#For a character who is only remembered for her friendship speeches

[bronzewool]

I never noticed this before but Anzu is always described as Yugi's childhood friend across all media. For whatever reason I always remembered her as this random student who defended Yugi in class and got sucked into his adventures alongside Jonouchi and Honda, but nope they've been friends since they were kids.

So imagine you're in Anzu's shoes. You've known this kid since you were like six(?) and he's been working on this puzzle box for the last eight years. He believes this myth that whoever solves the puzzle gets any wish granted, but won't tell you what it is until he finishes it.

Then after some wacky hijinx, several kidnappings and the occasional murder, he finally reveals the big secret.

He wished to have real friends.

...

Wow, fuck you Yugi.

This kid who seems to be your only friend (because Anzu is never shown hanging around other girls) just casually reveals, you were not good enough, and he's been investing hours into this puzzle every night for nearly a decade in the hopes of getting "a real friend", and he does...his former bully who gaslit him into believing said bullying was just teaching him how to man up, that same bully you stood up to on many occasions.

Fuck you Yugi. I'm glad Anzu got to go to dancing school in New York. I hope she stayed there, started a successful career, made a life for herself, and found a guy who appreciates her as a friend.

Fuck you Yugi

[cvpidsb0ws]

❛CONFESSIONS.❜ | alice in borderland characters

genre: FLUFFFLUFFFLUFF <333

warnings: NONE I THINK!!

sypnosis: headcanons of alice in borderland characters confessing to you.

author's note: did i disappear after just one aouad imagine then appear again with an alice in borderland obsession? yes i did. 😁😁😁😁 !not proofread!

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ryohei arisu

RYOHEI ARISU WOULD BE HEAD OVER HEELS FOR YOU. ONLY YOU.

he's definitely that kind of person to hide his feelings because he's scared of rejection

so that means he's the type to not make the first move at all CONSIDERING HE'S A SHY BB!!!!!!!

BUT BUT BUT HE'LL PROBABLY GROW FED UP OF YOU NOT GETTING THE HINT OF HIS UNDYING LOVE FOR YOU

SO IT WOULD LEAD TO HIM FINALLY CONFESSING AAAAAAAAAAA

arisu would probably be anxious the whole time 😭😭😭😭 like shaking, sweaty palms, stuttering, uncontrollable laughter, etc

HE WOULD PROBABLY CONFESS AT A PICNIC OR SOMETHING SIMILAR <333

he would try his best to cook all of your favorite foods even though he sucks at cooking💪💪

he would buy a bouquet of your favorite flowers!!!!!!!!

OH AND HE WOULD ALSO WRITE A LETTER WHERE HE PUTS 100 FUCKING REASONS WHY HE LOVES YOUUUUUUUUUUUUUUU

he's the type to prepare cue cards because he know he would fumble while he confesses

LIKE HE PROBABLY PREPARED A WHOLE ASS SPEECH BUT THERE WOULD BE A MOMENT WHEN HE JUST STARES AT YOU AND REALIZE HOW MUCH HE LOVES YOU WHICH KIND OF LEADS HIM TO JUST SAYING A SIMPLE "i love you"

yuzuha usagi

YUZUHA USAGI WOULD ONLY HAVE YOU AS HER WEAKNESS.

she's someone who has always been fearless, bold, and etc🙀🙀🙀 SO WHEN SHE STARTS TO HAVE FEELINGS FOR YOU, OFC SHE FEELS CONFLICTED OR CONFUSED

probably because she's strong and you making her flustered meant her downfall😁😁

she wasn't complaining though

USAGI WOULDN'T TAKE LONG TO CONTEMPLATE HER FEELINGS FOR YOU THO

if she liked you, then she liked you :)))

AND SHE WOULDN'T BE SCARED OF CONFESSING AT ALL BUT SHE WOULD STILL HAVE HER DOUBTS

doubts that chased her every time she went for a run or climbed a mountain‼️‼️‼️

SHE WOULD PROBABLY BRING YOU TO HER FAVORITE MOUNTAIN BEFORE THE SUN COMES UP

AND SHE WOULD INVITE YOU TO SIT ON THE GROUND AS THE SUN CRACKS LIKE AN EGG YOLK IN THE SKY

she won't even realize that you have already lied your head against her shoulder

AND THAT'S WHAT TRIGGERS HER TO SAY SHE HAS FEELINGS FOR YOU

shuntaro chishiya

chishiya is chishiya. self explanatory. <3

HE WOULD BE IN DENIAL FOR THE LONGEST TIMEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE.

he will not want to accept the fact that he fell for someone since he has the master manipulator factors and all💯💯💯💯💯💯💯💯💯💯💯💯💯💯💯

but you were an exception ;)))

he would practically go from being a logical person to a carefree one for you LIKE HE DOESN'T CARE ABOUT THINGS WHEN HE'S WITH YOU BECAUSE YOU MAKE HIM FORGET THINGS WORTH WORRYING (and as much as he hates to admit you make him happy)

he would act cold, tease you 25/8 just to cover up the fact he has feelings for you

HE WOULD PROBABLY CONFESS BY HIDING ENVELOPES THAT HELD RIDDLES OR CLUES FOR YOU TO FIND

AND THOSE ENVELOPES WOULD LEAD YOU TO WHERE YOU FIRST MET

he knew you were clever enough to solve them :)

he would stand there waiting while he was wearing a suit that made him itch (BUT HE WOULD REMEMBER THE TIME YOU SAID MEN IN SUITS WERE ATTRACTIVE)

he would also have shampooed and conditioned hair for effort🙏🙏🙏🔥🔥🔥

AND A SIMPLE "i may or may not have feelings for you" WOULD HAVE SUFFICED AS HIS CONFESSION

hikari kuina

YOU WOULD BE HIKARI KUINA'S SOFT SPOT.

she would be too scared to be rejected by you because she didn't want to ruin your friendship

but she would still be confident on confessing #kuinathingzzzzzz

PROBABLY BECAUSE SHE WANTED TO PROVE SHE WAS BRAVE-

SHE WOULD CONFESS BY CHALLENGING YOU

LIKE SHE WOULD INVITE YOU TO FIGHT HER FOR 5 ROUNDS BECAUSE SHE TOLD YOU SHE HAD A SECRET THAT YOU COULD ONLY FOUND OUT IF U WON AGAINST HER.

spoiler: she loses to you on purpose because she knows how much you hate losing😍😍😍😍

SHE LOVED WINNING BUT SHE WOULD DO ANYTHING FOR YOU TO HAVE A SMILE ON YOUR FACE

her being the reason for a smile on your face made her weak🙏🙏🙏🙏

she would also give u a prize for winning <333

EITHER A RING, A NECKLACE, OR A BRACELET

AND SHE WAS THE ONE TO MAKE THEM BY HAND WITH BEADS

although it frustrsted her, she knew it would make you smile

"i love you . . . like so much."

suguru niragi

admit it. suguru nigari will not catch feelings for anyone at all.

unless it's you ofc😍😍😍😍🙏🙏🙏🙏

BUT HE HATED THE FEELING

HE HATED HOW MUCH HE GREW FOND OF YOU

HE HATED HOW YOU MADE HIM BLUSH, FEEL BUTTERFLIES FLUTTERING IN HIS STOMACH, GROW A SMIRK INTO A SMILE, AND MORE.

he would also be confused about his feelings since he's niragi😆😆😆😆

LET'S BE HONEST BECAUSE THIS MAN IS STUBBORN ASF AND WILL NOT CONFESS AT ALL.

he would probably drop big ass hints to wait for you to confess

BUT YOU WOULDN'T GET ANYTHING WHICH CAUSES HIM TO BE ANNOYED

AND SOON ENOUGH

"fuck it, i like you, dumbass."

[sketch-twentytwo]

This is coming of the heels of the FOP:NW season 1 finale, and I guess I was just disappointed in the ending.

The season has been building up Dev and Hazel's relationship (friendship you heathens!) and showing Dev's struggle to mature and really understand what he thinks is missing in his life (parental love from his father) but his heel turn kind of comes out of nowhere.

I don't think it should've been on Hazel to "save him" but they barely have a conversation the whole second half of the episode. I thought she could've given him some tough love, a speech about real friendship, or something.

Instead Peri tells him he cares about him (which is nice) and he basically forfeits and succumbs to being fairy/friendless and most likely being reset to square one (that is unless his sunglasses blocked out the magical, memory erasing flash).

I just think it could've been one of those finales where Hazel fights Dev with the power of friendship while still extending a hand. The guy is a selfish jerk and all, but he's also a ten year old nepo baby who doesn't know any better. Maybe we'll get some more dev-elopment if we get a season two, but he just felt more fleshed out and complex than the rest of Hazel's friends who get to keep their memories for some reason.

