#Same goes for AOM they never missed

[theprinceandthewitch]

I don't think I mentioned this... but in Ashes of Memory, Alice receives a letter from Orpheus addressed as "Eury Lamb"

Lamb is the last name of the man who adopted her and experimented on her. It also serves as a reference to Little Girl's "Source of Evil" cosmetic, which is lamb themed.

"Eury" is a reference to Eurydice. People have theorized "Eury Lamb" is the name her adoptive father, Villhelm Lamb gave to her to keep her true identity a secret. But that's not rlly relevant...

What is relevant is that this makes Orpheus' alias choice even MORE obvious he loves Alice... this mans got romantic interest in her...

People who use that adoption letter as proof that the writers want you to view their relationship as sibling-like are so cringe. That letter is literally the direct opposite of "sibling-like".

Folks missed the part called "context": Orpheus [who was 17 at the time] knew she was being abused at the orphanage and tried to get her out in the least stressful way possible... and he couldn't even adopt her to begin with because the orphanage thought it would be best for her to be taken in by a blood relative. Which was a lie, because they ended up giving her to Villhelm Lamb to be used as his lab rat.

Like idk man... the writers have made it so abundantly clear Orpheus doesn't see her as a sister. That One letter doesn't prove he sees her as a sibling because if they wanted to make them siblings... then.... they would have... ya know, made them siblings... but they don't because.... they're not siblings and they're writing a tragic romance LMAO.

As for Alice, in AoM she calls him a playmate... granted she doesn't know Orpheus and her playmate are the same person, but she remembers him as her friend and not her brother... because.... they were never adopted siblings...

But yeah It's so crazy to think Orpheus doesn't love her... I'm over here losing my mind at That Scene in AoM where Orpheus asks Alice if she could play a song for him on her father's favorite piano.

What gets me is that this scene shows how much Orpheus missed her. He buys everything her relatives sold off so he can rebuild the mansions' interior to how it was when they were children. He also goes out of his way to fix her father's favorite piano. The piano didn't just need fine tuning - it was straight up destroyed during the raid. It was a really, really expensive thing to repair. Even though Alice's father had other pianos, some of which could have survived the raid, he rebuilds the one which holds alot of sentimental value to her... LIKE???

REALLY... You guys really want me to think Orpheus did all this JUST out of a sense of guilt for unintentionally causing the raid? You are rlly gonna look me in the eyes and tell me Orpheus using "Orpheus" as his alias while addressing Alice as "Eury" is totally platonic?

Are u rlly gonna say that to me knowing this official artwork made Norton and Melly wear their Pluto and Proserpina/Persephone outfits while Frederick, Orpheus, and Alice are dressed normally? My brother in Christ... will you rlly look me in the eyes and tell me Orpheus [AND THE BIRDS] holding flowers is platonic symbolism...

THIS ISN'T EVEN SUBTLE LOOOOL

How much more evidence do people need that these two aren't siblings AND they're on a whole romantic journey together...

[xserpx]

Somewhat nebulous thoughts on Gorst, heroism, and what it means for AoM

Seeing Reddit bros sympathise with Gorst -> me thinking about Gorst -> me thinking about Byronic heroes -> actually makes me want to read the Brontës, just to better explore what I think Abercrombie was doing with Gorst - which is thrusting the Byronic hero into mundane reality to face the fact that all that brooding and narcissism and "dangerous" reputation is in no way admirable, and is instead rather pathetic actually.

Gorst believes himself to be a romantic hero sweeping in to save Finree. He imagines himself to be a war hero winning glory on the battlefield. There are times his sense of persecution might feel justified - who doesn't want to write a letter to their boss calling him a Fuck-Hole? - but at the end of the day Abercrombie writes:

'You went to a ford, and a bridge, and a hill, and what did you do there except kill? What have you made? Who have you helped?'

He stood there for a moment, all his bravado slithering out. She is right. And no one knows it better than me. ‘Nothing and no one,’ he whispered.

She is right. Even Gorst himself admits that. Perhaps you could make an argument that making things and helping people wasn't ever Gorst's goal, that there is some substance in striving for honour and glory and personal redemption... but I really don't think that's what Abercrombie is trying to say here at all.

