#and they just like . execute literally all of them in the worst possible way .

[esmeraldablazingsky]

I think that the way the trial turned out was pretty much Neuvillette’s nightmare scenario.

He does not like to sentence people who are important to him and must have had their reasons to do what they did— what about Vautrin?? Why must this happen again??

He wanted Furina to confide in him, to trust him with whatever was going on with her, but just like the business with Arlecchino and everything else, she didn’t. Instead, she clearly demonstrated in front of everyone that she would literally rather die than tell Neuvillette the truth. Would have died, if it wasn’t for whoever suggested diluting the primordial water.

He didn’t want to hurt Furina at all, his ONLY specification for what type of trap he would prefer to set is that it should be a gentle one that does not harm her. And yet, the trial puts her in more distress than he’s ever seen her, crying and panicking and begging for someone, anyone to believe her.

And if that all was really necessary, so be it, Neuvillette is committed to justice even if he does not personally like it. But in the end, he finds out that he misunderstood the whole situation, and even though Furina did in fact deceive the people, she did it to save them all, and the trial simply broke their faith in her and made her believe that all her suffering had been for nothing and she’d doomed the entire nation at the last minute.

I think for Neuvillette, that’s like, the absolute worst way a trial could possibly have gone, with the exception of if Furina had actually been executed before he found out the truth, gone with no chance at making amends.

[flower-boi16]

The Problems With Charlie As The Main Protagonist

I've spoken about my thoughts on Charlie as a character before a few times on this blog, but I think it's finally time to discuss why Charlie isn't exactly the best protagonist. On the surface, there doesn't seem to be much wrong with her, she's likable and endearing enough and she's easy to root for. But...once you look deeper, the problems begin to rear their ugly head.

1. Charlie Never Grows

The first major issue with Charlie as a character is how she never really grows over the course of the first season. The show never really gives her much of an arc...? Like, by the end of the season, what does Charlie really learn by the end? The only thing I can think of is that she was right about sinners being redeemed and...that's it.

And it doesn't really make Charlie that particularly compelling as a character, she's entirely stagnant. She does have a conflict with her father, which, while executed fine, isn't enough to make her a developed character. She only gets small tinges of development and that isn't really enough for me.

Charlie doesn't learn anything or grow as a character, which makes her pretty underdeveloped as a character. The show never really gives her any real character flaws to grow from and become a better person, she's always portrayed as in the right anyway and never challenged once. Speaking of that...

2. Charlie is Always Right

This more or less ties back into the "Charlie never grows" point I've said before and I've talked about this several times before, but it's still an issue with Charlie's character; she is ALWAYS in the right. Charlie's "everyone can be redeemed" mentality is never once challenged by the narrative, and anybody who does oppose Charlie in any way is considered as wrong by the narrative.

The reason why this is a problem is because Hazbin Hotel heavily preaches about being against black-and-white moralities, as seen with Heaven and especially Adam. Heaven is meant to be seen as bad because of its black-and-white mindset of "Sinners can't be redeemed and never will". This is put on full display with Adam, and his song Hell is Forever, to the point it literally includes lyrics like "the rules are black and white there's no use in trying to fight it".

You Didn't Know further pushes this with this line "the rules are shades of gray when you don't do as you say and you make the wretched suffer just to kill them again".

So the show wants to push a message of "black and white morals are bad", but...it's rendered moot by the fact that Charlie is purely portrayed as in the right. Charlie is completely correct, everybody can be redeemed, everyone even the most evil people who did the worst possible things can still be good, and anyone who opposes her is wrong cuz she's completely in the right...gee, for a show so heavily against black-and-white moralities...doesn't this all seem very black and white in it of itself?

Charlie's "everyone can be redeemed" mentality is just as black and white as Adam's "nobody can be redeemed", they are both extremes leaning in opposite directions, that are also both wrong in their own ways, yet the show portrays Charlie's extreme as the right one and Adam's as the wrong one.

I've already talked about this before but Adam is a pure straw character; he only exists so Charlie can prove him wrong, he cant have any real character depth beyond being a generic asshole or have a real point because the show is so dead-set on making Charlie purely in the right no matter what; the narrative never challenges her and anyone who opposes her is portrayed as automatically in the wrong.

This is not the only time this happens btw. In episode 5, Lucifer is also portrayed as automatically wrong for opposing his daughter’s goals. He himself says that “Our people are AWFUL. They got gifted free will and look what they did with it!”, and the show…never counters this, despite what Lucifer is saying…being true. The people in Hell ARE awful and it's their own fault, many of them ARE deserving of death because…well, their shitty people.

Charlie is never challenged once throughout the show and its a problem because not only does it fly in the face of the show being so anti black and white, it also wastes an opportunity for the show to develop Charlie as a character; with her learning that some people can't be redeemed because they either are incapable or uninterested in changing.

That would fit more with the show’s anti-black-and-white themes and also have Charlie go through real growth as a character as she learns that not everything is all sunshine and rainbows. But sadly, we can't really have that.

So Charlie's ideals are never challenged by the narrative and thus it not only flies in the face of the show's themes it also wastes an opportunity for Charlie to grow as a character. Now it's best to get into the next issue with her...

3. Charlie is Barely Focused On

Another big issue with Charlie as the show's main protagonist is that the show doesn't really focus on her that much, especially the first half. Now, shows don't need to focus on the main protagonist at all times, obviously giving some screen time to other characters is definitely something shows should do.

But the problem is that Charlie gets very LITTLE focus in the series despite being the main protagonist, and this contributes to the problem of her being underdeveloped. The first half of the show is especially bad at this; episode 1 Is the only episode in the first half that focuses on Charlie, but even then it's overtaken by the B-plot involving the other characters trying to film a commercial.

Episodes 2&3 are entirely dedicated to what characters like Alastor or Angel Dust are doing and episode 4 is completely focused on Angel and his arc. It contributes to the issue of the show not being able to develop Charlie that much as a character because she's constantly being overshadowed by other characters. The second half is better in this regard for focusing more on Charlie but still, for the first half of the show, it feels like Charlie is overshadowed by other characters which is embarrassing because, well, she's the main character, yet she feels like she's barely gotten any actual spotlight.

4. Conclusion

I want to love Charlie as a character. I really do. I mean, she's a part of one of my favorite character archetypes. I always LOVE over joyful optimistic characters because I just find them a joy to watch on screen, but sadly, Charlie doesn't have much depth beyond that archetype. She isn't that developed making her fail to be much of a compelling protagonist, her ideology is never challenged by the narrative wasting an opportunity for her to grow and contradicting the show's themes, and she's heavily overshadowed by other characters despite being the main protagonist.

So ya, that's why Charlie isn't that great of a protagonist...bye.

[tomhollandisabae]

Idk but maybe something with ghost and y/n. Like benefits that turn into feelings but ghost fucks another girl and reader gets jealous and screws a team member and ghost is jelly

thank u for the request darling 🥰❤️

pay back- simon "ghost" riley x f!reader

masterlist

summary; after you see simon fucking some other girl you decide to make him pay by fucking one of his worst enemies, phillip graves

warnings; smut, mature language, angst, phillip graves, fluff, english is not my first language, [18+/ M.D.I.]

words; 1.9k

a/n; so apparently now i have also a crush on alejandro and graves too (don't come after me about the last one... tiktok is to be blamed for that)

You and simon had been fuck buddies for almost 8 months now. It was nothing serious, just a way to blow of some steam after or during missions. However, things started to become a little more complicated when you started calling one another over at your houses, fucking in between missions too.

You had to admit that simon knew how to pleasure a woman, he had learn your body better than you and was able to make your legs shake- literally. He was the best you've ever been with and you wanted that to last for as long as it was possible.

The problem was that after some time you started catching feelings for him. At first you blamed it on the experience of your high and the afterglow of your climax, but as time passed by you realised that it wasn't just that. You had fallen for the man that was hiding his face behind a skull mask. A man you had never seen the full face of, although you had fucked hundreds of times.

But you had to be tough, so you pushed those feelings away, only for them to become even stronger one morning where you were just arriving at simon’s house when you saw a girl leaving.

That hurt a lot.

Without thinking much, you turned your car around and drove back home. After that, you were avoiding him as much as you could, but still sleeping together here and there.

You wanted to make him pay in any kind of way.

So at first, after you had calmed down, you were treating him as before; always joking around, poking him and in general being yourself. You just waited for the right moment, or more like; the right person. Two months later that moment finally arrived.

Your victim was phillip graves.

Simon had confessed to you that he didn't like that guy at all.

“You're always friendly with him though. i've seen you interacting with people you don't like and trust me when i say; that's not how you do it.” You had said in an attempt to make sure that he really doesn't like graves.

“I do it for the team’s sake. Doesn't mean, however, that I don't have a bad feeling about him.” He had told you and you just nodded.

More or less, you had decide to fuck graves, but you also had to make sure that ghost knew about this or you had to figure out some way so that he could learn about it. In the meantime, you were being very subtle about flirting with graves. You didn't want ghost to catch up and ruin your plan. Sooner or later an evil idea came to your mind.

The meeting room, right before your meeting. Ghost always arrives first so that was the perfect way to execute your plan.

So here you were now; on top of the meeting table, underwear discarded on the floor, legs spread and graves between them fucking you like there was no tomorrow. You had to admit that he wasn't that bad, but still… he wasn't simon. However, the teasing and the feeling of your orgasm always approaching and then being gone was getting on your nerves.

You had no other option but to think about simon and how he would fuck you; pumping his huge cock in and out of you, pulling all the way out till the tip and then slamming back inside you, always hitting your g spot.

You let out a moan at that and wrapped your arms around graves while keeping your eyes closed.

Graves’ thrusts were fast but not as hard as you'd like them to be. Ghost was always making sure that you could feel all of him, even though impossible at first; due to him being way bigger than the average, after some time, though, your clit would connect with his pubic bone making you see stars from the stretch and the fact that his tip was kissing your cervix.

After a little while you heard movements outside the door and you were pretty sure that it was him, so you had to make your presence known.

“Uugghh phillip…” you let out a fake moan and the show began.

“fuck y/n, you feel so good” he groaned in the crook of your neck.

“fuck yes!! Fucking me so well!! Ohh my fucking g—” you couldn't finish your sentence as you let out another fake scream this time.

“phillip yes yes yesss!!” that made him go even faster.

That made you wonder what the hell was he doing? At this point you were annoyed and just wanted to get over with it so you tighten your walls around him pretending to be reaching your climax.

“shit baby, can feel you clenching ‘round me” he breathes out.

You just let out another moan in response and threw your head back as you faltered your walls around him faking your orgasm.

