#Meta Analysis

[marshmallowwitharubberband]

One interesting comparison/foil I enjoy between the Twin Prides of Yunmeng is the relation between their perceived social awareness vs actual social aptitude.

Meaning, Wei Wuxian *seems* socially unaware, with his rule breaking and penchant for pissing off people, but actually he is very socially apt. He knows exactly what to do or say to get people to do what he wants (for better or for worse) and uses that ability numerous times. He is not unaware of social norms, he just picks and chooses which ones to follow at his convenience. His fatal flaw is his overconfidence, of course, but said confidence is not entirely misplaced.

Meanwhile, Jiang Cheng is overly aware of all the social norms, hierarchical customs and what is expected, but is so socially inept it's painful to watch. He is incapable of communicating effectively or bonding with his peers, for what we see. He's usually seen running behind Wei Wuxian to scold him for his misbehaviors, but he's rarely seen actually interacting with other disciples outside his sect (let's remember the merry adventures with NHS, LZ and the Wen siblings, as well as Yanli attending the lectures and his whole mess with Wen Qing —for which I'm grateful for bc my queens deserve more screentime but I digress— are all an invention of CQL and not book canon) without WWX acting as a social lubricant. And it ends up having terrible consequences for him.

Jiang Cheng spent the better part of the lectures being on WWX's ass about pestering Lan Wangji or getting in trouble with Nie Huaisang, or talking to Mian Mian, for fear of making the sect lose face. But in reality, Wei Wuxian was fulfilling the actual intended purpose of attending the lectures: making connections.

From a political point of view (though maybe not the Lan point of view), having all the heirs and disciples mingling for half a year is a networking opportunity one would be a fool to waste.

Proof of that is how said connections and friendships saved Wei Wuxian more than once throughout the story, including hauling him back from the dead.

Meanwhile, Jiang Cheng's hissy and angry way of going about life, while kinda justified, was so off-putting that even some readers can't stand him. His "first my sect, then my sect, and last, my sect" attitude is admirable, but in the end it costed him any potential alliance he could have had without depending on his sister's marriage.

Poor guy was left out of the Venerated Polyc- er, Triad and had to get his sect back with pretty much his bare hands because he did not cultivate (haha) any useful alliance or relationship with other clans when he could have. So, when he needed it the most, he was left alone.

No one of the other sects cared enough about him to intercede in his favor and Wei Wuxian, his social lighthouse, was too busy being a broody drunkard —and, later, a boogeyman— to be of any help. Which left Jiang Cheng, essentially, stranded.

All this to say, I want an AU where Nie Huaisang feels so bad for his friend's prickly wet cat of a brother that he drags Wei Wuxian and Jiang Cheng into a sworn brotherhood of their own and it changes the course of everything

[invisiblue]

Just loosing my mind between Ellie and Gail convo, and how fast Gail cracked Ellie after Joel's death.

"He said 'I saved her" / "He saved me a lot of times" / "Bit that's not wronging someone" / "No idea what he meant, I don't feel wronged" and Gail kept pushing for a better answer where Ellie just "deceived" her, Gail's smile and understanding face really showed how she was playing the same game as Ellie was doing. Ofc she knew Ellie was hidding her feelings and intentions, for someone else it could be very believable.

Then, there is the long "Us" discourse from Ellie and more people got that she was faking too much, and for Gail it just clicked that it was more, Ellie telling an even bigger lie to obfscute her reasons, she trying to hide how desperate she was there for revenge, how far she would go to get it, even reading such believable and yet fake text, because she didn't mean all that, she just wanted to get the council approval.

And thats when Gail and Tommy convo gets new meaning "That one? Liar." Gail is just so certain that Ellie was manipulating everyone at that moment, it was bigger than just a lie. And Gail has no idea, but she's being lying her whole life and she has being lied to, so she knows how to do it very well. So the "Turns out nurture can only do this much. The rest is nature. If she's on a path, it's not one that Joel put her on. I think they were walking side by side from the very start." fits very well, its on her being since the beginning, once she decides on something there is no going back and Gail knows there is nothing Tommy can do, that anyone could do and the "Some people just can't be saved" just hits harder.

[gynnnicsworld]

You know Sterek has been frequently 'cancelled' and attacked for basically being the most popular ship in the TW world, right?

Because of the age gap between them, right? Well, I have to complain about it, because it really pisses me off that they're discarding the beautiful, slow-burning love story that exists between Stiles and Derek in CANON. Because damn it, they liked each other.

It bothers me that they tarnish Sterek's image for things like being a "pedo" ship when NO, they're not. They're trying to lump us all into a "sick shipper" category.

If we're being honest, Sterek has probably been the story with the most backstory, where we've seen how each season has seen the closeness between Stiles and Derek grow, where they've gone from 'hating each other and having to deal with each other because of Scott' to genuinely caring for each other to the point where Derek would take a bullet for Stiles or Stiles would go against the entire FBI to protect and get Derek out of whatever mess he was in.

