#I already loved that family dynamic in dragon age

[wilsons-journey]

A happy family is nice and all, yes sure. But a Family made of random strangers that get so close over time, that they are like a big, strange family. That's the real shit.

I have a really big softspot for this.

I love to imagine my Charr OCs in this. They all come from such different places and this group would be such a lovely and chaotic mess.

---

And I think I have to introduce some more of my big Cats. They will get important later on.

Starting with Baal, half brother of Deus. But he has a very special connection to someone of my other OCs, too. Maybe you already have a guess?

Another important figure would be Desmond, best friend to Vale. And uncle to Fuma.

And maybe Mishra. I'm still not sure if I should keep him. He was meant to appear in the comic with Wilson. (A new Friend) Together with Fuma he would play a very important role in Wilsons life. But about that part I'm not very sure yet. Maybe I will discard this idea and he stays a NPC. (Sorry dude)

But I guess Baal and Desmond will also soon make a appearance on this blog .v.

Besides, if you are interested in my OCs - you can find more information for them in my Blog at "The Cast"

[marveloustimestwo]

Can you do yandere Aemond obsessed with his i maid, he tries to convince his mother so she let him married her and alicent is a platonic yandere for her too

Thank you for the request, anon!

Warnings: Yandere themes, allusions to Aegon's tendencies, this is very long when I did not intend it to be.

Aemond Targaryen is already quite a difficult yandere to deal with.

He has trouble dealing with his emotions, or rather, he instead chooses to ignore them completely until he no longer can.

Whatever anger, sadness, or undesirable issues he feels towards his family, himself, or others are stuffed away, which really only causes them to get worse.

The fact that you are a maid only adds to this issue.

Aegon already views him as weak, as someone undeserving of respect. While Aemond does not much care for what his brother thinks, the last thing he needs is to bring further shame unto himself in the eyes of others.

Aemond would often treat you coldly because of this. He wants to keep himself from falling more than he already has; he's already finding himself far more comfortable with you than he would like.

You're so warm, so sweet to him in a way that he hasn't received in years. The fact that he forces his emotions down makes them worse, yes, but his family dynamics also play a heavy role in why his obsession starts.

How he was treated by his father and brother is especially damaging, but it is also a big reason why he would seek reassurance, praise, and comfort from you.

If you were hired when you were both very young, you would be a crutch almost, a safe space for him to go to when Aegon insulted him or when he couldn't speak to his father.

Knowing Aemond from a young age would have made things better for both of you in all honesty.

While his obsessive tendencies would still be there, Aemond would be a lot softer than he would be if he met you later in life. The anger and the coldness he feels would've melted away years ago in your presence.

Granted, that same softness would not extend to others. He's still rather cold at best, and downright vicious to those who think they have the right to touch or even talk to you.

He's very possessive. Even when you're getting orders from those who are higher up have Aemond seething. Nothing is too little.

Aemond would ask for you to only be his maid early on. He hates the idea of others spending this sort of time with you, especially Aegon. He's heard of what his brother does to the servants, and he hardly needs you being subjected to that.

It also means that once you've done everything needed for the day, he can spend as much time as he wants with you (which is all the time, really.) If he had his way, you would stay in his room permanently.

He'd particularly enjoy reading with you or discussing topics from his books. Considering you're a maid, he'd take time to teach you how to read if you didn't know how.

Late at night when things are quiet, Aemond would also take you on flights with Vhagar. The dragon was his pride and joy, the same thing he spent so many years without, and lost an eye for.

Having the two things he cherishes the most in one place is something he holds dear. It would likely be during this that he would realize that he wanted to marry you.

At this rate, being years into his obsession, Aemond wouldn't really care what his brother thought. If Aegon really, truly had the gall to try and stop him, he could always use his prized dragon as a way to end the fight once and for all.

His mother, however, was a different ordeal. While they have their own unhealthy dynamic, Aemond has no true want to harm his mother and actually does care about what she thinks.

The one thing Aemond didn't expect was how accepting Alicent would be of this situation.

Going into it, he was preparing himself for a fight. He had a whole speech prepared about how he wanted to marry you, about how deep his love runs for you, and how there is nothing he would not do to make this happen. To him, fire and blood would be an easy path should all else fail.

A deeply dramatic speech that is met with Alicent's judgmental gaze, and a reply of "Did it truly take you this long to realize all of this?"

Alicent had noticed your presence as soon as you were assigned around any of her sons. At first, she gave you nothing more than a glance, far more concerned with other things than a simple maid.

It was when Aemond requested you as his personal maid that she actually saw you. Aemond in particular had become so unfriendly over the years, so it had surprised her to hear of this request.

She was even more surprised to see how attached he had become. Alicent had never seen him so friendly with anyone in years.

Looking into your life, it was hard for her to see what was so special at first. You came from a long line of servants, the majority of the women being maids, while the men were often cooks or stablehands.

Asking Aemond was like asking a brick wall. The answers he gave her consisted of the things she already knew. "She is my personal maid," or "She was assigned to others, I just so happened to request her personally."

With no explanation as to why. Only one comment actually seemed to give her anything.

"I have known her since I was a child, mother. Of course, I am fond of her."

A flippant remark, it seemed, at the end of another line of questions. Alicent even wondered at times if Aemond had realized what he said.

Speaking to you personally felt as though it were her only option.

At first, it had only made her more confused. You gave her all the answers she wanted, as she was the Queen, but to hear it from you felt strange.

If Aemond has threatened you to be around him, she might understand. She already had another son who harassed the servants. But to hear that you might actually enjoy Aemond's company? That he taught you to read, took you on dragon rides, actually talked to you about his thoughts and interests?

It practically gave her whiplash. Her immediate thought was that you might've been trying to squeeze something out of him. Private information, money, or god forbid, actually marrying her son to get a leg up in life.

Questioning Aemond on the matter would immediately have him snapping at her. He did not need his mother threatening what he has with you. Forcing you to stay away from him, having you take care of anyone else, or making you leave the castle entirely will have violent consequences.

So Alicent set to watching you and seeing why exactly her son liked you so much. And that is where her own obsession would begin.

When Aemond finally tells her that he plans to marry you, Alicent has been waiting for a least a year for this to happen. She's tired of him beating around the bush and is happy to do whatever she needs to make it happen.

As such, it takes a very short time for you to be married to Aemond. No matter what anyone else tried to say about it.

[thevelaryons]

why did daemon chose to marry laena? I have always thought it was because she is prince aemon’s granddaughter and her mother and brother laenor were at some point considered jaehaerys’ heirs, we know daemon is ambitious so marrying her will bring him closer to the throne. but the show made laena (who is interested in flying more than boys) the one who seeks him out, she even admits that she was not his first choice.

The show has a lot of odd writing decisions that depict characters acting opposite from their book counterparts so trying to determine the motivations of the book characters by looking at the show versions is an exercise in futility.

Daemon clearly had a preference for Valyrian women. His favourite paramour was Mysaria, he willingly chose to marry Laena and then Rhaenyra, at brothels he was described as picking the Valyrian maidens, and he had no interest whatsoever in the non-Valyrian Rhea. So just as he had, at one time, wanted to have a family with Mysaria, this time too, with Laena, he could create a family with a suitable partner.

