#american dragon crush

[tvrningout-a]

i love y'all so much :' )))

[madeinjapan-thailand-blbambeyond]

MAN CRUSH FANDOM • MADE IN THAILAND

MONDOP HEAMTAN

[Nickname: BANK] [Stage Name: ISBANKY]

[adashofniallandasprinkleoflunacy]

throwing up blood

[ladyloveandjustice]

My Favorite Books I Read in 2023

I read a ton of good novels last year- 36 in all (and uh, 78 manga/graphic novels, but we'll examine that in another post). Here's a link to my Goodreads year in books (the manga is at the beginning, the novels start with Siren Queen) and my storygraph wrap up.  

I reread a ton of Discworld this year, and it's as spectacular as ever. But what about new reads?

Well, here are my favorite books I read in 2023!

In the Dream House by Carmen Maria Machado

This is an autobiographical memoir about the abusive relationship the author went through with her ex-girlfriend. It's absolutely gut-wrenching, and at times, achingly beautiful. Machado uses the house she shared with her girlfriend, which she calls the "dream house", as a back drop. It's a place she always wanted and also a place she became trapped in, Machado's language is beautiful as she explores the relationship from different lenses-- The Dream House as Lesbian Cult Classic, the Dream House as Noir, the Dream House as Creature Feature, the Dream House as Stoner Comedy....All facets of the relationship are explored in a way that grips you by the throat and makes you remember everyone who ever tried to suffocate you-- but it also explores the hard work of moving on, of picking up the pieces, of living and embracing tenderness along with hardship.

I especially related to Machado's struggle to talk about abuse between queer lovers because of her fears of giving homophobes more ammunition...and when she says "we deserve to have our wrongdoing represented as much as our heroism, because when we refuse wrongdoing as a possibility for a group of people, we refuse their humanity", I felt that deeply.

This wasn't just one of my favorite books this year, it goes on the list of all-time favorite books. I wish I had this kind of writing style. I'll be returning to this again and again.

Zachary Ying and the Dragon Emperor by Xiran Jay Zhao

A middle-grade novel about a Chinese-American teen who feels a bit alienated from his heritage, which becomes a bit of an issue once he finds out the First Emperor of China has possessed his A.R. Gaming Headset. Now he needs to close a portal to the underworld with the help of other kids possessed by emporers.

This was a whole lot of fun, and often quite poignant. I was unsure if I could really enjoy middle-grade books as an adult, and this absolutely proves I can. There's a lot of really interesting Chinese history blended with action-packed fantasy, and exploration of the complicated feelings a kid can have about their own heritage . The dynamic between Zachary and Qin Shi Huang was so entertaining with the Emperor being villainous, heroic, charismatic, detestable-- and Zachary realizing how his complicated feelings about him mirror his relationship with his culture at large. There was also a lot of fun with other historical figures, and Xiran's take on Wu Zetian is a joy. (Also, if you like Yu-Gi-Oh!, you'll probably like this, since Xiran says it was one of their influences).

Camp Damascus by Chuck Tingle

Rose is young woman who's raised in a fundamentalist Christian household, and she's a devout, obedient daughter. But some weird things are happening. She's seeing a terrifying demon everywhere, insects are coming out of her mouth....and she's possibly having feelings about other girls. What's going on?

Yes, this is by the Chuck Tingle who makes all those Tinglers. But THIS one... will make you tingle with fear! It's a great horror novel! It's skin-crawlingly creepy at times, but also does a great job digging into how fundamentalist dogma harms queer people, and the hypocrisy of such beliefs. The conversion camp aspect is handled tastefully, and overall it was a great spooky read that's also ultimately very affirming, cathartic, and hopeful.

Qualia the Purple by Hisamitsu Ueo

You might go into this thinking it's just a quirky yuri light novel about a schoolgirl and her crush who sees everyone around her as robots (like literally, when she looks at someone she sees a robot instead of a human). But it quickly becomes surreal queer psychological horror steeped in absolutely wild applications of quantum mechanics and thought-provoking time travel.  Some of the quantum mechanics  exposition dumps were a bit much but I deeply enjoyed having my mind cracked open by this book. 

It's one of the most interesting takes of time loop stories I've seen. But it definitely covers a lot of rough subject matter, including a relationship with a serious age gap and extremely messed up relationships, so be cautious if you have triggers.

Our Wives Under the Sea by Julia Armfield

This book follows Miri, whose wife goes missing on a deep-sea submarine mission for six months. Miri thought her wife dead, but she miraculously returns one day...but her wife has changed. She's like a stranger. She may have bought the horrors of the sea home with her.

This is a gripping exploration of grief and loss combined with a delicious, slow horror that creeps under your skin. There's excellent Lovecraftian and body horror elements to the novel, but it works very effectively as a metaphor for a loved one going through trauma, and a relationship starting to crumble because everything seems different. A moment that really stuck out to me is when Miri copes with her wife's disappearance by frequenting an online community where women roleplay as wives with husbands missing in space. The way the online drama of the community interacted with her grief was  both funny and heartbreaking. 

This is another example of a book that makes me deeply jealous with its lyrical writing, and another one for the ever-lengthening all time favorites list.

Otherside Picnic Volume 8: Accomplices No More by Iori Miyazawa

The latest entry in a series about two girls exploring an alternate dimension full of creepypasta monsters, while also falling in love with each other. See my other reviews here and here.

This volume has the payoff to a lot of careful character work and relationship building, and it was completely satisfying. In fact, it was...show-stopping. Spectacular.  Incredible. I loved the exploration of how love, sex, and romance are so different for different people and it's impossible to put it in neat boxes. The frank and messy conversation our leads have about their relationship was perfect and so was that absolutely  bonkers, wonderful finale. This is another one for the all times favorite list, and I loved it so much I wrote a extremely long review/recap here. 

Queer Ducks (and Other Animals): The Natural World of Animal Sexuality by Eliot Schrefer

This was a well-researched, well-crafted, easy to read book that explores queerness (mainly homosexuality, bisexuality, trans and genderfluid expressions in animals, and even the question of if and how animals can related to gender) in the animal kingdom. Though it's definitely aimed at teens, I learned a lot from it (who knew female bonobos were such life goals) and it presented its information in a fun way. It included some interesting examinations of how proof of homosexuality and bisexuality in animals was historically suppressed and filtered through homophobic assumptions. If you want to learn a little animal science in an accessible format, definitely check this out.

Night’s Edge by Liz Kerin

The story follows Mia, a woman in her 20's living with her vampire mother. Her whole life revolves around not drawing suspicion towards her Mom. She also has to make sure to feed her Mom some of her blood every night--lest her mother fall back in with her abusive boyfriend and start hunting humans.  But when Mia meets a cute girl, she starts to dream of living her own life...

It was a really interesting use of vampirism as a metaphor for both living with a parent struggling with addiction and having an abusive parent. It's just a well-told, heartwrenching tale that got deep into the character's mindsets. I thought the ending was bit abrupt and rushed, but it did make more sense once I realized this was the first in a duology. It's a fascinating take on vampires, and I'm interested in seeing more.