Oh yeah. That. For all the flack Timmy Turner got for almost revealing his fairies and the threat of them getting taken away from him over and over, Hazel just wishes her buddies can remember. At that point why not use the next rule-free wish to wish that she'll be able to remember her godparents FOREVER? IDK, it just sort of feels like some of the stakes of the show have evaporated.

I think it would've worked well if they'd just kept it with Hazel and Dev being the only god-kids in the show who have knowledge/memorize of fairies. Now it feels like there's too many people. But, we'll see what happens I guess.

Fairly Odd Parents: A New Wish has it's Pros and Cons, in my opinion. The character writing is FANTASTIC when it's good, but the plot lines aren't always compelling to me. I want to see more of it because I think it can and will be improved/built upon, but for now, it's a nice show I'd probably watch once and not again.

[jo-harrington]

Sunsets.

They were always better when you watched them with someone else.

You glanced down at the hands in your lap: yours and Sam's, twined together like your lives have been for the past 5 years. The best of friends from the moment her family moved into town. You couldn't remember a time when you existed without her.

She's chatting now, telling some story about her boyfriend's dunce behavior to cheer you up after Mark broke your heart. Douchebag. You don't really know how you got here of all places; how things seemed to go so right with him and then so terribly wrong.

Sam made a joke at both Patrick and Mark's expense. You laughed and the sound of it was unfamiliar and almost roared in your ear, like a hundred people were laughing.

Everyone always laughed at Sam's jokes. Everyone loved Sam. Everything always worked out for her, even in the most unlikely situations. She was just lucky like that.

You told her once, after she won the talent show at school, that it almost seemed like she was the star of The Samantha Show or something. She found it hilarious, apparently, but you had an inkling that her feelings were still hurt. This was real life, not TV. She didn't just win because she was some main character, she worked really hard on her dance routine.

You felt a little bad after that, never brought it up again. The dark little voice deep down inside you smothered for now.

Because yeah, she did work hard. You knew that. She was smart and talented and funny and caring and a great friend and neighbor and that's just how it was because...

Because...

Because she strived to be all of those thing.

Things you…really didn’t bother with.

Because you were…

You.

Average, squeaking by a three-point-something GPA, wannabe artist who could barely draw, never left town before even when there was that field trip to DC because you got the mumps. A little nervous, a little clumsy, a little romantic with your head in the clouds. You always had a crush but nothing ever really came of those crushes until Mark.

The only boy to ever like you back and then he broke your heart.

“I just want to disappear,” you muttered pathetically and let go of Sam’s hand to cover your eyes again.

"So do it!" Sam finally hopped to her feet in the way that only she could, raring for another passioned, motivational speech that she was known for. You really needed one of those and also loathed that she was about to give you one. "Disappear! Leave!”

This was not the speech you expected.

"Uh, what?" you let out a mixture of a scoff and a laugh, tears forgotten for now. "What do you mean leave? Hello, graduation in a few months. Prom? Then college. What happened to your big plan last week? One last summer in Port Geneva?"

"Forget one last summer," she waved her arms wildly. "This is your life! You're my best friend, I want you happy. Tell me the truth. Do you really even want to go to college? Wouldn't you rather pack up big blue and go on that adventure like you talked about in 8th grade?"

At your blank stare, Sam grabbed you by the shoulders and shook you.

"That's the whole reason we're friends in the first place don't you remember? The ice breaker?! Are you kidding?"

"I don't have a clue," you giggled as she jostled you around.

"Our entire friendship built on a lie. UGH. Ok. Mrs. Mills what-do-you-wanna-do-in-10-years activity? And everyone's was stupid. Tina wanted to be on the cover of Tiger Beat for the Girl Superstar issue. Patrick...gotta love him...but he wanted to be the starting quarterback for the Miami Dolphins. Mine was so dumb I don't even want to say it, great first impressions I made as the new kid.

"But you wanted to see the world! Pack your bags and board a train around the US. Paint the sunset at the Grand Canyon. See glaciers in Alaska! Hell, you even said you'd travel to Middle Earth if you could. And I thought you meant the equator!"

You both laughed and as she went on and on about things you apparently said 4 years ago and as the memory came back to you, your heart ached.

Yeah, you did say that stuff didn't you? You’d been such a silly, idealistic kid before you grew up and reality hit you time and time again.

"That was just kids stuff Sammie," you laughed dismissively. "I'm...I'm gonna take classes at State, and I'm gonna work at the furniture store and I'm gonna..."

"You're gonna pine over Mark Greckman over the rest of your life?" The hands were on her hips again. "No, ma'am, you...you're gonna go on your adventure and...oh my...you're gonna find a prince of some European kingdom or...or a handsome stranger in an Italian villa. Or both. Hoards of men fighting for your affection."

"Please stop," you stood up and grabbed her as she started waving her arms around and pantomiming kissing a tall stranger. "Stop it."

"Ok I'm done, I'm done," she promised. "I just don't want you to be crying over that idiot anymore. And we might be close to graduation but...I don't know...you can still change your mind."

"Hmm," you shrugged. "I dunno. If just sounds so…”

“Unlike you?”

“Yeah.”

"Just think about it," she urged you. "You and your Volkswagen Beetle…and the world...the whole universe if you want it! The possibilities are endless. I just feel like...1985...it's gonna be your year."

There was a spark of inspiration that grew inside of you, and in your heart, you knew she was right.

You pulled her into your arms, grateful to have your best friend.

"Port Geneva was filmed in front of a live studio audience."

Eddie hit the rewind button on the remote and watched the scene speed in reverse until it hit Sam’s big speech. He hit play and watched for a minute then paused, the blurry image of your giggling face frozen on his screen for the foreseeable future.

He sighed and leaned back on the couch to enjoy your company for a minute.

The living room was dark, only illuminated by the glow of the TV and the street lights outside shining through the windows. There was a stack of tapes on the coffee table, along with his abandoned homework. The pizza he ordered would be here soon but for now…it was just you and him.

“M’sorry Mark was an asshole,” he said aloud into the still room. “To be honest…I kind of warned you about him way back.”

You don’t say anything. You never do.

“I know, the heart wants what it wants.” He picked a piece of lint off of his jeans. “I just want to look out for you honey.”

You stay smiling on the screen, and he can imagine it got the slightest bit bigger when he said that.

“I know you try to look after me too. Guess that doesn’t stop either of us getting hurt right?” He chuckled and pat his hands on his lap.

This was pathetic, talking to a fictional character like they were really in the room with him.

You were just…you were everything. And you’d been there for him, a balm to his woes. You had been since he started watching Port Geneva way back when, but especially since everything went down last year.

With his dad and the house and…

There was a knock at the door and Eddie hit the eject button so he could put in the next tape in watch with dinner. It was gonna be a good episode, you tell Mark off and even punch him; he remembered it fondly.

Defending yourself. He was proud of his girl.

Eddie ate his dinner and watched his episodes, taped from when they originally aired. Wednesday nights at 9pm, right before the news. He did his homework and occasionally repeated the rewind-pause-play act that he had perfected over the years so he could make another joke or, just once, complain about his chemistry homework.

Life was hard. For everyone. But especially if your name was Eddie Munson. Still, he endured. He’d never been a stranger to fantasy and escapism, he had his books and his game and his movies but there was something so…comforting in the realism that was your show.

A small suburban town full of normals. All sorts of mundane activities that mostly everyone made feel were…life altering events. And a handful of misunderstood outcasts—like you and Scott and Bonnie—who played supporting characters to the stars. Stars that were, quite frankly, unrealistic and annoying.

Eddie felt that way sometimes though, like he was just some background character waiting for his chance at the spotlight. Who had been the main character in his story, huh? Ronnie? Yeah…he could see that, now that she was on her great college adventure.

But with her gone, what would come of his storyline? Did he just fade into the background again?

Eddie ejected the tape before the current episode finished and propped his feet on the coffee table as he flipped the channels to something else. He needed to focus on something else. He would come back to his tapes, to you, another night and he would wish that you were real once again. Knocking on his door, taking him on a grand adventure with you.

But for now he just needed to stew in his…sad secondary character thoughts.

You got your time in the spotlight, a 2-episode arc at the end of the season, and as much as he hoped that it would be his turn soon…to be the character everyone loved…the person everyone loved…he knew it might never happen for him.

Eddie the Freak. Eddie the outcast. Eddie the idiot.

He would even take a single scene dedicated to him at this point.

Was that too much to ask?

Coming in 2024.

Find the Masterlist here. And the original blurb here.

[ravenalla]

I think overall the main problem season 3 is having is the same as TBOBF, which is not giving the audience a well-established storyline and so not giving them a reason to care. This is probably gonna be long so bear with me.