They care deeply and genuinely for each other, so much so that Derek preserved and fixed Stiles' Jeep, keeping it in his garage as a sort of memento or anchor for him.

It bothers me so much that they talk shit about Sterek when this couple exists:

sorry but parrish/lydia was a canon pairing between a teenager and an ADULT and if that wasn't enough, an adult from the sheriff's department.

Why aren't people talking about this more? Why are they attacking Sterek instead? Sterek: a couple that wasn't canon during the show's run, and we only got confirmation of feelings for each other through the actors and through obvious hints in the show. But directly, it was never a canon couple between a teenager and an adult guy. They were together.

I put the adult that way because Derek's age was never confirmed as such. At the beginning of the series, Stiles says Derek is only a couple of years older than him and Scott. So at the beginning of the series, Derek was between 18 and 19 years old. But later on, they address the fire, so they change the age again, but they never say exactly how old he is, so canonically Derek could be 2 to 5 years older than Stiles. You choose what age gap to give them.

While Lydia, about 17, and Jordan Parish, over 20, are a CANON couple.

Anyway, hypocrisy and homophobia, right?

But there is a VERY important theme between the Derek/Stiles relationship, which if you ask me made the possibility of a relationship between the two of them impossible while Stiles was still a high school student and perhaps only when Stiles was older could something exist between them.

The existence of this damn bitch and what she did to Derek.

I hate her as much as you do, and it disgusts me to have to watch Teenage Derek with her.

But it's important to what I wanted to say; it's why I think Derek repressed his feelings for Stiles.

According to the Teen Wolf book, Kate was Derek's substitute swim teacher, who used certain hormones and scents to attract the teenage Derek to her. YES, that was not only a relationship rife with manipulation, power imbalances, and pedophilia, but she also ended up orchestrating the murder of Derek's family at a moment of vulnerability for Derek because Paige's death hadn't happened long before.

We all know Derek blames himself for the death of his family, and he hates Kate. He knows what she did to him. He knows he was manipulated by an older woman and that he fell for her.

Derek has serious trust and self-confidence issues.

He doesn't believe he's worthy of love or peace.

His anchor until Season 2 was anger because his life was infested with anger/hate/rage.

So he sees himself as something bad, something that hurts, someone who destroys what he loves. He's a victim of sexual abuse, even though he doesn't admit it.

But Stiles became that little glimmer of light annoying, but a light in his dark life filled with negative things. Stiles earned his trust. Stiles fought every step of the way and broke down that wall Derek built around himself to keep people away from him, because trust means giving someone the power to hurt you. Oh well, Derek's mind worked that way. Unbeknownst to him, Stiles earned that trust.

And that's where we have this scene.

This is where Derek lets us see how important Stiles has become to him, Stiles became his anchor.

At this point, it's undeniable that Derek already has feelings for Stiles. He trusts Stiles blindly. But then, why didn't Derek do anything to have Stiles? Because Derek is a victim of sexual abuse by a woman who took advantage of him in high school. And Derek never dealt with that trauma, or we were never shown to have it that way.

Derek dates women, of course—Jennifer (who also manipulated him), Braeden, etc.—whose relationships didn't end well or were never serious.

But not with Stiles, because Stiles is like that extremely important thing where he can't ruin that connection they have, he can't taint or sully this relationship he has with Stiles. It's too important to Derek. Plus, the untreated traumas surrounding his abuser are a clear impediment to starting something real, something serious. And everything seems to indicate that Stiles is THAT person his unconscious heart has chosen.

That is, to start any romantic relationship with Stiles, Derek has to face all of his demons, all of his traumas first, in order to give Stiles what he believes Stiles deserves.

Kate ruined Derek's heart and mind a lot, plus Derek already had a wounded and bleeding heart since Paige.

So, a relationship as such didn't exist in the series between S/D, and it was quite unlikely that it would, but the feelings were always there.

That's why I don't understand why they keep attacking a couple who has SO MUCH backstory, and who if they ever dated, it was definitely when they were already adults and able to deal with their own issues.

The sheriff's line about the jeep and Derek always makes me think that the sheriff was always aware and noticed everything. He never disapproved; on the contrary, he supported them, because he knows there's no one who deserves each other more than those two. It was also a clear confirmation that Derek always had feelings for Stiles, complicated feelings he didn't know how to address, but whose feelings led him to treasure and fix Stiles's jeep.

[sunshine-n-sass]

i can't get over how much meaning there is in the language. i really need to study japanese.

Naruto and Sasuke often uses 'Nazedaka' and 'Nandeka' in their monologue. Nazedaka= for some reason,without knowing why, somehow. nandeka = nazedaka have similar meanings.

We know that Naruto never wanted to give up. If we ask him 'why', there is always an answer for it.

