#bismuth did nothing wrong

[thedeerman]

ummm someone tell me why listening to system/BOOT PearlFinal (3) from the SU Movie just gave me the wildest fucking Hazbin AU concept (this is fucking long pls forgive me)

So- Steven Universe Movie x Hazbin Hotel. All of them have just had their memories wiped, their 'default' personalities reset, and not having any idea who they once were. you get to really see what each character would have been like had they not faced whatever horrible thing landed them in Hell to begin with.

Going through that song in particular made me really think, guys. Hear me out.

Lucifer is Rose/Pink in this, so he wouldn't really be there.

Obv Charlie takes her rightful place as Steven, as she is literally, in almost all fucking ways, Adult Demon Steven Universe. Take out the aliens and add in the bible and you got Charlie Morningstar

Lilith is Pearl- She fell in love with the angel that took a liking to her, dedicating everything about her existence to Lucifer. Even when it came to giving up everything, she did it for him. Reset, she's just as dedicated but has no one to give that dedication to. Until...

Yes, ALASTOR HAS TO BE GREG. Lilith may have come from Eden with Lucifer, by his side from the very beginning, but after all those years, I never thought I'd lose... Also, the whole 'pearl latching on to greg as her new diamond' thing makes that EXTRA hilarious. Charlie's gonna be all "Mom, don't you recognize them? Don't you recognize me?" Lilith's overly helpful ass is gonna be like "Hmmmm... Well I certainly recognize my Um Radio Demon!" And Al just, "...Oh boy."

Angel is Ruby, even if he hadn't been raised in the mafia, I'd like to think that Angel would be a solid badass mf either way, dedicated to protecting what he cares about.

Husk is Sapphire, ever think that maybe the reason the oddly wise bartender always seems to know everything isn't because he's a bartender? Uh oh, secret's out, Husky. (not to mention the idea of Huskerdust 'isn't it love' is killing me)

Niffty is Amethyst- except an amethyst is big, and strong... this one is not the best example, something is clearly wrong! (im sorry i have no self control). anyway yall can't tell me that cute little reset 'who am i? whats going on? idk, lemme just copy this guy over here' Niffty wouldn't be the best fucking thing

Now, I don't think it even needs saying that Sir Pentious needs to be Peridot, if you show me both of their pictures I will say 'that's the same picture'

And that means Cherri takes her role as Lapis, which I fuckin adore

As much as I'd like to make Vaggie be Connie, Connie is entirely absent the whole movie lmao and I also think that Bismuth is a damn good gem for Vaggie anyway. Bold, determined, has a deadly hatred of the place she came from and will do anything to defend her new home (gay as shit)

And for spinel, I'm not 100% sure. I'm thinking it could be an adamsapple situation where Adam was left in Eden, forever waiting for Lucifer to return despite the fact that he's essentially dead to the rest of Heaven. once he finds out about Lucifer having made a life for himself in Hell, he goes to take out his jealousy on Charlie and the others. and when he's reset he goes back to a silly, fun loving innocent guy that wants nothing but to make others happy.

Uhhhh oops that got long, im Very Normal about these two shows, guys. i swear.

[needles-cephaloparade]

HEADCANON (lapidot angst. suffer >:] )

Peridot is PISSED at Lapis for leaving. Peridot understood what she did wrong, but she also realized that Lapis wasn't really great either. And especially with taking the barn and everything in it along with her, not even considering on how that would make Peridot feel.

AND. after destroying the barn on Blue's head, she just pops in with a simple "Hey.", and nothing else after that. I'm guessing that the reason why we hardly see them in Future is because Peridot isn't really willing to work with Lapis anymore unless necessary, and doesn't wanna tell Steven that.