Though I’d say his reasons for marriage were more personal than political. Apart from being Valyrian, Laena is also a beautiful young woman described as having a fiery & adventurous personality, she claimed the dragon Vhagar at a young age, and she is the daughter of two people who Daemon is already familiar with. All of that would appeal to a man like Daemon.

Corlys is the type to keep an egg in every basket so I think he would see the political value of the Daemon/Laena marriage, but Daemon’s actions don’t make him appear to be acting in any political interest.

Prince Daemon fell in love with Laena, the singers would have us believe. Men of a more cynical bent believe the prince saw her as a way to check his own descent. Once seen as his brother’s heir, he had fallen far down in the line of succession, and neither the greens nor the blacks had a place for him…but House Velaryon was powerful enough to defy both parties with impunity.

Daemon is more pragmatic than people believe, so I don’t see him as the falling in love at first sight type. But his marriage to Laena was clearly not about the throne either. If Daemon’s claim is considered low on the line of succession, then Laena’s claim is even lower. Daemon would have to go on a murder spree to eliminate Viserys/Rhaenyra/her sons/Aegon/his sons/Aemond/Daeron, and then he and his children by Laena could be considered claimants for the throne. Clearly Daemon was not doing any of that.

Prince Daemon knew that his brother would not be pleased when he heard of his marriage. Prudently, the prince and his new bride took themselves far from Westeros soon after the wedding, crossing the narrow sea on their dragons.

It’s said that Daemon chose to leave Westeros after marrying Laena. Daemon is many things but not a coward. So it wasn’t simply a case of fearing his brother’s wrath. Daemon, hardly if ever, fears Viserys. Daemon’s marriage to Laena removed him from the political sphere entirely.

He and Laena returned back to Westeros only after they had children, at which point they took up residence with Laena’s family. It’s very unusual for a man in Westeros to be living with his in-laws, but that’s what Daemon did.

Laena is described as a fiery girl and Daemon is given the description of hot tempered. In his wife, Daemon found someone who could match his personality. They’re a very fire on fire dynamic. Just like Laena, Daemon also claimed his dragon. They both seem to dislike the stagnancy of staying in one place and are rather restless individuals (at least until they become parents). For many years, Daemon was stuck in a marriage to Rhea just as Laena was stuck in a betrothal to the Braavosi boy. They both know what it’s like to be devalued, Daemon because of his brother’s dismissal and Laena in general because of her gender being the reason she was passed over as heir to the throne. But neither of them are defined by this, judging by how Daemon chooses to live his life on his own terms and not by the whims of his brother and Laena not being bothered by the distance to the throne. So I’d say their marriage was a case of two like minded individuals finding common ground with each other.

[syndrossi]

What would have happened if Jon and Rhaegar were different ages when they went to Summerhall? If Rhaegar had already married Elia, or met and fallen for Lyanna, and if Jon hadn't beaten the others yet or met Dany or discovered his true parentage?

Ooh. WHat if whatever ritual the warlocks did to summon the two PTWP only managed to bring their souls to new bodies when they died, so Rhaegar is fresh from the Trident and Jon is fresh from being stabbed as Lord Commander - how long does it take Rhaegar to realise who Jon is? Also, Jon just collects father figures, so I find it hilarious that he'd get two more in Daemon and Rhaegar. Imagine it, 15/16 year old Jon and 24 year old Rhaegar!

If things were flipped that way, it would definitely be Rhaegar who figures out his relationship to Jon and rather quickly, since he'd have the information needed to put the pieces together, especially with Jon's stories at their shared storytime. And oof, them waking up right after a traumatic death would certainly make for a less than gentle start to things! I could see Jon coping very poorly, Rhaegar guessing that something had happened to this boy too, and some much earlier heart-to-hearts. I give it less than a month for Rhaegar to conclude that Jon is/was his son before.

Jon not having defeated the Others and not even KNOWING about Dany/the dragons means that Rhaegar gets a very bleak tale of the future. He had failed, and his failure had cost the lives of his family, his wife and children, and the woman he loved. Not only that, but his remaining son had grown up unloved, then been sent to the Wall with all rights to a family and inheritance of his own stripped from him, to face an impossible threat--only to be betrayed himself, the last of the Targaryens murdered. I don't know how he recovers from learning that, or how he could ever let himself be a child again. So Jon probably does end up with a weird mix of an adult father figure and a child-attempting-to-be-a-father-figure (and who would probably flat-out reject Daemon's attempts at being one to him).

Ultimately, I think it makes for a less interesting set of dynamics, which is why I chose the Jon-Rhaegar reversal of Rhaegar being younger. There are many stories of Rhaegar in a father-figure capacity for Jon, and it felt like it would be redundant/confusing with Daemon in the mix as the ultimate overprotective/overenthusiastic father! But certainly an interesting reversal to think about.

[darklinaforever]

I found a Nettle x Daemon shipper

They hated Daemyra because of the age gap as if Nettles wasn't 32 years younger than Daemon

They were saying that Nettles x Daemon was okay because Nettles was older than Rhaenyra was when Nyra got with Daemon which... Isn't truth?

As far as I'm aware Rhaenyra was in her 20s when she married Daemon and Nettles wasn't even 18 when she escaped

And even if we take the rumours of Daemon sleeping with Rhaenyra when she was 16 she was still the same age as Nettles was when she first appeared

In fact, Rhaenyra was 13 / 14 years old when there were sex rumors about her and Daemon, but that's honestly to be taken with a grain of salt. One version comes from Mushroom, a notorious pervert who includes himself in the Daemyra duo, and on the other, we have Eustace, a pro Greens, and at this stage, well before Daemon's return, the Greens were already reporting rumors about Rhaenyra's sexuality. So the idea that something sexual happened between Daemon and Rhaenyra when she was 13/14 should be taken with a pinch of salt. The only thing we can be sure of is that Daemon courted Rhaenyra for 6 months (I remind you that Rhaenyra was always accompanied by her ladies in waiting, except when she and Daemon flew on the backs of dragons) and then he asked his hand, following Viserys' anger. This is literally the only certainty we have on the Daemyra affair when Daemon returned from the war.

As for Daemon and Nettles' story, officially we have no proof that anything romantic or sexual happened between them.

And sorry, but the relationship with Nettles, if true, seems much more problematic than Daemyra, whose only thing that can disturb is the incest and age difference factor, although these two points are easily explained by the context of the universe if GRRM (not to mention that officially, Daemon married Rhaenyra when she was an adult like you said), and that apart from that, the relationship seems purely loving, and the two seem broadly equal, although Rhaenyra has the superior position as future queen and then queen, over Daemon.

But, why it's seem worse with Nettles ?

Daemon has a behavior towards Nettles that can be compared to a mentor / father figure. He certainly gives her gifts, but unlike Rhaenyra, all of them seem to have a practical use (so it doesn't look like gifts intended to seduce), not to mention that Daemon also taught Nettles a number of things (and don't come talking to me about the baths again, I have already covered the subject several times, as well as @horizon-verizon).