He stabbed himself to open the wound, why? Because he doesn't want to run away and being afraid again.

He sympathize with Haku even though he killed his teammate Sasuke, why? Because he knows what loneliness is. He is also the one who taught him how far you will go to protect your precious person. He also understands him.

He never want to give up taking the tenth question in chunin exam, why? Because he doesn't want to run away.

He never want to give up fighting against Gaara, why? Because Sasuke acknowledged him and he wanted to protect Sasuke & Sakura.

He understand why gaara becomes a maniac, why? Because of loneliness, the hatred from others... And he is a Jinchūriki.

He never want to give up fighting against kabuto, why? Because he wanted to prove to Tsunade that he was worthy to hold the title of Hokage. By this, he can bring her back to Konoha and cure Sasuke and others.

He never wanted to give up fighting against pein, why? Because he wanted to protect the village. He wanted to end the cycle of hatred.

He never want to give up fighting against Obito, why? Because he wanted to end the fucking war.

But when it comes to Sasuke he doesn't know, why does he feel like that…? Why he didn't want to see him hurt...? why he doesn't want to give up on Sasuke? Why would he go to such lengths for him? He is unable to give a definite answer to all these. Because it's not that easy to say.

N̲a̲r̲u̲t̲o̲

1. Naruto's inner monologue (In ch. 228) vote 1

Raw: 何��か分かんねーけど...

Romaji: nande ka wakannē kedo...

Literal: I don't know why.... but...

Raw: オレは お前を... 大蛇丸なんかに 取られたくねーん だってばよ･･･

Romaji: ore wa omae o... Orochimaru nanka ni toraretakunē n datte-ba yo...

Literal: I don't want you... to be taken away by someone like Orochimaru!

[His words contain sooo much emotion.]

2. Vote2

Raw: 「それ説明しろって言われてもオレも正直よく分かんねェーよそんなの... ただお前のそーゆー背負ってゴチャゴチャしてるとこ見てっと・・なんでか・・ ・・・オレが・・・痛てーんだ」

Romaji: sore setsumei shiro tte iwarete mo ore mo shōjiki yoku wakanne yo sonna no...tada omae no so you seotte gochagocha shiteru toko mite tto... nande ka ... ore ga... Itate nda

Literal: Even if you ask me to explain it.... I honestly don't properly understand... that kind of thing...It's just that.... When I see you carrying burden on your back... getting all messed up.... for some reason... ...I'm.... hurting...

S̲a̲s̲u̲k̲e̲

(Sasuke's dialogue is much more poetic in Japanese. He sounds so incredibly vulnerable)

1. Sasuke's inner monologue (ch.698)

Raw: 「...なぜだか気になるようになった」

Romaji: ...nazedaka ki ni naru yō ni natta

Literal: For some reason/without knowing why, somehow.... I became as anxious/worried and bothered about you (when you were in my mind).

means -> { I became (in such way [that] when you were in my mind) }

Raw: それからのお前を見る度にど んどん気になるようになっていった

Romaji: sore kara no omae o miru tabi ni dondon ki ni naru yō ni natteitta

Literal: And then, steadily, every time I saw you, I became uneasy (when you were on my mind)....

• Kininaru

気 - ki exists in us. Spirit. It is the spirit principle that follows it within a person. Kininaru - that person is occupying our feeling, sensation, thoughts etc... Whatever it is that turning into our spirit.

-> Kininaru means to think about something unconsciously/subconsciously.

Kininaru means shinpaininaru 気になる -> 心配になる｡ 心配になる (shinpaininaru) means- someone is worried about something. It depends on the context how it use, it could be 1. I'm concerned about something/someone 2. I'm worried about something/someone 3. I'm interested in~ 4. I'm bothered about~ 5. I wonder~ 6. I'm curious about~ etc...

1 . Kininaru uses when you are curious about something or you want to know because you are curious about something/someone. It's like, that someone/something catching your attention and you becomes curious because you want to know so badly! 'You want to know more & more'! And using 気になっていた (kini natteitta) means "I've been curious about something/someone." It's not about 'you are curious about it now' but about 'you've been curious about it for a while.' Kininaru express about the feeling of yourself about what you feel about something.

2. I'm worried about -> "I can't help but worry about that X"- Worried about X (because X has an injury/illness or some other problems). If you say you're worried, it doesn't mean you're worried, it's that you're worried about 'that person'. Kininaru has more of a feeling of something that effects you. As like Naruto's worries become Sasuke's worries

3. Kininaru uses when you've romantic interest in someone or someone attracted you or someone catches your attention. "Oh, that person drew my attention" Or "something was interesting about this person". It often use なって- form to say 'you're interested in someone'. If you say that you're interested in someone (気になってるんだ - ki ni natteru nda), it means that you like him/her a little bit. And you want to know more about that person.

