#Nothing plot related anyways just my opinion

[anundesirablechild]

playing the persona games in reverse order just retroactively shows you how derivative they are

[gartenofbanny]

So I watched Helluva Boss S2E6 "Oops" and let me tell you, it's better than Unhappy Campers, but it's also pretty mediocre too. So let's start off with the things I did like

Pros

Fizzarolli and Asmodeus's relationship

Fizzarolli and Ozzie's relationship is pretty adorable to look at, unlike Stolas and Blitzo's. They actually bounce off each other pretty well and are actually cute. Dick jokes aside.

I also like how Fizzarolli is sort of an advisor to Asmodeus's business related things, telling him what he needs to do for the day, and I also like how he tries to hide how other demons are starting to question whether or not their relationship is entirely lustful or actually romantic.

Asmodeus is very protective of Fizzarolli and respects whatever decision he makes. This is what Stolitz wants to be lmao.

Anyway, that's really the only thing I liked about this episode, now onto what I don't like

Cons

The intelligence of the characters

Most of the characters shown on screen are just dumb for the sake of moving the plot along.

Fizzarolli says he won't raise attention but then decides to raise attention in the Greed Ring where there are theives, bank robbers, and mob bosses.

Asmodeus, despite being one of the Seven Princes of Hell doesn't want to read a fucking contract. I get that he's impatient, but he's one of the Seven Princes and he's had to sign a contract AT LEAST ONCE in his centuries of living.

Striker and Crimson are just..they get distracted in a song where Fizzarolli is intentionally distracting them. I know Crimson is dumb as hell, but Striker and the rest of Crimson's mob? How am I supposed to take these antagonists seriously when they're stupid as hell?

Stolas

Stolas really had no reason being here since why isn't he in the hospital recovering from his injuries? How fast can demons regenerate if it has only been a week since Western Energy? That just removes even more tension even more for when certain characters take injuries because they can just heal from them at most a week later.

Stolas serves ZERO purpose to the plot. He barely does anything throughout this episode. Instead, he just gets all giddy at the sight of a stack of papers. He also says "get fucked little one" and I'm over here like YOU DID NOTHING SHUT UP.

In my opinion, they should've just let Asmodeus answer the phone call alone and read through the contract off-screen. Or have Asmodeus kill the lawyer and search for Fizzarolli while wandering around the Greed Ring.

The entire lawyer scene was pointless anyway because Asmodeus killed the lawyer in the end.

The Backstory

The backstory between Fizzarolli and Blitzo was...eh. I didn't really feel anything while watching the backstory because it was pretty predictable. While I was surprised that Blitzo admits that it was his fault (because when's the last time Blitzo took accountability)

I just could not feel sad for the life of me. And then, when Blitzo tries explaining, he's just interrupted. I'll get to the tonal shift of this episode later, but Blitzo says, "You have no idea what I lost in that fire". So Blitzo's mom died, and I'm wondering was Blitzo even aware that Fizzarolli was alive or not?

Because in Fizzarolli's perspective, Blitzo did see him but just ignored him. Not to mention, Blitzo somehow didn't acknowledge the fire when he bumped into Wally Wackford.

I'm damn sure Wally Wackford was screaming. Even then, Blitzo should've heard the flames go off, Blitzo should've seen the light of the fire in his peripheral vision, but he doesn't acknowledge it.

Blitzo's mom

Yeah, I'm counting this as a con. I don't feel bad that Tilla died because WE DON'T KNOW ANYTHING ABOUT HER. She's the same as Moxxie's mom but with a name.

Are the mothers of male characters just supposed to fucking die? At least we got to see Moxxie's mom on screen. We never even saw Tilla in the first place aside from some fucking portraits.

Is this supposed to make me feel bad for Blitzo because he caused the fire, and I'm pretty sure Fizzarolli also had a good relationship with her, yet we never see his reaction to the death of Tilla either. Just Blitzo's and, to an extent, Barbie Wire's. Speaking of

Barbie Wire

Yeah, Barbie Wire wasn't really mentioned at all throughout this entire episode, not even in the flashback.

In the storyboard she did appear, but in the final version she just doesn't make an appearance for some reason. Vivziepop does not give a shit about their female characters

Fizzarolli forgiving Blitzo

Fizzarolli forgave Blitzo way too quickly in this episode. It doesn't make any sense that Fizzarolli forgave Blitzo, but Barbie Wire doesn't. Even though Barbie Wire has still been in contact with Blitzo.

Turns out Fizzarolli and Blitzo's hatred for each other was just a huge misunderstanding. Someone or something has prevented them from coming into contact with one another. They both keep saying, "But they told me" or "I never told them that" and who the hell is "they"? Just leaving out information for no reason at all.

Fizzarolli says, "It's hard to forgive you. It's been 15 years," but then he proceeds to forgive Blitzo near the end of the episode.

That's not how forgiveness works. Forgiveness takes time to go into effect it doesn't just happen when you hear a sob story.

Personally, I wouldn't have mind if FizArolli forgave Blitzo but not in the same episode where they're the main focused of an episode for the first time.

Convenient shit

Stuff just happens because it happens in this episode. Blitzo is at Greed because he wants breakfast and just so happens to meet Fizzarolli despite the fact that Crimson is still around.

Striker and Crimson coincidentally meet and are conveniently near Fizzarolli and Blitzo, allowing the two to get kidnapped.

A goon conveniently has anger issues and kills a large amount of his own crew allowing Blitzo and Fizz to escape

Striker and Fizzarolli are conveniently behind fucking gasoline WHY IS THERE PERFECTLY GOOD GASOLINE IN A DUMP?!

Fizzarolli's arms conveniently malfunction, so he can't escape the flames, so Blitzo has to save him.

It's just convenient stuff just so the plot can move along.

Tone issues

Can't be a Helluva Boss episode without tone issues. I don't feel like listing the examples because there are A LOT, but one major example I will put is Crimson blackmailing Asmodeus and at the end of it, one of his goons don't know how to hang up a phone or to stop a video.

This series can not have a serious scene if it saved its life.

Conclusion

I would comment on how Striker is just mischaracterized again through Blitzo calling him a supremacist or how the antagonists overall in this episode are dumb as hell. Or how this episode raises even more questions

But I believe those two deserve blogs by themselves. Anyway, thank you all for reading, and I hope you all have a nice day! ❤️

And I give this episode a 3.1/10

[nikethestatue]

this fandom might actually be the worst one I’ve seen!! I flip through a bunch of diff ship accounts bc listen, ship whoever you want, personally I am partial to elucien but I can admit there’s a lot of evidence for other ships as well. I like seeing all art for ALL the ships!! But then today I see a post about how we need Gwyn’s book because she is a victim of SA and it would be great to read a book about her healing journey.

Idk maybe it’s just me but I get annoyed when someone is always reduced down to their SA so I pointed out that Rhys & Lucien also had SA trauma and there has been no healing journey for them?? How are we going to fill an entire book for Gwyn?? Like, Sarah doesn’t seem to delve too much into healing journeys from SA (in ACOTAR at least 🤷🏻‍♀️ idk about other series) and tends to use it as a plot point to create a traumatic background character. It’s something that greatly annoys me tbh

And then I got yelled at?? And told to read the books again?? Like yes, I am a new reader, and yes it was a Gwyn Stan account (didn’t know that at the time, I literally just replied for the first time from a post I saw on my for you feed) - but nothing I said was anti-Gwyn (how could it be- she’s one of my favs too???) ?? I vaguely know there’s whatever ship war going on but I didn’t even comment on a ship post and I didn’t mention any other names/ships so I was genuinely confused about why I got yelled at on a post that only mentioned Gwyn.

All I said was I doubt Sarah is going to write an entire book about Gwyn’s healing journey ? It wasn’t even ship related so why did I get so much hate?? no wonder this fandom is filled with such toxicity, nobody new is allowed to join even casually unless they earn their masters degree of 16000 pages of analysis (apparently reading the books isnt enough?) and so it’s just filled with the same bitter people since whenever these books came out

Maybe bc I acknowledged I didn’t see her as a main character - because she’s not? She’s very much a side character but who cares? She’s still a favorite of mine? Two things can be possible at once, people!!!

Anyways, tldr I got a slap on the wrist and told I don’t know SJM if I think Gwyn is a side character and I’m just like ok I didn’t say she couldn’t be one later but based on the one book she is in… she is a side character?

I hate this mf fandom I should’ve stayed out of it. What did I even do?? I even apologized if anything I said about Rhys or Lucien was untrue?? And now I’m just annoyed because I should still be able to debate theories about my favorite books with people even if I don’t spend 24/7 reading PowerPoints on ship wars??

They got mad because you were right. That's it.

SJM doesn't write post-SA healing journeys. Again, you were right.

We've had male and female characters who were SAed, in TOG, Lysandra and Fenrys come to mind, in ACOTAR it's Rhys and Lucien and Gwyn, in CC it was Lidia (similar situation as Rhys/Lucien).

These aren't books for deep exploration of post-SA healing. I am sorry. This is an incredibly tough subject, without a singular answer. SO anything she'd do, wouldn't be taken well. Some will say 'too quick!' others will say 'not quick enough!' and everyone will have an opinion. The only reason Nesta got an extended healing (and not from SA) was because SJM used the same methods she used for her own issues. Working out, meditation, being with friends, balancing the physical and the mental, relying on her SO. Beyond that, all of SJMs 'healing' is training and being in love. Or nothing at all.

Gwynriels cant accept the fact that Gwyn is a secondary character. She is not more important than Emerie, or Mor, or anyone else, who's had terrible trauma. Her main was Nesta. Nesta's healed and Gwyn is secondary to Nesta. Gwyn's healing journey is over. She because stronger mentally and physically, she trained, she reached and conquered her 'mountain'. and that is all she needed to do.

They dont want to understand and accept that no one is interested in an 800 page of Gwyn's post-SA healing journey. Even they aren't. That's the truth. They want her with Azriel. Getting it on, having sex, being mated. They don't want to read any 'healing journey'. They want her going on missions, swinging her sword, being a badass, being with Azriel, having Gwynriel sex and having a normal fantasy heroine book. it's all performative. They just want Gwynriel. Is all.

[mrdarcygenderenvy]

Recent Austen adaptations yelling

Ok I DID make this blog to review historical-set Pride & Prejudice adaptations (with an exception made for iconic B&P). But for everyone who was DEFINITELY WONDERING, yes I have also been storing away a lot of opinions about other recent Austen adaptations that I Must Tell Someone.

.

Fire island (2022)

A modern gay party cheesy rom-com P&P that genuinely made me laugh. Having seen some other (whiter) cheesy gay romcoms that were extreeeemely PG & playing it safe, I was pleasantly surprised.

Also Bowen Yang and his story just came across really earnest in a way I was into - would watch this man cry again, 10/10.

Personally as an extremely disabled british nerd (now tragically unable to travel and/or go to the club...) this gay scene is a long way from my queer scene. But I still had emotions, you know?

Kinda wanted more of the Mary analogue and generally just normal looking people (almost everyone is so ripped) but I appreciate that's how beautiful smooth people often look in mainstream american films, we can't have everything.

