#and yet he doesn't even use his powers to its full potential unless someone he loves is in danger like Via

[mayashesfly]

Thinking about people who are born with strong powers that they could've easily used to hurt/defend themselves from others that want to harm them but not using it to it's full potential because they're gentle souls with big hearts.

Thinking about people who weren't even born to be strong yet still protects those that they love with all that they are because they know they're gentle souls who can't bear to hurt another.

[theminecraftbee]

Yeah, I knew it was unlikely for anyone to partner with a spirit from the start like Grian does, in fact my first idea for this was "episode where xB gets possessed by the spirit of Hiding or something and plot twist the episode doesn't end with him defeated, the monster is invisible by definition and after its conflict is done it can't be caught, plot twist xB stays like that for the rest of the season peacefully somehow, I guess that could mean somehow being a full magical girl who's just undetectable instead of having a transformation sequence, this could also power up his ability so Scar eventually forgets he even has that guy to look out for..." and then I couldn't think of any situation where a character whose whole plot point is staying hidden would do anything to cause the heroes to notice it enough for an episode to happen anyway, and then I imagined that first burst of all of them escaping, off to do various chaotic things, and then the one that's based on some concept that's naturally peaceful and quiet all along just calmly floats along until it finds someone who's used to being quiet and would be happy to be rid of what little attention he does get, so I thought it would be funny if the two just met and instantly agreed fully or however partnership works, like before the monster attacks have happened enough that xB even knows about them, you know?

That plus the "mysterious helper who may or may not know all the secrets but either way ends up not being a threat" trope and the "unremarkable background character with an inexplicably dedicated fandom" trope, it would work just as well to have him start appearing at any time but it feels funnier/more fulfilling to be able to look at this imaginary anime and have at least one frame of every single episode where he's visible!

oh hmmm that's actually a fun one. and to be fair, i think xb would be... rather happy to slip into the background, honestly. sure, this is all... a lot more than he'd prefer to deal with. but watching scar's crew deal with it has given him SOME idea of how to handle the fact he still has a spirit around, and being able to be invisible sometimes... it's useful. it's useful!

i think maybe he shows up in the background of some support group episodes afterwards and if you aren't paying attention it's hard to realize what's happening.

however i'm honestly still not sure how early in the plot we can have a spirit partnership here? i think maybe. xb is an early possession victim (maybe one of the first ones blackbird interferes with?) but the spirit escapes. xb sort of just slips away without letting anyone help him quietly because he manages to get unpossessed but he just KNOWS people are gonna be weird about the fact the spirit escaped. plus, he has unlocked a little more of his magical potential now. he can just... make himself disappear. he doesn't know why. it's not a partnership, so much as a potential he already had that, like a few other members of the plot (bdubs being out big example), due to a combination "wishing star getting closer" and "spirit possession", he can do even more.

and it's... nice. sometimes it isn't nice - he basically can't go out to eat unless he's with someone else, the waitstaff will forget he's there, and actually for anything he needs to be remembered for it's kind of a pain, but in a lot of life he just... slides in the background now. and if he really, really wants to be noticed he can mostly turn it off? but eh, he's an introvert anyway, as long as his small circle of friends still talks to him, he's fine. keralis and hypno and beef haven't forgotten he exists yet.

(hypno nearly forgets once. it makes xb's hair stand on end. he puts more effort into his side of the friendship with him for months afterwards. hypno's bemused. "you never texted back so quick before. what's gotten into you - monsters making you remember your mortality?" and it's... easier than the actual answer to go with that. hypno says xb should go to the support group again. xb doesn't say: they won't remember i'm there too if i don't make an effort to talk the whole time.)

its later in the plot, after... i had a timeline somewhere, but i think at LEAST after bdubs joins the squad and DEFINITELY after the "the magical girl crew fights the military" incident. it's then that the spirit of hiding reappears, and, drawn once again to xb's magic, despite the fact he's arguably more resistant to possession now, turns up where xb is.

and like... look. xb really, really doesn't want to get possessed again. because as nice as fading into the background is, he just... he doesn't want...

and they find themselves at an impasse.

xb gets this guy, is the thing. compared to other spirits, this guy doesn't do that much. it just... makes it easy to forget itself. to forget other people. and there's a horror in that, too, but there's also... xb can relate. before all of this started, he would have thought he'd be content to be entirely forgotten as well. it's just, the brief moment when someone he was close to had no recognition in his eyes -

"hey," xb says to the spirit that does not want to leave but that he doesn't want to let possess him. "hey. change of plans. how about we make a deal? i think there's something we can both offer to each other."

two days later, he slips into keralis's door and, once he finds the man, quietly sobs. he never says why. afterwards, he goes back to almost-normal. almost. if you aren't one of his friends, at least. his friends are... concerned. he's up to something.

xb assures them: he won't interfere that much. not his style. also, if he WERE to get noticed, he's pretty sure he might get dissected or something? so. much better to just... adjust from the background when he can.

he's sure it'll turn out fine.

[your-brilliant-lady-m]

Part 5 - Basic Concepts of Miraculous Ladybug: Guardians

Helloooo! Did you think I was done? No!

My PhD thesis chapters were approved last week, so have some celebratory meta. I haven't seen the latest Season 4 episodes, so do forgive me for not being up to date.

Welcome to the next part of my analysis of the basic concepts of Miraculous Ladybug. Today we are talking about Master Fu, Order of the Guardians and how little everything here makes sense. I highly recommend reading previous parts to fully understand this one, but I'll try to quote most parts of earlier posts.

Order of the Guardians

Order is an international and ancient organisation (New York Special showed us the guardian from North America and he was dressed like Su Han). Presumably, Miraculous jewels were created by these people. Guardians are responsible for the preservation of jewels and knowledge about them. They also distribute Miraculouses to worthy people around the world to combat mostly magical threats, but sometimes jewels are used against normal threats too. It's implied that Master Fu used Miraculouses during WW2 when he was in Paris. Perhaps he performed some spywork with Marianne, but the magical nature of his interferences was discovered and he was forced to flee, before returning to France many decades later.

Why does the Order need so many people to take care of a 3 Miracle Boxes? If its only purpose is to preserve knowledge, keep magical secrets and distribute Miraculous jewels then wouldn't it be more logical to have Master-Apprentice system? It's much easier to keep magic knowledge a secret and train a few people in martial arts than doing the same in the self-sufficient temple full of people, keeping in mind that a good part of them are teenagers and children, who are bad at keeping secrets. Also a single person can travel around the world much easier to give out Miraculouses. Imagine that we have a few active guardians traveling the world with Boxes. What do other people at the temple do in the meantime? They teach the next generation about the powers of each Miraculous and Mirakung Fu, but besides that?