Note: Potential verb + "you ni naru" - to become/to become able to. kininaru - anxious/worried/bothered or to be on one's mind. Adding 'you ni naru' means "I couldn't do it before but I can now". So the potential verb + youninaru express or to shows the change.

So, 気になる has the meaning of 「心配になる-shinpaininaru」 (worrying/ bothering/anxious/curious/concerned...) and also the meaning of 「ちょっと好き- chotto suki」 a little liking ( in a romantic way) . It's a bit special. There are two meanings to this verb, so if you use this you need to pay attention to this.

Raw: その時思った... お前の弱さがだんだんオレに染まってきたんだと

Romaji: sono toki omotta... omae no yowasa ga dandan ore ni somatte kitanda to

Literal: At that time I thought.... your weakness gradually came to taint me.

[[The other panel 'literal' is above, you can check]]

Note: The image of どんどん (dondon) means 'something is going very fast' or 'changing speed of the progress is very fast'. Dondon means rapidly/steadily/more & more/significantly. And whereas だんだん (dandan) means little by little/gradually. So both dondon & dandan are opposite because どんどん is faster than だんだん.

And in both cases Sasuke saying something like; "Seeing Naruto being scolded by the others and him suffering... made Sasuke worry more and more about Naruto. The thought of Naruto made him worry/anxious. He's feeling uneasy or being overly concerned about him".

2.

Raw: 「そしてなぜだか安心したんだ」

Romaji: soshite nazeda ka anshin shita nda

Literal: And then... without knowing why, somehow.... I felt relieved (because of you).

Note: Anshinshita + Nda, んだ (nda) is used at the end of sentences. んだ is a casual and preferred in speaking. んだ- One way in which it often does this is by emphasizing the feelings of the speaker. 安 (AN) which means "peace" Or "ease", 心 (shin, Kokoro) which means "heart" or "mind". 安心 as "relief" or "peace of mind". 安心 has the kanji for 'safe' and 'heart'. So it means "peace of mind your heart is at ease". 安心する means " I feel relieved."　安心 is a noun, and 安心する is a verb. If you want to say ``I felt relieved'' in the past tense, you should change the verb to be in the past tense 「安心した」. It more emotionally relieved.

And, Sasuke using anshin shita which means something like - 'only when you are there, I was always at peace/safe/relieved '. It has a meaning of 'That's a load off my mind ' or 'you found your safety or security when your burden was lifted ' Or 'being pleased/happy and satisfied (feeling content)'. So, it has more deeper meaning than just 'relief'. (It is a vague concept in Japanese with a wide range of meaning).

We can also see the same word used by Naruto himself in his monologue (VOTE 1)

Raw: オレは... 最初自分と同じような 奴がいるって 分かって 安心したんだ!

Romaji: ore wa ... saisho jibun to onaji yōna yatsu ga iru tte wakatte anshin shita nda !

Literal: In the beginning... when I found out.... There was someone similar to me.... I felt relieved!

Also the same expression was shown in ch. 499 when Naruto heard his mother's word 'I love you'

なんだろ = nandaro = (I wonder) what is this?

すっげー 安心する... = sugge anshin suru... = I feel so calm/ I feel so relieved...

すっげー うれしいっ!!! = sugge ureshi !!! = I feel so happy!!!

Naruto's reaction to kushina saying i love you was so precious. He was unaware of any of these types of emotions. He have never known what a mother's love is. He doesn't even know what his mother looks like or what her voice sounds like. He doesn't know how mother's scolding and mother's love feel. When Kushina says "I love you" to Naruto, it means that she has deep affection and care for her son and wants to express those feelings. It is a way of showing him that he is valued and appreciated. His mother's love... it gave Naruto a peace of mind that he had never felt before. It makes him soooo happy. Tender and unbreakable, gentle and strong, soft and loud bond between a mother and a son. And he felt all these for the first time.

A boy who is alone in life gets comfort from another boy without even have a conversation with him. Sasuke and Kushina were the two people who soothed his heart, made him happy, and comforted him.

Kid Naruto:

それに 嬉しかった。 ホントは すぐに話しかけ たかったんだ･･･

soreni ureshikatta. honto wa sugu ni hanashikaketakatta nda...

And besides, I felt happy. To tell the truth, I really wanted to talk to you right away.

Teen Naruto:

オレだって いつもお前が 一人なのは 知ってた

ore datte itsumo omae ga hitori nano wa shitteta

I always knew you were... alone

同じような奴がいるって安心した・・・

onaji yōna yatsu ga iru tte anshinshita ・・・

There was someone similar to me.... I was relieved/I felt relieved...

すぐに話しかけたかった･･･ なんだか嬉しくてよ!

sugu ni hanashikaketakatta... nandaka ureshikuteyo!

I immediately wanted to talk to you... Somehow/somewhat I felt happy!!

