#and yet based on parts of it too

[percivaldeltaco]

MILGRAM Guilty/Innocent verdicts, according to my father

MILGRAM, but instead of forming my own opinions I scroll randomly through the YouTube comments of each video, take the first theory I see, explain it poorly to my father and have HIM judge them guilty/innocent based off of that.

aka.

A 50 year old Taiwanese man’s opinions on MILGRAM characters. (He, as a doctor, had a LOT to say about Shidou)

[note that this was posted between It’s Not My Fault and Triage.]

vvvv

ME: State your name and occupation, please.

DAD: Dad, Physician.

----

Haruka (no. 01) (no idea how to sum up the common consensus on him, but yknow what I’m thinking of) - INNOCENT

“I dunno... I think this guy needs treatment. I don’t know, there’s actually no causal link between having a learning disability, being neglected, and like, killing small creatures.” 

“They say killing animals in your youth is a risk factor for predicting if someone’s gonna grow up to be, an actual, y’know.” 

“I mean, so, forgivable? I mean, only in the sense that y’know, this may be part of him that’s sort of intrinsically broken and he really just needs treatment.”

----

Yuno (no. 02) (abortion “theory”) - INNOCENT

“Well, I mean, I don’t really have any- to me this is not an issue... I don’t think there’s any particular moral wrong here, I mean y’know, she does what she does, she was in a position that she found herself pregnant and she didn’t want to be pregnant so she had a perfectly legal and safe medical procedure to take care of it.”

I brought up the fact it might not have been legal.

“Well, I mean, either way, I don’t see that it’s an issue. I don’t have any issue with it.”

----

Fuuta (no. 03) (doxxing/cyberbullying theory) - GUILTY

“Yeah, well, I don’t really think there’s anything particularly excusable about this one.”

----

Muu (no. 04) (bully -> bullied “theory”, I brought up the lesbian theory to him and presented it as an additional option as well) - GUILTY

“I dunno. I mean, honestly, I don’t really have much sympathy in this case. If you’re gonna dish it out you better be ready to take it.”

“Look, if you can’t stand the heat, get out of the kitchen, alright?! Y’know, I mean, seriously!”

“This is like, at best it’s just pure hypocrisy, okay, well turnabout. You didn’t think about it until you were the object.”

My sister makes an Ace Attorney reference referring to the word ‘turnabout’. He texts her an Ace Attorney meme. 

----

Shidou (no. 05) (organ harvester theory) - GUILTY

laughing

“This is not how any of this works, okay? You cannot just whip organs out of one person and bung (?) ‘em into someone else and it’s gonna be like ‘Wow, that’s awesome’!”

“Yeah, see, that to me is too far out there. I can’t even say because that’s now how it functions.”

I ask him if hypothetically you could, what the verdict would be.

“Even if you had a whole... You could some how make it work... it’s still not- no.”

“Besides, you can’t even perform surgeries at 29 unless you went through med school very quickly.”

----

Mahiru (no. 06) (toxic relationship + suicide theory) - GUILTY

“She sounds... extremely emotionally immature. I don’t think she was ready for a relationship.”

“Now, why didn’t the guy just dump her and walk away?”

I explain the ‘breakup ritual’ line, and bring up the ‘both sides toxic’ theory.

“Well, I mean, is there any evidence at all to support that sort of thing?”

I explain the vagueness of the video.

“Yeah, I dunno, I mean absent to any further data I’m not inclined to be merciful here.”

----

Kazui (no. 07) (cheating + suicide theory) - INNOCENT

“I mean, sad to say, it’s not an uncommon phenomenon. It’s a thing that happens, y’know,”

sigh

“So I don’t really, I mean, depending on how he broke it to her, I suppose, and if he actually DID have an affair or had just contemplated one.”

“Or even then, I sort of feel like jumping off a balcony over it is a little bit of an overreaction.”

“A lot depends on the specific details about how this came out, assuming that’s the correct story. I mean, the situation is sad, but at least the way it’s presented I don’t feel like I can hold him at fault for her deciding to throw herself to her death.”

“Well, I mean, and I think legally you couldn’t really say anything about it. I mean, he’s responsible in part but it’s not like he pushed her or anything like that.”