Master-Apprentice system gives us more personal conflict between Fu and his mentor and makes his relationship with Marinette and Adrien more nuanced. In this scenario Fu accidentally caused the death of his Master at 14 because he wasn't careful. It makes sense for him to take on only 1 or 2 students if this is how things were done with Miraculous Guardians. This Wang Fu is very cautious and protective, he spent the majority of his life afraid of hurting someone else and never took an apprentice as a result. But now he is ready to try again, since he is not getting any younger and he likes these 2 kids. He wants them to succeed. Maybe Master Fu, becomes the father figure for Adrien in this situation and a guide for Marinette. Just think about it. This way writers avoid the need to develop all these extra characters (Su Han) and traditions related to the Order. All inconsistencies I mentioned before and later in this post are gone now! Hell, even memory loss and the changing of the Miracle Box shape could make more sense. We also raise the stakes post-amnesia, if it happens of course (the whole Season 3 finale didn't make sense, so stay tuned for my next meta). Marinette and Adrien are on their own now, there's no one who can give them answers. It's very fun scenario, which has potential to be brilliant. Any thoughts on that?

The existence of Order of the Guardians is not quite a secret, at least it wasn't in XIX century China. Master Fu in "Feast" says that guardianship was considered "a great honor". It implies that people who lived close to the temple of the Order knew about Miraculouses and what exactly guardians did for the greater good.

The existence of other Miracle Boxes around the world makes sense from a real-life perspective. Writers have the ability to create many stories set in the same universe and use them for merchandise and an almost unlimited amount of content. Judging by the unholy amount of specials in production, this is exactly what the creators are going to do. It probably won't go down well, but who knows?

However, it doesn't work in our main story. The main conflict is Paris-centred. Gabriel's motivations revolve around Emilie's resurrection and Season 4 gives us more reasons to suspect that Adrien's mom wasn't as wonderful as everyone says. Hawkmoth still remains the main villain of the show and most likely it's going to stay that way. There's no point in moving the main story to different places for the sake of introducing more Miracle Boxes from around the world. Ladybug and Chat Noir aren't needed to fight something halfway across the world unless Hawkmoth also changes locations.

LB and CN are centrepieces of this franchise. They brought success and money to ZAG. Creators constantly need to remind the audience that this new piece of media with new characters who will never be mentioned again is connected to Miraculous Tales of Ladybug and Chat Noir. Writers have to come up with reasons to include our heroic duo into the story even if makes no sense.

New York Special had to introduce American Heroes whose names rarely come up in the fandom because people stopped caring about them or their stories shortly after the release of the Special. I barely saw any content dedicated to them. In order to bring LB and CN into the story, you have to include Hawkmoth too. Gabriel suddenly needs to get his hands on the Eagle Miraculous and goes to USA. Marinette and Adrien suddenly have a class trip to New York. Unfortunately, their presence in this story is required only to expand the world of Miraculous and attract fans of the show, so that they could keep an eye on new content related to newly introduced characters.

In the end, it's not their story. Events of the special don't affect main story of the show and the development of the love square is merely an illusion, because Adrien and Marinette are no closer than before. In season 4 LB and CN are growing apart and their test of trust in NY Special doesn't matter. Perhaps, some people don't see it that way and it's their right, but I find it hard to see NYS as a valid contribution to canon. I mean, even people in large portion of the fandom state in the tags on AO3 that "specials are not canon", "specials didn't happen" or "ignores both specials". It speaks volumes about continuity and preferences of your fandom.

Shanghai Special didn't give us more information about the Order, which is located in China, history of Miraculous jewels. We still don't know much about how Gabriel and Emilie found Peacock and Butterfly. Maybe, Marinette's family had connections to Miraculous jewels. Maybe, Adrien does some snooping and discovers research his parents made while Gabriel is away. All of these are relevant to the main story. However, we got something much different in the end.

Marinette chases Adrien across the globe and they make new friends. Fey becomes Ladydragon and now has a direct contact with Marinette through her uncle. Gabriel's desire to get his hands on the Prodigious comes out of nowhere. Apparently, he had been planning this trip for years, presumably even before Adrien was born. It probably happened at the same time as Agrestes found 2 Miraculouses. He bought bracelet-key (which is also a Miraculous apparently, but its Kwami is a Guardian of the Prodigious and they existed separately for a very long time - and let us not dwell on this mess) from some shady mafia boss, who can easily find out just who Gabriel really is (fashion designer billionaire) and use this information to blackmail him. This Special didn't answer important questions, but it gave us a new superhero character.

The real question is whether Miraculous as a project will survive long enough for writers to create content for every minor character they introduced in all specials. This is only a beginning after all.

Miraculous is not a global show and it can't be globalised in a way that makes sense, at least with Ladybug and Chat Noir in the centre of action. Case closed.

Mirakung Fu

I liked the idea of Mirakung Fu introduced in "Furious Fu". It makes sense and things rarely do in this show. Miraculous grants its holder superhuman strength, stamina, endurance and ability to fight. This means that essentially transformed heroes are guided by magic in combat. There's nothing personal in the way Miraculous holders fight. You can predict their moves and learn how to fight this magic guidance, which is what Su Han does.

However, if the holder has any special training, skills or knows any martial art in their civilian life then they become more dangerous opponents during transformation because now their fighting is a mix of magical moves and their personal knowledge, tricks and style. Therefore, Adrien and Kagami as skilful fencers have more chances of winning against someone who knows Mirakung Fu than Marinette, for example.

Memory loss

At the end of season 3, we find out several things:

apparently, now Miracle Box can change appearance to suit its guardian;

when Guardian passes down the Miracle Box to someone else, they lose memories not only about everything related to Miraculous, but also about pretty much everything in their life (Fu doesn't recognise Marianne, instead he experiences the love at first sight)

Master Fu trains Marinette to be the proper holder and next Guardian off-screen. He says that her training as the holder is complete in "Feast" and wants her to become the next Guardian. Fu told her lots of things, and yet, he never mentioned the fact that he would lose his memory after relinquishing the box, nor the fact that Marinette would lose her memory afterwards. She finds out about this from Wayzz after the battle with Miracle Queen and the letter that Master Fu gave her. That's not proper training! How on Earth do you forget to mention this memory loss? How?

Master Fu's amnesia is a convenient plot device that removes him from the narrative almost completely. That's mostly all there is to it. Why? Because it doesn't make sense.

Fu was around 7 or 8 when he started his training. The disaster at the temple happened when he was 14. He stated that his training was never complete, which means that he never passed any magical ritual, never swore an oath or was bound by some kind of spell that made him subjected to the rule of memory loss.

Miracle Boxes belonged to the order, not Fu. Their design reflected their country of origin because these Miraculous were made and kept in China. They were just standing there on the shelves not magically bound to anyone in particular. When Feast attacked, monks just tossed Wang Fu the miracle box and grimoire. No one at the temple lost their memory after Fu took the box with him (Su Han is the proof). Su Han not only remembers Fu and his mistake but everything that happened that fateful day as well. In "Furious Fu" Marinette explains Su Han that Master Fu lost his memory in the very first conversation they have. However, after Ladybug and Chat Noir fight Su Han on the roof and escape with the Miracle Box, the latter searches for Fu and attempts to take his staff from him. In this scene, Su Han acts like Fu knows very well what is going on and who he is.