“fuck i'm cumming shit shit shit” you yelled and that send him over the edge as he finally pulled out and came on your stomach.

Gross.

“fuck y/n” he exclaimed trying to catch his breath.

You didn't say anything just laid back supporting yourself on your elbows waiting for him to clean you up, but he only tacked himself back in his trousers and walked away.

Realising that he wasn't going to clean you up you sighed and grabbed one of the tissues on the table and did it yourself.

Not even a few seconds after you were cleaned up and had put your clothes back, the door opened and ghost came in.

Without paying any attention to him, you say on the far end of the table being further away from both men.

“ghost nice seeing you” graves smirked as he sat down on his chair too.

Simon didn't say anything just followed graves’ moves taking a seat while waiting for the others.

During the meeting simon had his eyes clued on you, while you were trying to avoid eye contact. He was hella pissed for sure.

When the meeting finally ended, everyone, including yourself, rose from their seats and left the room. Graves, however, made sure to talk to you before leaving.

“whenever you want to repeat that, you know where to find me” he smirked while whispering in your ear before leaving too.

It was just ghost and you now in the room. You didn't know what to do. You hadn't thought that your plan would actually work.

“ghost you're not leaving?” you asked as you turned to face him.

“why? So graves can come back and fuck you again?” he responded with a raspy voice.

“whatever you mean?” you tried not to smirk as you acted clueless.

“i'm talking about what happened before the meeting” he approached you, now towering over you “when you had made sure I was outside the door, before giving the worst performance of your life, because trust me I know how you react when you cum and that wasn't it.” He said leaving you speechless. He didn't do anything else just walked passed you and then towards the door.

“why? Did you made that girl cum then?” you finally fired back as you saw him freezing where he was.

“what?” he turned around.

“don't act like a fool simon, I saw that girl leaving your house one day when I had decide to come over and surprise you, turns out you were the one that surprised me.” You crossed your arms across your chest.

You saw his fist clenching as he walked up to you and pushed you back against the table while grabbing your neck putting pressure on your arteries on either side.

“so that gave you the right to go and fuck graves huh? After I had told you that I dislike him?” you didn't say anything as you felt his cock rubbing against you through your clothes.

graves had left you extremely frustrated.

“answer me.” He tighten his hold on your neck.

“I wanted to make you jealous.” You admitted.

“why the hell would I be jealous?” he questioned and that took you aback.

You hadn't thought that there could be a chance that he wouldn't care about you. After all, you were the one that had feelings, not him.

“i- i…” you tried to say something, but you didn't know what.

“fucking hell y/n” he exhaled as he released your neck and took a few steps backs.

“I knew this would happen…” he murmured.

“what do you mean?” you asked confused.

“why the fuck would I care about you that much that I would be jealous? The only thing I care about is the fact that you fucked the guy I told you to stay away from.” His words stabbed your heart like a sharp knife that kept twisting and twisting.

“i'm sorry…” you lowered your head.

“fucking hell y/n” he looked away from you “why did you have to do this?”

“because i love you” you finally admitted and his head turned immediately towards you.

He didn't say anything, just kept looking at you. There was your answer, of course he wouldn't be feeling anything towards you. that's why you decided to leave, but as you were making your way pass him, he grabbed your arm and lifted his mask before crushing his lips against yours.

You were in shock. It took you awhile to realise what was going on, but sooner or later you returned the kiss while wrapping your arms around his neck as his hands snaked around your waist pulling you even closer to him.

He had never kissed you like this before, so many feelings hidden finally being revealed through your actions. His tongue slipped into your mouth as he was expressing thousands of emotions with his lips against your own. Could he love you? How could someone like him, so broken, left out, being in love? He just pitted you that's all.

You finally pulled back as you pressed a hand against his chest.

“please, don't play with my feelings anymore. I can't do this” you whispered while lowering your head.

“darling…” he exclaimed as he lifted your head slowly locking his eyes with yours “i'm not playing with your feelings and i'm not intending on doing so” he placed his forehead on yours “do you mean it?” he asked.

“mean what?” your voice barely audible.

“that you love me?” his lips brushed against yours.

“of course” you said and his hand made its way through your hair locks as he pushed your face against his.

“good. Because I love you too.” He finally told you, but before you could react in any kind of way he had crushed his lips against yours, kissing you with so much care and affection.

“don't go anywhere near graves ever again. Do you hear me?” he instructed when you broke away.

“yes sir” you smirked.

“fucking hell… after what you did I shouldn't let you cum for at least a week” he said making your eyes widen.

“wha—” he interrupted you.

“behave and you shall receive darling.” He smirked and kissed you once again.

[wordy-little-witch]

Okay time for that marineford au I considered

Essentially just. The whole situation with Sengoku and Garp, where the latter point blank is pinned to the ground and begs Senny not to let him go-

Garp who is flawed and makes poor decisions. Garp who has put his job above most other things the majority of his life. Garp who lost touch with his son by these decisions, Garp who took in Ace (one of the biggest betrayals to the institution he has ever done), Garp who hid him and Luffy both away, Garp who pushed and pushed and pushed for them to become Marines because that was the only option he could fathom to keep them safe and keep his power over the situation, Garp who made bad choices with the best intentions-

Garp has lost one grandson already to the people he is meant to serve.

Garp had to watch on as Ace knelt on an execution platform, dead eyed and terrified - not of his own death, no, but of deaths of the people who showed up for him.

Garp had to watch as one grandson was nearly taken while another ran full throttle through a war ground to save the other. He accepts the hit and hits the ground in a mix of allowance and genuine pain. Luffy doesn't always know his own strength, especially when someone is between him and his goal.

Garp goes down and he prays to every deity he can think of that his boys will be safe.

Akainu moves, and Garp moves to lunge. Sengoku shoves him into the stone ground, cracking the rock and pinning him in place. And Garp? Garp is Done.

He has lost his son. He lost a grandson. He lost friends, he lost so much in name of the greater good, but is it even 'good' if all it reaps is suffering? After all the things he's done, is he even a good man?

He's made so many choices for the Marines that keep him up at night.

He refuses to continue that cycle.

He turns his head, eyes livid, and he snarls, "I will not lose them, Sengoku. Not like Rosi. If you value me at all, you will let me up."

And Sengoku... falters. He hasn't heard that name aloud in far too long, and he is taken aback. That's all Garp needs.

Akainu is closing in. Luffy is down, his tiny tank of a body finally crashing in the chaotic mess of the past few days, culminating at the worst possible time. Garp is still too far away, but he can see the moment Ace's eyes change, can see when his oldest grandchild makes his decision and moves.

So Garp moves faster.

Ace blocks Luffy with his body, anticipating the burning agony with welcoming arms if only to keep his baby brother spared the fate. Luffy is gaping up at him, and he tries a smile to the pale little face staring up to him. There is warmth at his back and it takes a moment to realize the haki signature is familiar, wraps around him in a way he hasn't felt in over a decade. Luffy is not looking at him anymore, he realizes. He turns his head.

Garp is back to back with Ace. He is staring down Akainu, a hole carved and cauterized in his gut. There is blood from his mouth, staining his chin, and yet even the magma now nestled in his abdomen holds no candle to the fire burning in his eyes. Akainu sneers at Garp, mouth opening to spit a comment on treachery and betrayal.

Garp's fist moves faster. Haki covers his flesh and knuckles, cracking across the admiral's face while his other hand holds the man by the collar to keep him in place. One, two three blows are delivered before Garp shifts, lifting and flinging the magma user towards the sea.

Ace stares. Luffy hiccups. Garp turns, staggering. Just as his knees buckle, both both lunge to him, lowering and supporting his weight. Garp clings, hands cupping their heads, pulling them close.

"I'm sorry," he chokes around the blood. "I am so sorry."

The battlefield is quiet, either literally or metaphorically, none of the three know. All they can know at the moment is grasping hands and burning eyes and aching hearts. Luffy curls as close as he can to Garp, huddled close as he can, limbs loose and throbbing. Ace is staring is disbelief.

"You boys..." Garp coughs. "Are my treasure."

"Gramps...?"

"No, Lu. Let grandpa finish..." He gives them both a squeeze. "I made... so many decisions.... ones I never should have." He turns his head, meets Ace's eyes. "Taking you in, calling you mine... that was one of the best decisions I ever made. Portgas D. Ace... you are mine. My grandson. My boy. And I am so... so fucking proud of the man you have become." He takes a shuddering breath. "Your roots do not define... who or how you grow. Whatever you become, you will be perfect. And you will be mine. And I will love you with all I have."

Ace's hiccuping sobs are quiet but jarring. Garp turns to Luffy.

"Lu... my baby, my boy." He cups the teen's cheek, thumb tracing a mirror to the scar on his face. "Since the day you were born, I knew you were destined for wonderful things. I'm sorry for the hurt I have caused. I'm sorry for the things I left unsaid. But you and your brother? You are the best things I have ever chosen. I chose you as a baby. I choose you know. I know you will shake the Seas and Heavens with your laughter, and I will laugh along with you." He pressed his forehead to Luffy's head, pulling Ace closer to cradle both boys close enough to feel their shaking breaths to his throat. He shuddered at the cloying cold that snaked up his bones.

The two boys clung hard to him, even as he began to sag. Between them both, they supported his weight, babbling pleas falling from chapped and bloodied lips.

"It has been... my greatest honor," he choked out, "to raise... the young princes of the sea." He gave them a weak smile. "May the waves carry you far," he recited weakly.

Ace choked. Luffy wailed. Both of them pressed closer, but finished the rite. "And may the winds carry your voice from the heavens."

Garp chuckled. He paid no mind to the blood that bubbled in his mouth from it. He gave them one final squeeze, a weak flex which was nothing like his normal strength.

Two grieving boys cradled the waning life of the grandfather on a war ground.

And with one sacrifice, the tides and paths laid out by Fate skewed.

Monkey D Garp gripped the rights bestowed to him by initial and forced the fates to obey.

A life for a life, an exchange of blood, and overhead, seagulls bathed in black screeched their agreement into the winds and waves and foam. A Deal was struck, the world shuddered, and with one decision, the very fabric of their reality unraveled a tapestry to weave into something new.

At the center of it all was a scarlet ribbon, an orange spark and a spiral of blue.

None on that glorified graveyard knew it then, but the blood of a vice admiral baptized a boy who would be king, purified a boy who renounced his crown, and moved to awaken a slumbering beast Seas away.

