#chat blanc analysis

[gale-gentlepenguin]

Gale’s Analysis: How Chat Blanc Destroyed everything good about Miraculous

So I was watching the older season of ML, trying to get my hype back before Season 6 aired or got leaked.

And naturally I had to rewatch Chat Blanc. It is agreed by the fandom as one of the best and it’s my 4th favorite episode of all time.

Or at least… it was.

What if I told you that Chat Blanc was actually the reason why the plot of ML couldn’t stay coherent and is the reason why the season 5 finale fell off the way it did?

Before you spam hate, (which trust me, I GET IT)

I have divided it up into several categories that goes in depth on every problem with in the series

For Adrien’s Character destruction

Oblivious Bunnyx’s Time powers broke everything

Outrageous permanent break in the Ladynoir Dynamic

Lame inevitable Retcon that couldn’t salvage it

Sorry Miraculous end of cohesion

Now I don’t want to ruin anyone’s love of this episode, but if you want to read more I’m putting it under spoiler.

APRIL FOOLS

Chat Blanc is GOATED.

[heidi891]

There’s no need to talk about Chat Blanc

I’ve seen opinions that Ladybug has to tell Chat Noir about Chat Blanc, but I don’t think it’s necessary. If Ladybug tells him, it won’t change anything. He already knows this. He has already recognised that he’s got a lot of pain and anger inside and seen where it could lead. He knows he almost Cataclysmed somebody twice (Jubilation and Derision) when he was under the influence of strong emotions. He has already dealt with it by giving up the ring when he knew he was unable to control his power at that point—at the cost of his own freedom. That was a mature and responsible decision.

Perhaps they should have a brief conversation about Adrien’s nightmare, not for Adrien’s sake, but for Ladybug’s. She’s traumatised by seeing Chat Blanc’s timeline, so she may feel better if she knows that Chat Noir is aware of such a possibility.

[uptoolateart]

A little more on the Cat Blanc parallels in the Paris Special:

So, Adrien gets hit by Betterfly's magic and transforms into Cat Blanc but with green eyes - just like his wedding suit in the Gift vision in Jubilation. Seeing as that episode comes immediately after the Paris Special, in terms of the timeline...maybe this was where Adrien got the idea for his suit in that vision. That moment under Betterfly's spell might have been the most at peace he'd ever felt.

It's more than just the white suit, though. In the Paris Special, he also gets wings, reminiscent of the angel costume he was forced to wear in that ad in Season 4. This, of course, includes feathers - the sentibeing hints are everywhere. However, in the ad, the wings were fake and falling to pieces and he was being launched dangerously off the Eiffel Tower. In the Paris Special, the wings are part of him. He's being recognised for his true nature and honoured for it, and it allows him to literally soar. It's like Betterfly said, 'Dig deep to find all that inner power and just fly.' Rather than being a monster, he's transcendent. I mean, look at all that light, too - and that utter look of serenity on his face and in his pose:

They really hyped up the feather link, too, by showing the pigeons in slow motion right when Cat was taken over by Betterfly's magic. And bear in mind that allergic reactions are the body's effort to ward off something it perceives as a threat. I always think Adrien's feather allergy is a symbol of his lack of self-acceptance, i.e. his body rejects the thing that holds him in the world (a feather). However, in this scene, despite how much the pigeons were emphasised, Cat didn't sneeze. He experienced a single moment of total acceptance, under that spell.

Most importantly, Betterfly referred to this power as a 'gift' (which made me think again of Gift in Jubilation) and asked if he accepted it. This version of his father gave him a choice. Cat is always taking the hits, but this time he wasn't used as a tool or weapon. He was set free. Betterfly helped his spirit soar - literally.

If he had any idea this was his father...I think it would tear at his heart to know that in some other universe, such a possibility existed, and yet in his own universe....

[adrinoir]

I had a bunch of people make some really good points on my last post about Adrien being very defensive and overprotective of Marinette. So, I kinda wanna deep dive into them.

Firstly, he was never taught how to properly cope with any serious emotions, especially anger. We’ve seen that, unfortunately, Adrien mirrors his father in smashing and breaking things whenever he’s angry or frustrated. This is the only way these two know how to get their anger out.

From what we understand, Gabriel has abused Adrien for a good portion of - if not, all of - his life. He neglects him, leaving with Adrien with no family member to open up to (unless we count Nathalie - she’s the real MVP here). He manipulates him, leading Adrien to feel like there are times where Gabriel actually cares a lot about him. He exploits Adrien through modeling, which has made it hard for Adrien to find himself as a person.

