#and we're like yeah that seemed like foreshadowing

[vidavalor]

Leave the Gun, Eat a Damn Cannoli

Satan to The Metatron like...

And Aziraphale all like...

And Satan all... going with me is not actually a choice, really, Az, I mean, wait 'til I actually get to the 'offer you can't refuse' part...

You ever see 'The Godfather', Az? I know you have.

You remember the film producer that wouldn't give Johnny Fontane the role in that movie? Do you remember how The Godfather forced his hand? The producer was a bit tough to crack at first until they realized what he loved more than anything in the world, remember?

His horse.

Do you remember what they did to get that guy to play ball, Az?

They killed the horse, chopped off its head, and left it in the guy's bed when he was sleeping. He woke up soaked in its blood and screamed the house down. It's one of the most notorious and disturbing scenes in cinematic history. Don't worry, though-- we're gonna do that shit a bit more symbolically here. Think of it as more of an allusion to the film than a literal recreation.

Your horse is Crowley. Amusingly, both euphemistically and symbolically. He's who you love more than anything else. We can also get in his head because he's a demon so there's that bit of the "horse head" in here as well, just for dark amusement.

Instead of killing him, though, which will just tick you off and make you harder to tempt to Hell and get out of the way for Armageddon 2: Armageddon Returns, we're gonna make you an offer you can't refuse:

Crowley's safety.

Yeah, I'm going to show up as The Metatron and tempt you by offering the one thing you would never refuse--no matter how slim the odds of the offer being true seemed-- because you have no choice. You would do anything to keep Crowley safe. Anything. Your unconditional love would be beautiful if I weren't evil incarnate and all that.

I mean, of all the nebulas for my stooge to reference, right?

Just FYI-- we watch more than Mary Poppins down here. This bit below is from 1941, so, really, Shax ghost-wrote part of the novel and film, apparently...

The show we're in has been telegraphing allusions to this film as a thing for awhile now, actually, Aziraphale... you rejecting oranges in 1601... Gabriel and the spilled tomatoes out of the wooden crates in the marketplace in 2.01... the fact that he then spent a chunk of S2 taking a nap in your house after betraying us, so, that Luca Brasi Gabriel was doing a form of, well...

...sleeping with the fishes...

...but really, ya know, the strongest suggestion of all this The Godfather referencing was when those writers of our show told us how it was tied to how you wind up going Down-- way back in the first episode. You foreshadowed it, actually...

You said it yourself then, Aziraphale:

Yep. That's the idea.

[winepresswrath]

genuinely though show louis not killing lestat is completely unforgivable. book louis just, you know, doesn't particularly want to kill lestat and so he doesn't. deliberately deluded himself into believing it would never come to this. nevertheless participates in swamp motion, and also arson. show louis knows that lestat cuts him slack that is not afforded to claudia, agrees with claudia that lestat needs to die if they're going to be free, commits to the plan, and then goes "nah" at the last second?? they are immortal. the reprieve louis offers lestat is a probable death sentence for claudia. that is your daughter-sister louis!!! unfortunately i am in the business of forgiving the unforgivable and he seems very sad. however when the armandening comes i'm going to be furious.

[darkcircles4lyfe]

it's a story about hands (reprise)

Yeah, okay, today's the day.

I gave my blog that title for a reason, you know, and it has loomed over me for years because the hand motif is absolutely everywhere and you could go on about it forever.

Maybe that's something I'll never actually attempt to do, but this chapter, we reached a breaking point.

Before I continue, I need to give a big, big disclaimer: I do not have a physical disability, so I'm not able to speak about that from the standpoint of representation as a first-hand perspective. I have at least listened to enough disabled people to know that fictional characters who become amputees only to miraculously gain their limbs back is, um, a trope. Disabled people in general being "healed" is a conception we would really prefer to avoid here. Not to call people out, but I don't think we're giving enough space to acknowledge that.

I don’t feel comfortable making the judgement call about what should happen. I’m leaving that open. I also don't want to downplay people's emotional reactions. Honestly, I don't know if I can accurately define the line between acknowledging real pain vs. ableist pity. But I’d like to talk about the possibilities of what could happen. Other characters have definitely gotten permanent disabilities as a result of their hero work, or even just the side effects of their quirk. But, for better or worse, I don't think this case is really about representation. Not that Horikoshi won't do that justice. He might. What I'm saying is that's not his purpose for having Izuku lose his arms. It's meant to be symbolic, so we can explore what it means. The other thing I’m keeping in mind here is that Horikoshi is notorious for playing with our expectations, like, alllllll the time. I mean, just take a few chapters ago for a classic example. Eri appeared at the end, and we all assumed she was about to take some sort of action to save someone with her quirk. Then, immediately following, we were given an explanation for why that wouldn’t be happening. And now it’s clear he wanted to do that “fake out” not just as a silly cliffhanger prank, but specifically so we would know not to suspect that Eri could be the miraculous solution to Izuku’s loss of his arms. Rest assured, there is no easy way out of this.

The expectation at play in this particular instance is an old one. It’s very understated, but its subtext has burned so brightly, you’d be a fool not to notice it. It sits with anticipation like one half of a call and response. Man, I was so certain. Lots of people still are. I was really looking forward to printing the panel where it happened onto a t shirt and wearing it proudly. All the hand motifs in this story radiate thematically from a single moment, the one that started it all for Izuku.

It raises all kinds of questions about the act of saving, who needs saving, why, what does it mean, what are the dynamics of power, politics, honesty, exploitation, compassion, pity, disdain, sacrifice. Katsuki has dealt with many of these since he first rejected Izuku’s hand. While Izuku was the one who was convinced Katsuki would keep on rejecting him…

…Katsuki was the one who kept that moment in his mind all these years and eventually came to regret it.

Katsuki is the one yearning for that hand-hold, the one who has imbued it with so much more weight than it ever originally had. Izuku, in contrast, does not allow himself to dwell on what he wants. To illustrate this difference, we need to look at another piece of foreshadowing:

Ugh, do y'all remember when lots of folks were complaining about how there never seemed to be actual consequences for Izuku's destructive treatment of his own body? I don't blame them, I was concerned and confused about it too. There were several "fixes" along the way. Recovery Girl healed him, but left a physical reminder. Then he started training to fight with his legs… sometimes. Then he got support items. All of these were unsatisfying non-conclusions because they didn't present Izuku with a lasting enough impression to change in a meaningful way. They didn't address his core, his origin.

Of course, that all changed this chapter. Now it looks like our frustration was inflicted intentionally. With the current context in mind, all of these moments look more sinister, like this day was always gonna come because they kept putting bandaids on a deep emotional and psychological wound. The problem is pretty much spelled out for us here:

As Katsuki put it, he just doesn’t take himself into account, ya know? He doesn’t care what happens to him. And he lies about it, to keep others from worrying, to keep them safe. To keep them from returning the favor and putting themselves in harm’s way for his sake. His motivations are noble,

…but what about the little boy inside Izuku? Who saves him?

This is all about Izuku giving himself up to the point that he literally has no more to give. The thing is, I bet he saw this coming. He knew his limits and decided to keep going anyway, because his personal safety and wellbeing are not important. Now that way of thinking has come back to bite him because the fight isn’t over yet, and he’s already made his sacrifice. So now we know who will be more distraught over this. Not Izuku—Katsuki.

It’s not about Izuku becoming disabled, it’s about how Katsuki wanted to use the intertwining of their fingers to communicate that he would never let go. Never stop valuing him most. Never let himself make the mistake of rejecting him again. Never let Izuku be so reckless with his life. To say: “we are in this together.”…if only Katsuki believed he deserved to be able to say such things. To reach out his hand would have been the ultimate way to simply imply them and let Izuku be the one to decide. Then, to feel their hands clasped together would be more than either of them dared hope for, but so beautiful, so right. A moment they’ve waited their whole lives for.

