#and because he sees it as that he both personally values control and relies on it to live

[daydreamerdrew]

Iron Man (1968) #50

[iwritenarrativesandstuff]

Chapter 105.5 Thoughts: Control, Manipulation and Partnership

Or, how Chuuya is actually the most qualified character to land a victory over Dostoevsky.

I just want to preface this with: I think Chuuya has woken from the brainwashing. We can't see his eyes, he's holding his hat again, and look at the progression of his face and expression from the last few chapters with him (these are in order btw from left to right).

I'm not completely sure how he did this, but I chalk a lot of it up to sheer stubborn determination on Chuuya's part, mostly because it's funny and he was clearly fighting back before Dazai's speech. However, I find it likely the speech did contain some kind of code - others have pointed out how "Goodbye!" might be a reference to the original author's last unfinished book and we know skk's codenames for things generally are based off their real counterparts' works so, maybe he'd already broken out of it, maybe there was something in there that gave him the final push - who knows at this point honestly? Either way, it means Chuuya had the capacity to break out of the vampire curse on his own and that's incredibly funny to me for many reasons but mostly:

Fyodor: "Bold of you to assume Chuuya's ability can't overcome flooding."

Dazai: "Bold of you to assume Chuuya's personality can't overcome brainwashing."

But really, this highlights something interesting here, both in what Chuuya's role is ultimately intended to be in this arc, and in the way Fyodor and Dazai manipulate and value others in very different ways.

I've said it before but it bears repeating: we already know that Fyodor is an excellent long-term planner, while Dazai is effectively able to counter him because Dazai shifts into thinking like his opponent. They're foil characters for a reason; they're both highly intelligent, manipulative, and willing to play the long game for the sake of winning against their opponent.

Thing is, I also stand by the idea that personality-wise, they're not similar at all - and that has serious implications for the people they are connected with. The build-up to the prison escape arc really highlights this. Some examples:

Chapter 46: Fyodor believes that all people are sinful and foolish and that his goal is to remove sin. Dazai believes that all people are sinful and foolish but asks what's so wrong with that.

Chapter 64: They decide to have a "super-happy chit-chat" about their problems. Dazai's solution to Fyodor's issue with his lazy subordinates is to get them to think lazing around is a bad thing so they will put in effort of their own. Fyodor's solution to Dazai being unable to woo the waitress is to isolate her from her job, house and family so that she can only rely on Dazai.

Chapter 77: Fyodor believes god is perfection and harmony, and thus that the people capable of change are the superior ones with most control. Dazai believes god is the accidental and illogical and believes it is the ordinary people who fight and live in that uncertainty who create the greatest change.

So, what's happening here? Fyodor's manipulation is shown to be very exacting and direct. He leaves no room for error and regards people on a hierarchy - God above all, himself as a servant of God's will, and the sinful and foolish humans he has little regard for. Dazai's manipulation involves manipulation of the situation, and is often indirect. It involves people coming to the conclusion he intends for them to on their own. And from his later dialogue with Sigma, we see he doesn't regard the world in that same kind of hierarchy.

Now, look at the way Fyodor picks an item and Dazai picks a person when starting the game. Look at the way Fyodor refers to Chuuya respectfully but brainwashes him entirely and mocks Dazai for not being worthy of "using" his ability. Look at the way Dazai is a complete ass to Chuuya but ultimately lets him make his own choices (begging people to take note of that moment in Stormbringer where Dazai cuts himself off to correct his referring to Corruption as Arahabaki's true power to Chuuya's true power).

So, the actual strength Dazai has over Dostoevsky then, is not really his strength at all, it's the strength of others and their choice and willpower to act in the way they believe is best. It's the only means of getting a leg up on Dostoevsky, otherwise they will continue to go around and around in circles forever.

And Chuuya is the best candidate for finally throwing Fyodor off his game.

Firstly, let's just establish something: no matter how mad he is at Dazai, he's not going to side with Fyodor, not willingly. Fyodor threatened the Mafia in the Cannibalism arc by attacking Mori, first of all. I doubt he's forgiven him for that. Secondly, Fyodor embodies everything Chuuya can't stand about Dazai, at the very least, younger Dazai - the manipulation, the lack of consideration and connection with others, the callousness and lack of regard for life.

Well, perhaps he's not quite as irritating. +1 point for Dostoevsky I guess?

But lastly, it is more advantageous for Chuuya at this point to help fight against Fyodor, especially since most of the Mafia has been vampirized by his organization. Helping the Agency stop the terrorist plot will help the Mafia by extension by undoing that. And we know from Stormbringer that no matter how much Chuuya is personally hurt, he considers taking out the threat to his people a higher priority. Always.

(You could make the argument that he was told whatever Teruko told Atsushi and decided to join, but not only do I find this wildly out of character, but if that was the case then there would've been no reason to brainwash him.)

That said, I don't think this was preemptive "Dazai's master plan #3057", and in fact, I stand by the idea that Dazai had no idea Chuuya was going to be in the prison. It is very, very important to me that for the rest of this arc, no matter what Chuuya does, that his actions are his own. Not Fyodor's, not Dazai's, but his. And not just because I hate that he's being controlled right now and that freedom of choice has always been important for Chuuya.

But because it makes narrative sense.

The vampires are a bit silly, yes, but they represent the way Fyodor and Fukuchi think - humanity will commit atrocities. They cannot be trusted to make their own decisions. They want to make a world that is free by... mind-controlling people so their plans work without a hitch. In short, they choose, on behalf of others, to sacrifice human autonomy for peace. So, if we are going to turn this arc around, we need to have characters breaking out of that control and thinking for themselves, in spite of the uncertainty of the outcome.

We already see this with Atsushi in the last chapter! He finally takes initiative and makes that choice to leave the room when he doesn't exactly know what the right thing to do is. And this is also why I don't think Teruko is wholly convinced by the DoA either - she lets him go. She gives him the freedom to choose what he does with that information.

Another one of the focus characters here is Sigma. Sigma is a guy who has no past, whose humanity is questioned, who keeps being used by organizations for his valuable ability, who has no home but desperately wants one... oh wait. Remind you of anyone's younger self? This could go one of two ways: Chuuya fails to assert his autonomy, leaving Sigma to learn from that failure, or, Chuuya succeeds in asserting his autonomy, leaving Sigma to learn from his success.

I think it, by necessity, has to be the latter. Sigma's at a tipping point right now, and I think seeing someone try to assert their freedom only to fail would damage him greatly. And I think it's a waste of Chuuya's character honestly.

Chuuya needs to assert his autonomy in this arc. Not just for thematic reasons but because I can think of no one else who can effectively break the "super-genius stalemate".

I keep hearing "Dazai knows Chuuya" in response to Fyodor calling their bond shallow, and that is absolutely true! But Chuuya also knows Dazai. Incredibly well. Odasaku knew Dazai's soul, but Chuuya knows Dazai's mind, knows his strategies and ways of thinking without even needing words. What's more, Chuuya has thrown off Dazai before and done what he didn't expect him to.

Which is nifty, because Dazai and Fyodor think a lot alike. Chuuya is in a unique position to thwart Dostoevsky because he may actually be able to predict him to a degree. Chuuya can absolutely land a victory against him, and it's excellent because it would be completely unexpected to Fyodor, who apparently thinks Chuuya's strength lies only in what his ability has to offer and not much else.

But listen. This also can't be skk's plan. I need Chuuya to sideline both of them. Both for the sweet, sweet catharsis of putting those two idiot geniuses in their places and also because I need Dazai to have screwed up. He wasn't wrong about people making their own choices in uncertainty. People need to assert their autonomy to create change. Dazai can't be wrong in this regard.

But with going ahead with the trap to drown Fyodor despite also having to drown Chuuya when he promised not to let him get killed... this needs to have been a mistake, otherwise the value of Dazai's emotional speech to him is diminished.

I want Dazai to try to laugh it off. I want him to say he always knew Chuuya would escape and then for Chuuya to deck him because "no, the fuck you didn't".

I really think Dazai hoped Chuuya would make it. Do remember that Chuuya was one of the first reasons young Dazai decided to try giving life a chance. The fact that he flashbacked to all his key memories with Chuuya says a lot. But his survival was no guarantee and it seemed very unlikely.

So, Chuuya is faced with the fact that Dazai nearly sacrificed him to kill Dostoevsky and save his new Agency friends.

