#but i needed to let this out

[theheirofthesharingan]

Itachi is the perfect example of virtues becoming vices in extreme circumstances. He is too much of everything to a fault. He's too selfless that he ends up making selfish choices. He's too kind who can't watch other people suffer yet does the same thing he doesn't want to see. He loves Sasuke too much that he destroys his life. Driven by both his experiences and circumstances he repeatedly blurs the lines that separate moral from amoral. He doesn't exempt himself from this either because he takes extreme measures to punish himself, in fact much more than the damage he's caused anyone else. When one wonders why he's loved so much, it's because of this. He's fascinating and interesting because his ambiguous morals don't stem from greed or hunger for power but his desire to establish peace and a deep love that he deprives himself of all kinds of comfort and forgiveness as a form of retribution for his actions.

[maychild]

unintentional love story and its callbacks

so on my first watch through of this awesome bl, i couldn't help but notice that unintentional love story has a couple of callbacks that jumped at me, and grabbed me by the throat. there are also some more subtle ones that you could take as callbacks or not, so i won't get into those, but i do wanna talk about two in particular that sucker-punched me.

first we have this lovely little exchange between taejoon and wonyoung when they meet after taejoon's photoshoot in ep. 8, during the Break-Up™.

taejoon says this:

look, taejoon, i get it: inho really did a number on you. he took a lot of money from your father to never see you again, and we can all see that he hasn't stopped being opportunistic. (he comes out of the woodwork just as taejoon's coming back into the pottery world??? like, merely a coincidence??? I THINK NOT. AND DOING BUSINESS WITH THE RESTAURANT YOU AND TAEJOON FREQUENTED????) and i understand taejoon thinks, upon finding out who wonyoung really is, that wonyoung isn't really all that different from inho. that the only logical conclusion to finding out the truth was that wonyoung must want to use him like inho did (urghhhh, yeah, even writing that made me wanna vomit.)

BUT WE, THE AUDIENCE, KNOW WONYOUNG ISN'T LIKE INHO (like, literally minutes right before this moment, wonyoung switches out the place cards on the dressing room doors JUST TO KEEP INHO AWAY FROM TAEJOON SO TAEJOON ISN'T HURT FURTHER AJFKDLSJFKDSJFKDSFJ I AM COMPLETELY NORMAL ABOUT THAT BEE TEE DUBS)

did wonyoung initially approach taejoon in an attempt to get his job back by getting taejoon to come back to the pottery world?? yeah, but the major difference, imho, is that during the whole previous eight eps, we haven't really seen wonyoung working that hard to get his job back. yes we've seen him taking vice-manager jung's calls and still reporting on taejoon, but...that's.all.he.does. he doesn't attempt to cajole taejoon any one way (and u might say that cajoling him in any one way might have given him away to taejoon much sooner, but i got the feeling that there was something else at play than wonyoung trying to be subtle about his subterfuge, esp. once he and taejoon get closer.)

but ok, taejoon is hurting and he's retreating back into his cold, hard shell we saw in ep 1, so while this is very harsh, i can understand where he's coming from.

BUT THEN EP 10 HAPPENS. for a little context, this is after they get back together and spend the night (IN MATCHING PJS LIKE THE DORKS IN LOVE THAT THEY ARE!!!)

does taejoon think this is a game??? flashing his wealth around like it's no big deal, mr.i'll-take-care-of-you, and use-me-all-you-want.

may i remind everyone that just two eps ago--TWOOOO--he was all, "i wonder if u're still hanging around because you want to use me some more?" and was all broody mcbroody about it. :((((

but wonyoung has something to say about his boyfriend being very serious about getting used:

TAEJOON IS SHOOK. WE ARE ALL SHOOK. this also references, to me, a subtle callback from ep.7 when they first confess to each other and have that talk on the rooftop about taejoon's father. taejoon confesses that he had never felt love from his father--he had felt more like a disciple than a son--which is why i think wonyoung is VEEEERY deliberate in his word choice here. he could've kept up the joking banter, but i think he was very conscious of the fact that taejoon's world is made up of a lot of people like inho, and not a lot of people like wonyoung (by that i mean, people who sought out taejoon not solely for his company or to build a loving relationship with him, but because he had wealth and connections INHO YOU DEMON) so i think wonyoung wanted to make himself very clear. (again! a subtle reference/callback to yeonhee, his friend girl, from ep. 7 also, who was like "you're very honest, and that was why i liked you.")

