y/N could feel the sweat on her back and her legs were tired from being so tensely flexed against one another. She was extremely horny and thanked the gods that it was the last appointment of the day, to she and Mark could head to her apartment.

On her car, Mark laughed on the passenger seat as Y/N attempted many times on inserting the ignition key until actually leaving the parking lot of the company.

“Is my baby nervous?” he said with a laugh, patting her right leg before squeezing it.

Y/N’s muscles immediately contracted at Mark’s touch and she shifted on the seat, feeling not only her face but also the spot where Mark landed his hand become hot and tingling.

Taking advantage of the situation but still laughing, Mark spread his legs further on the passenger seat, massaging his thighs from his knees to near his crotch.

“I’m not nervous” she answered quietly.

“What did my baby say? I couldn’t hear it.”

She took a deep breath, stopping at a red traffic light.

“I said I’m not nervous, Mark” she repeated, side-gazing the man.

Mark reached her right hand with his left, bringing it to his lips and leaving a small kiss.

“Are you sure, Y/N?” he smiled, guiding her hand to his left thigh and rushing it over his sweatpants.

Y/N gulped, feeling trapped as Mark pressed her hand against is leg in a squeezing motion. The man threw his head back against the seat, releasing a low groan only to provoke. She moved her hand back to the steering wheel and faced the traffic as Mark stayed in the same position, his right hand massaging the back of his neck, moving down slowly through his torso to his crotch.

When the couple entered the apartment, Mark immediately took off his jacket, leaving it hanging on a chair.

“Baby, do you have sparkling water by any chance?” Mark asked as Y/N still worked on locking the door. Not bothering to take of her boots, Y/N moved to the fridge and looked for the bottle of sparkling water.

After grabbing the beverage, Y/N found Mark on her sofa, legs as spread as in the car. He patted his thighs, signaling Y/N to sit.

“Thank you, honey” he said, involving Y/N with his arms and kissing her shoulder before taking a sip of the water.

Mark leaned his back on the couch, making Y/N’s upper body rest against his chest.

After a moment of silence, Mark spoke.

“So, do you want to tell me why you’re all worked up?”

Y/N exhaled before raising her body to properly face her boyfriend, trying her best not to pout.

“I’m horny, baby. That meeting lasted so much and you were in this fucking thigh sweatpants right in front of me, God, Mark.”

Mark took another sip of his drink while Y/N repositioned in his lap, sitting on his left thigh but now facing him. Her skirt started rising due to the position she was in.

The man dropped the bottle on the floor and traveled his hands behind her thighs, up to her waist, squeezing the soft flesh beneath his fingers, one hand colder from holding the beverage.

“Give me a kiss then, baby” he demanded.

As Y/N leaned closer, his grip tightened around her waist, pressing her down on his thigh. Y/N had just released a short groan as their lips touched and Mark caressed her lower lip with his tongue.

The kiss became more intense and wet as their tongues danced, Y/N’s hands grabbing the hair near the nape of Mark’s neck and breathing heavily. Her core was now wetting Mark’s pants for sure, since he guided her hips back and forth on his thigh.

Mark broke the kiss, speaking out of breath.

“Stand up, baby, help me take these annoying clothes off.”

The wet sticky stain was pretty visible on Marks pants as Y/N stood and undid the knot at the waistband before pulling them down. At the same time, Mark removed his t-shirt, remaining only in his black boxers and sitting back in his place.

Y/N kneeled on the floor in front of Mark, leaving him confused. The woman began caressing his thighs, squeezing and biting the flesh of his toned legs. Mark whispered a ‘fuck’, placing his hands behind Y/N’s head.

After the torture she went through all day, Y/N became even more desperate when she was finally able to drool over and rub her face against those beautiful thighs. Mark seemed so powerful when manspreading with those thick thighs, Y/N just wanted him to dominate the hell out of her.

Noticing how needy she seemed, Mark himself took his erection out of his boxers, holding the base of his cock with one hand and pulling Y/N’s head closer with the other.

“Baby, you look so fucked out already, look at your face” Mark said, running his free hand through Y/N’s spit covered face. After giving Mark a pleading look, Y/N leaned and licked a stripe from Mark’s balls to the pink tip of his cock.

Mark hummed at the feeling of Y/N engulfing his member inside her mouth, bobbing her head up and down his length in a fast pace, hollowing her cheeks and moving her tongue to give Mark the best she could.

Simultaneously, she felt her pussy drooling just as much as her mouth did on Mark’s cock, so Y/N used one hand to pull her panties down, having a little of a hard time, but finally being able to touch herself after.

The minimal friction against her clit was enough to make Y/N moan around her boyfriend’s pulsating hard member. Thought she tried to keep quiet, Mark soon noticed what Y/N was doing and raised her face. She faced Mark still drooling and unable to stop touching herself, which was now obvious from her expression and the noises she made.

“Open” Mark commanded.

Y/N opened her mouth and stuck her tongue out. Mark grabbed her face by the jaw and stared at his dumb fucked out baby, drooling and whining, then he spat into her mouth, moving her to stand up again.

“Raise your blouse, I want to watch your tits while you take my cock” he said, grabbing a condom from the pocket in his wallet.

After putting it on, Mark pulled Y/N back to his lap. The woman was unable to control a whiny moan as Mark entered her pussy, feeling herself automatically clench. Mark raised her skirt up to her waist and leaned onto her breasts, licking and sucking over the softest flesh he’d ever seen. When Y/N started moving up and down his cock, Mark leaned back again, giving her ass a slap and biting his lip.

“Ah, fuck, Y/N.”

Y/N wasn’t even tired when Mark impatiently started bucking his hip up against hers, holding her tight by her butt and guiding the moves. Both had already stopped trying to contain their moans, thought Mark released much lower and raspier sounds. Both their orgasms approached quickly with the fast pace of the thrusts.

“Mark, I’m gonna come” Y/N warned before she started trembling on Mark’s lap, the clenching making the man reach his apex as well, releasing his seed inside the condom, both gasping and moaning.