Su Han should be aware of the memory loss rule as the Celestial Guardian. He remarks on the different shape of the Mother Miracle Box and calls her "incorrect", which means that Su Han should have been able to easily tell that previous Guardian lost his memory and the Miracle Box is now bound to someone else. But he doesn't say anything. Moreover, since Su Han is supposed to know about amnesia, he seemed awfully chill about forcing this 14-year-old girl in front of him to give up the box and her memories. Hell, Chat Noir wasn't on board with this. But we get zero reaction from Su Han.

During the first conversation between Marinette and Su Han, he doesn't ignore what she is trying to say, instead he actively comments on every word. Even if Su Han didn't listen when Marinette told him about Fu's memory loss, than he still should be able to understand that Fu doesn't recognise him, because of common sense and the "incorrect" shape of the box. But nothing of the sort happens. Because writers apparently forgot that "memory loss" is supposed to be known to everyone in the Order. On-screen it looks like Su Han is not aware of the "amnesia rule".

"Furious Fu" makes the concept of memory loss a plothole no matter how you look at it. Just like "Timetagger" and "Chat Blanc", as well as "Kwamibuster" this episode is not consistent within itself. It does not surprise me, however.

Grimoire and Guardian Staffs

Let's talk about the Miraculous Grimoire. Good things first.

There are no illustrations of Miraculouses in camouflage. Kwami can't read its contents, only guardians can. Certain elements are written in riddles as an additional precaution. The book contains only the information people have learned so far, which means that Miraculouses have more unexplored potential ("Mr. Pigeon 72"). It describes powers of each Miraculous, provides information about weapons, has instructions for potions that don't make sense (see previous parts).

Unfortunately, everything is about to go downhill from here.

Guardians are taught how to read the writing in this book. They can read it just like people learn to read texts in a different language. This means that one can read Grimoire like any other book (you don't need to consult some guide to decode each letter or word). Master Fu proclaimed Marinette an almost fully trained Guardian. He should have taught her how to read the Grimoire then (he doesn't know the code very well, but he knew enough to understand the general meaning and content of the book according to "Collector"). He didn't. We don't know why. He shows her powers of every Miraculous but doesn't teach her the code.

Master Fu knows that Grimoire now belongs to Gabriel Agreste. He knows that it's dangerous for someone else to have it. If they knew how to read the Grimoire, they could discover all secrets of Miraculouses and harm Ladybug, Chat Noir and other heroes. It's very important to keep the information about the code top secret because Fu is not the only one with the source material.

What does he do then? Master Fu proceeds to write a French translation of Grimoire for Marinette, a translation that he doesn't even need. He carries it with him at all times on a tablet (without any precautions) just like the Miracle box after "Feast". Naturally, it means that in "Miracle Queen", Gabriel and Nathalie easily managed to get their hands on the tablet and Miracle Box. It allows the plot to happen, sure. But it doesn't make any sense.

"Furious Fu" created another curious plot hole. It will probably be ignored, of course. Su Han has a staff with a magical compass that allows him to find any Miracle box, but not the Miraculous jewels for some reason. How does the staff work? Can it locate the box without the Miraculous? If yes, then it seems useless. What's the point in the ability to locate an empty box? If it can locate the box only with the Miraculous jewels inside, it implies that the staff can track the location of every Miraculous too. So, Su Han could just locate the Butterfly and Peacock without any problem. But he talks about reassigning Ladybug and Black Cat to adults and defeating Hawkmoth like locating the Butterfly is not possible. This situation makes the Guardian Staff a simple plot device that creates plot holes and its only purpose is to explain how Su Han found Marinette.

Also, I have a few more words to say about this. Master Fu had a Guardian Staff that was never mentioned before. I wonder why? That's because the staff didn't exist before "Furious Fu" was written. Writers just went: "Do you know what would be cool? If Fu's cane was really a secret Guardian Staff with a compass all along that he decided to keep even after he lost his memory? It would make people wonder whether Master Fu is faking amnesia, and everyone will definitely call him an awful mentor after this even though we kind of tried to make him a good and responsible person."

Fu didn't give it to Marinette and didn't mention it to her. Why? When he gave up his memory, he should have written about this in his letter at least. Why did he decide to keep it? He can't use it anyway now.

Please note how in the flashbacks Fu didn't take any staff with him when he escaped the temple. Su Han seemed to know how Fu's staff looked like. It means that Master Fu didn't make this staff himself, because it belonged to the Order.

Su Han wasn't even surprised that Marinette didn't have the staff as the current Guardian. Was she not supposed to have it? He never questioned the fact that the former Guardian without memories has the staff. Su Han actually returns this staff to Fu after he is deakumatized and Fu acts like they have never met before. Why did Su Han gave the staff back when he knows what it is and to whom it should belong (to him or to Marinette as the current Guardian)? The staff is useless in the hands of the civilian. Does Marianne know about its secret? We'll probably never find out, unfortunately.

Guardian Staff of Master Fu has a compass too and therefore this also makes it a plot device, just like Su Han's staff.

[nice-kill-tanaka]

May I have a my hero and ohshc matchup plz

I'm a short girl around 5'2 with long brown hair and eyes and a leo. I like anime,dragons,reptiles,drawing but I'm not good,tarantulas,sweets,video games, memes,dark humor. I am very kind but I care more about others than I do myself. I have bad anxiety. I tend to overthink about everything. I love to sing especially country music but I am tone deaf. I have trouble standing up for myself because I was bullied alot. I can be very blunt. I also love to swear. I can be very loud. I love a good mystery and cop shows. I love dad jokes and puns.I am terrified of bees and heights. I am very lazy but I can be good at doing stuff if motivated. I have a very kind heart and sad stories or ones with very happy endings make my heart happy or hurt like crazy. But even though I'm kind that doesn't mean i am nice all the time. I am extremely grumpy and have a short temper especially on no sleep or if I just woke up. I also do have adhd and some anxiety I dont like being touched randomly unless I know it will happen or if I touch someone. As for dreams I'm not sure I wanna be a voice actor but not too sure if its right for me as I don't know how to edit or even have the equipment. I want someone who can just listen to me as I ramble on about things I love. I want someone to understand that I think differently then normal people. I also want someone to be able to understand im not the most affectionate person but I can be if given time but I will help someone if they are touch starved like I am.

[🌄 @cutelittleriot requested one (1) regular My Hero Academia matchup. I have just the ingredients for that! Sit tight while I get to work.🌌]

YAYYY!! First bnha matchup!! I gotchu bud 👍 I’m thinking about trying something new for the bnha fandom in particular. So, I’ll try it out and see what you think! Also, I got a little carried away with this one, so if it doesn’t seem characteristically accurate to you, please tell me!! 😖

And, the lucky person is:

⛰Eijiro Kirishima⛰

Quirk: Dragon

Dragon is a mutation quirk. It manifests slowly over time, until the user becomes about 60% dragon-esque at around 15/16 years old.