[comradekatara]

Can you go a bit more in depth about your post about Sokka in the Burning Rock episode? You said that it was basically his suicide mission, which I agree with. I'd really like to hear more of your thoughts on it.

okay yeah i mean i'm sure i've covered all these points before extensively because i love weaving a tapestry of sokka's fucked up psychological landscape more than anything in the world, but every so often someone will comment on one of my posts and be like "i think you're reaching i think sokka is the paragon of mental health actually" and i'm just like um. did we not all watch the boiling rock. did we just ignore the apotheosis of sokka's entire character arc. like katara's apotheosis in "the southern raiders" is both very overt and impactful and also, arguably, subtler than sokka's, because they don't explicitly spell out the themes every five seconds, but like. if you didn't watch the boiling rock then you cannot understand sokka. and weirdly enough i also believe that zuka shippers are the biggest culprit of this despite this episode being thee zucchini episode because they somehow still have the audacity to characterize sokka as "goofy sunshine who exists to comfort zuko" when like. the entire point is that sokka is legitimately suicidal here and zuko is doing everything in his power to support him thru what is quite literally a mental breakdown. like their relationship is legitimately interesting i don't understand how people have taken that and made it deeply boring.....but i digress.

the boiling rock is quite obviously sokka at his lowest. the worst thing that could ever happen to him – fumbling a mission that was squarely his responsibility, from its conception to its execution, due to not being able to sufficiently compartmentalize his emotions, leading to the mass imprisonment of most of his comrades, including the men of his tribe whom he idolized his entire life and felt immense pressure to live up to, including his father who he is deathly afraid of disappointing (for reasons that have nothing to hakoda being malicious or neglectful in any way, fwiw), and thus being directly implicated in the failure and the harm caused by said failure – happened. sokka is someone who is especially bad at dealing with failure, because a) he is exceptionally talented, and thus has less experience dealing with failure in both minor and major ways, and thus lacks the emotional resilience developed through the process of struggle and growth that normal people (such as, incidentally, zuko) go through and b) to sokka, whose primary desire at all times is to protect and provide for others in any way he possibly can, for someone else to sacrifice themselves for him constitutes a fundamental disruption to the order. there is a perverse wrongness to kya or yue or hakoda or suki making sacrifices on their own volition, because it means that sokka has existentially failed to protect them by martyring himself. like, he somehow feels so guilty about suki being imprisoned that when azula reveals this piece of information to him, it literally distracts him from his own mission. and mind you, there's absolutely no way sokka could have known or been responsible for suki's imprisonment. but he still feels guilty nonetheless. and azula knows that, knows exactly how to twist the knife to make him break, because, well, it's honestly pretty obvious.

sokka obviously cannot retroactively save his mother or his first girlfriend, but he can save his father and his current girlfriend. in "the awakening" aang says he has to restore his honor after the guilt and shame of his failure in ba sing se (aang is also an incurable gifted kid perfectionist, btw, as is azula. posts for another time...) and sokka repeats zuko's line again in this episode, after experiencing the guilt and shame of his failure during the eclipse. the driving motivation of zuko's entire character, feeling like he has failed in some ontological way and must therefore redeem himself or die trying, is reinforced through aang and sokka's respective experiences mirroring that drive. aang goes out in a storm and nearly drowns to redeem himself in some vague, nebulous way, because he isn't thinking rationally. and likewise sokka, who usually always has a plan and always thinks things through, feels that caution and foresight is pointless, because he came up with a genuinely brilliant invasion plan and it didn't work, so clearly there's something wrong with him (just as he always suspected) and no amount of planning even matters, because he's a capital F Failure and always will be. and so he vows to save his father, as he promised him he would when they parted on the day of black sun, or die trying, because if he can't even do that then what is he good for; at least he'll die a martyr, which to him, is basically his ideal situation. because to sokka, dying as a martyr is basically the highest form of fulfilling his purpose (being needed, protecting people) and so if he dies a martyr, then maybe his catastrophic failure (that is entirely his fault and rests squarely on his shoulders btw) can be forgiven. so his plan is basically just to sacrifice himself for his father so that he can die "redeemed." very normal, rational, healthy behavior, i would say.

sidenote, i also see people claim that "the boiling rock" makes sokka look stupid because why wouldn't he take any of the insanely talented benders to a prison in a giant volcano surrounded by a boiling lake, and it's like. sokka literally admits that he's not being rational, that he doesn't think he's going to survive this, that this is not a good idea. it would go against sokka's entire modus operandi if he brought the children who he feels a deep, presiding responsibility to protect on a suicide mission that he's lowkey hoping will fail (because he not so secretly loves courting death. it's like she's the moon or something). he only lets zuko come with him because he doesn't actually care whether zuko lives or dies at this point. sokka has absolutely no faith in zuko whatsoever (and frankly, why would he, zuko has yet to actually prove himself to him. he didn't even kill combustion man; sokka did) so he has no idea that zuko is actually going to be helpful and supportive in a meaningful way. and frankly, if he had known that at the beginning, or even remotely liked zuko as a person, he probably wouldn't have caved so easily when zuko invited himself to join. if he didn't think that zuko was objectively worse than him and basically worthless as a human being, i doubt he would have let himself be so vulnerable with zuko in the first place. meanwhile zuko is eating it up bc he's like "omg he's confiding in me he's letting me help him we're basically besties" because he doesn't actually know sokka well enough to realize that sokka doesn't actually do that shit with people he remotely respects. shit like "my first girlfriend turned into the moon" and "i had a feeling this was going to be a one way trip" are simply not things that sokka would say out loud 98% of the time. the fact that he is admitting something real is not a testament to the trust he places in zuko, but rather the opposite. sokka spilling his guts (you know, for him) to his resident collateral damage, sokka bringing his lovingly crafted space sword on this mission, sokka not even confirming whether or not his father is actually there beforehand – he's simply stopped giving a fuck, he doesn't care whether or not he lives to see another day, because to him, he has nothing left to lose.

but of course, that also isn't true at all. i mean, for one thing, zuko still needs to teach aang firebending, so he does serve a pretty important function to the group, and zuko simply telling him to do hot squats in his absence does not qualify as significant tutelage. but also, even more importantly, sokka is integral to the fabric of the group. when he's gone for a day in "sokka's master" they literally all just shut down and start complaining about how much they miss him (we don't actually see any b-roll of the gaang hanging around the western air temple because the episode is simply too busy for that, so who can say whether the same thing occurs twice). sokka cannot afford to simply die just because his first plan failed, he still has a major responsibility to his friends. fucking idiot. i've said before that sokka has the emotional resilience of like. a pathetic wet newborn kitten caught in the rain. but like, come on man. i mean, as someone who has also suffered from debilitating perfectionist issues and never had to be responsible for a failed military invasion that cost my people their freedom, i do get it, but still. not his best moment. although there is something genuinely admirable about the fact that after he finds suki, he decides that saving suki is enough, and genuinely does want to succeed in his mission going forward. like his love for suki is one of the only things that consistently makes him happy and makes him forget that his greatest dream in life is to be murdered, and that's so beautiful to me.

the entire point of this episode, by the way, is that sokka is wrong. if that isn't obvious. sokka's entire worldview, that he only has value insofar as he exists to provide for others, and if he fails to protect people in any capacity, he has fundamentally failed to uphold the one reason he even exists on this earth, and thus he does not deserve to exist unless he is bearing the weight of everyone's suffering or otherwise proving his worth through sacrificing himself for others, is um. fucking stupid???? and incorrect. and stupid. the thing is, unlike zuko, sokka can't really point to any one person who taught him to see himself this way. he can't just face his father and tell him that his abuse was cruel and wrong, because hakoda is a good father who has never not supported and believed in and encouraged him, done everything in his power to protect him, loved him unconditionally. hakoda has inadvertently damaged sokka's psyche in various ways, of course, but never with any intention to hurt him. like, ozai tried to kill zuko, on multiple occasions. it's a pretty obvious indicator of the primary source of harm in his life. but sokka is equally if not more Unwell, and there's no one single figure he can blame, because his complex lies within a tangled web of what my best friend fanon calls the "massive psychoexistential complex" of the colonized subject. he is being dehumanized not through interpersonal abuse, but through the violent logic of imperialism. sokka's formative traumas inform his psychology as he understands that he only has value insofar as he is protecting the people he loves (namely his sister) from being murdered by imperialists, much like his mother did. and that logic is continually reified through the violence he is being subjected to, until he truly absorbs the belief that his life has no value on its own, that he is genuinely Less than [human] in some fundamental way. which is obviously deeply tragic, but also lowkey kind of comical because he also happens to be the specialest boy in the world, who literally did come up with multiple working escape plans at the world's most secure supermax on the fly, mind you! but whenever anyone tries to point that out, including piandao literally saying "you're the most exceptional and worthy person i've ever met in my life" sokka is just like "um. that is incorrect actually." like NO ONE should depersonalize themselves and feel that their only value lies in their ability to serve and sacrifice themselves for others, but it's especially ironic that sokka literally does not think he has any value as a human being, and yet he is also objectively exceptional. like, do you understand why i adore this character so much. do you.

anyway. the point of this episode isn't that sokka has worth because he's exceptional, either. that's lowkey the point of "sokka's master," but also a) sokka doesn't really internalize it and b) the more important part of the episode lies in how much the gaang just misses his company because they miss their neurotic control freak big brother who makes bad jokes. but even if he couldn't come up with multiple working escape plans on the fly, suki and zuko still stay by his side anyway because they care about him. they are demonstrating that they would risk their safety and possibly even their lives, in the exact way that sokka is always trying to for everyone else, for him. that sokka doesn't need to be the one who always protects everyone else, and that he isn't a failure for letting people who care about him help him and protect him. and sokka has to accept their help, because suki and zuko are simply too stubborn not to force him into letting them support him. they are standing in a literal maximum security prison in the middle of a volcano and they are still choosing to prioritize sokka's mental health and wellbeing, which is honestly crazy, but also exactly what he needs in this moment. suki has known sokka for what, 3 days maximum? yes they're soulmates but like, girl get up. and in zuko's case, "girl get up" is magnified tenfold, because he literally risked his life to go with him to the boiling rock (also largely motivated by the guilt of not being able to stage his own prison break with iroh, but still!) and let himself get imprisoned despite being the fire nation's most wanted criminal, stayed by sokka's side no matter what including getting thrown into a literal torture chamber for him, jumped across a gaping boiling chasm with no guarantee that he'd survive except for the implicit expectation that sokka would catch him on the other side. like zuko is so fucking pussywhipped and sokka didn't even value him as a human being until like halfway through their entire mission. insane.