Throughout the first two seasons, we had a clear goal for our main character. Sure Din did other things all the time, the “side quest” as the fandom liked to joke, but it always made sure to remind us what the motivation behind all of this was, keeping Grogu safe, finding him a Jedi. The story still introduced other characters concepts, but it made sure to always keep Din tied to them in some way that made us understand why this would affect him and why we should care. The side adventures never felt random, they all had a clear step by step progression as Din tried to get closer towards his destination. Moff Gideon was also not just a threat against Grogu, his rule under the Empire was responsible for the destruction of Din’s people. The conflict between them was personal, both because of Din’s newfound love for the baby and because of who he is. It all tied together to give us this intriguing but fun and adventurous story.

On the other hand, stuff in Season 3 just feels like it’s happening at random. It began looking like the main drive this season would be Din trying to regain his identity and the restoration of Mandalore as a whole. Instead, the former was solved in a matter of two episodes with little fanfare compared to how serious they made the situation out to be. No we get pirates both we and the characters have never seen before and have no reason to give two shits about. They’re gone for a while. Then suddenly back as a big threat we are suppose to take seriously for some reason. Din and the rest of the covert do not show any indication they are ready to rally the Mandalorians and take back their planet up to this point. Oh nevermind now they want to. Like there’s no motivation for our main character happening between episodes behind the random monster of the week stuff, nothing the covert is working towards.

Things are just happening out of nowhere, nothing feels like a cohesive narrative and Din isn’t getting any new development or character moments to make up for it. Aside from two things that have nothing to do with the actual Mandalorian, Bo and the New Republic.

Bo-Karan’s story is interesting, and I like her developing a relationship with the covert, but this is not her show. You should not be ending every episode with a shot of her like this has always only been about her journey, at least not here. It’s fine to have more than one main character, but you can do that without throwing away everything you spent two seasons developing with another one. I don’t even know why Din and Grogu are here to be honest. Are they really any different from the background Mandos at this point? Din’s speech was cool, but there’s not really been tight moments of friendship this season for us to get super emotional about him coming to Greef’s rescue from these random Disney channel villains on planet gentrification. It’s obvious now that Bo’s going to be the one to lead, so him showcasing traits of leadership probably also won’t even matter. Din is obsolete, and the heart-wrenching relationship between father and son is now being used for cheap Grogu brownie point moments when they actually remember they have to include them.

As for the New Republic, yes, as people have said this does expand the world and relate to stuff that is going to happen later that we don’t yet know about. The problem is, this is a completely detached event from the main character. Nothing (aside from the random reveal of Moff Gideon’s escape) relates to our main characters situations at all, and it is so clearly ideas from rangers of the new republic shoved in so they can squeeze already established plots they didn’t want to abandon. Because we don’t know why this matters at all towards Din, there’s really no reason to care at this point. Again, you can say there’s plot happening, but it’s all disconnected in a way that doesn’t keep us anticipating any type of ending. And look I’m not saying the show needs to spoon feed its audience or explain everything right away. My problem is everything is that Din is given nothing to do anymore. All of his problems that were built up for two seasons have been solved instantaneously, and we don’t even get many conversations between Din and Grogu as we use to, the driving force of the show. Neither do we get simple explanations for things like where the hell did all the new Mando’s come from or why they decided to settle there. It is both so busy and so empty.

The Mandalorian was never just about finding Grogu a home as quickly as possible, it took the time to show us Din’s personality, his relationship with himself, and the new relationship he formed with his son. So why is the show treating it like none of that stuff was important enough to take up screen time? That Din and Grogu had to take a backseat because showing two former Imperial officers having a meaningless conversation about a planet’s history was more important, that dedicating every emotional beat to Bo-Katan’s changing feelings left no room for exploration of the main character’s own when he is suppose to have been his most changed and isolated self yet, that setting up major plot lines and characters which will bleed into other shows was worth sabotaging what made the show so popular in the first place? The Mandalorian can have a bigger plot, it can have more characters, but when those elements feel like they can exist without that main character being there? That is just bad writing.

[newlacesleeves]

okay fine fine i'll take the silly karate show seriously for a second.

i have spent most of the day talking about what i liked about it because, well, there was a lot i did like. remember, the bar wasn't just on the floor. it was buried in mariana's trench. but to say it exceeded my expectations is still an understatement. i really did like it.

putting this under a cut. spoiler warning obv. (also me talking in stream of consciousness.)

as for criticisms, yeah i have some. the first being the same one everyone else has: there were almost no johnny & robby moments. robby beats miguel for captain and johnny chooses to comfort miguel for his loss. he gives them both the exact same speech before they fight. literally word for word. now, sure, we can imagine their relationship is still pretty fraught but this would have been a good opportunity for johnny to show how proud he is of robby and instead we got...nothing. huh. okay then.

the next would be tory. i cannot fucking fathom why they set up this friendship between sam and tory and everyone only for NONE OF HER FRIENDS to comfort her or go to her when her fucking mom dies. (on a positive note, that episode won the whole season for me. more on that later.) obviously the idea is to set up tory running straight into kreese's arms but also we could have had that set up and still shown some fucking sympathy for her. (another positive: peyton list can act her ass off.) it felt out of character for all of them. sam spends all of the third episode befriending tory. they have that million minute hug. what do you mean sam didn't run after her and instead just accepted her captain position?

also. samtory. i kinda wish they dragged it out just a little longer. especially considering what transpires in ep. 5 (or doesn't?)

devon and kenny. what devon did to kenny was fucked up and just. wow not okay. i didn't like it. i didn't find it funny. again, it's a set up for conflict between kenny and anthony but 1. is that really necessary at this point? and 2. why THAT? it was cruel and unnecessary. devon trained for like 6 weeks she's not as good as the others use that as a character development tool instead of her cheating to win. i liked devon when she was introduced. i don't know if i like her at all now. she came off as petulant and entitled and it left me feeling so disappointed in her.

and the miyagi secret. look, i think it's ridiculous that they added this plotline in the first place but besides that, what exactly did we learn? he may have robbed a guy and he was a boxer? and he fought in the sekai talkai? (that part might be intersting let's see where that goes.) it just didn't really land for me personally. we could probably do without it entirely and the season wouldn't change.

okay some positives now. guess what they're almost all about johnny i'm not even sorry if you're following me you should be expecting this from me.

from the fucking beginning we get to see some actual growth from him. the whole naming the dojo thing in previous seasons would have been the cause for the dojo divorce but johnny and daniel both handled it so well and so mature i could cry.

the fact that they made him a car salesman and not like a mechanic or a janitor was also great. i feel like this season they really gave johnny some positive pride in himself. the way he talks about eagle fang and how he built it himself. how he learns from chozen when they go house hunting. and him being a GOOD car salesman not just pretending to do it for laughs. i loved that. i loved it so fucking much. that's what i want to see going forward. to that end, they finally eased up on the "johnny is a moron" shtick. thank god. because he's actually not a moron, he's not a complete idiot he has thoughtful ideas and can create lesson plans that have deeper meanings and all of that is innate in his character and should be played up more rather than "here's the himbo from the 80s who doesn't know what pandora's box is or how public parks work."

episode 5 really nailed it for me. tory's grief is palpable. her fighting through it literally is beautiful to me. and yes, YES, it was the right thing to do to stop the fight okay i'm not saying they shouldn't have. but what we get out of that is a real and emotional and RAW fight between daniel and johnny. not about fighting styles or who has the better dojo. they are both coming at this situation from their own trauma and past and johnny explains that (bonus points for the laura mention THANK YOU WRITERS) and daniel isn't hearing him so he goes for the jugular and daniel reacts in the MOST DANIEL LARUSSO WAY I HAVE SEEN SINCE SEASON 3. he punches johnny right there and doesn't hold back even if you can see the regret on his face a moment later. and johnny -- the GROWTH is in the way he doesn't react. he doesn't punch back. it's a real fucking moment for the two of them. we aren't talking about defense vs. offense. we're talking about GRIEF and all of johnny's bottled rage about feeling sidelined by daniel this whole time (which has been sort of daniel's default stage for the last few seasons) comes spilling over the top and it was such a good moment of catharsis i will be thinking about it forever.

there were other things i liked: johnny leaning into his girl dad-ness, the fights (always the fights!!), the return of shawn, sleeveless gi my beloved, johnny prom king confirmation (never ever getting over it). but these were the stand out moments for me on my first watch.

and look. these were the first FIVE of FIFTEEN episodes for this season. a lot of y'all are acting like this is the whole thing when this is literally just the beginning. so i understand what you're saying about what the show lacked but it's not like they're ending it here. we have ten more episodes to go let's hope they continue the trajectory they're on in the next drop.

