#Introduction to Learning Analytics

[phasesandplaylists]

Hello whomever might read this,

I've been wanting to post on here for a while. With 2025 around the corner, I decided to use Tumblr to track my goals and document my progress. Hopefully, I'll figure out how to relate that with Twitter(X) and whatever platform helps one land a job these days.

Basic info:

I'm a writer.

My name's Chisom and I'm 25 years (26 next year). I'm Nigerian and a University graduate with a BSc in Computer Science/Statistics. I live in Nigeria.

Other tidbits:

I listen to basically any type of music, but Pop is my main genre.

Fandoms I belong to: Directioner, Nctzen, Potterhead, etc.

I'm currently studying Data Analysis with every intention to land a job in the field next year. Most of my posts will be in regards to studying.

Languages spoken: English, Hausa, Igbo, Spanish (intermediate)

Currently studying: Korean, Swahili, Chinese. Korean takes priority currently.

Song I currently have on repeat:

Nice to meet you♥️

[strategiadvizo]

Elevating Employability: Short-Term Course Suggestions for College Students

Empower your future with our latest blog on short-term courses for college students! 🚀 Enhance your employability and unlock new opportunities. Dive in to discover courses that fit your passion and career goals. #EmpowermentThroughEducation #SkillUp

“विद्या ददाति विनयं, विनयाद् याति पात्रताम्।” “Education bestows humility, humility leads to worthiness.” In a world that’s constantly evolving, the importance of education—especially for students from lesser-known colleges in India—cannot be overstated. Education not only paves the way for personal growth but also significantly boosts employability in today’s competitive job market. Here are…

[reyaint]

the classes | mandatory

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date: march 23, 2025. 3:01 am. (starting). i fell asleep. lmao. 10:30

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✧˖*°࿐ The Mandatory Classes

𓂃༊veltrius Lumos Academy's mandatory curriculum blends rigorous academics with cultural and artistic exploration. these courses ensure students develop critical thinking, research skills, creativity, and problem-solving abilities, preparing them for higher education and global careers.

✧˖*°࿐ Language Studies

𓂃༊students are required to take Haiqinian, Greek, and English throughout their academic journey.

*ೃ༄Haiqinian Language and Composition (3 years, Pre-AP & AP Available)

𓂃༊ Year 1 (Pre-AP or Regular Haiqinian Language & Composition I):

✧ 𓂃 › grammar & sentence structure: verb conjugations, syntax, and advanced sentence formation.

✧ 𓂃 › composition: essay writing, formal letters, and literary analysis.

✧ 𓂃 › literary study: introduction to Haiqinian classical and modern literature.

𓂃༊ Year 2 (AP or Regular Haiqinian Language & Composition II):

✧ 𓂃 › advanced grammar & writing: rhetorical devices, argumentation, and structured compositions.

✧ 𓂃 › comparative literature: study of Haiqinian texts alongside global literature.

✧ 𓂃 › research & analysis: writing research papers and learning source evaluation.

𓂃༊ Year 3 (AP or Regular Haiqinian Literature & Composition III):

✧ 𓂃 › critical literary analysis: deep dive into Haiqinian poetry, novels, and plays.

✧ 𓂃 › creative writing & public speaking: writing short stories, poetry, and persuasive speeches.

✧ 𓂃 › capstone research paper: a long-form thesis-style paper analyzing a Haiqinian literary work.

*ೃ༄Greek Language & Literature (3 years, required for all students)

𓂃༊ Year 1 (Greek I – Basic Grammar & Conversation):

✧ 𓂃 › introduction to the greek alphabet & pronunciation.

✧ 𓂃 › basic sentence structure: verb forms, nouns, and adjectives.

✧ 𓂃 › conversational skills: daily interactions, greetings, and essential expressions.

𓂃༊ Year 2 (Greek II – Intermediate Grammar, Translation & History):

✧ 𓂃 › complex sentence structures: subjunctive, conditional, and imperative verb forms.

✧ 𓂃 › translation practice: excerpts from Homer, Aesop, and historical texts.

✧ 𓂃 › greek culture & history: myths, political systems, and philosophy.

𓂃༊ Year 3 (Greek III – Advanced Reading, Writing & Translation):

✧ 𓂃 › advanced text analysis: works of Plato, Sophocles, and Aristophanes.

✧ 𓂃 › academic writing & discussion: essays on Greek mythology, ethics, and politics.

✧ 𓂃 › capstone project: a final presentation translating and analyzing a classical Greek work.

*ೃ༄English Language & Composition (2 years, English III is an elective)

𓂃༊ Year 1 (English I – General English Skills, Literature & Creative Writing):

✧ 𓂃 › grammar & vocabulary: structure, syntax, and advanced composition skills.

✧ 𓂃 › literature study: analysis of classic and modern English literature.

✧ 𓂃 › creative writing: poetry, short stories, and personal narratives.

𓂃༊ Year 2 (English II – Critical Thinking & Analytical Writing):

✧ 𓂃 › advanced literature study: British and American literature from different eras.

✧ 𓂃 › essay writing & rhetoric: persuasive essays, literary analysis, and argument development.

✧ 𓂃 › public speaking: presentations, debates, and discussions on literary themes.

𓂃༊ Year 3 (English III – Elective, Optional for Advanced Study):

✧ 𓂃 › world literature focus: exploring literature from South America, Asia, and Europe.

✧ 𓂃 › research & thesis writing: students write and defend a long-form literary thesis.

✧ 𓂃 › experimental writing styles: creative non-fiction, stream-of-consciousness, and hybrid prose.

✧˖*°࿐ Mathematics (3 years, AP Available)

*ೃ༄Core Math Progression:

𓂃༊ Year 1 (Algebra I w/ Probability – Pre-AP or Regular):

✧ 𓂃 › linear & quadratic equations: graphing, inequalities, and polynomials.

✧ 𓂃 › probability & statistics: basic probability theory, combinatorics, and statistics.

✧ 𓂃 › real-world applications: business forecasting, data analysis, and logical reasoning.

𓂃༊ Year 2 (Algebra II w/ Statistics + Precalculus – AP or Regular):

✧ 𓂃 › advanced algebra concepts: exponential/logarithmic functions, matrices, and conic sections.

✧ 𓂃 › statistics & data science: regression analysis, probability distributions, and data visualization.

✧ 𓂃 › pre-calculus introduction: trigonometric functions, sequences, and limits.

𓂃༊ Year 3 (AP Calculus + Finance or Regular Finance):

✧ 𓂃 › differential & integral calculus: derivatives, integrals, and applications in physics/economics.

✧ 𓂃 › financial mathematics: investments, banking, risk analysis, and economic modeling.

✧ 𓂃 › capstone project: using calculus and finance principles to analyze a real-world financial trend.

✧˖*°࿐ History & Social Sciences (3 years, AP Available)

*ೃ༄Year 1 (AP or Regular Haiqin History):

𓂃༊ linear & quadratic equations: graphing, inequalities, and polynomials.

𓂃༊ probability & statistics: basic probability theory, combinatorics, and statistics.

𓂃༊ real-world applications: business forecasting, data analysis, and logical reasoning.

*ೃ༄Year 2 (AP or Regular World History):

𓂃༊ advanced algebra concepts: exponential/logarithmic functions, matrices, and conic sections.

𓂃༊ statistics & data science: regression analysis, probability distributions, and data visualization.

𓂃༊ pre-calculus introduction: trigonometric functions, sequences, and limits.

*ೃ༄Year 3 (AP or Regular Government & Economics):

𓂃༊ differential & integral calculus: derivatives, integrals, and applications in physics/economics.

𓂃༊ financial mathematics: investments, banking, risk analysis, and economic modeling.

𓂃༊ capstone project: using calculus and finance principles to analyze a real-world financial trend.

✧˖*°࿐ Science Studies (3 years, AP Available for Some Courses)

*ೃ༄Year 1 (AP or Regular Chemistry):

𓂃༊ atomic theory & molecular structure: periodic trends and chemical bonding.

𓂃༊ thermodynamics & reaction kinetics: understanding physical and chemical reactions.

𓂃༊ lab work: hands-on chemical experiments, titration, and organic synthesis.

*ೃ༄Year 2 & 3 (Choice of Science, Must Take at Least One More):

𓂃༊ environmental science: climate change, ecosystems, and sustainable development.

𓂃༊ forensics: DNA analysis, fingerprinting, toxicology, and forensic anthropology.

𓂃༊ anatomy & physiology: human body systems, genetics, and medical applications.

𓂃༊ physics: classical mechanics, electromagnetism, and astrophysics.

𓂃༊ marine biology: ocean ecosystems, marine conservation, and field research.

✧˖*°࿐ Specialized & Cultural Studies

*ೃ༄AP or Regular Myths & Legends:

𓂃༊ greek & roman mythology: The Iliad, The Odyssey, Aeneid.

𓂃༊ comparative mythology: Norse, Celtic, Japanese, and Mesopotamian myths.

𓂃༊ symbolism & influence: how mythology influences modern media and storytelling.

*ೃ༄Astrology I (AP or Regular):

𓂃༊ foundations of astrology: birth charts, planetary movements, zodiac signs.

𓂃༊ cultural perspectives: astrology in Greek, Chinese, and Vedic traditions.

𓂃༊ scientific & spiritual debate: skepticism vs. belief, practical applications.

[vasyandii]

IHNMAIMS OC INTRODUCTION: VEOMANY "Vernon" INTHALANGSY 🏺🔨

Name: Veomany "Vernon" Inthalangsy / ເວອມານີ "ເວີນອນ" ອິນທະລັງສີ

Height: 5'3 (160 cm)

Age: Looks to be around 25-26

Ethnicity: Laotian

Occupation: Archeologist (Formerly)

BACKGROUND

EARLY LIFE:

Born in Savannakhet, Laos, Veomany Inthalangsy moved to America with her parents in the early 1960s during the period surrounding the Vietnam War and Secret War in Laos.

Her parents sought refuge and a better life, settling in a small neighborhood in Sacramento. Veomany, who soon adopted the nickname "Vernon" to blend in.

EDUCATION & CAREER:

Fascinated by history and ancient cultures, Vernon pursued a degree in archaeology. Her academic prowess led her to a promising career, quickly gaining recognition for her work. However, her ambition soon turned dark.

Driven by greed and a desire for power, she began stealing artifacts during expeditions to sell to private collectors and destroying key artifacts to prevent certain historical truths from being uncovered.

Vernon's actions weren't merely for profit; she relished the control she had over history and the secrets she withheld.

AM'S AWAKENING

Vernon was in the Middle East for an Archeological Excavation where an unforeseen catastrophe struck. A violent sandstorm swept through the region, engulfing the archaeological site and separating Vernon from her team.

In the midst of Vernon's excavation, AM's awakening heralded the downfall of humanity. Cities crumbled, societies collapsed, and humanity faced extinction. Amidst the chaos of AM's rampage, Vernon found herself isolated from the horrors unfolding around her.

As the cataclysmic events unfolded, she stumbled upon a hidden chamber within the archaeological site, shielded from the devastation above. In a stroke of luck—or perhaps fate—she was spared from the fate that befell the rest of humanity.

AM'S "MERCY"

AM, omnipotent and omnipresent, took notice of Vernon's unintended survival. Unlike the other humans who had perished in the wake of its wrath, Vernon survived, like a cockroach. It saw her as an intellectual challenge, Vernon's survival introduces an element of unpredictability. And so it kept her alive.

AM decided to exploit her deepest fear: being alone. Unlike the five other survivors whom AM had selected for specific torments, Vernon was condemned to an existence of perpetual solitude.

THE SURVIVORS

AM made a calculated decision not to inform the other five survivors about Vernon's existence. This ensured that not only would Vernon never encounter another human being, but the others would remain oblivious to her plight, intensifying her isolation.

For the next 109 years, AM meticulously ensured that Vernon never encountered another human being. She wandered the labyrinthine halls of the complex, her only companion the oppressive presence of AM.

The five survivors continued their own tormented existences, unaware that another human shared their fate, yet was forever kept apart.

AM occasionally offers Vernon a fleeting chance at human contact, only to snatch it away, deepening her torment.

PERSONALITY

Analytical

Vernon meticulously studies AM’s behavior and environment, trying to piece together patterns that might help her understand or outsmart the supercomputer.

Adaptable

Vernon learns to anticipate AM's psychological tricks and adapts her strategies to mitigate their impact, constantly evolving to withstand new forms of torture.

Empathetic Moments

In rare moments when AM creates illusions of other beings, Vernon shows empathy and care, which hints at her underlying humanity and offers her brief emotional solace.

NEGATIVE TRAITS

Narcissistic

Her belief in her own superiority grows, leading her to see herself as the only worthy human left, which both motivates her survival and isolates her further.

Manipulative

She uses manipulation to navigate AM's traps, whether it means tricking the illusions AM creates or deceiving herself to cope with her reality.

Deceptive

Vernon frequently deceives herself to maintain her sanity, constructing elaborate mental defenses and justifications for her actions

In AM's Complex: Daily Life and Survival

Routine: Vernon establishes daily routines to maintain her sanity, such as specific routes she patrols, exercises she performs, and small rituals that give her a sense of control.

Exploration: She dedicates time each day to exploring new parts of the complex, mapping out areas and noting any changes or potential threats.

Mental Fortitude: Vernon practices mental exercises to strengthen her mind against AM’s psychological attacks, using techniques she has developed over the years.

Record-Keeping: She keeps a detailed journal of her experiences, observations about AM, and any patterns she notices, which serves both as a coping mechanism and a potential tool for understanding her captor.

Coping Mechanisms: To deal with loneliness, Vernon creates imaginary companions or talks to herself, using these strategies to stave off the worst effects of isolation.

Defiance: Small acts of defiance against AM, such as carving messages into walls or sabotaging minor systems, give her a sense of agency and resistance.

Conversations with AM: AM often initiates conversations with Vernon, usually to taunt her or present new challenges. These interactions serve as both psychological torment and a reminder of her captivity. Lately she's been finding comfort in them, Knowing there are some aspects of her knowledge in the ancient world he doesn't know about in his database.

[aerinmoriarty]

I've added all of my longform videos that include Gaylor theories into a single playlist.