DARCY WATCH: I do not want to dress like this adaptation's chinos Mr Darcy. But Conrad Ricamora was generally great and very hot and awkward and understood the assignment. Good ice cream throw.

.

Emma (2020)

I know I know, it's pretty... but I don't think that's enough!!!!!

Lovely production, beautiful costumes, a candy wes-anderson cinematography that really suits the story, and it's fun to notice references to actual outfits and prints from the time but lads. LADS. UNPOPULAR OPINION TIME: Where is the chemistry???

You can’t make Mr Knightley a nice sweet boy (so funny to have cast a posh folksy singing man) and leave the plot the same and expect it to work!! Also I was personally pissed off that a lot of the promo/ ads for this made it look like ~forbidden love~ when it's the 2 richest white people in town getting together?? ? There's actually not even a class difference in this one, guys.

Basically this romance was nothing to me!!! I felt nothing!!!!!!!! WHERE'S THE DEPTH

I did like the bit where he lies down though. Relatable.

Also why are you drawing so much attention to the servants when you don’t seem to have anything to say about class...? 'Wow look how many servants they had! Anyway, they don't get any speaking lines'... it's 2020 guys!!! like what are we saying here. 'isn't it cool to think about how people were rich'??

kind of the point of Emma (character) is she's pretty superficial, but the story does not, in fact, have to be

.

Persuasion (2022)

Weeping softly into a pillow........ did you know this version meant a version with Sarah Snook and Joel Fry got cancelled?? we could have had it all

(standing on a table yelling) THE MODERNISATION WAS NOT THE PROBLEM WITH THIS FILM!!!

Honestly I actively liked all the entire secondary cast in this. Louisa and Mary were extremely charming fun takes to watch. ('I'm an empath' IS right for the character if you're doing modern jokes!!!) And nobody can deny this was a correct and powerful use of Richard E Grant.

Henry Golding was naturally great. Apparently he got offered the lead and took the villain instead, which DOES mean the villain is super charming and fun to watch which is... hard to match and.... kind of shows up.... the main man.

It's been said before but the main two were WOEFUL imo. I have no beef with the actors I just question the DIRECTION and whether anyone making this knew (or cared) why people... enjoy things.

Book Anne is the quietest gentlest loser and I LOVE HER and so does basically every Austen nerd. Making her a quirky wine-bath girl who's honestly just cruel sometimes fully stops the main romance chemistry and plot from working.

And it means the main boy is still like 'god I'm so horny for how KIND AND CAPABLE YOU ARE' which is just 100% no longer true. You can't transplant a personality in a romance but leave the plot the exact same and expect it to work. The chemistry IS the plot in a romance..........

you can't act morally superior to your siblings and still rate people out of ten.... also so funny to me that everyone else gets period outfits and hair whereas this protagonist looks like she just glanced at a picture of any time in the past and grabbed a couple shirts from primark. it doen't even look good or build character!!!!!

Anyway, not to be an elderly man like 'ohhh why does nobody care about character these days' but the reason something like Clueless works is because it has the heart of the story right, instead of just copying the surface level stuff.

[azure-firecracker]

ATLA Live Action Stream of Consciousness (Episode 3, Part 1).

This rebel leader sounds like somebody but I don’t know who.

This very small plot twist has been ruined for me because I know what Lizzy Yu looks like.

Daniel Dae Kim as Ozai is awesome! He has a menacing presence that’s much more refined than just “RAAAAAH POWER!” One of the few things I think may have improved from the cartoon. And also what does he know about loss? Could be interesting.

AZULA I WAS ON THE FREAKING FLOOR SCREAMING I absolutely loved this intro. They’ve given her more emotional depth in this short clip than she got in like…all of book 2. And DAMN Lizzy Yu can act! She went through so many emotions so fast and barely said anything. The trolls who are criticizing her for not looking like a cartoon are not welcome on this blog. I hope the actual emotional depth keeps up.

Aang needs to stop teaching Katara waterbending let the girl be good at something.

“I never listened” FINALLY THIS KID GETS TO BE FUNNY

Gordon Cormier is adorable.

Dallas Liu continues to embody Zuko.

Zhao you devious asshole I’m glad he continues to suck. He does not need redeemable qualities.

Paul Sun-Hyung Lee’s lovingly disapproving looks are everything to me.

Omashu looks great!

Istg Katara may crush on this guy but OG Katara would never be this bashful. But who was he? He was hot!

CABBAGE MERCHANT

Wow Teo looks YOUNG!

Teo being desensitized to violence hits hard. I hope that kids being desensitized to violence becomes a theme (it happened in Azula’s scene too).

Gordon continues to do as well as he can with clunky dialogue.

Extended stay in Omashu could be an interesting change.

Sassy Azula we love!

I have already seen this clip so no surprises but I’ll share my thoughts anyway.

I knew this from interviews but Momona Tamada IS Ty Lee. She’s absolutely perfect.

I continue to love Lizzy Yu. She’s striking a balance of snarky but also clever and also you know she could kill you. I like that we get to see her be a little less guarded around her friends, and her feelings around Zuko/the throne make sense. Not sure if they’re going to make her all power motivated (wouldn’t love that) but regardless feeling like your work means nothing to those whose opinions you value is something I can definitely relate to, and it works for her character. Also her line about knowing which pieces to play? Chills!

More coming soon!

[mister-tom-a-dildo-lover]

Someone Liked this old post of mine and brought to mind something...

[The Post] was about how Tom Riddle was literally fucked over from the start and how nobody actually decided to try and teach him to be better.

Anyway, a common, defensive response on this post was the recurring, "Why is it Dumbledore's job to intervene?" along with a laundry list of excuses for why he shouldn't be held accountable for what happened to Tom, Severus, and Harry. etc etc...

Mind you, Dumbledore felt it was his right to intervene. To scare a 10 y/o into behaving by setting his only worldly possessions on fire in front of him as a lesson. He admits to this very tactic when Tom tries to apply for the DADA position for a second time. So why the hell aren't we allowed to criticize him for knowing full-well this kid was fucked up and doing nothing about it?

Many people, by making the claim that it isn't the Deputy Headmaster's job to watch out for the well-being of his students, sound like they are saying that they would never step in if they saw a child they aren't related to, at risk of harming themselves or others, because they don't think it's their job or duty to do so.

"Well, I saw the boy carrying a gun to school but as he's not my kid why should I have said something?" IDK, Karen, maybe because he could harm other people and it would be in yours and everyone else's best interest to put a stop to it before it gets bad and then GETS WORSE. This is a matter of common sense and common decency. Normal people would be worried about some kid being a potential danger to others and would say something or try to raise a red flag as a warning to others instead of holding their opinions in and plotting behind the scenes.

I don't understand how this is considered unfair of me to expect that a guy would do right not only by the kid himself, but by the students he's about to be exposed to. He believed, in his heart of hearts, that this kid is a psychopath after one conversation in which he got a woman shitfaced to hear her biased opinions, and then one conversation where he talked to him and decided speaking to snakes was the ultimate sign of evil.

Dumbledore just kept this shit to himself. And guess what? He does this over and over. Potential terrorist in the school who could hurt the children(Quirrelmort, Lockhart)? Nah, fam. Keep it close to the chest. Dangerous information that people NEED to know for their own safety? Nah, fam. Keep it close to the chest. Children being abused and need saving? Nah, fam. Keep it close to the chest.

And the results are: an up-and-coming Dark Lord, up-and-coming Death Eater(s?), deaths/tortures of people barely out of their teenhood, more abused children, and many other problematic things all because he won't share what he knows or believes.

BUT NOOOOOOO! I'm the bad guy because I think a teacher who inserts himself into everyone's business so they all look to him for permission and guidance, should have actually done something to help the troubled child he was in charge of for 10 months out of the year for 7 years.

[factorialsotherfandoms]

(Happy Ending AU, goes after Fit talks to Pac and Mike)

It's early, too early in Forever's personal opinion. Nothing specific woke him up, however, so he gets to work in his base. He isn't really up to thinking right now, so he simply grabs items from the witch farm and dumps them into barrels - he'll be able to find it later, he's sure.

After ten minutes or so he feels a little more awake and no less alive, and his communicator pings.

Ph1LzA whispers to you: hey m8 u up?

Seeing the message from Philza, Forever's heart skips a beat. He cannot help the grin that sneaks its way onto his face as he types out a reply.

You whisper to Ph1LzA: heeeeey~ do you need me?

Ph1LzA whispers to you: yes

Ph1LzA whispers to you: need a second pair of eyes on something

Any message from Philza is usually enough to peak Forever's interest - they've found a balance now, a comfortable one even, but it's still always wonderful to hear from him.

You whisper to Ph1LzA: I can come over?

Ph1LzA whispers to you: can I come yours i need a break

You whisper to Ph1LzA: always

By the time Forever has walked over to the warpstone, Philza is already there. He seems fine, and isn't carrying anything, just waving with an "'ey mate!"

"Philza!" Forever jogs the rest of the way over. "I knew waking up early was a good idea!"

He didn't, but it seems like one now.

Philza laughs, "appreciated. I've been trying to catch you for weeks, but god am I tired. Here, can we sit somewhere?"

"This way."

Forever doesn't really think before dragging Philza into the witch bar, grabbing a random potion for each of them and the atmosphere. His friend laughs and takes it, though it is quickly swapped for water instead.

Forever checks the cupboard. Potions of harming. Oops.

Still, Philza doesn't bring it up, just pours the water into a shitty cup and taps a nail against it.

The longer it goes on for, the more worried Forever gets.

"Is..." he hesitates a little. "Everything okay?"

"Just haven't been sleeping well," the words come with a yawn and a stretch. "I'll head back after this. Just gotta... This might sound really dumb, okay? I need you to tell me if it sounds dumb. Because I'm about at the point of asking Cellbit for help working this shit out, and I do not want to send him on a wild goose chase."

Those words really do not help Forever's worry. Still, he nods, and plasters a grin to his lips, "you could never be dumb, Felipe."

"Oh I can be plenty dumb. Do it all the time," Philza laughs a bit, but it tastes sour. "Anyway, the plan. Fit didn't laugh me off, and Missa actually gave me an idea. But, the idea's still a few bone short of a broth, and I'd tell you anyway, and well... Yeah."

"Yeah?" Forever considers the two people. It's... Whatever this is, it's not going to be related to why Philza is so tired and so strained - that's okay, he'll try again another time, for now he just wants to hear what he is being trusted with.

"Before I start... I trust you, okay? You can tell whoever you like about this, but you've /got/ to be sure they won't let it get back to the Feds - even if its via other parties. My judgement's shit on this, so I'll trust you with that."

Philza pauses, clearly waiting for a confirmation. Forever also pauses, then nods back - tries not to think about those words so casually said, the trust and the faith and the hope placed in him.

"And I know you've got a lot on your plate, so I really do just need you to tell me if I've completely lost the plot," there's something haunted in Philza's eyes with those words.

"I know, Philza," Forever flicks the name with his tongue, playing with it in his mouth. "I will. What do you need."