TL/DR: I LIKED IT A LOT.

[shkretart]

Hey, just discovered your Tumblr. I saw your Art on Instagram and Tiktok, it is breathtaking! Shiping Nikolai and Price is a rare piece of loving Artwork out there and you drawbit perfectly! Keep up the amazing work:3

I wanted to ask if you Ship Alejandro with someone or Rudy? And what are you thoughts about them?

And just for the understanding do you just ship Nikolai and Price or is Laswell involved in any of this too? (Like Price being together with her at some point?)

Hello! You asked very interesting questions.

1. To be honest, I didn’t imagine that anyone would like my drawings with Nikolai and Price. Well, you know, this shipp is not that popular and I don’t think anyone thought about the two of them, and even together haha.

The fact is that I have been interested in them since the original parts of the game. I went through the old parts and saw their friendship and I thought it was very sweet. And then I saw them in the new parts, although their interactions were shown very little.

I was generally afraid to draw anything from the game. I was afraid that my drawings would not be accepted by other people who were already close in the fandom. And my first drawings with Nikolai and Price were only on friendly terms. But on Twitter, people in the comments were thinking something completely different, haha. And people pushed me to bring their relationship closer. I'm very surprised that many people like this shipp, although I don't often see art with them. Perhaps this is due to the fact that it is simply not popular and does not collect enough likes, I don’t know. I love almost all the ships in the fandom, but my skills don't allow me to draw them haha.

2. I can't say much about Alejandro and Rudy. I like these characters. I like the fact that Alejandro and Valeria have something in their past. That's why I'm more inclined towards them. But Rudy is a wonderful angel and I love him too. I think Rudy/Alejandro is a very cute ship. Maybe I'll work up the courage and draw something with them.

3. About Laswell. It seems that it is already known that she has a wife, this was mentioned in the dialogue with Gaz in CoD:mw2, the sniper mission (if I remember correctly). So I thought it was better not to drag her into all this. Although before this fact, I had thoughts that Captain Price is in love with her, he just cares and worries about her so much that he sometimes stumbles in his speech when talking to her. This all gave me some ideas. Perhaps once upon a time they really had something.

I consider Laswell a close friend of Nikolai and Price. The three of them just look so harmonious. All three have seen a lot and they have all known each other for a long time. I just love their dynamic.

Thank you for looking at my drawings and asking interesting questions! ❤ Sorry there's too much text. I wanted to write shorter, but I couldn't....

[tippenfunkaport]

Momaport and I watched more She-Ra. We have now watched up through Princess Prom.

Some highlights and lowlights (because she didn't like these episodes as much as the last ones we watched)...

"Catra puts on a cocky attitude but she's just a scared kid." So true.

"Why does Castaspella have Goofy ears?" Truly a thing I ask myself constantly.

She has become a walking cliche because she can never remember Glimmer's name and calls her something different every time. She spent her entire discussion of Princess Prom calling her "Crystal" which pains me deeply.

She also keeps forgetting Mermista and calls her "fish one" which is just really funny.

Because of her complete inability to remember anyone's name ever, the whole Light Spinner is Shadow Weaver reveal was a legitimate plot twist to her which amused me.

She is a Glimbow truther, was on ship team day one even without my influence despite not liking Glimmer and not knowing what "shipping" meant, mostly because she loves Bow. I was given a passionate speech about how obvious it was that Glimmer and Bow love each other and only you, Tumblr, can appreciate the irony of someone else giving ME that speech and not the other way around. I mentioned that a lot of people claim they "came out of nowhere" and she was absolutely indignant and refused to believe that was a thing.

Relatedly, she doesn't believe Bow had a crush on Sea Hawk, she said he was "just fangirling." (She knows he's bi, that's just her read on that episode.)

Long impassioned speech about what a horrific childhood Catra and Adora had and how it's no wonder Adora is a stressed disaster.

She started talking about Princess Prom totally on Bow's side and mad at Glimmer and by the end of her speech somehow talked herself onto Glimmer's (oh, excuse me "Crystal's") side and was annoyed at Bow which was just funny to witness happen in real time.

"Entrapta reminds me of that one character... you know? The science lady? With the glasses?" I never found out what she meant by this. For all I know it means Entrapta reminds my mom of Entrapta.

"I don't understand why people these days are so obsessed with shipping, Why can't you just watch the show and enjoy the nice friendships?" (Mom is judging us)

She likes Catra and Adora a lot individually, but there is some naysaying about them becoming a couple, we'll see if she comes around. (She has never watched before, but knows most of the endgame ships just bc of hearing the kids and I talk about it.)

She's mad at me for showing it to her grandkids, because it's too violent and she doesn't approve. (I've been cancelled.)

*me explaining that Entrapta is autistic and people read Adora as ADHD* "Does everyone have to be something these days?" (alas, mom is still a cranky old person who wants us to get off her lawn but honestly she's far less cantankerous than I thought she might be about this show so I'll let it slide)

After Princess Prom, she said, "It's cute but I don't understand why you're all so obsessed with it. To me it's exactly like every other cartoon I've ever watched." which is an ARROW directly to my HEART but we'll see if she comes around once the plot really gets going. She generally doesn't like animation and is a straight boomer lady so I figured we'd have an uphill climb but STILL. Pain. We're going to keep watching it either way though because she said she likes hanging out with me and we're having fun. (I am a delight)

[fantasyquests]

Rewatching Season 1: Some thoughts on episode 8 1. Lifting the veil. Two identities are revealed in this episode: we learn that Halbrand is Sauron and that the Stranger is one of the Istari. Nori knows intuitively that the Stranger has come to Middle Earth to help, and while she does not have a precise understanding of what it means, we are led to conclude that he has been sent by the Valar to counteract Sauron's evil. The Mystics promise the Stranger that the veil which prevents him from remembering his past will soon weaken. Halbrand/Sauron uses a similar metaphor when he says that what he and Celebrimbor are doing in the forge "softens the boundaries" between the seen and the unseen world. It is interesting that when Celebrimbor uses Sauron's phrases "power of the unseen world" and "power over flesh" he believes that they are his own. When I first watched the episode, I thought that this was just Brimby's vanity, that he lied about it and claimed those were his ideas because he didn't want to admit he learnt them from a human. But now I think that at this point Celebrimbor is already bewitched, and that Sauron has implanted these phrases into his mind. In Season 1, Celebrimbor is not one of the characters through whose POV we follow the story, so we don't get an insight into his inner world; but the scenes with Galadriel show us what it looks like when Sauron messes with somebody's head. He can create an intricate illusion, make a person believe they are somewhere else or at another point in time, and assume the visage of a loved one, as in the scene where he makes Galadriel believe that she is talking to Finrod. We can only conjecture what is happening in Celebrimor's mind, but I believe that from this point onward his actions and thoughts are no longer his own.

2. True creation requires sacrifice. This is a phrase first used by Celebrimbor in episode 2, and he repeats it now in order to convince Galadriel to surrender Finrod's dagger and allow it to be melted so that its silver and gold can combine with mithril. Symbolically, it means that Galadriel needs to sacrifice her urge for vengeance, and work instead for the well-being of all Middle Earth. The dagger has been a part of her storyline from the very beginning, when Finrod used it to lift the soaked paper boat in Valinor. In Galadriel's hands, it represented her obsessive need to hunt down and destroy Sauron - but ironically, it was also a means which Sauron used to get an insight into her past and manipulate her. That she is ready to give it up now is a clear sign of personal growth. Elrond will likewise make a symbolical sacrifice by adding the piece of mithril (for him, a token of Durin's friendship) into the mixture. It may appear that at this point, Celebrimbor makes no sacrifice, but we know that in S2 his own life will be sacrificed by Anatar in the process of making (or obtaining) the rings.

3. The road which every man must walk. Two leaders die in this episode: Tar Palantir, the king of Numenor, and Sadoc, the trail-finder of Harfoots. It is interesting that the two communities use similar metaphors when talking about death: Pharazon speaks about the road "which makes an end of every man who walks it", whereas Sadoc announces that he will be "wandering off-trail". However, in spite of this apparent similarity, their views on death are rather different. We know that Numenoreans will become obsessed with death, mortality and finding the means to transcend it, which eventually leads to their downfall. In LOTR there is also a great speech delivered by Faramir where he describes this obsession, which the rulers of Gondor have also retained:

"Death was ever present, because the Numenoreans still... hungered after endless life unchanging. Kings made tombs more splendid than houses of the living, and counted old names in the rolls of their descent dearer than the names of sons. Childless lords sat in aged halls musing on heraldry; in secret chambers withered men compounded strong elixirs, or in high cold towers asked questions of the stars."

