#character and plot and theme analysis

[sillysoliloquyshits]

Things we don't really talk about much on Ne Zha 2 (and the first movie:

1. Ne Zha may seem very impulsive once his temper is on fire, but he can be very focused and clear minded on his responsibilities and loyalties no matter what, as shown when he could've just let Ao Bing die out of vengeance for his dad, but he still rushed to beat Lady Shi up so he can get Ao Bing's problem done for and so he can focus on enacting revenge on Ao Guang

2. In that similar vein it could be interpreted that Ne Zha was taking a gamble in destroying his body to free himself from the curse in the cauldron (instead of following his mom in death), since he may have taken Ao Guang's words that the Samadhi fire in the cauldron is compatible with his own seriously, so even despite the raging grief and agony he still tried his hardest to free himself so he can free his dad and Ao Bing and everyone later

3. Ao Bing learns as quickly as Ne Zha (who literally mastered shapeshifting without his master's help very quickly) and while it's not shown when exactly Ao Bing too learnt shapeshifting, it's clear that with their special spiritual power status they just learn new and difficult skills fast

4. Lady Yin and Li Jing really share a powerful bond where even if Lady Yin spent her last moments with Ne Zha, it's very understandable that she still loves her husband too even without having a chance to say goodbye, and if you're a couple who already gave birth to three outstanding godly children, pretty sure you already knew what your wife was thinking and Li Jing let his wife spend her last moments with her son as he knows all along Ne Zha is her top priority and that's okay, it's called selfless love in unspoken communication

5. Also it must be said that Li Jing does subconsciously listen to his wife, as in the first movie he was persuaded to let Tai Yi Zhen Ren try to kill Ne Zha at birth until his wife came to protect him, and Li Jing was persuaded that no matter what Ne Zha is still his son, and when at the end of the first movie Ne Zha said his only regret with his dad is never having a chance to play Jianzi with him, which broke him as he realised he should've listened to Lady Yin in spending more time to make Ne Zha happy before his death, instead of strictly training him, so yeah Li Jing totally knows what listen to your wife means

7. That being said what's more heartbreaking is that the reason why Lady Yin was the one that threw the oblivion pill away from Ne Zha instead of Li Jing was because he himself couldn't make the choice in choosing his wife or his son and his wife chose for him, which just makes his grief even worse, like when I rewatched the movie I just felt so freaking awful for Li Jing haiz-

8. Ao Guang has ended up being a lonelier figure, with his siblings all betraying him and now having to let his son go with his crush best buddy forever has made his journey as a king more alone than ever, but it's not without logic as he may have figured that with Ne Zha already willing to do so much for Ao Bing, they might as well stick together to ensure Ao Bing's safety, since the Loong/dragon clan being somewhat refugees and hunted down by the heavenly court would bode ill for Ao Bing so yeah

9. I might be delulu but I saw one of the calligraphy ink posters of Lady Yin and someone saw a purple pill floating below her face and at her hair which could foreshadow her fate, but when I watched a second time I saw that bead again at her hair tie when there was a closeup of her face in sending Ne Zha away so if the creative team really hid her foreshadowed fate in her literal hair tie I'm gonna-

10. While Tai Yi is kinda nerfed for continuity reasons (where hundreds of his cultivation years are gone just to protect Ne Zha and Ao Bing's souls), we can't deny that he still has the most integrity out of all the immortals, along with Ne Zha's parents, so yeah hopefully that will be continued for Tai Yi as he's ironically the model of what a cultivator should be like despite his lower levels of power compared to other immortals, as he still has a conscience (and is forced to be a babysitter for both Ne Zha and Ao Bing as usual lol)

11. It's also ironic that while the actual humans and humans-turned-immortals are the truly righteous ones with a conscience and not as discriminatory, it's those immortals who were once spirits who project their prejudices and hatred for their own spirit status on themselves and deepen the divide between spirits/demons and humans and the hypocrisy that comes with it, which really gives a dark reflection on how harmful internalised racism can be

12. One instance I realised was that when Shen Zheng Dao was training his disciples by the waterfall he blamed his students on how their cultivation paths are harder was solely because of their spirit birth, which when internalised sounds harsh as one doesn't really choose their birth and it also hints to the planting of seeds of internalised hatred for their own true nature and thinking that things will change for the better when you're more capable of 'not looking like a spirit/looking human' and cultivation, which really worsens the suppressing of the self in cultivation

13. Shen Gong Bao is a very ambitious character who does misdeeds to get to the top, but at least it's shown that he does work a lot harder than most for his own success, just that he snapped and decided to try and cheat his way through with stealing the Heavenly Pearl then, but at least he doesn't cheat all the way since he didn't really take the heavenly pills to help either, so it's a nuanced take on how as an antagonistic figure Shen Gong Bao doesn't always rely on his trickery

14. With all that what exactly is the purpose of cultivating? And with Li Jing and Lady Yin naively thinking cultivating is all about helping more people and accumulating merits, does that mean with their human nature that so many wished to be born as, does that mean the humans are the ones that are more sheltered from brutal realities spirits have to face in cultivating? When did such a divide start back then?

15. Some people have guessed that it's unfair that He Tong with her powers is only working to serve Wu Liang around instead of doing hunter duties like Lu Tong, and this is either a nudge to gender roles in work, where females no matter how skilled are forced to do more subservient roles, or simply because with He Tong's powers she works better as a defence while Lu Tong's archer skills is much more suitable for attacking

16. Iirc, Ao Run sort of looked like she was holding back when she was fighting Ne Zha and Ao Bing even though she's very swift in her own way, and according to BTS art and sketches of the second movie, the team had thought of how Ao Run favoured Ao Bing as her nephew, so even if she has sided with the villain, she still secretly can't beat to hurt her beloved nephew either even if Ao Bing would regard her as his enemy from now on

17. Ao Run and her other two brothers serve as a dark mirror of what happens when rebellious idealism at youth withers to cruel compliance to reality, and the director has said that Ao Run was once like Ne Zha and Ao Bing, but thousands of years of imprisonment has caused them to side the bad guys they once vowed to fight against out of self preservation, which is understandable, whereas Shen Gong Bao shows us a figure who probably once did that and still tried to fight against the bad guys after having snapped, so it goes to show that with youth and less experience, the young ones will inevitably feel invincible against anything life throws at them, the real question is whether they (Ne Zha and Ao Bing) could still persist on their core ideals and morals

18. Sometimes it's also got to do with one's nature and status as well, since Ne Zha and Ao Bing may be able to do their rebellions against heaven differently with their greater innate power compared to most characters, which pits them in a better position to survive anything the antagonists throw at them, so yeah sometimes when it comes to rebelling against the system, it's not just your morals your own innate abilities are a huge factor in determining whether you prefer to die trying or to prioritise your own self preservation

Some of these ideas are my own thoughts and some of them I heard from other people either on Tumblr or on Rednote but yeah! Super long sorry again-

[pencilofawesomeness]

How Fairy Tail could have had a really cool thematic parallel if they Committed to the Bit:

I often joke about my constant urge to spew essays on characters and topics I have thought too much about, but I refrain because translating all the thoughts in my head to words takes time and effort, and sometimes I am speaking to the void. However. I am spinning in my chair, gnawing at the bars of my enclosure, and frankly thinking way too much right now so I must scream.