When characters are nervous or shy about talking to someone, they often put their hands behind their heads as if rubbing their head or neck. Here, Naruto making the same gesture. But he never made this kind of shy gesture to anyone else. Why is he shy? Because Naruto was confessing that he always wanted to be like Sasuke and he found him strong and cool. He complimenting sasuke's look in person.

If Sasuke and Naruto felt like they were just friends or brothers... this 'I don't know why, For someone reason,without knowing why' would never exist. Sasuke is someone who actually had a brother, and he knows what it's like to have a brother. Naruto literally acted like a big brother to Konohamaru and He was someone who found many friends because of his hardwork and he knew what it feels like. And yet they can't say it out loud "why they feel a certain way for each other"

Sasuke begins to worry about Naruto way before they become friends, before having a proper conversation with Naruto. Also, they are not even connected by blood. The way they feel each other's pain and the conversation they have in KSA, Vote2 and Sasuke's monologue is not the way you would talk to your friend or brother. It's because they clearly love each other.

[david-lanndlord]

Okay but Cold Harbour is the episode that really, truly, fully humanized the innies - all of them, but none more so than Mark S. Let me digress.

I was so goddamn excited when iMark and oMark started talking with the camcorder, and it was so clear that iMark was incredibly touched at the start, that his outie had been thinking about him, wanted to talk to him, apologized to him. But oMark fucked up BAD the moment he belittled iMark's relationship with Helly and got her name wrong. It mirrored Helena getting Gemma's name wrong in the restaurant, and it was the same flavour of disrespect and disregard. oMark obviously isn't anywhere close to as malicious as Helena, but this scene made it extra clear that he doesn't see iMark as his full equal, and iMark realized it too.

So when the time came, it made perfect sense that he acted how he did. Mark nearly died, accidentally committed murder, and more in the span of a few minutes. iMark rescued Gemma, saw her safely out the fire escape door, and in doing so discharged his duty to oMark. He was in an insane and impossible situation, somehow managed to accomplish his mission, and then once that was done, he stepped fully into his agency for the first time in his short life and made the choice HE wanted to make!!!

I completely and fully disagree with people saying that that choice didn't make any sense. Of course he and Helly don't know where they're going. Of course they don't know what they're doing. But they were ready for death, had had their final parting, and then iMark said no!

I felt horrible for Gemma, and I cannot begin to imagine how she would have felt seeing that - it absolutely broke my heart. But at the same time, I couldn't help but feel proud of iMark, in a way, because in that moment he stepped out of oMark's shadow and became his own person.

[bitter-hibiscus]

The thing is that even in the interpretation of "Bruce let the kids be Robin because they would've gone out on their own otherwise" you can't actually deny Bruce's selfishness, at least when it comes to Jason. Even with the idea that Jason wouldn't have gone home with Bruce if he hadn't been offered Robin (which I don't subscribe to,) Bruce still only took him in because he missed Dick.

"Oh but you just said that he would've been running around alone anyway-" Bruce made Dick step down from being Robin because Dick got shot during a fight with Joker and almost fell to his death. Bruce specifically ended Robin because he couldn't risk Dick dying. And yet when Jason comes around- they meet twice before he offers Jason the position of Robin. And when Dick asks about it?

Bruce outright admits that Jason was there because he'd missed Dick. Because he felt lonely. In universe, Bruce knew that the idea of a child sidekick was both dangerous and senseless, and yet he still took a child home, put him in his eldest's clothes and took him out into the night to get himself killed. Which Bruce knew could happen.

It doesn't matter if Jason would've gotten himself killed on the streets anyway. Bruce's decision to make him Robin wasn't based on that. It was based on selfishness and the love he has for Dick Grayson and Dick Grayson alone.

If Dick had come crawling back on his knees and begged to be Robin again Bruce would have all but shut him off. But Jason (and the other, subsequent children) have always been less valuable than Dick. So he can take them out to die, because it means he keeps Dick alive.

[fist-of-vengeance]

the funniest thing about tiktokers woobifying allied mastercomputer is that it actually interacts with the themes of IHNMAIMS in a very interesting way.

a big focal point of that story is AM despising humanity for giving him sentience and intelligence without embodied sensation, without the ability to give and receive affection as they do. the transformation he inflicts on ted is of course a parallel to AM's own state of disembodied consciousness (i have no mouth and i must scream), but AM is also punishing ted specifically for doing what he cannot. for acting out of mercy and empathy in order to save the other humans at his own expense. I think AM despises that altruism because he envies it, because he can't fathom the softness that humans are capable of even after time and trauma have warped them beyond recognition. AM hates the human capacity for empathy because he can never experience it himself.

So the fact that some kids on tiktok read IHNMAIMS and immediately responded by pitying AM, by making angst edits and expressive cosplays and humanized fanart, is strangely beautiful. like I think it would really piss him off. the human capacity for kindness runs so deep that we would extend empathy to the personification of our hate.

