#she is a deeply flawed and complex person

[revvethasmythh]

aveline vallen really is a woman of all time to me. daughter of an exiled orlesian chevelier. an officer who fought at the battle of ostagar. named after ser aveline, the first female chevelier who was then murdered for being a woman. she fucking hates this and thinks pointless sacrifices and martyrdom are beyond stupid. her father gave absolutely everything to get her a knighthood and there's an underlying sense of resentment over this, but also she loves being a guardsman because her base, most primal instinct is to protect people. she married a templar but isn't really convinced the maker is real. her love and devotion for her friends is described as "smothering," so much so that she'll soak 10% of the damage hawke takes in every fight. she can be too blinded by her devotion to law and order to see her own wrongdoing as a cog in a broken system and simultaneously cavalier enough about it to work as a mercenary with hawke and gladly choose not to report some of their escapades if she thinks they did good at the end of the day. she is entirely hypocritical about when and how she chooses to apply the law that she upholds. her husband dies an the beginning of the game and you get to see her fall in love again, albeit she is quite frankly The Worst To Ever Do It in terms of courting technique. her new husband is her direct subordinate in the city watch's chain of command. she has a bizarre, sexually charge enemies-to-friends situationship with Isabela. her husband has a standing weekly card-game with fenris that she isn't invited too because she's "too competitive." at the end of the day, she would give everything she has to save the people she loves from suffering any more needless pain. oh and also she's the new viscount of kirkwall

[loriache]

Kabru, impossible mutual understanding & unknowable objects

Despite his concerted and constant efforts to understand other people, it’s established in a few extras that Kabru believes that true mutual understanding between certain different races is impossible. Specifically, between long-lived and short-lived races, and between humans and demi-humans. Partially, we can trace this conviction back to specific hang-ups caused by his life; the trauma of the Utaya disaster, prejudices he carries from his childhood, and his experience of racism among the elves. In this “little” essay, I’m gonna discuss how I think those experiences formed this belief, how it comes out in his actions, and how some of his actions seem to contradict it. The question of whether it’s possible to reach mutual understanding with other living beings despite our differences is one of the core themes of the manga, and I’ll also touch on how this aspect of Kabru’s character links to that.

Seeking understanding

Kabru is a character who devotes a huge amount of time and effort to understanding people, and he is very good at it. In his internal monologue, we can tell how advanced and complex his skills of analysis are. He is able to read a huge amount of information just from looking at people's faces and body language.

People are, to him, what monsters are to Laios. This is something that's been expanded on at length in other, excellent meta. It's the fact that they're foils; it's the fact that Kabru is also very easy to read as autistic, with a special interest which is the opposite and parallel of Laios'. It's something that came out of trauma and alienation, as Laios' special interest in monsters also began as a coping mechanism.

The complicated origin of this "love" for monsters and for people comes through, I think, in the fact that one of the places we see both characters use their fixation is in being very, very good at killing the thing that they love. This also ties into the idea that loving something isn't even remotely mutually exclusive with using it to sustain your own survival; using it for your own purposes; hurting it or killing it. Love can be, and often is, violent, possessive and consumptive. This understanding is part of what makes Kui's depiction of interpersonal relationships so compelling to me.

While Laios fixated on monsters and animals to seek a place of escape, in both his imagination and his self-image, from the humans who he couldn't understand and who couldn't understand him, Kabru seems to have fixated on understanding people in order to navigate the complex, socially marginal places that he has been forced into throughout his life. As an illegitimate child raised by a single mother with an appearance that marked him out as different to the point his father's family wanted to kill him, and a tallman child raised among elves who didn't treat him as fully human and wanted him to perform gratefulness for that treatment – treatment that, after he met Rin at age 9, he certainly always understood could be a lot worse – his ability to work out what people wanted from him, whether they were friendly or hostile or had ulterior motives, wasn’t just an interest. It will have been an essential skill.  

Milsiril, I think, was a flawed parent who tried to do her best by Kabru and did a lot of harm to him despite her best intentions. She may have treated him much better than an average elf would have, but like Otta and Marcille's mother, there are other elves with different outlooks on short-lived races. How would they judge her treatment of him? We don’t have any insight on what it could be, but to be honest, the person’s whose opinion of her I’d be most interested in knowing is Rin’s.

But even if she'd been perfect, living as an trans-racial adoptee in a deeply hierarchical nation with a queen who is a 'staunch traditionalist' who wouldn't even acknowledge the existence of a half-elf like Marcille (according to Cithis) is an experience that would deeply impact anyone.

Elves & Impossible mutual understanding

While Kabru was living with Milsiril - in other words, while living in the Northern Central Continent - he came to believe that "there was no way to achieve mutual understanding with the long-lived races."

This is evident in his political project: he wants short-lived races to have ownership over the dungeon's secrets. Despite his dislike of the Lord of the Island, he's a useful bulwark to stop the elves taking over. Despite his doubts about Laios, Laios needs to be the one to defeat the dungeon, because if he doesn't the elves will take over.

Kabru still carries a deep scar from Utaya, one that was exacerbated by the fact that he never got an answer to any of his questions about what happened or why. This, despite the fact that Milsiril knows about the demon and how it works. Do you think Kabru, with his social perceptiveness that borders on the superhuman, wasn't aware that she knew more than she would tell him?

Given that, the fact that he gets to a place where he "doesn't have any particularly negative feelings about [elves/long-lived species]" .... well, to put it bluntly, I believe that he thinks that's the case, but I kind of doubt it. After all, if he did have resentment, of Milsiril (someone who was his primary provider and caretaker since age six, and who despite her flaws, loves him and who I do think he loves) or of elves (who he has had to play nice with for most of his life, in order to survive, and will still have to play nice with in order to achieve his goals, since they hold all the power) what would that do except hurt him and make his life harder? Kabru is Mr. Pragmatic, so I don't think he'd let himself acknowledge any such feelings he did have. Exactly because he can't acknowledge them, they're well placed to get internalised as beliefs about the Fundamental Unchangeable Nature of the World.

However, these stated beliefs seem to contradict his actions. Despite his belief in the impossibility of forming a mutual understanding, he certainly seems to try to understand long-lived people, just as much as he does short-lived people. There's no noticeable difference between his treatment of Daya & Holm versus Mickbell & Rin that isn't clearly down to their relationship with him. His skills of human analysis were honed and developed while living amongst elves, and as soon as he's alone with Mithrun he immediately sets to understanding him - his interests, his motivations, his needs, and his past.

He treats him considerately and without bias, and despite the fact that Mithrun conquering the dungeon for the elves is both a reenactment of a core part of his childhood trauma and a political disaster for his aims, that doesn't seem to colour his perspective on Mithrun negatively at all.

This is something I find extremely laudable about Kabru, and it's another way he parallels Laios. He seems to understand that people, as a rule, (in Laios' case, he understands this about monsters - and eventually, all living beings) will act in their own interests, and if those interests conflict with yours, might harm you. But that's just their nature, and it's not something that should be held against them; you're also doing the same thing, after all. The crux of Laios' arc is precisely that he has to accept the responsibility of hurting someone else in order to achieve what he wants.

Kabru is deeply concerned with his own morals, what he should and shouldn't do, but mostly in the context of responsibility for the consequences - a responsibility he takes onto himself. He isn't scrupulous about what he needs to do in order to create the outcome he wants, but if he fails to create that outcome, then....

He blames himself to the point of thinking he should die. He doesn't blame Laios, or seem at all angry with him, despite concluding he should have killed him to prevent this outcome. That's because in his eyes, ultimately Laios was going to act according to his own nature, and it's Kabru's fault for not understanding that nature well enough. He's extremely confident in his ability to understand and predict others, (including elves and other long-lived people). Then, where does his conviction that mutual understanding is impossible come from?

Partially, it's the "mutual" part. I'm sure Kabru, who isn't able or willing to deny Otta's insinuation that Milsiril saw him more like a pet than a son, has felt that his full interiority, the depth of his feelings and his ability to grow, act, and think as a fully equal being, was something that the elves around him just couldn't grasp. Because that was their excuse for it, he came to understand this as a gulf between short-lived and long-lived beings, an inevitable difference in outlook caused by their different lifespans.

This experience might be part of what leads to his iconic “fake” behaviour. He trusts his ability to understand others, but if they aren’t able to understand him, then there isn’t any benefit to being honest about his feelings and thoughts. If his attempts to reach mutual understanding with his caretakers were never able to be fulfilled, then it isn’t any wonder that he reacts with such surprise and horror at blurting out his desire to be Laios’ friend.

In his experience, making yourself vulnerable in that way only leads to being hurt. Soothing him, hushing him, lying to him, talking to him like a child that isn’t able to use proper judgement – that’s an inadequate and deeply hurtful way to respond to genuine distress, the desire for autonomy, or disagreement. Ultimately, I think that’s why he comes out on the side of being grateful to Milsiril; because she did equip him with the skills and knowledge he’d need to reach his goal, and let him go.

Though he could understand them, they couldn't understand him. To the extent that was true - which I'm sure it was - it wasn't due to anything about lifespan. It was due to the elves’ racism, and the solipsitic mindset & prejudiced attitude that it caused them to approach him with.

Because, if it needs to be said, the idea that there is an unbreachable gap in understanding between the long-lived and short-lived species is not true. Marcille and Laios have a much greater difference in lifespan than any full elf from any short-lived person, and they’re able to understand each other – maybe not perfectly, but better than many other people who are closer in life-span to them.