So, beyond the age difference, much worse between Nettles and Daemon, if these two had a romantic or sexual relationship... well it's very weird in terms of power dynamic.

A street girl, of 16 / 17 years, basically taken in by a prince of 49 / 50, who seems to act like a mentor / father figure to her and would eventually establish a romantic and sexual relationship with her... ?

Once again, it seems much more weird and problematic than Daemyra, who are certainly from the same family, but are Targaryens on whom incest has no genetic consequences but who on top of that, don't really seem to being around a lot during Rhaenyra's childhood. Certainly, Daemon gave her gifts and paid special attention to her when he returned from his travels, but people seem to forget that Daemon generally spent his time traveling or working for Viserys, spending little time at court in his moments there, and before that, he spent years stuck in the Val. Then he was exiled for 7 years, only returning when Rhaenyra was 13 / 14 years old, ready to be courted.

But the stans of Daemon and Nettles' so-called relationship are simply hypocritical.

They say the worst things about Daemyra just on the surface, when when you think about it for two seconds, their arguments are stupid, and even more so to justify preferring the unproven relationship with Nettles. Objectively, if there was a relationship, well the one with Nettles is much more problematic. And no, that Daemyra is incest is not enough to say that the relationship is worse, we have to stop the bullshit.

Also, I take this opportunity to point it out, people really seem to forget that Daemon is 49 / 50 years old at that time. He is literally quite old in the text which clearly places him in the last phase of his life. It seems to me that there is something about the way he walks because of old age in the text precisely. And I say that, because the fanarts I come across always have this tendency not to show how old Daemon is compared to Nettles. On the contrary, he looks like a young man. 😂

So, recap: Nettles is 16 / 17 years old. Daemon 49 / 50 years old. He seems to have a mentoring role towards her, which can also be associated as paternal, classic when we talk about a mentor, because he offers practical things to Nettles and teaches her things. Which implies a disordered power dynamic where Daemon has a considerable advantage (unlike with Rhaenyra). Sorry, but to me, if this relationship is romantic, it's very, very weird and worrying...

In addition, the age difference between Nettles and Daemon seems to be part of the limits of GRRM which, in my memory, did not create a romantic couple with this type of age difference, and indeed, generally duos with such a big age difference are never romanticized in the text, at least from what I remember.

And since Daemon is a gray / anti-hero character, I highly doubt he will get into this kind of questionable stuff.

Regardless, I will never understand Daemon and Nettles shippers.

Just like the delusion of saying you're racist if you don't ship her with Daemon.

I really like the character of Nettles, but I don't want her with Daemon. It's two different things.

And unlike some Nettles fans, no, I absolutely don't think that a romance with Daemon is essential to her character and that without it, it loses all its meaning. That's not the case, because the only thing that really matters about whether or not they might have an affair is that Rhaenyra believes it, nothing more.

Nettles, as a character, is not dependent on a romance with Daemon at all. Which I find quite reductive by the way.

Anyway, complaining about the Daemyra age difference, but not batting an eye when it's Nettles instead of Rhaenyra, is just hypocritical.

[tomyo]

Dungeon Meshi perfectly captures love and bonds developed between found families. At the start you expect a bunch of people who mostly reluctantly deal with each other, especially with how much things were falling apart only for the story to slowly tell you these people were once a hugely solid venturing group.

There really is a gentle beauty to the way the story slowly unveils the love they share for each other, Laois often going out of his way to protect Marcille who is one of the most integral people in the party. In another series they’d probably be the ones shipped if it weren’t for the obvious lesbianism. While she’s initially portrayed as whining and high maintenance, as the story goes on she’s very practical and determined to help their chances by teaching Laios magic. There’s also small details at the start like comforting back pats when Laois makes himself ill on bad cooking. A later episode I love is when he willingly ventures into her nightmare to help her from bad nightmares. The show makes a point that being in good condition is tantamount to surviving the dungeon but the motivation obviously lies more around her mental suffering. To me Laios and Marcille are also the standout relationship in the red dragon fight, they act like they have the most tightest bond of the current members. I want to liken them to a lady and her knight but also in how again, the series subverts the obvious dynamic of partners with romantic undertones that usually would get put onto them. Laios deeply cherishes Marcille but in the way one would cherish their sister (fitting since he is an older brother).

Chilchuck stands out as being especially distant and anti social with the others, the most likely to criticize the others. Albeit even before he is clocked as loving his teammates you can see the dad in him pop out at many points, more specifically his girl dad ness rubbing off on his relationship with Marcille. A cute early moment where she tiredly insists to got with him for the water refill but he refuses only then to get in trouble and believe she’ll be no use when in reality she was already waking up the others to find him. The irony is her thinking of him as younger when she really hovers around him like a daughter would around their father. He protects her innocence over the mermaid eggs for instance. A commonly seen spoiler is he is the one to braid her hair when she looses the ability to desire that. You regularly see him being the one to patch gear as well. His moodiness if often attributed to his age but it was mentioned somewhere he intentionally calorie restricts so he doesn’t set off traps and it wouldn’t surprise me if he experiences regular hunger.

Finally when it comes to Laios, I find him surprisingly profoundly sad. Despite being the biggest source of comedic relief, his oddities come with a sense of profound loneliness. It’s natural for a big brother to be determined to save his younger sister but flashbacks often sell me the idea that Falin is the one who truly gets him the most. There’s a higher range of emotions flash back Laois shows, sometimes feeling like a completely different person. A goofy child, a broodish teen, and a cautious young adult, always with Falin alongside him in his memories. But as a full adult he expresses happiness and light levels of sadness but often a lot more subdued contemplation is involved, likely why he is also the presumed party leader. In some ways it can feel like that lack of expression was in part the sense of a neurodivergent beat down into normalcy. Despite his comfort around his party, he never tells them of Kensuke’s nature. But Falin was shown to adore her brother deeply and share interests in dungeon culture with him. They never seemed to fully develop a “I ‘hate’ you” sibling phase. While mostly keeping calm about rescuing her, you can see a desperation suddenly appear when he finally takes on the red dragon.

The loss of Falin clearly has a big effect on all of them as possibly the heart of the group. You first feel it around the ghosts appearing when Chilchuck realizes she isn’t there to protect them. Someone who warded off the mental hardships for her comrades, such as the one to teach Laois about nightmares. Loved by Shuro and considered accepting his proposal despite not sharing his feelings. Loved by Marcille so much that she committed a crime to bring her back even though it lead to them never being able to leave the dungeon. Her return completely takes the edge off the group. It’s the defining jump from silly antics to more tender family moments. The group more or less surrenders their lives above for her sake. There’s something beautiful about that when we see from Marcille’s memories, she was also seen as a bit of a freak by her peers.

On the opposite side, there is Senshi who often exemplifies a lack of familiarity with the group. His relationships are defined as a common interest with Laois, an ignorance for chilchuck’s maturation, and often at odds with Marcille. In a lot of ways he stays an outsider for a long part of the first half of the anime, rarely presenting a character growth moment until the kelpie instance. Despite overall being agreeable, he acted somewhat arrogant over his understanding of the dungeon and his beliefs. One of the few ways he had to grow thus far is accepting his views weren’t always the truth.