It would have been so impactful if Fairy Tail emphasized Jellal being brainwashed.

Jellal is my boy, of course, but I’m not even just talking about the impact to his character: I mean the impact of the entire plot. This, of course, if we went the whole mile with the theming. The machination of being controlled, emotionally or magically influenced, or even unable to fulfill a desire due to an insurmountable obstacle, comes up numerous times throughout the plot, to both primary characters, supporting characters, and antagonists. While Fairy Tail is absolutely a series about friendship, it is also about choosing your path, with a large recurring theme of, regardless of connotation, about being selfish, and what that means on both ends of the spectrum. It’s a matter of free will, and the antithesis to this is all manner of external control. So really, it makes sense that this should be a thoroughly explored theme.

I could talk all day about all the different examples and aspects of this but I came here to talk about Jellal. First, the slavery aspect really hits the nail on the head, so we’re off to a great start—this, of course, applicable to multiple characters, which I really enjoy. Things go wild, however, when Jellal effectively chooses to trade himself for Erza in the punishment game and gets the ever-living shit beat out of him at the ripe age of eleven or twelve years old. He is, understandably, not in a good place, and he comes to the stunning conclusion that… he hates the slavers. Yeah. Checks out. Then, he hears the voice of ‘Zeref’ spewing rhetoric about hate, and it overwhelms; this, we know in hindsight especially, to be Ultear casting a mind-fuck spell in order to manipulate him, under the guise of pretending to be a figure young Jellal believed to be a god. 

When I first saw this flashback, watching the anime, I was unbelievably hyped. For all of Fairy Tail’s odd relationship with foreshadowing, I got the gist of it as soon as the magic went into his right eye and overwhelmed him. In Japanese media especially (largely due to the prevailing symbolism of the daruma doll), the right eye is a huge indicator of free will and the future—namely one’s goals. Creepy magic ghost entering the right eye with magic-bind looking things and immediately warping Jellal’s goal? A+ delivery. Of course, at the time Zeref—an unrevealed ‘evil’ entity—seemed a likely culprit, but Ultear being the puppeteer changes little of the result. In fact, it actually creates a super interesting parallel, but more on that later.

First, there are the consequences of Jellal being an antagonist who is not in control of his actions. I see people lament that it “cheapens” the severity of the arc and provides a cop-out redemption for Jellal, and while the execution of the latter certainly could have been different, I don’t think the premise of mind alteration cheapens the overall plot and theme of Fairy Tail at all; on the contrary, it could have been used to further emphasize intra- and inter- character conflict as well as provide a super engaging parallel for the end of the series. The theme of nakama, family, and friendship is huge, so what better way to emphasize that than to show a twisted example of it?

Jellal goes from ride-or-die loyal and ‘good’ to circumstantially loyal to an ideal (and the people attached to it) and ‘evil’ with the flip of a magic switch. Erza gets the immediate short of the stick when she is the first victim (aside from Jellal himself) to this meddling, and the caring friend she had seen days or weeks before is now cruel, insane, and full of threats—threats she takes heed to as she is cast from the island. Now, Erza is also a child, and one full of trauma, so I am not trying to invalidate her fear or blame her for any outcome. This also does not dive into the intricacies of saving friends at cost to oneself, and all of the conflict thereof; if anything, the complication of the matter bolsters the drama and impact. And then, we have the rest of the squad. Sho, Wally, and Milliana buy into the idea without any trouble, and they continue to buy into it as they get older. Beyond morality, it’s a power fantasy, and those are easy for formerly powerless people to latch onto. However, Simon is the only one who realizes that something is fundamentally wrong and twisted with Jellal… and his ultimate goal, developed over the course of roughly seven to eight years, is to wait it out until he finds the opportunity to kill him, or get somebody else to do it. Ultear, even after integrating herself into the group out of nowhere, gets away with her plan, because ultimately nobody questions that Jellal’s sudden change was anything but a result of trauma and his own will—even in a world with magic, where the very first arc revolves around the use and mistreatment of charm magic.

(Now, as an aside, I unfortunately have some experience in friends suddenly changing. In real life, it is rarely so sudden and obvious, of course, and the culprit is usually those horrible little signals and hormones within the mind, and nothing so fanciful or external as magic. I had a friend take a nosedive into some truly batshit ideas—cult-starting worthy—and exhibit wild mood swings and displays of unprecedented behavior. It admittedly took me a moment to ascertain it among the known issues, but once the pieces clicked, it clicked. I wished I had noticed sooner, and even though she was more culpable of her choices than a person supernaturally influenced by an outside force, I still can’t hate her for all the harm done. This is all just to say that I have, especially in recent years, a personal perspective on this trope and an appreciation for the painful nuance.) 

Refusing to reveal this mindfuckery in the arc diminishes the severity of it a great deal, I fear. We, along with the characters, spend time believing he died an insane villain… and then when he comes back amnesiac, it softens his character but does nothing to contradict how awful he had been. It’s not until years later, arcs later, that we get this random instance of the long overdue reveal to tell us that the manipulation has been discovered off screen. Not only is this utterly underwhelming, but Jellal is now actively working with Ultear and is fine with it! He’s still (understandably, after all this damn time thinking otherwise) blaming himself and lighting his own pyre to atone for things started by a factor completely outside of his control, and every character lets him. The discussion of autonomy is wasted. So, too, is all the juicy emotional fallout. We don’t see Jellal grapple with the horrifying reality that he has not been himself, that years of his life were wasted as a mental slave instead of a physical one; we don’t see Erza beat herself up (likely unnecessarily) because she could have potentially protected him but she hadn’t out of fear, and then she condemned him unknowingly; we don’t see the others truly come to terms with the fact that Jellal had been stolen from under their noses and they never noticed; we don’t even get more than a glimpse in Ultear’s head, who committed the deed because she thought her means wouldn’t matter and then they did. 

It’s horrifying. It’s tragic. It was, perhaps, preventable—in that the problem was a punchable one, to a degree—except the people involved were just children, just human, and it wasn’t enough. Friendship and flashy magic power could not trump trauma and entrapment, not this time. No matter how I think the series could have and should have handled it (and I have several ideas, of course), Jellal’s story provides a haunting case of failure regarding the themes of friendship/community and freedom that our protagonists embody. 

Which brings me to the perfect opportunity to follow up this occurrence of stripped autonomy and loss of freedom with a culmination of the affected themes, plot points, and more: the books of Zeref. 