in conclusion: "the boiling rock" is a beautiful story of the most mentally ill boy on the planet (he took first place ever since jet died rip jet forever in our hearts), and his two ride or die bitches who he met like yesterday, and also his dad, and a casual homophobe named chit sang, all working together to demonstrate to him why killing yourself is a bad idea in most cases, probably. it's also the story of the most insane dyke drama of all time, but that's for another post (of which i have of course made multiple, most recently, here). i said it's the apotheosis of sokka's arc, and by that i mean it's the most overt acknowledgement of what his fundamental issue is, and the first steps one must take in actually resolving it (namely, accepting help and support from your peers and loved ones). do i think that sokka is magically cured after returning from the boiling rock? no, probably not (in fact, because i'm somewhat sick & twisted myself, i like to imagine that once the war ends, he actually gets worse). but he does seem genuinely happier after they return. and maybe that's just bc kyoshi warrior pussy hits different, but like. he was able to rely on others for help (including mai my best friend mai) who supported him unconditionally and prevented him from simply giving up, and that's so incredibly important. that kind of support is always important, to everyone, of course, but as we've established, it's especially important to sokka specifically, at his lowest (quite possibly ever), in this situation. no one has an obligation to risk their life for someone else, but sokka is something who thinks that his purpose is to risk his life for other people (namely katara), and so for people who really have nothing to gain and everything to lose in standing by and promising not to leave without him, to actually show that they support him unconditionally is huge. if sokka has no fans then i am dead and so is suki zuko hakoda toph aang piandao iroh the mechanist etc etc etc. perfect episode <3

[clockwork-ashes]

All You Have Is Your Fire - Part V

Find Part I here :)

Summary: 'I can hear your heart beating through the stone.' For the briefest of moments, Lucien wondered if his mate would know exactly when his heart’s steady rhythm came to a sudden stop.

Note: A huge, huge thank you to the lovely @bettdraws who literally deserves all the credit and whose post inspired me to start writing this. I could not stop thinking about this head canon, and it was so kind of you to let me try and make a story from it :) And a huge thank you to everyone reading!

Tag List: @anishake / @nocasdatsgay / @mybestfriendmademe

Part VI >>

Jesminda had been killed on a night like this, Lucien thought. 

The sky had been clear of any clouds, a blue so deep it was nearly violet. Stars had sparkled to life in the distance, and Lucien had been able to see them, jewel-bright, when he had looked out of the arched windows of the throne room. 

His father had been wearing a crown of golden oak leaves, his brothers had held him down with rough hands, and Lucien had begged for his lover’s life to be spared. 

Lucien had turned his head in the end, a betrayal in itself, but watching Jesminda’s execution would have been unbearable. Her screams, sharp and grating like knives on marble, still haunted his worst nightmares. Lucien knew he had failed Jesminda then, the female he had claimed with such certainty as his mate. 

When the High Lord’s guards had taken him from the dungeons, Lucien had been quick to think that Eris had been unable to convince their father of sending him back to the Night Court. The Mother’s scales of justice balancing once more for what happened to Jesminda, a sense of fairness to it all. 

Not for a moment had Lucien even considered that Elain, lovely and quiet and sheltered Elain, had prompted his release from the suffocating cell in the deepest parts of the Forest House. 

Alarm choked him at the feeling of Elain pulling at the thread connecting them, horror gripping him as the memories of Jesminda flashed clear as river water in his mind. 

Lucien’s eyes met Elain’s from across the room and her unease washed over him. 

She looked out of place in Autumn, the light blue dress she wore more fitting in Spring or Day, Lucien thought. Loose curls framed her beautiful face, lips parting in surprise and relief. Her slippered feet made no sound as she took a few careful steps towards him, eyes flicking desperately from his injuries to his bound wrists. 

Elain was an excellent actress, Lucien noticed. If not for the emotions of dread and apprehension flooding their bond, even Lucien would have been convinced at how well she played the part of a concerned mate. 

“Lucien,” Elain called, her voice cracking in distress. 

The way his name rolled off her tongue clashed loudly in Lucien’s ears, metal against metal. He wanted to be near her, he wanted her to be as far away from Autumn as possible. Both reactions warred within his mind. 

Why was Elain in the Autumn Court? 

Lucien could not find it in him to believe that Feyre and Nesta would have let their sister throw herself into unquestionable danger for a male she barely talked to. Rhysand must have considered him a very important emissary if he was willing to risk Elain’s life. 

Elain looked like she would rush to him, and Lucien wondered if she could feel the bond’s pull just as he did. Lucien only noticed that Eris was standing beside Elain when his eldest brother put out his arm to prevent her from moving. 

He was unable to stop the low snarl from escaping his lips, the guards tightening their hold on him. Who else would be to blame for Elain’s arrival in the Forest House but Eris, Lucien asked himself. He silently prayed that if anything happened to his mate, Rhysand would do him the favour of ending Eris’s miserable existence. 

“Look, Lucien,” his father’s voice rang out in the near-empty space. “Your mate has come for you.” Lucien turned his attention to Beron with great effort. He did not want to take his eyes off Elain for a moment, barely trusting his own senses.

His father’s grin was cruel, almost knowing, as he waited for Lucien to respond. When Lucien kept quiet, Beron shrugged, not deterred by the silence. Lucien saw as his mother tightened her grip on the armrest of her throne, knuckles white. 

“Your mate wrote to Eris, her words bleeding with concern for you, my son.” Lucien had to hold his back straight so as not to rear back at the words. Beron had not addressed him as such in decades. 

Lucien was trying to piece everything together, knowing that he was missing valuable information that would prove navigating the conversation with his father difficult. He cursed Eris for not having warned him at least. 

“Being apart pains us,” Lucien offered, hoping it would satisfy Beron. He glanced at Elain and tried to relax, to calm his nerves. She clung to Eris, surprising Lucien with how trusting she seemed. He had to remind himself that she was merely acting, doing her best to do as the Night Court had obviously pushed her to.  

“She thinks she has a claim to you,” Beron shook his head, false sympathy carved into the frown on his face. “But you know Autumn’s laws, an unaccepted mating bond means nothing, a seed not yet planted.” 

Lucien responded on instinct, everything about it familiar, as if no time had passed between his exile and his current presence in the throne room. “Yes, High Lord.” 

“It was a great betrayal to see you siding with Spring at our border, Lucien,” Beron continued, “but the young lady’s concern for you has been touching.” 

“Let her return to Night,” Lucien interrupted, agony clawing at him. To lose a mate would be torture, and he knew his father well enough to guess he would be taking Elain’s life first. “Rhysand would thank you for it.” 

Beron replied, bitter but not angry. “You never could hold that tongue.” 

“Owing the High Lord of Night and his Lady would be of great use to us,” Eris intervened, his words always holding more weight in their family. Briefly, Lucien was thankful, was reminded of how often Eris had put himself in the way of Beron’s wrath when they were both so much younger.

Beron cast a long look at Eris, clicking his tongue, before he faced his youngest son. “I ask only that you answer one of my questions, Lucien, and I will grant your mate her wish.” Lucien heard Elain’s sharp inhale, but he kept his eyes on Beron. The metal one whirred in anticipation, pausing into place when his father spoke once more. “When is your mating ceremony?” 

Lucien felt as though someone had pulled the rug from beneath his feet. He was unsteady, his answer needed to be quick, natural. “We wanted a spring wedding,” he blurted, the response dragged out of him. He did not know what possessed him to refer to it as a marriage, but he would have bet his life on the fact that Elain would not have talked about a mating ceremony. 

Beron raised a dark eyebrow, but by the way his frown deepened, Lucien guessed the response was correct. “We’ve set the date for the equinox,” Lucien added as he felt relief from the bond, Elain’s emotions influencing his own. “On a night with a full moon.” 

Lucien watched as the Lady of Autumn reached for her husband’s arm, her fingers clawing at the sleeve. “Beron,” she murmured, a quiet plea for mercy. 

Lucien was unsure if his father had even heard his mother, but he turned away from Lucien, a clear dismissal, as he addressed Elain. “In Autumn, marrying on the night of a full moon brings blessings.” Beron cocked his head to the side like a wolf, “Did you know?” 

Elain shook her head in response, choosing honesty. Lucien could barely see her the way Eris was standing, as if he too was ready for the worst case scenario. 

Time itself seemed to still as they all waited for Beron to declare his wishes. Lucien attempted to ease Elain’s nerves, tried to comfort her through the bond, but he was not sure if he was successful. Moments or hours could have passed, and Lucien would not have noticed.

“My son,” the voice of the High Lord, never that of a father. His words the toll of a bell as he spoke to Lucien once more, breaking his silence. Beron stood from his throne, “We should let bygones be bygones, what happened all those years ago was unfortunate, but your mate is here now.” 

Lucien wondered if Beron understood just how much those words made his blood boil. Lucien had begged for Jesminda’s life to be spared, had claimed she was his mate at the time. He had been so sure, and it was like a blow to have his father mention it. Lucien could feel his face heating with anger, but he kept his mouth shut.  

“Let this be my gift to you,” Beron gestured with his hand to the windows, stars winking. “Have your wedding in Autumn, Lady Elain Archeron of the Night Court, and I will lift your mate’s exile. He would be free to come and go as he pleased.” The High Lord smiled, wicked, “and it would be a great honour to see one of my son’s married.”  

Beron did not even look at Lucien, embers in his eyes flaring as he focused solely on Elain. Lucien wanted to scream. 

Elain flashed his father a smile, it seemed so genuine that Lucien was taken aback. “How kind,” she stepped past Eris, curtsying elegantly. “You have my thanks.” 

Elain sounded so very fae, Lucien remarked. With a wave of his father’s hand, the guards removed the binds from Lucien’s wrists. As soon as Lucien was freed from his restraints, Eris moved out of Elain’s way so she could run to him. 

She threw her arms around Lucien’s neck as though she had done it countless times. He could do nothing but put his hands to Elain’s waist. 

“I was so worried,” she spoke just loud enough for everyone to hear, but it was still soft, as though she had only meant for the words to be heard by Lucien’s ears.  

Like she was his lover, Lucien breathed in deeply, held Elain close. “Everything’s alright,” he murmured, lips pressed to her hair. 

We both lie so well.

The thought was like a knife to the chest, but Lucien hoped that the two of them had been able to dispel Beron of any doubts. Lucien knew his mother was convinced, he could see it in her russet eyes. For a moment, Lucien felt guilty, but he pushed the thought aside. 

Elain was the first to pull away, a scarlet blush staining her pale cheeks. She tucked a stray curl behind her ear with one hand, but the other held tightly to Lucien’s. It was smart of her to look embarrassed, Beron would have found their affection distasteful otherwise. 

