#and then also a eurydice sort of take

[orpheuslookingback]

oof man I've been loving severance in general but I think that last episode is the first one I have like lots of Thoughts about that I feel like I can at least kind of string together lol. Like I was moderately worried about what direction the Dead Wife thing was going to go in. Because it would have been so easy (and kind of disappointing) for her to just ultimately be an object that exists as a goal/motivator for other characters and not a person (as is common with Dead Wife characters, both literal and not so literal); that's sort of what she's been so far, with just the tease that she could be more. And unless they drop the ball big time (which god I hope they don't), this episode already made it clear: she IS more. Like revealing her to be both physically AND mentally alive at this point in the story is such a good writing choice and feels SO crucial to escaping from some of the really cliché permutations that these kind of basic story arcs/character archetypes can fall into.

I know everyone's been doing the orpheus/eurydice comparisons and now I know people are talking about how mark and gemma are now both actually the orpheus to each other's eurydice, but it's also this: gemma has been split into who knows how many people. She's his eurydice. She's his orpheus. And she's her own orpheus, too. Because she gets herself out of the underworld and then, not remembering she has, she's sent right back down again. And she hesitates and turns around one more time. But she doesn't know. She doesn't even know what she's really looked back at. She doesn't know the world she's sent away. Not until she's back in the underworld, and she's eurydice again.

Also! To interplay him remembering her, give us a classic Dead Wife Sequence- complete even with some of the classic images! The beautiful woman smiling in nature, lying in bed, looking at you, the light warm for the very first time- with the cold, stark reminder that she isn't actually dead, and more than that is still conscious and trying to get out and find him- is SUCH a cool move. Like it totally flips the idea of the Dead Wife Sequence on its head. It's not just grief anymore. It's not just using a lost person as a prop that our hero fights on in memory of. It's the Dead Wife Sequence as horror.

Because she's still the Dead Wife and yet at the same time it dramatically shifts her role in the story, right? Because it turns out everything she is to Mark, he is to her. This unreachable person who you now know isn't dead but who you cannot get to and you cannot know the true present reality of you can only take the word of people you don't totally trust or know. And so, they are dead. But now you know it's only to you. Because we've seen them both now, and we know they're both not just alive, they're fighting.

("she's not dead, she's just not here")

She's not your Dead Wife but you can't help the fact that in your memory, in your mind, she is. So you're the one, in a way, that's killing her. And you're her Dead Husband. "He's moved on" and you know that's a lie but does it really matter until you see him? Until he's real again? Because until then, you're both choking on ghosts.

And the ghosts aren't even really there.

[weaponizedducks]

hot (ish) take but reeve carney's orpheus is my favourite. like i adore jordan fisher and donal fin, and their vocal power is objectively better, but reeve brings a sort of naivety to orpheus that i really love. his high register makes it seem like he's almost in a dream for the first half- so absorbed in his music and his love that he doesn't see the things eurydice sees. and he maintains this naivety throughout- but it sort of grows into hope and faith instead. reeve carney's orpheus and eva noblezada's eurydice contrast each other so well, and just have such good chemistry. also his 'la la la's are literally ethereal

[shanastoryteller]

Happy Valentine's Day 💘

Can I get something from Hades?

a continuation of 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18

Zagreus is right next to him, so close that their arms brush as they walk, but Thanatos has never felt further from him.

"Try this!" he says, beaming as he reaches up and plucks something that looks like plum but is more red than purple from a tree hanging heavy with fruit, it's branches so long that he doesn't even have to step off the road to grab it.

Megaera snatches it from his hand, looking it over suspiciously. People give them a wide berth as they walk through Zagreus's city, but people wave and bow and shout greetings as they pass.

Even in Elysium, there's not this much joy. People are happy here. It's not endless fighting and torment and a fruitless search for glory. It's people living in ease and comfort, creating and lounging and laughing.

Megaera bites into the fruit much the same as she'd bitten into Zagreus and frowns. "This doesn't have power like the ones on the surface do."

"Why would it need to? The ones one the surface are to keep people alive and strong and to help them make it through winter. Down here they're just tasty," He takes the fruit back and bites into himself before holding it out to Thanatos. "Eurydice manages the gardens and fields down here, more or less. We grow normal stuff too, that's just not as fun for me."

Thanatos bites into the fruit, places his teeth over the indents Zagreus's left behind. It's more tart, like a cherry, but with the bite of something like citrus. It's also not without power, but it's more like a pom or a bracing cup of coffee than the boons of his surface fruits.

"And what do the others do?" Megaera asks, licking the juice off her lips.

He gestures around them. "Sisyphus does most of the city planning, although sometimes people just build stuff they want, which is fine, but if it interferes with his, I don't know, organization, I end up having to move it to some place he deems suitable. Patroclus sort of just does whatever, you know?" He frowns. "People come to him with stuff, because I'm not around a ton, and he's pretty good at keeping the other two from going too overboard when I'm not around. He's like a mayor."

"What about Achilles?" Thanatos asks.

Zagreus grimaces. "Patroclus's husband is Patroclus's decision. I have the diamonds to buy out his contract, and it's not like there's any concern about him staying in Elysium now - he's one of mine. Eurydice loves Orpheus, I think, but she's still pretty pissed at him, but he's welcome too. Sisyphus will probably ban him from the lyre if he tries to play mopey music though."

Megaera says what Thanatos doesn't want to say. Can't bring himself to say. "What about us?"

Zagreus pauses, the sun that can't be the sun warming his skin and brightening his eyes. "What about - what do you mean? You work for my father. I know that."