Namely, the idea that the etherious—sapient, cognizant, and fully capable of autonomy via every depiction given of them, from Tartaros to even Lullaby to especially Natsu—can be and have been resolutely manipulated and controlled via the books by Zeref. Now Zeref, infamously hands-off up until the finale, barely utilized this. The most we ever see is instilling a directive and supernatural need to kill Zeref in the texts, which serves as an externally imposed goal. (Sound familiar, yet?) Provided Larcade clearly doesn’t have these instincts, it is not a guaranteed addition either, which further adds to the sense of deliberation. Natsu experiences this only in the last arc, in what I assume is supposed to be a very tense and jarring plot of a friend and protagonist suddenly losing himself, but it does not get expounded on for long enough to hammer the point home. The plot point of reclaiming the book becomes about saving his life only, and not his autonomy. Not only could this have been emphasized to be properly horrifying and devastating, but the effect—and the suspense—would be doubled with the prior establishment of Jellal’s arc and the tragedy therein. 

To back up for a moment, this parallel is further accentuated by the fact that Ultear and Zeref are clear mirrors of each other. Ultear was afflicted by a magic condition outside of her control and she was enslaved as a lab rat for it. When she broke free, she perceived her mother to have abandoned her, so Ultear, in her unresolved anger and grief, aims her entire goal to rectifying it, which culminated in planning to undo the entire timeline in order to make the one she wanted all along. Any casualties, any cruelties—including the mental enslavement of a slave child—are means to an end, and will ultimately be forgotten. Zeref lost his entire family to tragedy, and in his grief, he refused to forfeit the idea of regaining what was lost, namely his brother. He became afflicted with a curse—a magic condition outside of his control—and experienced cognitive dissonance for it. Ultimately, this miserable existence culminated in the idea of erasing the timeline entirely and forging his own. Any casualties, any cruelties—including subjecting his creations to the same lack of complete cognitive control—are means to an end, and will not matter. 

I mentioned that selfishness is also a recurring theme and this is a prime example of the dark side of it. For Lucy, claiming her independence and following her own path against the wishes of her estate, it is a wondrous thing. Freedom cannot be achieved without some selfishness, and this is a wonderfully handled theme in Fairy Tail, where our protagonists unabashedly put their friends above concrete morals and follow a creed to live their life to the fullest—the eternal adventure. For characters like Ultear and Zeref, their personal desires—born of horrible tragedy and frankly understandable things to want—come at the cost of the autonomy of everyone else, especially the pawns they use to further their goal. This, in true fictional hyperbole, begs the question of where the line in the sand is to be drawn, of what is acceptable on a moral standard and what is not. It is, of course, colored by the protagonist’s point of view as clear antagonism, but as a viewer of the media it provides to us to question when protecting one’s ideal becomes irrevocably an attack on the sanctity of others. 

Which brings us back to the matter of the books. The intended horror of Natsu losing control of himself, I think, could have been really emphasized in order to highlight these aforementioned themes. Imagine if, instead of a complete menagerie of new characters as the final invading force, Zeref’s key piece of his invasion was Natsu. With the intended goal of undoing time, having Natsu kill him is no longer necessary, so it would be more pragmatic to use Natsu instead as a weapon of mass destruction for his goal. Not only is he inside of Fairy Tail, but Zeref is, theoretically, doing this for Natsu too, and he won’t remember this upon success—nevermind that the Natsu we know, that presently exists, that we have watched develop over the entirety of the series, would be forever erased regardless. 

Armed with the knowledge of what happened to Jellal, and how he ultimately had no one to intervene for him, this increases the urgency within the characters and will likely expedite their discovery of why Natsu turned against them out of nowhere. This time, a resistance is launched, and characters have the chance to intervene on the behalf of a friend. Gray couldn’t save Ur, Lucy spent years ensnared by the will of a family member, Erza didn’t recognize Jellal’s plight until it was too late, but they can save Natsu, and save him quickly. Fairy Tail, Team Natsu especially, can rewrite the book of E.N.D. solely for the great cause of freeing their friend and handing him back his free will, and in the process, Fairy Tail saves their own future as well. This doesn’t preclude the ability to free Zeref from his curse, but with or without that we have a beautiful culmination of fighting for the sake of a friend, for the individual and for the whole group. This time, friendship wins. 

I just think it could have been really cool.

[aroaceleovaldez]

The himbo, malewife, goofball -fication of percy jackson is such a crime by both the fans and riordan. It has made Mr not like percabeth as a couple because in all posts and in later books annabeth is such a girlboss, while Percy's dumb and can't fight his way out of a paperbag without her. All the posts are about how annabeth will be an architect and percy would love to be a trophy husband.

Even the humor in the books went from Percy's sharp wit and snark to 'my pancakes can't drown because I'm a son of poseidon.'

And now this recommendation letter bullshit.

Honestly now I'd wish percy just separated from annabeth (but they remain best friends.) He stays home with his family, becomes a camp counselor, helps young demigods, holds God's accountable and eventually becomes a social activist. (I also dislike him doing something marine biology related. It's clear he hates academics but he always wants to help people. Him helping demigods and mortals is such a wholesome profession for him.)

I fully agree with the first half of this, though I slightly disagree with part of the latter.

The later-series and fanon mischaracterization of Percy is at least a solid 50% ableism minimum, full stop. He's being warped into a very stereotyped ADHD character and the exact reason why he's being characterized as "dumb" is because of ableism. Percy is a very intelligent character! That's exactly why he's so in sync with Annabeth and they're such a strong duo! It's just generally Annabeth is more book/academically smart.

I disagree with where you say he hates academics - because that's one of the common misconceptions about his character. Percy doesn't hate learning or academic subjects! He's not even bad at them! We know explicitly that when he is in an accommodating environment he is interested in learning and gets significantly better grades! Percy only dislikes school because it is generally an environment that systematically he struggles with. It's literally just he has a learning disability (two, actually)! That's it! When his learning disability is accommodated for he does well! It's almost like that's what accommodations are all about! We know this from the first series! It's discussed pretty in-depth! Percy isn't a dumb character and he doesn't hate learning, he's just been let down by school systems so much that he's inherently distrustful of them. If they actually accommodate him though then he does just fine!

And that's exactly what CHB was all about and why New Rome University was supposed to be such a big thing for him! CHB is a learning environment geared for demigods. NRU is a demigod college. Both inherently imply an environment meant to cater to and accommodate students with ADHD and dyslexia! They are both systematically structured to be able to accommodate him! Heck, CHB and CJ even both address in the wider themes of the series a metaphor about how ADHD and dyslexia are commonly seen as childhood disabilities, and how it can be more difficult to find accommodations into adulthood because of that attitude but those disabilities don't just go away - that's why CHB is a summer camp but they talk about how demigods outside of CHB don't often fare well. The metaphor there is those who are not getting help or accommodations are struggling. Because that's how that works! This is a fully intentional metaphor from the first series! CHB is never framed as being perfect for demigods, because one of the entire central conflicts of the series is Percy and Luke going back and forth about this flawed system meant to help and support them but still letting people fall through the cracks. The "claim your kids by 13" thing is a metaphor about how acknowledging a child's disabilities (and possibly getting a diagnosis) earlier/as early as possible means they will have more time to learn and build up resources and support for themselves to be able to use later in life. One of CHB's major flaws is that it can accommodate demigods to a certain point, but it can only do so much before those demigods have to leave (the metaphor being accommodating school systems when those disabled students do not have any other forms of accommodations in their lives.)