Lucien wondered if Elain knew how perfectly she had played her part, that she could have convinced kings to kneel if she set her mind to it. 

Elain certainly seemed to have the High Lord of the Autumn Court wrapped around her finger. 

“Take some time with your mate, Lucien,” his father declared. “Two nights from this one, we can celebrate your return home.” 

Lucien wanted to be back in the human lands, he wanted to be in the home he had made with Jurian and Vassa, the unlikeliest of friends. Instead, Lucien bowed his head. “Thank you, High Lord.” 

Beron angled his chin, “The guards can show you to your rooms.” Flames flashed in his father’s eyes, familiar enough to make Lucien flinch. “I must speak with Eris.” 

The guards pushed Lucien forward, the gesture rude but not painful. They kept a respectful distance from Elain, and Lucien wondered if they had simply been too charmed by her to even consider treating her poorly. 

Together, they were escorted from the throne room, Elain still holding tightly to Lucien’s hand. 

[chaoticdelinqueerwithglitter]

This drabble is born from a really angsty brain riot with Bonten's origins, that happened to me after reading this words from @just-sp-in-inginthevoid :

"Bonten is a memorial for Izana, its symbol, its members’ tattoo come from Izana’s earrings and the (天) ten of Bonten 梵天 from Tenjiku 天竺, the (梵) bon of Bonten 梵天 comes from Brahman 梵. (...) There’s no need for Senju to have the same role as Izana in Bonten if she’s not dead."

(I always pictured Senju being death in that timeline, but the reality of the kanjis being literally THAT... ajfshgsjgejgrjg, the pain of this. Wakui, you know how to break us every timeline! 😭)

Bonten was born from pain.

(drabble of the day that Bonten was created)

Warnings: I'm so sorry, this is just angst and hurt/no comfort. I wrote it as an attempt of coping with canon and how painful is Bonten timeline when you actually look closer to it. It's from Koko's POV and everyone is just broke and devastated in their own way. Again, I'm so sorry :(

(English is not my first language, so be nice please 🙈)

Most people think Bonten is synonymous with fear.

But they are all wrong. Kokonoi knows better.

Bonten is synonymous with pain, it was born in it.

He still remembers the day that Bonten was created, even if it wasn't the official date, any of the executives would pinpoint the exact same moment.

Probably, only Koko could actually offer a coherent narrative of that night. The only outsider of all the chaos unraveling in front of him.

He still has nightmares of what he saw. But is not what happened what haunts him, no. Is the voices, the faces surrounding him.

Wakasa covered in blood, his eyes looking completely empty. His blank stare, like he couldn't believe who this blood belonged to. Benkei's hand on his friend shoulder, tearing up like a baby.

Takeomi curled up in the floor, sobbing next to his sister's body. Saying “it should've been me” over and over, the older man stuck in a loop of guilt and denial.

The former members of Tenjiku looking shocked, not moving a finger for what was supposed to be their gang, their leader. Koko spent enough time with them to know that, even if they were ruthless, seeing the leader of another gang being shot like that... Was too familiar.

Anyone who looked at them could see they never agreed with that. The ghost of Izana Kurokawa still lingered over them.

Kakucho was shaking, his lips trembling. The rain and the blood mixing with red snow in the scarred boy's mind.

The Haitani brothers unconsciously getting closer to each other. Ran pulling his arm around Rindou in a protective way, the younger one allowing it without complains. Both of them staring at Sanzu, terrified with the possibility of being on the pinkette boy place.

Sanzu's screams were the worst of it. The excruciating pain in his voice while he was holding Senju's body. His little sister's body. How he looked at Takeomi, tears rolling down his cheeks, his gaze filled with hate when he spoke to his older brother “I agree, it should've been you.”

Mikey standing there, the void in his eyes while his knuckles kept dripping with South blood. The man's body at his feet.

That gaze, dark and lacking of any emotion. Pure void that swallowed everything around.

(That swallowed them, trapped them like moths that flied too close to the sun)

Bonten was born from pain.

Bonten grew in pain, thrived with it.

And, Kokonoi is sure that whatever destiny awaits for them...

Bonten will die in pain.

[starrysharks]

okkkk i watched the first episode of hazbin hotel and i think it has a lot of missed potential. there are actually quite a few goods - the animation for the most part is nice, the voice acting is great (especially keith david as the cat thing), and the songs are alright. the show brings up interesting concepts but the main problem is that it doesn't really execute them in an interesting way, mainly due to the way the characters are written.

every character - with the exception of alastor, charlie and nifty - has a generally "vulgar" personality, ranging from that being a primary trait to basically the entire character (based on the 1st episode alone). they're all written in a similar way, which means that character interactions are very basic funnyman/straightman endeavors with little variation - angel dust says something dumb and vaggie chatises him, or angel dust says something sexual and husk chatises him. that formula basically extends to most if not all of their interactions so far, so the dynamics between characters are similar and frankly uninteresting. angel dust especially (i really don't like him sorry) is so far just a vessel for sexual jokes, and we don't really get anything from his character other than "he's horny", which isn't really good for your first episode imo. the language the characters use is also similar so there's little humorous contrast. there aren't really "jokes" with setup and payoff - just characters saying and doing out of pocket things.

the worst example of this is with the angels, particularly adam. i think that the angel with him (lute i think?) would actually serve his purpose in the story better based on her character - somewhat regal, orderly, but most importantly uses a completely different language to the devils. this sort of contrast would've been way more interesting imo - have the angels be holier-than-thou (quite literally), talk charlie down, make her feel less than or even like a "sinner" - which would be cool because as far as i can tell charlie tries her best to be as good as possible! that would be a unique way to bring out her angry side but instead adam just acts like any other devil, even worse than them, and maybe that's on purpose but i don't think it's very cool...... it would be fun to play off the watcher's preconceived notions and ideas on angels and devils after establishing how charlie deviates from the norm, maybe even having the angels be like "wow you lashing out proves devils are all evil", but now i'm rambling...

other than that, i think the story introduces its main plot points too early. give the concept some time to breathe and establish itself before dropping the bombshell that the extermination is to be 6 months early, damn,,, but i'd have to watch every episode to give an opinion on how they handle that, which i likely won't do. i have some small nitpicks, like the weird lack of buildup to most songs and the kind of weird pacing, but in short, based on the first episode, it's just a compilation of missed opportunities and edgy swear-humor offset by some genuinely interesting and good ideas. this isn't a review of the entire series, by the way - just a "initial thoughts" thing. if you really are interested in the concept, i'd say give it a chance, but please be aware of the creator's actions before you support it monetarily. (i watched the first episode through other means as i genuinely dislike the creator due to her bigotry, of which others have described more eloquently than me - it's very easy to find "call-outs" and critiques of her actions). 4/10, where is verblase :/

[gremlinaristocrat]

Overthinking Sylvie’s Strategy

So, I know the Gio&Molly vs Sylvie fight in Ep2 was mostly about getting the protagonists to show off their personalities and powers . . . but I think if you read (way too far) into the strategy Sylvester uses it tells you a surprising amount about him.

Start at the start. Sylvie overhears our heroes talking about how they’re villains. Instead of sneak attacking them while he has the drop on them, he starts a dialog, to confirm they’re actually bad guys (and maybe to satisfy his own desire for drama and/or indulge in his sense of invulnerability). Gio responds by confirming he’s a criminal, calling Sylvie a kid and initiating combat.

It’s kind of overshadowed by what he does later in the fight, but the doc is pretty reasonable early on; I get the feeling he’d have been even more willing to talk things out if dealing with Indus’ stupidity and Mera’s manipulation hadn’t shortened his already-short fuse and made him Done with Trying To Talk To People.

Sylvie’s first move is to use sleep pollen like he did with Indus earlier; unlike all his other attacks, he doesn’t call its name when he uses it, probably to minimize the chances that his targets will figure out what it does in time to stop it. This is a 10/10 opener, with the potential to harmlessly incapacitate enemies and end fights before they start.

When that fails thanks to Molly’s quick thinking and Gio’s creativity, he follows it up with Counting Sheep. This is another solid decision, and unlike the last one, it actually works out for him: his minions swiftly swarm and overwhelm his opponents.

Pictured: Flawless Victory.

Note that – as far as I can tell – Sylvie has basically won at this point. Molly and Giovanni have no way to stop the sheep before they nibble and poof them into unconsciousness; all he has to do is stay the course.

And then our boy screws up. He banishes his own army – or maybe incinerates them, the animation isn’t clear on that point – in order to confront a twelve-year-old girl with her worst nightmare, while having no idea what that nightmare is or how he’d be able to use it.

He also picks this point to sacrifice his vantage point, achieving no obvious gain. I don’t think Jello did this on purpose, but it fits very well that Sylvie literally gives up the high ground for no reason – while forcing his opponents onto a different patch of high ground – at the same time he’s metaphorically doing that.

Let me psychoanalyze the psychoanalyst: what the hell is the good doctor thinking when he unleashes (almost literal!) hell on the adorable cosmic brownie? What’s going through his head when he passes up sure victory for the chance to re-traumatize a child?

Well, it’s possible that Counting Sheep drains stamina faster than it appears to (though he doesn’t seem winded after using it). It’s also possible that he’s worried about one of them using ranged attacks on him, and feels the need to end the fight ASAP. The magic system in EE is intentionally kind of loose and vibes-y, so there’s an endless list of possible excuses.

That said, I think the most likely answer to “what was he thinking?” is “absolutely nothing”. This whole thing looks like a (legitimately!) clever synergy-exploiting strategy he thought up a while back, rarely or never got to see in action, and is just unreflectively executing on even though a more humane approach would have straight-up let him win.

I didn’t notice this until the Youtube comments pointed it out, but I think it’s neat Gio never calls Sylvie a kid again after he finds out the doc has issues with it (except that one time he does it to signal that he’s putting on a show for the cops). He’ll mock you mercilessly, and maybe steal your stuff, but our glorious pink-haired overlord will not use That Word You Dislike to describe you once he knows you dislike it.

Anyway, back to the fight. Sylvie tries to negotiate with his prisoners in the Flame Vortex, since apparently his Psychology PhD never taught him that confronting people with their literal worst nightmares might make them unreasonable and/or push them to extremes. Gio escapes with Molly; Sylvie doubles down on the Nightmare Fuel; Gio responds by thwacking a ball of yarn at him.

This is another point at which – again, as far as I can tell – Sylvie has basically won. The fact that Giovanni resorted to such weird and desperate measures suggests Gio & Molly don’t have any better ways to attack or escape from their current position. All the alleged genius needs to do is take cover behind an exhibit and let his summons finish the criminals. Instead, he cancels his own winning move (again!) so he can summon Dr Beefton, escalating (again!!) in a way that doesn’t actually help him (again!!!).

