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samasmith23 · 9 months

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Maria Castle (and Jason Aaron) officially declare: "The Punisher No More"... while gloriously pissing off right-wing chuds in the process!

I just read the final issue of Jason Aaron's 12-issue Punisher maxiseries, and here it is at long last! The scene in which Frank Castle's entire career of mass-murder and fascistic vigilantism is openly denounced by his now ex-wife, Maria!

This scene alone is what officially piqued my interest in wanting to read this book! Although Aaron is one of my personal Top 5 favorite comic book writers, I was initially uninterested in reading his recent Punisher run despite hearing critical praise for it due to both my personal overall lack of interest in Frank's solo-titles (my past exposure to him has mostly been through uneasy team-ups and/or rivalries with other characters like Spider-Man & Daredevil...), as well as the real-life controversy surrounding the Punisher's signature skull logo being co-opted by police officers and white nationalists (even though Aaron's run changed the logo in-response to said-controversy by having him join forces with The Hand ninja-cult). But when I heard about this scene on the day the final issue of the maxiseries dropped, it alone convinced me to want to actually read this series for myself, as it demonstrated Aaron's commitment to actively deconstructing the Punisher as a character while refuting his toxic & harmful ideology!

After being interrogated by the likes of Doctor Strange, Wolverine, Black Widow, and Moon Knight, Frank receives judgment from one final figure in the form of his former wife, Maria. Now able to fully announce her intentions to divorce her husband without a mob shoot-out to tragically interrupt her this time, Maria openly condemns all of the murders that Frank committed in both her and their dead children's names whilst revealing that she arranged for all of Frank's numerous weapons safe-houses to be confiscated. Half of the monetary real-estate from which would go to herself so that she could start a fresh new life, while the other half would be donated to charities in their children's names. As Maria herself states, "That's how you honor your dead family, Frank. Not by using them as an excuse for slaughter," before saying goodbye to her ex-husband for good as he awaits judgment for his crimes from Earth's Mightiest Heroes...

Holy FREAKING crap! This is the literal embodiment of giving the "reason you suck" speech if ever I've seen one! Not only does Maria freely express all of her personal justified grievances with her sadistic ex-husband, but she completely refutes his murderous & fascistic "might-makes-right" beliefs, and punishes him for his crimes by financially defanging him whilst simultaneously donating half of said-money & resources to worthwhile causes that ACTUALLY contribute to helping individuals hurt by corrupt societal systems, rather than further perpetuating said-corruption like Frank's murders have done.

And what makes Maria's berating of Frank Castle even more satisfying to read is that it ultimately managed to royally piss-off the far-right fascist scumbags who glorify & appropriate the Punisher's iconography in real-life. Seriously, when Punisher (2022) #12 was first released I witnessed several Comicsgater chuds whining and complaining about Marvel "ruining the Punisher's character forever" and Jason Aaron "emasculating Frank Castle." Additionally, said-CGers argued that Maria Castle was "unlikable" for robbing Frank of all his weapons and safehouses (except... I can honestly sympathize with Maria here since if I was also resurrected from the dead and found out that one of my relatives committed multiple mass-murders "in honor of my legacy," then I'd be pretty pissed off about it as well...).

And all I have to say in response to these bigoted manbabies' complaints about Aaron "ruining Punisher" is this:

GOOD!

If Aaron's Punisher maxiseries, and specifically the scene of Maria Castle condemning Frank, managed to anger the very same fascist rightwingers who blindly idolize the Punisher (despite his original creator Gerry Conway intending the character to be a cautionary figure about the failures of the justice system), then that fact alone makes this deconstruction of both the character & concept of Frank Castle a truly worthwhile endeavor! While the series ends with Frank using the last of the demonic magical powers granted to him by The Beast to escape the Avengers' captivity, along with the Archpriestess of the Hand trying to indoctrinate another troubled American youth similar into becoming her cult’s next "Fist of the Beast" (reflecting the sad reality of how fascist systems can continue to exist in society even when notable individuals are defeated), it appears that Marvel is officially retiring Frank Castle for good. Even though just last month Marvel released a new Punisher miniseries written by David Pepose which stars an ex-S.H.I.E.L.D. agent named Joe Garrison adopting the mantle, the epilogue of Aaron's maxiseries reveals that Frank had permanently banished himself to the Weirdworld alternate dimension, intentionally avoids fighting in local conflicts but instead provides shelter for war orphans (indicating that he might have actually taken his Maria's words to heart).

In my opinion, this is a far more satisfying conclusion than the alternative of having Frank killed off at the end of the series. This means that he actually has to put in ACTUAL effort to find some form of atonement or rehabilitation, rather than simply evading punishment for his crimes through death.

Overall, Jason Aaron's 12-issue Punisher maxiseries was a phenomenally inventive and thought-provoking character analysis and deconstruction of the truly violent & unstable individual that Frank Castle is (even long before he officially adopted the skull logo), whilst simultaneously analyzing and critiquing the circumstances that contributed to Frank's fascistic and murderous beliefs, as well as their negative impacts on his interpersonal relationships with individuals such as his wife Maria Castle. Although sadly, the way Aaron brilliantly ended Frank Castle's career as the Punisher in Issue #12 was sadly overshadowed by the controversy generated by a certain OTHER comic that Marvel released the exact same week... namely the publicity-stunt shock-death of Ms. Marvel (aka, Kamala Khan… aka, my all-time favorite superhero) in Zeb Wells' Amazing Spider-Man (2019) #26...

Sigh... at least Kamala was fortunately later resurrected over in the X-Men titles and was given the awesome Ms. Marvel: The New Mutant miniseries written by her MCU actress, Iman Vellani (which I've read and absolutely loved)!

But aside from that, the Punisher by Jason Aaron is easily one of the best modern comics that I read in 2023, with Issue #12 being the absolute thesis statement of what this series is truly about! I highly recommend it to anyone who desires a complete refutation & condemnation of the murderous scumbag that Frank Castle is and always has been.

From Punisher (2022) #12 by Jason Aaron, Jesús Saiz & Paul Azaceta.

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shivunin · 1 year

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DID I SEND CHARACTERS ALREADY? I can’t remember but I’m gonna do it (again)

Leliana, Bethany, and Josie??

Nope, but good picks! c: And thank you for asking, Zen!

(Character Ask thing)

Leliana:

First impression: I started Inquisition first, so: ooh badass spy lady, I'm into it

Impression now: The same, but I love the dimension that playing Origins gives her character (+ Leliana's song). To see her go from this devil-may-care character to a woman who is trying her best to be virtuous, then the Left Hand of the Divine to her ending in Inquisition (hardened/unhardened, Divine/not Divine) is all so fascinating. We get so much scope in her character and I think it's fantastic.

Favorite moment: I think my favorite line for her is the bit about shoes in the Winter Palace, where she talks about everything she can sort of interpret based on the woman's buckles. It's such an interesting insight into her thought process

Idea for a story: I have a half-written scene with her and Salshira in the Josie/Salshira universe where she helps arrange passage to the duel with Lord Otranto and I think it's really fun!

Unpopular opinion: I know people generally think it's not canon/ridiculous, but I think Fade Ghost Leliana is so goddamn funny. She came back from the ether to work a 9 to 5 for the church. Like what?? She fought her friend to the death over a jar of ashes and dragon's blood and then she was like, well, okay, but what if there was an epilogue?? It's so funny. So so funny.

Favorite relationship: Leliana and Shmooples. I want more Leliana and Shmooples content. She loves that little fella so much and I want to know what their day to day is like. (but I am also interested in how Josie and Leliana became friends; she is so protective of Josie in a way she isn't toward anyone else and it is really really interesting to me)

Favorite headcanon: Leliana and Zev are buddies and stay in touch. I saw a comic a while ago of him leaving gifts/notes for the other companions and I find the headcanon so delightful. I like to imagine he's how Leliana actually tracked down the Hero of Ferelden.

Bethany:

*I want to preface this by saying that I have not even once played 2 with a non-mage, so I haven't spent a ton of time around Bethany.

First impression: Oh, cool, you get siblings in this one!

Impression now: Let Bethany say fuck. For the love of God, let Bethany say fuck

Favorite moment: I am so sorry, I can't think of anything specific T.T I do think her dialogue with a romanced Sebastian in the Legacy DLC is funny.

Idea for a story: In my magician AU, Bethany is in a coma. I have loosely plotted a part in this AU where she wakes up and is able to express some of that anger about the role she had in her family.

Unpopular opinion: Idk if this qualifies, but I would like to have the option to choose which sibling dies in the intro sequence (no hate to Carver) so I can have my cake and eat it, too (be a mage and also hang out w Bethany)

Favorite relationship: Isabela sending Bethany naughty books in the Circle cracks me up, so those two.

Favorite headcanon: I like to imagine she and Wen hang out if she is a Warden (and have some version of a "don't you ever just want to lose it?" conversation)

Josephine: (light of my life!!!)

First impression: Oh my goodness she is so pretty 🥺

Impression now: Same. But also, if there is one individual person I would not piss off from Inquisition, it's Josie. Everyone else will just kill you---maybe take a bit doing it, but ultimately they would kill you. Josie?? Josie could wipe your family history off the map if she wanted. She could ruin everyone who ever helped you. And yet! she also goes out of her way to be kind to the Inquisitor even if un-romanced. I love that she stays herself throughout the events of the game.

Favorite moment: The Otranto duel. Oh my goodness. The drama! The romance! Josie not wanting the Inquisitor in harm's way, but also so relieved to be with them openly! My little romantic's heart can't take it.

Idea for a story: The uh. The Otranto duel with her and Salshira. Salshira having no idea how to fight with a sword but learning as much as she can on the boat over. Going in knowing she can't win and knowing she's going to do it anyway because Josie (clever, beloved Josie, who is home to her even though she wasn't looking for one) is worth it to her. She is worth being loud and vulnerable about her affection and she is worth fighting for. The relief of getting to hold Josie in public, with everyone watching, and swing her around in happiness---just like their dance at the Winter Palace, but a thousand times more joyful (I totally haven't thought about this at all...)

Unpopular opinion: Josie has never done anything wrong ever. I don't know if it's an unpopular opinion or not, but that's just facts.

Favorite relationship: Josie and Bull---like what is going on there, Josie???

Favorite headcanon: Josie sharing her doll collection with her love <3 (this isn't even a headcanon, I just realized as I wrote it, it's just like. a fic idea. ah well.)

#i have josie brainrot right now idk if you can tell haha #the problem is she is so pretty and so smart that it is distracting and i can't write coherently about her and salshira #ask response #ask game response #(also. i am sending you a hug of your desired intensity zen)

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luzswonderland · 3 years

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Thoughts on Season 2 Thus Far..

I gonna keep most of my thoughts on all the episodes brief, but also long enough where you guys can get the idea of where these episodes stand in levels of importance to me. I already have a lot personal favorites in this first half of the season and hope that the second half will deliver the same energy.

EPISODE 1: Separate Tides

Good episode to start off the second season

Episode does a good job of addressing the different circumstances that Eda, Lilith, and Luz have with adjusting to life after the events of “Young Blood, Old Souls.”

We see the Golden Guard for the first time. With a voice too. I have more to say about him later when I get to the future episodes. But he is a treat!

The reintroduction of the portal and Emperor Belos’ plans for the human world in this episode, does a good job of reminding the audience of what is as stake this season.

Adore Luz and Eda’s pirate outfits ❤

Overall, a strong start to a very ambitious season.

Episode 2: Escaping Expulsion (Personal Favorite)

We finally see Amity’s parents!!!

Wasn’t expecting Odalia’s eyes to be blue, but both parents fit the personalities I originally envisioned them to have

Luz teaching Eda and Lilith to use magic through the glyphs was so cute and shows how different both Eda and Lilith are when it comes to approaching magic

Love how Amity’s separation from Luz was the trigger that caused her to stand up to her parents

Even though I kinda knew the expulsion from Hexside wasn’t going to permanent, it still shows how much pull Amity’s parents have at Hexside and the Boiling Isles.

Looks like the abominations that Alador has made for profit will be used to fulfill whatever plans Emperor Belos has for the human world.

Loved Amity and Luz’s interactions!!!

Episode 3: Echoes of the Past (Personal Favorite)

Fantastic King centered episode

I know that invisibility spell will come in handy in one of the later episodes. Good job, Luz

Hooty and Lilith are a riot this episode. Was not expecting them to get along at all this season.

I thought the show was going to make them polar opposites, but good to see that Hooty has a fan in the house.

King trying to remember his past and recounting his childhood memories was so sad because you realize that he has been trying to find out who he really is this entire time😭

The temple where King was born holds so much history and I hope we go back there soon

Will we find out what happened to King’s dad? What potential does King hold? Find out next time on DBZ!!!

Episode 4: Keeping Up A-fear-ances

Finally get to see Eda and Lilith’s mom and her palisman’s a hawk.

Love the pattern of all members of the Clawthorne family having bird themed palismen. I wonder what palisman Eda’s dad has.

Love how the episode addresses the blatant issue that Gwendolyn has with trying to find a cure for Eda. She cares for her daughter, but she is being blinded by ambition

The scams in the book she was reading were kinda funny tho

Lilith being upset that her mom favors Edal more than her is relatable, but also makes sense considering how the curse impacted Eda’s childhood

Lilith wanting to travel with her mom makes sense and I’m happy she made the decision to do that

Lilith’s beast from is cool

We finally get more information about there being another human that came to the Boiling Isles long ago!!!

We finally catch up with what’s going on at home and see that Luz’s imposter is blending in just fine and Camila is none the wiser. At least that buys Luz some time in the Boiling Isles

Episode 5: Through the Looking Glass Ruins

We get a Gus-centered episode and I’m here for it. I love it when the show deviates from the main narrative and focuses on the supporting cast

Even though I’m not the biggest fans of their personalities, the introduction of the students from Glandus High was great

I really love the character designs of these students, especially Bria, she looks so cute

Gus getting more character development and bonding with Mattholomule was good to see, I hope we see more of their interactions in future episodes

SO MANY LUMITY MOMENTS!!!

Luz getting more attracted to Amity

Amity putting her job on the line, so they could find Philip’s diary

Luz saying that she hopes to show Amity the human world one day

Luz successfully getting Amity’s job back

The kiss on cheek at the end of the episode by Amity

The blushing!!!💜💚-I can go on and on

Amity’s new look fits her well and shows that she is starting to live for herself and not her parents-Good!

Through the help of the Echo Mouse, we also get more information about why Philip came to the Boiling Isle in the first place.

But the Echo Mouse is being picky and stops before it gets good😫

Episode 6: Hunting Palisman (Personal Favorite)

This is my favorite episode of the season so far and probably my top ten favorite episodes of the series.

We are finally introduced to Hunter as the Golden Guard and he is a treat

Everything from his character design, to his goals, to his interactions with Luz make him very intriguing.

The kids begin to pick out their palisman and a lot of them fit their personalities, especially Willow’s.

I’m glad the show is addressing the fact that Luz doesn’t know what she wants to do when she becomes a witch because tbh I’m not sure either. I know she wants to help and protect the people of the Boiling Isles but she can’t really do that if she wants to go back home.