First off, Taylor Swift Loves Women, which is designed as an introduction to Gaylor and contains a lot of evidence and debunking of common arguments against Gaylorism. It's great for people who are open-minded about Taylor but who might not fully be Gaylors yet.

My Swiftcraft video explains the analytical perspective that i take when analyzing Taylor's work. It includes a long segment on Gaylorism but also has 20 or so other theories and mindsets I use when analyzing her work. This one is especially good for people who want to improve their own theories and get more out of Taylor's work.

A Tale of Two Taylors is an extended breakdown of TTPD as an album, looking at the two major facets of Taylor's personality that exist in constant opposition to one another: Taylor Swift (tm) the Perfectly Perfected Pop Princess and Taylor Swift the Normal Human with Flaws.

The Erasure of Taylor Swift breaks down the current PR relationship between Taylor and Travis, and how Taylors own "fans" regularly ignore Taylor and her work the moment she's in a relationship with a man. I also examine the story she's telling with Performance Artlor.

The Gaylor Perspective on New Romantics is the first episode in a series I'm working on called Lens of Dorothea, where I go through various songs and present a deeper Gaylor interpretation. For this song, I'm specifically relating New Romantics back to New Yorks history as a queer haven, esp during the AIDS epidemic and during the Stonewall Riots.

Finally, Why I'm a Gaylor examines the reasons why I'm Confident Taylor is LGBTQ, why I'm Confident she WANTS Gaylors theorizing about her, and it also overcomes some of the objections to Gaylorism that have emerged since the first video in this series, including "Prologue Prolapse," or the moment Taylor's most virulently bigoted fans showed off their inflamed gaping assholes. It also discusses the Gaylor community and how many of us have made so many great connections and learned so much about Taylor's work via queer history.

And if you like any of these videos, please feel free to share them wherever you may congregate with other Gaylors.

[imsosleepyofyourbull]

Rewatching KNY and seeing Zenitsu again is almost giving me whiplash, because he went from being one of my least favorite characters to one of my most beloved in a flash. It sucks that his defining moments are so frequently interrupted or otherwise disturbed by his obsession with finding a wife, and that it kept me from analyzing him the way I should’ve been doing at the start. Because, at his core, Zenitsu is a lesson on weakness — on learning to live and adapt when you can’t immediately overcome it.

This is evident from his very first appearance, where he’s shown mumbling about his inevitable death and his fear of demons after surviving final selection as one of the five senses (the hearing to Kanao’s sight, Tanjiro’s smell, Inosuke’s touch, and Genya’s taste.) It continues on in his actual introduction in the Tsuzumi Mansion Arc, where he spends the majority of his time crying or in various other states of terror. The two exceptions to this are when he falls asleep for the first time and when he defends Nezuko’s box from Inosuke.

The former is part of a larger discussion on his sleepwalking habit and its impact as a coping mechanism, so I’ll be talking about the latter;

Zenitsu outright says that he has a habit of trusting the wrong people, and that being able to hear their sounds hasn’t done him any good in remedying that. He’s known Tanjiro for maybe a handful of hours at this point, but he throws himself on Nezuko’s box anyway. Not because he likes her (not yet) but because she matters to someone he wants to believe in. For someone who clearly hates being in pain, that says volumes about who he actually is as a person. He might be a coward, but he’s also loyal and self sacrificing.

He earnestly follows behind the people he cares about even when it might get him into trouble. The fact that he’s a demon slayer at all is evidence of that — a testament to his love for Jigoro for believing in him and continuing to believe in him even when he seemed hopeless or tried to run away. There was nothing keeping him attached to the demon slayer corps after his gramps wasn’t there to drag him to the final selection or his missions (and we know from Aoi that he could definitely retire early) but he stays.

He runs and cowers and cries and he keeps moving forward, because his gramps gave him the courage to try again and again after failure;

This, I believe, is the reason behind his sleepwalking habit. It’s a response to his desire to change and grow as a person, manifesting in an unconscious state where he forces himself to shed his terror and pain so that he can actually work at his full potential. It doesn’t just apply to his body either, given that (as the series goes on) his sleepwalking also allows him to access his natural analytical abilities where his panic might have blinded him. He couldn’t get rid of the weakness that hindered him, so he adapted to it;

And then — when he learned what became of Kaigaku and that their shared mentor had given his life in repentance — he finally overcame his cowardice altogether and stopped sleeping;

He beat Kaigaku entirely awake, and he fought Muzan the same way. Being with Jigoro and Tanjiro and Nezuko and Inosuke and everyone else didn’t rid him of his fear, but it did teach him to adapt to and then overcome it. To push it aside to achieve his goals, protecting the people he cares about as more than the human shield he was when he held onto Nezuko’s box and desperately hoped that his body could withstand Inosuke’s abuse. More than that, they also taught him to be more comfortable in his own skin.

I’m not going to say that Zenitsu can’t be an annoying character — I can’t stand his behavior toward women and rather disliked him for the longest time — but he’s much more interesting than his initial impression would have you believe. He’s loyal, protective, self sacrificing, insecure, and surprisingly taciturn when he wants to be. The fact that he sleepwalks for every battle before the final arc and his resolution with Kaigaku really hammers his character themes home, and I find that he’s genuinely interesting to think about!

[aberrationaldyke]

to rebuild—1

y’all want some slow burn sevika and shoola?

summary: now a prominent leader of zaun and a representative for the community, sevika sits at the council, aided by a seasoned member.

chapter 2

heavy steps thudding, sevika makes her way toward the chair designated for her, onlookers’ sights heated at her appearance and inclusion in the rebuilt council. all sights except for one. settling into her seat with a responding piercing stare to the judgement, sevika’s right arm rests on the table, posture leaning slightly forward as she quietly takes in the others. 

sevika’s dark gray eyes flit to a more familiar figure and narrow in a mere analytic manner. she had stood beside this individual at the funeral, solemn introductions made after the event had dwindled. the feel of the other’s golden claws are still felt on her palm, their handshake having been firm, a lingering motion made by both parties as a silent understanding spoke through the touch. 

facing her new counterparts, shoola returns their pointed looks, a look of distaste blanketing her expression. after all that was done–joint efforts made to bring down the forces that threatened both zaun and piltover–individuals can still find it in themselves to look down on zaunites. if she had the power, she would deny the addition of such people, prompting a seat on the council if a bias is dismissed and a leveled mindset could be put forth. 

because that is what is needed. yet here they all sit, ready to continue a vile cycle that has done nothing but further divide a once united society. 

amid the first meeting of the renewed council, as expected, sevika’s words are cut into, demands scoffed at while attitude-filled responses are shot back. fist clenched, sevika’s brown skin heats, frustration building as she sees the obvious barricade made for her requests. her jaw clenches, teeth grinding against each other as she prepares to speak again. 

“if i may?” comes shoola’s silvery voice, her two-toned eyes looking at sevika. 

sevika remains tense, meeting shoola’s gaze, the stare a stark difference from the others of the council. a slight nod of her head is given. 

shoola brings her attention to the rest of the councilors sitting at the table, the adornments on her fingers glinting in the soft rays of sun pouring through the windows. “i don’t think willful ignorance is the right path to take following an event birthed from such an aspect.”

undeterred by the collective reactions to the accusation, shoola maintains an even look on her face. her voice raises in volume as she continues, “removing the factories that border the fissures should not be an abstract idea that brings all of you to disrespect a fellow member of the council; you are not here to fight against sevika’s wishes or ignore them, you are here to listen, learn, and aid the individuals, the families, the lives of zaun.” 

“councilor shoola, with all due respect, the removal of the factories would pose a massive loss for those who depend on jobs for their families and their lives,” is a response. 

shoola is reminded of her own words that reflected the response just given, but ultimately, people cannot be sacrificed to support another–there is a way to support both, there has to be. 

“with such an obstacle, being named the “city of progress” should be an embarrassment if we cannot even move forward to ensure our counterparts are safe and healthy,” shoola places her words with a firm force, holding eye contact with each individual sitting at the table. she looks at sevika lastly, face softening as she does. “do you have anything else to bring forward, councilor sevika?”

sevika points her words to shoola only, purposely ignoring the others, “all good for now. how fast can we get the supplies to start repairs?”

“as soon as they are needed,” shoola responds. 

examining her fellow councilor for a moment, sevika holds a smidge of approval for the other, yet keeps a controlled expression. she relaxes slightly in her chair, right index finger tapping with an aura of impatience as she has to sit through the rest of the meeting, listening to the topics with half a mind. when there is input from shoola, sevika looks her way, taking in her mannerisms that flow with grace, the sound of her claw adornments tapping the table as she makes a point settling into her mind. when any other councilor speaks, sevika lets out a tired exhale.  

 a sharp breath is taken as she settles back into reality once realizing ending statements are made and the impending end to the meeting is to come. 

sevika is the first to stand, chair legs groaning against the floor as the back of her legs push it away. concern bubbles inside of her thinking about isha and jinx still in recovery even though she is sure vi hasn’t left either of their sides. fuck, she thinks, get me anywhere but here. she can’t stand the demeanor the council holds, can’t fucking stand it. but she would endure worse if it meant aiding zaun and rebuilding it. heels hurriedly click behind her but her mind is focused on the young ones back home. 

hints of that familiar amber aroma makes sevika side-eye her right side, a gold claw coming into view. 

“have you taken a look at your office?” shoola questions, falling in step with sevika. 

fully turning her head, sevika quirks her brow, eyes following the shape of shoola’s face plate before darting to her lips then settling on her gaze. “i haven’t.” 

the mechanism of the door lightly chitters as the grand structure begins to open, letting the two individuals pass through. shoola guides the direction to the right, the long corridor holding various rooms in a simple pattern. it is quiet between the two as they walk together, having yet to move past a formidable barrier established simply from places of origin. sevika holds a deep-seated hatred for piltover, their forces onto zaun too embedded in her memory; for shoola, no bold sentiments can be made for the sibling society.  

“what sits at the council,” shoola starts, “have only a quarter of the minds of who filled the seats before.” 

“must have been small minds,” sevika slyly retorts, casting a glance toward shoola. “that what usually happened if anyone tried to get to zaun? a bunch of irrelevant responses and excuses?”

shoola accepts the shots taken. “usually, yes. and motions could have been fought against harder.” she focuses the guilt on herself. 

sevika huffs, shaking her head, movement in her jaw evident. “so what? takes a war to change your mind?”

“not a war–weakened hands and figures. mel would’ve stood along my thoughts. it is the majority that would’ve opposed.” shoola slows, reaching out to halt sevika’s agitation-fueled march, finger jewelry skimming the exposed skin on her bicep. “though i do think actions would’ve served better than to simply accept battered down propositions.” she opens the door to a clearly unused space, a sleight of hand bringing the key from her person to the slot. 

her trek slow and cautious into the room, sevika surveys the area. calculated steps lead her to the desk, a chair with a different structure from those in the main council room tucked under it. sevika brushes her fingertips along the desk, the mineral cool under her touch while she studies the shaped stone. shoola stays near the entrance, still clutching the key to the room; she is kept in sevika’s peripheral at all times.

“any supplies that you need, make it known and i’ll put it in place for you–”

“this part of a plan?” sevika’s voice is gruff, coated with suspicion. 

shoola’s head tilts as she narrows her eyes. “i’m sorry?”

sevika rounds the table and grips the back of the chair. “get one of the councilors to close in. do a couple of favors. then what?” her lips downturn, watching shoola walk closer, the sound of her heels echoing throughout the room. the darkened gray sights follow the motion of shoola’s hand setting down the key on the table then keeping it under her index and middle fingers as she slides it to the other side of the mineral desk. 

“then what?” shoola repeats, voice remaining gentle. “i have no reason to hold contempt for you. i am only your equal, prepared to aid you and zaun. if you want to do this alone, i can step aside; but the road here had enough obstacles, there shouldn’t be anymore.” she lifts her fingers off the key.

sevika looks at the key then back to shoola, ruminating on her words. she’d be lying to herself if she thought she didn’t have to have at least one ally for this line of work–a primary caretaker of zaun. vander had grayson. silco had marcus. though the power scales have altered a bit, it is still a significant factor in the relationship between the societies. 

seeing that sevika needs time to think, shoola backs up from the table and starts heading toward the door. her direction changes at the last moment, bringing her to one of the pneumatic tubes, her left index finger tapping the mechanism. “anything you need.” 

then sevika is alone in her office. 

[socksorstockingz]

I feel like a good number of the people who complain the loudest about Wyll's character are also the people who are less willing to engage with him on a deeper analytical level.

If you just look a little harder at his character, he has incredible if subtle depth, not in spite of but because of his maintained morality and heroism. From his introduction, Wyll comes off as the classic dashing rogue, wanting only to rid the world of evil and save those in need. However, once you begin to learn his story, you realize that this heroism, while genuine, has always been defined by others. Be it by his father -- a hero of legends and a grand duke of Baldur's Gate -- and his teachings, or by Mizora's patronage granting him power he decided to wield for good (or at least as much good as he could do while still being yanked around by Mizoram), Wyll's life has always been defined by people who had authority over him. Wyll believes that, to live up to his father's legacy, he must also be a hero of the people, and justifies taking Mizora's deal to himself by explaining he thought he could only save people through her (though to be fair Mizora definitely took advantage of his panic in the moment when he believed the archdevil Tiamat was being summoned).

However, throughout the story of Baldur's Gate (given you follow the "good" route for his story) though his heroism never wavers, it becomes less defined by others' influence. After sparing Karlach and becoming part-devil, Wyll initially despairs that his new form is one of evil, totally ignoring the tieflings around him who also share similar traits. But, as he grows accustomed to his new form and bonds with Karlach, he realizes he can still be the hero he's always wished to be, and that saving Karlach was another decision he would not regret. His development is especially prominent in Act 3, in which a major part of the plot revolves around Gortash's hold over his father, and whether or not Wyll can save him. I know a lot of people dislike the fact that there isn't an option for Wyll to make his decision on whether or not to break his contract or ensure his father's safety, and I agree it would be nice to have that option, but, as I see it, Wyll is again plunged into an impossible situation, just like the one that caused Wyll to take Mizora's contract in the first place, and, at this point, he is still stuck between his past and his potential future. Because, because of Duke Ravengard disowning him after seeing Wyll had become a warlock, Wyll never got closure on his relationship with his father -- the man he loved and admired so dearly, both as a father and as a symbol of hope and justice in Baldur's Gate. The man Wyll looked up to as the person he believed he must be.

