#But he finally takes initiative to do a narrative action (for the first time)

[acaptainbyanyothername]

Even at his best with a goal in mind, Phineas still has a moment of indecision and weakness—except this time, Spahr is able to break through his own crippling indecision to break the cycle and finally be there for him. They’ve come full circle

[autolenaphilia]

I’ve been thinking about The Coffin of Andy and Leyley again, as usual. And I’ve complained before about people whose interpretation of the Graves sibs is “Ashley is an evil manipulative bitch who is corrupting her innocent doormat brother Andrew.” And this frustrates me because of its obvious misogyny, but not because that’s interpretation isn’t based in the game itself. It’s in there for sure, but it’s Andrew mask, his false narrative of him and his relationship to his sister, that the game thoroughly deconstructs.

It is built up through the promotional material, like the “our heroes?” art on the game’s steam page And for a good part of episode 1 you can even believe it. Ashley comes across as evil and manipulative, a yandere who has a pathological, abusive, possessive and obsessive love fixation on an nonreciprocating subject, Andrew. In her possessiveness, she naturally is very jealous, and wants her brother all for herself, going so far as to sabotage his romantic relationships with other women.

And Andrew at first seems nonreciprocating. She seems utterly dependent on him, but he acts like he doesn’t need her, and he clearly feels both annoyance and resentment towards her at times.

Above all he seems normal compared to his clearly mentally ill sister. Prior to quarantine he had a life outside of her, with a girlfriend and studies at college. When they start committing crimes he seems to have an appropriate freaked out reaction to their actions while Ashley seems amoral and goads Andrew into committing them with her.

Yet all this is a mere facade. It’s subtly undermined at first during episode 1, some aspects of which comes across more clearly on a repeat playthrough. Andrew’s narrative of being an innocent manipulated into evil is like all such narratives ultimately a way to dodge responsibility. Andrew lets Ashley take the lead when doing morally dubious things, but the key words is “lets.” This is established subtly in their first interaction in the game. Ashley asks Andrew if he wants to go spy on the neighbor his response is “nope”, immediately followed by a smiling “but I’ll come along if you do.” and he hands her the balcony key. This coy “no means yes” response from Andrew establishes that Ashley’s leading role is a kind of game that they play, one that lets Andrew abdicate responsibility for any dubious actions the siblings commit.

Spying on the neighbor is fairly innocent, but then their actions escalate. And Andrew’s own actions drive that escalation. It’s he who takes the siblings from cannibalism into murder. And in the climax of episode 1, he commits probably their worst crime: the murder of the woman in room 302, at least in the now existing two episodes of the game. Their other murders like the wardens, the hitman and the parents all deserved it but I don’t think she did. And it’s all on his initiative, Ashley never tells him to kill for her, he does it all on his own. And his clearly bullshit story about his victim going for a nail gun makes his tendency to avoid taking responsibility for his own actions by spinning false narratives even clearer.

(Sidenote: Both in the aforementioned “our heroes?” promo art and the main menu art it’s Ashley who holds the bloody meat cleaver, but in the actual game, it’s Andrew’s signature weapon. He wields that cleaver all the way from chopping up the cultist to the possible end for him and Ashley in the decay path vision. I don’t think Ashley even touches it in the actual game. It’s an obvious inconsistency that I think must be deliberate. The promotional art is setting up a false narrative of who is the violent one in this relationship and the actual game subverts it.)

And the ensuing conversation I think finally collapses the narrative of poor innocent Andrew and evil manipulative abuser Ashley. Ashley sure says some nasty and manipulative things, but then Andrew snaps and puts her in a stranglehold, threatening to kill her. It’s here that Andrew’s false narrative fully collapses, and the power dynamics are fully revealed. Whatever hold Ashley might seem to have over Andrew via emotional manipulation, abuse and blackmail, it is an illusion.

Andrew ultimately goes along with what she says because he wants to. He can always say “no” and can physically enforce that, even kill her. Him choking Ashley and threatening her life is not justified revenge on his emotional abuser, because that scene reveals that he is in control here, and he probably always has been (the flashback to their childhood where he briefly wonders “if killing her would be worth it” certainly suggests that). Andrew strangling Ashley and threatening her life is in itself a far more serious act of abuse than everything Ashley has ever said to him.

She is fake-crying here, but based on everything else we see her isolation is definitely real.

Ashley is ultimately a subversion of all the yandere evil manipulative bitch stereotypes she initially seems to embody. She is a surprisingly complex and well-written character where her “evil” traits are seen as originating in abuse and isolation. The reason she is so dependent on Andrew for all human affection is simple: it’s because he is literally the only one who has given her that affection. Her own parents never gave her that, and her peers disliked her because she is as she herself puts it “loud, weird and annoying.” The reason she doesn’t have any empathy or care for other people (besides Andrew) is because they never cared about her. Andrew is the one exception, and that’s also why she is so fiercely possessive and controlling of him. If he abandoned her, she would be all alone in the world. And why shouldn’t he abandon her? Everyone else already has. So she must have some hold over him, so he can never leave her. It all makes sense for her traumatized brain.

And Andrew? Far from being the non-reciprocating subject of Ashley’s affections, he is as obsessively in love with and dependent on her as she is on him. The difference is that Andrew hides it. He wants to be normal, so he pretends to be. But he isn’t normal, and is more like his sister than he cares to admit.

The deepest dive within Andrew’s psyche is his dream sequence in episode 2. It actually thoroughly deconstructs his mask of normalcy. For example, his very revealing flashback of his relationship with Julia. That relationship is a major part of his claim to normalcy, that he is not like his sister, totally emotionally dependent on the other sibling. And that relationship is shown to be a lie.

In the flashback Julia is angry with Andrew because whenever she and Andrew spend time together, Ashley tells Andrew to spend time with her instead, and Andrew obeys her. And this is obviously Ashley sabotaging the Andrew/Julia relationship, but the thing is, Andrew is very much a willing co-saboteur. When the choice is between spending time with Julia or Ashley, he always chooses Ashley.

We get more detail on why he does this in the same dream sequence. You can listen to what is ostensibly the harassing voicemails sent by Ashley to Julia. And they reveal more what is going on there. That Ashley did harass Julia that way is real, she admits to it in the waking world. But if the contents of the voicemail in the dream is what Ashley actually said is unlikely. There is no plausible way Andrew could know what Ashley said in them. Neither Julia or Ashley are likely to have shared them with Andrew. They are not real the same way the flashback probably is. So the dream sequence voicemails are probably the products of Andrew’s mind rather than Ashley’s. And as such, they are very revealing.

And to summarize the point the voicemails are making in less… colorful terms: Andrew doesn’t care about Julia on an emotional level, he just uses her for sex. The woman he actually cares about, is emotionally intimate with on every level except the purely sexual, is Ashley. She is, “the only one” and “everything” to him. It isn’t sexual for obvious incest taboo reasons, so Andrew has his “floozies” he uses as sexual outlets.

I think this description of Andrew’s relationship with Ashley and other women is overall true and very revealing of how he actually feels beneath the mask. That’s why he always chooses Ashley over Julia, there is a deeper emotional connection there that is absent with Julia.

The dream voicemails are just circumspect about one thing: Andrew does want to fuck his sister. He represses it because of the incest taboo, but he really wants to. This is obvious throughout the game and repeatedly hinted at. Andrew’s incestous attraction keeps on boiling over the lid of repression he put on it. He freaks out when their mother suggests it and at the incest vision, but that’s because he is repressing hard.

There are so many moments. My favorite is him casually touching her ass in their parent’s kitchen in episode 2. There is an optional dialogue when they are breaking in earlier which suggests he has done it before. The end of his dream sequence is him dreaming about Ashley’s cleavage. He lies about having nightmares and needing comfort so he has an excuse to cuddle with Ashley and sleep in her bed every night.

It’s clearly there in his possessive jealous rage he gets into whenever Ashley even jokes about having sex with men who are not him. Andrew threatening to slap Ashley for jokingly suggesting doing sex work is frankly far worse than whatever Ashley does to sabotage Andrew’s relationship with Julia.

Speaking of Julia, the flashback with her and Andrew ends with him asking Julia to tie up her hair for him. To wear her hair like Ashley does. This suggests Julia was just an Ashley substitute all along.

