#and it wasn't enough

[baejax-the-great]

In the version of Ajax's story that would have been around during Homer's time, Ajax didn't lose the contest for Achilles' arms because he is dimwitted or because Odysseus is clever. Neither of these things had anything to do with it (and I would argue the former isn't true).

Ajax wanted to prove himself. We'll never know exactly what he'd accomplished in his life pre-Iliad because two of the sections where these things would have been laid out, the catalog of ships and Helen's introduction of all the Greek generals to Priam, were in all likelihood tampered with and erased (probably by 5th century BCE Athenians). You ever wonder to yourself why Ajax's section in the catalog of the ships is so short and also contradicts other parts of the Iliad regarding where Ajax's camp/ships are? So have historians. And the Megarans (who took Ajax as a hero of their city), who wrote their own satirical version of his section mocking the one that got canonized in the version of the Iliad we have today. The exact why and how of that erasure is an unknown, but it's a fairly accepted theory (and more supported than my original thought on reading it--wow, did Homer hate Ajax or something?).

Regardless, Homer does mention repeatedly that Ajax is the second best of all the Greeks in the Iliad. He is also, notably, the one main hero who doesn't receive direct help from any of the gods. The closest he gets is Poseidon giving him a burst of energy, but that's about it. Compare to Diomedes who has Athena driving a chariot for him, or Paris who is spirited away in combat before Menelaus can kill him, or Achilles who has Athena tricking Hector and retrieving Achilles' spear for him--Poseidon handing Ajax the equivalent of a Red Bull is pretty paltry. But it's enough, because Ajax can get shit done.

By that same token, Ajax doesn't ask the gods for much. Notably he never prays to Athena, and she never interacts with him at all. Because she hates him.

As the older story goes, Ajax believed that the way to prove himself the best of the warriors was to eschew the help of the gods and show that he could accomplish his great feats alone. In a less sympathetic version of this, his invulnerability makes him cocky enough to believe he doesn't need the gods to prove himself (I actually think both these sentences mean the same thing, but the framing is a bit different--is he saying that the gods' help is beneath him? Or is he desperate to prove himself without getting a leg up from powerful beings?). Athena likes her little toy soldiers, and dislikes being ignored by great warriors who by all accounts should be begging for her favor, so this didn't sit well with her.

In eschewing the gods' help, Ajax does prove himself more capable than the other Greeks. His accomplishments are his alone. Nobody is going to compliment Paris for surviving his duel with Menelaus because they all know a goddess helped him. At various points throughout the Iliad, warriors accuse each other of having the gods helping them (such as when Little Ajax eats shit while racing Odysseus and blames Athena for favoring him), thus cheapening their victories.

Nobody can say this about Ajax. Everything he did, he did himself.

And for his pride, Athena hates him. And because of this, she will deny him the one thing he wanted--recognition of his abilities. When the time comes for the Greeks to give their respect to Ajax as their greatest warrior, something they all know he is, she rigs it so that they don't. Ajax is snubbed. His abilities will go unrecognized.

He goes mad--and we already know he's not the kind of guy who can ask for help--and so he is killed by the only warrior strong enough to defeat him--himself.

[respheal]

No context but doing the Dawntrail story as a healer job was a great idea

[sword-dad-fukuzawa]

Anon who asked the If Rem Lived question. I think you’re probably right, and I’m a little sad. Manga!Rem is honestly one of my favorite characters in Trigun. This is going to turn into a love letter for her. I know it gets joked she’s been Fridged, but Gunsmoke wouldn’t exist without her. Because if she hadn’t joined SEEDS then Vash & Nai likely would’ve died just like Tesla. Manga!Rem is also a little more fleshed out in like Ch. 40 & 41? When the crew wakes up she’s afraid FOR the twins, and tells them to hide. Then when she’s asked if anything has happened she just stone cold LIES. She lies because of love, and maybe a little guilt. She’s mature & handling the situation in the best way to protect the boys.

How hard it must’ve been to be the person maintaining Tesla’s grave and still be all smiles and friendly with your crew who cut up a small child. The female crew member even tells Rem to wake her up if Rem gets lonely. That crew member cares for Rem, and was one of the same people who experimented on Tesla.

Vash and Nai are Rem’s second chance. A way to make up for Tesla. She loves them, but there’s also that guilt. We also see from her personal flashback with the Blank Ticket a bit more background info. We know from Vash that she apparently had no one, so maybe she had no living relatives and Alex was also dead. Her apartment when she wakes up from the Ticket dream is a Mess. Trash and bottles everywhere. No doubt she was depressed and still reeling from Alex’s death. She tells Vash she joined SEEDS out of admiration for adventurers, but maybe it was also a way to leave behind the past and begin to look for a brighter future.

It’s just really odd to think that the entire Trigun series happens because Rem joins SEEDS. A right person & right time thing. All the little stars of the universe aligning, and because she exists the Fall happens, but because she exists she manages to save some people. This includes her sons. I love her because she’s a person so full of love & guilt, and everything was hinging on her: to do the right thing, to lie, to teach about humans, etc.

I’m sorry for rambling.