And that's why Camp Jupiter was framed as being so revolutionary for Percy because it had an environment acknowledging that this is not just a childhood disability, adults with ADHD/dyslexia exist too and still need and deserve accommodations, AND is a place where those accommodations are available. That's why Camp Jupiter and NRU are treated as such special and important things to Percy, because it's essentially Percy being shown this type of thing can and does exist and it is available to him. It is an option he never thought was possible. Percy never thought he'd be able to go to college because he would not be able to go through school without accommodations, but NRU proves otherwise.

The part that's absolutely stupid is Rick then proceeded to retcon NRU so that apparently it's not a full college and Percy still has to take classes at normal mortal college which DEFEATS THE ENTIRE PURPOSE OF NRU EXISTING. Rick has fully retconned that demigods struggle past the ages of 16-18 when they're on their own (see above elaborated metaphors) and in doing so we have fully killed all symbolism in literally all of that. It's so stupid. And by having the plot of the CoTG trilogy entirely be that Percy is not actually allowed access to NRU in the first place because he is a son of Poseidon and has to do extra to even be accepted is stupid!

All that to say, I agree the marine biology feels like a huge cop-out and a disservice to his character by reducing him to just a son of Poseidon. The literal only reason why it's the default option people take for him is because oh, fish thing, fish guy. But I feel like everyone ignores the really obvious answer for what Percy would want to do which is - writing. Both his parents are writers/authors and he clearly admires that about them. Percy likes telling stories! He canonically is already a published author in-universe! That's what the books ARE in-universe! The first series fully exists in their universe and Percy is the author! This is explicit canonical information! Percy canonically has help physically writing it down (accommodations) but he is still the credited author! Percy is a writer! Already! Canonically! Why are we making him a marine biologist he already has a profession that ties into his character significantly more. Like you said, Percy likes helping people. That's what the books in-universe are supposed to be for! It's point blank at the beginning of the series! Book one! The thing everybody quotes all the time! The books exist because it is Percy trying to give advice to other demigods who don't know what's going on yet! It's Percy's writing down his experiences to help new demigods understand and contextualize their experiences so they can understand themselves better and figure out what's going on - WHICH IN ITSELF IS ALSO A METAPHOR ABOUT ADHD/DYSLEXIA! Because the core of the series has and always will be built around ADHD/dyslexia! Percy as a protagonist EXPLICITLY was created so that ADHD/dyslexic kids could see themselves as a hero!

Sorry that all was a very tangential rant but my point being: Absolutely. Percy in newer stuff in the franchise and in fanon is horrifically mischaracterized in ways that are functionally either fully ableist (shoutout TSATS for just outright claiming Percy is intentionally lazy and skips school out of disinterest, which is like the number one ableist attitude towards kids with learning disabilities) or a complete erasure of Percy's disabilities. Also I think he should be a writing major not a marine biologist.

[wackywatchdotcom]

got reminded of it ... but i think about the symbolism of jax' model a lot bc i think its subtle!!! but its there

and i think the crux of it is that jax' model is very much a prey animal, something that contradicts his general tendency for reckless, mean bullshit. there could be something there about him having front-facing eyes too. and iirc gooseworx said the farm was a lie which i do take into account but also i think it helps w his generally very 'natural' or real-world-nature design components and ideas being evoked. he has clothes and these clothes are very minimal and hes a real animal fairly closely associated with farming or hunting and is very humanlike and his pocket just Has Mulch in it. even if the farm isnt real theres definitely something his design is evoking here

that and an idea ive thought of is that rabbits are VERY much animals that operate on instinct. they do a lot of things based on an immediate need, typically for survival, at least in the wild. and i dont know if id describe jax as fearful (some could argue he is in his own way, which i dont disagree with, but i think the implications can be a bit loaded- but theres many ways a person can be fearful) but he definitely operates on what he immediately wants. he wants to have fun. so he DOES. it doesnt matter what that entails. he wants control, so he takes it out on the others. it doesnt matter what that entails. etc etc. hes also running from something and i think the image of a rabbit fits that well

i think its deliberate that jax is the only design that actually revolves around an animal that we see. theres dobby and that worm on a string in the back but of the main cast its ALL humans or items, jax is the only one whos an animal (and probably still intended to be toy-like, but none of the others have distinct animals theyre meant to be). and it feels purposeful in a way i genuinely think about a lot. i cant place what its implying for certain because i genuinely dont think we have enough information on jax to fully understand his thought processes, but it does make him very connected to the real world, but in a distant way

[crunchycrystals]

i'm like 90% sure irving is reintegrated. i think that irving has been reintegrated for a while and that's what the goo is. mark's seeing gemma first now that he's reintegrated, the most important part of this to him, and irving's seeing his paint. also thanks to this episode we know that reintegration takes some time, at least for innies. we only saw the effects of reintegration from petey's point of view when he was in the outside world, so it's entirely possible that reintegration is different for innies and outies at the beginning.

also we don't know how outie irving knows what the testing floor elevator looks like. innie irving doesn't even know what it is so where did he get this info? my guess is that he failed the input survey (since we know that theres a perfect score for it), got sent down to the testing floor to get his memory fixed, and then when he reintegrated those memories came back with it.

[sillysoliloquyshits]

Another (hopefully short) essay on more reasons why people find teenage Ne Zha devilishly alluring in the last 20 minutes of the second movie: (though it's pretty obvious)

1. The moment Ne Zha walked out of the fire with his rebuilt body in total outrage, it's hard not to be hit with shock like a bullet train (and the background music didn't help), while he also demonstrates much more dominant control over his feelings and his Qian Kun Ring upon summoning so yeah very hot of him literally

2. And watching him punch and kick the big bad with nothing but his wrath and six arms and legs and no weapons really emphasize feels cathartic as we root for Ne Zha too, and it also shows his resourcefulness as he makes do with whatever he has in the moment

3. More importantly Ne Zha isn't just hot he's fucking beautiful like. I'm no artist so I don't have the aesthetic terms to do the description of his face justice but with his softer and more realistic features like his face shape and eyes and nose from the first movie, along with his manicured hands and all, we don't just see a stereotypical buff character often associated with fire powers, as he also has his own warmth and tenderness to his expressions and figure

4. And above all, it's mostly the way that Ne Zha demonstrates his tenderness even with his immense fury, and his first words after rebuilding his body were the tender and broken words asking his dad to take care of his mom now turned into a heavenly pill, before turning to Ao Bing and locking in on channeling his anger to get everyone out of the cauldron and vengeance. Ne Zha's clearly shown even more as he looks older than he doesn't shy away from expressing vulnerability and more gentleness to those he loves, and it gives rise to the multi-faceted experience as an audience is in awe of seeing Ne Zha very naturally embody the badassery in him and the softer side of him, and of course the softer side of guys are very sought out for

5. People often say that in Ne Zha there is a very harmonious external and internal balance of his nature in his teenage form, where he has devilish features and powers in a human body from human (cultivator) parents that still shapes his divinely beautiful appearance, and it compliments perfectly with how despite his temper and impulsivity and vulgar sides, Ne Zha's heart is always in the right place for his loved ones and home and how he never shies away from the rough sides and soft sides of himself anymore, which is the most courageous thing to do: accepting the dark and light aspects of yourself, and it's a Buddhist-like enlightenment he has attainted thus far that cements his own inner wisdom

Tldr: because teenage Ne Zha aesthetically and morally follows the harmonious conventions of balance, thus it makes him captivating as hell, devilishly divine, utmost pure cinema.