Andrew’s relationship with Julia was part of the mask. Julia is the sweet girl-next-door type, the type of woman he should be into if he was normal. Julia/Andrew is meant to be the model heterosexual couple, except it’s a lie. In the end Julia became an outlet for Andrew’s repressed incestous sexual feelings, with her acting as a substitute for his forbidden attraction to Ashley. It’s not a coincidence that Julia looks like she could be the third Graves sibling.

His final thoughts on Julia are telling in themselves. “You’ll never see her again. And the fact that it doesn’t really bother you, bothers you.” That’s Andrew Graves in a nutshell. He knows that he should have loved Julia, that he should miss her, want to fuck her instead of his sister, that he should be normal. But he isn’t normal, and that haunts him.

The fact that he is haunted, that the incest taboo matters enough to him to repress his attraction, might seem to hint that Andrew has some redeeming sense of morality. But it doesn’t really. All his morality boils down to is a fear of consequences. His freak-outs about his and Ashley’s crimes is just a fear of getting caught. That’s why he so compulsively blames Ashley, if he is not really responsible for what his actions he can’t be punished for them. It’s most telling when in his dream he reflects on his murder of the lady in room 302. He monologues for awhile about his fears of getting caught for murdering her, but ends it all with a blunt “other than that, it doesn’t bother you.” He is just as callous and amoral as Ashley, he just hides it better.

Ultimately Andrew mirrors Ashley. He is not a poor manipulated innocent soft boi, beset by his crazy sister. He is just as dependent on and all-consumingly in love with her as she is with him, if not more so. I don’t see much if any evidence for Ashley’s feelings for Andrew being sexual/incestous, but his feelings for her very obviously are. He is just able to disguise his violent incestous nature better with a mask of normalcy, but ultimately he is similar to Ashley. She is not a monster and he is not an angel, those are just the masks you are meant to deconstruct.

Of course people fail at doing so despite the game being fairly explicit about it, because of poor media analysis and the kind of misogynistic bias where we blame women for what men do.

[kitskiis]

I think the saddest part about secret life Joel is just how futile all of his actions are in that season. On a surface level i mean stuff like all of his more careful gameplay being cancelled out by a singular failed tnt trap but on a deeper level i specifically mean how that character contrasts with last life Joel. Joel is undoubtedly at his lowest point in the life series in Last Life. He goes down to red in session 2 and spends the majority of the rest of the season alone (and when he does have allies it’s only bc of a shared bloodlust). The red bloodlust completely takes over and this festers for nearly *8 sessions*. Not only that but the one time he is given a chance to restart and go back to yellow his old alliance member goes to red, leaving him alone again, and he is made boogeyman the next session. This, overall, has lasting consequences (he actually wanted to be fairly friendly at the beginning of LL, a stark contrast to how bloodthirsty he was at the beginning of DL or Lim L), and gained him a reputation that has never fully gone away. This is especially bad bc most people agree that LL was the most violent season (despite the lower kill counts in comparison to LimL) and was generally the worst and most traumatizing experience in the games for most people involved. Compare this to secret life, which everyone agrees was definitely the happiest season for Joel (or at least the most normal. His life is a tragedy no matter the season.) he has allies that (for the most part rip mumbo) stick with him until the end, he is friendlier with a larger group of people, and when he initially has to deal with the loss of some of them he has people who can ground him (bc as much as I adore the bad boys, grian was not qualified to do that). He was so hopeful that season, and was generally in a much healthier place mentally. And yet, despite how much he seemed to have grown, those 2 seasons ended so similarly for him it was almost comical. Joel engaged in a fight at the end, watched his ally get killed by scott, and is then forced into a 2v1 against Scott and another player that results in Scott taking his final life and him finishing 5th overall. I was describing both of those seasons here. After everything he did to grow, after all the improvements he had made, everything ended *exactly the same*

Making this about the bad boys for a second (because I’m me) they kinda suffer similar fates. Grian learned in the most tragic way possible that his allies were doomed to fail as long as he was with them no matter what, that this was not something that he could control by simply avoiding killing them himself. Even when he actively tries to save them (“let Tim do it he needs the time” “Joel you can kill me!”) he’ll still lose them in the end. I think this realization is also what made him stop trying to fight it, which resulted in him killing or almost killing his allies from previous seasons immediately afterwards (stabbing scar in the back and that one scene where grian kinda ominously jumps with a sword like he was about to crit and kill bigb after finding out he had 50 seconds left on his timer). It’s sorta like a way of telling the universe “fine. You win”

Similarly Jimmy. Well. I don’t think I need to explain that one. Even when he was given hope that things could be different, that he could break the curse, he died only a few minutes later. I still hold on to the narrative that the watchers only allowed that to happen to give Jimmy false hope that things can be different only to rip the rug out from under him and drive home the point that he is in a losing battle because by the time of secret life Jimmy was one of the only few people who genuinely still believed he had a chance. Obviously this is not something that can fully be a reality until he goes out first next season so if he doesn’t that’s a little awkward but just work with me here

TLDR; here is reason number 672 on why I believe the bad boys are the most doomed motherfuckers on this server and their alliance is a modern tragedy

[kobitoshiningneedle]

I think the tumblr Ace Attorney fandom has a weird stance on Dahlia Hawthorne. Even more so, on her culpability, to the point that some people claim that she was justified in killing Terry Fawles and even Valerie

First of all, we need to consider the main message of the games first and our personal sense of justice second, because Dahlia, as much as any other AA character, operates within the games' own narrative, and has consequences according to it. And Ace Attorney makes it quite clear that any human life is valuable and no one has a right to take it (illegally). This message was accentuated in TGAA mostly, but even in the trilogy we have Edgeworth who says "everyone deserves a fair trial"

And (I think I need to say before someone throws tomatoes at me) I'm not here to defend Terry Fawles and say that he didn't do anything wrong. He pretty much did, and the fact that he started to date his young pupil is pretty horrible and brow-raising, even if it's unclear who initiated it. It's also possible that Valerie was a neglectful sister, and that Dahlia's whole family was abusive and insufferable to her. The most important thing to understand here is that even if Terry and Valerie were all-round terrible people, killing Valerie and manipulating Fawles made Dahlia a criminal. Objectively.

The second point I see people miss is how disastrous was the collateral damage Dahlia caused in her attempts to cover herself. Poisoning Diego. Killing Doug. Attempting to kill Phoenix. Attempting to kill Maya. And the question is: in what way did any of these people do Dahlia injustice? What is their fault?

They didn't have any. By the time of T&T timeline she was pretty much a person poisoned by her hatred and fear. The main tragedy of her character is that she spiraled down from a mistreated schoolgirl who wanted to run away to a malicious woman who would stoop to crime whenever she needs to. I think this is a solid example of an anti-arc, in which Dahlia's fate was indeed shaped by her unfortunate circumstances in many ways, but! She still had agency in her actions, and having agency means having responsibility

To clarify: I don't hate hate Dahlia, even though my disagreement with the fandom lies in the amount of her hateability. I think she's fascinating and is a good foil to Mia. She pretty much IS a tragic character, and we actually have a good insight into her via Iris' recollections before the final trial segment - the person who probably understood Dahlia the most. Realizing that Dahlia was yet another victim of Fey family drama, much like our Maya (even if in other ways) adds some sympathy points to her. But I have a firm opinion that she wasn't exactly redeemable at the end of her criminal path

So, do I think Dahlia's character goes beyond the crazy-psycho femme fatale? Yes, even if the game wasn't really forthcoming about her childhood misfortunes as much as we would want to. Do I think Dahlia deserved condemnation in the end of BTTT? Yes, and I personally didn't expect Phoenix or Mia to pat her head after being responsible for the deaths of 4 people and (the other important part that adds to her hateability) feeling absolutely no remorse towards people that had nothing to do with her tragedy. Having complexity doesn't necessarily mean Dahlia is secretly better as a person, and understanding why a character became the way they are doesn't mean we should sympathize with or forgive them

[sgiandubh]

This is not a political post

One more time, in caps and bold: THIS IS NOT A POLITICAL POST. But if I can, as a diplomat and a historian, bring some extra context and try and understand what happened today in S's world, so be it. Enough said about me.

