#anyway all of this is why i don't trust people judging me/others for reading characters as queer in some way

[fakescenariosbeforesleepblog]

You're a romantic, y/n.

Ghost x Reader.

You think no one ever would notice you, but Simon has found the perfect moment to confess that he has seen you, all this time, he has been waiting for the right moment.

Warning: spelling and grammatical errors, i think I wrote it for a gn reader but I apologize if I mention a female or something like that, also it's probably not very good.

Anyway I hope someone likes to read how ghosts observe and knows everything about you.

Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters nor do I claim to own them. I do not own any of the images used nor do I claim to own them.

You always talk about how much you hate romance and all the romantic stuff, your friendship with Ghost is the best thing ever, he's cold and has a different way to show affection, he listens to you, even when you think he's not paying attention, he brings you coffee every morning before an important mission, offer you tea when you're sick, he's different, that's what you like about Simon.

Both are walking by the street, it's a spring Friday evening, the breeze is fresh but not really cold to make you wear a jacket or a sweater, you see an empty bench, you don't say anything and simply take Simon's hand and guide him to the bench.

It's the perfect spot to look at everybody who's walking around, both are sharing a cold tea. You're observing a couple who's close to you, they're holding hands and looking at each other with those deer eyes, and a lot of affection, you don't know what they're talking about but you're observing them cautiously.

- if you keep staring at them like that they will invite you to join them.

Simon's voice brought you back to reality, you hit him softly on his arm and rolled your eyes.

- I just think they look ridiculous...

- I don't think that's what you're thinking of.

- Oh, trust me Lt... I think it's ridiculous, all that sweetness makes me sick.

- No it doesn't.

- Then why do you think I'm observing them?

Simon is not looking at you, he's simply observing what he has in front of him, a beautiful sky and trees.

- You say you hate romance, but I've seen you smiling when you see a happy couple, or when you see old people holding hands. I've seen you watching movies about romance and drama, reading about it and poetry.

You blushed and feel a necessity to defend yourself but Simon doesn't give you the chance, he continues talking.

- I...

- You always say you would hate to receive flowers or chocolates, letters or any kind of present, but I've seen you looking at every flower shop, you like peonies and tulips, those are the flowers that you observe the most, you love chocolates, your favorites are the ones that have caramel inside. You never complain when I bring you coffee or tea, you smile at me and there's a spark in your eyes that I like.

- Simon, that's not...

- I also have heard you talking with Johnny about the girl he's dating, you always smile and you give him advice when he's in trouble, you help Kyle too, at the bar when he wants to talk with a girl.

- They're too dumb to get a girl by themselves...

You're blushing more than ever before, every word he says is something you never expected to hear. You want to hide, you feel caught. But you don't understand why you're feeling like this.

- Yes, but that's not the point, I've heard you cry after a date with some asshole because even if you say you don't expect nothing, you secretly are expecting to fall in love... my point is..., I'm just saying you pretend to hate romance and everything that comes with it but In my opinion you're a romantic y/n.

- What?

- You are a romantic, you don't hate love, it's just your excuse to avoid it or protect yourself, I don't judge you or blame you for trying, you perhaps had a bad experience in the past, or simply someone made you think you didn't deserve details, love or good things. You think it will be easier if you don't ask or expect any kind of love, but it only makes it more difficult.

Your eyes are filling with tears, you're not crying because of any pain, you're crying because he's right, you always expect a good love but you lose your hopes because it's always the same, you're always a "maybe" but never "the one", always a second option, never the only one.

Simon hears your sniffing and looks at you, you're already observing him, he kindly cleaned a tear with his thumb and before he could quit his hand, you hold it with yours, there's a long silence, it's not uncomfortable, as always, a silence with Simon is never uncomfortable, you could be in silence with him for the rest of your life and you wouldn't mind, he makes you feel good.

- There it is, that spark in your eyes. It's my favorite thing about you.

You smiled at him, then without expecting it, Ghost kissed you, softly, it was a short kiss, but once he was sure you were okay, he kissed you again, this time it was deep, sweet and filled with passion.

- I waited for this kiss for a long time.

- Did you?

- I did, I've seen you, I've heard you and the only thing i want since I fell for you, is give you and show you all the love you deserve.

Simon is a man of few words, he only speaks with the truth and when he feels sure to do it, he definitely took his time to finally tell you about his feelings. But, he showed them to you at every opportunity he had, you were just a little dumb to notice it.

[amethystina]

finally had a chance to read ch41 and i have my head in my hands, gaon you stupid beautiful boy. i do have to say, I'm absolutely loving how you're writing this, you understand the characters in a way such that i don't think any other tdj writer does, not to say their works aren't amazing, but your writing is always what feels closest to a season 2. Hell, in my head, it is season 2. Anyways, thank you for doing your service to this fandom. If I had yohan type money I'd hire you to script write tdj s2 myself. have a good day!

Yeah, things aren't going great for Ga On right now. I mean, I get it, though. He has a lot of trauma and anxieties to deal with. And, in his defence, Yo Han isn't making things easier for him by being so guarded. Ga On has been able to figure out that Yo Han loves him but that's about it. And to someone like Ga On — who loves to help and take care of people — it's actually a very big deal that he can't tell if Yo Han needs him. The fact that Yo Han is so reluctant to show weakness or admit that he benefits from Ga On's presence in his life is one of the reasons why Ga On is spiralling right now.

That's not to say that I blame Yo Han, since he's understandably defensive after his upbringing and all that. But it's causing some pretty big problems that could have been avoided if only he'd told Ga On that being with him makes Yo Han feel more like an actual human being — and less like a monster.

But we'll get there, trust me.

Thank you so much for saying so 💜 At this point, I feel like I could probably write both Ga On and Yo Han in my sleep. And, for some reason, they were some of the easiest characters to get into that I've ever written. That's not to say that I wasn't nervous when I first started writing this fic — I was full-on panicking because not only was The Devil Judge the first new fandom I wrote for in years but it takes place in a culture that's very different from my own. So I almost stopped writing Who Holds the Devil the very day after I had started it x'D

But, in the end, I couldn't help myself because there's just something about these characters that appeals to me so, so much. As seen by the level of detail I'm putting into Who Holds the Devil. There's just so much I want to explore and write about. I LOVE these characters. And, as I've mentioned many times, that means that I try my best to do them justice and give their story the continuation it deserves. Also, it's just satisfying for me to know that I manage to capture them well xD

So yeah! Thank you so much for the compliment! It makes me so happy and proud to hear 💜 And yes, at this point, a lot of people (including myself) are kind of considering Who Holds the Devil as their season 2. Which is another thing I'm so incredibly proud of. It scares me, too, not going to lie — because it definitely adds a whole new level of pressure to perform well — but to know that I'm writing something that feels so genuine and appealing to so many people is an amazing feeling.

So thank you to you for telling me what you think. That's one of the things that helps keep me going, especially when things get a bit rough. I hope you have a good day too! :D

(Also, YES. Imagine the things we could do if we had Yo Han levels of money x'D)

[scoonsalicious]

OKAY I'M HERE. Sorry, I'm late. Funnily enough, we're on opposite sides of the world so your update time is waaaayyy too early in the morning for me so I usually read it when I wake up (shocking I know, digesting this traumatic but amazing masterpiece early in the morning) but since school has started up again and I have morning classes I haven't been able to. So do expect my reports to be a lil later than usual. ANYWAYS ENOUGH ABOUT ME.

Let's start with Steve and Pocket. I totally forgot that both of them were under the influence during that time and while they did get a little frisky (I also find it so funny how Pocket doesn't have much of a reaction. it was all Steve. It was as if she already knew she could never orgasm with this man. like homegirl was dry during that I just know it) I'm glad they didn't go far and were able to actually realize how much of a mistake it would've been because not only for obvious reasons like that's your ex's best friend but also the intoxicated thing. It wouldn't have done any good to Poxket's mental state es; especially knowing Steve's feelings. But hey, he stopped it. Literally the bare minimum for any man but the bar currently in hell (looking at you Benson) so. Good on Steveioli.

Now with the heart-to-heart, I'm so glad Pocket was able to unload all that and actually have a good cry for once. And, for Steve, as much as I still find him kinda fishy (I still do think he has a hand in ruining their relationship, that he isn't as innocent or this knight and shining savior that he's showing. I just know Steve did something and pulled some strings so i don't trust him fully yet), he made some very good points. I do agree with what he said about Bentley. We can only really imagine what he went through with Hydra. And the point too where there are some parts Bison himself doesn't remember at all but his body and psyche do. We can sympathise and everything but we never truly understand it. Do I think Josiah is the only person who understands? I don't think so either. Not to discredit her experience or whatever but I don't think what she went through was entirely the same or close because I still do think she's still a spy got them (maybe that's me not liking her lol). But the fact is, she's the closest person who could understand, in Brennon's eyes anyway. Does that excuse everything he's done? Absolutely fucking not. But does that information change how I judge him? Of course. I still truly believe that there's more to this onion (because layers ha ha) than meets the eye. He still fucking fucked up and he still has so much work to do on himself before he can even have the chance to earn Pocket's trust again. But I can give him some grace, and understand that his mind probably wasn't in the best place at that time which led to bad decisions.

I saw some people claiming that Blair never truly loved Pocket, and while I can see why that seems to be the fact because he does have a shitty way of showing it, sometimes, we can't stop ourselves from hurting the people we love (to an extent obvs. if they cheat & are abusive & toxic etc. leave their ass. but again, in the context of the fic, it's definitely more complicated than that). That's just reality. But what truly matters is what we do after the fact. Not that it makes it okay, I'm not saying that at all. It's still not an excuse to hurt people and be a shitty person. What I mean is that not everything is as black & white as it seems. In this case, there's no such thing as 100% evil and 100% good (except Judas who has a special place in hell). These are flawed, broken, and complicated characters, and you the amazing writer has shown that greatly. So we should all take that into account instead of just saying this person is 100% wrong so he deserves to die, or This person is 100% right so I'm just going to support everything they're doing no matter the consequences even if it hurts other people. So I do think he truly and utterly loves Pocket with everything that he is, but when you've got someone who's out of his time, has so many issues, isn't in the best mental and emotional state, has been through so much trauma and has self-destructive tendencies, do we really think he knows what to do with such a powerful emotion? Better yet, he does love her, but in this case, it's just not enough. Love isn't the only thing that keeps a relationship healthy after all. But I will say, that love will also be the one that will push him to do better.

Now, with Mr. Bunana and his Audacity to barge onto Pocket like that. The hypocrisy is outstanding. Gold medal worthy. But then again, he did see them leave the party after basically humping each other on the dance floor, he did see Steve leave her bedroom and he did see Pocket in Steve's shirt. When you're already insecure as hell and have fucked up one too many times, I can't blame him for jumping to conclusions. I also can see how distraught he was though, and not to be mean, but he does kinda need this for him to wake the fuck up. And again, the audacity to cause a whole scene about it too as if he has any right. But, unpopular opinion, I don't see an asshole at all. I see a broken man who's spiraling out of control and is hitting rock bottom as we speak. He's grasping at straws, he has no idea what to do with himself, and he's lost everything, and for a man who's been at war for the last 70 years, what's the one thing he knows best? Fighting. So, he fights.

The toxic masculinity was so on point. When Pocket picked up the water I was cheering this whole time lmao. Absolute wild animals these men sometimes. She honestly should just have a spray bottle in hand, spray them when they act up. Also, that line about where's Steve hand was made me CACKLE. Like yes queen. They deserve to break each other's face a lil for thinking they can decide for Pocket and what she does with her body honestly.

Lastly, because goodness me this is long. We're off on this mission, and I really do share Tony's concerns (and he's so sweet and caring about Pocket. I'm glad he's by her side. Also can't wait to see how they met!) This mission is going to take a toll on Pocket more than she's going to expect. She's using this as a distraction with what's been going on recently, and that's not good. Because I don't think she fully realises the gravity of what she's about to go into. I'm thankful that Sam is there. But I just know, something about this mission is going to go so bad for Pocket. Maybe not physically, and the mission would end up a success, but mentally and emotionally? ESPECIALLY when she's already on a fragile state right now? Sigh. I won't like it, but shit about to hit all the fans.

Anyway. You're amazing as always. I always enjoy getting to pick at the details of your writing and it makes me giddy with excitement that I actually manage to nail some points hahaha. Keep doing what you're doing and don't forget to take care of yourself!

P.S. I love Sam and Pocket's friendship. I need more of them being best buds please and thanks.

— Jnon 🤍

Beloved Jnon, Please do not apologize for being "late!" It actually worked out in my favor, as I have been staying up too long into the night to respond to you, so this actually works well, because it's mid-day here and I actually got some sleep. Not enough, but I'm working on it lol. Reading Unwanted first thing in the morning sounds like a rough way to start your day! All the angst!