----

Amane (no. 08) (cult theory) - INNOCENT

“I mean, the thing is. This is one of those classic cases- assuming she’s been completely brainwashed by this cult, that’s one of those cases where deprogramming has to be the first step.”

“It’s related to not guilty by reason of insanity, this is someone who’s worldview has been warped to the extent that they’ve presumably sworn their unthinking allegiance to whoever their leader is.”

“Obviously she’s directly responsible, though I don’t know how a twelve year old can beat someone to death.”

“You would need therapy and deprogramming, before you try to bring it to trial.”

“It also depends on if the therapy turns out successful or not.”

I mention she’s twelve.

laughing.

“Alright, so like, automatically guilty then.”

----

Mikoto (no. 09) (DID “theory”) - INNOCENT

“I mean... really? Does this alter even have a name?”

“I mean, legally you can’t render judgement here.” 

“I mean, assuming the alter was the one murdering people?”

“Yeah, I mean, I dunno, if he truly is suffering from this disorder, it’s like the other ones, we can’t hold him responsible.”

----

Kotoko (no. 10) (vigilante “theory”) - GUILTY

“So, basically... did she intend to kill him? Or did she try to beat him up and get carried away?”

I explain that she did intend to kill.

“Y’know, the fact of the matter is, as great as it sounds, I don’t really condone vigilantism. She knows exactly what she’s doing, right?”

I say yes.

“Okay, well, in that case, then I would think that she should be prepared to face the consequences.”

“Yeah, so this also sounds like someone who feels that they are above society’s rules. Not something I feel completely comfortable with, even if now they appear to be doing things on the right side.”

----

notes: 

also said, at the end: “Just because someone cannot be held morally responsible for their actions also does not mean we should have them out roaming the streets.”

bold (no italics) is things that I said. Italics is things he did. 

[svtskneecaps]

ok among my favorite parts of qsmp is the fact that charlie slimecicle can only hold the act of being mad at mariana when mariana isn't in the room. like he successfully rp'd being mad at his deadbeat puta esposa for months while mariana wasn't logging on, like he complained about mariana at the wedding, during the election, in subsequent appearances, and then he's messaging mariana in the chat during purgatory and he's still holding it

and then they're both at spawn like as close to face to face as they get. and bro CANNOT hold the act it drops so fast lmfao he was like "yea cellbit i'm gonna kill mariana" and instead they have a genuinely heartfelt conversation and then rp sexo in the fountain

and i know i'm brainrotting purgatory rn but i'm actually thinking about this bc i saw a clip of mariana and slime talking during the awards show and literally. slime's face goes from 😡🤬 MARIANA'S HERE, SAY SOMETHING PUTA ESPOSA to 😄😁 the second mariana shows up on the screen

like he's still pretending to be mad but dude is grinning like absolute crazy and i love that

[rubiuscubito]

uhhhhhhhhhh lifestealers from last weekend’s costesting

[welcometogrouchland]

[ID in alt text] my magnum opus

[chiropteracupola]

steadfast sailor, paper captain...

[grimfantas]

you can call me heartless all you'd like, but it won't bring her back and it won't help you heal.

[figureofdismay]

at what point between Za'tarc testing and Threads do you think it would be most crushingly, precipitously painful for Sam and Jack to encounter another Alternate Universe Mirror Sam and Jack, who are of course Together (as usual)? I'm trying to decide what the maximum angst point would be for fic writing reasons 🤔

[hoodiedoodles]

i disagree with the notion that "Demons are only evil and can only be evil" that Frieren brings up as a show, especially when it contradicts itself

we're told that Demons are functionally similar to mimics-- being an advanced evolution that mimics humans to eventually achieve their goals. they are naturally immoral and incapable of feeling true emotions; they only copy those emotions. the Young Demon that Himmel kills admits that the only reasons she cries out for a mother is because "it makes [humans] stop hurting them". they have no concept of remorse or mercy, except where it makes them better at their jobs of killing humans.

but like... they are sentient creatures. any creature that can replicate intelligent behavior to the degree of being able to lie must be aware that there is more to them than "their nature".