What a good time to bring up this internal conflict

Kikimora wanting to get rid of Hunter makes sense seeing as how the Emperor’s Coven is based of performance

LIST OF FAVORITE HUNTER AND LUZ MOMENTS:

Hunter and Luz’s interaction on Hunter’s ship

Luz slapping Hunter to wake him up😂

Luz stealing Hunter’s staff

Hunter revealing his family history and why he defers to Emperor Belos

These two give off a good sibling vibe and I want to see more of this later

I originally thought the red cardinal was going to be for Luz, but it ends up being Hunter’s palisman at the end of the episode-Interesting

Whatever Luz’s palisman is going to be, I hope it’s an animal that fits her personality because I thought the red cardinal would have been perfect

Maybe she will get a violet-backed starling as a palisman🤔

Hunter comes off as very complex immediately and I love that the show let’s us know that he trying to figure out his place in the Boiling Isles as a powerless being.

Episode 7: Eda’s Requiem

An Eda centered episode is such a plus for this season

So far I feel like the show has had Eda be a main plot point, but she hasn’t really been given her own episode-This episode takes a good step in the right direction

Eda feeling like she’s losing both Luz and King because they have both trying to find out more about their personal journeys is equivalent to a mother accepting that fact that her kids are moving across the country 😥

Eda reuniting with Raine is nice to see. You can automatically tell right off the bat that they have history

Raine being a rebel against Emperor Belos while working under Emperor Belos as a coven leader is BOLD AF

I see why Eda fell for them

We are introduced to the Abomination and Beast Keeping Coven leaders and I love their character designs, especially for Darius

The scene where Raine and Eda play together was so beautiful and does a fantastic job of representing how pure their relationship was and currently is

I love how Raine realizing that Eda has more to live for than she thinks and puts a stop to the song they play in order to sacrifice himself

I know we are going to see Raine again, but I really hope Belos doesn’t do anything bad to them. Raine is a sweetheart

Even though Luz and King lose the Gland Plix race, it was still nice to see that Eda came towards the end of the face.

The reveal of King wanting to take Eda’s last name at the end of the episode is one of the main reasons why I love King and Eda’s relationship. They really do come off as mother and son❤

Episode 8: Knock, Knock, Knockin’ on Hooty’s Door (Personal Favorite)

This is a Hooty’s centered episode which is a first for this show, but this ended up being one of my favorite episodes of the show because of what it addresses

Hooty helping King accidently discover his powers was a shock to me because I just through their interaction was going to end up being pointless

King can now be more useful in battle 😁

We finally see Eda’s dad and see why Eda has a hard time accepting her cursed side.

We also learn how the curse has negatively impacted her relationship with so many people, such as Raine 😥

Eda accepting her cursed side is the first step to begin this traumatic healing process. At this point, I don’t think the show will cure Eda of her curse and I don’t think they should honestly. It teaches the audience that you sometimes have to live with what you have whether it be a disease, a physical disability or mental illness.

GOOD LESSON👌👌

Eda’s harpy form looks amazing. I can’t wait to see what the show will do with this form in the future.

Hooty helping Luz with her crush on Amity was one of the best parts of the episode.

The Tunnel of Love scene and the mixed signals from Luz and Amity had be dying🤣

Luz building up the courage to ask Amity out was so sweet and so real at the same time.

It came off as real conversation between awkward teens trying to figure a romantic relationship out🥰

LUMITY IS CANON!!!😍💜💚

This happened sooner than I thought, but I’m glad it did. This is huge, especially for a Disney show.

Just when I started to like Hooty a lot more, he had to mess it up when he ate a letter from someone who could be King’s dad (?)

DANG IT, HOOTY

Hooty freaking out when he thinks he messed with helping King, Eda and Luz never got old 😂

The comedy was on point with this episode and I love how everything just falls in to place.

Episode 9: Eclipse Lake(Personal Favorite)

This episode had so much going on and I have a lot to say.

We get back to the Emperor Belos plotline of him trying to get to the human world and find out the Belos has actually been to the human world previously🤔

I wonder what Belos wants to do with Hunter and how he relates to these “plans”

Hunter is totally going to get betrayed by his uncle 😥

Amity’s palisman is adorable, I guess she got it off-screen

“DragonClaw Z”😂😂😂

Love how everyone is coming together to protect the house, it shows they really know what’s at stake

Amity using every opportunity she gets to call Luz her girlfriend is so cute❤

Hard to believe she hated his girl’s guts at the beginning of last season lol

Sick Luz is funny Luz

More lore about the secrets of the Boiling Isles and Titan’s Blood

I really wish Luz could have came to Eclipse Lake with the rest of the cast, but I guess the rest of the cast needed to experience Hunter for themselves lol

Hunter being roasted by Eda, King and Amity was hilarious 😂

“A bad, but sad boy.”-Yep that’s our Hunter 🤣

Hunter trying to get into Amity’s head concerning her relationship with Luz and her role in the Boiling Isles was surprising

I’m going to assume that Amity hasn’t been in a romantic relationship before so everything with Luz is new to her. Amity is usually very level-headed.

Even though Harpy-Eda is cool, I like that Eda doesn’t know how to control his form yet, it shows that she has a lot to learn before this form this 100% mastered

Hunter’s desperation to get his uncle’s approval is just sad; I really want to know his backstory because this isn’t it at all

Praise King for helping Amity figure out the text messages🙌

I love how Amity tries to relate to Hunter, it sweet and shows how much she has grown. If only see did a better job of hiding the key 😣

The fight between Amity and Hunter is amazing. I love when the show just flexes its animation like this.

It may not be better than Eda and Lilith’s fight, but I still felt the tension between these two characters. When these two grow up, they are going to be some of the most powerful witches in the Boiling Isles for sure.

Hunter getting to Amity’s head about harming Luz is a low blow imo, but I’m glad Amity knew what was at stake in the situation

Crushing the key was smart tho. Even in stressful situations like these, Amity still keeps her cool. We love to see it😉

Luz can now use some of the Titan’s Blood from Amity’s glove to try to return back home!!!

This episode had no business being this good. When the plot kicks in the show, it never fails to deliver.

Episode 10: Yesterday’s Lie (Personal Favorite)

We finally catch up with what’s going on back on Earth and find out more about Luz’s impersonator.

The gang making a makeshift portal out all of Eda’s junk is very creative. I wondered what they were going to do with that stuff now that Eda can’t sell human collectables anymore.

The dimension that Luz enters through the portal is very trippy and creative. It makes sense since the portal they made is not authentic.

Luz mirror hoping and seeing someone impersonate her had to be scary. I couldn’t imagine.

We find out that Luz’s impersonator is actually a creature from the Boiling Isles known as a “Basilisk”

Vee’s backstrory is awful, I completely understand why she came to Earth and got comfortable after what she went through

We find out that Eda interacted with humans with an alias known as “Marylin”😂

Even though Luz doesn’t find a way home, this is the next best thing to let her mom know that she is okay.

Jacob gave off weird vibes immediately, so when he captures Vee to use her for fame, I wasn’t surprised.

What did surprise me was the fact that Jacob has been watching Vee for a while and he had the house where she transformed in monitored

I wonder if he’s seen anything else🤔

Camila is the GOAT. She came through and helped Vee out. A lot of people would have just ignored the situation, but she knew that Vee was important to Luz and I respect that👏👏

I’m glad she also agrees to keep Vee despite the situation

The scene between Luz and Camila was very heart-wrenching. Luz came clean about everything and Camila’s reaction to that was expected but it was still sad to see

The music and Camila trying to reach out to Luz was just 😭

This episode is a great mid-season finale. This episode addressed so much and foreshadows a lot of plot points to come in the later episodes.

The first half of season 2 had some bangers. More than half of these episodes are already in my top favorites of the series and we still have 11 episodes left. Good Job Owl House. I can’t wait see what the other half has left in store 🙌🙌

#the owl house #toh #owl house season 2 #owl house analysis

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terramythos · 3 years

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TerraMythos 2021 Reading Challenge - Book 23 of 26

Title: Stories of the Raksura, Volume Two (2015)

Author: Martha Wells

Genre/Tags: Fantasy, Adventure, Short Story Collection, Third-Person, LGBT Protagonist, Female Protagonist

Rating: 8/10 (note: this is an average)

Date Began: 8/30/2021

Date Finished: 9/8/2021

Stories of the Raksura, Volume Two is the second of two short story/novella collections that take place in the Books of the Raksura universe. As before, I recommend reading the original trilogy if you’re interested in this series— otherwise you will be pretty confused. You can check out my review of The Cloud Roads here.

Of the two novellas and three short stories in this volume, my favorites were “The Dead City” and “The Dark Earth Below”, both of which got a 9/10 from me.

Individual ratings, content warnings, and minor series spoilers below the cut.

Content warnings for the book: Suicidal ideation, graphic violence, gore, death, parental disownment, childbirth.

#1 - The Dead City (9/10)

Fleeing from the ruins of Saraseil, Moon attempts to process his trauma. After wandering aimlessly, he stumbles upon a small village troubled by a rash of strange disappearances. Moon resolves to uncover a mysterious threat and save the locals— but he must hide his true identity lest they turn on him.

He was tired of looking at dead groundlings, tired of feeling sorry for them. The Fell had hunted them through the streets of Saraseil, dug through the walls of their houses. There was a raw lump of emotion in his chest, boiling and expanding until it felt as if it was going to burst through his scales.

He wanted to make somebody else feel sorry.

This story really clicked with me; it’s more emotionally intense than many stories in this series. It’s also one of the few glimpses we get of Moon before discovering the Raksura, and the difference between this painfully lonely version of him and the version we get throughout the series is quite striking. Things gets better, Moon, I swear! The prose is also on point and very entertaining to read. I found the monsters in this story pretty creepy; basically a Three Worlds take on zombies.

Even so, I had trouble understanding why I liked this story so much, but then I realized— it’s a freaking Murderbot plot. Hyper competent, emotionally stunted loner stumbles upon a bunch of strangers in need, and decides they must help said strangers without being able to articulate why… all while hiding their secret identity. Cue a bunch of badass action scenes spliced together with emotionally charged self-reflection. This is in no way a criticism, because I LOVE that plot, and it’s kind of funny to see a Murderbot prototype in the Raksura universe.

#2 - Mimesis (8/10)

Jade is on a diplomatic mission with a small contingent of warriors. When one of the younger ones disappears, she searches the nearby forest to find him. But she soon discovers much more than she bargained for.

Of course, the lesson might be that instead of the court losing one warrior it was about to lose a warrior and a sister queen, just because Jade didn’t want to look like a coward. And maybe a predator’s burrow wasn’t a good place for an inner debate about responsibility and leadership.

This is a very short story, about the length of a standard chapter. But I did enjoy it; it’s nice to have a story from Jade’s POV. The monster here is maybe the creepiest one in the series? I like how its whole deal ties into the title. Other than that, not a whole lot to say about this one.

#3 - Trading Lesson (7/10)

A group of wandering traders visit the Indigo Cloud colony tree. Moon notices one attempting to swindle a Raksura, and promptly puts a stop to it.

Moon’s attempt to appear innocent and only mildly interested was clearly failing, so he said, “I like amber fine. I don’t like traders that take advantage of people.” Iglen wasn’t obligated to play fairly. But Moon wasn’t obligated to let him get away with it, either.

If “Mimesis” seemed short, this one is really only a few pages long. It’s basically a slice-of-life scene at Indigo Cloud. It’s some fun bonus content if you want to see a fragment of daily life among the Raksura, but not much else.

#4 - The Almost Last Voyage of the Wind-Ship Escarpment (8/10)

Jai is the captain of a small wind-ship with a tight-knit crew. Their newest member is a young man named Flaren, recently disowned and left for dead by his family. Jai feels an especially strong kinship with him— but when Flaren’s father offers her crew a job to deliver ransom in an active hostage situation, Flaren sees it as an opportunity to regain favor with his family.

Not only would they be rescuing people who were badly in need of rescuing, stuck-up Issilan nobles though they were, but the rest of the payment Canon Hain had promised was so large they couldn’t afford to pass it up. “The pirates want their ransom, we want their hostages and our payment for freeing them. If it goes well, everyone gets what they want.”

Everyone nodded, reassured, and Jai felt the tension ease. Then Shiri had to say darkly, “You hope that’s all they want.”

Honestly, I’ve always wanted to see a story that takes place in the Three Worlds, but doesn’t have anything to do with the Raksura. This is one such story, and I found it entertaining! I liked the themes of found family— specifically that love shouldn’t be conditional. It’s a cute story with some good action scenes.

#5 - The Dark Earth Below (9/10)

Jade is pregnant and close to giving birth, sending Moon into an anxious spiral. At the worst possible time, the Indigo Cloud colony finds itself the target of trouble. A small party of groundling explorers are found poisoned and near death along the forest floor. Moon finds both himself and the colony stalked by an invisible threat; but figuring out what it is and what it wants proves to be a challenge.

Stone growled and rubbed his face in frustration. Moon sympathized. He added, “I know, this doesn’t make sense.”

“It makes sense,” Stone countered. “We just don’t know why yet.”

This novella is the longest story in this collection; roughly half the book. “The Dark Earth Below” feels different than many Raksura stories. It’s a mix of domestic everyday life and a tense suspense plot. These might seem contradictory, but it totally works. It’s nice to see Moon and Jade interact as a bickering couple, a dimension of their relationship we don’t see much of in the main series. There’s some major catharsis seeing Moon at a point where he’s finally happy, a far cry from his character in “The Dead City”. At the same time, the suspense story (plus creepy monster; a running theme of this collection) is gripping. There’s something about an invisible threat stalking the main characters that really gets to me— and its final reveal sure is something.

Closing Thoughts

I ended up liking this collection a little more than the first one! These anthologies are great for anyone looking for more Raksura content after reading the main series. But I can’t recommend them if you’re not already familiar with at least the original trilogy. If you do end up reading the Raksura books, let me know what you think!

#taylor reads #8/10 #2021 reading challenge #this is late because i was out of town when i finished it :x

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starry-seongmin · 4 years

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“

#22 - “For once I thought someone was actually interested in me”

#42 - “S/he’s right behind me isn’t s/he?”

non idol!au, highschool!au,

Songs I listened to: Baragi - Hyunjoon , Promise - EXO

a/n: I may have gotten carried away from how much I usually write.

Ni-ki was a shy boy. He wouldn’t express his emotions and feelings so openly and easily. There would definitely be times where he would let himself go and be an open book and sometimes he would bottle his feelings and thoughts until they exploded. He was a young boy and he had plenty of time to learn how to keep his emotions in check and express them and he was slowly getting there.

The older boys were very well aware of Ni-ki’s habits and were with him every step of the way to help him and keep him in line when he would just explode or bottle up too much.

Right now, Heeseung, Seon and Jaebeom were contemplating over Ni-ki’s recent mood swings. He was keeping something to himself and being all quiet and dismissive during certain conversations. “Did Sunoo do something?” Seon asked and Jaebeom was the first to answer. “Sunoo hasn’t done or said anything to him. He’s treading on eggshells around him these days” he said, ruling out the energetic boy being the reason behind Ni-ki’s sudden change in behavior.

Heeseung’s eyes fell on the said person, approaching their table accompnied by Daniel and Ta-ki. He nudged Seon and nodded towards the trio of boys. Jaebeom and Seon followed his gaze and sat up straight and started talking about a video game as if they weren’t discussing one of their younger friends.