Scales and tough skin appear on the arms, legs, and face. Sharp teeth and claws grow in. Horns protrude from the forehead. A tail grows from the spine. Finally, wings grow from the back.

Flesh becomes twice as tough in places where scales are.

Depending on the user’s body type, wing usage is limited. (Since you’re generally shorter than average, “flying” and gliding comes easier to you.)

When the user consumes pressurized carbon dioxide, their stomach converts it into flammable gasses. Which allows the user to breathe- er...burp...fire.

Fire must be carefully used however. The smoke produced can accidentally be breathed in, causing lung damage.

🌱Humble Beginnings🌱

I’ll start by saying this: Being bullied is never fun. Being bullied over something you can’t easily control or change? Rub salt in it, why don’tcha?

You weren’t sure what the select few kids in your grade thought was so hilarious about your quirk. But, they managed to find enough wrong with it to do their damage for most of your time in school

First, the patches of scales that showed up on your skin were “too weak”. Then, your awkward transition stage with growing horns, wings, and tail was suddenly “ugly”

By the time your quirk fully manifested, the jeers finally devolved to “freak-ish”

Like a river carving out the Grand Canyon, the work was slow and wore you down over time. But, the impact was a lot bigger than even you’d initially thought

While you managed to somewhat heal and learned to guard your emotions against such hurtful things, that’s all you learned to do: Guard yourself. You were a shield with no spear, since you never fought back

With the help of supportive parents and teachers, your self-esteem wasn’t so low, but you did often downplay or underestimate your abilities

Like, Bitch??? You can burp fire??? Know your power???

The people you were on good terms with seemed to see a potential that you either disregarded, or didn't know about all together

They saw the way you treated others with consideration and forethought. How, despite (or because of) your anxiety, you remained hyper-aware of the problems of others and how to accommodate. And while your anger did have its vices, people knew how hot your righteous rage could burn

It actually took a lot of convincing for you to even apply to U.A. 

Outside of your other aspirations for the future, you didn’t particularly feel worthy for the job. Of anything you could be, you weren’t a fearless, upstanding, unshakable individual, not even giving a second thought to throwing yourself into danger for the good of others. You weren’t your alleged definition of a hero, and that was enough to deter you

But, whenever you recited your polite (well-rehearsed) decline, most gave you the same weirdly optimistic retort:

“Just try, maybe you’ll do better than you’re giving yourself credit for.”

So, here you were at an entrance exam full of people you hardly knew, wondering how you even rationalized to yourself that this would go just fine

The written exam went okay. As well as you could for literally guessing what to study to pass

All you had to do was do your best on the physical exam, and you’d be done for the day

But, your issue was in the people around you, not the exam itself

You were aware of the high amount of attention the moment you walked onto campus. The way other kids measured you up from a distance, studying everything about your not-so-human body. Watching your every move, especially the way your movements were strained from soreness (A short period of intense training tends to do that to you). You assumed they also wanted to see if your disposition was as powerful as your quirk suggested

((You specifically noticed a coltish, green-haired kid muttering to himself, questioning if your wings could actually support your body weight))

Even now, as the prospective heroes-in-training warmed up, you felt the stares burning into you

Half of you wanted to lift your eyes and rhetorically ask what the hell they were looking at, only feeling more annoyed as you snorted and returned to what you were doing. The other half wanted to fold into yourself until you disappeared (If only it were that easy)

But, you had enough (Roughly, one billion) worries on your mind to put confrontation on the list. Shaking off your anxious shivers as you lowered your head and continued with your “stretches” seemed so much easier

(A.k.a. Staring off into space as you held your limbs in awkward positions)

The time to begin the physical test was drawing near, and your self-doubt hadn’t eased up. Maybe this was a mistake. You didn’t belong here. Not when so many other students could fill the space you’re wasting so much better. Maybe if you slipped through the back now, you’d save yourself the disappointment of not living up to your own standards

“Hey, brown-haired girl! With the horns!”

You heard a gruff whisper from not to far behind you, from the left. You tensed for a moment, wondering what the voice could possibly want from you. But, the sight you saw was rather unexpected

The voice definitely matched the body, bulky and slightly rough looking, a little taller than you. Matched with a sweet face, sharp teeth, and bright, spiky, red hair. The smile he showed you instantly calmed your thoughts

“…Hm?”

You gave a short response, not wanting to jump to conclusions yet

“I saw you looking kinda psyched out over here, so I thought talking to you would make you less nervous!”

You felt a warm and fuzzy sensation in the pit of your stomach. As much encouragement as you got to achieve things, you didn’t see much of it to consider how you felt. How you could feel better. You liked it, which was surprising, considering the encouragement came from a perfect stranger

“Oh, uhh…thanks then. But, I’m fine, I promise! I’m no more nervous than you are.”

“Well, that’s also why I came to talk…I’m kinda freaking out too…”

This boy’s transparency was almost scary, but on the other hand, very comforting. You didn’t catch him trying to stare at your mutated parts once as you talked. Your eyes were the thing he seemed the most focused on, and while it made you embarrassed, it was the good kind (if that makes sense)

But, soon enough, the announcement for the beginning of the exam came over the loudspeaker, and you and your acquaintance had to look out for yourselves. But, before you parted ways, the redhead turned to you

“I’m Eijiro Kirishima, by the way! See you when I see you, Shortie!”

🌳Flourishing Love🌳

The beginning of Kirishima seeing you as a romantic option happened not too long after parting ways at the physical exam

He was almost completely cornered by one of the machines students could disarm for points. And just as that was happening, you had just turned the corner after shaking off another one

You saw Kirishima, but he definitely didn’t see you, trying hard to look tough, but struggling to stand his ground

It quickly dawned on you that Kirishima didn’t have a quirk that could easily deal with the hostile device. And if he did, he was too scared to use it

You vetoed the idea of charging in head on first. You didn’t feel like getting yourself or Kirishima hurt. Especially without a plan. You needed to be smart about getting your only acquaintance out of this situation

Your heart raced and your execution was all but clean, but you ended up using your fire breath to weld the robot’s wheels to the concrete

Before you let your inhibitions get the better of you, you climbed the machine and punched out the camera on the front. From atop the beast, you hung your tail over the edge low enough for Kirishima to grab. You didn’t dare look down at the ground

“Dammit Eijiro, grab on!!”

Once you felt a weight on your tail, you used your wings to propel you both forward. Obviously, away from the robot

You were too high on adrenaline and fear to notice, but Kirishima stared at you like you were the embodiment of Heaven on Earth. The stars in his eyes almost seemed inappropriate for the situation 😅

You looked just as—if not more—afraid than he was. But, you seemed so okay with the fact that you weren’t fearless, and acted like a true hero anyway. He admired, dare I say loved that about you

And he didn’t even know your name

As soon as you found out that you and Kirishima were in the same class, you felt instant relief. At least you were familiar with someone at U.A.