Yeah. That’s what we were expecting. We’ve been so comfortable. Horikoshi gave us all the signs. He tempted and teased us over and over. BUT. You know he does this thing were he gives us a desirable, completely plausible and simple thing to look forward to, and then he snatches it away. And THEN he replaces it with something much better, something we were not expecting at all because it seemed too good to be true. That’s exactly what happened when Himiko snatched Izuku away, and we were robbed of the chance to see him and Katsuki fight together. In hindsight, though, I’m glad things went a different way because now there’s so much more depth and angst on display. Likewise, in the present moment, we may consider how, as one door closes, another opens.

As wonderfully meaningful as the hand-hold would have been, perhaps it is still too simple a resolution for Izuku, for his and Katsuki’s relationship. Tbh, it could have been done like 100 chapter ago. At this point, there’s so much more potential. There are a couple of ways it could go. If Izuku stays armless, Katsuki will be forced to use other methods to get his point across. He’ll have to do something else, or say what he means, or both. Yes, I’m talking about what you think I’m talking about. If I say it, I just might jinx it (lol), but I mean it. I’m being serious. Either way, if Izuku did get his arms back in the end, I’m sure that it wouldn’t be an easy fix. It would be hard-won against Izuku’s self-destructive mindset, and/or by Katsuki’s conviction. Again, I say this knowing it is not meant so much as a representation of disability, but as a representation of Izuku’s greatest character flaw taken to the extreme. I know this might sound harsh, like, hasn’t he been through enough? I get that, but… I’ve said it before and I say it again: Izuku is stubborn as hell.

I wish I had a resounding final note to end this on, but I kinda don’t. I’m not sure what’s best. Now we just have to wait and see what Horikoshi has in mind.

[ghouly-boiiiii]

The potential for Ghoulcy to be canon may be more likely than y'all think...

Honestly, if it were any other IP I would say there's no way, but this is Fallout we're talking about. A franchise which prides itself on indulging in the ridiculous and absurd scenarios it can come up with.

They've already done it in the games. Hancock is a romance candidate for your character in Fallout 4 and he's a ghoul, so like, the idea of pairing a human with a ghoul is not a new idea in the franchise.

Plus, I feel like there has been some potential actual foreshadowing for it in the show. Not just Norms husband talk in the beginning, but the fact that Lucy is a very frisky lady and not squeamish in the slightest both lend itself to the possibility. Now, that could all just be for the funny, but they do seem like very oddly specific choices on the writers part.

As for Max, I think the line the doctor says, "Will you still want the same things when you've become a whole other animal all together?" is gonna be pretty relevant here. Lucy thought she was gonna find her dad, then go back to her vault and live happily ever after with her LITERAL knight in shining armor. But now that she knows the truth... that probably doesn't seem as appealing as it used to be anymore.

So yeah... probably still unlikely BUT I don't think it's at all out of the realm of possibility. I can definitely see the creators going in that direction just to be funny and shock people, but maybe even more so if they find out there are fans who are actually into it... 😅 I mean who knows? I can dream...

But yes, I know. Maybe this is just all wishful thinking, but I don't care. I'm gonna ride this train til it crashes and burns!! Ghoulcy forever, baby!!

EDIT: I just wanted to quickly add that Walton Goggins also talked about how he and the creators deliberately set out to try and make the Ghoul "kind of hot" (which they obviously succeeded at, because here we are lol). And while, sure, that may have just been for freaky fans like us, there could be another reason if their intention from the beginning was to have a romantic arc with The Ghoul. Gonna give us that whole Beauty and the Beast trope, Fallout edition y'all haha 😃

[laufire]

just finished watching "never fear", and episode of the new batman adventures clearly based on "fear for sale", a post-crisis!jason story. so of course, I have some thoughts!

both share the premise that scarecrow has invented a new toxin that removes fear. the episode then deviates from the issue in several ways, for example with the choice of the targets: comics!scarecrow offered his drug to athletes, tnba!scarecrow went through a middleman who offered it to scaredy cats who wanted a leg up in life (btas had a plot about scarecrow using his classic fear toxin on athelets while dick was robin though, so I get why they wanted to switch things up). another difference is in how early bruce is dosed with the anti-fear toxin AND the way it affected him. the biggest one is jason's role versus timmy todd's, though.

as a sidenote before I get into the meat of it: this episode does also showcase the little ways in which they differ in personality. timmy todd fits the *idea* your average middle-class person would have of a street kid lol. not necessarily in a bad way, always, but to me it's telling that jason's academic enthusiasm and artistic inclinations seem nowhere to be found in timmy todd.

but let's get into it. in the comic, jason and bruce are at the racetrack and they help rescue a driver whose car was catching on fire (bruce goes for him, ordering a nervous jason to dose it with water). later jason is dosed with classic fear toxin (and sees a burning bruce disappointed in him) and gets kidnapped by scarecrow and used as bait. scarecrow has also dosed batman with the anti-fear toxin, hoping to see him destroy himself out of fearlessness, but obviously bruce pulls through via some impressive feats. the comic ends with this image that just. yeah we're gonna forget about the unintentional foreshadowing for a moment because OUCH.

detective comics #571

in the show, bruce gets dosed early on, and it makes him dangerous. it, specifically, removes his fear of killing. timmy todd, the only other bat in the episode, has to task himself with stopping bruce. and he's very proactive about it, vis a vis comics!jason's more passive role. and very effective! he ties up bruce, he doesn't fall for his trick when bruce pretends he's seen the error of his ways, frees himself from some cuffs in the *very brief* time he's subdued, and gives batman the antidote, stopping him from killing the scarecrow. bruce validates his choices at the end of the episode, telling him he did the right thing.

this is the first time I've seen some comics!tim in timmy todd, though it's two-fold. I think one half of it could be and probably was intentional, while I suspect the other half is a matter of the show's creators developing similar goals as comics!tim's writers in an organical manner.

the first half is this: "fear for sale" was telling a story about bruce as a father and caretaker, and about jason as his child and charge; "never fear" was following the idea of comics!tim as a jiminy cricket figure, someone who stops bruce from "crossing the line". the context is different (inner conflict vs. external influence), and timmy todd does it in a timmy todd way and not a tim drake way, because their personalities are notably different. but the idea is there.

the other half is, timmy todd, just like dc comics when they created robin!tim drake, had writers that wanted him to be more proactive, to more *independence* as a HERO than the role of robin afforded post-crisis!jason.

this, as I said, I don't think it was tnba's writers "grabbing" a trait from comics!tim. mainly because it was not a trait only afforded to tim, although he is who perfected it. batman and robin are a duo but, although I'm not an expert on this era, dick already left gotham and had his own team and his own adventures as robin, separate from bruce. and pre-crisis!jason was also more proactive in his role, insisting on his role as partner, etc.

it's curious because bruce has that infamous scene where he tells gordon to basically treat jason as an adult because of how his difficult life experiences had made him "mature", the comics at this time very much do not treat jason as an adult, imo. even later, when starlin comes with his own agenda, I would maintain that: he doesn't see jason as an innocent kid, but neither, obviously, as Batman's Partner with everthing that comes with it.

and just... it's definitely something I've felt before, but this episode makes me feel more than a little mournful for what could have been, you know? mournful for what jason could have been, had he been allowed to really mature into the role, and enjoyed the perks that came with it.

[nalyra-dreaming]

Hi Nalyra!

I love your blog (it keeps me sane and feels like such a safe space). And so I wanted to get your opinion on some 2x06 things I noticed.