Like, seriously, what was the plan here? There are a lot of words you could use to accurately describe Sylvie’s colleague/alter-ego/fursona, but ‘agile’ and ‘nimble’ aren’t among them; if Gio and Molly had decided to hold onto their high ground on general principles after Sylvie (apparently) fainted, or if they’d sprinted off in different directions instead of trying to stand their ground, what would he have done then?

From here on out, the beef revolves around Beefton. This tells us very little about Sylvie, except maybe in terms of how much frustration he’s repressing, and what being powerful means to him.

Pictured: What Peak Performance Looks Like

So, what does all this say about Sylvie? He’s clever, willing to hear people out, and merciful when he can get away with it; however, he makes dumb or pointlessly cruel decisions under pressure, and follows a prescribed plan instead of adapting to the enemy; will escalate when surprised or provoked, even when it’s counterproductive, choosing moves which feel strong instead of ones which make sense. In summary, he’s the world’s smartest dumbass, and (at least in this part of the story) acts more like a stereotypical cop than the actual cop character.

He’s getting better quickly, though. I think a lot of this is symptomatic of him being new-ish to fights, and especially new to fights where people get hurt and/or which last more than one move . . .

Yeah, it shows, and not in a good way.

. . . since he gets more flexible and responsive when fighting Mera . . .

Pictured: Character Growth

. . . though, uh, apparently not enough for him to realize that he could demoralize her and/or broker a truce by offering to remove her Epithet with the amulet if he wins.

Out-reasoned by the tweenager; that’s embarrassing.

[funniestbusiness]

Genshin Impact: The Magnus Archives AU

or How to Mix Media With Wildly Different Vibes Because They Have This One Thing in Common

OK SO

You wanted to know! There's an audience for my thoughts! I shall inflict them upon you!

So we have the Archons in Genshin, inflicting benevolent or neutral concepts upon the world. We have the Fears in TMA, inflicting, well, fears upon the world.

*approaches blender*

(Be warned, this is probably rather superficial, no deep character analysis here, literally just "Which Archon could be which Fear?" Also, I'll use the Archons' common names because I like them more, except for Focalors for obvious reasons)

1. Venti - The Vast

Well, first of all, it fits elementally, but that alone does not make a Fear. Venti's major topics are those of being untethered, lost, small in comparison to everything. The thing is, he's not inflicting those on anyone, unless him abandoning Mondstadt counts. For the time being, let's consider this to be enough.

2. Zhongli - The Buried

In comparison, this one is easy. There has been very literal use of stone and earth to bury his enemies (just ask Osial). The Buried's more metaphorical manifestation are obligation and debt, especially financial debt, and the God of Contracts and Mora seems tailor-made for the position.

(We also have a rather obvious pick for a devoted avatar - Ningguang)

3. Ei - The Lonely or The End

A very strong case can be made for both.

The Lonely: She closed off the country and divided its people, abandoned Kunikuzushi and eagerly isolated even herself.

The End: She started the Vision Hunt, where deaths of ambitions metaphorically or literally meant deaths of the people themselves, chased the kind of eternity that is identical to death in its stillness, and is famous for how her Musou no Hitotachi is an unavoidable strike.

I like The End more, but take your pick!

4. Nahida - The Eye

Another easy one. It's knowledge, knowledge, desire for knowledge all the way down. Additionally, through the Akasha Terminal, she was able to execute surveillance, and currently is capable of reading thoughts. And yes, we have an archon who may not want to ever execute their power maliciously - but who definitely could.

Being assigned the colour green is only a nice bonus :D

(Two avatars quickly come to mind - Alhaitham and Cyno. I want to see them and/or Nahida "ceaseless watcher"ing someone. Badly.)

5. Focalors - The Web or The Stranger (with Furina as an avatar)

See, this gets complicated because this duo leans in different directions. Focalors herself is more of The Web, masterminding a grandiose plan to deceive Celestia, for which Furina would need to deceive all of Fontaine, spinning a lie for hundreds of years. But the fact that she's specifically an imposter, together with the general theatre and performance theme, brings Furina closer to The Stranger. You could say it's now the fear of "archons, but not quite" instead of "humans, but not quite", hehe.

(For either Fear, I feel like Arlecchino is a good avatar candidate? Jury's still out on how many layers there are to her)

Murata would likely be The Slaughter or possibly The Desolation, and the Tsaritsa could of course be The Web but I have no idea at this point.

Finally, we have another divine being in Teyvat who deserves an Entity of their own. I decided to get a little edgy with it~

SPOILERS FOR MAG 134 AND BEYOND

6. Neuvillette - The Extinction

...or is he?

He could have been, that much is true. He could let the people of Fontaine be eliminated due to "their sin" (at best becoming Oceanid hiveminds and at worst vanishing entirely) and Fontaine itself be destroyed in a catastrophic flood.

Which he did not do - the only thing he wants to eliminate is Celestia.

And Celestia itself is much more realised as The Extinction. It has once laid waste to the world order, replacing the inhabitants with humans, and later, repeated this on a smaller scale, casting down environment-warping Divine Nails and destroying civilizations it deemed full of hubris.

If Neuvillete is Extinction, he only is, for lack of a more elegant way to say it, their personal Extinction.

(Also he just doesn't go with The Vast, he has no vibes of it beyond his element. Even The Eye fits better)

So, here are my thoughts on this AU! Feel fre to add (please do add). I currently have no other avatar ideas in mind other than Childe being very obviously Slaughter-coded.

People who expressed their interest (thank you SO MUCH for enabling me): @hawk-in-a-tree @smokinghotcrow @ninthfeather @paxoculi @thejoespooky

[theconstitutionisgayculture]

The lgbts in Florida and the surrounding area are claiming that the drag show ban will result in women who just don’t dress “in a typical women fashion (ie wearing pants and flannel and ties)” or are even just “not conventionally attractive” will be targeted by police for death just by appearing in public around children (“they’ll be confused for drag queens”, they’re basically claiming a mom who likes wearing pants and baseball caps and shorter hair could be killed for picking up her children from the playground, or a transgender person just walking by children in public could be). On one hand, this is prima facie ridiculous, court trials and innocent until proven guilty exist, people aren’t that stupid, and I don’t think anyone should be around sexual things (regardless of age) period. On the other hand, the police have a bad reputation for a reason, police brutality and such exist, my trust for the government varies greatly, some people really are that stupid, and I am a paranoid person by nature and my mind tends to go towards the worst possible things. But that’s a me problem. I’m pretty sure the law only talks about punishing actual sexual content around children, but I haven’t read the legal text yet. Any thoughts?

So, here's the full text of the most recent version of the "drag ban" law. As with most of these based Florida laws, it's very short, so I encourage everyone to give it a read. But to summarize:

The law never mentions "drag" even once. Instead, it says, and I'm paraphrasing here so read the actual text yourself, that children aren't allowed in any event meant for adults that has a sexual component.

The punishment is directed towards businesses and government agencies that issue licenses for events. Not individuals.

The punishments listed are all fines or license revocations. Specifically Beverage licenses. So if you host an adult event and allow children to attend at your restaurant or bar, the government will come after your liquor license. No jail time is mentioned. And there's certainly no mention of executions.

Again, the law mentions events, not individual actions. So no, this law wouldn't make it illegal for a drag queen to walk past a child in public. That might fall under public indecency laws, or indecent exposure to a minor, but those are different laws that have nothing to do with this one.

So no, it's not at all reasonable to think that this law will lead to ugly women in flannel getting shot by the police just for walking past a playground. Like all left wing overreaction, they're scared of things that will literally never happen. Even the worst, most evil cop who just wants an excuse to kill innocent people wouldn't be able to use this law to justify shooting someone.

The way the media lies about these Florida laws is egregious, even by modern media standards. Never believe a single thing a newspig says about them without reading the law yourself first.

[queensectonia]

last night i was reminded of one of my extremely few Hater Moments (lighthearted) about this series and i never got around to fully articulating my thoughts on it, so it is once again time for our regularly-scheduled kirby rant:

the spider sectonia reveal was poorly-executed on every level.

to start with, this plot element was introduced when the series was in its worst throes of Not Putting The Fucking Lore In The Fucking Games, but I will happily concede that this reveal was at least in a game; just not the game it should have been in.

I almost wonder if the Sectonia Clone as a whole was a leftover from the fact that Robobot started out development as Triple Deluxe 2, but considering that a) TD2 was dropped pretty early on and b) Robobot is just full to the brim with fanservice and callbacks anyway, I don't feel there's much evidence for such a theory.

at any rate, reducing the otherwise very intriguing reveal of Sectonia's prior form to a blink-and-you'll-miss-it easter egg in an entirely different game is pretty... underwhelming. we've had plenty of "reveals" or cool nods and expansions to other lorebits in similar easter eggs, but none of them were nearly as important as "oh, by the way, here's what the character whose whole arc revolves around personal and physical image used to look like! in a totally unrelated game!"

but that's the tamest complaint. that's just the accessibility of this information, which could have been better but certainly could have been worse.

the biggest problem is Sectonia's design. it's bad. it is just not good, fellas. she is literally just genderbent Taranza. it fails visually, it fails conceptually, and it fails really hard story-wise.

this design was so uninspired that when people in the EN sphere first saw it, tons of people thought it just was Taranza. then when we got screenshots, model rips, etc., it was still so painfully similar to Taranza that it made people assume HAL was saying Taranza and Sectonia were related - which turned into just as much of a shitfight as you might think.

even if this weren't attached to such a crucial character reveal, it's just downright a bad design! instead of taking even the slightest efforts to differentiate Sectonia from Taranza, they did the laziest, most barebones "uhhhhhh what if taranza But Girl" design shift possible. she's wearing the exact same outfit as Taranza, just palette-swapped. so little effort went into both the concepting stage and the modelling stage. she's just Taranza's model with the merest tweaks to make sure you know this is a Girl Spider.

genuinely, I would be a hundred times more amenable to this entire plot point if HAL had just bothered to give her an actual design.

but the problem is, making Sectonia a spider kind of just fucks everything about her story and contradicts itself at multiple points.

the aesthetic and theme language in TD is very clear. this is one of the biggest strengths that both it and Robobot share - the identity and literary through-lines of both games pervade every single visual element of them. Robobot tells its tale of capitalistic tech-fuelled colonialism through every part of the game from level backgrounds, to enemy designs, right down to surgical decisions like mechanising the pinwheel tree that was such a fond image from KRtD. every tiny thing bore the mark of the HWC, whether metaphorically or literally, such that you spent the entire game never forgetting that there was one unified force behind all of this, and Haltmann at the end of the game was the culmination of this aesthetic.