Yeah, Pocket had absolutely no reaction with Steve, lol. It was seriously all the MDMA, making her crave physical touch, and when she kind of came down more to herself and realized it was Steveoli who was doing the touching? Well, let's just say it was dryer than the Sahara down there, lol. Ah, the little details that don't make it into the finished work! I can confidently say though, that if Pocket hadn't stopped it, herself, Steve most definitely would not have. Steve needed to hear Pocket break down in front of him, to see how she was affected by all of this. It was a wakeup call for him, and it allowed me to say some of the stuff I wanted to say about Bucky's state of mind without having Bucky say it himself (because who could believe him?!?) In later chapters, we'll get some first-hand insight into what kind of experience Juggalo had with Hydra, herself, and how those experiences shaped her connection with Barnstormer (intentionally vague wording here). I so fucking love how you are on the same page with me re: Bucky's mental state and motivations. Fucking love it.

And he is 100% flawed in this fic. He's trying to navigate this new world he doesn't understand, with all these sexual and social rules he doesn't understand. And I'd like to take a moment to point out that, in my timeline, Bucky has maybe spent a fraction of the time in Wakanda that he does in the MCU. Like, right now, in the story, it's about 2019-ish, meaning our Bucket left Wakanda sometime in 2017, probably less than a year after the events of Civil War, meaning that our Bucky has not done NEARLY as much mental healing as Canon!Bucky. So, when Canon!Bucky tells Cap that he's a "semi-stable 100 year old man" in Infinity War (which I just rewatched last night for Unbroken research!), our Bucket is even less so.

Right now, if there's one thing he's absolutely sure of, it's that he loves Pocket. But you're right, love is not longer enough here. Not for the two of them, not any more. Pocket's already realized that, and Bucket's just starting to.

Let's talk Bucky Barnes and the Audacity of this Bitch! When he barged into Pocket's room to accuse her of sleeping with Steve, he definitely wasn't thinking about what he'd done. He was thinking about confronting evidence of the worst thing he could imagine. It was one thing for him to conjure up the idea in his head, but it's driving him absolutely crazy to see physical evidence of it with his own eyes (even if its just circumstantial physical evidence!). I want to say, though, that even after he thought they slept together after her party, HE DID NOT go running to Jackrabbit for comfort-- I think that's progress! :D Right now, all he knows is how to fight, and how to hurt-- himself, and other people. It's all he's done for 75 years. Pocket was beyond livid over the two of them fighting about her, without really seeming to care about her-- just who got access to her body. Girl lived that life too long as a child; she was done with it long ago. I do like to imagine, though, that after she and Sam left, Bucky and Steve started fighting again, but this time they're all wet from being dowsed in water, so their shirts are sticking to them, and the fight is very homoerotic.... Finally, Tony's concerns for Pocket are very, very valid. He's kind of forcing her to regress, and he's really scared about what that might do to her mentally. Not to mention, she's putting herself in a dangerous position where women are being kidnapped and trafficked. He's got the utmost faith in her; it's just everyone else he doesn't trust. I love getting your messages, I love discussing the story with you! It makes me so happy! I promise there's one more good Sam/Pocket scene!

[isnt-it-pretty]

So how are we feeling about the new Lyney, Freminet, and Lynette content

I would die for Lynette. I know people are going to obsess over Lyney because he's male (and we don't have time to unpack why. I don't even know, but I'm not judging.) but Lynette is just so so good. She's such a mood and extremely relatable and I love her so much for it. I'm not usually into cat girls or characters with animal features but I can tolerate it for Lynette ❤️. Also she's the only(?) playable female character with decent footwear. I wear boots when I cosplay instead of heels anyways so it's nice to see that in a character.

(Minor archon quest spoilers) I have to admit that I wasn't a fan of Lyney at first. My first impression was "Ah. He's a more annoying Kaeya." Which, I love Kaeya, but he can be extremely frustrating at time. I pinned Lyney as being less than truthful immediately, so I didn't trust him. That said, at the end of act 1 of the archon quest when you find out more about him, I definitely came around. I still wouldn't want to main him or read Lyney!Centric fics but he is a nice characters.

(Leaked content spoilers) I read Freminet's voice lines and character stories. He is so so so autistic. I usually avoid autistic headcanons because they run the risk of making me extremely uncomfortable for various reasons I won't get into here (I'm happy when people headcanon for any and all characters! I just personally avoid it), but with Freminet it's just so undeniable. He's also an absolute sweetheart and I'm glad he has Lyney and Lynette looking after him (and Father, which, wow, Father makes me think FMA).

I love their relationship with each other, and I love how protective Lyney is even when he doesn't have to be (they all have visions after all). They definitely aren't going to be my main love (sorry but nobody can replace Cyno and Tighnari in my heart) but I'll check out their ao3 tag every so often and see if there's any interesting Lynette works.

(I have a Lynette fic in progress right now. Lyney and Freminet of course make an important appearance because what would Lynette angst be without her brothers? I've been writing that instead of my eleazar fic. Rip.)

[thranduel]

Hello! I really enjoy reading your posts and thoughts. They're very thoughtful and correct.Therefore, I would like to know specifically from you, why do you think so many men don't like Astarion? They are ready to kill him even at the start or betray after meeting with the monster hunter. Is it some kind of inner jealousy? What do you think?

hello! first of all, thank you SO much!! that’s so sweet of you 🥺 i love making posts about characters i love so it makes me happy when people enjoy them too :’)

and secondly, i feel like there are a couple of different reasons why many men don’t like astarion, and i think it mostly comes down to homophobia, a bit of jealousy because of his popularity, and also the fact that they’re threatened by any characters who are bold enough to make moves against them

and just to be clear, this doesn’t apply to EVERY single person; not everyone is going to like him and that’s fine! he’s not going to be everyone’s cup of tea. but unfortunately many people dislike/hate him for silly reasons like this and i just don’t know how any of these things is enough to make you hate a character you didn’t even ATTEMPT to get to know. he is one of the most well-written and complex characters with such an incredible backstory and the potential to redeem himself and become an even better person (if you help him and show him love) and it’s so sad that so many people miss out on that because they immediately judge him :/

anyways, the first thing: homophobia. astarion has one of the most unique and distinctive voices, and he can be quite dramatic and sassy. his mannerisms can also be seen as flamboyant. many men don’t like this (i wonder why lol). he comes across as very confident and even a bit cocky at first, and eventually if you slowly gain approval with him, he will start flirting with tav… this has literally made some people have a meltdown 😳 obviously astarion’s sudden flirting makes sense from a story perspective, because we know he only attempted to get close to tav to seduce them and gain their protection at first. but they don’t know that, and i don’t think they care because they’re too busy being uncomfortable about it and think they’re being personally harassed. the moment men see a male character that likes men, they automatically freak out. even if they’re fine with the character otherwise, that’s enough to make them hate them (homophobia sucks!!)

in regards to jealousy, i notice this tends to happen a lot when a character becomes really popular, especially if they’re physically attractive like astarion. it’s like they feel… threatened? bitter? in fandoms, a lot of people are women too, and i think misogyny comes into play here. people simply don’t like when women enjoy things, and astarion has a lot of female fans, so men don’t like that. it’s very weird. women enjoying themselves and loving a fictional man makes them very angry for some reason

i also think some of them just get easily annoyed when a character is very bold and willing to defend themselves. they don’t think about other perspectives except for their own, and they feel threatened when another character is tough and willing to challenge them to the point where their first thought is to just get rid of them before even trying to get to know them

i’ve seen people say they killed astarion because he put a knife to their throat at the start (he literally thinks that YOU are a threat to him. of course he’s going to threaten you and ask questions?!) and/or because he tried biting them in the middle of the night. and look, i understand how bad that second one looks, but you immediately find out why he was so desperate and made that decision because it’s revealed in that exact moment that he’s a starving vampire. that doesn’t excuse it, but it explains it. obviously it would’ve been nice if he asked first, but again, he literally tells you why he was scared and why he couldn’t trust you. he was doing it for his own survival. sometimes you need to take two seconds to put yourself in these character’s shoes before immediately losing your temper. and yes, i understand pretty much any of us would immediately remove that threat if we were actually in the situation, but it’s a FICTIONAL FANTASY ROLEPLAYING GAME. unless you’ve specifically made a character who would make those decisions in the game (which is fine and understandable because you’re supposed to roleplay as your character), i don’t understand why people would let their actual feelings get in the way and get rid of one of the most well-written and complex companions just because he did some things they don’t agree with. like, you’re supposed to stop and think: “who is this guy? what are his motives? there must be a reason for this” rather than just immediately crying about it and going straight to reddit to complain about how horrible he is as a character when you don’t even know him

but anyways yeah that’s personally why i think a lot of men don’t like astarion and why they choose to get rid of him. this is mostly based on things i’ve seen on reddit and the way they go on about how much they hate him while being extremely dramatic about it lol

[nayruwu]

I feel same way about ons as you :') I got into it because of gureshin it's been long since I already lost interest alas. I was wondering what do you think of characters like guren shinoa mika & krul? I really liked them back then but now I'm really disappointed with how author wrote them since past few years & weirdly fandom still tries to act as if nothing wrong with them but "people didn't read correctly"

hello!! :D

i'm sorry that so many others seem to be suffering the same way i am, but it's also a little reassuring. at least we're not alone in our misery.

and i think answering your question will be quite fun!

well guren, obviously i love guren. he's so sad and pathetic and tired and broken he's like a wet cat. the way he loves, the way he does terrible things and hates himself for it but does it anyway because he knows he has no other choice, it's so intriguing and painful. i love it. there's aspects that bother me when reading the novels, like when i cannot for the life of me grasp why he is doing what he's doing, or when he's being an arrogant asshole. but then i read the paragraphs my friends have written about him and love him with my whole heart again. i think they called it blorbo-in-law, that fits it quite well.

but i feel like i need to mention, i totally get why people got so mad with him recently. the way it was handled with the kids just immediately forgiving him again after one word was just... not good. i wasn't kidding when i said i wanted him to be more evil. it was a lot more exciting when him and mahiru first started that "let's betray everyone" stizzle and we weren't sure if he was actually going to harm anyone. it was serious, oh the suspense! now he's just our friend guren again. let him go batshit insane. please. he's not a saint, and he doesn't need to be.

at this point the only one i can trust to truly judge and be mad at him for more than half a panel is shinya. and that's a little odd. also he's currently in eeby deeby.

ohh shinoa! i used to like her a lot. it's only natural, i guess, since she is so similar to shinya. i always thought her to be a less extreme version of him - shinoa was also trained to be numb and hide herself behind jokes and smiles, but she seems to retain more of her emotions than he does. she's scared of dying, she's not much of a killing machine, and she is very much capable of developing actual romantic feelings for someone. wow, shinoa!

now, the problem is the toxic view of love that mahiru drilled into her head, and how the story will adress that, if at all. i don't mind her crush on yuu, it's her proof of not being dead inside or worthless or meant to be alone. but the way she acts on it is quite selfish. she's taking after her sister a little too much for my liking lately. "i will get yuu back, even if i have to kill mikaela to do it", alright miss mini mahiru. chill.

i would very much like someone to drill some sense into her head.

as for mika, he was my favourite for quite some time. i'm afraid i can't speak on him anymore, though, since he's kinda wiggled himself out of my field of interest. younger me would be going insane over his angel self... but now, i actually don't have anything to say about him. he exists. he's a massive scapegoat. i wish we could have seen him bond with shinoa squad.

krul is great solely because she's somehow the only female character who doesn't have a crush on some guy. hooray for vampirism! i don't have that many thoughts on her either, but i do adore her. she treated mika fairly well, she acted against vampire laws, she was more trustworthy than others. and god, that chapter where she was turned into a vampire was so awful, i loved it. more of an ashera-perspective probably, but still! as i've mentioned, i'm not a fan of her and all the black demons having been angels before, so i can't bring myself to look forward to their reunion as much as i used to. but i'd still like to see it.

[beautifulpersonpeach]

i remember when i was starting out as an army it was my first time being in a fandom of any kind so i had no idea what shipping was. i stumbled upon gcft thought okay cool video editing and jk was so talented i’ll show this to my muggle friend who is in the visual arts industry and see what she says and the first thing thar came out of her mouth after watching was “are they boyfriends?” 😭 well i said no lmfao bc i was dumb and naive.

anyway what i really wanted to say is youre slowly convincing me start looking into jaywon and enha bpp !! i saw a few videos come up on my fyp now.. also ive always thought jay was a bit arrogant (for the lack of better term) just based on how we looks and and a few videos here and there but as you can see in my story above i dont read people quite well at first dnsjsjs

***

Jay looks like a fuckboy no point sugarcoating it. He looks like an asshole.

Anybody judging characters based on appearance/vibes will likely think he's unreliable and a bad person. Which is what makes the contrast with his actual personality so much more jarring, and impactful. For anybody who wants to know Jay, I strongly suggest watching i-Land. The show itself I'd rate a 7/10, but it's useful for getting to understand a few members, one of which is Jay.

As for jaywon, I don't even know what to say. All I know is I've been watching them for some time and the only other pairing that's remotely similar in what I feel, is when I watch jikook. Even though jaywon is nothing like jikook. Their dynamic is completely different and their team (Enhypen) not like BTS exactly. Their story hurts and warms my heart sometimes, so I check in on them from time to time. If you want to get into jaywon though, I suggest getting into the whole group. It's just going to give you a better sense of what's going on and make you less likely to go delulu, because trust me, people go delulu with Enha.

And their music actually slaps. I'm not trying to sell you on it, just saying the facts as they are.