Lapis notices Peridot's grudge and is deeply saddened and upset with herself, knowing that she really hurt her. She couldn't bring herself to confront Peridot about it and apologize, so she went to Bismuth, and the two have grown more attached. Peridot sees this and thinks Lapis left her in the dust, again. She continues to distance herself from Lapis, and even shows some hostility toward her, giving her furrowed eyebrows and a huff whenever she walked by. She probably also didn't let Lapis near Pumpkin either, only near the last few days of her life.

so yeah that's the idea. eat up

[candyskiez]

ramble abt ur favourite su characters

I HAVE BEEN FREED FROM AUTISM JAIL!!!

pearl is probably my absolute favorite. which is funny considering I used to dislike her a Lot. she was such a dickhead to steven and was very hard to like at first considering she used to be so mean. but the great thing about how she was developed is you simultaneously learn WHY she's like that while also seeing her become better. like. "gems do not experience childhood" explained so fucking much, especially with how unhealthy homeworld is revealed to be, ESPECIALLY with how horrific the treatment of pearls is revealed to be.

also just. the fucking horrible mess of emotions that is, the only reason steven is here is because rose *isn't.* and pearl had *no sense of self* outside rose. yet she couldn't get better while she and rose were in contact. there HAD to be some sort of separation for her to be able to heal and grow. pearl had to grow away from rose for a long time and be completely separate from her for a WHILE if she and rose could *ever* have a healthy relationship, if that's even possible.

pearl starting to form her own opinions is so fucking. god. it's so fucking cathartic to watch. and learning just how much of her worth she put up on being the only one rose trusted made her flipping out about the lion feel so much more Real. of course she freaked out, it was the only thing she felt like gave her worth. of course she freaked out, she used the fact rose told her things she told nobody else to make herself go "see? it wasn't all for nothing. you're not beneath her. she LOVES you."

and god the way she treats steven in season one still makes me so mad but. it makes sense. it's horrible and unacceptable, but it makes *sense.*

god. also just. the little hints of her having opinions outside of rose for so long, she just felt too guilty to show them. she felt like they were a betrayal to, she was terrified of being Too Much. she was terrified of displeasing rose and losing her looking at her like she was *worth* something. she tells rose, why would I ever want to go home if you're here. but she misses space, she risked everything to try and go to space even when it was too dangerous. she was so close to bismuth. she did have feelings outside of rose, but her world revolved around rose so much that she felt like she couldn't have them. I mean it when I say she cannot have a healthy relationship with rose. there's too much of a power imbalance and she has to be away from rose so she can grow more.

also, god. pearl finally being able to say, rose was wrong. rose was wrong to hurt you. you were hurt, badly. even if she didn't mean to, she hurt you and that was unfair of her. to volleyball? the girl who reminds her of herself when she was younger? poetic fucking cinema. it makes me feral. I love this show I love the "rose quartz isn't a monster" while also "rose and pearls relationship was deeply unhealthy and pearl cannot be with rose and heal at the same time, they have to be apart for at least a while for pearls sake." COEXISTING. this show knows what nuance is and I love it. pearl is such an excellent character and I GET HER. I love her so much. I want to kiss her forehead. a single pale rose made me cry.

(this is for me telling people to ask me for opinions/thoughts on su stuff! feel free to shoot me an ask)

[toyota12]

Steven Universe Future: Pink State Analysis (Everything's Fine)

This episode is technically the last time we see Steven in his pink state, at least in his humanoid form.

After warping back from Homeworld, Steven, who has visibly grown again, to the point of needing to carry his jacket, gets another call from Connie.

While talking to Connie, Steven both lies and downplays his pink glowing, and tries to deflect the subject onto her. When that doesn't work, he tries to make the excuse of not waking the gems, and when she doesn't believe that, Steven simply hangs up.

Steven flashes back to events of the previous three episodes, before they appear on his T.V. due to his ability to broadcast memories onto it. Steven tries to lie to himself, insisting that he's fine, however cracking a nearby window in the process.

However, this gets the attention of all the Crystal Gems, who immediately come up the stairs and sees Steven's altered form. When Steven continues to deny that he has a problem, the gems decide to just take his word for it that he’s okay. Steven then decides to head to Little Homeschool, without speaking another word to the gems and races past them using his slowed perception of time.

On the way there, he almost damages the donut display on the Big Donut, before quickly stopping to re-adjust it.

When he decides to stop by Peridot's botany class and gets the okay to add some of his healing saliva on it, he accidently brings a whole herd of Plant Stevens to life, which scares everyone off. This is due to his healing powers being enhanced three times their normal strength.