"So you have no work for us to do?" she challenges, stepping closer so she can snarl into Zagreus's face.

He spreads his hands, like he's helpless, like that's something he can be when he wields the power of a god of the pantheon even without a throne. "It's not really - I don't tell people what to do, none of this was really planned. Even Eliana kind of just - people just do things and I let them, really."

"And will you?" Thanatos asks, desperate and lonely and longing and trying not to show and of it. "Let us?"

Zagreus stills, shooting him a lopsided smile that almost makes him feel like everything isn't crumbling from underneath him. "If that's what you want."

When it comes to Zagreus, all Thanatos does is want.

[theaceace]

When Burgess summoned Dream, instead of Dream being completely cut off from the Dreaming, instead the magic pulled all of Fawney Rig into the soft places at the edge of the Dreaming, so like Dream still can't get out of the circle and his subjects can't get in but the Dreaming suffers much less and crucially, he still has access to some tiny fraction of his power

So now the whole house and everyone in it is sort of tied to the Dreaming and there's just oodles of magic coming off it, and the house in the Waking and the house in the Dreaming exist sort of superimposed over each other. Like you can be in one and sort of be aware of the other but you can't really flip between the two

And I want the whole thing to operate on a sort of combo between Aladdin in the cave of wonders/Orpheus leaving with Eurydice rules where it's said that if you enter the house in the Dreaming side and manage to find the Dream king, he'll grant you the thing you've been dreaming of, but the catch is you have to believe you have it. You have to leave the house without checking. So Burgess asks for Randall, but he turns to look almost before they're out of the basement because if he were Dream then he would pull a trick (TBF it wasn't actually Randall, just a dream of him, but Burgess couldn't tell the difference anyway because he was a terrible father and you can't change my mind). After that, he never managed to find the basement again. Never even manages to find the dream house again, only the waking one, although he goes mad looking for it

But like. Someone else asks for riches and the Dream king says they can be found the guy's pocket or whatever, but he can't feel anything? There's no weight there, no shape, his pocket seems empty (it isn't when he checks, but as soon as he gets out of the house, yelling about his triumph, it's gone and the house is mundane again)

Alex, who doesn't ask for anything until after the death of his father (and after he murdered Jessamy) asks for peace. For safety. The Dream king says nothing, and Alex lives the rest of his life in the Dreaming version of the house, too scared to step outside in case whatever peace he's found in his personal prison vanishes

Ethel never makes it to the house in the Dreaming . She takes what she wants from the waking, and when she leaves she doesn't look back once

Time passes, and more and more people find their way to Fawney Rig, but as Dream himself said, the great stories always return to their original forms, so no one succeeds because that's how it goes

And then. And then Hob. Hob who finds his way to the house just looking for an answer. Looking for something he can do to make sure his Stranger is there in 2089, because otherwise he might lose his mind with the what-ifs. So he finds the house, and he meets Alex, who hasn't set foot outside the front door in over 80 years except it's a little hard to feel sorry for him when Hob realises why. He meets Paul, who lives solidly in the waking, and hasn't been able to convince Alex that it would be worth it to leave with him. He finds his way down to the basement, finally, and there he finds his Stranger

And at first he thinks? It's a trick? Because isn't that sort of what this place does, it tricks you? But he speaks to Dream, and he gets the rest of the story from him, and the only thing Hob wants to take from this place is Dream. And he's like I want to get you out of here, but I can't because you're trapped in that circle (which for reasons unknown to the author right now but probably has something to do with the nature of dreams and stories can't just be broken like a regular spell circle) and I can't do anything about it and Dream is all you know the story, Hob Gadling. It is a more powerful magic than the binding. Leave, and don't look back, and trust that I am following

(Dream knows the story. He's sure he knows how it ends. But he also knows that it has to be played out, that he has to give Hob this chance - he finds himself, as he follows, weeping silently for his son and Eurydice)

So then there would be the agonising climb and return through the maze of the house where Hob almost looks back a bunch of times, and eventually he makes it to the door and steps out into the bright sun of the waking, and -

End title

[perseidlion]

I'm new to the KAOS fandom, and I honestly love the way the show is riffing off myth.

I've seen some rumblings of some people thinking they're changing too much. But, uhhh, the show definitely never promised they'd be sticking close to myth by its whole *gestures broadly* deal. Also like...WHICH version of the myths? There are so many and they changed, sometimes drastically over time. KAOS is just really continuing the tradition of remixing these characters and the stories.

I feel like the people who are saying this takes it too far probably have a superficial understanding of Greek and Roman mythology. Cause if you really dig into it, these stories are weird, contradictory, raunchy, violent and tragic.

I was a Classics major for two years (before I decided I couldn't learn Latin or Greek which was required to study primary sources, so I switched majors.) And let me tell you, KAOS is VERY accurate to certain portrayals of the gods. Not all, of course, but many.

Zeus is absolutely a horndog dick who sleeps with all sorts of people and spreads his seed everywhere. I mean, he straight-up disguised himself as other people to have sex with their partners. Animals, too!

Hera is incredibly petty and vindictive and transforms people into all sorts of things as punishment. She was especially hard on any of Zeus' lovers she caught, or his kids from different mothers.

Everyone was doing adultery all the time.

Hades wasn't a meek corporate type, but he also wasn't a devil analogue as he often gets interpreted as in pop culture. He's definitely a big ole grump and doesn't seem to have a soft side, but he's not often portrayed as evil. Zeus is not God and Hades is not Satan. That's really applying a Judeo-Christian framework to Greek mythology.