TD did the exact same. every part of TD sells that it's a fantastical fairytale romp through a series of themed locations with a connecting thread of the invading Antr* force.

*(this is a way better romanisation than "antler" this is my hill)

if anything, I'd argue that TD's design language in this respect is tighter than Robobot's, because Robobot had a fairly broad theme of "industrialisation and hi-tech space future sci-fi" to draw its foes from, whereas TD had to condense its antagonists under the stricter banner of "evil insect army".

and they did incredibly. every point of design about the Antrs points straight to Sectonia and draws from her in some way or another. it's absolutely seamless. she's the perfect logical endpoint of Antr design from every angle: she's the literal queen bee of this insect hive and the perfect expression of their anatomy. she's bigger than the biggest Antr. she's more developed. she's more powerful. they were so careful and thorough about this design conceit that Antrs have multiple stages that all march straight up to Sectonia. we go from the tiny bronto burt and waddle dee clones with their little wings and eyes that seem so familiar, to the Antr soldiers, all the way up to the Lord Antrs who are one step away from Sectonia. they have stripes and facial markings to echo hers. it's all wrapped up with the genius bow of combining ants, bees, and wasps: they're all hymenoptera! the metaphor goes even deeper than that because there's a species of wasp that parasitizes spiders! controls them, even!

... except no actually, we've decided she's a spider too and all of that buildup and artful design means nothing.

it's awful. it's taking what is far and away one of the best-executed designs in the series and saying that all of that buildup and blatant connection of ideas meant nothing.

but that's just the visual end of it. Sectonia actually being a spider makes no sense in the lore, either.

first of all, TD's incredible design sense and artistic direction applies to Taranza as well. while he's obviously derivative of Magolor, within the context of TD he's clearly meant to evoke the sky fairies. he's designed to look much more like them than any of the insect characters. he's got the same body type, he moves the same way as them, he's a sky fairy with a spider theme. the game draws visual parallels between him and the sky fairies more than once; this is not unintentional.

this is part of what makes Taranza's role as Sectonia's right hand more impactful: he's only insect adjacent, and the design language would have you believe he's more closely related to the fairies than the insects, so him being with the bad guys is notable and interesting.

so why would a spider character be the ruling monarch of the insect hive? why would the line go ant, bigger ant, fancy ant, armoured ant, spider, wasp?

I mean, shit dude, the miiverse posts directly tell us that Sectonia used to "look like her insect underlings". it really feels like the decision to make her be a spider was a total spur-of-the-moment one, between how badly it interacts with the rest of the story and how lazy the design was. Sectonia's backstory had a couple of holes in it regarding the actual timeline of things, but those were just mysteries regarding what order everything happened in. she was both a bodyjacker and a good queen at one point, which don't exactly jive, so it becomes interesting to think about how those two facts coexist. on the other hand, her being a spider just gets shoehorned in there for no apparent reason other than to... heighten her connection to Taranza?

and that just dovetails into the complete mockery HAL made of Taranza's character development after TD, and THAT is a rant for another time.

there was just no point to it all. Sectonia being a spider adds nothing, removes a bunch of nuance and intrigue, and muddies both her story and the background world of TD.

[xiaoshengnu]

𝕸𝖞 𝕵𝖔𝖚𝖗𝖓𝖊𝖞 𝖙𝖔 𝖄𝖔𝖚 (2023)

overview : episode no - 24 | genre - wuxia

yun weishan has only ever known darkness. brought up and honed from a young age to become a spy under the mysterious sect wufeng, she longs for freedom. the drama begins as she is sent on a mission into the gong family, the enemy sect of wufeng. if she succeeds, freedom she gets. surrounded by schemes and treachery with possible death looming on both sides, yun weishan must navigate the dangerous waters of the gong family and her own turbulent emotions towards her target, gong ziyu.

l⃣e⃣ t⃣’ s⃣    b⃣e⃣g⃣i⃣n⃣

YALL THIS DRAMA. THIS DRAMA. this drama was simultaneously the worst and best thing I have experienced in a long time. however, if I could only use one word to describe this drama, it would 100% be stunning. the drama is absolutely stunning. from the music to the costuming to the makeup to the actors- this drama's visuals is quite frankly something never seen before in chinese dramaland- its so dark and brooding and so cool. the plot on the other hand...? let's get into it.

o⃣u⃣t⃣     o⃣ f⃣     t⃣ e⃣ n⃣

𝖕𝖑𝖔𝖙 - 3/10

𝖆𝖈𝖙𝖎𝖓𝖌 - 7/10

𝖈𝖍𝖆𝖗𝖆𝖈𝖙𝖊𝖗𝖘 - 7/10

𝖕𝖗𝖔𝖉𝖚𝖈𝖙𝖎𝖔𝖓 - 10/10

𝕠𝕧𝕖𝕣𝕒𝕝𝕝 𝕒𝕧𝕖𝕣𝕒𝕘𝕖 - 6.7

o⃣u⃣t⃣    o⃣ f⃣    f⃣ i⃣v⃣ e⃣

𝖍𝖎𝖉𝖉𝖊𝖓 𝖌𝖊𝖒 𝖛𝖆𝖑𝖚𝖊 - 💎💎💎💎💎

[ honestly, this drama is pretty unique I have to give it that much. in every way. the characters? the premise? and the style? I think the visuals alone grants it it's five gem value. ] 

𝖗𝖊𝖜𝖆𝖙𝖈𝖍 𝖛𝖆𝖑𝖚𝖊 - ✨✨✨

[ despite the plot that is quite literally held up by like two stitches, I would probably rewatch it for the characters, but probably not think too deeply about the drama's construction as a whole because honestly- it would frustrate me to no end. ]

‘keep reading’ for detailed review

 𝖕𝖑𝖔𝖙 - 3

okay- hear me out y'all. I know people absolutely LOVE this drama and I am one of them, but I have to admit the logic in this plot sucks ass. like it really sucks ass. recently i heard a youtuber describe the characters as people who thought they were zhen huan but in reality were just a bunch of xia dongchuns and it really made me laugh- and guys... unfortunately, its true. some of the methods that the characters use to scheme and idk "verbally spar" honestly were just so- sigh. so ridiculous.

generally speaking, I felt that the drama didn't really have a "thread" or a central purpose, which I think is mainly a result of the build up to the ending. it failed to answer so many questions and instead made it worse by creating even more. overall, the plot kind of just felt like wading through a gigantic mud marsh with pointless confrontations and plot points popping up everywhere. the scriptwriters gave the drama a super complex framing that they just weren't able to do justice. two powerful sects and two people from completely opposing sides. one is an assassin-spy that initially (?) yearns for freedom and one is the leader of the sect that she is trying to destroy. add to that all the scheming that goes on the gong family. and a lot of childhood trauma. that's a shit-tonne of emotion and plotting to deal with which you can't realistically develop to a good quality within just 24 episodes.

I also got the vibe that the scriptwriters were scared to pin point any of their characters down for the sake of mystery, which honestly instead of making the drama better, really just made it worse. so many characters' motives were constantly doing 180s and big revelations were thrown in without any evidence of it being interlaced with the rest of the drama (I'm looking at you Big Plot Twist At End of Drama). like, the general concept was amazing, show-stopping, fantastic, never seen before, but then came the execution and it all just sort of fell apart.though I did enjoy the plot and watched the show until the end, ultimately I felt that there was honestly just too many frustrating flaws to justify it getting anything higher than 3. I loved the drama all the same though, the concept, the music and cinematography was just insane.

𝖈𝖍𝖆𝖗𝖆𝖈𝖙𝖊𝖗𝖘 - 7

ugh all the characters in this show where literally sO COOOLLL. they all had such distinctive characters, styles and personalities, it was amazing. honestly, literally never seen before. their tragic backstories were so so heartbreaking. while plot wasn't fantastic, the drama was pretty good at establishing and handling the characters and their emotional attachments to each other. its kinda funny to me that for a drama which marketed romance as it's main thing, the non-romantic relationships were so much better written. I loved yun weishan and yun que's relationship to their master han yasi and the relationship between xue chongzi and xue gongzi. and omg, gong ziyu's relationship to lady wuji? brought me to tears.

speaking of the romance department; I found it really hard to invest in the ships. while I approved of all the pairings and thought a romantic dynamic between them would be very interesting, it did feel like the storytelling was yet again lacking. I couldn't be sure wether I could really invest and ship the romance between shangguang qian and gong shangjue bcs both their motives were so unclear, and neither of their feelings towards one another were never really explored properly? and while I definitely understood yun weishan's attraction to gong ziyu, I didn't really get why gong ziyu loved her and risked so much for her which made some of his actions seem really silly and hard to stand by. overall, for the romance, i think I liked what it had the potential to be than what we actually got.

𝖕𝖗𝖔𝖉𝖚𝖈𝖙𝖎𝖔𝖓 - 10

Y'ALLL. time to talk about my absolute FAVOURITE part of this drama. THE PRODUCTION. the colouring, the lighting, the sets, the cinematography?? the makeup? the music? the costume design?? THE COSTUME DESIGN?? its quite obvious that a huge amount of the budget for this drama has simply been poured into the design, like I've seriously never seen a drama shot like this ever before and it was absolutely insane (though they definitely had to cut down on the cast and extras, the whole drama has this weird kind of empty feeling for a manor that is so rich and famous and so tightly guarded, like yun weishan didn't even get a personal handmaiden) I remember seeing the trailers for this show and literally screaming- the drama itself did not disappoint. I would even go as far to say that I would watch this drama completely just for the aesthetics.

𝖆𝖈𝖙𝖎𝖓𝖌 - 7

in my personal opinion, no complaints about the acting, it was pretty great. although it's pretty dramatic at times and everyone speaks at the volume of a whisper, at no point in the drama did I get taken out of the show by the acting. esther yu really slayed in her new assassin role which was so fun to watch especially since most of her roles thus far have been rather cutesy and light- and her marital arts scenes ate- in fact all the martial arts scenes ate in my opinion. I think even the side characters did fairly well, it was all very nice. no complaints.

.

.

𝖇𝖔𝖓𝖚𝖘!!

favourite character(s) : 

yue gongzi ( who doesn't love an angsty angsty man? he's literally the definition of that teary wet cat meme and I love that for him ) 

xue chongzi (yet another angsty man- you can see a pattern forming lmao- his arc at the end was literally so heartbreaking. one of my favourite characters from this show fr. )

.