Ta-ki greeted the older boys with a bright smile and sat down. Daniel followed suit and Ni-ki silently took a seat next to Jaebeom. “Hyung, are you gonna eat that?” Ni-ki asked, eyeing Seon’s remaining cookie, unaware of the fact that the others were throwing him cautious glances, deciphering his current mood. “No, you ca have it” Seon replied, placing the cookie on Ni-ki’s tray.

The younger gave him a grateful smile and dug in, finishing the cookie in two bites. The boys were secretly relieved that he seemed to be in a good mood and soon they all busied themselves in conversation and finishing their lunch.

In the middle of Ni-ki telling them about how Sunoo got himself in trouble and had to held during recess, he stiffened as he noticed you walking with your friends towards their table. His sudden stillness didn’t go unnoticed by the others. Following his gaze, they soon understood the reason behind Ni-ki’s lack of functioning.

Exchanging knowing looks, Jaebeom waved you over to their table. Telling your friends that you’ll catch up with them later, you wave back and reach their table. “Hey guys” you chirp, a smile etched across your face. “What’s up?”

It was exactly as the boys thought. Ni-ki’s gaze was lowered, focusing on his tray and fiddling with his food an his eyes darting towards you in between for a fleeting second. His ears were red and he was not pitching in the conversation the boys and you were having.

“Ni-ki, you okay there?” The boy’s head darted up at you addressing him suddenly. “Yeah..I am perfectly fine” he managed to reply, the heat creeping on to his cheeks, painting them a delicate pink. “You’re turning red, bub..you sure?” you asked again, placing the back of your hand against his forehead and then his cheek to check his temperature.

Ni-ki swore his soul left his body and his heart jumped out and ran away as soon as your hand came in gentle contact with his skin. “You’re warm. I think you should go to the clinic just in case” you suggested, genuinely concerned for his health.

The spectators watched the interaction between you two, engrossed in what was going on. What they suspected was so obvious now. Ni-ki had the biggest crush on you and he was trying his best to withhold his composure and not pass out and Daniel admitted he was doing it quite well because it appeared that you were absolutely oblivious of the effect you had on the poor boy who was currently the center of attention and borderline passed out.

“I promise I’m okay” Ni-ki replied and removed your hand away. The contact of his hand with yours sent warm rushes all over his body, heart hammering. You frowned but chose to believe him and nodded, low-key disappointed that he let go of your hand.

“Okay, but if you feel weird you have to go and get yourself checked” you warned. “And it’s also your responsibility as his friends to look after him” you gave a pointed look at the audience of 5 boys who nodded, even managing to get a salute from Daniel and a “yes boss” from Jaebeom.

Satisfied with their answer you nodded and subconsciously, as if your hands had a mind of their own, patted Ni-ki’s shoulder, “Alright then, I’ll see you guys later” you announced, glancing over them one last time. “Also, I almost forgot..” you turned to Ni-ki. “Your free style dance was amazing. I’m looking forward to your next performance” you complimented him with a shy smile and taking off.

Ni-ki stared at your retreating figure with a dazed look, as if in a trance, processing the compliment he received from you seconds ago. He was brought back to his senses when Seon coughed to get his attention. He turned his head to be met with knowing looks and smiles from the boys, knowing they were bursting with questions, teasing and comments.

“Don’t” he warned, shooting a glare at them. “So...this explains your mood swings” Heeseung voiced the elephant in the room. “When are you gonna make a move?” Ta-ki asked the real question, leaning forward, eyes bright. “I won’t. Now you guys can shut up” he shot back, gently shoving Ta-ki’s face back.

“If you’re afraid of being rejected and possibly ruining a friendship and not having the ability to show your face and quite possi-” Danel began only to be silenced by Seon’s glare. “What he means is...if you’re afraid of being rejected and ruining a friendship, you won’t because as it was obvious with you being totally head over heels for Y/N, Y/N was also obvious of having a crush on you” Seon explained in hopes to encourage the younger boy to confess to you.

“I don’t know...Y/N hasn’t exactly given any sign of being interested in me” he voiced out, trying to recall anything you said or had done to give him a green light. The boys sighed and Seon even rubbed his face. “Your entire interaction is enough proof?” he pointed out, hoping Ni-ki would understand. However, the blank face from the boy said otherwise. “Let’s see...” Heeseung began with a ‘thinking’ look. “Y/N kept physical contact with you just now, from checking your temperature to patting your shoulder and resting their hand” he recalled.

“Y/N was also quite concerned about you having a temperature and feeling unwell and was adamant about you getting yourself checked and even made us promise to look after you” Jaebeom continued.

“Let’s not forget complimenting you on your last class’ performance...Heeseung hyung also takes that class and so does Ta-ki. Were they mentioned? No. Only you and they even said they looked forward to your next performance” Daniel added.

“Y/N had their eyes on you most times if not all the time. They even smiled at you in a way they don’t smile at anyone else... they had this soft gaze which is only reserved for you” Seon finished, a complacent smile on his face.

“You guys think so?” Ni-ki asked, getting a sliver of hope and boost of confidence to profess his feelings to you. “We know so” Ta-ki confidently replied, face stuffed with his sandwich. “Okay, I’ll give it a shot...after school” he promised himself, feeling a bit better thanks to the support his friends gave him.

[After school]

True to his words, Ni-ki made his way to your locker after extra-curricular activities before chickening around. Just as he turned round the corner, he was met with a scene he was not prepared for. You were standing at your locker with someone else, receiving a small bouquet of flowers. He quickly hid behind the wall, not knowing how he felt. He peeked to see you smiling at the person. He couldn’t hear what you were saying and he decided that he didn’t want to.

His heart was thumping loudly and he was pretty sure that it was echoing through out the school hallway. Feeling dejected and miserable, he walked away, to where his friends were waiting for some kind of update from him. Slipping your favorite snack back in to his bag, he reached the school gate where his friends stood.

Jaeho was the first to notice Ni-ki walking slowly, head down. Pointing it out to the others, the atmosphere changed from lively to heavy as one by one it hit them that Ni-ki didn’t come bearing good news. They shared confused and worried looks, feeling guilty for accidentally giving him false hope when they themselves were sure that his feelings were reciprocated.

He reached them and smiled sadly at them, shaking his head. No one had the heart to say anything. “Someone already beat me to it” he shrugged, playing off as it didn’t matter to him but he was only convincing himself as no one believed his facade.

“What do you mean someone beat you to it?” Jimin asked, putting an arm around his shoulder. “When I rounded the corner to their locker, they were smiling and had accepted flowers by someone else”, he replied. “I can’t believe that I actually had hope..” he murmured, resting his head on Jimin’s shoulder, as the older boy ran his hand through his hair to comfort him. “For once I thought someone was actually interested in me”

The boys exchanged looks, not really knowing what to say to make him feel better. “Hey, I know it’s easier said than done but forget about it, maybe you guys are better off as friends” Jake spoke up.

ni-ki only shook his head. “It’s not easy..” he admitted quietly. “I don’t think I’ll be okay. Everything seems different when I fell for Y/N. I couldn’t help my feelings then and I can’t help them now. They’ve already grown” his eyes were sad and obvious he was hurting. “I don’t want to feel like this” he groaned.

“Hyung, I think you should l-” Daniel was cut off by a wave of Ni-ki’s hand. “I’ll be okay soon, hopefully...I just need to avoid Y/N for a while until I’m able to control my feelings”

“Okay but I think you shou-” Youngbin tried to talk only to be interrupted by the younger boy again. “I know, I know...to be expressive and share my feelings with you guys, I know” he dismissed.

Not receiving any response from the boys felt strange. It was only when he realized they were not looking at him but rather behind him did he feel a sinking feel. Hoping it wasn’t what he was thinking he sighed, dreading the obvious answer. “They’re right behind me aren’t they?”

The apologetic looks from the boys was enough to confirm his fear. “Uhh, can you guys excuse us for a moment, please?” you timidly asked. The boys nodded and with a chorus of “see you later”, they dispersed.

You stepped down and stood next to Ni-ki who was avoiding eye contact. The both of you stood there, awkward. You wanted to talk to him about what he said earlier and you even requested the boys to give you privacy yet you had no idea what to say nor how to start the conversation with him.

“So...” you started, “You heard me being all melodramatic over you not reciprocating my feelings” he spoke up, getting straight to the point no matter how desperately he wanted to run away and never face humanity again.

“How much did you see? The flowers and everything?” you asked. “Just you receiving the flowers and being happy. I saw you guys talking but I couldn’t hear what you were saying.” he replied, scratching the back of his neck.

“Ahh..that makes everything easier” you whispered to yourself. You smiled at him and placed your hand on his shoulder. The stiffness from didn’t go unnoticed by you. “Relax..it’s not what you think” you said. “Yes, I was given flowers and yes I accepted them and yes I was smiling and talking” you explained. “But, the flowers weren’t for me. They’re actually for Mrs. Kwon. Our class collected money to buy her flowers as a token of congratulations for being promoted to Head of the Science Department. As the class president, it was my duty to give it to her on behalf of my class.” you finished.

Realization dawned on him as everything was put in to place. “Well, this is embarrassing...” he chuckled shyly. “You still have time, you know?” you spoke up, trying not to smile. He gave you a confused look, not getting your hint.

“To express your feelings?” you weren’t able to hide the excitement. feeling all giddy at the thought of finally being confessed to by the guy you had been crushing on since the past year.

“Well...” he started, pausing in between to take out the snacks he got for you. “You’re already aware of how I feel about you so all I’m gonna say is that even if we are quite young, you’re the one I want and if you feel that I’m the one you want then please accept my feelings because you deserve the world and i’m willing to try my best to give you just that” he softly voiced the words he was dying to say.

You smiled and accepted the snacks, your eyes and smile brighter than ever. “I’d love to..I’ve been waiting for this moment myself” you admitted. Ni-ki laughed, light hearted and ecstatic that he finally could hold your hands and you just how he dreamed.

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baodurs · 3 years

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i want someone besides me and the 2 friends who know all the lore to meet my detective, but i’m too impatient to let you get to know her via fic so i filled out this questionnaire instead. she is veronica and she is so important, here is some stuff about her if you are interested :’)

QUICK READ OF YOUR DETECTIVE

Name: veronica langford

Pronouns: she/her

Sexuality: bi

Love interest: adam

Best friend: morgan

Main skill: science/technology

Secondary skill: combat/physical

Main personality trait: impulsive

Secondary personality trait: sarcastic

Why did they join the Wayhaven PD?: best use of her science skills

Relationship with Rebecca: not great

Relationship with Bobby: ex, finds it hard to be around him

Verda or Tina?: both! but she’s on verda’s branch

Murphy bite?: wrist

Murphy's fate?: captured

Rescue LI or Rescue Sanja?: sanja

GENERAL

Name: veronica “it’s been 3 years and i never gave her a middle name” langford

Nickname: just veronica. people around wayhaven called her ronny growing up, and a few still do despite her trying to grow out of it. maybe a few people from college and sometimes tina call her v or vee or something.

Birthday: please you all know i am so scared of concrete dates

Age: 26

Pronouns: she/her

Sexuality: bi

Hair color: brown

Eye color: dark brown

Height: 5′10 (178 cm)

Piercings: just one in each ear

Tattoos: something retro sci-fi on her shoulder. not a reference to anything specific, but like a little planetary landscape with a UFO in the background or something.

Clothing Style: casual. lots of tank tops and muscle tees (weather- and occasion-permitting), concert t-shirts, warm colors. flannels and leather jackets. jeans, sneakers, combat boots. think like rocker chick vibes, but cozier and more colorful.

Apartment Style: basic. she really did not plan on living there long and kept putting off decorating because it’d be a waste if she was just going to move out. this rationalization went on so long but since the end of book 1 she has slowly bought a few things to push it towards “cozy,” still pretty sparse though.

STATS

Personality:

Charming | Intimidating

Impulsive | Cautious

Sarcastic | Genuine

Friendly | Stoic

Easygoing | Stubborn

Traits:

Heart | Mind

Optimist | Pessimist

Team Player | Independent

Skills:

Main Skill: science/technology (but mostly science)

Second Skill: combat/physical

By the Book | Bend the Rules

KEY DECISIONS

Reason for joining the Wayhaven PD: best use of her science skills

Murphy bite: Wrist | Neck | None

Murphy’s Fate: Captured | Escaped

Rescued: Love Interest | Sanja

ROMANTIC RELATIONSHIP

Love Interest: adam

Why them?: for veronica it’s kind of retroactive. the way i imagine their True Canon, they don’t have any real romantic moments in book 1, so she doesn’t seriously consider that adam might have feelings for her until well into book 2. (the training scene is when she’s like “oh. ok. i get it now.”) even then it takes a few more chapters for her to really process that, figure out how she feels, and recontextualize everything. like realizing that he loves her and then thinking back on their relationship, knowing that, makes her feel so held (sorry i have no better way to say it) in a way that just makes her want to cry.

to give some actual specific reasons, it’s his dedication and his constancy and hidden care/softness. and his very specific brand of... selflessness might be just left of the word i’m looking for, but hopefully you get me.

Bold, shy, or mixed?: neither! in theory it’s closer to bold, but it’s more just earnest.

What were their first impressions of each other?: disastrous. on top of finding him condescending and unpleasant, there are also a few moments where veronica genuinely wonders whether he’s even a good person. or, like, cares about people. but once she learns the truth of things, a lot of her initial anger gets transferred to rebecca.

adam, with the benefit of knowing what’s actually happening, has a slightly more favorable impression of veronica. yes he thinks she’s difficult and reckless and too emotionally driven, yes she’s making his job absolutely miserable, but he does begrudgingly respect that her accusations are always on the right track and she’s good at her job.

What do they find attractive about each other, mentally or physically?:

for veronica: she loooves his sense of humor. and how much faith he has in the people he cares about. physically, dimples <3. but everything about his smile really. and his nose!

for adam: veronica has a very blunt, unadorned sense of kindness to her that he really loves. the way she is kind before she is nice and values directness. physically, her eyes, they’re deep brown and so expressive.

What do they do to spend time together?: they’re both competitive so anything where they can compete on the same team is fun. (competing against each other is fun too, but also like. exhausting. for them and everyone.) maybe puzzles or other things where it feels like they’re “winning” or solving something together. i have spent an embarrassing amount of thought on veronica and overw*tch esp*rts and she would absolutely make adam learn how to play main tank so they could queue as a tank duo. but most of the time i think they don’t Do specific things together; they just hang out. just talk with each other. perhaps snuggle.

What is their favorite memory together?: in current canon... lol. veronica really just treasures any time adam relaxes around her but those moments always get Ruined. even once they’re well into a relationship, i think veronica’s favorite memory would still be something small like a random time he said something funny and they both laughed together and they were outside and the sky was pretty.

What are their love languages?: acts of service for both of them, but especially adam. veronica... probably lots of words of affirmation and physical touch. they’re both bad at blocking out time for themselves in the first place, so quality time can get neglected especially at first.

How do they handle being apart from one another?: pretty well i think! once they’re in an established relationship at least, before that it’s probably harder. but adam can distract himself with work, and veronica is good at focusing on whatever’s in front of her (whether that’s work or she’s away on vacation or something). if neither of them is too busy, veronica calls every night and they stay on a while, half talking and half just keeping each other company.