Namely, it really felt like the writers were setting up more groundwork for DM in this ep?! And I say this with pleasant suprise because I wasn't expecting it?

For me, the inclusion of more of Armand's backstory (that he has never made a fledgling despite how old and badass he is) as well as some of his fears/philosophy (that he doesn't have trust/faith in the longevity of the maker X fledgling relationship) serves as such important groundwork for why it would matter if Armand were to ever turn someone! Without those stakes being introduced to us, there would be diminished emotional payoff if Armand were to ever turn someone.

This way it is gently foreshadowed/set up in the back of our minds that circumstances would have to be really extreme for the powerful and wisened vampire Armand to ever be convinced to Turn someone. He is too mistrusing of it. And if they are introducing that concept to us, that makes it classic foreshadowing. (Like, I felt the anticipation rise before I even clocked why.)

Daniel's big reaction to finding out Armand never made a fledgling is to emphasise the significance of that revelation for the viewers. But it is so sneaky and all the more perfect because it is *Daniel* reacting to that revelation. If you know, you know, right? It feels like one of those moments deliberately set up for people to go 'oh shitttt!' to on rewatches once the Things are Done lol.

THEN add onto that all the mystery being set up about Daniel's apartment and the access Armand and Louis have to it somehow. And mix in Jacob's ambiguous words in the post-ep Insider about both Louis and Daniel being Kept things for Armand *throughout the years*...

I am not going full delulu with these things, right? The set-ups feel so clever... However long it takes to use them...

(All that being said, I didn't appreciate the other foreshadowing about Raglan saying shit like if only he could Body Swap with Daniel he'd be running the Talamasca... That better just have been hinting at Raglan's story in general. No matter what, we're in danger, gurl. Lol)

Hey!

Glad you like my little corner!!! 💕

No, you're not going full delulu, I do see it exactly like that. A lot of little hints, a lot of groundwork. Whatever happens, they set up the importance of it all with this.

Daniel who will be Armand's only fledgling... and the complicated feelings Armand has on that are already clear. We now know there is a lot of history, and we know that... Louis seems to have been involved, too, in some kind of fashion.

I adore how they are setting it all up. It's definitely done for the book fans, because... yes, if you know, you know^^ And if you don't... it will probably fly over one's head.

And the thing with Raglan... yeah. ... I mean, there's a lot of canon possibilities. But... yeah. They're going there^^

We better brace ourselves^^

[kamiko1234]

Okay done with chapter 10 starting with chapter 11 of The Lightning Thief, and normally I planned on not making a post on every single chapter BUT, I do have some changes/additions in my traitor theories.

So first off, Annabeth is the traitor. SO far has the most prove in the book imo (which is till meager), but I REALLY don't like how she told Percy that they HAVE to not get along because of their parents. Personally I just think that's more proof for my "Annabeth is the traitor" theory.

She was pretty nice to Percy pre-claiming, and on the bus she did fully intend sacrificing herself for him. But she also seems to have this very deep anchored world view of how their parents should affect them and their actions.

So, I modify my theory : Annabeths a traitor, but will get a redemption arc. The reason for the betrayal stays the same, her mom and her rivalry with Poseidon. And Annabeth would think that she NEEDS to betray Percy bc she's the kid of her mom.

So instead of being a malicious traitor, she'd be more like a tragic, indoctrinated villain who needs to be shown to do better ! It most definitely would be interesting.

HOWEVER, this is based of the reaction of another friend when I talked to them about my theories and they reacted very...... weird. After some time I threw in Grover being the traitor more as a joke and while not SAYING anything, that silence was SHOUTING.

So, Grover being the traitor. Canon proof ? Not rly there. Would it be one hell of a plot twist ? YES. Could be bitterness maybe ? My impression was that Satyrs were sort of servants or atleast bellow halfbloods in some way. I could deffo see him getting worked up over that.

Then however he did have a close relationship with Percy and a GOOD reason to stay loyal to get his license. So may I present : Multi-book build up of Grover betraying Percy.

With that I mean, should Grover be the traitor I think he wouldn't betray Percy in this book. Chiron said smth about prophecies having double meanings, so I assume they can be kinda wacky. Imagine Grover slowly building resent against the demi gods for how they use his ppl as tools/servants, and betrays Percy/the halfbloods as a whole in a later book. It could be a cool moment where the thing mentioned in the first book comes back around !

I do however admit myself, that theory is a WILD. Like, WILD WILD. And my only thing to go off on is the silence of my friend and the emoji's they send as a response. Take that theory with the BIGGEST grain of salt.

The third option I think possible : The traitor isn't gonna be Annabeth OR Grover, but will be a character later introduced. Comes from me starting to think that Annabeth could be a bit obvious with the whole sudden switch in how she acts with Percy making it a bit obvious. And the Grover theory being borderline crack.

That option would be my fav, since tbh I don't RLY want Annabth to go villain (even if the redemtion arc would be juicy as hell) but I also don't want Grover to start resenting his friends.

Logically speaking I do think it's Annabeth more likely than Grover tho. (Considering I now have theories for both being the traitor we're basically back to square one. Kill me, please.)

ON ANOTHER NOTE; apparently it's quite common for the author to describe scars as ugly looking and evil. (Thanks to the wonderful user who gave me that info !) Which, first off, YIKES. Not good, like at all.

That fact does however help me with my theory, since it allows me to safely eliminate one character for sure now. Luke !

I mean, I already didn't think it was him. The only thing that made me peek up was when he was described as evil-looking in that one paragraph. But if that (sadly) apparently is a norm, then it more likely than not wasn't foreshadowing.

So yeah, it's not gonna be Luke so I can just start to safely ignore him in my traitor theories. (Not like I ever considered him a real candidate in the first place, he's just safely eliminated in my head now)

[smalltownrobin]

I'm having a moment where I feel like I'm looking way too much into things but also that I am an absolute genius. You can decide which one I am.

So I'm remembering this funko shot listing pic they gave us back in november.

I still couldn't tell you what I definitely think is happening in this shot (apart from a very interesting theory of a collective Vecna trance a la that hotel episode of doctor who where they all have to deal with their darkest fears in this maze of hotel rooms, much like a "crawl" in d&d would suggest, but this isn't about that idea), but I do think knowing what we know at this point about what's being filmed for s5 (and more importantly WHO has filmed together), I think it's quite telling.

Walk with me for a second.

Based on things definitely confirmed about filming and potential leaks that could or couldn't be true, these groups are what I'm fairly certain about. There's been a couple rumours of El and Lucas working together this season trying to save Max, and they're next to each other. We've seen Joyce and possibly Will filming together, and they're next to each other. We also know from multiple photos and blatant spoilers that Robin and Will have been filming together quite a bit (swallowing my own opinion about that, let's just say I'm not totally thrilled), and they're next to each other. Whether Robin and Joyce have filmed anything together, idk. Then finally we know from both that pre-vis shot and the last photodump that Nancy, Jonathan, Steve and probably Dustin have filmed together in Steve's car, and oh look they're all together.

Right, Vickie. You will have to hear me out on this one. It may in part be my own desire to have Vickie actually involved in the bloody plot this time, but as far as we know about what they've filmed so far, Max is still in a coma. Vickie does not have a funko, and the Max funko in the shot seems to be furthest away from everyone, but closest to Robin, AND is faced down. Maybe they could have used Barb as another ginger girl to use as her placeholder and I'm being delusional, maybe that really is Max out of her coma fully functional by the second episode (cos oh yeah this shot is supposed to be within the first two episodes) and she's just faced down for the heck of it, but for the purposes of my current thoughts, we're going to assume it's supposed to be Vickie.