hell, the way Demon Society is structured seems to confirm this anyway. they function in a "might makes right" society, where the more mana you have, the more power you have, thus emphasizing longevity and crushing the weak. but by this same logic, the self-serving and cruel nature of the Demons is a purely societal influence-- they think they can't escape their nature because they were NURTURED to believe that.

there's no such thing as objective, pure evil. if a creature is capable of intelligent thought then it's also capable of going against the status quo. and given how miserable Demons seem to be I don't believe that there just AREN'T any "good demons" out there. Maybe they can't feel empathy, but neither can some real people, and we don't treat low-empathy people as monsters just for their nature. they learn how to be kind and work within society even without being able to feel empathy

Frieren is a very well put-together and well thought-out story so I feel like Frieren's commentary on Demons is meant to be intentionally cruel and incorrect to make a point about the dangers of absolutism, but i also wouldn't be surprised if the author just made a group of "objectively evil monsters" to showcase Frieren, Fern and Stark being badasses without worrying about the moral consequences

[discatded]

trucy from my breath of the wild au :)

[kayzero]

in the spaces between not working on zwg and not finishing brother’s burden, i’ve been, uh…

thinking about something new.

[fragmentedblade]

Also, Ruan Mei was the one who lent the Phase Flame to Ratio, wasn't she?

[thekoiboi]

I love how literally all of Creighton's dialogue is him obsessed with finding and killing Pate, meanwhile Pate is just like "heard someone is out for my life haha that's weird"

[majorpepperidge]

Scribbling my Very Personalized version of Al-Zalam is the only way I've been able to draw nowadays.

[deus-ex-mona]

i still can’t get over how lxl became waiterxwaiter bc of the anime’s artstyle btw

[adastra121]

Touchstarved OC Relationship Charts

I made the relationship charts for my Touchstarved OCs!

More about their relationships with the Touchstarved LIs below!

Person who made these templates is @deiimi

Jin the Abandoned Alchemist

“Friendship is...a new venture for me. But I promise, I'll do my best!”

Likes Kuras — “You take care of everyone, but who takes care of you, doctor?” Admires Kuras for his skills as a doctor and his selflessness. Finds his presence very soothing, which is great because he is a ball of constant anxiety.

Jin and Kuras have a lot of similarities in some ways. They are both naturally curious, they both seek to help others, they are both introverted, and they are both avid readers.

Oh, and they’re both INFJs and earth signs.

Kuras seems like the kind of person Jin would like to read next to. He wonders what sort of books Kuras likes. Perhaps he would have some recommendations.

Conversation is never boring with Kuras. Jin loves to discuss alchemy, theories, and experiments that he’s pondered attempting with him.

Jin insists on helping Kuras around his clinic where he can, since he believes he owes the latter a life debt now.

He stops by to gift Kuras something every now and then, like some food or tea, because have you ever seen the doctor eat or, gods forbid, cook anything? He worries for Kuras sometimes, even though Kuras would say there’s nothing to concern himself over.

Close with Leander — “Something about you makes me want to be more than I am — and yet, whenever I’m with you, I feel like…I’m enough.” Jin’s never met anyone so friendly, generous, and brave. Leander makes him want to be brave, too.

He wholeheartedly believes Leander is a good person. A mage of that kind of power and he uses it to help people for free. He lives in Lowtown. He’s given a home to the Bloodhounds.

Leander strikes him as a kind, dazzling, and genuinely good person.

And more puzzlingly, he’s fearless. Offered to let Jin — a complete stranger — inflict his curse on him, even tie him up so Jin could feel safer.

Try as he might, Jin just can’t understand why Leander is so kind to him. His whole life, he’s never been enough just as he is. His curse — his existence — is a blight he’s always had to seek atonement for. Not even the mage who basically raised him thought otherwise.

So for someone so bright and fearless and good to offer everything he yearns for like he’s actually worthy of it…that feeling is addictive. Almost more addictive than the feeling of warm, trusting flesh and blood under his fingers.

He can’t let Leander down. It has to be different this time.

Dislikes Vere — “I never know what to expect with you. I’m still working out whether that’s good or bad.” Everything about Vere startles Jin. Not just because he’s a killer, but because of his shamelessness and Jin flusters easily.