The Adventures of Amina al-Sirafi by Shannon Chakraborty

This novel follows a middle-aged Muslim female pirate living around the Arabian Peninsula. She's supposed to be in retirement, but wouldn't you know it, she's lured in for one last job! I she rescues a kidnapped girl,  she'll have all the riches she needs to set her family up for life. So Amina begins her adventure of fighting demons and monsters and ex-husbands. But the job might not be all it seems.

This novel is full of all the entertaining swashbuckling action and shenanigans that any pirate story should have. It's a rollicking good time, and feeds my craving for middle aged women going on quests and kicking ass. Amina's journey is a fun, wild ride full of dynamic characters and interesting mythology!

Yellowface by R.F. Kuang

Juniper is friends with a successful Chinese-American author, Athena Liu, and has always been deeply jealous of her. When Athena dies in front of her, Juniper decides to steal her manuscript rooted in Chinese history and claim it as her own. But plagiarism might catch up with her...

This is a strong example of a book I thought was really well-done, but one I'm probably never going to read again. The way it depicted Twitter drama is just too accurate and I got anxiety. It did such a good job putting you in Juniper's awful shoes so you can feel the pressure close in along with her. The book's commentary on the insidious racism of the publishing industry was effective, and it made a horrible character's journey fascinating to follow. I was so intrigued yet anxious I had to force myself to finish the last few pages.

Bonus read:

Legends and Lattes by Travis Baldtree

A very cute novel about an orc named Viv who decides to retire from the violent life of a bounty hunter and run a coffee shop instead. She ends up getting a lot of assistance from a succubus named Tandri...and my, is that a slow-burn coffee shop romance brewing? This book reminds me a lot of various cozy slice-of-life anime, and it's nice to be getting more of that feeling in book form. I wish there was a little more specific to the fantasy world rather than making it a coffee shop that line up 1 to 1 to a modern day shop, but it was definitely a sweet read.

[cherry-bomble]

people who have watched d20 please don't vote! rb for greater sample size

[most-datable-datable-bracket]

ROUND 3 MATCH 1

Qiu propaganda:

“i love them sooooo much i was completely head over heels for cove but then i found out about qiu lin and ol2 and they took that spot in my brain IMMEDIATELY. that should say enough. also i just really want them to win this time </3”

“They're my beloved :] and also the only OL character not disqualified so I had to hdjdbdj I just wanna see how far they can go now :]”

“Genderfluid ADHD monarch. They enjoy mountain biking and ballet. As a kid, if they're set to Crush, they'll desperately try to find a way to link the MC's favorite color to themselves in an attempt to impress. They're the most popular kid in town and for good reason. Can be sharp as a tack, especially in social situations, but also can be so endearingly stupid.”

“Listen. Listen to me. Here's why Qiu Lin deserves the win (ha)

- They're a trans POC love interest (specifically genderfluid and chinese-american)

- They spend a lot of time in Step 1 (the first part of the game where everyone is a kid) being super nice and trying to accommodate for you

- They specifically try super hard to bring you (and Tamarack) into their already established friendship group

- (It doesn't work out super well initially but they're trying, be nice)

- Qiu's also just. Super sweet when you're set to have a crush on them in Step 1

- Like, their word count almost doubles when they have a crush on your MC

- There's one part of the game where you can bring up your favourite colour

- On a friendship route (or if you're set to neighbours), Qiu will maybe make a short comment about something related to your favourite colour

- On crush? Qiu stretches so far to tie your favourite colour back themself. Your favourite colour is green? That's the colour of their jacket!!! It's black? Like their bike, did they mention their cool bike!!! It's white, [imagine this is in italics] the inside of their house (no, really)!!! [end of imagining this is italics]

- They're also set to have an arc about much they accommodate for others and how they go from over accommodation in Step 1 to no accommodation in Step 2 to finding a balance in Step 3

- Also, like, they do in fact go through gender identity issues. In fact, they spend Step 2 not quite knowing their gender identity fully

Now, vote for Qiu!!!!”

"Genderfluid and uses they/he pronouns.

Their hobbies are mountain biking and ballet.

Most popular kid in town by, like, a mile. And for very good reason.

Immediately devotes themself to making sure their new neighbors (the MC and Tamarack) feel welcome in their new town.

Loooooves teasing their friends.

Is genuinely confused if the MC doesn't immediately consider them friends because. He considered you friends.

Not canonically ADHD (yet. things can change.) but like. The ADHD vibes are strong.

Forgetful and writes stuff down in a notepad to remember it, then proceeds to lose the notes. This happens constantly.

They have a whole arc about going from being overly accommodating and giving too much of themself to others, to closing off and not giving anything, to finding balance and figuring out how to be kind and caring without overexerting themselves.

Also, one of their closest friends is a trans woman. This is relevant simply because I love Renee and had to mention her."

Fenris propaganda:

“Broody hot elf with glowing tattoos and a sultry voice that escaped from his former slaver and joins your ragtag team of misfits that save the city. He is snarky with your companions and always so surprised to be loved and supported. Everytime I play and try to romance someone else I fail because I can't not flirt with him.”

“I've played through DA2 four times now and every time I think I'm gonna date someone other than Fenris and every time I don't do that”

“Please he is my husband. I literally cannot do a playthrough without romancing him regardless of how much I try to give the other chara ters a chance because his romance lines are just so good and he's always so surprised that Hawke is into him.”

[erinelliotc]

Okay hear me out:

Version of the Ed, Edd n Eddy special Valentine's episode "Hanky ​​Panky Hullabaloo" where everything's exactly the same except that first of all starts, the cupids see Double D giving the Valentine's Day card to Eddy and Sarah tries to make Eddy fall in love with him as a prank, but nothing happens. Jimmy wonders if Sarah’s arrow didn’t hit the target and she says she never misses the target. So Jimmy tries to make Double D fall in love with Eddy and nothing happens again. Jimmy fears their arrows aren’t working and complains to Sarah. She says there’s no way the arrows aren’t working and then tries to make May fall in love with Double D and this time it works, showing Jimmy that their arrows are working perfectly as they should. They spend some time thinking what happened and eventually realize what’s going on: the only situation in which their arrows would have no effect would be when trying to make people who are already in love with each other fall for each other again. They can't make people who are already in love fall in love again. And that's how Jimmy and Sarah found that Edd and Eddy have a crush on each other.

Another possible version would be the arrows to work as in "American Dragon: Jake Long". If a person is already in love with someone, the arrows will have the opposite effect and will make that person hate the person they were in love with. But I don't think it'd be so interesting to see Eddy or Double D hating each other for a long time, or maybe I just can't imagine an interesting scenario with this dynamic.

