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This is the worst timeline. (x)

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hands you guys a tiny crumb of the chapter so far (17k words in... cod damn...!!)

i still can't give an estimate of how long it'll take cause lifes been hectic BUT i am finally at the last 'segment' i need to write... then i proofread and edit.. and then chapter will be out... yeeees....

and then it'll be time to edit the old chapters... and then... back to work!!

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a very long dive into cuttletavio feat. my personal opinions and viewpoints as someone with an insane fixation on the ship.

hello fellow cuttletavio freaks... since the fandoms been propping up more lately i kind of want to talk about my views on the ship and share them, but the problem is, i'm kind of scared to?

it's not necessarily that i want to be unfriendly/antisocial, but moreso this particular ship has a certain *history* to it (which i won't go into) and so making friends in the community seems scary!

this is going to be a long, long discussion/ramble on my views of the ship (their dynamics, etc.) which i don't really think will be read much but that's okay! i just wanted to put my thoughts out there and see how it goes. the full ramble is under the cut.

I've made a post before on the whole 'compare and contrast' aspect of the characters of Craig Cuttlefish and Octavio Takowasa, and that still applies to my views of them. I think the aspect of coming together despite their differences is important to the core of the ship. It is also important to the themes of Splatoon.

Splatoon- as a series- has a running theme of humanity, its mistakes, and its nature. The inkfish of the series, for all intents and purposes, have inherited the good and bad of humanity. This allows for a very complex view of the characters, especially in focus to the past. However, from what I've seen, it appears a lot of people tend to have a very narrow view of Craig and Octavio. They tend to split them into one of two camps:

Total Good, or Total Evil.

This narrow black-and-white view of the characters ends up bleeding into the ship usually. I tend to see people in the groupings of 'fluffy, wholesome ship' and 'toxic, abusive old man yaoi'. Both of these are somewhat disappointing (though the latter upsets me most, we'll get into why later) and dilute it to such a flat view. I know this is to be expected, since that's how fictional works are oft taken, but it does bother me since I care so deeply about the topic.

I'd say the 'toxic yaoi' view is the worse of the two. Am I saying the characters should always be happy, without angst? Absolutely not! It's perfectly normal for couples to argue and have spats. What I refer to is when the ship is distilled into these mere tropes (often associated with BL writing and such), where they're genuinely abusive, where the 'toxicity' is the main aspect of it. I can't stop anyone from having that perspective on the characters, but it really doesn't befit either of them in the slightest.

In my personal opinion- formed from character analysis and lore research-, they would be a healthy but complex relationship. As people, they are neither good nor bad. They want to be good people, they try, but they make mistakes along the way. These mistakes vary based on their own personal vices and virtues. We'll start with a discussion of that, their ideologies.

Craig Cuttlefish- keeping in mind that the NOA localization sucks balls- is a hopeful man that pursues an ideal of good. He's shown in-canon to care for his family, to be of artistic talent, and to pursue order. Through interviews, he's revealed to have always wished for peace. Based on these, I'd say he's somewhat of a hopeless romantic, with a strong attachment to his moral compass. I'd go as far to associate him with anti-war political beliefs and a certain 70s hippie charm to him.

Octavio Takowasa, on the other hand, is shown to be of a rebellious nature. Boisterous, loud, proud. He's shown in-canon to care for the greater good of his people, and that his allegiance is with chaos. His character tends to be misinterpreted less (from what I've seen), but many still tend to fall for the basic pitfalls of mischaracterization with him. As his kabuto symbolizes he likely leads a Shogunate-type society, we can infer he's of a strong, built mannerism, and likely was born into that militaristic structure. Despite this, I think he pursued peace in spite of his predecessors' rule.

Why does this 'order v. chaos' theme matter? It's because it can reveal their strengths and short-fallings. Craig is bound to his sense of justice, but it can be to a fault. Organized, operational, but would falter if his plans were broken. Octavio is able to go with the flow, ever-changing. He's a beacon of progress yet this also serves to his recklessness. Craig helps to ground Octavio, whilst Octavio helps to lift Craig up. They are, in essence, inseparable.

This DOES lead to arguments and falling-outs, but I do NOT think it would've escalated to that of 'toxicity'. They are mature adults. I don't think what happened at the Siege of Arowana was intentional, nor do I think they had it in them to hurt each other. I don't think they grew 'bitter' towards each other. Any hateful feelings were likely towards the leader of Inkadia's military or nation, towards the ones moving the pawns. It's unlikely Octavio started the war; not without being provoked. With Craig's behaviors, in-canon, I find it unlikely to be his fault.