And I hope he finally gets mad. I hope he finally expresses hurt on his own behalf for once. I hope they are forced to break their status quo that they have carefully maintained by not talking about anything ever. I hope they are pushed to uncomfortable places and that it is Chuuya who finally spurs this development.

Let Chuuya break the stalemate between Dazai and Dostoevsky. Let him shatter the status quo that him and Dazai have kept going for year after year.

Autonomous action in the face of uncertainty is necessary for change.

[robinmage]

absolutely no one: me: The Ancient Magus Bride isn't really a "romance" the way most people tend to think. Despite its few moments, one of, if not, the main focus of the series is about how the qualities of interpersonal relationships differ vastly between each individual. Your relationship with one friend may function incredibly differently from another friend, because the unique combination of those circumstances and personalities will affect how you coexist with one another and define each others' "roles" in your lives. For Elias and Chise, the growth of their relationship is also parallel to their growth as people. The way they met had a very big impact on how they viewed and treated each other in the beginning of the series. Chise, being completely alone and in a very vulnerable position and simply not caring because she had already given up on her life, and Elias buying taking her in because of her innate magical ability. As Elias is nonhuman and unable to relate to the human experience and human emotions, we later learn that one of his motivations for acquiring a human companion was because he wanted to understand these emotions more and feel closer to humanity. The circumstances of their meeting is explicitly mentioned, by a few characters, to be a generally fucked up thing to do, and one of the core aspects of Chise's early character development was how not to become complacent with relying on Elias so much. Chise is gradually learning how to value herself, separately from Elias, with the help of the people she has met. Elias himself struggles with his lack of emotional experience, occasionally lashing out when he feels new, strong emotions that he doesn't know how to react to or control. Put together, they are both still very immature characters and absolutely not ready or capable to commit themselves to any type of romantic relationship. Instead, the series focuses on the complexities of this human-nonhuman companionship, how their relationship can't solely be defined by human expectations and labels, and how to navigate the ever-changing state of interpersonal relationships combined with the ever-changing state of personal development. A lot of it comes from Chise herself, realizing that she not only wants to live but also wants to value herself as a person more than what she can selflessly give away to others. There are many people who genuinely care for her and are actively trying to help her see her own worth. Through these experiences and these connections that she forms with these characters is what gives her the strength to grow. The series is commonly tagged as a romance, though the elements of the genre are miniscule and not anywhere near as relevant as the main themes of learning how to love others, learning how to love the world around you, and most importantly-- learning how to love yourself.

[tomurakii]

My last post about bloodweave was pretty negative (though necessarily so imo) so I wanted to talk about the little things about the bloodweave dynamic that I DO like and want to see more of in fic (under the cut).

- the orb means Astarion can't start their relationship transactionally. Gale can't give Astarion blood, and also can't have sex with him (and presumably would refuse casual sex anyway). How would the relationship develop without Astarion being able to rely on the give-and-take, forced instead to just trust Gale will watch his back? Astarion isn't a plans guy, I imagine having to come up with something on the spot (considering none of the other companions are reeaaaally an option either) would lead to a lot more emotional vulnerability as he tries to take a route he has much less experience with. Not to mention that the flirty and standoffish front isn't exactly going to endear him to Gale, who approves of the capable, loyal, and righteous. How long can Astarion pretend to be invested in Gale's wellbeing before it becomes true?

- they both have bad ascension endings, but different natural outcomes. Gale is considered the more morally upstanding one, but in their solo states (without the player's influence) Gale will go through with ascension and Astarion won't. Would they goad each other on? Gale disapproves of Astarion's ascension, using arguments that could apply to himself about the personal sacrifice and loss of the soul. Would Astarion flip them around, become defensive? Their dynamic could mean the power hungry character ending up discouraging the pursuit of godhood, or the two of them hurtling over the edge together. Or, maybe, Astarion encouraging Gale to ascend and having to trust him to return.

- they're the party members with the most life experience, and they're also both pretty well-educated (even if Astarion's law qualifications may well have expired by the events of the game). He spent his time under Cazador sewing (like Gale in his Baldur's Gate epilogue) and learning languages (of which Gale knows four). They have enduring common interests beyond their circumstances. Gale can help Astarion rediscover the latent nerd potential he lost when he died, and lord knows he would love to pick his brain for a first hand account of the mid-to-late 12th century.

- Astarion recently regained hope for his future when the tadpole freed him, Gale recently lost all of it. While act 1 is a continuous series of positive discoveries for Astarion (tadpole frees him from cazador -> ceremorphosis is held off by the dream visitor -> tadpole can be controlled), Gale's life gets worse with time as his treatment stops working. It's a dynamic that could give Gale hope, force Astarion to practise empathy, or put them completely at odds.

- Astarion's all-encompassing desire to reclaim his life could be inspiring to Gale. Moreover, I imagine seeing just how passive Gale is about his death would infuriate him. To have so little regard for his real, mortal, free life? It's a great source of angst, and also a great starting point for Gale to start wanting to live again. Because after learning about Astarion's past he would agree, he'd recognise how much value a mortal life was supposed to have. He'd think himself ungrateful or impolite for entertaining the idea of throwing it away when Astarion would give anything to have what he had. This would lead to guilt, and potentially self-loathing, unless someone was there to help pick up the pieces.

- If Astarion meets Oblodra before Gale's act 2 romance scene, (or for a fanfic plot, just before Gale is confident enough to confess) they most likely won't have sex until the graveyard scene in late act 3 (or the post-ascension equivalent). It means that rather than the fuckfest we so often see from bloodweave fics, the relationship is almost entirely a slow-burning, emotionally intimate affair. I'd really love to see that play out, the progression from semi-horny yearning on both parts as the orb keeps them apart, to two love confessions that are followed by the both of them experiencing non-sexual intimacy for the first time in years. I doubt Mystra was one to hug her chosen, after all, or hold their hands.

I just love a bg3 ship that forces the characters to take different actions than they do in canon. It makes me feel like I'm developing a broader understanding of the characters, you know?

[rainbowravez]

i think it's really disappointing how interesting and complex of a character yul could be instead of being a one-dimensional bigoted racist archetype used as comedic relief.

it would've been so much better if he were a commentary on how the entertainment industry can shape people into genuine horrible people because of the toxic work culture and serve as a contrast to james, who left the industry (or atleast isn't as involved) and how it let him grow as a person, while yul has to stay because he has no choice for other sources of income and how his bitterness and resentment only continues to grow and harbor into the man he is now. imagine if a huge part of his resentment towards james was because of jealousy that he was able to escape the industry, instead of just mostly being because he poisoned him with mushrooms last season. what if that's why he was so angry that james tried to lecture him because james has no clue what it's like for him and that he has the nerve to question him when he feels james had the privilege of being able to escape. he's angry that someone who could relate to his struggles now is just like everyone else; an outsider of how bad the workforce he's in is and he's truly alone again with nobody to confide in because he hates the only other person who can relate, grett.

his relationship with grett is implied to be forced upon him and this could've been so interesting to explore. in the first few episodes it seems like he has genuine moments with her. what if a part of him actually loved her because he finally has someone who can relate, but because he was forced into this position he sees her as his captor who is the embodiment of how he will never have the ability to make his own choices. they got the right idea when he's talking to james on the bike, where he says "when i win the 3 million, i'll never have to listen to anyone", but it's ruined when it's just chalked up to him being like "i dont want a fat girlfriend cuz shes ugly and im not". it could've been a commentary on how k-pop stars are often objectified by their fanbase and their employers and how little control they have in their lives, especially being recruited at a young age (WHICH IS LITERALLY STATED IN THE SHOW!!! WHEN HE SAID A VIDEO OF HIM DANCING BLEW UP!!) and the mental toll it has. he's so cruel to her because of his frustration with his situation and a want for her to leave, both using her as a punching bag for his lack of control while simultaneously trying to make her leave him as a way to regain the little control he has over himself.

the biggest flaw of yul's characterization is how his bigotry is NEVER called out. yes, the point is that he's SUPPOSED to be unlikable, but nobody ever says he's being racist and why it's wrong (besides gabby when she defends grett), they say it's to make us hate him more but if THESE THINGS AREN'T CALLED OUT, especially to their young fanbase of young teens, it comes across as just out-of-pocket "dark" humor that relies of shock value to make the audience laugh, which insinuates that it's okay. he's literally just saying bigoted shit for the sake of it. you can write an unlikable character without making him drop obscenities every moment he's on screen. it's bad writing and an easy opt out that takes little effort to write and has become normalized in the show, esp. considering how the spanish va of yul improvised a racist line (calling james a monkey) and how they just let it slide because "oh well it's in character". if your voice actor is randomly saying racist stuff that's not even in the script and you allow it to slide, your team has a serious problem.

there's so many characters that are intertwined with the entertainment industry (riya, james, grett, yul) and so many of the ideas are THERE but they aren't dived into and these characters end up being one-note as a result, like yul and riya. the best we can do is infer but that can only go so far. maybe i'm asking too much for a total drama inspired series to have complex writing and nuance, but if you want to differentiate and distance yourself from total drama (esp. when it prides it's writing as being more complex than total drama) maybe actually put some effort into making complex characters and not using them as a puppet to make bigoted remarks.