After a couple of minutes of silence in which Y/N laid against Mark’s chest in order to regain her breath, she grabbed the bottle of sparkling water, taking a sip and passing it to Mark.

“Tired already?” she asked, in a joking tone.

“Not even close, baby” Mark laughed. “After all, now we have to make the night worth the mess you made in my pants, don’t you think?”

#mark lee #mark lee smut #mark lee fic #nct mark #nct mark smut #nct mark fic #nct mark angst #mark lee angst #nct 127 #nct 127 smut #superm mark #nct 127 mark #ml #masterlist #mine #mark lee x reader

236 notes · View notes

tomatograter · 4 years

Note

Do you have any tips on starting fics? Like thinking of idea's, getting motivation, and thinking up plots and themes?

Think of things you want to read about! The litmus test of anything writing-related to me is if i think it is compelling for myself. Trying to appeal to an outside audience can be very discouraging and counterproductive to getting words out.

I realize not everyone thinks like this, but i believe fics should be no different than other kinds of fiction, so; try to think of a Genre for your story while you're brainstorming it. This could flatten the process. It doesn't have to be set in stone, but ideally, placing what you intend to write as an "action" "adventure" "horror" "western" "dissertation" "comedy" "scifi" "missing scenes" etc etc story can be helpful to develop an atmosphere, further ideas, define what kinds of devices are to be employed and such.

Specially when it comes to fanfic and dealing with prewritten characters (see: dming for tabletop roleplaying games), i also think it is useful to write a story that challenges your characters. Not "i have a setting. I guess the characters will kick it up somehooooooow?". Make it tailor made. Character is afraid of snakes? Throw a fucking naja at them. This is a critical moment, what happens? Whos affected? Why should we care? What are the consequences? That gets your brain running. "Character is very invested in (X)" ok, now crush it. Same questions as before, why should we care? Can you pierce it back together? So on and so forth.

When you're cobbling it together, think of what kinds of situations could make a good contrast to their personality, troubles, weaknesses and a little bit of their strengths. (Balance it out.) It keeps things more engaging and interesting if your character is walking towards something, rather than being limblessly pushed by a series of events.

Being acquainted with the characters you're writing, their ticks, interests and embarassing traits is very helpful here. Play to their tune.

Dont let your scenes be an afterthought. You'll still have to write them after all!!! Not every scene has to be a showstopper, but if you find yourself writing large swatches of text whose only purpose is filling up space and not doing much tonally, emotionally, or character-wise, what is the point? Write things you want to read about. Think of the minutiae. 'How is this meeting/development/conflict different from others ive seen? Is it funnier? Is it unexpected? Is it cute? Is it embarassing - how can i make it evoke something like these traits?'

Write to your/your audience's level. Purple prose is cool, but are you comfortable with it? Does the story call for it? Are you sure you aren't more comfortable with other structures? Homestuck fanfic is neat because it's the fandom where I've seen the most entertaining works utilizing second person, and they can really rock.

Be indulgent. Don't be afraid to be stupid. This is self-explanatory. Keep a little document with all your ideas and dumb thoughts, no matter how messy they are. You'll eventually thank yourself for writing them down and not losing them later. Who cares if you want to write a fairy themed romance set in space? Wait, thats homest

Read other fanfics, sure, but read things that aren't fanfic. A lot of fanworks follow molds that may not be the best to replicate in your own writing. (Remember the "genre" bit from above? This is also helpful here, because then you know what to look for.) Hell, you don't even have to settle down to read all 600 pages of a book. Read opening statements from different authors. Compare and contrast first chapters. Find out what you like and what you dislike re: writing and try to replicate it in the lab. Do you have a story hook? Do these authors have a story hook that made you want to keep reading? How was that applied?

You're not going to write the fucking Mona Lisa on the first draft. Get that concept into your head, make peace with it, there, now you're friends. First drafts suck ass.

First drafts should suuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuck big smelly turds.

You're not doing it wrong. Try not to be discouraged! Instead, take it as a chance to read over your story and figure out what is not working. Write it again, with improvements. Personally i can't write anything straight through and i know very little people who can without having planned it beforehand - thats another keyword. Loosely planning scenes and a sequence of events showing how things happen is good even if you're improvising most of it, it gives you direction. Even better, sometimes it can help you visualize entire chapters or stories before punching them out. Even better! Crossing out the little blurbs of scenes you've completed and seeing how many are left to go can keep you motivated to finish the whole thing.

Writing is a laborious process, you dont need to make it more mystifying. Most of the magic comes with editing, re-writing, and adjustements.

Also, when you're done writing let it rest. Coming back to a text you think is finished 1-2 days later can be very illuminating, as opposed to posting straight away.

I hope this is useful in some way, and if it isn't, maybe this could be more up to your speed:

youtube

(Don't be intimidated by the equation. That was a very optional tip in a runtime of friendlier ones)

This lecture has some engaging tips on quickly snapping up concepts for short stories - your intention may not be writing a short story, but you still can get a kick out of how quickly she can structure them, brainstorming, what is used to give a sense of narrative progress, how to break complex things into bites, etc. Don't be afraid to learn stuff from people who have been doing this for longer than you have, but remember no writing instruction is necessarily universal.

#fanfic #meta #?