So based on all that, this is what I think could end up being some groupings for s5, at least for a little while.

They don't have to be permanent (god I HOPE they're not permanent cos why are you separating stobin again), but we could get these neat little three groups of four for at least a couple episodes maybe.

Nancy, Jonathan, Steve and Dustin, pretty certain have something to do on that farm in Steve's car, although half that pre-vis said jancy were in the upside down so maybe the car splits in half, idk. If so, rest in peace Steve's BMW.

Robin, Vickie, Will and Joyce, not a clue what they're doing, but if they are one big group they seem to be switching between downtown hawkins and the farm set again. Real world or upside down, idk.

Then El, Mike, Lucas and Hopper, not a ruddy clue couldn't tell you a thing in all honesty. We know both mileven and Hopper have filmed at the radio station, but so has everyone, so they might have absolutely nothing to do with whatever mini plot this may end up being, if it is one.

Whether this shot DIRECTLY links to how these groups end up grouped up, idk but it seems likely. Whatever is even happening here could lead into it, or it could just be simple foreshadowing of some sort. Maybe my groupings are wrong, maybe I'm talking out of my arse, irdk.

Sorry I feel like that was long, I am one of this planet's ramblers I cannot keep on topic and I say things in WAY too many words, so well done if you read it all, you're mad.

[dnalt-d2]

So is anyone else just not fully believing the whole thing about BBH dying anymore?

Like yeah, with the radiation poisoning and the coughing and the "foreboding words" he keeps speaking, it sure seems like he's gonna keel over any day now

But that's kinda the problem

Anyone else remember when he was SUPER hinting that he ate Ron? With like, full-on crunching sound effects? When he acted at one point like he was gonna actually kidnap someone??

And then Ron turned up fine

And he ASKED Pac to go visit him, instead of actually doing a kidnapping

(I know there's other stuff too, but I can't think of them at the moment, unfortunately. If you have any examples leaning either way, feel free to let me know, I'd love to hear it)

He's been making a bit of a habit of doing all this seemingly obvious foreshadowing, just to turn around and be like "Lol, gotcha!! I gave Ron a house and fluffy bunny slippers!! Why were you even worrying, you silly muffins???"

It just feels to me like he's laying it on kinda thick, is all. Even just tonight, he was telling Pomme that "Everyone has to die sometime" and really heavily implying that he might do so himself soon

Now obviously, this could just be the one case where he delivers on the thing we're expecting 100% and I'll eat my words once again

The only reason I'm not entirely UNconvinced is because there really would be a lot of angst if he died and forgot everything, and I think we all know that Bad RELISHES in that sort of thing. He'd even roleplay it out really well, if the return from Purgatory streams are any indication

Not to mention the potential developments that would come from that. Like him reading his memory book, seeing that he wrote "Cucurucho is maybe a friend" and then suddenly we'd have a Fed-Allied BBH, and THAT would be super interesting

I dunno, I could see this going either way, but Bad has a really good way of surprising us

So while I can't be sure what it will be, I'm positive of what it won't be

What we expect

[she-posts-nerdy-stuff]

Analysing my favourite lines from Six of Crows chapter by chapter: Chapter 3, part 3

Same as usual: famous or popular quotes being missed doesn't mean I don't like them it just means I don't have anything new to say, and some quotes will not have explanations because I just like them I don't really have anything to analyse

' "We fed [jurda parem] to three Grisha, one from each order,"

"Happy volunteers?"

"Indentures," ' - the VOLUMES this speaks. And the willingness with which he admits it because it's such a normalised practice??? I think Anya is actually a really underrated character and we should talk about her more

"[amplifiers] only increase a Grisha's power. Jurda parem alters a Grisha's perception" - can we talk about how Leigh Bardugo is a goddamn freaking genius for foreshadowing the plot of KoS/RoW with this single line? Because that's insane. This line specifically implies that the power parem unlocks for a Grisha is always possible, they simply lack the perception or understanding of it to find that power without the drug inhibiting whichever neural pathways it inhibits. The ability to shed yourself of the restrictions created by strict limitations between abilities, the Orders, etc. is always there but because there's such an ingrained cultural belief Grisha have effectively lost the ability to perceive their power in the way the Saints once did. I hope this makes sense, it kind of links to my post about the small science versus magic in terms of the revelation in KoS and RoW. Even Nina explicitly states that Heartrenders and Healers have the same gift but perceive it in different ways, and yeah I feel like I'm rambling but hopefully this makes sense, I think it's incredible foreshadowing particularly because we really think nothing of it in the moment.

' "What does it do to sorry sobs like you and me?"

Van Eck seemed to bristle slightly at being lumped in with Kaz, but he said:

"It's lethal" ' - ok so first of all I love that Van Eck's superiority complex is so very obvious from so early on, and in this particularly moment it's brilliantly conflicted as well because Van Eck will also see himself as superior to Grisha since he owns Mika's contract on indenture and possibly others. Second I would argue this is yet another red herring, I talk about this constantly but Leigh Bardugo embodies her own ideology of 'always hit where the mark isn't looking' in her writing style and will often give us hints that seem like foreshadowing but never come into play, whilst using them to far more subtly foreshadow what actually happens. Have I ever mentioned that I think she's a genius? In this case, reading these lines made me more concerned that an otkazats'ya character such as Kaz or Inej was going to end up injesting the drug and being killed by it than I was a Grisha character such as Nina. Now that's partly becasue this is given to us before we find out the kind of toll the drug takes on a Grisha and so we don't see anything to fear in it for Grisha themselves, only for the otkazats'ya who fear a loss of their dominance/control. In actuality we never see any otkazats'ya character forced to or accidentally ingest the drug, because it's a precious and rare resource that would only be wasted on killing them when there are plenty of other methods, but in this moment - particularly since, as far as we know, we're yet to meet a Grisha main character - parem is established as more threatening to the characters we know than the characters we don't, so our immediate concerns are raised towards them and we let our guard down slightly to the idea of a Grisha main character being threatened by the drug. Now yes, the danger of the drug for Grisha is established very quickly after this, and our fears for Nina taking it do become much more heightened than any other character, even Jesper, during the Ice Court Heist, but there are still a lot of red herrings and hidden pieces of foreshadowing surrounding Nina's ingestion of the drug, most notably Matthias saving her from Jarl Brum and appearing to have alleviated the threat of the drug only for her to take it by her own choice shortly afterwards, and we still have this initial perception in our minds for what we were first told about the drug: powerful to Grisha, lethal to otkazats'ya.

The fear that I've spelt otkazats'ya a different way every time I wrote it in that paragraph is real.

"If it's not identical to gold in every way then the difference has eluded us. Have it tested if you like," - the challenge, the superiority complex, good lord I detest this man

' "Perhaps you heard of the Shu paying off their debt to Kerch with a sudden influx of gold? The assassination of the trade ambassador from Novyi Zem? The theft of documents from a military base in Ravka?"

[...]

Kaz hadn't heard anything about Ravkan documents, but he nodded anyway. ' - I think this is another red herring (????) I remember reading this for the first time and thinking it must be really important but then it never seems to come up again, or at least not that I've noticed in any of my rereads. If anyone has noticed that it's referencing something please let me know because I might just be missing something, but it catches me out every time

' "Financial markets would be thrown into chaos. The world economy would collapse,"

"How very exciting," ' - I love him

' "At the Ice Court,"

Kaz stared at him for a long moment, then burst out laughing. ' - not only is this so goddamn iconic of Kaz but it's actuallu a really clever writing tool as well, because with this reaction and the short exchange that follows Bardugo quickly and succinctly tells us all everything we need to know about the Ice Court at this time, ie it's impenetrable, introduces the main premise of the novel, and successfully hints at her worldbuilding in a way that tells us there's more to discover but we don't have to deal with it right now. It's effectively a brilliant way of avoiding an infodump and it gets to come hand in hand with such an iconic Kaz moment, so bonus points.