[theoldoor]

a little late for summertime dont you think

just some post-talia bummery from these two i love them to the point that i have to remind myself that one isnt even canon like this is torture.

I dont have much to say for this post as ive said pretty much everything about post-talia them posts prior, I DO however, have a lot of talia rambling to do- which will be saved when i doodle enough stuff for it

They still have that little bickering and bantering thing going on, passive aggressiveness with one another and being the one who gets the other into silly troubles despite both being elites. Like how Jade said Topaz and Aventurine bickers like kids, these two however, bicker like those alt older brothers in coming of age movies and his bromantic bro bestfriend (ive said this before so manu times but i cant find a better way to describe them)

mayeb something like todd and wallace but theyre vashwood if you get what i mean - i’ve also been subconsciously projecting vashwood onto these two considering fenrir calls aventurine “vasha/vash/vashu” while aventurine calls fenrir “that wolf/wolfy/dumb dog” and ive yet to realize that until very recently when i was writing something for fenrir that goes like “he valued life as others and he also bets it on me.” and i get reminded of “he feared death twice as others” and it just hits “ive been projecting vashwood onto these two oh my god”

fenrir cares for aventurine more than he wants to, but he does regardless.

"You should never ask anyone for anything. Never- and especially from those who are more powerful than yourself. They will make the offer and give it of their own accord."

It’s something that Fenrir live by, is that genuine help would come without the need for obligations afterwards. During Talia, Fenrir actively create scenarios around him that make people that he’s dependent on rely on him, out of obligations or respect. So whatever help Fenrir gives, he calculated them all so that they’d be beneficial “technically” to him.

Yet for certain individuals, those he love dearly such as Hermia, Boothill and Aventurine- He was willing to suffer a loss for them, which, for a person all for survival like Fenrir, is a tough decision to take. He broke his own ideals and virtues so that he could protect and satisfy these people, his family and he hates whenever he does that because it showed him that someone is having control over him and he’s at their mercy, which means they could just leave him and he’s very vulnerable to them. To put trust in these people so much that he’d voluntarily help them is like to trust them with his life.

i also like the concept of Talia recycling everything, even people considering some people would see that they’ve been “used” beyond so they were given a chance again. that’s why i felt like aventurine was suitable for this considering his past and his potential inferiority complex there.

the foundation between aventurine and fenrir relies on a lot of trust, and gamble as they could not read one another. it connects back to aventurine’s eidolons being game theories and avidity’s being about desires and non-co-operative game theories (one wins at expense of another while game theory is both party wins through trust and cooperation). fenrir’s eidolons are still in writing, but i want it to be based on 7 deadly sins or something, he does have a lot of religious references for the new lore rework.

fenrir was created before i know of aventurine, but i did tweaked a lot of things about him when aventurine came out. though the fundamentals still stayed, they were just made for each other rurururouuouogugh….

[prove-it-or-lose-it]

@wayward-wren that other post was getting to be a chore to scroll through, so I hope you don't mind that I'm moving my responses to a new one. If I've missed something you'd really like a response to, just remind me about it and I'll do my best. I think I've pulled everything that I wanted to go over here.

> Paul writes in 1 Corinthians 1:22-23  "For Jews demand signs and Greeks seek wisdom, but we preach Christ crucified, a stumbling block to Jews and folly to Gentiles..." You're not alone in your skepticism, and that's why we have to rely on God.

I understand why you think that way, but my skepticism means that I can't rely on god. I can't appeal to something that hasn't met its burden of proof in order to explain other things that haven't met their burden of proof either. This just doesn't work, it's not a logical conclusion to make. In the absence of evidence for the claims, I must reject them until they can be shown to be true.

> Where does your morality come from? You can't claim God is evil without defining what evil is. Is evil hurting others? Then being a personal trainer would be evil, because exercise hurts.

This is hard to explain briefly. I mean, philosophers have been trying to nail down morality for about as long as all of written history. But what we see is that morality is an ever shifting social construct. There are things that we understand now to be morally bad which were seen as good or neutral in the past. And in the future I'm sure there are things we won't look upon favorably that are totally fine today.

Morality can't exist in a vacuum, so it needs a goal in order to sort of ground it. For me, it starts simply; the goal is to promote human flourishing and well-being while mitigating as much harm and suffering as possible. The evidence that this is a worthwhile goal is this: we, and even other mammalian species, have an awareness that individual suffering diminishes the chances of group survival, so in order to make sure we all flourish we ought to care for one another.

So I really don't believe in evil, though this might be a semantic point. With respect to my goal stated above, how can I see any moral value to a commandment that tells me that people should be used as property? This degrades and dehumanizes both subject and master, maybe even irreparably, and does nothing to promote human flourishing.

And this view is capable of accounting for nuance, whereas "don't look at someone and think they're sexy," is a harsh, black and white statement that amounts to thought crime, which is something that has no use other than to mentally dominate people and make them subservient. And for what? Thoughts like this cause no harm as long as the thought doesn't lead to any external, non-consensual action, and most of the time if not all, they're completely involuntary. It's control for the sake of control without even approaching being a moral value.

The nuance comes in as well with your personal trainer example, though I'd argue that the trainer is not harming directly but guiding a person through a process that will indeed cause some self harm, but with a positive goal. It's contractual and the recipient knows that the slight harm is to their benefit. Similarly, we consent to surgery which can be very risky harm, with the goal of becoming well. Absolute, black and white commands don't leave room for this and should ultimately be rejected in favor of a reasoned approach that takes all available information into account.

If god commands us not to lie, did he know that in 1930's Germany a great number of compassionate people, often devoted believers, would hide people in their homes who were taking refuge from a fascist regime? Did he expect those people who lied to the officers banging at their door, in order to protect innocent lives, to beg his forgiveness for misleading men with murder and torture in their minds? If my friend is in an abusive relationship and they've come to my place to call for help, and their enraged partner comes to me asking where my friend is, what forgiveness do I need for telling them that my friend isn't there? I've done no wrong, but this imperative given with no caveats or grey areas allowed brands me with the title of sinner and I object. Real life application of morality is rarely, if ever, as cut and dry as these ancient edicts would imply.

> If there is a God who created the world and is so much more powerful than the beings He created, why can't he make the rules?

I don't think that there is a god, or that the world was created, but to entertain the hypothetical; of course, I'd have no choice but to accept that those are the rules, but I'd also have no obligation to follow the rules if I have the free will you say I do. I don't necessarily believe in free will, but I would never follow an immoral command. If a god told me to go and do a genocide on the Canaanites or to keep slaves, for example, I would have all the information I needed to conclude that this god is a tyrant and undeserving of obedience or worship. I'd be damned, but my conscience would be clear.

> The thing with Christianity, is it's a story of God reaching to man. Every single other religion is man reaching to God. Every single other religion is a works based religion. Every single other religion is focused on how we can be Good Enough for God.

I don't have much to say here, except this: do you know every single other religion that has ever existed? Have you studied the Vedas of Hinduism, or whatever texts are foundational to Shintoism? How about ancient religions of fallen civilizations lost to time? Is it not more than a little bit dishonest to make broad, sweeping claims about "every single other religion," especially when your own's adherents can hardly agree among one another on what the official doctrine demands? These things are complicated and we shouldn't make such generalizations given the vast amount of study one would have to go through in order to truly know what you're claiming to know here.

[666writingcafe]

The Adventure Begins

Levi's overacting. Again. The only reason it wasn't obvious during the school play was because Simeon kept him reined in. Levi gets excited quite easily, and it causes him to get lost in whatever role he's playing.

I'll have to ask Simeon, but I don't think he intended the Lord of Shadow to act so...dramatically? badly? I don't know how to describe it, really. It just isn't very good.