When Steven decides help in Bismuth's wedding armor crafting class, and bangs a piece of metal with the slightest bit of strengh, he ends up splitting the anvil they were using in half, which is caused Steven's superstrength being enhanced no matter how much force he applies to the anvil.

Finally, when Steven decides to help with Amethyst's baseball game, he initially doesn't cause any damage to his surroundings. That is, until he expresses how ecstatic he is to have done so, and ends releasing a soundwave that destroys everything around him. This is due to Steven's destructive screams, however he causes more damage here than in any other episode.

When Steven finally warps back to his house, he is confronted by everyone, including Connie, who came because Steven unconciously broadcasted his thoughts onto her phone (much like Pearl did in A Single Pale Rose). The message is also able to warn her of Steven's distress.

Steven continues to downplay his issues as nothing of actual concern. Greg tries to tell Steven that they'll support if he wants to be pink and tries to usher him into talking to them if something's wrong. When Connie and Greg continue to try to talk to Steven, Steven eventually gets fed up with trying to reassure them and attempts to leave. However, this time, everyone blocks the exits in order to stop him from running off again.

When Steven appears to fluncuate in size once again, Connie suggests taking him back to the hospital. However, the gems (having never been informed of this) are shocked upon hearing this.

It's at this moment, when Steven finally reveals to everyone what he's gotten up to recently. Starting by downplaying the argument between himself and Greg, in which he crashed the van, as a "little disagreement", thinking about shattering White Diamond, and finally how he shattered Jasper, which shocks everyone.

Steven goes onto explain how he fixed that and how he can keep going onto fix everything he ruined without anyone noticing or worrying about it. He then begins to beat himself up for getting away with everything he did, saying how everyone doesn't know how bad he really is.

Steven says everyone views him as some one who always has everything together, when he really hasn't learning anything from his problems. He finally says how views him as some kind angel, but what he really is is a fraud and a monster. Unfortunately upon saying this, he begins to involuntarily transform into a monster, which ends the episode.

A final note is that when Steven says how everyone views him as a perfect figure when he really isn't, instead of him simply being fed up with how everyone expects him to be perfect, he also believes he's fooled everyone into thinking that he's perfect when he's actually a horrible person, which isn't true in the slightest.

Steven's actual problem is that he believes the mistakes he makes (and by extension everyone else makes) defines who he is as person, therefore, if he makes a mistake, he's a bad person. However, it simply means that people are neither perfect or terrible.

[koritea]

"There's nothing wrong with you."

Did I binge watch all of Steven Universe, Steven Universe: The Movie, and Steven Universe Future in a few weeks just to get mildly obsessed with Bismuth?

Yes. Yes I did.

Did I also create an OC specifically to give Bismuth the love and affection she deserves?

Yes. Yes I did.

Anyway this is Kyanite, they're a Lapis/Pearl cluster :)

Original screenshot under the cut!

[pinkasrenzo]

10 Characters and 10 Fandoms

rules: name 10 of your favourite characters from 10 different fandoms, then tag 10 people to do the same

thank you @bloody-wonder for the tag💕

In no particular order:

Shima Renzo (Ao No Exorcist) → and even if this isn’t an ANE blog the username is for him, beloved chaotic dumbass

Jacob Reckless (Reckless) → in name and facts, never have i feared more for a main character, plot armor doesn’t know him (or if it does it viciously hates him)

Gansey (The Raven Cycle) → a young old man, terrible fashion sense but we love him for it

Jadzia Dax (Star Trek DS9) → she’s just. perfect.

Neil Josten (AFTG) → feral menace and an ace icon, what more do you need

James Holden (The Expanse) → beloved space dad, should never get near a mic

Quentin Coldwater (The Magicians) → he deserved better and I will die on this hill.

Bumblebee (Transformers) → he! speaks! with! radios! my obsession with camaros did not start with him not at all

Misty Quigley (Yellowjackets) → precious murder daughter, she did nothing wrong🥰

Egashira Mika (Skip and Loafer) → must be protected at all costs.