Do they argue? How do they handle arguments and disagreements? How do they make up?: i think arguments are fairly rare! yes they’re both insanely stubborn, but they also understand each other pretty well (especially once in a relationship) and are very sympathetic to where the other is coming from. unless both of them are extremely stressed, one of them crumbles when they start genuinely arguing like "i don't want to fight ok, let's take a second."

What does their future look like?: who knows! i haven’t decided whether veronica will turn. i think she probably will, just because i do not want my main pairing for this IF to make me very sad all the time, but like. i’m not fully committing until i see a reason pop up in canon. as of book 3′s final demo, it’s not on her radar at all; she knows she loves adam and wishes they could Talk, but ultimately doesn’t expect or even want a relationship right now (because she doesn’t want to deal with dating one of rebecca’s agents OR with the logistics of being in a committed relationship with an immortal being). it’s just all so foreign to her current state of mind that it’s really hard to say!

Anything else you'd like to share: do you know how hard it was to answer some of these considering veronica wasn’t sure they were even, like, on decent terms for such a large portion of the canon content

BEST FRIEND RELATIONSHIP

Best friend: morgan and farah are essentially joint besties but i’ll go with M

Why them?: i think they appreciate each other’s no bullshit attitude. morgan likes that veronica doesn’t take herself too seriously and respects/relates to the way she tackles problems (quickly, head-on, and without complaint but also without pretending that it doesn’t suck?). veronica appreciates morgan’s bluntness, likes bantering with her, and in general just likes being around people that have quiet/steady presences.

What were their first impressions of each other?: neither of them had much of a first impression honestly. morgan barely thought of veronica at all beyond “she’s annoying,” and kept to herself so much that any dislike veronica had of morgan took a backseat to her dealing with the rest of unit bravo.

What do they do to spend time together?: lots of just sitting in the same room and listening to (low volume) music, veronica spends a lot of time hunting for songs morgan might like. morgan is also her go-to sparring/training buddy. and there are semi-frequent movie nights where veronica shows farah her favorite old shitty B movies, and sometimes morgan will tag along just to sit in the room with them or affectionately talk shit.

Anything else you'd like to share: i’ll talk a little about N! obviously veronica and nate respect, trust, and like each other, but she finds him the hardest of UB to connect with. they’re both people who wear their compassion on their sleeves but keep a lot of their hearts/themselves held back, so they just kind of circle each other, especially since like... nate values politeness and is very sweet in how he relates to people, while veronica values directness and is more jokey/lighthearted to put people at ease. idk how well i’m communicating this; as of the book 3 demo it’s getting easier, but their friendship is still newer/more... nebulous? than the others.

OTHER RELATIONSHIPS (Feel free to go in depth!)

Relationship with Rebecca: so strained. veronica has come to terms with rebecca’s absences throughout her childhood, but there’s newer resentment over... a lot of things, but how she handled the murphy case especially. veronica hates being kept in the dark, and even more than that she hates being rebecca’s priority. it’s difficult to reconcile her childhood and present images of rebecca, and she’s angry that rebecca is so freely and recklessly choosing her, now, to the point of endangering others if she has to, especially when she never felt like rebecca’s choice before. and incredibly frustrated/confused by how often the lines between their professional and familial relationships are blurred and what rebecca actually wants from her.

Relationship with Rook: veronica takes after rook a lot. in stat terms, the only trait they don’t share is stoic, and even then that’s veronica’s least extreme stat. people always told her how like her father she was growing up, and it’s a comparison she took/takes a lot of pride in! she looks up to him based on the stories, but more recently is uncomfortable with the comparisons. veronica would never have even come back to wayhaven if her life panned out as planned, let alone become a detective or joined the agency. that makes her doubt herself, and she feels like that doubt is letting rook down somehow.

rook is also part of the reason her relationship with rebecca isn’t as bad as it could be. she knows that rook loved her, and that he would want his family to be there for each other, so she feels obligated to at least try to make things better. but it’s really hard for her to move past everything to connect with rebecca (which also makes her feel like she’s disappointing rook).

Relationship with Bobby: they were together for a long time and veronica thought she loved him a lot! it was her first relationship, so she wasn’t sure a) what a “bad partner” looked like, or b) how to even be in a relationship or rely on someone in that way. so they spent a lot of time together and had great superficial chemistry, but veronica didn’t have enough experience with not feeling neglected to realize how shallow it was, or notice the red flags when she did occasionally open up. the plagiarism fiasco was a slap in the face, especially because it cost her internships/grad school apps/whatever, i don’t have the details, and forced her to move back to wayhaven after school. she’s still very hurt by it and finds it hard to be around bobby.

Relationship with Verda: due to the above plagiarism fiasco, veronica was pretty depressed when she moved back home, and disliking her job didn’t help. she was extremely jealous when verda was hired and wanted to hate him. but it did not take long for that to crumble into respect/admiration, and eventually into close friendship! verda is a role model for her; they bond over science; they joke easily and have good chill fun. she was really excited to see him piecing together the truth about the supernatural and then devastated to see how he reacted. she feels insanely guilty and thinks it was selfish of her to let him figure it out, but is also cautiously optimistic about making it up to him as of the book 3 demo.

Relationship with Tina: very close! veronica isolated herself when she came back to wayhaven after school, and she is so grateful to tina for being her closest friend and link to the rest of the world during that time. hates keeping the supernatural from her, though. she didn’t like lying to tina to begin with, but she feels even worse about it now that verda knows, and now that tina has clearly picked up on something being wrong but she still can’t say anything.

Relationship with the Mayor: cannot stand him. hates the way he talks about rook, hates the way he talks to rebecca. she cooperates as necessary but doesn’t bother hiding her lack of patience/respect for him.

Relationship with Capt. Sung: basically fine. i think veronica might be a little too casual for him in the way she works, but she always gets the job done so he’s not too bothered by it. (she is ‘bend the rules,’ but more ‘strict rules aren’t important as long as you’re still doing good work’ than the ‘boooo fuck paperwork’ variety. so it’s mostly fine.) she also appreciates him as a minor link to rook.

Relationship with Haley: very friendly, but not super close. they get along great and could make pleasant conversation for hours, but ultimately don’t know each other super well despite the familiarity of growing up together.

Relationship with Elidor: such a comforting presence for veronica during her recovery! she is so grateful, so fond.

Relationship with Tapeesa/Vieno: veronica loves vieno’s cranky-yet-friendly vibe and they get along well! not close, but will stop to chat whenever they pass each other.

Relationship with Unit Alpha: loves their energy. always looks forward to the next opportunity to chat with them, and fully supports any harmless dunking on UB even if she rarely joins in.

Relationship with the Maa-alused: going through the house of mirrors and then coming home for them to appear in her apartment and infect bobby was one of thee worst experiences of her life, and it’s hard for her to get past that + the illness in general. sympathizes with them, and got them to sign the treaty, but is still kind of unsettled by everything that happened and by falk.

Do they have any other important relationships, past or present? (Relatives, friends, etc.?): some vague figures i have in mind but no one i’ve really developed. a couple friends from college, and maybe an elderly couple that lives on her childhood street and used to check in her.

PERSONAL BIO

Describe their personality: her usual demeanor is very warm and casual. sincere but private--she’s pretty blunt and likes to be direct with people, but steers conversations away from personal topics. likes to joke around and doesn’t take herself that seriously. but behind all this, she’s extremely stubborn and won’t shy away from conflict if she thinks you’re in the wrong (which is why she seems like a different person in the first half of book 1. UB is surprised by how like... chill and nice she is once they clear the air). a workaholic, self-reliant and secure but still pretty hard on herself, takes a lot of responsibility for the people around her.

Strengths: so dedicated. honest and trustworthy, has a strong moral compass and can always be counted on to do her absolute best. flexible and intuitive, her brain works really fast.

Weaknesses: cannot compartmentalize or separate herself from a case, throws herself so recklessly into everything (in terms of both physical danger and emotional burnout). doesn’t necessarily hold grudges but has a hard time letting go of hurt, still can’t think objectively about bobby or rebecca.

Where in the world is their Wayhaven?: somewhere on the US east coast idk what to tell you. perhaps a carolina or a virginia.

What is their personal history?: veronica was pretty social and well-liked around wayhaven growing up. she was known as just a really good kid; she was an overachiever and got along with almost anyone. in college, she felt like she was free of something and took a very work hard/play hard approach to life. always doing or going, whether it was for school or work or fun. she really enjoyed life during this time but crashed and burned pretty hard when she and bobby broke up; a lot of her plans were delayed until the plagiarism incident was resolved and she didn’t really have the heart to pursue them afterwards.

a year or so after graduating, she returned to wayhaven with the intention of taking one more year to regroup, and she has been stuck there longer than she meant to be and has kind of hit a wall when book 1 starts.

If they weren't a detective, what would their dream job be?: she was on track to become a biochemist and it was her dream job but then the main plot happened to her.

Anything else you'd like to share: i don’t really know enough to fully explain this, but no OC i love is a cop so like. i think maybe the job she took when she got back to wayhaven was a douglas-esque receptionist role for detective reele’s private office. then reele retired and small town politics + veronica’s history of useful contributions to cases in her downtime at work led to her being pressured to take up the mantle. it’s hard to explain why she’s a detective when she so deeply does not want to be one but i am Trying (or maybe she would have jumped at the chance to do something marginally closer to forensics?? who knows)

RANDOM FACTS

Zodiac sign: aries is what i assigned her when i first made her and i think it suits her! plus it’d be fun for her and M to be twins. this goes hand-in-hand with my birthday commitment issues though

Hobbies: music (she plays guitar and bass and sings a little), running, gaming unfortunately. i could also see her having been into boxing or some martial art but idk what exactly!

Likes: early morning stillness, DIY projects, t-shirts with inexplicable slogans and other weird thrift store finds

Dislikes: overly sweet food or drink, when cold weather lasts too long, being lied to or “protected” from the truth

Drink of choice: something with gin maybe. also feels a great fondness and gratitude for cheap wine.

Starbucks order: i truly know nothing about coffee. is it weird to order black coffee at starbucks

Favorite food: variations on spicy chicken soup! she eats a lot of crockpot meals for convenience and they’ve grown on her, and she has a few different recipes based on whatever she has on hand.

Favorite color: maybe like a rusty orange

Favorite music: she will listen to anything, but her favorite is probably folk rock, or sometimes stuff with soul or old school country vibes. big thief is a good example of an artist she’d be into i think! also was very into the indie music scene in her college town and still follows some of those bands.

Favorite genre (and favorite movie/book/etc): loves old, campy, unselfconsciously optimistic sci-fi. loves star trek tos. also a fan of documentaries of all kinds.

Favorite season: summer

Anything else you'd like to share: a kiss for you reading this mwah

#oc: veronica langford #i wrote most of this in my post-vaccine delirium and did not edit it so. apologies if that is obvious #anyway if you read all/any of this thank u!!! i would love to write more for veronica and w/ayhaven but my sole writing brain cell has-#-always been allergic to t/wc for some reason. One Day. love her so dearly tho #once again macrodosing on shame by posting a filled out oc questionnaire. thank u everyone for witnessing

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theheartsmistakes · 4 years

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A Court of Silver Flames rant

Back at it again with one of those book talks because no one in my personal inner circle has read it yet... because they all have lives. Spoilers under the cut!!

O.M.G... Silver Flames is on my top 5 list of favorite Maas books. If you’re reading this you probably don’t care but my list goes as such:

1. A Court of Mist and Fury

2. A Court of Silver Flames

3. Crescent City

4. A Court of Wings and Ruin

The fifth and final spot is yet to be taken... I read the Throne of Glass series, but I found her Court books to be better... anyway!

Pros: Nesta Archeron... I liked this bad bitch from the moment we met her in A Court of Thorns and Roses. I thought she was vicious and cruel and nasty, but underneath all of that anger... she held so much love for her family. I know she has a lot of issues and I’m not justifying any of the things that’s she done in the past or the things that she’s chosen to say, but I love the flaws that Sarah chose to give her. I am weak for a good redemption story and that’s what this was for me. It was a redemption story for a character that for all intents and purposes was a villain.

I think I loved Nesta’s story the most because I can relate to her. Not so much in the vicious way she speaks to people, but in finding it difficult to forgive myself or to open myself up to other people in fear of them seeing what lies underneath. Sarah did such a great job of depicting that fear for Nesta and then carefully, through all sorts of elements: romantic love, platonic love, self-love, breaking that fear down so that Nesta could find happiness and forgiveness and acceptance.

It was beautiful!

Cons: I could have done with like a fraction of these sex scenes. They did absolutely nothing for me except for like one or two of them. I made a Michael Scott face for some of them where I was just hella uncomfortable... and like grossed out. I’m no Gwyn, I’ve dabbled in my fair share of romance novels, but I just didn’t care for some of these scenes. I really felt like they were kind of out of character for Nesta, maybe that was the point, I don’t know.

Those last 100 pages were SO rushed... it was so jarring. I went from relishing in domestic bliss with Cassian, to declining a mating bond I’ve known about since like book 2, to being flung into the Hunger Games, and then climbing the fucking mountain of Mordor (don’t get me wrong, I loved it, but I was just so confused). Then right when we’ve won that battle, we were thrown into the death and resurrection of three primary characters in the span of like 5 pages. But somehow, everything worked out fine... I am getting kind of tired of there being all of this build up about something like “oh, no one can wear all three artifacts and live EXCEPT this one person who is like barely a fae and has no control over her powers or self-awareness, but sure... she seems worthy. Let’s let her decide who lives and dies.” I would have accepted it a little easier if Nesta had truly lost something in this trade... like she lost her power completely instead of having a scrap left. I love that she made that 180 turn and basically sacrificed herself for Feyre, but I wanted more of a sacrifice from her... if that makes sense. As a writer and reader of fantasy, I firmly believe that magic needs to have rules and regulations otherwise it’s too predictable. What I mean by that is magic can’t solve everything and for Maas, I feel like too often it does. Let characters die. Let magic fail or come with a price at least.

What’s next: Please don’t come at me, I support everyone’s individual pairings, but I am not an Elucien fan. And I will tell you why: I didn’t like how Lucien handled the bond. Right after the poor distraught child was literally poured from a giant magic bathtub, he pounces on her declaring her his ‘mate’ as if she’d understand what the hell that meant. Rhys waited like a year before he told Feyre and same with Cassian. They gave their girls space and time to accept this while still remaining close.

Lucien did give her space afterwards, but he just continued to handle it really poorly. There’s no spark, there’s no jolt, no oomph. I need the OOMPH!

Also, Elain is someone who has had very little choice in what happens in her life. From the moment she was born her own mother was like, “she’s beautiful. I shall sell her to highest bider because Nesta shall dance and Feyre is a wildling.” Then she was engaged to “what’s his face” because of his status and wealth, even though she claimed to love him. Then, she was dragged into the cauldron and turned into a fae and lost her chance at a happy, normal human life with what’s his face. And fresh out of the cauldron, this red haired fae man is trying to claim her. I would have been like... can I have a moment to process all of this fresh, new information. Treat me like a 90′s Dell computer, I need a whole hour to load these documents. Just stuck on the stupid hour glass. Then, she’s in a whole catatonic state because she’s lost everything she’s ever known and the love of her life is going to reject her and possibly try to murder her, while simultaneously being thrown into a war that she now has to play a part in. Plus, she’s seeing ugly visions of the future. I just feel so badly for Elain sometimes. I don’t want to force any expectations on her. I want her to live in her gardens, I want her to bake, and bring light to the night court. I want her to make make her own choices and for that reason I hope she chooses Azriel, because it will be her choice and not something forced upon her. Plus, Azriel deserves to be chosen by someone. He just does. His rejection rate is at an all time high and I think that’s just criminal.

