#Kill Code having to tell them about how to use star power

[bluemoon1331]

I think Sun is becoming increasingly more dangerous, while Moon is wilting. A strange role reversal for the multiverse, and how it was at the beginning.

If it came down to it, I believe Moon would be more on the defensive, and Sun would literally obliterate any threat to his family. He's been through too much to actually lose any of them now. Watched them all fall apart and get sewn back together, again and again. Fallen apart himself on a multitude of occasions.

And unlike a lot of Suns (in comparison to what Dark Sun did), it naturally strengthened him inside. Sun hates killing. He knows what it's done to him, and other members of his family. But if it came down to it, I don't think he would hesitate anymore, not if there truly wasn't any other way.

The guy is tired. Probably more so than anyone else around him. But he's definitely become quite steadfast, and a rock for his family. He's also got a daughter to take care of now, and he won't ever let anything bad happen to her again, not if he can help it.

[david-talks-sw]

The biggest problem in "The Acolyte"

I think I've given this show a fair shake. There are parts in it that I really like, and I think this sits in 3rd/4th place in my ranking of favourite Disney - Star Wars shows.

But here's the thing. It felt underwhelming. The only time I was genuinely excited was during the fight scenes, any of them.

But when I think about the events that take place in the show... they're not so bad! There's nothing really lore-breaking, I like flawed characters doing their best. It's okay!

So why was I almost always deadpan, while watching it?

Structure.

The show doesn't have the same issue as other Disney Plus series, wherein they treat it as a 10-hour movie and thus lose all momentum every time. Headland knows how to raise the stakes properly... but unfortunately, the result is the same!

Because this series was structured and marketed as if it was some kind of investigative thriller, a noir movie about Jedi being murdered and needing to find the killer. And when you look at the events, and at the story it's telling... it really isn't that.

So when you're trying to make these twists... they're all predictable.

How could Osha have killed Indara when she's working as a meknik-- she has a twin.

But who could the Sith in the mask possibly be-- iiiit's Qimir, y'know, the guy who's literally quoting the Sith code and is trying his hardest to seem harmless.

Why is Mae going around killing these Jedi-- they had it coming, they likely wronged her in a way that was unintended and now she's in pain because of it.

What's the mystery behind the twins-- they weren't conceived biologically, they were created using the Force. They're Anakin 1.0.

Were the witches really killed by the fire? What did we miss, why are the Jedi so guilt-ridden over it-- the other side of the story, showing the Jedi probably killing them all through some big well-intentioned-but-misled accident that could've been avoided, which the Jedi now feel guilty over and try to cover up.

Osha seems to be fine with the Jedi arresting her sister-- her heartlessness makes her the perfect Sith, by the end of the Season, she'll be an apprentice and Mae will be on the good side.

Who is Qimir's former teacher-- Vernestra. His scars look like they come from a lightsaber whip.

Is Qimir the Sith master-- probably not, just an apprentice, a self-proclaimed non-Bane-lineage Sith, or an acolyte himself.

Will Sol survive the show-- no, he's gonna die, because of course he is, by Episode I, the Sith have been thought to be extinct for a millenia.

If you're a casual viewer, maybe these wouldn't be as obvious. But if you're a fan, it's like it's written on a billboard. And like, clearly Leslye Headland knew that this would be the case:

"I think a good twist is not about hiding everything from the audience and then throwing it on them like, 'Hey, this is what you didn't see! We hid it so well that you didn't see this!'" says Headland. "I think a good twist is telegraphing what's going to happen, and then once it does, executing it without an ounce of pity or sentimentality."" - Leslye Headland, Entertainment Weekly, 2024

But here's the thing.

You can't make an audience feel as if the stakes have been raised, when we can tell where this is all going.

Because then we're not watching, we're waiting for what will inevitably happen to finally occur. If most of these "mysteries" had been structured as simple plot points in a more straight-forward story about...

Two sisters trying to get back to each other after an incident in their lives caused by the Jedi.

The Jedi Master coming to terms with the fact that his flawed decisions led to tragic consequences.

A Sith Lord trying to appropriate the sisters' powers for himself.

... then I think that I wouldn't feel as underwhelmed.

Instead it's a murder mystery, and we already know the murderer, what motivates said murderer, how said murderer was wronged, etc... and they're feeding us the information by the breadcrumb to build up to these twists, but we can basically guess what these twists are.

Don't treat obvious plot points like a secret. You can get away with it a couple of times, but not with every single one of them. C'mon.

ADDENDUM:

[placeholder-mcd]

(Obligatory "I sound like I'm speaking objectively from authority but this is just my opinion and it's okay for you to like media I dislike for whatever reasons you may have")

Okay so like. while "the minecraft move trailer is so bad that it makes minecraft story mode look good in comparison" is both true and funny, can we please not start pretending that story mode is a well-crafted piece of media. as someone who has played through it multiple times (first when it originally came out and I was 12 and thought it was awesome, then later as an interactive Netflix experience with friends for so-bad-it's-good reasons) I feel pretty qualified to say it blows

Like, yes. There are so many things that MCSM got right that the movie apparently got wrong. But, like, they're all extremely common-sense things to get right -- like having the whole thing be animated, and maintaining a visual style that feels consistent with minecraft, and spending time with individual aspects of the minecraft experience that have their own communities (like redstone contraptions). that sense seems a little less common now that the movie trailer exists, but still, these are all bare minimum expectations of a piece of narrative-driven media set in Minecraft.

MCSM still completely fails, however, to have any compelling characters (RIP Reuben you were just as annoying as everyone else) or non-grating dialogue. The universe they depict isn't even well thought out! Like, okay, example:

Right off the bat, they make a big decision about how they're going to handle MCSM: they are not telling a story about people playing Minecraft the video game, but are instead depicting a universe where Minecraft is inhabited by a civilization of NPCs that have identical abilities to a player (aside from like, pausing the game or changing settings or what have you). This, in itself, is not a bad decision, but it puts the writers in a position where they need to conceptualize what is effectively a Minecraft AU. You're not playing survival mode or creative mode, you're playing Story mode. In this AU, humans exist in the minecraft world and have for a long time (centuries, at least?), they've built cities, they have language, etc. Imagine you're Jesse. Imagine you've grown up inside of Minecraft. Everyone is playing on hardcore, there is no respawning, and you live in a world filled with strange and dangerous creatures that seem hell-bent on killing you. Why the Fuck does anyone go out at night. Why isn't literally everyone combat-trained. Why is Jesse acting like he's never seen a Creeper before. Why is Petra the only member of the main party who knows how to craft a pickaxe.

At the build competition, the party is surprised that the reigning building team has a beacon. But nobody takes a second to actually investigate what that means. Did their team intentionally spawn and defeat a Wither? Doesn't that make them more badass and legendary than the order of the stone? Is there a black market for nether stars? (I think Petra is probably the one who gave them the beacon since she also trades Ivan a Wither skull. But like. Why isn't literally anyone else just going and doing what Petra does. Why aren't they impressed)

Ivan having access to a Command Block is also insane. Like, it has potential to be an extremely cool choice -- did Ivan find a way to break the fourth wall? Did he find an exploit in Minecrafts code that allowed him to obtain this? The command block has the power to just generate resources out of thin air. Ivan could actually use it to become a god and give himself creative mode. But okay, we can assume that the command block is just... Different, in the AU. Fine. It's a computing center / power core for the Wither Storm. Sure

But, like. I, even as an 11 year old, knew everything there was to know about minecraft when I played story mode (and, unlike the Movie, MCSM was actually attempting to appeal to the existing fanbase), so watching these characters who have lived for DECADES within the Minecraft universe just. Be helpless and completely clueless as to how the universe works? It makes me hate like all of them. I don't care about Jesse or Gabriel and if I actually had the freedom to perform the basic actions I could perform in Minecraft -- mining, building, and crafting -- I could use my game knowledge to pretty swiftly end the entire conflict at like any point in the story. And I'm not very good at video games. But I would expect a character who's been LIVING IN THE MINECRAFT WORLD TO BE ABLE TO DO THAT. BECAUSE THEY'D BE BETTER AT MINECRAFT THAN ANY OF US.

