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I think about bbc merlin and how a lot of it kind of adhered to the legends

Like balinor being smh the fiend/demon who impregnated his mom and disappeared

And then merlin absolutely using his powers opposite to his dad’s agendas coz he’s been baptized (or in the show’s case, turned into cult bby for the crown) or coz he knows of his mom’s trust and devotion to god (gaius, uther and arthur in the show’s case).

Leaving the dad to be forgotten in time lol

I do miss the classic!merlin being called "son of the devil” or "boy without a father” tho 🤣

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Lets go All Over The Fucking Place with mama

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is this anything

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i feel like the grand majority of the problems with Danny Phantom as a tv show are so easily explained by the fact that there was clearly not a single woman in the room during production.

like. overshadowing being treated as a bit of a joke rather than a total violation of bodily autonomy. tucker's treatment of girls, and particularly it going unaddressed. danny having apparently gone into the girls' locker room invisibly, without consequence, which we learn through... two brief screencaps with goofy music. (never brought up again, arguably just done as a one-off for laughs, but still... not something a girl would laugh at.) sam constantly belittling the other girls for being feminine, in conjunction with paulina being written as shallow and one-dimensional (for the overall effect of femininity as a whole being dismissed and demonized).

according to imbd, there were exactly two (2) women involved who wrote a single (1) episode each, one being torrent of terror and the other being, INTERESTINGLY, D-stabilized, one of the episodes widely-recognized as one of the better ones in the show.

so i'm not saying we should just completely ignore any of the problematic characterization, because obviously characters don't need to be perfect and should grow, but i am saying that the writers did not see these things as flaws and therefore did not induce any sort of character growth away from them. which would not have been the case if they'd actually had any other perspective than Man in the room with them

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(tw for sa mention)

so it's 3 am and maybe i'm thinking too deeply into this but uh. i feel like i've seen very little content about how genuinely horrific vlad's cloning attempts of danny are? maybe it's just me but it's always read a little bit like an allegory for sa. ik it's mostly looked at through the halfway-unserious cartoon lens but like. i remember being physically nauseous the first time i saw the ep, even though i knew through the phandom pipeline that it happened.

the way danny is kidnapped, restrained, and repeatedly tortured/forced into transforming by an adult "family friend", the way he can't tell his parents what happened because vlad is effectively blackmailing him with his secret/they wouldn't believe him, the way jack is absolutely convinced vlad is incapable of any harm because he's a "good friend" even though his WIFE knows and explicitly calls him a creep. the fact that dani remains as a completely innocent yet permanent reminder of what happened just makes it worse imo.

please don't get me wrong, i love dani and all of the content about her grappling with her identity as a clone, but it's never sat right with me that i don't see just as much about how terrifying and deeply violating it must have been for danny, and how it must have affected his own sense of identity. maybe i'm just not on the right side of phandom tumblr for that though

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Taking an itty bitty break from midterms to recreate part of this lovely page because I have been reintroduced to the wonderful world of Paranatural and have realized BullyMagnet is absolutely just Danny/Dash Middle School Edition™

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FUCKING FIIIIIIRE

designs for a zine piece! enjoy some background story my illustration never needed under the read more (fair warning I did NOT edit this at all):

newbie mage apprentices Sam and Tucker who became friends bc they're kinda… the ones at the bottom of their class and struggle the most, for different reasons. they become besties over time and practice together!

except one night, something goes terribly wrong. they spent the last few nights preparing for a project, a bigger spell that needs an intricate circle with precise measurements to work. but when they try to activate it, well… 

oops. they summoned a demon.

which is, for one, extremely illegal. only certified demonologists are allowed to summon demons because they're so dangerous. anything less than a perfect binding circle and thoroughly researched info on the demon, including their true name, is even remotely safe.

but, weirdly enough… the demon seems just as surprised as they are. as Sam and Tuck frantically try to figure out how to dispel the demon, they realize–oh god, did their circle actually sufficiently bind the demon? it can't leave. they watch the demon tentatively poke it's claws into the air around the boundary, and watch it fizzle, retreating back with a strained hiss.