Edit***

All right, so I just read Az’s additional chapter (my copy of the Silver Flames did not have it, and I may be switching teams. This is why I am an unreliable narrator, because I am so easily swayed. Honestly, I wanted Elain with Azriel for the previously mentioned reasons ^^^ and I stand by those reasons. However, after reading his chapter, I feel like Gwyn is a great match for Azriel. HOWEVER, I do not feel Azriel is a great match for Gwyn. I loved Gwyn’s character. I loved her spunk, her unwavering kindness, her loyalty, her innocence, her devotion, her talent, and I loved her interactions with Az. I loved that he rescued her and then helped train her so she wouldn’t need rescuing again. I also love how Az’s shadows interacted with her in such a different way from how they interact (or don’t) with Elain. They come out and play with Gwyn and she’s not afraid, but they seem to tuck themselves away when around Elain. Maybe because she’s so bright and sunny and Gywn feels comfort in shadows, I don’t know, just a theory. But this is a girl that is working through some trauma and is figuring out how to live and live well with that trauma. It’s not impossible, but it’s tough, and it’s going to require a lot of trust and time. Azriel is having wet dreams about Elain. I guess his attention could be swayed to Gwyn, especially if Elain truly becomes off-limits for him. If that is the course SJM is thinking about going, I’d like to see it done in the same way Mist and Fury was done when Rhys was helping Feyre heal. Elain would have to be taken out of the picture in the same way Tamlin was. I hate that for Elain, because I like her and I want to see her flourish (plus aren’t the court books about the Archeron sister’s?) but it will not bode well with me if this becomes a weird love triangle with two traumatized women and a spy.

I thought this would help me but it has not. I guess we’ll just have to wait and see. I don’t think I’ll be mad if it goes either way. Elriel or Gwynriel, I’ll be happy for both of them.

Still don’t want Elain with Lucien because of previously mentioned reasons. He has learned to chill, but I still think he handled the bond wrong and now he needs to put in the time.

#book talk #a court of silver flames #sarah j maas #nesta x cassian #spoiler #elriel #gwynriel #azriel #azriel and elain #azriel and gwyn #elucien #lucien and elain #who knows #i don't #i need to move on #this is unhealthy #book obsessed

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mcrmadness · 4 years

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Rambling about my (dä fan)art...

I was writing another post and this kinda got out of hand and turned into me talking about my art overall. I’m gonna put this under the cut because I don’t know if people are interested in my art nor especially in my thought about it and my “art history” basically, but if you are, then I hope you enjoy.

And yes, this is gonna be about my die ärzte fanart mainly!

So let’s start with the HELL coverart drawing because that’s what I was talking about originally:

I’m extremely happy with how the drawing turned out in the end and I like that feeling of success when I’m happy with something I have created. That is not always self-evident with myself. More than often I have plain hated my drawings or have felt like there should be something done differently, or something that I could always improve at and do better. So this feeling where I’m actually content and happy with what I have created is something new and different. I have a dopamine rush every time I look at that drawing. I like the drawing. I think it looks nice. And I’m extremely happy about this fact and I am not afraid of admitting it. Perfectionism is a curse and a gift. It can sometimes make your life a living hell when something that is perfectly good still feels like it’s not enough. When everyone else sees that what you have done is actually good or even great but your brain just keeps repeating how it’s shit and everyone else is just delusional and that they don’t see what you see. And this is like the polar opposite of that feeling. It wasn’t other people who were delusional, it was you and youself all along. You were the one seeing the image in your head and the drawing not matching that image. Other people saw only what you had created and couldn’t compare it to anything. And that doesn’t mean it was never good.

So whenever I do these comics and comic style drawings nowadays, I just feel so happy. I feel that I am no longer failing them, I feel like I can draw the image I see in my head. I finally feel like I can draw, I have some skills, I’m not a professional and maybe not as good as everyone else but I’m good at what I’m doing. This is my thing and I’m good at it and it’s enough. And I love it when I feel like I’m improving. For years I felt like I was stuck, like my skills would have been glitching somehow, I didn’t get better no matter how much I drew. But I guess I tried too much and was too harsh on myself because I believed that a drawing is good only when no reference photos have been used. And I sucked at drawing without them. I still do! I was staring at the Hell coverart the whole time I was drawing! I wouldn’t have been able to do this if I didn’t! And this feels particularly good also because this is the first time I have tried something different with these comics. I have never tried to draw a photo or existing picture with this style. I have only drawn my comics and those I have created all by myself. The clothes come from what I have seen in videos and photos but the plots are created by me alone, with a idea coming from somewhere actual usually, as inspirations do.

For comics I do look at reference photos of people sitting or standing, or I look at the mirror, or even take photos of my own hand to be able to draw something. And that’s lots of fun and also challenging because I’m mixing there my old habit of portrait drawing with my less serious comic book style but I really really do like the combination. It also makes me feel that I am memorizing what I draw and the next time when I need to draw that same posture, I no longer need the reference photos because they’re no in my brain. And in my muscle memory. My hand remembers how to do the lines now.

Here you can see one of the sketches I did in 2018 - I had this image in my head and I wanted to draw it and I just... drew it in my sketchbook. Didn’t use pencil. But now I’ve noticed I like doing these on proper paper instead of the sketchbook AND it’s so much more fun to first draw the sketch with the pencil and then draw on it with the fineliners. That I have always done with the comics (apart from one) because they take more time than these quick sketches. But here you can see Farin’s legs on the first image - I think I might have looked at reference photos for that but then it was so much easier to do the to the comic I made in 2019.

I have now also figured out that a big part of my style is not to draw just simple straight lines. I like making those sketch-like lines even with the marker. They look more rough but that’s something I like seeing with my art. That’s what I was missing when I was staring at the lines I had drawn before and hated every detail of them. They were too clean and neat.

^These two I have also drawn on my sketchbook in 2018 and I don’t really know why. I guess I was still a bit stupid and didn’t really realize I’m drawing again. But anyway, they both were inspired by my own fanfiction I have written a long time ago. It’s one of my favorite self-written fanfics and it had these two scenes I just saw in my head and felt like I could try drawing them. Maybe that’s why they are in my sketchbook, I wasn’t sure if they were going to turn out even good... The marker around the second one obviously was shit and the paper wasn’t good for it, and I never finished with it so it looks a bit weird. Do I need to say that I really enjoy drawing very small, repetative details, like those tiles? It’s so soothing, almost like a therapy.

I think that quitting antidepressants in 2013 has done so much good for my creativity. If you compare my work from 2011 to 2019, the difference is huge - all are just parts from my comics:

Can you guess see the difference? But have to admit I am jealous for myself for how I have drawn Farin’s hair to the 2011 one and maybe have forgotten to color Farin’s arm but... I actually had so long pause from drwing (~8 years) that I forgot how I did that and had to use THAT as a reference when I was trying to draw late 80s Farin’s at some point last or this year :D

Anyway, my style with the shadows is a little different when I use colored pencils than when I use markers. This is from my latest comic from this year, where I experimented with Promarkers the way I had never done before and I really like how it came to be:

I have owned this set of Promarkers (black + 5 greys) for years and have never really used them, apart from the black which I usually used for the thick lines anyway. And wanted to see if I could find some use for the greys too! (Yes that’s Bela back there - this comic was an alternative ending for Für Immer music video :D)

And I wanna end this post with a face progress comparison for all three. During this I also noticed that before I used to draw their side profiles and it was really difficult to find images where I’d have drawn from from the front. And nowadays I have mainly drawn them from the front and it’s hard to find side profiles! Interesting! Here’s one of Farin and Bela from a drawing I made this year:

Also the hand that was so much fun to draw but I also took photos of my own hand in that posture in order to even draw that - that was fun! :D

But here are the last three images - using the HELL one as the last for each, of course:

Bela has always been the easiest to draw. And the first one of these three is actually from my first ever Bela&Farin comic! I didn’t color their skin back then. With the next ones I already did color their skins too but I used darker colors to do the shadows. Nowadays I do the shadows with fineliners. Or it depends - that 2019 one doesn’t have that lol.

Damn it was so difficult to find something where I’d have draw Farin from the front :D And I see the HELL one literally is my second (or third) time drawing Farin with his grin. Or if you count all those numerous extra mouths I drew because I failed the first one, then I have drawn his grin at least 15 times by now. I probably can draw his teeth with no reference photos from now on.

I haven’t drawn Rod too many times. I can actually count about... 5 times? And then there’s only 2 times when I’ve drawn his side profile but he’s at the background. I don’t know if I’ve ever really succeeded at that, I usually try to draw his head a more round and his eyes smaller than for Bela and Farin and I was actually bit worried for the HELL one and was wondering if I’m going to ruin the whole thing. But in fact, that was actually easiest of them to draw. And STILL I’m surprised by how alike he looks in that last one. In fact, I think his dacial features are perfect for a carricature drawing so you don’t need to do more than a few lines for the mouth and it looks like his mouth. The middle one was for a drawing I made for a friend and with this I actually looked at photos so that I could draw some of his hairstyles from the 90s and I liked this one the best and it was also quite easy to draw too.

Do I even have to say that I’m not extremely motivated what comes to drawing? I feel like my creative has become what it has never been before. I still don’t really know what to draw but I just feel that whatever it is I’ll start next, it will be good. And if it doesn’t... who cares? I had so much fun with those extra mouths of Farin which was maybe visible from the video I filmed, and that is what makes drawing worth it. Before I took the drawing process so seriously and a mistake felt like the end of the world but now I laugh at them and make fun of them and don’t take them too seriously. And I always have ways to fix these, or I can redraw. Just like I did with Farin’s mouth (or a half of his face actually) for this newest drawing. The most important thing is that I’m having fun and enjoying what I do, that way usually the outcome will also be a success.

I have now at least 2 dä comics on my to-do list (I don’t remember if there’s a third one too) + one pencil drawing that is halfway there. It will take one more night/day for it to get it finished. I also have probably 5 ideas for self-comics etc. in my sketchbook and I try to find some time to work on those. Or actually I have a plenty of time. Adhd, time blindness and executive dysfunction just make it feel as if I didn’t :D Can’t wait to get working on my next drawing projects, tho!

(I wish I knew how to make art for a living even but that’s a topic that will need its own post which I’m probably do in a near future if I don’t forget :D)

#mcrmadness’ art talk #mcrmadness draws #the post has lots of text but also quite a many images #dä fanart #die ärzte #I have been drawing dä comics since 2010 - the old ones are very stupid but whatever :D #long post

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baddyzarc · 5 years

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1/6 Ruins: Legend of the Ancient Hero

x 2 3 4a 4b 5 6 7

So awhile back I wrote a small, incomplete piece over Vector and his guardian, Minotarous, and how it connects to his legend and mythyrian number. Since then, I've been wanting to do it for all of the Emperors since there's enough details and Easter eggs to do that and nows a good time. I'm gonna be taking text mainly from the original subs since the dub did things to them that I do not agree with.

Since its gonna cover 6 different ruins, I decided to split this up into multiple parts.

So let’s begin with the ruins of everyone's favorite blind, book-loving, memelord supreme barian, Dubhe

Being the first to kick off the arc, Durbe’s ruin is probably the easiest of the ruins to understand.

Aside from the theme of trusting in others, one of the other major themes of his ruins revolves around the self-sacrifice motif.

This is clearly seen at the very start of the arc. It started with the scene where Yuma jumped in front of a bear in order to protect Durbe, who is a stranger and a very likely candidate of the Barian Emperor that crashed into their ship. Yuma was willing to sacrifice himself to (or fistfight) a bear to protect a complete stranger.

The next example is a little more obscure, but I say it happens when Durbe pushed Ryouga out from under the falling rocks and trapped himself with the fish boy. This one is a bit tough to grasp what Durbe “sacrificed” by doing this, but I argue that Ryouga was immediately held distrust towards Durbe from the beginning. Durbe has no reason to save him, and it would’ve benefited him greatly if Ryouga is out of the picture. Instead, Durbe saves him, and in the process he sacrifices his safety for a person who really hates Barians.

This whole concept continues throughout the Durbe's ruins. “Numbers 44: White Winged Horse - Sky Pegasus“ has the ability to destroy a monster unless the owner pays 500 lifepoints, and due to additional effects, Yuma has to pay 1000 lifepoints (which is a quarter of his life) each time this happens. Yuma chooses to sacrifice his lifepoints to keep Durbe and Ryouga as well as his “Numbers 39: King of Wishes, Hope” alive. In the Legend, Mach sacrifices himself for Durbe, and Durbe sacrifices himself for Mach in the past. There’s also something to be said when Yuma places his trust in the Barian Emperor, Durbe, after recounting his disaster with my boy Vector too. Even near the end of the episode, Ryouga is willing to die in order for Yuma to win the duel. The whole mini-arc is lathered in this theme.

What I found interesting about the "self-sacrificing" theme is what Mach says at the beginning of the duel. He says that in order for Yuma to win (and in turn save Ryouga and Durbe), he has to surrender the duel, or "victory can only be achieved through surrender." In essence, Yuma has to sacrifice, or surrender, the Mythyrian Number if he wants to save everyone. This is usual villain banter, but in the context of this episode, it is almost knee-jerking and tragic.

Recall back to Durbe’s legend. The Legend of the Ancient Hero (recounted through the scriptures on the ruins, Durbe, and Mach) tells the story of a group of four brave knights with one of them being Durbe and his Pegasus, Mach. Together they protected a distant land. Durbe returned to his homeland for some time (presumably to aid Nasch in his quest). Corrupted with the aspiration for power, the remaining knights overthrew the king and took over the country. When Durbe returned, he tried to appeal to them by saying “their hearts [are] filled with justice.” Unfortunately, he failed to open their hearts, and the three knights attacked Durbe.

Despite the assault, Durbe refused to harm or kill the attackers because he saw them as his cherished companions. Instead of fighting back, he surrendered, and he was stricken down by their relentless attacks.

Mach intervened in these attacks in order to protect his master, and he became fatally injured as a result. Durbe refused to retreat or abandon his dying steed, so he stayed by Mach’s side so they could perish together.

The final line of the legend said that the knights saw how noble the two of them were in their self-sacrifice to each other. They committed their lives to prove the bond between friends, the knights included. To honor Durbe, the knights ceased their rebellion, and they laid Mach and Durbe to rest as heroes.

In the case of the legend, even with their tragic demise, victory was achieved through surrender.

Yuma does a similar thing. In order to win, he has to play Mach’s game. He has to accept sacrificing himself over and over again. Only by taking those hits, by surrendering his life, is he able to win the duel and save his friends.

Okay, so enough about the theme of the ruins, let’s talk about physical ruins.

Noteworthy imagery used in the ruins is the use of colors.

When the characters got separated, they ended up in two chambers. One is lit by blue flames and the other by red flames.

And the thing about Zexal is that blue and red have strong associations to Astral World and Barian World respectively. Not all of the time, but the usage of these colored hallways and flames disappear shortly afterwards. So if the writers didn’t want you to notice the difference, they would’ve omitted it entirely. These colors are included for some reason.