I am fumbling with a ton of thoughts since this morning, when this link was shared with me by one of the closest people in my platoon:

In a nutshell: S signed that (in)famous letter, an initiative of APUK (Artists for Palestine UK), a network that's been operating since 2015. You can read it in full if you open the link and I suggest you do. You will soon find out that the letter, while correctly pointing out the atrocious gesture of bombing a civilian hospital in Gaza, asked the world's governments to 'end their military and political support for Israel’s actions'. Nowhere in that letter did the word Hamas appear, which would immediately point out as supporting what is a terrorist movement that is, alas, also part and parcel of the Palestinian government, under Mahmoud Abbas's weak, irrelevant aegis. The man is an old PLO/Fatah crone: fishy, ineffective and fairly corrupted. His position on the Holocaust is, to be elegant, a study in ambiguity. Enough said.

It is pointless and absurd to try and explain the whole situation in detail. I would have to go back at least to the Balfour Declaration (1919) or the no less infamous end of the British/LoN/UN Palestine Mandate (1948), if I wanted to simply scratch the surface of a subject that is everywhere these days. With an intensity of absolutely legitimate emotions that can simply not be measured by any counter on this planet, as we speak.

But the facts are here, and naïve S had no damn idea: 500 civilians were killed, Tuesday night, in the bombing of the al-Ahli Baptist/Arab Hospital in Gaza City. Hullaballoo ensued on a cataclysmic scale: first, Hananya Naftali, a digital aide to Benjamin Netanyahu recklessly wrote on X that the "Israeli army [Tsahal] bombed a Hamas terrorist base inside a hospital in Gaza". Then erased the tweet. Several video collages released by the Tsahal, the first of which was heavily contested by a NYT journalist (and former Bellingcat researcher) Aric Toler, point out towards the PIJ (Palestinian Islamic Jihad)'s forces being responsible for the strike.

These quotes from an Al Jazeera paper sum up the ensuing scandal better than I ever could - selected by me, but you can and probably should read it all (https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2023/10/18/what-is-israels-narrative-on-the-gaza-hospital-explosion):

No craters mean no airstrike and most probably a rocket failure. The uneasiness remained, that being said, at the highest level. And the planned US-Egypt-Jordan- Palestine talks hosted by Amman were abruptly called off hours before Biden landed in Tel Aviv.

To cut the story short: the letter is right to point out that you just don't bomb hospitals when you are at war, as per the terms of the Fourth 1949 Geneva Convention, dealing with the protection of civilians in times of war. Both Israel (signed in 1949/ratified in 1951) and Palestine (2014) are, as parties and signatories, legally bound by it, in the eyes of International Law. The only problem with it is that it purposefully omits to put things into context (whodunnit) and forgets the cynical truth: Hamas keeps hundreds of innocent Israelis and two millions of innocent Gaza civilians as its hostages.

Article 18 is at the core of the matter:

The last thing S should have done is to sign that fucking treacherous letter, without getting a second (third, fourth...) opinion.

S is a good man, we all know and love this about him. He is also one of the most naïve people I have ever seen in this lifetime. This is why his final reaction really, really moved this cynic, here:

I am taking this home and keep it. It deeply moved me (yes, me):

" I don't know nearly enough and trying to educate myself on the conflicts in the Middle East. I feel helpless and wish I could help in some way.'

I am sure 'someone nice' called and 'nicely asked", maybe even offered some scarce and biased details, to prompt an impulse signature. I am also sure S didn't read the letter himself. There is no harm saying you were wrong. He did it with dignity and grace - no, it was not easy.

This is a man of worth speaking. Bravo!

But for the love of all that's holy, Sir: don't you ever step into this kind of shit again. These things are far more complex than you could ever fathom and it's a very cynical world out there. Leave it to us, we are handsomely paid for it by our governments. I hear you and I am completely supporting this more than welcome withdrawal. It's not worth much, for sure. But it is an honest POV.

Also, John 8:7:

So when they continued asking him, he lifted up himself, and said unto them, He that is without sin among you, let him first cast a stone at her.

Kindly refrain from politics in your comments. Let's not drag trash where it should not be, ever. Thank you all.

[televised-eyes]

It really saddens me to see Aziraphale get the full force of everyone’s contempt over his reaction to the kiss & here's why:

What do we know about Aziraphale's true character? What they we been shown? Well, he’s a silly angel, who cares too much, loves his partner Crowley and truly wants to do what he believes is the right thing!

Don't get me wrong, I can see why a lot of people side and identify with Crowley after the final fifteen, given his trauma and the fact that he was the one making himself vulnerable by initiating the kiss.

But here the thing: it’s not like Aziraphale acted out of character after hearing Crowley’s proposal. We, as the audience, have been shown multiple times when Crowley has begged for them to run away together and every time we’ve seen it, it has been in a situation where Crowley wants to abandon all responsibility. It’s a trauma response and I don’t blame Crowley for being traumatized by Heaven and Hell. Just like I don’t blame him for not wanting to go back to either.

But Aziraphale has never responded positively to this proposition before. The only difference this time was the kiss. A beautiful, desperate, awkward kiss!

Aziraphale has always been wired to take responsibility and direct action even when he shouldn’t. For him, Azi’s personal code is to always do what he believes is the right thing to do, even if it might not end well. He gives the flaming sword to humanity, he saves Job’s children, he discorporates himself to stop the apocalypse, he does the thing with the halo.

I just don’t buy the narrative that he chose Heaven over Crowley. I think Aziraphale chose Heaven *because* of Crowley. He knew as long as he was in charge, he could keep Crowley safe.

Azi clearly loves Crowley despite his cognitive dissonance at all times. He can talk all the livelong day about how they "aren’t friends," but his actions speak the opposite. He cares deeply for Crowley. Azi trusts Crowley, he lets him get “plenty of use” out of the bookshop, he turns a neighborhood association meeting into a cotillion ball so that he can dance with him, he risked an eternity in Hell by wearing Crowley’s face.

He also knows that Crowley always comes back especially his angel needs him. Unless Crowley does a 180 and returns to Hell to actively thwart Heaven out of spite (which ngl that would great television & a theory I’d like to dwell deeper into elsewhere) this was just another disagreement and they will work it out somehow by working together. And hopefully learn how to communicate clearly!

The very root of the argument was misunderstanding and failure of communication on both sides.

The more I think about the “I forgive you” line, the more I think it may have just been Azi’s gut reaction to read the kiss as one of Crowley’s “temptations.” It’s a loaded word, but I think most people read the kiss as a last act of desperation to convince him to run away. In the past, we have seen Azi’s automatic response to what he feels like is a temptation from Crowley has always been to “forgive” him.

Is it irritating? Yes. Is it good communication? No. Is it a trauma response? I think yes.

I think that’s why the ending of season 2 didn’t upset me as much as it has upset others. I feel like I understand both sides—both how and why Crowley and Aziraphale make their decisions—because the writing is so damn good.

*Aziraphale did not reject or abandon Crowley.*

That last look at Crowley before stepping into the elevator was not a “good bye” or a “fuck you.” I truly believe he looked back to remind himself why he’s doing what he’s doing in the first place!!!

Aziraphale is protecting Crowley because he loves Crowley and believes their relationship is not only worth making sacrifices for, but also strong enough to withstand them!

[smytherines]

I love One Step Ahead for all the obvious reasons (gay angst), but also because it is so packed with little storytelling moments. Also it just seems exhausting. So much happens in that song:

1. Motorcycle chase (with office chairs)

2. Boat chase

3. Staff fight

4. Sword fight

5. Vigorous musket loading

6. Run up the staircase

7. Hang glider chase

8. Fistfight

9. Run halfway down the stairs again

And the entire time they are doing all of this, they're belting out a vocally demanding song. I mean, no wonder Curt Mega had to take a breath during that final note. That's a feat of endurance. I simply would've passed out and died.

One Step Ahead is one of my favorite setpieces of all time. In anything. Ever. It is so impressive, and it is even more impressive when you realize this was done by a tiny little independent company with the theatre budget equivalent of $1.50. Unreal. It should not be possible.