Vere is a bit unpredictable to Jin and that makes him nervous.

Vere’s constant games and teasing will probably take some getting used to. As well as the flirting and the innuendoes.

Doesn’t know whether to take Vere seriously a lot of the time.

Most honest person you’ll ever meet if you don’t listen to a damn word he says. Jin’s starting to learn what that means.

It will take a while for Jin to warm up to Vere.

Likes/Dislikes Ais — “You are everything I have been warned against and you seem to have made it your life’s mission to piss me off at every turn! So why do I trust you?” Despite not knowing each other very long, Ais has somehow managed to push every one of Jin’s buttons. But he’s also honest, and that’s something Jin respects.

Ais challenges Jin in ways he isn’t used to, and he finds that both frustrating and frustratingly enlightening.

Ais is intriguing to Jin, unlike anyone he’s met before. His cool, relaxed, and honest demeanor — his entire character is so different from Jin, who is anxious, cautious, and constantly worried about not being a burden, not making his existence harder for others to deal with.

Jin has a bad habit of lying to himself — sometimes he doesn’t even realize it — so whether subconsciously or not, he finds Ais’s honesty refreshing and…safe. Jin feels oddly safe around him.

Ais feels like the eye of a storm. A moment of clarity in the midst of desolation.

In some ways, Jin finds the most freedom in Ais. He allows himself to get upset, to make demands, to say aloud the sarcastic comments often kept in his head. He allows himself to take up space in a way that he usually doesn’t and it terrifies him, because what if he likes it too much? What if he can’t go back to the way he used to be?

Likes Mhin — “Ah, are you busy? Sorry, I’ll try not to get in your way!” Mhin seems very reliable to Jin, but also very focused on their goal. Jin doesn’t want to bother them.

To Jin, they feel like a startled animal in an unfamiliar place. He’s very cautious around them, tries not to upset them.

Jin would leave Mhin alone for the most part, wait for them to approach him.

They’d probably end up with each other in a rowdy tavern, Mhin being a loner and Jin being a bit of a wallflower.

If they end up conversing, I think they’d bond over their interest in alchemical experiments.

Alon the Stray Hound

Likes Kuras — “I like you, Doc, maybe a bit too much. You know, you’re not giving me much incentive to avoid getting hurt.” Already liked and found him curious when they first met, but after discovering his mischievous streak? She wants to team up to pull the prank of the century.

Like Mhin, Alon admires his selflessness and how he helps the people of Lowtown, seemingly for free.

Kuras piques their curiosity. He’s graceful, mysterious, unshakable. They want to know if there’s anything more beneath that seemingly untouchable image.

He’s like an impenetrable safe they’re trying to crack. She doesn’t know what’s inside until it opens, but they’ve decided it’s worth the effort. There’s something invaluable in there, she just knows it. He’s a puzzle to them and they like puzzles.

Evading an angry Senobium cleric through Eridia’s labyrinth of a city with Kuras was the first time she felt at home since her old crew’s betrayal.

Likes Leander — “I’m no mage, but even I know you and I could make magic together.” Instantly clicked with him due to their similarities. There’s two of them now. And that’s everyone else’s problem.

Looking at both their relationship charts, it looks like they’re fighting for the Protagonist role.

Being the Hound, they’ve got good instincts and they know Leander is putting on a show most of the time. Alon’s not too worried because they’re also a performer — a jester who works and charms the crowd, both to survive and because they genuinely love it. So as far as Alon’s concerned, Leander can keep his secrets — at least, until it hurts others.

Look this is what happens when you put two people with a hero complex together okay they can end up being heroic against each other

They’re both magicians, though Leander does actual magic and Alon does sleight of hand.

Alon also probably had a Robin Hood thing going for them and their crew in the past.

Likes Vere — “You’re trouble, Foxy. I like that in a man.” Finds his assholery hilarious, shares his love for mischief and distaste for rules. The chain and collar plays right into her hero complex, though, so that might be concerning…

Loves to match Vere innuendo for innuendo. Vere’s insinuations tend to be more elegant, though, while Alon has a whole arsenal of “deez nuts” or “your mom” jokes.