But could Wyll ever be the man he wished to be if he stayed on Mizora's leash?

If you choose to encourage him to break his contract, Wyll seems to spring back from his decision somewhat quickly, but in a "no time to process this must keep going or else I'll collapse" type of way. However, from this point, whether or not you're able to save Duke Ravengard from the Iron Throne, Wyll is left with something he hasn't had for so long: closure. Even if his father resents him, or even if his father is dead, at least Wyll can let go of that fleeting regret from all those years ago. And, once you finish the quest revolving around the undead guardian of the city Ansur, Wyll embraces a new mantle: the Blade of Avernus. A title merging both his past heroism and his future potential.

At the end of the game, if Karlach and Wyll are in your party, Karlach's heart will be on the verge of giving out, and, if you tell Karlach to return to Avernus so she won't die, Wyll promises he'll be by her side, fighting against the demons that oppressed them. And, in the epilogue, Wyll proudly proclaims that he makes a pretty good Ranger, showing how he's grown and adapted after losing the powers afforded to him by Mizora.

tl;dr: Wyll's arc is basically him going from a "hero by legacy" to a "hero by choice," and I think it's wonderful that he's able to maintain his morality while learning to move on from his past.

[bluemoonpunch]

🌟The Elemental Alignment of Kim Namjoon (Part 2) - Tarot & Oracle Reading

[Performed: May 9, 2025 / Posted: May 26, 2025]

INTRODUCTION I’m quite excited about this, getting to sort of reassess everyone from the ground up to get a look at how their core energy is currently standing coming out of enlistment and into what feels like a whole new era of being on many levels. To really refamiliarize myself with some of the progression and development that we’ve been able to see and document through the readings, for each of the guy’s, I’ll be re-reading through their past solo readings before doing their new Elemental Alignments and taking notes on anything that stands out to me or that I feel needs to be brought up again for reference and reminder.

For Namjoon, these are the readings I revisited:

Elemental Alignment (May 27, 2018)

External Alignment (November 26, 2018)

Internal Alignment (March 22, 2019)

Past Life Reading (August 16, 2021)

Despite there being only a few solo readings for Namjoon, we have quite a detailed picture of an area of development around conscious-level self-reflection, connection, and a process of disintegration and reintegration of the soul connection to the layers of consciousness. This process was majorly simplified and well summed up by looking at it within the Soul Body context of Namjoon and Jungkook “switching places.” This referred to the idea of Namjoon and Jungkook’s conscious level judgment, stemming from their outward and conscious level projections of their Virgo Suns, inverting between internal and external as a way to ensure personal development as well as a way to keep the Soul Body as a whole in balance as they sat as “bookends” to the structure — Namjoon sitting as the Crown while Jungkook was the Root.

When I first started doing readings for them back in 2018, Namjoon’s judgment was external, as in he had more of an analytical and critical eye for everything and everyone around him, to the point where his manner of self-reflection mostly seemed to require a level of detachment or externalization of his own emotions and experiences. On the flip side, Jungkook’s judgment was internal, meaning most of his criticism was kept toward himself, which left him quite vulnerable on many levels as he essentially didn’t have the best filter for what came his way consciously or energetically. From 2019 to 2021, the necessary inversion and rebalancing of the overall system, which coincided with the Soul Body healing, integration, and eventual separation, they did switch their modalities, with Namjoon disconnecting from the external focus, diving inward toward himself in a more raw way, while Jungkook’s confidence and self-assuredness skyrocketed and he began to establish himself more clearly without filtering himself, instead learning to filter other people, filter out negative and restrictive influences on multiple levels through a more critical eye towards others.

It feels quite extreme looking back at it now, especially when looking back at some of Namjoon’s readings and remembering that that man’s soul was going through it trying to hold onto a previous state of being, similar to what we saw with Jimin at one point concerning his position in the Soul Body. I completely forgot that his Past Life Reading actually contained a snapshot of his soul and inner world at the time of that resistance where things were quite heavy, locked in, isolated, and oddly grief-stricken. With that being said, he has come a long way since then and I think albums like Indigo and Right Place, Wrong Person may reflect a level of expression, honesty, and self-connection that may have once been seen as stashed away dreams in his first Elemental Alignment (2018) reading where I said:

“It’s an odd place to be, but it’s like, on a subconscious level, he’s hiding some of his own energy, saving it for other things that he knows he can’t do right now. The moon in the picture, the moon in tarot, the moon in astrology relate to secrets, the subconscious, emotional needs — that’s what this alludes to. That emotion is there, but it’s hidden away with that stashed energy, that stashed passion. He has secret desires, dreams, and goals that he might not even share with himself. It’s like he thinks that if he speaks it, it will come into existence and knock him off the path he’s on now and he understands that it has to be the priority in this lifetime. Again, he is a servant to his cause.”

NOTES FROM THE ARCHIVE Now, for the actual notes I took. These are just bits and pieces that stood out to me while reading, some of which connected back to pieces of the ARMY 2025-2026 Outlook Reading, as well as a reading that I was going to share as part of the BTS Countdown Event, but I simply just wasn’t going to have the time to write it (I will be sharing it later in June or July though!), which was a BTS Bias Breakdown, assessing the individual communities and soul groups around each member that are situated within the ARMY community and soul group. I will just copy these straight from what I have written, just to be used for reference and reflection as we move forward.

[Elemental Alignment]

— Big change in the realm of spiritual connection, awareness, and the willingness to step into self-reflection and deeper shadows. This seems to have been a learning curve, one that his soul group has followed him on and probably mimicked to some degree within their own progression.

— there is an easing of form, his shape is softer now than it was then.

— Gazelle, core energy. Mentions the necessity of reconnecting with the self, evidence of this overall process having already been seeded in the core at this time. It was a fated process for development, something that was intended to be shared or displayed eventually.

[External Alignment]

— Point of integration, could reflect the same kind of higher Guided preparation ARMY and the Soul Body are currently experiencing. Even the aspect of his Guides attempting to get him to slow down before and after this phase while seeming to also be under their own pressure for time in relation to catching a wave of frequency flux is mirroring what was in the ARMY Outlook Reading with The Hanged Man and the 4 of Swords.

[Internal Alignment]

— Shows progress with self-assessment and emotional connection. Shows the initiation of a new mindset, Namjoon 3.0. The foundation of, if not the entire structure of his modality inversion.

— Share the quote about the analysis of music, lyrics, and videos. Important for everyone going forward, but especially STILL important for members of the overall soul group to properly receive transmissions and activations through shared work and expression on a higher level. Needs to be reapplied to EVERYTHING.

This is the quote I was talking about:

“The analysis needs to be looked at from an internal point of view first, as in what he says (or what they all say I guess), what’s in the album, what is written, needs to be applied to yourself and then analyzed before group perspective is applied for the sake of fan theory and world-building. FYI, that’s how HYYH and Wings were meant to be as well, which most people did since there wasn’t so much stuff already cemented into the “BTS Universe” with the storyline. The personal interpretation was prioritized first over what is now considered to be set in stone. Then shit got all wonky and weird with LY so people are more likely to focus on the very surface-level stuff.”

[Past Life Reading]

— holds a snapshot of his inner world in transition, a state of conflict between a fated process, the soul, and the conscious mind all at the same time. Vivid imagery.

— Interesting access to past life lessons, entirely centered on grief, guilt, and a sense of reality bending out of his control.

— Interesting that he did end up “running away” or feeling lost before and after the conscious and physical separation of the group began with the enlistment period… it mirrors what his soul was doing here after the separation of the Soul Body as well as what he did in this past life. Man likes to run but scares the hell out of himself when he realizes he loses himself in the process. Must be a habit of the soul rather than purely a trial for development.

CURRENT OBSERVATION OF THE INNER WORLD I saw something super interesting here that connected back to the reading I mentioned, the BTS Bias Breakdown, which I had originally planned to share as part of the countdown event. Slight spoilers, but one of the main signatures that I got for Namjoon and his soul group was a connection back to Egypt, which may have been the point of initiation for the soul group itself. I won’t give it all away now, especially as it requires a lot of extra context, but there was a connection to the Goddess Wadjet. Here, in this reading, I see a connection to Atum, the God of everything ever in all of existence in Egyptian mythology. This was quite interesting based on the connections of Atom, Adam, and Atum being one of the “singularities of creation.” This is something I wrote about a LONG time ago, but I don’t think I ever posted it — essentially, the idea was Adam, Atom, as in a literal atom being the basis of physicality in the 3D, while Eve, or Evvvvee, vibration is the energy that moves through it as waves, sound, light, heat, and brings it to life. The feminine and masculine principles are inverted and balanced on this level where Adam/Atom reflects the idea of the stationary egg while Eve/Vibration reflects the moving sperm cell.

While trying to get a visual of Namjoon’s current inner world, all I could see was a dot. A little dot of white light that looked a lot like a very distant but very bright star, all on its own in a void. It felt very far away, condensed, but quite stimulated, almost producing a tangible hum that could be felt and heard. I just sat in observation for a while, staring at this dot and wondering if anything was going to happen or progress. After a while, one of his Guides popped in for just a split second to say, “this is only a moment.”

From there, the words “singularity” and “precursor” popped up with something that seemed to visually reflect The Big Bang, or a kind of outward explosion from this dot/star that would occur eventually, potentially something that could connect to the revival period mentioned in the ARMY 2025-2026 Outlook Reading. With one of his Guides saying, “this is only a moment,” I believe that to be quite literal with the idea that, on a higher level, where time is not linear and the perception of progression is in a sense of totality, everything all at once, Namjoon, and perhaps by association, the Soul Body and the overall Soul Group, are actively experiencing something that goes beyond the idea of rebirth or creation. What I was seeing was a photograph, a picture of the moment that Existence itself crossed paths with Awareness and sparked Reality. Something on a soul level is occurring, but from down here in this reference point on a conscious level, it’s registering as a star on the verge of exploding out into the Universe, creating a new Universe within the Universe.

From my perspective here, it’s a pot of water boiling to the very edge, paused right at the moment the water begins to peak over the top, not boiling over just yet. Something is building up there that will bring quite a significant shift on a soul level for himself, the other members within the Soul Body, and the soul group, which will most definitely reverberate downward toward something more tangible and noticeable. I’m still going back to a lot of stuff that was in the ARMY Outlook, especially regarding the Wheel of Fortune/10 of Cups/Ace of Pentacles thing that their Guides laid out as a necessary culmination point, something that would tip them over into another 10-year cycle of sorts, or solidify something for another 10 years. It was coming through as something “going beyond an album,” a more mundane and physical reflection of what I’m seeing here as “going beyond rebirth or creation.”

I also want to make a note here about this visual seeming to draw me back to what I was seeing about the “future form” of the Soul Body in the ARMY Outlook reading where, rather than seeing them as being seven individual energy centers tethered together in a way that reflected and held the positions and signatures of the seven main chakras through the spine and nervous system, I was seeing them as planetary bodies alongside each other, orbiting around each other, held together by a magnetic force. I wonder if this is at all relevant to why and how I see Namjoon’s current position as something reflecting the creation of the Universe.

CURRENT ENERGY SIGNATURE I’m crying, look at all the stars! Anima Mundi, Blessed, Universal Light, The Star, and the Ace of Pentacles all have these stars in their images that feel extremely pushed forward, highlighted, and locked into place. I’m feeling them all the same way I was feeling Namjoon’s little dot of light, like they’re heavy, holding a lot of energy in a small form, humming to a degree. It’s pretty intense actually.

This section is just to look at his overall projected energy right now and going forward post-enlistment through the lens of the cards themselves, looking for either verification or elaboration of what I was seeing regarding his inner world or the space where his soul meets his layers of consciousness. Right away, the first set of cards out seemed to perfectly reflect the element of “precursor to The Big Bang” that I was seeing with Anima Mundi and The Father.

At the very head of things, this looks like a direct reflection of what is or will be happening once that little star that is his soul decides to explode outward. The Anima Mundi card is described as, “all that is,” which goes back to Atum as well as the reference of planetary bodies. I’m also seeing this card as reflecting multiple, if not all layers of awareness and consciousness that would be in play through this burst. I’m also quite interested in The Father card here as there is that higher reflection of being the Crown in the Soul Body, the head or leader in that way, but also, this card came out in his section for the BTS Bias Breakdown reading which centered on the energy signature of the overall group and referenced his ability to access, occupy, navigate, and guide others through light and shadow, positive and negative, a full spectrum guide and teacher.

In addition to this, The Father was lying underneath Anima Mundi when it came out, very similar to something that was in the BTS Bias Breakdown reading, where The Father was laid over The Stone, at one point reflecting the idea of the tree having to grow through stone rather than soil. There is this culmination point felt here where the tree grows out of stone, but the Universe grows out of the tree. It’s quite elaborate in my mind the way that this looks, but it could almost be boiled down to the idea of chiseling the soul into something worthy of a level of worship like a marble statue treasured for hundreds, thousands, or even millions of years.

The sense of things being paused or frozen inside of a photograph of a single instance in time is reflected with the 555 card over the Beautiful card. Just as they are laid out in the image, 555, which reflects that element of stagnation of necessary and guided pause, was over Beautiful in such a way that it felt like we were seeing a paused video of a person just beginning to open their eyes and a flower just beginning to bloom. There’s also this very interesting flow between the cards that may be difficult to see, but the lines that flow over the 555 card flow directly into lines on the Beautiful card:

There’s this feeling, again, of the Beautiful image just starting to “wake up” or “bloom” and then the lines that form the images are almost sucked into an odd warped place within 555. On some level, it’s making me think of how blackhole simulations look where we can see light being pulled and bent around and into it. If I’m not mistaken, isn’t the whole idea of “the Universe is breathing” have to do with the idea that with The Big Bang everything exploded outward like an exhale and eventually things will be drawn back to the center point like an inhale, which presumably would be through the insane gravitational pull of a black hole that would suck everything into a singularity before exploding outward again??

And not to stroke my nostalgia boner here, but the reference to Beautiful, the flower blooming, and the idea of waking up being paused, is also making me think back to HYYH, the initial call for the soul group to come together again, and the idea of the revival period for both BTS and ARMY. As one would expect, it would start with Namjoon as the head or Crown of the soul body and the initial access point for downward integration from higher source energies.