If I were to go deeper-in with my personal theories, I'd liken that Inkadia as a nation is closest to Western Ideologies (which, does track, the whole haikara vs bankara thing). This is hinted at by mentions of inkling hedonism in pre-war times, which proves still present in the consumerist tendencies of modern Inkopolis. This doesn't mean that *everything* from western nations like the United States translates historically to Inkadia, but we can infer how this influence relates to the war and geopolitical tensions of the pre-war period.

It's already pretty obvious that the Sunken Scrolls are propaganda. From both sides, to be exact. The Octarian propaganda is obvious to us, the player, because we play as inklings in Splatoon 1. However, many people seem to not use the same thinking for the inkling historical sources in the scrolls. Those are likely influenced by propaganda too. This brings me to a topic I like to emphasize quite often (including in my fic... hi Ruse Theory fans!!): history is written by the winners of war.

The sunken scrolls state things like the war was started by rising tides, and that the inklings won due to 'superior number of limbs'. While I think the tides were *partially* true because of the Splatlandian scrolls mentioning a great flood, I don't think thats the whole story. We know the Zapfish are valuable to Inkadia. We also know that Bluefin Depot is a coal mine, Craig did something in Bluefin Depot during the war, and coal is a pollutive source of energy. Zapfish- so far- seem to be more of an efficient source.

Where am I going with this? The war had most likely been a power/resources battle, with the floods a further excuse for suddenness of attacking a previously-allied nation.

This ties into the ship because it clarifies the reasons for the war, and how much control they had in the manner. As far as we know, Craig's lowest rank in the early times of the war was that of Second Lieutenant. He wouldn't have been even close to calling those shots. As for Octavio, the waters are a bit muddied.

Shogunate Governments typically rule temporarily during wartime, but we also never hear of any other form of Octarian rulership. This can be excused with the fact that Splatoon's inkfish don't directly copy human culture. It's likely that the Octarians could have discovered remnants of human culture in the bunkers (pre-war, whilst exploring the continent), and simply emulated some of the elements discovered. In this case, the Octarians would have a Shogun who also serves the role of 'Emperor' as well.

Keeping this in mind, while Octavio serves over a military-type government, I don't think he started the war. Since Octarian tech RELIES on Zapfish, I believe they had claim over most of the Zapfish habitats in Inkadia's landmass. Therefore, we can sort of tie together how things escalate from there.

I think that even during the war, Craig and Octavio were in love. I don't think they ever broke up, neither, since Craig likely assumed the Octarians would take a quick victory. You could also infer some espionage-related activities but that bleeds more into the theoretical so I won't go into that. If there were some kind of separation, Octavio would have declared it out of worry more than distaste.

Keeping this in mind, I really think Craig and Octavio had a genuine love that bared no intention of hurting the other. If Octavio wanted Craig dead, he'd of taken care of that by now, even as old men. He's still very-much capable. Craig could have likely done the same, too, as he's shown to be resilient even in old age. There is a tragicness to the circumstances of their environment but they love all the same through it all.

What does this all mean? Craig and Octavio had a beautiful, brilliant love, stifled due to a war declared out of their hands. They loved so truly and openly, and planned on things to go smooth after a quick win. Unfortunately, the tables turned, and they got the wrong end of the stick. A life imagined of beautiful intimacy together, only for reality to crash in with that of isolation eating away at their hearts.

Going into personal theories some more, I don't think Craig stopped fighting for Octavio. He's left in such a poor state in Splatoon 1 for that of a 'recognized hero' in war. It could be an element of veteran mistreatment, and it could also be that he tried to speak up post-war of the unrighteous terms it'd been started upon. It could be he'd been stripped of any benefit due to his political views. I think Octavio resorted to stealing the Zapfish because he knew Craig's attempts would never bring about change, and that he'd been punished for trying. Craig wanted to stop him from stealing the Zapfish because he feared repercussions for his lover. I'm rambling on and its getting all sappy and I may cry now--

uhhh all this to say, cuttletavio more deep than basic tropes of 'toxic yaoi' etc etc. thank u for coming to my ted talk.... feel free to contribute to the convo in the reblogs or comments....

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hot take: cuttletavio is at its best when its a healthy relationship imo

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I’m sorry I had to when I noticed his short shorts😓😭

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maybe i will start interacting more in the community. maybe it will be nice... maybe....

