#yet everyone can be heroic and everyone deserves love

[fictionadventurer]

If Elizabeth Goudge could stop making me want to break down weeping in the middle of Domino's, that'd be great.

#the rosemary tree #elizabeth goudge #books #to be fair most of it was probably hormones + low blood sugar #but her exquisitely compassionate character work didn't help #i had to actually stop reading for a bit while waiting for my pizza #because 'yet miss giles in the shadows seemed not far' made me want to bawl from the compassion in the idea #she was presented as the horrible teacher and yet goudge is so careful to outline the why #the strengths that could be heroic if she could overcome selfishness enough to be kind #goudge is just so good at entering into everyone's internal life to make you understand that everyone's a mess #yet everyone can be heroic and everyone deserves love #who knows which way it'll go but the fact that there's any hope says a lot #i'd almost say her treatment of the headmistress disproves the point #because now that she's pointed out the rot beneath the sweet exterior she's being painted almost as a boogeyman #but even there we see the flaws that led her there and signs that she *wasn't* always like this and could be better #it's just #i've never seen anyone more compassionate toward all their characters even while being so unflinching about their flaws #closest thing i've seen is isfjmel-phleg's treatment of her blackberry bushes characters #it's about understanding the why #we can't really love people unless we take the time to understand them

[twopoint99]

Possible spoilers if you haven’t already listened or read the book. Also, spoilers for The Horror of Dracula, 1958 and Bram Stoker’s Dracula, 1992.

One of my favorite things about @re-dracula is seeing the reactions of people whose main exposure to the story is through the many film adaptations. The differences in how the characters relate to one another are way too many to list from film to film. Even aside from the bizarre choices (Lucy as Mina’s sister-in-law - the Horror of Dracula, 1958, or Mina as the reincarnation of Dracula’s lost love - Bram Stoker’s Dracula, 1992) the most important difference between those adaptations and re - dracula is that these are fully rounded characters who clearly care about one another.

Jonathan adores Mina, Mina loves him, and loves Lucy. The suitor squad and Van Helsing genuinely cherish Lucy and it causes everyone palpable pain when they see her slipping away. When the group finally gets together in one place, they all acknowledge and respect the various strengths they each bring, and they hold one another up as needed.

None of the characters seem cast aside, as often happens in film adaptations. Even the 1992 film, which includes all three suitors, doesn’t manage to make them all seem like full personalities. They appear more as aspects of an individual, or as tropes. Lucy herself in the ‘92 movie is the complete opposite of her characterization in the novel. Her behavior in the film is anachronistic at best, and offensive at the least. It is a perfect illustration of the stupid and misogynistic attitude in horror that “wanton” women are punished.

Not only that, but it also completely changes the story and the dreadful implications of it. Lucy isn’t targeted because she’s “done something wrong” (quotes because I don’t believe expressing/exploring one’s sexuality is wrong, no matter what my favorite genre keeps telling me), she is targeted because she is convenient. Dracula wasn’t musing in between leaving his castle and reaching England that by golly, he couldn’t wait to terrorize Lucy Westenra! He saw an opportunity, like any other predator, and he took it.

Of course, we’ve seen that he is very willing to play with his food once he feels in control. He was very pleased to be able to torment Jonathan, yet another character who is often treated poorly in adaptations - in the 1958 version he’s so smug and patronizing toward what appears to be a terrified woman, that I was actively hoping for his death.

In contrast, the novel/Dracula Daily/re-dracula show us a sweet, earnest man, one who is gentle and loving. He, like Lucy, is a convenient victim, and like Lucy, is innocent.

The true horror is that terrible things can happen to anyone, and no amount of wealth, education, or simple good-heartedness, will act as a shield. There are no preventatives, and no one “deserves” the terrible things that happen. The real strength of the story isn’t in deciding which characters(usually women) are worthy of saving, an overly simplistic approach that many film adaptations take, some more subtly than others. The story resonates because in spite of the randomness of the horror, the people involved decide to do something about it.

These people are not always perfect or even heroic. Dr. Seward (who I really enjoy, and who is also often portrayed badly in adaptation) is not a safe person for his patients to be around. He is ableist, arrogant, patronizing, and definitely not handling his own mental health well. He is also loving, practical, loyal, and in many ways exceptionally tender-hearted. All of the cast is achingly good in their portrayals, but Johnny Sims’ interpretation of Seward has been revelatory. The man is flawed, but gosh darnit, he’s absolutely human. His pain is visceral, his awkwardness is utterly relatable, and his attempts to make things make sense is so hard to hear, because we want the awful things to be a puzzle with a logical solution, but we also know that there is no motivation for what is happening, it is all chance.

Mina herself questions why they need worry about Dracula, once he is gone from England. By this time she’s had a horrific experience with the count and understandably wants to be done with the whole thing. Earlier, however, she begins her work of compiling all the information available about Dracula, because she understands that something may need to be done, for the good of all.

She is afraid of losing her husband, she is afraid of what other horrors may wait, but she also is able to put that aside to continue to pursue stopping Dracula, so that there won’t be another victim, and so that Dracula himself might be saved from the horrific reality he’s experienced for so long.

I have been telling people ad nauseum that re-dracula is hands down the best adaptation of the novel I’ve ever encountered. It is because it is treated as a story about people, real people, with real connections to those around them, real flaws and strengths, who grow to share a bond. They swear to stop Dracula, not out of vengeance, as Jonathan can be forgiven for wanting, but out of love for those they have lost and those they may save.

#re: dracula #tiny essay #if you aren’t listening but have any interest please listen #you won’t regret it

[bibibbon]

MHA chapter 420 rant

New chapter new rant it's become somewhat of a thing at this point 😭

So hori's out here deflating any stakes or tension as always. I personally hated what happend last chapter with Izuku losing both his arms but I did wish for hori to continue on the path he chose instead of completely reversing it with some bs in this chapter. Heck I don't understand how Eri even had enough energy to heal his arms considering it was stated chapters before that she couldn't and shouldn't help Izuku it wasn't her fight and neither should she be forced to watch what's going on but here we are.

Heroes are hypocrites when it comes to Eri and she deserves better. Oh Eri the ever so lasting plot device. As someone that likes Eri's character and wished for her trauma and what she went through to be explored this is just bs and shows that the heroes are incompetent hypocrites at their jobs for allowing Eri to mutilate herself (the same thing overhaul did to himself) so she can be useful to these people who she views as her saviours?!?!?! Let's not even tall about the fact that ECTOPLASM stated that he helped her with that and allowed her to do that like?!?!? You're an adult who is supposed to be supervising the child and you almost failed to stop her from running away into the battlefield but allowed her to do that to herself. Let's also talk about how aizawa horribly failed as a guardian like its clearly stated in the chapter that she did want she did because she was inspired by aizawa and how he cut his leg off so she mimicked him so she can be helpful?!?! Aizawa isn't angry, worried or disappointed but shocked and that's it nothing else he doesn't even reprimand her like seriously 😑.

Present mic and kurogiri deserves better. We still don't know where present mic is but he deserves better than this I still hate how his feelings aren't acknowledged in this bs and he is just there pushed to the side as support. Kurogiri is a mix at this point they seem to realise that oh oboro is dead he ain't coming back but kurogiri is acting on memories that haven't died and to be honest Iam sick of hori drawing the same memory panel over and over we should just get new content show us them play fighting or doing something that friends do idk 🤷‍♀️

Wasted potential aizawa at this point. I lasted made a post about aizawas wasted potential but dam does it really show and basically at this point hori reduced all the characters involved in the kurogiri situation to just that and it's sad like we could of had more and we should of. Aizawa was doomed from the start as he was hori's mouthpiece which sucks

Iam not a fan of everyone coming in to fight AFO. I already hate the fact that AFO is back but having everyone who hasn't had a big moment or can still fight yet come into the fight is horrible. Iam ok with having a few characters come in but having some endgame avengers type of thing is horrible especially because class 1A and izuku aren't shown to have a strong bond a lot of the time it's one of the reasons why the vigilante arc fails and why a lot of other moments concerning class 1A and izuku fail.