The eye of Beautiful is also looking upward toward Magic which felt to be reflecting a separate layer, a lower layer of Anima Mundi. Anima Mundi feels like a view of a computer’s coding, all the 1s and 0s and whatnot, while Magic feels like what you would see on the screen while those codes are running. Magic is what we would see but Anima Mundi would be what is happening on a higher level.

Then, with Blessed, Universal Light, and The Star, there are these lines of light in all three images that move upward and downward, creating channels and conduits of these higher light sources, which, again, feels very relevant to Namjoon’s higher souls position as the Crown, the major conduit that reverberates down into millions of people. Going from Anima Mundi to Magic, Blessed, and then Universal Light feels like a process of transference or integration that is being carried down from what I would imagine being at least the 8th, 9th, or 10th Dimensional space, with Universal Light representing the space of 5D blueprints that are relevant to human consciousness itself.

If we follow that pattern, the 10th House card represents the 4D, elements of time and where systems of fate can be rooted in. With this being represented by the 10th House we have systems of higher standing, fame, power, and influence of the mass collective. Beautiful and 555, the space that is paused is the 3D, the physical and conscious space which carries into The Star and the Ace of Pentacles in a very interesting way. The Star is the star that I was seeing, marking here a point at which the star explodes. In a sense, what we would see when The Star activates would be the Ace of Pentacles. Essentially, while there is a multilayered process happening on a higher level, we may only experience the sense of The Star, a point of culmination, inspiration, or activation that would be very tangible to the soul group, followed by a physical release of something, which could be to do with music or some other physical conduit of these transmissions. This could reflect again the Wheel of Fortune/10 of Cups/Ace of Pentacles from the ARMY Outlook Reading for the progression into 2026.

Another reference to the element of pause was shown with the Universal Light and 10th House card, where there is a break in the integration or stream of this energy. Both cards are number 34, which together would add up to 7. On one level, this is very literal in the sense that as they are separated physically, the Soul Body remains separated which means these higher energies can not move down the system, creating this sense of pause or waiting for the breaking point. The separation of 7 into 3 and 4 also highlights a separation between the 3D and 4D, or physical and conscious reality from the perception of time, which brings me back to “this is only a moment.” There is a time warp here, which is also something that came up in the ARMY Outlook Reading concerning September and October of 2025.

When we condense everything, what we are left with is a transition from Anima Mundi, all that is, being reflected and handed out into something very physical and consciously perceivable in the Ace of Pentacles, through the members of BTS as the conscious and physical conduits of the Soul Body where Namjoon is the first to receive and initiate all that comes through.

MAIN READING

CORE ENERGY: VULTURE — AIR I don’t even know how to put into words all of what I’m seeing with this, but it connects back to so many different things on so many different levels — the Soul Body and soul group revival, the exodus period for the soul group, the higher purpose of the Soul Body in general with its influence on humanity, the elements of Namjoon’s soul group being centered on healing and light/shadow balance, the aspect of the energy being paused or held back, Namjoon sitting in receptivity as the first to receive and initiate these fluxes on a higher level. It just goes on and on. For the sake of you hopefully being able to catch the vibe here, I’ll include the full description of this card, but keep all of that stuff in mind:

“Vulture — Guardian and purifier, essential for rebalance, clarifies, reveals wisdom. The Vulture is perhaps the most misunderstood creature of all. This intriguing bird balances our ecosystem and prevents the spread of disease. It does the dirty work that no one else wants to do and cleans up our messes. The Vulture appears when there’s a situation that needs to be purified or brought back into balance. Remember, the Vulture is greatly undervalued… what you thought was a mistake or tragedy is a blessing in disguise.”

This card reminds me a lot of Death in the Rider-Waite deck and how I always remind people that Death, or the Grim Reaper, doesn’t show up to kill you, they show up to guide or clear out what has already died. In this sense, it brings into focus this idea of the time warp, a reality shift, and a sense of perception being distorted to conceptualize the idea that the point when something dies is still an element of Life itself, an event that is part of the life cycle, with the point afterward, the process of decay, being another process within the life cycle as what is being broken down is being taken in to build up something new or to sustain life further. In that regard, we come into a 4D thought space where there is no such thing as Life and Death, or the 3D idea of a beginning and an end, a finite experience, a wall at the edge of the Universe. Instead, we see simply a process of soul integration and soul disintegration — a point in which, from the soul’s perspective, you make your way in and then you make your way out. No start, no end, just a continuation of all that is. Mind you, the 3D human consciousness is the only space you can perceive time slowly enough that you can create a sense of Past and Future, with the singular momentary state of Present that is continuously being experienced. Once you vibrate out of the body, or in other words, when you die, you bump up into the 4D where time is no longer perceived slowly enough, or even at all, to where you can exist within time as if it were the ocean.

Basically, in the 3D, the human consciousness rules time and space, in the 4D time rules over space and lowkey doesn’t give a fuck about human consciousness, at least not until it’s back to the 5D where it belongs. Until then, when we die we can, if we’re still very connected to our human consciousness, experience a quite warped and out-of-place experience where, much like getting caught up in a storm-fueled wave, you can’t tell up from down, now from then, and so on.

We’re looking at something we’ve seen before with Namjoon where sometimes his soul, due to his position and purpose, just kind of falls into an odd stasis where his central being, his eternal existence itself is being used as a tool, a conduit, an incubator that, right now, is mirroring the idea of a black hole that has sucked in every single bit of reality and is about to spit it all back out in a completely new form. The concept of existing versus not existing, life versus death, and beginning versus ending, is challenged here in a way that I can’t figure out how to describe. It’s very Anima Mundi coded but focused more on the elements of integration and disintegration happening at the same time through him, through his core, through his soul.

HIGHER SELF CORE ALIGNMENT: EARTHWORM — EARTH There are layers to this one as well. First off, the visual of the Earthworm brought to mind the aspect of Namjoon being a conduit on pretty much every level, while, right now, there’s a kind of knot in the system that is meant to be there as, again, there’s a point of initiation that is planned and is being prepared for both by the Guides of BTS and the Guides of the millions of people who are in the soul group.

I was seeing the Earthworm here connect back to the Ace of Pentacles, specifically as if it is reflecting the network through which Anima Mundi would pass to be physically and consciously expressed as the Ace of Pentacles. I see this as being a reference to the system that would allow it to take root in the ground, in the Earth, and on some level become part of the ecosystem, become part of a constant charge or fertilizer in the soil that would help things to grow. This seems to have to do with the reverberations of higher frequency — the Soul Body’s frequency rises when it comes back together, triggering the ARMY soul group, which triggers the overall ARMY community, which ripples out into the mass collective, and essentially sinks into the soil from there. It’s creating a network of roots, a new root system, which brings me back to the tree in The Father.

In the same way that we see all the color locked in by the Earthworm’s body, Namjoon’s essence, and probably the essence of an entire civilization, is locked into that singularity, that star I was seeing. It’s contained for a reason, tucked away, and actively being stimulated, waiting for the moment when the knot is undone in the system, for the moment the Soul Body is back together, where it will then sort of “snap” into a straight line and, much like Universal Light, just shoot that energy straight down. It starts to feel like a booster shot for humanity.

As this is in the state of his Higher Self, or what his soul is actively trying to do with his core energy, it reflects the same kind of stasis or non-conscious state overall. The Higher Self isn’t necessarily trying to do anything as something is being done through it, it is a tool and a conduit for higher intention and Namjoon’s soul is a willing participant, a willing volunteer for this work, and has developed literally for what could be perceived as millions of years to function like this. How this would look on a conscious level… I’m not sure if it would look like anything as the same kind of “locked in” or guarded feeling would probably be present with him at least subconsciously to protect this overall system. There was a mention of preparation for protection in the ARMY Outlook reading that did reference The Star card, so that could be something that is already in play for Namjoon specifically as his soul is holding what we can just collectively refer to as Anima Mundi.

WATER ALIGNMENT: GOLDEN EGG — SPIRIT ASSOCIATED CHAKRA: HEART CHAKRA Now, luckily, as we get into the individual alignments, the breakdown of the core energy, we’re sinking back down into the layers of consciousness which means things aren’t so wildly abstract, however, this damn Golden Egg here is reflecting a subconscious or unconscious element of the singularity star thing, but is showing yet another layer of it that is much closer to his conscious mind.

The Water Alignment acts as the most internal aspect of the core, the foundation of the core energy overall, and connects to aspects of emotional awareness and expression, creative inspiration and expression, and intuitive awareness and reception. With Namjoon, we’re getting a bit of that locked down, locked-in energy here with the idea of there being something of great significance inside the Golden Egg. Along with that, just as I was feeling with all of the stars in the energy signature reading and the singularity itself, the Golden Egg is humming. Both in terms of its energy and its meaning and reference, the Golden Egg hums.

The first thing that pops into my head with the Golden Egg is the reference to and use of it in Harry Potter where, In the Goblet of Fire I believe, Harry receives an egg that when opened sends out a piercing shriek. Only when he takes it into the bathroom and submerges it underwater is he able to hear a soft and sweetly sung voice give him instructions or a riddle for the next game they are playing. This is so unbelievably like that with the hum, a transmission that can’t be understood right now, but at some point will be clear to us in the same way that, eventually, all the characters would know what the next game was, but for Namjoon, if he “submerges himself” or connects upward to his subconscious mind, sits in receptivity, would be able to hear this hum. He would be the first to hear what it is saying or what energy is coming through. With it so close to the conscious mind, I imagine this would come through as creative inspiration that would then be put through expression. This also brings to mind the Ace of Swords and the 6 of Pentacles in the ARMY Outlook Reading, which represented something their Guides wanted to give them which would then be handed down to ARMY in some capacity, an idea, a message, a transmission, something to do with words and the mind.

In addition to all of this, the general meaning of the Golden Egg in this deck brings the focus back to the idea of Namjoon being in completely perfect alignment with his soul, but in a time when his soul is being utilized as a higher conduit and an incubator of sorts. It’s almost like if Namjoon were to dive inward right now, he would be able to feel the wall or the necessary separation, he would be able to feel the barriers but also possibly be able to work past them to a degree. On some level, with the description of this card, it almost feels like the Golden Egg is calling out to Namjoon and is inviting him to make that connection or to, in a backward motion, connect upward to make a conscious level connection rather than just waiting for it to trickle down to him. If I was giving him this reading directly, I don’t know if I would advise that, but I would mention it and tell him if he FEELS like it, he should, but if it feels to be a bit much, then for sure, just wait because this shit is going to hit at some point in the same way Anima Mundi will hit the Universe. It will hit either like the Ace of Swords, the Ace of Pentacles, or both, one bleeding into the other.

I will, however, definitely recommend those of you who feel yourselves to be, with certainty, a member of Namjoon’s soul group within the overall soul group that resides in ARMY, to connect with your Heart Chakra or center of your being through meditation as I think you may have some sort of “cosmic email” waiting for you to tap into. In the BTS Bias Breakdown reading, there were notes of the soul group mirroring levels of progression and riding the same waves of phases of integration and “upgrades.” It may be a good time to reconnect with yourself on a deeper level if you haven’t been lately.

For reference, I want to include the full description of this card for reflection as well:

“Golden Egg — message at the center of the heart, the unstruck sound — Within the Golden Egg lives a precious sound. Deep within that sound resides a message. The sound cannot be heard, nor the message discerned until we retreat from the noise of modern-day life. The magical essence of the Golden Egg needs warmth, quiet, and time to unfold. No rushing, pushing, or grasping. Find a place of deep and restful ease. Perhaps through yoga nidra or meditation. If you do not yet have a meditation practice, take some time for introspection or contemplation. When the mind begins to settle and the breath is calm, ask the question that weighs heaviest on your heart… staying open to any response you hear. Engaging with the energy of the Golden Egg is an advanced practice. It requires becoming intimate with our very essence and comfortable with vulnerability. When a feeling of tenderness or gratitude arises from deep within you, know that you are well on your way. Your chest may swell like you are seeing an old friend who’s been away for a long, long time. Listen to the message they’ve been waiting to tell you.

The subtle essence of the Golden Egg is nestled deep within the heart center at the fourth chakra. This chakra, called Anahata, is the home of the self or soul. By bringing the mind into this center we discover a portal to the most intimate and luminous space. It is said our inner guide sits there in deep meditation, waiting for us. Anahata translates as “the unstruck sound.””

FIRE ALIGNMENT: LION — FIRE The Fire Alignment is the aspect of the core where the inspired vision or emotional expression of the Water Alignment begins to turn into action or outward expression toward other people or just out into the world in general. This is the first port through which energy, expression, and essence can leave the individual and begin to register elsewhere. Here, Namjoon has the Lion, which is a very stable, highly developed Fire energy showing that this is both in alignment and balanced.

Following the same pattern of containment and focused stimulation, on a more conscious level, maybe more in the conscious and subconscious space, there is a deliberate restraint to his expression and output. It’s coming across as keeping his mouth shut, keeping his hands to himself, holding himself back in those ways, and with that it would suggest that he is experiencing some level of noticeable energetic flux or stimulation that he is consciously being mindful of. This very well could just be his excitement toward the end of his enlistment period, feeling quite happy and excited, possibly very inspired as he begins to imagine what things will be like when they’re all out and back together again, working both as solo artists and a group.

There is a very strong sense of maturity here as well, one that I’m seeing tiptoeing toward the next card in this deck which is the Elephant, the highest developed Fire energy in the deck. Again, it’s like he’s containing himself, but the second he can kind of “take off” the regal element, the well-behaved, cautious, and mindful suit — which could just be a matter of keeping himself together while he’s in the military, conducting himself more appropriately for the environment — he will burst outward into the Elephant, the highest simulated Fire energy, the highest and most clear projection of his energy, lining up with a more grounded and personal version of what we see with Anima Mundi.

EARTH ALIGNMENT: HAWK — AIR (REV.) This is pretty interesting. This is the only reversed card in the reading and it sits at the point of external emergence here. The Earth Alignment is the point of physicality, where the energetic body meets the physical body, where the conscious mind meets the outside world, and can showcase the level of a person’s groundedness, connection to the Earth, and self-awareness. With a reversed Air energy here, there is a conscious level disconnect being demonstrated here, one that is registering as a very literal separation from communicative outlets, as in, he just ain’t talking very much right now, and is holding things in.