The myth of Orpheus and Eurydice was always more about grief and not being able to let go than about the power of true love.

The gods gained obedience and worship through fear. They absolutely punished people who didn't worship they way they wanted them to.

The gods were a giant, powerful, highly dysfunctional family with lots of petty grievances and grudges.

The Greeks had no concept of gay or straight. They conceptualized sex and sexuality as acts, not an identity. They were more concerned about who was the passive person in a sexual encounter (for reasons of class and manliness) rather than what gender their partner was. So it makes sense that this modern retelling would have a similiarly open an undefined concept of sex and sexuality.

Greek myth is full of people who change genders or who swap back and forth through magic or prayer, or were both male and female at the same time. Caeneus in the show, is based on a real myth of someone AFAB who wished to become a man.

(sidenote: Misia Butler is so damned charming and handsome.)

It's also important to remember that the religion of the ancient Greeks lasted a very long time and changed over that time. There was also this really interesting dichotomy between the gods of plays and myths and the gods they worshipped in a religious context. That was one thing that is really hard to wrap your head around when you're studying Greek and Roman myth, especially when you're studying it alongside plays and epic poetry.

The gods of the stories who were being vengeful and petty and the gods they sacrificed to and worshipped were not the same - and they were. Sort of imagine it like Christian peoples' perceptions of Jesus vs Jesus in pop culture. Like, if you studied Dogma or Good Omens or something alongside the Bible and didn't distinguish between religion and pop culture, you'd definitely be confused.

So there are all these competing stores, some benevolent and holy, some raucous and scandalous. KAOS very ably continues in that tradition by remixing and recontextualizing the source material for a new audience.

They do some reaaalll weird thing with timelines, though! They squish together myth and pick and choose different versions and inspiration. But honestly that doesn't bother me because it's all done deliberately and not out of ignorance. They're changing what they've changed to serve the story.

Plus it's great fun. It's one of the most creative shows I've seen in ages. Go and watch it! As a bonus, it's also hella queer.

[inastarlesssky]

Not me looking at the episode cast list for S2 of The Sandman and realizing that Tom Sturridge is only in 10 of the 11 episodes. Nope.

I have thoughts, and I'm putting them under the cut because yes, the meta-ing and thought-thinking has begun now that S2 is around the corner. (Before you read, if you so choose to, bear in mind I haven't read the comics or anything, nor am I well-versed at all in Sandman lore) Also possible definite spoilers ahead...

So, yes, I haven't read the comics from start to end. I would like to, but it's not possible for me with my life stuff and the other things I have going on. Anyway, once I finished Season 1 and heard that Season 2 was happening, AND heard that there was stuff from The Wake being seen among set photos or whatever, what did I do?

I did some digging, looked up this issue and that issue and came to the knowledge that Morpheus will cease to exist by the end of it. I specify Morpheus because (comic readers, correct me if I am wrong please as I understand it, 'Dream' is assumed by Daniel Hall later, and he's sort of the new 'Dream' of the Endless. Though we know that Morpheus IS Dream in the beginning and Morpheus is who I mean when I'm talking about Dream, and it's Tom Sturridge in my head when I'm thinking about Morpheus. Okay, clear.

So as I understand it, because of the whole complicated situation with Orpheus (still not entirely clear to meet because I didn't read everything I suppose)....as I understand it, Orpheus went to Oneiros (Morpheus) and asked him to help revive his deceased Eurydice. Oneiros says no (still don't understand why he said no). Then he disavows Oneiros. Then stuff happens, and Orpheus eventually asks Oneiros to kill him. He does, and because of that, he will eventually have to answer to the Three for it.

Okay thus far, what I've found googling stuff for the mythos of all that.

Now with where the show will go. As I understand it, the Kindly Ones are going to come after Morpheus because he must pay for killing his son. (Which for me is, I don't know, it's tragic because Orpheus asked him, and Morpheus will suffer for this). Then, there's the whole thing with the Dreaming.

In the trailer, Morpheus says, "The Dreaming will survive...even if I do not." And it kills me because he's accepted the notion of essentially sacrificing himself, allowing himself to be the one that has to end, to be destroyed. Better he (who was responsible for the crime) die rather than let the Dreaming (the whole collective unconsciousness of humanity) be destroyed, because if they destroy that, that will have really big bad consequences.

I know that it's this scene where his sister comes for him, and she takes his hand, and that's the end of Morpheus as Dream of the Endless. But goddamnit, I'm not gonna be okay.

I love the tropes of sacrifice and someone dying for someone they love, but it still hurts, and I am very fond of Morpheus, and Tom Sturridge is a very good actor, and it's going to gut me, the end of this season.

Okay, I used way too many 'and's there, sorry. Thanks for coming to my Ted Talk.

[aotearoa20]

Listen, Reeve Carney's Orpheus is here to sing and get his wife back. The Union just sort of happens. Which is great, i think that he didnt do all that much in that respect, he was just himself and that story was enough to wake up everyone around him

But on the other hand Donal Finn's Orpheus for sure came down here to get his wife, but he'll be damned if he doesnt also start a Union now that he's here.

Because (and granted ive only seen one or two silme tutorials) chant ii on broadway feels like a dialogue between orpheus amd Hades with Eurydice and the workers listening in and taking courage from it.