And the thing is, One Step Ahead is the perfect narrative counterweight to A1P1 (Spies Are Forever). The amount of thought they put into this is just stunning. Because here's the thing: A1P1 is also incredibly physical. For most of the song Curt and Owen are on the move, they're going up the ladder, they're fighting goons, they're going down the staircase, they're running.

But more importantly, Curt and Owen are touching a lot in A1P1. And yeah, that's fun in a swoony curtwen vibes way, but its also incredibly important to the narrative. They are touching a lot, and when they aren't touching they are standing just a little bit too close together. Its subtle enough that you initially dismiss it as a stylistic choice, but once you have the full context it is remarkably intimate.

Those are important details- like the way Owen has his arm around Curt and is literally holding his hand when they're talking to Cynthia. Its meant to tell us that they are together. In the romantic way, yes, but also they're just aligned, working together, on the same page. They are partners here. They literally have each other's backs.

And that's down to Curt Mega and Joey Richter selling the absolute shit out of these roles, and genius choreography by Lauren Lopez, and Corey Lubowich being the director of all time.

The digital download BTS has a part with Joey and Curt rehearsing the bit where they do the hug, and right after that they're trying to figure out what cool action poses to move into and Corey says that he wants to see something with them "connected," which is just... yeah, that's the perfect word to describe what is going on in A1P1. These two are connected.

So then we get to One Step Ahead. At the very beginning, Curt does the arm clasp with Tatiana. The first time they did this, Curt had a flashback of Owen. Owen was still his partner in his heart. But this time that bond is severed. Curt thinks of Tatiana as his partner now.

We get into the action of the song, and Curt and Owen do not touch. Even when they are very physically close together, there are weapons between them. In A1P1 they had lots of moments with their backs turned to each other, trusting each other, working perfectly in sync. In One Step Ahead they are facing each other head on. They are literally and figuratively fighting. They are breaking up.

The only moment during this sequence where they are actually touching each other is when Owen slaps Curt, Curt punches Owen twice, and they do that lock up move. They're only touching to hurt each other now.

And its so subtle and well executed that you don't really think about the parallels between these two scenes the first time you watch them. But you feel it on an emotional level. They had about ten minutes to establish the relationship between these two, and they used that ten minutes so effectively that the staircase scene ends up hitting like a ton of bricks.

Just. I love this show. I love how much TCB and Curt Mega and the rest of the cast care about this show. I'm so grateful they keep coming back to it. I cannot wait to see what they do with these scenes for Spy Another Day.

[kindlingkeen]

I think something that annoys me the most about quite a few Joker Dies/Jason Comes Home fics is that they think that as soon as the Joker is dead, Jason will stop killing. Like, doesn't matter if he's the one to kill the Joker or not, as long as the Clown dies, that's it, problem solved, Jason can go home with no issue because obviously he has no more reason to kill!

and it always has me ???????????????? the Joker is not the reason Jason kills? the Joker dying takes out a massive threat to the citizens of Gotham and I don't doubt it would make Jason personally feel better just in general, but there are still horrible, horrible people around and doing things that Jason believes means they don't deserve to keep living? Just because the Clown's dead doesn't mean all the other issues Jason deals with as the Red Hood are going to disappear wtf

Anon, I’m so sorry it too me forever to answer this ask!! Tumblr disappeared it from my inbox after I read it initially, and then it just reappeared this morning! I hope you’re still around to see this.

That narrative has me going ???????? right along with you. I don’t understand it. I’ve thought about it a lot and the best I can come up with is that sometimes authors are more interested in telling a story about Jason reintegrating with the family than they are in being true to Jason’s character. Because when you think about everything Jason’s been through, his motivations and perspective, the choices he’s made, it’s actually really hard to make him play happy house with the bats and keep his character authentic. If you’re out there in the void reading this and feel differently, reblog or leave a comment with your thoughts, I’d really like to hear them.

As I see it, here are two pieces to your ask: 1) Joker dying. 2) Jason killing.

First, Joker. Honestly, imo, focusing on the Joker dying completely misses the point. Canonically, if Jason really wanted Joker dead above all else, he could have killed him in Lost Days. He could have shot him in the face the first time he saw him in UtRH. It’s not about Joker. It’s about Bruce. Bruce’s choices, Bruce’s actions, Bruce’s feelings (or lack thereof). Taking it one step further, I actually think that deep down there’s a part of Jason that doesn’t want the Joker dead. Because once he is, that’s it. The possibility of Bruce making things right (right in Jason’s eyes, at least) is gone forever.

Second, Jason killing. I think Jason kills because, at his core, his priority is victims. He’s willing to take that final step because he sees it as necessary for existing victims and to prevent future victims in the making. I think it’s possible to put Jay in a scenario where he chooses not to kill for other reasons. But it’s not something he’s ever going to repent for, it’s not a ‘suddenly seeing the light’ sort of situation. I think these two panels from Detective Comics #975 are a good example of that. Although I take issue with the ‘I still have enough respect for this place’ line.

So, yeah, those are some of my thoughts on Jason, the Joker, and the Red Hood’s lethality. I’m still getting the hang of these meta rambles. Hopefully that was coherent enough, lol.

Thanks so much for the ask, anon! I really enjoyed thinking this through! 💙

[angelsworks]

Can you do imagine x Uhtred x a Time travel reader like she’s from 21st century and is struck by lightning which send her into the past and she meet Uhtred who becomes obsessive with her and they are like bound by fate ?

Time traveller Yandere!Uhtred x Time Traveller!Reader

Type: Oneshot but parts are a little headcannonly

Summary: Uhtred is convinced the girl that fell from the sky was meant for him.

Warnings: Yandere themes, etc

You’d been ‘adventuring’ in the countryside. Well adventuring in the sense that you were lost. Wandering aimlessly, picnic basket in hand over the many hills the English countryside had to offer.

It started with rain, grey clouds rolling in from nowhere, filling the sky and creating darkness. Then the wind, as strange as it may started to circle where you stood.

Then you heard it, a loud crack of thunder and suddenly blinding light engulfed you. You felt it warm your body and send tingles shooting throughout your skin. Almost electrifying you.

Your vision was completely stolen for you. Replaced with a blinding white.

It felt like you’d been spinning and falling for hours when you finally stopped. The ground hit you and you felt winded. Your vision returned slowly, gradually becoming clear and free of the many black spots that littered it.

When you could see clearly you saw a man, more like several men. Looking down on you questioningly.

You raised your eyebrows and jumped up. The sudden action caused one to pull out his sword.

“What the fuck?!”

Regardless of how friendly the men tried to be their Initial metallic greeting did little to settle your nerves.

You ran off spouting something about them being crazy and that you’d phone the police.

Of course they’re confused. They’ve just seen a girl fall from the sky with a strike of lightening. Sihtric and Finan are convinced you’re some kind of witch. Oesferth is more inclined to believe you are an Angel. Some message sent from god.

Uhtred on the other hand feel more swayed to agree with the monk. You are clearly special and unlike anyone he’s ever met.

It takes almost an hour for them to get coherent words from you. Making you sit down and tell them just what you think had happened.

Afterwards they aren’t sure what to think. For one they think you’re crazy at first. But the more you explain, the more they try to understand.

Uhtred’s first instinct is to go to Brida.

During the ride you try to make peace with your circumstances. Thinking of ways to get back home. Unaware of a certain Danes growing interest.

When you reach Brida she had a different narrative entirely. She believes you are a gift from the gods. A gift for Uhtred. She sees “strings of destiny” tying the two of you together.

From then on it’s fruitless trying to get anyone to believe you or even consider helping you get back to your own time.

They all believe Brida and therefore want Uhtred to be able to follow his destiny. He hasn’t had the best of luck with destiny.

Spending time trying to understand you is one of his favourite things. It makes him laugh when you tell him of all your favourite shows, modern living and historical events.

“So this Robin Hood, is a fox?” He asks confused.

“No,” you laugh. “Disney just chose to portray him that way. He was a real man who lived in sherwood Forrest.”

He hums, “And he’s famous for stealing.”

Your knowledge of the future does little to warn them of dangers. However you are able to provide more modern medical in-sites. Simple things really like knowledge about germs and diseases.

These ideas help Uhtred and his friends in many ways.

“Typhus?” Finan asks you.

“Yes. I read it was common in this time. With the lack of medical treatment available it could be fatal.”