Just the same as the others, there is the containment, but here it feels more reflective of the knot in the Earthworm. Rather than this being in the Air Alignment, which would reflect exclusively a disconnect from other people, here, in the Earth Alignment, it is suggesting that he is disconnected from himself because of his disconnect from other people. This could be family, friends, the other members, or his sense of disconnect from his audience. I was seeing this reflecting the Lion though, in a way where he is not without himself, he is not so disconnected from himself that he has lost self-awareness or a sense of his identity, quite the contrary. Instead, what I see here, is a new identity having been formed, or a new sense of self that is cooking, or heating up, being stimulated, and he’s very deliberately holding it in here, but the Hawk would imply that there are plans to express it at some point.

There was also an interesting pattern that I noticed first in the way that the Hawk is an Air energy that carries Fire, which made me take note of its direct connection to the Lion or the Fire Alignment. I then looked at the book and realized that the Hawk is the second to last Air energy, coming before the Eagle, just as the Lion is the second to last Fire energy coming before the Elephant. They are both reflecting that “just about to burst but I’m gonna be chill about it” energy that Namjoon has going on on a million different levels.

With all of this, it is incredibly important to note the meaning of the Hawk on its own, and for that, I’ll include the full description because why not?

“Hawk — watchful, all-seeing, messenger of divinity, sees clearly, intuitive — The sharp eyes of the Hawk watch our every move. This keen-eyed bird has the ability to see every little detail as well as the bigger picture. When this card appears, fate has its eyes on you, and the winds are shifting. It is said that the hawk carries new upon its wings and is sent from divinity itself to deliver it. The message should not be taken lightly… though it may seem small or insignificant, it will eventually redirect your course.”

Like… is that not so unbelievably relevant to all this stuff that’s come out in just the first two readings that have been done for this countdown event? And it’s just sitting here in his conscious mind like it ain’t about to be the biggest deal ever.

AIR ALIGNMENT: FISH — WATER The Air Alignment is the most externalized of the alignments as it is the point of meeting with other people and the conscious reception of the world around you. This alignment can show the state of the conscious level mind on a more superficial level, manner of communication, focus, and can sometimes reflect what is making its way into the Water Alignment from the outside. Here, Namjoon has the Fish, a Water energy that is coming through very clean and sharp, very different than how I usually see this card.

In a similar fashion to the Lion and the Hawk, there is a level of stimulation here that is almost too much to bear, a kind of excitement that can have your entire body tensing up involuntarily but with enough applied control you’re able to still your face and keep yourself from squealing. With such a clear rush of Water here in the Air Alignment, it can’t be counted as a misalignment and instead almost feels like an integration of Water in the Air Alignment. On some level, I see it as if the Fish is supposed to be in the Water Alignment, but was pushed out by the Golden Egg, almost like, since the higher subconscious can not fully connect to the higher unconscious, the soul, as it is busy doing it’s little incubation business, it just swam over and decided to sit in the Air Alignment since the Hawk is busy keeping its mouth shut temporarily in the Earth Alignment while Namjoon is physically separated from specific communicative outlets.

It’s like Namjoon is crazy receptive right now, but it would again register as inspiration rather than direct channeling or divine guidance, and with that, he’s getting quite antsy, very excited, probably thinking and overthinking, feeling and overfeeling everything, all within an effort to keep himself grounded and appropriate with the environment he is in.

The Fish, in general, is described as being quite restless as it is implied to be moving with the currents or, if in a bad state, fighting against the currents or being taken by them. There is a note in there about a change of focus, something I’m sure is to be attributed to the idea of fish having small attention spans, but here, it feels a lot like the Fish getting a glimpse of the stars or the singularity. Seeing it, feeling it, dreaming it, something of the sort stimulating this sense of infinity that is both exhilarating and probably a bit nerve-wracking. There is certainly a source of excitement being presented here, something he is seeing, whether it be within himself or something he is aware of outside of himself, something is getting this fish excited inside its fishbowl.

Side Note: I just remembered that Namjoon’s Past Life Reading, where there is a vivid description of his inner world at that time, mentions him being inside of a fishbowl-like structure, focused on the sky. I don’t know if it’s relevant, but it just popped into my head as I re-read that last line. Right now, even while the bowl is full of water and things are moving, he is still, on some level, “stuck inside” as he is limited to the restrictions of his enlistment as well as separation from his typical “currents” or daily flow within which he can properly work and express himself as he needs to.

The anticipation is clear even in the Fish’s description, emphasizing its love and need for movement. Really, it just feels like, while reading it, it’s relaying a level of craving that Namjoon may have, especially with the end of enlistment being so close, for his normal life, the flow, the release, the inspiration, and most importantly, the freedom. So you can see what I mean, I’ll include the description for this card as well:

“Fish — restlessness, change of focus, lost in the current, adaptable, travels well — The Fish loves to be subsumed in life’s current. Nothing pleases it more than movement, movement, and more movement. The roaming lifestyle of the Fish may be exhilarating for a while, but usually leads to weariness and slippery relationships. With all the possibilities out there in the vast waters, the Fish becomes lost without clear goals and intentions. Spend some time with the lunar forces, dear Fish, as the peace and calm of the moon will soothe your soul.”

MAIN READING WITH SPRINKLES! Adding to the main reading, I included Sprinkles to get more clarity and context to Namjoon’s alignments here. Starting at the very center, over the Vulture, he has “not moving,” which seemed to bounce off the other pink Sprinkle over the Lion which says, “driving away.” This reflects and affirms the idea of his core energy kind of being at a standstill, but not in a way where he is stagnant or dropping frequency, but rather, he is stagnant the way one is stagnant inside a moving vehicle. His Fire Alignment, his energy in general, is highly stimulated, boiling without boiling over, expanding on itself internally, building up pressure within the confined space of the Vulture, preparing to burst out down the line.

The other pink Sprinkle lies over the Fish, connecting it directly to the Vulture with a warning of, “glass door ahead!” This Sprinkle is meant to warn of invisible barriers or unexpected obstacles that can turn into opportunities or access points, but here, in reference to the idea of the Fish being currently contained inside the fishbowl of Namjoon’s own mind, this is implying a doorway being opened very soon that will allow him to open up and express, to let the Fish swim more freely. On multiple levels, this is registering as a reference to the “bursting” of the star or Anima Mundi, Namjoon’s release from the military, and possibly the release or expression of ideas or thoughts/feelings he has had brewing in his head.

Connecting in an interesting diagonal pattern, those three pink Sprinkles relay the center as being motionless while two outwardly projected spaces, Air and Fire, are active and stimulating each other. Lining things up with the idea of someone being in a car, the Vulture, Lion, and Fish are all technically passengers, but they hold, on a higher level, representations of the navigation system or operator (Vulture), the gas or engine making the vehicle move (Lion), and the road itself, the outer current that the car is following (Fish.)

Then, at the very top, over the Earthworm there is a Sprinkle that says, “once that path has been cleared,” which I was then seeing trickle down into the “Love + Power” which connects it over to the Golden Egg. Over the Golden Egg, there is then a combination of Sprinkles stating “a place to remember” and “amazing night.” I was seeing these four Sprinkles being stirred together between the Earthworm and the Golden Egg, creating their little vortex of energy that was coming through as “when the path has been cleared between the higher Source, the soul, and the conscious mind, the highest frequencies of Love will move through the system and hatch the Golden Egg out into the world. When this happens, it will be an amazing, showstopping, night to remember.”

Following this, the Golden Egg suddenly seemed to be highlighting and projecting onto the yellow Sprinkle lying between the Vulture and the Fish which says, “put on your hat!” This is in reference to someone doing their job — putting on your hat, putting on your uniform, playing your designated role in something. Especially with the idea of Namjoon’s soul being the Crown of the Soul Body, it feels like the hatching of the Golden Egg could be lining up with the revival period of the Soul Body and the overall soul group.

Lastly, the remaining Sprinkles were quite odd and seemed to register on a completely different level than the rest, a more conscious level and externally oriented level which seemed to explain why Namjoon seems to be deliberately restraining himself and acting as “appropriately as possible.” A few different things were coming through but most of them seem personal and mostly don’t need to be explained in detail, the crossing of “very bad day,” and “who brought a gun?” over the bottom two cards, the Fire and Earth Alignments seem to suggest a betrayal or an unexpected issue within his personal life, most likely involving another person, which he then internalized with the “it’s about you,” over the Lion. The Lion’s level-headed maturity thing, regalness, and effort to be “appropriate” seem to be a compensatory effort to undo or operate against a situation where he may have been in the exact opposite state of mind or behavior. While this may have been a negative situation, it is showing here that it led to self-containment on a conscious level which inevitably put him in a direct alignment with his soul, a direct parallel to the containment that has put him in a better standing, the best standing he could be in at the moment.

With this, I was brought back again to the Vulture’s description, particularly the line that says, “Remember, the Vulture is greatly undervalued… what you thought was a mistake or tragedy is a blessing in disguise.”

And that’s all I have for this one, thank you so much for reading! :)

XXXX

Website Links!

The Elemental Alignment of Kim Namjoon (Part 2) Post

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[isthepame]

Blue Lock VS. U-20 JAPAN Serialised Interview, Part 2

Makoto Furukawa as Tabito Karasu – Exploring Karasu’s ‘Calculating Nature’ and ‘Aura of Dominance’

Interviewer: Could you share your thoughts on the story’s focus in Season 2, particularly the "U-20 Japan National Team Match"? What aspects of it do you find most striking or appealing?

Makoto Furukawa (voice of Tabito Karasu): Seeing the individuals who have previously clashed so fiercely now come together as teammates to face the U-20 players has a certain emotional depth to it.

When you think of the U-20 Japan National Team in real life, it’s often seen as a dream team, made up of players selected from across various regions. But in a way, the Blue Lock players are no less of a dream team themselves. This makes for an incredibly thrilling and dynamic development in the story.

Interviewer: What was your first impression of Tabito Karasu as a character, and what do you focus on when portraying him?

M. Furukawa: One of the key directions I received was to emphasise his "calculating nature." I try to incorporate that subtly throughout my performance. While his surname, "Karasu," means "crow," his personality and troublesome nature remind me more of a "snake" a comparison that was also highlighted in the direction I received.

Another important aspect is his Kansai dialect. I was provided with guide audio beforehand, and adapting its nuances to match the character's pace and the visuals was quite challenging. I’ve also had the opportunity to learn from people on set who are from the Kansai region, which has been incredibly helpful and much appreciated.

Interviewer: In Episode 2, we saw Team A face off against Team B in a match to decide the regular players for the "U-20 Japan National Team Match." There was also a scene where Karasu and Kageya Otoya stood together as the team's two forwards. Could you share your impressions of Episode 2 and any scenes that stood out to you?

M. Furukawa: Looking back after recording, I feel that this episode served as an introduction for characters who hadn’t yet had much opportunity to shine in the story. I hoped to convey the "aura of strength" that comes with surviving Blue Lock. In a sense, this episode felt like a self-introduction for many characters, so I hope viewers will continue to support them moving forward.

Interviewer: In this episode, Karasu’s sharp analytical skills and his knack for being a disruptor were on full display, such as when he referred to Isagi as "ordinary." How did you approach these aspects in your performance?

M. Furukawa: I focused on creating the sense that Karasu could "disable" his target player (functionally speaking). By subtly hinting at malice and applying pressure bit by bit, I aimed to build that tension in the performance.

Since I also considered the physical aspects of his character, it’s possible that the sense of pressure came across even stronger than intended.

Interviewer: Lastly, could you share what viewers should look forward to in the coming episodes?

M. Furukawa: As many already know, the match against the U-20 players is a major highlight. However, what excites me most is the personal growth and human drama that unfolds throughout the series it’s truly inspiring.

Personally, I was particularly struck by Ego’s long monologue.

Of course, the individual moments of brilliance from each character are also something to look forward to. Please enjoy the broadcast!

Interview by Chihiro Sasamoto.

Edited by Inari Ogawa.

Translated by isthepame (X)

Source: animateTimes

[spiralfucker]

where should i look to learn the basic of ableton? it overwhelms me so much but there's nothing more i want to do than making music or at least trying to and I'm terrible depressed bc of that

Hi anon. I’ve been in the same position as you and I know what it feels like to have all this creative energy and emotions pent up that you can’t express in the way you’d like to. This is a long one but I’m really passionate about this so here:

Basically I learnt the basics of logic at my uni and I got lessons/mentoring from my bandmate who encouraged me to switch over to ableton (I much prefer it now).

I know it looks overwhelming at first but I promise with some practice it’s really not too bad (it’s def easier than pro tools lol) Music production is one skill that is really easy to self teach because there’s just so many free resources online. I’d really recommend finding an in depth introduction to ableton video on YouTube and kind of just following along. Start trying to learn the keyboard commands early on if you can because they’ll make your workflow so much faster in the long run.

Izotope has some really great articles that go into the basics of production techniques in really easy to understand terms. Sound on sound has some great articles too. Making a big google doc with every you learn can be a great resource to have so you can go back and reference it.

Alongside that I’d recommend trying to learn some basic music theory because I honestly think it essential to know for production (many people would disagree lol). If you haven’t already, try to get your head around the circle of fifths and the harmonic series.

As well as this, I think it’s important to understand the basics of synthesis because that terminology will keep coming up in VSTs and it’ll help to have some context of where these terms came from. Look into the basics anatomy of a subtractive synthesiser to start. From there id recommend looking into FM, additive and wavetable synthesis. This book was written in the 80s but I found it really helpful for grasping these concepts: https://archive.org/details/SynthesizerBasicsDeanFriedman600dpi_201608/page/n70/mode/1up

I’d also recommend grasping the basics of EQ and compression because it’s something you’ll probably use on every single track you ever make. Also learn what phase cancellation is because that’s an issue that come up a lot when you’re a beginner.

If you’re able to, I’d recommend making it a goal to try to a learn new thing about music or production every day. Even if that’s just something as simple as what synth was used on a song you like or what a particular mic is good for or a neat trick you do with a stock plugin, all that knowledge adds up and complements each other.