In the one in the West End, Orpheus is still singing with the workers. Theres a point where their all up and walking together and he's among them grinning and then Hades starts up and all they fall back to their knees. He grabs one of them and tries to pull him to his feet and he just looks so confused and scared and it hurts

Anyway i love them both but the West End was the one i got to see live and it slaps

[omegamoo]

are you also omegamoo on ao3? :0

also. take as much time answering this as you'd like but i am Immensely curious - who would you cast as hades/persephone/hermes in flower husbands hadestown au? :3

OKAY i’ve been holding onto this ask because i didn’t know what to answer the last one as BUT ive been talking in the smajor nation discord and we have a few options

1. hades/persephone as joel & lizzie -> hades & eurydice dynamic with joel & scott would go crazy, as would persephone & eurydice as either lizzie & scott or lizzie & jimmy. issue is that lizzie isn’t in third life which does sort of defeat my personal goals but is very good. also i do think lizzie & joel are a good bit more loving than hades/persephone but (this was my mutual ann’s idea!)

2. i think grian’s hermes he’s got that narrator energy you know. and if we do jimmy as orpheus then the grian-jimmy dynamics are great. (this is also my mutual ann’s genius idea!) But then i don’t know where to put scar….

3. could also do hades (scar) and persephone (grian) - persephone forced into the underworld somewhat against her better wishes slowly rekindling a love that is deep and complex? yes.

3b. if it’s desert duo as hades/persephone then who’s hermes. needs to be someone close to jimmy if he’s orpheus. if scott’s orpheus it’s cleo i think but then who are the fates? ugh

4. if we’re not strictly third life then i think pearl/martyn/cleo are the fates. can you hearrrrr me

5. strictly third life i guess the obvious answer would be hades (ren) and persephone (martyn)? but i don’t think persephone is martyn

and yes i’m omegamoo on ao3!

[rainbowchaox]

Jayce:

1. Victor Frankenstein: Jayce was clearly the one that brought Viktor back to life. Jayce doesn’t die in the arctic but it’s clearly shown Jayce is connected to winter and snow. It’s where he meets Mage Viktor.

2. Pierre Curie: Pierre is sorta infamous for being sorta a wife guy making sure his wife was able to get her name on their Nobel prize nominations. It was a whole thing where he complained until she was added onto it. Making her the first woman to receive a Nobel Prize.

3. Icarus: Icarus is always a symbol of humanity trying to become the gods. That no matter how smart or clever one came be there’s always a fall. And Hextech is the metaphorical brass and wax wings that will melt off Jayce causing him to fall into the abyss of the Oceon.

4. Orpheus: Orpheus whole deal is loving his love so much that he can’t help but look back. And Jayce is similar he can’t help looking back. He can’t help loving Viktor.

5. Pygmalion: I adore this myth because the summary is Pygmalion created a sculpture to make his ideal companion. The more I read on the myth the more I can see it with an asexual lens. Plus helps that Viktor becomes a robotic god by the end of things (Demi4Demi Jayvik truther here)

6. Achilles: Both Achilles and Jayce are lowkey the reason why their soulmate dies. Jayce just did it himself but Achilles killed Patronculus by inaction. Also helps both Achilles and Jayce both go into a rage after their other half death. Also Jayce broke his leg which can be a symbol of Achilles Heel.

7. Odysseus: Literally the wife guy ever that goes through actual horrors to go back to his wife. Jayce can so relate. The hell dimension was his odyssey. (Meanwhile shout out to the animatic Monster by Sonofan)

8. Judas: Usually I am personally annoyed at everyone bringing up Judas as an archetype. The betrayer. A aspect people usually forget is how Judas is usually portrayed as Jesus Favorite. And that’s Jayce okay?

9. Gilgamesh: In the legend Enkidu was created to sorta humble Gilgamesh and when Enkidu dies. Gilgamesh loses his shit. Again totally Jayce.

10. Ganymede: Jayce is akin to Ganymede because he is Viktor favorite man in the universe. Herald Viktor lowkey wanted to abduct Jayce and make him similar to his cup bearer. Pretty Much Jayce Is Special.

11. Liang Shanbo: This is because of the butterfly motif both Jayce and Viktor share. It’s also a love story about “Brothers”. It’s very cute and Jayvik. Check out the butterfly lovers.

12. Alexander The Great: Not only did Alexander relate to the story of Achilles and Patronculus. But Jayce reminds me of him. Not in the conquerer sort of way but the fact he is the one that was remembered for Hextech. Not his lover. Not his partner.

Viktor:

1. The Creature: There’s something so disturbingly romantic about putting back your love together. There’s something so homoerotic about Frankenstein as a story in general. Viktor is the creature but one that is selflessly loved. Say what you will about Jayce but he didn’t run off after seeing heterochromia. He loves Viktor for being alive.

2. Marie Curie: Pierre and Marie are partners in every sense of the word. And they are the scientist pair I can only see them as (Stop with the Edison and Tesla allusions. Jayce doesn’t deserve to be called a Edison please!). Marie is Polish and Viktor is Czech. And Viktor and Marie both died from their work.

3. Alan Turing: I know I said Marie was the main scientist that I can connect to Viktor but let’s be honest. Viktor is the level of super intelligent gay as Alan Turing. Viktor is so alike to Turning its scary.

4. Eurydice: Viktor numerous times is saved by Jayce. And Viktor never holds it against Jayce for “looking back” and making things worse. Jayce and Viktor love each other too much to not take a glimpse.

5. Galatea: The legend is that the statue came alive to be Pygmalion companion. And Viktor even when is a full automaton is practially made for Jayce. Asexual Codependency is hell of a drug.

6. Patroclus: Patronculus dies because Achilles refuses to fight. Viktor dies for a similar reason. He is the price for the “hero” mistake. They are peak gay tragic lovers.