You guys’ friendship developed rather fast, like and extrovert adopting an introvert

Kirishima quickly noticed how fast you opened up once you got comfortable around him, and loved you all the more for how bright and vibrant the unfiltered you was

He found himself picking up on your sense of humor, telling dad jokes you whisper under your breath to the Bakusquad (Much to Bakugou’s dismay 😅)

Don’t worry, he always gives you the credit 😉

As time went on, Kirishima learned to appreciate how blunt you were. He realized that he needed someone to tell it like it is (“It isn’t manly to sugarcoat things! 😤” he says)

And while Kirishima prefers physical activities over video games, he loves to hype you up while you play before classes

It was only natural a mutual crush would form :D

Kirishima finally worked up the guts to ask you out after the U.S.J. Incident

You and him had gotten separated (You had gotten trapped with the cold son of Endeavor. And you both took out the villains with an awe-inspiring display of fire and ice)

Kirishima was faced with the reality that either of you could lose each other at any moment. And while both of you came out alright, he realized he couldn’t be wishy-washy about his feelings for you

He told you on your way to school the next morning:

“Look. What happened yesterday really scared me. Normally, I wouldn’t say that, but I think you deserve to know. Because…you mean a lot to me!! More than I can put into words. I love when we have fun together, and I don’t know what I’d do with myself if I never got to tell you how I felt…”

“Basically…I like you!! Like…in the romantic way…”

Your early morning grumpiness dissipated almost instantly, replaced by momentary confusion and disbelief, then embarrassment and joy. Was this really happening…? The boy that took a chance on you since the beginning, confessed that he had feelings for you…? Even though you didn’t question your relationship, you always assumed the nice things Kirishima said, the way he looked at you, was all part of the pleasantries. You questioned if you were even worth all of that

‘But you are.’ The little voice Kirishima helped you develop said. ‘And he would say more if he didn’t look so embarrassed.’

And so, you accepted Kirishima’s confession. And he saw the sweetest smile you had ever given him since the first time he complimented your puns 😊❤️

\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/

[🌌 There you go bud! That’s one matchup for the road. Hopefully it lasts for a while, but if it doesn’t, feel free to come back! I’d be thrilled to see you again.🌄] —Reagan

[kotekie]

Colress and redemption

A ramble by me here we mc go.

Key point that needs to be made really clear.

I am not talking about whether colress deserves to be redeemed. That is a different topic and I'm just focusing on how I find a colress redemption arc to be so gosh darn fascinating.

Secondly, this is focusing upon game Colress. Anime and manga not included.

Thirdly, I have not completed bw2 or sun and moon but I did do my best to research everything and I reread all his dialogue on bulbapedia before doing this ramble.

All clear? Okay let's go.

In my honest opinion Colress is an absolutely fascinating character to have a redemption arc and honestly skipping over it I find to be a crime.

Colress is a grey character. That's kinda his whole deal but let's be honest his shade of grey... is a bit darker considering bw2 events. Then again it is... difficult to write a purely grey character. Overall. He is a grey character.

He's not the typical character you would want to see a redemption arc for. Typically those types of characters have some kind of tragic element, I.e good character turned bad due to traumatic event. Usually they have someone to pull them back or try to help them become better.

Colress has no one.

The closest bond Colress has to anyone is Ghetsis and I'll get to him later.

Sure Colress works with people but he never really has any friends. Nor any family from what we see.

He is alone.

This is important because Colress is very influenced by certain people. Mainly, people whom he holds some kind of respect for.

No more is this evident then in Bw2. It's by his interactions with Ghetsis the plasma frigate incident happens. It's by his interactions with the bw2 protagonist that he starts to change and eventually disbands team plasma.

We even see the influence of the bw2 protagonist in alola. He referers to 'that trainer he once met' and he mentions that its bonds between humans and pokemon that draws out the full power between humans and pokemon as he had learnt in BW2. Yet even in Alola he is still doing pokemon fusion. Which is. Well. Not the best thing to put simply. Which, is a remnant of Ghetsis's influence.

Speaking of which.

I am not suggesting Colress and Ghetsis are friends. At all. What I am saying... is that Ghetsis is likely the closest thing Colress had to a friend.

I am not going to debate whether or not he actually despises Ghetsis but I will say that he does somewhat care for him. This comes from his line in ultra sun and moon where after yeeting RR Ghetsis back into his world he says "I can only hope that the taste of defeat will keep that Ghetsis out of trouble in his world" which if you think about it... That is a very odd thing to say about someone like Ghetsis unless on some level you care about them.

That's something sad I found about Colress. In game Ghetsis is probably the closest thing he has to a friend. Perhaps maybe the bw2 protag but it never seems to evolve into a friendship or develop to a deeper level then the one he has with Ghetsis and I'll explain why I think so later.

You could argue he cares about the ultra sumo protags and lillie but I would like to bring up the possibility that he only cares about them because they would be useful for his research. After all the protags can use z moves and gets a legendary. That would be useful to his research.

All in all... I think this leads to a key component about Colress. He doesn't understand bonds between people and pokemon beyond a very basic level. It's limited. No more is this clear then in his research.

He focuses in on power.

He says his theme of research is to draw out the true 'potential' in pokemon. Yet often he talks about drawing out a pokemons power.

You could argue that Colress is actually seeking to draw out the full power of pokemon not potential. I would like to bring up the possibility that he does mean potential but to him potential = power.

He has a narrow view on what potential means. Just like he has a narrow view on relationships.

He fails to see that a pokemons potential is not just power but the ability to change, grow, help others and so on.

With relationships, he thinks it about mutual trust. Trust is important but it's the groundwork. Work colleagues trust each other. Friendships go a bit beyond trust. Its loyalty, understanding and comfort, dedication and being able to be vulnerable around each other.

This also makes his bond between Ghetsis to me is quite sad.

We know that Colress prioritises his research above everything. It's kinda his whole thing. He works with people who will provide him with what he needs with his research.

Yet. He still Hope's that rr ghetsis doesn't get in trouble in his own world. A ghetsis that would provide no benefit to him yet he still doesn't want him to get into trouble. Colress cares about Ghetsis.

But as we know, Ghetsis is a manipulator and doesn't care about anyone but himself.

We know that Colress is influenced by the people he respects. Is it that far fetched that his warped views on pokemon potential and relationships came from his bond with Ghetsis? After all we do that Ghetsis's influence is still prevalent is sumo considering he willingly made a device for poke fusion. Again.

This is why I don't think he formed a friendship with the bw2 protag. If he did I don't think his views would be so narrow.

We see the potential. In bw2 he says when the player rebattles Colress that he is uncertain of where to go next but when he battles the protagonist the future seems clearer. If they had become friends he would have become better. He has the potential to become redeemed.

This is why I find the idea Colress having a redemption arc so fascinating. He has the potential to do so and surprisingly it easy.

He can become better. He just needs a better influence.

Yes I am saying the power of friendship can turn Colress its cheesy but there ya go.