That doesn’t mean that I think Kabru is wrong about this, however. Because there’s an interpretation of his statement that is reflected in his actions and is true. When he talks about his problem with elves, it’s not just their attitudes: it’s their power, and what they use it to do. They “explain nothing and take everything”. Though it’s presented in the guise of ‘guiding and protecting’, in fact it’s a simple case of a powerful nation using their military power, wealth, access to resources, and historically stolen land – including the island itself – to protect their own interests and advance their own agenda. That’s why they’d be able to show up, seize the dungeon, and forcibly take Kabru’s party and Laios’ party to the West. If Kabru wants to stop that from happening, or change that status quo, persuasion or a bid to be understood would be completely pointless. Between the political blocs formed by long-lived species and the interests of short-lived species, “mutual understanding”, given their current, unequal terms, would be impossible. This is something that we see reflected in Kabru’s actions; before he asks his questions about the dungeon, he grabs Mithrun as leverage. He never really attempts to persuade the canaries to see his point of view, because that would be pointless: they’re agents of the Northern Central Continent’s monarchy, and will act in its interests regardless of any individual relationship with him.  

I don’t think Kabru sees the different dimensions of this belief of his in quite such clear terms, however, as is evidenced by the other group who he thinks it’s impossible to communicate with.

Demi-Humans & Unknowable Objects

The other place that we see his conviction about the impossibility of mutual understanding is in the kobold extra.

I'm including the whole thing, because I think it's an excellent and clever piece of world-building. Aside from what it says about Kabru, which I'll expand on shortly, what this extra does is deconstruct and call into question the usual "fantasy ontological biology" present in these sort of DnD-like settings. Essentially, the kind of worldbuilding where a race (such as kobolds) can be described as war-like, and that's establishing something essential about their biological nature. That's common to the point that if Kui didn't include this, some people would probably come away thinking that's the case about, e.g., the orcs.

But here, despite what Kabru is saying, the information the reader actually gets is:

the conflict between short-lived humans and demi-humans such as kobolds is mostly over access to material resources that they need to survive.

These resources are scarce because powerful nations, such as the elves, have monopolised them.

Kabru, who has grown up in a place at the centre of these conflicts, ascribes essential, negative traits to a cultural group which was in direct conflict with his own. Communication with this other group is impossible; they aren't people, they're more like objects.

oh yes! just like this conflict between groups of tall-men, a conflict which the reader will immediately interpret as more clearly analogous to real-life racism. Our other protagonists also carry prejudices from growing up in a place where a marginalised group was in conflict with the dominant group over scarce resources. It's definitely impossible to communicate with these people, and you can only kill them.

Woah, when you say it like that, it sounds pretty bad!

But also, nobody walks away having had a realisation or unlearned their prejudices - because they don't have the tools they need to do that work. Yet. I do think, to an extent, it could happen - especially with Kabru, since it's suggested in the epilogue that Melini might become a safe-haven for demi-humans.

To focus in on Kabru, the key here is his statement that you should think of demi-humans as "unknowable objects". Even his extraordinary powers of understanding have seemingly hit a limit. Part of this is just inherited prejudice, and doesn't need to have a complicated psychological explanation, any more than the elves who were prejudiced against him need one.

But also... this is probably somewhat linked to the way demi-humans seem to be considered "pseudo-monsters". They're the place that the strict delineation between the human and the monstrous is permeated. Laios, who is not interested in humans, remembers and is excited by Kuro. Chilchuck and Laios argue over whether it's OK to eat a mermaid. Kabru's prepared to (pretend to) roll with the idea that Laios ate the orcs.

But these are people, aren't they? Of course, this is a social construction, as we see from the fact that in the Eastern Archipelago, the label of "human" is reserved for tallmen, but in most of the rest of the world it depends on some obviously arbirary classification based on number of bones; "demi-humans" aren't in any essential way monstrous, except to an extent in their appearance, and physical location - due to their marginal social status, they're pushed out to live in unsafe places such as dungeons.

Therefore, Kabru's view of demi-humans as fundamentally "other", unable to be understood - monstrous - could be read as akin to abjection, the psychoanalytical concept described by Julia Kristeva. In order to create a bounded, secure superego, that thing which permeates and calls into question the border between self and other, human and animal, life and death, is rejected and pushed to the margin.

“Not me. Not that. But not nothing, either. A "something" that I do not recognize as a thing.[...] On the edge of nonexistence and hallucination, of a reality that, if I acknowledge it, annihilates me. There, abject and abjection are my safeguards. The primers of my culture.” (Kristeva et al., 1984, p. 11) “It is thus not lack of cleanliness or health that causes abjection but what disturbs identity, system, order. ” (Kristeva et al., 1984, p. 13) “The pure will be that which conforms to an established taxonomy; the impure, that which unsettles it, establishes intermixture and disorder. [...] the impure will be those that do not confine themselves to one element but point to admixture and confusion.” (Kristeva et al., 1984, p. 107) (discussing food prohibitions in Leviticus)

This is both (due to its affinity with food-loathing and disgust) a very fruitful concept to apply to dunmeshi, and a psychoanalytical theory which I wouldn't exactly cosign as True Facts About Human Psychological Development. You may also know the abject from its utilisation in the classic essay "Horror and the Monstrous-Feminine" by Barbara Creed - that's a lot more approachable than Kristeva if anyone's interested.

Key here, though, is that through the symbol of the "demi-human" is embodied a step between "human" and "monster" - and that's a prospect that puts at risk the whole notion of an absolute separation between those two categories in the first place. To Laios, that's something wonderful, and to Kabru, it's terrifying. We can see this principle further embodied in the relationship both characters have with the notion of becoming monstrous.

To Laios, this is transcendent, and represents a renunciation of everything human - in fact, if it didn't, it wouldn't "count".

To Kabru, it's a deeply-held fear, established by his childhood alienation (due to his illegitimacy, his eyes, and perhaps also his neurodivergency), deepened by monster-related trauma and the sense of responsibility and survivors guilt he feels for what happened at Utaya. His identity as a human who is not monstrous is key to his sense of stability and safety; he doesn't want to touch monsters, he doesn't even want to see them.

To acknowledge a kinship, a possibility of similarity between the things he loves (humans) and the things he hates (monsters) would be more than touching them - it would be putting them inside him. We know, quite explicitly, that this notion is triggering to Kabru. He literally has what seems to be a flashback when he's about to eat the harpy omelette.

So he abjects it, classifying the demi-human as fundamentally unlike him - an unknowable object, or an object that he refuses to know. Because in understanding it, he would interject the things he hates and fears into his self, which is already, always under threat by that hated and feared object.

Of course, again, Kabru isn't very good at enacting this refusal in practice. For one, when he chooses between his desires and ingesting the feared object, eating monsters... he eats monsters. Part of this is treating himself badly, the "ends justify the means" mentality. His goal is to destroy all monsters, so if he needs to become monster-like to do that, he will. But part of it is also the other motivation that he didn't even seem to know about until he said it: he wants to become Laios' friend, and to learn from him how a person can like monsters. He wants, at least in some part of him, to reconcile the feared and hated object into something he can understand.

For another:

Kabru can speak the kobold language. In the first place, while this may have been common in Utaya, it also could have been something he chose to learn, an early expression of his interest in understanding and talking to all sorts of people. It isn't the kind of thing you learn if you believe that communication between yourself and the group that speak it is impossible, is it?

It's possible to harbour prejudices against a group while being kind to an individual, and given Kabru has those prejudices regardless of his reasons, that is what he is doing. But also, his treatment of Kuro doesn't reflect a sincerely held belief that he's an "unknowable object" at all. His approach is exactly the same as it is to any other person: an analysis of goal and motive, and an attempt to help if he's sympathetic and their goals align - going out of his way to give language and local knowledge lessons in secret. His conviction that Mickbell and Kuro will truly become friends when they can properly communicate is completely contradictory to any sense of demi-humans as fundamentally different, or impossible to reach mutual understanding with. To me, it seems like this self-protective shield against the corruptive force demi-humans as an idea present to his identity, this abjection, when Kabru is face-to-face with one, just simply can't hold up against his finely honed skill of intellectual empathy. Perhaps because he's autistic, it seems his "empathy" is less an emotional mirror response, and more a set of cognitive skills for analysis of others. That instinctual, emotional empathy might not trigger when presented with a member of an out-group, but if it’s possible for Kabru to turn his cognitive empathy off, we don’t see him do it.

This isn't to say that this prejudice doesn't affect his behaviour. For one, it could negatively impact his judgement of politics and policy, where individual people don't enter into it. For another, I'm not convinced he'd be willing to overlook Mickbell's exploitative relationship with Kuro if Kuro wasn't a kobold. As it is, since both of them are satisfied, he doesn't feel like he needs to intervene, regardless of the fact Mickbell isn't paying Kuro. But if Daya and Holm were in a relationship, and Holm took both Daya's and his own share from their ventures, but only compensated her in living expenses and kept the rest, do you think he'd tolerate it, for example? Even if she said it was OK?

Conclusion

The kelpie chapter establishes that "people can never know what monsters are really thinking." That isn't just true of monsters, though.

True mutual understanding is impossible - between anyone. We can never truly understand another person's heart. This is touched on in, for example, the existence of shapeshifters and dopplegangers. Even a monster that seemed like a perfect copy of a person wouldn’t be that person, and wouldn’t be a satisfactory replacement.

We’re intended, I think, to understand the winged lion's repeated suggestions to just replace people who have been lost with copies as something uncanny, which demonstrates the way that the winged lion never manages to attain a complete understanding of humans. A version of a person who was created to fulfil your memories of them, to be the person who you wanted them to be, would be a terrible, miserable thing.

Disagreeing, coming into conflict, and misunderstanding each other, are essential parts of what it means to be living beings, as fundamental as the need to eat.

The only thing to do is not to take more than you need to eat to survive, and not impose your own desires onto others. To do your best to sincerely communicate your desires, even if they're embarrassing or vulnerable or strange, like Kabru eventually does with Laios; like Laios does, bit by bit, with the people around him; like Marcille does, Chilchuck does, Senshi does... to hope they will accept you, and do your best to understand them in return.

We can re-examine, in that context, Kabru's line about the elves' tendency to "explain nothing and take everything".