[eyesmadeofpearls]

Since it's not 2020-21 anymore i feel there's one thing i have to say to you all (Prepare for a yap session, and please remember that just because something isn't canon doesn't mean you cant ship it! please, continue to ship as i don't think anyone has a problem with it! :) This is just for people who seriously believe that any of its going to be put into the show and have went as far as harassing horikoshi, so if you find yourself getting angry with my words, then you've probably got a guilty conscious)

The bakudeku shippers who harassed the author and put him under social pressure have completely ruined the series. 🤗

Saying that he "doesn't understand English so he can't be affected by what fans say 🥺" is extremely rude and sooo fucking annoying of you. Of course bro knows English, he kind of has to?? To further my point i think it's pretty well known that the people of Japan are very particular about how others perceive them, they definitely care more than Americans do, that's for sure. To add onto my point above, the social culture over there is extremely lawful and strict, so stepping out of the norm can be scary. Crossing that unspoken line has created problems for people in the past and it's why there's a huge mental health epidemic over there. If you can imagine a handful of people over there harming themselves and becoming shut ins because of that pressure from people in their country, then imagine being a huge artist and show maker in that situation. Except.. It's not just half of Japan who's got their eye on him anymore, it's half of America too now. That is more than 'just' pressure especially when you know how die hard fans can really be.

I firmly believe that in his case he opted not to make any ships canon because he didn't want to anger bakudeku shippers. All of his official art both out of his work career (drawing just for fun) and in his work career (the manga and show) have been set up to ship uraraka and izuku. People seem to have forgotten that although a majority of the show watchers from America are teen girls like me, this show is for teen boys living in Japan because it's shonen. In japan it's also more socially acceptable to be straight and that's why it took so long for gay marriage to be legalized. So no, i don't believe that the horikoshi would be making a boy love anime and manga about teenage heroes in training. Notice how the plot doesn't focus on who he's in love with but it's been very clear he has a crush on uraraka? Yeah, that's what Shonen is. It's more plot than inner life things. It's like dragon ball z. Yeah, goku's got a love interest but guys aren't worried about that. Still, it's cool to see he's got a girlfriend since that's what's inspiring to teen boys i guess. I also dislike fans treatment of "feminine" acting guys. Midoriya isn't feminine, you're just an American and so am i, but at least i know that the way they raise boys over there vs here is wildly different. Our boys are quite frankly super disrespectful, loud, and ignorant as teens. The boys over there have to be respectful, they have to follow the rules, they can't afford to be loud, and their main focus is on being an adult and getting a job. Though i guess their parents strictness no matter how hard they try doesn't stop them from being rowdy after school. It's nothing compared to how guys over here are rowdy though. Because guys over there don't sit in the back of your class making fake moaning noises or begin to flip tables and scream loudly. Think of Midoriya like spiderman, he's just easily flustered, kind, and respectful but not "feminine" or gay.

Also, telling fans they watched the show with their eyes closed just because we acknowledged midoriya wouldn't get with his bully and rival is crazy work.. "He apologized!!'' if a murderer apologized, would you forgive them?? Yeah, he apologized and changed, but that doesn't mean its all okay now. Bro literally told him to jump off a roof, burned the notebook he values the most, and then proceeded to throw it in the water causing all of his time and effort to be practically useless. Not to mention he beat him to the point of real injuries and continued to be a right dick even after "apologizing". (An apology means nothing if you don't actually try to change and be a better person.) And no, insulting someone on purpose isn't romance worthy material. Unless you specify you're joking then you have brain damage for thinking anyone in their right mind would date someone who constantly calls them a nutsack face, an idiot, a dumbass, a loser, pathetic, a nerd, and genuinely believes that you should be below them in every way unless they've got a twisted degrading kink. And also, sacrificing himself for Midoriya is just plot. Everyone at one point has sacrificed themselves for him because he's the main character, the entire point of them trying to fight for him before he does anything is to weaken the enemies so that Midoriya can go in and finish them off after they beat the villains to near death. They all work towards protecting his future and upping his chances to defeat their common enemy and the man who raised villain motivation by creating more of them. (AFO) So yeah, no, it's not romantical at all that Bakugo wants to be heroic and give the only person who can defeat AFO a fighting chance. Midoriya has gotten hurt trying to protect everyone, uraraka included. But now that you know this would you say to my face that he's got feelings for her too? Or all of his friends? No, you wouldn't. Because that's just what a hero does.

Him and uraraka were meant to be a slow build up, people keep saying "well he always blushes!" yeah, but never at other men. It's been only women who can make his face entirely red like that. In japan, anime uses blush for multiple reasons, so you need to learn to read context on why they're blushing and the room.. Shock, a feeling of content, happiness, embarrassment, and romantical feelings can all contribute to blushing. If a guy were to put him in a headlock and bring him close to their chest, he wouldn't blush.. If a girl did it, his entire face would become pink. To clear up the blushing accusations, he blushed at tsu because she asked him to put her down since she was embarrassed, and he got embarrassed too because she didn't want to be held and felt bad for making her feel that way after realizing the implications of the way he held her. He blushed at hatsume because her literal chest was in his face, on top of him. That's called shock and embarrassment which is something you'd feel if a random pretty lady landed on you chest first. The other times with hatsume he never blushes again like he did and they return to speaking terms other than that one time she held his waist but that's for the same reasons as before. Uraraka however has managed to get him to blush with a full face without even doing anything. He called her cute, he said he liked her hair, her outfit, and he's always got to be standing next to her in every official art piece. Tell me when he's ever said anything like that about a man other than "he's so cool"?

Remember that in Japan love is a touchy subject, you're expected to focus on your future first so that you can have all that you need to settle down. A lot of people don't even say i love you until marriage over there, so it's not odd that Midoriya isn't as open about his feelings unlike uraraka. I think it's just common everywhere for guys to not be the first ones to say anything.. When i met a lot of my exes i was always the one to say i love you first and to initiate things, and i think that's just because it makes guys feel better knowing that they're being chased for some reason or it could hurt their social reputation with their friends who'd probably tease them about it. But anyways, when you pay attention to the way they act near each other, things tend to fall in place. Your actions will always speak louder than your words.

[battyaboutbooksreviews]

🌙 Ramadan Mubarak - Books ft. Muslims

🦇 Good morning, my beautiful bookish bats. To celebrate this Islamic holy month, here are a FEW books featuring Muslim characters. I hope you consider adding a few to your TBR.

❓What was the last book you read that taught you something new OR what's at the top of your TBR?