93 notes · View notes

chrispaulcolfer · 3 years

Note

i hate romantic blam so much but for some reason, everyone else adores them and says stupid shit like "blam would be so much better than toxic klaine, their friendship was so strong and they always supported one another unlike klaine"

first off, i think that if people don't think klaine was supportive, they watched the wrong show.

second, do these idiots realize that if blam had actually happened, the writers would have ruined them the way that they "ruined" klaine?? like...are they really dense enough to not realize this?

kurt and blaine had a fairly innocent friendship in s2 and look how that turned out.

people act like crackships are better because since it never happened on the show, they can create their own version of what would happen with the pairing, so they can make their ship unproblematic and hold them to an impossible standard that canon ships would never reach.

but the truth is that given the opportunity, if blaine and sam had dated (which i am so thankful that they didn't) their relationship would have been "ruined" as well, because the glee writers are just that incompetent.

also, going based solely on canon and not meta-wise, kurt and blaine's issues are kurt and blaine's own individual issues. if blaine was dating sam, he'd still be "clingy" and "needy" and would still have issues with self-confidence and abandonment and would still be every part of himself that caused his issues with kurt.

that just doesn't change just bc he's dating someone different. so i imagine that a lot of the fights and problems would be the same tbh.

i forgot to add that the finale of glee just shows why blaine and sam would never work. blaine is a city boy. he belongs in NYC, that's where he thrives and that's where his dream is. sam, per his own words, needs to be out in the open space - he needs to be in lima, ohio. blaine offers sam a room in his apartment and sam actually declines it, because that's not where he belongs. it's not where he could ever be truly happy.

so if canon blaine and sam were ever to get together, their relationship would never last because no matter where they lived, one of them would be unhappy. i'm sorry to all you blam shippers but they are just fundamentally incompatible just like finn and rachel.

oh, and sam is straight. but apparently that's a controversial opinion now because if men are affectionate and open with other men then they must be gay or bi 🤪🤪

THAT LAST PART THO. I mean, I'm agreeing with everything you said, BUT THAT LAST PART IS A PET PEEVE. And not in the sense that no one should be shipping what they want, even if in canon the character is straight. But in the sense that preaching about men needing to be more open about affection, be less about toxic masculinity, and get in touch with their feminine side. And if a straight man (real or fiction) does show emotion with another guy - NOPE, CLEARLY GAY. CLEARLY NOT STRAIGHT! Hate. It. And hate them.

But yes, I've been around people who think bl/am had way more chemistry than klaine did. Some even saying that they used to ship klaine until they saw the chemistry between Blaine and Sam and it just changed their mind. And then proceed to indicate that Blaine Anderson through writing is this nerdy, subservient guy who manages to fall into helpless situations where he needed constant saving because "his poor feelings" 24/7. Couldn't stand up for himself once. Couldn't think for himself. But OH, THE BEST THEY WRITER FOR BLAINE WOW. Like get fucked you pretentious, dim witted dumbasses. Thanks for weakening Blaine's character I guess. uwu bl/am 5ever because Blaine's attraction to Sam's lips is better than anything klaine had uwu. And Sam is superior because he never was biphobic uwu (because we ignore Sam being racist, noooo Sam is just hilarious and a dork, never did anything wrong. Oh also underage stripping is fine because it's hot as that's all Sam is reduced to I guess. Oh and abandoning your family to help a glee club isn't thoughtless - no no, Sam NEVER made dumb decisions, he's perfect for Blaine because impressions!!!). Give me a break.

Not every shipper is as awful, that much is obvious because every ship (being for it or against it) is going to have level headed shippers who can logically enjoy a ship without hating on the other canon love interest. But god, almost everyone I've been around who thinks it's necessary to hate on Kurt just to say their ship is more superior with "chemistry wins" logic pisses me off and we don't affiliate with those people anymore (thank god because you lose sanity around people like this). Wishing harm (sometimes death) on another character to upraise your ship isn't you being hilarious and quirky. It's just you being total assholes. And that goes for everyone.

#anti blam #mostly anti blam shippers too tho #you summed it up I'm just ranting my personal frustrations #long post #but they've seriously ruined my enjoyment of sam in s4 and the first half of s5 (and the long hair didn't help)#It just reads as a ship based off lustful simping for chord because the damn ab thirsting goes overboard every single time #IS THAT ALL SAM IS?! a nerd with abs?! GEEZ give his character more growth than that!#answered

11 notes · View notes

ordinaryschmuck · 3 years

Text

Why I (Want To) Love Amphibia

Salutations random people on the internet who probably won't read this. I am an Ordinary Schmuck. I write stories and reviews and draw comics and cartoons. If you've been paying attention to my posts, you would have known that I made a top twenty list of the best-animated series of the 2010s. And if you read my Honorable Mentions list, you would have known that I consider Amphibia one of those shows that, while I like it, I wouldn't go so far as to say that it's one of the best. Don't get me wrong. It's good. But there are issues that I have with Amphibia, and I can't recommend it without being hesitant. I still like it fine, but I doubt some people will be as forgiving as me. So I'm going to explain the quality and faults that the show has, while still being considerate to those who do love it. Because unlike some people who would make a two-hour-long video essay about how much they hate something, I can at least acknowledge that while something doesn't entirely work for me, that doesn't mean it won't work for everyone else. Because there is a reason why this show has such a following...I don't think it's earned, but I won't knock people down when they love something I find passable. And I hope that respect goes both ways as I explain why I (want to) love Amphibia.

Also, this review is going to contain spoilers for the entire series. So if you haven't checked it out yet, I recommend you do it to form your own opinion. Season one is on Disney+, and you're on your own for season two. And I suggest you find a legal way to watch it if you can, because I'm not going to leave a link to a pirating website filled with every animated series and movie you can find. And I'm definitely not going to insert that link into a random letter in this review with the thought that if you have to pirate something, then you might as well work for it. Because that would be crazy.

...

Stop being crazy.

....

Anywho, let's start with:

WHAT I LIKE

The Comedy: Let it be known that this show is funny. Like, really funny. I wouldn't go so far as to say that it's funnier than Gravity Falls, which got me chuckling with every episode, but Amphibia definitely hits more than it misses. There are occasions when the jokes aren't really character-oriented and could be said by anybody in the Plantar Family, but if they're still funny, then who am I to complain. Although there is one issue that I have with the comedy. But I'll save that for when I talk about what I don't like. For now, I can assure you that if you're hoping for some laughs, Amphibia has plenty to offer.