Also, if I can be even more candid, the truth is I'm not sure I want a lot of jikookers putting their attention on jaywon in the first place. Some of y'all are crazy I'm sorry to say. And the engene fandom isn't big enough to dilute a huge influx of crazies into their fandom, especially of the ARMY variety. I'm also not sure jaywon's relationship is stable enough for outsized attention targeted on them. Which is why I hope the jikookers who do set their attention on jaywon, are decent enough people first.

[ilthit]

Ruby sent me numbers from the choose violence meme, so here we go!

1 - the character everyone gets wrong - Shen Jiu (Scum Villain's Self-Saving System) 7 - what character did you begin to hate not because of canon but because how how the fandom acts about them? - hate is a strong word but I have mentioned: John Childermass and the Gentleman with the Thistledown Hair (Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell) 22 - your favorite part of canon that everyone else ignores - this one is from Mo Dao Zu Shi (the novel)

Full discussion under the cut.

the character everyone gets wrong

Shen Jiu from Scum Villain's Self-Saving System. CAVEAT: You are allowed to write him anyway you like, let him fall into whatever character slot you that pleases your id. I'm not a cop, you do you. I too have even written some SJ fic that I didn't think was in canon character (the Golden Concubine one). But. If you want to be true to the character as he is written in the novel. He is not gay. Sorry. He hates men. Hairy chests make him want to vomit. He's more than a straight guy, he's like a male lesbian. Yue Qingyuan is his soulmate? Maybe, sure, if you want. Yue Qingyuan is such a big simp that Shen Jiu learned to trust him, like he doesn't trust anyone else, and then he sucker-punched that trust right out of him by appearing to have dumped him to pursue personal success. Shen Jiu is an abused, traumatized alley cat, too proud and too fragile to let anyone close. Whenever he's tried to extend a hand to make a connection with another man, such as asking Yue Qingyuan to explain, or protecting Liu Qingge in a fight, those men were unable to respond the right way*, and he immediately retreated back with all spikes out. He has to be the strongest, but he can't. He needs to be in control, but he isn't, even of his own anger and fear. The only time he can rest is in the arms of a woman, or when getting to spoil and protect an innocent girl, someone who is not trying to take his place. Also they're soft and they smell good. And I just think that's valid.

You know how many fics there are with Shen Jiu/female character on AO3? Last time I checked it was two, I think it must be three by now. Honestly, just let Shen Jiu like girls. It's fine.

*Their inability to respond correctly may be part of the critique of toxic masculinity that is a major theme of SVSSS, which is why I quite enjoy the idea that an AU where Shen Yuan meets Shen Jiu, this could change, because while SY certainly has piles of toxic masculinity, he has proven through the narrative to at least be able to respond differently. Shang Qinghua might have done it too, and he tried, but didn't have the power to push through his System and circumstances. That scene in the carriage where he tried to save Shen Jiu is one of my favourite SQH moments, it made me feel for both of them. It still doesn't mean I think canon-compliant SJ would sleep with either of those gross boys.

what character did you begin to hate not because of canon but because how how the fandom acts about them?

Hate is a strong word, but I went from feeling vaguely positive about John Childermass, the holder of the braincell in Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell, to feeling vaguely negative just because the fandom is so much about this one character that I feel like all other characters get pushed aside. I get that to some people it's specifically the Childermass fandom and they wouldn't be here except for Childermass, but… hey.

In the same fandom, I went from being entertainingly creeped out by the Gentleman with the Thistledown Hair to not wanting to read any fic with him in it at all, because I worry that the fic will treat Gentleman/Stephen Black as somehow romantic or desirable and, again, I don't want to judge, but that creeps me out in a way that is no longer entertaining.

your favorite part of canon that everyone else ignores

In MDZS the book, aka The Grandmaster of Demonic Cultivation, there is a scene in the extras where Wangxian are enjoying their honeymoon and overhear gossip at the inn where they talk about Nie Huaisang's recent political ascent, and Wei Wuxian muses briefly about how they might not be so happy with him for long, and then decides it's none of his business and he just wants to start living his life now. This is, to me, KEY to the whole story.

In The Untamed, the TV version, Lan Wangji is said to be ascending to the position of chief cultivator, and I am sure this is because on television, they wanted to say: Look, Wen Ruohan was evil, Jin Guangshan was evil, Jin Guangyao was evil--but now a good man will be Chief Cultivator and so everything will be fine!

The book, the author, is saying: It is not possible to be the leader and be a good person. It is not possible for those in control to be benevolent, because power will always fall in the hands of those who are willing to commit atrocities to gain it.

Nie Huaisang is my close second favourite character, I'm not bashing, but he is cunning and ruthless and was willing to let a lot of people die to get his revenge. Jin Guangyao was cunning and ruthless and was willing to let a lot of people die to get consequence and still wicked tongues. Jin Guangshan… You get the picture. In the book, the Wen aren't living on a volcano making zombies for fun like cartoon villains, they have a prosperous city and seem to be generally okay kinda leaders until they started overreaching with the outposts. That's all. Greed, the ambition for revenge and to attain material goods and earthly power, leads inevitably to evil. The only way to a happy ending is to refuse to participate.

You couldn't have that on TV, because it would imply the government may not be on your side. 🤫

MDZS fandom is wide, I am sure I am not the only person to discuss this aspect, but maybe it just seems so momentous to me that I am surprised I haven't yet seen more talk about it.

[a-stitch-in-time-and-space]

WRITERS!!! WRITERS IM BEGGING YOU!!!! STOP MAKING JULIAN LOVE-SICK OVER JADZIA SHE’S BEEN WITH WORF SINCE LAST SEASON AND IT WAS NEVER BROUGHT UP UNTIL THE LAST FEW EPISODES IT’S TAKING AWAY FROM ALL OF THEIR DEVELOPMENT WITH EACH OTHER WHY ARE THE STRAIGHTS LIKE THIS??? DO THEY NOT CARE ABOUT THEIR OWN CHARACTERS DO THEY NOT CONSIDER THAT THERE’S MORE THAN FUCKING ROMANCE TO KEEP BONDS BETWEEN PEOPLE TOGETHER DO THEY ONLY KNOW LIKE... ONE PERSON AND IT’S THEIR SPOUSE????

(on that note I am dreading Ezri/Julian, I know it’s coming and I don’t want it)

[thefandomcassandra]

So I've been holding on to this meta idea for forever and a half because fuck, man, my shit doesn't show up in the tag so really I'm yelling into space, but like...okay. I'm doing it anyway.

Let's talk about Norma and Raz!

Norma and Raz are two characters who share so much similarities and, despite me openly being mean about Norma, I do want to talk about the fact that I love her as a character and someone who absolutely could have been Norma growing up.

Raz and Norma are children who both crave attention. They're people pleasing but they approach it in different ways. Raz, who is a young child, is not really as afraid of his sincerity coming off as dorky or "cringe". Norma, who is older, has internalized what I would consider some unfortunate lessons about liking things and the concept of "cringe" and "normal" to such a degree that she struggles at being sincere.

Raz is trusting. Too trusting. He wears his heart on his sleeve around his heroes and hasn't learned that he maybe should be a little more guarded. In spite of his mental shields, he doesn't have a lot in terms of emotional ones and it shows when he fawns over any of the Psychic Six or Ford or Milla or Sasha. Any of his supposed heroes set stars in his eyes and he can't help how open he is about his love and desire to be needed and useful.

On the other hand, Norma is more guarded and conniving — and I don't mean that in a bad way, but more matter of fact. Norma must have had some kind of bad experience built around being psychic — possibly in tandem with how overtly not-normal Lizzie looks and how much she seems to wear being psychic as a fashion statement as well as a lifestyle — and so she hides a lot of it under a much simpler teacher's pet affect. That means that her style of people-pleasing is the type that burns bridges on her way across them so that they can't burn her back.

I'm sure there's a convergence point where, if Raz was unlucky, he'd find himself in a position where Norma's way of plying favor becomes more and more appealing than the constant beatdown of honestly and openly liking a thing where people can judge you. As it is, he's a genuinely kind young man and I hope it stays that way, if he has the support of his family and friends, but barring that...it's not hard to see how Norma got where she is.

All it takes is one person calling her a freak behind her back but it getting back to her. All it takes is one person putting her down or insisting her brains are only because she can cheat by reading the teacher's mind. All it takes is one hurt feeling and one pyrokinetic accident and one realization that she'll never be normal so why should she play fair?

Anyway it's not coherent but god talk to me about it. Please. I have so many thoughts.

[epicene-humanoid]

some trans Jeff thoughts:

he realized he was trans in elementary school and just went fuck it I'll just start introducing myself as Jeffery and see if anyone decides to stop me (as we know, jeff winger can get away with almost anything)

he got top surgery the second he could afford it (around the same time he started at his law firm), and probably bribed someone to keep it a secret

"I'm jeff winger and i would rather look at myself naked than the women I sleep with" are the words of a man proud of his transition

he's really insecure about his fashion sense, which is why he mostly dresses like the douchey guys at his firm in the start of the show, he thought you can't go wrong with the sleazy lawyer look

he will never admit it but he feels super good about the dean hitting on him, because the dean is a (cis) guy, acknowledging that Jeff is more manly than him

i think he starts out stealth and comes out to everyone one by one, probably starting with abed because he knows abed won't judge him and will probably just see it as an interesting backstory.

abed just says it's cool and maybe worth a prequel exploring Jeff's transition, and jeff asks him to predict how all of the members of the group will react to him coming out.

abed's predictions:

britta will be over-the-top supportive and do a ton of research about trans history, probably put together a slideshow just to prove how progressive she is, and jeff will be a little bit weirded out, but also touched that she did all that for him, though he would never let her know that

shirley will be confused, because she doesn't know how someone she trusts and knows so well could be part of a group she was raised to hate, but ultimately realizes that there's nothing actually against the lgbtq people in the bible, and, as a cool character development arch, starts to advocate against use of the bible to justify bigotry

troy will just think it over and decide that Jeff's physique and coolness are even awesomer knowing how much work he'd had to put in to be like that, and respects Jeff's manliness even more

annie will give him a hug, say something sweet about how she'll always love him, and worry about his health, because even she read somewhere that taking testosterone makes you more likely to have a heart attack, jeff will explain that the risk is still only as high a cis guy, and she'll be the one to always remind him to take his shots

peirce will say at best say "jeff winger used to be a chick?" and at worst call him a slur, either way there's sure to be a lot of misgendering from him, and pestering to know Jeff's deadname (needless to say, Jeff just doesn't tell peirce)

the whole group goes out of their way to keep their beach trips a secret from pierce (the girls don't want him there anyways, he's too liable to be creepy) even though jeff knows that even if pierce saw his scars, all he would have to do is make up a story about some childhood accident and pierce would never question it

sorry this ended up being super long. can I hear some of your headcanons for him?

YES ALL THIS!!! yes yes i’m fully accepting this as canon oh my god

i’m about to type a whole ass ESSAY at midnight because i have been DYING to talk about this for months ajfdksljk,,, this is going to be obscenely long and i might end up adding even more to it as i continue to rewatch the show because there is truly no shortage of trans jeff content (especially when you’re trans and see transness in every little thing ajdkslfkjs)

spoiler warning for literally everything about this show under the cut <3

i 100% agree, i feel like he realized he was trans super young, especially since in the show we see him as a little kid a couple of times. 

like look at little jeff with the oversized sweatshirt and little ponytail!! that’s childhood trans fashion. not to be dramatic but part of me thinks that jeff’s dad left before he fully came out to his family (which gives him even more angst about it, because until that one Thanksgiving episode, he’s never able to prove to his dad that he’s a better man), but part of me thinks that his dad left after he came out (which adds that spicy i-should-have-stayed-in-the-closet guilt that he has to work through). 

either way, because his dad wasn’t there, he had to base his concept of masculinity on something else, which was becoming a lawyer!! there’s some line that’s like “after the dust and divorce papers were settled the only man i looked up to was [the lawyer guy]”. like, replacing your father figure in your mind with the concept of “a job where you can talk your way in and out of anything and distort other people’s concept of reality”? that’s trans.

 and the fucking THANKSGIVING EPISODE... i struggle to watch it without crying hehe <3 yeowch! the dichotomy of willy jr. being the “wrong” kind of man because he’s “too soft” but jeff also not being enough despite adhering to all the social standards of masculinity... fuck!! this whole scene of him telling his dad “i am Not well adjusted” and talking about how he gave himself an “appendix surgery scar” when he was a kid and he still keeps the get-well-soon letters from his classmates under his bed? oh my god. the implication of people loving him not despite his scars but because of them?? trans. i can’t think about this episode for too long or i’ll start yelling.

OH and this scene? where he talks about how his mom got him a girl costume for halloween?? and everyone said “what a cute little girl” and after a few houses he stopped correcting them?? and “once the shame and the fear wore off, i was just glad they thought i was pretty”?? THAT’S TRANS... the man needs validation oh my god... and then in all the halloween episodes we see he has these ultra-masculine costumes (a cowboy, David Beckham, one of the fast and furious guys even though he never watched the movies, a boxer with his DAD’S boxing gloves... god) costumes are about becoming something else and he always chooses to be hypermasculine and that is trans.