"Okay. So," Philza pauses after just those words. "For a bit, I've had this idea, right? Half of us don't have lives we can take the eggs with us, and nobody wants to get split up after. So? What's the point in escaping? Other than being free of the Feds. And I'm pretty sure some people will keep the Feds to keep the community. My thought then is, what if we don't /have/ to loose the community? What if we find an uninhabited world and rebuild our lives together there? Can bring the eggs, get unlimited respawns for everyone, portal through to the hubs so everyone can come and go..."

"Could it work?" Forever's mind is thinking. "It'd need a strong foundation, and a patron... I think? Worlds aren't really my strong point."

"But they are one of mine," Philza grins. "I should be able to hold it myself, for a month or two, even with fifty inhabitants. During that time, I can get in contact with my wife - she's a goddess so she should be able to hold it longer. If she agrees. And if anyone else knows anyone who'd help out, well, having Death as the only influence is probably a bad idea anyway. Forgot to mention that bit to Missa, probably should have, but details there can be worked out later. Need the rest of a plan first."

"Like the actual escape part?" Forever asks, not wanting to interrupt, but seeing Philza starting to doubt himself.

Philza nods, then frowns, "kinda? I have half an idea, but it needs stuff we don't have."

Forever's ears twitch up, "like?"

"My wings," Philza shakes them, hesitating a moment before pressing on. "I'm still not sure how to get the rest of you out, but... If I had them, I could get out, scout, maybe find help?"

Everyone has heard Philza complain about his wings, but few have seen the damage to them truly. Forever isn't sure how bad it is, but he's not even sure he could tell if he saw them.

And then Philza is, somewhat nervously, taking off his backpack, and then the cape which hides his wings. Nervously he unfolds them, and lets Forever see.

Gently Forever reaches out, running a hand down snapped feathers. They themselves are broken - far more of them than would be needed to ground Philza, every single one is cut in half or further - and the flesh beneath... In spots where the feathers are plucked, the skin is angry and raw. Under everything it is uneven, heavily scarred and warped like entire chunks were ripped away.

And the shape, when he looks... Philza's wings are different shapes, the bones of one - maybe both - snapped and regrown out of alignment.

"You just said clipped," Forever whispers. "This is..."

Philza shuffles uncomfortably, "they are clipped."

Forever doesn't wait longer. He opens his arms, and captures Philza within them. Squeezes his friend, holds him close, holds him tight.

"Does it hurt?" he asks.

"Sometimes."

There's a lie in Philza's eyes and the way he holds Forever a little tighter. Always, then, and Forever's fragile heart snaps again.

"Are they..." He hesitates. "Can they even be fixed?"

Philza turns and looks at his wings, shuddering at the state of them, "the feathers will be replaced in a few months, but last time the Feds came and clipped them again. The rest..." a hesitation. "Yes."

"How?" Forever demands. "How do I help you?"

"The End," Philza shakes his head a little. "The End would heal them... Maybe surgery, or some magic, but... When I've hurt them before, I've always returned to The End."

Forever wants to ask, he desperately does, to know why the End would heal Philza in a way nothing else can. He doesn't, though, he does a look struggling to stay present well enough. Instead he starts thinking - as President he doesn't really have the power to do anything, let alone to demand Philza be permitted to visit the End. There's no doctors here, and their closest thing to a witch is Cellbit...

There are tools Philza is unfamiliar with, though. Maybe... Philza's knowledge of the natural world is incredibly - Philza is incredible - but Forever knows he is less capable in the hands of redstone and machines. Perhaps, perhaps...

But no, not yet - speak to the other engineers first, at least. It's just a case of knowing who would keep Philza's trust. Pac and Mike, perhaps, they'd enjoy the challenge.

"And once they're healed, what would you do?" Forever asks.

"Fly," Philza says it like that word holds the hope of humanity and the life of the worlds in its hands.

"I meant about escaping and making us a home," Forever teases.

"Oh," Philza snaps back. "Yeah, that, um. So if I could get to the End I could just jump off and into the void, get out that way. Otherwise... There's a trick, with tnt and the bedrock. You know it?"

"Yeah, but..." Forever hesitates a bit, and he feels Philza emotionally close in the silence. "That's a one way ticket to death."

"Nah," Philza softens again. "You worried about me, king? I'll be fine."

"It's the void!" Forever objects. "You need a train, or a boat, or - or some protection! Otherwise you fall and you die."

"Hence the wings."

"Won't you suffocate?"

"Not if I'm careful; I've done it before."

Forever thinks in horror of the idea at Philza flying through the void, lacking in air, scorching himself. He grabs Philza's face, checks it - checks him - for scars from the void, for the pain it must have caused.

Philza's hands gently close over Forever's, "I'm okay, mate; it's not a method I'd recommend to anyone else. Wouldn't risk it carrying one of you, either."

Fuck, no, Philza definitely shouldn't.

Forever goes to object, but then he remembers... The End. Philza's insistence such a place could heal him. If - if - that is true, if Philza hasn't been madder than they thought this entire time... Then perhaps the void would love him as his own.

Calls into doubt if those are crow wings, however. Not that Forever could tell - he's never met a crow.

"You'll be careful?"

"I don't even have my wings, mate, it's only theoretical."

"You promise?"

"Alright," Philza relents. "I'll be careful, I promise."

Forever searches Philza's face for a lie, and finds none. Instead he grabs another bottle from the witch bar - this one on purpose, experimental painkillers. He gives it to Philza who looks confused, but doesn't even sniff it before he downs the bottle.

"So your plan is... Beg the Federation for wing surgery, blow a hole in the bottom of the world, fly in the void, find us a new place to live together... somehow get the rest of us out, then we're happy and free?"

"When you put it like that, it's really not much of a plan, eh?" Philza laughs a bit, that awful laugh that means he hates himself. "I guess... back to the drawing board. Missa was just talking about me being able to fly away if they healed, and I remembered maybe I actually /could/, you know?"

"It's not... The worst plan," Forever hesitates, considers a bit. "I would help. Don't beg the Federation, though, we're better off studying. If you did..."

"Yeah, I know," Philza pulls a face. "I just don't know where else to go."

"Try Cellbit," Forever shrugs. "He has so many books. Maybe one has an answer?"

"You think its worth bringing this up to him, then?" there's almost hope sparked in Philza's eyes. "It's not really like any of its actionable."

Forever nods rapidly - he knows Cellbit, and knows him well. He can see the hope fading, his friend being crushed by a torment without end. It's only half a plan - not even half of a plan, really, missing every key component possible - but it is hope. It is someone promising an after, one where, maybe, they can all be... happy.

He can't say that, though, so instead he grins. "He's already working on getting us away, why not join forces?"

"Ah, then I'm sure he has better ideas," Philza laughs again. "He always does."

"At least let him know he's not alone in trying?" Forever suggests. He knows Philza, he knows Philza, now he just has to convince him that, yes, talking is the correct plan. "He might like bits of your plan. And he can show you where to help on his."

"I guess I can carry his backpack and get his notepaper for him," Philza says. "... But you really think the plan is good enough to share?"

"I think Cellbit will appreciate knowing about it," Forever says, because the plan is missing parts, and it's so dangerous, and his eyes are still watching Philza's wings. "Do you brush those?"

"Brush... Huh?" Philza twists, and looks at his wings. "Oh, right, no? It's called preening. Like..." Philza twists further, further than a person should, and starts using his fingers and a needle to clear muck from his feathers. "Like this. Fit helps me with the bits I can't reach - or Missa or Wilbur or Chayanne, but Missa and Wilbur work and... I don't really want my toddler having to do it, you know?"

"I could learn," Forever offers. "If... If that's not too forward?"

Philza hesitates a moment, then plucks another needle from a pouch and extends his wing.

"We start where I can see you," Philza gestures to the soft, mutilated underside. "And... Maybe somewhere more private?"

It's not just about helping, though Forever wants to help - Fit is around so often he doubts Philza would ever need Forever's help. But, if he's going to make something... Then he his research done.

"You don't want the witches watching?" Forever teases, already getting up. "What a prude. Come downstairs, then, we can use the couch."

Philza gets up to follow, "are you sure you want to learn? It's kinda fiddly."

"Of course!" Forever replies. "Who wouldn't want to brush your beautiful wings!"

"Preen," Philza sighs. "You- never mind, let's just get somewhere comfy. It'll take a while."

"That's okay," Forever says. "I don't mind."

'If it's you' he doesn't complete it with - it's true, though. He might not be after Philza any more, but he does love him. He loves all his friends, the eggs, the islanders... But no matter what, Philza is always a little special. it's not burning passion any more, but it's there. It's there, and it always will be.

He wants to help. Forever can see a problem and a solution that hasn't been tried. Between him, Pac, and Mike, he's sure they can make Philza some sort of flying aid - he just needs to know better the shape his wings are in.

It's not even about the escape, the new home, with Richas, with everyone, the reward that could be promised to him if he assists... It's about a bird who is probably not a bird, and two broken wings, and an open sky.

It's about the fact Forever loves his friends, and one is hurting, and if he can help... Why wouldn't he?

[acourtofthought]

What are ur thoughts ?

There’s an ig live with sjm and her friend steph where Steph asks if Azriel will be getting book. Sarah excitedly says she “Cant confirm anything yet, but once we get to the end of SF we will know who the next book is about” (indirect answer from Sarah but directly after steph asks about Azriel book)

It almost feels like she’s saying “I can’t say it officially for legal reasons but the question about Azriel— YES”

Ive seen the clip where Sarah is asked if we will see Elain in next book and Sarah answer “we’ll see her in some form.” The way she answered this didn’t sound nearly as enthusiastic

(My point is wouldn’t Sarah sound just as excited when she starts writing Elain’s book; she comes off as someone who can’t contain her excitement while writing about her characters when they’re in the forefront of her mind )

That's definitely one way of looking at it and I think many would agree with you!

But SJMs phrasing in response to the question was "when you get to the end of the book, I think you'll know who the next one is about and Azriel's JOURNEY is one I'm very excited to write about.

First, at the end of the book we're told it's Beron, Koschei and the treaty they still need to worry about. It's specifically stated those are the threats they need to focus on versus Gwyn and Emerie joking how the Illyrians will be "in hysterics for decades." The end of the book also ends with Nesta placing Elain's rose carving on their fathers grave as a permanent marker of the beauty and good he'd tried to bring into their world (Elain is often symbolized by roses and is full of light, kindness and generosity). Nothing at the end of SF points to an Az related plot in my opinion, because Koschei, the treaty and Beron are things more strongly connected to Elain and Lucien. While the treaty is something Mor was working on, she's not been able to accomplish it and Az is definitely not going to be the character who tries to secure Vallahan's signature, that's a job for emissary's and courtiers.

Second, way back when Sarah spoke about how the second the sisters came back on page in book 2 she realized that they had their own journey's beyond what Feyre was seeing and that she'd like to write their own books someday.

She then spoke about, because she knew early on where she wanted the sisters stories to go, she was able to plant seeds for their journey's early on in ACOMAF, ACOWAR and even ACOSF for Elain.

Journey is different than a character getting the next book. Journey is all the information the author lays out for a character to build up to their eventual book.