7. Penelope: Viktor never gave up on Jayce. He like Penelope will always wait for Jayce. He will never stray from Jayce. Jayce has his whole heart whether he knows it or not. And Viktor will love Jayce even if he changed from his experiences.

8. Jesus: I think it’s clear why this is here. Viktor went full Jesus in season 2. Viktor though is selfish with his love with his Judas. Jayce will kill him and Viktor will always understand.

9. Enkidu: a creation made by the gods in order to humble Gilgamesh (Jayce). Said gods didn’t know he would get attached and become very “close”. But Viktor like Enkidu was destined to die and Jayce deal with it “well”

10. Hephaestus: Look me and the homies love Hephaestus and IM BEGGING for people to write Jayce unknowingly rizzing up the god of the forge. Viktor is yes disabled but also he is literally known for making machines. I need more Hephaestus Viktor please.

11. Zhu Yingtai: Please the butterfly lovers legend is so Jayce and Viktor. And how the myth ends is pretty much what happens to Jayce and Viktor once they had their final talk in the arcane.

12. Hephaestian: Alexander and him were very close. He was Alexander’s favorite general. He like Viktor faded into the background because of the fame of their “Sun”

[demigod-shenanigans]

Have not done a lot of choiceless hope in grief (valgrace Orpheus Eurydice fic posting) lately because I’ve been busy trying to get my lost trio week stuff written. However. Have the first few chapter titles as a preview of sorts! Keep in mind that I’m estimating the fic will be around 16 chapters total (give or take) so this is only about half ^^

Leo and Piper have an extended sleepover

Piper tries to make burritos unsupervised

Festus torches a bedsheet

[Redacted because I don’t think I’ll keep the current title for that one]

Piper gives Leo snacks. Also a dagger for some reason

Leo leaves through the door for once

Leo quits his job

Underworld PSA: Don’t stick your hand in the Styx 

[applepixls]

hey guys. have you heard of hadestown.

(its a musical that meshes the myths of orpheus & eurydice and hades & persephone)

orpheus is a naive (sorta sheltered?) bard who acts on his whims while eurydice is a realistic and tough girl who's doing all she can to survive

hades is king of the underworld and keeps persephone there a lot of the year meaning there's a lot of winter up above

now hear me out.

3rd life.

scar as orpheus, grian as eurydice.

wedding song as scar proposing they take over the desert, the second verse being grian suggesting they take the dark oak. now, imagine all I've ever known as a dark night dancing in the desert not to mention, "its a sad tale, its a tragedy" (bonus: in a gathering storm eurydice calls for orpheus and he isn't there because he's off writing his song, narratively similar to grian calling for scar in double life when everyone was digging around for their sugar cane while scar was off accidentally lighting the place on fire and petting the jellie pandas)

extra bonus ideas:

persephone sounds like bdubs? like, listen to livin' it up on top. the gritty voice/singing and all her attitude (/pos) and some of the lyrics "who makes the summer sun shine bright?/thats right! persephone!" (he was the esmp2 sun god!) she sort of reminds me of the vibe bdubs gave off when he was ren the king's guy in s9 (my impression was he was kinda frantically running around at ren's whim, its not at all the same with hades and persephone but there's the sort of obeying a king thing)

leading me to my next thought of ren as hades. someone i was listening with said "winter has come" which made me think of "red winter is coming" dfhj

but another thought is just the last life ethubs divorce? seems very relevant with bdubs persephone parallels

also in hey little song bird hades refers to eurydice as a canary and we all know whos a canary

hermes (conductor of the train on the road to hell) and the fates play a narrator type role except hermes is more explicit while the fates are the humming in the back of your head they weave the path of how everything goes and you cant defy them

martyn throughout all the series is a sort of nomadic no solid home kinda guy and always self aware (he makes the lore-) which connects him to hermes for me but at the same time the fates are very much watcher/listener things so like bigb and martyn? (i don't know the lore sorry lol) i'd also say that somehow impulse's littlefinger flip floppy triple double agent character in third life gives a vibe like he knows whats going on in all the groups also connecting him to them for me

(i will say scar could fit hermes as well in being a sort of travelling sales person in last life and a bit in double life? also I've read dirges in the dark which means i see him and the devil and making deals with complicated clauses as very interconnected)

my final note (and being a devils advocate)

scar could also parallel hades.

if you watch his perspective he's very happygolucky and doesn't seem to get the real weight of the situation and such but from other perspectives his and grians deal seems kinda like he's had grian sign away his soul or he's kidnapped grian and there's some stockholm syndrome happening (its actually grians guilt but i digress)

hades convinces eurydice (scar is a silver tongued man) to sign away her soul to him and also the story of hades and persephone is that he kidnaps her and she eats some pomegranite and has to stay in the underworld for part of the year

sooo yeah. paralells between hadestown and 3rd life/life series. enjoy.

[lemonadewine]

A timebomb, time loop AU (inspired by Orpheus and Eurydice)

which basically amounts to friends to lovers and then angst. Which is what most of my fics amount to. but like. fun?

Little excerpt after the cut for those keen on those things. I tag my fics so you can blacklist if this clutters your tags: onemoretime

Ekko was the one she sat on when he annoyed her. The one she wrestled with and argued with. It was nice not to feel like the youngest, just stuck tagging along. The playing field was even when they battled.

And someone was hurting him. 

Powder found an older boy and his friend, the friend had large droopy ears and a sad droopy nose. The guy holding Ekko’s arm behind his back was not very tall but he was dense and moved slowly. Powder watched Droopy look through Ekko’s bag.