Iam a fan of the civilians trying to help however they can but no inko?!?!!?!!. I loved that we got the page of civilians genuinely wanting to help Izuku and offering their shirts to stop the bleeding also even though we don't get much from the all might guy I genuinely loved the development he has gone through. Sadly, I was expecting to see inko in this chapter and considering we had a whole page dedicated to the civilians it's sad that we didn't get any update on inko as she was probably there watching what happend to her son

Eri's dream. I loved that Eri's dream is something way outside of heroics and it's something that doesn't involve her quirk at all. It makes me remember of izuku holding her hand and telling her that he supports her dream. I wonder if Eri and jirou hang out often or anything considering that jirou is Eri's inspiration or if present mic also inspired Eri. it's sad that Eri's character is never truly explored considering what happend to her this chapter and the double standards that are with both heroes and villains.

ALSO MONOMA YOU DESERVE BETTER YALL TELLING ME THAT DENKI ALREADY QUIRK EXHAUSTED IS OUT HERE FIGHTING BUT MONOMA CANT FOR SOME REASON IS VILE

#mha critical #bnha critical #mha #hori is a bad writer #horikoshi critical #izuku deserves better #eri deserves better #mha 420 #bhna critical #bnha #i dont know #monoma deserve better #present mic deserves better #kurogiri deserves better

[signedeclipse]

Sorry, I had submitted this request earlier but forgot to specify the type of post I wanted. I would like to request a headcanon reader x kyogai, akaza and gyutaro (separate) where the reader is the opposite of a damsel in distress, being very cool, independent, humorous, strong, smart, never falters under pressure besides being well-groomed and civilized, she can be very sweet to them but sometimes she teases them harmlessly and can be quite persuasive. I love your writing!!!

Akaza | Gyutaro | Kyogai [X Reader]

In which their s/o is very independant and can easily defend herself.

Akaza

It's very hard to match him up in strength considering your human limitations

But even so, it's impressive that you can at least bring him to a struggle during a strength-only battle

He does go easy on you, I mean, you can't compare to his ability to punch someone's jaw off, but he has a relaxed fighting mode and you both train together sometimes

Regardless, Akaza is happy to have met someone that trains and works out with him

Besides sheer strength, you could outwit him very easily, sometimes gaslighting him a little bit over something stupid, which makes him laugh when he realised you almost got him

I mean seriously, who would think brown cows make chocolate milk? Almost him, apparently

While he is naturally very defensive of you when it comes to his colleagues, he trusts you to be on your own

No one would pick a fight with you because you're so good at working it out, and even if they did, he knew you'd leave them with a scar and a face to never forget

The one time he saw you knock a man out scared him just a bit, because you do sort of baby him in your personal time and seem so kind

EIther way, he loves his knight in shining armour

Gyutaro

You're first meeting was actually you shielding him from the sun, before he was yet an uppermoon, only a few decades after he and his sister had transformed

And with a first impression like that, you'd managed to get along very well

Gyutaro had always been the older sibling, the protector, he never had someone going out of the way to look after him

It healed a part of him he didn't know he had, the one that longs for a security only parents or a guardian figure can provide

Despite that, he viewed you as equals, but it felt nice to know someone could back him up if he wanted or needed it, that it wasn't just him protecting Daki

You acted the other half his sister didn't have, he watched you show her how to do makeup, you helped her dress to become an oiran, did her hair, found her accessories none of her suitors could find or compare in the beauty or intricacy of

Gyutaro felt for once, he could relax, he could step back and do things he needed without the fear of leaving his sister alone

You were his safe place, his person, the only human he'd allow to live a good life because you deserved it for everything you did for others

Kyogai

Surprisingly, for a human, you match him in strength if not stronger- so long as you leave the demon blood art out of the equation

That was never something he knew until you asked him to spar you for a bit, since your partner was busy that week

Before that, he just understood you to have a very heroic personality

When you met him, you had encouraged both his writing and his drumming, and gone to stores he couldn't to get him finer writing supplies, and things he could use to bind his writing so it was protected

Beyond that, you told stories of people who had met long ago and how you continue to keep tabs on them, some of them going from hobbyist to making careers out of it that's to you

It was touching, if not making him a tad guilty for being almost the complete opposite of you

Sometimes he worries you don't need him, since you were so well off without him, and so happy without him, too

But you argue that he lets you be yourself, and not have to always smile, because as joyous as you may be, everyone has their hardships

Kyogai is always there to support you emotionally

And if something happens that you can't figure out, he will go to great lengths to help you find a solution

Authors Note - This took awhile to sit down and write for some ungodly reason but thank you for requesting and I hope you enjoy!!

#akaza #akaza x reader #gyutaro #gyutaro x reader #kyogai #kyogai x reader #demon slayer #demon slayer x reader #demon slayer headcanons #kny #kny x reader #kny headcanons #kimetsu no yaiba #kimetsu no yaiba x reader #x reader #reader insert #headcanons

[nitpickrider]

a bit silly, but if you had to fill an Avengers roster, who would you pick?

Wooof, oh me oh my. Let's lay down some ground rules before I do this. 1). Only people who have been Avengers at some previous point in time. Doesn't narrow it down a LOT but this list would be a jigsaw of my favorite Z-Listers otherwise 2). Limiting it to seven people. That's the magic number with superhero teams and it gives me a reason to stop

Steve Rogers, AKA Captain America: Sometimes you just cannot beat a classic and when it comes to Avengers line ups there is no one that I think is more integral than Captain America. The pathos that he brings to the table no matter what character he is interacting with is palpable and reading through his first big volume has given me a deep respect and love for the character. He's our leader for sure, the axis of solid, steady service I can hang my weirder picks on.

Dr. Walter Newell AKA Stingray: You all saw this coming and don't act like you didn't. One of my favorite if not my FAVORITE Marvel Characters of all time. He's a doctor with an interesting specialization. His "I'm only a part time superhero" hangup is even funnier and more interesting if forced into the limelight on THE hero team. Not to mention he comes with his own swanky Hydrobase we can use for an HQ and with his wife and four kids running around underfoot we have the kind of domestic adorability I think any good team needs.

Miguel Santos AKA Living Lightning: The first time I can ever remember reading about a comic book hero being gay, as just like, part of who they are. A tiny detail in their rich inner life. Not to mention the less respect a character gets the more I want to lift them up on my shoulders. He could be the sweetheart with a little chip on his shoulder from not getting the respect his objectively awesome powers objectively deserve.

Angelica Jones AKA Firestar: Something you may not know about me. The first piece of media that really opened my eyes as to the potential and depth and scope of the Marvel Universe was Spiderman and His Amazing Friends. It was cheesy, it was cheap and yet Angelica was the first character that I felt SPECIAL for knowing and caring about. She's happy, she's passionate, her simple classic costume kicks ass and the New Warriors need their goddamn respect. 'Nuff said.

Sersi, Just Sersi: What little I have seen of this character fucking FASCINATES me. This woman is chaos incarnate. It's like she is actively making on the fly decisions with everyone she meets whether she's going to kill them, screw them, turn them into a small mammal or some combination of the three. She's *Instant Plot Complication Just Add Water* because she saw a butterfly and that somehow translates to her blowing the entire team's cover.

Dane Whitman AKA The Black Knight: I love everything about him. I love his vibe, I love the fact that his backstory is built partially around recontextualizing the lore of a mostly forgotten Atlas fantasy comic. I love that he has a wickedly evil cursed blade that comes with the side effect of basically holding him hostage to a heroic moral code. And on top of that he's a dorky intellectual who can't see a social cue if it's blaring at him from oncoming traffic.

Jennifer Walters AKA She-Hulk: ...I do not feel the need to explain or justify this choice. YOU know Jen is awesome. *I* know Jen is awesome. She-Hulk does not need justification. She shows up in stories and makes them better by existing. Also yes this is the bodytype I'd use. Yes, I have an addiction. No, I don't feel the need to explain that either. RESERVISTS: Characters I really like but either don't know enough about or don't think they make good Avengers

Marc Spector and System AKA Moon Knight: One of my favorite dudes but does NOT play well with others. Was interesting for about 10 seconds as a member of the West Coast team but I'd prefer he never touch the ranks again.

Flint Marko AKA Sandman: Marvel did Sandman fucking dirty by never letting him fully reform and be the good guy. I want Sandman to be the good guy dammit

Maria de Guadalupe Santiago AKA Silverclaw: I know literally nothing about her outside of reference books but her powers are dope and I dig her vibe.