The 'winners' of the Heroes are the characters least comfortable with sticking swords in people: Finree, Calder, and Beck. Their femininity/weakness/cowardice means they don't qualify as 'heroes' in the same vein as Whirrun or Gorst or Black Dow, but they're the ones who actually make things better for themselves, have families, have lives beyond war and fighting. Beck chooses to stop following in his father's footsteps and goes home to his mother instead, Calder chooses to hand power to his older brother rather than claiming the glory for himself, Finree gets (almost) everything she wanted through diplomacy alone.

In contrast, Craw and Dow often think about hanging up their swords for a life of trade. They never do. Tunny is fully aware there's no helping him at this point. And Gorst is, I think, Calder's direct opposite - a single man, a warrior, battling against how he thinks people perceive him rather than leaning into it the way Calder does.

Gorst also has physical issues that he sees as emasculating him: his high voice, his impotence. It's only in committing violence that Gorst becomes an example for other men to follow, but of course, in Abercrombie's world and in the Heroes especially, violence is a form of impotence. The war destroys farmland, wrecks families, and at the end of the day it's just a proxy war between wizards.

I love Gorst, truly. He's absolutely fascinating and I definitely think there's room to feel sorry for him. Unlike some I don't think he's a full-on incel - he puts Finree on a pedestal rather than blaming her for not choosing him, which, y'know... is a hair's breadth better than blaming all women for everything, I suppose - but at the same time, I love the subtext in this book and how it totally crushes Gorst's Byronic vision of himself. No one actually makes fun of him, aside from the woman he's creepily obsessed with. His flowery inner monologues are shown to be pretentious fantasising. The dark past that haunts him is a badly timed rendezvous with a sex worker followed by a tumble down some stairs. He's convinced he's a joke, and he absolutely is, but not for the reasons he thinks.

Abercrombie's writing always caters to meta analysis through subversion of tropes, playing with expectations, and laying the subtext on thick. He does it amazingly with Gorst. It's just a shame that many blokes who read the book manage to miss all of that and make it all about who has the biggest fucking sword.

I also wonder where this leaves Leo and Stour, as natural progressions of these ideas. Both men are obsessed with the idea of glory and heroism. Stour leans more toward violence while Leo leans more toward honour. Against the backdrop of AoM, where revolution and war are the only things that might be capable of unseating Bayaz from power at this point, will violence remain impotent, or will it actually manage to effect change? Will Leo actually become a hero, and what will that mean? What happens when two warriors are forced to stop fighting? Their stories have been running almost parallel thus far, is this where their paths diverge? Once again, we have a character who might serve as Calder's opposite, his shameful legacy, and I'm wondering if there are any lessons Stour might actually have learned from his father. Same with Leo, to be fair. And then there's Rikke who seems like she's half way to dragging the North back to the Dark Ages. A good chunk of my excitement for TWOC is to see whether Abercrombie builds on the message of the Heroes at the end of AoM or if he calls it into question in some way.

[themadauthorshatter]

Never!Tedros Headcanons Part 3!

There will be more Tagatha and Tophie in this one, though more Tagatha than Tophie because come on

So, like I said before, Tedros got suspicious of his supposed true love has more evils following her than before, which leads to him wanting to train away from her for a little bit.

He promised to be her prince, and a solid MAYBE on the ball; he's had bad experiences with ballroom get togethers. She accepted the maybe as a yes anyway.

He gets so damn annoyed when she starts failing the pre-Trial challenges.

When he asks why she keeps failing, another lie is born at Sophie's side when she says that she did learn everything and will get better.

She lies more and creates more evils, which really starts rubbing Tedros the wrong way because they start aggressively rubbing against his legs and arms and are slightly louder than Sophie because they purr and sort of talk-meow to him.

When she panics when Hester threatens her and Tedros, but Tedros is more concerned about the evils.

He follows Agatha more, despite Sophie's warning that she's still a little sick, and even asks if he can hold her, because he's about to snap.

She asks if he's okay and why he's so scared. He doesn't answer.

Sophie tries to get a kiss out of him before the Trial like before, but he asks her if she really loves him. Sophie's obviously confused, but Tedros asks again if Sophie is telling the truth about loving him, that if she's honest with him, he'll finally explain why he goes to both schools. She says yes and goes in for a kiss. Even with Agatha as a cockroach on her shoulder, Tedros backs away when a new evil is born. She tries to get him to come back, but he tells her that they'll talk again just before the Trial.