Because of all this abuse, Adrien represses a lot of his real emotions to be this “perfect” son. He just wants his father to love him and he’s gone to lengths where he’ll do just about anything for Gabriel to simply earn his love. Although, thank god Adrien is learning not to do this so much anymore and is starting to break out of his shell.

However, Adrien breaking out of his shell is not being executed very healthily. A lot of times, Adrien’s emotions - particularly anger, most times - are released because other people’s actions have made them boil to the surface to a point where Adrien can’t contain them. This is why it’s scary to think of when he’s going to be brought to his full breaking point.

A few people brought up Chat Blanc as an example in my last post. When Gabriel revealed he was Hawk Moth, Adrien was tipped over the edge, enough to where he destroyed the entire world. That is horrifying and we now know what Adrien is capable of. The only reason I hadn’t mentioned it is because I’ve been wondering if there is something else - something not nearly as bad as his own father being Hawk Moth and manipulating him to picking him or the love of his life - that would send him over the edge.

My theory is that someone doing something horrendous to Marinette is what could completely break him and possibly cause him to beat up or even cataclysm someone. I don’t want to believe Adrien has the heart to do that, but we’ve caught glimpses of him this season attempting to cataclysm people and balling up his fist at his own classmate. And sure, Adrien might feel bad after trying or actually damaging someone, but he’s still accountable and he did it because he physically couldn’t control himself.

And THAT is what’s scary, that Adrien’s emotions are bubbling up so much that something small might just cause him to break. It feels like something wouldn’t necessarily have to be as extreme as Gabriel revealing himself as Hawk Moth to make Adrien break, considering we’re already seeing big signs of Adrien’s repressed anger.

Adrien showing bits of anger might not be new, but we should be concerned because it’s only getting worse.

[wackus-bonkus-maximus]

Same anon who just asked about why you placed Adrien as a 7 instead of a 2, only to look deeper in the reblogs of your ML enneagram post and see you already answered it haha!

In friendly defense of 2!Adrien, I’d argue that his reactions to being stressed coming off as more of a 7 rather than a 2 is actually a perfect reflection of the effects of his abuse; it’s fear that drives his non-confrontation tendencies rather his own nature. I think Risk highlighted that a bit in revealing how Adrien does desire confrontation, even if he doesn’t act on it.

(I have always found it interesting to consider the role that trauma/neurodivergency plays in shaping a character’s personality, since it’s one of the flaws I feel most personality assessments can’t really account for.)

I also think Chat’s arguments with LB were more like to be confrontational than avoidant (thinking of the times he’s called her out and his romantic pursuit being the primary indicators), up until she became the Guardian. So then with S4, I’d consider it to be a gradual relationship shift that leads to Chat no longer feeling safe and secure enough in his position to confront her the way he once did, which is why he only tries a bit in Kuro Neko before running, and then doesn’t try at all in Strikeback.

I hope this doesn’t come off as too preachy or anything, just wanted to share my 2¢! Cause either way you slice it, your Adrien has always been brilliantly written and incredibly in-character to me, so you’ve clearly got a rock solid understanding of his character. ❤️

hello november anon and sorry for the delay! thank you so much for the ask and also for going back and looking through my prev posts. you know my teacher heart loves it when you do the readings! 😌 also you're definitely not the only one who believes adrien is a 2 rather than a 7! and while i know there are good arguments for both sides, i'll explain in depth my position on adrien's personality.

part 1 of the ask:

so here are the reasons i think adrien IS an enneagram type 7

adrien's motivation seems like that of a 7 to me: he wants to experience everything and be satisfied in every way he can. if he had a disney princess "i want" song, it would be "i want to go to school, i want to make friends, i want adventure in the great wide somewhere., i want to have fun."

the literal first shot of him in the show (if we use origins as a starting point) is adrien running away. nathalie asks him to please reconsider, he knows what his father wants, and adrien says, "but this is what i want to do." according to the enneagram institute, "sevens do not see themselves as the center of a community or family, but as members of a free-floating band of fellow adventurers whose own enjoyment is enhanced by being with others." going to school and having a new experience with new people is what's going to enhance adrien's enjoyment of life - not being the center of his family unit or the apple of his father's eye.