Unlike MC. I'm not sure why I like their acting better, especially since they're currently matching Levi's energy. Maybe it's because they're intentionally hamming it up. They did mumble an apology to me before they started talking to him, after all, so they must know that Levi's acting isn't the best.

Satan's isn't much better, either. He's not as over-the-top as Levi, but I don't find him convincing as the "villain" of this story. If anything, he'd make a good anti-hero, but Solomon probably didn't want to make things too complicated.

Solomon's not a very good author.

However, I'm choosing to keep all this to myself, because the point of all this is to help MC get their first star. Lucifer, on the other hand, is having a hard time suspending his disbelief. So, I understand why MC told him to shut up. I just hope they're prepared to get their ass handed to them once Lucifer's back to normal size, because while he has a soft spot for MC, he doesn't like being silenced. Messes with his pride.

Speaking of which...the stars.

They represent the seven virtues, which are direct opposites of our sins. For me, that virtue is temperance. Solomon probably knows this, but he may not realize the full extent of my relationship with temperance.

Once upon a time, I was able to control myself and my urges. Until I wasn't. For my brothers, their sin was triggered by specific events; that wasn't the case for me. It just...happened. And I didn't realize it until it was too late.

Now, it's what most people know me for. They think I'm a meathead that only thinks about food. Even my brothers.

Which isn't fair.

Why are they allowed to have complex personalities, but not me? Why can they participate in mentally stimulating activities, while I'm cast off to the side and dismissed as too dumb to understand any of it? It's never made sense to me.

I think that's part of why I like MC so much. They're the first person in a really, really long time that sees me beyond my sin. They actually listen to what I have to say and seem to value my opinion, even if it's not related to food or sports.

Yet somehow, deep inside, I don't fully trust them. I think it's coming from my subconscious. Somewhere in there lives a hurt angel that feels like everyone he cares about will die and leave him behind. And in a way, it's true.

Lilith may have been the only person in our little family that actually lost their life, but my brothers barely resemble what they were in the Celestial Realm. It's weird. They wear the same faces, but they're completely different people. Sometimes, I feel like they're complete strangers, or perhaps taken over by aliens.

Oddly, the one person I can rely on to stay the same is Satan. Then again, he didn't have his own form until we arrived in the Devildom, so this version of him is all I've ever known.

"Beel?"

Shit.

I missed a lot, didn't I?

"Are you okay? You seem out of it."

"I could say the same to you." Why is that the first thing that comes out of my mouth? I sound like a jerk.

MC merely sighs as they sit next to me on the...bed? I take a proper look at my surroundings and realize that we're in a hotel room of some kind. Lucifer appears to be sleeping on the nightstand, using tissues as both pillow and blanket.

"Wanna go first, or shall I?" Interesting question. They don't seem upset at me.

"Your call." MC rests their head on my shoulder.

"Simeon needs my help making an important decision." Their tone indicates something serious.

"With what?" MC sighs again.

"His future." Huh? Why would an angel need a human's help with that? I know that the two of them are fairly close, but still.

"But that's neither here nor there," they quickly add, sighing. "It's not like I can do anything about it now." They glance up at me. "What's on your mind?"

"My past."

"As an angel?" I nod.

"Back then, the only thing that mattered to people was that I was strong. I wanted to be useful, so I decided to become a soldier and fight for the Celestial Realm. Problem was, I had trouble controlling my powers."

"Like I did before receiving the Ring?"

"You know, I hadn't really thought about it until you said it, but yeah. I suppose we have that in common. In your case, everyone had your back, which is good, because I wouldn't have wanted you to go through that experience the way I did." MC sits up and properly looks at me.

"What do you mean?"

"Every time I would destroy something--even though most of the time it was a complete accident--Raphael would make some sort of sarcastic remark about it. I think he started calling me the Hulk at one point, but it was meant as an insult." I pause.

"At least he had the decency to do it to my face. Lots of angels would talk shit about me behind my back. They thought I was too stupid to pick up on it, but I knew. They acted overly sweet towards me whenever I would walk in the room. Condescending, even. It was like I was a dumb kid to them." MC places a hand on my thigh and pats it.

"Sounds depressing," they remark.

"It was. Oddly enough, the one person in authority that didn't treat me that way was Lucifer. I initially thought he was too busy with his duties to really care about much else, but then one day he approached me and started talking to me. We had a legitimate conversation."

"About?"

"He told me to keep in mind that being a Celestial Realm soldier wasn't about attacking--"

"--but protecting." We must have woken Lucifer up. "You had the power to protect everyone--to keep them safe--and that you shouldn't feel bad because you were special. If you learned to control your powers, I'd recommend you to the cherubim and have you serve as a Celestial Realm gatekeeper. You did, and so I kept my promise." Lucifer beckons MC to pick him up and bring him closer to me.

"MC and I may be connected by the Ring of Light, but the two of you have a strong connection as well," he continues. "You're both motivated by the need to protect the ones you love, even if it means sacrificing yourself in the process. Drawing on that similarity is going to be the key to pass Solomon's test."

"Are you saying Solomon knew we had that in common?" MC asks incredulously.

"No. I did. I simply passed the knowledge along to him."

"How long--"

"The rooftop."

"Of Dogi Magi?" I'm glad MC understands what he's referring to, because I'm completely lost. Must have been something I wasn't involved with.

"You knew that Belphie would hurt you if you went against his order to reject me, but you did it anyway."

"I didn't want to lie to you."

"Because that would have meant hurting his feelings." Asmo may have used his powers to pick up on Lucifer's crush on MC early on, but I knew pretty much from the moment they set eyes on each other. Granted, he was more attracted to their soul initially, but who could blame him? It was bright and shiny, even back then. If we weren't under orders to not eat them, then they wouldn't have made it out of the assembly hall alive. Even Diavolo was struggling to contain himself.

Anyway, the point is MC cared enough about Lucifer in that moment to feel the need to protect him.

Just like I felt the need to protect Lucifer after I became a cherub.

MC's going to get their star.

[dreamingofthewild]

hi! did you see the post i wrote mine in response to? i didn't want to comment on it because i don't want to invalidate anyone's interpretation. i do feel that gale and astarion are extremely similar (having done both romances this was so evident to me and my multiplayer group that we were like wow) and even for similar reasons because they both want to be safe & power = safety to them imo

See, I think they are plot foils. Astarion is also a plot foil for Wyll as Gale and Wyll share many similarities, but I will not detail that here.

They represent bad vs. good, light vs. dark. They are opposing forces that highlight each others traits.

Here are some ways they have similar themes with opposing ways of going about it.

On a similar note, Astarion tries to gain the PC's support through manipulation and Gale through helpfulness.

Dependency: Astarion needs the player's character for protection. Gale relies on the player character to help manage the orb. They both rely on the character's support and choices. Which is why you can convince Gale to stay with you in an evil playthrough, and the only way Astarion will leave is if you're antagonistic towards him. The other characters don't rely on the PC as much.

Pursuit of Power: Both are drawn to power but for different reasons. Gale seeks power for knowledge and autonomy, while Astarion seeks it for freedom from his past and for control. Unlike Shadowheart and Lae'zel, who want to become chosen, Astarion and Gale aim to surpass their respective abusers.

Redemption Arcs: Their stories both involve redemption but from different angles. Gale seeks self-forgiveness and understanding his worth, while Astarion’s redemption, in a good playthrough, is about finding humanity and empathy after a life of manipulation and survival. Gale doesn't need to be redeemed. He just thinks he does. Where Astarion needs to be redeemed but thinks he can't.

Worldview and Personal Growth: Both need significant shifts in their worldviews. Astarion needs to learn empathy and trust, while Gale needs to understand his value beyond his powers and reassess his relationship with Mystra. Both don't think they're worth anything other than what their abusers made them to be. Gale with his magic and Astarion with his looks.

Charisma: Both are charismatic but in different ways. Astarion uses seduction and cunning, while Gale uses intellect and persuasion. Astarion's flirtations are inauthentic, while Gale’s charm is genuine.

They are opposites because Gale is good but has the potential to be corrupted by his own insecurities if you don’t convince him that he is enough. Where Astarion is a bad person who has the potential to become better if you can convince him that the world is not a bad place and he is worthy of being saved. Both need to be challenged and know that they can change.

Self-Identity: Both struggle with self-identity and have moments of deep self-reflection and doubt. Gale struggles with his sense of failure and worthiness in Mystra's eyes. Astarion struggles with his autonomy and whether he can be more than a tool used by others.