Agatha goes to class to turn in her work to see Tedros being, verbally, calmed by Dovey. Just as she nears Dovey's desk, Tedros quickly walks out if the room.

"What was that about?"

"Just some stress before the Trial. I've never seen the poor boy so flustered."

"If he's that scared, why can't you take him out so he doesn't have to compete?"

"He made his friends a promise, Agatha. And I offered to, but he told me he needed to be in the woods tonight, no matter what."

"But what if he gets hurt? Didn't you see him? He CAN'T compete in the Trial!"

Cue Dovey looked at Agatha with serious "Hold up" eyes. "He... He really didn't tell you?"

"Tell me what?"

"Well... He spoke so fondly of you, I thought he'd told you."

Agatha admits she had no clue what Dovey's talking about, and Dovey excuses her.

Before the Trial, Tedros is a trembling mess and almost misses when Sophie talks to him. He begs her to stay with him during the Trial, to promise she'll be waiting for him when he goes in the woods. She does very hastily because she's immediately pulled into the forest.

When it's his turn, before Hester, he charges in and attacks anything and anyone that moves in the woods, Evers, Nevers, and woodland creatures alike, consequences be damned.

Even when Chaddick tries to calm him down, Tedros sees Anadil's, Ravan's, and Vex's evils, and yells for Chaddick to get away from him and runs to look for Sophie.

When Tedros and Hester clash, he's lost his sword and instead fights with a branch, which he uses to beat the demon and Hester to Hell and high water. THIS IS AN UGLY FIGHT, BTW, AND HE ONLY GETS THE UPPER HAND WHEN SHE GETS CARELESS. He collapses from the exhaustion and despair sorrow that he lost control of himself and is too busy having a mental and emotional meltdown about it to see a weak demon arm go in for a stab.

Agatha knocks it away and saves him before comforting him, even though he tells her she shouldn't be in the woods or near him because he could hurt her.

He sees hot pink evils(the evils to him have the same color as people's fingerglows) and un-disguises Sophie.

He yells at her for lying and breaking her promise, especially after he trusted her, which he kicks himself for because he admits he knew he shouldn't have because what everyone said was true, that she was a witch and a liar, and, as the two final blows, with his hands grasping his hair and his body curling inward as he struggles to stand, he screams that he was right, that the School Master didn't make a miatake, that Agatha and Sophie are in the right schools, and that Sophie belongs in both the School for Evil's Doom Room and, more extremely, the bottomless pit of Hell, just like he does, because he knows she killed the Beast.

After this he passes out and the two girls stare at each other before Agatha leaves, just as the students see what's happened, Tristan keeping Tedros calm with hair ruffles as the prince hyperventilates on the grass.

He's not really allowed to attend the School for Evil for a little while, just in case he snaps again.

He's back to silence and staring, but he now has to write on a notepad provided by Chaddick and Tristan.

They are the only ones he WANTS to see. Neither know his talent.

Beatrix tries to pay a visit, but decides it's best to leave him be after she slipped him a note and then heard him screaming.

Agatha just doesn't ask to visit him because everything he said still has her shaken and stirred.

Chaddick and Tristan deliver him his homework, until he asks for Agatha to do it, so they can catch up on their work.

Lie. He just wants to see her.

She visits anyway, and asks if everything he said was true. He nods.

She then tells him Dovey brought up how close she thought they were, considering how he 'slept' in her room for a couple nights and was found asleep outside her door after sleepwalking, and asks why he goes to both schools, even though he's supppsed to be a Never. Tedros writes that he can SEE the evil in others, describing them as monsters that follow people and coax them into doing worse evils. He didn't see any surrounding Agatha during orientation, though does note the small evils she has are lies she told in oreder to help Sophie, which explains why they're so small compared to Sophie, who has larger evils like pride and murder; Agatha's evils are the size of medium sized rats while Sophie's are about the size of tigers or bears. He even explains that he's snapped before and it led to him killing a maid.

The whole "going to both schools" is an accommodation made for him for that reason; Evers just don't have that much evil in them, none that's really noticeable for him.

Agatha realizes that his talent is the reason for his silence and staring, and why he follows her and other Evers around.