“Well how can we prevent such a thing?” Sihtric asks you, mildly interested.

“Well you can start by changing clothes at least once a week and bathing frequently.”

They all warm up to you eventually. You become an important part in their group. So when you bring up trying to go back to you’re own time, they’re all quick to shoot you down.

“We can’t risk you getting hurt.”

“You could die.”

“Like you say, we have no way to help you if you get injured.”

“You belong here, with us.”

You’ll have to come to terms with the fact you’ll never go back to your own time every again. Uhtred believes you belong to him. Sihtric, Finan and Oesferth believe your in-site is important to their survival.

You can’t leave them. Not now you’ve found them.

[silenthowls]

Now that I've gathered some thoughts and done some brainstorming with a few people, I'm going to be making a more cohesive timeline and put my plot ideas from my initial post here so everything is all organized. Later, I will be making a specific page for events summarizing Yohan's reactions and interactions during them for posterity ~ I'll also do smth similar to this when the next part of the event hits as well.

⸻ THE ALIBI

Yohan was, admittedly, not thinking of giving too many people an out for this one. Unless you were Bae Yunhee, that is. The narrative is that Yohan overheard their plans to go to the resort for a getaway; his own presence there being a reluctant chaperone and alibi for their sake. Just in case their parents disapproved of their sudden private tryst and needed an out for being alone together. The rest of the story is that he, for the most part, kept to himself, wandering around the building quietly like a man intent on meditating — which is actually true to the real events of that day prior to the dinner party.

⸻ TIMELINE

DEC 20TH : Yohan was out on an arranged date when the news broke, and proceeded to make several phone calls. Needless to say, he rushed back to campus the minute after he hears it, trying not to throw himself into a panic. That night is his first sleepless one — he stays up all night.

DEC 21ST : The funeral comes fast; so fast that Yohan still hardly has much time to register what's happened. It is clear he is in distress. During this day, he is quiet, trembling as he attempts to keep himself together in the presence of others. He mentions after, off-hand, that maybe he should speak to the police.

DEC 22ND : By now, it is beyond clear Yohan has hardly gotten much sleep in the past two days, nor eaten from the way his stomach bubbles in protest. However, he is in intent on attending each day of the funeral. His parents attend with him this time to console Hyungseo's. Unfortunately, this is also the day Yohan happens to lose his mind and has his outburst, spurred on by the hostility that already rests in the air. He is dragged away and piled into his parent's car. They take him home shortly after where he continues his meltdown and subsequently punches a hole in the wall of his room. His father gives him the beating of the lifetime to knock some sense into him, and discipline him for embarrassing them in front of everyone. "You may be too old to send back, but we can sure as hell disown you. Did you forget how lucky you are?"

DEC 23RD : Yohan shows up to the final day, too; more rested, but keeping to himself this time. There is a bandage over his knuckles now and a far off look in his eye, light wincing as he walks. It is quite obvious he is seething, though. The same day, he visits the memorial for the first time and places the pocket watch he intended to gift Hyungseo after his victory among the other things. He decides it's time to throw himself head first into self-destructive behaviors.

DEC 24TH : Another memorial visit to assess what's been left for Hyungseo. Another day of thinking of taking up smoking. Another day of plotting revenge on everyone who has wronged him and Hyungseo.

DEC 25TH : His father, once again, is unhappy with his adopted son. He's caught wind of the police interview taking place the next day and decides to remind Yohan of his place. If he had any thought of exposing the entire thing, it's been forced out of him now. He's in no mood for Christmas dinner and leaves to do something more productive with his time.

DEC 26TH : The interrogation, interview; whatever you may call it. Yohan keeps to himself for the most part if he sees anyone at the station. He's decided. Everyone will pay for this somehow.

⸻ PLOT IDEAS

It is a couple days after Hyungseo is found. His funeral is taking place, and Yohan is none too calm about it. When his outburst comes, only MUSE A is the one who takes action and pulls him back before something bad happens. They are the one who loads him into the car that takes him to his parents' home where he is met with his own version of Hell. Not that they would ever know what they'd done.

SONG SUNYOUNG is determined to convince Yohan to cease in his determination to tell the entire truth. Whether it's done in a gentle manner or not is of no consequence. He doesn't seem like he's backing down the day the news is revealed, and he has it already set in his mind. Maybe it's time to set him straight. But, at least you aren't the only one trying to talk some sense into the man.

In this time, Yohan finds himself more willing to do things he wouldn't normally be inclined to do. In his search for distractions and in his attempt to put his mind off of completely going off the deep end, he finds solace in MUSE C for the time being. What's a little scandalous rendezvous between two people in a difficult time? Especially if it means he will chill out a bit and stop threatening to cause havoc? It might offer a temporary slice of stress relief along the way. And, no, it doesn't matter if they've always hated each other or will ruin their friendship with it.

MUSE D just doesn't get it. What was so great about Hyungseo anyway, and why is Yohan so damn hung up on someone like him? They are the first to express this out loud, deriding the man's method of mourning. It seems he's lost his mind, after all, so aren't their feelings justified? Anyway, it wouldn't be the first or last person who Yohan gets in a fight with during this week of turmoil. Physically or otherwise.

[petruchio]

“The other tributes begin to line up as well. I'm confused because, while they all are angry, some are giving us sympathetic pats on the shoulder, and Johanna Mason actually stops to straighten my pearl necklace.“Make him pay for it, okay?” she says.”

The hunger games supreme, i would die if you analysed the scene with the other victors seeing katniss in the wedding dress for the interviews

u know what's so exciting anon is that i'm visiting my parents for the next week and a half so i have access to my physical copies of the trilogy now and i literally saw this ask and grabbed my copy of cf off the shelf so we could get analyzing together. so let's dive in...

so looking at what comes directly before that passage, we have this:

The other tributes have already gathered offstage and are talking softly, but when Peeta and I arrive, they fall silent. I realize everyone's staring daggers at my wedding dress. Are they jealous of it's beauty? The power it might have to manipulate the crowd? Finally Finnick says, “I can't believe Cinna put you in that thing.”

i think it's interesting that the katniss jumps to jealousy here, because at this point in the novel she's still under the impression that they're all *actually* competing -- she's not in on the plan for the rebellion yet, so her understanding of everyone's actions in catching fire is that they are her opponents. in a way it kind of parallels how she feels about peeta in the first novel: she interprets him as an adversary, though she later discovers (as do we) that he was always trying to help her. the same is true of her relationships with finnick and johanna in the second book.

so from that perspective, how do we interpret finnick's comment here? because he knows about the rebellion, and he also knows that katniss DOESN'T. i don't know if we can know for sure whether or not he knows about cinna's involvement though -- so either he does know cinna is a rebel and is horrified at how blatantly he'd use katniss to rebel against the capitol without her knowledge (almost taking advantage of her naivety?) OR he doesn't know about cinna's involvement and is disgusted by his invocation of the wedding and the k/p love narrative, which we know all the other victors (at this point) believe to be a sham. i'm not sure how i read that, so i'd be curious what other people think -- those are just my initial thoughts. either way, i think he pities her because he recognizes that she doesn’t understand the full implication of what she’s wearing.

then the there's the passage you mentioned, which opens with this:

"Cashmere tosses her flowing blond curls back and spits out, "Well, you look ridiculous!" She grabs her brother's hand and pulls him into place to lead our procession onto the stage."

let's assume cashmere also believes the love story is an act. she's probably saying it's "ridiculous" to keep this ruse going, because the assumption is that katniss is going to turn on peeta as soon as they get into the arena and single-mindedly fight for her own survival -- and since we're presuming katniss doesn't actually love peeta, the wedding dress is just another representation of how performative the whole thing is. the rest of the victors are probably thinking -- can't she just drop the act already so we can get going. only katniss and peeta both play it UP instead, and furthermore, katniss ISN'T trying to kill peeta. she's trying to keep him alive.

then comes the quote you pulled -- "Make him pay for it." but what follows that quote is katniss thinking about what johanna meant by that:

"This is the first time I realize the depth of betrayal felt among the victors and the rage that accompanies it."