Genuinely wants to help Vere out of his imprisonment, but how to make him see…

“I mean, yeah, so you killed some people — Not saying I condone it! — but the Senobium deals with that crime by…forcing you to kill people? Sheesh, and authorities call me an outlaw.”

Likes Ais — “Hey there, Soup Guardian. Guardian of the Soup. Ocudeus quivers before him.” Admires Ais’s straightforwardness and cool charisma. Thinks he’d be a loyal friend, or at the very least, a fun drinking buddy.

I don’t think Alon would be romantically attracted to Ais. They’d find Ais attractive, though. Like, they have eyes.

Would visit Ais to chat or play with Princess and the other Soulless creatures.

Finds his calm presence grounding, and likes that he listens to them ramble on about whatever pops into her mind at the moment.

Would join him in a bar brawl. Would help him start one, would help him end one.

Loves to banter with him since they’re both sarcastic little shits.

Okay, I’ll give him a serious quote from them: “Let me know if you need someone to take Princess out for a walk! I’m your guy.”

Likes Mhin — “You helped me, now I’ve got your back! So what d’ya say? You with me, partner?” Finds them interesting, cute and fun to fluster. Wants to get to know them better.

Remember when I said she likes puzzles? Mhin is a sort of puzzle to them, too. Full of odd contradictions and pieces that don’t fit together. They are lonely and they need help, but they insist on doing everything on their own. They say they don’t care, but they keep helping her. What’s their deal?

They find Mhin fun. Fun to figure out, fun to fluster, fun to chat with.

Mhin strikes Alon as lonely and in need of a friend — maybe it’s their hero complex saying to lend a hand or maybe it’s because they’re in the same spot, but Alon wants to reach out to them.

She believes they share the same goals. Of course, Mhin doesn’t have to accept her ambitious propositions of teaming up to pull a Senobium heist, but she can’t shake this hopeful feeling around them — that if they worked together, maybe neither of them would be alone anymore.

I did not intend to make them Mhin’s foil in my playthrough but um. So far…

They are both cursed. They are both newcomers to Eridia. They are both seeking to get into the Senobium. They are both lonely.

Alon is charming and outgoing and always seeking to make new friends, even if she ends up getting hurt. Mhin is the opposite, pushing people away to protect themselves, prevent themselves or others from getting hurt.

Mhin is sullen and short-tempered whereas Alon is optimistic and hard to ruffle. Though I guess that’s already evident in how she likes everyone already.

Mhin is blunt and straightforward — they have their secrets, but this is the vibe I get from them. They’re usually honest with their feelings, emotionally constipated as they seem. Alon is also emotionally constipated but in a completely different direction. She deflects and covers up their unpleasant feelings and other uncomfortable topics with jokes like it’s an Olympic sport and she’s the defending champion.

Alon is adventurous, impulsive and adaptive. They thrive in change and chaos, but deep down, they crave stability and a home. Meanwhile, Mhin strikes me as someone who prefers the security of the familiar, when they need a change.

Their fighting styles would be so different. It’s like earthbending vs airbending (if any of you guys are ATLA fans). I think Mhin has a very efficient and precise method of taking down enemies. They make every strike count and they don’t hesitate. Alon, on the other hand, likes playing tricks, using traps and diversions, discombobulating and dancing around their enemies. Mhin is a hunter, Alon is a thief — her goal isn’t usually to take down her opponents, it’s to escape or avoid direct engagement. Not that they can’t fight — they did grow up on the streets — but Alon will always choose to sweet talk, confuse, incapacitate, or run where they can.

Alon’s colour is orange to contrast Mhin’s blue. Similar to how Leander’s green contrasts against Ais’s red and Kuras’s yellow contrasts Vere’s purple. And although I wish I could say otherwise, it is completely unintentional. I wanted to give Alon a bright colour that stood out from the others because that’s their character. They are bright and colourful and fun.

Alon’s colour scheme is semi-inspired by the sun (bright orange, yellow, and pinks like the sunset) and Mhin’s colours more closely resemble the moon.

I just think this is cute. Mhin likes stargazing. Alon has freckles. And you know how there’s always poems and metaphors about freckles being constellations on skin?

[flufflecat]

half of his bodyweight is gonna be hair alone