Warnings Against Toxic Relationships: But even the best comedies know when to offer some substance. Because I won't lie, when Anne described what is clearly a toxic friendship in the second episode, I was hooked. I love it when kids shows breach topics that can be important for children down the line. And for the most part, I think Amphibia does it well. There are so many instances that the writers' point out the several red flags that a person should avoid when it comes to a friendship and when it's time to either cut that person from your life and stand up for yourself. One of my favorite episodes is "Prison Break," where Sasha explains how she manipulates people and shows zero remorse for it. Then there's the episode "The Sleepover to End All Sleepovers" that shows how a person's influence can affect others and how much it changes perception as Anne and Marcy still believe they need someone like Sasha in their lives...At least I hope that's what the intention is. Because if the writers are trying to say that Anne and Marcy really need someone like Sasha...Well, I'll save that for my dislikes. Because even though it could use a little polishing, warning kids about toxic relationships is what keeps me hooked into seeing what happens next in this series.

It’s Not Afraid to go Dark: On top of breaking borders with morals intended for kids, I just gotta respect a show for playing around with what's considered "too dark." Especially if that show is on the Disney Channel!

The writers are not afraid to imply that death happens in the world of Amphibia, primarily because it is like a swamp ecosystem filled with predators and food chains. And I feel like because the characters are mostly amphibians, the writers can get away with an entire cave filled with the bones of victims as long as they're not humans. But frogs? No one gives a crap about them. There's a reason they're the ones who get dissected in schools.

Plus, a good majority of the monsters that Anne and the Plantars face are pretty horrifying at times. The crew who work on the show do a great job balancing the line of making these creatures look scary, but never go too far that they'll scar kids for life. Except in the Halloween special...How the f**k did they get away with the monsters in the Halloween special? And while they don't ever show what these monsters do, the implications honestly make things much worse, which again, I kind of respect. It's good to have shows like Amphibia that can scare kids a little bit. Getting through something fictitiously dark helps make kids feel braver and prepare them for the real horrors in the world. Especially since most of these creatures are just exaggerated versions of real-life predators...google them.

The Season One Finale: It was "Reunion" that made me realize that Amphibia has the potential to be amazing...it's also the last episode of season one, so let that sink in.

Joking aside, I honestly do love this episode. It's funny, it brings in elements from other episodes, nearly everybody does something useful, and it all ends with a satisfying and equally gut-wrenching climax. A climax, by the way, that is so perfect that I'm going to do a scene breakdown for why it's so good...so, you know, add that to the to-do list (I have so much s**t to make -_-). "Reunion" has so many elements about what makes a season finale so good that I feel like future writers should take notes for their own series that they plan to make. While I wish every episode of Amphibia had this level of quality, the writers know that the last impression is one of the most important. Because I will defend this show if this is the episode people use to trash it.

Marcy: I will also defend this show if someone trashes Marcy. Trust me, the best way to tell that someone is just hating on Amphibia for little to no reason is if they utter the word, "Marcy is a bad character." That is not true. Marcy is a great character, and I'd go so far as to say she's the best character in the series. She's sweet, adorable, and has a story ten times more interesting than Anne's. Anne learns what a sincere relationship is like through the Plantars, where Marcy falls victim to another manipulative relationship through King Andreas. It's her co-dependency that has the chance to get fleshed out more, and I can't wait to see if she has a moment to break out and form her own path.

Also, in the mass expanse of the multiverse, there exists a world where Amphibia is about the adventures that Marcy had in Newtopia as she uses Dungeons and Dragons logic to get by. And I want to see that universe! Because this clumsy nerd is already a blast to watch with the briefest of cameos. Imagine how much fun she would be if she had her own series!

Sprig: I don't know how much love Sprig gets within the fandom, but I got a feeling that it's not enough. He's funny without being annoying (most of the time), there's a whole lot of heart and sincerity to his actions, and above all else, he's the best friend that Anne needed. When Anne explained her very flawed views about friendship in "Best Fronds," it is clear how essential someone like Sprig is as he teaches Anne what friendship really means. It means caring for each other, supporting each other, making equal sacrifices for one another, and just being on the same page as each other. It is genuinely sweet seeing their friendship bloom, and I honestly hope the Amphibia fandom gives Sprig the amount of appreciation he deserves. Sure, he can be annoying sometimes, but for the most part, he's easily up there as one of my favorite characters.

Wally: Same with Wally! Who would have guessed that a character who appears as an dumb source of comic relief has a level of depth and lovability to him? "Wally and Anne" shows that while he is a nonsensical goofball, he doesn't really care what the frogs of Wartwood think of him. What matters is what he thinks of him. And that is just an incredible lesson to teach kids that just makes me love Wally more.

(It also helps that he's probably the funniest character in the show. I know I said that he's dumb, but when he works, he works.)

Kermit the Frog Cameo: ...It's Kermit the Frog, y'all. I physically can't hate him. Especially since this is the perfect show for him to make a cameo in!

WHAT I DON’T LIKE

Anne’s Character: I don't have a problem with Anne. I think she's a serviceable protagonist, and I love the fact that she's Thai, offering a form of Asian representation other than Chinese, Japanese, or Korean. But here's the problem with Anne: After a season and a half, I still don't know what her character is. If you were to ask me to describe a Disney show protagonist within one sentence, I could do it effortlessly. Watch:

Star Butterfly: An adrenaline junky of a warrior princess who slowly learns to be responsible with each passing season.

Luz Noceda: A generous nerd that obsesses about fantasy and fiction, who still understands when to take a step in reality when the moment calls for it.

Scrooge McDuck: An old Scottish miser who has the heart of adventure and is a duck that almost loves his family as he loves his money.

For Anne, I don't know where to start because her personality is so inconsistent. Sometimes she makes friends with others without even trying, and other times, she gets on others' nerves easily. Sometimes she's a thrillseeker with the heart of adventure, and other times, she's a person who prefers to hang back and avoid doing work. And sometimes she's the only sane character with logical advice, and other times she's the most insane character who needs advice. Now, you could argue that these are all character traits that make Anne multidimensional. But if you ask me, it seems like her personality is dependent on what the writers want her to be for the episode. Someone like Luz going back and forth between two traits only works if there is a dominant personality trait that takes over the other. If Luz spends an entire episode being angry and serious, it proves that there's more to her than just a character that's nerdy and optimistic. But it's clear she is still that lovable nerd by having her say a corny line like, "Talk to the glyphs, Witch!" But because Anne has so many personality traits, it's hard to tell which is the norm and what is out of character. Case in point: Having Anne obsess over hang-gliding in one episode and doing a puzzle in the next is off as neither correlates with each other. Nor do they tell me who Anne is, other than the fact that she's clearly a character lacking a singular identity. And seeing how she's the main character, the one audiences are supposed to root for and identify with, it's probably not a good thing.