"Kaz pocketed his pistol" - this is so funny to me because I'm sure they establish it's Van Eck's pistol but he just takes it and no-one questions him I love it

"There's no point to a fortune I won't be alive to spend" -later echoed by "you can't spend his money if you're dead" and I find this really interesting because it implies that Kaz absolutely has a set price in his mind for everything. Ten million kruge is not worth drying for but thirty is.

"He had the eerie sense that the carved fish on the walls had halted mid-leap to listen" - I love this so much. Just as a quote in itself I love it. But also, there is a kind of theme following through of this discomfort the characters often find in murals, mosaics, and the like, and they are also often used as a metaphor to represent the character's relationships or arcs, such as the wolves destined to run in circles for as long as the Ice Court stands that represent Kaz and Inej or Nina's comment about how Ravkan folk monsters wait to be awoken by the call of heroes, but she is no hero so hopefully no monster will come. I haven't found a satisfying answer for what the carved fish may represent, but they could possibly just link to lack of trust that should be placed in Van Eck and really the uncomfortable feeling should be more about the merch than his decor. I did a little bit of reading about what fish can sometimes represent in Dutch art, the culture on which many aspects of Kerch are based although Ketterdam itself is confirmed to be an amalgamation of cities around the globe with particular emphasis on Dutch-Republic era Amsterdam, and I found out that in the fish would often be shown dead as a warning of moving away from faith by gluttony or greed - so perhaps a symbol of Van Eck's performative religious acts and the greed that truly controls him. (Yes, I actually spent my time researching fish in Dutch art for the purpose of a one sentence reference to carved fish in Six of Crows, and I know what you're thinking: I must be really fun at parties)

"the dream he'd had since he first crawled out of a cold harbour with revenge burning a hole in his heart"

' Mika started to cough, and Kaz saw blood on his sleeve.

"Sit," Van Eck instructed gently, helping Mika into a chair and offering the Grisha his handkerchief.

He signalled to a guard.

"Some water," ' - I'm not 100% sure on the relevance of what I'm about to say but looking at this exchange retrospectively it just seems so performative and I really question it; I don't this is part of the façade Van Eck presents generally to the world or if it's, in his mind, for Kaz's benefit to give him no reason to distrust him, or what, but I know that I don't for one second believe that in private Van Eck would politely give an indentured Grisha his handkerchief and send someone to fetch him a glass of water.

' "DeKappel oil painting [...] I had been assured that my gallery was impenetrable [...]"

"I do seem to remember reading about that" - the audacity in this child knows no bounds and I'm so here for it

' "I'm inclined to believe that the thief took it for a different reason,"

"What would that be?"

"Just to prove that he could,"

"Seems like a stupid risk to me,"

"Well, who can guess at the motives of thieves?"

"Not me, certainly," - I adore this excahnge so much. And as a side note it's really clever becasue we as the reader know with so much confidence what's going on that there's no need to extrapolate and explain it to us, yet we feel like we have the full story. And of course later we learn it was Kaz and Inej working together and I love this because cna you imagine one of them bringing the paper to the other after reading about the 'impenetrable gallery' and they're just looking at each other like "... we have to, right?" "Hell yeah we have to, get your coat,"

"Kaz had heard rumours of a firepox outbreak [...] skin crawling. He wanted no part of a plague" - this is some mad foreshadowing right here, and the fact that KAz is seized by an unexpected flashback mere lines later tells us so much because when we look back on it we realise that he's so stressed by the idea of a plague and his concern only makes it harder for him to anticipate a flashback.

"Van Eck led him through a door and into a manicured garden, thick with the new nectar scent of early crocuses. The smell his Kaz like a blow to the jaw. Memories of Jordie were already too fresh in his mind and, for a moment, Kaz wasn't walking thorugh the canal-side garden of a rich merch. He was knee deep in spring grasses, hot sun beating down on his cheeks, his brother's voice calling him home," - so this is the flashback I mentioned a second ago and it is literally just a couple of lines after Kaz's concern about a potential plague outbreak. We also have the added twist of crocuses traditionally symbolising rebirth, mirthfulness, and innocence, contrasting Kaz but also arguably existing to taunt him with the younger version of himself and his brother the scent reminds him of. The idea of twisting what crocuses usually represent is also famously used in Vivki Feaver's poem, 'The Gun', where she writes "the King of Death/ had arrived to feast, stalking/ out of winter woods / his black mouth/ sprouting golden crocuses" and Bardugo could be doing the same thing here by using something traditionally associated with youth and joy to represent or hint towards Kaz's traumatic experiences as a child. Possibly the metaphor is extended by the way the scent of teh crocuses is so quickly lost to the stench of the boathouse, particularly with the idea that there are dead bodies in there linking to the feeling of dead flesh, to show the stark contrast of Kaz's life before coming to Ketterdam, and after.

"Councilman Hoede lost a lot of blood. But he's in the same state as these men. He's been removed to the country with his family and the staff from his house" - this was very much the same vibes as the way you can pay an awful lot of money to be buried outside the city or you can be burned on the Reaper's Barge and it's so interesting to me, that even in death your body is priced and part of an institutionalised nonsense social hierarchy.

' "Why do you wear the gloves, Mr Brekker?"

Kaz raised a brow.

"I'm sure you've heard the stories,"

"Each more grotesque than the last,"

[...]

"Pick one," Kaz said, as he vanished into the night, thoughts already turning to thirty million kruge and the crew he'd need to help him get it, "They're all true enough," ' - this is a brilliant excahnge and I love it but when we're looking back on it after knowing the full story it's so sad because part of Kaz genuinely views himself as a monster

[i-am-the-niche]

Percy Jackson Analysis ep.1

(did that sound vaguely pretentious? I feel like a need a funny name for this)

SO SORRY it took me this long. To be truthful I put on My Happy Marriage to listen to while refining my notes, I'm not a huge romance lover so I didn't think I would get that invested but then I proceeded to binge the whole thing...

anyways go watch My Happy Marriage, it messed me up in the best ways

On to my children, the way I wrote these notes was chronological, including lines I thought were powerful and thoughts I had while watching, enjoy my sub-tier analysis

To start with I think the casting, as well as most of the acting in the show, is phenomenal. There are some acting scenes which aren't great, but the nice things about child actors is that they grow and improve

iconic opening line 10000000/10

blackjack cameo? *chefs kiss*

One thing that really stands out to me regarding young Percy in school is that the bullying is portrayed so well. Like, sure some kids get punched but more often it's whispers, snide comments, teachers not doing enough to stop it. Not to mention when you have mental health problems or neurodivergency on top of that it makes it even harder to fit in and gain help from authority figures. There's no way teachers weren't aware of how Percy was being treated (we even see this in the books with mortals that don't care about him getting picked on by other mortals, think sea of monsters)

GROVER!!! I know I already ranted about the casting but Aryan just does such a good job. I hope in later seasons we see him more than we did in the books.

I'm UNHEALTHILY OBSESSED at the idea that mythomagic cards are to help train halfbloods. It also gets me thinking about season 3 interactions between little Nico and Percy. But it's incredibly clever to have a game that would entice children to learn more about the monsters they're likely to face against. It's also a clever marketing move irl.

Once again great portrayal of bullying while still keeping the show appropriate for kids

UNREALISTIC their paper would never be printed with color ink /lh

I really enjoy how they displayed dyslexia, it seems very accurate to descriptions.