“There’s nothing good here, Dekker, let him go.”

“No. Keep looking, he has something, I know he does.”

“No,” Powder said, coming out from her vantage point, hearing Vi scream in her ear no. no. don’t do that. just stay hidden. i’ll take care of it. “He doesn’t have anything, Benzo doesn’t give him anything good to carry, he’s really stupid.”

“Shut up, Powder,” Ekko said, “What are you doing? Go away.”

But his arm was being twisted at such a weird angle. And Vi also told her, we don’t leave people behind, powder, okay? you never leave someone behind.

Powder’s heart began to pound when Dekker told Droopy to get her. Just to put her somewhere where she wouldn’t be a problem. Check her bag too. But Droopy was less enthusiastic about intimidating children. Power wasn’t a child anymore, though. She was twelve. And twelve meant she was old enough. For what? Hard to tell, it was just… old enough. The two boys weren’t much older, fourteen… maybe fifteen? 

“Look, we won’t hurt your friend-”

“You’re already hurting my friend,” Powder snapped, “And Vander is going to kill you. If my sister doesn’t… and she will.”

Power did begin to panic here, just a little bit. Because Vander wasn’t coming, Vi wasn’t coming, and she could only bluff for so long. The boys both stiffened at Vander’s name but that wasn’t the same thing as stopping. Now Dekker was holding Ekko down but he was also looking at her. So she caught Ekko’s disapproving eyes. Tried to think. 

“I could scream,” Powder said, “That will bring them both here really fast. Do you want me to do that? You could lose a couple teeth for the low, low price of some copper wire and broken Piltover garbage?”

“Don’t scream,” Ekko managed to say and Powder shot him a look but he sounded weird, “He’s going to kill them. They don’t understand. You know how Vander is.”

Powder skirted the wall, trying to come a little closer to Ekko without startling the two boys, now watching her uncertainly, “He has these metal gauntlets, and he just sort of… picks them up,” she bent her knees and did a tiny movement that somehow conveyed slipping her hands into something and it being very heavy when she lifted them, “like they weight nothing. And they don’t. For him. But teeth-” she tapped her front tooth, “Cheekbones… jaws… they tend to be a little more delicate. Mandibles, in particular… ” it was a new word and she said it like she liked it, her next two steps to Ekko almost had a swagger, “I don’t think copper is meant for wiring jaws shut, but if that’s all you got, then that’s all you got, you know?”

“Shut her up,” said Dekker, his fear making him angry.

“Run,” Ekko said, his fear making him brave.

“Don’t fight and we won’t hurt you-” Droopy said, his fear making him hesitate. 

“Watch your jaw,” Powder said, her fear making her incredibly, incredibly stupid. She swung her backpack, filled as it was monkeys and mice and chomping things, wrenches and bolts and yes, wires. She swung it with all the force of a twelve year old girl who was incredibly frightened. And then she grabbed her pliers from her pocket, the ones with Ekko’s name circled even though they should have her own name, and she dove for Ekko. 

Powder had done two things that Vi wouldn’t like. One, she joined a fight she couldn’t finish and two, she blocked her own exit. You could do one and be okay, you couldn’t do both. But Ekko was there and Dekker was watching her, his hands were lighter on him , and Ekko could be slippery. She could be quick. As soon as Ekko could run, they would run. 

But one backpack wielded by scrawny arms was never going to be enough, it knocked Droopy flat, he got up quickly. And he did not appreciate being hit in the face with a bunch of shit. 

[firthwatch]

Femme Fatale is a 1991 American drama film, directed by Andre R. Guttfreund.

This movie is so forgotten it doesn't even warrant a plot synopsis on wiki. The IMBD provides "A worried artist tries to locate his wife who suddenly abandoned him only to discover she led a secret life--or two. He proceeds to investigate her past and stirs up a hornets nest."

This movie is available to watch on youtube.

Review Under Cut

I think this movie is much, much more interesting than the IMDB description would lead you to believe.

First off, it's 1991 which means it came out a year before Verhoeven's Basic Instinct, and while it's not as slick and well done as Basic Instinct, it's playing with the same Neo-Noir tropes to the point that I genuinely believed it was a take on Basic Instinct, but actually, it was just ahead of its time. In fact Basic Instinct is doing the same sort of work as this film, satirizing the entire noir genre and dissecting the portrayal of the femme fatale trope. With some big differences, of course.

The first thing I really like about this movie is that Firth's character Joe is not a cop, he's not a private detective, he has no flirtation with the seedy world of crime. He went to art school and then got a job at a nature reserve--he likes silk moths and tree frogs (who he will capture to show the children who visit the nature center but of course he sets them free after a few weeks). He's a guy you want to trust because there's no reason not to trust him. He's not the guy the femme fatale meets during her journey through the criminal world--he's the guy who crosses paths with her while she's navigating the dark world she lives in. And that's how they meet, purely by circumstance when he sees her in the woods. Later, we come to find out exactly how and why she ended up in those woods, but Joe doesn't even ask.

And he comments on that himself--with his other girlfriends he always wanted to know everything but with her, he just wanted to be close to her. Which worked in her favor because she could get away with revealing absolutely nothing about herself and he's still eager to marry her.

It's shortly after their marriage that he comes home from the store to an empty bed and a note with a rather ominous message "I don't know who you are."

Because of the genre of film, it does hint that maybe she discovered HIS dark past, but we're almost immediately assured that he has no dark past--he literally is exactly as he seems, a painter who loves nature and loves his wife.