🌙 A Woman is No Man - Etaf Rum 🌙 Amal Unbound - Aisha Saeed 🌙 Love From A to Z - S.K. Ali 🌙 Hana Khan Carries On - Uzma Jalaluddin 🌙 Yes No Maybe So - Becky Albertalli and Aisha Saeed 🌙 Evil Eye - Etaf Rum 🌙 I Am Malala - Malala Yousafzai 🌙 Exit West - Mohsin Hamid 🌙 Written in the Stars - Aisha Saeed 🌙 The Night Diary - Veera Hiranandani 🌙 Much Ado About Nada - Uzma Jalaluddin 🌙 The Eid Gift - S.K. Ali 🌙 More Than Just a Pretty Face - Syed M. Masood 🌙 Yusuf Azeem Is Not a Hero - Saadia Faruqi 🌙 If You Could Be Mine by Sara Farizan 🌙 Snow - Orhan Pamuk 🌙 Sofia Khan Is Not Obliged - Ayisha Malik 🌙 The Proudest Blue by Ibtihaj Muhammad 🌙 And I Darken - Kiersten White 🌙 The Last White Man - Mohsin Hamid

🌙 Hijab Butch Blues - Lamya H 🌙 The Bad Muslim Discount - Syed M. Masood 🌙 Ms. Marvel - G. Willow Wilson 🌙 Love from Mecca to Medina - S.K. Ali 🌙 The City of Brass - S.A. Chakraborty 🌙 The Love Match by Priyanka Taslim 🌙 A Map of Home by Randa Jarrar 🌙 A Very Large Expanse of Sea by Tahereh Mafi 🌙 An Emotion of Great Delight by Tahereh Mafi 🌙 The Love and Lies of Rukhsana Ali by Sabina Khan 🌙 The Moor’s Account - Laila Lalami 🌙 Only This Beautiful Moment by Abdi Nazemian 🌙 Salt Houses by Hala Alyan 🌙 When a Brown Girl Flees by Aamna Quershi 🌙 Jasmine Falling by Shereen Malherbe 🌙 Between Two Moons by Aisha Abdel Gawad 🌙 Sea Prayer by Khaled Hosseini 🌙 A Thousand Splendid Suns by Khaled Hosseini 🌙 The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini 🌙 Unmarriageable by Soniah Kamal

🌙 Home Fire by Kamila Shamsie 🌙 All My Rage by Sabaa Tahir 🌙 The Bohemians by Jasmin Darznik 🌙 Ayesha at Last by Uzma Jalaluddin 🌙 A Case of Exploding Mangoes by Mohammed Hanif 🌙 Chronicle of a Last Summer by Yasmine El Rashidi 🌙 A Girl Like That by Tanaz Bhathena 🌙 Other Words for Home by Jasmine Warga 🌙 The Mismatch by Sara Jafari 🌙 Does My Head Look Big In This? by Randa Abdel-Fattah 🌙 You Truly Assumed by Laila Sabreen 🌙 Saints and Misfits by S.K. Ali 🌙 Once Upon an Eid - S.K. Ali and Aisha Saeed 🌙 Tell Me Again How a Crush Should Feel by Sara Farizan 🌙 Alif the Unseen by G. Willow Wilson 🌙 The Henna Wars by Adiba Jaigirdar 🌙 A Show for Two by Tashie Bhuiyan 🌙 Nayra and the Djinn by Michael Berry 🌙 All-American Muslim Girl by Lucinda Dyer 🌙 It All Comes Back to You by Farah Naz Rishi

🌙 The Marvelous Mirza Girls by Sheba Karim 🌙 Salaam, with Love by Sara Sharaf Beg 🌙 Queen of the Tiles by Hanna Alkaf 🌙 How It All Blew Up by Arvin Ahmadi 🌙 Zara Hossain Is Here by Sabina Khan 🌙 Punching the Air by Ibi Zoboi & Yusef Salaam 🌙 She Wore Red Trainers by Na'ima B. Robert 🌙 Hollow Fires by Lucinda Dyer 🌙 Internment by Samira Ahmed 🌙 Against the Loveless World by Susan Abulhawa 🌙 Love in a Headscarf - Shelina Zahra Janmohamed 🌙 Courting Samira by Amal Awad 🌙 The Other Half of Happiness by Ayisha Malik 🌙 Huda F Are You? by Huda Fahmy 🌙 Love, Hate & Other Filters by Samira Ahmed 🌙 Mad, Bad & Dangerous to Know by Samira Ahmed 🌙 Muslim Girls Rise - Saira Mir and Aaliya Jaleel 🌙 Amira & Hamza - Samira Ahmed 🌙 The Weight of Our Sky by Hanna Alkaf 🌙 Nura and the Immortal Palace by M.T. Khan

🌙 As Long as the Lemon Trees Grow by Zoulfa Katouh 🌙 Counting Down with You by Tashie Bhuiyan 🌙 Zachary Ying and the Dragon Emperor by Xiran Jay Zhao 🌙 The Yard - Aliyyah Eniath 🌙 When We Were Sisters by Fatimah Asghar 🌙 The Adventures of Amina al-Sirafi by Shannon Chakraborty 🌙 Maya's Laws of Love by Alina Khawaja 🌙 The Chai Factor by Farah Heron 🌙 The Beauty of Your Face - Sahar Mustafah 🌙 Hope Ablaze by Sarah Mughal Rana

[hetalia-club]

Hetalia characters but it’s what kind of kid in Highschool they would have been. (I’m going off American/Canadian high school types because I am American)((Midwest to be more specific))

America- the jock who took dodge ball way too seriously. Would throw the ball way to hard. He really took all of Gym class way too seriously.

Canada- was the Hockey Meathead. Also took Gym way too seriously. And always had a huge dip in his bottom lip and carried around a clear spit bottle.

England- the “um actually” kid. Would correct the teachers with usually wrong information they learned off of the internet or TV, The teachers hate him.

France- class hottie who always skips class but the teachers have like a weird crush on him so they let him do whatever…

Russia- quiet photography kid spends too much time in the red room some think he’s a serial killer but he just is awkward and shy and doesn’t know how to socialize

China- the kid who draws all day every day. Draws dragons and wolves specifically. Will not pay attention in class. Gets in trouble for drawing all the time. People like him a lot though. He will draw you a sick dragon if you ask nicely.

Italy- similar to France. But he does get in trouble for things because he cannot stop talking to save his life.

Romano- is always in detention for his mouth. Has a reputation as a ‘bad kid’ but it’s actually because he just has no filter. At least twice a week if you are in a class with him you will hear the teacher say “Lovino, go to the principals office” and he’ll be like “the fuck did I do?”

Japan- the foreign exchange student everybody loves. Gets invited to all the parties and has dated most of the popular girls in school.

Prussia- the foreign exchange student nobody likes. Gets no bitches. But does not mind.

Germany- Teachers pet. He is the one who will yell at the class to “stfu! The teacher is talking!” Will remind the teachers there was an assignment due.

Spain- The senior foreign exchange student. One of the most well liked kids in school. New S.O every week. Will most likely be Prom King

Austria- sexual active band kid. (If you know you know)

Norway- the kid who always has his headphones in. Doesn’t want to talk to anyone. will just ignore you if you try.

Finland- major frat boy energy. Goes to every house party and gets trashed. He seems to always know where they are happening even if he wasn’t invited he’s still going to show up.

Sweden- the shy/quiet kid who is friends with the party boy he always gets drug along because Finland says he needs to “socialize more” but he always just sits in the corner and waits for someone he knows who is leaving to take him home.

Denmark- another jock. But he is friends with everybody. Will talk to everyone. Floats around the lunch room and does not have a specific clique.