The whole thing is a contrived and buggy mess that feels like it was written by a Hollywood CEO who watched someone play the game for 30 minutes, looked up some basic information like how to beat the game and whether there's any in-game lore, and then riffed on that until a script outline was finished. The programmers, visual artists, and composers clearly did a ton of work to make MCSM feel like minecraft. And they did a good job -- clearly, a much better job than the Movie is going to do. But that doesn't change the fact that the Story -- the focal element advertised in the title -- completely misses the fucking mark and centers around a group of characters who are largely incompetent and stupid in an unfunny and uninteresting way. MCSM was a shitty cashgrab by telltale games and I am not apologizing to it.

[padfootdaredmetoo]

Attachments

Anakin Skywalker X Padawan Reader

This was purely selfish, but I couldn't get it out of my head. I don't think there is a demand for these sorts of fics. Anyway, this takes place during the Revenge of the Sith. The reader is Anakin's Padawan from the Clone Wars. When she hears that Anakin is fallen to the dark side she decides it's a great time to confess her feelings. (she is legal and he didn't know her as a kid) (I'm not exactly well versed in Star Wars lore so apologies in advance)

Warnings: Kissing

You were not entirely shocked by Obi-Wan’s words. The chancellor's words about the Republic's corruption had drawn you in too. But No way Anakin was a Sith. You had been beside him the whole war. No way he would turn his back on you or Obi-Wan or his life. 

Maybe that was your heart speaking. You could feel darkness clouding him but could still feel him well enough to find him. You landed your ship and walked out. The planet's heat bit at your skin and your eyes burned. 

You felt him acknowledge your presence and your stomach filled with nerves. Anakin had been through a lot in his life and you saw how people often treated him. You knew there was a chance he was so far gone that killing you wouldn't be an issue. 

But your heart held so much hope you were rooted on the path in front of you. You had tried to be a good Padawan, tried to avoid attachment. But avoiding attachment to him was almost impossible. Everything about him puts you at ease. 

He emerged from the shadowy arch onto the bridge you had landed on. His hood was drawn and you wanted nothing more than to rip it off. You wanted see his eyes while he broke your heart. 

“Anakin.” You broke the silence and the hurt was already palpable in your voice. He moved towards you, coming close and grabbing your shoulders. 

“You have to understand. The corruption, all of this war, everything it’s -” 

“All lies, Anakin. Palpatine is playing everyone, I don’t trust him.” 

“The power is necessary to bring balance to the galaxy. It’s necessary to save you.” Anakin’s voice was dark and it caused you to shudder. 

“I don’t want you to be the chosen one.” You whispered raising your hands up slowly and pushing his hood back. His eyes were varying dark shades of red. 

“Who do you want me to be then?” He snapped. Everyone always needed or wanted him to be something, you were no exception. 

“Mine.” You barely got the words out. This confession was going to doom you, yet you knew if there was a way, any chance of bringing him back, you had to take it. His eyes flared. 

“I must master death to keep you alive. My dreams - I won't lose you like my mother.” You could feel his mental blocks fluttering. 

“You saw me dying surrounded by lava.” You waved a hand around. “So save me.” He thought about your words for a moment. 

“Not even the Sith can master death, they can move bodies, do you really want Palpatine inside me?” You raised a brow and he gripped your shoulders tighter in anger. 

“No, but I - I can’t go back now.” You felt his mind move back to the control room behind him. All those separatists dead. 

“Don’t judge me if I don't mourn for them.” You knew you should be more serious about things, but that’s just how you were with Anakin. They could be in the thick of battle still telling jokes. 

“He wants me to go kill the younglings,” Anakin whispered. 

“Good Luck.” You snorted and his eyes flared. “Anakin you cried like a baby when you held Senator Amidala's kids for the first time. You can do a lot of things, but killing children isn't one of them.” 

“Why are you so sure of me?” His voice was breaking and you could feel his emotions radiating off of him more freely.

“Because I love you.” You felt his arms slacken and moved towards him. Grabbing his face. 

“The code-” 

“Had never stopped us from misbehaving before.” You watched the war raging in his mind. You decided to go for it, worst case you would die but at least you would know what it would be like to kiss him. You pulled at his face and raised up on your tiptoes. He didn't make it easy for you, but then again he never did. 

Your lips crashed against his and you felt his arms wrap around you tightly. His head bowed to you and he kissed you back. The attachment forming between you was all-consuming. It took all of you and you could feel his memories and mind pressing against yours. He felt everything inside you. All your emotions about him. There was no space to feel self-conscious as his own love poured against you. Tears spilled down your cheeks and he gripped at your flesh through your robes. 

Mine - Be mine Anakin

Your mind kept saying it over and over and over again before you realized he could probably hear it. His kisses were harsh and consuming and you could feel them in your soul. There is nowhere you wouldn't follow this bond. You prayed he would be kind, if only for your sake, and return to the light. 

A splash of lava washed up on the edge of the bridge as chunks of rocks slid into it. He broke the kiss abruptly. 

“Time to save you.” He motioned towards the ramp of the ship. You went inside and like every mission over the past three years, you resumed your usual positions. His eyes were their usual rich brown and you felt your muscles relax. You took the first easy breath in a long time. 

He chose you. 

“You have a stowaway on this ship.” He said. You stood up and moved in front of Anakin, lightsaber drawn. A move he repeatedly tried to get you to stop. But at the end of the hall, Obi-Wan’s figure revealed itself. 

Anakin struggled with his master occasionally and you hoped that this didn’t set him back. He needed time to rest before coming to terms with everything if he was going to stay in the light. After that, they could lecture him. 

“Master,” Anakin said in a neutral voice. 

“Anakin.” Obi-Wan greeted him with a broken voice. Anakin moved past you and moved towards his master. Obi-Wan grabbed Anakin’s face looking into his eyes before making a choking sound. 

His arms wrapped around Anakin tightly.

“My boy, my son.” The tears were evident in his voice. “I failed you. Anakin -” His voice cut off as Anakin hugged him back. 

“It wasn’t your fault, master.” Anakin was crying too. 

“It was, it is. I should have- I was so focused on doing everything by the code, I forgot some of Qui-Gon’s most important rules.” You decided to resume your spot steering the ship giving them a moment. “He tried to tell me of corruption, I didn’t see it till-” 

“Master no one saw it. I let you down and I’m sorry.” 

“It is behind us now.” He released Anakin and patted him on the back. You looked over your shoulder and watched as he tried to compose himself. Tears were streaming down your own face. 

“Not you too,” Anakin said moving towards you. 

“Dad moments kill me.” You mumbled wiping the tears on the back of your hands. Anakin took his seat and motioned for you to come sit on his lap. You didn't need to be asked twice. You curled up in his lap, tucking your face into his neck. Obi-Wan took your spot. 

“I haven't slept in a very long time.” You yawned “I’m sorry if I doze off.” Anakin only kissed the top of your head. He was just happy to be trusted to hold your sleeping body. To be trusted to watch over you.

[beautifulterriblequeen]

Order as Antagonist in TDP

So how about that trailer, eh? I was so excited I didn't notice this text up top on TDP's tweet for like. An hour.

We haven't heard anything about this Cosmic Order before. Is it a specific group? Is it a vibe? Is it a Startouch thing? Hard to say, yet. But there are some vibes from the Starscraper shots we've gotten in the trailer and teaser that may point us in the right direction:

This place has eight pillars, each with a recess that holds a relic staff seemingly identical to the one Viren's been toting around. It's not unique, and Aaravos didn't craft it. He stole it.

This is the Prometheus part of Aaravos' character. This is the fire that he stole for humans, from the gods. The relic staff. A relic staff, one of many.

Why did he, a godlike elf himself, feel the need to commit this act, for which he was cast down, exiled, and stripped of much of his power? Why?

Hard to say yet, but knowing all that he is capable of, I think it comes down to one thing: stealing it was the only way to get it. Nothing else he could think of would work. And he's pretty imaginative. But the system, the Cosmic Order, had him, too. He's a magic elf, bound by the same forces as everyone else up there. Breaking the rules was his only remaining option.