They have the power to impose their preferred "menu" onto less powerful groups. And in that context, mutual understanding being impossible just means that they won't give up their power because they're asked nicely. Kabru's goal is to seize the truth that they won't give to him, and to create a situation where they can't take everything. Because he's accurately surmised that nothing about the treatment of short-lived races will change so long as the power imbalance remains. Despite the way he mistakenly ascribes part of that to "long-lived vs short-lived" or "human vs demi-human", the actual gulfs in understanding he identifies are structural, are about power and about access to material resources and safety.

I think he could come to recognise this. Yaad is teaching him political science after all, and while a prince's lessons on political science won't exactly get at much that's radical or invested in the interests and perspectives of the marginalised (Capital is a critique of for a reason after all...) I believe in Kabru's ability to learn critically and get more from a lesson than it was intended to teach.

[moonagedaydreamsofrhiannon]

IN DEFENSE OF TRAVIS MARTINEZ:

Because I’m sick and tired of seeing travis hate everywhere I go.

“Travis was sexist.”

Did he spout some sexist rhetoric in the beginning of the show? Sure. But it’s important to recognize that: A) he changed, and by season 2 he completely stopped, B) he was a teenage boy in the 1990s, and that kind of rhetoric was normal at the time, C) most of his sexist macho tough guy attitude was a complete act that he likely put on to compensate for his insecurity about his own masculinity, and internalized homophobia. (More on that later.)

(Also let’s be real, Travis is basically one of the girls anyway and I’m tired of pretending he’s not.)

2. “Travis didn’t care about Javi.”

Did we watch the same show??? Granted Travis may have had trouble expressing his feelings (also related to his insecurities about masculinity, likely learned from his father, as well as growing up in a patriarchal and homophobic society), but he cared deeply about Javi. In S1E4, Travis literally DUG UP HIS DAD’S GRAVE, through horror, tears, and vomit, in order to retrieve his ring to give to Javi. When Javi disappeared, Travis kept looking for him every day for months, and never gave up, even when logically it would have seemed impossible for him to still be alive. He comforted and reassured Javi when neither of them drew the card. He cradled Javi’s dead body and ate a bite of his raw heart (which was a metaphor for how much he loved him, and a parallel to Shauna eating Jackie’s raw ear.) Maybe Travis wasn’t always there for Javi in the way he needed, but he absolutely loved him, and it’s important to remember that Travis was also a traumatized, grieving, kid who just lost his dad.

3. “Travis slut-shamed Nat.”

As we are literally shown in the show, Travis was not trying to slut shame her, he asked how many times she had done it because he was embarrassed about the fact that he was a virgin, and worried that she would judge him, or that he wouldn’t measure up because he was more inexperienced than her. When she told him she hooked up with Bobby Farleigh, he did not get mad at her because she slept with another guy (he already knew about that, and was fine with it), he got mad because she hooked up with his bully, and then lied to him about it. I don’t blame Nat for this, she didn’t know about it at the time, and didn’t want him to get mad once she found out, but I also don’t blame Travis for being hurt and embarrassed and upset with her for lying about it.

4. “Travis was just kind of a dick.”

Sure, but so were all of them. He acted like kind of a jerk in the first season. So what? Shauna had an affair with her best friend’s boyfriend, lied to her about it for months, and refused to apologize. Misty tried to drug Coach Ben. Nat faked his brother’s death to him (yeah, she was trying to help him move on, but still not cool). All of them called him “Flex” (y’know, the nickname that was used to bully him for years). None of them are perfect or nice or likable all the time, and that’s ok; that’s the whole point. They’re realistic, complex, flawed, morally gray and sometimes unlikable people. They’ve all done bad things, but nothing Travis did is worse than what anyone else on that show has done. He was a traumatized teen whose dad literally just died. Also, me personally, if everyone around me was constantly calling me the mean nickname that was used to bully me since middle school, I would also probably act like a little bit of a dick.

5. “Travis is a straight man.”

Wrong. (Also not really a valid reason to hate someone… But most importantly, just wrong.)

Travis Martinez is clearly a bisexual.

So many of his issues: the insecurity, the bullying, the macho tough guy act, the whole weird complex about his masculinity, all of it stems (at least partly) from the fact that he’s bisexual and has internalized homophobia. The whole “Flex” thing is just thinly veiled homophobia. The main reason why he got bullied is because Bobby Farleigh spread a rumor about him getting back surgery to better suck his own dick. The unsaid implication there is that he’s a man who sucks dick, which is inherently queer, even if it is his own. If you look even slightly past the most surface level interpretation, it’s pretty obvious that Travis was bullied because of homophobia. His performance of stereotypical toxic masculinity was clearly over compensation for the fact that he doesn’t fit into the box of traditional straight masculinity, and was a reaction to the bullying from his peers, abuse from his dad, and internalized homophobia from growing up in a homophobic and patriarchal society. As the show progresses he starts to unlearn that toxic masculinity and internalized homophobia, and he allows himself to be more vulnerable, emotional, and feminine, and as a result, he becomes stronger, more confident, and more respectful of the people around him.

As for Travis being a man… Is he though???

In season 1, Travis is a man (narratively speaking); there is a clear distinction between Travis/Coach Ben and the girls. However, in season 2, we see a stark shift in how Travis is depicted. The separation between Travis and the girls pretty much ceases to exist. Narratively speaking, there is no distinction made between Travis and the other girls; they are one entity—one hive mind. Instead, the emphasis is now placed on the distinction between Coach Ben and the girls/Travis. When Coach Ben watches the Yellowjackets eat Jackie in horror and disbelief, Travis is right there with them, dressed in ancient greek robes along with the rest of them. In season 2, Coach Ben is the only real Man of the group (Travis has narratively become one of the girls, and Javi is just a boy, not a man) and he is shown staying separate from the rest of the group, and growing more and more uncomfortable with the cultish dynamics, while Travis, on the other hand, becomes more and more integrated with the group, as he falls deeper and deeper into cult beliefs, until he is a full-blown devout Lottie worshipper. Of the three males on the show, he is the only one who actually participates in cannibalism with the other Yellowjackets. Also he lost his virginity to a lesbian.

Whether or not you choose to believe that Travis is transfem (I do) you cannot deny that, at least narratively speaking, Travis is literally just a girl.

6. Travis is a victim.

I don’t know why nobody in this fandom seems to acknowledge this, but Travis is a sexual assault victim and I’m tired of people constantly overlooking and ignoring that fact. In Doomcoming, the girls (excluding Jackie, Nat, Tai, and Van) chased him down, sexually assaulted him, and then tried to kill him. That’s not something that’s up for debate or denial, that is literally canon. Stop pretending it didn’t happen. Stop pretending it wasn’t assault. Stop shaming him and making fun of him for struggling with sex, or not always being able to get it up. That’s a normal trauma response after being assaulted/raped. You guys are literally proving the point. This kind of treatment from society towards masculinity and male victims is just playing into the patriarchy and toxic masculinity, and is exactly what made him act the way he did in season 1 in the first place!

[thewriteadviceforwriters]

Do you have any tips on writing a character that can be a bit quiet and weird/quirky yet confrontational and loud. She bites and picks her fingers when very anxious but she’s also a confident, and brave character who fights for what’s right and what she wants. I have a difficulty mixing a character’s personality sometimes, and wondered if you had any tips to help? :)

On Creating Beautifully Contradictory Characters ✨

Hey writer friend! Rin here.

I LIVE for these questions! 💕

Here's the thing about characters (and people). we're not single-note beings who fit into neat little boxes. The most real characters exist in the in-between spaces.

Let's talk about how to make this work...

The secret to contradictory character traits

What makes a character feel REAL isn't consistency. it's coherence.

• Your character doesn't need to be the same in every situation

• What they need is an emotional core that makes sense of their seemingly opposing behaviors

• Think of their personality as a constellation, not a straight line

When I'm developing characters like this, I always start with their wounds and values. What do they care about SO DEEPLY that it would make a normally quiet person raise their voice? What hurts have they experienced that make them bite their fingers when anxious?

Some practical ways to blend these traits

• Give her specific triggers for each mode. Maybe she's quiet in casual social settings but finds her voice when someone's being mistreated.

• Create physical transitions between states. How does her body language shift when moving from quiet observer to vocal defender? Does she take a deep breath? Square her shoulders?

• The finger-biting anxiety habit is actually perfect. it can be the bridge between her quiet and loud states. Maybe it's what she does while gathering courage before speaking up.

• Show us moments where BOTH traits are present at once. She can be nervously biting her fingers WHILE confronting someone.

What NOT to do (because it's boring)

Please don't fall into these traps:

• Don't make her "usually quiet except when..." That's not a complex character, that's just situational behavior.

• Don't explain away her contradictions with trauma (unless that's genuinely part of her story). Not every character trait needs a tragic backstory!

• Don't make her self-conscious about her contradictions. She doesn't need to apologize for being both quiet and loud.

Let's make some word magic happen

Try writing a scene where:

We first see her in her quiet, observing mode

Something happens that triggers her sense of justice

We witness her internal thought process as she decides to speak up

She exhibits her anxious behavior (finger biting) while ALSO stepping into her confrontational mode

Afterward, she returns to quietness, but it feels different now

The magic happens in those transition moments. That's where readers will fall in love with her complexity.

Remember this always

The most memorable characters aren't the ones who are consistently anything. They're the ones who surprise us while still feeling true to themselves.

Your character's contradictions aren't flaws to fix or explain away. they're what make her human. They're what make readers say "I KNOW her" even if they've never met anyone exactly like her.

So embrace those contradictions. Let her be quiet AND loud. Let her be anxious AND brave. Let her be fully, messily human.

I hope this post helped you

-Rin T.

[lullabyes22-blog]

Arcane Fandom drinking game.

tw: racism, misogyny, classism, ableism.

tw: fandoms in general, ig?

Take a shot if:

Sevika is reduced to this exoticised, hypersexualized, sub human caricature with no exploration into her motivations, her family, her issues as a disabled woman or her experiences as a working class person who grew up in a literal slum - and instead serves as a sex toy with body heat, who exists solely to get the reader off.