Now you're probably wondering why I bring this up. Ryouga, Durbe, and Rio are Barians, Astral is, well, an Astral, this separation doesn’t make sense. But consider where the characters wind up. The “blue light” leads to the legend of the hero while the “red light” leads to the Number.

With the "red light" path, their intention is to free “Number 44: White Winged Horse - Sky Pegasus”.

Okay, slight deviation since this is important, but the Mythyrian Numbers are a special set of Numbers that Astral used to seal Don Thousand’s powers away. With Numbers, they do not belong to the Astral as a whole. If that’s the case, the existence of “Number 100: Numeron Dragon” implies that Astral created God, which is a little problematic (or a plot hole, take your pick). This is also why the Barians have their own set of Numbers. Astral is called the Original Number, so I take this as he is conglomerate of a bunch of strong Numbers, and Astral’s whole identity and powers is tied to the Numbers. This is why his memory shatters in the form of Numbers, or how other beings can absorb Astral’s Numbers. The Astrals simply used the powers of the Numbers to create Astral and lock Don Thousand away. I’ll explain this more later when we get to Mizael’s ruins and the whole smitck with the Numeron Dragon because it gets complicated.

BUT if anyone took the Mythyrian Number, whether it was carried out by Astral World, or Barian World, or an Earthling, Don Thousand’s strength will be restored. No matter what, Don Thousand's strengthening is inevitable as long as the characters choose to act on the red path.

For during the path of the “blue light”, or the one that Durbe and Ryouga took, the show hints that the evil Barians maybe aren’t evil. They have another secret to them that we don’t know of. In fact, the legend concludes by mentioning that the heroic Durbe and Mach ascended into Heaven, or into Astral World. This did not happen, of course, since we know of Durbe’s true fate. With Ryouga, his presence with Durbe allows for a crucial scene to play out later in the episodes. This also steadily connects him to his Barian heritage.

I can’t say much for Rio, but I feel as though the writers were incredibly inept about handling her Barianhood in comparison to Ryouga. They had no idea what to do with her (aside from being a handy-dandy translator and expositioner) and her character suffers for it, but ill get to her later.

Like, I may have an slight explanation for why Rio stays with the “red light” group. It’s kinda weak, but here we go.

Out of all of the legends, only Nasch and Durbe were not seen to be touched by Don Thousand's direct actions:

All of the other Emperors had a scene where an Over-Hundred goes into their heart or are possessed by Don Thousand. It is highly implied that Durbe also had the Over-Hundred Number monster enter his heart, but this was not shown since the scene cut away before we find out. Far as I know, Durbe was influenced to become a Barian when Donny made the knights turn on him, and the betrayal of his friends was so heart-breaking that Durbe descended into Barian World. Nasch was… well, ill get to him later too, but Durbe and Nasch could be the only ones who aren’t embedded with the curse. At least, on-screen.

Whether it happened or not is up for your interpretation, but them staying on the “blue light”, in the path of true heroes, makes sense in this concept.

Weak, yeah, but if there’s anyone that can explain why Rio is on the “blue light” side, let me know, aside from plot convenience. It’s obvious that the writers wanted Ryouga and Durbe to be together in the death rooms for plot reasons though.

Moving on, more plays on colors could be seen with the drawings in the Ruins.

This handsome, colorful fellow is meant to be Durbe. This depiction of him is much different than the one that is shown in (hopefully accurate) flashback.

It isn’t known who is responsible for scriptures and drawing in all of the ruins.

But the person who did this has the right idea of dressing Durbe in this multicolored garb. The story is called the “Legend of the Ancient Hero” and heroes are often associated with the three primary colors: blue is seen his shirt, pants, and helmet; red is seen in his cape; and yellow is seen in his undergarment. Meanwhile, white is a color often associated with purity, peace, and sincerity. All of these colors represent Durbe his legend—as a pure hero.

Being as he is the first Ruins we visit, using all this imagery to scream to the audience that “the barians are actually fallen heroes! theyre not evil!” is quite a nice, fun touch.

As well, out of the Seven Emperors, Durbe is the one who tends to be the most pure and heroic. From his deck being based on “holy” objects and his... questionable leadership, Durbe isn’t like Vector. He isn’t cruel or evil; everything he does is “for sake of Barian World” and that’s about it.

He knows that if Barian World does not attack Astral World, they will die (and vice-versa with Astral World). His motivations are solely to protect his home and his people. Also, I like Durbe I really do, but he is pathetic as a villain. Literally the worst plans and a bad leader who does not know how to use any of his pieces, but I appreciate his noble goals. He’s funny, Durbe is really funny. He just doesn’t have the heart to be the bad guy; but as a character who acts heroic (his duel with Merag for example), he does it pretty well.

And to rub my grubby little barian-eatin hands all over Durbe’s heroness, I want to talk about his ace monsters—his Mythyrian, his Over-Hundred, and his Chaos Over-Hundred.

Durbe’s Mythyrian Number also serves as his beloved Guardian of the ruins, Mach. This holds true for most of the Emperors due to the Guardians connection to their Emperors during their past life.

Now, Durbe isn’t shown with the card like some of the other Emperors, but we likely can infer that he was in posession of the Mythyrian Number, thus being a target of Don Thousand.

The role of the Mythyrian Number for the Emperors isn’t crystal clear, but what is known is that their being used to seal Don Thousand away. During the original fight between Don Thousand and Astral, Astral won the battle but lost fifty of his Numbers. Among these were the Mythyrian Numbers, which had the power to suppress Don Thousand. I don’t know if it was random chance that the Numbers glided towards the Emperors or it was divine intervention, but what I do know is that anyone who got the Mythyrian original had a good, strong heart and were destined for Astral World.

My personal theory is that the Barians and Astrals are like Newton’s Third Law, “every action has an equal and opposite reaction”. They complement each other and balance each other out.

In order to seal Don Thousand’s Chaos away, the Astrals had to counteract with equal forces of Cosmos. In their true life, the Emperors provided the necessary Cosmos to suppress Don Thousand. The Emperors were supposed to be Astrals anyways; the Astrals just harnessing their powers while they were humans to fight Don Thousand.

Since the Mythyrian Numbers are drenched with the power of Cosmos due to their relationship with the human Emperors, they are the antitheisis to the Over-Hundred Numbers whose powers come from Chaos.

Mythyrian Numbers being based more on Astral World could also be seen in how the Pegasus on the coat of arms is often associated with Heaven, or a messenger from God. And as Mach recounted the ending of Durbe’s legend, he does that color thing. That iconic blue, Astral-like glow.

With his Over-Hundred Numbers, I think the most interesting thing about it is that the full Japanese name is “Numbers 102: Holy Lightning - Glorious Halo”. These Number monsters represent the Barian Emperors in some way (despite some of them being weird like the giant handy one). The most direct statement to this is when Vector uses the Over-Hundreds to mock Nasch by summoning Durbe and Merag’s monsters (as in “I ate your sister and best friend and these are mine now”), and the entirety of Nasch’s tragic display during his final duel with Yuma.

So even in death, even as a Barian, even as one of the villains, Durbe is still sainted as holy and adorned with a halo. None of the other Over-Hundred are dressed in such a positive light (if at all).

When he turns “Glorious Halo” into a Chaos monster, technically putting extra barian sauce on a plate of fried barian, the name changes into “Number C102: Unholy Lightning - Noble Daemon”. Durbe still has the “Noble Demon” attached to him, even with extra evil on him.

Durbe’s nobility as a Barian makes since if you see that he isn't deeply infused with Don Thousand's curse in comparison to someone like Vector. Or his strong affiliation to keep Barian World safe from harm.

Plus, as a little extra snippet that I noticed in the episode, I wanna focus on this scene in the ruins.

This scene is great. It doesn't have much to do with Durbe, but it's an amazing foreshadow. I think by this point, the audience suspects that Ryouga is a Barian. He acts weird sometimes, his past is unknown, he can summon Chaos monsters, the Emperors are missing two and the Kamishiros slide in like a puzzle piece. BUT, I think the most damning evidence is this specific piece.

Before entering the ruins, Durbe broke his Baria crystal. He is unable to use his Barian powers nor does he have the ability to fix it. But the moment he saves Ryouga from falling to his death, Ryouga begins to glow that iconic red Barian color.

Not Durbe, but Ryouga. Ryouga’s energy flows into Durbe, which restores his crystal to full power and allows him to reveal his true form. Since Ryouga is the King of the Barians, Nasch, it makes complete sense that his body has remnants of his Barian life. (why this didnt activate before, idk, maybe shark wasnt in the mood)

Watching Ryouga heal a fellow Barian is conclusive evidence that Ryouga, as well as Rio probably, must be Barians, or at least connected to the Barians.

Even parts of the duel includes Nasch’s legend in it.

“Labyrinth of Decisions”, “Unfair Treaty”, and “Shield of Conspiracy” are cards used by Mach that fit into Durbe’s story. The labyrinth could be attributed to him leaving the country to aid Nasch in tracking Vector into the Labyrinth of Screams, and the unfair treaty/ or conspiracy is attributed to his own story, where the three knights betrayed the king.

In the end, the first of these ruins reveals two major plot points about the Emperors with one being much more obvious than the other. First is that there are more to the Emperors than being “plain evil” for the sake of it. Second, the events seen in the ruins hints that this shark-shaped shadow is Ryouga, and he is likely to be the final and missing Barian Emperor(s).

Of course this isn’t everything. I don’t know why his ruins are in South America (Ecuador, i think, go here if you want to know more about geography) when they say his homeland is somewhere else.

The Pegasus came from Greek mythology which spawns an interesting connection to the legend of Nasch and Vector. Pegasus was borne from the death of a gorgon (Medusa) and reared by Poseidon (who is attributed to being the god of the seas in most pop culture iterations). Gorgons and oceans is basically the story of Vector and Nasch, and as you know, Durbe and Mach participated in that legend too.

I’m just so fascination by Emperors and their everything, their monsters, their past lives, their ruins, their planet, their composition. Theyre entertaining to explore bc it feels like the writers put something in them for the audience to discover. They're simply fun, and I'll see you in the next ruins

#long post #zexal #barians #durbe #dumon #dyzarc diet #dyzarc writes #barian biology #my boy durbe and his horse #i have a video conference tommorow at noon and my internet cut off at 2am #i was like 'ah! my durbe essay cant save' instead of 'ah! how an i suposed to stream in the morning'#so my priorities are pretty much straight #not a fan of getting a critque over skype thats what

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sendmyresignation · 4 years

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hi again! top 5 (or 10 if u want) books u have read

hi!!! and this is the hardest ask I've ever gotten. hands down. being a bibliophile was like 85% of my personality pre-mcr spiral so this is going to be in no particular order. and a top 10. and under a read more....

1. Eon/Eona duology by Alison Goodman: this series I read in elementary school so, it's very much a favorite for nostalgic reasons- flaws and all. it's a dragon-centric fantasy series I have vivid memories of reading at the bottom of my sleeping bag by flashlight past curfew at french camp in fifth grade lol. but also, most importantly, this series was also the first I thing read that dealt in anyway with gender-fuckery. the man character is a girl who has to pretend to be a boy to access the world of dragon magic, since women are forbidden from the practice, and a large part of the book is about her repression of the self and how pretending to be someone she isn’t is mentally damaging for her. additionally, the main side character she interacts with is trans. like the representation is almost certainly bad (it's ten years old and written by a cis woman) if I looked back, but it was the only media that I read as a kid telling me pretending to be someone I'm not is dangerous for my mental well-being and that gender is complicated so. it's important to me. plus it kicks ass lol

2. Beloved by Toni Morrison: I read this in preparation for my african american lit class last semester (knowing full-well we were going to read Toni Morrison and wanting to get a head start) and.... it changed my life a little bit. This novel is beautifully written, hauntingly human, and a masterwork of a response to the way americans discuss the legacy of slavery. it's very much not a fun read, but there's a reason it's a classic and every american should read it

3. This Is How You Lose the Time War by Amal El-Mohtar and Max Gladstone: this book. this fucking book man. it's a lesbian sci-fi spy thriller but not really? it's difficult to explain other than it has the best enemies-to-lovers plot I've ever read and the prose is so purple I fell in love immediately. do yourself a favor and read this one, she’s short but packs a punch <3

4. Frankenstein by Mary Shelley: look. this book inspired me to write a 12 page paper in high school, when the writing requirement was 3 paragraphs and a half-baked thesis. this book brings out the worst in me, truly and that experience of tearing this book into pieces and putting the puzzle together was so life-alteringly... fun. i think that paper was the moment i figured out i wanted to do the “writing papers about books” thing as long as possible. plus it's whole thing as a gothic science fiction novel is so far up my alley... the creature as a character i heavily projected onto.... I love frankenstein so so much

5. The Seven Husband's of Evelyn Hugo by Taylor Jenkins Reid: ok. hear me out. this book is so much more than it appears on the surface. truly a wonderful discussion of golden-era Hollywood, a beautiful mediation on love, and jussst pulpy enough to make the reading experience breeze by you. and yes, despite the title, it is queer! really this book is on my list for the scenes at the middle point of the novel that are just.... queer domesticity? i read this a few years ago so that was really rare for me to see that and it warmed my heart, even if it wasn't the center of the novel. this is a book i recommend highly. enjoy yourself, have fun, read this book

6. Blood in the Water: The Attica Prison Uprising of 1971 and It's Legacy by Heather Ann Thompson: I get to include one biography. as a treat. but this book is one of the most detailed and compassionate pieces of historical nonfiction I've ever read. partway through the research process, Thompson realized the material she was using as evidence was starting to 'go missing' and that survivors were starting to pass away so she went from writing a biography to writing the Definitive biography on the uprising and, as a result, it is dense and heart-breaking and rage-inducing. I don't think a single reading experience has effected me as deeply as this one. i respect the incredible amount of work it put to pull this together, as well as the dedication to tell this story before it gets conveniently 'forgotten' to history.

7. True Lives of the Fabulous Killjoys by Gerard Way, Shaun Simon, Becky Cloonan, etc: you know what!!! i love the comic and I'm not afraid to say it <3 even in the pretentious ways, not just the "It's fun!" ways. here are my more in-depth thoughts.

8. The Passion of Dolssa by Julie Berry: realizing in retrospect that this is a novel about a female martyr figure.... but this is truly one of the best historical fiction books I've ever read. the research that went into it is insane, the characters are wonderfully fully-realized, and the setting is so vivid, and this story is right up my alley apparently....

9. Rot and Ruin series by Jonathan Mayberry: another nostalgia addition, this is a four book post-apocalyptic zombie series I fell in love with in middle school (and it held up upon rereading it in high school). it's special because it takes place years after the zombie 'uprising' in a world after it's immediate aftermath- which I feel is really rare for dystopian novels and makes the series unique- there's world building!! an established isolated society 13 years after society falls!! but the true gem of the series is the characters and their personal journeys. they all grow so much and witnessing it is so rewarding. they're just. special to me.