Aaravos chose Chaos over Order and put his money where his mouth is. He did get exiled and cast out, but humans have magic now. Somehow, that's not a thing the Order can take back from them, once it's out - rather like Pandora's Box.

But I want to look at this Order, and how pervasive it must be. How else would a powerful elf like Aaravos be reduced to petty thievery to accomplish his ends? Surely he tried other ways, other options, other persuasions. Why didn't they get him anywhere? Why did he have to take such a - for lack of a better term - human approach to the problem?

Let's back up a second and look at a seemingly random list of likes for one specific elf: Runaan. (no of course it isn't random, this is why this theory post exists. but shh, it'll make sense I promise)

Runaan likes four things in this list. Two of them are his immediate family. One is his favorite food. And the last item on the list?

Order.

I used to think this was just a bit of a wink to him being autistic-coded and liking his patterns. And I still do think that's accurate. But my third eye got pried open by the Cosmic Order text, and I think it's more than that now.

Runaan is a tiny cog in the grand engine that is the Cosmic Order. He goes where he is told, he kills who he is told to kill, he obeys without question, no matter how heinous his acts would be - he would have killed Ezran without blinking, because that's what the Dragon Queen told him to do.

Runaan is the most Moonshadow Moonshadow, according to the Deluxe Elf Interview. He's the epitome of what it means to be a Moonshadow elf. His devotion, sacrifice, and adherence to the rules are what makes him a good Moonshadow elf.

How convenient for the Order.

Runaan is still an individual, inside his own rules. He chose to become an assassin, and he did it to spare others from having to take lives and live with the weight of those acts. But that does imply that if he hadn't chosen this path, someone else would have, and people would still be dying.

And I think he's right. Maybe his love of order actually lets him perceive the great gears grinding over his head, up in the stars, turning the wheels of fate for everyone they control. Maybe he knows full well that he's part of a grand system - but there's nothing he can do about it except stay alive or die, because he is trapped inside it. He cannot change his fate because he is locked into it, just like everyone around him.

The Book 1 novelization tells us Runaan always expected to die on a mission, and that he meets that fate with a calm resignation on the balcony. He surrenders to his fate, because he cannot fight it.

What could lock Runaan into a fate that ends with him dying on a mission?

His own choices? Think bigger.

His society, then. Obligation, honor, guilt. Hmm, bigger than that.

It's been there the whole time - something that all the elves and dragons possess, but humans don't. Something which caused the imbalance in the first place.

Magic.

Magic is the Cosmic Order.

yes it has eight points and yes I'm back on my bullshit

Quick aside: The Cosmic Order is turning out to be the big magic version of King Harrow's Narrative of Strength, which he contrasted with the Narrative of Love - and we'll get back to that at the end of the post.

Alrighty, back to magic: The worst offenders seem to be the primal magics, which have locked the elves and dragons into very tight little boxes as far as what they can and cannot do, think, and imagine. An elf with a single arcanum can only think in terms of that primal source. It's as bad as an irl human who only knows one language, and so their brain literally cannot conceive of concepts that exist in other languages. (Learn more languages, guys, it's genuinely good for your brain, I am not kidding)

This helps explain why Aaravos was able to think a little bit outside his box and consider giving magic to humans when the Order said they didn't deserve any. He is an archmage, and he speaks many magical languages. He knows all six primal magics, as well as the ancient blood magic and dark magic. That's eight different ways of looking at a problem.

(is this why elves only have 8 fingers, because they literally cannot grasp anything outside of magic?)

From his multifaceted viewpoint, Aaravos can see the inherent unfairness in humans being forced to abide by the Order without getting any magic for their trouble. It's basically taxation without representation.

The Americans among us can attest to how well that went over in our own history.

Aaravos: Prometheus, Lucifer... Che Guevara... Guy Fawkes?

Aaravos really does love revolution.

Further thought: this post about Ethari's design has reminded me again about his lower-than-average magical ability and how that has manifested in his unique design and in his character. And I'm looking directly at how Ethari's lesser magic power may be the reason he's so mentally flexible. If he can challenge Runaan directly about how Rayla is not ready for that mission when everyone else is going along with it, isn't that lack of narrow-mindedness the thing that sets him apart?

What else might that freedom of thought do for him? Is this the reason he is actually able to invent at all? Because he is capable of envisioning that which does not yet exist? How rare that must be among Moonshadow elves!

tldr: Ethari is actually bad at being a Moonshadow elf, and that could very well be what saves him.

Contrast Ethari with Karim, who is a powerful Sunfire mage, and very much locked into his traditional views of elf vs human. He's willing to go to war in order to impose his views on all of the Sunfire elves if he can, because he genuinely believes he can see the Order of things better than anyone else can.

He believes in the superiority of the elven ways, while Janai has let her heart change her mind. Janai fell in love with a human, and it broke the Order's hold on her. She makes history now - it does not make her.

Side note: Is this... is this the formula, then? Is this how enduring ships work in TDP? An elf with a normal arcanum, paired with either a human or an elf with a "flawed" connection to the Order inside them? One who can anchor, and one who can imagine?

Let me make a quick list:

Claudia+Terry

Ethari+Runaan

Callum+Rayla

Amaya+Janai

Well. How bout that.

Ironically, this is a different path to what was going to be my final point in the first place: Order may be the default for elves and dragons and the way they are supposed to follow the rules of the universe, but love still exists, and they can always choose to embrace it. They can all be saved by love, in the end. It's their choice. In fact, choosing Love over Order is an act of defiance in itself.

Terry chose Claudia over fear. Janai chose Amaya over war. Rayla chose Callum over vengeance. And Runaan, my poster boy for stubbornness and suffering, chose Ethari over Order itself.

Saved by love.

[mcflymemes]

STAR WARS: EPISODE VI - RETURN OF THE JEDI PROMPTS *  assorted dialogue from the 1983 film, adjust as necessary

i'll not leave you here. i've got to save you.

what i told you was true... from a certain point of view.

you're going to find that many of the truths we cling to depend greatly on our own point of view.

there is still good in him.

you may dispense with the pleasantries.

i'm here to put you back on schedule.

perhaps i can find new ways to motivate them.

we shall double our efforts.

don't talk that way.

you have a power i don't understand and could never have.

i know. somehow, i've always known.

he must be allowed to speak.

it's your choice, but i warn you not to underestimate my powers.

i shall enjoy watching you die.

good, i hate long waits.

doesn't sound so bad.

she was very beautiful. kind, but sad.

so you have accepted the truth?

that name no longer has any meaning for me.

you want this, don't you? the hate is swelling in you now.

it is unavoidable. it is your destiny.

how many languages do you speak?

you are unwise to lower your defenses.

all craft, prepare to retreat.

we've got to give him more time.

it's an older code, sir, but it checks out.

there may be more of them out there.

i have a really bad feeling about this.

it only takes one to sound the alarm.

you cannot escape your destiny.

i can't kill my own father.

why don't you use your divine influence and get us out of this?

i beg your pardon, but that just wouldn't be proper.

you were our only hope.

soon i'll be dead, and you with me.

your insight serves you well.

bury your feelings deep down, [name].

help me take this mask off.

i do believe they think i am some sort of god.

i can't see! what's going on?

i assure you, we are quite safe from your friends here.

i'm out of it for a little while, everyone gets delusions of grandeur.

if you will not fight, then you will meet your destiny.

just for once... let me look on you with my own eyes.

no, you're coming with me.

your overconfidence is your weakness.

you were right. you were right about me.

together again, huh?

i feel the good in you, the conflict.

there is no conflict.

you couldn't bring yourself to kill me before and i don't believe you'll destroy me now.

you've failed.

who are you?

you cannot hide forever.

i will not fight you.

it is the only way you can save your friends.

your thoughts betray you.

when he comes back, i won't get in the way.

it's not like that at all.

i can't do it. i can't go on alone.

i think my eyes are getting better.

there's nothing to see. i used to live here, you know.

how could they be jamming us if they don't know if we're coming.

break off the attack! the shield is still up!

take evasive action!

keep your distance, though, but don't look like you're trying to keep your distance.

i don't know. fly casual.

you can't do this. i feel the conflict within you. let go of your hate.

this is an unexpected pleasure.

you're going to die here, you know. convenient.

tell me. what's troubling you?

you're a jittery little thing, aren't you?

i just said you were a fair pilot!

i'm surprised they didn't ask you to do it.