COULD THAT MAN MAKE IT ANY CLEARER??!!! NO and i love wonyoung for this. (i love them. *cries in single*)

ANYGAY, i am completely and totally fine and totally normal about this bl. everyone needs to watch it already tho.

[christadeguchi]

(✿◕‿◕) die (ꈍ ꒳ ꈍ✿)

[sparkleofstardust]

in light of the recent news that Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi has been found dead after a helicopter crash you might be wondering 'who the hell is this guy and why are so many people celebrating his death??' and i'm here to answer that!

to fully understand what's going on we need to look into Iran's history: when the Iranian revolution in 1979 happened the authoritarian king who was ruling at that time was overthrown, but the ensuing power vacuum lead to the islamic regime seizing power and establishing Iran as an islamic republic

the following years were incredibly cruel to the Iranian people; thousands of people (especially minorities) have been protesting against the strict islamic regime leading to many being jailed, tortured and executed.

and this is where Raisi played a big part: in 1988 he was part of a committee that ordered the execution of thousands of political prisoners who were protesting the islamic regime, earning himself the title of "the butcher of tehran"

do not be fooled by what the state media wants you to believe, the Iranian people are celebrating his death. he was a cruel mass murderer who has destroyed the lives of thousands of people, his death should be used as a time to mourn for all the suffering he has caused, and bring new attention to the political prisoners still being held in Iranian prisions today

because sadly the fight is far from over. many of you have probably heard of the murder of Mahsa Jina Amini back in 2022, causing a new wave of nationwide protests and establishing the "woman, life, freedom" movement. the regime has gotten increasingly cruel in their treatment of the Iranian people, especially women, but the people of Iran are not deterred and keep fighting for a free Iran.

if you want to know how you can help, please keep talking about us. the one thing the regime hates is international attention, and in the past it has been proven that international pressure has stopped the regime from executing various political prisoners. people like Toomaj Salehi are under imminent threat of execution and spreading their names could save their lives. so whether you share social media posts or talk to your family and friends about what is happening in Iran, anything helps 🙏🏼

jin, jiyan, azadi ✌🏼

[hymnoeides]

'Cause I'm stuck with your stories

[hinamie]

I'm always pushing you away from me / but you come back with gravity / and when I call, you come home

[stromblessed]

Mizu, femininity, and fallen sparrows

In my last post about Mizu and Akemi, I feel like I came across as overly critical of Mizu given that Mizu is a woman who - in her own words - has to live as a man in order to go down the path of revenge.

If she is ever discovered to be female by the wrong person, she will not only be unable to complete her quest, but there's a good chance that she'll be arrested or killed.

So it makes complete sense for Mizu to distance herself as much as possible from any behavior that she feels like would make someone question her sex.

I felt so indignant toward Mizu on my first couple watchthroughs for this moment. Why couldn't Mizu bribe the woman and her child's way into the city too? If Mizu is presenting as a man, couldn't she claim to be the woman's escort?

However, this moment makes things pretty clear. Mizu knows all too well the plight of women in her society. She knows it so well that she cannot risk ever finding herself back in their position again. She helps in what little way she can - without drawing attention to herself.

Mizu is not a hero and she is not one to make of herself a martyr - she will not set herself on fire to keep others warm. There's room to argue that Mizu shouldn't prioritize her quest over people's lives, but given the collateral damage Mizu can live with in almost every episode of season 1, Mizu is simply not operating under that kind of morality at this point. ("You don't know what I've done to reach you," Mizu tells Fowler.)