In the Harfoot communitiy, there is a much healthier attitude to death and the transience of one's existence. Sadoc is mourned and lovingly remembered, but there is no obsession. A new trail-finder is established and the caravan moves on. If the Harfoots even think about immortality, they find it in their ability to love.

[tokiro07]

Undead Unluck ch.213 thoughts

[The End of the Beginning of the End]

(Contents: Criticism - pacing, praise - Fuuko's speech)

I'm so tempted to just say that this chapter should have been what I predicted last week, hit post, and never say anything again to anyone ever, but I feel like that would be doing a disservice to everyone involved, most notably myself, so I'm going to try to give this chapter a fair and partial evaluation to the best of my ability

As other readers have said over the course of this week, I feel that this chapter was, in and of itself, fine, it's just mistimed. What the Unchaste Arc (if you can even call it that...) needed was a capstone focusing on Kururu. I won't go over how that would have looked since I went into detail on it last week, but it's extremely evident that that's the missing piece here on the basis that she's still clearly an antagonist in this chapter

Kururu does not have a single line, but she spends the entire chapter picking a fight with Julia and baring her fangs (which I'm glad she still has, to be clear), so Fuuko's entire speech about how all of the Negators used to be enemies but are now friends rings somewhat hollow

Fuuko mentions that Kururu told her Soul was the actual villain for this arc, but a) we didn't see that conversation, and b) that doesn't mean that she's on friendly terms with the team now. And if she is on friendly terms, then why a) weren't we shown that? and b) is she attacking Julia???

It's one thing for background events to be handwaved by omake on twitter or the collected volumes, but in my opinion this is central to not only the themes of the current arc, but the story as a whole. And I know Tozuka knows that. I've said it many times, Tozuka has earned my trust that he knows how to tell this story, all of my expectations for future events come from precedents that he's established, so when something like this happens, I have to wonder what's going on behind the scenes

Shonen Jump just got a new editor-in-chief, so it's possible that someone higher up the chain wasn't happy with the flow of this arc either and just wanted the slate cleaned, but that's entirely speculation. If I'm right though, that could also explain why the Bunny arc got wrapped up in a single panel, as it likely wasn't going to be "action-focused enough" for whoever wasn't vibing with the idol battle

In my opinion, this should have been a three-event chapter, like when Yusai, Isshin XII and Sean were recruited, with a third being about wrapping up Kururu's arc, a third being about Bunny's adoption (a lighthearted bit of cutesy comedy) and finally Fuuko's speech about Remember

Nico crying over Fuuko accepting this new version of himself as the same man was easily the highlight of the chapter, as it drives home what value using Remember has. We already saw from Nico regaining and perfecting Unforgettable that the memories don't overwrite the current self, they integrate and inform a more completed self. I've talked about the Looping mechanic introducing a sort of "reverse character development," but that development is still half-baked without the cast fully understanding the lies that they've overcome

I doubt we'll get a full scene dedicated to every single character reconciling with their memories, but even just a few of them remembering what they've lost rather than just understanding that they were supposed to lose anything will really change the flavor of their interactions going forward. There's a world of difference between Rip hearing that he's killed people and knowing who he killed, and the ability to strive to be something more comes from experience, not hearsay

All of the bonds that Fuuko has now are strong, but Nico knows firsthand just how much there was for those bonds to overcome. He's not simply her friend who doesn't remember her, he's someone who has helped and hurt her more than he could ever atone for, and she still forgave him. The weight of their friendship as it is now is all the more apparent after Nico could recall the actions that put that friendship to the test. For Fuuko to come see him when he was essentially a new man, think to herself "yes, this is the same man who put me through that," and then decide that that man was, after all was said and done, her friend...well, I'd cry too in Nico's position

And I imagine that everyone else will be much the same. For Shen to remember he sacrificed Gina, for Mui to remember she personally killed Shen, for Billy to remember betraying the Union only to be forgiven...everyone has a past that has informed who they are now, they just don't realize how much of an impact that it's had

And that's why it's so important that Fuuko waited until everyone had joined up to use it. Juiz once said that Remember was meant to reunite old allies, but that's not what Fuuko is using it for. If she did, she wouldn't be teaming up with the friends she "doesn't know yet does know," she'd only be teaming up with the friends she knows, invalidating the lives and choices of those she doesn't

If she simply revived their memories right off the bat, they'd pick up exactly where they left off, for better or worse. Billy and Rip may still hold everyone at arm's length, Sean may still resent everyone for being more important than him, Shen may still be motivated by revenge, etc. And worst of all, not everyone would be friends. Everyone was on mostly good terms by the end of L100, but Under was still Under and the Union was still the Union, separate entities for all intents and purposes

Now? It's just the Union. Everyone knows everyone, everyone is friends with everyone, and everyone knows more about themselves than they did before. The selves they know yet don't know are important tools for becoming better than they've ever been, lessons that they wouldn't have been willing to learn the first time around but are now retroactively open to

Fuuko is no longer turning complete strangers back into her friends, she's reminding her friends where they came from, and showing them how important their decision to be her friends truly is

No one is fighting God because of what he did to them anymore. They're fighting God because they believe it's the right thing to do, because they believe in Fuuko's vision of a better world. That's not an opinion they would have if she had used Remember on them, as their past ego would likely subsume their present, like Victor trying to erase Andy to resume control of their shared body, but now Fuuko has allowed them a strong enough sense of self to unify past and present into one complete future

The sentiment behind this chapter really can't be understated, which unfortunately is what makes its timing all the more frustrating. The fact that the Union isn't even all together means that this speech isn't actually hyping up how major it will be when Remember finally does get used, we already got that when Fuuko shared her vision of a 25-seat Roundtable, and instead it feels like it's priming her to fail. Like we're so close to seeing that vision fulfilled, how's it going to go wrong?

And if that's not what happens, then the timing is still wrong for one very simple reason: KURURU'S STILL NOT ONBOARD!!!

Everyone agreed to using Remember all at once, except for Kururu, who was still throwing an oddly silent fit in the background! "The friends I don't know yet do know"??? Kururu doesn't have any god damn clue who any of you are!!! She's the one person here who hasn't had that rapport built up, the one who doesn't have a reason to help Fuuko achieve anything, and the one who's motivations could still end up being overwritten simply because she hasn't developed a firmly established and differentiated ego! Granted, it doesn't seem like this one is too different from the last one anyway, but that's exactly the problem!!! We don't know the difference between the two Kururus because she's the only character who hasn't been given the opportunity to explain herself to the audience!!!

I mean, I guess Bunny hasn't either, but again, she at least has the naivete and optimism of a child who was freshly adopted, so we can at least somewhat justify her lack of characterization

I really, truly, deeply hope that Kururu gets the Feng treatment, that her development is just being put off for a more opportune moment, because if she's just going to be reduced to a background gag, then I will be sorely disappointed

That said, my love for Kururu ironically skyrocketed after this chapter, because now the Kururu I created in my mind, the Kururu I don't know yet do know, has much less chance of being replaced by the "true" Kururu from Tozuka's. While obviously I'd prefer to know authorial intent, Tozuka has inadvertently set Kururu aside and left me the opportunity to say "my character now," which is an oddly powerful way to form an attachment between character and reader

I should know, it's exactly what Oda did with Monet

Anyway, I think that's enough venting for this week. Here's hoping that next week's chapter will leave a better taste in my mouth

Until next time, let's enjoy life!

[aurora-313]

In all your readings, have you found another couple that functions perfectly as both platonic friends and as lovers as ichiruki do, but that is so underutilized by its creator in any capacity?

(Imagine Lisa easing out from Black and Blue, then she and Kaien are friends for a little while, then they see each other once a century.Fans of their relationship will be upset, and it will be their right. What will not be their right will be to act nasty about it. You know that you assume a risk with a WIP. )

Any author can do what they want with their story, but when you create expectations that you don't meet, people will be upset, especially if they pay you, and you use their friendship/romance as a selling pitch. I still don't get why people are upset on the people that are upset. Again being a WIP, doesn't mean that I have to like whatever direction the author chooses. I personally rarely take risks on WIPs, so I STARTED BLEACH AFTER IT WAS FINISHED AND I KNEW THE ENDING, and the false advertising still hit me. I fell for ichiruki, and the end and then the soul burriel chapter where they barely speak on the phone and Renji now replaced Rukia as Ichigo's friend was an 180degree if I ever saw one. I wonder if in the Hell Arc, they'll even recognize each other anymore..

P.S. Thank you for remembering Rukia in your fiction more than her creator does in canon.

(Please forgive me. This answer went on a ramble and I don't think I actually answered your question.)

I'm sure I've seen a few in my time.

The ones that readily leap to mind from my childhood are Major Carter and Colonel O'Neill from Stargate SG1, and Doctor Weir and Major Shepperd from Stargate Atlantis. Although I'm not sure the first duo count since there's multiple alternate universes where they do get hitched.