#marvel #marvel comics #marvel universe #marvel heroes #superhero #comics #avengers #captain america #steve rogers #walter newell #stingray #jennifer walters #she-hulk #living lightning #miguel santos #angelica jones #firestar #dane whitman #black knight #sersi #marc spector #moon knight #flint marko #sandman #maria de guadalupa santiago #silverclaw #Hope this is what you wanted becuase it took me fucking 40 minutes!

[checkoutmybookshelf]

From Criminial Mastermind to Fairy Tale Hero: The End of Artemis Fowl

Here we are, everyone: The final Artemis Fowl book. It has been a journey revisiting the first series I was old enough to follow and fandom, and it's wild to me that we're finally at the end. Especially since I picked up the first Artemis Fowl book in late elementary school (I'm genuinely not sure when though, because the first book came out in April of 2001, when I was in fifth grade and it's very possible I didn't pick the book up until sixth grade, which would have put me at 11, same age as Artemis in that first book) and the final book came out in 2012, when I was in my junior year of undergrad. So at that point, Artemis, Holly, and Butler had been part of my life for a long time. And now here we are, to say goodbye to them again after this leisurely re-listen/read. Let's talk Artemis Fowl: The Last Guardian.

Artemis grew and changed so much across eight books, which makes sense because holy cow do kids change a LOT between 11 and 15. We get so busy living life in those years that we don't really think about how much we truly learn and grown between prepubescence and full-on teenagerhood, but that is a time of massive change, and I think that more than anything else really justifies how Artemis goes from a chillingly vampiric child to a teenager with enough compassion and empathy to understand that sometimes the right choice is a heroic self-sacrifice for the people that your people (both humans and the people, in this case) love. Artemis also did a really interesting version of that thing so many teenagers do where they hit a point where they can't just phone in their abilities anymore and have to actually put effort in, but for Artemis it was emotional rather than intelligence. And yet even when making said heroic sacrifice, we have the absolutely beautiful callback to the end of book one, where Artemis drugs his mother, Butler, and Juliet to keep them from being harmed by the bio-bomb. To stop Holly from preventing him from stopping Opal, Artemis sedates her. The more things change, the more they stay the same...

Except where best villain ever Opal Koboi is concerned. By this book, Opal is so disconnected from reality that she is willing to risk literally going nuclear to escape captivity, and then just...casually sparks off the apocalypse because if there is one thing our girl wants, it's to be Empress of the World, and if that means using spirit zombies and an ancient fairy doomsday device, then I guess it's a good thing she's already versed in black magic. Or something. Opal is fully and completely off the rails at this point, and if you catch yourself referring to yourself as "Mommy" in reference to the spirits of several scores of ancient elven berserkers who would--barring a geas--murder you for it, you might want to stop and take a long, hard look at your life choices. And maybe don't forget that you've cloned yourself, because that's the kind of little detail that can completely ruin your chances of being Empress of the World.

Holly quite possibly deserves every medal that exists for managing to drag Artemis's extremely out-of-shape butt through increasingly dangerous and high-stakes missions while navigating fairy politics and *checks notes* breaking up with her commanding officer after a disastrous date where they both got kicked out of a crunchball match. (And once again...HOW DARE Colfer leave this in exposition and not show us this amazing disaster of a date!?!?) Holly has also just been through the emotional wringer with Artemis and every time he decided to double-cross or lie by omission to bring off a plan and every time he does something infuriatingly human that drives up her blood pressure and yet makes the mission succeed. And then she has to sit there and watch him die to save humans and fairies. Seriously, the fact that Holly Short is a functional being rather than a hot mess is nothing short of a miracle.

And then we come to Butler. Long-suffering, super fucking over it, broken-hearted Domovoi Butler. Artemis got DAMN lucky that the whole "put my spirit in a clone of me" plan panned out, because if it hadn't, Holly was entirely correct: Butler would never have recovered. Butler and Opal might be my two favorite characters in the entire series at this point. That's not where I started--for a very long time, Holly was my favorite character, and Commander Root still gets an honorable mention--but as a grown-ass adult (I'm not doing that math for you, if you want to know that I'm old, you do the math), I cannot escape how dedicated, competent, kind, and just AWESOME Butler is. I feel like the vibe here is very similar to the thing that happens when you watch Sound of Music as a kid and either Maria or one of the kids is your favorite character, but when you come back to it as an adult, Captain Von Trapp is EVERYTHING (RIP Christopher Plummer, we loved you). Butler has a similar vibe but in a different genre.

So, I was an adult and had enough experience of watching fandoms to see the mixed reactions to this book being released. People were sad the series was ending, people were disappointed because the series had seemingly drifted, and people loved it. My reaction was pretty mixed, because I had a lot going on, I knew there were good things here but I was also kind of missing the heisty, criminal mastermind vibes, but also OPAL KOBOI. So I was pretty unsure how to feel about this book when it came out, and then I didn't reread it for literal years because I went to grad school.

Returning to this book now, I have suuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuch respect for how Colfer tied up the series and how he pulled off a new Irish mythological cycle, but updated for the twenty-first century. I have enough life on me to appreciate the changes Artemis goes through, and enough literature degrees to have a new and deeply fulfilling perspective on the series structure. Last Guardian is not my favorite book of the series--it's not even in the top three--but I think that what it does is genuinely impressive and I love how you can finish this book and go instantly back into the OG Artemis Fowl. The story does not, strictly speaking, have to end. And that is a vibe I can 100% get behind.

I deeply love the Artemis Fowl books, and I cannot recommend the series enough. They have so many strengths, are incredibly well-written, and they live rent-free in my head even now as an adult.

#artemis fowl #eoin colfer #artemis fowl the last guardian #artemis fowl and the last guardian #domovoi butler #holly short #opal koboi #children's literature #children's books #books and reading #books & libraries #books and novels #books #book recommendations #middle grade sci fi #middle grade books #middle grade fantasy #middle grade fiction

[styrmwb]

I beat Chrono Trigger

And I beat it like, nearly entirely unspoiled too. For the longest time Chrono Trigger was "The most Styrm game Styrm has never played" and I felt silly cause my super cool ADHD brain never decided it was gonna decide to play it until now (I also had to get it done before FFVII rebirth or it was NEVER gonna happen lmfao) So like, what are my onions?

The game's so fucking good, it stands up so incredibly well that I regret not getting to it sooner. The music, the story, the gameplay, the art (backgrounds and spritework), every single part of this game I absolutely adored. I can MAYBE think of like 2 things I would have changed about the game but they're so minor.

Characters

I loved every single party member. The ones with character felt so alive and enjoyable, and the ones that didn't really have much character were super fun to use in battle. Crono MIGHT be one of the most broken JRPG protags I've played as; I gave him a counter item for the whole game and he would constantly attack with high crits. Marle is one of my favorite characters; being all adventurous and shit, rejecting the stuffiness of royal society but like, not NOT caring? I like it. Plus she was instrumental in having me not die lmfao. Lucca had a really great character arc with Robo and her mother, and blowing shit up was super fun. Speaking of, Robo deserves the entire world; I would die for him. Unfortunately he didn't get as much use in my playthrough as I would have wanted, but I still dearly care for him. Ayla was a powerhouse even though i completely neglected her thief mechanic, and despite her caveman speak and relative lack of goal compared to the cast, I really appreciated her presence as I almost felt like she was a pillar For the rest of the cast. Magus was hype. I'll describe thoughts later down the list, but for his gameplay his magic annihilated battles, and the dude pretty much solo'd the Lavos boss rush. Finally; Frog. The absolute best character in the game. His design? Creative. His story? Heartbreaking yet heroic. His gameplay? Essential. I loved Frog from the moment I saw him and he was with me through thick and thin. Something I really appreciated was that HE got Masamune rather than Crono. Sure, Crono is the main character, but Frog is the hero. I love my amphibious mans.

Lavos is super cool to me. It's not really a character (but kinda is?) and more like a force of nature. I also think it's kinda conceptually funny that the main villain of this classic game is the meteor that killed the dinosaurs. I don't think I FULLY understood what it truly was, but it's a concept that I very much enjoyed.

Overall, all of the characters in this game are great. Everyone has a role, everyone is enjoyable in their own way, and I really love seeing how the time travel aspect would let you see fates of characters and their role in history.