The newest member Izutsumi was a great means to display the bond developed thus far, basically creating an outsider view of a family they have yet to belong to. Her story questions the norm we accepted of people who eat together from the vantage of someone who never was in a familial situation but rather a living piece of property. This time Senshi is playing the role of the father, teaching her manners for her food while Chilchuck is a bit of a pissy uncle until they manage to bond over a fight leading to him making her her own bag, and finally Marcille trying to be caring to her needs. What got me the most is what can be said from how in tune they were together with creating a sauna and how comfortable they were being semi nude with each other in a tight space. A different series would have taken the opportunity to exploit Marcille and Izutsumi for a moment of cheesecake. However we never really end up with a lingering shot or a comment on the situation because no one there is sexually interested in each other that way; they are a family after all. Great place to point out the difference in tone compared to Falin and Marcille’s bath scene, two characters considered to be the rare non platonic instance. Beyond that, there is some warmth to the way the all join in with each other for a meal as Izu watches on; Senshi feeding the blind Laois his food while Chilchuck joins his surrogate daughter (Marcille) who smiles at his presence.

I feel like I could go more at some point into ep 20, the overall dynamic, and the sadness of Laois but I’ll falling short rn.

[lightofwintersun]

Can we talk about Viserys I Targaryen's role in plot and his REAL TRAGEDY?

In the HOTD fandom, it is customary to expose King Viserys Targaryen as the main culprit of the Dance of the Dragon. All the bumps are raining down on him: "Oh, he's a weak fool, he doesn't give a damn about Alicent, why did he marry her then? ". Or "Why the hell did he makes children for Alicent if he didn't love them, and only looked in Rhaenyra's ?" "Why didn't he reform the succession by birthright?"

We blame to Viserys that if he had been consistent and far-sighted, he would have done this and that. But Viserys' role in the plot is exactly that. Sitting like a meme dog on fire.

Otherwise, the plot would not have happened.

Plus, you can also think about psychology. Some people are like that. Like Viserys. It's easier for them to pretend for years that everything is fine than to face the truth. And there are many such people. Yes, such people should not go to rule, but Viserys was chosen by the king. And his rulership is spoken of in books as the pinnacle of the Targaryen dawn. He did not waste his grandfather's legacy in the early years of his reign, at least.

But Alicent, you say. He was terrible man who married on 15-years girl, you say.

And here TV-SHOW cruelly deceiving you.

Due to the change in Alicent's age and the change in the dynamics of her relationship with Viserys, some accents have shifted. And as a result, the whole point of the situation was missed.

For those who have not read it: NEXT, WE WILL TALK ABOUT VISERYS FROM THE BOOK, NOT THE SERIES.

Viserys in the book loved not only Rhaenyra to the detriment of the rest of the children, as in the series. He also loved Alicent. Rhaenyra herself admits this, in plain text. His conflict was not in blind love for his daughter out of guilt, but in the fact that Viserys loved and his eldest daughter and his second wife. And he let the situation go because he didn't seen a way out of the rivalry that his wife and daughter had unleashed. He showered them with gold and gifts, but it didn't work. Due to the skew of Viserys' love for Rhaenyra by the screenwriters, the very essence of the conflict is missed. Viserys understood that Alicent wanted her son on the throne. But he couldn't resist her. Not because he didn't consider her a person and saw only Aemma in his heart, as in the series, but because he loved Alicent too.

Yes, he could have made a birthright reform. And that would be the right thing to do. It was necessary to do this. But perhaps he was afraid that the lords would rebel. And Viserys hated strife. And his love of family and dislike of strife led Westeros into civil war for a couple of years.

His tragedy was not only that he turned a blind eye to the traditions of the Westerosi. And it wasn't that he started a family that he didn't care about. But the fact is that he was a peaceful man who cared too much about relationships with his wife and daughter. The fact that his love for his family turned out to be weaker than their thirst for power.

Also about book!Viserys in family.

Viserys wanted to go to Dragonstone with the whole court, so that Aemond would choose an egg for himself or an already hatched dragon, so he was not indifferent to his problem.

It may seem like I'm devaluing Paddy Considine's work. No, I'm not. He did an excellent job with the task assigned to him. But imagine if we saw Viserys, who loves both Rhaenyra and Alicent and tries to reconcile them? Viserys, what helps Aemond in his trouble and propose to go to Dragonstone so that the boy can choose a dragon and an egg for himself? Viserys whose cares about Alicent? Finally, how does Helaena brings Viserys's grandchildren to him and he tells them a bedtime story, and they listen with their mouths open? Imagine Paddy Considine in it.

I'm sorry that the viewers of the show do not know such a Viserys. And already they won't find out

[alphacentaurinebula]

WOT - Lan's storyline

I have been loving WoT s2 and feel like overall the changes they've made have been for the better. But of course I'm now going to spend ages talking about the small bit of it I DON'T like (cough, fandom), because there is one element I am really not enjoying and that is Lan's storyline.

I really like Alanna and her warders in the show (she was very much not my fav character in the books) and I enjoyed the chance to see into their world more in Ep 4 (when we saw their lives together, their relationship, Alanna's family...). I liked the insight into this different warder dynamic. And i just super love Maksim. If we had 15 episode seasons, this would feel like a brilliant way to enrich the storyworld and secondary characters.

But given how much story they are packing in for everyone else, and how little time we actually HAVE in 8 episodes, this whole plotline has just felt like treading water/wasted time.

I don't feel like we've learned anything interesting about Lan, in the way Moiraine's storyline has been filled with both character revelation and backstory. He's broody? I think we knew that already. He's not into threesomes? Disappointing for Future Nyneave, but not exactly crucial information here!

And also Lan is just like...so dumb? Everyone and their mother understands how Moiraine got around the 3 oaths to say she didn't see them as equals. I get it, he's hurt, but...dude! And I've seen complaints (from book readers) that it was wrong of Alanna et al to accuse Lan of being a darkfriend because of his background, but that is rubbish. This world is set up so that literally no one above suspicion of being a darkfriend. It makes sense they'd be suspicious of him.

Which makes it even more ABSURD that he isn't suspicious of them, and instead just blurts out this MASSIVE secret about the Dragon Reborn. I know the Alanna squad set themselves up as not dark friends by accusing Lan, but that could have been manipulation! He's ridiculously trusting to tell them about the dragon reborn.

I know he's pissed with Moiraine and doesn't understand her plans or trust her as he once did...but this revealing of a secret they'd worked 20 years for, just seems...really flipping DUMB!

I know loads of people love Lan in the books but I find him super boring and basically only care about him and his fate because I love Nyneave so much. I really wish we weren't wasting screen time on him and a pointless plotline in a season where everything else is working so well.

[plutoisaghoul]

Some Sinfonia/Minecraft family headcanons

Chayanne has a pair of emerald earrings and Techno is his idol since Phil started telling him stories about Techno.

Chayanne also hopes that when he hatches, that he has some pink hues on his scales because of this admiration.