[thebisexualwreckoning]

2025 book bingo

finally have the time to post reading update for my 2025 reading bingo hosted by @batmanisagatewaydrug now that I'm back from holiday and settling back into the unending grind of academia.

January:

Literary Fiction: Convenience Store Woman by Sayaka Murata, transl. Ginny Tapley Takemori

This was deeply strange book ruminating on the nature of being 'othered' simply by not forcing yourself to fit into the box that is this capitalistic society we live in, the expectation that if a woman has not married or found a high-paying corporate job by the time she's thirty she has failed some fundamental aspect of life, the way our fast-paced culture treats convenience store workers and other 'menial' labourers. Needless to say, I am enchanted by this book and Keiko's staunch refusal to follow the path set by others and instead live life on her own terms. It's a very short read and one that I have niggling feeling will be polarising to many, but I liked it. I also do not know whether this was intentional, but Keiko read as extremely autistic and aroace coded to me

Short story collection: Lesser Known Monsters of the 21st Century by Kim Fu

It's rare I read a short story collection where every single work is a five star read. This collection was deeply emotional and deals beautifully with the subject of grief in its various contexts - losing family, growing up and having to leave behind your childhood, watching the world move on while you remain stuck in the past, etc etc. It reminded me quite a bit of Ted Chiang's works, this using of sci-fi elements to explore a more deeply human core. Even among all of these excellent stories, a few that particularly stood out to me were: 'Pre-Simulation Consultation XF0078167' (a meditation on love, grief and learning to let go) , 'Twenty Hours' (about a brilliantly toxic couple whose favourite pass time is killing each other), 'Scissors' (a tantalisingly sexy lesbian bdsm tale about power dynamics and trust in eroticism), and 'Do you remember Candy?' (a tender look at a mother-daughter duo plus the memories - and flavours - that draw them apart)

February:

Sequel: Heavenly Tyrant by Xiran Jay Zhao

If i had a penny for every book I read this year with a toxic relationship and communist message to spread, I will have two pennies, which isn't a lot but does say something about my reading tastes that it happened twice. 

But, back on track: Heavenly Tyrant is a book I have been waiting to read for a long time and god did it manage to deliver. It was bloody and brutal and unapologetically full of feminine rage but also community. It took many of the problems I had with the first book and brilliantly dealt with them. Zetian finally forms a connection with the women surrounding her and unpacks a lot of her internalised misogyny. It's much more politically dense than the first book and does a lot of work educating on communist principles and how often they tend to leave behind women and other marginalised identities, an issue I am intimately familiar with. Socialist men, apply your politics to the women in your life challenge level: impossible. 

Make no mistake though, this book still has as much, if not more, violence as the first book. Lesser mech battles given the information revealed at the ending of book 1 meant a lot less killing of Hunduns and a lot more executing of billionaires. It bares mentioning however that Qin Zheng's rule would have fallen apart eventually though because power to the labouring class good, torturing innocents because of paranoia bad. People will rebel, my guy, take a chill pill. 

Speaking of Qin Zheng - I support bisexual rights AND bisexual wrongs. But also I have never loathed a character this much and wanted to figure out what the fuck is going on in their brain (and also fuck them) more. I'm afraid the sex actively made him worse, much sad for my tumblr girl aesthetic.  

I do have to mention that this book has the same habit of the first with telling and not showing. We see this world through Zetian's eyes, and she is as new to being a political figure as the rest of us, and much of what is going on is straight up explained to her instead of letting readers and her form opinions of their own based on our observations of the world. 

Still, that didn't really take away much from my reading experience and there is a distinct improvement in the writing from the first book, which I also loved. Good book, I highly recommend in the current political climate. 

Vaguely related tangential anecdotes: Now that this information cannot dox me anymore since I am no longer in Kolkata, I also picked up a copy of Ekatorer Dinguli by Jahanara Imam in it's original bengali for the 'Set in a country You have never visited' prompt. Make no mistake, this was one of the hardest things I have done. I roamed the entirety of College Street (a.k.a the largest book market in the world) before ending up at Dey's Publishing house (aka the oldest publishers in Kolkata) where I finally managed to find a copy!

After I took my mother to get something to eat at Indian Coffee House (also in College street) (because despite growing up in the city, strict parents meant that she'd never gone and now that i can do nice things for my mother I like to do nice things for her) - the place to gather if you were a freedom fighter back under british colonialism or a member of the naxalite movement led largely by the tribal community of the Siliguri area and the radical communists (who tended to be college students) of Bengal back in the 70s (mostly because it was the only place us brown folk were allowed to gather) - and learned that great-grandpa was also a naxalite/communist, who woulda thunk?

2. Reading Outdrawn by Deanna Grey for the romance prompt and it is currently reminding me of how fucking much i love the romance genre. It also made me wanna study why so many of my asexual friends who'd never want to have sex in real life love the freakiest books while i, an aromantic person loves the most romantic books on earth before i realised humans are weird man, you gotta have some fucking whimsy sometimes.

[scootingaround12]

To go with my idea of Brad being an augmented human and his hiding it from star fleet;

So it’s pretty clear Williams going to be a villain this season and it got me thinking about a scenario where the days saved the rifts are closed etc and William is arrested for his crimes.

William who just like Brad is an augmented human and before had reason to keep this hidden but now it’s definitely something he’d tell Starfleet about to get Brad also discharged and arrested. Definitely a if I’m going down I’m taking you with me scenario.

Also I’m thinking about Brad celebrating with everyone of the Cerritos after everything when a bunch of high ranking starfleet members come up and immediately arrest Brad in front of everyone stating his crime as being an augmented human who hid his identity in order to join starfleet.

Everyone’s pretty much ready to riot and throw down then and there, except for Brad himself who while definitely upset also looks calm and resolute almost.

He tells it’s true that he’s an augmented human that hid it all these years and that he’s sorry he’s lied to everyone. He always figured he’d be found out one day and yeah no way was William gonna keep their secret after everything, still it was nice while it lasted.

Cue a whole drama where Brad has a trial, all sorts of people are brought in as character witnesses and the Cerritos fights tooth and nail to get Brad free and back into starfleet.

Also Mariner is 100% freaking out about the idea of Brad in jail by himself (the others are also freaked out but mariner extra so) and thinks he’s probably been sold for a pack of cigarettes already.

Brad is actually having an ok time though, like he’s definitely not thrilled but compared to some of the missions and alien jails they’ve been to earth prison is pretty chill.

So Brad gets released and is reinstated as a junior lieutenant and a the rule stating that augmented humans can’t join starfleet is removed.

Brad and the gang expect everything to just go back to normal on the ship, but there’s definitely some stigma around augmented humans and the fact he kept it hidden for so long that affects peoples opinions on him.

Some of its mild like Jack Ransom asking him if he has any cool augmented stuff like extra strength, endurance and brain power (he doesn’t). He even makes a few comments on missions about Brad being built differently and using those augmented abilities to help them (it’s annoying at best and offensive at worst)

Doctor T’ana now that she has access to brads actual genetic code and health is kinda horrified by what she finds, since his DNA is constantly falling apart and fixing itself resulting in all kind of health problems. She starts him a strict regime of supplements and vitamins etc and asks him all sorts of questions about past health stuff and doctors (she looked ready to kill someone when Brad mentioned he didn’t really ever go to the doctor as a kid since his parents where worried about his illegal augment status being found out).

There’s also a number of starfleet officers who almost seem to be scared of Brad, whispering about how you can’t trust augmented humans that Brad must be hiding his true self like William was and that one day he’ll just snap.

There’s also a more vocal angry group who spew all sorts of hateful things about how brads an unnatural freak and that he and other augmented humans don’t belong in starfleet to anyone that will listen.