10. The Book of the Pheonix by Nnedi Okorafor: Nnedi Okorafor is one of the most brilliant sci-fi writers of this generation and you all should be reading her work!! Pheonix is my personal favorite because it has my favorite prose Okorafor has written, as well as a preoccupation with history and a superhero/mutant-esque plot that caters to me but it's also just a genius prequel to her novel Who Fear's Death (which you should also read but mind the content warnings) but all of her books/novellas are wonderful :)

small honorable mention to not the life it seems :) i didn't include it on the list but by virtue of being about my chem, it's spiritually here

Anyway... thank u nastia for giving me the opportunity to share!!! i may have gone a little overboard... but i v. much appreciated the ask 💕

#if anyone wants to talk books with me. ever. do not hesitate. i am always down #igottheanswer #my posts #hangernhigh

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ink-flavored · 4 years

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Writeblr Q+A

Tagged by @silver-wields-a-pen !! Thank you <3

Rules: Fill it out, post your answers, and tag some pals.

1. When did you first learn you enjoyed writing?

Well, I’ve known I enjoyed reading pretty much ever since I could comprehend words. Before I even really knew what I was doing, I would tell myself and my younger sister stories, and write down my day in a journal to have stories to read later.

My first experience with creative writing was in middle school, when we were asked to write poems every day for our poetry unit. That’s when I remember actually enjoying the act of writing for writing’s sake, but you could count my 6 year old ramblings too, if you wanted!

2. Tell us about the first project you ever wrote.

The first one I remember, not sure if it was actually the first one I ever wrote, was about a girl who had a wereworlf-esque ability to turn into a dragon. It was pretty much my dream. It still is.

3. How does your favorite media shape who you are as a writer?

To this day, my favorite book series -- The Inheritance Cycle -- has influenced the way I write magic systems, telepathic connections, my penchant for fantasy, and is absolutely where my love of dragons came from. I’m not sure where I would be without The Inheritance Cycle, truly.

But it’s not the only one! Reading House of Leaves was a fascinating dive into a genre I don’t normally read, and it really showed me that horror wasn’t just about gore and monsters (which is why I normally stay away). Playing the Dragon Age games showed me just how much you can do with characters. Probably some more I can’t think of have influenced me as well.

4. What's something you've wanted to write, but aren't sure you could? (A tv show, a genre, a style, a time period, a video game, etc)

I’d like to finish the game I started writing, one day. Maybe write some more.

I’ve dipped my toes into horror a little bit, but I know I’m not at all experienced enough to write a narrative in the genre. The problem is that I’m a giant wimp who doesn’t like being scared and also I’m squeamish. So that rules out a giant chunk of horror content for me to study lol

5. What is the thing that keeps you from writing the most?

Myself, for sure. Whether it be writer’s block, getting stuck in the fine details that don’t matter, or simply not having a plot to go with the story I want to write the most.

That, and having to work a nine-to-five. I suffer at the hands of capitalism.

6. How do you deal with an inner editor?

I don’t, really? I’m one of those people who’s half-editing as they write, though I’ve been trying to curb it lately. I’ve gotten over myself recently, not really caring what any of it says until I actually have to be editing. I just focus on having fun!

7. How long have you been writing?

Uhhhh... good question.

For Real Actually, probably since that middle school English class from earlier. Maybe “officially” the next year, but definitely around that time is when I decided I really loved writing and wanted to do it for a living.

8. What is your general writing process? Do you write chronologically? Do you do a lot of planning?

Pfft. Process, that’s cute.

I kinda do whatever? Stories come to me in all manners and in all forms -- just aesthetics, just a plot, just a character, just a single scene or line of poetry. I do as much planning as my brain allows, but I do like to have a skeleton outline of the main story beats before I actually sit down to start writing anything.

I absolutely love world-building tho. I do that so much.

9. Assign a scent to your writing style.

Oh, but that depends so much on WHAT I’m writing!!!!

But if I must choose... a scented candle in an abandoned house, covered in dust and falling to ruin. Comfort in a place where comfort should not be.

10. One book you hope everyone reads?

Lately, I’ve been re-discovering Eavan Boland’s poetry, and I’m currently reading her most recent collection. I’d recommend anyone who wants to write poetry -- or even just likes poetry! -- to read anything by her.

11. What is it about your least favorite genre that makes it your least favorite--and how might you change that to better appeal to you?

You know how they say hate and love are two sides of the same coin? There’s a difference between a genre boring me and a genre inspiring enough passion to incite hatred. That difference, reader, is wanting it to be better.

I used to think horror was the worst genre on the planet (anxiety and panic disorder notwithstanding) even though a lot of the genre has things I should like -- putting characters through trials to reveal their true selves, stories that make you think about yourself and the world, all that stuff. I hated it because, from what I saw in popular media, it focused too much on gore and was more concerned with being a scary story than an interesting story -- which has its merits! It just wasn’t what I was looking for.

Stuff like House of Leaves and Welcome to Night Vale really showed me exactly the kind of horror I like. Which is, little to no gore and scares that settle deep. There is so much about both that I think about to this day, episodes I haven’t listened to in months or years. House of Leaves is a story about the protagonist descending to madness and you get to watch it in real time -- knowing it could easily be you. I like horror that reminds us we’re all human, and that being a human is very, very scary on its own.

So, more horror needs to be like that.

12. Design a "collector's edition" for your first novel. Include items that might be of interest to your audience.

MAP. BIG HUUUUGE MAP. I love maps. It’s gotta have a big map poster in FULL COLOR, BABEY!!!!

13. If one thing was real from your project, what would you want it to be?

Dragons. You have no idea how much I want dragons to be real.

14. What's something you always include in your work? Do you have any other Easter eggs?

I like magic, I like dragons, and both of those show up an uncanny number of times in what I write.

15. What is your favorite passage from your own work?

Jeez, that’s a tough one. I write so much stuff! But something I am very proud of is from a flash fiction called One Minute:

You cannot move, or the minute will reset. If you move, you will have to keep sitting. You will have to start over. The creature will surely kill you. If you move. The minute. Will. Reset. If you move. You. Will. Die.

It has been forty-five seconds.

You can’t see the creature, but you know that it’s big. It blocks the light behind you, casting a massive, dark, endless shadow. It is darker than a shadow should be. Darker than the night sky. Darker than the blackness behind your eyes.

You pray to God. You pray to any God.

It has been forty-nine seconds.

I like to read it out loud!! It sounds nice to say imo

Aaaaand, that’ll be it!

Tagging (no pressure!): @royalbounties @rrrawrf-writes @rainy-rose @blueinkblot @sunrisecitrusuniverse @tenacious-scripturient and anyone else who wants to do this!! Consider yourselves tagged!

#annika talks #ask game #long post

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terramythos · 4 years

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TerraMythos’ 2020 Reading Challenge In Review - 9/10s!

See Master Post

Here's the 9/10 books of this year -- books I really liked but not to the point of perfection.

1. This Is How You Lose The Time War by Amal El-Mohtar and Max Gladstone (Full Review Here)

This is a beautifully-written novella about two women from enemy time travel societies. They start as rivals who pass taunting letters to one another and gradually fall in love with each other through their writing. There’s some really beautiful and interesting locations, and I love the longing and emotion in the letter sequences. I think using a science fiction setting for a love story is super cool; especially with time travel, there’s a sense of predestination not found in other genres. I also like the idea of each author writing one of the two leads, so the style is slightly different between them.

2. The City We Became (Great Cities #1) by N. K. Jemisin (Full Review Here)

Jemisin is a fantastic author and created my favorite series ever (The Broken Earth), so I was stoked to read book one of a new series by her. The concept here is that cities become sentient beings over time given enough people and cultural influence. New York City is about to be born into a human avatar, but something goes wrong. An eldritch foe known simply as The Enemy seeks to sabotage the nascent city and almost succeeds. Proto-avatars of the city’s boroughs have to find their inner power and band together to rescue him and save the city.

I really dig the ensemble cast, especially Manny (Manhattan), Bronca (The Bronx), and New York City himself. The book is also a great middle finger to Lovecraft, as the cosmic horror element is steeped in structural racism and oppression, with the Eldritch Aesthetic being a creepy pale white. Super excited for the next book.

3. Artificial Condition (The Murderbot Diaries #2) by Martha Wells (Full Review Here)

I’ve already said plenty about the Murderbot books on my 10/10 list. I really like this one in particular because it introduces ART, one of the best supporting characters in the series. It’s super interesting to see how Murderbot interacts with a non-human person (or... spaceship. But ART is also a person for sure) similar to itself and I really like the banter and friendship between the two. Like the rest of the novellas, it’s short, but it packs in a lot of story and heart.

4. Rogue Protocol (The Murderbot Diaries #3) by Martha Wells (Full Review Here)

My other 9/10 selection for this series! There is a heavy focus on Murderbot’s past and how far it’s come ever since it freed itself from the company’s mental slavery. This probably has the strongest character development in the series outside of Network Effect, with a genuinely sad and sobering ending.

5. Finch (Ambergris #3) by Jeff VanderMeer (Full Review Here)

I think this book is where I really “got” the Ambergris series; it’s a pseudo-trilogy with a lot of postmodern elements, but this one is the most straightforward. Finch is a fascinating mix of noir, dystopia, and cosmic horror. I even called this “nontraditional cyberpunk”; there’s elements of a surveillance state, underground resistance/revolution, artificial implants/bodily enhancements-- but all related to fungi and eldritch horror.

Anyway, this book stars Finch, a detective working in the city of Ambergris, who is tasked with solving an impossible double-murder case. In his investigations, he soon stumbles upon a web of conspiracy related to the downfall and takeover of the city by the gray caps, the humanoid mushrooms who enslave and oppress the human population. It’s just as weird as it sounds, but if you made it to book three, you'll be plenty familiar with how bizarre the series is. Technically, this book is a standalone, but I recommend reading the other two first as they are integral to understanding the plot.

6. The Last Sun (The Tarot Sequence #1) by K. D. Edwards (Full Review Here)

This is a really impressive debut novel with an interesting world concept and great characters. The idea is that Atlantis was a real thing and got destroyed. The surviving inhabitants decided to build a new city by magically stealing a bunch of buildings throughout the world and transporting them to Nantucket. The result is a cool patchwork urban fantasy setting. There’s a huge tarot motif, hence the series name. It’s also gay!

I fell in love with the excellent character banter, especially between Rune and his soul-bonded bodyguard Brand. While I had some criticisms on the plot structure and a reliance on same-y action scenes, everything else was so good I gave Edwards the benefit of the doubt. And it really paid off in the sequel, which improves on basically everything.

7. The Princess Bride by William Goldman (Full Review Here)

I mean, the movie’s a beloved classic. If you haven’t seen it... go do so? It’s a great adventure story with lots of memorable characters, lines, and moments. Honestly I’m more surprised I hadn’t read the book before, and I’m glad I did. It often felt like an extended cut of the movie, with a few key differences in the frame story and some locations. While I think I like the film just a little more, I appreciate the novel for giving me a broader perspective on the story and characters.

8. A Choir of Lies (A Conspiracy of Truths #2) by Alexandra Rowland (Full Review Here)

A Choir of Lies is a standalone sequel to the book A Conspiracy of Truths and can be read on its own if desired. It stars Ylfing, a fan-favorite character in the previous book. He’s processing grief and depression in the wake of his mentor (the last book’s protag) suddenly abandoning him. A (sort of--it’s complicated) professional storyteller called a Chant, Ylfing tries to make it in the Netherlands-inspired fantasy city Heyrland, and writes a diary about his experiences. However, another Chant has found his manuscript and writes scathing commentary on his decisions in the footnotes.

I had a difficult time getting into this one, as Ylfing is both relatable and infuriating, and a depressed protagonist can be hard to get behind. However, it's well worth sticking through, as the sheer catharsis of Ylfing realizing his horrible mistakes and doing everything he can to fix them is... well, pretty inspiring. Multiple characters own up to their failures, often at great personal cost, for the wellbeing of others. I think it’s a great message, especially reading it in 2020 when the future feels hopeless. A Choir of Lies also has two of the things I liked most about A Conspiracy of Truths-- lots of meta commentary on storytelling, and surprisingly interesting economics.

9. The Harbors of the Sun (The Books of the Raksura #5) by Martha Wells (Full Review Here)

I thought this was a nice finale to the series. It has some satisfying thematic bookends regarding the Fell and Moon’s character development. It’s also probably the most “epic” fantasy of the series, with super high stakes and a broad cast of perspective characters. I have to wonder if there are plans for further books or a different series in this universe, since the setting has a lot of depth and potential. Either way, I really enjoyed it!

10. A Killing Frost (October Daye #14) by Seanan McGuire (Full Review Here)

Another year, another October Daye book! Obviously I like this series if I’m fourteen books in and still reading it. A Killing Frost has some slow-ish pacing, but ramps up a lot in the second half of the story. It’s the conclusion to my favorite storyline in the series -- the redemption arc of Simon Torquill. He’s a really interesting morally gray character, and I think serves as the poster child on how the series plays with the idea of heroes and villains. Also, this book casually drops probably one of the craziest twists in the series at the end, and I am super interested to see the fallout of that.

11. The Edge of Worlds (The Books of the Raksura #4) by Martha Wells (Full Review Here)

This is basically part one of Harbors of the Sun and involves the main cast going on a long journey to an ancient ruin. The first half of the book is pretty slow and probably could have been pared down -- lots of travel sequences. However the second half is super tense and action packed. I found the ancient ruin itself really interesting and creepy, and the book sets up a lot of things that pay off in The Harbors of the Sun.

#2020 reading challenge #taylor reads

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exaltedviolinist · 4 years

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tlok rewatch 2020 - book 4

this is it...