The thing is, it's not the Gale x Astarion shippers who are villianising Gale and turning him into a power-hungry karsus Jr. Toxic Bloodweave exists, but it's only a small portion of the ship. Most fics deal with Gale just wanting love, acceptance, recognition, and approval. Astarion wants the same things but doesn't feel worthy of having them until Cazador has been defeated. Once in love, they are both fiercely loyal.

They balance each other out. And when we say they're similar, we're not saying Gale is inherently evil or Astarion is always good. We're saying that they both need saving from themselves because they are both more than what their abusers made them to be. Both their stories are more fulfilling and sweeter in their romance route.

I managed to get Astarion’s good ending while not romancing him and having only 52 approval points with him. Wyll and Karlach were proud of him. Wyll seemed to like Astarion. I'm Act 3 in my playthrough, and I doubt Wyll the monster hunter would be proud of Astarion the monster if he thought Astarion was evil even in a non-ascended playthrough I'm adding this because some people don't see that Astarion has a redemption ending. I don't think Wyll, Gale, or Karlach (but especially Wyll) would associate himself with Astarion if Astarion was fully evil even in a spawn ending.

[niphredil-14]

Jason Todd Yandere Headcanons

Comics:

I don't think that Comics! Jason is likely to be a yandere. Possessive of his darling, and aggressive to those who get too close to her, but I don't think it's enough to warrant a Yandere title. He's far too aware of how terrible men have treated the people in his life and the people that they supposedly "loved." He wouldn't want to turn into one of them. Because of this, the furthest he would go is fighting a guy who tried to steal his darling away from him, or who was making them excessively uncomfortable and wouldn't back off. He wouldn't kill them for either of those though. 

UtRH:

Now this man? He’s very similar to comics!Jason, but unhinged and emotional enough to be a yandere, though I don’t think he would be a very violent one. He would kidnap his darling, but from there, he would mainly rely on manipulation and brainwashing kinds of tactics until they fell in love with him. His guard would be raised immensely for a little while after taking his darling, especially if they were aggressive and/or cold to him. When they had fallen for him, his guard would lessen and lessen the more affectionate and reassuring they were. There would only be one reason for him to become violent with his darling, and that would be if they tried to escape. He’s given them everything. He’s been perfect. Why are they trying to leave him too? It would take a long time to build his trust up again, and it would likely never truly be repaired. Even if he wasn’t violent frequently, after they tried to leave him, he would be more often than before they had so carelessly broken his trust. He wouldn’t have hurt them, if only they hadn’t given him reason to!

Arkham Knight:

This man, as beautiful and broken as he is, is fucking deranged. He’s the most likely to be a yandere. He would definitely kidnap his darling. And they would be forced to do whatever he wanted, not that he wouldn’t feel guilty about it. If he has one thing going for him, it would be his self-awareness. He would know that what he was doing was wrong, but fuck, they’re just so perfect, he can’t help himself! He would be much quicker to get violent with his darling, they’re his, and he loves them, why can’t they just understand that! That the only reason he hurts them is because he loves them! Any time that he forced them into anything, he would apologize the whole time. He’s sorry! He knows how terrible he is, how disgusting and monstrous. But if only they could see themselves the way he sees them! Then they’d understand why he just has to have them in any and every way. Once they loved him too, he’d be much kinder, once they molded to fit his vision, to fit his every need, he would be softer with them, he wouldn’t hurt them so long as they behave!

With a Yandere! S/o

Comics and UtRH:

These boys would eat that shit up! All they’ve ever wanted was to be wanted. They wanted to matter enough to somebody for that somebody to do anything to keep them. It wouldn’t really be possible to kidnap either of them, but then again, it wouldn’t be necessary, they’d go anywhere their darling wanted them to. If they ever saw their s/o kill someone for them, they’d be over the moon, ready to propose, given the fact that the corpse had been somebody trying to hurt them. They have no problem with killing bad people and would be glad their s/o shared some of their values. But, if their s/o killed an innocent person out of jealousy, they wouldn’t be so happy. Everything would be easily smoothed over however, so long as their s/o agreed to not hurt innocent people. Neither of them would tolerate their s/o being violent towards them, though, not that their s/o would have any reason to considering how willing both of them would be. 

Arkham Knight: 

I don’t think that AK!J could deal with a yandere in his life at all. For too long he felt like people were vying for control of him trying to keep him caged. From ho strict Bruce could be, to the Joker, Jason would need to be in control in a relationship, and in his life. He would kill anybody that tried to hurt and/or kidnap him, and he wouldn’t trust anybody to be interested in him enough to go so far for him. He wouldn’t be able to accept any affection from somebody that he wanted to be with for a good long while after they got together, so he would especially hate somebody he doesn’t want trying to be affectionate with him.

Taglist: @mxsmwndr @theunavenged

[shannonsketches]

I was reading this post about Frieza but I didn't want to spam OPs notes with my rambling but Yes yes yessssss same hat same hat!!!

I described Vegeta to my friend as Frieza's favorite dog who spends his career being so unwittingly smug of how well he's learned to hold his own leash --

He's subconsciously learned the How To's of Power from Frieza's detachment, isolation, and precise self-control (knowing a saiyan's strength is in his rage while ignoring that rage comes from a place of emotional investment).

The manga/Toriyama's version of their relationship differs slightly from Toei's EU, largely in the way that Vegeta was being raised by his own father to usurp Frieza at some point, and take his place as ruler of the universe. It didn't start with Frieza, for Vegeta, but Frieza certainly compounded it. By all accounts, Vegeta seemed to enjoy his work, and was very proud of how good at it he was. But pride means as long as you're working for someone else, you're not good enough. And restoring Saiyans to the top of the food chain seemed to be King V's ultimate goal, vicariously through his record-breaking son.

But this seemed to be the goal of both their biological fathers, and what I imagine Frieza liked about Vegeta. It's also something I think Vegeta liked about Frieza. Relating to someone you have several plans to kill, in some quietly fucked up way to be less alone.

But Frieza wasn't only afraid of super saiyans! He was also afraid of what a group of powerful saiyans were capable of, which invites noting that he told Vegeta it was cowardly to rely on others, and that it was proof of ones weakness, while knowing Saiyans were historically deployed in groups. Teaching Vegeta to hang back while his underlings -- not peers, not friends -- did the work, until he -- the special one, like Frieza -- had to step in and solve the problems they weren't strong enough to handle.

Because those were weak Saiyans, who needed teammates. Not like Vegeta. Vegeta was a special Saiyan, who could do it all by himself. Both Frieza and King Vegeta told him so.

Which is probably what King Cold taught Frieza, too.

Part of the reason I think Frieza is/was headed for a redemption arc in Toriyama's version of the story (the manga/recent movies) is because Vegeta and Frieza are largely the same shape in terms of archetypes and story paths -- both born into what are essentially mafia families, both had callous fathers who valued their power over their person, both given no choice in their careers, both powerful enough to be surrounded by sycophants, both smart enough to know better than to call anyone a friend.

The major difference is that Vegeta was suddenly and completely removed from that environment and forced to adapt to a newer (softer) one in order to get his rematch with Goku, and Frieza immediately returned to his army to work toward his rematch with Goku. Vegeta didn't have a home to go back to, and Frieza did. Vegeta was forced to grow and change, and Frieza wasn't. Vegeta was unceremoniously pushed out of his self-isolation (and comfort zone), and Frieza was plucked up and happily curled right back into it.

His change is on a much slower track, but he's still experiencing the same furious denial and obsession with being better than the enigma called Goku that Vegeta did. I definitely agree that Vegeta was scared, and we're seeing that fear in Frieza too. This notion that your value lies wholly in your power -- a theory both King Vegeta and King Cold telegraphed to their children, and one Vegeta continued to witness and embrace while working for Frieza -- is deeply embedded.

It took Vegeta over a decade to start accepting it wasn't true, surrounded by people who kept choosing him even when he failed and rebelled and did all the things he should've been condemned to death for, by Frieza Force standards. Frieza was dead all that time, and when he came back he was pulled right back into the waiting arms of his old toxic environment, and even commented that he noticed they didn't want him back until his power was useful to them.

In the anime/toei versions it seems like the Saiyans are enslaved, but in the manga/toriyama version the Saiyans are absorbed into his empire, effectively just put under new management but still able to keep their culture and homes and monarch, the monarch just had a new boss (who also had a boss, more or less, which was beerus). So in the manga/Toriyama versions of the writing, it seems like the only part of Vegeta's job he didn't genuinely enjoy was the fact that he had to do it for someone else.