When we have lines like "She has no interest in him anyway" (Az in regards to Elain and Lucien), and "I think Lucien will never be good enough for her." and "I'll defeat him with little effort" I feel strongly that Az's "journey" is going to involve him seeing exactly how Elain is very much interested in Lucien, that Lucien is extremely good enough for her and he's not really going to be able to defeat Lucien with little effort. When we have a character like Az going off half-cocked and arrogant, authors don't usually reward that behavior by giving the character a HEA of their own while the characters he belittled are left suffering. Remember Az rejected Elain and hurt her, he claimed she couldn't handle the Trove, claimed Lucien wasn't good enough. Narratively speaking it makes more sense for them to prove him wrong first before he gets his HEA.

Also, SJM was very quiet on Rhys before ACOMAF and said she was so excited to finally be able to gush about him after the books release. She was very quiet on Chaol to the point that readers thought she hated him only to later say how she had been building up for his story for a long time, people needed to just wait for it to all come together. Sometimes, her going quiet on a character has meant she's getting ready to give them a book.

As far as "you'll see some of Elain in the next book", I'm not sure why that's being taken as she's not getting the next book. There was no way for Sarah to answer that question any other way. "Elain is going to be in the book a lot" and people would use that as confirmation she's next. "Elain is not in the book much" and that confirms she's not the next POV. Since they have wanted to keep the next book a secret, she answered in a way that keeps everyone guessing.

While I do understand why some are taking her IG Live with Steph and using it as confirmation of Az, I think it's safe to say that nothing in these interviews is true confirmation of who is next. If they wanted us to know, they would have come out and told us but it's been said time and again that when the time does come, Bloomsbury is going to want to make it a thing so until then mum's the word.

We have no way of knowing whether she's trying to throw readers off, keep them guessing, phrasing things in a way that is purposely ambiguous, and so on. At this point I think everything is on the table for who's next because valid arguments can be made for all sides.

[indominusavenger]

I'm gonna come out and say it; No Way Home sucked. Sure, it had some good moments but in my opinion, it does not live up to the first two instalments of the trilogy. I liked the first part of the movie but as soon as I knew where the second part was going, I fell off that train pretty quickly.

Not only did it make MCU Spidey end up with the same tale as his two predecessors but it also undoes Peter's entire establishment in Marvel's overall franchise. What was the point of the last four movies putting him on the roster with Earth's MIGHTIEST Heroes if you were just going to take all that away and make it like he exists in a completely separate world from them? What was the point of the three cameos we had from RDJ, Samuel L. Jackson, and Benedict Cumberbatch in their iconic roles to show that interconnected universe as with every other MCU movie, only for that to be stripped away at the very last second? Might as well have been another one of Sony's solo ventures at making a series after TASM but it's not and that's why I HATE the uncertainty of Peter Parker's future in the MCU. However, given the current failing reality of the MCU with every new movie that comes out, I can already confirm it's nothing good. In fact, it probably would be best if progress stops altogether before Marvel really is stuck in the dust and just a part of a magnificent past with no legacy to carry on. (This is a side note but that is still a big issue for me anyways that I may expand upon later in another post. In the meantime, go watch all the video essays on YouTube, I'm sure you'll find many good ones.)

He had a unique story that fit into the overarching plot of the MCU and the premise he had was different from the previous Spideys which is what was so interesting about his character development. This Peter Parker had friends that weren't introduced before, or at least, they were more developed than in other series; he had a superhero as a mentor, not a scientist turned villain due to unfortunate circumstances; he had a guy in the chair who wasn't after him or turned villain because his father was one, he had two crushes that were friends, he was part of clubs and acted more teenage-like than the last two. He interacts with other heroes, joins the Avengers, fights THE villain, perishes, comes back, loses his mentor, and is still expected to keep on going.

For crying out loud, he was asked if he was going to be the next Iron Man but he knew he wasn't which is what Far From Home set out to show us. And to all those who called him Iron Man Jr. in Homecoming, I hope you know that you make no sense and I think Marvel did a wonderful job making him stand apart. He was a kid admiring one of his role models and now that he actually had a connection to him, of course he was going to want to be like his mentor but even Tony recognized that he wanted him to be more, not like him. This shows Iron Man himself had great respect for the young hero.

Now, moving onto No Way Home, two main things that annoy the heck out of me; Peter being forgotten (obviously) and Aunt May dying. I'll start with Aunt May's death. To be honest, it was a completely unnecessary death and it actually doesn't make sense for the purpose it had in the movie. The punchline "With great power comes great responsibility." loses its premise as soon as you recall Civil War's intro to Peter in the first place. Uncle Ben had already died, Peter was Spider-Man at this point, and remember what Peter told Tony when they met, why the older hero related to him so much? "When you can do the things that I can, but you don't... and then the bad things happen... they happen because of you." So he already learned that lesson on responsibility and by the time we get to No Way Home, this kid had learned lessons also involving the universe at large. Why are we rehashing Uncle Ben's offscreen death with Aunt May if Marvel literally stated that was overdone? Make that make sense. But oh, it was to make something big and dramatic happen in the movie because we needed to mOve aLoNg. Peter lost his parents, his uncle, and mentor; can you come up with something new other than parental figure losses? Why do TASM Peter and OG Peter still have their Aunt Mays and even if it was just a deleted scene, technically TASM Peter's dad? Huh, then what do you say there? Why did MCU Peter Parker have to lose ALL his parental figures?

Finally, the thing that probably broke most of us; Peter being wiped from everyone's memory. As I stated earlier, his entire existence within the MCU just vanishes, like that, in seconds. So......... what was the point of his existence up till now in the MCU? What was the point of his specific development and growth if he was just going to get forgotten? Why was he meticulously introduced at the height of the Avengers' conflict and then constantly involved with some other MCU hero/important character if he was going to be removed from that? If the Avengers were never a big deal, why make him a part of that at all and why were we still bringing them up at the climax of the film? For those who bring up the argument that he's supposed to be a solitary hero, well that was the worst way to have introduced him then, right? But Marvel chose that route, not any other. Which is why that decision still makes no sense to me. You put him in a world where he wasn't the only superhero and he was going to interact with other heroes which none of the other Spider-Men had and that already put him in a unique position. Why give him a background that was going to get swiped?

Imagine that, making five blockbuster films that gave him a firm standing in the MCU at the peak of Phase 3 and then in his sixth film, his last standalone which is supposed to be his most shining moment, he gets the rug pulled out from underneath him to give him a blank slate? You might as well have thrown every script out from 2015 to 2019 including him before they were ever written or considered. It's the equivalent of undoing everything you just worked on in a school project that's worth 40% of your final grade. Think about that for a second. Marvel just undid 6 years of work and investment in a single character for them to go back to the beginning. Why didn't you just do that then from the start? You could have had more classic Spidey a long time ago by that train of thought (which I really didn't want because we already saw that twice and this Spidey was something fresh).

Anyways, thanks for reading. This is 2 years worth of disappointment and frustration put on the page.

[tuliptiger]

If you LIKE TOTK that's fine I don't need to tell you that, you don't need me to tell you that. I don't care or mind if people like things I don't but I also know sometimes it's hard to see people giving criticism towards things you like. I digress.

As a fan of BOTW, having experienced it first, I will say it's obviously impacted how I view TOTK. If TOTK came out with no history of BOTW it might have been a different story I honestly don't know. There are a lot of things I like about TOTK but they're mostly flavor and don't actually like matter ie they could've not existed in favor of major changes to make TOTK and BOTW more cohesive.

Things I like about TOTK:

-More unique horses, upgrading horses, more horse colors

-More enemies and a variety of enemies.

-More outfits for Link. Super fun and super creative on these ones. Love em!

-The IDEA, and almost idea ALONE, the depths and the sky islands. Didn't love how they played out

-Monster raid battles, they are fun! Once again, don't love how they played out though. I feel mostly neutral about them if not somewhat positive about them. Wish they wouldn't have put one right in front of Fort Hateno.

-Intractable dragons! Love the elemental dragon upgrade.

-Idea of a customizable house and the variety of parts you can put into the house plot.

-The ability to grab almost everything although I truly did not mind that being limited to just metal objects. I liked the restriction and felt it appropriately challenging. It could've just been an upgrade later in the game of magnesis. Ultrahand is FINE like I said. Have the ability to move normal boulders is nice but ultimately unnecessary. They built a game when you can move a boulder through game mechanics and physics and it was FUN.

-Anyway, Ultrahand was fine. I liked being able to move the horse carts.

-THE HORSE CARRIAGES and towing stuff that was 💯🤌♥️ a beautiful addition

-The idea of repairing things in Hyrule but ultimately a lackluster use and follow through in this too. Repairing the bridge to the rito village was super fun to me.

-The flora and fauna additions that WERE THERE.

-Caves!

-Bulbul frogs

-How inventory items have use now but! Once again once again there is a common theme here, I don't love how they actually implemented it. Not EVERY item needed a use tbh. It didn't, we didn't need that ability. It is wild to go back to BOTW and notice you can't throw items but not having to navigate that item menu is a fucking blessing. Throwing items and attaching them to arrows etc is super fun though.

-Some of the new missions were super fun

-Monster hit list missions!!!! Personal taste maybe but I looooove most hunting missions.

-Zelda and Dragon Zelda ngl that shit was cool but like exclusively that fact and nothing else related to that. No story line stuff or the ending or anything else

-BOSSES AND BOSS FIGHTS! AND and and refightable boss fights because ngl they DID go off with the boss fights. Really cool use of how large the game is plus the physics of the game.

-Wellssssss loved the wells

Ok!!! Not a comprehensive list but! I DO like things about TOTK. Am I still a hater yes absolutely I fucking hate like 80% of that game and things surrounding it. I really really do but there were some really pleasant things about it too. Just not enough to appease me for the things that in my opinion sucked ass and were intentionally bad decisions.

[ousamaduo]

What tf is Knights !! arc about, or also why are the kouhais essential to their general arc:

I wrote this as a thread on the bird app, but since someone is k!lling that app, I'm putting this here, with a few tweaks. Obligatory disclaimer that I have kouhais brainrot :)

1. The main !! arc

I've been guilty of complaining that Knights !! arc has been pretty vague, and yeah, it sorta was. The thing is, it was more clear to see how their arc went in !, because it was pretty simple: a bunch of individualists leaning to come together as a unit, and also healing together from their past wounds. But now that they've sorta learned to work together and have a new leader, wtf is their arc even about?

I'd argue it's exactly related to their cute new leader, but first I wanna talk about his cute new kouhais.

2. The kouhais

First we see them mentioned back in the ! arc, in Operetta, which happens in... April, in-game, if I'm not mistaken? Sometime in the Spring, for sure. That was the event that set off my kouhais brainrot <3

Ritsu and Arashi discuss how there are so many newcomers in Knights, that soon it will be as big as Chess was, and how worried they are about it. (They also have a cute moment where they call Tsukasa a miracle, which is sooo adorable, the way they love Tsukasa so much.... sobs).

The convo basically sums up their past arc (the War stuff, Tsukasa being the miracle that helped them heal and come together, etc), but also sets up something that's gonna be recurrent in their future arc: the amount of newbies they have, and how it affects the unit as a whole.