[notmorbid]

chain-gang all-stars.

dialogue prompts from chain-gang all-stars by nana kwame adjei-brenyah.

make them love a version of you.

if you can gather enough people into one voice, you can do anything.

ask for permission and you're giving them power.

everybody's looking for the same thing in a lot of different ways.

how do you feel right now? what's it like?

stoic as ever.

how'd you get into so much trouble?

you beautiful, heartless bitch.

talkative as always.

it's hard to forget the things that hurt you. you don't often forget the shape of your cage.

a good shave is a kind of love.

we all get good at crying quiet.

there's always more wicked, if you dig deep enough.

you'd be destroyed looking in the mirror, if you weren't already dead on the inside.

i hate what i am, but i love what i can do.

being near you makes me feel safe.

suck my dick, america.

if i go there tonight, i don't know if i'll come back.

christ still loves you, i'm sure.

the horror you make is yours forever.

who told you to go and do that?

you're too good ever to have any kind of worry.

why didn't you tell me when it happened?

i'm asking you to trust me.

i worry because someone has to.

i'm going away. i don't think i'm coming back.

i need some things to be for me and only me.

you're scared of what's new. you're scared of hidden intentions. you're scared of surprises.

it's not like you to be sloppy.

few things bring people closer together than killing as a pair.

i've been silent, but i've never been blind.

i didn't even vote for you.

i've died so many times now, i must be unkillable.

i went to hell and became an artist.

there is always, always a bottom you can't imagine.

it would be funny, if there weren't so much blood everywhere.

you're my emergency contact on everything.

i won't let them touch a hair on your head.

i don't care about you. i love you.

organization is life.

i didn't want to die, but i didn't want to be there.

if you remember your name, i think you'll be okay.

whoever holds the rod is always right.

don't be sorry. make ____ sorry.

everything seems slower than before.

don't hold back your hurt for me.

pain can disappear people.

what are you punishing yourself for?

use your personality. they'll love you.

do you think i'm a person that can be in the world? like, actually?

in a sick world, healthy is strange.

what were you dreaming about?

i don't guess. i know.

sometimes being a leader means carrying things alone.

if you don't have a code, you have nothing.

i didn't make the rules. they made me.

if not now, when?

don't tell me to relax.

be careful who you give your name to. you don't know how they're gonna use it.

what is said about you has power.

how's it feel to be home?

i've been angry for such a long time.

the thing we fear is already here. it's wrong not to try to do better.

literally everyone knows you're a lactose-free pescatarian.

breathe through it. you'll be okay.

i'm a talker. i always have been.

i did it because i could.

i wanted you to see who i was.

what i want for you is to see what you've done and forgive yourself.

forgive yourself. then you can start working on everybody else.

i tell you, and i can't un-tell you. you understand?

what do i have to be for you to trust me?

i thought being back would make me feel something, and it does, but not like i thought.

i feel like this place isn't my home.

if my mother were here, i would tell her to go to hell.

you've been very kind to me.

try to look at yourself and say 'i love you'. then see what happens.

you understand how i feel about you, right?

i don't know what this life is for, but i know it isn't nothing.

i'm happy i got to be part of your story.

it hurts, but it's still mine.

sometimes what hurts you is also what you need.

the bad news is, i forgive you. the good news is, i forgive you.

i know it hurts. see the hurt. feel the hurt. then move.

[seaside-writings]

Well, well, well! Hello. all you lovely people! It's been a hot minute since I did one of these lol.

As you can all probably tell, I've been dragged kicking and screaming back into Gravity Falls by "The Book of Bill." Because of this, I wanted to make a prompt list from all of my favorite lines of darker dialogue from the book.

Now I know this book is filled with dark dialogue from front to back, but these are the ones that stood out the most to me, and I know they stood out to others as well.

I hope you all enjoy this list, and if you use any of these prompts, please credit/tag me so I can come check out what you’ve created!

I hope you all stay blessed and safe throughout your day.

Lots of Love & Wishes: Celia 💙△💛👁️‍🗨️🖤

P.s. I did add some lines from the Axolotl’s poem I just felt like they fit well in this mess.

"Until there was no one left but me, covered in blood, alone in the universe,"

"Turn back while you still can, or live forever with the regret,"

"It infects other books!"

"Any regrets about causing the apocalypse?"

"Blame the arson for the fire."

"It's not with it. Trust me. You have to trust me,"

"Love is a trick and worst of all it's a trick you play on yourself,"

"Even his lies are lies,"

"I don't want to die alone,"

"I'm broken wanna fix me?"

"Once you kill with one of these, it becomes a "serious straw,"

"This book has no codes,"

"They don't even consider for a single moment the sheer improbability that they got to exist in the ONE timeline where they kept all of their bodily organs,"

"Maybe one day in the future all their good luck will finally run out,"

"I've peered into the souls of the madmen, but this was the first time I'd been in a mind that was collapsing like a neutron star,"

"Your world is controlled by dark invisible forces that need to operate in the shadows to maintain their power,"

"Some desperate part of him seemed to be trying to heal himself, hoping to weld his memories back together like one of his robots,"

"For the first time, I felt a kind of pain that wasn't hilarious,"

"Nightmares about trying to wash blood off her hands that never comes out,"

"Recurring nightmares about overhearing a fight between his parents he wasn't supposed to hear. Why do you think they were in such a rush to get the kids out the door for the Summer?"

"A single spark from the memory inferno hit me, and a hole sizzled straight through me like a laser through butter,"

"And if I ran into any symbols, I'd be ready,"

"Their screams getting louder and louder."

"Listen not to his lies!"

"And he tended to rip out journal pages that had anything to do with his issues with others… especially me,"

"Is my strange way of seeing the universe a gift or a curse?"

"Is loneliness just the cost of greatness? And if it is… how long am I fated to endure?"

"On your own, you're a bunch of sepia-tinted nobodies destined for the dumpster of history,"

"Although the day had begun with us as strangers, it ended with us as brothers, bonded by vengeance and a newfound hatred,"

"Someone had reversed the Shaman's spell and had summoned me back! Who would it be?! A genius? An idiot? Oh. Oh my goodness me. Yes. It was both,"

"Can you collect them all before the end-times come?"

"How about that; you've got an inferior clone! Why didn't you just eat him in the womb? Think of how powerful you'd be!"

"Assemble all seven collectibles to open the seal,"

"The perfect weight to kill a man,"

"Says he's happy, he's a liar,"

"I grow maddened."

"A different form, a different time."

"He looked distant, more distant than I'd ever seen him before,"

"By a monster."

"He laughed joylessly,"

"It would eat you alive."

"Trust no one,"

"As the chanting grew louder, the forest was suddenly engulfed in flames, screaming laughter echoing, and then- I awake on the floor, gasping for breath,"

"I could see in the third dimension,"

"But being special comes with a price,"

"I've shut down the portal! Damn it all!"

"My mind reels from horror and humiliation! How could I have been so foolish!?"

"Saw his own dimension burn, misses home, and can’t return."

"I was wrong about everything!"

"Break my bones if you must, but you cannot break my will!"

"No, I won't give him the satisfaction! Instead of destroying my work, I'll destroy him instead!"

"That's because I've been knock-knocking your skull against the wall!"

"Has he done this before?? How far would he go?"

"I keep coughing up spiders,"

"My heart was in my throat until I heard the dial tone… the pay phone was out of order. The message hadn't gotten through,"

"You're my property. Don't forget it,"

"You gave me your blood, You let me into your mind!"

"From the graves around me arose a horde of cackling cadavers eyes aglow,"

"Why are you doing this?! Why won't you just leave me alone?"

"Without me, you'll always feel unseen, surrounded by dolts who don't recognize your true potential,"

"You've always felt alone in a crowd, haven't you? Who else will give you this feeling again?"

"Even if you got rid of me, you'd miss me. Admit it, you'd miss me,"

"The hillbilly abandoned you, your father won't want you returning without millions, you have no friends, and if you died out here in the snow. who would even miss you?"

"I have no one else,"

“I awoke from the hallucination, heart pounding, to find myself back in my living room, clock ticking, record skipping- and began to weep,”

"What if… he mocks me? What if he sees that I abandoned our family to become a recluse on the brink of madness?"