I very much love the idea of a character learning to be good via the bonds they share with other people. Plus Colress's transformation wouldn't be quick it would be slow and take time. It's small acts that build up to make a massive change and personally I would love to read it tlajkssn.

But um ye.

Dats pretty much it.

Bonus: (abuse mention below)

I don't think Ghetsis abused Colress. Ghetsis is a tactical man. I agree he did likely abuse N but he would have done it in a way to brainwash N into thinking what he wanted him to think.

Ghetsis needs Colress's loyalty and it's really quite simple on how to do it. Fund his research.

However I do think that Ghetsis may want revenge. Colress is no longer useful so it's pretty much up in the air what he may do to him.

Also, Colress has never met N. N is the exact person Colress would want helping him in his research and Ghetsis would have known this. Having the two interact could prove disastrous to his plans as Colress would have told him that humans and pokemon can get along and N would've helped Colress in his research far more then Ghetsis ever could.

Also post bw N would have been the positive influence Colress would have needed to become redeemed just saying.

Sequel post:

Update post for story based on my analysis:

Edit: hey this is Koteki from the future just adding to a link to an analysis that helped fuel my own- I recommend you have a read through it cause it's very good. In these analysis I tried to keep it to my own thoughts but it was inspired by this analysis so here-

https://archiveofourown.org/works/13321335?view_adult=true

[mongoose232323]

#YukYkYuk #RudyIsStillInUkraine #TrumpIsSoSmart #SoCleverIgnoringSubpoenas

~ I M P E A C H E D ~

The 30 Stupidest Lines From Donald Trump's

Unhinged Letter To House Speaker Nancy Pelosi

From Article

On the eve of his impeachment by the House, President Donald Trump sent a blistering letter to Speaker Nancy Pelosi -- airing his grievances with her and the broader Democratic Party while insisting that the actions taken on Wednesday will doom her to the dustbin of history.

I went through the letter -- which, from its first words, you can tell has the President's rhetorical fingerprints all over it -- and highlighted some of the most, uh, important lines. They're below.

1. "This impeachment represents an unprecedented and unconstitutional abuse of power by Democrat Lawmakers, unequaled in nearly two and a half centuries of American legislative history."

So, two things. One, impeachment is built into the Constitution and two past presidents have been impeached by the House. Two, it's "Democratic lawmakers" not "Democrat Lawmakers." And away we go!

2. "You have cheapened the importance of the very ugly word, impeachment!"

Like I said: You can clearly see Trump's involvement in the letter.

3. "By proceeding with your invalid impeachment, you are violating your oaths of office, you are breaking your allegiance to the Constitution, and you are declaring open war on American Democracy."

Wow. Lot to unpack here. Whether or not Trump likes it, the House is tasked with carrying out impeachment if a majority of members believe it is warranted. So, it's not "invalid." As for "declaring open war on American Democracy," well, Trump never pretended to be understated.

4. "You dare to invoke the Founding Fathers in pursuit of this election-nullification scheme?"

There's almost never a good time for the "how dare you?" construction.

5. "Even worse than offending the Founding Fathers, you are offending Americans of faith by continually saying you pray for the President when you know this statement is not true, unless it is meant in a negative sense."

WHOA BOY. So, Trump knows Pelosi doesn't actually pray for him? How? Did he someone eavesdrop on her prayers? Also, what is the "negative sense" of praying? I spent more time than I'd like to admit thinking about this and decided that Trump is suggesting that if Pelosi prays for him, it's for his demise. I think.

6. "It is a terrible thing you are doing, but you will have to live with it, not I!"

Nothing is ever Trump's fault. Ever.

7. "Fortunately, there was a transcript of the conversation taken, and you know from the transcript (which was immediately made available) that the paragraph in question was perfect."

What would a perfect paragraph look like? Do we even know? Anywho, here are 4 facts from that July 25 phone call between Trump and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky: a) Trump tells Zelensky that the US does a lot for Ukraine b)Trump reminds Zelensky that Ukraine doesn't reciprocate c) Trump asks Zelensky for a favor: to look into a debunked conspiracy theory that the hacked Democratic National Committee server is in Ukraine and d) Trump asks Zelensky to look into Joe and Hunter Biden. To my mind, the White House transcript of that call reads more like a smoking gun than an exoneration.

8. "I said to President Zelensky: would like you to do us a favor, though, because our country has been through a lot and Ukraine knows a lot about it? I said do us a favor, not me and our country, not a campaign."

Trump didn't start making this "me" versus "us" argument until the past few weeks. But even putting that aside, the two things he asks of Zelensky (whereabouts of DNC server and investigation into the Biden) were not mentioned at all in Trump's notes for the call, which were supposed to focus, generally speaking, on the country's corruption problems.

9. "You are turning a policy disagreement between two branches of government into an impeachable offense."

At issue is not the separation of powers or even really a disagreement. The issue is whether a president can ask a foreign country to investigate one of his potential political rivals. And, even if he can do it, should he?

10. "You know full well that Vice President Biden used his office and $1 billion dollars of US aid money to coerce Ukraine into firing the prosecutor who was digging into the company paying his son millions of dollars."

Reminder: Biden called for the firing of Ukraine's top prosecutor as part of an international coalition designed to address corruption in the country. There is no evidence of any wrongdoing in Ukraine by Joe or his son Hunter Biden.

11. "Now you are trying to impeach me by falsely accusing me of doing what Joe Biden has admitted he actually did."

Apples and oranges here. Again, Biden called for the firing of the prosecutor as part of a coordinated -- and transparent -- strategy to address corruption in Ukraine. Trump got on the phone with the Ukrainian president and, contrary to the notes prepared for him in advance of the meeting, freelanced to ask him to investigate one of his main rivals for the GOP nomination.

12. "President Zelensky has repeatedly declared that I did nothing wrong, and that there was 'No Pressure.'"

Zelensky is no dummy! He knows he needs future aid from the US in order to fight the Russians at his borders. Given that, why would he piss Trump off by saying he felt pressure? Also, not for nothing: Why is "No Pressure" capitalized?

13. "Ambassador Sondland testified that I told him: 'No quid pro quo. I want nothing. I want nothing. I want President Zelensky to do the right thing, do what he ran on.'"

Yes, Trump did tell US Ambassador to the European Union Gordon Sondland that. After the White House had been made aware that Congress was looking into the withholding of military aid. So....

14. "Your chosen candidate lost the election in 2016, in an Electoral College landslide (306-227), and you and your party have never recovered from this defeat."

The 2016 election ended 1,134 days ago.

15. "You have developed a full-fledged case of what many in the media call Trump Derangement Syndrome and sadly, you will never get over it!"

An incurable case of TDS??? Call the CDC, STAT.

16. "You view democracy as your enemy!"

Just a reminder here: This is the President of the United States, on official White House stationery, telling the Speaker of the House that she believes democracy is the "enemy." Very normal! Nothing to see here!