Gameplay

I loved the lack of random battles. Every battle felt planned and like its own individual puzzle, especially with the positioning gimmick; what enemies get hit by what abilities, how do I avoid hitting this enemy with the element that heals them with my super strong AoE ability. The idea of dual and triple techs enhanced this further: am I gonna use individual turns for heals or am I gonna just have Crono and Ayla fuckin decimate the entire area?

The aspect of time travel felt overall very well used. Past experiences affecting the future, but things in the future not affecting backwards; it feels like it should be obvious it works that way but it just felt like, well executed. this paragraph proves i need to get better at writing cause ultimately I just said I liked it

I also feel like the whole beginning section with the fair leading to the trial really makes you think harder about what to pay attention to and what matters: it teaches well without shoving it in your face. Might just be because I play a lot of RPGs and this is an older one, but I was able to discern the knowledge i needed easily.

Story

So to clarify here, I know there are multiple endings, but I got two; the Die To Lavos Ending not sure why i got this one nope and the real ending; I tried to do everything that I possibly could, so that was my experience.

It's great. I kinda loved how it was less a "party vs a bad time man" and more of a "party vs a natural calamity": I feel like that's not done often in games, there's usually a big bad (which I don't hate!) but it was a nice change of pace. I absolutely loved how each timeline had its own individual struggles, and the nature of time travel made them flow together very well in small ways (like defeating Magus makes Ozzie the worshipped one). Being able to go into it unspoiled really improved the huge moments, like Magus and Crono's big events (not gonna say in case there's someone like me out there), and I very much enjoyed guessing what would be next and what would affect what.

The Only Major issue I have is the 3 party limit, and character dialogue being locked to who you have. I feel like there would have been some really cool moments had everyone been there, like the campfire scene where everyone got their time.

Music

I mean, it's peak. I've already heard some of Mitsuda's work in later games, but hearing him here do (pretty much) the whole soundtrack was just a treat to my ears. The main theme is stuck playing in my head daily. The overworld and cutscene songs I think are where it shines, although I did really like the battle songs as well. and as always shoutouts to Uematsu we love that man.

Art

Again, a short section, but this game is beautiful, and I could tell that a lot of the techniques they used felt advanced for the time, like the time travel effect, or the car race; the spritework felt bouncy and alive, the backgrounds were beautifully detailed (Like Magus's Castle holy shit), and the entire game was a joy to look at.

Unspoiled

So yeah, I beat this game unspoiled somehow. I knew a couple characters like Crono and Lavos (the fact that they Existed), I've seen some backdrops like the campfire and Masamune in its sheath, and I've heard some songs; but other than that, I didn't know anything!

(warning for spoilers if you are like me and have gotten unspoiled don't read this)

Like I said in the story, it was really fun to figure out how things would be affected by the nature of time travel, naturally figuring out side quests like Fiona, and being hit by moments that I never would have expected. I didn't think my actions at the fair would affect anything until I saw the trial which made me question everything (I'm sorry old man for eating your lunch) (twice). I remember getting what i thought was the full party cause that's what the box art was, until I noticed what I thought was a 7th party member slot, leading me to wonder when this person would join and who it is; discovering Antiquity (also a surprise to me) convinced me that the person was here, and then that said person was Boy with cat that said I was gonna die, and lo and behold I was right! But not in the way that I thought. Seeing Magus be the final member was incredibly rewarding, and I probably wouldn't have gotten him if I didn't get reality checked by my actions mattering in the trial (although I do wish he had some more party interactions and dialogue). Also close to this: I did not know Crono STRAIGHT UP dies. Like, OBVIOUSLY he was gonna come back, right? But to have that happen to your main character? Felt revolutionary for the time. Didn't think Lavos was gonna be like, a humanoid creature, and I ESPECIALLY didn't think it was gonna have a phase 2.

(ok spoilers over)

Final

I could not be happier with my experience for this game. I can absolutely see why it is considered a masterpiece, and it's clearly going to stick with me for a good long while, the rest of my life, even. My negatives are incredibly minor, really only wanting more party dialogue and interactions (and to remove Golem FUCK that fight lmfao), and for that, I can probably consider it one of my favorite RPGs.

10/10, thanks for reading my ramblings if you did.

#chrono trigger #textpost #games I beat in 2024 #jared's game ramblings

[jungleslang]

I am absolutely losing my mind over Yeong/Naksu's character in part 2!!!!

It's so insane to me how we're seeing all these different facets of one single character. She was born as Cho Yeong, but we see her first as Naksu, then as Mu-deok, and now as Jin Bu-yeon.

As Naksu she was cold and ruthless and only cared about her mission. In episode 1 of the first part we saw her brutally push a blind girl out of the way and forcefully grab another so she could shift her soul into her body. As Mu-deok, we see her warming up and caring about those around her. She becomes reluctantly heroic and decides to save everyone who's trapped in the ice stone, even giving up her power to do so. And now, as Jin Bu-yeon, she is a sheltered but kind and playful noble lady.

We have seen Yeong in so many contexts. As an infamous assassin, an impertinent maid, and a sheltered lady. But her core personality is still there in all of them. Cho Yeong as Naksu, Mu-deok, and Bu-yeon are all different and yet soooo similar.

Regardless of what name she goes by, I can still tell it's her because she has that exact same boldness and fighting spirit. As Bu-yeon, she is unhappy with her circumstances and so she does everything in her limited power to change them. You would think that having no memories of anything but confinement would make her obedient and docile, but nope. Even though she believes that Lady Jin is her mother and she doesn't want to hurt her, she refuses to go along with the future her (fake) mother has mapped out for her. Mama Jin also talks about the times Yeong has escaped before. That means that Yeong ran away multiple times despite knowing that they would always be able to track her down with the bracelet because she simply cannot stand to do nothing. She herself says that escape is not possible and tells Uk that if she leaves, it would only be an outing. But she does it anyway. Because doing nothing is just not in her nature.

I just love love love that we still see hints of Mu-deok and Naksu in her role as Bu-yeon. Like she points that fire poker straight at Uk's throat with zero hesitation and she even managed to sneak up on him. Uk is a Hwansu level mage now, but he didn't notice her creeping up behind him until she spoke. She still has Mu-deok's cunning and resourceful nature and her quirky charm, too. She knew how powerful Uk was by the way he managed to break the barrier and embed that fire poker into the wall, and she still dared to deceive him. She purposefully made him think that she was more powerful than she actually was so that she could appear useful to him and he would help her. Her first thought upon meeting a powerful stranger who could easily harm her was "how can I use him to get what I want?" That along with the way she slams her hands against the table when she doesn't get her way is such a Mu-deok thing to me.

And that's not even talking about how utterly fucking unimpressed she was when she confronted that body-snatching water monster thing in the second episode. The only memories she has are of being locked in the same room for three years and yet she didn't flinch at that thing for even a second. She actively chased after that monster, coldly stared it down and essentially told it to fuck off before turning her back to walk away. You cannot deny the sheer big dick energy of that move. That cold confidence and fearlessness scream Naksu and you cannot convince me otherwise.

I can't wait to see how all of these versions of her come together when she gets her memories back!!!!!!!!

It's so sad to me that we never got to see her live under her true name, and I really hope the show takes us there by the end. She deserves to finally be able to live as Cho Yeong, the person she really is. And when she does get to live as Yeong, I hope we see elements of all three of her aliases in her personality because they've all shaped her in some way.

#alchemy of souls #alchemy of souls: light and shadow #alchemy of souls spoilers #naksu #cho yeong

[sparklepirate]

Alright, final thoughts on Brisingr.

You know what half the book was dwarven politics but I ate that shit up.

The more I read these again the more I appreciate the nuance of Eragon's character. It's super rare for me to like a main protagonist as much as I like him, but he has so many things going on. He's heroic, but in a deeply existentialist way, which leads him to be a bit cruel/callous towards his brother. He is smart and a quick learner, both academically and on his feet, but he does and thinks some of the stupidest things sometimes. He was forced to grow up so fast, so while he often comes across as mature and self-assured, internally he is still just a kid, or perhaps a very, very young man, and that kid part of him still shines through sometimes. He does and will do what he has to do to help the world, but he is constantly surprised to find new avenues of guilt when confronted with various consequences of his actions, but he still presses on. He is still learning his place in life not only as a dragon rider and a hero, but just as a person in general, and I think that's so cool and interesting to read! And he's also dealing with the trauma of the everything that's happening to him, but doesn't quite yet seem to realize that he isn't alone in his feelings. He is a dork, and I love him, and I want to be his friend, and I want him to accrue a whole squad of older sibling figures to help him through his stuff.