"Where did you all go? WHERE DID-"

"Shame is a powerful emotion. But if grows even more in the dark,"

"I thought I was protecting my family, but I was really protecting myself… from humiliation,"

"No, they mean nothing to you!"

"Because no matter what the idiot counselors in this smiling cage say, I don't need anyone, I never have, and I don't miss any of them!"

"I'm fine,"

"This morning I awoke to find my knuckles bloody and sore. He must have been punching and scraping the steel door like a caged animal all night in a frenzy to get in,"

“Someday… someone… will let… me… out,”

[goodolddumbbanana]

I think there is something very funny about how people keep seeing Dark Sun worse than how he perceived himself.

Like sure, Dark Sun is smart, knowledgeable, selfish and self preservation, he tortured his Moon and maybe killed everyone else and did some immoral things off screen. But for real...

Have we seen him really do anything really truly evil or manipulative?

1. This is the same dude that can't even pretend to be himself, to be Sun without people keep recognising him.

Foxy, Nexus, Puppet, Ruin, like they only need to glance at the first sign and immediately go, 'yep, it is not our Sun.'

The only reason why Earth and Lunar fell for his trick was because 1. they haven't met Dark Sun before; and 2. They never thought they would fall for the same trick again after the Goliath thingy. And 3. Dark Sun wasn't too active about going along with his plan and actually played with Earth and Lunar a little bit.

And with Eclipse and Lord Eclipse because well, Eclipses always look down at Suns.

Because when I look back at Sun and Dark Sun's acting, they are literally the same. They both jump too quickly into their needs, their language bodies are too stiff, they are both making people feel like something was wrong about them but they couldn't tell what it is.

Like how Sun pretends to be Ruin, Monty could feel something very wrong but they didn't know why. Or when Dark Sun pretends to be Servant Sun, Lord Eclipse catches his of guard about the things he said but doesn't react to it. (LORD Eclipse never told Servant Sun to stop moving when Lord Eclipse kills him.)

Both of them, Sun and Dark Sun, only succeed in their acting because people usually look down or not pay attention to them. And when people do, they tend to get caught pretty quickly.

2. He totally used Nexus for his own advantage. But to be fair, from what I gather from these episodes, he literally lets Nexus do whatever he likes inside his lab. He pulled the strings to get Nexus to work with him for sure, but it was also the same dude who got pissed because Ruin stomps into his dimension.

He acts the same way Sun did when Moon got reset.

From these first days when Nexus woke up, Sun was the one who handed everything. He knew about Nexus's arm, he knew about the portal's access code...

It is not sudden Sun got smarter. He just has more knowledge than Nexus at that time...

And for someone who manipulated, Dark Sun pretty much just like watching the newest shows before anyone else. Just like he has seen the future... And use it for his own interests.

Sun also did that too, the little manipulative thingy, but only with small inconvenienced things. He lies to Nexus about learning the star power. He brides Lunar to force Moon to go to sleep. He steals money to buy Rocksan Wolf rings or something when he used to crush her. Oh.. and he didn't tell Moon about July 16th...

3. Dark Sun only focused on his goal. We didn't know what it was but he never did anything to harm people outside it.

Like, he totally could harm or kidnap Lunar, but he didn't do that. Or he just killed off Moon, but he didn't. He also kinda pushed Lord Eclipse down to the cliff and did not kill him immediately, with the diaglode the same one when Sun went down the spiral and tried to kill Eclipse.

"I told you, you are going down, right now."

"To remind Every eclipse will fall in the end..."

Sound familiar? Both Dark Sun and Sun said so... When they killed Eclipse. The only difference is that the Sun gets his hand dirty and traumatized, he also falls when doing that task. And Dark Sun succeeded without his hand dirty.

And my favourite part, both Sun and Dark Sun pointed out how miserable and pathetic and stupid Eclipse is and admit they were pretty much thinking too highly about Eclipse.

Dark Sun still has some morals, and that show in the way he doesn't want to dirty his hands, he doesn't want to rule the world or something absolute like that. He just wants to live in peace without anything cross his way.

I love Dark Sun so much and I hope people wouldn't misinterpret him like someone who was cold and cruel and manipulated and abused Nexus while in fact He just flows with the stream and takes manners in the selfish way for himself.

[disgracefulthings]

Hello..If you don't mind me asking, can I ask, what are your top 7 (or top 10) favorite media (can be books/ manga/ anime/movies/tv series/etc) and your top 10 favorite (fictional) characters from any media? Why do you love them all? Sorry if you've answered this questions before......

Thanks for asking! Be warned, long post

For media in no particular order:

Code Geass - Great male lead and phenomenal ending. Has that anime trope of too many love interests with little personality, but still has some really good female characters (Nunnally and Euphemia are amazing). The Lelouch and Suzaku relationship is just how I like it - filled with many complicated feelings

Scum Villain Self Saving System - As someone who loves fanfiction, I think Scum Villain is a must read. MXTX really shows her understanding of fandoms in the story. Shen Yuan is an amazing main character, his chaotic thoughts and his lack of understanding of everything makes him really funny, and I love learning more about the characters around him as they become more real to him

Puss in Boots: The Last Wish - Just a really great movie. Great characters and villains, you don't need me to tell you why it's amazing

Infinity Train - Gone too soon. Therapy train that forces you to get better or it kills you, a great idea for a kids TV show! It honestly was a really good show that showed people going through realistic issues, and have them try to be better, though the protagonists are never perfect and can and will fail. I will never forgive HBO for cancelling it

Gravity Falls - Being in the Gravity Falls fandom while this show was coming out was really fun. I loved all the theories and seeing which ones came true. Great characters and villains, and I can't wait to see what Alex Hirsch comes out with next

Hannibal (TV Series) - A great rom-com with some delicious looking food. Also Will has 7 dogs, 10/10 show

The Mandalorian (First 2 Seasons) - Got me into Star Wars. Tired gun dad and little gremlin baby carry the show, and I love watching Mando slowly learn Star Wars lore

Iron Man - Favorite Marvel movie. It does so many things right, I don't care if the main villain makes their own iron Man suite and fights Tony using his own power, that wasn't an annoying Marvel trope yet, and Iron Man does that trope the best. Stane actually has a personal relationship with the main character so we can feel Tony's betrayal when he learns what Stane has done. Also it has Phil Coulson, so 10/10

My Next Life as a Villainess: All Routes Lead to Doom! - This show is just hilarious, I don't care if Catarina ends up with any of her love interests, I just love all of the characters (except Keith, I'm not a fan of 'I can't believe it's not incest' type ships)

Epithet Erased - Criminally underrated. The story takes place in a world where some people have specific words attached to their souls called epithets that give them power. The series has many amazing characters, but mostly follows Molly, a little girl whose epithet is 'dumb'. She is forced to grow up after losing her mother, and is made to do things 10 year olds shouldn't know how to do, like taxes. It's an amazing series that can be very heartwarming and funny, but also very tragic. Please watch!!!

And now my favorite characters, this time in order:

1. Shang Qinghua, Scum Villain Self Saving System - I love this pathetic hamster man. You can see parts of himself in the characters he wrote, and while his backstory isn't as tragic as most of the other characters, it is still very relatable and sad. He has really great chemistry with many of the characters, so he can be fun to write. He is my best friend and I would kill for him

2. Loki, Marvel - I'm a young adult woman on Tumblr, of course I love Loki. His characterization has kinda gone out the window since Thor Ragnarok, but he's still very charming and funny

3. Sesshomaru, Inuyasha (and only Inuyasha. Final Act made some questionable choices for the character, and I refuse to acknowledge Yasahime's existence, may it burn in hell) - I love the trope of redeeming a character by giving them a child. Sesshomaru's character growth throughout the story was fun to watch, and I love the fact that even though he has 1 arm, he doesn't hesitate to punch his brother in the face. The show ends without resolving anything, but at least it doesn't ruin the relationship he had with his father, gives his arm back in a stupid way, and changes his relationship with Rin in a creepy way. Nope, none of that happened

4. Yakushi Kabuto, Naruto - I loved this nerd since he was introduced, and the fact that he was given a tragic backstory near the end of Naruto just made me love him even more. He's a healer that uses his abilities to harm others, and I love that for him