The biggest issue he has, at first, with learning what Freeza did was that he'd been lied to and used, knowing his rebellion would've come sooner if he'd known -- and that's humiliating. By the time he's five, he's already numb to the experience of war and death. He's already got his own command, and Saiyans rarely all make it back. By the time the truth is revealed to him, he doesn't care about his parents or his comrades. He cares that he, Vegeta, the Special Saiyan, was stupid enough to fall for a lie.

He feels genuine fear for the first time in his life when he faces Frieza's final form and realizes, that's it. There's no getting stronger. There's no next time.

He chose to brag about tearing up that luxury leash, and it was a gamble he lost. The unraveling of that sympathy and compassion hits him like a truck when he's dying and suddenly it's Very Real that there's no one left to remember him or his planet or his people or care about what happened to them or do anything about it (an important and poetic justice -- an exercise in empathy -- for all the peoples he gladly did it to (and, by his own admission, would have with or without Frieza)). He's modeled his life after his father, and after Frieza. He has no friends. He's not strong enough to be valuable anymore, not with Goku around. Nobody is going to wish him back. Nobody is going to miss him at all.

So Vegeta gets killed while he's having a fight-or-freeze panic attack, in which he freezes, and it's a thing that keeps happening to him from that point on, for the rest of Z, and throughout Super. The most embarrassing kind of proof that he feels safer in the company he kept on Namek, and actively recovering from the life he led before.

Frieza, ironically, doesn't have the freeze response. Frieza's panic is frantic and manic because, like Vegeta, nobody is going to miss him at all. He doesn't have any noble cause to hold onto like Vegeta did -- the one that's his own fault. He's set up all of the dominoes that are falling on him, and he's got nowhere to run except back to the place that taught him his only reason for being is his power, and -- just like Vegeta did -- he's spiraling because Goku showed up and made it a game. There's nobody safe for Frieza, except -- just like Vegeta -- in the company of those same people. People who should, by all accounts, want him as dead as anyone.

idk where i'm going with this, I just really enjoy their parallels and I am very intrigued by Frieza's arc lately.

I can't decide if I want Vegeta to destroy him or lose the battle and win the war with some familiar banter like they had in Res F but painful and recognizing himself in Frieza (or vice versa, rather) and give Frieza a whole mental break about how the two of them are probably the only people in the universe who will ever really Genuinely Understand each other, for the twisted humor it is.

I don't want Vegeta to forgive Frieza, I don't think that's the answer to all stories like this, even when the themes are about love and forgiveness I don't even think he's particularly forgiven Buu yet, tbh. I think he'd have to be dying again to chat like that, the way Vegeta does when he's about to die. But I think it could be a really good scene, and I think it would fuck Frieza up to be offered something of a broken olive branch just to lose it again because he's already killed it.

Maybe they're out of senzu beans. Maybe he's killed Dende already. No healing. No dragon balls. All the boys are down. Vegeta's wound is fatal. Frieza's won, but Vegeta's getting that last laugh in by being just a little nostalgic. A little sentimental in reflecting on their history. Give Frieza that nice familiar panic Vegeta knew so well; That little alarm bell that tells him he's got nothing left to strive for and no one left to know him. Let Frieza shatter so he can have some space to grow.

And the thing is, it's a gamble he's already won. Geets doesn't care if Frieza changes or not. He's dying, and there's no telling whether or not Bulma will figure something out before he's reincarnated. Do better or don't, this is fully not his problem anymore. xoxo!

[hxhhasmysoul]

I saw a post about yuji not having a sense of self and his cog mentality and he needs to first save himself, I would like to know what you think of it and if you agree then how will yuji gain it back?

Tbh I am asking this because having a sense of self is equivalent to having a strong soul in jjk which is basically to understand ourselves thoroughly and yuji knows himself. He already possesses a high sense of self which is to help/save people and because he doesn't want to die alone that's why he was able to suppress sukuna and sukuna also acknowledges that yuji's soul is indomitable/ unbreakable.it never changed. Like remove him from jujutsu world and he still would do something similar to that, gege also said if not sorcerer he would be a firefighter saving people.. He lost his will to fight but as soon as to do showed him a thread to hold on he took that instantly .same happened when todo appeared a second time and yuji was worried about others being killed

I personally see his cog mentality as his coping mechanism because sukuna and mahito destroyed his perception regarding curses and jujutsu world,his reason to fight kind of like until shibuya he never really understood the reason why he has to die as vessel .. They kind of opened his eyes and showed him what he is actually up against. It's just like mahito said that this wasn't some kind of pest control , he isn't naive but he repeatedly failed in his goal which weakened him. His desire to save people is both his strength and weakness.

Even when yuta wanted to kill him he defended himself although half heartedly , he even then didn't want to die ,was looking for reasons to save people and that is before megumi showed up . And he started to rely on others more. Even hakari notices that he calls himself cog but his behavior isn't like one... Megumi is the perfect example of cog.... I am waiting for his reaction to yujo to determine whether now he will finally acknowledge the reality of the jujutsu world and try to take matters into his own hands..

I mean, if Yuuji ever truly lost his sense of self and his strong soul, Sukuna would’ve taken over because that’s how that vessel business goes.

I agree that the cog mentality was a defence mechanism. Mahito did force Yuuji to admit to wanting to kill instead of save, and right after as you mentioned Sukuna’d made Yuuji realise why he needs to die. And then Megumi decided to make Yuuji feel more guilty for everything that had happened, because I’m sure Megumi felt super fucking guilty for releasing Makora. Megumi expected two people to die, Haruta and himself, not the whole fucking district becoming a crater. So he tries to spread the blame. 

And the cog mentality helps to deal with guilt. It absolves to some extent because it lets both Megumi and Yuuji offload some of the responsibility onto greater powers and the jujutsu system. 

And you’re absolutely right about Yuuji. The thing about him is that his core convictions are unshakable. He always values human life even if he stumbles, even if it’s not 100% selfless. 

To me that’s a very nice portrayal of someone who is heroic, because it feels true. It’s not mindless, it’s not divorced from who he is or what he’s going through. He wants to save people but he is allowed his weaknesses, he’s allowed to fear and to not want to die while at the same time saying he’s ready to die to take Sukuna with him. He’s human, not an icon so he is full of contradictions. To me it makes his attempts to protect others more sincere because they come with him constantly trying to reconcile his inner contradictions, it is his strength and his weakness. He constantly rebuilds his sense of self because life makes it clear to him that it’s impossible to be just selfless and pure and good. That’s inhuman and Yuuji is amazingly human and a good person. He probably doubts the latter but I think that a part of being a so-called “good person” is being aware of your own limitations and actually being open to the world around you. Like not deciding up front what is good and what is bad and sticking to it no matter what, even if the world gets complicated around you. I don’t know if it makes sense XD But a strong sense of self to me is not something rigid and static, it's something that constantly grows with the person. That constantly reconciles the self and the world that the self is a part of. And it is one that isn't afraid of reality.

Yuuji wins with Mahito because Mahito thinks that his soul can adjust to anything but it actually can’t. He manages to bring darkness out of Yuuji and Mahito’s world changes. He was the nihilist to toy with everyone, the one to torment Yuuji’s soul. He was the strong one in that relationship but instead of breaking Yuuji, he created a monster. His sense of self was built on human life being meaningless, souls being a dime a dozen but suddenly his own soul is on the line. He can’t be nihilist about his own soul, it’s an inner contradiction he can’t reconcile in the moment. Another being that from a predator he became just a curse, like all other curses hunted by a sorcerer. Curses seem to think that because they can’t lie, they always see the truth. But truth comes from perception, as long as something seems true to someone it’s not a lie. And it’s a huge shock to realise you haven’t seen the whole truth even when you were so convinced you are the ultimate truth seer because you could see souls. 

Yuuji manages to incorporate the contradiction Mahito forces onto him into his sense of self. Also I won’t get into it but I personally find the equivalence between humans and curses as kinda forced and not truly holding up to scrutiny upon inspection. 

Sorry it took me so long to answer. Thank you for the ask. I hope my answer makes sense XD

[asherisawkward]

I've heard some say that Belos is a boring villain because he only relies on religion, his god complex, angst, and trauma to keep the audience invested and lacks development. Do you believe that to be true?

There are factors of this that I both agree with and disagree with.

Prepare for another essay, because you triggered:

I am so sorry for rambling like this.

