my biggest gripe with the manhwa rn is that they made javier more of an asshole than he is in the novel and then took away most of the scenes where we see him being kind and soft with others.
javier can be an ass, he is a brat and he's especially annoying when he's with lloyd, but above anything else he is kind and loyal and selfless and good. i cannot emphasize enough how good javier is. he's the kind of person who cannot see someone in trouble or danger and do nothing about it. he's the kind of person who would sacrifice his life for total strangers and no hope of any reward. he's the kind of person who can't even enjoy a lavish party without feeling guilty because he'd much rather help people in need with that money.
he's so fucking good, lloyd is a little annoyed by it because he keeps getting dragged into life-threatening situations because javier just won't stop helping people they don't even know. mind you, lloyd is also endeared by this and would not want him to change but god can it be frustrating in his endeavor to keep them both alive.
there's this particular scene that i just. i'm so sad it was cut. where javier is helping around the refugee camp, going without sleeping and eating so he can focus on helping as many people as possible and then he spots a little kid that got lost on his way back. so he decides to help him.
and he's so gentle with this kid.
Javier walked over to the kid and called him. The flustered boy looked up. Javier strove to put on a warm smile on his face.
"Are you lost?"
“...”
The boy nodded, his eyes all wet. Javier carefully stroked the boy's head.
"I think I can help you with that. Why don't you let me help find your tent?" suggested Javier.
“...”
The boy nodded again.
"But why didn't you eat the food? It's going to get cold. Are you not hungry?"
"I am… hungry," the boy finally said.
But what he said next caught Javier by surprise.
"But I won't eat it," said the boy.
"Why not?"
"My mother is hungrier."
"Is that so?"
"Yes."
“...”
Javier wondered why this kid came out to take the food when he had a mother. There must be a reason, he thought to himself. He held out his hand.
"I will hold the tray for you."
"..."
"I won't spill it. I promise."
"Okay..."
Javier took the tray and wrapped the boy’s hand with his own.
like. god. javier is not a naturally warm person. he's very reserved and stoic and sometimes outright cold, but he still tries so hard with this kid. because he knows what it's like to be him. he knows what it's like to be a child and be scared and hungry and without a home. and he remembers how much it meant for a kind adult to reach out a hand to him and help. and he wants to be that to others too.
everything he does, he does because he genuinely believes it's the right thing to do and therefore his obligation. and even when it doesn't come naturally to him, like being warm and gentle to a child, he still tries his best to do so.
and like that wasn't enough, when they finally find the kid's mom, javier finds out she's blind. recently blinded actually. that she used all her strength to get her child to safety and now she has to depend on him to take care of them because she can't do it anymore. her blouse is smudged with porridge.
so javier kneels down and explains who he is, why he's there and that he wants to help. he lifts up a spoonful of food and slowly and carefully starts to feed her himself. she's a complete stranger and javier doesn't hesitate one second to do this for her.
this is who javier is!! this is who he is at his core!! he's kind and he's selfless and he's above all else good!!
if your audience can't imagine javier comforting a child, then you failed your audience. you missed the point of his character.
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Natori is desirable, has always been desirable, had "the looks and the grades," makes a living off of being beautiful and charming and good at provoking feeling in other people and is at the same time totally uninterested in pursuing any of that interest and seeing if it could develop into something deeper. he rejects the girls at school even more preemptively than he rejects matoba, who suggests he might be useful. he's deeply, profoundly lonely throughout all of this and tbh I think being wanted actually makes it worse in some ways, because the people closest to him who should love him best think he's a curse and that makes casual interest and affection feel cheap, unearned, and ultimately disposable. naturally his two careers are:
attractive man plays pretend
loner weirdo does rituals on outskirts of society
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Listen, I know I'm the weird one for thinking about it in such a methodical way, but I think that if you're going to criticize someone, you should at least be aware of why, specifically, you're doing it. Are you trying to help that person see something in another light? Are you trying to inform others about a prevalent issue or mindset? Are you really upset with them, or is there a larger issue at play? How will criticizing this person change them, others, and/or yourself?
Like, I understand that's a kind of a robotic way of thinking, but taking a moment to think before I interact with anyone, especially strangers, has saved my bacon more than once. And, like, if you're just doing it to be mean, why are you even doing it? You obviously can, but why not use that time being happy
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I've seen people talk about how Venom continued playing Big Boss even after the Truth because he had nowhere else to go, or because he's just so loyal to Snake he didn't even consider leaving, but really, I think it was because staying in the position of power let him make a change he wanted to see in the world, outside of what BB wanted of him.
The actual Big Boss never cared about global nuclear disarmament, but mg2 clearly tells us that it did happen, and even with bits of Phantom Pain missing, the cut content makes it pretty obvious that V was the one behind it. It's easy to assume Venom spent many years being a puppet that followed orders it didn't have any interest in, but I like thinking that he got to do something that he truly cared about in the end.
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