#Intelligent Decisions

[muchymozzarella]

Listening to the podcast with Tumblr's CEO about how Tumblr is running on debt because he believes it's worth keeping up because of how unique and good it is as a blogging platform and honestly it warms the heart

And how Tumblr may have been purchased for 3 million but at one point cost 60 million a year to run and they decided it was worth slowly fixing and honestly it warms the heart

And thinking about how Musk bought Twitter for way above its valuation when in fact he was also getting all of its debts and liabilities since Twitter was, like Tumblr, also running on debt, so he actually owes way more than 44 billion dollars and that's why he's no longer the richest man on earth and that's why he's floundering and losing his mind, and honestly it warms the heart

And about how Tumblr are happily poaching talent from Twitter and investors are looking at Tumblr as a worthwhile investment and the debt is going down in part because of Twitter's fuckup and honestly it warms the heart

[ofswordsandpens]

ever since I heard that RR was like "we decided that since Annabeth was so smart and 6 steps ahead of everyone, it wouldn't make sense for her to do x, y, or z like she did in the book" I've been physically ill, it haunts me

[gambitandrogues]

Hey friendly reminder that Jesper Fahey was supposed to be attending Ketterdam University, the same place the royal family decided to send Nikolai to (and assumed he was also attending). If I see one more person dumb Jesper down to comic relief when he was smart enough to get into the same school a prince was attending, it's on sight.

[willosword]

☹️

[garvalhaminho]

why does every tsc male main character act like a divorced father of three w bills to pay at 17. who gave them the right.

[fromtheseventhhell]

I ignore about 95% of the conversations surrounding Arya having killed people because, outside of Arya stans, people refuse to include the context of the very violent circumstances she experiences + her trauma which influences her actions. She wasn't destined to be a killer and her being forced on the run, having to survive during a war (at times on her own), having to witness countless people being tortured and murdered, being enslaved as a prisoner of war, having to witness the deaths of her family, etc. are all hugely important factors. Not to mention the times when her life is literally on the line and she has to make tough decisions to ensure her survival. The only time her trauma is acknowledged is when people are using it to prove she's "too far gone", otherwise it's essays on how she hasn't suffered that much. It's so boring how people ignore well-developed characters just to reduce them to one or two aspects of their story. And this treatment is only for certain characters; let someone mention Sansa being part of the plot to poison Sweetrobin and all of a sudden, people can understand being forced to make questionable decisions under difficult circumstances.

[requiemforthestars]

I'm a NATLA defender now, tbh. I think more people will grow to appreciate its good parts more as time goes on. I'm of course waiting to see how they wrap everything up and I'm not immune to its flaws, but I think people are so blinded by everything not being The Exact Same as the original cartoon than they're not appreciating its good parts. It's an adaptation, a companion, it's not a replacement to the original.

[good-beanswrites]

See, Milgram said there's this kid who developed a hero complex from his video games. He got caught up in fantasies of killing the bad guy, he took justice into his own hands, and it killed someone for real. And they could have said yeah, he's a shoot-em-up game guy. He glorifies the military and oogles the tactical gear in the games. Or maybe he has fantasies of an action hero, car chases and explosions and machine guns. And that would have been such a nasty guy, yeah? I'd hate every bit of him and it could have been fine!

But no! They said he likes knights!!! Fucking knights!!! They said, he has fantasies of picking up his righteous fire sword and defeating monsters. He imagines himself in shining armor and vibrant landscapes. He's unbearably lonely and just loves the thought of leading a team of trusted adventurers who will have his back no matter what. And so now I'm screwed because I'm sitting there like FUUUUCK!! That does feel righteous!! That is the dream! I have had those exact thoughts after playing my little knight video games!! There's nothing wrong with wanting those things!! ARGGH!!

[ihaterossfromfriends]

Me when I think too hard about what the internet/lily orchard did to steven universe

[ID. cause I know tumblr's video player is shit. Jontron sitting on a couch in his basement points at the camera and says "you fuckers! YOU FUCKERS! I WILL RAIN HELLFIRE UPON YOU!" as the video and audio distorts to emphasize his frustration]

[beanghostprincess]

we gotta start giving luffy more credit for his emotional intelligence and empathy because i don't think y'all are aware of how fucking smart this lil dude really is

[kaeyachi]

I've seen some people who are saying "Kaeya already chose Mondstadt!"