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I HAVE AN ANNOUNCEMENT!

as you all seem to know, Dissonant Melody, a comic by the amazing @driftingnova seems to be all but discontinued, and its creator has been completely absent from tumblr and all other platforms for at least two years.

dissonant melody meant and still does mean more than the world To me. While I can’t ask Nova directly because they’ve been radio silent for years, I am going to take it upon myself to do a sort of ‘fan continuation’ of sorts. It’ll stay relevant to the way the story seemed to be going, and I’m going to keep the same designs style and at highest pg14 rating, and I will credit Nova in every post I make

this comic is amazing, and I feel like it deserves some form of closure.

TLDR;

DISSONANT MELODY IS RETURNING SOON.

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interacting in fandom feels so difficult for me but its probably cause i get so invested into one particular thing about a piece of media that if anyone gets it wrong or reads it in a weird flanderized way i get viscerally upset it sucks nuts

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Random idea for an au but what if Cap’n Cuttlefish and Dj Octavio had a conversation that ended up in a fight and Cap’n Cuttlefish tells Octavio that he’ll be there if Dj Octavio wants to talk again and then Cap’n cuttlefish dies

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"this is just gonna be a sketch" he says "ill stop after this last line" he says"

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im not even hanging on by a thread im hanging on by an atom

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I think every computer user needs to read this because holy fucking shit this is fucking horrible.

So Windows has a new feature incoming called Recall where your computer will first, monitor everything you do with screenshots every couple of seconds and "process that" with an AI.

Hey, errrr, fuck no? This isn't merely because AI is really energy intensive to the point that it causes environmental damage. This is because it's basically surveilling what you are doing on your fucking desktop.

This AI is not going to be on your desktop, like all AI, it's going to be done on another server, "in the cloud" to be precise, so all those data and screenshot? They're going to go off to Microsoft. Microsoft are going to be monitoring what you do on your own computer.

Now of course Microsoft are going to be all "oooh, it's okay, we'll keep your data safe". They won't. Let me just remind you that evidence given over from Facebook has been used to prosecute a mother and daughter for an "illegal abortion", Microsoft will likely do the same.

And before someone goes "durrr, nuthin' to fear, nuthin to hide", let me remind you that you can be doing completely legal and righteous acts and still have the police on your arse. Are you an activist? Don't even need to be a hackivist, you can just be very vocal about something concerning and have the fucking police on your arse. They did this with environmental protesters in the UK. The culture war against transgender people looks likely to be heading in a direction wherein people looking for information on transgender people or help transitioning will be tracked down too. You have plenty to hide from the government, including your opinions and ideas.

Again, look into backing up your shit and switching to Linux Mint or Ubuntu to get away from Microsoft doing this shit.

[mackeralsauce]

ok i will share my silly cuttletavio thoughts... yeees...

I think it's interesting to explore the various parallels between them, the dichotomies that still rhyme in their stories, which bring them closer than they could be to any other.

For instance, they very much had contrasting upbringings. Octavio had most definitely been raised as high-class, and due to his role as future Shogun, had probably been trained strictly with an authoritative parental structure. Craig, on the other hand, would've probably had the complete opposite. Lower-class (and homeless, in my interpretation), scraping to get by. Freedom at the cost of well-being. Despite this, both experience an intense alienation from their peers. Octavio is likely idolized, high-up and 'unattainable', yet also feared. Craig is likely scrutinized and scorned, seen as filthy and rugged.

To delve into these social dynamics further, they've likely both had to put on a 'social mask' to survive in their circles. Octavio- as we know him in the Splatoon series- is chaotic, boisterous, and rebellious. He's the exact opposite of the 'order' of the Octarians. Craig is shown to be orderly and organized, which is contrasting to the chaotic playing field of Inkpolitan culture. I think that before they met, they'd play an 'act' to fit into their role, repressing their true selves to survive. When they had an opportunity to make a true, genuine friend who wouldn't judge them, that likely opened them up and got them living life authentically.

I think those two brought the best out in each other. Even modern-day, I think they still share that playful 'openness' with each other. They had a genuine bond that could only be developed by their contrasting circumstances meeting in the middle.

cod i love them so much... arghhhh...

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should i start posting my silly cuttletavio n worldbuildin' takes? i was gonna save 'em for my fic but with how slow im writing... perhaps itd be best to share... my whimsy...

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Hey, don’t cry. Free online database of Japanese folk lore

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Fun fact: I put a lot of effort into my oc’s and it just won’t get me anywhere

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