Chayanne and Wilbur play fight a lot. (That's just their dynamic)

Since Missa is the Son of La Catrina (as I read on several posts about/introducing the Spanish Streamers) I believe that he's gone now because Catrina summoned(?) him to help her reminding the humans to celebrate their loved ones that are gone.

Which is also why i headcanon him to know where exactly Trump, Tilin and Juanaflippa are but he can't tell their parents.

Since Phil technically made Kristin also canon in the QSMP Universe. I also believe that Kristin knows where the dead eggs are exactly aka she knows where the fuck heaven is.

The reason why both of them can't tell anybody about it is because it would interrupt the circle of life and death. (and Rubius already interrupts that circle enough as it is by bringing back Flippa that one time and sending Foolish to hell)

Also obviously she knows about Rubius both Angel and Devil Rubius.

I headcanon Phil to also be an ancient being in this universe.

So technically the entire family is fucking old although they don't age like normal humans.

Chayannes arsonic tendencies come from him being a dragon.

[horizon-verizon]

I physically cringe at how toxic some fans are becoming.

Canonically Rhaenyra loved all her children, Jace would have been a great king, Luke and Joffrey's deaths are tragedies Like the disappearance/supposed death of Visenys and Aegon loved his older brothers, so where did this brutal division come from where one side calls the older ones irrelevant and useless bastards and the other says Aegon and Visenys weren't just as loved as the three first brothers.

I find it worrying that for the first one they are recycled TG comments (I can only assume these people are A/V fans and not Rhaenyra fans if they are regurgitating this mentality) and the seconds are the fault of the same problem that the VB and the dragon twins already suffered, that of the change in ages, time jumps and poor management of time on screen translates into poor development of family dynamics.

Also, even in the show this whole argument about who Rhaenyra loves more, Harwin's or Daemon's children is super stupid because you can argue either way due to circumstantial evidence.

She loves Daemon's people more because they are children of the love of her life! She loves Harwin more because he's not a pedophile!She loves Luke more because she called him her "sweet boy" (at one point he was worried and she comforted him)! She loves Daemon's children less because she barely kissed them (we ignore that she takes the time to go play with them*)!!

Or let's make the opposite argument!! Lucerys (from Harwin) and Visenya (from Daemon) aren't enough to start a war, so I imagine she doesn't care about either of them 😳

This is all stupid and ignores both the source material and the show's writing problems, and Rhaenyra (either Rhaenyra) would be furious and ashamed that anyone make these kinds of arguments against her children.

(Now, if anyone wants to talk about Rhaenyra treating the dragon twins less like her daughters or her husband's daughters and more like one of her servants, yeah, I have no arguments against the way They destroyed those relationships because they did not " nuanced " it, they simply eliminated it)

*I have only seen intolerance from one of these sides and I am genuinely curious what it looks like in these people's heads to show that Rhaenyra "does" care about Aegon and Visenys Let it not be something she already did and just needed to be expanded upon because it appears that they mean is that they have to show Rhaenyra caring MORE about them than her other three children. Rhaenyra is supposed to hold Aegon and say "oh, my beloved Valyrian-looking son that I can love with all my heart." ?

I believe the writing for the show--how they have her literally do almost nothing for her kids after Luke dies--encourages and flamed the fires for these already existing ideas for people to be so brave about it. I myself haven't seen some myself and I think that has to do with good filtering, but I don't deny they exist. Truthfully, such ideas have existed a very long time in the fandom and I hate them.

[ladybug023]

More Daeron HCs!

(I’m all about the brotherly dynamic of Aemond and Daeron!! .)

He’s the complete opposite of his brothers.

Unlike Aemond, Daeron loves tourneys and jousting.

He has deadly golden retriever energy. Joyful and friendly but don’t fuck with him.

He’s like the Rhaenys to Aemond’s Visenya. He’s the most people person brother. This is his greatest strength.

Tall asf for his age. Taller than both of his brothers. He hit a growth spurt at 13 and is now 6ft and he’s still growing.

At 14 Daeron was already unhorsing men twice his size In jousting matches.

One of the most handsome men in Westeros too. Women practically throw themselves at him. He chooses to be completely oblivious to it.

Both Aegon and Aemond envy him. He’s everything Alicent and Otto wanted them to be.

Aemond sees Daeron as someone he could’ve been if he didn’t lose his eye. But Aemond doesn’t hold it against his little brother. He could never. Especially since Daeron looks up to him.

When Daeron did visit his family for holidays, he always makes time to help his sister with her charity work.

His biggest flaw is that he’s a bit too optimistic and honorable. He always tries to see the good in others. A big example of this is when he always gives his brothers the benefit of the doubt.

After the Luke incident, even Alicent lost faith in Aemond. Daeron was the only one there for Aemond emotionally.

Aemond breaks down to Daeron telling him that he didn’t mean to kill his nephew.

Daeron is always there to pull Aemond back from the darkness and encourage him to not be the one eyed monster that Westeros believes him to be.

Daeron: Show them what I see. Show them the kind and compassionate man I know you are Aemond.

Aemond: I wish I could be that man little brother…but I am afraid he died with Lucerys Velaryon…

Daeron basically became the Green’s PR manager. He knew it was important to win over the love of the small folk.

Especially since now Aemond was seen as a kinslayer and Aegon’s reputation was less than savory.

The reason that the small folk loved the Greens was mostly because of Daeron’s actions.

He wrote and encouraged songs to be sung about Queen Helaena’s beauty and Aegon’s strength.

Daeron did a lot of in charity work and frequented orphanages. He’d take orphans on dragon rides on the back of Tesseron.

He always donated leftovers from the castle to be given to the people in flee bottom.

He basically ran the city while Aegon drank and Aemond went to war.

Daeron commissioned to improve Kingslanding’s buildings and put in a hydro powered sewage system.He wanted to redesign the entire city to look like a mix of Old Town and Old Valyria.

He also knew that it was important that the small folk had jobs to keep them busy and paid.

Otto noticed Daeron’s achievements and named him commander of the city watch.

(I like this idea for him it parallels to Jon’s time leading the crows. Everyone underestimates him because he’s young but he proves himself to be a great leader.)

Daeron went to work stomping out the corruption within the city watch. He had Ser Gwayne as his right hand and together they put a end to child pit fighting (much to Aegon’s annoyance). He also targeted the use of children under the age of 13 in brothels making it illegal.

This really pissed Ser Luther Largent the former corrupt City Watch Commander. He was enraged that he was replaced by a teenage boy. So much so, that one day Luther challenged the Daeron to a duel in front of the entire city.

To everyone’s surprise, Daeron won by slashing his Achilles’ tendon. Watching the 7 foot man fall in agonizing pain.

Daeron demonstrated his mercy by allowing Luther to live but stripped of his rank.

[themerlinlibrary]

Favourites Friday (Dec 2023) – Self-Rec Round: Family Dynamics

TML Favourites Friday round-up! December 2023 round 5 (SRR)

What is Favourites Friday? – The Basics

a different theme is announced on Friday each week; FF recs must match the theme of the week

only one FF rec per person per week/theme

FF recs must be unique within that week/theme; no double-posting the same fic for one theme!

no self-recs during regular rounds

only self-recs during self-rec rounds (last Friday of each month)

Theme for this self-rec round: Family Dynamics!