Sure, we can agree that his heart is with Mondstadt, but his storyline so far isn't leading to a clean-cut decision at all. Something will happen that will make him decide, and that means there will be heavy consequences for either choice.

He could learn vital information that would make deciding hard for him, or he could be forced into doing something he doesn't agree with to keep others safe.

He'd do everything to protect the people he loves and cares for, and if that might mean teaming up with the Abyss or the Tsaritsa? Even if he might get hated for it? Even if it could kill him? He'd do it.

And do not be so quick to think that he doesn't care for his homeland- a nation where time and time again, the narrative of "not all of its citizens deserved getting cursed" and "there might be a cure to the curse" keeps coming back (the cure being known to an Alberich at that, as far as we know of). No matter how he may feel about his father, he is still aware of his responsibilities as an Alberich. He says he doesn't hold much concern now for his birth nation, and yet he has used what he knows in concerning ways ( Windblume letter to Venti that could be perceived as a threat/warning, luring out Dainsleif with his surname)

Basically, what I'm saying is that there is no way it is going to be that easy for him.

[drrav3nb]

KIM YOUNG KWANG as SEO DO YOUNG in EVILIVE (2023)

[brionnnne]

note that i will only ever call mithrun "stupid" jokingly. by "stupid", i only mean "frustrating behavior that i am immensely familar with". seeing him do something that makes me groan aloud, closing my eyes, sighing "stupid (affectionate, mournful)". like when he fucking... his dumbass "i don't want to [use the bathroom] right now, so it's fine." oughh. i know you! i know you! that's not how that works!!! and he's smart!!! he's so smart... but god, god... he's kind of an absent professor. he's kind of a cloudcuckoolander. i love him dearly. he gets called a dummy, a little idiot, and i flick his forehead, a little bonk of hard-heads, like "try again, idiot. that's not how bodies work." and "ooh, 'that's not going to work'. yes it is. shut up, stoopid. stubborn little man, my god." rolling my eyes forever.

[whenthegoldrays]

I got to the part where Catherine suspects General Tilney of murdering his wife and like. you can’t even blame her. I’d think the same thing, or at least suspect that he willfully neglected her so that she’d die. free my girl Cathy, she’s done nothing wrong

[sevenines]

i’ve been listening to/watching many (many, many) reactions to steven universe (because that’s what you do when you become newly obsessed with something. see what everyone else thinks about it and drive yourself mad) and it’s so interesting to see all the unique ways people tackle it and the common threads between them all.

there’s podcast recaps (pressure to over-analyze) vs youtube reactions (pressure to overreact). everyone knowing the show (yay) vs fans guiding newcomers (interesting) vs everybody being blind (often disastrous). don’t mind silly fun? they love the first season and amethyst’s character. told about how ~deep~ it gets and expecting only that? they love pearl and have to be dragged through the beginning. even how they chunk the episodes affects things—in watching episode-by-episode, people go the most mad as they try to squeeze meaning out of episodes they can’t yet appreciate until later (or are just. bad at analyses.). in chunks of two, people assume su will have much more horror after watching frybo and cat fingers back-to-back. and chunks of 5 are completely different too!

this only skims the surface. i can watch any episode of su and point out which jokes usually make people laugh, what people pick up on, and how their opinion of the situation reflects on whether they have mommy issues.

[apoptoses]

Armand: 7. What's something the fandom does when it comes to this character that you like?

I think there's some really intelligent meta and fic out there about how trauma informs Armand's actions that's like, straight facts and not woobification.

Because with a character like him it would be so easy for fandom to turn him into some sad little lost doe, perpetual victim, something infantalized and weepy and saccharine. I've seen it in other fandoms where people will see trauma and just blow off 90% of the character's other traits in favor of transforming them into something entirely unlike themselves.

But the thing that got me to interact in VC fandom in the first place was seeing people who acknowledge the things that happened to Armand and how it makes him a character who exists in shades of grey. Not 100% victim, not 100% villain, but something with humanity in him. His experiences have been discussed with care and he's allowed agency and that's really fucking important for keeping him a well rounded, multifaceted character.