But onto Bleach. IchiHime fits under this category in my opinion: the 'under developed and under utilized' part.

Sure we have the 'love you in five lives' speech and the not-kiss, but"

One: Kissing an unconscious person that you're not in a committed relationship with is not cool. Under any circumstance.

Two: She's consistently scared shitless of Ichigo's powers and rejects his hollow, even though the Hollow is literally his soul manifest.

Three: Orihime repeatedly demonstrates she doesn't really understand how Ichigo works.

In the post-Deicide novels, Orihime was actively happy Ichigo didn't have powers anymore, only to reluctantly change her tune when she saw how thoroughly miserable he was without them.

It would've been great character progression to see Orihime delve into that personal stance: why was she happy about Ichigo being powerless? Because she legitimately didn't want him to get hurt anymore? Or relief that he wouldn't turn into a monster again?

And overcoming those personal scruples would've been a fantastic personal journey to see in the manga. Her coming to terms and reconciling her image of Ichigo being this heroic ideal and the flawed, deeply traumatized individual who had the capacity to be literally monstrous.

Orihime could've reexamined her feelings about ichigo at their core, and realise perhaps she doesn't actually love him after all. That she lusts after an ideal she's modelled in Ichigo's image. In realizing and coming to terms with that error, in abandoning her preconceived notions and actually seeing Ichigo for the first time, warts and all, Orihime could've paved the foundation to build a genuine friendship. Later possibly a romance.

If this was the journey Orihime went on through Bleach, taken entirely of her own accord, with a conclusion on her own terms? Then I wouldn't have been nearly as jarred by the epilogue. Ichigo's Oedipus complex aside.

But I digress.

Rukia was one half of the main duo that made Bleach compelling. And Kubo absolutely pushed her away after FKT, attempting (key word "attempting") to put Orihime in her place. Which is a frankly bizarre decision. Rukia is the "Death" to Ichigo's "Strawberry". She is the deuteragonist, the inciting incident to the whole story and the primary motivation for the first two arcs (Aizen's and Kisuke's century's long trans-dimensional chess match aside).

Ichigo pushed himself beyond breaking and learned skills well beyond his paygrade to save Rukia from unjust execution. In his desperation to achieve that goal, Ichigo had to learn to fly before he could crawl, ultimately mutilating his own powerset in the process.

In any other media, in any other story, that tends to be a giant glowing give away about the nature of his feelings, even if Ichigo wasn't entirely clear on them himself. Its the classic handsome knight rescuing the princess in the tower and riding off in the sunset to live happily ever after.

Yes, Ichigo went through the same motions to rescue Orihime from Aizen, but he had doubts about her. Even in his venture, Ichigo entertained the idea that Orihime had legitimately betrayed them. Then the narrative goes out of its way to demonstrate her presence was merely an excuse for Ichigo to settle his scores with Grimmjow and Ulquiorra, and for Aizen to remove Soul Society's best weapon from play. Ichigo did personally want to save Orihime but he felt like he was conducting himself out of obligation, driven by his white knight/martyr complex. As soon as Ichigo felt Rukia's reiatsu flagging, he immediately shifted gears because 'Oh shit, gotta go save my totally platonic bestie first, bye!' and would've proceeded to do exactly that until Ulquiorra goaded him.

To me, Ichigo and Rukia is what made Bleach BLEACH. Their banter is what I loved about the first arcs, the teasing sprinkled with moments of heartfelt connection (in case you can't tell, its my favourite love language. Hence why Lisa and Kaien poke and tease each other all the time).

There's no 'Now I realise I why I wanted to save you' moment with Orihime in HM. She's narratively bait for Aizen's schemes and little more, as soon as she's safe-ish, Ichigo ditches and moves onto other grudge matches.

Then the final arc and the epilogue chapters roll around and I had to ask myself, is this even the same manga? Where's the Death and the Strawberry? Where is the bond that started ALL of this? Rukia is the woman who gave Ichigo the means to combat his despair, and they don't even talk anymore? You don't think Ichigo would've wanted to extend his congratulations for Rukia getting married? Having a kid? Getting prompted to Captaincy? Or anything to indicate they were friends at all?

(yes, Ichigo does in the novel but its telling one interaction between them is completely overshadows the story's 'main' pairing.)

My issue with TYBW and epilogue isn't the pairings - though that is a part. My issue is the narrative took great pains from the start to demonstrate Ichigo never felt like he belonged in the living world. His life was a dull tedious affair. The Fullbring arc reveals how much he actively hates Karakura and wants to leave ASAP.

Ichigo only began to truly LIVE once he gained shinigami powers (we'll ignore the fact he was only born and raised to be a weapon/universal battery). He loved every second of it, even when the power scared him and acted beyond his control. He fit into the realm of the dead far better than he ever did in the living.

Then Kubo turns around and claims; actually, NO. Ichigo's super content with exactly the same quiet kind of life he despised with every fibre of his being, living in a town he fucking hates and wanted to leave as soon as he graduated.

How does that shift in gears not raise serious red flags?

I'm not saying Ichigo had to go and live in Soul Society (though that was being set up thanks to the god-tier powers he'd been juiced with) but I did expect him to leave Karakura behind when all was said and done.

As a random-ish segue on the matter of friendship.

The Karakura gang feel like fair-weather friends more than anything else, excepting two circumstances: Ichigo and Chad (first arc) and Tatsuki and Orihime. Even then, those friendships become a stretch in later arcs before basically disappearing entirely. Sure, Chad, Ishida, Ichigo and Orihime have had life and death adventures together, but those scenarios were either a matter of self-preservation or wounded pride. Sometimes both.

But remove the supernatural circumstances, the Karakura gang felt like the average transient high school friendship. Circumstance brought them together, they would remain friends until graduation, then they'd all go their separate ways never to see each other again. Which is a sad state of affairs given Bleach's theme about the heart and nature of human connection.

But one must ask how strong those friendship really are when Ichigo will jump to the worst conclusion at the drop of a hat?

Orihime in Hueco Mundo, as stated above, Ichigo seriously entertained the idea she was a traitor until Ulquiorra claimed otherwise.

Chad with Xcution, Ichigo immediately assumed the worst intentions about it until Chad revealed he joined as a means to help Ichigo get his powers back.

Ishida joining the Quincy, Ichigo instantly assumed Ishida was 110% on board with the whole destroy reality plan until Ishida outright states 'I'm a double agent, you fucking dumbass.' (I give the Fullbringer arc incident a pass because Ichigo was not thinking clearly at the time)

It doesn't strike me as particularly strong or healthy when the first instinct is to immediately assume the worst.

But anyway, I shall get off my soapbox for now.

I do enjoy writing a great deal of Kaien, which means Rukia is inevitably involved given how intrinsically linked their stories are. Kind of hard to have a story about him and not have her in it. :D

I hope you continue to enjoy Kaien and Rukia in my writings. :)

[liedownquisition]

One thing that frustrates me sometimes is that the premise of the original RHATO team joining up together would not... take a lot to be made into something actually decent. Respect for the characters, really. Keep Kori's amnesia, keep Roy's isolation, but nudge the script a little:

Jason is vaguely familiar to Kori, because canonically they DID meet at least once when he was Robin (ignoring n52's everything tbh, the continuity still confuses me sometimes esp when some writers couldnt decide whether ot not 52 was a reboot or if they were going to keep referencing prior shit), but she doesn't remember, just has vague vibes and maybe he can help her with that if they knew each other? And Jason could try to help with what he can but he barely knew her, really. He's agonized bcs the only person he knows who might maybe help is Dick and he's Very Deliberately Estranged from the Bats.

Enter a tip from Talia. Maybe Jason reached out asking about the Titans, maybe she knows where he is and came to the conclusion that interacting with non-Bat heroes that he had a decently positive relationship before his death would be beneficial to him.

Roy's been off-grid since some time after Lian's death, pushing away everyone and deliberately running headfirst into things that could kill him. They're planning to televise his execution, but don't want to risk him getting rescued before that, but they can't hide from her spies. It solves a lot of problems then, doesn't it? Jason and Kori rescue him and he can help her with her memories and/or get her back in touch with the rest of their old team to help and Jason doesn't have to deal with any Bats himself.

But then they don't leave.

Kori's pretty content as she is, with people who know and have been helping her. Her memory loss isn't exactly life-threatening or anything and she's not in any hurry. Roy took one look at the two of them and came to the conclusion that he could help here, help both of them, and they won't judge him for what he's done or try to force him to reconnect with anyone before he was ready to face them/reality (if ever).