(no pressure) tagging: @pollyna @novishu @fugitoidkry @montdargent @courfaeriedust @cecilyacat @wibblywobblybowtie @bismuth-209 @theedgeofnight @maybemountains

[selfawarecobalt]

"Then you really are better than her."

i love bismuth sm free my girl she did nothing wrong

redraw of one of my favourite shots from the episode

[is-the-owl-video-cute]

I’m sort of ambivalent about su. I thought it had some strong storylines and moments but at the same time it also had huge problem of having various elements flat just not work together. The diamonds are one of the most glaring examples of this because of the fact that having both be “grieving and distant family who hurt other people due to their own unresolved issues” and “a group of space dictators who canonically don’t bat an eye at all of the genocide they’ve done” just doesn’t sit right with me. (Before anyone gets mad at me for reading to much in a childrens cartoon, first off you are right but I like analyzing things and second off this is a thing a I had a problem watching this show as a kid). Bismuth did nothing wrong and should of been allowed to shatter the diamonds and they should simply gotten their juice to reverse corruption by putting their shards in a juicer.

The implication in SU is that earth was the first of the planets conquered to have sapient life. Any other examples of organic life was depicted to be plants or insect-like creatures. It’s less Genocide more mass extinction. Still not great but not as dire as people make it out to be.

[beevean]

I find SU discourse funny bc i've been on all sides: Been a lover, been a hater, HATED Rose Quartz, loved Rose Quartz, the filler episodes were boring, the filler episodes punched me in the gut, the diamonds should step on me, Bismuth did nothing wrong, etc etc. And the conclusion I've gotten is that i need to sit down and rewatch it, watch SU future and do a proper review bc damm the whiplash of mixed feels is not healthy. The music is always awesome tho

Pd: It never went anywhere in canon but i still like Pearlapis

SU was very good at making you change perception of a character at the drop of a hat :D Oh you thought Jasper was peak evil? lol, laughs in Earthlings. Oh you thought Blue Diamond was the "nice" Diamond? lmao, laughs in Reunited (and even earlier but it's not as overt). And ohhhh boy Pearl in S2. Nearly all "good" characters did something very fucked up, and nearly all "bad" characters (bar the less serious ones) had a humanizing trait, which is then up to you to decide how much it justifies/redeems them.

I'm starting to see videos pop up in my feed, asking if SU was ever good and if it still holds up. I don't trust like that, begone clickbaiters. But rewatching the series now that it's officially 10 years old would be interesting :)

(Pearlapis, huh? ngl it smacks me of an "aesthetic" ship first and foremost, because they're both elegant ladies. But mmmh something something they both have experienced being objectified, except one was built to be an object and rose above and the other was apparently of high status and got "degraded". Mh 👀)

[villains4hire]

Lapis Lazuli

1 - For starters? Out the gate, I roleplay this character as ace. Did years ago in the SU fandom and I see no reason to change her. I will ship her and more or less smut with her still, however, but be picky and be sensible about it as I did prior. Regardless, and here’s my personal message to anyone who has a problem with this: Ace people have dated, had sex, or been repulsed are varied and not a monolith, etc. The amount of weird control I see over shipping Ace characters, sex lives is fucking creepy, but also I understand if it’s disregarded or sexualized/handled poorly and I hear you, I can relate to that in my own, but not exact experiences. But those outside of being ace who do not understand nuance and are incredibly aggressive or annoying about this? Fuck off and quit talking shit about stuff you don’t get, take more than five seconds looking up a definition to learn about how actual people live. Anyway, you’re free to ask me if you want to ship, but I will say if I don’t think it’ll work I’ll tell you out the gate. I will just say there are gems just canonically involved with people, so it’s not because she’s alien. I just hrm, can’t really see her into people a lot of the time other than in certain ways I can’t really say is ‘down-bad’, though could be willing.

2 - I roleplay Lapis more or less with the ending of SU but also my original characterization, I believe before the Malachite arc ended years and years ago. She’s a bit fighty, lonerish, but incredibly loving if close, bit of a goofball, memer, more below etc. That being said? My Lapis is stand-alone. She is not to be presumed to be living or with Peridot, Bismuth or otherwise and isn’t a Crystal Gem. She fights for the people she cares about, but it’s nothing canon changing other than motivations, relationships or what she identifies with in terms of factions etc. I roleplayed this character for her potential and friendship with Steven and still do. Most canon-compliant Stevens I’ll accept out the gate but at least ask me first.