THE PHYSICAL EDUCATION EPISODE!!!!!!! being uncomfortable during P.E. is a queer experience. period. but him being specifically uncomfortable in the clothes someone else is assigning to him? trans. “are we gonna talk about clothes like a girl? or use tapered sticks to hit balls around a cushioned mat like a man?” TRANS. and him eventually stripping in public? celebration of transness. and the fact that he eventually becomes comfortable in both the uniform and his own style!! trans!! god i love this episode. 

AND AND AND!!! the gay dean coming out episode!!! where it’s the three of them discussing the best way for the dean to come out as gay despite not entirely identifying with that label!! so we have both frankie and the dean who are sort of ambiguously queer, and jeff who’s a stealth trans man who’s probably only out to only the study group at this point. this scene where the dean and jeff have this like eyebrow communication while frankie is talking is just so cute. queer-to-queer communication. “I am so curious” “oh?” “intellectually.” “oh...” ajfdksljfk this scene just screams high school GSA to me and i love it so much.

and SPEAKING of the dean!! i totally see you on that. i feel like jeff has some internalized homophobia/biphobia (like he’d throw punches over someone else, but when it comes to himself he has a lot of shame). and also seeing the dean so confident in all his different outfits/costumes has a weird affect on him bc it’s like “okay, the dean, a cis guy, can do that, but i as a trans guy could Not because that’s Breaking the Rules”. which, like, throwback to the halloween thing. of course there’s no right way to be masculine, but mr. winger does not know that.

another thing!! the episode where their emails get leaked? that includes his emails with his therapist. fuck!! he was outed to the whole world in that episode!! no wonder he was so fucking angry!! this whole episode (and really any time he mentions his therapist) is so interesting when you think about them as a person he talks to about his transition. OH which adds to the thing with the dean!! “and you told your therapist you wanted to be alone this weekend” and “not you jeff, i know you’ll be visiting your dad” ”I told you to stop reading my emails”. luckily his study group has his back and just makes fun of him for emailing astronauts lmao

and WHO can forget “they’re giving out an award for most handsome young man!!!!” what else is there to say about this line besides: he’s trans. you know he didn’t get awarded enough for being a handsome young man when he was a kid, and no amount of compliments when he’s fully-grown can really make up for that. some people crash a kid’s bar mitzvah to cope with the fact that they struggled to be seen as themselves when they were a teenager <3

also his weird relationship with pierce? where he kind of hates him (understandably lmao) but at times has this almost-friends-almost-father-son relationship with him? especially in this episode where he’s forced to bond with him and ends up having a good time by accident (at a barber shop no less, the perfect place to Be A Man with your Man Friend). idk what to say about him besides the fact that pierce says his mom wanted a girl when he was born and made him dress like a girl (and his middle name is anastasia!) so if they’re gonna do any bonding over transness it’s gonna be that. 

okay one last thing and then i’ll shut up for the night. this episode kills me (and almost kills jeff hahahahelpi’mcrying). it’s a very Trans thing to not be able to visualize your future self, it just is. growing up trans at the time he did? i don’t know what kind of future he saw for himself, but i’m so happy that he ended up with a group of friends who became his family and love him the way they all do. i’m so emotional over this asshole it’s ridiculous. 

in conclusion:

they’re trans, your honor <3

[charlotteswriting]

Hello hope you are doing well! 💕 Could I request the DR2 students reaction to the reader (who is like Sally from Sally Face with a prosthetic mask and personality) taking off the mask? of course you don't have to if you don't wanna💖

Ah, yes, it’s been a long time since I played Sally Face. Let’s gooo!!

Also Shouyo is adorable. 😩😭

Also character limit is 10. But I think I’ll be writing for them all this time. This might be short tho-

Hajime Hinata

Ok but he’s curious?? Because you give off mysterious vibes and he wants to see what’s behind your mask

You barely take off your mask. He attemped to see it when eating, but you hide your face really well

Well, he doesn’t want to pressure you. But if you feel like you can trust him, there’s a chance you might take off your mask.

And when you do, well, let’s say he’ll be silent for a while. He’ll just stare in shock, he doesn’t pity you, he just feels sorry that you have to cover your face with a mask.

He cares more about your personality, so he won’t talk about it at all. He loves you for who you are, not for your face.

Nagito Komaeda

Oh boy. He literally thinks it’s because of his luck. It’s not that he doesn’t care, he’ll keep his distance if you are desperate to hide your face

Though he secretly wants to see...

But again, he’s ok if you don’t want to show your face. He doesn’t want to pressure you

He doesn’t mind your looks, but if you were to take off your mask in front him, by any chance, he’d think very highly of himself

“So this is why... I see,” He wouldn’t say anything that’d make you uncomfortable.

He’d appreciate you for trusting him!!

Byakuya Twogami

He totally understands

He understands the pressure you feel and how desperately you don’t want to be seen by anyone

Well, in the time you two grow closer, he’ll open up to you and tell you about his past,, so you might trust him enough to take off your mask in front of him.

“Y/n, are you sure-” Before he could finish his sentence, you take off your mask and he just stares in awe. He’s surprised

He feels sorry for you that you’ve had to gone something so painful. But he feels reliable because you trust him with that.

Teruteru Hanamura

Oh. He’s really curious of what your face looks like!

Like, he wants to take your mask off so bad, but he can’t bring himself do it because of how you’d react. It can’t be good, right?

He’ll have to learn controlling himself,, because he doesn’t want to be judged by you

So if you take off your mask in front of him, he’ll never forget that day. It’s like the most important moment of his life

“I... Y/n, does it hurt?” He doesn’t really care how you look at all. How you feel is his current concern

Gundham Tanaka

Oh, boy, even though he tries to be seen cool outside, he wants to see what’s behind that face

He thinks you’ve made a pact with a devil and you were cursed in return or something like that- but no worries, mortal, Gundham is here, he’ll get your back.

If you were to take off your mask in front of him, he’d be shocked and close his eyes because he thinks you took it off by not noticing he’s here- he respects your privacy

“It’s ok, you can open your eyes...” You’ll have to assure him more than one times and he’ll finally open his eyes

The sight he is met is surprising, he’s rather amazed that you are so strong

Kazuichi Souda

Someone. Stop. Him

He reaaaally is desperate to see what’s behind that mask

Many attempts of trying to see. He even tried to build something that could see through your mask- but he failed and you and Sonia scolded him for hours

But yeah, he gets it, he’ll stop.

But if you were to show your face to him, I don’t think he’d be creeped out- he’d be just surprised... And shocked? Yeah. He still thinks you’re so pretty. And it’s not only about your looks

Fuyuhiko Kuzuryuu

He literally thinks you look so cool with that mask of yours. And that attitude of yours. He simps.

He won’t ask you to show your face to him, if you felt like you’d open yourself to him, you would. So he isn’t forcing

But he wouldn’t mind seeing your face at all. I mean, he has imagined how would you look like- And he really wants to see but he is just embarrassed to ask...

As soon as you take off your mask, his eyes grows big and he’s like: hand in marriage

Yep. He thinks you are beautiful, and that’s on periodt.

Nekomaru Nidai

When he first met you, he’d be like “Who are you and what’s up with that mask?” And when you told him about it, he wouldn’t ask twice

Yeaap. Not even caring for your looks. He’d even tell you nice things if you are insecure

Not even asking you to take it off. For once. It’s not that he doesn’t care, if you wanted to take it off, you would, right?

And when you take it off, he’d thank you for trusting him with something so important. He’d also encourage you and support you!!

Also he wants to ask what happened to you in the past but he can’t, so you’ll have to tell him abt it...

Chiaki Nanami

Even though she doesn’t ask you about your looks, she is curious...

You trust her wholeheartedly, and you feel yourself comfortable around her, so you wouldn’t hesitate to take your mask off.

And when you did, she’d just smile softly and would thank you 🥺🥺😭

It feels good to be reliable, doesn’t it, Chiaki?

Also if you feel yourself insecure, she’ll tell you the nicest things, but if you want to change the subject, she won’t bring it up unless you want to talk about it,,

Sonia Nevermind

Ok but she is really?! Curious of your face?!!

She respects your privacy, but she wants to see it!!! Though she knows her limits smh. She a queen

When you take off your mask, you got her screaming. She isn’t scared, she is feeling mixed emotions, like, happy? Because you trust her enough? And more happy? Because she can finally stop imagining your face?

She thinks you’re really cool and strong!!

Also she’ll definitely want to see it some other time but only if you want to.

Akane Owari

This girl isn’t the desperate time but she’ll ask you to show your face. If you say no, it’s a no, she won’t bring it up again unless it’s mentioned or something.

Also if people annoy you, she’ll literally bark at them to make them stop. You’re really grateful.

When you take off your mask for the first time, she wouldn’t be able to speak. You put your mask on and sigh, thinking she finds you ugly.

Bitch, what? 😃 Say that again!!!

“No, no, I was just surprised you did that out of blue! Show me again, Y/n!”

Mikan Tsumuki

Ahhh, she can relate how you are feeling!! Having to hide your face would be such a pain

She understands you so well, she doesn’t want to make you comfortable about it so she doesn’t even talk about it. She just acts like,, your mask doesn’t even exist. Ahh, Mikan, you’re so perfect, just marry me

If you were to show your face to her she’d be so happy!!! Like you trust her enough?! She feels so touched and appreciates your feelings

As soon as she sees your face, she’ll ask if it’s ok to touch, soft touches with your consent, ahhh

She feels sorry that you have to go through something like that, so she’ll do anything to let you know you are loved!!

Peko Pekoyama

She believes it’s her fault for not protecting you. Even though you told her it happened long before you two had met-

It’s not that she wants to be your S/O because she feels herself guilty, she just wants to protect you at all cost

Even though she won’t ask, that doesn’t mean she isn’t curious of your face. Like, she really wants to see

And if you, by any chance, take off your mask in front of her, she won’t even make a sound. She just won’t be able to take her eyes off your face- though she’ll stop if you feel bad

She doesn’t mind your appearance, she thinks you are precious, and she’ll keep loving you

Mahiru Koizumi

As soon as you told her about the accident, she felt so sorry for you

She didn’t want to involve your personal space, so she kept her space. Though she couldn’t help but wonder about your face

She can’t ask you to take your mask off out of blue.. She can’t be that reckless. That’d totally offend you!

She won’t make a move unless it’s your choice to show her. I think she’d be kind of shocked but totally understanding with u!! She thinks you are unfortunate, yet so beautiful

Now she really wants to ask you for a photo after seeing your face.

Hiyoko Saionji

Ok but she wants to see your face but she doesn’t want to be seen desperate

But you can read her by her actions so well, though she refuses it

She thinks you’re the most perfect human on this world, and she means that, so your appearance doesn’t make a big difference, she already loves you, and you know how kind she is towards the ones she loves- (cough, cough, mahiru)

If you take off your mask out of blue, she’d cover her eyes and let out a loud scream. Which you wouldn’t know how to react. “Hiyoko?! What’s wrong, are you scared?”

She just thought your mask dropped and didn’t want to see you by mistake, is all. She’d be kinda shy because of the misunderstanding, and would try to say kind things, shE TRIES

Ibuki Mioda

Omgggg Ibuki stans rise up! This girl loves everrrrything about you! She first thought you wore that mask because you thought it looked cool, and she adored your style!!

She adored you even more after finding out because you think you need to hide your face. And she wanted to see it. By this, I mean she literally begged you to take it off for her! For only one time! “Pleaaseeee, Y/n, I promise I won’t tell anyone!!!”

Even though she sounds reliable, you hesitate but she gives you puppy eyes- THE PUPPY EYES. So you let it slide, Ig.

When you showed her your face, she literally screamed like a fangirl, “Y/n, what the- You’re so cool under the mask!!!”

“You must take it off some more! Your face is beautiful!” Please tell this girl you aren’t wearing the mask because you think you are ugly,, yeah, anyways. She loves when you take off your mask.

Aaaa!! This took me soooo long, I am sorry 😭 Anyways, this is so short I know but it has lots of characters, hope this makes it up hsjghd I hate myself for writing sooo bad 💔 I was really tired today and I tried to write but ended up literally writing bullshit and I was like 💆‍♀️ I promise I’ll get better but progress is taking foreverrrr 😭😭

[nesonkin]

So, this is the second part to my embarassment of a post. I will be assuming you've read it before reading this one and if you didn't you should check it out first. With that out of the way, let's just continue.

Again, there's this big problem I'm facing when writing AI characters because I'm trying to stay grounded to what actually makes sense. And I'm afraid that because of that I'm either creating something that's been done (EDI) or simply making them autistic-coded (well, I suppose it's a reason why I relate to AI characters so much). Or worse I can make them straight up bland and boring. Which is something I don't want to do. So, if you feel like telling me my version of N-7's character is meh I get it. Perhaps, I can do something better for her if I'll ever write anything for this.