Tedros tries to hold her hand, but falters and instead holds his knees to his chest, saying without looking at her, "Sorry I can't get you two home, wherever it is. If you do find a way, though, just go and take that witch with you. Nobody wants either of you now. I can make do with my mates."

Agatha only hugs him and tells him that she's not going anywhere because she knows HE DOES want her around; it's either she stays or he's stuck following Evergirls to cool his head.

Tedros laughs bitterly that he's in the right school, considering he's not much of a prince or doing much to help either of the girls. Agatha just tells him, "Shut up, you creep." Only it's said in a really sweet way.

He gets a real Ever uniform, but still wears his black coat and pants because, again, who's stopping him?

The Nevers call him a traitor, but he unsheathes his sword and scares them away.

Hopes that Hort, Ravan, and Vex are okay.

It ABSOLUTELY has to do with the snake he originally put in Sophie's bed that moved to Hester's.

It may also have to do with the uniforms and dead birds he stapled to ceiling of his room in Evil.

It's not that he hates his roommates and fellow Nevers in general, he just targets people who get on his back and won't get off.

Dot has never been one of these people. After putting cockroaches in Hester's, Anadil's, and Sophie's uniforms, he left Dot a few books, one detailing the history of Nottingham, one with really good chocolate recipes, and one titled, 'Cruelty and Kindness: How To Be Evil Without Being Evil.' He also left a note reading, 'Sorry for the noise. I couldn't help myself!😈' and a bar of chocolate that had candy embedded in it, aome being peanut butter, and a jelly center.

Has pranked Chaddick and Tristan by not walking behind them when they think he's following them and by simply smiling as he walks in between them. He doesn't do anything, he just smiles amd they think he's about to do something; it's the thought that counts.

He's thought about pranking Agatha, but instead let her witness his greatest prank yet:

He took all the Evers' and Nevers' shoes and tied them or placed them in high up places, even his own and Agatha's so no one could get blamed for it. Well, everyone's shoes except Sophie's. He spent an hour laughing his ass off in the boy's Groom Room when he remembered the glares students from both schools gave Sophie; he just put Dot's under her bed next to her snack stash.

He can be an asshole when he wants to be.

Chaddick tried getting him back with a bucket of water held up by a cracked open door, but Tedros stared at him all day, trying to figure out why Chaddick kept making sure he was infront of him.

Hates Beatrix's pet rabbit. He literally got caught glaring by Chaddick and admitted the wanted to boil the damn thing.

His animal companion/henchman was a mountain lion

"The son of a lion was a true lone wolf, one a heart that never forgave and a mind that never forgot. Good in his looks and kindness through distance, but Evil in his eyes and silence, in the footsteps that no one seened to hear, even when he was close enough to strike like death in the night."

[monixa]

Wrote this a few weeks ago and never posted it. I still feel this way so here goes.

My blog is small and it's purpose it to find content I like amd mainly lurking 😊. I found myself sucked in the fandom (charmies 4ever ✌) because after seeing the movie (no need to name it, lol) I found myself lost and at the same time changed. I want to and do believe that there was more than just a friendship after the movie and yearned for more of it, for the same feeling in my life, for them to be free. It made me rediscover fanfics l, it made me learn new things about people, about feelings, about LGBTQ+, about communication in genwral. It made me want to support this community in my own little way even more than I ready was, it made me want to teach others about it. Most of all it made me feel less alone in 2020, it was and still is an escape and it has made a better person.

Today I found out that more and more fanfic authors (and others who are not fanfic authors) are leaving the fandom, I kinda knew/ felt this would be coming, the signs were there in the first days after the shitshow began.

I totally respect anyone's decision and opinion on this, I do feel dissappointed about a few things i have seen these days:

- jundgement, you can have an opinion but do not judge, it is not our place to do that. Ultimately this is a personal issue A is facing and it is his alone (with his close ones)

- the feeling that anyone owes the public/fans/fandoms any explanation. At least at this point in time, he does not owe anyone anything. If he owes anyone anything, it is his kids. He does not owe us or anyone, any explanation/reaction/statement.