Philip is a fairly static character throughout the series, as most of his development occurred off screen in the past. So, I can understand why some people think he’s boring, but I find it really interesting in the way his behaviors and even lies reveal information about him.

Let’s start with the religion. Philip is an extremely devout person. He spent almost four hundred in what he believed to be Hell to save humanity from evil. But the way he uses the Titan as a manner to control people is indicative of what his life was like back on Gravesfield.

Puritan beliefs could be more described as the following: humans are born sinful and impure, you must devote your life to a strict set of standards and rules to try to make God happy, everyone is born predetermined to go to Heaven or Hell but will not know until after death, and death is the ultimate punishment for Adam’ and Eve’s sin. They also took great care in analyzing everything around them for signs of God’s pleasure or displeasure.

How much are those beliefs echoed in the cult he created on the Isles?

Philip absolutely has a God Complex, made clear by his repeated creation and termination of the Grimwalkers in an attempt to create the “perfect” Caleb. By doing that, he is claiming that God himself made his brother wrong and that he can do better. If that isn’t ego, I don’t know what is.

However, I’ve noticed a certain amount of behavior that could come across as self loathing or even an inferiority complex. Often, these behaviors are seen together with god/superiority complexes masking the insecurities that lie beneath.

The first evidence of this occurs when we see his face for the first time. Not the scar, but his ears. Many noted (correctly) that they were too small to be witch ears and looked more like cropped human ears. As we later find out, Philip cut parts of his ears off to blend in more thoroughly with BI society. He likely didn’t even need to do this due to the t of illusion stones (like the Blight twins use) that can modify his appearance. Alternatively, he could have simply covered his ears with his hair. Some braids or a specific hairstyle could have done the trick, but he chose to permanently scar himself.

Later, when we confirm the connection of Belos being Philip, we also find out that he carved glyphs on his arms to utilize magic. Once again, he could have stuck with his staff, as it doesn’t require such measures to utilize (see: Hunter and the other Grimwalkers), but he still chose to do something permanent and harmful to himself.

We can see this come to a head in a particularly dangerous move: consuming Palismen. This was likely never done before due to the taboo on harming a witch’s bond with them. And Philip decided he would crack one open and absorb its magic. It could have killed him! It was part of the reason why he was cursed. Those are serious consequences, and yet he continued for centuries, making his curse worse and worse like an addiction to drugs.

Also, remember what he said at the end of Elsewhere and Elsewhen? “It doesn’t matter. I just need to live long enough to see this through.” Those are not the words of someone who values his life. In fact, that statement has led me to believe that he didn’t intend on living in the Human Realm after the Day of Unity. I think he intended to die there so he wouldn’t be trapped in the place he hated forever.

Now for the fun parts: angst and trauma.

I sometimes feel that he’s made more overtly cruel than he probably would be at times in order to drive home the point that he’s evil, and I can understand that. However, Philip’s behavior towards the Grimwalkers was likely based on a mixture of him being a shit person, displacement theory, and the standards of punishment/child rearing he was used to.

From a storytelling standpoint, he’s incredibly useful as a driving force for multiple characters, and that makes him intriguing.

But here’s another detail I noticed: Philip considered the making of his Grimwalkers one of his worst memories. In Kings Tide, we see the paintings of him meeting his brother with Evelyn, Caleb’s body after the fight, and the first Grimwalker being made. And it’s that last one where Philip finally loses it.

The process of making Grimwalkers was incredibly traumatic for him, and the fact that he engaged in this behavior continuously over more than three hundred years indicates some form of emotional self harm. He forces himself to go through the stress and effort of painstakingly making and raising these beings to be the way he wants them to be. And they fail every single time. He even begins branding them to show that he intends for them to die, no matter what.

So what is the point of that? Why would he do that?

He’s cultivating the emotions he experienced when he lost his brother—the event that drove him to hold the goal of genocide instead of simply getting Caleb home. He has to keep doing this or he’ll lose the ability to stay motivated and continue his goal.

It’s incredibly tragic, and it implies he’s tired, that he wants it to be over.

Then again, considering that most of this is my over-analysis and not actually stated in canon, I may just be falling into the exact trap you suggested.

To conclude, Philip Wittebane is a character whose motivations for his actions and beliefs are largely implied as opposed to outright stated, and it can make him difficult to enjoy as a character. The majority of those who like him tend to either like his surface attributes/aesthetic or the depth that could have been revealed through scrutinization.

[cabeswaterdrowned]

@clotpolesonly @mirror-bawl

I wanted to reply to both of your tags so doing so together. • Agreed about Gansey trying to be his better self for Adam’s sake, I think it would have been a combination of Gansey’s malleable personality and how he’s used to reflecting what people want to see in him for their own comfort especially when he likes someone as much as he likes Adam, and then also he’s genuinely being inspired by what he sees / values in Adam to be better. Sort of simultaneously showing the bad / good in adansey how they both play off and enable each other’s predisposition to be performative / put on masks and at the same time inspire each other to work on themselves and be better genuinely, at least that’s how I see that dichotomy.

On a related note that part where Ronan gives his ‘Adam would hate Gansey on fire’ hypothesis I do think he’s more correct than incorrect, and in some ways I find his read of their dynamic more reliable than either Adam or Gansey (who tend to be very delulu about it in one way or another) but I still feel like his perspective is worth questioning a little here. I think Adam would have a layered reaction to Gansey on Fire that would include hatred but wouldn't necessarily be only hatred, in the the vein that Gansey's President Cell Phone persona evokes repulsion and a kind of infatuation/attraction from him simultaneously. Also worth noting that Gansey on Fire is positioned as kind of separate from ‘Angry Gansey’ because of course Adam does bring that out sometimes. I feel like the difference is that the former Gansey is sort of casually arrogant and would be uncaring about the effect of his actions or words on others, whereas the latter might make a mistake and be cruel but never doesn’t feel like shit for it or doesn’t try to be another way. (I do really like that each Gangsey member sort of has a ‘favorite’ version of Gansey I’ve mentioned that before and might go into more detail about it but that’s for another post). • On Gansey seeing Adam as a real boy… yes I totally think that has to do with it and so does Adam’s hyper competent and controlling nature although Gansey would not admit to himself that there’s a side to it of Adam being willing to do the dirty work for him. I also think dynamically Gansey right now is used to the master-dog dynamic he has with Ronan, which is a loving relationship in a way that’s a very important departure for him from his dynamics with his family, but also there’s that Gansey being asked to manage or control Ronan aspect there which works for them and their dynamic but as the sole friendship you have … and then meeting someone like Adam who Needs to be allowed to work with you as a partner and is more comfortable with you relying on him than the other way around which has it’s own problems but! The different type of support there would be so appealing / grounding. Gansey at this point in TRB also sees Adam as perfectly controlled in comparison to Ronan, but doesn’t quite see the neuroses and mess that creates that control similar to how he can’t parse that in himself. Which in the long term makes a messy out of control Adam less palatable to him than an out of control Ronan but in the moment means he’s allowing himself to lean on perfectly controlled (lol) perfectly logical/rational (lmfao) Adam Parrish..

[bigsoftmarshmallow]

Okay, I'm ridiculously curious now. Because I do not see this sort of thing ANYWHERE!!

What are your thoughts on an Omage!Ganondorf with an Alpha!Female? Like, I have other ideas, but I'm just going to leave it at that.

So personally, I cannot see Ganondorf as anything as an Alpha, but just for you, Anon, I'll attempt hard for you to see him otherwise-

SO OMEGA GANONDORF!

A Male among Alpha Gerudo Women, an Omega King to be pampered and defended by any means necessary! After growing older and being properly educated about the world, of Alphas, Betas, and Omegas, and their places in society, he would be so very angry that in the rest of the world, Omegas are oppressed and considered only breeding fodder.

Ganondorf would show what would happen if they would anger the wrong Omega. He would conquer and be king!

Had ChatGPT Help Me With More Information:

Ganondorf from "The Wind Waker" as an Omega

Attributes:

Intelligence and Strategizing: Even as an Omega, Ganondorf would retain his sharp intellect and strategic mind. He would be a master of manipulation and persuasion, using his cunning to navigate social hierarchies.

Calm and Reflective: His reflective nature would make him a calm and composed Omega, often thinking deeply before acting.

Adaptability: He would adapt his strategies to his Omega status, using his intelligence and cunning to maintain control and influence.