And Jason? Jason's a wounded animal snapping at anyone and anything that tries to come too close and covering up his own issues by fucking with shitty ppl & ruining their day. It's a bit of a challenge to make him chill out, but neither of the other two are afraid of that and he's already done all this to help them so why not return the favor?

Jason's the "leader", not because he's more qualified to lead a team but because he needs the feeling of being in control. There's only three of them and there's enough power & experience between them to compensate if anything goes off the rails & Roy's fluent enough in Bat from all his history with Dick to nudge Jason a little to the left if he has to. It's halfway between babysitting and a vacation.

(Amusingly this gave me the mental image of Roy & Kori in beach gear slurping colorful mocktails and Jason running around on an adult-sized child leash.)

You could even keep Roy/Kori, build it up slightly more, ect., ect. Just make it an actual relationship & not turning Kori into a sex doll lmao. I mean they were friends! Even without Dick they were friends with Each Other! & sometimes friendships can get sexual or turn into relationships!

None of this fixes like the racism & such in a bunch of the plot but that's a speech for whole different post I think, and I'm honestly not sure if I've got the chops to redesign all that. At the very least, it would be too big of a distraction from everything else I'm already easily distracted from working on lmao.

[whinlatter]

sorry i’m the anon from the other day who came to gush all over beasts and i’m back to do more bc i forgot to gush all over the way you write women and about their friendships!!! especially from a series that is narrated by a boy and also just generally dismisses girls as giggly and frivolous far too often, the way you have redefined not only their internal strength but the strength of female friendship! hermione and ginny, the unit they have going on w hannah and luna (the spice girls!!!), the inclusion of hannah abbott who shines for me in your series, pavarti’s speech for lavender at the greyback trial, probs so much more i can’t even think of right now. sorry i know i’m rambling so bad but it’s so flawlessly executed in beasts sometimes it makes me want to cry and i thought you should know!

mate thank you for this fr, that means the world. i am not the first person to point out that female characters, and particularly female friendships, are criminally undeserved in canon, nor the first to try and correct some of that in a fic, but it’s an honour to contribute to the cause and something i care about trying to get right. in chapters 10 and 11 one of the very dumb reasons i wanted scenes with girls getting changed (so the girls before the party, and ginny and cho before their surprise heart for heart) was because i wanted moments of intimacy and vulnerability between female characters, but also because i wanted the reader at this point in the fic to see that the girls are literally changing, trying on new versions of themselves, figuring out who they’re going to be in the next years of their life.

on the female friendships thing — it’s funny because i have found writing beasts that the moments between the girls have been the scenes that have basically written themselves or that have sprung up really organically and easier than when writing other dynamics. because it’s like, oh yeah girls hanging out and having a laugh! and looking after each other! and also bickering and properly arguing and growing up together! i benefit from that every day of my life and have done as long as i can remember and cannot imagine having grown up without it. and i really can’t imagine how i would even begin write a story about young woman coming of age without that being a part of her life (and if you were to write a story about a young woman whose life lacked it, surely the absence of it or the search for it would have to be a plot point). you’re completely right that ofc the series is narrated by a teenage boy, but it seems mad to me for a series that has such a large ensemble cast with meaningful arcs that there are no female friendships meaningfully and substantially depicted on the page (including ones dealing with conflict, or falling apart - it doesn’t always need to be positive, just an arc). jkr’s feminism, which is as bizarre as it is hateful, is so enraging for this (and many other) reasons: she pats herself on the back for her view that women (and exclusively cis women) are better than men, so they don’t need to grow, and for some reason don’t need arcs beyond their relationships to men (ginny changing over her adolescence is a literal major plot necessity and yet entire thing happens off stage?)

got the soapbox out SORRY but basically thank you forever i really REALLY appreciate this. thank god hannah abbott is enough of a blank slate to throw in a 10/10 cutie into scenes to make everyone be a bit nicer to each other!

[missielynne]

CBS Ghosts Review: Isaac's Wedding

I specifically remember telling a Nonnie that I didn't think the stripper would be a big problem but turns out he wasn't NOTHING (at least in the context of Nisaac.) I love how they made him absolutely everything Isaac could want in a man INCLUDING hating Hamilton and having no sense of smell (which is why I was really rooting for him to die and become a ghost because it would have been just perfect for Isaac.)

I know Nisaac was the big point of the episode and the main gay rep for the show but I really like that Isaac was showing interest in someone else too so they didn't go through with the wedding. Was the timing perfect? No. But ever since the Christmas episode when Nigel slept with Jenkins based off like a one day estrangement and constantly let the man lurk in the background without being firm about where they were, I've soured on Nisaac at least where Nigel is concerned, so the thought that someone could be so perfect for Isaac as he is made me so happy (plus I like the idea of Isaac being willing to explore the dating pool instead of just marrying the first guy who wants to because he's afraid he'll never find anyone else.) He deserves better than that, and both he and Nigel deserve better development so they have a deeper, richer story, which is why I'm glad the writers took the chance and didn't go through with the wedding, even though it would have been good for representation. They built up a reason in the story why there shouldn't be a wedding so it wasn't just for shock value, allowing both our men to grow as people.

Now...the same cannot be said for our would-be throple: it took all of two seconds for them to put Thor and Flower back together again and I am not happy about it because the way they're writing it just allows the romance (which is written in a way that doesn't fit either Flower or Thor's characters at all and consumes them at the expense of the family and friendship connections that make both lovable and enjoyable to watch.) I can only hope that now that they've said "I love you" and seem to be on stable relationship ground, they'll start to make them more compelling.

My favorite part of the episode was definitely Pete on the island. I definitely felt the happiest I've ever felt watching him on this show so far. Donna was absolutely perfect for him: they were from around the same time, they found one another attractive, she found his goofy way of flirting ("My wife is terrible, I'm single") sweet and endearing and really got into his water-rafting role play without treating it like something silly or him like some sort of a dork and that's the kind of relationship he deserves. I was literally so sad when he started to disappear and the only way to fix it was to go back to a place where he isn't as appreciated as he should be and has to do all the work to make things peaceful and happy.

His speech at the wedding was so nice and so real, and I love that it was what made Isaac realize that there was more out there for him. No one thinks anything he says is that sort of meaningful, so that was nice...even if it did ruin things for Isaac and Nigel, but at least Nigel seems to have taken it well. (And I'm glad that even though it's weird, Baxter has Carol. He's been a third wheel in the shed for too long.)

And then we get to Patience: I love hearing Flower talking about her and how she was built up. (Also Thor and Nancy's "Just smile and nod" as she talked.) The first time I watched the episode, I didn't see the figure of Patience with her face obscured by her bonnet so that was creepy the second time around. And when she finally kidnapped Isaac, aided by the basement ghosts, that was the creepiest "God bless you" before he was grabbed that I've ever heard, but I loved Nancy's "let's not tell anyone about this: it's not a good look for us."

It's good payback for the ways Isaac's choices have affected other people and I can't wait to see what happens to him next!

Well, that's it, folks! The last review of CBS Ghosts season 3. It had highs and lows but there are definitely several eps that I will add to my rewatch list as we wait for a full season four (which I will also review when it premieres this fall.)

Cheers and happy Ghosts watching, everyone! :)

[once-upon-an-animation]

A rant about Reyna’s love life situation in ToA…

So I just read the Tyrant’s Tomb and uhhh…I see why people have such mixed feelings about what happened with Reyna. Here are my thoughts (w/ spoilers of course).

- First of all, that whole Lester/Reyna pseudo love story thing was so…weird? Like, I understood the point of getting Reyna to reflect on dating, but like, did she really need a bizarre romantic subplot with Lester to achieve that? The whole incident w/ Venus felt like it only existed solely for the sake of this moment with Reyna, seeing as it was first introduced in this same book, and will likely be forgotten about afterwards. As a result, the whole thing seems so random with no buildup whatsoever. I think there are better ways to introduce Reyna’s interest in taking on celibacy and joining the Hunters than this pile of weirdness with Lester/Apollo.

- Second of all, a lot of Reyna’s dialogue concerning her love life sounded like Rick Riordan just inserting himself into the story, and it was extremely cringey. Don’t get me wrong, I don’t think it was OOC for Reyna to say these things, but the language choices made it clear that RR was just using the character to voice his own thoughts (I literally cringed when he used the word “ship” unironically in her speech to Lester/Apollo near the end of the book. Nobody talks like this.) We have never seen any of the kids at New Rome actually mention Reyna’s love life in any of the books as far as I remember (let me know if I’m wrong). So this problem she has with other people “shipping” her doesn’t seem real in-universe and feels like it’s being brought up to address the fandom specifically and sort of…scold(?) them for shipping Reyna with other characters.