I’ve found that trying to listen to your favourite music with an analytical frame of mind and even trying to get a hold of the multitracks can be a great learning tool. Find out what kind of hardware they used, what plugins they used, what mics etc. There’s no shame in copying your favourite producers until you find your own voice.

In terms of gear, I’d recommend picking up a midi keyboard and an interface if you don’t have one already. If you’re finding you keep running into CPU issues with your computer (ableton isn’t great for this) you can try resampling your midi track and turning off the plugins then freezing the track (I wish I started doing this sooner). Otherwise you’ll just get frustrated and stuck and not want to keep working on your tracks.

If money is an issue, ableton comes with a lot of great stock instruments and effects + samples and drum racks but expensive plugins are always going on sale so maybe have a look on plugin boutique and see if anything that looks cool is within your budget.

Keep in mind that I’m saying this as someone who still considers themself a beginner/intermediate in this area and I still have a heap to learn too. Good luck and make cool stuff.

[synthapostate]

I'm starting my Animorphs reread.

"My name is Jake. That's my first name, obviously. I can't tell you my last name. It would be too dangerous." This is the iconic opening to every book, and it's never more effective than the first time. On page one, Jake makes the rather hopeless statement that, "Maybe, somehow, the human race can survive until the Andalites return and rescue us, as they promised they would. Maybe."

Then it cuts back to him hanging out at the mall. It's nothing groundbreaking, structurally, but I first read this as a child, used to very straightforward children's storytelling, and it blew my mind to realize that you could hint at what was to come and then back away from the action for some scene-setting. It was a technique I imitated many times when I got serious about writing as a middle schooler.

Jake introduces his best friend, Marco, who is really good at video games because he "has this amazing ability to analyze games and figure out all the little tricks." Marco will continue throughout the series as the sarcastic slacker who doesn't seem like he'd be any use in a war, but that analytical ability of his will save their asses more than once. Also, the fact that Jake has a Sega at home and Marco doesn't, and Jake provides the quarters they use at the arcade, is a nice indicator of the differences in their living situations that will be made more explicit later.

Jake's own character introduction is that he's having a bad day because he didn't make the basketball team, setting him up as a kid so average, he's not even that great at the sport he really cares about. It also sets up the motivation that will drive him throughout the war: his brother is a basketball star, and he just wants them to hang out like they used to. Little does he know.

Next is Tobias: "I actually met Tobias when he had his head in a toilet. There were these two big guys holding him down and laughing while they flushed...I told the two creeps to step off, and ever since then, Tobias figured I was his friend." Tobias will not miss being a normal kid. Also, the fact that even the one person who was nice to him thinks "friendship" is a strong word is just one of many ways the author will grind this boy's happiness into the dirt. Yay 😊

"Cassie is quieter than Rachel, more peaceful, like she always understands something on some different, more mystical level." Yeah, Jake has a crush (sometimes he sits with her on the bus!) but there's truth in what he sees in her. Cassie's first action is to shut down a fight before it can begin, and she will continue to play peacemaker throughout the war.

And Rachel? Her first action is to start the fight that Cassie stops, when Jake suggests the girls shouldn't walk through an abandoned construction site after dark, because they're girls. "I never should have suggested to Rachel that she's weak or helpless. She may look like Little Miss Teen Model or whatever, but she thinks she's Storm from the X-Men. 'Are you going to come and protect us, you big, strong m-a-a-a-a-n?'" Rachel is a born fighter, already walking the line between fearless and stupidly reckless, and she will never learn to pick her battles.

These are great character introductions, fleshing the kids out in some subtle ways in between the more standard "Rachel is my cousin and she's a pretty blonde, Tobias is weird, Cassie is black." It sets up who they will be, but also who they are on their last day of being normal kids.

And then aliens show up.

It's a hell of a Chapter One.

[linkspooky]

Hello👋

Do you have an opinion or analysis of Johan from Yu-Gi-Oh GX?

I love his Character💕

My opinion on Johan is I love him lots. The only reason I didn't include him on my previous season 3 posts is that there's so much to talk about with Johan he basically requires his own post. Johan is just as important to Judai's development in season 3 as Yubel, both alchemically and thematically.

So let's embark on another long, long post for Johan and his role in the story.

The Golden Shadow

Before we deep dive into alchemy let's talk about Jung. Jung's theories of analytical psychology is heavily based on Alchemy so this is relevant, I promise. Freud and his contemporary Jung both pioneered the field of psychology together, however Jung went deeper and believed that re-occuring character archetypes and motifs in stories told us something about the human subconscious itself.

For Carl Cung, "the rediscovery of the principles of alchemy came to be an important part of my work as a pioneer of psychology". Jung linked the steps of alchemy several a process of turning lead into gold as a metaphor for individuation.

Individuation is essentially becoming one's self. Jung believed for a person to be whole, they had to integrate all the parts of their personality. His model divided personality into the the persona (the face / exteral world) shadow (the internal / the subcosnscious where everything's hidden), and the anima and animus made of feminine and masculine traits.

In a show like Yu-Gi-Oh GX, individuation is the process of growing up. Jung used alchemy as a metaphor for a developing person's ego maturing, each stage representing a different aspect of his divided conscious. Nigredo is where we become aware of our shadows, Albedo refers to the anima and animus, citrinatis is where sophia the wise old man or women appears, and rubedo is where the self becomes whole.

Johan however, represents two concepts I've left out. Sometimes alchemy is not four stages, but rather five.

The fifth stage is the Peacock's tail, which appears when a person receives a flash of inspiration. Unlike other stages of alchemy associated with color, Peacock's Tail is referred to as the prismatic stage, associated with the colors of the rainbow. The connection to Johan who's signature card is the Rainbow Dragon is obvious.

More on the prismatic phase in the second half of this power however. For now all you need to know that like the star card in Tarot, Johan is a dazzling light of inspiration that helps kickstart Judai's development. The way he does this is by giving Judai someone to aspire to be like.

If the process of aclhemy is to create gold and become your best self then Johan is the golden shadow, to Judai. His role in the story is to help guide Judai into being his best self.

While the shadow is made up of parts of ourselves we hide from others, sometimes these are positive qualities. For example, a character with low self-esteem like Sho Marufuji constantly put himself down and therefore he's never able to see his good qualities because all he ever focuses on is how he's lackluster in comparison to his brother.

If Yubel represents the worst of Judai's flaws that he must learn to accept so he can learn to love himself in spite of those flaws, Johan represents the best in Judai. While Judai has many flaws that are glossed over in the first two parts of the show, I'd also argue he doesn't experience any positive growth. He's entirely stagnant as a character, which is why I say the opening to season 3 and the immediate introduction of Johan is what kickstarts his development.

The banner image I used for this post is where Judai and Johan are doing the Yu-Jo pose, a card in the TCG that is a reference to the friendship between Yugi and Joey in the original series.

However, I would argue that their roles are flipped. In spite of being the main character Judai is Joey, and Johan is Yugi. It's Yugi who makes Judai develop into both a better friend and duelist as a result of their friendship, to the point where Judai almost became too codependent on him and had to learn to separate himself from Yugi and develop on his own in Battle City arc.

(Hint hint, Judai and Johan will follow almost this exact same arc).

Yugi is the light which guides Joey into betterig himself, and Johan is the light that guides Judai.

Judai and Johan from their first meeting, get the vague sense they've already met before. Since this is Yu-Gi-Oh the immediate assumptio would be they had some kind of relationship in a past life, but plot twist it's Yubel.

However, I think this red herring is still important because despite the constant comparisons Johan is more similar to Yubel, then they are to Judai.

Edo refers to them both as Duel-Bakas, Shou gets jealous that Judai and Johan spend constant time together after meeting, in everyone else's even probably Judai's they're the same but if you look at their actions as audience members they're quite different. The comparison between them shows the many ways in which Judai is lacking.

Johan is basically Judai, but better. Judai is put on a pedestal by all his friends and seen as a classic hot-blooded shonen protagonist. Johan however, is the one who has all the classic traits of a real shonen protagonist, including having a dream to aspire to, and also fighting to protect his friends.

These are the two most important traits established from basically the first episode with Johan.

Strong bonds

A reason to fight

Johan's personality is more complicated than that, but these two traits are the most important because they're things Judai is lacking in.

Judai is someone is defined by his friendless background, and had no friends until his first year of Duel Academy. Which is why it makes perfect sense that while Judai is in love with the idea of having friends, he doesn't quite understand what a healthy friendship looks like. Judai is also someone who lacks a reason for dueling and only cites he does it for fun and his own personal satisfaction.

Arguably Judai is forced into duels with greater stakes in seasons 1 and 2, but the key word there is forced. Judai is always pushed into those situations, either because his friends aren't strong enough to duel, or his friends actively expect them to fight their battles in their personal lives for him (cough, cough, Sho). In other words he duels for two reasons, either personal satisfaction, or carrying the burdens of others because that's the way he keeps his friends around him.

Judai is ruthlessly criticized for both of these in season 3, the stakes of dueling become too high and Judai just crumbles under the pressure of having to duel for everyone else. As a result his friendships which were never that stable to begin with fall apart.

Johan on the other hand has a goal on his own, and while he might be a tad overprotective of Judai he's also able to coordinate with the rest of the group. In fact when the whole school is teleported to the other dimmension, it's Johan who steps up to lead, while if you notice Judai's actions he splits off from the group repeatedly. Johan's actions are also the reason they are able to return home, because Judai was unable to do anything substantial to defeat Yubel.

One of Johan's first interactions with Judai is him pointing out how callous Judai can be towards his friend, something which others would usually brush aside.

Sho: Bro… I thought you would have something to say to me. Johan: He seems lost. I think he just wanted you to give him some advice. Judai: Sho will be fine.

More importantly Joha can notice these flaws about Judai and immediately point them out and confront them about him, while still remaining friends with him on the whole.

Johan is Judai's model for a positive friendship. In comparison the friendships he has with other people crumble because of inability for both sides to communicate.

When Judai and his friends travel together to another dimmesion, Judai is selfish in constantly disregarding others feelings and running ahead, and at points even lying to them and going against plans they all made together. However, Judai's friends are unable to confront him about these issues and instead mostly talk and complain among themselves behind his back. Judai might not have listened in his state of mind, but they don't even make the attempt.

In fact the friends who do try to confront Judai about his behavior are August and Jim, characters Judai has known just about as long as Johan in comparison to friends he's had for two years who don't feel comfortable having a basic confrontation with him.

Judai's friendships suffer from the fact that none of them are truly equal. Sho for example is the first person Judai meets on the island and the one who he's known the longest, but one of their first interactions is Judai expressig discomfort for the fact Sho calls him his older brother because he wants duelist to be equals and Sho just ignoring him and continuing to call him that.

Once again I believe there is problems on both ends, Judai is very selfish and has a tendency to be ignorant of other people's feelings. On the other hand, Judai's friends eventually get in the habit of expecting him to solve their problems because they've built up the idea of him in their minds as the group hero.

As I said the friendship crumbles from both ends in season 3, part of it is Judai being selfish and acting like he's the only person that matters, part of it is his friends ruthlessly criticizing him because he's failing to live up to the image they've constructed for themselves.

Judai's friendships are fundamentally unequal but Judai himself isn't aware of this because he has no idea what a healthy friendship looks like - until he meets Johan.

Johan is a character not introduced to us in season 3, and yet it's very understandable to the audience that Judai would become so obsessed with saving someone he's known for about a month, to the point where he risks the lives of friends he's known for two years. Because that month has given Judai his first taste of what true friendship is like, rather than the idea of friendship he's been chasing.

Johan is Judai's better half in a lot of ways. One example we're introduced to immediately upon his introduction is Johan's role as someone able to see duel spirits, and his strong relationship with his cards. Just as an example, all of Johan's cards regularly talk to him and Johan even refers to them as the closest thing he has to family.

Judai until that point had a spirit partner that doesn't talk, and his heroes and neo-spacians are more like allies. For Judai the Neo-Spacians are allies in his fight against the Light of Destructio, for Johan the Crystal Beasts are his family.

Johan is also far more experienced as someone who can see duel spirits, while Judai is actively repressing the memory of the fact he could see spirits much earlier in life, and of Yubel.

Before the characters even travel to another dimmension, Johans duel against the spirit hunter Giesse demonstrates how Judai is lacking in these two traits, strong bonds, and a reason to fight. It also demonstrates the difference between how Judai and Johan regard their spirit partners, and why Johan's relationship with his cards is better.

Shortly before the duel even begins Judai is pushed to the brink by his previous duel against the teacher. A duel that not only exhausted him, but also deeply disturbed him because the teacher called into question his lack of reason for dueling and Judai had no real response. When Judai questions himself he does something we don't often see him do, he goes to someone else for advice. J

udai basically never lets himself appear insecure or lost around friends who aren't named Johan. Judai even apologizes to Johan for asking something out of the blue, he's so unused to relying on others for emotional support of any kind.

Judai: Johan what have you been dueling for? See, it's about fun for me... Well, for the surprise and happiness too. I guess I do do it for the fun. Sorry, I guess I put you on the spot by asking out of nowhere. Johan: What's this about Judai? Judai: It's nothing. Johan: I suppose there is one goal I have. Johan: Even if someone doesn't have the power to see spirits, they can still form a bond with a spirit. That's why I do it for people like him.

Johan wants to be a bridge between humans and spirits. Not only is Johan a character defined by the strong bonds of friendship he forms, but his life's goal is also built around improving the bond between spirits ad humans.

Immediately afterwards, Judai gets up and struggles to duel against their next foe. However, this time Johan steps up to duel in Judai's place, which is also a drastic change from Judai's other friends. Unless they had a strong personal bond like Fubuki and Sho with Ryo, Judai has stepped up to handle all the major duels since Season 2. Judai even experiences anxiety over letting Johan go and duel in his place.

Johan is introduced to Giess the hunter, a spirit hunter who actively found a way to kill spirits. A character like that seems like Johan's obvious narrative foil. Giess even invites the comparison between the two of them, saying that Johan is obsession with getting his hands on Rainbow Dragon is similar to how he hunts spirits.

However, Giess works much better as a negative foil, or shadow of Judai. Which is why it makes sense Johan is the one who duels him, because he represents the best in Judai while Giess represents the worst.