- 5/10. this book is the worst book of the four and it’s not even debatable to me. i think 5/10 is the fairest assessment i could give it: it has, at its very core, some really interesting concepts, like korra’s healing journey, humans abusing of the spirits in a post-harmonic convergence world, republic city being used as the final battlefield... but their execution always flops ultimately, and beyond that, some pretty evil things go down in this book (korra being completely devoid of her usual personality, korra being "cured” by her abuser, korra validating the pain and torture she endured in order to learn compassion which she already had before, tenzin calling book 1 korra selfish, tenzin validating korra justifying her abuse, etc.). as a whole, the book is not good. there were some interesting parts for sure, but most of them were visual delights. if you even care about korra you would recognize that she is sidelined and her personality is toned down for the sake of appearing as someone she isn’t. the pacing is pretty bad and the show struggles to find its footing in the grand story it wants to tell. i’m thankful to say at least that book 4 was a... better experience to me than i anticipated. i won’t be AS negative as i was for over 5 years about this book, but i will never actively defend it for anything. - artistically, i feel as though this book isn’t as memorable as the previous three. i simply can barely recall tracks or sceneries that shook me to my core: the ones that DO come to mind all come from the finale - mako’s sacrifice, goodbye, and that shot of the republic city skyscrapers being sliced from afar. i saw the whole book just a few days ago! it’s really not a bad book visually or sonically but i can recall book 1, book 2 and book 3 shots/soundtrack way easier than book 4. - let’s start with the positives.... korra’s journey to healing started out great. her visions are realistic, the way she goes around dealing with them and reacting to them is accurate and to me having korra fighting an evil within herself would’ve been a much more compelling story than what we got. they really started dropping the ball after korra extracted the remaining poison out of her. dark korra shows up one last time against kuvira (which i thought was excellent!) but then is never brought up again? what was that about? i didn’t think it was realistic korra miraculously was rid of visions, trauma and ptsd symptoms once ZAHEER (of all people........) helped her with her spiritual block? one can accept something happened to the one without making it completely disappear. it doesn’t go away so simply. and a toe-to-toe face off with dark korra is something i fully anticipated yet never got. on that note, korra alone is a great episode but i think this is what the standard should’ve been for book 4: korra at the center of the plot and diving into her trauma and healing process. all they needed to do is replicate that recipe, put in supporting characters like the rest of the krew and tenzin/lin/the air nation and we’d be golden. - they had a good idea in making kuvira use spirit vines for her gains - why wasn’t anybody reacting to this? the spirits who now share this world were never outraged that humans were being damaging to them. there was a lot of potential to make this a human vs. spirit conflict that korra could’ve been able to resolve in this modern world where the portals are permanently open. spirits and humans alike simply let kuvira take the vines and use them for a destructive weapon. the one time vines reacted in anger to that their qualms with kuvira/humans were never dealt with or appeased - korra only saved humans in this episode, nothing more. and it was never addressed again. - republic city being used as a battlefield WAS. AWESOME. i WISH they didn’t have this ugly robot ruining it all for me. imagine if korra was facing off against kuvira in a fast-paced intense battle in which they collided in buildings, sliced skyscrapers and blew up the city..... that would’ve been sick. - and... that’s about all i can credit book 4 for honestly. kuvira isn’t compelling as a villain (just a repurposed ozai with viewer sympathy thrown at the end for some reason, probably because they tried so hard yet failed to paint a parallel between her and korra), the 3 years time skip is absolutely fucking evil and i rejected it years ago, i still do and for all times, the krew only fully regroups in episode ELEVEN and their separation creates the same problems the first half of book 2 experienced, the krew reuniting in the reunion episode was so basic and disgustingly anticlimactic, the beifongs take way too much space again, toph made her epic comeback only for her to brutalize korra for a whole episode before being actually sort of helpful, varrick and zhu li are main characters now and i will never forgive that (how did zhu li get more lines than korra in some episodes is BEYOND me), prince wu (and meelo to that extent) is an abomination of a character and nothing can redeem that, korra is devoid of personality (or is exhibiting a washed out version of her personality), korra is antagonizing her old self and justifying the violence she suffered from, tenzin was a terrible mentor this season and not even remotely helpful in any way, hiroshi is only brought back to be sacrificial lamb at the end and not further develop asami’s lackluster character which gets NO justice this book either and stagnates lower than her character in the book before it and worst of all korra isn’t the protagonist of the show she is the titular character of anymore.

- i tried my best to like this book, i really did. i did not want to resent this book anymore - it’s tiring to have this awful book constantly remind me that korra never got the proper ending she deserved. the worst season had to be the departing one!! and i don’t know who is to blame for all this ugliness really: nickelodeon and their terrible promotion/scheduling of tlok? the writers who tried to appease to fans by rewriting korra and constantly torturing her from 3x13 to the end? the creators who had some anger to let out on a brown woman? what happened??

- i don’t even want to address this final episode but i shall. the first 10 minutes or so are good. as soon as the portal is created though, that’s when everything turns to shit. korra and kuvira talking is fine but i still don’t buy the “kuvira is like korra” argument they kept forcibly bring up because they couldn’t find a way for us to organically create potential similarities but the rest is trash. the westernized zhurrick wedding can kiss my ass, korra not having a final scene with bolin or the krew as a whole can kiss my ass, the final episode not being named avatar korra can kiss my ass, tenzin and korra celebrating her abuse and attempted murder can kiss my ass (and on that note, it makes me laugh thinking that they thought korra needed to be taught compassion through torture as if her saving kuvira, sparing her life and being selfless was more compassionate of her than surrendering herself to terrorists in order to save a nation she had just brought back from their ashes) and korra apologizing to asami can kiss my ass. korrasami itself being a thing was a surprise for me back then but let’s be honest: as much as we like to see it we can simply cannot avoid the fact that the pairing had no romantic buildup the entire season - korrasami was only somewhat pushed in book 3, particularly at the end of it. i don’t feel like makorra had that much more anyway so know that this isn’t an attempt to put one against the other either - but i will say that mako accompanying korra to the spirit wilds of republic city and to zaheer’s prison was meaningful to me and to korra, as well as mako’s desperate look to jinora when they were looking for korra’s body after the spirit blast. to sum up my thoughts on the pairings: i think bopal and kainora are cute, and i only actively shipped makorra and korrasami in book 3 where they were written well. that’s about it. i’ve made my peace with this book. it doesn’t poison me as much as it used to be but i’ll always be angry at it for being the way it is. it didn’t need to be, and there were very easy fixes. it boggles my mind. this will probably be the last time i rewatch book 4, at least in a very long time. my favorite episodes of this book: Korra Alone and Reunion. i actively disliked: The Coronation, Enemy at the Gates, The Battle of Zaofu, Remembrances and the second half the The Last Stand.

in conclusion: book 1 > book 3 > book 2 > book 4. and korra’s bob isn’t as pretty as the pigtails/ponytail sorry not sorry.

#the legend of korra #tlok rewatch 2020

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travllingbunny · 5 years

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The 100 6x13 The Blood of Sanctum

This was a rather underwhelming finale to what was probably my favorite season of The 100. That doesn’t mean it was really bad or that it ruined the season for me; no, it was just something that felt more like a midseason finale than an epic conclusion. This may be because the writers were already sure that they were getting season 7 – and may have already planned it as the last, which made season 6 something like the first part of one big, 29 episodes season, aka “Book Two”.

Out of all the storylines, only SheidMadi got resolved – as did the two-season story of Madi as the Commander, which is not history, together, apparently, with the Flame. I admit that I really did not expect the show to finally do away with this long-standing plot device. On the other hand, not only is Sheidheda still a villain who is going to cause trouble in season 7, but the main plot with the Primes and bodysnatching has not been fully concluded – because Russell Lightbourne is still alive, several of the mind drives are still in function, and there are still a lot of “devout” Prime-worshippers in Sanctum. Out of all the storylines, that was the one I expected to be fully over.

The best parts of the episode – the strongest emotional moments – all involved Clarke. Even though Clarke suffering and losing people she loves has been done to death, the show can always count on Eliza Taylor to deliver those big emotional moments. The only problem with her scenes is that they were somewhat predictable – especially since the promo department saw fit to spoil the emotional climax in promo videos and pictures. Still, the scenes where Clarke is tempted to give in to the desire to believe that her mother is still alive, but then stays strong and smart and floats Simone in her mother’s body alongside most of the other Primes; and the climax with her confronting Madi, are really good. Sure, it’s the “Power of Love” trope, but the show knows how to do that trope well, and I liked it. It fit with the show’s themes, including the old “Love is a weakness” theme. Sheidheda was the one to repeat that mantra, but it was something we first heard from Lexa (who eventually changed her mind about it), later learned was actually a part of her Flamekeeper Titus’ teaching, and eventually learned (in season 5) that it was also a part of Gaia’s teaching to Octavia, as something that Flamekeepers generally teach Commanders. Here, Sheidheda said that Lexa told him Clarke was strong (he would have first known about Clarke through Lexa, years before Madi took the Flame), but, according to Sheidheda, Lexa was weak because of her love for Clarke, and Clarke now proved she was weak because of her love for Madi… But then Clarke proved that Love is strength by risking her life and using her love for Madi and Madi’s love for her to bring her daughter back, when she seemed fully possessed by Sheidheda.

This season was full of parallels to season 2 – which was for the long time my favorite – as a redoing, in a better way, of what happened; and the reunion scene between Clarke and Bellamy was a beautiful one with parallels and contrasts to their goodbye scene in the season 2 finale. The song and the softness and tenderness of the scene were similar to the Bellarke season 2 goodbye, and the dialogue recalled both that scene, and Clarke’s conversation with her mother, when she said “I tried to be the good guy” and got the reply “Maybe there are no good guys”. But that mindset was very damaging, to Clarke, to Abby and to everyone. And here, Clarke says she tried to do better (which irked me somewhat, because she has to know she did do the right thing – it would be absurd to think that killing Primes in self-defense is somehow wrong, or that she was in any way responsible for the mayhem Russell caused, because he’s the worst) and Bellamy assures her she did, they did. What makes more sense is that Clarke is wondering if doing better was worth it, since she lost her mother. It is the opposite of the season 2 finale, when she saved everyone she loved, but lost a part of her soul and all of her moral certainty in the process. (Even though, in the circumstances in that season finale, when the choice was between killing all the Mountain Men or letting them win and horribly murder Clarke and Bellamy and everyone they loved – Abby, Octavia, all their friends – the former was the right choice, and anyone who disagrees has to explain how lying down and saying “yes, kill us all, you superior Mount Weather people” was a better choice.) But this time, Clarke accepted Bellamy’s comforting words and hug, and is staying with her people instead of isolating herself.

But the relationship issues with Bellamy and Clarke and Echo, respectively, were put on hold– which was obviously a deliberate decision by the writers to not resolve them before the last season, and the way it has been made to work is by making the last few episodes so full of action that characters didn’t have the time to sit and talk about their feelings and relationships (especially Bellamy and Echo, who haven’t had an on-screen one-on-one scene since 6x04, and weren’t even in the position to have one since 6x08). Many of the character arcs feel like they just reached the halfway point.

The weakest part of the episode was the battle for Sanctum. Aside from some funny moments involving Murphy and a confirmation that Octavia has changed and that she and Bellamy have repaired their relationship, most of it was just action - and I’m someone who gets bored with action scenes if they don’t involve meaningful character moments and/or real stakes, which was missing. The show also missed the chance to portray the changing society of Sanctum, and the revolution/civil war that started in 6x12, in an interesting way. Instead, we just got beaten over the head with how brainwashed the “devout” Sanctumites are, which took quite a bit of screentime. It was hard to care when none of these people were characters we had met before, and were hard to relate to. What happened to the rebels who shouted “Death to Primes”? Did they just lose the battle off-screen and got captured? What happened to Delilah’s parents – the only Sanctum residents we had already gotten to know that are still alive? The show has done much more to humanize Russell freaking Lightbourne and the Primes, which is not a bad thing in itself, than it ever did to humanize the ordinary residents of Sanctum, who remain a nebulous crowd with few individual characteristics (ironically, similar to how the Primes treat them), which just serves as the motivation for our heroes to spare/help so they would do better.

Seeing Jordan brainwashed does help somewhat understand that the people of Sanctum are not stupid and sympathize with them: if he can be so brainwashed after a few days, what chance did the Sanctumites have? They had that happen to them for years. Jordan’s new mindset after literally drinking the Kool Aid is scary and promises big problems for season 7. Remember when they said Priya was overseeing his recovery? The Primes are always proving even more evil than you thought. She and the “adjustor” seem to have somehow managed to make him transfer his feelings for Delilah to Priya – to the point that he carries a mind drive (probably Priya’s), and to make him believe in their BS mantra that their world was happy and peaceful before Earth people came (which cannot be further from the truth), when he was the first to call the Primes murderers when he discovered the truth about them in 6x05.

The mystery of the Anomaly, of course, has been established as the main plot of season 7 (no surprise there), and while I expected a Diyoza to come out of the Anomaly (I expected a younger Charmaine, but at least one person on Twitter guessed it would be her daughter Hope), the final twist with Octavia disappearing into the Anomaly did come as a surprise. But that part of the episode felt somewhat disconnected from the rest.

Other thoughts:

Indra’s story about Sheidheda’s rule of fear was a little weird – because I don’t really see how exactly his actions were that different than those that were expected from any Commander. Apparently, he butchered everyone who refused to submit to his rule. But isn’t that what Commanders generally do? We learned back in season 2 that Grounders have a strictly hierarchical society and are expected to obey their leaders. When Lincoln showed disobedience and went against an order of his Commander (going back to help Octavia in Mount Weather against Lexa’s orders), Lexa issued a kill order on him. Blood must have blood, Love is weakness – these are mantras taught to Commanders (or at least the recent ones) by their Flamekeepers. Sheidheda’s actions may have been more extreme in scale and harshness, but at the core, he was following the exact same rules he was taught. Giving anyone, especially a child, absolute power, doesn’t tend to end well.

One of the few characters who got a rounded character arc in season 6 is Gaia, who ended up choosing saving Madi over saving the Flame. Yes, it was also about destroying Sheidheda, but it was a big thing for her to decide to destroy the thing to whose worship she had dedicated her life, for the common good, to protect people and to save the life of a real, living child. But she will have an identity crisis next season and will have to decide what her life is now.

The hug between Clarke and Raven was nice but…semi-satisfactory to see: they have made up, and Raven has done better in the last few episodes, and made amends to Clarke, in a way, by saving Madi, just as Clarke did better by caring about the common good and saving everyone, again (something she had lost in season 5) rather than just people close to her.

But Raven really needs a good storyline again and a better characterization. In season 6, she was a side character who was there just to support other people’s stories. Even Gaia’s: in order for the decision whether to kill the Flame to belong to Gaia, the show had Raven ask Gaia what to do with the Flame – which was quite mind-boggling. Since when does Raven care about the Grounder religion, to the point of giving the decision to a Flamekeeper? Especially when a child’s life and everyone’s being is at stake?

Speaking about sacrificing one character’s characterization to give a cool moment/uplift another, I didn’t enjoy the way that it seemed like Octavia is now the most morally developed and Bellamy just followed her lead when she decided to help Gabriel save the people of Sanctum. As if Bellamy didn’t always care about saving people who weren’t necessarily “his people” – e.g. saving the slaves in 4x02, his insistence in season 2 that they spare the children and innocent people in Mount Weather, trying to stop Finn from killing a Grounder prisoner in season 2, trying not to get Children of Gabriel unnecessarily killed in 6x03 – when they were seen as enemies…

Layla, one of the very few non-Prime new characters we got to know, got murdered by a devout nutcase, and her death scene was spoiled in a promo… But I wasn’t even sure she was injured when I saw the promo, because the scene must be the least unconvincing killing scene ever. That little surface scratch with a knife looked like it can’t do more than just leave a little mark on her neck, for a while.

Emori and Murphy were fun to watch in their glamorous new clothes and makeup and with their ‘god” personas.

Even though he made the choice to help his friends, Murphy still wants immortality. And he is not concerned with the well-being of people he doesn’t know, which is in character for him. We’ll see if any of that comes into play in early season 7.

Does it count as Bury Your Gays when a show reveals an already dead character as gay (or possibly bisexual)? I remember that this was brought up when Lost did it with a dead recurring character in a flashback. Here it was a character we saw for just a few seconds in 6x02, who didn’t get any characterization, and has been dead for 12 episodes, and super-definitely-dead for 8 (one of the Primes, Daniel Lee).

Are Bellamy and Echo still together? Who knows. Are they still kind of technically an item just because they haven’t had any time or chance to interact in private, which would be necessary for a breakup? If they are together, why are they acting more platonic than Bellamy and Clarke? It would have been easy for the show to confirm they were still a couple: it would be obvious if they had kissed during their reunion – as Miller and Jackson did in this episode, or if they kissed at some other point (as Murphy and Emori do all the time) or had other gestures of intimacy other than the reunion bro-hug in 6x12, with Bellamy patting Echo on the back the same way he did his sister a couple of episodes back. At this point, Becho is the Schroedinger’s Ship.

Rating: 6.5/10

#the 100 #the 100 season 6 #the 100 6x13 #the blood of sanctum #clarke griffin #bellamy blake #bellarke #octavia blake #madi griffin #sheidheda #raven reyes #gaia kom trikru #john murphy #emori #abby griffin #the primes

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