But I do think connections are a better way to define a character so let's get on with it. I've talked about Mary Ann and N-7, and briefly mentioned Ozar taking care of her in Mary Ann's stead. I see N-7 working with Ozar as sort of a secretary. They'd have a mentor-mentee relationship where Ozar's experience helps N-7 form her own values and understanding of the world. And in turn Ozar could revaluate some of his life choices according to feedback N-7 would give to him. Obviously, this shouldn't be exclusive to these characters only, but given the context of them having a deeper bond I thought I'd mention it. And I see this bond as important because in my headcanon lore N-7 would be mostly isolated from others (until S4) just working and rarely making an effort to try and define herself outside of being helpful. To Te-Osh she will be the part of her old friend. Te-Osh was there to oversee the progress during N-7's development and was just as proud of the result as Mary Ann was. They didn't up growing as close as N-7 and Ozar would but they still respected each other. Te-Osh trusted N-7 enough to let her train Matt in her stead while she had an injury. So, you could say Te-Osh and Ozar were the few proper connections N-7 had prior to joining Olia's cew. As before that no one really made any effort to try and relate to her on a personal level. Mostly due to isolation and the way she holds herself. And because she's a robot, yes.

So, it's really good when she puts herself out there and gets more involved with other rebel officers. From what we've seen, which isn't a lot or anything to begin with, Olia and N-7's relationship is that of mutual respect and I imagine Olia just trusts N-7 wholeheartedly to do her best job. Olia likes to figure people out no matter what they're made of. She's a good judge of character. This gets challenged by N-7's usual upbringing but they make it work. It may get to a point where their beliefs clash but it's alright. Olia has a large collection of books from her homeworld that N-7 reads in her spare time. Sometimes Olia has to step in to clarify that what the books depict may not always be the accurate portrayal of how something works in real life. Like, when it comes to romance books. Especially when it comes to romance books.

And now we finally get to Matt. Because this whole thing has always been Matt-centric in my head. Kinda like SW Rebels is Ezra-centric. Oh, god, why do I have to justify this being Matt-centric. Anyway.

Matt is kind of a mess. A panicked, lost, traumatized and withdrawn kind of mess. He gets abducted by aliens (which in other circumstances would be quite exciting), gets separated from his father, almost has to fight the beastman (which we know would get him killed) before Shiro injures him and fights in his stead, then gets sent to another prisoner ship for workers. He's isolated from the only people he knew. And even they can be as good as dead for all Matt knows. That's a lot to handle for someone his age and experience. Then he gains a new cellmate. The only person who seems to understand what he's saying. It's his first real bond with someone in what feels like an eternity. It's what makes their friendship special to him. Gus gave Matt support and hope that he can make it through. And save his dad, and potentially Shiro, given the latter's not dead. And this hope is paid off by the appearance of the rebel squad that later comes to their rescue.

Matt is rescued by the rebel fighters and taken under Te-Osh's wing until he is able to stand his own ground. His injury is generally taken care of and Matt can begin to receive his combat training. Soon enough he is able to participate in some of the ground missions like raids and scouting. It's not without occasional mishaps but nothing fatal.

I imagine because of his help to Gus while on the prisoner ship he got the attention of the rebel officers who would invite him to join their forces. And while hesitantly Matt decides to take the offer. Because he understands they're his only way to find dad and Shiro and go back home. He sees it as an opportunity. So, that's his priority at the time. It's only after spending time with the rebels and learning more about the Galra and what they've been doing to everyone his priorities begin to shift from his needs to the greater picture. And then a bigger mishap happens. And Matt allows himself to be seen without a mask while also pissing someone off so bad they put a bounty on his head. Tbh I haven't exactly thought out the way it happens. Only that it was mostly because of Matt's carelessness or trusting nature. I will have to think about that some more. So, for him it's only logical he is to be transferred to a remote location hidden from everyone and contributing to the cause by listening in on the Galra radio chatter. There begins another period of isolation for him.

Until his location is compromised by Pidge. Damn, bro, it's like the Paladins can't do anything without compromising Coalition bases. But, yeah, Matt takes care of the equipment and leaves with Pidge. As for his time in isolation I can't say anything interesting happens. Matt collects the data and reflects on his life. It's not a very great time for him. Isolation can do a number on one's mental health. Especially if it wasn't that great in the first place. Tbf there are barely any signs of this when Pidge finds him in canon. But canon who? It's at this point when Matt finally gets to meet people he was separated from for Bob knows how long. And in addition to that he also gets to learn that Shiro did survive the arena and is doing well (even though that wasn't the real Shiro but okay). Only thing left to do is find their dad. Except now Matt knows not to put his wishes before the mission/the needs of others. That's why he wouldn't come back to Earth given the opportunity.

But I went ahead of myself. Prior to Lotor joining the party Matt has to regroup with his former rebel squad. He joins Olia's crew and reunites with some of the familiar faces. Except for Te-Osh. Who is dead. But I'm not going to get into that here. He also gets to meet some of the new people like Meloi (the alien rebel with long ponytail looking ears? or whatever it is? the name is original), Slav, and the trouble trio - Nyma, Rolo and Beezer. They're Spare Pirates and they haven't fully joined the Coalition but they're willing to lend their help in the upcoming attack if it means getting back at the Galra and because extra credits are extra credits.

This is also that time period when the Paladins were making fools of themselves during the Voltron show. It gets the attention, sure. But I can't help but think of how tone deaf it all seemed to the rebel fighters. Who at the time were busy doing the dirty work.

The cooperation between the rebels and the BoM is another thing I should think more about. So far it's unclear how involved they are with each other. And I wonder if they ever crossed each other's path before Voltron. It's important because it's very unclear what Matt and Keith's relationship is like in the show. They clearly care about one another but have they had interactions off-screen? Joint missions or something? Unclear. I like to imagine that they did.

And Matt continues to learn as much as he can about the alien tech while living out his Mass Effect dreams. Which becomes even easier when Lotor joins the party. Because his knowledge has been a great help for the Coalition. That is until he becomes the Emperor and Shiro decides it would be a great idea to sync the Galra map with the one from the Castle of Lions. Which in hindsight was a pretty bad idea (I mean, yeah, that was the clone Shiro, but no one objected either). I can't even begin to imagine the Coalition's reaction to learning that all of their secret bases were now revealed to the Galra Empire. It's especially fucked up for the Blades for how much they relied on secrecy. Damn, they didn't deserve this crap. It still bothers me how no one talks about that.

So, the disappearance of Voltron. Another event that left a huge impact on the state of the Coalition. It still pains me that they decided to pull the time-space-skip to force the plot to take place on Earth. I mean, you know how the beginning of S6 had this whole thing going on about the Galra Civil War and how Lotor needed the Quintessence field to stop it. And then they just... dropped it. Like they never even wanted to deal with that and skipped right to the end. It's just sad because to me it seemed like a very interesting plot point. We were given some basic info on the Civil War and how it affected the Coalition. For one many rebel fighters have been wiped out. How that happened is a whole other story that I would have to think about some more later. But, damn, that's 3 whole years that they just skipped and it's the most interesting time period too, because we know so little about it. I mean it surely boosted Matt's character development as evidenced by the second glow up. He must have been devastated to learn that his little sister disappeared along with the rest of the Voltron - their symbol of hope.

It is at this point I am also struggling with what I want to write down in this point and what I want to omit for the sake of any of my future works. But to keep it brief it's a very bad time period for the Coalition. They're forced to adapt to changes brought by Lotor and Voltron which is extremely difficult when they also have to navigate Galra's Civil War and avoid being hunted. Some rebel officers ended up joining Galra warlords to escape their fate in exchange for the information on the Coalition. Rebel forces have been divided which made them easier targets for space pirates. And at this point Matt and the gang are just trying to stay alive and lay low. Matt's skills at keeping himself hidden come in handy. They also are constantly on the move, making sure they leave no trails. With how unstable the state of the galaxy is there's really no telling what will happen the very next minute. And then they're also struggling for resources all the time. Now more than ever. There is a need to regroup and rebuild the alliances which becomes nearly impossible when the Galra's craft is simply superior to anything the rebel fighters have. It almost feels like they have to start from the ground up. Fortunately, some of the rebel officers managed to stay low for as long as they could thanks to being stationed on various listening outposts. You know, like Wakala and Remdax. It's really helpful to have all these "sleeper agents'' when it's time to assemble. So, it takes 3 years for the state of the galaxy to stabilize a little. And for the rebels to regroup. Galra beating the hell out of each other meaning there's less warlords potentially coming after their asses. And the Fire of Purification basically built their own Empire. Rebel fighters take every opportunity they can get from this nonsense and rebuild their support system. They take it step by step and help who they can.

When the Fire of Purification moves to Earth it's an opportunity because that leaves the biggest enemy out of the picture (to be completely honest with you I cannot find anything that suggests the possible time of when they attacked Earth. I am probably missing something but all I can find is that it happened during the time-skip. No sign of when exactly that is except maybe for the confirmed "not earlier than 6 months after Voltron disappeared". This obscutiry gives me anxiety because I feel like it was mentioned somewhere and I'm just too stupid to find it.). Okay, so obviously those are not good news for Matt especially when they receive Sam's transmission. Thankfully, soon comes Krolia who is there to tell the rebels about everything that happened. And later they arrive on Earth. That's basically it for the general history of events.

I know I haven't exactly discovered America with this post but writing it has been both fun and exhausting. I'm glad I got to put my thoughts out there and I hope others will enjoy it as well. For the rest of the post I'll just write some of the headcanons... like I was supposed to from the beginning... instead of writing some stupid essay. Well, anyway.

Matt is good with kids, so Olia's pups love him. They call him Uncle Matt.

Olia has this no nonsense attitude. Slav finds it especially intimidating because of her fangs.

Speaking of Slav, my man has been a great addition to the coalition thanks to his brains. Matt enjoys spending time with him. There's a lot of interesting theories Slav talks about that Matt is intrigued by.

Rolo didn't die. He found the few remaining members of his species including some very old friends and stayed with them to help. He still has ways to contact his rebel friends, so it's all good.

Nyma became a proper rebel officer. For the most part because she had nowhere else to go and the coalition needed every help they could get. And she does care for Matt and the gang too. Her charisma proves to be helpful when the situation calls for it. I also like to think she's got some medical training as well. And that area she grew up in specialized in medicine. Weed too.

Beezer is hard to headcanon because I have to also make sure I'm not treating him as an astromech from Star Wars. He was likely stolen from the Space Mall as we've seen a similar looking model at Vrepit Sal's cafeteria. Both Rolo and Nyma understand what Beezer's saying perfectly and they use it to their advantage quite often. Matt would learn the droid language soon too.

Being Space Pirates Rolo, Nyma and Beezer would often get bored with nothing to do. So they have Beezer broadcast the closest TV channel they can connect to. They become quite knowledgeable in the lore of that one Bii-Boh-Bi sitcom. And they've watched so many trash shows like this they have to restrain themselves from making a reference in random situations. It makes them insufferable when they decide to tease someone. Like Matt.

N-7 accidentally jumpscares people. She also uses a longsword as her weapon of choice.

Olia rarely fights, she's more of a pilot, but when she does she usually just uses a pistol.

At this point it's getting a little tiring, so I'll just end it there. Maybe I'll write some more for the gang. Just not now.

[lady-0f-the-wood]

okay can I just say I love your ask box LOL that is awesome! so I figured after I posted about 600 replies on that one post, I owed you at least an ask. ;-) I saw that you stan Cersei, I'm just curious, what is it you love about her character? I have to be honest, I haven't gotten to that part of the books yet but I absolutely loved Lena's Cersei. I don't know else to describe it, but she was delicious. I wish she had gotten a better ending than the freaking ceiling. =(

First of all, thank you so much! Also, reply to my stuff as much as you'd like. I enjoy reading it. ♡ Also also, so sorry that it took me so long to respond.

Okay, so, this might end up being super long. Please bare with me. Lol

So, I stan show!Cersei. I believe that she is a completely different character than her book counterpart. All of my stannery and all of my arguments for her, are solely based on the show. So that's an important factor I think.

So, I used to hate Cersei when I first entered the Fandom. I was completely on board with all of the Cersei hate posts, but the more I watched the show (seen it at least a hundred times now) the more I understood her, and the more I tried to figure out exactly "why" she is hated so much. This curiosity drove me so far down a rabbit hole, that I couldn't climb back out of it.

During the process of trying to figure her out, I learned a lot about myself as well. I learned that I used to be this person that judged based on what other people were saying, instead of judging by what I see with my own eyes. A quote from Tyrion sticks out to me. "I trust the eyes of an honest man, more than I trust what everyone knows."

Anyway, I saw that the biggest part of Cersei's arc, is about protecting her children. I also have three children, so naturally I connected with this aspect about her. The more I dove down the rabbit hole, the more I realized that almost everything that Cersei did, she did for her kids, or her family, or for her survival. It's not easy to see that though. They present Cersei as the ultimate villain, but really she just does what she has to do for her children. But when every character hates her, the fans tend to hate her as well.

When Jaime pushed Bran, he did so to ensure that his children, Cersei, and himself did not get killed. If Bran would have told someone about what he saw, they all would have been killed. So, I realized, I would have done that too, to protect my kids. However, fans started blaming Cersei for that, when in reality, Cersei scolded Jaime for doing it when they got back home. She didn't like it. She didn't tell Jaime to do it, but for some reason, many fans believe otherwise. 🤔 So that is one factor that made me try to understand her more.