okay. okay, they can do this. without death looming over their heads, they can figure out how to send the demon back. it's cool, it's fine. except while they leaf through their books, they notice the demon watching them. it looks kind of… curious. timid. interested in what they're doing. it catches them noticing his staring, and it. apologizes? it seems flustered?

weird, okay. they keep looking, and the demon starts talking. at first, little comments to itself. mumbles that soon get just loud enough to hear. little “ooh, is that a telescope?" and “is that what fire looks like up here?" and “that must be for making charcoal…”

Sam is the one brave enough to be like "are all demons as chatty as you??” and the demon gets flustered again, apologizing. says he's just never been topside before, he's only read about humans in tomes. oh wow is that the moon outside? it really IS blue up here! is it always blue? what are you doing up? I thought humans slept at night?

Sam and Tuck can't help getting pulled in with the demon's genuine curiosity. they're wary though, since they know demons can be clever, conniving. there's a number of ways a demon can get the upper hand on a summoner who has them bound. if he gets their full names, gets them to smudge and break the circle… there could also be ways they aren't aware of. so they consider their words carefully, but engage in some chatter while they research.

it's almost morning by the time they find a way to send the demon back–but as they prepare the spell, the demon says WAIT WAIT and they stop, uncertain. the demon starts stammering out how this is weird but like… he really had fun tonight. he doesn't get to just hang out much, especially with anyone his age.

Tuck is like “how do you know our ages??" and the demon points out "oh, you said something about Paulie’s 18th birthday party, so I thought…” and they're both like oh shit we didn't even notice we did that?

“Paulina" Sam corrects in her dumbfounded stupor. 

“Right, Paulina!" the demon snaps his fingers, but quickly loses his confidence when Sam and Tuck continue to stare at him like they're not sure what's going on. he coughs and fidgets and says “um, well, I was just wondering, I guess… if you wanted to summon me another time, I wouldn't mind. you see those circles there? yeah, that's what summoned me. the candles helped too I think. oh, it doesn't need all those runes though, probably don't want to redraw all those.”

Sam and Tuck are practically gawking, but… for some reason, this demon looks so sincere. so much like them, awkward and lonely and genuinely curious.

it's a bad idea. a terrible one, even. the demon probably noticed they're newbies and not demonologists. it could be hoping they make an error in their circle, or mess up a candle, or reveal their names on accident. 

But, well. They're stupid. they're also eager for anything to help them in school, and too empathetic for their own good. they send the demon off with a yeah, no. they then think about it for a week, and end up summoning the demon against their better judgment.

the demon is shocked and so happy, they can't help but be a little endeared. they lay down some ground rules, take care to be as safe as possible… and soon, this demon that introduces himself as “Phantom" becomes a nightly visitor. they talk about their worlds, find out they share a lot of common interests, and help each other in their studies. which, hello, demons also study? bro are you serious??

they play games, laugh till their ribs hurt, and open up to each other on a far deeper level than anyone expected. over time, Phantom becomes a true friend.

Sam and Tuck quietly begin to lament the fact Phantom is stuck in that damn circle. they want to take him places, let him see the human world he seems so interested in. they want to paint his stupid claws and noogie him between his dumb horns and hug him.

but it's an astronomical risk. it's legal for a demonologist with a proper permit, but it's still considered a grave taboo to grant access to a demon outside a circle. there's just too much at risk. demons can be dangerous enough to lay waste to entire towns, take multiple teams of military-rank mages to take down.

they wouldn't risk it… if they hadn't snuck into the library’s restricted section and copy a page from a demonologist book that gives them good framework for a contract. they make some edits to it though, giving Phantom at least a little wiggle room to protect himself if need be. and allow him use of transformation magic so he can hide somehow. but they spend weeks making sure they have airtight wording to ensure Phantom can't cause anyone or anything any substantial harm. 

when they finally bring the contract to Phantom, he's stunned. he cries. nothing needs to be said, they all know the gravity of their proposal. even if they ask for proof of Phantom's trust in turn, first. they ask for his full name, so they can bind him. just temporarily. but in that moment, they'll have full control over him. they could instead tell Phantom to serve them, force him to obey their every order. even if it's just for a moment, giving them his full name with the proper circle and incantation, is putting his life in their hands. 