katniss hasn't had time to think about the betrayal of it as deeply because she never truly got comfortable in her role as a victor -- she's never mentored anyone, she's never experienced the games as anything but a passive viewer and then as a tribute. so i think there's something interesting here in that she's starting to understand the complex relationship of the capitol and their exploitation of the victors. obviously she knows she's being exploited on the victory tour -- but she sees that still as just a game of protecting her family, keeping up the act so that prim doesn't get hurt. but i think this passage shows her the humanity and complexities of those she formerly perceived as the "privileged ones"

basically that is to say, we've discussed before how the arc of a lot of the hunger games is about katniss stripping away the social codes and assumptions she makes about people and seeing them and their humanity as they are. and i think her reaction to the interviews is an example of her realizing that the other victors are being exploited by the capitol just as much as they are benefitting from its supposed benevolence. sure, the victors are rich -- but that comes at the cost of their autonomy. so while they might be rich enough to buy enough food and to live in fancy houses, they can't live their lives for themselves, because the capitol is the arbiter of all that wealth, and thus they are slaves to the whims of the population.

katniss feels this on a personal level in the first half of catching fire -- in the absence of her purpose in life being to procure food to keep her family alive, she SHOULD feel free to move and act as she pleases. only she can't, because she can't disappear into the woods with gale and kiss him without the president literally showing up at her house and threatening her. and i think this passage marks the beginning of a turning point for katniss in understanding that those feelings, while specific and personal to her own unique situation, are a form of suffering shared by all the victors.

essentially, she's coming to terms with the fact that the culture's abuse of celebrities is not a problem unique to her and peeta but rather is something systemic and points to a much larger system of exploitation and inequality in the nation at large.

[heartscrypt]

Hii! I have a question about your thoughts on jamiazu.

Do you think that Azul would ever be able to confess any romantic feelings for Jamil? If so, how? And if not, would they be able to get together in any other way?

Sorry if this is a weird question, just curious.

thanks for your question! it is SO not weird at all i really enjoy stuff like this. actually i am going to go on a huge ramble that goes on a little tangent so like. LONG POST AHEAD!!!! be warned!!!!!

anyways. azul is always confessing his romantic feelings for jamil whether he knows it or not. in every interaction. because he's so damn obvious. hope this helps LOL

in all seriousness though. i really like to think that azul is kind of cursed to be a hopeless romantic despite it going against all of his pragmatic sense. i mean. he's a child of divorce who hates leaving things up to chance and he believes in getting something back whenever he gives something away. being head over heels with someone goes against his whole nature, so i think it's definitely a new thing for him. he won't recognize that his feelings are romantic right away because he'll be too busy trying to justify to himself why he's investing so much time and energy into a guy that Clearly wants nothing to do with him and won't give him the time of day. its business, guys, i swear.... stonks.....

i think once he does come to terms with it though. it starts leaking through in Every Interaction he has w/jamil. in every encounter, azul basically ends up saying I Love You without actually ever speaking it out loud. whether it's through his actions (like getting jamil gifts / offering to help out without any genuine expectation of repayment) or or his words (like implying things about them being good together / complimenting jamil excessively). things he did before he realized, but they just have so much more Weight to them now that he Knows he likes the other in a very Non-Platonic-Business-Partners way. he doesn't intend for it to have that emotional weight but its fucking impossible for him to hide and he does NOT know what to do with himself.

he keeps pushing forward regardless because some part of him hopes that his feelings will reach jamil but he also does it with the expectation that jamil will push back like he always has and that's completely fine by him because never actually directly admitting that these feelings are romantic means that the rejections also stay platonic and that is. Way easier to bounce back from. because god forbid jamil sees at who he is behind all the walls he's put up to protect his most vulnerable and emotional self and ends up hating the real azul too.

tl;dr: i don't think azul would go out of his way to make a real, honest confession of his feelings. but he's so obvious it actually hurts to watch

---

ok so. as for jamiazu get-together:

maybe im like super biased b/c im a sucker for narratives that involve jamil learning to shake his passivity and going ahead and Taking what he wants. but i always think that any scenario where jamiazu gets together has to be initiated by jamil somehow. azul can make the first move and several moves after that but jamil has to be the one to make the Final move if that makes sense.

i don't have like. one set get-together scenario but i have a couple that i like to rotate in my head sometimes. most of them involve azul being a failgirl and getting caught off guard because i think it's funny and jamil also thinks it's funny. here are two for your viewing pleasure:

azul makes a pass at jamil that is romantic-coded but could be interpreted as platonic. jamil seizes the opportunity to turn it Explicitly into a romantic thing and fluster azul to no end about it.

azul: there's a new tasting menu at the mostro lounge if you'd like to come with me and try, i'd love to see what your discerning palette makes of it ^__^!

jamil, very casually: yeah sure. why not. i'll go on a date with you

azul, who did NOT expect a yes so his head is about to explode in t-minus 5 seconds: oh, uh. that's .fantastic, actually— wait. ....DATE?!?!?;!?

jamil corners azul and admits romantic feelings first. bonus points if it's a situation where any romantic confession would be incredibly out of the blue. and the way that jamil says it is like dropping a bomb on azul

like in potions lab. azul's concentrating very hard on pouring an exact amount of a substance. jamils watching him and at some point out of nowhere he breaks the silence in between them by going "i think i like you. in the romantic sense". azul's concentration snaps immediately and he fumbles the beaker into the cauldron out of sheer WHAT THE FUCK IS HAPPENING. it explodes in both of their faces. they both have no chance to address what jamil said because crewel is chewing them out for the next 15 minutes about lab safety. during the entire 15 minutes azul looks like he's been hit over the head with several bricks. Repeatedly. jamil's smirking the whole time though he dgaf. takes pleasure in flustering azul

anyways. im insane about these guys ♥️ if you stuck around and read the entire post im really sorry for writing so much i just have a lot of thoughts

[dindjarindiaries]

S1 and 2 were about Din learning to become a father even though he never asked to be one but in the end he stepped up and did what was best for Grogu + sprinkled scenes where he was tested on the resolve of his Creed. S2 finale gave us (what we thought at the time) a glimpse of what the next season was gonna be... We thought he'd be burdened by the call to action of having to step up as Mand'alor the same way he had to step up as a parent but nope. They literally ignored any kind of interesting storyline involving the Darksaber in s3 for Din to explore so the story could prioritize Bo-Katan's character growth. I don't mind that Bo was given an arc but they stopped giving Din anything else to do that's solely about him and Grogu after he nearly drowned in the Waters this season. They could've given him the arc where even though he and his covert didn't recognize the Darksaber as an Excalibur-equivalent, he was still pushed to defend keeping it by various Mand'alor wannabes from surviving sects. An arc where he acknowledges the good of taking up the mantle of Mand'alor to rally his people back home, a place where their children and people can be safe from giant space creatures. But ultimately choosing the simple life he had as a vagabond bounty hunter and a father to Grogu. A final duel between Din and Bo-Katan where she honorably earns the right to become ruler would have been epic. She talked about not wanting the Mandalorians to fight each other but she was so quick to pummel Axe to get the Night Owls back in Plaizir (which shows her hypocrisy despite her initial good intentions)... I just feel like the overall narrative of s3 had so much potential but they fumbled the ball with it to the point where the fandom has all but fizzled out, at least to me.

Season 3 truly makes no sense when you think about it, like… my theory is that the reception to season 1 and specifically season 2 threw everything off, along with a few other factors. But TBOBF is where things got weird. They wanted to do a Boba Fett show, but had no solid pitch, and for some reason didn’t trust Boba/Tem enough to be able to tell his story on his own, which is just… devastating, honestly.

And so I think Favreau took the beginning of season 3 and tacked it into TBOBF to help. I truly think that everything without Boba or Fennec in it was meant for season 3—the entirety of Chapter 5 and the first half of Chapter 6. I wish I knew how Favreau actually envisioned them reuniting prior to this.

That’s why season 3 feels so strange. Since its first one or two, maybe even three, episodes were put into another show, they had to fill the space somehow but maintain the same ending. So that’s why we got episodes like Chapter 19 and Chapter 22 (though I adore the latter lol).