- lack of perspective. Put yourself in the other's shoes and see if it looks the same as before. See if you would do as you say you would. It's just an imagination exercise because it's not real for us, we can only imagine, but if we truly imagine it we surely see it different. I mean, in the absurd scenario where we find ourselves in a similar situation (accused of something by someone, doesn't matter what) would we want this to happen to us? Public crucification? Would we want to be found guilty on SM? Is this the jury now?

- even if I don't believe any of the allegations, I still did not like the assumptions on how a victim or agressor should react/say/state and so on. We are different and we might or most likely will, react differently to the same thing. I recommend whatching the miniseries "Unbelievable" and you will understand better. Certainly many victims have similar reactions, but NOT all. I do not believe that these alleged victims are indeed victims, too many holes in their stories and timing is suspicious as hell, not too mention the soon to be ex wife's behavious in the matter (or generally).

We are not to say that we know this to be 100% bullshit (even if we believe this to be exactly that, bullshit), but we are entitled to our opinion and beliefs. Time will tell, those of us who will still be in the fandom in the future will look back at these times and talk about it as we've done in the past and pat ourselves on the back for waiting and trusting that the truth will come out.

This post is not making too much sense, but I felt the need to vent, even into the void if nobody ever reads it.

I feel sad that some of my favourite fanfic authors and fellow fandom membera have made up their mind so easily, I will miss their fics and blogs but I do respect their decision, and it ultimateley lets us know that the person behind aome beautitiful fics/blogs is just a human.

As for A, I hope he keeps up with therapy, this must be such a painful time for him and his close ones. ❤

To the people still in the fandom, I love you ❤❤❤, you have made my 2020 happier, you have inspired me, you have tought me so much.

[healthnotion]

The 4 Sport Coats of a Well-Rounded Wardrobe

We’ve highlighted the benefits of sport coats numerous times here on AoM: they lend you a fitter, more masculine silhouette regardless of your body shape; offer plenty of pockets to stash your stuff; and give you a removable layer that helps you adjust to changing temperatures. Perhaps best of all, these versatile garments allow you to look sharp and put-together — in a variety of situations, with a variety of dress codes — without appearing too formal or overdressed.

Need we go on?

You may have been convinced of the desirability of adding a sport coat, or several, to your wardrobe, but just haven’t known where to start, and/or how to expand your collection. How many sports jackets does a man need, and what kind of jackets should they be?

The number will really depend on your lifestyle: the climate and local culture of where you live, your personal style, and how often you have the opportunity, and simply the desire, to look snazzier both on and off the job.

With that in mind, today we’ll suggest 4 types of sport coats that, for a good segment of men, will make for a well-rounded, yet un-bloated wardrobe. Changing seasons call for different colors and materials in sport coats, and these 4 will carry you through the whole year, and every kind of event, in style.

Hopsack Sport Coat

If you only have one sport coat, which kind should you own?

Many style experts will recommend a navy blazer as the first, core piece of your jacket wardrobe.

I disagree though. Navy blazers are certainly sharp and versatile (and have a spot on this list). But I find I really don’t wear mine very often; it never seems quite right for the social and professional occasions in my life (being a little too formal), and I don’t think I look as good or feel as good in it as I do in another one of my jackets: the hopsack sport coat.

In our more casual society, I think one’s foundational, and perhaps only, sport coat should be a bit more laid-back. That’s where the hopsack comes in.

The “basket weave” of this wool coat keeps it very light, breathable, and naturally wrinkle resistant, and gives the material a coarser texture and the kind of sporty feel that makes it look great with jeans — which really, is what you wear sport coats with most often these days. At the same time, the weave still feels substantial and drapes nicely, so that you can dress the jacket up with trousers or khakis if you wish.

The hopsack sport coat is at least a 3-season piece, and can go all year in many places. The airy yet substantial weave makes it fine for the summer, most at home in the fall and spring, and passable in the winter — if you live in a place that’s not too frigid.

Brown’s a great color for this jacket, as it’s neutral and versatile and pairs well with denim. Gray is another good option. Consider going for one in green, if you plan to pair it often with khakis and/or trousers.  

Functional and handsome, you’ll find yourself throwing on your hopsack sport coat for everything from date night, to a company dinner, to parent/teacher conferences, to your travels and trips.