The very first time we see Knights in !!, even before they showed up in the Main Story, was the gacha story Meowsketeers, the first !! gacha. Which, surprise, is dealing with the kouhais :)

In Meowsketeers, Ritsu is bothered by how Tsukasa just bluntly dismissed a bunch of newbies because they weren't taking things seriously. Tsukasa's argument was that it's ok if you just want to have fun as an idol, but in that case they should just go to other units, because, in Knights, he wants only people who take their activities more seriously - after all, they are the top earners of ES. (Which, looking back now, is sooo funny considering how stubborn Tsukasa is in protecting his kouhais later LOL).

Anyway, Ritsu really doesn't agree with that and spends most of the story stressed about it. He understands Tsukasa's point, and he wants to support Tsukasa since they chose him as their King, but he also feels sorry for the newbies. It all gets solved when the newbies send him a video of them practicing, and apologize for not taking it seriously before, and ask him to vouch for them to be let back in the unit, and he promises them he'll convince Tsukasa to let them join again. (We are never told if Tsukasa lets them back in or not btw lol I just assume he did).

In my opinion, it’s not for nothing that this was the first Knights story in !!, as it sets up the important themes of:

- Tsukasa is not adding just anyone, he wants his newbies to make an effort!

- Ritsu is pretty attached to them, despite the worries he voiced in Operetta, and it shows (especially in euthanasia lol)

- Knights as a whole doing their best to support Tsukasa’s decisions as their leader, even if they have complaints (they’re so cute in this story btw, teasing him and all, really, go read it)

But then you might ask, why tf was their first event Next Door, which has nothing to do with the kouhais?

Next Door, my behated <3, sets up another plot that inconveniences Knights later, ESPECIALLY in Sudden Death: Leo getting shipped off to Italy with Izumi. Now, I’m not sure in universe, but irl Leo and Izumi are arguably the most popular Knights, along with Ritsu. So let’s say it might be the same in universe: them being away would be an inconvenience to knights, right?

Exactly :)

Later in SS, when Knights’ orders get leaked, Leo wants to stay in Japan to support them, but he and Izumi have to go to Eurovisio--, I mean, a festival in Europe. Not to mention the amount of times they have to fly back and forth between Japan and Italy in other stories. Back then it was mostly a funny gag, but then Sudden Death actually used it as a real problem for them.

Would Leo and Izumi being there have changed how things happened? Likely not lol but we’ll never know.

I’ll get back to this, but back to the kouhais.

Next event, the first Knights unit song event, euthanasia, they’re once again the source of conflict. Izumi is upset that Knights funds and time are being used on the kouhais, Tsukasa insists it’s a necessary investment. Leo agrees with Tsukasa, because he wants to support him, as the former King (he actually does this a lot through this arc tbh and it’s so cute). Arashi sort of agrees with Izumi, despite being in Yumenosaki and supporting Tsukasa, she agrees that she doesn’t want to spend her time training the newbies, but instead improving herself. Ritsu isn’t happy with all the fighting and proposes a duel, euthanasia.

The thing is euthanasia is just a play for him to prove the kouhais aren’t just useless deadweight (as he has them performing alongside Knights), but he also understands Izumi’s and Arashi’s worries, so his solution is to leave the kouhais training in the hands of the Producer Association.

This event also brings back the concern Ritsu and Arashi had back in Operetta: with this many newbies, soon Knighs will be like Chess, and we know how Chess ended, right? But Ritsu squashes those worries by showing that: 1) unlike Chess members, the newbies are hardworking, and 2) they have the support of groups like the Producer Association now, while back during the War, Chess (and all other units) were on their own.

Also, one thing almost everyone forgets is that Chess actually ended because of the new payment system the student council set up: units received a certain amount for their lives, and it was up to them to share among the members, so the more members a unit had the less the individuals would be paid. Having a unit with more than 5 members would mean their payment would be less than their investments in the show, making it a loss to have to have so many members.

But Knights is a top earner now, one of the Big 3 of ES, so money is not a concern for them.

So now the newbies are not much of a hindrance to Knights, what else next?

After euthanasia, we get Fragrance, which again has nothing to do with the newbies, just like Sunshine, which is just Knights on vacation. But I’ll get back to that.

Fragrance is a pretty fun story, as it picks up on Arashi’s individualistic side (I don’t think it’s a bad thing btw, it’s one of Knights’ charm points imo). They’re offered to work with Aarashi’s favorite perfume brand, but she hesitates because he doesn’t want to taint her good memories of it. The others try to force her hand on it, and she ends up getting mad at them when they try to turn it into a duel. It’s a pretty good story for Arashi, as she shows her more assertive side again (after being more or less just going along with whatever their cute King suggested), but it’s also a pretty interesting story for Ritsu, imo. Back in !, he was a more laid back character who didn’t meddle so much, and Horror Night Halloween demonstrates this pretty well in the flashback sequence: he didn’t have the courage to step in and change things. When Izumi and Leo had that fight, he could only stand there listening behind that door. Now he doesn’t just stand there doing nothing, but actually takes action when Knights need it. Only this time he goes a bit overboard and ends up upsetting Arashi lol. It worked well with the kouhais conflict before, but he’s still learning how to balance his meddling lmao

Then after this we get, Sudden Death. (Man, I hate the SS arc…)

This time we get an interesting info on the kouhais: there are other, smaller, subunits of kouhais competing in Knights’ name in other regions. And there are about six of them accompanying Knights here, although they’re “in hiding”, as apparently they’re not very good yet.

I won’t give a summary on this story because it’s long and I always end up going on a hate tangent, but what’s important here are two things: the already mentioned bit of Izumi and Leo having to be abroad being an actual problem this time, and Tsukasa’s feelings for the kouhais.

I’ve talked a lot about this before on the bird app, but: Tsukasa LOVES these kids, despite whatever he says. Trust me.

After Tsukasa’s, uh, “execution” he’s too depressed to leave his room, so he can’t help Ritsu and Arashi with the plan of performing for an entire week in the avenue they reserved. Instead, it is the six not-very-good kouhais who step in to help them in his place. He reflects that he hadn’t really seen them as individuals before, but as tools, as an investiment for Knights. “Kohaku” argues that that’s not true, he must have cared for them or else they wouldn’t have stepped in to help as they did.

Sudden Death shows Tsukasa’s first failure as Knights’ leader. He trusted someone else and got betrayed. He then refused to fight back, even though he knew it would affect Knights negatively, to protect Kohaku’s family. In Requiem, when he received the crown, he declared he wouldn’t choose between his career as an idol, as Knights, and his family. But here he’s finally forced to choose between Knights and his family (Kohaku and the Oukawa clan). And he chooses his family. And it hurts him so much he’s almost suicidal.

And this is basically the last we see of Knights as a whole in this year, chronologically. We get a small peek at them during the SS finals, but it’s mostly them bickering. After this event, which reportedly left every TsukasaP dead, we rewind back in the year, to Tanabata in Seven Bridges, and the vacation in Sunshine.

Sunshine is a special case, the “funny filler vacation event”, the “beach episode” if you will. Leo fakes a slump to force Knights to go on vacation, except this vacation is basically performing at a summer festival, but which will allow them a few days to relax at the beach. And yeah, it’s funny and cute, until you realize this happens riiiight before A Dark Night’s Passing (aka that whole GFK mess, actually Leo might have already been involved in that guy during this) and Next Door (aka Leo getting scared his friends would use him, but then plotting a Judgment where he’d purposefully lose and allow them to do whatever they wanted with him, which ended up in him benign sent to Izumi to deal with). Fun stuff, right? Haha…. laughs in sad LeoP.

Seven Bridges once again is an Arashi focus, kicking off the 1.5 Main Story arc, with the plot of the cenotaph being removed and Arashi being upset about it. It also introduces Hitsugi/Negi.

But it also shows the kouhais once again, and how they were being treated by the students in the producer course (basically being ignored by the producers-to-be, who were all starry-eyed about working with THE Knights and only seemed to care about Ritsu, Arashi and Tsukasa), and Tsukasa being upset about it.

Now forgive me for being vague as this event wasn’t fully translated yet and I only read the livetweets a while ago. But basically Tsukasa is pretty upset at the Peace Party (a group of producer students who basically decides who will produce Knights, and has been lowkey bullying Anzu and Hitsugi/Negi), and after it is revealed that the cenotaph is being removed because of the Tanabata plan which the Peace Party forced Anzu to sign as her own, coupled with them treating the kouhais as less then, Tsukasa decides to basically boycott the school’s Tanabata festival and refuses to let Knights participate in it, instead choosing to participate in ES’s Tanabata. Of course, they end up participating later (I don’t remember exactly why, but if I’m not mistaken it’s because Anzu changes the plan to mix the school’s festival with ES, or something like that), but what matters to me is: Tsukasa is SO upset on the behalf of Arashi (who’s upset about the cenotaph being removed), Anzu (who’s being bullied by the Peace Party), AND his kouhais (who are being mistreated and ignored by the producer students).

But didn’t he say the kouhais were just some assets to him??

We get now to Mad Tea Party, which is set in November, right after Fragrance. Knights want their newbies to be the ones to participate in Underland (that Alice themed event we saw in Ra*bits and Alkaloid already), to better promote the newbies. Until Izumi learns that a fashion designer he admires is designing the outfits for it, and then he demands to participate too. They decide the five older members will participate along with the kouhais, but again Izumi is pissed that Ritsu/Arashi/Tsukasa are holding back during practice for the kouhais. He demands they choose only the best ones to participate. Tsukasa wants everyone to participate. Fight (duel) ensues.

We once again get Tsukasa “newbies are just an investment” Suou fighting for his kouhais. Once again we get Izumi on the opposite side of him.

This event also has an interesting point for Izumi’s character, with him complaining, why do they have to take it easy with the kouhais? Izumi himself didn’t have it easy when he started as a model and later as an idol! Remember how his favorite hobby is to bully newbies? His justification is that he wants to prepare them for how harsh the entertainment world is. This ends up clasing with how Tsukasa treats the kouhais.

But wait, wasn’t Tsukasa harsh to them during Meowsketeers?? He kicked some of them off because they weren’t taking it seriously!!

Exactly. Back then, during Meowsketeers, which happens early in the timeline, they weren’t taking it seriously. Mad Party happens in November, after euthanasia, where Ritsu mentions their kouhais are hardworking and won’t set them back. They are Knights too.

3. The real arc

I’ve talked a lot, but I’ll try to put it clearly now: this entire time, Knights arc has been about Tsukasa setting in as Knights leader, and how Knights support him/react to his actions.

Tsukasa is the youngest member of the original five. He’s also many times been referred to by them as their miracle. The one who guided them back to the light. Izumi puts it clearly in Requiem that they only kicked their asses back into gear because they had a “cute kouhai” nagging at them.

But because he’s so young and inexperienced, he also needs their support. He makes decisions they’re not always happy about, but he insists he doesn’t want to be a tyrant, so everytime they’re not satisfied with something they argue and duel until they come to an agreement. It always ends up mostly ok, until it doesn’t in Sudden Death.