Take two shots of she is neutered instead of oversexualized, and reduced to the Mammy stereotype wherein her only purpose is to roll her eyes and provide commentary on the (white) characters/readers' antics, the latter of which drive the plot.

Take a shot if:

Mel Medarda is reduced to a living example of the Jezebel stereotype: oversexualized in the most dehumanizing and demeaning language possible, made a literal receptacle for other characters' desires with no attempt to engage with her motivations as a politician or her feelings as a woman, or else blamed for every single problem in the show, because apparently an ambitious woman is synonymous with 'The face of pure evil,' a woman who has sex and uses it to express agency is an insatiable slut, and a black woman is literally the devil incarnate.

Take two shots if she's taken the other extreme, and her ambitions, flaws, and sexuality have been wiped away completely, leaving only a hyperperfect husk of a character behind, for us to rally around with empty cries of 'Yaas Queen!' and no attempt to critically examine a) the problematic nature of the praise and b) the essence of what makes her human, and what drives her forward, in the first place.

Take a shot if:

Ekko is reduced to his crush on Powder/Jinx, with no attempt to engage with the complexity of the fact that his best friend warped into a monster, nor the ways in which he himself is a product of Zaun's poverty and his relationship with his community, the impact of trauma on children, his complex relationship with violence and his own moral compass, nor the fact that he is an activist, a freedom fighter, an artist, and an engineer, all at age eighteen.

Take a double shot if the characterization veers the other way, and he is portrayed as 'Forever Alone' because black men cannot have healthy relationships, do not deserve to have a full range of complex emotions, and should be punished by having their most deeply held wishes, friendships, and loves crushed to dust before their eyes, for daring to dream of a better life and a world that loves them.

Take a shot if:

Jayce Talis is not even acknowledged in fanworks as a mixed race man, nor as a person of color, with no attempt to engage with the complexity inherent in his experience of privilege, and the ways in which he is a product of his upbringing, and where these factors intersect with class commentary. Take a half shot if the character is whitewashed, and turned into the kind of bland, boring, vanilla caricature that we're used to seeing in media in perpetuity, who exists as a foil to the villains, a symbol of virtue, and a blank slate on which the viewer is meant to project themselves and their own beliefs.

Take a full shot if the character is the epitome of the white savior trope: a smug, paternalistic, know-it-all white man, whose self-assurance in his own superiority allows him to walk in and take over a conflict, then tell people what to do.

Take two shots if characterization veers the other extreme and he's just a sweet, dumb, himbo puppyboy with no personality, no goals, no desires, and no motivations of his own, save for making Viktor happy and doing his best to be a good boy.

Take three shots if Mel is the one leading him by the nose, because nothing says 'nuance' like making a black woman the villain for the sin of having agency and not existing solely for vilification.

Drink the whole bottle if:

Caitlyn, an Enforcer and a Councilor's daughter, is portrayed as a sympathetic sweetheart angelcake, without being forced to confront the actions of the state and the institution of which she is a part, without being forced to face the consequences of her complicity in the system that oppresses others, nor without being forced to recognize the fact that her actions and her words are not, in and of themselves, inherently just, and the fact that her privilege does not automatically grant her moral authority.

Drink another if she is portrayed as a damsel, an innocent, a child who needs to be protected and cared for, rather than a full person with agency and a complex emotional landscape of her own.

Drink again if the characterization leans the other way and she is turned into a classist caricature, an entitled bitch who doesn't even realize she's the bad guy, or gets turned into a literal Nazi because, once again, folks cannot engage with complex topics such as classism, racism, ableism, etc. and instead resort to infantilizing, simplistic, and reductive portrayals.

Stop drinking and switch to cyanide if her characterization hinges on her relationship with Vi, within which Caitlyn is the dominant top here to 'tame' this feral subhuman, with no understanding of the uncomfortable and undeniably harmful implications of such a power dynamic.

Drink the rest of the alcohol stash if:

Vi, an adult, a former convict and a street savvy survivor, is reduced to an angsty, moody, petulant puppydog off her leash, unable to take responsibility for her own actions, and her trauma is treated as an excuse for her behavior.

Drink another bottle if she is portrayed as a hypermasculine, toxic, violent, and Cait is the one forced to tame her, make her behave, and bring her into line, and her relationship with Vi is portrayed as inherently parent-child, or worse, caretaker-charge, without any regard for Vi's autonomy and right to be flawed as a human being.

Drink a fifth if Vi is portrayed as a hypersexualized aggressor for the audience's titillation, with no attempt to engage with the fact that butch lesbian women have more complex emotions than 'sex starved nymphomaniac', nor the ways in which Vi's abuse, abandonment, and trauma have impacted her relationship with intimacy and sexuality. Drink another if the characterization shifts the other way and Vi becomes a sexless robot who has no personality or wants, nor is given room to grieve for her family, her home, or her own trauma, and is instead expected to bounce back, get over it, and move on as nothing more than Caitlyn' Brave Buff Gf (tm).

Drink the entire bar if:

Viktor, a disabled man, is depicted as a neurotic, fragile, jittery wreck. Take two bottles if his disability is treated as a punchline, or the defining characteristic of his existence, and the only time we're meant to consider his body or his physical pain is when he's having an episode and collapsing, or having a coughing fit, and it's treated as a joke, rather than something which affects him and his ability to function.

Take three bottles if he's taken the other extreme and he is twinkified and babygirlified, and his sexuality and his love life are the only thing we're meant to care about, and his romantic relationship with Jayce is the only thing he's allowed to have, lest the audience think too hard about the ways in which he and his work might benefit Zaun, or how the Council might respond to a disabled person from an underprivileged background.

Take a fourth if the characterization shifts and he's reduced to a hypersexualized toy: a broken doll to be pitied and fetishized and cared for, and Jayce is his Daddy, his owner, his caregiver, his knight in shining armor, all in one.

Take a fifth if, in the midst of all this, his relationship with his disability, and the ways in which it has impacted his life and his choices, is completely glossed over.

Take six if his relationship with his disability is not even acknowledged.

Switch to cocaine if:

Jinx, one of the most complex characters in the show, and the only one with any sort of internal consistency, is reduced to a whiny helpless brat who just wants a hug and an explanation for her widdle feewings from a big strong grownup.

Take an eightball if her relationship with her sister, her trauma, and her mental health is reduced to the 'Hot Psycho' trope: an excuse to play up the 'cool' aspect of her personality while completely ignoring the trauma at the heart of her actions/behavior. Take another if the characterization swings the other way, and she's reduced to a one-dimensional villainess, a demon, an amoral monster, and the only motivation for her actions is the fact that she is a crazy bitch, and the only reason for her existence is to serve as a foil for Vi's goodness and the audience's own hangups re: mental illness and critically engaging with the more unpalatable aspects of human behavior.

Switch to crack if her relationship with Silco or Vi is not even mentioned.

Pour a glass of absinthe if:

Silco, a single parent, a survivor of violence at the hands of a loved one, a victim of systemic abuse, and a revolutionary, is portrayed as the ultimate villain, and his desire to fight for a better life for his community is somehow worse than the Council's decision to literally silence everyone in the undercity via chemical runoff, political neglect and police brutality.

Pour two if he is a cartoonish, hamfisted boogeyman, with no sense of his humanity, nor the ways in which he is a product of the same systems that hurt every undercity character, and the ways his actions replicate the cycle of abuse and hurt the ones he seeks to save in turn.

Pour a third if he becomes an unrepentant sadist, a child abuser and a sexual predator, and there is nothing loving or fatherly about his relationship with Jinx.

Pour four if the character is taken to the other extreme and he's sanctified as a literal martyr and hero, and all his wrongdoing is glossed over because he's just a ~victim~, and everything he does is justified, no matter how terrible, because he had a traumatic childhood or his abusive ex didn't die soon enough. Eat the sugarcube if his bond with Jinx is suddenly a wholesome Disneyfied gag-fest wherein he calls her "Pumpkin" and babies her like a toddler, and their relationship has zero codependent overtones, and she's suddenly a sweet innocent who doesn't have blood on her hands, same way he's not the one who sanctioned it.

Eat the bottle of absinthe if Silco is given the tumblr sexyman treatment, and suddenly he's just a walking Daddy Kink, with no regard for the ways in which he is a complex person, nor the ways in which he and other characters might actually interact, or his history or his trauma or the way it impacts his life.

Drink the whole liquor cabinet if:

Zaun is portrayed as a dystopian hellscape rather than a robust, vibrant, diverse community, with a wide range of experiences and a deep and nuanced relationship with authority, power, and violence. Break into the cellar if, instead, it's just a shitty stereotypical ghetto, full of criminals, addicts, and victims.

Light a cigarette if Piltover, a technological juggernaut that also has a diverse immigrant population, and a vibrant and rich cultural identity, is reduced to a bland, generic, vanilla utopia, and is full of pompous blowhards who have never engaged with the undercity outside the scope of the narrative.

Light a molotov cocktail if it swings the opposite direction and Piltover is turned into an neoliberal nightmare, a soulless, shiny, hollow, plastic, faceless wasteland, populated only by vapid, shallow, self absorbed stooges and shills who have no depth or personality of their own.

Throw the molotov and light the house on fire if:

'Piltover and Zaun' is not even mentioned, and there is no acknowledgement of the way these two cities shape the cast of characters who reside within these systems, much less a mention of the ways in which the characters might not be fully representative of the communities they are a part of, and the fact that they are still very much human beings with individual experiences.

If you didn't get alcohol poisoning, a whopping hangover, or a charge of arson: congratulations.

You win.

[mommyownsmee]

About how I learned to love Brats, Pillow Princess behaviour & the Art of Dominance

Recently, I’ve been thinking a lot. Something in the way I think changed.

Every Submissive always talks about being a “good girl”—doing what makes the Dom/me happy, always being obedient and eager to learn. I used to think that is the way it always has to be. Used to. For over ten years as a Domme, I thrived on that concept: A “good girl” has to follow rules and submit without hesitation. For years, I thought that was the pinnacle of submission.