a 2's motivation would be to be as loved as possible and to make themselves neeed by those they most care about. while adrien definitely shows a desire to be loved and needed, especially by ladybug, i think his primary desire is for experience, and it's this from which all his actions- not just characteristics - are based. take for example his reaction to getting his miraculous vs marinette's (also in origins):

adrien is excited and intrigued and ready to go, as a 7 would be when offered a new experience - and a new way to satisfy their desire to try everything. marinette, as a 1, is quite the opposite: she is being put in a situation where she must do something right or fail, and therefore is stressed tf out. while marinette's motivation to be good/perfect fuels her anxious reaction, adrien's motivation to experience everything and be satisfied fuels his thrilled and slightly reckless reaction. that's why he charges out into battle without listening to all the instructions; his motivation was to escape the restraints of his life and try something new.

in growth, enneagram 7's take on the positive traits of 5's. in stress, they take on the negative traits of 1's. i have seen adrien exhibit these behaviors throughout the show on many occasions!

according to the enneagram institute, "Sevens have fear about their inner world. There are feelings of pain, loss, deprivation, and general anxiety that Sevens would like to stay clear of as much as possible. To cope with these feelings, Sevens keep their minds occupied with exciting possibilities and options— as long as they have something stimulating to anticipate, Sevens feel that they can distract themselves from their fears." therefore, while one can argue that adrien's wealth of knowledge and fun facts is a result of everything gabriel has forced him to learn (mandarin, piano, fencing, medieval horse colors), we can assume he at least was interested in it - and that seeking new knowledge like a 5 kept him from lingering in his sadness.

"i'll help you learn mandarin marinette" "i'll show you how to fence marinette" "most people think henry iv's white horse was white my lady" "do you need subtitles my lady i speak several languages"

now as to how adrien moves to the low parts of type 1 during the show: i think the main examples of this are the instances he adopts rigid, critical, and judgemental characteristics, which is potentially unpleasant for anyone who has to be around him.

first up, adrien's akumatized forms: chat blanc, ephemeral, celesticat

i bring up the akumas because, though adrien isn't in his right mind (by hawkmoth's akumas), they are examples of adrien being in extreme stress.

as chat blanc, adrien wants to either right the world or destroy it for being wrong - the critical supreme judgement an unhealthy 1 is capable of. he lashes out when contradicted, and is quite ruthless even to marinette, who he loves, in the name of executing judgement.

as ephemeral, adrien seeks to control time. (however, this is probably the weakest example because adrien was being amok-controlled in this instance and was acting on shadow moth's will, not his own.)

i include celesticat because while this is an example of a "good" akumatization, adrien was still under so much stress that an akumatization was able to take place. yet even while being in "good" stress, adrien still shows characteristics of 1: perfectionism, righteousness, taking control of the situation. he literally turns into a pure white angelic being, an embodiment of perfection. it's what he believes he has to do in order to salvage the situation. it's one of the more healthier moves from 7 to 1 i have seen depicted in media and is entirely plausible concept under the enneagram's theory! this just goes to show the depth and richness of his character.

next, we will discuss adrien's various alter egos:

cat walker

i've said it before and i'll say it again; cat walker is another move from 7 -> 1.

as chat noir, adrien is at the height of his 7-ness. he enjoys the freedom that his miraculous powers and secret identity gives him, and uses it as a means of escape from the regular constraints of his life and obligations. then in kuro neko when ladybug slights him, she denies him the fulfilment and satisfaction in reaching his full potential as chat noir (e.g., being of equal importance on the team as her) that he should be allowed. of course he becomes hurt and angry! she's stepping on his core desire in life.

according to enneagram coach dr. tom lahue (my favorite enneagram guy ((also a 7)), "type 7's typically deal with anger by trying to avoid it or deflect it. that really is the anger type of a 7 - deflective. deflecting things away." that's what i believe cat walker is: a stress reaction, a deflection of his anger with ladybug. he deflects his painful emotions into something he thinks is positive; a new start.

adrien is usually so joyful and optimistic, but this was a huge blow for him. dr. tom says the best way for a 7 to handle this anger is to be "real and genuine" when coming to terms with it, what does adrien do instead? he turns to a new alter ego. he chases the experience of fulfillment, only he does so by adopting a persona who is serious and perfectionist. obviously this was neither what adrien or ladybug needed, and that is because cat walker is a stress reaction who adrien cannot sustain without continued levels of unhealthy self-denial. this is the hardest he has gone to 1 in the show and what it took to snap him out of it was a level of reflection, analysis, and objectivity (that this was an unhealthy behavior) indicative of a type 5 - and which shows his progression to growth.