"how it makes you feeeeel"

The lines about not everyone who looks like a hero being a hero and not everyone who looks like a monster being a monster is some of the best foreshadowing I've ever seen. It perfectly foreshadows Luke, Medusa, and generally captures one of the major points of Uncle Ricks books.

the hold fast line being used through the series *chefs kiss*

One thing I stand by in both the books and series is that I was incredibly disappointed in how little Chiron directly stood up for Percy- even in regards to mortals. Like yeah ok he's gonna be a hero but he's also twelve, help the poor boy!

The bullying Dodds shows Percy is also very accurate to real life. I've had many teachers who straight up bully kids just like this and are never called out for it.

The utilization of the word 'Special' thought the series is a great example of how "PoLite EUpHEmiSm' and often weaponized and used as derogatory terms and serves as an example of why many push for using terms like disabled over differently abled.

"childhood trauma, feelings of inadequacy" DAMN GROVER just going for the jugular, pop off. love how the show incorporates realistic convos kids would have. This instance and other little side bars we see throughout the show add something that I often find missing in television throughout all generas. it's incredibly important to have realistic convos to help solidify characters as people.

"Never ever stand up to them" "that doesn't sound right" THIS LINE 10000000/10

"there you are" we're not fools Percy Jackson

I did feel like this should have been Perseus Jackson seeing as how it's pretty canonical that monsters and gods alike only refer to him using his full name, adding on the the names have power theme that permeates throughout the series.

trauma for days

"is he dead?"

Chiron low-key being the embodiment of gaslighting, girl boss, gatekeep

UNCLE RICK CAMEO!!!

realist portrayal of adults already having their mind made up and children being unable to do anything except tell their story over and over

(also does Kronos speak to Percy in his dreams as the school principal? I genuinely can't remember, if so Kronos sure knows how to embody nightmares)

I honestly wish they would have expanded more on both how guilty grover would have felt rating Percy out (even if it means protecting him) and also how betrayed Percy would have felt. his fatal flaw is loyalty, grover was his very first and very best friend, he only really has his mother, this would have been a huge punch in the gut.

anyone else feel like grover and Percy should have been interviewed separately?

I'm sorry, I have to complain about the lighting in this show. WHY IS IT SO DARK? THIS ISNT SHOWN IN THEATERS! MY EYES ARENT THIS GOOD. IM SQUINTING TRYING TO FIND OUT WHAT IS ON THE TV!! WHYYYYY??!?!

"at least I know you think you didnt" -not helpful Chiron :/ shame on you

"you might have the most difficult journey" great foreshadowing

'SPeCiaL'

I know there was lots of discussion about how Gabe wasn't abusive 'enough' but often times abuse isn't easy to see or what TV leads you to believe. The show keeps it age appropriate while also showing how much of a leech and how controlling he is (answering Sally's phone, not wanting her to leave to the beach). Honestly I might make a separate post on this but at the moment I'm tired of seeing ignorant people claim that Gabe wasn't aggressive enough or that Sally wasn't meek enough to be abused.

I was disappointed that Eddie became a 'good' character instead of showing how abusive adults often have buddies backing them up

It's realistic Percy would talk to Gabe even though he's a dick, kids want to make connections

Sally in the rain- reference to Poseidon 10/10

Sally is just happy to see him :')

"all that matters is that your here, ok?" aww

BLUE FOOD!!!

"Is there something else you wanna talk about" mom knows

"I'm scared" damn does that resonate

once more just because Sally isn't portrayed as meek doesn't mean that that whole interaction wasn't unhealthy and abusive

di angelo reference! even if it's not our di angelo the name choice was incredibly purposeful

"it's getting angrier" personification of the storm lends well to Zeus and Poseidon

love PJO dream sequences

"who are you" does Kronos not know who Percy is? Gonna be real this confuses me, am I missing something obvious?

Sally was crying??!?!

the race from the car to the cabin is another example of the writers (and actors) creating realistic people you can connect to. the nostalgia that hit me in this scene was POTENT

It's so so so important to have a place to escape to as an abuse victim, and as a teen in general. Scratch that, just people in general need places to escape to which makes the cabin even more significant

Percy's self deprecating marshmallow talk :(

"I'm used to the world feeling weird to me" neurodivergency and mental health issues can create very isolating atmospheres making community important -camp is that community

Uncle Rick does a great job creating metaphores regarding discrimination and ableism

It's so hard to tell someone you trust and love that you think something is wrong, especially as a child. Walker did a fantastic job capturing all the mixed up emotions that occur.

"something that felt real to you but no one else could see" once again significant to neurodivergency and mental health

I don't personally like the choice to have Sally tell Percy that his father is a god. The acting in the scene also just rubs me really wrong - it feels fake. I think I enjoyed the book version better with him never receiving a clear answer until camp, and even then you can debate on how "clear" it was.

I would be freaking out so much more that Walker if my mom approached the subject like this. It would be incredibly frightening to think your mom was going insane alongside you.

"there is something wrong with my brain" once again, uncle Rick reaches out of the screen/pages to hit me where it hurts

"I don't want to see him" the betrayal he feels :(

grover pants scene (I feel no need to elaborate on this note, it was by far the funniest scene of the episode 1000000000+

"so the important thing is not to panic"

"who are you" nooo he's ur friend don't do this to me :(((

I love grover

very nice natural lead into explaining the mist

The show is unfortunately hit with the complex issue of trying to provide context to an audience who already knows and is eager to see the action. I know there were many criticisms about it but I will say my mother, who didn't read the books, felt she had a firm grasp on the lore of the show, so that counts for something?

"what else haven't we talked about, what else haven't you told me" broken trust :(((

"I'm actually 24" NOW IS NOT THE TIME GROVER

"won't all of us be safe" ha... about that

"swear it, SWEAR IT GROVER" damn, okay sally

again, WHY IS THE LIGHTING SO DARK?!?! I know it helps hide cgi but we know there's gonna be CGI in a show abt monsters and myths

"you are not broken, you are singular" amazing foreshadowing

Sally is bamf

trauma

the choice to make things silent after Sally 'dies' *chefs kiss once again

I just really love the shot of Percy surfing down the monster dust

"he must be the one" :)))

hope y'all enjoyed :)

[project-sekai-facts]

VBS event teaser commentary

Sorry for not doing this last month. Again. Yeah I know I'm doing it just before the actual preview drops who even cares.

As per the norm, the teaser is just based on the jacket art so there's not a whole lot we can learn there. We know that cards are sometimes based on the song though, so maybe we can guess something there. Personally this gives me a retro nightclub sort of feel, and I'm kinda surprised they haven't done something like that with VBS yet, doubly so when you consider the Gekkou teaser had a very retro feel (I'm grasping at straws atp I've wanted this for two years lol).

Okay, so actual plot predictions time. I reckon this will be another POU or LUTF situation where the event focuses somewhat heavily on a side character. Ah, well, less so "I reckon" and more "Break Down the Wall foreshadows that this event will focus quite a bit on Arata and Souma". Based on bdtw, I think the event is going to focus on two things which heavily overlap with Toya's arc: Toya's feelings towards music, and getting Arata to rejoin the group.

The game has drawn parallels to the relationships between Akito & Toya and Arata & Souma since POU, with Toya outright quoting Kaito's statement from pou about their similarities in bdtw. Toya is able to relate to how Arata feels because their experiences with their partners are very similar. Akito and Souma are the ones who got Toya and Arata into the street music scene and shared their dreams with the other. Because of this similarity, Toya is able to put himself in Arata's shoes somewhat. I'm writing this very late so this is not clear what I'm getting at at all. Basically it's about partners. Toya is the best one to try and reason with Arata, and it's probably why this was his job given to him by Ken. R Sound Design says the song has a focus on relationships between the characters, so to say this will be a big part of the event is not a stretch at all.