And while I still feel like Mizu has an obvious and established blind spot when it comes to Akemi because of their differences in station, such that Mizu's judgment of Akemi and actions in episode 5 are the result of prejudice rather than the result of Mizu's caution, I also want to establish that Mizu is just as caged as Akemi is, despite her technically having more freedom while living as a man.

Mizu can hide her mixed race identity some of the time, and she can hide her sex almost all of the time, but being able to operate outside of her society's strict rules for women does not mean she cannot see their plight.

It does not mean she doesn't hurt for them.

Back to Mizu and collateral damage, remember that sparrow?

While Mizu is breaking into Boss Hamata's manse, she gets startled by a bird and kills it on reflex. She then cradles it in her hands - much more tenderly than we've seen Mizu treat almost anything up to this point in the season:

She then puts it in its nest, with its unhatched eggs. Almost like she's trying to make the death look natural. Or like an accident.

You see where I'm going with this.

When Mizu kills Kinuyo, Mizu lingers in the moment, holding the body tenderly:

And btw a lot of stuff about this show hit me hard, but this remains the biggest gut punch of them all for me, Mizu holding that poor girl's body close, GOD

When Mizu arranges the "scene of the crime," Kinuyo's body is delicate, birdlike. And Mizu is so shaken afterward that she gets sloppy. She's horrified at this kill to the point that she can't bring herself to take another innocent life - the boy who rats her out.

MIZU'S ONE MOMENT OF SOFTNESS AND MERCY, COMING ON THE HEELS OF HER NEEDING TO KILL A GIRL TO SPARE HER THE WORST FATE THAT THIS RIGID SOCIETY HAS TO OFFER WOMEN, AND TO SPARE A BROTHEL FULL OF INNOCENT WOMEN WHO ARE THE CASTOFFS OF SOCIETY, NEARLY RESULTS IN ALL OF THEIR DEATHS

No wonder Mizu is as stoic and cold as she is.

And no wonder Mizu has no patience for Akemi whatsoever right before the terrible reveal and the fight breaks out:

Speaking of Akemi - guess who else is compared to a bird!

The plumage is more colorful, a bit flashier. But a bird is a bird.

And, uh

Yeah.

I like to think that Mizu killing the sparrow is not only foreshadowing for what she must do to Kinuyo, but is also a representation of the choice she makes on Akemi's behalf. She decides to cage the bird because she believes the bird is "better off." Better off caged than... dead.

But because Mizu doesn't know Akemi or her situation, she of course doesn't realize that the bird is fated to die if it is caged and sent back home.

Mizu is clearly not happy, or pleased, or satisfied by allowing Akemi to be dragged back to her father:

But softness and mercy haven't gotten Mizu anywhere good, recently.

There is so much tragedy layered into Mizu's character, and it includes the things she has to witness and the choices she makes - or believes she has to make - involving women, when she herself can skirt around a lot of what her society throws at women. Although, I do believe that it comes at the cost of a part of Mizu's soul.

After all, I'm gonna be haunted for the rest of this show by Mizu's very first prayer in episode 1:

"LET" her die. Because as Ringo points out, she doesn't "know how" to die.

Kind of like another bird in this show:

[ultravioletness]

I’ve been making gay knights (and ladies) collages on my phone at work

(Part two)

[egophiliac]

was this anyone else's first thought, or

[time-woods]

you cant tell me he wasnt holding back any comments

[wombywoo]

retired 🩶

[aalghul]

once again thinking about jason as duke’s robin. he’s ~4 years younger than jason, and that puts him at 8-12 during Jason’s time as robin. that’s prime time to get attached to your local kid vigilante before your own life goes downhill.

and if we try to keep duke’s meeting with bruce in zero year + duke’s age (so he can remember the meeting and hold that conversation with bruce), he has to be around 8. if he starts following batman through the news at that time because of the mess that just happened, the robin he sees is probably jason. I’ve literally connected the dots

[christadeguchi]

if nothing else can save america this zero-year-old fairy baby otter with no gender can. chiitan's platform is love. and chaos.