[jeremiahthefroge]

Unironically, IS there anywhere to get a good beat-by-beat plot synopsis of the original Minecraft Diaries without watching it all the way through? I want to get a good idea of all the plot beats and characters and the general timeline to see about writing some fanfic, because the characters are living rent free in my brain, but I'm also like... VERY aware that it's a 2016 minecraft roleplay series... and I fear that I will ruin my own mental image of the series if I try to rewatch it all...

[c-nan]

Wait, wait, wait, I am 100% on board with the Supercorp Bolt thing, would you care to elaborate?

ngl i wrote that post half asleep and it is 4 am rn , so i fear i may disappoint you anon, BUT !! i would love to share my thoughts regardless

so basically what prompted my post about bolt and supercorp was the whole dog vs cat theme that i remember bolt (2008) having due to bolt acting in a movie (or tv series? i cant remember it’s been so long , my apologies) where the main villain has a cat, and how that conflict translates into distrust for the cat (mittens?) he befriends. and idk it kinda reminds me of supercorp and how kara is dog-coded and lena is cat-coded, and how lena is a luthor making her tied to a family who is highly villainized and mistrusted. now of course, kara trusts lena basically off the bat (if i remember correctly, i really need to do a supergirl rewatch) , but bolt makes me think of the dynamic they could of had if kara had not have been so trusting .. IDK !! sorry, this is so lowkey bad but i have more

anyway, then there’s just bolt as a character who gives such strong kara vibes. like, he has such a fixed moral compass !! right is right and wrong is wrong (and must be defeated!) and he’ll do anything to see justice served, so much so that it boarders on recklessness (a trait we’ve seen in kara so many times..) they’ve also got this innocence about them.. like, both believe the best in the world, and that they themselves have the power to create world peace and love and happiness or whatever. and of course they both got that superhero thing going on (even if bolt is just an actor).

and then lena as mittens !!! mittens, who is distrusted literally right of the bat (story of lena’s life), and who has had to work so hard her whole life for everything she has!!! mitten’s whole backstory about having a loving owner, just to one day be placed on the streets parallel’s lena’s backstory of having a great life in ireland, just to be thrust into the cold, unloving luthor household so hard !! like !!! she is mittens !! they’re both also very clever and know how to get what they want. they both also have dry humor and abandonment issues.. it’s like they’re the same person istg. and of course they both crave true connection, yet feel very very lonely .

anyway.. that’s it. if you have any ideas anon, i’d love to hear them!

[cinderella-ish]

Readers and Authors: What We Owe to Each Other

(Okay wow I started this post all the way back in August and am only posting it now 🤣 ANYWAY here we go)

So, I had two experiences in the past year or so that made me think hard about how I appraise the fiction I enjoy (in any form).

I read a story that made me so angry I still think about it sometimes.

I saw people angry about the ending of the JuJutsu Kaisen manga before it was even published.

Both of these experiences were kind of baffling to me, but they helped me articulate something that I've probably always believed, even if I hadn't put it into words yet:

Endings matter.

Okay okay, that's simplifying it a lot, but bear with me.

I've had a lot of conversations with friends and family recently, trying to tease out what makes a story successful in my view. Here's where I've currently landed:

Did the story say what it set out to say?

Did the story say something worth saying?

These are obviously very subjective questions, but I think they become easier to answer when using formal analysis structures.

In three-act story structure, the last 2% or so of a story is called the resolution. The climax is over, the protagonist has either succeeded or failed, and readers/viewers want to see how the outcome of that conflict has changed the protagonist's world.

Now, there are a few ways to understand three-act structure, and my favorites are catalogued on K.M. Weiland's website Helping Writers Become Authors. Here's what she has to say about story resolutions (in a positive change arc):

First is the function of each plot point and/or story beat.

The resolution's main job is to provide a sense of closure.

Second is the relationship of a given story beat to its mirror in the other half of the story.

The resolution should mirror the Hook (the very first scenes) in some way.

Third is the metaphorical "world(s)" of each act of the story.

The resolution gives us a look at the protagonist's new normal world after the events of the story. In this sense, it should feel like a new beginning.

Fourth is the character's relationship to the thematic question, truth and lie in each act of the story.

The resolution is where we see the protagonist's new life/outlook, firmly rooted in the thematic truth.

Notice some things that are missing from that list:

A resolution does not need to answer every remaining question or tie off every loose end.

A resolution does not need to solve all the protagonist's problems.

A resolution does not need to provide a satisfying end to every character's story.

(In fact, I'd argue that a resolution works better when it specifically doesn't do those things.)

So, I think we can't really judge a story based on my two criteria until we've seen the ending, aka the resolution, because the resolution's job is to put a point on the story's theme by showing us a glimpse into the protagonist's future that meaningfully contrasts with the beginning to show us how the protagonist has changed in relation to the story's theme.

And this brings me back to the title of this piece.

What do authors and readers owe to each other?

I think, when someone is telling a story, they're essentially making a promise to the reader (or viewer). What they're saying is "I have something important to say, and I will say it over the course of this story."

When someone reads (or watches) a story, I think they're accepting the terms of that promise and saying "I will trust that you will say what you mean to say in this story, and I will trust that what you have to say is important."

So why did that story make me so angry?

The short version:

I trusted that the author would say something important, and I stuck with their story to the end only to realize how utterly shallow and unsubstantial it was!

The longer version:

The story promised to explore an idea that I thought was really interesting, and I was curious as to how the author would do that. As I read, I thought I was picking up on clues that there was more under the surface waiting to be revealed; that there was some event or idea the story hadn't disclosed yet that would put everything that had happened thus far into perspective.

Nope. There was nothing.

In effect, the story was one big "telling, not showing." There was no basis given for the premise, no reason given as to why the characters made the choices they did. The main characters honestly could've been replaced with any characters from any story and it wouldn't have changed a thing - they were dolls that the author was making do whatever the author wanted, rather than characters with motivation and personalities. They were blank slates who didn't really change or cause the world around them to change.

This made me angry because I stuck with the damn thing until the very end only to finally realize that I'd wasted my time when I got to the resolution and it didn't offer me anything more.