Iceland- the kid who is always asleep in class. Somehow he is passing everything with straight As but he is never awake. Sometimes he’ll not show up to school for like a week. Straight just vapes in class and somehow never gets caught.

[scifrey]

ART THREAD

I have had the very great pleasure of commissioning some beautiful art to celebrate the release of my new novel Nine-Tenths. I'm going to share them all in this thread (and hopefully add to it if I'm lucky enough to be graced with more) so you can appreciate the talent of these incredible artists.

by Christopher Winkelaar

Nine-Tenths is set in a world where all the nobility in Europe are homo draconis - shape-shifting dragons who have the ability to take human form. Every culture in the world have dragons living among the humans, but the European and Asian nations are the only ones where dragons were historically elevated to the roles of monarchs, nobles, and emperors.

In a world where the American Colonies rejected British rule, this meant they were also rejecting draconic protection--and so while they won their Independence in 1793, they were soundly trounced in the War of 1812, losing all of New England, including New York State, to the British. They were absorbed into the Canadas, except for New York City, which was reclaimed by the Dutch and re-renamed New Amsterdam.

The Canadian colonies expanded west, as they historically did in our world, through a series of broken treaties with the Indigenous peoples of the continent, and the reprehensible colonialist practices which put the settlers in power today. It also means they were able to expand further south, without the Americans to bump up against.

This also meant that the Americans were unable to expand as far south and west as in our world, coming up against Indigenous dragon-protected lands, such as the Oniagara, or Aztec and Incan empires, which grew further north after Spanish contact, and flourished.

Unlike in the current version of Canada, the land was legislatively divided into much smaller provinces than currently exist, each overseen by a hereditary draconic Lieutenant Governor, who report to the draconic Governor of the Canadas, who in turn reports to the House of Lords in England (also dragons). Each province is divided into Duchies, Earldoms, and Marquessates, presided over by a noble dragon family.

As dragons are long-lived, the current Queen of England is Elizabeth (the first one). As she has not yet passed, the Kingdom of Scotland as yet remains separate from England. Ireland too is independent, the Irish dragons having beaten back the English ones. However, Wales remains a satellite colony of England, as the betrayal which brought about it's subjugation and the trickery around the hereditary title "Prince of Wales" still occurred. (This an important plot point).

by @seancefemme

This is the first piece of art I commissioned for the novel, and you'll note it's now become the cover art!

Meet the heroes of our tale: barista and disaster bi Colin Levesque, stuck in the middle of his quarter-life crisis and crushing on his cafe regular, Welsh dragon Dav, the Marquis of Niagara (though of course, Colin doesn't know he's the Marquis, and thinks Dav is just some minor noble with nothing better to do all day than hang out and read).

by @ibrithir-was-here

Colin works at Beanevolence, an indie cafe in downtown St. Catharine's, in the province of Upper Canada (Southern Ontario in our world). It's owned by his bestie Hadi, and he was only supposed to be a barista until he'd graduated. But now he has his Sustainable Tourism degree, and no clue what to do next. He feels completely stuck. Luckily he has Dav to distract him.

Except that one day Dav distracts him too well, which results in a kitchen fire. As an apology for the inferno, and to help the cafe get back on it's feet while the repairs are under way, Dav volunteers as the new bean roaster, creating incredible and (and ultimately social-media viral) coffee roasts with his fire-breath.

by @ibrithir-was-here

Colin and Dav start a flirtation at work.

Which leads to...

by @teejaystumbles

Luxurious dates and late-night smoochies.

by @pinkpiggy93

Which also goes a little bit viral. See, it turns out that the Marquis of Niagara usually keeps a low profile, and his sudden romance with a human has the gossip rags and tabloids all in a tizzy.

But more than that, it puts Dav under the scrutiny of Francis Simcoe. He's the Lieutenant Governor of Upper Canada, a dragon with a hate-on for Dav, and the perfect ammunition to ruin his happiness.

Because, you see, it's against dragonic rules for dragons to be seen to be laboring in service of humans... and Dav's new gig at Beanevolence is about to--forgive the pun--land him in hot water.

➡️ Read Nine-Tenths Here ⬅️

[harmontgomery]

get to know me 𓉸ྀི

　 ﾟ　　⊹　₊　　𓏵　　˚　　 ∿

ཐིཋྀ (name): manuela, but you can call me manu or nu!

ཐིཋྀ (age): 18 (jun. 26th)

ཐིཋྀ i'm from brazil, can speak portuguese, english and a little bit of french.

ཐིཋྀ my favorite shows are gilmore girls, pll, american horror story (especially murder house), from, house of the dragon and outer banks.

ཐིཋྀ i'm a reader, and my favorite book is call me by your name, by andré aciman. i like existentialism literature!

ཐིཋྀ i'm a lover of old things, especially music.

ཐིཋྀ i listen a lot to 80's/90's music, lana del rey and the neighbourhood!

ཐིཋྀ i'm a ravenclaw.

ཐིཋྀ infj!

ཐིཋྀ my celebrity crushes are drew starkey, evan peters and matt smith.

ཐིཋྀ my style lately have been pretty much inspired by aria montgomery's and violet harmon's looks :)

　 ·　　𓉸ྀི　　 ˚　　𓍼ྀ　　₊ ◌　 ˚

warnings:

ཐིཋྀ i can reblog/post some gore stuff sometimes (meaning sh, blood, knives, etc) so if you don't fw this, don't follow me.

ཐིཋྀ this is not a safe space for the ed community, i've been through it and it actually triggers me a lot.

ཐིཋྀ i'm new here (i actually have been on tumblr for about 4 years, but i didn't have a proper account) and kinda want to get some new mutuals and meet people 🩷🪽 feel free to talk to me and interact!

⠀⠀ㅤ*̩̩͙‧͙*˚⁺‧͙ㅤ ওㅤㅤֺㅤ ⠀⠀✧ ⠀ ㅤֺㅤ ওㅤ ㅤ*̩̩͙‧͙*˚⁺‧͙

[starsfic]

Summaries for February:

LMK: Tangled AU where Long Xiaojiao has been kept locked in a tower under the watchful eye of her "uncle" and "the Lady", only desiring to get out and see the world, especially lanterns that appear on her birthday. However, things change when Qi Xiaotian, heir to Sun Wukong, comes looking for the missing piece of the Samadhi fire.

Coraline: Based on this song, Wybie Lovat finds himself moving back into his grandmother's childhood home with his daughter. Reeling from a nasty divorce and the disappearance of Coraline, Wybie finds himself trying to untangle the history of the house, all while keeping an eye on his daughter.

LMK: Smut, Qi Xiaotian wakes up ten years in the future, married to Red Son. Meanwhile, Qi Xiaotian wakes up ten years in the past, not together with his husband yet.

TMNT, my incarnation: April O'Neil makes a new friend when staying up late studying at the public library

TMNT, my incarnation: Related to 4, but the entire first episode. When the turtles make and suddenly lose a new human friend, the four turtles (and Casey) find themselves in a hidden city.