3 - This character is fairly powerful to being overpowered? Bit of a glass cannon if physically hit though, so bit of a warning if on Earth for example or other heavy water-based planet.

4 - I will have this character curse occasionally, as Lapis is probably one of the few who would. But I’ll try not to go crazy with it. 5 - Oh right Jasper is also in the wrong, but I will say that Lapis abused the ever living heck out of her with Malachite. I am not going to skirt around that and if you try to say otherwise or have a problem with it? Do not approach me for this character, as I embrace every aspect of a character if I take them up as I like. As Lapis is a victim, yes, but it does not make her weak, if anything? It made her one of the more formidable characters of the series and dangerous.

Do I want them to die: Nah. Stakes can be high but SU has no real death other than skirting the censors for shatterings. Death can occur in rps so long as it isn’t too gorey though. Just have them pop like a balloon or something into paste if shot with a laser or like comically smushed etc. Will I have/get icons: I have them Tag: tide reformed (Multiverse, after the events of SU default verse) tide formed (Homeworld Verse, Prior to Meeting Steven and the mirror) Age: 10k+ Years in terms of age. Sex: Nothing. She’s a rock. Gender: Fine with any pronouns, he/she. Race: Gem Race - Subcaste: Lapis Lazuli Sexuality: Ace. Personality traits: Extremely loyal. Loving. Distrustful of outsiders, people or even other Gems at first until she knows their intentions. Can be incredibly selfless, but also selfish. Can enter toxic relationships at times, especially if it’s her in control in terms of power or wrestling power into her control. Unforgiving, grumpy at times though is not incapable of forgiving people. Can hold a grudge. Has deep guilt regarding certain things. Tends to forget certain people she doesn’t hold much regard for. Brutal beyond words if pushed or she sees the need to be, is not canonically above torture. Is a touch unstable at times in terms of anger from being in isolation for six thousand years, but has immense willpower as she’s one of the few who didn’t go outright insane. Enjoys memes. Art if you could call it that in the form of ‘Meep-Morps’ and other activities in random garbled words. Likes memes even if she misunderstands them, phrases, words even if she misuses or misremembers them. Deadpan sense of humor or grimness but also can mess with people. Laidback, likes to be lazy and lounge. Likes jokes, humor, a little immature honestly for what she’s willing to get into for some good fun. Mental traits: Gem Mentality, she isn’t human by any means. Physical traits: Pretty slim, petite, inhuman body type but not overtly so. Flat-chested, thickish legs and all around a smaller body. Around 5′1 to 5′2 and has a free-spirited but mature beauty to her despite her personality. Powers: All of this is simply here canon powers as this character does not need help other than flavor for a few unsaid things. Enhanced Condition - greater strength, speed, and durability but varies gem to gem Immune to disease - age. Bubbling - can bubble objects, gems or large objects like other gems can. Shapeshifting - can shapeshift form, parts of herself. Regeneration - reforming and such after poofing. Gravity Shifting - adjusts to gravitational changes. Weapon Summoning - she’s never had a weapon summoned before as she usually just has water. It’s presumed she has one though, however, and it’s basically a whip-sword that moves and flows like water. And can be manipulated as such and use her hydrokinesis, it’s usually used like that of a razor ring in self-defense when there’s no water around. Hydrokinesis - Lapis is exceptionally strong in this regard it seems even compared to other gems. Most likely from being more early generation gems than the later ones. It’s a self-explaining ability but the exact limit is not known but it’s planetary for the manipulation she’s capable of. She could potentially manipulate high-density liquid entities but I will say that blood is not water-like enough for her to do this to and it’s more intended for liquid metal and minerals such as moving tectonic plates since she’s a terraforming gem. Water Generation - she can generate a certain amount of water from her gem, but it’s unknown. She usually use’s this with a combo with her weapon if forced into tapping into it. Water Form Manipulation - she can cause water to turn into ice or even use it as deadly projectiles. Thermal Manipulation - she is capable of causing water to steam or boil. Hydromimicry - she can create clones against her enemies. Water Bubbles -  she can use these to imprison gems, people, granted they’ll drown if not given air. Water-Walking - she can walk on water and even allow others to walk on water with her. Water Wings - she can fly using a form of water wings and like other things, she can manipulate, stretch and even punch with them. Memory Projection - can project memories onto a mirror-like surface or still enough water. Pathokinesis Resistance - she is immune to emotional manipulation such as Blue Diamond’s empath attacks. This is not to be confused with White Diamond’s ability to control other gems. High Nobility Status - Lapis Lazulis judging by their demeanor for the others we’ve seen and the vast amount of power they have? Seem to be Blue Diamond’s higher gems, so when it matters. I will say that Lapis is pretty high up there in terms of caste and privilege. Motivations: To be free. To move past what’s happened. To belong, to find purpose beyond her original intent. To find what’s considered home. Backstory: The entire wiki for her other than being with Peridot, Bismuth, at the barn. I primarily have her come and go, then mostly show up to help Steven, make a few friends but more or less just have her in the background. She comes when she’s needed or wants to be there and gets better about it as time goes on, along with those approaching her consistently does she become more social. She never considers herself a Crystal Gem but she told Homeworld to eat it basically.