Phantom, with tears still in his eyes, smiles warmly and nods. with only a breath to steel himself, he gives them his full name. Daniel James Fenton.

magic sparks in the circle, and Sam and Tuck finish the incantation. ethereal chains sprout up to wrap around Phantom's arms and legs, which makes him jump–but the unwavering trust in his eyes makes the two humans choke up.

they release the binding. all that's left is to break the containment barrier in the circle, so Phantom can walk free.

“Uh, about that…” Phantom laughs sheepishly… then proceeds to step outside of the circle, merely wincing when the barrier zaps around him.

Sam and Tucker gawk. Phantom scratches his neck. “Y-yeah, so… your barrier circle was already broken that first night. It's, uh… right over there. You missed a spot.”

abject horror overcomes them because this entire time Phantom's been visiting, he could have broken out? EASILY?? THEY WOULD HAVE BEEN DEAD.

Tucker falls to his knees, but soon starts to laugh. it's kind of hysterical at first but slowly, he and Sam are genuinely laughing. they're so STUPID, and Phantom is the most un-demonlike demon they've ever HEARD of. Phantom is still flustered, stammering out apologies because he wasn't trying to deceive them or anything! he just didn't want to scare them! without a proper containment circle they technically couldn't send him back either, so he just… went back using his own magic each time they “dispelled" him. 

once they've calmed down, Phantom morphs his body into a human form–which shock Sam and Tuck, because uh, only elite demons are capable of that. they were expecting an animal, or straight up going invisible. Phantom laughs it off, says he just, spent a lot of time practicing bc he's so interested in the human world (not a lie, but). he proceeds to adopt the nickname Danny, and they all have FUN WONDERFUL SHENANIGANS

(and sometime in the near future, when faced with something truly threatening he needs to protect them from, Danny reveals that. well. their contract also had some holes in it. and he's had access to his full demon power this whole time. whoopsie! it's a good thing he genuinely loves them and doesn't want to hurt anyone, or their asses would be SO dead lol)

they're about as normal about his full demon form as you'd expect from me btw:

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This is not a Dandadan pin, this is a freaking masterpiece made by @NakamaPin I've never seen a pin this detailed, I'm honestly at a loss for words, just staring at it like I've been possessed 😂❤

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And FUCK these guys

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"Robin, report" but it doesn't work on everyone

I'm absolutely loving these "Robin, report" posts bc they hit me right in the heart but I was randomly smacked in the face the other day with the idea that it probably doesn't work on Damian. Like the others' first identity was Robin, it's what they were trained on, of course they're going to instinctually respond to the name, but not Damian. iirc his given name is Hafid and he even asks to be called that when he first shows up but regardless he wasn't trained to respond to Robin. So imagine they're all on a mission one time, ye olde classic Situation(TM) shows up and Damian's not responding. They try everything, tracker's broken, etc, etc, and then Bruce hits him with the "Robin, report" and they all wait because of course he'll respond to that but it doesn't work. They think maybe if Dick does it he'll respond (because he'll always be Damian's Batman, let's be real) so they call him up, still no dice. It's to the point that they're thinking of calling in Clark when Dick quietly says "Hafid, requesting status" in Arabic or something and that does work. Damian doesn't remember it afterwards, but the others do.

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streets of gotham

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um can we make this a real thing??????

please tag any other fandom that could use this meme format

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their facial expressions are pure comedy gold and also so so accurate

Happy Skull Island Day, these goobers now streaming on Netflix

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babysitting

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i am IMMENSELY curious as to who these characters will end up being

other people: nooooo don't look at my comic thumbnails they are really bad I need to clean them up me:

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