17. "As you know very well, this impeachment drive has nothing to do with Ukraine, or the totally appropriate conversation I had with its new president."

Wait. Is this the "perfect" conversation? Or are we referring to another "totally appropriate" conversation here? Either way, Trump did nothing wrong! Ever!

18. "Congressman Adam Schiff cheated and lied all the way up to the present day, even going so far as to fraudulently make up, out of thin air, my conversation with President Zelensky of Ukraine and read this fantasy language to Congress as though it were said by me."

This claim, which Trump repeats constantly, makes me insane. Because it's just wrong. Here's what Schiff said before paraphrasing what was in the July 25 phone call: "In not so many words, this is the essence of what the President communicates." He literally makes clear that he is paraphrasing Trump, not directly quoting him. Why is this a thing???

19. "You conducted a fake investigation upon the democratically elected President of the United States, and you are doing it yet again."

To be clear: Pelosi had zero to do with the special counsel investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 election. That was the Justice Department under Trump. Also, that investigation wasn't "fake" -- it led to a number of arrests and prison sentences, not to mention documenting the deep and broad efforts of the Russian government to meddle in the 2016 election to help Trump and hurt Hillary Clinton.

20. "And by the way, when I speak to foreign countries, there are many people, with permission, listening to the call on both sides of the conversation."

Again, Trump misses the point here. The issue is not that other people were listening. The issue is what he told Zelensky -- even with people listening! If he talks like that when he knows people are on the line, how does he talk on the sidelines of summits and the like when there are far less staff nearby?

21. "You are the ones interfering in America's elections. You are the ones subverting America's Democracy."

I am rubber and you are glue. Whatever you say bounces off me and sticks to you.

22. "If you truly cared about freedom and liberty for our Nation, then you would be devoting your vast investigative resources to exposing the full truth concerning the horrifying abuses of power before, during, and after the 2016 election -- including the use of spies against my campaign."

There has never been a shred of evidence that spies were used against Trump's campaign. In fact, in the report released by Justice Department Inspector General Michael Horowitz earlier this month, it's made quite clear there is zero evidence of spies being sicced on the Trump campaign.

23. "Any member of Congress who votes in support of impeachment against every shred of truth, fact, evidence, and legal principle, is showing how deeply they revile the voters and how truly they detest America's Constitutional order."

"Detest America's Constitutional order"? Really?

24. "In other words, once the phone call was made public, your whole plot blew up, but that didn't stop you from continuing."

As I wrote at the time, the transcript of the July 25 phone call is pretty damn close to a smoking gun against Trump.

25. "More due process was afforded to those accused in the Salem Witch Trials."

Uh, paging John Proctor...

26. "This is nothing more than an illegal, partisan attempted coup that will, based on recent sentiment, badly fail at the voting booth."

Definitely not illegal! Or a coup!

27. "Your legacy will be that of turning the House of Representatives from a revered legislative body into a Star Chamber of partisan persecution."

Not to be a contrarian here, but pretty sure that no matter what happens with impeachment, Pelosi's legacy will be as the first female Speaker of the House.

28. "You apparently have so little respect for the American People that you expect them to believe that you are approaching this impeachment somberly, reservedly, and reluctantly. No intelligent person believes what you are saying."

Really? And how did Trump learn to glean people's "real" motives? Is that some sort device you can buy on Amazon? If so, send me a link!

29. "I write this letter to you for the purpose of history and to put my thoughts on a permanent and indelible record."

"This will go down on your permanent record." -- The Violent Femmes

30. "One hundred years from now, when people look back at this affair, I want them to understand it, and learn from it, so that it can never happen to another President again."

https://amp.cnn.com/cnn/2019/12/17/politics/trump-letter-nancy-pelosi-impeachment/index.html

[thefreshfinds]

Pen Soul: Jodie Jo’

There’s a story to be told and in Pen Soul Jodie Jo succeeds at doing so.

As quoted in the description on Soundcloud, "Jodie Jo' uses this double entendre to show that his soul is in his pen, or per-say, his writing. Everything comes from within, if looked at from a spiritual point of view, most would consider it God sent." He tells many stories from another's perspective in this 16 track LP, reeling out subconscious thoughts and pinned up emotion.

“The backstory of Pen Soul is just the experiences I've encountered in my day to day life.” says Jodie “The tracks on this project deal with a lot of internal issues that cause negative impact on relationships such as, holding grudges, miscommunication, judging, blaming, ignorance, and lack of leadership, but also it brings in the solutions to these issues that can be heard in various tracks, such as forgiveness, apologies, understanding, knowing self, vibrating higher, and finding purpose. So Pen Soul really derives from my soul, the things that I've struggled with, and how I overcame things, but I wrote the songs in a way where it's not telling my personal business, I paint scenarios of other people's lives and situations which can be related to, while giving a message that can't be heard unless dissected.“

Truly Pen Soul speaks on the problematics of our society, of Black America. It uses a range of beats that incorporate a jazz, nostalgic feel while taking you back to your roots.

Pen Soul starts off with Enter the Course (Intro) which gives us a sneak peek of what to expect next. Building up, the track starts off with a gun shot and then a British accented lady begins to speak as if she is giving a friend a word of advice. Afterwards, there is a bit of everything in the audio snippets from "Black Household" or "Church Sunday, Stripper Monday" to police sirens (to even some news documentations.) which adds a sweet touch to a transition.

The second track, Hard Heart (Part 1) drones into your ear sockets with a dash of ethereally, low drum kicks, saxophones, soft yet angelic singing and mellow back phrasing. He feeds the mind with a spoonful of knowledge about dealing with obstacles that life throws at you. Going even further, Jodie says that you shouldn’t let these same obstacles (like battle wounds) or past situations harden your heart. Life can flash before your eyes, so it’s best to just love with all you’ve got. Towards the end he speaks for the hurt by saying “How can I love someone who wants to do me wrong?” As a result, we begin to think of ways to get over those hurdles within ourselves and even though it can seem difficult, Jodie’s symphony makes it easier.

Black Household puts you at ease with its nostalgic yet soulful aura. In an instant the listener is able to understand what it’s like for those who live either with a single black household from the perspective of the mother and the kid. It really reflects on the deep emotion a mother must sacrifice in order to make ends meet but at the same time, she shouldn’t treat him the way she does because of stress and he seems to agree. Overall this track shows a strained yet loving relationship between a son and his mother.

Some shake it for the glory. Some for the gold. But in this women’s case, she does it for both. In the fourth track Church Sunday, Stripper Monday Jodie Jo’ is the narrator and he tells a brutally honest story about a woman who thinks she is rebuking her sins on the weekdays by going to church. His words are centered by an elevated production that has some passionate melodies, enticing saxophones and finger snapping snares. All in all the song gives off the feeling that it’s meant to: wise words and gospel thrown in with a pulsating tempo.