Cersei also tries to help Sansa. People always say that Cersei tortured Sansa, but she didn't. She taught her many things. She taught her about being a woman when she got her period. She taught her about what would be expected of her if she became the queen, she taught her that, even when she is depressed and sad, she must present herself as a courteous lady when speaking with other nobles. Cersei is also the reason that Joffrey married Margaery instead of Sansa. She talks Joffrey into marrying Margaery instead, and then looked at Sansa and smiled at her. She literally saved her from marrying Joffrey. I just think that Cersei doesn't get enough credit for helping Sansa in these ways. Sansa is my other favorite, so I truly love this aspect.

Anyway, Margaery Tyrell comes along, and wants to marry Cersei's children, just so she could manipulate them and become the true power in westeros. It's one of the reasons that Olenna killed Joffrey. Because "the next one should be easier" meaning, Tommen will be easier to control, so House Tyrell could truly take over the crown. Once she marrys Tommen, she tries to talk him into making Cersei leave and go back to Casterly Rock, because she cannot fully manipulate Tommen while Cersei is there with him. So Tommen goes straight to Cersei and asks her "wouldn't you be happier in Casterly Rock?" And it was that very moment that Cersei realized what Margaery was trying to do. So then, Cersei arms the Faith Militant. She had to fight back. She couldn't just let Margaery take over, so she saw an opportunity with the faith, and she takes it. Her father is gone, Jaime is away, and people are trying to take over the crown by manipulating her son. So she does anything that she could to fight them back. Unfortunately, it backfires on her, because The High Sparrow is a whole other being, so she creates another enemy by trying to fight back the original enemy.

Anyway, many fans do not understand this. Most fans say that she armed the faith militant simply because she "hated Margaery" or something. In truth, she had a legitimate reason for everything that she did. She did not do things simply because she is "evil". She didn't do things just because she wanted to. She had a reason for all of it. Strong reasons.

Another example would be the sept. They were going to kill Cersei at her trial. They all needed to get rid of her. The HS and Margaery, and even ol' uncle Kevan were all manipulating Tommen so they could become powerful, so they all needed to be rid of Cersei, because Cersei is the one who is stopping them from controlling Tommen. So, Cersei decides to use The Mountain in her trial by combat, so that she could survive her trial. However, they manipulated Tommen into taking away his own mothers trial by combat. Tommen was so naive that he agrees to take away his mothers only chance of leaving this trial. So, Cersei goes with her plan B option, and uses wildfire, and takes out every enemy in one setting. It was literally done for survival, and to protect her son from being controlled like a puppet. But once again, the fans believe she just blew up the sept for revenge. Not survival or anything else.

In truth, if she did that simply for revenge, then she wouldn't have even planned to use a trial by combat. She would have just planned to have it blown up from the start. When I saw that nobody else realized that she wasn't even originally planning on having the sept blown up, It drove me even further down the rabbithole. Like, nobody was talking about the fact that she was going to use a trial by combat. Nobody was talking about the fact that Tommen took away her trial by combat, so she was out of options. Thus the reason for it being her "plan B". But everyone was only saying that she did it simply because she wanted to, or that she did it for revenge. Like, I'm sure it felt good to get revenge, but revenge wasn't the main objective. So I felt a need to understand it even more.

Even her relationship with Tyrion is misunderstood. It is a love/hate relationship. She grew up listening to Tywin saying that Tyrion killed her mother. I think growing up listening to that, instilled a lot of tension between the two. But even still, they have several heart-to-heart conversations. She has multiple chances to kill him, and refuses to do so. When she thinks that he killed Joffrey, she has people search for him to kill him. When he sides with Daenerys instead of her, and then Jaime follows him, she has Bronn sent to kill them. But in the end, I don't think she truly hated them, because when Tyrion comes back to KL with Daenerys, she could have killed him right then and there. She has the archers aiming at him, but she doesn't do it. They are just very complicated. House Lannister is definitely my favorite house for this reason. Because they are so complex, so intense, strategically skilled, intelligent, grey characters, and misunderstood.

I also think Cersei and Jaime are the best couple. If this were the real world, I wouldn't condone their relationship. But it's a fantasy world, and plenty of other characters were incestuous as well, so that doesn't bother me. Either way, I love that they have a very strong love for each other, and that they are also a very complicated couple who would do anything they could to protect one another. However, most fans just hate them because they are siblings. 🤷🏻‍♀️

So I guess what I'm trying to say, is that Cersei is very highly misunderstood. All of the worst things that she did, had a strong reason behind them. 96% of the time, those reasons Involved protecting her children. That's the part that I love about her. She is a bitch, there's no denying that part, but being a bitch doesn't make someone the ultimate villain, does it?

She's a very grey character, and I love the journey that I went on just to learn that fact about her. I love that she is misunderstood, because so am I most of the time. I love that she does everything she can to protect her children, even if it means doing something horrific, because I would also burn cities to the ground to protect my three boys. No matter the cost. No matter the effort. They are the priority, and that's how it is for Cersei as well. I love that she has an Incredible amount of strength. I love that she openly admits that she doesn't give a damn about anything or anyone other than her kids, because in Westeros, I wouldn't either.

However, there are some things that I disagree with when it comes to her. I do not support everything that she did, but I most definitely understand it all. But I believe that should be a whole other post. Lol

I hope I explained this properly. It's been hectic today so please forgive me for typos. I just love her for being the most perfect grey character to ever exist. I love her for being the hero of her own story.

I'd like to also leave this tribute video HERE because it's just so perfect. It shows both the black and the white in her, that makes her this perfectly blended grey character. Such an amazing tribute video!

My favorite scene, and favorite quote, with my two favorites:

Cersei: "Permit me to share some womanly wisdom with you on this very special day... The more people you love, the weaker you are. You'll do things for them that you know you shouldn't do. You'll act a fool to make them happy. To keep them safe. Love no one but your children. On that front, a mother has no choice."

Sansa: "But shouldn't I love Joffrey, your grace?"

Cersei: "You can try, little dove."

Thank you for asking. I love talking about Cersei, so this was nice. ♡

[cienie-isengardu]

Erron Black. Arguably a character I don't know much about. Is Erron Black feminist, sexist, or just soft on girls? Now I know MK everyone can fight everyone, but in story mode...

In MK10 Milenna impale his hand with a knife, but he doesn't fight her. I'll except injury for that one.

But then with Cassie Cage later, he fights her, only after she engages him, but once he knocks her down he stops fighting her to fight Kung Jin in the market.

Later on the bridge fight, we do see him fighting Jacqui Briggs, in the background, but she charged him, so she initiated it, and when they focus in he is fighting Kung Jun again.

In MK11, when young Erron Black goes after Jade and Kotal, he let's Jade leave without so much as a glance.

In the Black Dragon fight pit, even though she is right next to him, he ignores Sonya Blade until she actually attacked him. He doesn't even point the other gun at her, he points it up and looks away, until she punches him.

The only time it looks like he initiated a attack on a woman was when Sheeva got shot in her shoulder armor (and shrugged it off), but we immediately see him chasing down Nightwolf, so that looks like a accident. And they only fight after she punches him across the room.

And in the comic's when he kidnapped Cassie and Jacqui he defended them against Kano, telling him not to hurt them, and when he realized they were in serious danger, tried to free them and help escape.

Unless I'm missing something, well he doesn't avoid it, he doesn't fight initiate fights with women.

Before I will talk at length about Erron Black and his attitude toward women I wish only to emphasize this is my subjective opinion and there is no need to agree with me on this. Because no matter how much source material will be brought into discussion, there are many ways to interpret his mindset, especially since A) what Erron says is not always compatible with what he is doing and B) the specific game mechanics that limit and/or adapt his “personality” to the needs of the storyline.

Long text ahead!

Mortal Kombat X’s stated Erron Black was hired by Shang Tsung 150 years ago. So he was born and raised at least the previous century and half, thus his approach to women may be old-fashioned but I wouldn’t say he was somehow deeply concerned per se about gender to begin with. Yes, the mentioned examples suggest otherwise but their context is as important as Erron’s action alone. Because the context of the game will not always work well with in-universe logic. I’m talking here stricte about game mechanics that are built around chapter’s main hero that must win against the opponents and in the mentioned examples Erron was sadly just an obstacle to beat down so it is not like he could headshot Mileena, Sonya or Sheeva or any woman and be done with the problem despite how marksmanship is his forte. Also, the game mechanic in MKX kinda made me joke that Erron shouldn’t be left on his own for too long because his competence in those chapters seemed that bad (from Outworld’s main cast only D’Vorah looked to me as a competent character and she was a traitor, that says a lot about Kotal’s team doesn it?). Anyway, on the basis of the specific nature of the game alone I wouldn’t go so far to judge Erron’s mindset, especially since he was a background/supportive character in MKX and MK11 story modes. So far, Black didn’t have his own chapter - thus the story isn’t told from his POV.

To be honest, games and comics present Erron in different lights, thus his approach to women may vary from one source to another. Because of that let’s firstly look at the sources separately.

In MKX, on Kotal’s voiceless order, Black was going to kill Rain. Mileena attacked Erron by surprise before he could shoot down the rebel but it was Kotal’s chapter so the emperor was the one that dealt with her. Erron was part of the background during chapter 2 without any impact on the story.

Then we have chapter 4 about Kung Jin.

When Cage Team met Erron Black for the first time, the man demanded to know what is Special Forces’ business here including “a reason why we shouldn’t kill you”. Despite the not so friendly welcome, Erron was willing to address Takeda’s remark (“I can read you… You’re not from Outworld.”) and did not resort to violence once Cassie’s explanation did not satisfy him. Looking at the uncertain situation of Outworld, Erron’s lack of trust is understable - Kotal was still at war with Mileena thus in constant danger. Of course, it is up to interpretation, did Erron listen to Jin solely because the prospect of money spoke to him so much or there is some bias (thus the cynical remark about Raiden’s seal and dismissive attitude) against Cassie, the woman in charge. I personally tend to think Erron was simply cautious because the last Earthrealm that got close to Kotal tried to kill the emperor. And yeah, Kano is nothing like Cassie, Jacqui, Takeda or Jin but there was no way for Black to know that for sure, especially since Outworld and Earthrealm weren’t really at the best terms at that time and Raiden’s name did not foreshadow anything good.

The next sequences may be interpreted as Erron being soft on women but I’m gonna present here different possibilities:

Once Jin went ahead to disrupt the execution, Erron’s first reaction was to shoot him yet Black took aim instead of shooting blindly without care for the crowd (or at least the slow down of his action is how it looked to me). Because he was focused on Jin - the main culprit whose action caused unwanted riot, Cassie easily stopped the attack. Should Erron be more focused on the female soldier at his side? Most likely, but all of this happened in mere seconds so I can understand why stopping Jin acting on his own accord was priority to the mercenary since it was related to his job and he was the one that agreed to take Earthrealmians to Kotal. Which may be the reason why Black just knocked down Cassie and immediately ran after Jin. And mind you, Erron knocked down Cassie by hitting her on the head with the butt of the pistol, which is not a gentle way by no means.

The chapter 6 is focused on Takeda and partially on Cage Team’s run from captivity. The Earthrealmians were important hostages, even if falsely accused of working with D’Vorah. So it makes sense that “Outworld Champions” weren’t trying to kill them. Otherwise Kung Jin would be shot down for good yet Erron kept him just at gunpoint. Once again, the game mechanics don’t make much sense considering how Jin stayed behind as air support but somehow ended up on the bridge while Jacqui disappeared somewhere in the background. Also, the same as with Cassie in Chapter 4, Erron did not kill defeated opponents nor tortured / injured for fun (Rain is a different matter because Erron went for killing only after Kotal’s voiceless order to finish the traitor).

In Chapter 11, Erron is even more degraded into a support role and he did not attack nor take part of the skirmish in the forest until Jacqui beat down Kotal. Personally I suspect he could be (in universe) too injured for hand to hand combat but once Team Cage was surrounded and Kotal gave the order for execution, Erron was aiming at Jacqui and if Sub-Zero did not show up, Black most likely would shoot to kill.

(Also, he did not shoot any enemy from a distance, so the women and men were treated the same although if this is a matter of game mechanics or Erron’s own moral code, hard to tell. Black recognized himself more as Outworlder than anything else so he may actually follow the common there idea of one on one fight.)

So, MKX story mode alone does not tell us much about Erron’s mindset about women because he has never been the one starting fights in the first place. This kinda makes sense since he is a mercenary and kills or injures only those who Kotal wishes to see dead or punished. Besides that he didn’t injure / kill Cassie when he had a chance but he didn't do so with Jin either. MKX!Erron gives the impression of a collected, detached type of person who is far from macho stereotypes or psychopath/sociopath like Kano.

Thankfully there is additional information like dialogue intros and Erron’s ending (from what we learned about Erron's approximate age) that aren’t canon per se but at least give some insight into his psyche.

The best counter argument for eventual Black’s habit of going easy on women is his own ending in which he ambushed and killed Cassie, Jacqui, Takeda and Jin (this situation was repeated in Briggs’ ending except this time Cage Team was saved by Jax). This is a rare moment in which Erron was the attacker and on his own initiated the violence toward others. In this case, he attacked women and men alike.