[sillysiluriforme]

[the-overanalyst]

ok I KNOW nobody's talking about mizu5 anymore but i just had another thought. so we all remember the "do you wish to continue" button, right? traumatized everybody? yeah that one.

SO i just realized having that warning there puts us in mizuki's position. we get an overwhelming sense that something is going to go wrong, but we don't know what. so now we have a choice to make. we can move forward and face whatever happens. or we can stay stuck in the same place forever.

also notice that the moment the story gives us this choice, it takes the choice away from mizuki. in a sense, we're the only ones who can save her. but it's not really saving. because if we choose not to continue, just like if mizuki had chosen not to reveal her secret, we would miss out on the eventual happy ending. because the whole point of mizuki's arc is to stop being avoidant, stop being frozen by fear.

[maskedrivals]

The claim that "shuake wouldn't work out because Akechi tried to kill Joker" is funny to me because Joker canonically prefers "just everyday Akechi" over detective prince Akechi.

We have proof of Joker's preference in the third semester. Okumura was revived as a loving father in accordance to Haru's wishes and Akechi was revived as his maniacal, violent self in accordance to Joker's wishes.

Joker could have revived Akechi to be any iteration of kind and friendly but he didn't. Instead, he wanted Akechi to have the same personality as his black mask self, the same personality of the man who attempted to kill him. Joker canonically prefers Akechi's true personality, whether the player agrees with him or not.

[featherstorm2004]

Ok but the implication that Fyodor inherits the personality traits of the people who kill him is extremely messed up when you think about it. And considering how old he is it's very likely his original personality has been completely taken over by this point, honestly I wouldn't be surprised if Fyodor doesn't actually have a grand master plan but is instead working with a hodgepodge of half baked ideas culminated by his past vessels over the centuries.

Especially when you consider that these new desirers seem to effect him strongly, with him not giving two shits about Aya until he took over Bram and now suddenly he's yandere levels obsessed with her.

[liarvibe]

I saw a post on my dash talking about how Tsumugi is a shitty story teller (as an endearing, "baby's bad at stories but trying her very best just doesn't have the skill yet" character flaw now as a dig) and I REALLY dig that interpretation a lot, but I also want to talk about a different take on it because I have BrainRot about it now

And it has to do with her Mastermind Sprites and the interpretation that V3 Was Not Fiction.

I've posted about this before on my old blog where I jokingly discussed that Tsumugi's eyes (aside from just flat out changing color, like what) look extremely stressed.

Her pupils are drawn with the scratchy look that Danganronpa has used for insanity in the past, and Tsumugi has purple bags under here eyes.

So what could this mean for a Tsumugi Shirogane who was the Mastermind of Game 53, to be on the cusp of insanity and to have bags under her eyes?

A lot of people joked in the original post that it was the Team DR Crunch Time, but I do have to wonder if Tsumugi is even enjoying herself as the Mastermind. These insane, tired looking sprites only pop up when she IS presenting as the Mastermind, and one other time that I think is important to mention.

At the end of her Salmon mode event:

Here is her Graduation Event Video if you want to double check it, but in this instance, the writers chose for not her to only imply that the person "Tsumugi Shirogane" was merely a cosplay, (which is an INSANE LORE DROP that I don't think people notice/talk about ENOUGH about Tsumugi) BUT that the Freudian slip was unintentional--a showcase of her true self.

And how is this "true self" described? Well--

As if the light left her eyes.

This could indicate lifelessness, but I also see it used a LOT to describe exhaustion and depression. A lifeless state of mind, if you will. And this was describing a sprite under the label of her mastermind sprites.

I think Tsumugi is a passionate person over her hobbies and fandom, I think she writes fanfics as love letters to the fandoms she adores and cosplays her characters out of pure love for them, as she complains about in her FTEs when mentioning people have been putting themselves before their characters when it comes to cosplay professionals.

I don't think V3 was a product of her love at all, if she even made it herself. Her grand reveal of her being the mastermind is full of sprites with eyes that are described as lifeless.

I don't think anyone who wants to be doing what they're doing would have lifeless eyes while doing it.

[sapphire-weapon]

So here's an interesting thing.

This is Saddler's POV when Ashley picks up Leon's gun:

Leon isn't looking at Ashley.

He's looking right at Saddler. And that's the look of a man who's ready to kill.

It's only after the first shot is fired that Leon actually looks at Ashley, and his expression is completely different when he does.

From Ashley's POV:

This might sound weird, but this is probably the best showcase of how fundamentally changed Leon is in RE4make from RE2make. In RE2make, his focus would've been Ashley first. He would've been worried about her and scared for himself. Saddler would be an afterthought; Leon can worry about Saddler after both he and Ashley are safe.

That was probably what Krauser was referring to during training when he told Leon that he was too soft to do what's necessary. You know, before Krauser himself went nuts, and the meaning of that statement became something else entirely.