Along the lines of trauma, I hope he and Roran get to talk about this stuff. They both have moments of berating themselves over being weak for having strong feelings about killing and participating in a war, and I wish they would talk to each other and realize they were not alone. ... Murtagh too but that's just wishful thinking. I'll just have to write that myself I suppose.

Saphira is also so good queen of my heart and my soul she is beauty she is grace if she were a human she would rip apart a rat with her bare hands and teeth and do a kegstand immediately afterwards with the blood still dripping down her face but her makeup would be FLAWLESS while she did it ❤️

This felt like the first book that really drove the point home of how close the two of them are, because this is the first time they had to be truly separated from each other. Every time they reunited and they were just so filled with joy and love I just 🥺

As always- Murtagh deserves better!!! He and Thorn!!! He is in this position because he was too compassionate for Eragon (being led to the Varden), and then Thorn (swearing fealty to save him), and no one really cares about him but he still hopes and he still loves!!! Obviously, like, being on opposite sides of the conflict no one is going to not try to kill him, they kind of don't have a choice, but... Damn. I won't say too much more about him until after Inheritance but like. Damn. Justice for my husband.

On that note, the absolute betrayal he must have felt upon finding out that Oromis and Glaedr existed. Granted, by him becoming a dragon rider it was already too late for them to help him, but still. It's just kind of a tragic circumstance that everyone was so powerless in this situation, and like... Being literally possessed by Galbatorix for a bit there was. Hmm. Bad. I'm sure we'll be dissecting THAT in the new book.

It makes me wonder how much of this situation could have been prevented if the elves and the dwarves weren't so consistently self-serving. I think that's what makes Nasuada such an effective leader in comparison to them. She will get shit done, and she will set aside pride whenever she needs to to achieve the best results. Now, she has her flaws, which I know are explored more in Inheritance, but I can understand her constant frustration with the other kingdoms refusal to help or share important secrets that could have helped them sooner/prevented bloodshed.

And as far as secrets go... I don't know. It's hard to gauge "should have" or "shouldn't have" with most of the things Oromis and Glaedr neglected to tell Eragon and Saphira (or anyone), but the eldunarí feels like the most cut and dry. I guess they weren't anticipating Thron hatching but like. If that's the source of Galbatorix's power... It might have been useful for literally anyone to know about that before now. Arya didn't even know, for god's sake.

Speaking of Arya, I like her way way more this read through!!! And I do not ship her and Eragon literally at all sorry I'm a hater ❤️

RIP Oromis though sucks that you died.

Onto Inheritance!

#ashna reads the inheritance cycle #brisingr #inheritance cycle #eragon #murtagh morzansson #saphira

[xanthusasaka]

My version of thilbo arclight

Thorin:

People are naturally jealous/want to have what they can't get, and Thorin also almost naturally, without realizing it, longs for things that Bilbo has - a warm home, a peaceful town, enough to make him proudly say that "I miss my home." Maybe it was envy? Maybe it was jealousy, which made him remember the warmth and all kinds of comfortable facilities in Bag-end a few months after he visited it, so he firmly believed that Bilbo - a flower in this kind of greenhouse, could not be like himself, a wandering warrior without a home.

In fact, Thorin's "self" has no home, the lonely mountain is a responsibility, it is destroyed, he has no right to call it home, he feels that he has no choice but to reclaim Erebor, and because of this heavy responsibility, he can't proudly cal the Blue Mountains home.

When Bilbo finally sympathized with the dwarves and confessed that you don’t have a home and I will help you get one, that kind of envy and jealousy and suspicion all turned into an extreme form of longing. Not only does Thorin longing to have a home but he also longing to become like Bilbo, who can say out loud that home is comfortable and I miss home, and even (in a queer lens) longing to find nostalgia in Bilbo’s body. It was a dangerous yet soul-touching transference. What he lost in childhood, he found them in the hobbit. If his homeland had not been destroyed, he would have lived a life like Bilbo, so he also realized that courage lies in In everyone's heart, Bilbo could also empathize with his experience and Bilbo is also brave and strong.

Bilbo

When Bilbo faced Gollum, he didn't realize that he was a Hobbit, but this didn't affect Bilbo thinking of Gandalf's teachings and not killing him. Yet, when Bilbo was protecting Thorin, he made the determination to kill. ↘️(he is literally aiming for heart

(Bilbo in Thorin’s eyes are probably like:↙️

In fact, Bilbo also has a dark and greedy side in his heart. He wanted to kill Gollum. Before Thorin told Gandalf that he must have run away, he did hesitate and wanted to leave secretly. He concealed the ring from Gandalf, and then wanted to kill the orcs again. He's been in an inner struggle, and knows quite well what the bright side looks like in opposition to those dark sides—he wants to be an adventurer, to see the world, and he is moved by Thorin’s heroic past.

Unlike Thorin, who may not even know about Bilbo’s upbringing when he dies, Beebo knows very well that he also has noble blood; he just doesn’t have the sense of aristocratic hierarchy like dwarves and humans, but he is actually a person who value’s his upbringing: he often attributed his boldness to Took's blood, and in the end of BOTFA he told Thorin that as a Baggins (perhaps representing his cautious side), he did not deserve to be with Thorin. Maybe after he set off on the journey, he also secretly thought about whether he could do what Thorin did if he were a dwarf, whether he could be a hero and do the right thing.

Unlike Kee and Fee, who proactively wants to be Thorin, and wants to be recognized by their uncle; Bilbo only subconsciously wants to be Thorin, wants to be recognized by him. Bilbo cannot bear to see a heroic story with a sad end, so he jumped out to save Thorin from Borg. This complex desire and motivation has shaped his growth, from hating Thorin, wanting to leave; to actively protecting a person who had doubted Bilbo ten minutes ago, to taking the initiative to climb up trees and find direction, to rescuing the whole squad several times. Interpretation of movie Bilbo without a queer lens always believes that spare Gollum from death and not attracted by the Arkenstone shaped Bilbo growth. While in fact, Bilbo has a lot of desires. In addition to the Ring, he also wants Thorin’s affirmation. (And maybe love😂)

#bagginshield

[sillypiratelife]

We got zoro and nami gay lesbian solidarity, so sanji and vivi bisexual pansexual solidarity when

Serving it right now 🫡🫡🫡🫡

Sanji and Vivi bisexual / pansexual solidarity:

Grew up thinking they liked just one gender until they joined the strawhats and they had their first gay panic ever.

Gushing about girls and how cute and soft and powerful and capable and amazing and lovable they are, to the point they look like two adorable fools blushing over their tea break conversation.

They are very aware why they like that one guy, but it doesn't stop them from jokingly (or not in Sanji's case) complaining about their life decisions.

And by that I mean that Vivi and Sanji hold hands in solidarity every time Koza or Zoro do another heroic yet stupid thing and they can't scream to anyone else about it.

Didn't understand their sexuality 'cause they either thought everyone was pretty (Vivi) or had a specific attraction towards different genders (Sanji).

Some nights are about weeping over the fact they will die alone, other nights are 'bout how the list of people who deserve them is limited to two people and maybeee a third one of the person is interested.

Honestly? They adore being scandalized. It's mostly because they value the most those who are not afraid to treat them like equals, who are not afraid to fight them (physically if necessary), those who are not easily fooled by appearances.

I don't know how to explain this but they are damsel in distress coded, even when they're also very Knight of the Kingdom. Not 'cause they can defend themselves it means they're not into being defended and supported and occasionally saved.

Terrified of starting something even if they could, as in they don't want to ruin what they have wishing for something they don't know if it'd work out.

Penpals. I don't argue about this one. They absolutely most definitely deserve to be the bestest of penpals. Sanji should be able to describe every single thing Nami does so Vivi and he could sigh dreamily over it. Also, they should share their mutual condolences over the way Koza and Zoro sound when they're on protective mode, or how they look when they train, or how close they are to losing their minds over the miscommunication of their relationships.

They call each other names are Mr. Prince and Vivi Strawhat. The letters are freaking coded to look like recipes. Insane stuff.

Would arrive color matching to an event without knowing. It's the fashion radar. No idea what it means.

The rules establish that they must almost faint when they see a handsome cute girl swearing like a sailor, but always fistfight the pretty boy with a kind heart for taking shit.