(TL by pjsekai_eng)

And connecting to that: Toya (and Arata's) feelings about music. Toya's bdtw chapter also focused a lot on his feelings towards music, and how he'd grown to love it again thanks to Akito and VBS after his bad experiences with classical music as a child. Once again we're right back to the partners thing. Toya talks about his feelings towards music in woao as well, which also happens to be the event where Souma explains the story behind Gurney Flap's formation, and how he was able to get Arata to love music as much as he does. The key difference between Toya and Arata's stories though, is that Toya was able to move on from the past and his trauma. Toya seems to realise that Arata's past is affecting him in bdtw, and Taiga also pointed this out in lutf. While his relationship with his family is by no means mended, Toya was at least able to start healing with the help of his love of street music. On the other hand, Arata is very clearly still grieving the loss of Souma as his partner, and it's what's been holding him back this entire time. I could easily see Toya having a heart to heart with Arata in regards to their feelings towards music and their friends/partners. In a perfect world they do what they did in lutf where they explained a lot of the RADder backstory but for Gurney Flap this time, but I don't want to get attached to that idea. I think at the very least explaning what exactly happened to Souma could happen though.

Oh and on the off chance this ends up being An5, it'll be about her feelings towards Kohane. As in, her insecurities that have been showing up since Bout for Beside You about Kohane essentially becoming too good for her. Like with Toya this was heavily foreshadowed in her bdtw chapter and cards, as well as at the end of kiuan over a year ago. Combine An's grief over Nagi with her insecurities over Kohane and Kohane carrying Nagi's spirit in the sense of her singing, and you have an event story.

[sunreys]

As much as I love the netflix shadow and bone and I really enjoyed watching it, let's be so fucking for real: it's not a good adaptation.

Season 1 was not a bad start. Like yeah you can have your complaints about certain acting choices and cgi and whatever (it is a Netflix show let's keep our expectations,,,,,level) but it was not that bad! It was fun, it was pretty faithful to the characters! In terms of book adaptations, it's honestly up there in quality. Season 2, though.

This whole show has been compared to a crack fic, and I second that---its not really the grishaverse. It's like someone's six of crows/shadow and bone crossover fic. Meaning we're smashing together two stories that are each already full of so much content on their own that it would be hard to do it all justice in an 8 episode netflix series. Even harder when you're combining 2 books, random storylines we pulled out of our asses, and scenes from soc and ck that had no business being there. I understand why they did this: six of crows is much more popular than shadow and bone, and the people at netflix wanted to get the most money possible from this. Alas, this hinders the story of the show so so much. For all it's flaws, there is so much good shit in the shadow and bone trilogy. There is SO MUCH that is so interesting, so poignant, so fun, etc etc that we entirely skipped past and cut out because we jammed so much other shit in there that had no reason to be. We skipped almost the entire plot of book 2! And while there's stuff in there that certainly drags on and could be cut, why did we cut out Alina and Mal's time in hiding? The Darkling finding them and everything else with Sturmhond? All the political shit that goes down with Vasily? Alina's struggle with being seen as a saint, her genuine struggle with being plagued by the Darkling? The reveal that Vasily was a fucking idiot and led the Darkling and the Fjerdans to the capital? The CHURCH SCENE??? WHITE HAIRED ALINA??? And that's just book 2! And then we get the canon divergence. Now I'll admit, I was slightly curious to see where they were gonna take this plot. However, if it was gonna go how they seemed to be setting it up, it would've been disappointing. I'm not a fan of stories where after the big climax the female lead loses her magic powers in favor of some peaceful life as a housewife or whatever. However, I loved the way the shadow and bone books ended. It was set up and foreshadowed that using merzost would have a cost. Alina willingly chose that cost to save mal, to have her happily ever after and her normal life which is what she always wanted. To prove the Darkling wrong. That's the important thing. Instead I guess mal goes "damn I know u literally brought me back from the dead but I'm gonna break up with u now bc I hate destiny I guess". And it seems as though the show was planning to have a storyline where Alina deals with having the Darklings power and struggles with whether or not she should succumb to the Darklings ideals or whatever. Which sounds like an interesting plot right? But guess what? WEVE ALREADY SEEN THAT SHIT IN THE BOOKS. IF THE SHOW ACTUALLY SHOWED US WHAT HAPPENED IN THE BOOKS WE WOULDVE HAD ALINA STRUGGLING WITH HER LITTLE VILLAIN ARC INSTEAD OF WHATEVER TF WE WERE HEADING TOWARDS AT THE END OF SEASON 2.

Anyways. Netflix execs get ur shit together and start greenlighting adaptations that fans of the original material---who you are literally appealing to by making this adaptation in the first place---will actually enjoy.

[wisebeth]

Zuko : Hey Katara, according to these reasons, we're apparently supposed to be together?

Katara : Huh? What can they be?

Zuko : According to our shippers, you're the first person who saw good in me–

Katara : Sure, I was the first person who trusted you but Aang saw goodness in you, before anyone else did, including me so where does that leave us?

Zuko : Not to mention, I betrayed you a minute later and never thought about it again. But Aang's words haunted me multiple times afterwards, so does that mean I like him too?

Katara : Also, apparently because you let me touch your scar so uhh we like each other??

Zuko : Makes no sense. I was literally flinching and I let Mai cuddle into my scar all the time and feel a lot more relaxed with her? Or are we ignoring everything else and only focusing on what you and I did for each other?

Katara : It's also because we were once teased to be a couple and denied it? So we secretly like each other and in denial?

Zuko : Bullshit! I had the exact reaction of annoyance when that Jin girl was called ‘my girlfriend’ and I was more than happy to confirm Mai was my girlfriend. Maybe...maybe it's not denial and I only like it when my actual girlfriend is called my girlfriend?

Katara : Besides, if we're shipping based on who shipped us then doesn't mean I and Aang were foreshadowed since the beginning since Sokka called him my boyfriend in the earliest episodes?

Zuko : Well we're also compatible because uhh I was ready to help you in finding your mother's killer so I understand you better than Aang?

Katara : I'm pretty sure you helped me because you had compassion for my situation and wanted to gain my trust. But Aang, out of all the people, knew that it's not in my nature to kill anyone, and he was right because I didn't bring myself to kill him. And he knew if I did kill him I'd regret it, he was there comforting me when I blood bended for the first time even if it was to help my friends.

Katara : And he doesn't “understand” me??? Do they realise Aang is a genocide survivor, who lost EVERYONE he loved to the fire nation? Of course he understands!

Zuko : Yeah! Not to mention, I also went on a life changing journey with Sokka and Aang as well, it was supposed to be a part of my redemption arc. There were no romantic undertones?

Katara : Okay so we're also popular because you took a lightening for me and they see it like a big romantic moment where you sacrificed yourself for me.

Zuko : But...you're my friend! I have grown to see you and the rest of the gaang as my friends, if your life is in danger, I'd try to save you obviously. What did they expect me to do? Stand there, doing nothing and let my sister kill you? “uhh sorry Katara since I don't like you romantically I'm gonna let you die”.

Zuko : Besides I also risked my life for Sokka by accompanying him to the Boling Rock and let Appa free before we were even friends. What's next? I'm in love with Appa as well? Wasn't this a big part of my redemption arc that once I was willing to kill and capture you all and now I'm ready to die for you, which shows how much I've changed and matured as the show went.

Katara : Besides if we're talking about big sacrifices with romantic undertones, then Aang was ready to give up the avatar state for me even though the fate of the entire world was dependent on him. He was willing to choose me over the entire world.