Idk though, that’s just the vibe I’ve gotten. And it’s really upsetting as a fan to watch it crash and burn and yet still be entertained in a way, but… it’s the only way I can explain what the heck happened 😭😭😭

[acourtofthought]

What are your thoughts on Rhys’ attitude towards Nesta? And even Lucien. He tells Feyre that he’ll take kindness over nastiness any day, but I feel as if he really means that he wants some type of submission or someone who doesn’t stand up to him. It’s interesting how he puts so much blame on Nesta for Feyre hunting as a human but less on Elain.

When Feyre tells Lucien that they don’t pull rank in the NC, is that just her unreliable narrative again? Because we do see Rhys pull rank. Is everyone just delusional because of their oaths to him?

Also, with Lucien and the blame that he puts on him for how Feyre was treated in Spring as if Lucien had much sway over Tamlin. Also, a lot of Elriels get down on Lucien because of how he treated Feyre as a human, but which Fae was THAT much of an human advocate in the first place? If it wasn’t for Rhys’ connection to Feyre would any of the others truly care about humans?

Also, thoughts on Nessian? I’ve always wondered about their “love story”? I find it interesting that Nesta wanted a “man” but most of what we see about Cassian comes across as rather childish, and besides fighting and the bond that keeps drawing them together, what else truly binds them? What else do they talk about? I just feel like there relationship wasn’t as fleshed out at Feyre and Rhysands. Granted, they did have a few books and SF was about Nesta’s healing journey.

Thoughts?

I did understand Rhys's initial hesitation towards Lucien in book 3, they both had reasons to dislike one another.

On Lucien's end, Rhys was responsible for staking a head on the Spring Courts fountain, he threatened Lucien's mother, he nearly killed Lucien himself, and he allowed the other courts to believe him a monster for centuries.

As a result, Lucien went into book 2 with the impression that Rhys was a monster. We know Rhys was only playing a part but Lucien didn't know that so to him, Tamlin (even depressed) was not half as bad and since Tamlin was once his friend, I imagine Lucien thought he could find his way back to who he once knew him to be. Both Feyre and Rhys continued with Rhysands facade so Lucien had no way of knowing Feyre wasn't being brainwashed and his actions reflected that, where he did try to bring her back to Spring.

But to Rhys (knowing he wasn't truly a monster), it looked like Lucien failed her (though I think it's a bit of an unfair judgement since it was Rhys's fault they didn't truly understand what was going on).

But anyway, when Lucien first came to Velaris they were both coming from a place of misunderstanding so I wouldn't expect friendship. I don't agree with the rules they put in place regarding Lucien and Elain but I digress.

It's ACOFAS that confuses me a bit. I think SJM "reset" the characters so she'd have somewhere for them to go in the spin-offs but it's really weird that by the time Lucien offered to search for Vassa in ACOWAR and he and Rhys had the moment where they shook hands, an offer beyond just transportation, Rhys suddenly had an issue with him again in the novella? And Lucien suddenly could not stand to have Rhys pay for the clothes on his back? Again, I think SJM intentionally wrote it that way so she could build from the ground up in the spin-offs but it doesn't make sense that they regressed.

I do agree with you, that there really wasn't much Lucien could do for Feyre beyond what he was doing. He did try speaking out against Tamlin and he was punished for it. He was also juggling what the people of Spring needed (he tells Feyre he is the one the people look to first, that he sets the example and they were trying to learn how to live again after what Amarantha had done to them all). Lucien was in a lose lose situation because he was trying to balance the needs of many without any real power to make a difference. That's one of the reasons I think his story will be epic because seeing Lucien finally having enough power to make a difference? HOT

With Nesta, I do understand where Rhys is coming from though I think he's over the top in his reaction to her.

Feyre did make an effort to reach out to Nesta, to help Nesta, to include Nesta and Nesta pushed her away and was not very kind in doing so. She did not want to spend time with Feyre, spoke out loud about hating Rhys yet she still had no problem accepting their money.

So no, I wouldn't expect Rhys to feel fondness towards Nesta when his wife was being emotionally hurt in the process. I think at times he was unnecessarily cruel about it (two wrongs don't make a right and all that) but for someone like Rhys, he's going to give what he gets and since Nesta gave insults and harshness, he matched her. As far as the "Nesta is Illyrian" comment, I do think that was meant to be a compliment in a strange way. Rhys sees Nesta as an equal of sorts. He sees her as one of them. And because he knows what "his" people are capable of, he expects to see that greatness from her but she refused. He believed her capable of more yet she chose (in his eyes) to squander that.

On the other side of things, I think him saying "Elain is Elain" is a bit of an insult to her though I'm sure he didn't mean it that way. It was a "she's not really one of us so I don't expect much from her". He did acknowledge her kindness but at the same time he set her apart from the rest of the IC. Though again, I think that's just another way SJM is telling the reader Elain is not where she truly belongs, she's not with her core group yet.

Nessian.....I think their buildup was excellent while their actual story fell flat. Cassian lost a bit of his character (where was the formidable general who leads all the Illyrian armies?) and Nesta had so much anger that I struggled to connect with the romance since she was constantly pushing him away with insults anytime he got a little too close. I realize that was in character for Nesta but that, seeing him put down after he let his guard down to her along with the whole "just sex" thing isn't something I enjoy in my romance.

[shuunnico]

Would you change anything about Cyberpunk's story?

I'm going to assume you mean without dramatically changing the story.

Cyberpunk 2077 Spoilers

I'd do maybe three things total.

First, I'd extend the start of the game. Jackie dies about 4 hours into the game and about half of that is spent without him.

Instead of a montage, I'd have those moments be played out. It would allow you to create subtle tutorials (unlike the actual game, where you just get teleported to a training room). You'd be able to bond more with Jackie over missions, over downtime, and you'd be able to know Mama Wells and Misty more before Jackie's death.

With the game having Jackie at your hip for that long, played straight, it would make Jackie's death more surprising and less predictable. It would allow you to world build, build up a couple more characters and make V's backstory more fleshed out.

You can start out living in the Wells' bar, then get a place of your own, get your own car, get your implants, etc. By taking more jobs, it becomes more believable that Dex would seek you out, instead of (basically )starting the game with that.

Second, I'd bring Adam Smasher back at least once more. You see him during the Relic heist, you see him in a flashback, then he's the game's final boss.

The ideal might be he's a world trigger, where he's actually hunting you through Night City. Make enough noise and he might show up and the only option is to run.

But I can see how that might be frustrating. So even if it was just one more mission where he ambushes you, that'd be fine. Just something to remind the player why he's a big deal. And, of course, make him more powerful in the endgame.

Third, I'd change the intensity of the threat to your life. The implication in game is V has months, if not weeks, to live. This causes narrative dissonance whenever the player is taking actions that don't progress the story, effectively doing side jobs when V's life is directly under threat.

Initially start with the idea that V will die in a few years. Have it start out as not such a pressing matter. Have the actual problem be the loss of control and seizures, rather than the immediate threat of death.

Then, start introducing the plausibility of a cure. At that time, ramp up the threat and have V start degenerating faster, with it being months left to live. So you have the threat being bigger, but with a viable cure on the table (and a less pressing time frame) it still makes sense V is planning for the future.

Have there be periods in the game where the main mission stalls for a bit and encourages you to do side jobs for cash or influence.

Then, near the end of the game, you have the story pull the rug out from under you. The degeneration picks up faster, giving V only days to live. Now you're in the endgame.

You generally get the same story beats, but it doesn't make you quest why you're out there doing a racing subplot when V could die at any moment from the Relic.

[pikahlua]

I'm not the same anon but I feel like asking, did you always enjoy the relationship between Bakugou and Deku? I like Bakugou and I hated the relationship (still don't like it and I wanted to see Bakugou caring for Kaminari and Kirishima or even Uraraka instead, it would've been much more enjoyable to me), I don't think how Bakugou's benefiting from being one-dimensionally only focused on Deku. Hori's ruining him imho, even if Bakugou gets a powerup his potential is still wasted

One-dimensional and primary focus are not the same thing, anon. I wish you had given me a little more to go on here, because I don't understand what is being "ruined" about him or what "potential" of his is being wasted by your standards. I'm left with only the option of explaining what it is I get out of Katsuki and why that so deeply ties into his relationship with Izuku (regardless of shipping!) to give you an opportunity to point out where you and I are diverging in thought. This is the only way I can answer your question about whether or not I always enjoyed their relationship together.