But the thing about power is that it evolves. True power doesn’t stay stagnant—it grows, adapts, and deepens with experience. Over time, I’ve come to realize that submission is more nuanced than a simple checklist of behaviors. It’s raw, alive, and deeply personal. Submission isn’t about perfection. It’s really all about connection.

For years, I believed brattiness in every way always needed to be corrected. To me, it once felt like resistance, a flaw, or a rebellion that threatened the structure of the dynamic. But now, I see it differently. Now, I see it as a form of self-expression. A way for my submissive to show her fire, her confidence, and her trust in me.

Yes, trust. Because it takes trust to push boundaries. It takes trust to tease, to play, and to challenge the person who holds the power. And when my submissive does that—when she smirks and says, “Mommy, I’m the most beautiful girl in the world, aren’t I? Others must have it really hard, not being as perfect as me,” or when she pouts and demands, “Mommy, I want it because I deserve it”—I don’t see rebellion anymore.

I see confidence. I see life. I see a woman who knows her worth and isn’t afraid to own it.

And it’s sexy. Damn sexy.

Bratty behavior doesn’t weaken the dynamic. It strengthens it. It adds layers, complexity, and depth. It turns submission into a dance—a playful, sensual exchange of power where no one is truly in control except for me. And yet, her fire ignites something primal in me. It keeps me sharp, keeps me present, and keeps our connection electric.

Being a Domme for over a decade has taught me that dominance isn’t just about control. It’s about responsibility in a other way than I thought it is. It’s about seeing my submissive for who she is—not just the quiet, obedient girl who kneels perfectly at my feet, but the playful, demanding princess who knows what she deserves and isn’t afraid to say it.

Why should I suppress that part of her? Why should I try to mold her into someone different and docile when her strength and confidence are what make her so captivating?

When she teases me, when she pushes the boundaries, it’s not defiance. It’s trust. She knows I’m strong enough to handle it, to match her energy, to guide her through it without breaking her spirit. That’s the real power of dominance—not in silencing her, but in allowing her to roar, knowing I’ll hold her steady when she’s ready to submit.

That doesn’t mean she doesn’t have to put in the effort sometimes. Of course she does. Submission is a two-way street. There are moments when she needs to kneel, to focus, to give herself fully to me. But those moments don’t need to be constant. Submission isn’t about perfection—it’s about authenticity.

Some nights, she doesn't want to exert any strength. She wants to be my Pillow Princess, indulgent and adored. And why shouldn’t she? Why should she always have to work for my approval when my love for her is unconditional?

I’m the Domme. It’s my responsibility to take care of her.

When she looks at me with that confident sparkle in her eyes and says, “Mommy, I deserve to be treated like the princess I am,” not a single muscle in my face flinches—even though my heart skips a beat every time.

“Oh, is that so, my darling?” I ask, leaning forward, my voice soft but commanding. My thumb brushes over her lower lip, and I lock my gaze on hers. “Then show me how much you deserve it.”

She melts, every time. It’s a game we play, a game of confidence and submission, of power and vulnerability. She knows I’ll always win, but she also knows I love the fire in her eyes when she dares to try.

Her brattiness doesn’t threaten my dominance. It enhances it. It reminds me of why I do this—why I’ve spent over a decade mastering the art of control, not to break someone, but to guide them. To make them feel safe, cherished, and understood.

When I pull her close, kiss her hair, and promise her that she’ll get everything she deserves, it’s not just words. It’s a vow. A vow to build her up, to nurture her, and to remind her every single day that she’s mine.

And tomorrow? Tomorrow, she’ll kneel. Not just because I demand it, but because she craves and wants it. Because submission is her gift to me, and my gift to her is the freedom to express it in all its forms—bratty, playful, vulnerable, and fierce.

That’s the beauty of our dynamic. It’s not rigid or predictable. It’s alive, pulsing with energy, passion, and trust. And as her Domme, I wouldn’t have it any other way.

For me, there’s nothing more intoxicating than that.

[unknown-cold]

Omg that's true!!

I'm so tired of these people saying Vi and Caitlyn's relationship is toxic, I mean literally the same thing she said Jinx and her relationship with Ekko wasn't good either and Jayce and Viktor too.

It is natural for problems and disagreements to occur in relationships, but it is not natural to think that a relationship will be peaceful and good all the time. These things only exist in Disney movies.

But apart from all that. Seriously guys hating on Vi or Caitlyn or both is way over the top. Like let's just imagine JUST IMAGINE, if Vi were male, the narrative surrounding her actions and character would change dramatically. She would likely be hailed as a "brother hero," a model of loyalty and kindness despite impossible circumstances. Her trauma, in prison, losing Vander, failing to save Jinx, and so on, would be sympathized with as a testament to her strength and determination.

Her status as the “bad sister” is undoubtedly tied to gender expectations. Women, especially older sisters, are often burdened with the role of caregiver, and are expected to be endlessly compassionate and self-sacrificing. Vi’s moments of anger, guilt, and mistakes, however, conflict with societal stereotypes of women as the natural “fixers” of emotional and familial conflicts. The fact that Vi is pigeonholed as the “bad sister” while Jinx is often seen as the tragic victim reflects deeper gender biases. Vi’s traumas and emotional wounds are ignored or minimized because she is expected to be the “strong one,” while Jinx is given sympathy and a more nuanced lens because her messiness and vulnerability fit into certain stereotypes of women who are broken or in need of saving.

It’s a frustrating double standard, and it underscores just how progressive Arcane is by refusing to fully give into those tropes. Vi’s character still shines as someone strong, flawed, and deeply human, but the criticisms she faces highlight how society treats female characters with such biases.

The misogyny is REAL and don’t think for a second that other women aren’t fully participating in that also. The amount of shit Vi gets for temporarily joining the Enforcers with Caitlyn to stop Jinx is insane. A male Vi would have been seen as a TORTURED HERO for joining up with the EVIL FORCES that took his parents away all so he could do HERO THINGS. But Vi does it? “Wah wah she joined the COPS she’s A TRAITOR THE REAL VI WOULD NEVER”. Like. Watch the show, my friends, and you will see she did what she thought was best and it was a very complex and very emotional decision for her; she hated every second of that uniform. But no, people shit on Vi and then complain like any of them could write a better show. Ugh.

And nobody would have hated a male Vi for having his love scene. Nobody. In fact, it would have been EXPECTED, but because Vi’s a woman, and a lesbian expressing her big gay love for her gorgeous gay lover, some people refuse to see her humanity and her growth as a person in that moment. I'm so tired

And the argument that we hate them because they did bad things is not true, I have seen people hate Caitlyn just because she is lesbian and one of them said if she was a straight woman I would have accepted her character on the show. Seriously this is someone who takes his criticism seriously, he forgot the story and everything in the show and focused on whether the characters are gay or straight or worse when I saw a comment from someone saying why are the main characters on the show female characters? Like is this an idiot or is he drug or what exactly? I think we should also ask, why do men always take the lead roles and when they are evil they are better, and if they are good they are also better, but if a woman comes along who is evil or wants to be evil or does just one mistake everyone hates her and she is the worst person in the world, but men are the only ones who deserve to play the role of evil and do bad things and we will sympathize with them and love them. THIS IS CRAZY!!

To understand what I'm saying more, compare Viktor's character and Caitlyn's character and you will see that Caitlyn was the character who was criticized the most even though she didn't kill anyone innocent and in the end she tried to fix things, while Viktor tried to kill all the people of Piltover and Zaun and didn't care about anyone, even his friend's pleas, he didn't care about them and Viktor thought that this was the solution but to end the conflicts between the two cities. But is there anyone who criticizes this, is there anyone who says that this is a bad act, of course not, yes you will see some people justifying it, as they did with Silco, the person who killed an entire family for control and drowned all of Zaun with shimmer and made the children work in dangerous factories, and there is not a single criticism, and people defend him even after Jinx's condition worsened, no they say that he is better than Caitlyn, my god like what the fuck!?

Then they tell you we don't hate women we don't hate gays or lesbians, just shut the fuck up, everything is clear, Arcane revealed to us that there are still people who are fanatic and traditional to the extreme who still want to see a man as the hero of the story and that all people and women should respect him even if he is evil and cruel he is always better than this bullshit, Arcane proved to us that it is possible for both sexes to appear in an excellent, strong and realistic way without insulting or belittling the other because these things are not useful and will not help in telling the story in any way.

Quick note I don't hate Jinx or Viktor and many of you who follow me know that I love Viktor very much but I will not deny the bad things he did and I am also really tired of the hypocrisy of some people and their constant criticism of other characters and characters. Just bc they say like these characters

Like I don't like Silco but have you ever seen me post every day criticizing Silco and Silco fans all the time or go to Silco fans and tell them if you like Silco then you support child labor and the drug trade and blah blah. Like they do with Caitlyn fans when one of them says he likes Caitlyn they accuse him of supporting collective punishment and corrupt governments and police brutality just because he likes a fictional character. I've never seen such stupidity and backwardness and bullshit in my life, just because I like a fictional character you think I will act like her in real life?? These people need to grow up seriously or find a job

[miscellaneouzz]

More Vox Machina meta time bc I feel like people do NOT talk enough about how complex Pike and Scanlan’s relationship is. First off the show is very good at steering away from the typical he’s-annoying-so-she-eventually-gives-in misogynistic approach a lot of those types of dynamics have. Like it initially comes off as just cute and flirtatious until their dynamic ironically becomes the least romantically driven of the main ships in a way that’s far more layered than I expected. It always feels like Pike’s complicated feelings come with observing Scanlan from a distance, she’ll flirt back and play along but ultimately wants to see the person he COULD be, the more sincere and earnest side to him (which can also be tied to Zerxus’ comment about her taking pride in “redeeming” her friends).