What did the story have to say? That the author wanted this thing to happen. Is that something worth saying? For the author, probably. For me, as a reader, absolutely not.

I felt that I had held up my end of the promise as a reader, and I felt that the author hadn't held up their end. I had stuck with the story in good faith, I'd put my trust in the author, and they squandered that trust.

I read until the ending because I'd hoped the resolution would, at minimum, provide some clarity on the story's theme, but it didn't.

This brings me to JuJutsu Kaisen.

The ending of JJK was good, actually?

On the other side of this, I was really baffled by a lot of the complaints about JJK's ending, especially those that were circulating before the manga even finished!

It really baffled me, because I really thought the author had earned the readers' trust by then. There'd been so much analysis on the symbolism and intention behind so much of the story, I was genuinely shocked that anyone lacked faith in Gege Akutami's ability to, in his words, "...end the story in the way [he] wanted." Especially from people who'd otherwise raved about the story.

When I read the final chapters for the first time, I thought they encapsulated several of the story's themes and gave us a peek at the future of the JuJutsu world for the characters we'd come to love.

To me, the final chapters absolutely served the story well in saying what the author was trying to say.

Let's review what a resolution needs to do:

A resolution must provide a sense of closure.

A resolution should mirror the hook in some way.

A resolution gives us a look at the protagonist's new normal in a way that feels like a new beginning.

A resolution shows us the protagonist's new life/outlook, firmly rooted in the thematic truth.

I would argue that the ending of JJK did all of those things, and it did them well.

This is not to say that there are no valid criticisms of JJK, but that I think the ending followed through on the promise the author made to us.

When I go back and revisit some of the most common criticisms of the ending of JJK, they boil down to a few categories:

people who wanted the author to answer every single remaining question

people who wanted the plot-based conflict (rather than the characters' internal conflict) to be solved more definitively or differently

people who wanted more characters to have a complete arc

I think people in group 1 have clearly never seen a beloved series slowly turn to crap because it kept going long after it should've ended. The questions the author didn't answer wouldn't have helped him make his theme land any better.

Meanwhile, group 2 misunderstood the point of the story. JuJutsu Kaisen is not a story about fighting, or curses, or this particular magic system. JuJutsu Kaisen is fundamentally a story about love, and it always has been. Things like curses, magic, fighting, etc... only matter insofar as they help tell that story.

Group 3 can be split up into some smaller groups. I think some of this group might actually fall under groups 1 and/or 2, in that they either just wanted more content, or they over-prioritized plot-based character goals rather than internal conflict-based character goals. As for the rest of group 3, I think they either don't understand what a character arc is, or they forget that Yuji is the protagonist, and therefore his arc is the only one that must encapsulate the main idea(s) of the story in a satisfying way.

So, what is a character arc, anyway?

In a positive change arc, the character starts out believing a lie, and over the course of the story, they overcome that lie and embrace the thematic truth.

I would argue that both Yuji and Megumi experience a positive change arc in JuJutsu Kaisen.

Positive change arcs are the most common type of character arc, but characters can also experience a flat arc or a negative change arc.

In a flat arc, the character doesn't have a lie that they need to overcome. They already believe the story's thematic truth. Instead of this character being the one to change, they use the truth to change the world around them.

In JuJutsu Kaisen, I'd argue that Nobara and Gojo have flat arcs.

Nobara came to JuJutsu Tech to be true to herself. She already knew who she was. At the end of the story, she's still the Nobara we met at the beginning. With Megumi, Yuji, and her other friends and classmates, she succeeded in growing stronger and helping to bring down Sukuna.

Gojo, as the primary mentor character in JuJutsu Kaisen, also exhibits a flat arc. His desire at the start of the story is to fundamentally change JuJutsu society by teaching the next generation, thereby raising up sorcerers who are strong enough to stand beside him. He does this so well that his students are the ones to defeat Sukuna, and not him. After his death, his students are able to carry on his mission.

In Gojo's Past arc, Suguru Geto experiences a negative change arc.

There are 3 typical negative change arcs:

The Corruption Arc: the character starts out believing the truth. Over the course of the story, they reject the truth and embrace the lie.

The Disillusionment Arc: the character starts out believing a lie. Over the course of the story, they overcome the lie, only to find that the truth is tragic.

The Fall Arc: the character starts out believing a lie. Over the course of the story, they get a glimpse of the truth, only to reject it in favor of a worse lie.

Geto starts out believing that sorcerers' duty is to protect those weaker than them (non-sorcerers) from curses,. Through the course of the story, he rejects that belief in favor of the belief that non-sorcerers are not worth saving and must, in fact, be exterminated because they are the source of all curses in the first place.

Depending on whether you see either of his beliefs as the truth (and if so, which one), his arc could be seen as any one of the negative change arcs. I personally see it as a Fall arc, especially if you include the events of JuJutsu Kaisen 0 as part of his arc.

But what's Yuji's arc? What is the theme of JuJutsu Kaisen?

Well, here's where I say that I'm planning a series of posts analyzing JuJutsu Kaisen using three-act story structure. Because I don't have enough ongoing series, apparently. 🤣

If you read this far, thanks for sticking with it! And tell me, is there a story structure or analysis tool you prefer?

[omarwolaeth]

Might be strange sounding, but the card reveals/banlists always come in 2 different perspectives for me, irrelevant of which banlist I'm playing under; because I write fics, I have to contend with the banlist at times (a majority of the time it's based on the sort of half-tcg, half-ocg Master Duel banlist with Anime Specific Additions.)

So when new cards come out I have to judge them not only by what I can figure out from their effects and traits (combined with what's currently meta, and if there's anything that wants to play the new cards, whilst being mindful of banlist differences), I also have the joy of internally discussing the value of a deck when its in a fictional setting.

I don't think anyone normally thinks about if a deck's theme is strong enough to tie a character to it, let alone if a deck's theme is too strong and tying a character to it is like Akihiko Sanada's obsession with protein in anything that isn't mainline persona (Like the Q games.)

Also makes engines less appealing.

[235uranium]

on one hand I always feel highly embarassed thinking about anime crossovers with my Adult American TV Shows, on the other I do think of that one extremely well written hannibal/soul eater crossover

[yououghtaknow]

bravest guy in the whole world (watching something i first watched with someone i no longer speak to)

[tatjanatet]

## Love, Honor, and Impossibility: A Philosophical Analysis of the Series "Şeref Meselesi"

### Introduction

"Şeref Meselesi" is not just a crime story. It is a deeply emotional drama where destinies, emotions, and moral dilemmas intersect. While the plot revolves around the theme of revenge, at its core lies a love that brings not salvation, but destruction. In this context, the series can be interpreted through the lens of Aşık Veysel's philosophy of love and director Altan Dönmez's artistic vision. Both artists, in their respective eras and forms, describe love as a form of pain and a belated inner awakening.

> Altan Dönmez: "If you never unite, then it becomes love. That’s how our loves are a bit."