So, you know, buckle up, kids. It’s time for...

What the Fuck Does Pika Even Like About Katsuki Bakugou and His Relationship with Izuku Midoriya?*

*this post is not an exhaustive list

Did I always like the BakuDeku dynamic? That’s a hard question to answer, because there’s a period of time in the first chapters/episodes of the story I would like to call “buffering.” It’s that time frame after I’m first introduced to the characters and still evaluating the story’s themes and coming to conclusions. I have to take some time to formulate my opinions before getting a grasp on where I think the story is going. I would say the proper timeline on my opinion forming looked something like this:

Beginning through Deku vs Kacchan Part 1:

This was pure buffering. I wasn’t fully invested but had committed to watching the show through the end of what was released (season 2 at the time). As something of a shounen veteran, I recognized a lot of familiar tropes but also noted how they were being played around with, I just didn’t have an idea of what that meant yet. Katsuki Bakugou at this time represented to me my LEAST FAVORITE shounen trope (the stubborn lancer rival character), so I didn’t have high expectations. I related a lot to Izuku Midoriya, but as we got into the childhood backstory of these two, I did uncannily relate to both Izuku and Katsuki as children, and so I was most captivated by Horikoshi’s depiction of that part of their relationship.

Katsuki’s Starting Line:

This was the first episode that took me completely off-guard. Katsuki’s speech at the end demonstrating the logical conclusions he comes to in order to achieve his biggest dream is something that still shakes me to this day. Why? Because it’s the first time I’ve seen a character like this learn his lesson so quickly AND maintain that character development in the story without any regression. All his actions following this speech make perfect sense with respect to his goal. This is the point where I began forming my initial hypotheses about the story and its characters to use as a lens for the rest of the show.

USJ arc, Sports Festival, and Internships:

With my new lens, I engaged in a lot of focused observation and information collection during these arcs. I particularly noted how Katsuki’s words often did not match his actions. The first instance of this I consciously remember is how Kirishima interprets Katsuki’s attitude at the USJ to be one where he trusts their classmates to take care of themselves. From there on, I was dedicated to wrapping my head around Katsuki Bakugou’s character.

I also explicitly noticed how the narrative was rewarding Izuku for imitating Katsuki, so I kept an eye out for moments like these going forward. This was probably the most intriguing aspect of the show to me at the time as I wasn’t yet sure why the narrative was doing this.

Final Exam Arc:

This was the epiphany arc. Katsuki Bakugou Origin is probably my favorite episode of the whole show. Because of my previous lenses and hypotheses I was using, I was able to understand this episode’s implications in full the first time watching it. Before the episode had even ended, my brain came up with the prediction that at some point Izuku was likely to give One For All to Katsuki (Heroes Rising was a wild ride, let me tell you). I can say with confidence that I was consciously enjoying Izuku and Katsuki’s relationship from this point on.

Little manga-only tidbits:

With season 2 finished, I went to the manga and discovered the manga-only scenes where Katsuki tells Izuku he should have killed Shigaraki at the mall and where Ochako tells Katsuki she thinks he’s afraid of Izuku and she wants them to be friends again. Those cinched it for me that yeah, Katsuki fucking cares and he’s just hiding it or unable to express it clearly. A+ 10/10 would tsundere again. (Yes, I’m aware he’s not a straight-on tsundere trope character, I'm just using the term for convenience.)

Summer Training Camp and Kamino:

OH MY HEART. I loved all the kids at this point, but Katsuki Bakugou rose so high in my esteem from this part of the story.

License Exam and Deku vs Kacchan Part 2:

100% sold!! Katsuki Bakugou is king and all other characters shall grovel before his supremacy!

Overhaul Arc:

Long and boring as fuck (it played better in the anime, at least). Sorry, but I don’t need another shounen story about a kid learning how to beat bad guys in a fight. Like, I get it, it works with the structure of the story where Izuku is learning to win while Katsuki is learning to save, but it was LOOOOOOONG and pretty tedious without Katsuki hanging around. I became more of a casual fan at this point.

Remedial Course:

Final confirmation that if Katsuki Bakugou isn’t in-frame the story is probably boring. I fucking love this mini arc.

School Cultural Festival:

Vastly underrated arc. Wait, are you telling me Katsuki Bakugou’s character development has been happening subtly in the background of every arc and keeping this whole story together? Holy shit, time to reread the whole manga!

Joint Training Arc through Christmas:

Absolutely zero character development happens for Katsuki in this arc, and if that’s a surprise to you, let me explain. I predicted 100% of everything that happens in this arc and confirmed to myself I’m absolutely keyed into Katsuki Bakugou’s character progression. It all comes down to DvK2. Katsuki challenged Izuku to beat him someday. Katsuki also represents victory to the whole class, and he has consistently demonstrated a desire to grow and succeeds each time he tries. With All Might’s advice to him at DvK2, it was very obvious Katsuki would kill it in the JTA. Katsuki always wins, so the next stage of growth would be to win while saving people (his team). That just makes the most sense with the story. And Izuku, if he truly has been working hard and growing since DvK2, has to meet Katsuki’s challenge--which means he has to win his match. Anything less and their characters would both have regressed.

My Villain Academia:

Neat concept, boring execution (there, I said it).

Endeavor Agency Arc:

Finally the story’s getting back to what makes it great! (aka Katsuki introspection and personal growth into a hero who saves.)

Paranormal Liberation War:

“All my predictions are starting to come true and I don’t know how to handle it.” In particular, my early hypothesis that Katsuki, in his journey to become a hero who saves, would have to save Izuku--and potentially fail at it, because he’s still got a lot to learn and room to grow, and failure would demonstrate that.

In other words, I got sucked back into the fandom from this point, and everything became about Izuku and Katsuki’s relationship as the rest of the story revolved around it.

So why is the dynamic between Izuku and Katsuki so important to the story for me?

Well, first I have to start with the major theme I think the story explores. To me, the best stories center around a question and then explore it from multiple angles. Whether or not the story offers a conclusive answer to that question is irrelevant (although usually such a conclusive answer feels preachy, reductive, and often detracts from the story). With that in mind, I think the question My Hero Academia explores is:

What is a hero?

The setting is integral to exploring this question, because instead of a story about a hero in a society of normies, the story is about a normie in a society of heroes. The hero society, at first, seems to have this question all sorted out. But as the story progresses, we learn that the superhero society has thought the least about this question, and we see the seams slowly tear apart with time. A society that demands heroes also demands villains for those heroes to face, and so the society assigns the “villain” role to people based on arbitrary factors in order to meet the hero demand.

And the lens through which this society is scrutinized is in two young boys who by all means SHOULD have been great friends but were torn apart by the expectations of their society. As Izuku and Katsuki grow up and navigate this corrupted world, their heroic spirits guide them to their own answers of what true heroism is. Their noble hearts cleave apart the obfuscations of their society and lead them back to each other. It’s a slow burn because they have so much wool placed over their eyes to clear away little by little. The fact that they restore their friendship is a testament to what great heroes they are. And each time they learn a new lesson or achieve some heroic epiphany, they put a piece of their friendship back together.

So to say something like the focus on Katsuki’s relationship with Izuku ruins his character or wastes his potential feels extremely backwards to me. The opposite--a story where Katsuki does NOT focus on or have those interactions with Izuku--would utterly miss the mark and fail to explore the themes of the story. Sure, it’s fun to watch Katsuki interact with other characters, and that sort of “filler” is the detail that helps give a story style. But to remove the interaction with Izuku would be to remove the foundation of the story itself. Katsuki’s growth as a character and a hero uses Izuku’s growth as a jumping off point all the time, and it’s not bad writing to do so (I would argue that’s exactly how Izuku as a main character often holds the story together, by allowing the other characters to learn from and contrast with him). It’s not taking anything away from Katsuki if Izuku is intricately tied into the epiphanies he has. Everything he learns and does and fights for is still just as heroic. I want him to interact with (or just internally consider) Izuku because I know that’s where he’ll achieve the most growth--and that’s where I’ll find the most to chew on. I like all his other interactions as well, but my primary goal is to analyze the story and characters. Literary analysis butters my toast and brings me joy. I want to see how far Katsuki as a character goes, and Izuku owes him a long toss through the air to the finish line.