Navy Blazer

The above caveats aside, the navy blazer is a good staple to have in your wardrobe. While, just like the other jackets on this list, the blazer can be worn in more casual situations, it alone can be dressed all the way up to the semi-formal and business professional range.

For the blazer isn’t technically a sport coat at all, but its own kind of garment, differentiated by a simpler, sleeker, smoother, “hard-finish” wool fabric and a more structured fit.  

On the formality scale, the blazer resides just below the suit jacket and just above the sports jacket, but can be dressed up or down to encompass a wide variety of styles and dress codes. While blazers come in various colors, the most traditional is navy blue. Sharp and masculine, a navy blazer can be worn year-round and goes with just about everything.

That includes jeans, though the formality of the jacket doesn’t pair best with denim. If you want to wear jeans, the other jackets on this list would be better choices. For that reason, while choosing plastic or mother-of-pearl buttons that match or complement the color of the fabric is recommended if you want to give the blazer the most versatility (muted buttons give it a more casual look), if you already know your blazer is going to be the jacket you put on when you aren’t wearing jeans, then dial the formality up to its fullest by going with classic, metallic buttons. Designate the blazer as your classy jacket.

Click here for tips on how to wear a navy blazer with style.

Thick, Textured Cold Weather Sport Coat

You could wear a hopsack jacket in the winter, but it’s not ideal; not only is the fabric too light to keep you warm, it won’t complement the heavier-weight garments you’ll be wearing in colder weather either. That is to say, a thin sport coat doesn’t look right when paired with thicker, chunkier trousers, sweaters, scarves, etc.

So, while you can skip this suggestion if you live in a temperate or consistently warm clime, if you live someplace where the temperature gets chilly, it’s a good idea to invest in a thick, textured, wintertime sport coat.

Here I’m talking about jackets made with a fabric like tweed or corduroy. Fabrics with substance, warmth, and texture. You can do some interesting patterns here – checks, stripes, plaid – but as most guys have trouble even figuring out what to wear with a solid colored coat, I’d recommend getting just that, or something with a very subtle, minimal pattern (Herringbone is a safe way to add visual interest while keeping things simple). Brown or gray in color. Coats in this kind of straightforward style will go with the most things in your wardrobe, and be easiest to wear.

The sturdy jackets in this category have the same sharp-yet-casual vibe as hopsack coats, and can be worn in the same kind of situations; they’re not business wear (unless you work in a more casual or professorial line of work), but more for social events and outside-of-work-work events. They look great over a sweater or under an overcoat; in fact, they can function as your overcoat, if you throw on a pair of gloves and a scarf (a great look), and the temps aren’t too frigid. They look great with jeans, but can also work with nice wool trousers for dressier occasions.

Thin, Lightweight Warm Weather Sport Coat

Here you have the flip side of the suggestion above: you could wear a hopsack jacket in the summer, but it isn’t ideal, both because your warm weather jacket could be even cooler, and because it doesn’t read as a “summertime” garment.

A hopsack sport coat is cool and breathable, but it’s still wool; better to have a jacket that’s made from lightweight, open-weave cotton or cotton blends — think linen or seersucker-esque materials. You’ll also want a jacket that’s only half-lined — that only has that silky inside lining in the sleeves (to allow your dress-shirt-sheathed arms to slide smoothly through them), but not in the torso — to maximize breathability.

You want your summertime sport coat to match the looser, laid-back vibe of the season. That means a softer, less structured construction (don’t be afraid of a few wrinkles and rumples), and brighter, bolder colors and patterns. Though I’d suggest getting the other sport coats on this list in solid, neutral colors, summer is the time to break out of this box a bit. You’ll pretty much only be wearing it with white or light-colored button-downs, so you don’t have to worry so much about matching it with other pieces. Blue and white is a can’t-miss summer jacket color combo, but try some interesting patterns with it — I like gingham check myself.

You don’t necessarily need all 4 of the above sport coats in your wardrobe, but if you live in a 4-season locale, having them all at hand will ensure you always have a jacket that’s ideal in function, feel, and look for each time of year, and for various kinds of events. Keep in mind you don’t have to get all of the coats at the same time; start with the hopsack (or whichever kind of jacket you think you’ll personally get the most use from), and then slowly build out some additional options over time.

The post The 4 Sport Coats of a Well-Rounded Wardrobe appeared first on The Art of Manliness.

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