[perpetual-fool]

positive invalidation

I am now addressing the hazy fragments of my earliest memories. I am using my 'reinterpret and replace' strategy, following the thread of 'my feelings are wrong' as far as it goes. And it seems, the root of it isn't people telling me I'm wrong, it's people telling me I'm right. For instance, when I was about 11 I wanted to write my own music. All it consisted of was making up random melodies, a complete dead end, but people said encouraging things and they bought me staff paper. That false validation convinced me that there was something there to figure out when there absolutely was not. It was like trying to write poetry in a language I don't speak. And then I think I must be stupid for not being able to figure it out.

Alternatively, a current example. I have an agreement with my mother that if I catch her psychologically torturing me, such as gaslighting, she puts a dollar in a jar. (Then I use the money for alcohol.) This isn't correction, she's not making any effort to change her behavior. If she wanted to not torture me, should could just not do that and we wouldn't have the jar. But I figure, if she just wanted to torture me, she wouldn't be using the jar. And that's enough to convince me that she isn't acting in bad faith, and I must be failing to communicate or understand.

It feels pretty airtight to me. Like, people that assert whatever random noises you want to make are 'music', I feel they must have a different 'music' than I do. Which I can't seem to figure out, incidentally.

But they're wrong! I know because of logical contradictions. "Music is any noise you make. But not those noises, those noises are wrong." And today I was having daymares about the "I define you as bad, stop being bad or I will punish you" pattern. Tangent, sorry. But yeah, there's stuff you put a label on, and then there's a label you apply to stuff. You can look at a behavior and call it 'lazy', the term describing the behavior, or you can take the word 'lazy' and stick in on whatever you want, and the whatever becomes 'lazy' by definition. And this is used maliciously very frequently. "What you're doing is harmful (descriptive)", "But I'm helping (defined)!" I presume this is supposed to be cheating, sleight of hand. I have no idea how it's supposed to logically function to process 'defined' as 'descriptive'. As if someone could step on your foot, say "I'm not stepping on your foot" and then suddenly the pain in your foot magically disappears. Have further thoughts but definitions are not why I feel I'm bad.

So, the bottom of this is that, I buy into the invalidation because I've already fallen for false validation.