[whetstonefires]

You know what I realize that people underestimate with Pride & Prejudice is the strategic importance of Jane.

Because like, I recently saw Charlotte and Elizabeth contrasted as the former being pragmatic and the latter holding out for a love match, because she's younger and prettier and thinks she can afford it, and that is very much not what's happening.

The Charlotte take is correct, but the Elizabeth is all wrong. Lizzie doesn't insist on a love match. That's serendipitous and rather unexpected. She wants, exactly as Mr. Bennet says, someone she can respect. Contempt won't do. Mr. Bennet puts it in weirdly sexist terms like he's trying to avoid acknowledging what he did to himself by marrying a self-absorbed idiot, but it's still true. That's what Elizabeth is shooting for: a marriage that won't make her unhappy.

She's grown up watching how miserable her parents make one another; she's not willing to sign up for a lifetime of being bitter and lonely in her own home.

I think she is very aware, in refusing Mr. Collins, that it's reasonably unlikely that anyone she actually respects is going to want her, with her few accomplishments and her lack of property. That she is turning down security and the chance keep the house she grew up in, and all she gets in return may be spinsterhood.

But, crucially, she has absolute faith in Jane.

The bit about teaching Jane's daughters to embroider badly? That's a joke, but it's also a serious potential life plan. Jane is the best creature in the world, and a beauty; there's no chance at all she won't get married to someone worthwhile.

(Bingley mucks this up by breaking Jane's heart, but her prospects remain reasonable if their mother would lay off!)

And if Elizabeth can't replicate that feat, then there's also no doubt in her mind that Jane will let her live in her house as a dependent as long as she likes, and never let it be made shameful or awful to be that impoverished spinster aunt. It will be okay never to be married at all, because she has her sister, whom she trusts absolutely to succeed and to protect her.

And if something eventually happens to Jane's family and they can't keep her anymore, she can throw herself upon the mercy of the Gardeners, who have money and like her very much, and are likewise good people. She has a support network--not a perfect or impregnable one, but it exists. It gives her realistic options.

Spinsterhood was a very dangerous choice; there are reasons you would go to considerable lengths not to risk it.

But Elizabeth has Jane, and her pride, and an understanding of what marrying someone who will make you miserable costs.

That's part of the thesis of the book, I would say! Recurring Austen thought. How important it is not to marry someone who will make you, specifically, unhappy.

She would rather be a dependent of people she likes and trusts than of someone she doesn't, even if the latter is formally considered more secure; she would rather live in a happy, reasonable household as an extra than be the mistress of her own home, but that home is full of Mr. Collins and her mother.

This is a calculation she's making consciously! She's not counting on a better marriage coming along. She just feels the most likely bad outcome from refusing Mr. Collins is still much better than the certain outcome of accepting him. Which is being stuck with Mr. Collins forever.

Elizabeth is also being pragmatic. Austen also endorses her choice, for the person she is and the concerns she has. She's just picking different trade-offs than Charlotte.

Elizabeth's flaw is not in her own priorities; she doesn't make a reckless choice and get lucky. But in being unable to accept that Charlotte's are different, and it doesn't mean there's anything wrong with Charlotte.

Because realistically, when your marriage is your whole family and career forever, and you only get to pick the ones that offer themselves to you, when you are legally bound to the status of dependent, you're always going to be making some trade-offs.

😂 Even the unrealistically ideal dream scenario of wealthy handsome clever ethical Mr. Darcy still asks you to undergo personal growth, accommodate someone else's communication style, and eat a little crow.

[pseudopigeons]

started watching the silly little pirate show

[hinamie]

alongside someone like you