Then we have intro dialogues in which Erron usually deals with people in a professional manner, some even sometimes addressing in a polite way. Like “Mr. Kung” to Lao, “Mr. Hasashi” to Scorpion and “Mr. Takahashi” to Takeda. Surprisingly, he addresses Cassie and Sonya by their military rank (Sergeant Cage and General Blade respectively) which suggests that whatever Erron learned a century or two ago about gender-related social norms most likely evolved accordingly to his own life experiences, especially those gained in Outworld.

At the same time, it seems some of outfashioned - harmful - convictions are still enough deeply rooted in him to say stuff like that:

Kenshi: The friendless wanderer.

Erron Black: Least I don't take orders from a woman.

Kenshi: Which century are you from?

Which is kinda ironic since Kenshi takes orders from Sonya whom Erron addresses by high military rank without any snide comment about a woman in the army. But as far as I managed to check the intros, this is the only(?) one outright sexist thing Erron said to anyone and surprisingly, he didn’t say that to any woman, just to Kenshi. Frankly, if the idea of taking orders from women was so offensive, why would Erron bother to call Mileena the Crownless Queen or Kitana the Fallen Princess, if both titles by itself imply facing women that are used to give commands or even hire people like him? Once again, there is little to no sexist attitude toward women in context of their power over other men. Which suggests that whatever prejudices Black may have, he does not allow them to affect his interaction with other characters. Usually, at least.

Okay, the insult toward Kenshi could be some of Erron’s deep-seated sexist beliefs adding to the reason why he didn’t support Mileena in the fight for the throne. Yet, at the same time, if that was the case, he could outright say he doesn’t agree to be bossed by a woman to her (or he could be accused of that by her or any character really). Of course, it could be something similar to Black’s claim to care only about money with MK11 strongly hints he is saying one thing and doing differently but I will come back to this topic in a moment.

Another argument against this insult: Erron was one of the characters that did not mock Mileena’s look, origin or called her crazy. If he really thought listening to women's orders was so bad, then he didn’t show that when interacting with her or other female characters.

At the same time, like many other male characters, Black is not immune to the beauty of women around him and some of his comments sounds disrespectful and are unwelcome by the ladies:

Sonya: The gunslinger.

Erron Black: I could take you away from all this.

Sonya: I must be a jerk-magnet.

→ Sonya is not amused by Erron’s words at all.

Erron Black: Hello, beautiful.

Jacqui: Messin' with the wrong girl.

Erron Black: But it feels so right.

Jacqui is like the only one woman described by MKX!Erron as the beautiful one, the other he usually referred to along the lines of hot / sexy. Yet once Jacqui outright warned him to not mess with her, Erron deliberately ignored her because it amuse him. Whatever it is a sign of an old-fashioned mindset (a remnant of the times he grew up) or just simply (male’s) egoism on his part, Erron likes to flirt with women but he does not always respect their opinion or wish to be left alone.

At the same time, Erron rarely tried to change women’s minds about him or their eventual relationship. So far, only the intro dialogue with Kitana seems to be the exception:

Kitana: Stop!

Erron Black: We've barely begun, my lovely.

Kitana: It will end quickly.

Black may put his own amusement above other people's personal comfort, yes, but didn’t act creepy like Kano did, especially toward Blade-Briggs-Cage family as a whole.

So we have this

Jacqui: I really don't like you.

Erron Black: I really don't care.

Jacqui: As long as we're straight on that.

in which Erron doesn’t care for Jacqui’s dislike of his person but doesn’t impose himself on her. He does not resort to the common rapist “excuse” that woman says no but her body says otherwise, like Kano did (“Your mouth says Kano, but your eyes say Kan-yes.”) and this contrast puts Black in a more positive light. Similar thing happened in the intro dialogue toward Tanya.

Erron Black: My friend, Tanya.

Tanya: We are not friends, bounty hunter.

Erron Black: Have it your way...

Again, whether trying to be friendly or ironic, once Erron was “turned down”, he simply accepted the situation without any additional crude remarks.

Interestingly, interaction with Sonya showed that Black was capable of rethinking his statement about hot/sexy women:

Erron Black: Girls with guns? Always hot.

Sonya: I'll shove 'em up your ass and fire.

Erron Black: Almost always hot.

Those examples suggest Erron may treat women differently, depending on their “fighting experiences”, age and origin and maybe even how sexually / aesthetically appealing they are to him. For example, veteran Sonya’s threat was taken seriously while (novice / new generation) Jacqui’s warning was ignored. At the same time, the intro dialogues didn’t hint at any romantic or sexual interest in Ferra (a young female symbiote) nor D’Vorah (Kytinn) and relatively good looking Mileena who deserves a separate paragraph.

To be honest, Erron, Johnny and Kano are like the main three men openly showing their (sexual?) interest in women around them. Understable, Black’s flirting / comments rarely were appreciated yet he still was less creepy or aggressive towards others than Kano. Erron didn’t bother to hide his eventual (sexual) interest in beautiful women but it can’t be said A) he had no control over his sexual drive and B) has rapist / sexual predator tendencies.

Another interesting thing: with few exceptions like Kano or Quan Chi, Erron threatened people with violence usually after they offended him and most of the time maintained professional neutrality toward his rivals. In that regard, Erron treated other characters the same regardless of their gender.

This is something worth keeping in mind how Black, as mercenary, in general is not the initiator of violence. Unless someone will pay him. For money, Erron would attack (kill) anyone, including women (to Tanya, “The Kahn wants your head.” + Erron’s Epilogue).

The last detail to talk about: one of the intro dialogue with Cassie suggests Erron thought she was an easy opponent.

Cassie: Is something funny?

Erron Black: I'll win this easy.

Cassie: You're going down hard.

but to be fair, he thought the same about Sub-Zero

Erron Black: You're an easy target.

Sub-Zero: As are you.

Erron Black: Bullets beat snowballs any day.

so I wouldn’t say it was the bias toward Cassie because of her gender and just Erron’s own arrogance (and maybe lack of good judgement on his part).

In summary, MKX!Erron in game alone tends to act in a professional manner. He had an occasion to shoot defeated opponents but did not seize the opportunity against not only Cassie but Jin as well. During the storyline he was rather collected, emotionless. In intro dialogues he openly expresses his interest in tough, relatively attractive women yet the banter is far from the creeping tone of Kano’s interaction with female characters.

Then we have Mortal Kombat 11 in which past and future timelines are messed up. Sadly, Erron’s characterization departs from the neutral-polite one seen in the previous game. Of course, this could be blamed on the younger version of Erron, but frankly, twenty years for someone living at least for a century and half shouldn’t make that big difference in behaviour and well, MK11 outright claims Erron is prone to violence for violence’s sake instead of just money. Which is one of many plot-holes and divergences between both games I guess.

Anyway, Erron, again, was the background character to beat down, so it is worth remembering that he couldn’t permanently hurt or kill anyone from the main cast. In chapter 2 he let Jade get away when he was facing Kotal and frankly, there is little explanation for that in-universe wise. I personally suspect it may be related to Erron’s own sense of honor, as in respecting one on one fight without cheap moves like shooting someone’s beloved person. Not practical in the mercenary job but it is possible for someone born and raised around two centuries ago. Also, Shao Kahn’s anger was focused mainly on killing Kotal for taking the throne. Because of that Erron could be not interested in Jade who simply did not have any significant political matter at that time. Sadly, it is really hard to say for sure what was on his mind.

In chapter 6, past!Erron stormed the Special Forces Base alongside Black Dragon members. There were women in that group but sadly, Black did not interact with anyone beside Johnny Cage. We can at least assume, Black did not mind fighting side by side with women.

Similary, present!Erron in chapter 7 showed up in the background during the alliance attack on Coliseum. The attack was led by Kitana (albeit did Erron join her to save Kotal out of loyalty or for money, it was not explained) and there were female fighters in the group. It seems then Erron does not mind fighting side to side with women.

During the pit fight (chapter 8), past!Erron faced the past!Sonya and the past!Johnny. Frankly, the same as in the previous chapter, game mechanics make little sense because there was no real reason for Erron to open the ring and face the characters when he could simply shoot down both from a safe distance. This really undermines the whole point of Black being a gunslinger, isn’t it?

Anyway, Cage took the forward position (which I think is both because despite his injuries he tried to shield Sonya AND because he actually met Erron during an attack on a Special Forces’ base) and got shot in the arm. After a short skirmish, Erron knocked down Johnny and aimed to kill the injured man.

The most logical thing for Erron in this situation would be to shoot down Sonya first and then finish already beaten down and exhausted Johnny. In defense of the Black though it is worth emphasizing that he didn’t completely ignore Blade nor turned away from her.

Most likely the weird slow-down action of aiming at Johnny was a moment of distraction that Sonya simply used to attack. Similar to MKX, game mechanics do not allow Black to headshot the main heroes, even though, in-universe, he should do just that and be done with the job. There is also a possibility that past and present Kano still wanted to keep Sonya alive for their own amusment (torture and sadly most likely rape) what could explain why Erron didn’t shot her from safe distance. I mean, the game alone did not voice what Kanos really ordered Erron to do.

I know that MK games like to slow down action for dramatic effects, but I strongly believe it was actually a matter of a few seconds of distraction (Erron looking aside to shoot Johnny and aiming) that Sonya took advantage of rather Black ignoring her on purpose. Even more since Black did not hesitate to shoot at her and seemed to enjoy facing “the legendary” Sonya Blade.

The same as MKX, Mortal Kombat 11 does not explain Black’s mindset. He does not shoot Jade or Sonya when he has a chance but he does not make any rude remarks toward women in general. However the intro dialogues shed a light on the complicated relationship that Erron has with women.

From what we learn about Erron, his childhood was far from normal or safe. We don’t know details, but what he shared with Cetrion and Cassie strongly suggest that Erron’s both parents were abusive people:

Cetrion: You shot your own father, Erron Black.

Erron: Sonofabitch had it coming.

Cetrion: Honor thy parents, mortal!

or

Erron: My Ma would’ve loved you, Cassie Cage.

Cassie: Aw, sounds like you miss her bunches.

Erron: I hated Ma.

or

Erron: I grew up around tough women.

Cassie: Didn’t they teach you respect?

Erron: They taught me to hit back.

The last statement suggests young Erron was abused by women (most likely including his own mother) to the point he is now willing to hit back anyone regardless of their gender without remorse. Erron himself says “I ain't above shootin' a lady” (intro dialogue vs. Sonya).

Beside that, an abusive mother alone could influence Black’s approach to women - and most likely she did, since he admitted to hate her. Surprisingly, Erron uses the past tense (“I hated Ma”) so there is a chance he gained distance over time in that matter. It also seems like whatever he feels about mother usually doesn't affect his relationship with other female characters. For example, in the mentioned banter he did not insult Cassie for reminding him about the abusive parent. Despite the bad childhood intro dialogues hint Black actually likes dangerous women.

Erron Black: I stepped out with Nitara before you.

Skarlet: You clearly have a type, Erron.

Erron Black: Just like living dangerously.

Like in the previous game, Erron openly shows his (sexual) interest in various women. The interesting change however is how:

His interest extends now to more alien-looking female characters like Nitara or Sheeva. Surprisingly, Mileena’s advances are still rejected. Also, Erron has like zero respect for the goddess Cetrion but to be honest, he does not respect any god.

Erron is more disrespecting by using nicknames like Legs or Baby Doll for Sonya or Sugar for Cassie. Of course, it may be just the “charm” of younger Black - hard to tell in most cases which version is speaking - but it creates an overall feeling of ironic, at times irritating or insulting approach to female fighters. At the same time, there are women that Erron refers to in a rather consistently respectful manner - Jacqui (Miss Briggs, Little Lady), Jade (ma’am, missy), Kitana (Princess, Kahn).

Before I will focus on the complex situation with Mileena, I need to talk about Erron’s important trait: he often says one thing but does the opposite. This is especially noticeable in intro dialogues concerning money and loyalty. Both games agree the main motivation for Black is a good payment, albeit MK11 highline also the thrill of danger. Anyway, Erron admitted he is willing to betray Kotal, a current employer, if someone offered a better deal (“Until a better offer comes along.”, “There's always a better offer, Kotal”). This strengthens the impression Black cares only about himself yet he rejects all propositions coming from Kotal’s enemies such as Shao Kahn, Rain or Mileena, Quan Chi, Shinnok and Kano/Black Dragons. At the same, he is willing to work with/ for Kitana who happens to be the best friend of Jade, Kotal’s beloved. Which makes Erron still operate in a group wishing no harm to the ex-emperor.

I’m bringing this into discussion because there is strong possibility that under the tough guy act, Erron still follows some “old-fashioned” sense of morality and is decent enough to not attack or harm women (and in my opinion, people in general) unless A) it is part of the job or B) is self-defense. Which could explain why he let Jade walk away or why he didn’t shoot Sonya from a safe distance but faced her in hand to hand combat. Depending how long he lived in Outworld, he could simply adapt into local customs - the people of Outworld are a combat-focused society and because of that have a strong sense of honor code. Erron’s eventual softness toward female fighters would get him in serious problems and I doubt he could afford such weakness when serving Shang Tsung or Shao Kahn.

So, why did Erron not want to serve Mileena, the designated successor? As the Empress, she was in position to offer the best (materially wise at least) deal after all.

In MKX!banter Erron claims Kotal paid him better:

Mileena: You aided the usurper.

Erron Black: He offered more coins.