Everything lines up to go wrong in Sudden Death. They’re up against Tsukasa’s dear Kohakun, who he absolutely trusts. Kohaku doesn’t know what the rest of his unit are up to. Izumi and Leo have to leave and can’t help them. Even Ritsu, Knights’ strategist, didn’t predict what would happen, because despite everyone being wary of Crazy:B, they decided to support Tsukasa who thought he could trust them. The consequences of both Knights and Crazy:B’s orders affect Kohaku, who’s loved by both Crazy:B and Tsukasa.

Even if they could have escaped the trap Crazy:B prepared for them, Tsukasa would have still been affected, as Crazy:B NEEDED to defeat Knights, or else Kohaku’s family would suffer. Tsukasa wasn’t aware of that back then, but the results would still hurt him regardless of what happened.

But it did happen, and Tsukasa had his first failure as Knights leader. And when he was at his lowest and couldn’t be there with his seniors, it were his kouhais who were there. Tsukasa thinks he “neglected” the kouhais, but “Kohaku” claims they must admire him, even be grateful to him.

We are never given names or faces for the kouhais. We are only told of their actions and lines through other characters, they’re basically NPCs. Ironically, they’re a tool in the story (but not in the way Tsukasa thinks lol): they’re here to showcase Tsukasa’s leadership skills. Even though Tsukasa believes he “neglected” them, we see it time and time again in other events how he stubbornly fought for them, even against his own beloved senpais. He diligently trained and invested time and money in them. He might have thought of them as mere assets, but they likely didn’t see it like this. What would you think if you had a senpai fighting for you, investing so much in your idol career, trying his best to make sure you flourish as Knights members? “Kohaku” was probably right. They likely admire him. Why else would they continue to perform even after they lost? Even after they saw their leader go through such a humiliating defeat? Everything Tsukasa did for them led to them being loyal to him.

This also brings back the parallel to Chess, which dissolved immediately after the students were told there wouldn’t be many benefits to being in a big unit. They weren’t loyal to each other, even before that the members barely even tried. When Leo offered them money in exchange for them not participating in Checkmate, resulting in their default loss and Knights victory, they gleefully accepted it. Because they weren’t “serious” about being idols. They didn’t have the pride and the will to win. They didn’t really care about that battle.

Ritsu and Arashi in Operetta, Izumi and Arashi in euthanasia, they were all concerned about Knights ending up like Chess, filled with a bunch of lazy members who would just coast along to their fame and not really do anything. But because of how strict Tsukasa was in Meowsketeers, how stubborn he was about how they were treated in Seven Bridges, how insistent he was through most of the !! events about training and investing in them, the newbies are now hardworking, loyal members to Knights.

Tl;dr: Knights kouhais were necessary tools to showcase Tsukasa’s leadership skills and how different Knights are now from Chess, hope this helps <3. Tsukasa is a LIAR, who says he neglected his kouhais but he’s fought basically everyone in Knights to keep them there. Ritsu is also the ultimate kouhai advocate, maybe even more than Tsukasa himself, and always comes up with a way to help them. IzuAra aren’t too happy, but Arashi still does her best to support Tsukasa, and Izumi ends up armstrong into training the kouhais too in Mad Part LOL. Leo had his Opinions, but ultimately he wants to support Tsukasa, as the old king supporting the new king. Knights kouhais are all stubborn hardworking babies who LOVE Tsukasa, and I’ll keep brainrotting over then as long as happyele keeps giving me Tsukasa being cute with them!

4. Conclusion: two kings?

We still have Knights climax story to go, a guaranteed Tsukasa 5* event. My prediction is that it will pick up from where Sudden Death left off, mostly on Tsukasa’s feelings of how he failed as a leader and how his seniors AND his kouhais still supported him after that.

Back when !! released, there was an interesting plot thread that was thrown in and then forgotten: Leo and Tsukasa acting as the two kings of Knights.

Tsukasa is too belligerent in the new arc, according to main story, and Leo usually acts as the face of Knights, to direct any ill comment towards him instead of at Tsukasa. Leo talked more about it in his first idol story, if I’m not mistaken, saying it confused the fans and how it looked like Knights had two Kings now, and that they might need to solve this with a Judgment lol.

And then that plot thread was just. Completely forgotten and dropped LOL. With Leo being shipped off to Italy with Izumi, supposedly Tsukasa was free to act as the absolute King and ultimate face of Knights, right?

I think that might be brought back after Sudden Death, though. We might get some conflict about how his actions led to Knights defeat, especially contrasted with how Leo wasn’t there to take the brunt of it. We were told the fans weren’t happy at all about what happened, in Parallel World Nazuna comments the fans were MAD at Crazy:B lol. So who knows, maybe the ultimate test of Tsukasa’s leadership is still to come.

It might just be my wishful thinking tho because I want leokasa gay fighting again <3

Thanks for coming to my tedtalk :)

[calocera]

Your posts about SNW Spock makes me so curious, could you please explain how they've done him wrong since he seems very different from the original series :O Are they making him more human despite the SNW taking place before the og?

yeah i can! im not the best person to talk about it probably since im a pretty recent trek fan and also tos/spock arent parts of trek i care about as much as a lot of other fans, but i have opinions for sure!!

firstly just up front i do not like ethan peck as spock. he does not look like spock or act in a way i am satisfied with. it feels like the only reason they cast him was because he has a deep voice. so i am going forward in this with haterism for him specifically not JUST how he is written in snw

Spock is written not like a vulcan but like an anhedonic human. actually not even anhedonic, just like a human raised in vulcan society trying to blend in. like there is nothing about him that feels genuine he just feels like woobiebait for 2012 tumblr to make flower crown edits of because he is awkward and quirky. every scene involving spock is a joke about him and his demeanor, everything he says is a wink wink nudge nudge "lol vulcans act like this and its so stupid lol logic is silly" like i can physically feel a laugh track whenever hes on screen. i enjoy jokes about vulcans but it isnt funny when there isnt anything else. its like spock showing emotion, it isnt satisfying when its a constant and not a little treat peppered in. in snw hes stifling a giggle or screaming in pain or being oopsie awkward silly every time he gets a focal scene, it takes the magic away because now it isnt a rare break in character its just how he is. Ive seen a lot of people defend this aspect as him being young and therefore less mature than in tos, but hes like approaching 30 :\ i get him being less mature but he doesnt act like a sheltered 30 year old he acts like someone freshly 18. at this point its just like…MAKE A NEW CHARACTER!!!!

as a point of contrast, i like how uhura is written in snw (in season 1 anyways, she has barely appeared in s2) she is obviously younger and is growing into her spot on the crew, but they arent hinging her character on the 1 or 2 pop culture uhura moments, retconning anything about that that doesnt align with modern media fandom, and calling it a day; they actually expand on her character outside of like idk her doing a sexy dance and her sitting at the phone (though i guess it is easier for her since she had barely any character in tos anyways). meanwhile they DO do that with spock, his bullet point top 10 iconic spock moments of sometimes being awkward and showing emotion are now the only things he is allowed to do. tldr flanderization

i also think its interesting that it is this way since ethan peck played spock in discovery and there hes the exact opposite. hes extremely serious and vulcan; which fits the tone of the show (regardless of my opinions on the tone of disco). i just dont understand how that spock translated into the snw spock. they are not the same guy.

anyways on to the biggest plot related gripe with him...how he interacts with women!!!yay!!

first theres how they decided to have multiple episodes about his, apparently, strained-yet-loving-and-involved relationship with tpring. the inclusion of t'pring feels stupid because other than the 1 minute of cheap "oh i remember her!" from someone seeing her on screen for the first time what point is there to her returning when the ONE canonical fact about her is that she and spock A: had an arranged marriage, B: did not meet in person since they were children, and C: hated each other. its not like there is a huge contingency of t'pring/spock shippers holding out since 1967 so what value does reintroducing her as a character serve? i assume its as some kind of attempt to give a woman who previously had no real character something to do, but her existence on snw is STILL only about spock and her relation to spock so there isnt any sort of feminist level up happening. including her was not interesting enough to justify retconning the plot of the most iconic episode of star trek. especially when multiple episodes tonally and stakes-wise rely on you caring about them as a couple, and anyone watching who knows who she is already knows that her and spock dont have any relationship to speak of in the future so who is this for? if you really really just NEED spock to have sex with a woman why not make a new character? that would also suck but at least it wouldnt be timeline interfering. im not even a huge continuity purist "oh no!!the timeline!!!plotholes!!!" but when the situation is the writers deliberately breaking the continuity in large ways and the outcome isnt even fun? stupid.

and now his relationship with chapel. i am way more annoyed by this one since its just gross. so from tos the only thing with them is that chapel has a crush on him and spock is not interested. also worth noting that its such a non-plot related thing that it only is revealed under the influence of alien drug virus that makes you horny. and they decided that not only was that enough to base a whole reciprocated romance arc around, but now since theyve introduced tpring back into the story, spock is now a cheater??? what is the POINT of breaking canon to introduce spocks girlfriend only to go "well actually hes horny for his coworker" like...that isnt how love triangles work youve just done a character assassination. the man who would rather kill his best friend than have sex with his wife is now fucking both her and the woman who confessed to him and he got so mad he crushed a computer with his bare hands. ok 👍. i just hate that they chose spock to be the romantic center of the show. anyone else could have been the character who gets into relationship drama why spock? there are multiple new characters who could have taken up the position. and its not like spock has nothing else to do as a character without it

to say things specifically about the most recent epsiode since it was particularly annoying and showed things that happen throughout the series:

firstly spock just does shit thats stupid. illogical even. i know the whole logical fallacy moment with vulcans but when it isnt a point of note in the show and rather just happens as if its a normal occurrence for spock as a person im like...he would be a laughing stock on vukcan and not have any of the positive reputation he holds.

the plot of this ep was basically that spock gets turned completely human and they just miss literally the whole point of it. vulcans have MORE emotion than humans, they ACTIVELY suppress it. yet when spock is turned human he just experiences human emotion completely emotionally? he should be having an EASIER time suppressing his emotions. and OMG he gets a BONER because he sees a hot WOMAN LOL LOL isnt that funny? spock got hard isnt that hilarious? its just so cheap. they act like being human makes him a completely different person, they played it like the voyager episode where belanna gets split into human and klingon BUT in that case she was literally split into two different people (this ep had a lot of issues too ie racism but that’s a different can of worms); here spock just becomes human he still has the same memories and training and history...why would he forget what its like to be a vulcan. they could SO EASILY make excuses too but they just didnt care. and anyways bada bing bada boom the ep ends with him and chapel hooking up which i already complained about and could complain about more.

i think thats already too much so im gunna stop myself here but trust theres more i hate and other people have probably talked about this better than i have :')

blade nation

[river-muse]

Wall-of-text comment, coming right up!

Okay I think I forgot to mention this before, but I love the Mundus powerscaling you've settled on, and the story of Vergil running away after dmc3!

I think the dmc3 novel or smth gave fans the impression that a 'rested' dmc3 single twin could have defeated Mundus, which, while truly tragic as so much trouble could have been avoided, I think it's also very underwhelming. I guess you upscaled Mundus even higher than dmc1 Dante (30-smth yo) + DS Sparda? Anyway, I really love this. Mundus is a very dangerous and tangible threat, and it's a great pressure point on the twins to figure out their bullshit faster.