Untested Fear by TheManTheMythTheLazy G, 1.4k, Arthur & Uther Canon era

Blackout, Beaming, Gold by Zaharya M, 19k, Merlin/Arthur Steampunk AU, Whump

The Great Dragon by s0mmerspr0ssen T, 71k, Merlin & Arthur Canon AU, Bromance

The Last Night (You'll Have To Be Alone) by Glon_Morski T, 127k, Merlin & Arthur Post Canon, Modern Era

fill my little world by ravenwilds G, 4,8k, Merlin/Arthur Modern AU, Parent!Merlin

And Mother Knows Best by Imagined G, 4k, Merlin/Arthur Canon era, Magic reveal

My Heart Beats the Tempo of You by thesongistheriver E, 65k, Merlin/Arthur Modern AU, musician and actor

Home is where the heart is by Brechtjeeatscheese M, 85k, Merlin/Arthur Modern AU, Werewolves

Kin and Kind and Other Blood by theaceofdragons G, 560, Gen Dragon Age

To Lose and to Love by Excited_Insomniac T, 17k, Merlin/Arthur Modern AU, Parenting

Morgana by kirani  G, 1.8k, Gen  Modern AU, trans!Morgana

Have You Come to Cure My Heart? by sleepygecko G, 991 words, Gaius & Arthur Canon

A masterlist of all round-ups can be found here (oldest to newest) or here (newest to oldest).

If you want to make sure you never miss a FF rec, or would like to participate and share your own favourites; join us on the Discord TheMerlinLibrary! Happy reading!

About the FF round-up lists:

Recs are listed in the order they were posted on the Discord; the order does not imply any sort of ranking.

The pairing given in this list is the main pairing of each respective fic – please read the tags for any possible minor or side-pairings, as well as any potential warnings or triggers.

Pairings and Eras are given as tagged in each respective fic. (?) signifies that the tags were unclear and I do not know enough about the fic to fill the gaps.

Round-ups are compiled on the weekend of the week after the respective theme of the post (when the new theme has already been anounced), to avoid omitting potentially belated FF recs.

The weekly round-up is not a guarantee! I'm running this alone, so it can only be posted for weeks when I have enough time on my hands to compile a list. If you'd like to help out, feel free to contact me on Tumblr ( @zaharya ) or Discord. Thanks to @ravenwilds for helping me out with this round-up!

[archersgoon]

what i have been thinking about recently is my own personal headcanons regarding carles and tilda. bc i don't think it's a stretch to argue that the image we get in-canon is an idealised view of them greatly impacted by their violent deaths (like this is just text. thank you abian). as some of you may be aware i am not especially fond of carles, so this will not be especially charitable to him

i should clarify my personal mont timeline here (assume carles is roughly of an age with tilda his family is 100% less interesting [&less relevant] to me). first we're putting yata's birth at roughly 13 years earlier than it is in canon (so she's ~78 in fotr). we're also making saro a decade older, and moving tilda from fifth to second in birth order. i think i'm putting her and saro as very close in age also. like <18 months. so she was roughly 50 when she died, making her 41 & 43 at the births of balthazar and isaboe, respectively, and (assuming a 15-16 yr age gap between evestalina & isaboe) making her (and carles) roughly 27 when they had their first kid.

ok now that's out of the way. their first meeting. i think this actually went as established in canon they were incredible impulsive lol. good for them. altho i will say that i go for ~25 as the age here, which i think is a bit older than implied. anyway it sort of reads like he's already king by this point and lumatere government + court is incredibly small, so they come back to the palace like 'we're getting married!! 😁😁" and topher's predecessor is sat there head in hands while topher goes out to hunt down some willow bark.

so young adult tilda's spent her whole life in a local position of relative power, since her father's hbic of the monts & saro's his successor (and saro at least is real enough to involve her) + presumably she was involved in whatever yata's job description is. so she rocks up to the palace with smaller-scale experience that can in theory be applied here, and she's used to being listened to. she figures she can clean up shop a bit if necessary.

here's where it starts to get nasty (sorry). i... don't really think she was doing all that well in the palace. like i think carles was a loving & doting husband or whatever the fuck, but i don't think he really listened to her in matters of state. like we know she grit we know she had determination but none of that ever really shines through in terms of policy & stuff. dragon ships foreign policy etc. do not seem to be things she had any influence in & tbh i think the only real in-canon manifestation we can attribute specifically to her is that doggedness you see in isaboe regarding survival of the royal house

i think this is mostly due to carles. if we assume that finnikin's stance on women (while relatively extreme) is derived from more common views in lumatere then it isn't a stretch to assume that carles, while undeniably in love with his wife, maybe didn't respect her as a person quite as much as he thought he did. like he had that same problem wherein he treats valid concerns as just women's business even at the expense of his personal & political clout (you can also argue that this dynamic being modeled for isaboe as the ideal relationship explains why she puts up with finnikin's bullshit as much as she does, even if she does exercise concrete power). so even though this weakens his position & makes him an ineffectual king that's how things proceed.

as a result we have tilda, who loves her husband but is frustrated by his ineffectiveness, exercising authority in the one area left to her: producing an heir. if we assume the same semi-salic succession laws as in belegonia & charyn apply here, then without a son from her the lumateran heir is the future imposter king (i assume this position was why he was captain of the guard despite his conflicting loyalties), who she sees being weak, ineffectual, and frankly dangerous every damn day. but she keeps having daughters. and canonically this weighs on her a lot mentally and physically. even if we don't use my preferred timeline, it certainly reads like there's at least a decade b/w evestalina and balthazar. from her pov she has one job & she can't seem to do it. we don't know when yata started doing the one week on, one week off routine, but i think it's probably because even with all the paid assistance she gets as the queen, even before she had five kids total, tilda was not doing well emotionally. like if i am being honest i think she felt trapped in that palace.

anyway. was carles in any way helpful here? i don't fucking know. he was clearly engaged with his children in the few snippets we get of him, so he would've hopefully been a help on that front, but i don't know how useful he was on a deeper level. like were he and tilda supporting each other in their attempts for an heir, or was he being (from his perspective) helpful in a way that only compounded the pressure she felt (i.e. 'maybe next time' kind of chatter every time they had a daughter/any presumed miscarriages [they defo happened]). & then after she finally manages balthazar she immediately follows it up with a high-risk accidental pregnancy. howd she feel about that (i know yata & seranonna were shitting bricks). like all that effort and now you might die. but then she survived and finally got a kid that looked like her so maybe it was fine idk

i think maybe things did improve after that given 1. the removal of the imposter king both as heir & captain (and his removal to charyn) & 2. the assurance provided by balthazar. though carles was still shit-useless as king so that was presumably a major stressor

tldr tilda was unprepared for both the increased pressure that came with being queen & her husband's failure to take her seriously when she tried to advise him politically, resulting in her focusing all her effort on that front into producing an heir, in a way that was incredibly unhealthy for her on many levels

[destinygoldenstar]

Miki Peridot ; The Ultimate Scientist (Danganronpa The Privileged Traitor)

Takeo Midorigawa (Tah-Kay-oh Me-door-ee-gah-wa) ; 21 Years Old ; From Hiroshima, Japan ; The Ultimate Scientist

*Fanganronpa Antagonist* Miki Peridot is a student of Hopes Peak College Class B-3 in Danganronpa The Privileged Traitor. I labeled her as ‘the antagonist’ but keep in mind that in this fangan, the protagonist is the traitor and the support is the mastermind, knowledge the audience has right away. So keep in mind there’s a difference between ‘antagonist’ and ‘villain’ in definition.