Just saying there's also a bit of gender slash identity crisis with both of them. Just a bit. Do I want to be like them or do I like them? Is this admiration or lust? Is this romantic love or friendship? They're so confused.

The last person you want to threaten with the "you and what army?" line, because there are 5 to 10 other queer motherfuckers waiting to kill you if you harm the bisexual / pansexual icon of the team.

#sillypiratelife asks #one piece anime #black leg sanji #vinsmoke sanji #vivi nefertari

[softieskywalker]

To this day, I still think that the way George Lucas wrote Vader is SO cool

There’s something so darkly heartwarming and awesome about making Darth Vader, who morally speaking is an absolute monster that remorselessly hurts millions of innocent people and who is perhaps THE most feared person in the entire galaxy due to his visibility and feats, love his son Luke, the picture perfect definition of a pure hero who decides to operate on the power of love and optimism, so much

About making a huge chunk of his story in the OT revolve around him desperately trying to capture Luke because he just wants his son again

There is something so sweetly awful/awfully sweet about Darth Vader having 0 issues with brutally murdering other people’s sons but still having the audacity to go into an apoplectic rage if anyone dares do something as ~evil~ as even slightly harm HIS son

Terrifying villain dads loving their genuinely heroic protagonist sons is a trope that’s so awesome and yet so weirdly rare, and I LOVE how galaxy brained George Lucas was for making the Vader-Luke relationship like this

You know what this makes me remember in a real life example? In the Holocaust museum I saw a letter from a Nazi officer who was writing to his wife about how much he missed her and his children, how much he loved them, how he was going to bring them gifts when he went home. And he also described some of the horrendous atrocities he was doing, and it even said "killing so many (jews) is hard but you get used to it, you stop seeing them as people." I won't ever forget that phrase. Because it really struck me, how human it was. And how it's useless to see people who commit such crimes as monsters, because they are human, and humans are capable of these things.

Back to your point about Vader, he's such a force of evil for so long, he kills and tortures and destroys and yet he's still capable of loving his son and missing his late wife because fundamentally he's human, he never stopped being human. Humans are capable of horrendous things and it doesn't take away the capacity to love. It sounds so contradictory and yet it's true! And it's also an indicator of how selfish love can be. Because how can someone love so fiercely and also be a murderer, a torturer, a tyrant? Because love is not an inherently pure or absolute good thing, love can be selfish and destructive. That's Anakin's entire central conflict, how he loves so selfishly. And it's also amazing how Luke, someone who has so much selfless love to give, who never went without love, because Owen and Beru loved him, and Obi-Wan loved him, and Leia loved him, and Han, and everyone around him in some way loved him, he has love to spare. And he could somehow show Vader that he also could love in a way that wouldn't destroy him, but that it could heal him. And how, at the same time, Luke always craved that fatherly love, and Vader being so selfishly obsessed with him probably contributed to Luke forgiving his father for what he'd done to him and how much he had hurt him. Knowing Vader wasn't indifferent to him but rather wanted him, had wanted that child he thought he'd lost, that his existence in the universe wasn't unwanted, that probably meant so much to Luke. And it also proved to him, someone who never went without love, that he could be selfish about it too, and choose to forgive and try to redeem someone who did not deserve forgiveness nor redemption. In the eyes of the Galaxy Vader will always be a monster and a tyrant but for Luke, who allowed himself to love his father selfishly, he could be someone who in the end chose to save and protect him.

#i could talk for hours about the complexity of Vader and Luke's relationship #it fucks me up so much #darth vader #anakin skywalker #luke skywalker

[deusexlachina]

Cheeseaged Exocolonist Age 19 1/2: Form a translesbian political marriage for the buffs

The first half of the final year, in which we shake down my centrist auntie, use the gentle love of a transgender woman to become a political powerhouse, and fight against both competitors for rule of the planet.

And I come dangerously close to having to play fairly.

The final year is a busy time - so busy that I split this year into two logs. I've saved everyone who can be saved, and improved the lives of almost everyone in the colony. But it will all be for naught if I don't depose Lum, because he will never make peace with the Gardeners.

I get Utopia on board, giving me the vote of everyone except Antecedent, a centrist who doesn't believe in war but supports Lum solely because he surrounds himself with Very Fine People. The only named character in Lum's circle is Vace, who was in an abusive relationship with Antecedent's daughter until I destroyed it without her help or apparent knowledge that her daughter was being abused. Antecedent is the single worst mom in the colony and being a mom is her whole career. And she's competing with Instance, who is evil.

However, once I tell her I have the support of every other authority figure in the colony, she sees which way the wind is blowing and immediately decides to support my coup of the man she supported seconds before.

I have successfully gotten the entire council on board with overthrowing Lum. At this point, Marz could really take it from here. However, despite planning her whole life to be a political leader, she's a terrible leader with terrible politics. She only discovered capitalism was bad when she was seventeen, which is an impressive level of ignorance given that she is the child of an anti-capitalist group fleeing from an Earth doomed by capitalism. This whole story is taught to ten year olds as part of the basic Humanities curriculum.

Her environmental policies have also been quite bad, which is not a good thing in a planet where the environment is sentient and able to murder you.

In terms of leadership per se, even with the colony on the line, she decided to get all the adults onboard with the coup and then let me do all the work of recruiting. She doesn't get any votes on her own, and doesn't even allude to trying.

Lastly, and most importantly, she does not have godlike powers that allow her to use the knowledge gained from every possible life she could have lived. Only I am fit to rule this planet. And that means I have to take her down.

Unfortunately, it turns out that you need to have Persuasion maxed out to actually defeat her. This catches me off-guard, because achieving peace is the one ending I've never gotten. Even with Marz's jacket, I don't have enough. Worse, there is only one job in the game that primarily levels Persuasion (i.e. levels it anywhere close to how much I need), and I haven't even unlocked it yet because it requires either persuasion, which I don't have, or loyalty, which I have actively avoided. And the deadline is the end of Early Dust. Even if I backtrack by several months, it's not enough.

I don't just need cheese here. I need stinky cheese. I take longer than I will disclose calculating how much Persuasion I need and where I could get it. Eventually, I come up with a plan that I am prouder of than it frankly deserves.

There are three statuses that reliably boost stat gains. If you defend the colony, you get Heroic, which boosts Physical gains. Mastering a skill gives you Enlightened, which boosts Mental gains. I could do either of these easily, but Persuasion is a Social skill. There is only one status that boosts Social gains: Smitten. It is the buff you get for entering a relationship.

She's not seriously...oh, but I am. That's right. Citizens of Vertumna, I am about to enter the planet's first political marriage!

I spend some time deliberating on who will be the lucky girl before selecting Tangent. It has always been Tangent. It is always going to be Tangent.

I tell her our shared trauma could be romantic, which sounds glib but is one of the most sincere things I have said in this entire run. Everyone else I have detached from, just pawns for me to put in the perfect position to make the perfect world. Tangent is special, different, perfectly imperfect. She was my wife in the one timeline I lived organically, the one life where I naively thought I could die. I woo her out of a longing for that innocent time, but I am no longer innocent, and she is only innocent because of my manipulations.

Anyway, this gives me the Smitten buff, which allows me to grind Persuasion really fast. It increases all Persuasion gains by one, so I make sure to get as many little Persuasion boosts as I can while the buff is active, exploiting the game mechanics as much as Sol exploits her loved ones.

It goes without saying that I timed my romantic confession to squeeze out the most extra Persuasion points. Which turns out to be 5. Even sadder is that this paltry bonus ends up being crucial.

With this boost, I get just enough to qualify to Assist The Governor. I decide the best way to Assist him is by facilitating his retirement. In this job, he assigns me to make propaganda, so I make him a meme. This is not essential to deposing him or becoming governor, and in fact actually costs me 10 kudos. But it is a small price to pay to humiliate my enemy at the end of his career.

I use my remaining kudos to buy a doll, so I have all four item slots with a persuasion-boosting item. But here I encounter a dilemma. I'm still five points short. The whole game, I have been relying on the broken pet vriki I got in year 12, which boosts skill gains on a success (for me, all the time).

But the coup happens immediately after Early Dust, and you have no opportunity to switch items, so I have to be equipping all my persuasion items to have enough for the check. Without the vriki, I can only count on four points. The only way I can get five points is by getting a super goal. This would be easy, if not for one problem. The fidget spinner, the source of my powers, also takes up a gear slot.