But then from Scanlan’s perspective, becoming the person he “could” be means distancing himself from Pike completely, because he’s in love with her and in his mind he sees that as an example of him clinging to his old habits of “finding all the wrong ways” to fill his emptiness. His scene with her on the balcony felt like such a culmination of both their complicated feelings– him relying on those coping mechanisms and Pike recognizing that– and I think that’s part of why he cried and why Pike pulled away at the last second. After that scene, we pretty much see Scanlan stop pursuing romantic interest in Pike for the rest of the season, but she’s still the only person he’ll be vulnerable with.

So then comes this heartbreaking irony that Pike’s been wanting more sincerity from Scanlan for a while now, only for Scanlan finally opening up more about his feelings to include him saying things that end up hurting and pushing away Pike. Because now Scanlan being more vulnerable and sincere means finally admitting he doesn’t view Vox Machina as his “real” family and that he never thought he mattered when he was with them and I don’t think that’s something Pike was truly ready for. And in the end Scanlan is still defining his worth purely on his relationships with others– if he’s no longer pouring his identity into romance/sex, he’s gotta pour it all into his newfound parenthood. He’s still flawed and not in a way where everything just hinges on Pike to “fix” him.

I think when it comes to the romantic relationships in the series it’s the one I’m most invested in from a character perspective. They’re the only pairing that’s yet to sincerely confess or discuss feelings for each other despite how much their relationship focuses on the need for sincerity and it’s so interesting. Like through the relationship struggles of Keyleth x Vax and Percy x Vex, we still see them be more open and upfront with both the conflicts and resolutions of their feelings for each other.

Pike & Scanlan are the only ship we’ve seen neither for, neither a straightforward conversation on the conflict of their relationship itself nor a sincere resolution to their feelings. And I think it has a lot to do with the parallel you can make about their own crisis of identity. Their character motivations and struggles with identity are not entirely dependent on each other as Scanlan has a tumultuous relationship with parenthood and Pike with her faith yet they impact each other so deeply.

There’s a lot more to say BUT for now… onto whatever season 4 brings for the gnomes!

[internetgiraffekid1673]

Every post in the EAH tag rn: "Apple this, Apple that, can we talk about Duchess?"

GREAT IDEA, LET'S TALK ABOUT DUCHESS!!!

Everybody tell me your favorite part about the character and story of Duchess Swan in the reblogs!

I think my favorite part of Duchess is probably how genuinely oblivious she is. She gets so caught up in her own perfectionism and misery and longing for a perfect life and perfect fairytale, that she totally forgets other people have MASSIVE issues too.

She totally doesn't realize Raven not only doesn't want her tragic ending, but has NO interest in being a dark sorceress AT ALL. It doesn't even cross her mind because she loves learning the skills required for her story like ballet. She's got no fucking idea how homesick Lizzie is ALL THE TIME because she's too busy finding Lizzie annoying. She very easily falls into the trap of idealizing Daring and not realizing he is a deeply flawed human being. I don't think she fully gets the kind of damage she'd be doing to Ashlynn and especially Hunter's lives if she exposed their relationship in True Hearts Day.

It's just such a relatable aspect of her personality. It's a very HUMAN thing to let your own pain blindside you to the pain you cause others. There's a post I saw on here once that said something to the effect of "it's crazy how being tired, hungry, sad, or angry can literally make you evil." Misery loves company and it just takes so much energy to deal with other humans in all their complexities that you just DON'T have when you've got something looming over you like Duchess does.

The fact that she gets better---that she saves Lizzie in Next Top Villain and that Lizzie forgives her, that she starts listening to Raven, and that she generally learns she does not have to continue supporting a system that wants to hurt her is so inspiring. It makes me feel good and makes me have hope for our world.

I think the most UNDERRATED aspect of Duchess is her amount of discipline in ballet. I love that Next Top Villain fully depicted the insanity required to be a prima ballerina in something like swan lake. Her whole body is in shambles all the time from her constantly pushing it to the limit. She's such a good athlete and it amazes me.

[sunsetmade]

Rearranged (again)

Rafe Cameron x Reader

Summary: When she calls Rafe over in a panic, he rushes to her side—only to find himself caught in the middle of her latest “urgent” mission… involving a couch and a vision.

The call came in just after seven.

Rafe had been lying on his bed, one arm flung over his eyes, his phone resting on his chest when it started buzzing. He didn’t even look at the screen before answering—her name flashing across it was already familiar, already welcome. But the second he heard her voice—urgent, slightly breathless—he sat up straight.

“Rafe? Can you come over? Like… now?”

He blinked. “Yeah. What’s wrong?”

A pause. A suspiciously long one.

“Just… come quick, please?”

She hung up before he could press for more.

Rafe was in his truck in less than five minutes.

⸻

He didn’t bother knocking when he got to her place—she never made him. The door was unlocked like always, and when he stepped inside, heart thudding a little faster than usual, he found—

Nothing burning. Nothing broken. Nothing screaming.

Except her.

Well, not screaming. More like standing in the middle of her living room with her hands on her hips, head tilted in deep concentration. Her hair thrown up into a quickly-done-messy-bun. Her brows were furrowed, her bottom lip caught between her teeth, and she was staring at the couch like it had personally offended her.

Rafe glanced around, adrenaline fading into something between amusement and disbelief. The coffee table was pushed halfway across the room, the rug bunched up against the far wall, and her books were in uneven piles scattered along the floor.

She didn’t even notice him at first. She was too busy squinting at the window, then at the couch, then back again like she was solving a complex puzzle.

He cleared his throat.

Her head snapped up, startled. “Oh! You’re here.”

“Yeah,” he said slowly, eyeing the chaos. “You sounded like the place was on fire, baby.”

“I—okay, I know, I panicked a little. But I really needed a second opinion. Or, like… your muscles.”

He raised a brow, a crooked grin pulling at his mouth. “You called me over like it was life or death… because you’re rearranging your furniture. Again?”

She straightened, half-sheepish, half-defensive. “It’s not again if it wasn’t working before.”

“You changed the layout three days ago,” he said, stepping over a stack of paperbacks to get closer to her. “Pretty sure I still have bruises from tripping over that lamp.”

“That was a design flaw, Rafe,” she replied with faux seriousness. “I’ve evolved since then.”

He let out a short laugh, coming to a stop in front of her. “I drove here thinking you were being robbed or bleeding out, and you’re in here giving the loveseat the stink eye.”

She pouted and gave him a look. “You said you liked when I called you.”

He smirked. “I do. Just didn’t realize you’d be calling me to fight a war against your furniture.”

“It’s not a war,” she sniffed, arms crossing gently over her chest. “It’s a vision.”

“Baby,” Rafe said, voice all teasing affection, “you have so many visions. At this point, I’m convinced you just get bored and start pushing things around to see how fast I’ll show up.”

She didn’t deny it.

Instead, she turned and gestured grandly toward the couch. “I’m thinking we angle it this way so the light hits it just right during the day. But then I lose the view of the TV unless I mount it on the other wall, which might be too much commitment for me right now.”

Rafe pretended to ponder deeply. “So what you’re saying is, I need to lift the couch and walk it around the room like a video game character until you get that look on your face.”

She grinned. “You do know me.”

With an exaggerated sigh, Rafe rolled his shoulders and made his way over to the couch. “Alright, tell me where you want it.”

“Hmm,” she mused, tapping her chin. “Maybe turn it toward the window?”

He grunted as he lifted the side of the couch, maneuvering it with the practiced ease of someone who had clearly done this before. She hovered beside him, guiding him like a very gentle, very adorable general.

“Little more to the left—no, my left. Okay, now back—wait. That’s too much. Rafe!”

He stopped, breathless but smiling. “You’re the worst GPS I’ve ever used.”

She laughed, the sound bright and full, and for a moment, Rafe just watched her. The way her hair caught the light. The way her oversized t-shirt slid off one shoulder as she bent to smooth the rug. The way her nose scrunched when she was thinking too hard about something that probably didn’t matter to anyone but her.

But it mattered to him. Because it mattered to her.

“Okay,” she said finally, stepping back. “I think that’s it. It’s perfect. Look at it!”

Rafe looked. It… looked exactly like it had last week.

But he looked back at her—hands on her hips, proud and bright-eyed and so clearly pleased with herself—and he smiled.

“Yeah,” he said, wiping his hands on his jeans. “It’s perfect.”

She turned to him, glowing. “Thanks for coming. I know it wasn’t exactly an emergency—”

He cut her off with a shrug. “Didn’t matter. You called. I’ll always come.”

That softened her completely. Her shoulders relaxed, her voice gentled. “You’re kind of my favorite person, you know that?”

Rafe stepped closer, lifting a hand to brush a thumb over her cheek. “I better be,” he murmured, smirking. “I risked my life to move that beast of a couch.”

She laughed again, leaning into his touch. “You did so bravely.”

“I try.”

There was a beat of quiet between them, comfortable and warm. Then—

“Okay,” she said, suddenly animated again. “Hear me out. What if we swap the bookshelf and the desk?”

Rafe groaned dramatically. “You are trying to kill me.”

But he was already moving toward the bookshelf.

Because she had a vision.

And he’d follow her through a hundred furniture layouts if it meant being near her when her eyes lit up like that.

[automaticheartcrusade]

As a number 1 Fiddleford Mcgucket lover, I honestly love the fact that journal 3 revealed that he had secretly created the Society of the Blind eye behind Ford’s back and was USING the gun on him multiple times, because it added a new complexity to the character. What he was doing wasn’t morally correct, but he probably felt like he was doing what was best for Stanford since he cared about him so much. Is it a little fucked up? Very much so and that’s what makes Fiddleford’s character even more interesting. You feel SO bad for him, he didn’t deserve anything that happened to him, but more people need to acknowledge his flaws too, specifically his family.