𝖙𝖍𝖊 𝖈𝖗𝖊𝖜 (source mydramalist)

lead actors : esther yu, zhang linghe, lu yuxiao, cheng lei

director : guo jingming, luo luo

screenwriter : guo jingming

[altschmerzes]

THE 13 BOOKS I READ IN 2023 IN ORDER FROM BEST TO WORST + THE PROTAGONIST'S SUPERLATIVE. PART 1.

NOTE: this ranking is entirely based on how much i enjoyed the thing and not necessarily on anything quantifiable or concrete. except for 1 and 12 those are just i think empirically true. also, this got very very hard between 2-8 and i enjoyed everything above 10 like, immensely. that said:

1. The Last Unicorn by Peter S. Beagle. fucking gorgeous book. the writing was incredible, it made me feel like i needed to write right now right now right now or i was going to die and also why would i ever write again when i didn't write this. made me REEL several times and need to put it down and process it. i need to read it again and again. so much in there about the structure of story and fairytales and roles within a story and just. augh. man. i have at least a thousand words worth of highlights of quotes that make me completely insane. i want to write a dissertation on the interactions of amalthea and lír.

Protagonist: Amalthea/The Unicorn. Best Gender Moments And Unmatched Aro Vibes.

2. Blackcurrant Fool by Victoria Goddard. someone designed these books in a lab just to kill specifically me. i'm so thrilled i'm like, mad about it. this is book four in the series and included some MASSIVELY fun payoffs for some background references and foreshadowing that had been building for a while. some of my favourite tropes on this here earth are contained in this book and they make me insane in their execution. beloved. i kept having to put my face in my hands and shriek. like. literally. i liveblogged the last like ~30% of the book to several people. in detail.

Protagonist: Jemis Greenwing. Most Likely To Respond To A Given Situation With Both The Most Sincerely Heartfelt And Most Dramatic Option Possible And Then Insist That This Was The Obvious And Logical Thing To Do.

3. Bee Sting Cake by Victoria Goddard. some really excellent introductions to characters and concepts in here. did a good job as the second book in the series to continue keeping things interesting while maintaining and expanding on what was good about the first one, introducing new elements and making them play well with the established dynamics and situation. some really fun exploration of 'what if your two favourite people met each other and how would that go'. some delightful stuff about bees also which gets me in my feelings and the pov character has a good cry a couple times which he damn well deserves at this point.

Protagonist: (since there are two, i'm alternating for this series' superlatives) Peregrine Dart. Best At Being Totally And Completely Fine (Lying).

4. Stargazy Pie by Victoria Goddard. YES. I LIKED THESE BOOKS A LOT OKAY. THREE OF THEM IN A ROW. WHAT OF IT. very fun introduction to a series, it was a great first book. it delivered its worldbuilding in my favourite way for a fantasy series to do so, which is to just sort of drop me right in and explain as we go in a naturalistic kind of way. it meant i had to accept i just didn't know what was going on several times but that was fine. excellent combo of silly and serious and the characters are just. so charming and i'm so so fond of them. also i love a really stuffy strict distant society. bc then i'm like OHO TIME TO BREAK THESE RULES!!!

Protagonist: Jemis Greenwing. Most Likely To Have Everything Happen To Him So Much And All At Once.

5. By Force Alone by Lavie Tidhar. this book would probably have been ranked higher if it weren't for all the Someone's Got Their Dick Out. which is fine, go for it, but it felt like all the like. someone is getting their guts stabbed out and someone else is fuckin every other page is mostly a thematic thing that is supposed to drive home how gritty and grimy the narrative is. which y'know. not my bag. i like a gritty and grimy narrative but dude we know. that said it was extremely fun except for that, and i liked the way the characters were described a lot. they were not good people and it was deliberate and compelling. it was a lot to process all at once and i wish i'd slowed down with it - the last fourth of the book particularly hit me like a train. special shoutout to everything this book did with pelinore and the questing beast.

Protagonist: Arthur Pendragon. Most Doomed By The Narrative.

[actual-changeling]

…im sorry i feel like im still missing something. gabirel and beelzebub didn’t unlearn anything, though? they were in positions of power and left the system when they got bored. they’ve never been terrified for so long the way crowley and aziraphale have been (as far as we know). they implemented fear into the lower ranking demons and angels to keep them in line with threats of violence, of falling, condescension, and actual implementation of punishment via execution. g+b arent comparable to a+c because g+b actually felt like they had control over things in their lives. and what other angels and demons have unlearned everything the system has taught them? do you mean unlearn as in they now view the system the same way crowley does? if i understand you correctly (and correct me if im wrong), you’re saying aziraphale is in the same position as all the other angels so therefore has no excuse to “not change” but he (and crowley) are in distinctly unique positions from everyone else because of their time on earth and with each other. that gives them unique struggles, right?

I'm sorry, but at this point I'm wondering if you've even watched the show because it is all right there on the screen.

Aziraphale is in a unique position yes, and it is BETTER than literally everyone else's. Heaven does not give a single fuck about what he does and does not do, he has more freedom than any other celestial being and can do whatever the hell he wants. The only time heaven cares about him is if he is directly working against their world-ending plans—otherwise they forget he exists. This is canon. Heaven somehow judging and punishing him is made up. They don't care about earth or what Aziraphale does down there.

And are you trying to tell me that Gabriel and Beez are somehow in charge of the system? Because they're not. They're victims just like everyone else. The Metatron could have his memory erased and his life destroyed with a snap—they survived the way they were forced to live, just like every other angel. They have no more control than Muriel does, they are just as paranoid and terrified and lonely. They can be punished like everyone else, their jobs are high-risk.

Gabriel is not lying to Beez' face. He is not insulting them, being cruel, trying to change them, or calling them an evil demon like it is the worst thing it could possibly be. Beez is fine with being a demon and Gabriel is fine with being an angel, and they both understand that those identities mean absolutely nothing once you look past the institution. Everyone knows that, except for Aziraphale, because he refuses to see that.

Angels are working with demons, and yes, they have their roles, but they also know that those only matter while they're actively doing their jobs. None of them have fucking control, not demons, not Archangels, not Dukes of hell, not Crowley. Angels and demons are not the enemy here.

Heaven and hell as institutions are, not individuals who were forced to live within them.

Again, Aziraphale had almost total freedom because he's been on earth since the beginning, his "concern" is based on made-up beliefs so he does not have to look past his own comfort.

"Unique struggles" for CROWLEY, who is canonically being tortured and followed and watched 24/7. And HE STILL CHANGED. He fucking worked on himself, he is not being cruel or cowardly, he is not hurtful, he understands what it means to live in an abusive system and he still changed because that's what is right. What is decent. Crowley is kind despite the fact that it can get him killed because he actually looked in the mirror and built his own moral compass instead of shutting eyes & ears and sticking to bigoted views to make his life easier.

Aziraphale does not change because he does not want to. He keeps hurting Crowley because it's the path of least resistance, the easiest way to avoid having to look in the mirror, and he takes it for granted that Crowley will come back to him no matter what. That he can demand anything and everything and Crowley will follow—and if he doesn't, he throws a tantrum like a toddler and goes to pout in a corner (see the argument about Gabriel in episode one, for example).

Aziraphale was in a unique position with endless opportunities and he did absolutely nothing with it—his beliefs and words are the same as on the walls of Eden. Six thousand years and Crowley is still the second choice and heaven his first.

[dizzy-pops]

Just saw someone saying that (paraphrasing) “being trans is a first world problem bc you’re so spoiled that you’ve run out of things to complain about and now you’re trying to change your gender! Just be happy with what you have. At least you have a roof over your head!!”

Which- SO many things to fucking unpack here. But because I care and will NEVER be silent about this, I’ve done it and organized it into sections. This is gonna be a long read, so buckle up.

-Being transgender is NOT a first world problem. The reason it might seem that way is because in many third world countries you can literally be executed if you are outwardly queer. Keeping their identity hidden will literally save some people’s lives. The governments in several countries are EXTREMELY transphobic (and homophobic, but that’s another issue.) Dressing to match their authentic gender CAN and DOES get transgender people murdered. Either by the government, or others.

-Where the fuck did transphobes even come up with the idea that trans people “choose” to be trans because they’re bored? Yes, cause people totally choose to be ostracized from the rest of the world and live a life of fear, knowing that the next time you need to use a public bathroom, it’s very possible you could get beaten to death. People have not “become so spoiled they’ve run out of things to complain about.” That is not the reason people are trans, I fucking promise.

-Trans people do not choose to change their gender. Most trans people’s gender DOESN’T change at all throughout their life. They just don’t realize that they are trans until later in life. There are of course exceptions to this, the main one being genderfluidity, and we cannot forget about or exclude genderfluid people whose gender actually DOES change, but even then, they do not choose to change genders. It just happens. Just as being a binary trans person just happens. There is no way to prevent it, or to cause it. IT JUST HAPPENS. And people NEED to understand that. More often than not, people who believe people “become” trans also think that trans people are trying to “turn” cis children trans. I can personally assure you, no trans person is seriously trying to turn anyone trans. What would the point of that be? There would be literally NO reason for a transgender person to try to “turn” a child trans. I, for one, seriously wouldn’t wish this on my worst enemy. Except maybe Matt Walsh.

-“Just be happy with what you have!” Think about what you just said. No, seriously, I want you to sit and think about what you just said, and why you think that’s an ok thing to say. Because it’s not. And it’s much easier said than done. Don’t you think we wish we could just be happy with what we have? Don’t you think that a lot of trans people wish with ALL our fucking heart that we could just be cis? And yes, there are plenty of trans people who ARE happy with what they have, and that’s wonderful! But you need to understand that the majority of trans people have some form of dysphoria and saying “just be happy with what you have” to a trans person is like telling an insomniac to “just go to sleep.” It just doesn’t work that way.

-To assume that every person reading what you shat out would, in fact, have a roof over their head is ignorant as all fuck. It is a fact that many homeless people are transgender or otherwise queer. Queer people make up a HUGE percentage of people who are homeless, whether that be due to being kicked out by their parents, not being able to find work, no one wanting to sell them a house, or any other reason under the sun. Many trans people are poor and/or homeless because they are trans. Either for any of the reasons mentioned above, or any other reason. It’s classist to assume that the trans person reading your bullshit statement would even have a roof over their head.

-Tl;dr: Being transgender is not a first world problem, people are not trans because they’re “bored” or “spoiled” or any other reason like that, trans people don’t choose to change their gender, it’s easier said than done to be happy with your body, and implying that every trans person has a home is classist and ignorant.