The Story: For the record, I have no problems with the story itself...the way it's written, however...

First off, there's too much filler. This isn't necessarily a bad thing, as filler episodes have the potential to be fun when written well. The problem is that relying on filler instead of telling your story can leave some people (me) uninterested and angry. And the thing is, there is a perfect way to avoid filler that doesn't involve telling the overarching narrative: Introduce personal plotlines. Look at The Owl House, for example. There are several character-oriented narrative threads that get introduced within the first few episodes. Such as Luz learning magic, Eda's curse, her relationship with Lilith, and Amity's redemption. Therefore, The Owl House avoids any filler episodes just as long as it focuses on any of these plotlines and even introduces new ones. Amphibia has the plotlines, but it rarely focuses on them. Especially since the story takes way too long to develop.

Every time I think the show is finally going to start moving forward and we can continue the story, there are like ten more filler episodes where everything comes to a screeching halt. Now, to be fair, there is an explanation why we're forced to wait for the story to move forward, and it's because the characters are forced to wait as well. But, even then, there could have been better ways to pad out that waiting than just adding filler. For example, I may not have been forced into an alternate universe where nearly everything wants to kill me, but if I was, I WOULD SPEND EVERY WAKING MINUTE I HAVE TRYING TO FIGURE OUT A WAY BACK! In the first season, how many episodes does Anne spend trying to figure out the mystery of how she got there and how to go home? Two. There are two whole episodes, out of thirty-nine, where Anne tries to figure things out...That is insane to me. But to be fair, season two is doing a much better job at moving things along...but it doesn't change the fact that the writers are kind of bad at telling their own story.

There are two episodes, "Anne Vs. Wild" and "Lost in Newtopia," where the story continues, but it's only in the last few minutes. The problem is that if you take those endings out, the episodes themselves do not change a bit. BUT because those are significant and essential moments for the plot, you can't take them out. Resulting in scenes that, while intriguing, come across as awkward in the long run. So now, my question is why. Why is the story handled so poorly? And I have one theory.

It Feels Like the Writers Can’t Decide What they Want the Show to be: Sometimes it seems like Amphibia is written as a pure slice of life series like Big City Greens. However, there are times when the show seems like it's intended to mix slice of life with fantasy like Gravity Falls. Now here's the problem: Big City Greens and Gravity Falls are two very different shows in terms of storytelling, tone, and character work. Big City Greens is an episodic comedy series where character development is unimportant, and the adventures rarely go beyond just being wacky. As for Gravity Falls, it is a show that is semi-serialized where the character development is constant, and the fantasy-adventures are always prevalent in every episode. And there are several episodes of Amphibia that could be a part of either show. Episodes like "Stakeout," "Lily Pad Thai," and "Little Frog Town" have plots that I can see being in Big City Greens. Then there are episodes like "The Domino Effect," "Toad Tax," and "Marcy at the Gates" that I could see being in Gravity Falls. These two groups of episodes are vastly different from one another that it causes Amphibia to feel disjointed in the process. Usually, I'm a fan when a series mixes different genres together, but do you want to know why something like Gravity Falls does such a great job at mixing slice of life with fantasy-adventure? Because, as I said, fantasy-adventures are always present in every episode. "Dipper vs. Manliness," "Boss Mabel," and "Roadside Attraction" each have the most basic slice of life plots of the show, but there is always a fantasy element or a monster to fight. There are entire episodes of Amphibia where there is no monster, and even when there is, it doesn't have the same amount of tension and weight that the creatures in Gravity Falls have weekly. A show like Big City Greens doesn't have to worry about monsters or evil villains every week because it doesn't need to. It's a show about the wacky adventures of a family of farmers adjusting to city life. Why would they have to worry about a monster every week when they just have to worry about each other. If Amphibia was the same way then there would be no issue. But because if it wants to be a mix of slice of life with fantasy, then it does need to worry about a monster every week. I usually try to defend shows that try to play both sides, but this show has to be the one occasion where I have to say pick one or the other. Because the writers tried hard to be both, and personally, I don't think they did a good job.

Characters Don’t. Stop. SCREAMING!: It's here we move on from what's objectively wrong with Amphibia to the things that just bother me personally...and this is one of those things. I get it. An over-the-top reaction to something minimal can be funny on occasion...but it's never "on occasion" with this show. Nearly every episode has characters screaming to get a laugh, and most of the time, it's more annoying than it is funny. It's Hop Pop who does this the most, and I just feel so bad for Bill Farmer. That voice already seems like it's hard to do, so being forced to scream and yell with it for the sake of comedy can't do him any favors. Other shows, especially ones on the Disney Channel, have characters overreact for the sake of humor, but it's Amphibia that I feel like it relies on this the most. I'm sure some people aren't bothered by this, but I am, and this is my review, so I'm mentioning it.

Poly: Speaking of things that probably don't bother other people...I feel like I'm making some enemies with this one. Because, boy, do I not like Polly. Her voice is annoying, she mostly causes problems for the family, and to me, her entire character seems pointless. No, really. Think about it. Anne is the main character, Sprigs acts as her emotional support, and Hop Pop acts as the voice of reason. What's Polly's purpose? Because all she adds are unnecessary jokes, character traits that could have gone to anybody, and acting more as a plot device than an actual character. The only justification for her that I can think of is that she adds gender balance to the main cast. Which would be more than acceptable if there was a point to her existence. But I think it's pretty evident with her exclusion from the original pilot pitch for the program that Polly's personality is practically pointless...that is most likely the only alliteration I'll ever do for a review, so you have better appreciated it.