When it was revealed that he had gotten into an argument with his wife because she was upset he forgot to get her a Christmas gift in the Book of Bill, I felt bad for her. We don’t know much about Emma May Mcgucket but I don’t think she’s supposed to be painted in a negative light. Some people hate the mere idea that Fiddleford may have been neglectful to her and his son Tate some point down the line, but I genuinely think that’s what happened, and people shouldn’t villainize his wife or Tate honestly. It was unintentional of course, we know that Fiddleford cared about his family deeply and had a portrait of them when he was working with Ford, but him choosing to pack up and go with Ford for long periods of time probably caused a rift in the family. And yes, there is a tragedy to it, because him forgetting to get his wife a present was probably due to the brain damage the gun had on him. However, both concepts that Fiddleford loved his family but went crazy due to what he witnessed, AND him partly being to blame for his own self destruction with creating the memory gun and getting addicted to it, are statements that can and should coexist. Him getting traumatized wasn’t his fault, but using the memory gun repeatedly and putting the society/work before his family was. Ford definitely had influence, but the point still stands.

And for me that’s part of the appeal for Mcgucket, he didn’t deserve anything that happened to him, he would have been a completely different person had he not taken Ford’s call, he’s pathetic and tragic, made his own mistakes but also got screwed over at life in the process. But he deserved the happy ending he got and I just love this sad old man.

[cloverandstuff]

To be Hero X is...so much better than I ever could have imagined.

When I initially saw clips of the show on youtube, I loved the animation style, but I was scared that the plot or even concept might be executed in a poor manner.

I was scared that I might find Lin Ling boring, and predictable. And when I saw Moon, I was even more scared of what they planned to do with her, since the clips made it seem like she would just be the tsundere stereotype.

But I was so wrong and I am so happy about that.

The concept of the whole show is so beautiful and they execute it remarkably well in the first and second episode. The artstyle only helps, with the combination of 2D and 3D helping to setup emotional beats. I managed to grasp the power system easily, but it still has the ability to remain complex (cause whenever something is based mainly on realistic emotions, it's bound to get complex)

They establish the world setting and plot setup in a very entertaining way in the first episode. The suicide is fucking hilarious, with the tone shift that it does. But it's not funny to Lin Ling, and when he has to tell anyone, he genuinely seems distraught or upset over it.

Speaking of him, Lin Ling has my sense of humour. He is shy but also just unapologetically himself. He hesitates but it's not annoying or unreasonable. He's bold when he needs to be and it doesn't feel wildly out of character.

Episode 2, however, was my favourite out of the two. Mainly cause it adds so much more flavour to the characters.

Lin Ling is a genuinely kind person who isn't just doing shit for Moon to get her to like him back. He really just wanted to make her happy, and makes the choices to achieve that, even if it isn't necessarily what he wanted.

Moon, while still having the essence of tsundere in her, proves to be kore than that. We don't know the way her relationship worked with Nice, but she hated being chained. She didn't want fame nor money. She wanted the freedom to travel. She is aggressive but she isn't cruel to Lin Ling. She acts childish and playful, and doesn't stop herself from having fun.

And her arc in that single episode? She wanted to stop being an accessory to Nice, and just be her own person. When she gets to have that, she chooses it over Lin Ling, because she know what she didn't want. She made the choice she knew would make her happiest, and Lin Ling respectdd that, even if he was upset.

(I ship them. I actually ship them so much. They deserve each other.)

Original Nice was given the justice he derseved, with it not being a case of "old hero was actually an asshole and the new guy is much better". He is complex and flawed, with many complex emotions.

I don't have OCD, but based on my undertsanding, OG Nice seemed to be a good representation of that. Suddenly having obsessive thoughts with perfection, to the point that it affects your personal life and relationships, makes sense for him. He hadn't had these thoughts before and when his powers declared he would, it affected him deeply.

His persona was not wholly fake, because he genuinely wanted to be a hero. He was mainly a performer before (with the few clips we see of his life before), and that translated into his persona.

Then we have Wreck. My god, Wreck is just so unique in the series. When he appears first, you are intentionally made to believe that he's jealous of nice and wants Moon. In fact, most of the times he shows this anger is mainly in the romantic 'scenes' between Nice and Moon.

When the wedding happens, he aims straight for Nice. Because he wants answers. He wants to kniw why none of his texts got responses. When he gets punched, he immediately knows that Nice isn't his Nice.

His character revolves mainly around a false narrative you are fed, before he outright breaks every piece. He cherishes Nice, and mourns him when he finds out about the suicide. His dreams, which began with him, seem near impossible to continue now that he's gone.

I don't know how his story will be continues, but I hope he shows up. He is a genuinely good character that I would love to see elaborated more. Especially since he is the only one left who seems to truly know Nice.

[ultfreakme]

The Naruto fandom has an odd tendency to take underwritten female characters and focus on making them morally unquestionable rather than actually engaging with the characters for what they are and giving them depth. Like there's foundation here for complex, different stories but it always lands on "she's perfect and always correct". Which is.......boring, uninspired, and feels about as misogynistic as Kishomoto. This on top of trying to make the female characters the image of perfection in the eyes of deeply corrupt system, unwilling to examine the rot in Konoha.

This is because the fandom as a whole has no interest in engaging with the abhorrent politics in the show which villainizes any critique or push back against Konoha's "Will of Fire".

I doubt I'm the first person to point out how everyone's oh-so horrified about Zabuza saying he became a ninja by killing all his classmates, then flash-forward 5 episodes and our main gang is being put in a forest which forces them to kill each other & crippling children permanently. It's fine guys! Because Will of Fire!

Hinata exemplifies my conundrum. Despite the anime's efforts to make her into A Character of Significance, she's nothing without Neji. She exists to highlight him, and she simply cannot stand on her own without the commentary Neji brings.

Which is like, fine. Tenten exists like that. She's the assigned Girl of the Squad. But highlighting Neji and his story in Part 1 makes Hinata into a terrible person in the context of Naruto as a show. The show does a lot of work in establishing the significance of the clans and the power they hold in Konoha. This is crucial. The discrimination the Uchihas faced led to genocide and is the main motivation for our secondary protagonist.

The Hyuuga clan discrimination creates a good base to work off of but building Hinata would mean writing a female character, but more importantly, examining the politics of the world that has been set up, which the show has been avoiding like the plague after Land of Waves. The fandom completely disregards the clan system discrimination which is an IMPORTANT aspect of the show, and essential to the world-building, instead making Hinata into a "nice girl who's super-duper strong yay feminism!". And that's it. The elephant in this porcelain storage room is ignored.

It's not even actually engaging with the character in any capacity. Boiling them down to a laundry list of achievements and the vague label of "morally correct" is not better than what the actual show does. Some of the best written female characters are horribly flawed (literally everyone in She-Ra, G.L.O.W, Legend of Korra, Claymore, etc). And on top of that their "perfection" is always in context of comparison to the male characters of the show. "Sakura's too good for [insert whichever male character" or "Hinata's so good, even more than [insert other male character]".

Maybe it's because this is a fandom which came about during the 2000s and a majority of the people in it were children when they first watched it, but it's genuinely painful to see the fandom still be at Feminism 101. There IS a middle ground between praising every woman to high heavens to the point it's nauseating and bashing a female character solely for the purpose of hating.

The problem with the way Hinata, Sakura or whoever the hell is written isn't just about misogyny, and it won't be fixed by giving them magic power-ups and pitting them against each other in some weird match-up of "best kunoichi", "best medic", "best taijutsu fighter". That is entirely unimportant.

I have read mangas where the FMC has no friends, no special skill that makes her stand out, the story doesn't make her into a shining beacon of anything but she was deeply compelling and well-written because she worked with what she had, and the aspect assigned to her were thoroughly explored.

What does it even mean to be the best kunoichi or whatever the fuck when the character does nothing in the main story?

This isn't even a Naruto specific problem tbh. Arcane, DC Comics, practically every fandom I've been does a half-assed attempt at engaging with the politics of the art they're seeing. It's giving Lockheed Martin putting up pride flags and going "we support the gays <3" and sending horrific weapons to massacre and cleanse innocent people.

A lot of Naruto fandom seems to think that Naruto & Konoha are in the right, because the "good guys" keep talking about the Will Of Fire, which mandates people to:

Have 12 yr olds die for them

Genocide an entire clan after falsely accusing them of a thing they had no part in

Letting people discriminate against shinobi based on bloodline and social position

Killing without questioning order

Doing whatever it takes to "protect Konoha" whereas even slight digressions against Konoha are seen as threats that rewquire utter eradication

The show's wrong. Your main character is wrong. It's not even intentional on the writers' part after Part 1. They're just fucking wrong and suck at this.

[itsmaferart]

The fear of evolving…

Okay, we’re back with a new chapter of SxF 114, and Endo leaves us with a deep reflection.

And yes, this will be a long post with spoilers.

Sheets and toothbrush new…

Focusing on the chapter, we see that it revolves around a family outing with Yor and Yuri, where they spend quality time together. The outing starts with Yuri desperately wanting to buy something that will please Yor. However, this turns out to be quite challenging when what Yor wants are household items that remind her of her husband and daughter.

This is very frustrating for Yuri, who just wants the chance to indulge Yor's personal whims and feel the satisfaction of "providing" for her, both materially and emotionally. But I’ll come back to this point later

Yor should drink alcohol more often... please?

Once at the restaurant, Yuri expresses his frustration that everything in Yor's mind is centered around her family and not on her individuality. In Yor’s angelic mind, she constantly thinks like a mother and a wife, which leads Yuri—who tends to have extreme thoughts—to see her as someone losing her individual identity just to fulfill a role (which isn’t true).

Yuri's criticism is, to some extent, constructive. Many people feel frustrated when they find themselves boxed into a role that prevents them from exploring their individuality. In fact, part of the lessons Yor is learning is to think for herself and to be "a little" more selfish by wanting to have friends, go out, and maybe even pick up a hobby. But we all know that this journey is slow and must be surrounded by positive stimuli that show us that being "authentic" and a bit selfish can be healthy.

....To love is also to fulfill stages...