And the story you've come up with for post-dmc3 Vergil is very true to him, or at least, I think it is very true for him. Vergil's been on the run from his issues for the last decade, and the ending of the last twin fight just showed him that...all that growth was still enough. His newly awakened little brother was able to defeat him, then what chance does he stand against Mundus? As painful as it looks, that defeat was be a significant blow to him, and Dante's attempts to help would not be able to remedy that, if anything they would only aggravate Vergil's wounds. So yeah, it makes total sense Vergil ran into the night one after that.

Birthday chapters commentary:

(regarding the notes at the beginning of the chapter - I Am Looking Forward To Seeing Your Older Nero)

My best guess is that Vergil was thinking of his 'hiding' habits and how they affected Nero, so, berating himself in front of his mom, before the beginning of the chapter. Then, Dante mentioning that Eva would be proud of Vergil's parenting (which she would) triggered him and he bolted.

Lemme just quickly say here that the frustration Dante feels when Vergil runs? So. Goddamn. Relatable. To. The. Reader.

Love the twins' strategy of constantly picking Nero up, adorable))) Also love that Nero came up to his uncle for the support there (I am weak for Uncle Dante), be clearly needed some support there to tell his dad. That entire scene is great and I love it. The moment Nero interprets Vergil leaving wrong is small but heartbreaking all the same.

The description of the uncle-nephew nap had me crackling in tears xDDD So accurate too!

The scene of Dante waking up automatically looking for a gun is another sneaky, yet powerful heartbreak. I guess he anticipated something like this before and started keeping his girls away when family visits occur? Also wonder why didn't Nero run and jump full speed on his newly-awakened uncle. Missed opportunity, birthday boy!

Twins almost starting another fight, but wrapping it and tossing it away just as quickly in front of Nero is definitely progress, and another prime example of 'forcing the dogs to lie'. Perfectly in sync, even if their actual opinion on the topic are opposites, and the question before them is in dire need of discussing.

Car space for legs being too short is just. Pure torture. All-too relatable, sadly. Poor bois, they did nothing to deserve this(

Nero&Dante teaming up in 'zebra is a horse' arguement is everything to me. Vergil was laughing at his favourite idiots, no doubt xD

My live reaction at little Nero trying to get Dante involved in zoo activities (follow your own advice for your brother, loser): 😭😭😭

Surprisingly accurate common zoo layout description! Very well done there.

"Lizards are not crying aside- [topic switch]" demons? Was that a Devil May Cry reference? What next, a fic Featuring Dante???

I love every single one animal interaction. Like, you could have easily glassed over those, they don't affect the plot or character interactions between each other. Yet, they are all so detailed and lively, I adore those. It's clear you've had a lot of experience with animals, OR your research is obsessively-crazy good. I bet both.

My live reaction at Nero holding hands with twins: 😭😭😭

"I can't Birthday Boy out of this one" - snorted out loud at this one xDDD I feel like the zebra debate is based on personal experience xD

UNCLE DANTE SHOULDER RIDE UNCLE DANTE SHOULDER RIDE UNCLE DANTE SHOULDER RIDE (Vergil absolutely got jealous, and it was his own fault)

Kyrie is a certified otter lover. Love Vergil's little queue to not bring her up and how quickly Dante adapts to his advice.

The plushie naming scene is precious.

Dante seeing that the gift for Nero is hand-wrapped by a clearly inexperienced Vergil is another sneaky little, but very powerful heartbreak. While Dante would make a truly awesome uncle, I also feel very strongly that he would be jealous of Nero. Dante was never enough for Vergil, but Nero had to just..appear and boom! almost-domesticated Vergil. (this is absolutely Dante's issues speaking and not what actually happened, I can also absolutely see the reverse of this happening - Nero being jealous of Dante's twin-telepathy with his father.

Vergil's little cake admission. OUCH. Bad Dante, you shouldn't deflect your closed-off brother's rare emotional moment, you should encourage those to happen more, Bad Dante, Bad.

Twins pool scene can solve all of reader's mental health problems, guaranteed. Precious. Soul-healing. Very touching.

(why was Vergil shaken after that shoulder pat?...my best guess is touch-starvation, but Nero should have been able to keep that one at bay I think...)

I'm enjoying this reread and note-taking very much)))

I GET TWO IN ONE DAY????? 👀

Ohhh you were CHEWING on this one I can see! For your guess on my knowledge of zoo layouts/animals- I grew up obsessively watching Animal Planet and have been to zoos and aquariums quite a lot before! I LOVE animals even if I don't have the skills/certifications/heart to work closely with them in a professional setting. When I was super little I'd been thinking about pursuing that as a career but set it down because I get way too attached to things. Besides my beloved massive american wirehair cat that roams my house like an overgrown baby I also keep a corn snake I've raised since he was younger than a month old.

Mundus! Yes! I wanted him to be an actual threat that's looming in the background of the narrative because let's be real that guy can create other demons wholesale on a whim and can- well- wait that's spoilers hold on I can't say that 💀 either way I wanted his presence to have actual weight to it rather than just seem like a little speedbump that the twins can take down without issue and have just been avoiding for no reason. He's got his own plans in motion that get hinted at in the narrative but not said outright. He's acting like a persistence predator in that respect. Strategically hunting at random points, cutting off escape routes, and keeping his quarry on edge so their capabilities diminish little by little until they get desperate and tired. :)

I'm not gonna lie I think you even picked up stuff in the narrative I HADN'T PLANNED but it all works so good!!! The case of the writer subconsciously pulling off genius narrative strikes again.

I'm in love with all of this I'm dipping you lowly(platonically) because while I'm going to keep being self-indulgent in this series until it's over it's so exciting to get interactions with it!! I spent a while worried that my method of situational characterization with this divergent AU would be off-putting to anyone else but you're proving me so wrong.

Also yes Older Nero in this AU is going to be fun! I have quite a lot of that content already written or planned. He grows up to have a very similar to canon personality with- a different flavor that you'll see as we progress in the series.

I have a fun question that doesn't need an answer, but is a little extra tidbit to think on because you've made my day:

If the official DMC team said once that Nero wouldn't be who he was without Kyrie- then what do you think Kyrie would be without Nero?

EDIT: No you know what I am NOT DONE TALKING!! I keep dwelling on how you noticed every single moment of action that reveal scars that haven't healed!! The one that still kills me is the description of how Vergil wrapped the gift because if it had been from his perspective we would have just seen him berating himself for not being able to do better but through Dante's eyes we see the MEANING behind the gesture and how significant it is.

Also the zebra argument was by far one of my best things and if I've had that hyper-specific argument before I don't remember but I have FEELINGS about it!

The pool scene. Oh, how soft it makes me feel. Writing it was such a nice breath of fresh air it makes my heart melt and was a sign that with time Vergil can heal and open back up to his family.

[sergeant-angels-trashcan]

Hi! I'm interested in working through the Hatchet field stuff while I'm on break. Is there a recommended viewing order? Or can I jump in anywhere?

ahahaaaa i am SO SORRY I am just now seeing this. in my defense i caught covid about the time you sent this (and also infected my mom who does NOT do sick well) buttt if you're still looking,

tbh you can start anywhere, because while they're all related, they aren't connected--like you'll appreciate certain jokes and callbacks, but in that way I guess it's like an anthology.

Technically, the first musical is The Guy Who Didn't Like Musicals. If you know someone who doesn't like musicals, they might actually like this one (PROMISE ME YOU'LL THINK ABOUT THE IMPLICATIONS) It's the first introduction to Hatchetfield and there are some recurring characters in the next musical, which is Black Friday. It is about Black Friday and consumerism and the amazing line "I've met god. he had nothing nice to say about you" BITCH OMG. The most recent musical is Nerdy Prudes Must Die, and honestly imo it has the least connections to the first two, so you could probably start with that one if you wanted--again, you'll appreciate some jokes more if you've seen the other two. It does also have more Lore, but I still think you'd be fine not knowing anything about it. I don't know that much about it and it was still good, because--

---there's a whole series of web-icals? Social Distance Musicals? Whatever, it's called Nightmare Time and they dive deeper into the lore of Hatchetfield and I've never managed to watch more than the opening number of the first one (it's a sound quality issue, i just need to watch it on a laptop or something) but look to be really cool and interesting and maybe deal with the same Hatchetfield? Because the Hatchetfield in each of the musicals is...not the same one. Or it is, but different timelines. Or different dimensions. Something. I think Nightmare Time does more into that.

Basically, you could watch them all as standalones, there's not really a plot that goes through all three of them, but characters and concepts that do.

But that's the order I'd do them in. From a theatre nerd standpoint, it's also really cool to see how they've evolved musically. Just technically with how they're putting numbers together and adding vocal layers. NPMD has a few songs that i would LOVE to see the sheet music for so I could try and figure out who is singing what. Honestly the best comparison I can make is "Wait For It" from Hamilton.

Anyway I hope you enjoy them!!! If you want to shout opinions at me i am here for that :)

[croakings]

breaking my loz silence to be a hater but also, here's how totk can still win

i will preface this with the thesis but also bear with me, ok, so: let it be known that in most circumstances, like most people probably, i hate when stories go "And It Was All A Dream!!!"

however. under some certain conditions. it is So Tasty. and i think totk is like. i'm sorry i think this is the only thing that can redeem the story of that game even somewhat. to me. this is all obviously just going to be my own personal opinion if you liked totk you are valid etc and so on and so forth but this is probably not the post for you

a minor point i want to start off with is that we were promised majora's mask vibes and they did not (imo)(this will be the last qualifier/clarification as far as that goes just stick "imo" everywhere in your brain for me please. thanks) deliver on that so much...... UNLESS MY UPCOMING TINFOIL HAT/COPING "THEORY" APPLIES! (there is absolutely no evidence or support for any of this whatsoever.)

i know people have come up with theories and Themes Analyses as to why the totk ending is good and makes sense and i did like a lot of those, and those people are very smart, however what they do not take into account is that i do not like it. if there's one thing i hate more than It Was Never Real In The First Place, it's And Actually None Of That Mattered That Much At All!..........

unless! It Was Never Real In The First Place!!!!!!!!! (<- IWNRITFP)

SO many of my personal gripes with totk are solved by making "the primary impact of these events is just like. emotional there aren't a lot of other consequences if any" follow the caveat of Because IWNRITFP!!!