Zuko : And Mai betrayed the entire fire nation for me, ready to fight my psychotic sister's wrath despite knowing she could die doing so, and even accepted to get imprisoned. Or are we ignoring what our canon spouses did for us and only focusing on what we did?

Katara : Either way, a lot of it seems far fetched and over analysing to me.

Zuko : Same.

[aquaburst3]

I read a post where OP listed off all of the reasons why they don't see Mallyuu being possible in canon and believes that Malleus would be in a politically arranged marriage to a powerful fae of high status. I strongly disagree with OP. Even as someone who isn't a huge Malleus stan or has their Yuu shipped with him.

Okay, sure. If we're looking at that possibility from a strictly dogmatic historical and realistic lense, then I agree that statement would be correct. But we're not talking about the possibility of a real life marriage for a crown prince here, but about a fictional one in a Disney game. In that case, I think it's possible. Because...

I don't think game has such a law actually put in place. The game never mentioned it. The closest thing are that stupid council, who could be overthrown or put in their place, and Lilia saying that "Malleus can't enter a marriage lightly" during the Ghost Marriage event. (Far as I'm aware, I've tuned out most of Book 7 since it's mostly just one stupidly long flashback.)

If such a law did exist and Malleus was in a canonical arranged marriage, wouldn't the game have brought it up by now? (Yana sucks at foreshadowing and laying down this shit, but come on! That's too much even for her. xD)

Yuu brings some things to the table. They are human. Malleus marrying them would help with diplomatic relations between the fae and the humans. With how isolated the fae are in that world, they kinda need it. They also survived several overblots and would've saved Malleus' life, which is worth something.

I'm pretty sure that his grandmother could pull a Sultan and just change the law if such a thing is in place. She's one of the most powerful fae in the world, so what she says goes. She could easily put that council in their place if she must.

Dragon eggs in canon can only be hatched by true love, either platonic or romantic. (Even if I think that whole thing is silly, but that's beside the point.) If Malleus was in an arranged loveless marriage, he would never be able to produce an heir like the council wants, even if he has an AFAB/cis female partner. If they want any kids from him and he marries an AFAB person/cis female, it must be someone he loves like Yuu. If he marries someone AMAB or cis male, then he can just adopt or use a surrogate.

If we bring mythology/folklore into this, it's even more possible. The fae criteria for marriage is focused more on how talented and attractive the human partner is, that's it. There are plenty of stories where fae "spirit away" normal human women and men away to marry fae royalty. I imagine the fae in TWST are similar.

As for the life span thing, I think either Malleus will pull an Edward and let Yuu age normally or have the human partner drink fae aging potion. (I went with the latter in my own writing in a general sense. Again, shipping my Yuu with Jamil.)

Even if he was in one, he would find a way out of it. One of the biggest tropes that the Disney brand stands for is "true love conquers all". While the form of that love changes, that idea remains the same. The game shattering that by making Malleus be doomed to be in a loveless arranged marriage forever would go against what the brand stands for, so it seems highly unlikely. The fact that the game is also tapping into the otome market makes it even less so.

So, yeah. While I don't think MallYuu will ever be canon, I think a union between them is quite possible. It's fanfiction. Do whatever you want.

[kimberlyannharts]

So I may have been slightly hyped for this book the past few months

For the three of you who haven't heard about this, MMPR: The Return is a story set in the future of an alternate universe of the MMPRs; one where Jason, Zack, and Trini didn't give up their powers upon the eve of the Peace Conference, and thus the team stayed together even after high school. But fast forward twenty-two years later, and the team has broken up due to some sort of tragedy - we know from the Re-Imagine prologue in the 30 Year Anniversary book, Zordon and Alpha were destroyed by Zedd and Rita. But other stuff seems to have happened too. What is that stuff? I guess we're about to find out!

Oh, and I should mention this was written by the original Pink Ranger herself, Amy Jo Johnson. (and her partner, Matt Hotson.) That might be important to know.

It's Mighty Morphin Power Rangers: The Return #1!

= Three pages in and Jason's already getting his ass kicked. You're forty-five years old, man, you should be at the club

= I know this was debated a bit when the book was announced - how it would line up with Thuy and JDF's passings, especially after coming off the heels of Once and Always, where the focal point was Trini's daughter taking up her powers after Trini's death. (For what it's worth, this book was first conceived pre-pandemic, long before OaA. Making comics takes a long time.) And while Tommy is still a bit up in the air (despite what we'll see in a few pages) Trini does seem to have definitively passed due to illness.

While I definitely get the frustration of Thuy's passing essentially sealing Trini's fate - especially in a comic book, where you don't have to worry about actor restrictions - I'm a little more generous towards it here because Amy and Thuy were close friends and she actually dealt with her death personally compared to how the OaA writers, well......didn't. And this issue is clearly paralleling Kimberly's motivations and feelings to Amy's real-life ones, so this just feels like another part of that.

(Also to contrast OaA's handling of Trini - a) her passing here isn't caused by a graphic onscreen explosion, proving the whole "well they HAD to show it onscreen for more impact!!!" was bullshit b) her friends AND THE WIDER COMMUNITY are actually grieving and talking about her impact on everyone as well as using the non-actor-restriction to SHOW it and c) The book actually gives her a JOB. TWO jobs!!!!!!! Yeah OaA why the fuck did you send ZACK to Congress WHEN IT CLEARLY SHOULD HAVE BEEN TRINI

also I like her middle-aged design. prettyyyyyy)

= onto lighter topics HEYYYY IT'S THESE GUYS!! Bulk and Skull are married and you just can't see the ring through Bulk's gloves, it's real and true

= speaking of which this whole flashback is adorable and nostalgic but I want to point out some background details

= Ernie is just trying to run a fucking business here

= go white boy go

= ZACK/KIM HAS FINALLY COME BACK TO ME MY FUCKING BELOVEDS!!!!!!!!!!!!!! God, when WAS the last time they actually talked one-on-one in the main series

= FUCK!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

= so along with some other stuff I'm definitely taking this as foreshadowing that Trini wasn't cut off from Kim like the boys were. That's the power of WOMEN (and also if we get Aunt Trini flashbacks with Olivia I'll fucking CRYYYYYY)

= Absolutely obsessed with Billy's face here

= D:

= So besides the Trini stuff I want to the keep the Once and Always comparisons to a minimum but it's very funny how both storylines involve Billy using a company as a front for his embezzlement schemes. At least his telecom company PROBABLY isn't war profiteering

= also Alpha's rose <3

= so anyway Jason's gone rogue and was pretending he's the main character until he suddenly went missing, as shown in the first few pages. And Billy and Zack want to become Rangers again to try and find him.

= but the thing is guys, Kim has won the idgaf war. She's depressed, she's traumatized, she spent twenty-two years raising a child with Tommy's genes all by herself, she's tired. She does NOT want to be wrapped up in Jason's midlife crisis drama

= Zack getting so mad and wanting to risk it all for Jason hell yeah those are my Jason/Zack crumbs

= Mysterious shadowy figure watching the old people drama from a distance, you are just like me fr

= OLIVIA THAT'S FUCKING OLIVIAAAAAAAAAAAA and she already sounds so CUTE. If you go back to the diner scene you can see the phone constantly buzzing until Kim finally puts it away. She's like mom. mom. mom. MOM

= also just because the tragic Tomberly family storyline already makes me want to kms do you think that ring is kind of small and plain because Tommy and Kim were so young when they got married and it's all Tommy could afford. And Kim still wears it to this day. I want to die

= It's already been confirmed that Selena is indeed referring to Sylvia here, so I won't talk about that. What I DO want to talk about is Kim's casual momwear. Those sweatpants!!!!!!!!!!

= It would be really funny if Kim just. immediately slammed the door shut