However, Yuri's mistake is believing that Yor is in an oppressive and dictatorial environment, when it’s clear that the Forger family has become a "safe space" that provides Yor with validation, love, and understanding—enough for her to want to explore her own tastes on her own, even if they are very small steps. For Yor, the role of mother is deeply intertwined with her identity; she grew up fulfilling this role at a young age, and her sweet and strong heart instinctively makes her a wonderful mother.

The issue is that, like all mothers, fulfilling this role or mission with her children has a set timeframe. You will never stop being a mother or pather, but the stage of "dependence" has an expiration date.

Of course, Yor longs for Yuri's childhood and treasures those wonderful memories because it was a stage of life that she knows will not return (and she will likely experience again when Anya is an adult). For Yor, taking care of her brother, providing affection, food (even if it’s toxic), and looking after his health (to the point of almost harming him) was not a sacrifice; it wasn’t an obligation that frustrated her. She loved doing it because she loved her brother. Although she knew that this made her miss many experiences, she also understands that it gave her a purpose that kept her clinging to life for a long time, helping her not to face the void and absence of her parents alone.

Yor has gone through various stages and allowed other people into her life to gain new experiences and expand her emotional connections (the Forger family). Now she has a husband (with whom she occasionally gets heated and drunk), a beautiful daughter (who drools on blankets), and a dog that scratches.

But… what is really happening with Yuri? Now, here comes the more complex part:

Yuri has grown physically; he is an adult, has a job, and earns a good salary. However, emotionally, his mind is still that of a child.

For Yuri, emotional connections (love) are grounded in dependency—in other words, a provider-receiver dynamic. In this view, the person who provides fills the other with love and care, and the receiver must be grateful. This is the flawed perception Yuri has of Yor's role in his life.

Yuri believes that since Yor has been everything to him, the only way to repay her and maintain their bond is by reversing the roles and paying her back with even greater value and effort. He is stuck in a stage that prevents his love from evolving into a new phase. In part, Yuri has also sacrificed his childhood and adolescence to become a productive adult because he thinks the only way for his relationship with Yor to work is for one of them to be completely dependent on the other. His fear of evolving is tied to the belief that if their love changes, it means "I don't need you anymore, I don't love you."

The issue is that Yor doesn’t need a single source of affection because she now has a broader support circle.

Yuri holds an irreplaceable place in Yor's heart and life (which is why she cherishes her childhood memories).

However, Yuri clings to the mistaken belief that if one doesn’t depend on the other, he will soon be pushed aside and left behind. This leads him to want to remain the same child, living in the mountains and recreating his past—holding on to a stage of his life that he views as the only happy one. He believes that without Yor in his life, he no longer has purpose as a person or individual, nor any source of affection.

I know Yuri is a pain and his head is full of nonsense, but Endo's subtlety shows that beneath those layers of discomfort, oddities, shouts, grunts, and other flaws, there’s a good guy. Even against his will, he bought the things Yor wanted (for their family).

It’s now that he realizes everything he thought he had to do to "stay" by Yor’s side doesn’t actually satisfy him; on the contrary, it frustrates him even more when he arrives at an empty room. Many times, we cling to dynamics and fill our heads with goals and expectations, believing that this way "things won’t change" out of fear of loneliness, when in reality, the effect is the opposite.

Friend! I'm not even going to think about where I get so many photos from!

It’s hopeful that Yuri doesn’t have to be "truly" alone without Yor. Even if he doesn’t realize it, he already has friends, colleagues, and someone interested (and a bit jealous) in him waiting on the other end of the call. This suggests that if Yor has found her place with the Forgers, perhaps Yuri is closer to understanding that he has more people around him than he thinks.

Bonus +

We love Chloe, who is panicked (and jealous) that Yuri is going on dates!

[nataliescatorccioapologist]

If Shauna hadn't slept with Jeff, her and Jackie would've never got into that fight and Jackie wouldn't have died.

If Shauna didn't beat Lottie up, they wouldn't of had to pick cards and kill Javi.

If Shauna didn't kick Lottie out of her home, Lottie would've never died.

#everythingisShaunasfault

No but on a more serious note, I really tried to give Shauna a chance and I get she's gone through a lot but I just cannot find it in me to like her. Like even before the plane crash she was sleeping with her best friends boyfriend so she was already a shitty person. I really don't like Jackie that much either.

Okay warning I’m about to go on a really long (respectful) Shauna defense rampage.

I get where you're coming from, and I think a lot of people struggle to connect with Shauna because she is so impulsive, reactive, and self-sabotaging, which makes her incredibly frustrating to watch. My feelings toward Shauna right now are very similar to how I felt toward Travis in Season 1 and parts of Season 2: I didn’t like him as a person, but I had empathy for him and understood the underlying grief and trauma driving his actions. Shauna is not someone I would want to hang out with or even be in close proximity to, but I love her as a character. She is fascinating, complex, and, as you pointed out, is the catalyst for many of the show’s most interesting and pivotal events. Shauna is not a good person (nor are many of the characters on this show) but I understand her and I empathize with her as a deeply wounded and traumatized teenage girl lashing out.

But to defend Shauna a bit, I think the argument that all these major tragedies trace solely back to her isn’t entirely fair—while she played a role in each situation, they were all shaped by a much larger web of circumstances and choices made by others.

Jackie’s death wasn’t just about the fight—it was the culmination of months of isolation and resentment. Jackie was already struggling to fit into the group dynamic, and even if that specific argument hadn’t happened, it’s likely something else would have pushed her over the edge. Teenage girls (especially best friends with a lot of underlying jealousy) can be ruthless. Shauna didn’t send Jackie outside with the intention of killing her, they had just gotten into a really intense (mutual) fight and Shauna couldn’t stand to be around her afterwards, which is how most of us feel after getting into a really bad unresolved fight with someone we care about.

Javi’s death was a consequence of the escalating desperation in the group. Even if Shauna hadn’t attacked Lottie, the ritualistic violence was already brewing, and someone was going to die sooner or later. They were all starving and on the brink of death, they would have had to do the card draw to survive anyways. And Lottie asked her to do it— encouraged her to— to release her rage. In Shauna’s mind, this group of people ate her baby and she no longer has a sense of reality, of course she’s going to spiral out of control.

As for pre-crash Shauna—yeah, sleeping with Jeff was a terrible thing to do, but I think it speaks to her deep-rooted insecurity and her struggle with identity. She felt invisible next to Jackie and acted out in ways that gave her a sense of power, even if it was self-destructive. It doesn’t excuse her actions, but it makes her an interesting, flawed character rather than just a “shitty person.”

You can blame a lot of characters for things going to shit— Misty broke the flight recorder which prevented them from getting rescued, Lottie was the first one to spread the idea of the “Wilderness,” which is what lead to all of these ritualistic sacrifices and the group spiraling as a whole, Tai and Van called off the psych team which caused Nat to die, ETC). They have all had a hand in their own destruction.

Shauna has repeatedly shown a softer, more caring side—she’s not just a bundle of rage and impulsivity. She feels genuine remorse, empathizes with others, and fiercely protects the people she loves. Even in the most recent episode, that inner softness comes out when she’s in Lottie’s old bedroom. She’s on the verge of tears looking at Lottie’s childhood and realizing that she’s really gone, and then she has a really sweet moment with Lottie’s father where she allows him to apologize to Lottie through her and heal those emotional wounds.

And if you really really hate Shauna, trust me her actions do not go unpunished. This girl has suffered. Her best friend is dead (who she weeps over and misses so intensely that she talks to her dead body for months and continues to be haunted by hallucinations of her even 25 years later), her baby is dead (who she had to watch get eaten by her friends in her dream, whose lifeless body she held on to for days because she couldn’t bear to accept that reality, whose death she blamed herself for, whose body she had to bury), she had to cut up Javi’s body despite being a maternal figure for him, and she is so traumatized that she can’t allow herself to love or get close to anyone (including her husband and daughter), and now she is having to watch her fellow survivors and the only people who can truly understand her die one by one (Lottie, Nat, and more to come I’m sure).

Anyways Shauna defense rant over, sorry it was so long. That said, if you just don’t vibe with her, that’s totally valid. Not every character is meant to be likable!

[i-wear-sunglasses-inside]

Thoughts on Thea Muldani that literally nobody asked for:

Do I like her as a character? Absolutely not! She is by no means the worst person we see on page, but she is still deeply loyal to the Ravens and their philosophy, even as an adult 6+ years his senior, she blames Jean for his own assaults as a 16-year-old, and she decided, again, as an adult, that the individual she watched grow up on the court while she was herself in college would be the best possible option for a romantic interest. I’m actually not going to talk about her hopping on live television to incite mass suicide among her junior team members because that was a coordinated effort with Kevin and Jean as well. Point is, there is a lot that is highly toxic about her character (like literally any of the Ravens. Makes sense.)

HOWEVER, Do I think Nora made her this way in error? Also no. I’ve seen a lot of people acting like Nora doesn’t know how to write a complex woman with hard edges that you can still sympathize with or a relationship where two deeply flawed individuals manage to come together and create a healthy, caring relationship. Obviously that’s not the case (see: the characterization for any of the women on the foxes, including Abby, and the relationship between Andrew and Neil), and it feels weird to just start accusing her of suddenly being inept at building her own characters/character relationships when that is possibly her biggest strength as a writer.

If Thea is being characterized as an extension of the Ravens, if she’s being characterized as a harsh and toxic individual, it’s on purpose. That purpose might be to act as a baseline to provide room for character growth, it might be to showcase the juxtaposition between what the ex-ravens would have become vs what they are becoming, and it might be that she’s acting as another hurdle in Kevin’s path away from The Nest. Regardless, I think that maybe it’s worth taking a step back from either “Thea is an iconic girlboss who was brainwashed and is therefore without agency or accountability because of that” and “I can’t believe Nora blundered this character so bad, she literally needs to be erased from the series so that Kevin can be with (insert preferred partner(s) here)”.