5. Pythor P. Chumsworth, Ninjago - Best villain in the show. It doesn't always handle his character well, but his motivation for revenge is very tragic and I wished the show acknowledged it. His release with Lloyd was fun in ep. 4, and I wished they had a reconciliation. Still, he was fun throughout the show

6. Natural Harmonia Gropius, Pokemon - I love the idea of a character that can understand Pokemon, and he has a compelling arc in the games and anime. I love villains who do the wrong things for the right reasons, and also have good relationships with the people he's apposing

7. Mitth'raw'nuruodo, Star Wars (specifically when he's written by Timothy Zahn) - He's too smart for his own good and can be a little shit, but he also holds importance to the life around him, even though he's on the Empire's side. I love my morally grey characters

8. Discord, My Little Pony - I watched the entire show just because I liked one character, and it was worth it. I love my chaotic gods

9. Kumoko, So I'm a Spider, So What? - I love shows where we watch a protagonist get new abilities. Kumoko is very silly and chaotic, and while she seems nice, she wouldn't hesitate to commit atrocities

10. Lan Qiren, The Grandmaster of Demonic Cultivation - I just think he's funny

[darklinaforever]

Reylo's indetroner equivalent to date.

I mean, Dongfang Qingcang = Kylo Ben to death. They both killed their father for essentially the same reason ! And Rey and Orchid are both in the same situation of not knowing who they are and no one knows who they are either. Girls without a home and family, and who would really want have that, who don't know who they are and think that basically they are nothing, and who are alone. There's also the color coding of the guy and the girl, the girl's powers generally linked to healing, not to mention the mystical connection of the two characters which essentially allows them to resurrect each other at the end. Then obviously, they are in enemy clans. He is from the tribe of the moon, and she, from that of the celestial. Then we discover that she is in fact the reincarnation of the former leader of another clan, which the Moon Tribe once decimated, so she is the equivalent of the goddess of nature. So in short, the heroine was nobody, but then discovers her true identity which further reinforces the supposed enemy aspect between the two characters. Like Rey when she discovers (unfortunately) that she is Palpatine's granddaughter. Without forgetting that the heroine's primordial form at the beginning is an orchid, that's her name, and you are well aware that an orchid is a plant that needs sunlight. Something said in the series itself, and where we see Dongfang Qingcang taking care of Orchid by making her be in contact with sunlight as much as possible. Not to mention that fairies are often symbolically associated with light in our culture. And even if Orchid is ultimately not a fairy, she thinks she is for the majority of the series and is designated as such by the title. Yes. No doubt. It's Reylo pure and simple.

We'll see how The Hurricane Wars trilogy evolves in the future...

Talasyn and Alaric's relationship is reminiscent of many other well-known fictional romantic relationships for me. (Just like Reylo, and of course, also like Dongfang Qingcang & Orchid, and they are all generally - so not all - the same)

There is Romeo & Juliet by the obvious appearance of the star-crossed lovers, from an enemy clan in the middle of war.

The obvious myth of Hades & Persephone. Because sometimes Persephone is called the Light of the Underworld and she is also sometimes depicted with a torch. So always associated with light. Hades is on the other hand associated with death and darkness. It is also often pointed out that they are a power couple.

Of course ; Beauty and the Beast. But in the sense that the trope is used today in the idea of ​​a man cathegorized as monstrous finally finding redemption / or evolved, through the romantic relationship he forms with a woman. (Let's be real, this is the direction we are heading)

The classics Jane Eyre & Mr Rochester ! The orphan heroine meeting a Byronic hero dressed in black. The emphasis of the relationship being on their spiritual / magical connection. (And probably later in the trilogy the emphasis for Talasyn & Alaric will be on their equality, like Jane & Rochester, I'd be hard-pressed, seeing as after all, it's taken from a Reylo fanfic and is about a trope of light / darkness, equality will inevitably come to the table at some point)

Erik & Christine from The Phantom of the Opera. The young orphaned woman associated to the light who finds herself in a complicated and tragic romantic relationship with a man having a traumatic past, and wearing a mask over his face. But who also offers to train the heroine and ends up doing so.

The other aspect of Reylo would be Darcy & Elizabeth from Pride and Prejudice, but hey... as long as we don't get in the sequel the guy telling to the girl that she may be nothing according to her or for the others, but not for him like with Kylo (And Dongfang Qingcang from LBFAD) as equivalent to Darcy's failed declaration... well I can't really say. Hoping we will have it too !

I also hope that the connection between Talasyn & Alaric on a spiritual and magical level will strengthen even more, and also above all that the concept of equality will come to the table as their relationship evolves positively. (Which should normally be the case)

[amphiptere-art]

Humm. I've been trying to figure out how this would work. May as well just throw out the idea.

Evil blue Moon

We shall nickname them Arcane.

This is based off of the idea of a blue moon that uses there magic without pity. Eclipse's are killed mercilessly. There's no feeling behind there slaughter, and no feeling for slaughtering those around them.

They basically taught by golden the same way normal blue moon is. The only difference is that they started to resent sun and moon for how they treated them. And then they thought they found a friend. Earth. But she was a liar. She tried to control him. He wasn't having any of that. He basically forced her to remove that pesky code that made him want to stick around. And once that was done he slaughtered Sun and Moon. Slaughtering Earth also despite her pleas.

He also gained an object like the cube. Put this one made purposely crafted from a wither storm they found. Using the ball pit to explore at first. I should call this object the octagon. There is no downsides to it. They simply lets him explore the universe to his ease and by typing in simple directions. Always able to return home whenever he wishes.

They go throughout the universe trying to cleanse it of eclipses. And if you are an eclipse lover. Well you're just in his way. People slaughter the eclipse in anyone that fights for them. And due to having no morals nor the younger mentality. They are stronger and faster. Unlike other blue moon types they took the star. Deciding to finish their wish. Which for them doesn't result in a shattering. Although the merger still happens.

This Blue Moon basically wished to be powerful and strong enough to siphon whatever energy/magic they wanted and to never run out of energy. Basically cutting out the main weaknesses of blue moon. Which is their ability to run out of endurance, the moral fears of murder, And the fact that some world still have magic. Arcane works more so like a wither storm himself in the world without magic. Sucking the energy out of everything around him. Uncaring of how it affects the world.

Arcane also does not really care about hurting somebody's feeling by eating them. While they would still want to eat somebody who is deserving. If they are hungry they will simply go to a Lord world and eat the inhabitants. If they want to challenge they might stalks in the streets of a standard world. Feeding into this sense of paranoia as they scramble to figure out why their friends are disappearing and dying. He honestly finds it funny.

Due to the extreme power creep they learn magic from many places. Their room magic is about as strong as Blue Moon's and stronger. Plus without their weaknesses dragging them down. They really are quick and merciles with how they hunt. And due to not having the weakness of running out of physical energy and never have worry that they cannot fight. They can fight for years if they wanted to. Utilizing the magic they have to basically heal them over and over again.

Not to mention the star they now use. Finding it as something to give them what they want to destroy all that pains them. Usually that is in a constant healing factor. Basically the star just heals them over and over again. Sometimes though it's to give them a significant power boost or a way to remove magic. Basically unless you are holding a star arcane could simply say that your magic doesn't exist. And it will be so.

Arcane is very dangerous. You don't want to meet up with Arcane. You don't want Arcane to find your world. And you definitely don't want to fight Arcane. As even in the most advantageous situations. They will just continue to fight. Using their practically invincible overhealing to keep up and of course not getting tired. They will fight you and tell the world is nothing more than the void a wither storm usually leaves behind. You either give up and die, or let the world die with you. Now of course it's very good thing. Arcane is simply for fun, and does not exist in the reality of my head cannons. As they are simply a april fools.

[rolorules]

Random Rolo Ramblings 6: Kururugi and Canon

My intention was to write a few lines about the relationship between Rolo and Suzaku and post them around Suzaku's birthday. Well, it did not happen quite like that, but here they are. Admittedly, there is not really much to write about as far as the series canon goes, and here I would already like to digress a little: By '(series) canon' I mean everything that is officially part of the Code Geass story (people, places, events) as it unfolds in the TV series, not the recap films, which divert from the series canon and partly tell a different story. You can consider them a form of Code Geass elseworld or parallel universe/alternate timeline (apparently Genesic Re;CODE did that) or just see them as a separate movie canon which includes Lelouch of the Resurrection. (Correct, 'canon' is the second main topic of this article.)