LMK: MK is visiting Pigsy’s grandmother out in the country, unaware of the local demon lord and dragon lord fighting in the background over who gets to court him for their own reasons.

Scooby Doo, my incarnation: The first part of Episode 1, when trying to leave their hometown of Crystal Cove to start their second year of college, the Mystery Gang find themselves trapped in Crystal Cove.

LMK: Fairytale AU where Prince Qi Xiaotian, nursing a quiet crush on the missing Prince Red, befriends a handsome red deer.

LMK: Fairytale AU where Long Xiaojiao finds herself as the detective of figuring out who is eating the village sheep. Who is the red bull?

LMK/FNAF: After a nasty argument with her parents, Long Xiaojiao decides to cut herself off financially from them and get a job. However, the only available position is a night guard of an American pizza chain. Shouldn't be too hard...right?

[stuffingprize]

Why ship Agon & Yoichi? Finally the 3rd & final portion of my long AgoHiru meta post!! Ready to dive in full? Part 1 | Part 2

~~Part 3~~

WORLD YOUTH CUP - A smile worth 3 million

We've reached the final arc!! After the Christmas Bowl, Japan gets a chance at forming an all star high school line-up to play in America. Agon decides to join & we get to see him interact with a wider variety of characters, showing us more of his similarities to Yoichi as he's put in places where he must team up.

Violence, deceit & lack of patience over sentimental speeches #justgeniusdevilthings

Unsurprisingly, he still gives Ryokan lots of flack, refusing to acknowledge him throughout most of the arc despite everyone else agreeing that he is an essential asset to the team.

Truly unbelievable! Agon just can’t stand having Ryokan in the way of his time with Yoichi two years & one lost match later...

On Yoichi's end, however, he doesn't seem to be the type to hold on to grudges. Despite the hurt Agon put his friends through, Yoichi prefers being practical & can put it all aside if it means gaining an ally for his current goals. Ultimately, Agon is a useful player to have & we know that Yoichi is especially fond of those he finds “useful.”

Plus it's fun to see that Yoichi is practically the only person who can talk smack & laugh at Agon's face & get away with it (Mizumachi tried).

And because there are areas where he & Agon just get each other, Yoichi calls on him to do a Flying Dragon & Criss Cross together during their game against the American team, which they pull off perfectly despite never having played together before.

When Sena & Monta attempted their first Criss Cross against Teikoku, they fumbled the ball bad

Finally, Agon gets a chance to play with Yoichi, & it is absolutely of no surprise to me at all that THIS is the precise moment Agon begins to enjoy football!!!

Agon has smiled plenty on the field before, when his motivation was to “crush those without talent.” Agon has done the Flying Dragon before, with Ikkyu whose talent he praises & his twin whom he actually cares about. But here, his enjoyment is enough to make him laugh. By wordlessly being in sync with Yoichi. Teaming up with & having fun with Yoichi, perhaps like they used to before football.

In fact, Agon was so engrossed in this part of the game that he overlooks Mr. Don coming for him!

Shien (the Kid) is comparing Agon's experience in this moment to the time when he had finally admitted to something he truly wanted during the Hakushuu game!! An interesting insight

Lucky for Agon, Ryokan comes to his aid because winning this game is more important than their drama! (& because he's a sweetheart)

And after these successful series of plays where Agon finally shared the field with Yoichi & friends, we get this small development:

Is this tentatively the beginning of Agon letting go of his hurt & seeing Ryokan for what he truly is?

Although Ikkyu was usually his only exception when it came to adequate teammates, Agon would still say he was best if there were "22 players exactly like me." Here, Agon is opening up to the idea of finding value in other players. In Ryokan. In Yoichi. Even if he still sounds sore over it, it’s progress.

Yoichi influences Agon: +10 points! (Agon tempts teamwork.)

Despite this final arc's ups & downs, I enjoyed the small developments we got for Agon, as well as seeing Yoichi talk to him so casually. We begin to see how they treat each other differently now that they're teammates instead of opponents:

From weariness to fondness…

BONUS 100 POINTS: Agon & Yoichi enjoy playing football together!!

Before reaching the end, there’s still one more topic I’d like to talk about. Why has Yoichi, since so early on, piqued Agon’s interest anyway? It isn't about smarts or attraction, or deviousness. Well maybe just a little bit. Here's what I mean:

~

CRUSH THE UNTALENTED - Agon's Dissatisfaction

Above is Agon's officially stated no homo reasons for playing football back in vol 20 before Deimon vs Shinryuji. My interpretation being that Agon hates average try-hard players because his brother Unsui IS the average player who resigned himself, which really pisses Agon off because they’re twins & Agon feels his pain.

I personally think that if Unsui hadn't given up on himself so soon, then Agon wouldn't be twice on edge about average players who could be him. It's something that becomes evident in the World Youth Cup arc when he sees Unsui in Habashira & even taunts his brother over it.

And yet Yoichi who also fits the “average try-hard player” is someone Agon continues to be drawn to. We have this insight from Unsui himself during the Ojo vs Deimon rematch:

...Where Agon didn't follow up his usual "HUH??" with anything ridiculing Honjo's words. It's a rare moment that also happens between him & Yoichi back when they used to hang out.

Perhaps one reason Agon so carefully watches Yoichi is because he senses an answer he craves to his perpetual annoyance of average people. See, despite not being physically impressive, Yoichi continues to enthusiastically work towards his impossible goals seemingly undeterred by limitations. He “gets creative.”

Agon is a genius, they have a long history of them trying to read the other out, & yet he still says, "I've never understood this about you."

What is ambition all about? What is something worth struggling for? What good are teammates? I think Agon has always wanted to understand these differences between himself & Yoichi.

Yoichi influences Agon: +10000 points! (Agon’s attitude toward life football changes.)

~

AND TOUCHDOWN.. or is it? - The Undefeated Saikyodai Wizards

By now, I hope I've proven that Agon is continually influenced by Yoichi & that it largely dictates many of his actions—whether it's to resist & oppose him or simply follow him into whatever interests him next. So it is only natural that Agon would follow Yoichi into college.

Well, it probably helped that Yoichi intentionally chose a different college from Ryokan this time around (lol).

These two devious men who had once teamed up to frame & take advantage of others, then threw each other out, are finally now fighting together for good after six years of back & forth drama..!

And thanks to the recent 21st Anniversary of the series, a Special chapter was published which revealed Saikyo College as the then Undefeated Champions. However, Sena Kobayakawa has joined the fray & the plot revolves around a chance for either Yoichi or Sena to join the NFL. The deciding factor being which team wins—Saikyo or Enma.

Back at the World Youtch Cup arc, Agon heard from Yoichi himself how badly he wanted to join the NFL. With this knowledge in mind, it’s safe to say that Agon not only is now playing because he wants to, but this game in particular because victory means Yoichi's new dream can come true!!

Similar to Gao, Agon once played football to destroy Yoichi's dreams. But now, it’s the opposite!