I cannot stim.

For the first time in years, I have to play the card game with real numbers instead of my bullshit all-wildcard deck that breaks the game in half. The fate of the colony depends on me winning without cheese!

I draw a bad hand. I use a crystal to draw a new hand, and thankfully the redraw is much better. It's good enough to win...but still not enough to get the super goal. I rearrange my hand, something I have to do because the numbers actually matter this time. But no combination works. Are my strongest memories not enough?

In a tragic twist worthy of the Twilight Zone, my all-blue deck works against me, because they can't benefit from the fidget spinner, and yellow cards are worth more here. If only all my cards were yellow...

I have a desperate plan. At one end, I play a blue card with a gem, which for this challenge is rainbow - it counts as any suit, including the vaunted yellow. Then, I put my memory of Nomi right in the centre, a special card which transes the gender of its neighbours so they're rainbow too. Finally, I use one of my few remaining consumables to turn my best blue card yellow. At the end of this trickery, I have an all-yellow hand without having a single yellow card.

And then, just as I'm out of ideas and resources:

No pressure.

Having gotten a Super Goal by one measly point, I get 100 Persuasion. I am ready to rule the world. And not a moment too soon, for immediately after, it is Vertumnalia, the annual festival when our coup is planned.

With the combined might of every leader of the Stratospheric behind me, I depose Lum...

And am elected ruler of the only human colony on Vertumna! I am formally granted this position by Dr. Instance, presumably because I am in a de facto political marriage with her daughter.

Trial basis, good one, Doc! I am ruling you ingrates for life.

#cheeseaged exocolonist

[twst-drabbles]

Trey 1

Summary: A deserter fights one final time against the army he used to serve as they pillage the village he hid in. He does not seek victory.

(I played Behave Irrationally from Valkyrie Profile on loop while writing this one.)

This was always embedded within his blood. The instinct to reap more.

“I take,” he stabs, “I take,” he grinds his heel into bone, “and I take!” he tosses the corpse to the ground.

Appreciation? Protecting others and having their backs? Trey spoke of it once, and has yet all he did was take advantage of their kindness to hide in his bakery! While everyone out here was getting slaughtered, he was quietly tucked away in the safe room, hoping all of this would pass.

He had blocked his own ears to the screams, ignored the villagers that so kindly took him in, despite his uniform that clearly belonged to the Kingdom of the Red King. Despite the fact he himself was once close to him.

Trey had abandoned his mission, his king, his allies. And now he has abandoned these people as well. Why must he pay a price for choosing to do nothing?

…no, of course not. No one can truly choose to do nothing. No one can abstain from choice. Trey is here, pretending to be a simple baker, shutting his eyes from the all the sins he’s accumulated, all because he was afraid of paying any price.

Nothing in his muscles stays quiet as he runs upon the blood caked road. They twitch about, awakening old instincts to go out and search for more enemies. Trey grips his kitchen knife tighter, already spotting a group of card soldiers exiting once humble, friendly homes.

Hundreds are here, all perfectly uniform, all perfectly following the rules and methods that have been hammered into them. He didn’t wait for them to turn around. He dove into the fray, with only a knife and a broken, howling spirit.

“Any and all who show even the littlest hint of rebellion, cut off their heads! Them present them before my feet!”

Trey’s own head would make for a fine gift, wouldn’t it, Riddle?

…

“Answer me this question, Trey Clover,” within this black space, right at the crossroads of choice and possibility, you have appeared before him, “how would you define yourself? A soldier? A baker? A friend?”

He had only heard tales of the Rainbow Winged Valkyrie. The death deity, the one who appears before heroic souls, to judge them. A god who picks soldiers to fight a battle eternal among gods.

“How cruel of you, Valkyrie, to appear before me,” Trey knows he should keep his mouth shut, to placate the Valkyrie and play along, if only to protect himself, but, “Do you not show yourself to souls deemed heroic? To those that hold such potential within themselves? How can you stand to look at me, when you know I’m nothing but a deserter.”

“Is that how you define yourself?” No stutter, no skip, no hesitation. His worries and disrespect mean nothing to you, for he was but an ant. As is the view all gods hold.

“It is the truth. No matter how you may judge me, I must reject to being one of your einherjar.” Leave him back on Midgard, let him be consumed by a witch. He does not deserve to serve anyone, no matter how gentle your light may be.

“Then so be it.” You spread your wings, “A man consumed by guilt and selfishness is not fit to be an einherjar. However, I have made a promise to myself, so I will grant you mercy once more.”

Once more?

“Speak, Valkyrie. What do you mean?” Trey stepped towards you, however the wind from your wings beat him back.

“May your life and love flourish in the next life.” With no explanation, you have left him alone in this space.

Without your light, Trey succumbed to sleep.

His soul needed no guidance. Mortals, clumsy and fickle things, will always find their way back to the world, as new child, in a new life. The sacred feathers of the Valkyrie will be left untouched.

#twst #twisted wonderland #twst-drabbles #twst-drabbles exclusive #drabble #heartslabyul #trey #trey clover #valkyrie au #reader insert

[poisonheart]

It’s been several days since I finished FFXVI and I gave myself time to process those emotions, but I still don’t like the ending. The more I watch people play through that conclusion, the clearer my reasons become. To me, Clive was never free.

He was his mother's disappointment (and treated like a bastard just because he failed to "awaken"), his brother's shield (I loved their bond but it was still a big responsibility for a child), a slave assassin to a foreign kingdom, Cid's replacement, the person people placed their faith on in the absence of a savior while being wanted/hunted as a vessel by a selfish god who only cared about self-preservation.

In the end, after having so much taken from him and giving so much of himself, he had to lose everything to birth a new, better world.

And I get it. Intellectually, I understand and can even see the "beauty" in the tragedy of it all. I know what had to be done and I know he was always that kind of guy—willing to give himself up for a better cause.

Emotionally, I disliked it. I always do. In the end, he didn't escape the whole "being Child of Fate" thing.

Joshua shouldn't have died.

Dion shouldn't have died.

Clive shouldn't have felt like he needed to die to bring happiness to everyone but himself.

I know it's implied he survived despite seemingly calcifying at the end. He was given a quill and suggested to abandon the sword for that quill—to become a writer when it was all over. And you see a book after the credits written by "Joshua Rosfield."

Again, taking up someone else's name, having their legacy live on. I get it was a cute, meaningful gesture—if it was Clive who wrote it because Joshua didn't survive, but he could never just be "Clive." He was always someone else, something else. Not just Clive. I wanted him to live as Clive Rosfield.

I know the ending was ambiguous to leave the door open for DLC's. I mean, Clive "healed" Joshua after consuming the powers of god with all the creation magic that came with it. We can assume, if we want, that Joshua does make it too. Maybe he's the one who becomes the writer because Clive was too busy being a farmer or something.

Maybe Dion survived too.

Maybe when Clive "healed" and "birthed" this new world, or whatever actually happened there, those people in the vicinity were restored.

[And maybe none of them lived and DLCs are about the past of the characters in those 13 years after the intro... or they'll give Jill a little Clive baby who is also tasked with living up to his father's legacy...]

Don't get me started on how Dion deserved better. Especially if you do the quests before the finale—that shit hurts. Clive was given time and a support system to overcome his guilt over "killing Joshua" but Dion never had that. He was only allowed to find absolution in death. He should have lived a long life—repairing his kingdom, raising that little girl who saved his life with his boyfriend, and being happy.

Maybe on the other side we didn't see, in some DLC, they did live happily ever after.

But it wouldn't change how punishing the finale felt.

Jill said Clive always wanted to save everyone, but never thought to save himself, and even at the very end he didn’t.

He could never rid himself of his fate as some divine plot device. 

I get that it is heroic and noble to give up oneself for those you love and the world they'll be left in. That undoing the horrible suffering we saw was indeed an act of love, but I personally dislike this trope.

It's a personal bias of mine when a hero needs to die to achieve a greater good, leaving behind people who want them to live because they too deserve a slice of the happiness pie.

Clive spent his life juggling duty, guilt, promises, dreams while being stalked by a god hell-bent on destroying his life to break down his will and take over his body (Ultima, you had tits too, so why?) and yet he was still chained to his fate of becoming a sacrificial lamb.