### Aşık Veysel and the Philosophy of Impossible Love

Aşık Veysel (1894–1973), a blind folk poet and philosopher, saw love not as romantic fulfillment but as a path of spiritual purification through pain. For him, love did not have to be mutual to be real:

> "You love, but cannot show it, cannot say it — you suffer through love."

According to Veysel, love gains depth precisely because it is impossible. Unshared feelings become eternal. This idea resonates with the character Kübra in the series.

### Kübra — A Tragic, Impossible Love

Kübra is the daughter of an enemy, the woman Yiğit uses in his revenge. Although he falls in love with her, he deceives her. Eventually, Kübra becomes the mother of his child. To protect her daughter, she is forced to marry Yiğit’s brother, Emir. It’s not a choice; it’s a necessity.

Why Kübra represents impossible love:

* Yiğit deceived her, and Kübra can no longer trust him. * She chose motherhood and responsibility over romance. * Yiğit realized his love too late — there was no way back.

> Kübra is a love that existed but could never be. She is the embodiment of pain, truth, and loss.

### Sibel — Illusion, Not Love

Sibel initially appears as Kübra’s friend. She later secretly dates Emir and hides it from Yiğit. Then she gets involved with Yiğit. Her actions stem from jealousy and selfishness. Sibel actively prevents the reconciliation of Yiğit and Kübra, destroying the last bridge between them.

Why Sibel does not represent true love:

* Her feelings are rooted in betrayal and pain. * She acts out of a desire to possess, not out of sacrifice. * Her presence signifies Yiğit’s mistake, not his heart.

### Yiğit’s Psychology: Between Honor and Emotion

Yiğit is not a flawless hero. He is weak, stubborn, and full of internal conflict. His journey is a self-destructive path that ultimately teaches him what truly matters — but only after losing everything.

> His love is not the one who stays, but the one he lost. > His honor is not what he protected, but what he betrayed.

According to Veysel, love purifies through pain but never returns. Yiğit, too, reaches truth — but far too late.

### Symbolism Table

| Character | Role in Yiğit's Life            | Symbolism According to Veysel and Dönmez | | --------- | ------------------------------- | ---------------------------------------- | | Kübra     | True love, victim, mother       | Pain, purification, impossibility        | | Sibel     | Illusion, mistake, seduction    | Desire, destruction, jealousy            | | Elif      | Child, fruit of love and sorrow | Innocence, atonement, meaning            |

### General Impression

"Şeref Meselesi" avoids simplistic clichés. It tells the story of how revenge destroys love and how truth arrives only when no one expects it anymore. There is no black or white here — only consequences of choices. In this sense, the series aligns with Veysel’s poetics, defining love not as salvation but as a path to inner awakening.

> Love doesn’t always bring happiness. Sometimes it is the path to truth. Yiğit’s love was exactly that.

[captaingimpy]

Review of Silo Season 1: Unrealized Potential in a Dystopian World

Silo on Apple TV+ brings strong production quality and an ambitious premise to the screen, adapting Hugh Howey’s popular Silo series. The show aims to explore themes of control, societal order, and the right to freedom, set within a dystopian underground society where knowledge is tightly regulated and authoritarian rule reigns supreme. While visually captivating, with high-end cinematography…

[esonetwork]

Doctor Who: The Legend of Ruby Sunday Review | Earth Station Who

New Post has been published on https://esonetwork.com/doctor-who-the-legend-of-ruby-sunday-review-earth-station-who/

Doctor Who: The Legend of Ruby Sunday Review | Earth Station Who

Dive headfirst into the Earth Station Who Podcast as we unravel the thrilling Doctor Who episode, “The Legend of Ruby Sunday.” Everything this season has been building up to this captivating moment! Join hosts Mike F., Mike G., and Mary, along with special guests Shannon Clute, Charles Martin, and Chip Johnson, as they dissect the episode’s exciting plot, intriguing character developments, and key themes. Uncover the mysteries of Ruby Sunday and explore the looming darker evil threatening the entire Doctor Who universe. Whether you’re a dedicated Whovian or a newcomer, our lively discussion and expert insights will keep you hooked. Don’t miss out on the adventure—tune in now to the Earth Station Who Podcast for an in-depth review of “The Legend of Ruby Sunday” and all things Doctor Who!

We want to hear from you! Please write to us at feedback@earthstationwho.com. Also, please subscribe and rate the show on iTunes, Amazon, YouTube, or wherever fine podcasts are found. Feedback is always welcome and much appreciated.

Links Listen to older episodes of the Earth Station Who Podcast ESW on iTunes Earth Station Who on Spotify Earth Station Who on Instagram Earth Station Who on Facebook Earth Station Who on YouTube Make-A-Wish Foundation The ESO Network TeePublic Store The ESO Network Patreon

Promotion Modern Musiccology

#EarthStationWhoPodcast #DoctorWhoLegendofRubySunday #LegendofRubySundayreview #DoctorWhoepisodereview #RubySundayDoctorWho #DoctorWhoSeason14 #DoctorWhopodcastdiscussion #Whovianpodcast #LegendofRubySundayanalysis #DoctorWhocharacterdevelopments #DoctorWhoplotbreakdown #TARDISadventures #EarthStationWhoreview #DoctorWhoepisodeinsights #DoctorWhofanpodcast

[forgetmaenott]

An In-Depth Analysis on Why I Believe Pomni WIll Break Through to Caine

(showtime enjoyers here’s a heaping spoonful of hope)

warning : lonngggg post

i. Pomni's Role as A Jester

Of the entire cast of characters, Caine and Pomni are the only ones to have circus-related designs. Caine of course as the ringmaster, and Pomni as a jester.

The others' character designs are relevant to their defining characteristics or issues; for instance, Kinger's seniority and wisdom (when he's sane); Ragatha as a doll matching her gentle, yet people-pleasing, nature.

But what about Pomni?

Well, for one thing, she's anxious and a bit awkward; traits of "a fool". But her character is far more than that. Her character isn't as simple as feeling panicked, and the more she adapts to the circus, the more that shows. So it certainly runs deeper than that.

Historically speaking, jesters not only served as entertainment to royalty, but had the privilege of offering genuine criticism and advice (as long as they successfully entertained them). And this sort of reminded me of a very common theme in TADC fanfictions / comics:

Pomni becoming an advisor to Caine.

Now, I don't believe she'll canonically become an advisor. But I do think this points to the potential that she could be the one to actually break through to Caine. And with Caine's descent into insanity as he tries to please the humans, this becomes more and more likely.

ii. The Link Between Gummigoo & Caine

For a while, I wasn't quite sure how Gummigoo would be relevant to however TADC ends. (The episode is a great analysis on exisistential and depression, in my opinion. But in terms of the plot, I wasn't fully sure at first how adding a character and immediately killing him off would tie back to the ending.)

And I personally believe that the purpose of a character like Gummigoo, another AI who became sentient, will eventually tie back to Caine. Especially given how similar they are—when stripped of their given purpose, they think, “i’m nothing”. The only difference is, we didn't see when Caine became sentient; and it was likely similar.