You see, all along, what Agon wanted was to get himself in the Devil’s sights. What he hated Ryokan for (taking Yoichi through football), what he hated Sena for (being Yoichi’s ace), was now his alone. Agon is the trump card Yoichi can count on..! 

Such intense focus!! Agon as Saikyo College's Ultimate Player

Like we saw when they played against the Americans, Yoichi & Agon don’t need explicit instruction from each other. Their compatibility carries on. Wordlessly communicating~~~

Agon-speak for Of course I read you, honey.

With Agon becoming a serious athlete who trains & is now happily playing alongside Yoichi Hiruma, it’s no wonder that their team holds the title of Champions so far…!!

Yoichi influences Agon: +20 points! (Agon attends Saikyo College. Agon plays for the sake of Yoichi’s dream)

>>Yoichi influences Agon, FINAL COUNT: OVER 9 THOUSAND…!!!!!!!

AND THUS CONCLUDETH THEIR GET-TOGETHER LOVE STORY!!!

Standing together like this, they make up the titular #21!

Thank you for reading 🏈

[suzieloveships]

Hear me out, Rhaenicent american dragon au

Westeros Dragon: Rhaenyra Targaryen

Rhaenyra is your normal, everyday high schooler if you ignor the fact that she can shapeshift into a dragon. It's a special ability so member of her family have.

Her father can't turn but her aunt Rhaenys can. She trains Rhaenyra master her powers because dragons role is to protect other magical creatures.

Laena and Laenor can also turn and three of them train together (basically they are this au version of Trixie and Spud but also Haley)

Alicent is a girl that goes with them to school and Nyra has the biggest crush on her. The two of them have that typical high school romance going on

One of biggest issues Rhaenyra has to face as a dragon are hunters who hunts magical creatures. Rhaenyra especially has a rivarly with Huntsgirl, a young daughter of the clan leader. Huntsgirl always wears a mask so there is no way for Nyra to know her identity.

The real problem arrives when during on of their fights Huntsgirl's glove fells off and the Rhaenyra's horror Huntsgirl has a dragon shape birthmark on her hand. And Alicent has the exactly the same mark on her hand

[thegayhimbo]

Stranger Things "Deliver Me From Evil" Review

If you haven't yet, be sure to check out my other Stranger Things Reviews! Like, Reblog, and let me know what your thoughts are, as well as any theories you might have for Season 5!

Stranger Things Reviews/Theories

Stranger Things The First Shadow

Stranger Things Comics/Graphic Novels:

Stranger Things Six

Stranger Things Halloween Special

Stranger Things The Other Side

Stranger Things Zombie Boys

Stranger Things The Bully

Stranger Things Winter Special

Stranger Things Tomb of Ybwen

Stranger Things Into The Fire

Stranger Things Science Camp

Stranger Things “The Game Master” and “Erica’s Quest”

Stranger Things and Dungeons and Dragons

Stranger Things Kamchatka

Stranger Things Erica The Great

Stranger Things “Creature Feature” and “Summer Special”

Stranger Things Tales From Hawkins

Stranger Things x Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Crossover

Stranger Things The Voyage

Stranger Things Tie-In Books:

Stranger Things Suspicious Minds

Stranger Things Runaway Max (Part 1 of 3)

Stranger Things Runaway Max (Part 2 of 3)

Stranger Things Runaway Max (Part 3 of 3)

Stranger Things Darkness On The Edge Of Town (Part 1 of 3)

Stranger Things Darkness On The Edge Of Town (Part 2 of 3)

Stranger Things Darkness On The Edge Of Town (Part 3 of 3)

Stranger Things Rebel Robin Book and Podcast (Part 1 of 2)

Stranger Things Rebel Robin Book and Podcast (Part 2 of 2)

Stranger Things Hawkins Horrors Review

Stranger Things Flight Of Icarus

Stranger Things Lucas On The Line

Stranger Things Episode Reviews:

The Vanishing of Will Byers (Part 1 of 2)

The Vanishing of Will Byers (Part 2 of 2)

Synopsis: While delivering pizzas on a dark night in Lenora, California, Argyle and Jonathan exchange creepy stories...........

Observations:

I wasn't aware this comic came out last May. If I had known, I would have reviewed it then before I saw The First Shadow. Ah, well. Better late than never!

For a short released on Free Comic Book Day, this was a nice quick read, and a fun story centered on Jonathan and Argyle. It has a similar premise to Halloween Special and Hawkins Horrors in that it focuses on scary urban legends, but the main differences here are 1.) They're told from Argyle's perspective, 2.) There's a strong comedic tone to these stories as opposed to just playing them for straight horror, and 3.) The stories Argyle tells are tied to his Mexican heritage, and ones he likely grew up listening to from his family.

Take his first tale for example: As an 8 year old boy, he attended his cousin's birthday party, and at one point encountered a monster called a Chupacabra:

In Latin American folklore, the Chupacabra is a creature known for sucking the blood out of animals, and having a reptilian, alien-like form (though some people claim it also has some similarities to a kangaroo). Its name means "goat sucker" in Spanish, and it's often considered to be of the same species as vampires.

Naturally, Argyle freaks out at seeing the creature, and attacks it with a baseball bat (similar to what Steve Harrington did to the Demogorgon in S1)................only for it to be revealed that it was never there to begin with, and that he ended up smashing his cousin's pinata with the bat:

Then we get another story from Argyle about his first crush (Suzie Q) whom he skips class with so they can make out in the janitor's closet........only to conveniently encounter La Llorona:

Just like with the Chupacabra, La Llorona also comes from Latin American folklore, and is a vengeful ghost who drowned her children in a fit of rage after her husband cheated on her, and now haunts watery areas (lakes, rivers, etc), unable to move on to the next life, forever wailing over her dead children. In some versions of the tale, she also goes after those who are unfaithful, still clearly sore over what happened to her.

Funny enough, the first time I ever learned about the legend was from watching the pilot episode of Supernatural:

But just like with Chupacabra, La Llorona was never really there, and instead a teacher named Miss Downers shows up, catching Argyle and Suzie Q ditching class, and punishing Argyle as a result:

The final story occurs around the time Argyle gets hired at Surfer Boy Pizza, where he encounters yet another monster, this time known as the Quetzalcoatl:

Quetzalcoatl (also known as "The Feathered Serpent") is a deity in Aztec culture, whose role varied, from being the God of vegetation and wind, to even being a symbol of death and resurrection, and also contributing to the creation of humanity. Like with most Gods, the mythology surrounding him was constantly evolving, with different stories analyzing his exploits and role in the universe.