Reinterpretation: Example, suppose I ask "will you tell me the name of three types of bird?" And they say "sure! chicken and bismuth." After thirty minutes of clarification they acknowledge that they know 'bismuth' is not a type of bird. I remind them I asked for two more birds, they tell me nothing they say is ever good enough for me, then block me. So, why did they agree to my request if they had no intention to fulfill it? And assuming it's not just to destroy me, since that explanation was apparently not sufficient. Else, they agreed before thinking it through and would rather push me into a meat grinder than admit they can't do it? No. (Doesn't make sense that they would agree and then immediately stab me in the face. Unless the point was to get me to let them stab me in the face, but they don't seem to enjoy the stabbing process.) Hmm. Let's break this down, is the initial agreement probably genuine? I think if it wasn't, the following part would be plausible. So yes. Is the blatantly wrong answer genuine? If the exchange lasts long enough they eventually admit it, so no. Am I supposed to be fooled by the answer? If it was supposed to be straightforwardly plausible, then they'd be expecting me to suddenly be unable of basic mental tasks like counting, and if it was gaslighting they're insist the context was different, like telling me I only asked for two things. So, no.

So they genuinely agree and then tell me a lie they know I won't believe. I hope you can appreciate the problem. This is what leads me to thinking maybe these people aren't real and my whole existence is a lie. But as I was saying, buying into the first part is the problem, so I think I have to find a way to conclude the initial agreement wasn't genuine. Why would someone be telling a lie they know isn't even a little bit plausible? Maybe they don't realize it's going to get checked? Like if if they wanted to get in somewhere, but a guard asked for a password, they think if they just make something up maybe the guard won't realize it's not the right word? Why then would someone believe they wouldn't get checked during the checking process? Yeah I got nothing. Input welcome.

Had another idea though. Was thinking, these exchanges where people suddenly respond as though a completely different conversation is happening, I don't actually know that we were ever on the same page. If I ask "is it tuesday?" and they say "yes", I'm just assuming they heard and understood the question, because the answer isn't inconsistent. I've had loads of instances where someone would give a non sequitur reply, I ask "what does that have to do with the subject?" and they refuse to explain. So, maybe the whole thing is non sequitur.

But how would that work? Like, they can understand "please pass the salt" but not "why did you add salt?" So whatever meaning they're inventing is close enough for the former but not the latter. That should be possible, but then why would they insist on believing a wrong meaning when it clearly doesn't fit? Ya' know, the thing that's prompting me to start asking questions in the first place. The reason I stay up all night, have heart problems from the stress, suffer frequent daymares, but they sleep soundly and refuse to even acknowledge the problem. No, malice is the only possible explanation here.

I somehow have to conclude this is wrong without an explanation.

Different approach, it's strange that I feel this is unresolved. Say, with puzzle games, I pretty quickly either see the solution or see that I don't. And there's no version of a puzzle that I can imagine which would leave me in limbo like this. This is a very simple problem, I am readily making connections, but it's like the solution is perpetually around the next corner. My brain is associating this with a thing I saw in a manga (recap). It was an isekai with a magic system that involved imagining the structure of matter, and the protagonist had more powerful magic because the locals were imaging a 'four elements' model of the world, which is wrong. There was a character failing magic school because they were being taught wrong methods, including messing up incantations by slurring the words since she didn't know they were words. So, if I were that anime girl, would I be stuck the way I am now?

Hypothetical: I am an anime girl attending isekai magic school. The teachers are telling me that to make a fireball, I stick my hand out, imagine fire essence moving from the environment into my hand, and say "feuerkommherundmacheinenball". It's working, but badly. My magic circle is wobbly, my ball isn't very big, and it falls apart after only a second or two. The other girls have much larger balls than me and can keep it up much longer. They keep telling me to imagine harder and speak more clearly, but it's not helping. No matter what I do it just doesn't come out right. I'm a failure with no magic talent, and I'm never going to be able to avenge my parents.

Sure, that feels about right. It is the moral component which is stopping me from concluding that I just don't get it, as presented. In contrast with programming, of which I concluded the underlying logic has to be fairly straightforward but it was being presented in an incoherent way. Aside from that, yes, I am being misled.

I'm gonna have to chew on that for awhile, but I'm gonna say this is nominally solved. And I'm having a weird feeling I've never felt before. It's like, my bones are cozy? And my internal voice stopped screaming, which it's been doing all day. So, this is probably good.

[clown-cult]

Steven Universe episodes in hindsight upon doing a rewatch.

All my opinion obviously so just chill, y’all.

Garnet episodes: (before jailbreak) fun, creative, heartwarming adventures with best mom. (After jailbreak) fusion talk. That’s it.