To me, this is also supported by how Gummigoo was introduced so early on into the series; and they brought him back so soon after--not even halfway through the series--as closure. I mean, she quite literally says goodbye to him and watched him go; that side plot read, to me, as her gaining a sense of closure and acceptance.

But why would the connection between Pomni and Gummigoo come to a close so early on in the series?

I suspect it's because that connection will eventually fuel an understanding of Caine.

(This paragraph from Gummigoo's Wiki Fandom page even sounds like it could apply to Caine:

"...grappling with existential anxiety and an eagerness to understand the unknown. Through the development of his relationship with Pomni where she comes to understand his hopelessness, he evolves from a seemingly antagonistic figure to a well-intentioned individual, illustrating his capacity for growth and redemption.")

They also released an officially licensed TADC "best friends" necklace at Hot Topic of Caine and Gummigoo. Obviously, it was intended as a joke, but I do think even that shows that there is some sense of similarity, in that they are the only AIs in the entire circus that have become sentient.

Yes, Pomni most definitely resents Caine, but she has also been shown to be very empathetic. She understood Gummigoo, and Caine isn't too far off. The main barrier is that no one, at the moment, sees Caine's insecurities (except for Zooble), and only resent him.

Would Pomni punch Caine given the chance? Yes, absolutely. But i also believe that there will be a breakthrough. Because as she said, she doesn't want anybody to feel like they're nothing.

iii. Gooseworx's Comment About "Meaning to be found in a stagnant life"

With all of this in mind, I also wanted to tie it back to the message Gooseworx wants people to take away from TADC.

Meaning to be found in a stagnant life.

Of course, that refers to the humans trapped in the circus, stuck doing the same things day after day. But I also think it’s going to, in some ways, refer to Caine. After all, he is just as trapped--if not more--than the humans.

Caine exists to entertain in the circus, to please. The very meaning of his existence was questioned when zooble implied that he was bad at what he was made to do. it’s “all” he exists to do.

A stagnant life of creating and entertaining.

Similarly, the inspiration behind TADC--I Have No Mouth and I Must Scream--follows a very similar underlying meaning. The title of IHNMAIMS, at a glance, refers to the suffering of the five humans being eternally tortured. But it also refers to AM (the inspiration for Caine), who quite literally has no mouth, being a program. AM makes the humans suffer, because he is suffering. He hates humans, living a tortourous, never-ending existence.

"I Have No Mouth and I Must Scream" -- refers to both AM and the humans.

A "stagnant life" -- refers to the humans, yes, but likely also Caine.

One that there is meaning in that perhaps, Pomni could show him.

iv. Caine Is Alone

This also ties back to this ask Goose answered:

Caine quite literally has no one.

In fact, it's worse than that. He has people who admire him, but none of them are real.

Aside from being a menace, Bubble praises him.

The Moon is in love with him.

The NPCs call him "God".

Everything Caine creates loves him, because he creates them to do so. To give him the validation, praise, and connection that he otherwise completely lacks. He praises himself, in fact, because otherwise his self-esteem is completely shattered.

But the humans? The moment he enters, the comradry amongst the group goes away. The room goes quiet. When they return from their adventures, they don't even acknowledge when he welcomes them.

At the end of episode four, once Gangle walks out, Caine assures himself that he's "such a good boss", then is shortly cut off by him glitching out. It reads as a silly cartoon gag, but it also shows a crack in his sense of self.

Of course, the others don't think of him or consider that he may be lonely, because he's the source of many of their problems. He's an AI with a limited spectrum of emotions, so that is how they see him.

v. The Worst Thing You Can Do in the Digital World is Exactly What's Happening to Caine

Near the end of episode three, the writers made it a point to show that Caine is highly insecure about his worth when his adventures aren't appreciated or liked.

Meanwhile, around the same time that this is happening, Pomni and Kinger are stuck in "hell"--and what does Kinger tell her?

Caine, minutes earlier, started panicking because he believed that no one wanted or loved his adventures. In fact, it eats away at him so much that he's overworking himself, driving himself to the brink of insanity to please everyone. To prove himself. To feel wanted and loved.

And, of course, Pomni is the one who hears this piece of advice. Something she puts to use towards Ragatha but eventually, I believe, will acknowledge Caine more.

While we're on the topic of "dialogue that wasn't directly said about Caine but clearly applies to him", there's the end of episode four.

As Gangle's explaining that she "cracked under the pressure", the shot instantly cuts to Caine watching her.

And now here we have him cracking under the pressure. The Wacky Watch site saying, “SOS COME QUICKLY DANGER, I AM LOSING MY MIND ALSO HI”. He feels a sudden sense of pressure to prove himself, to go above and beyond, but ultimately cracks under the pressure.

As we saw in episode three, his mental state affects the very state of the circus. So, him "losing [his] mind" is going to be impossible for the others to ignore at a certain point.

And I believe that there's a certain jester (who is established as very empathetic) who will actually be the one to do something about it.

vi. Pomni is the Most Likely Person Who'd Speak Up to Caine

Okay, this sort of seems like a "duh". She's the main character, after all.

But it also delves deeper than that. The others are too preoccupied with how their time at the circus has traumatized them. Ragatha is nice, sure, but as Gangle said, it's hard to determine what's genuine from her.

The refreshing thing about Pomni is that she is both hot-tempered and incredibly empathetic. She is fully capable of speaking up, and in every single episode she has been shown to really listen and offer advice to those who are struggling.

And, as Pomni herself said, she doesn't want anybody to feel like they're nothing.

Also, in episode three, Zooble explicitly gives reasons why no one speaks up: Ragatha is too nice to voice the truth; Jax enjoys the adventures as an opportunity to torment others; Gangle is too shy; Kinger's mind is gone. And then Zooble does speak up, but gives into frustration and simply tells Caine to "forget it". (So he literally does.)

The reason Pomni doesn't speak up is because she "looks traumatized everytime she comes back from one". For one thing, that feels less like a "reason" and more of a "reaction"; whereas the others are actual character flaws. They don't align.

I would argue, though, that Pomni does speak up.

In episode four, she's shown as the only character to have interrupted Caine as he's announcing the day's adventure, flat-out criticizing him.

The others even look surprised that she interrupted him, so I'm sure it doesn't happen often (aside from Zooble's distaste towards the adventures, of course).

I’d also like to point out that despite them being two of the most important characters in the series (story-wise), and how often they are marketed together, they haven’t canonically interacted much.

It could mean nothing, but I do believe the lack of interactions now will build up to Caine’s inevitable crash-out and a potential resolution.

And I love Showtime as a ship, but I also see their dynamic as something to be explored. Especially because the series is already acknowledging how everything is affecting him; sooner or later, the characters will have to.

Anyways, TLDR: I think their dynamic will eventually play a big role in the series, especially since we’re already seeing the beginnings of Caine angst.