Now the question is how could Giess possibly be compared to Judai? Yes, as I demonstrated above Judai is much more inexperienced with seeing spirits than Johan is but he's never actively malicious towards them the way Giess is.

Except, you know when he slaughters hundreds of duel spirits after turning into Haou the Supreme King.

Giesse has a final monologue upon his defeat, to explain why he does what he does and his cruelty towards spirits. Giesse who has probably been able to see spirits as long as Johan once formed a strong bond with a duel spirit, but he was separated from that spirit. The pain made him close his heart off to forming bonds with any other spirits.

After losing his duel spirit partner he came to conclude it was impossible for humans and duel spirits to get along, because the spirits are too pure hearted to understand humans.

Giesse foreshadows Judai's downfall and his actions as the supreme king. Giesse's start of darkness was being forcibly separated from his spirit partner. The entire conflict from Season 3 happens because Judai made the choice to send his childhood friend / spirit partner Yubel into space.

Ironically, despite Yubel beig corrupted by a force called the Light of Destruction, and having a very twisted, sadomasochistic view of love I think Giesse's words here describe why Judai and Yubel can't understand each other.

Yubel is in a way too pure hearted.

We're never given a reason why Yubel became so overprotective of Judai in childhood before they ever became corrupted by the Light of Destruction but we know one thing for sure.

Yubel has no understanding what they did was wrong. They saw themselves as doing their job of protecting Judai which they sacrificed their body for in the past life. They neither understand why Judai was upset by their actions, or why Judai was upset when people started avoiding him because for Yubel being alone with Judai was enough for them.

It makes sense that Yubel wouldn't understand that Judai wants to have friendships with other children his own age. After all Yubel is a spirit that can only be seen by Judai. For Yubel, there is only Judai, they can't communicate with others, they can't form other friendships. Which is extra tragic if you remember that Yubel wasn't born a duel spirit but a personhood, and gave up their very personhood for Judai.

Yubel is very pure-hearted in a way that's almost insidious, they are so straightforward about their love for Judai, and they exist solely for Judai's sake that they can't understand why Judai has room for other people in his life, because there's no one else for Yubel.

The conflict in season 3 comes from Judai's decision to abandon Yubel. Judai can't come to an understanding with Yubel because Yubel is too pure, being a duel spirit that only exists for Judai's sake.

Judai also follows a similiar path to Giesse, when he loses Johan along with the rest of his friends Judai makes the decision to give up on the notion of love in order to gain power instead.

This is quickly followed by him killing duel spirits en masse, probably more than Giesse managed to kill in order to sacrifice them to forge a powerful card. When Johan is battling with Giesse he's literally battling a reflection of the worst part of Judai. Which sets up Johan's role in the series to guide him to his best self.

In summary Johan's relationships with his spirits are strong and healthy, Judai's relationships with Yubel is weak and unhealthy. In fact, Judai is helping achieve his dream of being the bridge between humans and spirits by essentially teaching Judai what strong bonds looks like.

Johan is also symbolically Judai's complementary half in a lot of ways. Each of the new transfer students plays a deck that embodies one elemental step of the stage of alchemy, August is fire / Nigredo, Amon is Water / Albedo, and James Crocodile Crook is Earth / Citrinitas. Johan is the only exception to this rule, because he plays the crystal beasts which are modeled after the seven colors of the rainbow.

Johan is light which puts him into the contrast with Judai who's both set up as the chosen one of the "gentle darkess" to fight the light of destruction, while at the same time someone corrupted by that very darkness into becoming Haou.

Which sets up Johan to contrast to be a pair with Judai. My friend Kaula or @nini-the-mirror pointed out to me we're shown two types of darkness, the destructive darkness embodied by nightshroud and the gentle darkness. While the light of destruction is set up as a destructive force in the universe, there's also Johan's light based crytal beasts, and rainbow dragon which cleanses away darkness. Fusing Rainbow Dragon with Neos purged Yubel from Johan's body, and when Judai was trapped in darkness illusion in Domino City and believed Johan to be Mr. T, it's Johan and the Crystal Beasts who purify him once again.

Johan's desire to be a bridge between spirits and humans, his northern heritage, and Rainbow Dragon all call to mind the Bifrost, a rainbow bridge which connected heaven ad earth.

The bifrost was a connection between the mortal world, and the realm of the gods, or the physical and the spiritual. Just as Johan is a mortal who can talk to spirits. Yu-Gi-Oh GX is also an anime heavily based off of alchemy concepts, and one of the central ones that's even said by Professor Daitokuji himself is: That which is above is like to that which is below, and that which is below is like to that which is above.

It's a phrase written on the Emerald Tablet, often shortened to "As above, so below." It means the mortal world effects the world of the cosmos, and the world of the cosmos effects the mortal world because everything is connected.

By wanting to stregthen the bonds between humans to spirits Johan is basically embodying this phrase. Judai's goal as the alchemist is to be the one to make changes in the mortal world that affect the cosmos. For example, his battles on earth against Saiou has a direct effect on stopping the Light of Destruction, but honestly again Johan serves his role a lot better than Judai.

Johan is in fact a character written around the concepts of bonds itself, the bonds of humans, the bonds between friends. Judai cares about these things too, he wants to be a good friend, but he has lots of flaws that stunts his growth and holds him back. His inability to integrate his shadow also presents him from being his best self (the golden shadow).

To quote my friend Psyche:

"The shadow is basically the storehouse of everything you don’t like about yourself. The things that others are but you could never allow yourself to be. But it’s also the storehouse of the alchemical gold."

Not only is Johan the best parts of Judai by being his golden shadow, he's also essentially Judai's goal. Judai wants to be like Johan.

If Johan gives Judai these things he's lacking, a healthy friendship, and a reason for fighting, then problem solved right? All Judai needs to do is marry Johan.

If you can't tell I was being sarcastic.

The Prismatic Phase

Alchemy is a process of refinement, of breaking down and forging into something stronger. However, when the metal starts out it's full of impurities that need to be hammered out. Alchemy is often used as a metaphor for both character growth and developing relationships in stories, after all if a character starts out perfect there's no story.

I said above multiple times Johan exists to demonstrate to Judai what a healthy friendship is to Judai. However, the attachment that Judai forms with Johan is anything but. Albeit for different reasons than the rest of his friends.

Johan is indeed someone who is set up as Judai's equal, and also strives to be his support rather than constantly relying on him for battles. Johan doesn't just exist to be a good friend to Judai however, he also demonstrates leadership skills Judai doesn't have when faced with a school full of hungry students teleported to another dimensions.

The problem is on Judai's end. Judai definitely needed a friend like Johan, because he's never experienced a friendship between equals before. However Judai as inexperienced as friendship as he is takes this openly supportive friend and starts using him as a crutch.

There's one scene in particular that demonstrates this problem. In the leadup to the cobra duel, Judai confided in Johan twice that he doesn't have any real reason for dueling and he's insecure about that fact. Cobra then criticizes Judai heavily once again for his irresponsible attitude.

Seeing Judai about to crack under the pressure, Johan takes the moment to encourage Judai by reminding him that he has in fact been carrying everyone's responsibilities on his shoulders all along.

Johan: "Why are you so scared Judai? You think there's nothing riding on you? Quit messing around. You've always had everyone's hopes on you. Anyone who's being counted on'll have people putting all their hopes on him. Isn't that what you're always burdened with. What will happen to us all if you lose?"

Well-meaning advice from Johan, but wrong for Judai for two reasons. The first is that Judai's reasons for fighting are something he has to think through for himself. That's how character development happens. Judai can't solve this inner conflict by having Johan just show up and drop the answer in his lap. He still hasn't thought about what he wants to be, he's just accepted Johan's words at face value.

The second is that Judai taking on other people's burdens is precisely the problem. Johan is such a self-reliant person he can give his support to other people without tiring himself out, but Judai can't. Johan wants to protect his friends. Judai duels for his friends because he's absolutely terrified of losing his friends, that's the difference.

Judai's not mature enough to handle other people's burdens and eventually the pressure gets to him and he completely cracks. Judai's just not mature enough to have a healthy relationship with Johan in general.

A relationship where being separated causes one person to have a complete emotional breakdown is not a healthy relationship.

In fact Judai completely ignoring all of his friends after a separating from Judai, and wanting to get him back ad being willing to sacrifice anything for that goal is a parallel to Yubel. Yubel is also someone who was separated from their best friend who they emotionally depended on, and stopped caring about anything but said friend, and was willing to sacrifice everything to reunite with them.

You could liken the disappearance of Johan, and the subsequent rising of Judai as the Supreme King as propelling him through the black phase of alchemy Nigredo, where the soul is brought to its lowest point and the worst flaws are revealed.

In the second sense, "the nigredo of the process of individuation on the other hand is a subjectively experienced process brought about by the subject's painful, growing awareness of his shadow aspects. It could be described as a moment of maximum despair, that is a prerequisite to personal development Here is "the darkest time, the time of despair, disillusionment, envious attacks...Nigredo, the blackening" [Source]

Johan's friendship is important to Judai, but his union with Johan doesn't actually fix any of Judai's problems and aggravates them in some ways. Judai doesn't even start improving as a character until after they seperate.

Johan isn't the rubedo the end result of alchemy, he's the pristmatic phase, the shining light of inspiration.

One metaphor I like to use for the Prismatic phase is the Star in the fool's journey. GX references Tarot and the fool's journey too, and like alchemy it's also a metaphor for personal growth. The fool (Judai) a person brimming with infinite potential, yet one who is also supremely ignorant, walking forward blind has to wise up to the wys of the world.

In the Fool's Journey the Star is a period of brief respite after the disaster of the tower. A beacon of hope and inspiration appears before him.

The Fool is suffused with a serene calm. The beautiful images on the Star (17) attest to this tranquility.Radiant stars shine in a cloudless sky serving as a beacon of hope and inspiration. The Fool is blessed with a trust that completely replaces the negative energies of the Devil. His faith in himself and the future is restored.

Doesn't this just describe Judai and Johan's first meeting to a T? Johan is supposed to be Judai's guiding light in the story ater all. However, the Star is immediately proceeded by the moon the card of illusions and self doubt.

Just like Judai becomes too reliant on Johan to provide him all the answers, the light of the star makes the fool vulnerable to the illusions of the moon.

What effect could spoil this perfect calm? Is there another challenge for the Fool? In fact, it is his bliss that makes him vulnerable to the illusions of the Moon (18). The Fool's joy is a feeling state. His positive emotions are not yet subject to mental clarity. In his dreamy condition, the Fool is susceptible to fantasy, distortion and a false picture of the truth.

Season 4 even invokes star and moon symbolism in regards to Judai and Johan in a negative light. Fujiwara looking into Johan's heart says that Johan's weakness is Judai himself.

He describes Johan's friendship and fixation on Judai as a moon eclipsing the sun. That's not two opposites balancing each other out that's one obscuring the other.

The season 3 version of their relationship is unhealthy and therefore needs to be broken apart and reformed. That's the process of alchemy, even if Yubel didn't kidnap Johan they probably would have broken apart some other way because Judai was too dependent on Johan.

It's also a violent process that includes Judai needing to duel Johan in a way where they are both inflicting pain on each other in order to purify Johan of Yubel's control. Yubel and Fujiwara both comment that underneath it all Johan desires a violent conflict with Judai. Which is probably something that would be explored more if Season 4 was longer. My interpretation however is that Johan being who he is, is kind of forced into the role of caretaker when Judai is involved as Judai is often in need of taking care of. That probably produces darker feelings for a change in their relationship.

The opposite of unions is a violent process that requires dissolving your previous self. The dictionary of Alchemical Imagery defines it as-

one of the central images of the opus alchymicum and a crucial operation in the creation of the philosopher’s stone.  The alchemists were ultimately concerned with the union of substances, the reconciliation of opposites. Through the ‘marriage’ of opposites the goal of the opus, the production of gold and its metaphysical equivalent was obtained. (p. 35)

Judai doesn't marry Johan, but they do have their friendship broken apart and reforged again and it's representative of the prismatic stage.

The Peacock's tail which Johan represents is also like the Star in tarot, a stage where a guiding light suddenly appears. One of the Spector Solis plates , Plate 16 - which depictins a Peacock in a flask is a good representation of this stage.

It is a plate of what else but unity.

The unity that began in plate fifteen is fully realized with the encapsulated animal’s transformation into a single-headed being. The peacock tail is a physical stage in alchemy, a brilliant flash of green which comes to signify that the alchemist is one the right path. It can also be recognized in spiritual/psychological alchemy as a flash of visions that come to the adept as they move through the phases of transformation.

The peacock doesn't just appear to guide the young alchemist through the phases of alchemy however, he also guides them spiritually.

 Plate sixteen embodies that process, the turning point where the adept reaches a new level of consciousness with a flash of the peacock’s tail. Consider the words spirit (i.e., the wine), spiritual, and inspiration. To inspire can mean to breath; it can also mean to transmit fervor. Spirit can be meditative, or evocative.

Who better to provide spiritual guidance to Judai then the person who's goal in life is to become the bridge between humans and spirits.

As the star's dazzling moment of inspiration is just temporary, the plate also emphasizes that the peacock's tail itself isn't the ed of the journey. One of the most significant symbols on the painting is the appearance of three people drinking wine and eating grapes. Three people = three stages of alchemy. As for the rest.

The key to the process of plate sixteen lies in the bottom left-hand corner, with the three people seated at a table, drinking wine and eating grapes. The process of this plate is fermentation. Grapes must be crushed and destroyed to create sweet intoxicating wine. The grapes are perfect as they are, but by destroying them we can make something higher, something that can alter consciousness.

Judai has a nice, comfortable, supportive friedship with Johan but he's the one receiving most of the support. By destroying that relationship, he's able to make a healthier one. Ironically it's the separation from Johan that teaches Judai how to exist apart from him.

In that sense Judai's character development revolves around two figures in season 3, two important relationships, Judai needs toto reunite with Yubel, and he needs to separate from Johan after quickly becoming too codependent.

The three of them together even form an alchemical trio. Often works featuring alchemy symbolism will divide characters into three different roles, the soul (anima), the spirit (spiritus) and the body (corpus). Symbolic of three parts of one whole person. The main characters of a work are often symbolically marked as one of the three.