Dealing with Alphas and Betas:

Respect and Manipulation: Ganondorf would respect strong Alphas but would also be adept at manipulating them to his advantage. He would use his wit and intelligence to stay ahead in any situation.

Collaborative with Betas: He would collaborate with Betas, valuing their stability and reliability. He would use their strengths to complement his own strategies.

Mate Preferences:

Strength and Intelligence: He would look for a mate who is both strong and intelligent, someone who can match his own cunning and strategic mind.

Respect and Loyalty: He would value respect and loyalty, seeking a partner who understands his ambitions and supports them.

Courting Style:

Subtle and Strategic: Ganondorf would court his mate with subtlety and strategy. He would use his intelligence to create opportunities for connection and demonstrate his value.

Deep Conversations: He would engage in deep and meaningful conversations, seeking to understand his mate’s mind and values.

Shame about Orientation:

Acceptance and Adaptation: Ganondorf would initially struggle with his Omega status but would ultimately accept and adapt to it. He would find ways to turn his orientation into an advantage, using it to strengthen his strategies and influence.

Ganondorf from "Ocarina of Time" as an Omega

Attributes:

Pride and Determination: As an Omega, Ganondorf would still possess his immense pride and determination. He would be fiercely independent and driven.

Ambition: His ambition would remain undiminished, and he would seek to achieve his goals through cunning and strategy.

Dealing with Alphas and Betas:

Challenging Alphas: He would challenge Alphas, asserting his own strength and intelligence. He would not bow easily and would always seek to prove his worth.

Using Betas: He would use Betas to his advantage, relying on their support and stability to bolster his own plans.

Mate Preferences:

Power and Influence: Ganondorf would look for a mate with power and influence, someone who can help him achieve his ambitions.

Respect and Understanding: He would value a mate who respects his drive and understands his goals.

Courting Style:

Bold and Direct: He would be bold and direct in his courting, showing his mate his strength and determination.

Displays of Power: He would use displays of power and influence to impress and attract his mate.

Shame about Orientation:

Struggle with Acceptance: Ganondorf would struggle to accept his Omega status, seeing it as a challenge to his pride. However, he would eventually find ways to leverage it to his advantage, turning his perceived weakness into a strength.

Ganondorf from "Twilight Princess" as an Omega

Attributes:

Cold and Calculating: As an Omega, Ganondorf would be cold and calculating, using his intelligence to navigate the complexities of his status.

Ruthless Ambition: His ambition would be ruthless, and he would stop at nothing to achieve his goals.

Dealing with Alphas and Betas:

Manipulating Alphas: He would manipulate Alphas to his advantage, using their strength and dominance to further his own plans.

Strategic Alliances with Betas: He would form strategic alliances with Betas, valuing their reliability and support.

Mate Preferences:

Intelligence and Cunning: Ganondorf would seek a mate who is intelligent and cunning, someone who can match his strategic mind.

Loyalty and Ambition: He would value loyalty and ambition, looking for a partner who shares his goals and desires.

Courting Style:

Subtle Manipulation: He would court his mate through subtle manipulation and strategic moves, creating situations that draw them closer.

Demonstrating Value: He would demonstrate his value through his actions, showing his mate that he is a worthy partner.

Shame about Orientation:

Cold Acceptance: Ganondorf would coldly accept his Omega status, viewing it as just another challenge to overcome. He would use it to his advantage, finding ways to turn his orientation into a strength.

Ganondorf from "Hyrule Warriors" as an Omega

Attributes:

Charisma and Confidence: Even as an Omega, Ganondorf would exude charisma and confidence. He would use his charm to influence and lead others.

Dynamic and Energetic: He would be dynamic and energetic, always seeking new challenges and opportunities.

Dealing with Alphas and Betas:

Charming Alphas: He would charm Alphas, using his charisma to win their support and cooperation.

Collaborative with Betas: He would be collaborative with Betas, valuing their stability and reliability in his dynamic plans.

Mate Preferences:

Strength and Charisma: Ganondorf would look for a mate who is both strong and charismatic, someone who can match his energy and drive.

Loyalty and Support: He would value loyalty and support, seeking a partner who stands by him through thick and thin.

Courting Style:

Bold and Charismatic: He would court his mate with boldness and charisma, using his charm to win their affection.

Grand Gestures: He would use grand gestures to impress and attract his mate, showing his dedication and commitment.

Shame about Orientation:

Confident Acceptance: Ganondorf would confidently accept his Omega status, using it as another tool in his arsenal. He would leverage his charisma and intelligence to maintain his influence and achieve his goals.

Summary

Wind Waker Ganondorf: Intelligent, calm, and reflective. He respects and manipulates Alphas, collaborates with Betas, and courts subtly with deep conversations. He adapts to his Omega status.

Ocarina of Time Ganondorf: Proud and determined, he challenges Alphas and uses Betas strategically. He courts boldly with displays of power and struggles to accept his Omega status but leverages it.

Twilight Princess Ganondorf: Cold and calculating, he manipulates Alphas and forms alliances with Betas. He courts subtly through manipulation and coldly accepts his Omega status.

Hyrule Warriors Ganondorf: Charismatic and confident, he charms Alphas and collaborates with Betas. He courts boldly with grand gestures and confidently accepts his Omega status.

Each Ganondorf’s approach as an Omega reflects their unique personality traits, blending intelligence, pride, ambition, and charisma to navigate their status and relationships.

[transmutationisms]

i agree with the your statement on what succession is saying on the nuclear family but i guess i don’t understand how to get there analytically. how/why is it saying that these things are intrinsic to the social form of the family? how/why is it not arguing that it is the product of familial abuse specifically? like how is it arguing that this is true for all families and not just ones we’d label fucked up? like i do believe it but i can’t articulate why so i was wondering if you could lol thank you

so, to me the analysis proceeds by asking what specific social forms and conditions create and enable the familial abuse. logan has control over his family because of his money and his social and political capital. he sees himself as specifically having ownership over his children, as they're almost avatars of himself including / specifically in their sexual behaviour. his psychological abuse is possible because they rely on him for their emotional development; his physical abuse is possible because as the father, he has legal ownership over them. he wants to turn them into ideal, disciplined employees, who correctly demonstrate his definitions of masculinity and strength, and punishes them for failing to live up to these demands.

so, what elements are anomalous? logan's level of wealth and power is elevated because he's a tv billionaire, of course. but, legally and socially, parents do actually have ownership over their children, who are denied personhood and bodily autonomy. fatherhood specifically is configured as a relation of ownership (though make no mistake that even in a non-patriarchal society, ceteris paribus, the parent-child relationship is still power-imbalanced). the family as the site of emotional development and the source of the child's basic material needs means there is tremendous potential for abuse because it's very difficult, emotionally or materially, for a child to survive leaving it. and logan's valorisation of masculinity etc is very much in line with prevailing cultural norms.

the suggestion then is that the type of abuse we see in the roys is not an aberration from the normal rules of familial dynamics, just an intensification of them. even in healthy, non-abusive families there are elements of control and power imbalance, and children are basically trapped in such families as well; they're simply lucky not to be in immediate extreme harm because of it. misogyny that pervades a society will also pervade individual families, and it's very common and normal for parents to value their daughters less than their sons, treat their sons with disgust for being effeminate, etc. even in families where these things don't produce outright abuse, they are still harmful; abuse of the roy variety is not different by quality but in quantity.

the collapse of the employer-employee relationship and the parent-child relationship is a critical piece of this. for logan, having children was a means of securing an heir to both his business and his bloodline / legacy. this inherently makes the children instrumental for logan, valued on the basis of how well they conform to what he wants, ie, a flattering reflection of himself that can outlive him. and furthermore, the show goes out of its way to show how the power imbalance of employer-enployee inherently creates the possibility for abuse (tom and greg, kendall and jess, logan and the old guard, logan and waystar more generally). so, mapping logan's relationship with his children onto the capitalist relationship to the worker is a deliberate move again suggesting that these relationships are both marked by a power differential and instrumental use of the disempowered person, which enables abusive treatment.

so, familial abuse on the show is not a departure from normal family dynamics but an intensification of them. not all parents are emotionally and physically violent with their children to the extent logan is, obviously. but the family inherently allows for this possibility, makes it extremely hard to stop such violence when it is occurring, and is still coercive even for those children who are not in an actively dangerous situation with an outright abusive parent. again, the difference with the roys is in degree of intensity; nothing about how they function or the ideology logan imposes on them is actually a violation of cultural, social, or legal norms in the united states in 2023.