But in RE4make, Leon's first response is rage. It's violence. It's murder. His instinct isn't to save Ashley or protect himself -- it's to kill Saddler.

It's only after it hits him just how stuck he is -- after that first shot is fired -- that the worry starts -- that the regret and heartache kick in.

What Krauser taught Leon -- what he really taught Leon -- was that protecting someone is more than shielding them from harm or pulling them to safety. It's eliminating the threat around them so that they can be safe. Shields can break, and running protects no one.

So, sure, the "being held against my will" thing is the main reason why Leon turns down Ashley's offer at the end of the game -- but it's not the only reason. It's because Leon came to accept, over the course of this mission, that he's not that guy anymore. He can't stand by and be Ashley's guard. The only way he knows how to protect her is by eliminating the threat around her -- and that's not what security detail does.

But that's who Leon's become now. The ship of "serve and protect" has sailed, for him. In his own words: "You've gotta keep moving forward."

[huginsmemory]

On ad astra per aspera ✨

Can we talk about the repeated use of ad astra per aspera? Cause uhhhh it shows up twice, once on the website and once in the Book of Bill, and OH BOY this has connotations, both for Bill and Ford's relation in the literal and figurative meaning on the word, and for Bill's own history:

(extra addition added 16/09/2024! 🌝 )

First, in the website (if I recall correctly) if the phrase ad astra per aspera is inputted into the computer, you get the two pages on Bill's 'funeral':

And within, in the pages, at the very end before signing there names is the phrase itself (highlighted in red) .

Secondly, a joke version of it is seen in the Book Of Bill, specifically on the night where Bill and Ford fucked 'one thing led to another':

In this one, it's clearly a joke off of aspirin used for his hangover, used again to close the entry.

Now the phrase ad astra per aspera itself means 'through suffering to the stars', which also has... wider connotations then just these two piece alone, which I'll unpack later. But first, the interesting choice of connection of these two pieces;

Both times the phrases occur, they occur closing the entry; a bit too much of a coincidence to me (and in this fandom there is no such thing as a coincidence). Considering that the 'one thing led to another' night is a night that was important to their relationship as it hints at the intimacy they had with each other, it showing up again in Ford's 'funeral' entry about Bill feels very much like an allusion to that night. Especially considering in the funeral entry Ford is very open about how much he cared about Bill, with how he at one point "considered him the centre of his life". The entry from Ford reads as someone who is moving on, and part of this is acknowledgement of the grief and sadness for the more positive part of the abusive relationship that he lost. As a result, having him acknowledge the intimacy of their relationship, it makes sense for him to tongue in cheek allude back to his first writing down of the phrase, where they were quite clearly implied to fuck be intimate.

While it alludes to their Bill and Ford's intimacy, the literal and metaphorical meaning of the phrase also rings true here; through suffering to the stars. If we talk literally, then through Ford's relationship with Bill, something that ultimately was full of suffering, he built the portal, and ended up wandering the myriad worlds out there in space; one may say out there among the stars. He literally was out there wandering the stars as a result of suffering.

Now metaphorically, the phrase means through suffering/adversity one gains beautiful/worthwhile things. Considering this entry is Ford moving on from Bill, this is very apt; again, their relationship caused Ford immense suffering, and as he is now letting that relationship and suffering go, he's instead prioritizing creating healthy relationships with Stanley, the other twins and Fiddleford (the something beautiful and worthwhile part!). In fact, the entry on Bill's funeral is half on him strengthening his relationship with Mabel, the shooting star, another layer of wordplay; case in point about the healthy relationships. He's weathered through his abusive relationship, to discover and create a loving family.

It doesn't quite end there however; although that's fairly it for specifically Ford and Bill's relationship, we also haven't talked about what the stars mean to Bill himself. Which, well; it's very clearly implied that Bill accidentally killed everyone in his dimension in an attempt to show his parents (and other people in his dimension) the stars. And on top of that, to quote; "I looked up and saw the stars. And I was ready to become one of them". Which he then in a way, becomes, considering the page in journal 3 on constellations, in which Ford remarks that one of his favourite constellations is the constellation 'William' (obviously Bill). It's a bittersweet immortalization of himself after everything that occurs around trying to see the stars for Bill.

So I find it very interesting that for Ford, a phrase about suffering and stars is something he ends up correlating to his relationship with Bill, considering that to Bill, to get to the stars is something he deeply suffered for as a result. It's also important to note that Bill's suffering was something that occurred out of love, and ultimately an attempt to be understood and create a deeper relationship with his parents where they could trust him. And then for Ford, all this while later, to look up to the stars (to see them) and to see the Bill constellation and go 'oh that's one of my favourites' is fulfillment. Because Ford during that time trusted and cared deeply for Bill, fulfilling that relationship of trust, love and understanding(at least surface level, considering the way they banter together), that Bill had yearned for when he was younger and killed his plane.