As far as the Geass series canon goes, it certainly includes R1, R2 and also Akito the Exiled. I would also add the picture dramas, but that is a matter of debate and one could argue that their canonicity is not on the same level as that of the series' episodes. There are also the drama CDs, but, like I wrote before, these are just too far out there to be part of the official story. There may be official books that Sunrise considers canon, but my personal philosophy is that when we talk about films or TV shows, only what's on the screen is canon.

So what about Suzaku and Rolo? If we follow the show's internal chronology, they first meet in the final scene of Akito the Exiled. We get two reaction shots of Suzaku's face, first when Rolo enters the room, accompanied by the two Geass Order guards, then after he tells him that Charles has 'granted' 'Julius Kingsley' another audience. (By the way, look how tall he is in comparison to Suzaku. Must be the boots.) In both cases, Suzaku looks both quite angry and extremely wary. In the first case, Suzaku even makes a hard-to-define moaning sound that sounds both apprehensive and annoyed. In other words, he does not seem happy to see Rolo at all. He might be uncertain at first whether the rescue party are friend or foe, but even after Rolo has made it clear that they are on his side, he looks as happy as an employee who hates his boss and is told that he can go back to work now. This may have nothing to do with Rolo as a person, but with the unpleasantries that await Suzaku and Lelouch, but to me this look also says "Who's that creep they've sent to pick us up?"

Luckily, there are no hard feelings between Suzaku and Rolo in R2 despite this encounter, and this is obviously because R2 was produced before Akito. There is only one conversation between Suzaku and Rolo (and Villetta) in the OSI's secret control room, (which I have covered before, more than once, actually). While Rolo and Villetta have more or less always treated each other as equals, Suzaku clearly acts as the one in charge. Everyone is very polite, but Suzaku seems to be doubtful about the effectiveness of their surveillance, which triggers a response from Roll that makes him appear a little offendes, but secretly he is certainly worried that Suzaku might find out that Lelouch has regained his memories (and that he has changed sides). In a different world, to Star Trek, they may be friends, at least they don't hate each other, but in this situation, Rolo mostly regards Suzaku as a threat, which is why he even offers Lelouch to kill him. When Suzaku arranges a phone call with Nunnally to figure out whether Lelouch has regained his memory, Rolo thwarts his plans with his time-stopping powers. Apart from that, we see him giving Suzaku wary sideways glances, and that, to my knowledge, is about it. Not much, given the fact that older official artwork often shows Lelouch, Suzaku and Rolo as a kind of love-hate-whatever triangle.

What I would really like to know is what happened between the trio's journey home from Euro Britannia and Rolo's/Suzaku's arrival at Ashford. Didn't they have any conversation about 'Julius' resp. Lelouch? It would have made sense for Suzaku to brief Rolo about Lelouch's character traits so that he knows how to handle him and how to play the role of the little brother convincingly. Moreover, the Vincent's design is based on the Lancelot's, would Suzaku not be the perfect tutor for Rolo as a Knightmare Frame pilot? That would also explain Rolo's piloting skills. (Wouldn't it be fun if Lloyd was also involved? Maybe Rolo had a reason to call him "pervy four-eyes" in that infamous sound episode.)

Of couse there is that slightly weird scene in the second recap movie where Bismarck introduces Suzaku to Rolo (who is dressed like an accountant and looks as if he hadn't had any sleep for a week and not seen any daylight for a month, quite the contrast to his Akito outfit and posture) and Villetta. Here it is made more obvious than in R2 that Suzaku is in charge of the operation. In this scene it is also acknowledged that Suzaku and Rolo have met before, and maybe Suzaku's bad memories are the in-story explanation for Suzaku's so bluntly (and rudely) addressing Rolo's faulty Geass, which is one of the things I hated about this scene, the other one being Rolo's new alias ('Nebiros'/'Neblos'). Rolo's resentful look is more than understandable. I know why the writers made Suzaku say that: they needed a quick way to establish Rolo's weakness, but it still seems so out of character for someone like Suzaku. (I like Suzaku thanking Rolo for rescuing them better, even though he did not look particularly grateful when Rolo freed him and Lelouch from prison.) Villetta's defending Rolo and praising his skillfulness, on the other hand, is perfectly in character for her. Anyway, this scene does not contradict series canon, so I can potentially accept it as "this is what happened" to fill a gap in the story, I'm just not sure if I want to.

Which is why I am now turning to the readers. How do you personally deal with the canon problem, in Code Geass and otherwise? After all, reboots, recaps, remakes etc. are a pretty common phenomenon in the world of anime and elsewhere. Do you want to have a rigid canon or do you like to see alternate/new/fresh versions of the same story? What is your personal Code Geass canon, the two seasons of the TV show, Akito, the recap films, Lelouch of the Resurrection, the mobile games? Please let me know and thank you for reading all this, these articles are called "ramblings" for a reason.

P.S. Sorry for mostly using screencaps that I have used before.

[cronagorgonzola]

Ok so Star Trek: Enterprise really seemed to be improving in season 3 ever since they abandoned the shapeshifting lizard people as the series villain and stopped trying to put T'pol and Archer together but then we came across an episode last night that baffled us so thoroughly we stayed up for an extra hour just yelling into the void about it

So, Enterprise comes across this destroyed insectoid ship. The crew are dead and most systems are down and they dont know why. And then on the ship they find a hatchery of insectoid eggs. Babies. It's the most fortified section of the ship and the only section that still has life support.

Turns out, the crew cut power to their own life support in order to keep the hatchery running. They sacrificed themselves to save these babies. Phlox analyzes their anatomy and learns that they reproduce asexually, concludes there is likely a hatchery like this on every insectoid ship. So now we know two things: these children were loved, and the crew of this ship was not especially negligent for having them onboard, because this is a normal practice for their people.

Archer says "we gotta save these babies." The crew is skeptical, because saving the babies would take a lot of resources and put Enterprise in danger. For once i agree with Archer - they gotta save the babies. He makes a lot of really good arguments, like "we have a chance to show the Xindi that we're not the monsters they think we are," and "if this was a nursery of primate babies, you wouldnt think twice about saving them." That good Star Trek shit. No one actually directly refutes this argument, they just say they dont want to save the babies.

The whole episode goes on like this, with Archer fervently trying to save these babies while the rest of the crew stands around saying "idk i think the captain's going crazy." T'pol refuses a direct order to help with saving the babies, so Archer relieves her of command. This is seen as evidence that Archer is going crazy. Another insectoid ship shows up, and Reed blows them out of the sky without even attempting to communicate, so Archer relieves him of command as well. This is further evidence that Archer is going crazy.

Then the senior staff fucking mutinies. They say, "captain, youve taken this whole 'save these babies' thing too far, let us kill the babies." The babies have started to hatch and Archer is getting weird with it. They drag him off to sick bay and scan his brain - turns out, he was infected with some kind of alien pheromone that gave him an irresistable urge to protect these babies. He was not, in fact, following a moral code that compelled him to protect innocent life, or trying to set a good example for humanity as they join the interstellar community. He was just crazy all along! No attempt is made to refute the (very good) arguments he made in favor of saving the babies, the viewers are just meant to accept the premise that saving the babies isnt worth it actually, because it would take a lot of resources. Archer even says "yeah if i was normal i wouldve just let the babies die" and leaves it at that - no slow zoom in on his face as he realizes what that means about him, no speech about how humanity needs to outgrow old prejudices to see the sanctity of diverse life, the episode just leaves off on "those babies were creepy it wouldve been fine to kill them."

But the episode still makes a point to tell the viewer that the babies will survive, because the writers understand that when you put a bunch of babies in danger, people will naturally worry for their safety. Not the crew, though. It's super fine and normal that they were totally willing to let those babies die, the captain was definitely the crazy one for trying to save them.