It is weird and hilarious that an all-powerful God would randomly show up to scare the daylights out of Argyle after he just finished his job interview.........and you can already put together what actually happened during this scene:

With all 3 of these stories, it's pretty clear the monsters Argyle claims to encounter aren't really there, and are more symbolic of Argyle's feelings in the moment: His disinterest (and possible jealousy) with his cousin's birthday party leads to his "encounter" with the Chubacabra and destroying his cousin's pinata. His romantic interest in Suzie Q and her later "unfaithfulness" after she rats him out to Miss Downers having parallels to La Llorona's legend, and even his new job as a pizza delivery boy reflecting the mythology of Quetzalcoatl who brought maize (corn) to humans. It's ambiguous if Argyle just has an overactive imagination, or if he's tripping balls and hallucinating in these stories, but the main theme seems to be that he's constantly getting into trouble while taking it in stride. It's probably a big factor in why he was so willing to accept Jonathan, Will, and Mike's explanation in S4 about the Upside Down.

Jonathan is with Argyle in his van as he tells these stories, and while he doesn't go into specific details about the horrors he faced in Hawkins, he does allude to them in a somber tone (something Argyle takes note of):

It works as a nice contrast to Argyle's lighthearted tales, and a way of showing that, despite having moved to Lenora, Jonathan is still haunted by the monsters of the Upside Down and the fear that they will return one day (which sadly happens in S4).

It's nice to finally get a comic that focuses on Jonathan and Argyle and the friendship they shared during their time together. Argyle was a standout in both the Lenora storyline (which was one of my least favorite arcs on the show) and S4 as a whole. While he did serve as comic relief, there was a surprising amount of depth and insight to Argyle (such as pinpointing the problems with Jonathan keeping secrets from Nancy, being savvy enough to follow Colonel Sullivan's trail to El, and even providing El with the salt-bath she would use for remote-traveling in order to save Max from Vecna) that made him a lot smarter than he appeared on the surface.

Those moments alone allowed me to appreciate him.........which is why I wasn't happy when Eduardo Franco announced back in January that he hadn't gotten a call from the Duffer Brothers for S5, which likely means his character won't be returning:

I am hoping I'm wrong about this, and that they're deliberately misleading fans about Argyle not coming back to prevent spoilers about the last season. I even speculated on the idea that Eduardo has an NDA (Non-Disclosure Agreement), which is why he might be cagey about production details. There's nothing, for instance, to suggest that the Duffer Brothers couldn't have called him several weeks or months after this interview, and he's simply keeping quiet about that for the sake of the show. There's also the possibility of the Duffer Brothers reading the room over fans reacting to Argyle's absence (which was pretty negative) and making the changes necessary to give him an important role in the story.

It's also possible to argue that since Argyle lives in Lenora and S5 will take place exclusively in Hawkins between 1987 and 1988 (a whole year or two after S4), there isn't any logical way to keep Argyle in the show, and I can understand that perspective to some degree. However, it still doesn't change how it comes off as the Duffer Brothers wasting the potential of yet another character (*cough* Kali/Eight from S2 *cough*), and nuking a friendship between Argyle and Jonathan in the process that fans reacted positively towards and wanted to see more of. Argyle was good for Jonathan in that he allowed Jonathan to be more open and relaxed than he ever was in Hawkins (even while introducing Jonathan to Purple Palm Tree Delight to achieve that), and was genuinely supportive of Jonathan through his issues.

Not many friends would be willing to drive halfway across the United States and put themselves in constant danger the way Argyle did. He was a loyal companion, and he absolutely deserves to be part of the Party, and have a role in taking down Vecna and the Mind Flayer.

As for Jonathan.............I've seen a growing chorus of fans who've complained about his character and story being shoved into the background with each passing season, and I have a hard time refuting that claim. Season 1 was where he arguably has the most relevance to the show, from his motivation to find Will when he disappeared, to his growing feelings for Nancy and how that brought him into conflict with Steve. However, ever since Season 2 when he finally got together with Nancy and helped her get Hawkins Lab shut down, it feels like the writers have lost interest in Jonathan, and either reduced him to a side-character in other people's storylines (i.e. Nancy dealing with sexism in the workplace in S3, or Will dealing with his feelings for Mike in S4) or have given him arcs that come off as inconsequential in the grand scheme of things.

I make no secret I wasn't a fan of Jonathan's arc in S4. While he did get a few chuckles from me when he was stoned, I wasn't impressed with other aspects, from him ditching Nancy during Spring Break, to keeping her in the dark about not applying for Emerson College (which was the school they were both supposed to attend). I know fans have analyzed Jonathan's behavior to the moon and back, and I get what the Duffer Brothers were trying to go for with Jonathan's indecisiveness and his fear of creating a relationship with Nancy that would echo the horror show that was Lonnie and Joyce's marriage, but it was still frustrating to sit through, and in comparison to many of the other arcs that season (Vecna, Hopper escaping Russia, Dr. Brenner's return, etc), this felt like small potatoes, and a conflict that could be easily resolved if Jonathan sat down with Nancy and talked it over with her.

I am somewhat curious where they're going with this. Since the last season takes place a year or two after the events of S4, it makes me wonder if Jonathan will have already come clean to Nancy about Emerson by the time S5 starts, or if he'll still be keeping that secret from her. I really hope it's the former because I have zero interest in sitting through multiple episodes where Jonathan continues to lie to Nancy until she eventually finds out about it.

Adding on to this, I'm not thrilled that they brought back the Nancy/Jonathan/Steve love triangle in S4, and that the marketing for S5 is focusing exclusively on that:

In a season where we're likely going to see multiple characters die and have a final gruesome battle between Hawkins and the Upside Down, this comes off as superfluous. The "love triangle" should have been over and done with by S2, and I'm not going to be thrilled if Jonathan and Steve's interactions in Season 5 consist of them duking it out over Nancy. All 3 characters deserve better than that. 😒

I want to be clear that I still like Jonathan as a character, and I'm still rooting for Jancy despite everything. All that I want for Jonathan at this point is to have a decent storyline, and be given more focus in the final season. I remember having similar criticisms of Lucas's role in S3 at the time, and expressing how I wanted Lucas to have an arc of his own for Season 4. The Duffer Brothers must've heard that (or at the very least gotten feedback from fans about it) because Lucas got one in S4 that not only was engaging and helped further his character development, but was also one of the highlights of that season.

By the same token, I hope Jonathan gets that treatment, with an arc where he's at the front and center that helps further his character development. One thing that gives me hope that they might do this is a behind-the-scenes Tweet from S5's production, revealing that there will be a flashback episode in "Sorcerer" (Episode 4 of Season 5) focusing on Jonathan when he was 13, as well as Will and Mike when they were 8 years old:

My hope is that the flashback gives more insight into Jonathan's past and mindset. I'm sure there will be a focus on Mike and Will and their relationship, but I would like to see more revealed about Jonathan as well. I hope that he become more open and trusting with people (aside from his immediate family, Argyle, and Nancy) and eventually realizes he doesn't have to worry about turning into Lonnie or continuing to act as a co-parent to Will, and can start living his own life without feeling like he has to limit himself.

On top of that, I also want Jonathan to have some kind of confrontation with Vecna where he dishes out some much-needed payback after the hell Vecna has put Will and his family through.

Overall, this was a delightful short comic that I wish had been longer. It's currently free on Kindle if you wish to check it out! :)