Takeo Midorigawa is her birth name, but she made a name change as the Mad Scientist and rogue inventor, Miki Peridot. Famous for her reckless inventions to be displayed throughout the country of Japan, and her mechanical arm, which she claims to the public is her personal sidekick, and she became an amputee when she fought a shark mutated into a T-Rex hybrid. The creature lost.

This story is a lie. In actuality, she was born in critical condition.

She was miraculously rescued, but without an arm and metal devices all over her chest that couldn’t be removed. She had to get a prosthetic arm, and keep this metal all over her torso. As such, she’s flat chested, and infertile. She would be like this the rest of her life.

Despite her condition, she was quickly adopted by a loving family that were both inventors. They taught her everything about tech and science of all sorts. Miki quickly proved herself as a prodigy who grasped rocket science at age five. And soon she started making experiments of her own and publishing these experiments to the world. She found the cure for cancer when she was twelve.

The only problem with her fame was that it went to her head. If there’s one seven deadly sun that describes Miki, it’s pride.

She wears her image like a trophy, is extremely confident, and is prone to bragging rights and putting herself on a pedestal that deserves respect. She knows she’s modern science’s best b*tch.

Though it’s because of this ego that she has a hard time connecting with other people. Though the reasoning is different in Sara’s case, this is something the two have in common.

Because of accusations of her inventions being dangerous, Miki was described as a mad scientist supervillain using her inventions to take over Japan.

Her rival who would play cat and mouse with her was Japan’s vigilante of the night, The Black Dragon (Riyuko Kurai).

It’s a classic superhero supervillain dynamic, but with a twist.

Because Miki defeated her opponent. But not in the sense of ‘she killed her’ or ‘she locked her up’. No, instead she persuaded her that her inventions were actually beneficial, and the two became friends who perused the same goal.

Now Mikis inventions are being sold to people for protection and innovation, and she’s known as the supervillain who won.

Riyuko is Miki’s only friend, and the only person she chooses to interact with. Everyone else is someone who needs to be protected or marketed to, and therefore inferior.

And then both of them go to Hopes Peak, only to realize it’s a killing game. People will die.

Miki tasks herself to use her tech to protect the other students with tech and using her brain to solve the school mystery. But no one wants her help because of how she approaches the goal of protecting them. She’s arrogant about it, and cold towards others who try to help besides Riyuko, and has a temper when it comes to people touching her stuff. DONT TOUCH HER STUFF.

She sees the other students as lesser intelligent and strength who need protection and a savior, and not as people who can survive on their own. Riyuko is the only exception as a vigilante who already proved to Miki she was capable of such.

If she wants to save the others and solve the mystery on who the bad guys are, she may have to learn humility.

Victim? Killer? Survivor?

Again, I labeled her as ‘the antagonist’. But look up the definition. Then look up the definition of a villain. There’s a difference between the two words. Especially if you know who the protagonist (Sara Fumihito) and support (Senri Endo) are supposed to be.

Miki is also the only character in this cast who is an amputee, with no killing game causing it. That metal arm is not armor or anything, that’s her actual arm.

Riyuko Kurai, The Black Dragon, The Ultimate Vigilante, is also a student and a character.

See my other profiles; The Protagonist ; The Mastermind; The Ultimate Musical Sensation ; The Ultimate Good Cop ; The Ultimate Bad Cop ; The Ultimate Archer ; The Ultimate Environmentalist ; The Ultimate Arsonist ; The Ultimate Vigilante ; The Ultimate Violinist ; The Ultimate Renaissance Student ; The Ultimate Dance Streamer ; The Ultimate Video Game Modifier ; The Ultimate Poetry Writer

[lemonhemlock]

do you have any thoughts on Baelon and Alyssa? I’ve been seeing lots of discourse on what they would think about Rhaenyra or how the dance would play out if Baelon was king

an ask from May, lol. sorry it took me this long!

i'm gonna be a bit lemontarty and go against the grain on this one. a popular take i've seen is how alysanne was so brainwashed by targcest that she interpreted alyssa always being glued to baelon's side as marital intention and thus paired them up from a young age. kind of like how straight people have that annoying habit in that they see a boy and a girl playing and, as a result, call them boyfriend and girlfriend and start planning their wedding. i don't think it's an outrageous take, but i also don't think it was necessarily the author's intention here.

not that targcest fucking up family dynamics isn't a worthwhile topic of conversation, but i don't really see it in the way those two specifically were written. it seems to be one of grrm's exceptions he throws in ever so often. i say this because neither baelon, nor alyssa ever expressed regret with their relationship or even any kind of dissatisfaction, nor is even one argument or point of contention between them ever mentioned. they apparently couldn't keep their hands off each other and baelon never recovered mentally after alyssa's death.

that being said, i take issue with how alyssa was written bc she is way too much of a Cool Girl™. now FB came out in 2018 and Gone Girl in 2014, so idek what george was thinking with this, bc alyssa is 100% the girl in the monologue. she is sporty, low maintenance, the only thing she wants to do is fuck her man, fly her dragon & give baelon enough sons to field a football team etc. she's so much of a male fantasy it's hard not to laugh, tbh. you just know she'd eat only pizza and never gain weight.

as for what they would think about rhaenyra, who knows. it's worth mentioning that rhaenyra would have never been in the running for queen if rhaenys, daughter of prince aemon and baelon&alyssa's niece, hadn't been passed over. now, alyssa was long dead when aemon died, but had she been alive, for thing to happen in the same way, then she should have been complicit in the passing over (twice) of rhaenys. so if she would have been comfortable with that, why would she be a rhaenyra supporter? alyssa honestly gives me boy mom vibes. if she didn't die, she would have given baelon a ton of children & possibly more sons who could have, in time, produced other male offspring, complicating things even further.

the dance wouldn't happen during baelon's reign, it would happen after baelon and viserys both died. but it could happen while alyssa was a queen dowager. so, in this scenario, who's to say she wouldn't have already convinced viserys to name aegon as successor? thus avoiding any dance at all. i find it hard to believe she would champion rhaenyra for queen when she herself would have been complicit re: rhaenys.

also, another thing to consider is that viserys' obsession for a son was also born out of the scarcity of targaryen heirs at the time: daemon was a loose canon, rhaenyra was a girl and rhaenys had married outside of the family so her children were technically velaryons. if alyssa gave baelon more children, it's very possible that viserys would not have pressured aemma for more offspring so much as he knew that, if push came to shove, he could call another great council and they had more options to consider as heir.