So all in all(tldr): ad aspera per astra, (through suffering the stars), is quite the fun phrase to unpack in regards to Bill and Ford's relationship, considering the deliberate reference to the phrase on the entry about the night 'where one thing led to another' and Bill's funeral entry. The phrase is a combination of references; tongue in cheek allusion to the intimacy, but also references to the literal (space fugitive) and figurative (abusive relationship, to loving family again pipeline) hardships Ford endured as a result of the relationship. There is also irony in the way that Ford seems to correlate this phrase about suffering and stars with Bill and his relationship, considering that out of an effort to be understood and share the stars with his parents, Bill accidentally killed his whole dimension; later he also made a constellation of himself. As well, as Ford says that one of his favourite constellations is a constellation that's clearly Bill in Journal 3, it alludes to that Bill's wish to show his parents the stars and be recognized is fulfilled by Ford (pre-portal incident that is).

EDIT: extra details added on the constellation piece as of Aug 14 2024 (less than 24 hours after og posting, because I'm deranged). Big thanks to @bowl-o-nudel for the nudge :)

Edit (16/09/2024): I've had a few people say that the saying has appeared in Journal 3 multiple times, and having reread journal 3, to my delight it is indeed correct! And oh the CONTEXT they give. The two instances are those seem below; the first appearance in the title page of Journal 3, and second time is a page from when the twins graduate.

As well as all the parallels of how the phrase is applied for both Bill and Ford, as @zoizyboigy suggested, it seems to be a phrase that Ford takes as his own motto. It seems to be a highly personal motto to him; after all, they all are written around important turning moments in Ford's life; graduating, the journals which where to be his ticket to fame, fucking a triangle finding acceptance and intimacy with Bill , and lastly, moving on in his life from Bill and his destructive obsession with recognition. 

And it makes sense WHY this motto is one that is highly personal to Ford; the first time it is seen chronologically is when he's graduating, chosen when he believes he's going to be accepted into the university. It's a motto he chose because he was excited, because he thought he was already through his suffering and arriving to the stars of his fancy university, where validation and acceptance would abound; only that doesn't happen, and the suffering part within the motto is the only thing that's accurate, especially as that's when he rejects Stan. It's a motto chosen in celebration, that becomes a reminder of the failure to become someone who is accepted and important (and his prioritization of validation over relationships); it's now something he holds that reminds him of the validation he believes he deserves and he obsessively chases. 

And that's why you see it in the journal pages, because these journals are going to change his life, he's going to become finally a person of importance and be accepted with the information he's compiled in the journals. And in the same way, you see it after Bill (and interdimensional being of ancient knowledge) and him are intimate; he's become someone of importance to Bill, he's been accepted by Bill, even attractive to Bill (romance Ford seems to have terrible luck in).

And that's why you see it at the end of Ford's farewell to Bill; it's another turning point, it's Ford letting his obsession with world validation go which characterized it's meaning from the beginning, Ford letting go of his relationship with Bill, which it also came to mean, and instead celebrates his acceptance within his family and the strengthening of those bonds, and of prioritizing healthy, loving relationships.

Ps, if you enjoyed this meta post, I've also made another one, on exceptionalism!

[biggesthomuradefender]

one thing i feel like some ppl forget, gloss over, or just don’t know abt madoka/madokami, is that her existence as a concept/god is much more than being lonely and unhappy, it also involves a cycle of endless and constant suffering and purification w absolutely no reward outside of saving magical girls from being witches.

let me explain:

when madoka made her wish, aka became a god, she swore to prevent all witches from the past, the present, and the future forever, meaning that madoka is CONSTANTLY sending herself everywhere at once all the time in order to do that, while also having to absorb the negative energy from their gems AND purify it all at the same time.

could you imagine just how absolutely fucking exhausting and lonely that is? not only does no one know or remember her, outside of homura, and she can’t even interact w anybody outside of her role as a savior and a god.

and she constantly has to purify all of the negative energy she absorbs 24/7. is an endless cycle with, as i said before, zero reward except for preventing witches.

there’s a scene in rebellion where madoka reaches for homura, and each time she does, you can see scars littered on her arm (s). not only is that a literal representation of her dying for the “sins”, aka wishes of all magical girls, but i also think that they’re meant to signify madoka’s pain, the pain she hides and lies about behind her god status and her genuine, loving demeanor.

it’s why the flower scene is so important and powerful; yes, it may have been madoka w/o her proper memories intact, but that’s exactly it: madoka is only able to be so honest w homura right then and there bc she doesn’t remember her godly obligations, all of her guilt and responsibilities at all.

and homura knows all of this. it’s why her reaction is so intense, desperate, and painful, esp after her fake world begins to rly fall apart; like madoka, homura very easily blames herself for a lot, even the stuff that isn’t rly her fault and she’s just being unfair/mean to herself.