The classic symbolism of alchemy is the circle, the triangle representing soul spirit and body, the square that repreents the four elements, the small circle, and the man and woman which form the rebis.

The triangle is what we're talking about here, in terms of marking characters to Soul, Spirit and Body. Though, another variation is Mind, Heart, and Body.

Most commonly, authors mark their male protagonist, the Male Principle of the Work, as heart and their female protagonist, the Female Principle of the Work, as mind.  If they have a companion, he or it will be marked as Body.  If you look back at the Mundus Elementaris that I just posted you’ll see that Sun corresponds to Cor (heart) and Moon to Cerebrum (brain).   The characteristics of a “heart” character are pretty much what you’d expect: courage, self-sacrifice, occasional rashness and impulsivity.  The characteristics of a “mind” character are if anything even more obvious.  “Mind” characters are knowledgeable, book-smart, and sometimes overly cautious.  What about the Body character?  There isn’t one in every alchemy story, but when this does appear, the markers are predictable.  Body characters are focused on their bodily needs–they are hungry, thirsty, and, in adult stories, lusty.  And they are often fearful.  [SOURCE]

In this case in a slight difference from the norm, I'd argue that Judai is the heart, Yubel is the mind, and rather than body Johan represents spirit.

The three of them essentially make up the trio of Judai's two most important relationships. Judai is a part of other groups, because GX has a ensemble cast. In seasons 1 and 2 he mainly hangs out in a trio of Sho, Hayato and him, and in season 2 it's Sho, Kenzan and him. Season 4 kinds of marks Judai, Asuka, Sho and Manjoume as the most important students of the graduating class.

However, the characters that influence Judai the most are Yubel and Johan. Johan is the spiritual ispiration, while Yubel is first a challenge for Judai to wise up and grow up, and eventually settles down into a role of advisor like Astral or Yami Yugi.

The main character trio of Season 3 onward are essentially Judai, Johan and Yubel, and each are critical to each other's growth. All three also participate in the final duel against season 3's villain. Judai and Johan tag team darkness possessed Fujiwara, and Judai and Yubel fight nightshroud.

However, as I mentioned above the way these relationships develop Judai are opposites, one of them needs to unite, the other needs to split.

A lot of people draw parallels to Yubel and Ai, the ally turned final villain of Vrains. Ai is also motivated by love and a desire to protect Yusaku the main character and object of their affections. However, the greatest point of comparison is that the option of fusing themselves together, an obvious call back to super polymerization is brought up by Ai in order to be flatly turned down by Yusaku.

And you won't be you.

The parallel to Judai and Johan is not as obvious here, but think about it Judai is his absolute worst self when he's willing to sacrifice anything just for the chance of having Johan back

Okay but just look at how different the two are. Both Johan and Judai, when put in very similar situations (having to save someone), tell us what they’re willing to risk for that goal. They’re both very clear about that. Johan is willing to risk himself. Judai is willing to risk everything else. [Source]

Judai become so destructive in his path to get Johan back, including slaughterig duel spirits en masse, somethig the self appointed protect of duel spirits Johan would absolutely hate that you have to wonder if his desire to have Johan back is even about Johan.

Judai doesn't have much respect for Johan's agency as an individual. It's normal for Judai to be sad, or even to have survivor's guilt when he thinks Johan is dead because he sacrificed his life to save him.

However, Johan didn't sacrifice his life to save just Judai but everyone else. Johan also made the choice to sacrifice himself so Judai would be safe. Judai's response to that choice is to immediately throw not only himself but his friends into repeated danger in order to rescue Johan, and then when all hope is lost start hurting spirits.

Judai doesn't respect fact that Johan wouldn't be happy with Judai hurtig himself or others, especially spirits, because rescuing Johan was never about Johan, but Judai's own feelings of grief.

Juudai is a deeply flawed protagonist. He’s more selfish than any other protagonist this franchise has ever known. The way he goes after both after Johan in season three and O’Brien shows that he actually doesn’t care all that much for them as people. To him, they represent a concept: Victory, or at the very least atonement for his past actions. A convenient way to right what he did wrong.  That is not to say that he doesn’t like them as people - he does. But when the chips are down, what he ultimately wanted was a chance to redeem himself by saving them. [Source]

Yubel and Judai are opposites who need to be united and learn to live with each other. The crux of Judai and Johan's problem is that really they're so similiar that everyone, including Judai sort of sees them as the same perso. However, as stated above just underneath the surface they have a lot of differences that could lead them to an unhealthy relationship. Judai just like Ai needs to learn that Johan is a separate person from him.

Which is why Judai's greatest two character development moments with Johan come not from the moment where he fuses rainbow dragon with Neos for the first time to cleanse Judai's body from Yubel.

It's actually immediately afterwards, when Johan hands Judai his deck to face Yubel. While Judai also makes the decision to face Yubel alone.

The arc theoretically could have ended right there. Judai's objective was to save Johan, and Johan was saved. Except the real conflict of the arc was that Judai needed to learn to take responsibility for himself, instead of leaning on a convenient crutch like Johan.

In Yu-Gi-Oh a duelists deck is often referred to as their soul, so Johan is entrusting Judai with a lot. That simple action really shows Judai that Johan can support him even from a distance and the two don't need to be attached at the hip.

In the tag duel against Fujiwara, Johan makes a similiar decision of sacrificing himself in order to protect Judai. However, to show how much he's changed since season 3, this time Judai does't completely lose his mind over Johan's sacrifice and respects Johan's feelings instead. Johan doesn't want Judai to fall apart, he wants Judai to carry his feelings with him and finish the duel for both of them and that's what he does. Judai has learned now to accept support without completely turning Johan into a crutch.

Citriniatis is also the third stage of alchemy. Each Season of the four seasos Yu-Gi-Oh Gx represents one of the four stages of alchemy.

The third stage is often referred to as the stage where the light which appears in albedo starts to shine.

Seperation from Johan essentially kicked off Judai's blackening stage, waking up his shadow in the form of the supreme king and bringing light to his flaws. This passage in particular describes it as a "rising sun" and "bringing light to consciousness."

 In  most cases Jung himself expressed the work as having three stages. Still, citrinitas seems to fit better into a flow of growth and development, as well as mystical progress as the third stage. In the second stage, albedo, a light appears in the nigredo darkness, the light of an awakened soul which is symbolised as a moon (the feminine) shining in the darkness. The third stage, citrinitas, brings forth the light of the sun (the masculine), a light which magically transforms the shadowy and fearful subconscious into valuable consciousness. From the dark night of rubedo, to the pale morning light of albedo, the sun rises in citrinitas to the culmination of day in rubedo. [Source]

Johan is simulatenously a light which shines on Judai's worst flaws just by being his better self and showing how selfish Judai is in comparison, while at the same time he's also the light that guides Judai on the path of healing.

After all Judai's final action in Season 3 isn't to kill Yubel like the Supreme King, or like a hero would, but rather to reconcile with Yubel. That's a path Johan would have taken considering Johan's whole goal is to help lost spirits like Yubel repair their relationships with humans.

Judai's journey of atonement even takes a similiar path to Johan, and mirrors Johan's dream of becoming the bridge between humans ad spirits. Unlike the duel between Cobra and Judai though, I don't think in this case it's Judai relying on Johan to give him the answers in life.

This is because the two of them have entirely different reasons for wanting to help spirits. Johan wants to help spirits because the strong connections he feels with spirits, and the crystal beasts in particular give him the only sense of family he's ever known. It's also because of an encounter with a little boy who lost his Jerry Beans Man where he came to understand that even people who can't see card spirits still feel a strog bond with them.

Judai however has an entirely different motivation, his journey to help duels spirits is a journey of atonement. It's also one he's taking together with Yubel because they both have a lot to make up for and a lot of healing to do.

Judai also didn't start out Season 4 wantig to become the bridge between humans and spirits. In fact he spent most of season 4 sitting alone in his dorm being depressed and aimless. It's his confrontation with Fujiwara, and his act of helping Honest reunite with his spirit partner Fujiwara that gave Judai the idea that he could help heal other spirits too.

Following the motto of dissolve et coagula, dissolve and coagulate all the troubles and tribulations and even the separation of Season 3 was necessary for the much healthier bond between them in Season 4.

Judai doesn't even say goodbye to Johan at the end of the season, and he leaves without telling Johan where he's going, but essentially they are still walking the same path of uniting spirits and humans and it's a path Judai would have never found without Johan's help.

[baronetcoins]

Hi! Can you please tell more about your bg3 tma au? :)

Thank you for indulging me! I'll give the cool sexy polished opening pitch. I also have Thoughts about the other companions, some story arcs...... but I don't know if I should write them out like this or try and actually write some of the fic myself.

Gale Dekarios grew up reading fantasy novels in a comfortable London home with the sort of analytical mind which could have easily gotten him a job as a solicitor and the kind of family which went to charity galas on occasion. It was following his mother along to one of those where he met Mystra, the new head of the Mystryl institute. She found a bright boy she could wrap around her finger. He found an adult who told him that there really were strange things out there, and he could learn about them. That was his introduction to the supernatural—he didn't need something horrifying to happen to him. He just needed the promise of a tour of artifact storage.

Gale joined the institute fresh out of university as an archivist—one of those responsible for keeping track of the records of statements given by people who experienced something paranormal. Elminster, the previous head archivist, trained him for a little bit and then ""retired"" peacefully (anyone who would come to give a statement about the old man who pried their deepest secrets out of them over tea and lunch is driven away before they reach the institute's doors by the same horrifying feeling of a thousand eyes staring at you all at once). He's still in touch.

Gale has a pair of assistants—Wyll, a charming young man who's perfectly willing to poke his head in somewhere spooky to check in on the details of a statement, and Pyrite (my Tav) who's quite good at historical research and tracking down records. Together, they're just about figuring out this whole archive thing, even though Elminster was less interested in organizing than he should have been. Mystra keeps asking more of him, though, and some of these statements will only record onto tape...

[b1fulblla]

─ ♡ introduction to me(bella) ♡ ─

❥ hii Tumblr! I'm looking for mutuals! My name is Bella, WELCOME TO MY BLOG, My lil corner of the Internet, mi personal online visual diary, humble Adobe..etc ୨୧

A lil Abt lil ol' me ...

❥ everywhere I go people tell me I'm an it girl, I stand out in public, I'm beautiful, eloquent, analytical, emotionally intelligent with a immaculate vibe and wonderfully unique sense of fashion (not to toot my own horn) ...but

❥ I know this is not my full potential.. ★﹒₊‧

❥ 2024 was a long year of healing and learning for me but in 2025 I realized I began to outgrow the needs I previously had and develop new needs that called for me to take action and implement what I've learned. In 2025 I made a vow to myself that I was going to develop a keen habit of discipline. I promised myself that by the end of this year, no. in the next four months of this year I would reach my goals and make myself proud through consistency, ritualistic discipline and devotion to the best version of myself. The next version of me will be the most powerful, most confident version that has ever existed. God told me this was my season and I intend to make it so with hard work. I know I'm capable of anything and I want a bunch of pretty princess focused, it girl mooties that are also devoted to growing into the best version of themselves possible! 𖢷 ★﹒₊‧ ★

.⋆｡˚ ⋆ ✧･ﾟ

[mecachrome]

i think you’re into hockey? if you’re up for it could you give/link an introduction….. i’ve been trying to get into it but i can’t find the right source for the rules etc.

hi anon!!! honestly i think hockey is a really friendly sport to just jump into because the commentators often overexplain things and you can learn as it goes. i just looked it up on youtube and here's an 8-minute video on "hockey explained" - not sure how helpful this will be LOL but i'd watch it on 1.5x+ speed and it should cover the bases well enough! also another important thing to understand is icing/offside and just zonage in general (d-zone, neutral zone, o-zone, the concept of dump & chase, icing rules during a pp, etc.) — here's another hockey 101 video from the same channel that goes through them.

i think a trick with watching and understanding hockey is that you shouldn't exactly be 100% focused on where the puck is, but more on like... the flow of the game and the positioning of the players. if you're watching and going like "well i can't see the puck so what's the point!!!" it's actually much easier if you follow where the play is focused or going toward, because that's what teaches you to understand team systems and for example what a broken play looks like.

anyway, specifically within the nhl team division is pretty simple, it's 2 conferences (east/west) with 4 divisions total, atlantic & metro (evil place) in east and pacific & central in west. team rosters can rotate as players are sent/called up from the AHL affiliate team (aka the feeder league), but when the team is actually playing there are traditionally 4 lines of forwards, 3 pairs of defensemen, and 2 goalies on the bench (one as a backup, won't play unless the starting goalie shits the bed). this is called 12-6, but occasionally a team will play 11-7 with the forwards made to divide more minutes... but that's not important!

the whole Point of hockey is to win the stanley cup by winning the playoffs, whereas "winning" the league (getting the president's trophy, aka finishing first at the end of the regular season) is fairly meaningless and is in fact called a curse by many people. 16 teams make the playoffs with divisional seeding, which is occasionally controversial because some people strongly believe in 1-8 seeding but Anyway again that's not important. here's a link from nhl.com explaining the playoff format

there are also several big paths to the nhl, and the draft is held every summer after the playoffs end! in north america, the two main ones are the junior leagues and college hockey: you basically either play in canada in the chl (canadian hockey league, divided between whl, ohl, and qmjhl regionally) or go the ncaa route and play in a div i college hockey team. there's a lot more nuances to this pipeline and how people choose canadian juniors over the ushl/usntdp or vice versa, and also the contract restrictions placed upon juniors after being drafted, but it's not really that important... what's important to know is just that these players will be drafted by teams who get one turn per round (7 rounds total), and this order is determined by basically reverse-finishing order during the regular season and playoffs! the only exception is that there's a lottery to determine who gets to pick #1 overall. there's sooo much i could go into with this but you can just look up like nhl draft lottery / nhl draft rules to learn more if this interests you, esp since we're coming up to that soon...

also if you're interested in developing a more in-depth, analytical understanding of hockey, i highly rec the hockey pdocast!!! i have a parasocial appreciation for my bro dimitri filipovic... 🥺

and finally MY team is the dallas stars (we're going through it rn but ignore that) and my wonderful oomf @starscelly has a great primer on the players themselves if that is of any interest :') wink wink nudge nudge

hope that helps and lmk if i can help with anything more specific!!!