MAN i need to read trimax. this just makes me want to read trimax so bad. GOD. this whole essay has me in tears please never apologize for rambling in my inbox anon ;-;

[sigurism]

Anne Canovas et Tom Novembre Prêt-à-Porter (Ready to Wear) Dir: Robert Altman

[capitanschampagne]

i feel so empty today

[problemnyatic]

the steven universe hate is insane bc people are (or at least were) more upset that fictional war criminals got fictional hugs than they recognize that it singlehandedly advanced queer rep in children's media by lightyears and then straight up ate heavy retaliation for the nerve.

It does have real flaws that are worth discussing, but it also put their male protagonist in dresses and skirts and played it straight and even empowering, they aired a lesbian wedding on television, it was a genuinely queer, genuinely diverse piece of media through and through. It did a lot of real good for the real world.

But also the fictional characters caused fictional harm to other fictional characters, and didn't get an onscreen firing squad sentence. So, you know, it's basically ontologically evil in real life.

[king-nyx]

Crying about the fact that Apollo was so close to what he perceived as the happy ending and then it was all stripped away from him. It's for the better, but he didn't believe that. He could have made it work. He would have fought tooth and nail to make it work. He would have done everything right and he would never take the wrong turn just to make it work. He would've been the perfect, most supportive husband just to make it work. He would've sacrificed everything to make it work.........

[js-dragonart]

Grand maester Orwyle just wants to do his job in peace, but the greens won´t leave his patient alone.

[starry-bi-sky]

I am loudly pushing the batdad agenda i am loudly pushing the— DPxDC Prompt

“Woah. You look like shit."

Granted, that’s probably not the first thing Danny should be saying to the guy that just bit the curb, but in his defense; he’s not running on 100% right now either.

The man -- tall, towering, and broader than Danny is tall -- whips around on his heel, black frayed cape flaring out impressively. Danny would've whistled in appreciation, but he takes the time instead to wipe the back of his hand across his mouth, smearing the blood running from his nose across his cheek.

"Sorry." He blinks widely, not even flinching as the man with the horns zeroes in on him. "That was rude of me. I have a really bad brain-to-mouth filter; Sam says its what always gets me into trouble."

And she's not wrong either, per say. His smart mouth is what landed him in this situation -- with blood blossom extract running through his veins and cannibalizing the ectoplasm in his bloodstream. Thanks Vlad.

The man grunts at him; a short, curt "hm" that shouldn't make Danny smile, but he does because he's somewhat delirious and probably concussed. The man keeps some kind of distance, sinking towards the shadows of Gotham's alleyway like he dares to melt right into it.

If it's supposed to scare Danny, it doesn't work. Danny's never been afraid of the dark; he's always been able to hide himself in it. He blinks slowly at the mass of shadows.

"You look hurt." The shadows says, blurring together around the edges. Danny squints, and licks his lips to get the blood dripping down his chin off. Ugh, he hates the taste of blood.

"I am." He says, "My godfather poisoned me. M'dying." The agony of the blood blossom eating him from the inside out looped back around to numbing a while ago, so all he feels is half-awake and dazed.

"Hey," Danny stumbles forward towards the man, a bloodied hand reaching out to him. "You-- you're a hero, right? You're not attacking me; which is more than I can say for most costumed people I've met." Maybe it's a poor bar to judge someone at, but he's already established that Danny's not in his right mind.

The man makes no change in expression, but Danny realizes blearily that it's hard to tell with the shadows on his face. He stays still long enough for Danny to latch onto the cape -- stretchy, but almost soft under his fingers.

He looks up blearily into the whites of the man's eyes. "Can you help me? I don't-- I don't wanna die." Again. He doesn't wanna die again. He blinks slow and lizard-like. "I mean- I'll probably get to see mom and dad again, but I told them I'd at least try and make it to adulthood."

There's a clatter down the street, and Danny's ghost sense chills up his spine and leaves a bitter, ashy taste in his mouth. He immediately knows who it belongs to even before the deceptively gentle; "Daniel?" echoes down the way.

"Daniel? Quit your games, badger, Gotham is dangerous for children."

Danny's mouth pulls back, and blood spills against his tongue. "Please." He rasps, and grabs onto the shadow's cape with both hands. "Please. He's going to kill me. Please--"

"Daniel? Is that you?"

His lips part, dragging in air to plead with the darkness again. He doesn't need to, the whites of his eyes narrow, and the cape whirls around him before Danny can blink. Soon swaddled in shadows, the Night lifts him up, and steals him away.

[herethebirdsjourneyends]

She finally blocked me

[thomdoesthings]

Keelah se'lai

[son-flower]

on being maggey byrde

[stil-lindigo]

scorched earth.

a comic about a princess who died in a fire.

(this is a sequel to bite of winter, a comic about Snow and what became of her after her death.)

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creative notes:

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all my other comics

store

[hrokkall]

Yeah sure I'll let this one free into the wild

[lilacthebooklover]

alex finally got his gay background character representation <3

[mejkosmos]

no because people never shut up about how bad bill fumbled ford which,,, okay valid BUT can we talk about how bad ford fumbled //FIDDLEFORD//?!? FOR A DORITO?!?!??!?