Mileena: ...and no protection.

Meanwhile, MK11!Black outright says it was not a matter of money but of Mileena’s behaviour. Considering how prone to violence she was, it is no wonder why Erron decided to work for someone else.

Erron Black: Now what's got you all rip-snorting mad?

Mileena: When I gained the throne, you abandoned it.

Erron Black: Wasn't no pay worth dealing with your crazy.

This brings me back to the MKX’s banter suggesting Erron may dislike being bossed by women. Considering the implication he is currently negotiating a proper deal with Kitana Kahn (“New Kahn, same deal?”), the problem is more complex than judging someone by gender alone. I mean, Erron worked for Shao Kahn who himself was a cruel tyrant so sadism shouldn't be anything new for Black, right? Except, he was hired by Shang Tsung and because of that I think it is highly possible Erron had just indirect contact with the Emperor. Thus Erron could be not ready for Mileena’s unstable nature(?) and cruelty.

I mean - Erron comes from a pathological family and grew up around tough women. In his opinion Cassie has some traits or behaves in a way for which his mother would’ve liked the girl. So there are certain things that Black connects to hated mother. Now, Cassie is more of an extrovert type of person, showy and with sharp ripostes but she is one of the good guys and cruelty for fun is not her thing. So, if someone like Cassie can somehow make him think of a hated parent (that most likely is dead for decades now), how much Mileena could trigger Erron in the wrong way? To the point he chooses his mental health over money and/or thrill of danger?

If this is true, we may further wonder if bad experiences with tough women in childhood are the reason why despite flirtatious nature, Erron’s interest in female fighters usually is strictly sexual attraction? Because it really looks like he does not try to emotionally connect with women. Even his “thing” with Skarlet seems to be more a matter of thrill than a serious relationship, considering how Erron was okay with her eventual death.

(The possibility of Erron being freaked out by Mileena also rises an interesting question about her mental state between MK9 and MKX)

This is why I think Erron did not have a problem with working for women as long as they did not remind him too much of past abuse. And this is pretty nice implication, considering how tough guy Erron is for most of the time.

Because of that, Kotal questioning if Erron is jealous of Jade could be read in different way too:

Erron Black: So, you and Jade, huh?

Kotal Kahn: Jealous, Erron Black?

Erron Black: She's quite the looker, Kotal.

And yeah, Erron brings this to the matter of appearance alone, but hopeful as I proved earlier, Erron sometimes says one thing but does (thinks) something totally different. Because of that I suspect he may not be really jealous of Kotal for having a sexy lady but actually of the relationship itself. You know, build on respect and love than just build on sexual drive.

Like I said before, the game cutscenes and character banters may be interpreted in many ways but for me MK11!Erron Black - at least the older version - seems to mask his trauma and/or complex nature of his relationship with women under the act of tough guys. At the same time, there is a high possibility he still follows an out-fashioned sense of honor and though he is not above shooting women, he does not attack them unless it is demanded. Though to be fair, in my opinion this is how he approaches everyone. A mercenary’s mindset that distinguishes him from the likes of Kano.

In Mortal Kombat 11: Aftermatch, Erron met Sheeva, when the Shokan Queen in the company of Fujin, Nightwolf and Shang Tsung carried a coffin to the Soul Chamber. Black and Baraka decided to confront the Shokan woman and it quickly turned into a fight (and the typical game mechanics).

There is a question though - did Erron really take Kitana's offer or did he stay with Kotal? Because it’s really suspicious that he happened in the place where defenless, injured Kotal was in the healing process. Anyway, whatever the case, Black directly or indirectly worked for the new Kahn so it is highly possible his actions were dictated by Kitana’s best interest rather than his liking or disliking anyone.

Let’s just look at the situation - Kitana is the empress but she promised to treat her allies as her equals. That means Sheeva, as well respected Shokan Queen, plays an important role in the new regime - killing her or permanently injuring was out question, otherwise Shokan people could rebel against Kitana and in result the freshly established peace would go straight to hell.

In my opinion, this is why Erron asked Sheeva’s group to go with them quietly so the situation could be explained to Kitana without unnecessary violence. Black actually was okay with Sheeva go to Soul Chamber as long as Shang Tsung (Shao Kahn’s sorcerer) and the suspicious coffin was returned to him. Thanks to Shang Tsung, one of Tarkatan warrior died and thus the situation got out of hand. It makes sense Erron was more focused on Shang Tsung (hated by Kitana), Nightwolf (whose current self is revenant) and Fujin than on Sheeva who, potentially, was protected by political immunity.

When the Shokan Queen beat down Baraka, Erron in my opinion did not try to hurt her, only fired a warning shot. Maybe to make sure Sheeva will not kill Baraka (another important leader whose support Kitana needed to uphold the peace in Outworld). The Earthrealmers on other hand were another matter. Maybe Erron was too trusting or too reckless to not pay more attention to Sheeva or simply didn’t really think she was the traitor. It was after learning she is trying to resurrect Kitana’s evil mom - a dangerous, not consulted with Empress decision - Erron faced Sheeva in hand to hand combat.

Not much to analyse here, especially not with limitations of game mechanics yet I strongly believe Erron’s course of action was dictated by political situation and Kitana Kahn’s best interest so killing or seriously injuring Sheeva could be out of question. Also, like I said previously, Black is rarely the aggressor, what I believe is related to his mercenary’s mindset.

The last source, Mortal Kombat X comics series, requires a little clarification: I treat it as a potentially additional insight into Erron’s psyche than any real canonical material. Partially due to many plot-holes but also because of overwhelming violence used for violence’s sake alone. That said, here what happens:

Earthrealm (Special Forces) and Outworld (Kotal Kahn) weren’t on the best terms. To help Kotal, Erron and Black Dragons kidnapped young (under 21 years old) Cassie and Jacqui and took them to Outworld. During the journey through the dangerous jungle, girls tried to run away but got hurt in the process by Kano. Erron openly talked against brutal treatment of prisoners.

Looking at the difficult situation of Kotal, it was in Erron’s best interest to keep Cassie and Jacqui in one piece. Otherwise the whole plan would fail and then Kotal would be forced to deal with really pissed off Sonya Blade. And that would take a bad turn for Black himself. But like I said earlier, the tough guy act could also cover Erron’s more empathic nature that in the mercenary world was seen as a weakness to exploit. I personally think he did not like torturing people if that was unnecessary but also that he would have spoken against it even if Cassie and Jaquie were boys.

Then the Red Dragons attacked to take over hostages.

(Once again, a tough guy act with the “girls are Kotal’s property” as in cover up his worries about the situation or his true mindset, or mix?)

When the fight started, Erron went to tied hostages:

One one hand, Erron needs the girl to stay alive and not be taken by the enemy. On the other hand, he does not promise them safety nor ask them to run away. He is freeing them so the two girl (both under 21 years old) will fight against experienced criminals armed with swords and other dangerous stuff. This is actually an interesting detail, because it suggests Erron thought Cassie and Jacqui had a chance against thugs or that at least that way they wouldn't be a burden to him.

Jacqui punched him and Erron, either was taken by surprise or did not want to hurt her, was “saved” by Kano. And then betrayed by the Black Dragon leader.

Kano’s worlds raise a question, how much Erron is driven by the money and how much he uses the tough guy act to actually hide his unwanted “vulnerability” (as in, having moral sense and not being the heartless psychopath like Kano).

My general conclusion about Erron is that, for a side character he has a really complex relationship with women around him. I strongly believe that Erron sticks to some old fashioned sense of honor that mixes well with a mercenary's mindset. Thus rarely he is the one attacking first. This most likely influences his interaction with female fighters but at the same time, Outworld is not a place where people are judged by gender but for their skills and powers. So, Erron living there for decades for sure got influenced by that mindset to some degree.

I would not call him a feminist - not because he couldn’t be one but for lack of proper material to analyse. Feminism has many shades but in the most general sense is about establishing the political, economic, personal, and social equality of the sexes. Erron does not show much opinion on that matter and does not interact with “common” women; those truly weaker than him, disabled or anything else other than warriors, soldiers or queens. With lack of such interaction there is no chance to come to a proper conclusion.

Does Erron have a soft spot for women? It is possible but that would not stop him from hitting back or killing them if the situation called for such action. I think the safest option is just that Erron is in general a more emphatic and honorable human that he wants to admit, to not look weak or be exploited by others. In contrast to Kano, Black for sure has some moral code he follows no matter what. Even if this get him into trouble more often than not.

Hope it answers your question!

[esther-dot]

1 I too think they put too much effort in the show (an I appreciate it); they really did try to keep the main storylines, and give their own interpretations simultaneously. But if they changed the story from a Stark one into a Lannister one, raised Dany to a misunderstood hero, changed Tyrion's ending (who is a basic villain for the plot progression), why would I believe that Jon's ending is what they gave us? Their credibility is at least lacking (esp bc Ghost is missing an ear, lol). They

2 turned the main hero into D's fanboy when there's enough evidence to point to a Stark-Targ conflict. If Jon ends up in the Wall, which might happen, at least in the books it will be abt sth meaningful, like battling against Dany, thereby contributing to KL's destruction, which the show also tried to give (on their own terms), not bc he loved his child-murdering bitch. Although they might have given to Tyrion Jon's ending, perpetual service for the good of the people he destoyed by opposing D.

3 All in all, I don't think D&D have much credibility with what they did. The ending is there: Dany dead, KL destroyed, Bran king. The rest with all the changes they effected is at the very least negotiable. Excuse the rant, E.

(continuation of this convo)

I don’t mind rants! I'm a big fan of getting it all out.

I totally agree that they did a strange combo of Martin's ideas and theirs even when those two versions of the characters were no longer compatible. It didn't hit me that they were essentially running two concurrent stories until s7-8 (I was a show watcher and hadn't read the books until the long hiatus) when Jon was just totally opposed to himself in scene after scene.

They really should have just dropped all of Martin's stuff because it made their story incomprehensible, and the blending of ideas totally failed to convey Martin's anyway. Then, as stupid as their story might have been, at least it could have been cohesive. Like, fine, Dany is a good person who shouldn't be judged for the occasional misstep of burning people alive and Jon is a naive lamb who simply does as he is told, and Bran and Sansa are the dark forces that manipulate our heroes until they get their thrones. Come on! It would have been funny! It wouldn't be the "real" story, but if D&D had just decided to go for it we wouldn't have had the implication of those things while also having their actions contradict that interpretation. They really forgot that this wasn't a normal tv show, characters can't revolve through characterizations without the meaning being lost. Their failure to see how much the ending mattered (and therefore set up for it) meant that in the end, everything that came before felt futile.

All the same, I don’t get that upset by D&D’s stupid comments in interviews because I don’t think they’re honest about the how/why they made decisions. They were making a TV show, they needed a big event to hang each season on, moments in episodes that got people talking, and that’s what their goal was. They failed spectacularly in writing the story, but when it came to what they wanted to do (getting stuff to trend/prompt articles/grow their audience etc), they were very successful.

RE: Jon's ending, you're right that going to the Wall could be it and that also, we really can't trust D&D to have delivered a faithful version of his ending because of everything else they did to him. I mean, why make him loyal to Dany unless you're trying to justify his punishment? So weird that they turned him into a pretzel that would deserve some kind of punishment, and then, punished him for the thing everyone would be happy about?

When I think about the possibility of his ending at the Wall, I think the implications it has for others things is the strongest argument against it. I am not sure how he is involved in the destruction of KL if Bran is to be chosen king. How much distance Bran can create between himself and his brother/cousin/king to allow that? It seems un-doable to me.

I listed most of my objections here, a big one of which is justice and how can Bran be delivering justice if this is Jon's end?

I think there are many ways this ending for Jon doesn't make sense. Like, are the Others still a problem? If they are, how is it possible to protect Westeros without a Wall? How will the Watch be worth anything without one? They need it? How will they rebuild it? And in the books, wont it be a genuine, the whole fucking thing comes down, not just a little chunk?

Oh, the others are dead? So, the purpose of the Watch is no longer to protect the realm, merely to continue to prevent the FF from coming South? If they're expelled from Westeros rather than settled than what the HELL was the point of making their view sympathetic?? Oh, so they'll be settled South of the nonexistent Wall? Then what the hell is the point of the Watch?

Also, also, I feel like there is too fine a point on the fact that the Watch is corrupt, the vows anti-human, it's existence abused by people who want to disappear inconvenient offspring. If in the end Jon is sentenced there, I'm suddenly supposed to think this is an institution worth saving? Let's say Jon does participate in the destruction of KL. Let's say he somehow fails his people or the people of KL. His ending at the Wall is still bullshit because even if he "deserves" to suffer, continuing the Watch would mean subjecting other people to the suffering he endured. How gross. We have met too many people who are there who don't deserve to be for that to be okay.

So, I think if any ending was wrong, it was Jon’s. I know a lot of people want Tyrion dead or at the Wall, but there is that moment in AGOT about his shadow being that of a king, so I think it’s possible a villain “wins” or ends up in power. I suppose that could just be the impact he has on the events, rather than him ending up in a position of power, but as much as I thought he would die in the show, I’m not so sure Martin wants everything too neat and nice. Maybe Bran gives him the position as hand as part of getting him to agree to annul his marriage to Sansa. Who knows.