With the ongoing daunted tone from the piano chords, fast paced drums, cymbals, passionate saxophone and clickers to follow, Mama Drama (The Tale of The Good Baby Daddy) bangs in as the fifth track and tells a story about a mother who keeps a loving man away from his kids (which can be surprising to some because it is usually the other way around.) The production and words that Jodie choose to use are hard hitting. These two elements also wring out the right emotion from your heart, making it easy to feel the fathers pain.

Announced as the sixth track Feminine Myocardium to me, is a man's proclamation of love towards a woman who just doesn't show him ordinary love. The track is followed by reverse tape effects, minor saxophone blares and guitar chords, making the listen more sentimental and in turn, easy to recall past experiences with an old flame.

The seventh track Yeah Yeah, Sure Sure is about the mindset one is in during an argument but shows that love always outweighs the flaws seen in one another. Jodie's floetry in this piece can be characterized to Andre 3000’s due to the structure of syllables and grammatical phrasing that he decides to use. The production has the same reverse tape effect and blaring saxophone as the last but it also includes some warm, splashy piano chords and muffled drums.

"And they fight, and they fuss", thats what Jodie Jo paraphrases in the chorus of the eighth track called Ignorant Love. As it starts off with some deep twilight effects, the track raises the tempo with some light tamborine play, 808's and the same blaring saxophone. The message in the song is told by Jodie Jo who uses duality in his delivery and flows. To sum it up, the character in the story just wants all the fighting to end. It's taking a toll on the relationship that the lovers have.

As Ignorant Love fades out, the ninth track Aniyah's Melody is able to fabricate a cut of funk and soul. Backed up with melodious singing, spacey syntheziers and saxophones, Jodie Jo is able to spar out remorseful notations as the character to the woman that he loves.

The eleventh track Asthma & Pneumonia to me, sounds like The Way by Jill Scott except it's a little bit more slowed down and Jodie replaces the words "Is it the way.." with "Mama I can't breathe.." and adds "I got asthma & pneumonia" in as back chorus. As Jodie goes down the storyline about his asthma attack, Jodi tells us that we shouldn't take this life to granted. The lively saxophone and drums help from beginning to end, taking the track to a close and leaving some space for Puff, Pass to start.

The hardest to make for Jodie, Puff Pass wafts in as the twelvth track of the LP. As quoted by Jodie "It was one of the first tracks I started, but ended up being the last one I finished. Whenever I approached this track, my mind went blank. I didn't want to approach the song in a boring way, nor be too cliche with the topic about smoking.” Jodie’s smooth words are followed by some lighter flicks, spacious droning and low hitting drums. As a result the song transports the listener on a stimulating trip.

In the midst of Puff, Pass fading out, the thirteenth track Vibrate Rendition zooms in the perspective of another who has a sincere apology to those that he has been a “burden to”. Frankly, the character doesn’t want to cause pain anymore.. he just wants to make things right. The powerful words that Jodie uses are followed by some deep soul and sultry jazz to stress the endearment he feels. Jodi even takes us back to the Speakerboxx/TheLove Below days as he chants the excerpt from the song Vibrate in the middle to end!

A continuation of Hard Heart Pt 1, the fourteenth track called Hard Heart Pt 2 speaks from the perspective of others who let their anger or grudges get the best of them. This track is relatable to everyone because we’ve all had those people who have crossed us, but Jodie assures us that we just need to let it all go in order to live a prosperous life. Getting the point more across, the drums and piano also add a “rise and fall” effect to the storyline!

Second to last, the fifteenth Death & Fear takes an nostalgic approach. The drums and piano give the song a warm feeling and gives Jodie some free room to speak on all of the things he plans to accomplish.

Last but not least, Dreamville Audition II is just a scenario of how his audition could go once he meets Mr. Jermaine! I won’t give out too much detail but, I will say that this track bangs! It really captures Jodie’s versatility, solid bar structure multi floetry and powerful cadence.

To conclude, Pen Soul is one of many projects that really reflect the hard work that Jodie puts into his craft (you can even see where his inspirations root from: J.Cole & Andre 3000.) Jodie is here to make the world listen and be aware of what’s going on around them. Every time Jodie Jo raps, it is always different and he is constantly showing growth. All in all the lyrics and soulfulness hold weight on your mind but after you listen to the full collective.. expect to feel uplifted.

After all, Jodie Jo is the teacher and we are just the students.

LINK: https://soundcloud.com/jodieraps2/sets/pen-soul

By Natalee Gilbert

* Additional information about Pen Soul & more:

1. What are the steps that you took to create Pen Soul?

Jodie: The steps I took to make this album happen was first and foremost to pray before I worked on anything. From beats to lyrics, to brainstorming, to looking for inspiration. God plays a big part in my creativity and creations. After that, comes preparation, I make about 3 beats in a day and just get in the booth and freestyle over the beat. Usually I find a hook melody first before writing verses, if that sounds like album potential, I write a song to that beat and see what I get. Usually 2 or 3 days later it sounds wack to me and so, that's how tracks get denied. So pretty much I followed that process until I composed 16 tracks, that I felt were fitting for my intentions for the album.

2. In your opinion, what is the best album that was made in history?

Jodie: In my opinion, the best album made in history would have to be Songs in the Key of Life by Stevie Wonder, that being after Pen Soul of course.

3. What’s the difference between Pen Soul & Big Ups to Tha Homies?

Jodie: The difference between Pen Soul and Big Ups 2 Tha' Big Homie first and foremost would be the replay value, Pen Soul I believe has more songs that can be put on repeat while "BU2TBH" has songs that you'll play once and then come back later and be like "Oh yeah, this was my song". Next would be the soulful touch, Pen Soul is considered my only classic in my personal accumulation of projects. Pen Soul is diverse in the production, it has saxophones adding to it's spice, and it all together is greatly put together and much more thought out than BU2TBH.

4. Upcoming Songs:

Jodie: Keep a look out for around Christmas time, that's all I'm gonna say there.

5. What advice would you give to your younger self?

Jodie: If I could give my younger self advice I would tell me to talk to God, take life as it comes, truly develop a belief that anything is possible, don't stress about society's idea of success, count your blessings, and tell your parents, siblings, and loved ones about your love & appreciation for them more often.

6. Who do you admire in Underground Hip-Hop?

Jodie: I truly admire my homeboy Jodie Jo', because he's so consistent and true to himself and those around him. I think he has potential to be a legend amongst legends.

7. Advice to artists working on a project:

Jodie: It's okay to hate your work for a period of time. Get true feedback from people who aren't just pumping you up. Get inspired, try to talk about something nobody is talking about, or at least in a way that nobody else has. Be creative with your voice. Don't create songs based on other people's taste, create your taste and you'll attract people who have your taste. Get an ear for your voice, and your sound. Speak with clarity.

8. Words to the supporters:

Jodie: Y'all are real as ever, God has his hand upon out unit, I am appreciative of everyone that reaches out, everyone who shares, everyone who goes the extra mile. And I will never take the love given to me for granted. We are headed to the top y'all, Dreamville finna come sign ya boy! I'ma make y'all proud