If you like Polly, then more power to you. For me, I just don't enjoy her.

Sasha: Oh, nelly. I can already see the hateful messages I'm gonna get from this.

Now, as a character, I actually do like Sasha. I think her personality is interesting enough to dissect, and I think she acts as a perfect antagonist to Anne, the Plantars, and even Marcy if you want to get into it. My problem relies on how much the fanbase is already jumping on the "Forgive Sasha" train. Because, "Aw, she's just like Catra and Amity! So sweet, tortured, shippable with the main character, and--" STOP IT! Stop it right now...and think. With Catra and Amity, you see the environment they grew up in, you feel the abuse they deal with, you understand the reasoning of their actions, and you come to forgive them for who they are...At least for Amity, you can. For Catra, it requires more of an argument. But Sasha? Did we see the same cruel mistreatment to her friends? Did we hear the same coldness in her voice as she describes how to manipulate people? Did we witness the same damage she's done to Anne and Marcy in how they perceive healthy relationships? Apparently not! Because while everyone else is already on the same page that Sasha deserves redemption, I'm sitting here thinking that maybe it's for the best to be a little more hesitant. So far, we have yet to see any way to understand her reasoning and have yet to see how she deserves forgiveness. Sure, Sasha was willing to sacrifice herself for Anne, but did Sasha really earn that? It works as a sudden realization that Anne deserves better, but Sasha has yet to do anything that proves she can be better. Especially since the next time we see her, she's trying to help a fascist ruler get back up on his feet...THINK ABOUT THAT!

But, sure, she's meant to be forgiven. That can work. Because while Sasha shows kids the type of people they should avoid, she can also work as a warning for what kids should avoid becoming. That is a great thing to teach...but it can also be potentially dangerous. Because if incorrectly interpreted, Sasha can show kids that every person who seems toxic just needs a chance to change. And that is the last thing you want to teach, given how very few toxic people actually change. You want to know why The Owl House gets away with an equally dangerous lesson about how not every bully is awful? It's because it shows two sides of the spectrum by proving why someone like Amity did the things she's done while also saying that characters like Boscha and Mattholomule are just a-holes for the sake of being a-holes. Sasha has no one to compare to. Sure, there's King Andreas, but he's a government figure. They're built to be manipulative. Sasha needs someone that's on her level of cruelty to prove that while some people can change and have reason to do so, others don't. And seeing how I don't think she deserves to change, at least not yet, that is an issue. It's the biggest issue out of all the issues I have with this show.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

So, yeah, I think it's pretty evident how I feel about Amphibia when I can write paragraphs about the stuff I don't like while barely being able to talk about the things I do like. Because I do enjoy this show. It's funny, most of the characters are enjoyable, and its discussion on toxic relationships still has me hooked to see what happens next. My issue lies with inconsistency. The main protagonist, storytelling, genre, and thematic purposes are all inconsistent. I'm interested enough to watch more, and who knows, maybe I'll make a final verdict review once the series comes to an end. For now, if you had to ask me what I’m excited to make a return, I don't know if I'll be willing to hop to it by saying Amphibia.

(Also, if you're still looking for that link for that pirating website I mentioned, now would probably be a good time to tell you that I really never did put one in. I told you, that would be crazy...That should teach you to try to break the law.)

#amphibia #what i thought about #why i want to love #anne boonchuy #sasha waybright #marcy wu #sprig plantar #polly plantar

24 notes · View notes

thoughtsofanexcitedspacechild · 4 years

Text

Kataang: An In Depth Analysis

Hello again! I apologise for the inactivity. It’s been a busy month as far as school goes for me, so let’s just say I’m a lot busier solving chem equations and working on stuff for AP art. Don’t get me wrong though! These analysis and essay format posts are my favorite and I wish I could do them more often! Seriously, it’s the only thing that keeps me wanting to write! I’ve also decided that I’m going to make these little intro paragraphs separate to the actual essay, because while I’m at this, why not kill two birds with one stone and practice writing essays for my actual AP Lang. class? I mean I’m obviously not gonna turn them in or show them to my teacher, (unless this gets 1000 notes or more, in which case I’ll show this to her ;)) but this is a good way for me to work on formatting a thesis and developing arguments, all while doing and talking about something I love! Speaking of which, let’s dive right on into today’s topic; the much debated, and thoroughly analyzed ship: Kataang. (Buckle your seatbelts hotmen, because this is gonna be one hell of a sky bison ride) I got inspired by a creator on Tik Tok that I follow, Amanda Castrillo, to write this. Her username is @theamanda2d and I highly recommend you go check her out and give her a follow. A lot of the arguments in this are my own, but I also sourced a lot of information and arguments for Kataang from her series “a case for Kataang”, which I highly recommend you go watch. I’ll insert her quotes directly so you know exactly where her points are coming from as well as mention where I elaborated on a point she made but didn’t directly quote her. I’ll also be sourcing a lot of information from the show and including exact episodes and scenes that support my case. So without further ado, here is my *unofficial* case for Kataang.

In our lives, there’s usually one point at which most of us make a choice. That choice is to love someone. Yes, you heard me right. You make the choice to love someone. Of course, the feeling that most people know as love, but is really just sexual or romantic desires, tends to be confused with real love. Authentic love that comes from the choice to love someone. This kind of love persists through even through the darkest times. This kind of love truly does burn brightest in the dark.

It stems from a strong base of mutual understanding and friendship first, and doesn’t rely on a spark of passion to keep burning although it can fuel the flame that already burns strongly. There are many great examples of this kind of love, both in our own world and daily lives, but also in literature. One of the greatest examples of this, is the relationship explored between the fictional characters Aang and Katara from Avatar: the Last Airbender. (Oh, what? You don’t think Avatar is a legitimate form of literature? Pity, you must not have read my previous posts or even watched the show at all, because it IS.)