Amethyst episodes: consistently good. Deal with a lot of relatable struggles such as doubt, the opinions of others and self loathing. Unfortunately she has way too few episodes centred around her.

Pearl episodes: Pearl loves Rose so so sooooo much to the point it’s been actively detrimental to her and those around her several times, but it’s okay! In this episode Pearl will finally be able to accept, heal and move past all tha—SIKE!!!

Steven episodes: Steven either learns a new ability by being thrust into traumatising situations or does absolutely nothing of importance for the episode’s full run. There’s no in between.

Beach city episodes: still the absolute worst part of the show. I’ve created a list of episodes that I give to people getting into the show so they know which ones to skip.

Peridot and/or Lapis episodes: either way too much pandering to the fandom or a genuinely solid storyline that succeeds in the world building that the beach city episodes were supposed to be about.

Bismuth episodes: she has naught but barely a handful and gets done dirty in every single one. #BismuthDidNothingWrong

Jasper episodes: she got none and I will forever be furious about it because she deserved so much better.

[billyggruff]

I see that a lot of people don't see the diamonds as evil.

I wish I could find the blog that said it, but they really answered why this is the case. They basically said that the reason why this is the case is because the framing is confused. Specifically in regard to how they frame characters emotions. Characters like Bismuth received the framing of a villain with everything from the dark shadows to the harsh red lighting of her fight scene with Steven. Her eyes were frequently cast in deep shadow or shown to be dilated, which are both popular animation techniques to make a character seem menacing and scary. 

Yet in the context of the narrative when you look at it without the crude framing techniques it’s plain to see that Bismuth’s rage is warranted and justified in many respects. The fight should have felt much more conflicted and should have raised doubts and questions within Steven. Yet thanks to this framing a lot of people walk away from the episode thinking that Bismuth is just a bad person and is wrong. 

Meanwhile Blue Diamond is framed in this mournful grieving tone with everything from her weak voice to her expression and posture. She’s given these quiet moments next to PD’s palanquin and they really hammer home just how long she’s been grieving. Even YD’s framing has been confused lately. 

The framing treats her like she’s supposed to be empathized with. Like she “isn’t that bad of a person really guys” 

However we know for a fact that the Diamonds worked together to corrupt all the gems on Earth, authorized those gem experiments, and intends on a planet filled with life to be destroyed for no other reasons than for a weapon comprised of millions of shattered gems and to get rid of a bad memory. Despite the framing attempting to make them sympathetic, their actions are utterly reprehensible. BD almost had Garnet shattered just for fusing on accident in front of her. These are not good people, yet they are framed as such while on screen. 

Lawyers use this technique with their clients in order to lower their sentence. They show their clients in their best light. They show pictures of them when they are at their friendliest looking. They talk about their hopes and dreams and how this case that has been put against them has ruined their lives, and isn’t that punishment enough your honor? They work their hardest to paint the most empathetic picture of their client as possible, even when in actuality they could be the worst monster you can think of. 

That is what the framing with the Diamonds feel like. It feels like the writers are trying to paint them in as empathetic a light as possible so when they introduce their “happy ending,” where everyone forgives eachother and it was all just a big misunderstanding, the audience will buy it. 

Basically, the reason why a lot of people do not see the Diamonds as evil is because the writers are actively working to make them seem empathetic. While characters who rightfully want to fight against them (a la Bismuth) are framed as bad, antagonistic, and unreasonable. The writers are almost the Diamonds defense attorneys at this point, which really confuses the narrative about a rebellion against a tyrannical regime. 

[thatshowthefuckyousound]

If a slave protects their slave master over their fellow slaves, they deserve to be killed alongside their slave master.

Bismuth Did Nothing Wrong 2k17

[tricritic]

Friendly Reminder That Bismuth Wasn't Going to Indiscriminately Murder, She Was Going to Shatter the Diamonds and Other Aristocracy

Also, she knew Steven wasn't Rose in the end. That's the moment she gave up.

[commissar-bianca-blog]

Bismuth would punch a Nazi...

She’d punch a hole through a Nazi!