Of course, as he begins to search for clues about her in Los Angeles, he pulls back the layers of the typical femme fatale trope. She is part of some seedy underground art movement, and has acted in disturbing movies about eroticized torture and S&M--nothing at all like his wholesome paintings of landscapes. That leads to the discovery that she's a lesbian, and not just incidentally, but that her last long-term relationship was with a woman. Unlike Sharon Stone (or Madonna in Body of Evidence) she doesn't appear to be an all-knowing sex goddess HOWEVER she is obsessed with Marilyn Monroe and does carry the name Baker as a result (her obsession is that of somebody obsessed with "the perfect victim" and it's not clear if that's who she wants to be or who she wants to meet). Of course, what would a femme fatale be without a darkly mysterious past with a psychiatrist and videos of "multiple personalities"? (too many movies to provide a firm count, but we can also look at Doppleganger and The Color of Night).

And through all of this, Joe perseveres. Because that's his wife they're talking about. To me, it becomes a retelling of the Orpheus an Eurydice story...he's going to travel deeper and deeper into the underworld out of his devotion even if every turn results in something startling, disturbing, or contradictory to what he thinks he knows. He even gets attacked--and I've got to say, the goons sent to roll him are some of the best I've ever seen on the screen.

The way the movie ends is logical but almost anticlimactic. I actually don't have a problem with the anti-climactic nature of the movie because Joe is a nice, quiet guy who never wanted to be in a Neo Noi movie to begin with. That's not his world, he knows nothing about it, and he doesn't want to know.

Lisa Zane does a good job with the material given to her--she is, after all, playing a stereotype that is so popular in cinema and has essentially nothing to do with real life. Billy Zane is Joe's college roommate he's staying with while in LA, and he's a painter as well--his subject is a naked woman with a bag over her head. He prattles on for a minute about the objectification of women and Joe says, "Still having a problem drawing faces?" to which Zane smirks and nods. Which is really what this movie is about--men who dominate the creative world and who are unable to "draw faces" when it comes to women. Elizabeth/Maura/Cynthia is a trope first, a plot devise second, and a character last. Except to Joe. To Joe, she's the woman he loves, and he's made a commitment to her. There's a scene where he learns the true nature of the relationship between Cynthia and the psychiatrist, and Joe asserts his right to take her back to their home in Vancouver with "I am her husband" and it would seem so terribly paternalistic and condescending except that what he is really saying is "she chose me" in the moment where she has the LEAST amount of choice and autonomy.

Movie Review 7/10--I do recommend watching this. I love Noir/Neo Noir films and it felt like a take on the genre that I've never seen before. The script is smart, and Colin does a great job as the emotional center of the film. He is pure of heart and pure of motive and that's actually incredibly rare in this genre.

Colin Beauty Review 10/10 He's always beautiful, who am I kidding. BUT he's more "every man" in this role.

[ridingforrohan]

Another Character Development Prompt

I've enjoyed these immensely and you guys seem to as well, if I tag you and you don't have time or feel like it, no pressure!

Once again, I'm using Fréaláf for this because he's lovely. If you want to see more of him, go read Tenth Queen of Rohan.

1.) What is your character like when intoxicated? How is their tolerance for alcohol?

One or two drinks tends to lighten his mood and loosen his tongue a little. Add more and you either get the quiet sad drunk or the "I love you" drunk. The "I love you" drunk is more fun but he tends to get pretty fixated on his wife who finds this amusing for a little while and then will do her best to drag him to bed to sleep it off. He doesn't drink often and makes a point of not appearing drunk publicly when he's king, but it happens from time to time. Fréaláf weighs enough that he can take a decent amount before it really starts to show. He's mostly confused at Halloth's seemingly bottomless ability to keep down drink. It takes him a while to figure out Halloth is really good at pretending to drink a lot all while liquoring up other people.

2.) Does your character have a horse and if so what are they like? Are they a good rider?

As the King of Rohan, Fréaláf has no right to be anything but a fabulous rider. He was stuck in the saddle at a very young age and subjected to pretty rigorous training for most of his childhood and adult life.

His beloved mare Swiftryne is a tall chestnut mare. While she has a bit of an attitude, she adores Fréaláf and will do anything for him. This includes running beneath a rabid mûmak, charging down a steep icy slope into enemy forces, and occasionally carrying an extra rider. She's an incredibly talented and balanced horse. Her hot temper is a perfect counter to her rider's more level headed nature.

She is getting on in years and by the time of Tenth Queen she's 17 years old. Not too old to ride by a long shot, but starting to get a little stiff in the hind end.

I base her off of this horse at my work! (Though he is a gelding.)

3.) Does your character enjoy physical affection? If so, are they naturally affectionate or more reserved about it?

YES. He absolutely does. Rohirrim culture is very intimate and usually a lot more touch is expected than perhaps amongst Gondorians. Friends clasp hands in greeting, embrace, lean into one another, and in situations like when one is out with an éored will help one another dress and care for their hair. Generally having people in your personal space is a sign of affection and is quite normalized. With his family this is also expected, and to a slightly heightened degree. In a romantic relationship, this gets taken even further, and not always in a sexual way. When Halloth arrives in Edoras, Fréaláf has lost a lot of the more intimate friendships and family connections that provided that sort of connection. Having someone around who wants to cuddle with him, play with his hair and touch him is incredible, and his comfort with that sort of intimacy lets them have a physical relationship that holds off on being sexual until both parties are already very comfortable with one another. It's a low stakes slow burn romance, which I have enjoyed writing.