ANOTHER thing i would like to add to complicate this timeline even more is that alyssa could have provided sisters for viserys and daemon to marry, thus negating the need for viserys to even marry aemma in the first place (and rhaenyra's existence) and daemon's fixation on his underage niece. or, you know, viserys can still marry aemma (say it's true love or whatever) and, after she dies, he can marry a younger sister of his instead of alicent.

and with that i've provided plenty of AUs out there for you potential writers 🎈

[carriagelamp]

This month I managed to read a few Classic Children's Novels that I've been meaning to get around to for years, so it was very satisfying to finally have them checked off my list!

Early Man: Junior Novelization

This is a novelization of the Aardman film, in which you learn about the secret neolithic origins of football/soccer, in which a timid, bumbling clan of Stone Age cavemen find themselves being overwhelmed by an all powerful Bronze Age empire… a Bronze Age empire that loves football. The only way to save their valley will be for the cavemen to somehow learn this strange new sport and beat the Bronze Age champions.

I really enjoy this movie and I often enjoy a novelization, so I thought I’d see how this one was. And it was… fine. It pretty well expresses the movie in simple language, with no shocks and surprises — though it was Americanized which always gets my goat. If something is written in British English just leave the damn thing in British English, especially if one of the key concepts is football/soccer, it just becomes jarring to “soccer” when the whole movie refers to it as “football” smh

Elmer and the Dragon // The Dragons of Blueland

I read the first book of this trilogy — My Father’s Dragon — a couple months ago because of the Netflix film and quite enjoyed it. These next two books were… fine. The first felt quite fresh and interesting and charming, in which a young boy called Elmer ventures to Wild Island to try to save a baby dragon that’s been imprisoned by the animals there. These next two are a direct continuation of that adventure, but honestly just feel more like additional chapters more than anything, they don’t really stand on their own. In Elmer and the Dragon, Elmer and the baby dragon escape Wild Island and end up having a little adventure with some birds who have a strange mystery on their island. In The Dragons of Blueland, Elmer is called back by the baby dragon to help save his family who are being hunted and are trapped in a cave. 

Grandmaster of Demonic Cultivation 3

I adore this series, and I’ve talked about it at length before. I can’t believe that this book almost entirely took place in the past and never resolved the cliffhanger from the end of book two, but it just as me desperate to get my hands on the fourth book. The way all the different layers of the past are gradually being woven together to not only give answers but to actually raise more questions is really well done and makes it really satisfying to track how all these different characters connect to each other, and who knows what, and what events happened before and after other events…

I Think Our Son Is Gay

Just a very cute little manga about a housewife who suspects that her son may be gay. The son hasn’t come out yet, and is doing his best to try to cover it up, though he is sweet and very easy to read and not a terribly good liar. This is just the cutest slice of life — the mother accepts her son completely and is supporting him from the background until he’s ready to come out himself.

Julián Is A Mermaid

A lovely and loving picture book about a little boy who is completely enthralled by mermaids. He does his best to get dressed up as one, making a horrible mess in the process. However, when his abuela finds him and the mess, rather than being upset, she helps him perfect his costume and encourages him to do the things that make him feel happy and excited. All about self-love and passions and how children might express themselves in different ways.

I find some books like this can occasionally feel less like fun stories a child would enjoy and more like a lecture directed at adults who are already familiar with the topic, but this one is a perfect balance. It has a message to share, but the art is wonderful and dynamic, and the story is one a child could enjoy and relate to.

My Dress-Up Darling v1

I’ve had a hard month, so my brother bought me the first book of this as a happy day present because he thought it was funny. It definitely was and I think I’ll pick up the next book, it made me giggle out loud.

This story is about a boy who is learning the art of making traditional hina dolls from his dollmaker grandfather. While he loves the work, and is excited to be ready to work on more than just the clothing, he feels like a misfit for this unusual passion. Things change though when he finds his sewing skills suddenly being called for by a classmate who has her own odd passion -- a video game character that she desperately wants to cosplay. It's very cute, very silly, and is absolutely chock full of fanservice if you enjoy some gratuitous, silly sexiness along with romcom.

Nick and Charlie

Like many people I’ve been enjoying the Heartstopper graphic novel series, and finally picked up this little novella that Oseman had written years ago about a snapshot into Nick and Charlie’s relationship. This novella takes place in the lead up to Nick going off to university — Nick’s excited and Charlie’s anxiety over being left behind or forgotten is at an all time high. It was a very sweet and very quick read, I enjoyed settling down with it.

The Secret of Platform 13

I’ve often heard this book called a clear inspiration behind Harry Potter and have always meant to read it — well, now I finally have! I really enjoyed The Secret of Platform 13 and would highly recommend it to anyone that wants a book that reads like good, old-school, children’s low fantasy. I honestly can’t remember the last time I read a fantasy novel that gave me quite this feeling in a long time.

There is a magical world kept hidden safely away from the mundane world, where humans and magical beings are able to live together in safe and happy harmony. Every few years though, a door between the worlds open for a few days, giving a chance for people to crossover. During one of these moments, the newly born prince is brought over… and kidnapped, disappearing into the mundane world and unable to be rescued before the closing of the door. The magical kingdom waits many anxious years for the door to open once more, so that an intrepid rescue party can be sent out to save the lost, kidnapped prince…

Shaun the Sheep: The Flock Factor // The Beast of Soggy Moor

I really love these little Shaun the Sheep novels, between the art and the silly, cute writing style they really capture all the great things about the show. I had read a few of them a couple years back, and decided to finish off the series.

These books are all about Shaun, the de facto leader of the farm’s sheep flock, who is always coming up with schemes and plots and pranks. Along with him is the rather bumbling sheep flock, always ready for some mischief, Bitzer the overworked sheepdog who is just trying to keep order, and the completely clueless Farmer who manages to get into just as much trouble as his flock.

Stuart Little // The Trumpet of the Swan

I got onto an E. B White kick at the end of the winter holidays, because I have read Charlotte’s Web a hundred times, but haven’t read his other two children’s novels. I will say, I can see why it’s Charlotte’s Web that has really stood the test of time while the other two have become a bit more of a footnote. Both were enjoyable reads, but I wouldn’t bother recommending either unless someone really wanted a classic children’s novel to read.

The Trumpet of the Swan is about a trumpeter swan who is born without a voice. Determined to find ways to communicate, Louis goes through a variety of adventures, in which he befriends a human boy, learns how to print, is gifted a trumpet, gets employed at a summer camp, and even saves his love from a zoo. There’s some bits I really like, but then there’s other bits that don’t quite sit right, especially towards the end. It’s a mixed bag in my opinion.

Stuart Little I found particularly disappointing, especially because I assumed it would be like the film that came out in the aughts. Instead, Stuart Little is more episodic than possessing an overarching story, in which the mouse Stuart, born to a human family, goes through a series of odd misadventures that a mouse can get into. Once again, I found the ending weird… E. B. White just has a kind of weird fixation about love and I don’t love how it’s expressed in these children’s books. It feels out of place and frankly uninteresting. Honestly, I’d rather just rewatch the movie.