From the time I first watched the show, I was rooting for them to end up together. Right off the bat, Aang and Katara have this instant connection. Within the first episode, they already become friends, and not only that, they act as if they’ve been friends for years, almost like they were meant to meet each other. Aang finally getting together with Katara just feels right, but there’s more to their relationship than the feelings that Katara and Aang both experience and the feelings that we the audience feel seeing them together. Throughout the series we see them both make the choice to love each other, not only as lovers, but as friends too. Their relationship thrives, and we’re able to see them both grow as people and better themselves because of each other.

Firstly I want to address the counterargument that many people bring up and that is that Kataang, in and of itself, is one sided. Fans (often Zutara shippers. More in depth analysis on why this ship DOESN’T work out realistically to come) will argue that Kataang is forced and one sided, and that Katara doesn’t share Aang’s feelings. Although I can see where this is coming from from a first time viewer’s perspective, this argument can be extinguished by looking deeper at Katara’s actions and intentions towards Aang. We see them bond as friends very early on in the series, but the earliest hint at a romantic relationship actually shows up in season one episode four, when they go to Kiyoshi Island. Katara acts snarky and jealous when Aang gathers quite a fan club of little girls.

Nevertheless, when this fan club fails to stick around for Aang’s encounter with the unagi, Katara’s the one that’s there making sure he’s okay. (S1, Episode 4, The Warriors of Kiyoshi) This is ultimately foreshadowing for their relationship as a whole. Although his role as Avatar lands him many friends, and in this case fans, the only person that truly stays with him the whole time is Katara. She’s the one who shows up and has his best interests at heart. Most of her intentions are in fact platonic in this episode, but the hint of romance comes out when we see that Katara doesn’t like the idea of Aang with another girl.

After half way through season one, specifically the Fortune Teller episode, we do see that Katara does in fact have feelings for Aang, albeit complex ones. In this episode we see her pester Aunt Wu for information about her future husband and she’s informed that he’s a very powerful bender. She doesn’t consider Aang until Sokka mentions that it freaks him out how powerful of a bender Aang is while Aang protects and saves the village from it’s demise by an erupting volcano. Her hopes were set high on a muscley, extremely strong looking bender, and I’d like to imagine that before her realization, Katara was probably picturing someone more like Haru or even post redemption Zuko as her future husband. For the first time, that image is replaced by Aang, and she doesn’t mind it. (S1, Episode 14, The Fortune Teller) We see these new found feelings develop further in the Secret Tunnel episode, when Katara is finally forced to confront the romantic feelings that she’s pushed down while trying to sort them out. At this moment, Katara finally acknowledges her romantic feelings and attraction to Aang. (S2, Episode 2, The Cave of Two Lovers) The creators intentionally showed us the story of the two lovers for a reason. “Avatar is a very smart show,” says Amada Castrillo, Avatar fanatic and creator of the Tik Tok and youtube series “A Case for Kataang,” “and we’re never told or shown anything for no reason...A war was keeping them apart maybe not physically, but romantically.”

Later in the series during the season finale of season two we see her absolutely distraught when Aang nearly dies and she does everything in her power to save him. We see her almost break. Only when he wakes up does she feel better, and start to be happier again. She doesn’t care about anything else but making him feel better, and even when he does wake up, she still focuses mainly on healing him. Here we see Katara make the choice to love Aang both in sickness and in health. (S2, Episode 18, The Guru/The Crossroads of Destiny and S3, Episode 1, The Awakening) She of course would have done this for any member of team avatar, but the way in which she treats Aang when he’s nearly taken away from her points to the extreme love and affection that she carries for him every day. This happens multiple other times throughout the series, with many of the occurrences being in book three. When Zuko joins the Gaang, she flat out tells Zuko that if he were to hurt Aang, (not Sokka, not her, not Toph, but Aang specifically) she would personally see to his demise. (S3, Episode 11, The Western Air Temple, 23:30) (Some Points taken from, but not directly quoted from Amanda Castrillo’s “A case For Kataang Part Nine: Text and Subtext”) This is why the assumption that Kataang is one sided can be proven wrong.

Two other arguments stem from the previous argument, one being that Aang is a simp, and/or that Katara is a trophy. First of all, the later argument is easily disproved by the fact that Katara is not a prize to be won. “Katara is, and was never a prize for Aang,” says Castrillo, “And to say that she was, grossly mischaracterizes and undermines her as a character.” (Amanda Castrillo, (@theamanda2d) “A Case for Kataang: Chapter 2, Katara the trophy) Katara is shown multiple times throughout the series being able to speak up and defend herself without Aang’s, or anyone else’s help.

Aang, although viewed as a simp, is not. Yes he respects Katara, and all other women for that matter, but he doesn’t fawn over her. He allows her to defend and take care of herself. The definition of the word “simp” is the abbreviated term “simpleton”, meaning “a silly or foolish person.” Although Aang is silly at some points, he’s also not foolish. He’s a smart and capable individual that many fans fail to recognise as legitimate because of his innocence and softness. So no. Aang isn’t a simp that bases his entire self worth on his status with Katara.

Another point that must be acknowledged is the fact that Aang and Katara are actually complementary characters. Although many people would bring up the argument that Air and Water aren’t opposite elements, the type of bender they are doesn’t necessarily tend to point to the exact type of person they are. The creators aren’t dumb, and the characters in this franchise are so well developed, that there are many sub personalities in each type of bending, and all of them can be analyzed further than the type of element they bend. Judging a character solely by the element they can bend is like judging a person on the color of their skin or a book by it’s cover, and when diving deep into each of their personalities, we can see that their personalities are actually complementary. Katara is high strung and anxious while Aang is usually calm and collected. Aang is very good at regulating his emotions while Katara is not. This aspect extends further than their personalities as well. Katara grew up in a very family oriented and close family while Aang only had one parental figure in the form of Gyatzo and occasionally a few friends. Katara is also more grounded and a home body while if he could, Aang would probably continue to explore whatever corner of the earth that he could. (Some points taken, but not directly quoted from Amanda Castrillo (@theamanda2d), “A Case for Kataang: Chapter 10, Balance”)

Another thing that I found is that when looking at color theory, Aang’s signature orange toward the end of the series and Katara’s signature blue are actually complementary colors. I’d like to think that as Katara develops and explores her feelings for Aang, Aang’s color palette changes slightly. It goes from being red and yellow in the beginning when Katara didn’t know she had feelings quite yet, to eventually shifting to orange when we see her feelings start to fully become clear. I thought this was a super interesting detail and despite it being a bit far of a stretch, I think it must have been planned. If you consider the time when we see Katara start to develop feelings, it’s about the same time that Aang’s outfit choice shifts to orange. Of course, this piece of evidence is mostly based on my personal observation and knowledge of color theory, but it’s a detail that I personally found super compelling.