The only difference was the outcome.

One option ensured everyone/the world perished.

The other option ensured the everyone/the world didn't perish.

He just couldn't escape being bitch slapped no matter what.

I know that it's poetic to show how different he is from Ultima who didn't care about anyone, hijacked a planet because his was dead, and created people for the sole purpose of saving himself through them someday.

Clive had to be the opposite.

Had to be willing to die for a better world.

Prove to Ultima who was floating in the lifestream that selfless love was better than self-love.

I get it. I get the themes, but I don't have to enjoy them.

This was also my problem in FFXIV with the Warrior of Light's ties to a past that chased them all the way to their reincarnation(s), but that's another story.

I felt the story punished Clive for existing.

I didn't feel liberated by the ending.

The vagueness of it didn't satisfy me.

He had a miserable fate from beginning to end.

Even if Clive is alive, happy, and free in some future DLC chapter, that hint of disappointment will stay with me. Because they said the ending was meant to stand on its own.

I know that a story isn't good because it has a happy ending, but I can't think of a cast of characters who deserved a sappy end more than this one, especially a protagonist who was seemingly born under the worst possible star (fate).

I didn't want the conclusion to be left up to interpretation.

Overall, I still liked the journey, I enjoyed playing it, loved the cast, and especially enjoyed the combat—which I wasn't expecting—but I can understand why so many people turned to fanfics.

It's the only way to cope now.

#ffxvi #ffxvi spoilers #clive rosfield

[ladystrallan]

Once Upon a Time season 5A thoughts

I’m rewatching OUAT and I wanted to share some of my opinions on each season!

- The random girl shushing his ominous speech is so funny

- Wow he just poofed into dust

- Omg the end of excalibur is the dagger

- “Mate don’t” idk why but that is funny

- “We need someone wicked” yassss

- Omg the rose

- Wow iconic move to cut her hand off to remove the bracelet

- She is so good at manipulating everyone

- Gaslight gatekeep girlboss

- “Accent’s a bit much no?” Lol rumple

- “Out dwarves, adults only” Regina…

- “Well… you don’t look like a crocodile” why is this episode so funny

- Okay I remember really not liking Arthur and the whole Camelot plot line

- OUAT loves a memory loss plot

- Omg dark emma

- She’s got a cool look

- Not dopey turning into a tree

- OMG WHAT IS THAT THING???

- Hook: Emma look at me this isn’t you

- Of course she can’t dance

- Omg that guy is evil or something

- A demon sent from the underworld… hmmmm I feel like I know a hot guy from there

- I seriously can’t wait for 5b to see my man <3

- Omg Henry and Violet is so cute (I remember liking them together)

- He whips out the ipod lol

- This song is kind of a bop

- Omg she destroyed his village

- I guess there was a Robin fake out death before it actually happened

- Can you make the price like a dollar or something? Or does it have to be of equal value

- “WE’VE BEEN VIOLATED” lol

- “Have you thought about kissing it out?” Omg that’s so funny

- Regina is such a hypocrite

- She has done things just as bad if not worse than what Zelena did and yet she deserves redemption and Zelena doesn’t???

- “I wished him happy just not with my wife” lol

- “What’s that then” “It’s a picture from up inside Zelena” “Woah mate” I’M DYING

- Arthur is giving me Louis from Versailles vibes

- And if you’ve seen my Versailles thoughts, you know how I feel about Louis (I hate him)

- Noooo not on her birthday

- DAVID NO DON’T TRUST HIM

- Omg they kissed

- I mean, if you’re neglecting your wife it’s kinda understandable if she cheats

- “Well, there’s this girl” “Is there indeed?” Loved the delivery Killian

- “Is that your dad?” “No it’s my horse” lol

- That’s sinister, using magic to keep your wife from leaving you

- Arthur is such an asshole omg

- Omg Merida is back

- “I need you to make him brave” wow that’s what her movie is called

- Ooh that’s Merlin

- I’m pretty sure he was talking about Nimue (and she was the first dark one)

- Well that’s a way to meet the dad

- “When this kingdom is attacked by ogres” WHY IS IT ALWAYS OGRES???

- Awwww that’s cute a little date

- “Um hi milady” lol

- Not the friend zone

- This is giving me so much second hand embarrassment

- Taunting rumple with belle is the way to make him brave

- She is his courage… that’s so cute

- Love the arrow in the intro

- Wow I guess no one cares about rumple then

- Slay belle for standing up for him

- NO NOT THE CHIPPED CUP

- Please tell me they can fix it :(

- NOOOOO DON’T KILL BELLE

- I do like the idea of rumple being all heroic for her

- Omg I’m crying this is so sweet

- Zelena and Emma team up??? Iconic

- YASSSS RUMPLE

- “He’s not my sweetheart” I think he is belle ;)

- OMG SLAY RUMPLE

- “You saved me” “Actually I think you saved me” AWWWWWWWW

- “I would change everything for you” screaming

- YASSSSSS RUMPLE PULLING THE SWORD

- I’m a slut for good rumple (or just rumple in general lol)

- I do miss him having magic though

- Why is Zelena so slay all the time?

- The outfits, the acting, the trickery, 10/10

- Emma’s lucky she didn’t get the dark one skin condition

- She just got a bleach job and a new outfit

- Arthur is such a dickhead omg i can’t stand him

- Lol Rumple’s Merlin impression

- Zelena was like switched sides? Time for an outfit change

- Omg she’s going into labour

- Why does every evil person want a baby? How many dark spells require that?

- Omg the house that he picked

- “Did someone scream for a doctor?” Yasssss Dr Whale is back!

- Did he go to the same hair salon as Emma lol

- Yassss mulan is back!

- Mulan and Merida: iconic team up

- RUBY!

- So many characters I love are back this season :)

- OMG IT WAS ARTHUR

- Me anytime I see Arthur: “Dickhead”

- OMG RUMBELLE

- MY HEART

- THEY ARE SO CUTE

- Regina & co are actually so awful to Zelena about this whole baby thing

- Like I get that it’s Robin’s baby but it’s hers too

- And I’m pretty sure being away from the mother is bad for a baby’s development

- Like at least let her visit with supervision

- I guess when you become the dark one you immediately know how to use magic

- Ok I guess they are letting her see her baby

- SHE CAME TO THE WELL

- NOOOOOOOO

- Was not expecting the break up part 2 :(

- Me sobbing

- How is she pregnant in 5b though???

- They must get together by the end of 5a

- Catch me opening the underworld portal so I can see my man <3

- The visual of all the dark ones sitting in the boat together is so funny to me

- It’s giving summer camp vibes

- “The underworld is worse than you could possibly imagine” uhhhh no rumple my true love is there so I think it’s pretty great

- Awwww rumple sending her to see the world

- NOOOOOO RUMPLE IS MARKED

- That’s actually so vile to send her away so she literally CANNOT SEE HER BABY

- Slay move by hook

- Rip (until he gets resurrected)

- Belle didn’t leave!

- THEY’RE KISSING

- YASSSSSSS

- And the baby was conceived ;)

- Rumple being the dark one again, kinda slay

- Kind of bad for his redemption arc though

- “I will always find you” we love a good iconic line

- I am so excited to see Hades!!! Love of my life (and death)

How I feel about the characters this season

Love: RUMPLE (10/10 character development), Belle, Zelena, Dr Whale, Merida

Like: Emma, Hook, Mulan, Ruby, Nimue (idk she’s kinda cool)

Neutral: Snow, David, Merlin, Guinevere, Henry

Dislike: Regina, Robin

Hate: Arthur

Season rating: 6/10

Firstly, I HATE ARTHUR AND I CAN’T WAIT UNTIL HE’S DEAD. I don’t care for the Camelot arc, but I do like dark Emma and Rumple got some really good character development (even though he went back to being the dark one). I also like Merida and it was nice to see Ruby, Dr Whale, and Mulan again. Gets an extra 0.5 for setting up my absolute favourite arc in the show (the underworld)

#ouat thoughts #once upon a time season 5a #once upon a time #ouat 5a #once upon a time season 5 #emma swan #zelena mills #zelena #zelena ouat #regina mills #killian jones #captain swan #rumplestiltskin #belle french #rumbelle #ruby lucas #ouat mulan #ouat merida #dr whale #outlaw queen #ouat camelot #dark swan #the dark one #henry mills