For this round I'm tagging @eurydices-dreams , @from-the-coffee-shop-in-edoras , @frodothefair and any others who would like to participate!

[qoldenskies]

Something about how everyone (ESPECIALLY Leo) so severely underestimates just how important honesty is to Donnie now gets me every time I reread cw. Even Mikey who understands and does his very best to tell Donnie whatever he wants to know and April who is focused so much on open communication I feel don’t truly get how serious it is, especially in the beginning. It’s going to take him forever to heal from believing so deeply that he was insane and making things up, and even when he makes some progress and accepts that so many things are lies he’s got to sort out which of the things he was told and experienced were lies and what actually happened. It’s so much to sort through and so overwhelming and despite them meaning the best by trying not to talk about some things or hide them to spare him it only makes it worse and worse. Even just smiling at him to try to reassure him despite they themselves feeling so unsure and upset is too much of a lie and accomplishes the exact opposite. Just the idea of them trying to ease the way and only making it harder to traverse does something to me and is my favorite thing in cc. Each reread I do of cw I’m just screaming at them to just tell him what you’re thinking/doing/did. It’d solve so much 😭

it's all over wait out the weather too,,, april clamming up and refusing to admit she's upset over missing out on the concert is the first big one that comes to mind, but it's also just baked into the way that they (leo especially) approach his flashbacks. they attempt so much to tell him it's not that bad, and that they're not upset, even though it IS that bad and they ARE upset. it's not okay, and that's okay. but they dont know if that would make donnie feel worse or not; because he's automatically going to assume that it's his fault, and pin it all on himself. notice also that when mikey elaborates on how much it actually means to them to be able to take care of him, he's a lot more receptive going forward. he really just needed them to be honest.

(tbh i cant help but wonder if ode to eurydice would have happened at all, had leo just voiced his insecurities to donnie. it probably wouldnt have, and now once again leo has to contend with the fact that his dishonesty once more almost lead his little brother to his early grave.)

the thing is that even when they keep things from him in a well-meaning attempt to keep him from feeling responsible, when they handle his flashbacks gently and calmly and console each other about it after, it just serves to make him feel worse. he automatically assumes they're not telling him things because its a slight against him, something wrong with him they dont want him to hear because they think he cant handle it. donnie was always meant to be ahead of the curve on things like this; it was how they survived when they were less secure, and it's how he's always operated. he struggles to understand that he can just exist with a problem he cant fix. keeping things from him only make him think he's supposed to know what's intuitively ... even if he's aware he's not being actively gaslit, it has such a negative affect on him.

he doesnt want to be the kind of person who just cant hear certain things, who cant handle certain things no matter how much he tries, and it means he will try to encourage honesty to his own detriment. there are times where its a damned if you do and damned if you dont kind of situation, and it makes the dilemma of what they should actually tell him a lot more difficult, because they understand that listening to him and asking him what he wants is really important, but also that donnie in survival mode is not reliable about expressing his boundaries and needs. he will say he doesnt feel like he's eating when he's starving, that he's handling himself when he's buckling under the weight of his own sorrow, that he can help them with whatever they need when he can barely walk. and sometimes he will say he needs the truth, the whole truth, when no matter how they try to frame it, the truth will devastate him to the point of relapse and self-harm-- but they also know by a certain point that he needs to feel secure in his own perception of reality, like he isnt being kept away from important information and his knowledge and input is valued. so what are they supposed to do?

[pluvio-floret]

Did you make the tragedy au? If so, what is it about? I think I have somewhat of a grasp on it but I would really like to read more about it and to hear your ideas and thoughts! :D

(p.s - love your art! <3)

It’s by me & @feelo-fick :))) It’s about Chilchuck finally going on vacation :>

Well..

I kid. Sort of.

It’s an au in which instead of the Winged Lion taking Marcille, it ends up settling for a panicking Chilchuck instead, to its disappointment. Basically, a Dungeon Lord Chilchuck au!

He’s separated from the party who are trying to find him, & as the dungeon changes, so does he. Despite his initial skepticism & caution, he starts to indulge in some of his addictions & dreams, such as one of a safer world, one of good cheer & little care. One in which he can relax, but also control if need be… (Is he in control?)

The others manage to catch up with the two, the golden of which plays a trick, winning Chilchuck for longer. When the party finally realize what’s happened & go back after him, several events (which I’m trying to be vague about for now) ensue…

(With lots of mythological ties, of course. Have you read the title of my blog? Have you seen the Orpheus & Eurydice things? And then there’s Dionysius. Not to mention the Minotaur…)

…All the while the hourglass winds down, things becoming progressively harder & harder to tell if they’re real or fake (the alcohol surely not helping). People aren’t just themselves anymore- Monsters are people & the reverse is true too. Whom do you trust when a face is shared? Whom do you trust when you become worse?

-

Sorry for how vague this got; I’m not sure how much to share just yet. We like keeping things ‘oooooOoo so mysterious’ for funsies but also want people to Know The Stuff, which gets complicated lol. There is a lot that we have for this au though, & those “events” I mentioned we’re very normal about, so things relating to & about that pop up in our posts about it all the time. So… There’s that, have fun.

(Also thank you so much!! :)))))))) )

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OH ALSO it’s chilaios this is an au with chilaios I forgot to say!! It plays. Their relationship plays. A rather nice chunk of it. It’s not what it’s abboutttt exactly but yeah plays a big part those two’s uhh.. Interactions. And it stabs my heart :) I love them. May they bleed terribly. So very terribly <3