"but bug" you might say, "what the fuck are you talking about". that's fair despite all those paragraphs i've said very little. i understand.

i am team "pissed off about the arm". team "ZONAI??????? AAAAAAAGGHHHH". team "AND WHY DOES IT ALL DISAPPEAR IN THE END ANYWAY COME O—". team hater. if you will. zelda doesn't even get to have any dragon features stick around like come. ON. ok anyway

also. we have the Monarchy Good Let's Keep Doing That Actually. despite. gestures at all of botw and the info we get of link and zelda post-botw pre-totk. where they're like. really not so much doing the monarchy. is the thing. and that seems really great for them in fact. and this seems really kind of silly outside of it really being needed to continue The Cycle. of loz games. and in loz games. which is that there is a princess and link punches things. and monarchies are a little necessary for point one. there.

but also some of you know me. you know what my favorite activity is. it's Making Up Lore To Explain Mechanics/Whatever i know this is not mechanics it's like. Video Game more broadly. franchise continuity. and that too. put that after the slash idk how to phrase that. so here's the thing.

they go down to the castle murder basement. right. gloom is there. it's spooky. things Go Wrong. tale as old as time.

this is a reach but cope with me. bear with me. what if. the murder basement. is the last real thing that actually happens. (until the ganon fight)(i think)(disclaimer: i have played only like 35 hrs of totk and the greater portion of that was mapping out the depths. so please understand i hate this game and this essay is based on information i gathered trying not to be doomed to hate this game/attempting to gain motivation to like. actually play it.)(if you notice i barely succeeded. if at all. rip)(one of the first things i did was collect the dragon tear memories and that INSTANTLY made me tap out. iykyk y'know.)

I KNOW. BUT. HEAR ME OUT.

here's the story of totk: link and zelda go down to the catacombs. neither of them come out. like. link does. sort of. i guess. if you ask some people. but like. nothing he does seems to matter or affect people. or. most things. with a few direct Plot Related exceptions. no one recognizes him the famous Savior Of Hyrule (the sword one)(not the princess the other one) who has spent literal multiple years scurrying around speaking to without hyperbole every single person in the country probably multiple times in insane circumstances pretty much every time. everyone is just Have You Heard The Legend Of Press Down B To Slash Fancy AND I SOLVE THIS TOO. with Game Theory.

WHAT IF. what if. ganon's last hurrah. ganon who like. constantly loses. and is repeatedly killed by teenagers at best and children not infrequently. is to see these guys who pretty well won. because they lost. who have a pretty good chance of doing things differently. where he can't. and/or won't. who can set hyrule in a different direction, if they're allowed to continue on. and not let them continue on. "lol they're traumatized young adults," he might say, "i am The Scourge Of Millennia and HERE. is how i can still win." (<- loses)(inevitably)(of course)(BUT HE CAN TAKE THEM DOWN WITH HIM.)

what. if IWNRITFP. maybe we can say the zonai in some capacity WERE real idk. this is irrelevant to my essay but i do like the thought they're just Early Hyrule and we know nothing more about them that's true than we did in botw. i think it would be incredibly good soup if ganon just made EVERYTHING about zonai and the Ancient Times that we see and learn of in totk. just. completely up. this also solves how ganondorf (and also rauru and sonia like character-wise) kind of sucks in this game tbh: because he's The Villain. he's MADE himself THE villain. what are his motivations? you may ask. what the hell is he trying to do? what on earth is even going on with zelda and co in the past? irrelevant. you see if he is as cartoonishly evil as possible. and makes zelda and co (The Good Guys)(So Good Guys Wouldn't It Suck If Something Like Killed Them Mercilessly Or Whatever) completely miserable and sets up the perfect, most unassailable dichotomy in her mind of Me Evil, Monarchy (You)(plural)(The Royal You, even) Good, then zelda and link who are already traumatized can just be pushed more firmly into The Cycle. all of this if he just. makes them live out a nightmarish reality he constructs of "nothing that they are or have been matters and they have to cast it all aside to be The Princess and The Hero". and convinces them keep that going forever. because without them(The Princess and The Hero) there is only Him (The Villain). they HAVE to be in the cycle to keep him from winning the cycle by default. don't they. right. sure they do don't look at the man behind the curtain what man. who said that.

also the sages!!!! Bloodlines!!! Of Course It's About Bloodlines!!!!!! it's the cycle!!

and see the thing is link and zelda come out of the catacombs with Dragon Ganon Defeated and that can be real. that's the story. link and zelda finally do come out of the catacombs. they have experienced once again a bunch of things that no one else had anything to do with or could be reasonably aware of and there is nothing they can do to involve these other people. they can try to talk about it but everyone else really truly it cannot be emphasized enough was just doing other things. everything makes sense if it's about the isolation. The Role. idk ig parts of the surface stuff ought to be "real" or at least "interacted" with, but that wouldn't be very hard for a magical rage beast probably. the whole kingdom experiences a brief extended nightmare but link and zelda as usual get the brunt of the cosmic horrors. this makes sense to me.

also!!!! this makes the depths like. less. [picture so-so gesture here.]

i mean. they're still like. more should have been done with the depths. more (or less) should have been done with all of totk but i'm exhibiting favoritism here. the depths make sense if IWNRITFP. the yiga are down in an empty inverted-ish Ghost Monster Hyrule doing loony toons. they are also. cartoonishly. evil(?). do the yiga have a point in totk? like. really? do they. (other than Mechanics.) well. i raise you: do they NEED one? link loots stuff and knowledge from them. as in: you have to know things in dreams. somehow. sometimes. what i'm trying to get at here is aren't the depths and the yiga so much more funny if ganon is literally just making them up. like "here is Evil hyrule (look at the ghosts of all those you've failed) with my Evil minions (evil)(like me)(cartoonishly evil and bumbling)(this is a dry joke sarcasm HUMOR. if you will.)(what if ganon is like "oh yeah the yiga my doomsday death cult in botw what was going on with— did link throw that guy down a hole. that's hilarious. i'm going to make a whole thing about that.) and my Evil loot here have relics of past heroes. this doesn't mean anything btw don't worry about it just put them on. yes Put The Tunic On no don't think about it i'm not even here. what. who said that"

like. OH of COURSE no one recognizes you or says much of anything that doesn't somehow give you instructions or tasks to do if IWNRITFP. like. ganon doesn't care. link doesn't care!!! that's something people do. when he is running around trying to save the world. that makes sense..... DREAM SENSE. nightmare sense. this is me coping with the complete lack of character interaction and whimsy i like from loz background guys the totk npcs are SO BORING. and if they're cardboard cutouts. right. of course they are. duh. no friends in the hater zone.

do you all see my vision. is this anything. had i played more than 5% of the game or read more stuff i could probably expand on this or be at all coherent but DO YOU GET IT. am i communicating. please take this and run with it THIS is how we can still get majora's mask and. COSMIC DOOM AND HORROR also again justice for ganondorf (and zelda)(and link) on this one WHAT IF. he was evil. what if he was FUNNY. what if totk were good.

ganon with the last vestiges of his Evil Power from his corpse under the castle sealed for reasons of There Can Still Be A Good Story There: if two guys were on the moon and one guy killed another guy with a rock would that be fucked up or what. also wouldn't it be cool if i were a dragon. i’d like to be a dragon. i can make that happen and sort of kind of make sense. as a treat. while also doing that to the princess while tormenting her with (More) Visions.

welcome to his twisted mind...... mine.......... minecraft server. hey gamers have you ever THE CYCLE THE CYCLE GET BACK IN THE CYCLE

life could be a dream. IT COULD BE A DREAM

[the-possum-writes]

Scared Gecko

❥Tags: sfw, tooth rottening fluff, headcanons, gender neutral reader

❥Ship: Flame Prince/ Reader

❥A/n: Haven't done anything Flame Prince related, so have this fresh batch of headcannons.

❥Taglist: @watchingfromthefloorboards @foxpearl1wilder

❥You're a fire gecko humanoid, which means you're both fire resistant and also able to head outside the fire kingdom without issue.

❥Turns out your family is indebted to the royal family so you're unfairly sent out to serve them as payment from their behalf.

❥It's terrifying™ since you've heard stories about how evil and malicious the royal family is, not only to each other, but especially to their staff.

❥You're practically fearing for your life by the time you reach the castle grounds. Upon crossing the thresholds you're sent to the prince's chambers as his own personal servant since the last one mysteriously disappeared.

❥There's nothing but bad thoughts flowing through your mind, what kind of terrors does he have in store for you? Make you walk over needles for his entertainment? Clean his shelf stacked with skulls of his enemies? Wash his toilet with nothing but a toothbrush??

❥You're met with he sight of a young man encased inside a glass lantern, it didn't last long since you immediately bow in front of him, anything to avoid upsetting him somehow.

❥"My prince, I present myself as a feeble servant to follow your orders, your cripsy highness... Uh, crispy-ness." Yeah, you'll need to work on that.

❥He eyes you up and down with disinterest, that was until a thought came to mind. "You don't look like you're made of lava, how are you fire resistant without magic?" he asks of you, to which you reply. "I'm a fire gecko your highness, I can walk in these lands as much as I can wander into other territories without flames."

❥This give him an idea. "As your first task I order you to fetch me something..."

❥You're mentally praying to the patron saints of geckoes that wherever he's sending you isn't plagued with monsters or ice, imagine the suprise when the location on your map leads you to Turtle Prince's library.

❥You walk up to the desk with shaking knees, hoping you don't screw this up. "I'm here looking for..." you squint at your own messy handwriting.

❥It takes a few attempts but you manage to sneak back into the Prince's chambers with the book he requests intact, you wanted to ask about it but his expression wasn't friendly in the slightest.

❥He basically orders you to read to him, a task you would've done anyway if he asked nicely. But manners don't seem to be part of his lingo.

❥"And they lived happily ever after, the end." you close the book as you reach the last page.

❥After this single reading seesion the prince mellowed out and made small talk with you about the story. "Do you think they stayed together? There was that one plot hole with the rival but..."

❥He's asking for your opinion?! You? Basically a commoner turned servant.

"I think the rival was more of a metaphor, his death felt so abrupt and nonsensical." you bring out your own headcannons. The prince gives you a glare, almost like saying 'how dare you have an opinion unlike mine' but he then turns thoughtful. "I never thought about it that way." he rubs his chin.

❥It soon became routine, you would fetch items for the prince like a bookclub and in exchange he didn't make you do tedious tasks like wash his floors with a toothbrush. But eventually it wasn't just books, it was sometimes scented candles, or dry twigs, pinecones and grass from the outside world just so he could burn them himself.

❥The more you read to him the more open he became with you, the flame Prince talks to you about his interests, how he ended up in a lamp and the kind of things he'd want to do if he ever got out.

❥"Like what?" you ask.

"Well, I've always heard the Birchwood forests burn lovely at this time of year, it would be nice to spread my legs a little, pick out and smell some wildflowers while I'm at it."

"Kind of drastic, but it sounds nice."

You've grown to appreciate the young man. He's kind of destructive, no thanks to his family locking him up, but he's also very curious about the world around him and it's kinda endearing.

"My prince I have an idea, if I may."

"Go ahead." he allows you to speak.

"What if... We, break you out and have that walk together...?" you twiddle with your fingers as he contemplates the thought.

Flam Prince had a serious expression as he slowly stood up in his lamp shaped prison, resting his hands against the glass. "Are you aware of what my father will do if he catches you?" he warns. You start shaking but still nod relentlessly. "He'll dip you in ice water!" the prince keeps fueling your fear, but you don't go back on your idea. The prince sees enough, relaxing his body along with his facial features that always look so sad and annoyed, but now he's giving you a proper smile. "There's no one else I'd share a stroll with."