In addition, I don’t like it when authors use their characters as a disguise for their own thoughts. It ruins the integrity of the character and the story. If you have something to say to the fandom, just say it instead of hiding behind your character.

- Third, I find the line where Reyna says “Why do healthy friendships have to progress into romance” (or something like that) in response to Lester/Apollo asking her if she’s dating Thalia to be really hypocritical. Romance is a very major theme in RR’s books and he has a knack for pairing up as many characters as possible, even characters who don’t really need to be a relationship/whose romances could have worked just as well as a friendship. This line Reyna says about not every friendship needing to be a romance could apply to almost every couple in this franchise.

I give Percabeth, Frazel, SilenaxBeckendorf, and EmmiexJo a pass, because romance genuinely complements their stories, but as far as other ships goes, I actually think their romances were unnecessary/poorly executed/could’ve worked just as well as a friendship. ChrisxClarisse definitely didn’t need to be a thing; Clarisse doesn’t even give off romance vibes anyway and Chris stops existing after TLO. Grover and Juniper are cute, but nothing would change if their relationship didn’t exist. Jasper/Jiper might have genuinely been better as friends. Caleo ABSOLUTELY didn’t need to happen; I personally believe romance was NOT the best resolution for Leo’s arc. I give props to Nico and Will for being the first gay ship, but again, RR should not be using romance as a bandaid for emotional conflicts. Nico should learn to maintain healthy friendships first before jumping into romance. TysonxElla did not need to happen for any reason at all. A lot of the hinted pairings in The Hidden Oracle (Miranda & Sherman, Chiara x Damien, Valentina x Paolo) didn’t need to exist either. These are all side characters whose romances have little to no impact, and who would lose nothing if they were all just friends. Same for Lavinia x Poison Oak.

As you can see, RR loves to pair people up together. And most of these pairings are straight/straight-passing. But Reyna maybe liking girls is where he finally draws the line, and decides that romance doesn’t need to happen all the time? Seriously? Like don’t get me wrong, it’s cool to finally have a character in this franchise who chooses to be happily single, and I know that Thalia has not expressed any interest in women (neither has Reyna, tbh), but like…still. RR has been gung-ho about romance everywhere else, even with characters where it literally didn’t matter. Why did he draw the line here?

All of this also makes me wonder if Piper/Shel became a thing just to placate disappointed fans who wanted to see a major character in a wlw relationship. I remember RR’s tweet where he was like “I didn’t want to make Reyna like girls because it would seem like girls only like girls if things don’t work out with boys”. This is a nice sentiment, but it becomes questionable when you realize that what he tried to avoid with Reyna is basically what he did with Piper? And to make matters worse, Shel is such a non-character. She exists for a few pages at the very end of the final series, has no canon personality or physical appearance (as far as I remember), and she’s so unimportant, she doesn’t even have a last name! Her only purpose in the story is to show us that Piper likes girls, which is so lame! Why not give a wlw between two fully fleshed out characters instead of this last-minute romance between a major character and a character who’s just a device?

- Lastly, I’m really tired of RR shoving the female characters that he doesn’t want to pair up into vows of celibacy (Rachel, Thalia, and now Reyna). In fact, this happens with the male characters too, where they are either dating (Percy, Grover, Tyson, Leo, Nico, Will, Frank, Jason) or they’re dead (Luke, Octavian, Jason).

Reyna was so close to being the first major character who didn’t fall into this pattern and then it was ruined. There are many options that people can have for their love lives beyond dating or mandatory celibacy, Richard Riordan, and these options are not that hard to write/explore even in a book aimed at preteens. The characters could easily say that they’re not interested in romance at the moment and may become interested at a later point, that they’re interested but are waiting for a person that they truly want to date, that they’re working on friendships right now, that they’re focused on other things right now, etc. Not everyone needs to be paired up, but not everyone needs to take on a vow of celibacy either. Characters are allowed to just be single, no explanations given. There are so many things Reyna could do besides being a Hunter. She could go to school, travel the world, do something similar to Emmie and Jo where she creates a safe haven for others, maybe even a safe haven for abused girls such as a herself. Becoming a Hunter is not the only option here.

Sorry for the length of this rant, and sorry if this post sounds hyper-critical of Rick. I’m just not impressed with the way Reyna’s love life was handled, and how she explained it using dialogue that was essentially just Rick Riordan talking. Very weird.

[smolghostbot]

GT July: Melancholy / Video Games

So, I maybe read the prompt list in the wrong order, but... I spent like all day yesterday trying to hype myself up (hooray for anxiety) to post this first piece since it's one of the longest and I think most well-written one I have. So we're just rolling with the punches here, if i am sent to the jar for my crimes then so be it. Not that anybody's going to read this anyways, but...

Word Count: 900ish (😅) Character bios in my pinned post. TWs: Vague depiction of a panic attack / PTSD episode (non-POV), and light discussion of triggers and past abuse, in a supportive way.

========

It was happening again. Mel sighed, she had been through this before with her little roommate. Slowly, carefully, she stood up and walked away, watching the little creature on her living room table cry and hug his backpack like it was a security blanket. She wordlessly went to the fridge and grabbed a strawberry, carefully cut the skin and seeds off, and then placed it on a napkin on the other end of the table from her tiny companion, knowing better than to intrude on his personal space. They sat down on the floor, and gently whispered.

"Patch… Patch… it's me, Melody. We're friends. You're safe, everything is fine. Look, I got you a strawberry. Please calm down Patch, come back to me buddy…"

They knew that living with a tiny little thing like Patch would be difficult, they had accepted that when inviting him into her home a few months ago. But, the strangest things would set him off into these episodes. She knew he had… a bad experience in the past with humans, but didn't know what she even said this time to set him off. He was just watching them play a video game, and they said something about… they didn't even remember. Was it the friendship meter? Something about axes being useful for this boss? And the next thing they knew, Patch was freaking out.

The human repeated her kind affirmations, full of regret for something she wasn't even sure of. After a few stressful minutes, the little thing's eyes returned to normal. He looked around the room, as if waking from a daze, noticing that the game was paused and Mel was sitting on the floor, clearly worried about him. His sparkling purple eyes glanced at Melody, a shameful look in them. She responded with a kind smile.

"Welcome back, Patch. I got you a strawberry, I know they are your favorite. Please eat some? You were crying a lot, you need to stay hydrated."

Patch looked full of shame as he crossed the table, took his little utensils out of his bag's pocket, and began to eat a bit of the strawberry.

"So… would you like to talk about it? You don't have to right now, but I'd like to know what I said to upset you so badly."

Patch just looked at Melody's eyes, that guilty look still on his face. He shook his head no, and pointed to the TV, which was sitting on the home menu for the game system.

"Was it… something about the game? I know it has fighting in it, was that upsetting to you?"

Patch shook his head no. Mel seemed to think deeply, her eyes glancing between Patch and the TV. Eventually, she grabbed the notepad kept on the end table, which Patch used to draw out things he couldn't explain with just gestures.

"Okay… it might be notepad time. Can you please try to explain? I don't want to upset you again. Unless thinking about it would be upsetting right now. If so, just shake your head no and we can do it later."

The little being began drawing, clearly drawing one of the enemy characters Mel was facing, a despotic king. She was actually impressed at how accurate it was for a character who Patch had only seen for the first time a few minutes ago.

"That guy upset you? Why?"

At that, Patch drew lines coming out of his mouth, as if to indicate speech. Mel thought about his voice lines… Maybe the actor sounded like somebody? Or maybe it was about the lines themselves.They were pretty commanding, he was supposed to be an evil tyrant and all. She realized that Patch's episode happened right after he gave a big speech about the world bowing to him. Her expression went grim as she started to put some pieces together.

"Patch… this is about… that monster, isn't it? Did… did the king remind you of them?"

Patch's purple eyes glancing away from her, combined with a sad nod said everything. Melody was suddenly filled with a fire inside.

"Listen to me, Patch. That character? Is a bad guy. He's not… he's a bad person. Humans hate people like him. The literal point is to hate him. And… people would hate that monster that hurt you, too. At least I do. If I could have them arrested… or worse… for what they've done…"

Melody stopped and took a deep breath, sighing and collecting herself before continuing. They know that anger was a big trigger for Patch, even if it was born from a desire to protect the little guy.

"You know… one reason people like video games is because you get to do things you can't in real life. How about this, I'll mute the TV, and the two of us will kick this guy's ass and pretend that he's the one who hurt you. Would that be okay?"

Patch looked up at her, a small smile on his face. He pointed to her hand. As she curiously brought it up to him, she was surprised as he wrapped his arms around her fingers in somewhat of a hug. Considering how apprehensive Patch usually was about being touched, this was huge. When he backed away, she gently returned to her seat on the couch, ready to help her tiny friend face his demons in this small way.