Kataang also works because of the extremely well executed communication and dialogue that happens between them. There are multiple different examples throughout the series and as their character’s develop, we’re able to see a beautifully efficient and respectful form of communication between them. We see Aang clearly express his feelings of anxiety to Katara, and in return, Katara is able to help him and offer advice on what he’s feeling. Katara also is able to confide in Aang in return and oftentimes he’s the one that she’s most comfortable being vulnerable in front of. We see her almost mother Aang alongside Sokka in the first season, but her relationship with him changes and shifts to one where both her and Aang feel comfortable and contribute and receive equal care from each other.

One issue in particular also comes to mind when talking about this ship, and that is the issue of boundaries. Counter arguments against Kataang often bring up one scene in particular, specifically in the Ember island players episode about halfway through when Katara confronts Aang on the balcony. (S3, episode 15, the Ember Island Players) Episode Aang is understandably upset with the way that he and specifically he and Katara’s relationship is portrayed in the play. He obviously has feelings for her and at that point we know that Katara also has feelings from a few episodes prior when they kiss before the invasion. That kiss was mutual, and she kissed him back, meaning that from that point on, both of their feelings towards each other are very clear. The night of the play on the balcony, Aang does cross a boundary that had been established. The kiss before the invasion made sense, and Katara didn’t do anything to stop him from doing it, and Aang had her consent in this case. Aang’s kiss on the balcony was a mistake, and in this case it was uncalled for, but many people misread Katara’s feelings of confusion. When Katara mentions being confused, she’s not saying she’s confused about her feelings for Aang. Since season one, we’ve seen her show multiple forms of affection towards Aang, and not only that, she was usually the one initiating the many hugs, cheek kisses, etc.

She’s not confused about how she feels about Aang. She’s confused about the timing and if it’s a good idea or not. (Some points taken from, but not directly quoted from, Amanda Castrillo (@theamanda2d) “A Case for Kataang Part 7: The Camelephant in the room)

Regarding the consent for the kiss, yes. That was Aang’s mistake. He’s human, and he did mess up there. But his intentions weren’t meant to harm anyone. He, like so many of us watching at home, read Katara’s confusion to be about him, and wanted to see what she really felt. Afterwards, he knows he messed up, and feels bad about it. “...[Aang’s] very self aware. He knows how he feels about Katara, and he’s said it multiple times...Aang is human. He f***s up. He says the wrong thing. He makes mistakes. And he was just as confused as Katara at this moment.” (Amanda Castrillo, (@theamanda2d) “A Case for Kataang Part Seven: The Camelephant in the room)

Lasty, I want to acknowledge the visual and audio parallels portrayed in the show and how they can effectively work towards supporting Kataang. If you observe the angles at which characters are shown as well as the framing, it visually sets up and can represent how two characters feel about one another. First let’s consider the framing of a scene from the very first episode after Katara breaks Aang out from the ice. Aang is lying down and katara is directly positioned above him. When he wakes up from being trapped in an iceberg for 100 years, her face is the first that he sees.

This positioning and framing is shown multiple more times throughout the series, establishing their strong connection. So is this one:

(For a better visual reference please see Amanda Castrillo’s video “A Case for Kataang Part Four: Parallels) “Its built up and set up for us time and time again. Their interactions aren’t framed like that for no reason. Scene framing matters.” (Amanda Castrillo, “A case for Kataang Part Four: Parallels.”

There’s also the fact of the score and what specific music points to what character or what mood the creators were trying to enforce with the music. Avatar’s score is genius and every song and note was hand crafted to set the tone for each scene and help explain what’s happening. (This is one of the many reasons Avatar would translate well to be a musical or even a ballet. Post/informal rant on this later to come.) There are many great examples, like how Azula is represented by a clash of chords, (To quote my previous post: “I love how Azula is just represented by a pair of clashing chords and when you hear it you know that she’s about to f*** s*** up.”) or that Aang has a lively flute melody that plays when he gets really happy/excited, but perhaps the best example of the use of music in the franchise is the use of the “Avatar’s Love Theme.” It’s my personal favorite song from the show, and it’s used extremely effectively and efficiently throughout the show to provide a very specific and recognisable feeling: romantic love. When you hear it play, Aang is ALWAYS with Katara. Go back and listen to the times where it plays, and it’s always when he and Katara share a special moment together. We only hear part of the melody for the majority of the series, but in the final episode, right towards the end when Aang and Katara are left alone on the balcony looking above the city by themselves, we hear it play again, and this time, we hear all of it. The kiss between them also happens right at the crescendo and peak of the music, emphasizing and establishing that Aang and Katara are officially canon. The music plays a huge part in this story, and all musical elements as well as visual point to Aang and Katara being a team, and not just that, but a romantic couple.

In conclusion, Aang and Katara are a couple that was meant to happen. Throughout the series, their love is shown through their undeniable chemistry, complementary characters and personality, and the visual and musical elements set up for us within the show. Aang and Katara love eachother very much, and although their feelings were often being confused by looming threats to their lives or tainted by the war they were both fighting, in the end they’re able to fully and completely allow themselves to love each other. Despite their romantic love, they are ultimately friends before they are lovers, and don’t rely on a spark of passion to be able to keep their love for one another burning. They love each other wholly and in so many different ways, and that my friends, is why Kataang works and will always work.

#avatar: tla #kataang #katara #aang #atla

67 notes · View notes