2. aspik

one can argue that aspik is more proof of adrien being a 2 than a 7 actually, as his motivations for becoming aspik were to woo ladybug. however, the stress response of a type 2 is to move to the negative qualities of type 8, which is to lash out at those who they believe have taken them for granted.

according to the enneagram institute,

"Average to unhealthy Twos seek validation of their worth by obeying their superego’s demands to sacrifice themselves for others. They believe they must always put others first and be loving and unselfish if they want to get love. The problem is that “putting others first” makes Twos secretly angry and resentful, feelings they work hard to repress or deny. Nevertheless, they eventually erupt in various ways, disrupting Twos’ relationships and revealing the inauthenticity of many of the average to unhealthy Two’s claims about themselves and the depth of their “love.”

as aspik, adrien was never resentful of ladybug for taking him for granted or making him feel rejected. as aspik, his goal was never to make himself needed by her. as aspik, he maintained some extreme levels of optimism that ignored the rational conclusion that he should give up for several thousand time loops. as aspik, he was able to let go and displace his hopes in himself to someone else - and run off to his responsibility as chat noir with high spirits (though i'm sure the ladrien kiss helped)

3. griffe noire

this has got to be the most stressful stress reaction i've seen on adrien. and you might say "but wackus he looks nothing like a type 1" and i say "JUST HOLD ON

going back to dr. tom's analysis on type 7's in anger, he says, "7's typically express their anger indirectly, e.g., through sarcasm, like 5's - like 6's sometimes... but they quickly try to move on and reframe into a more positive way." griffe noire, rather than telling jokes and puns to lighten the mood, mocks and ridicules poor toxinelle who has not convinced me she doesn't have a crush on him. 1's actually do the same thing when they are unhealthy; they criticize and blame and nag others for not being up to par, and by directing his anger at his situation onto toxinelle, griffe noire is doing the same.

dr tom goes on to say, "in some cases [7's] might take impulsive actions to try to free themselves from this feeling of being trapped... engaging in frenetic escapism in behaviors or addictions or substances to try to distance themselves from those who are frustrated with them... or their own anger/pain in life." we have seen griffe noire engage in multiple frenetic behaviors while running amok (haha), all of which are clearly attempts to redirect his pain and anger/ keep it from consuming him. for example, griffe noire takes chat noir's cataclysm to the chest as though it's a game. for another, he openly threatens to destroy the entire world with his super cataclysm. and of course, he is constantly abusing his miraculous by over-exerting his powers in a way only adults should. yet all of these destructive behaviors are still adrien's way of escaping his normal life, and his everyday pain. it's almost like his self-destruction is his addiction.

and yet by the end, it took the introspection of type 5 for griffe noire to realize that his behavior was unhealthy. he observed, he listened, he showed an inquisitiveness that brought him back from the brink. and he also upgraded his outfit so if that isn't a type 7 path to growth i don't know what is!

now i know i won't have convinced everybody, so i just want to drop this section from the enneagram institute's text on misidentifying 2's and 7's:

Although both types are gregarious and enjoy being with people, their interpersonal styles are noticeably different. The Two... would like to be the heart and soul of a family or community, the best friend or confidant everyone comes to for attention, advice, and approval. Twos want to be significant to others and on intimate terms with them, although sometimes they go too far, meddling too much and being too solicitous to make sure they are needed.

adrien is not focused on being needed by anybody, not even ladybug (although due to his romantic interest in her, i can understand why people think so). being the heart and soul of the team is not what motivates him; primarily, i think he just likes having all the experiences he wouldn't otherwise get to have without being chat noir.

By contrast... Sevens do not see themselves as the center of a community or family, but as members of a free-floating band of fellow adventurers whose own enjoyment is enhanced by being with others.... Sevens may thus exhibit a certain generosity, although their motives may well have less to do with helping needier friends than with making sure that they themselves have a good time by having others around.

this isn't to say that adrien is just focused on having a "good time." i see that his enjoyment is amplified when he is surrounded by people he loves and cares for. he is motivated to have good experiences, and be fulfilled by trying everything, and becoming close to people and forming loving relationships is just a happy byproduct of that.

now there ARE several caveats to my analysis which provide potential arguments against typing adrien as a 7 - and which i can touch on briefly before i close:

adrien's abuse: i understand that trauma and anxiety can affect personality deeply. i'm not qualified to speak on this, or on how it should or shouldn't affect any personality type. i can only say that i think adrien has acted pretty consistently under stress as far as the show depicts

inconsistent characterization: i think we can all agree that ml won't be winning any awards for its consistency in characterization. which i know sounds contradictory to what i just said about how it depicts adrien under stress, but i think there IS a lot of discrepancy in this show and over the course of 9 years with different teams of writers all trying to execute one person's vision, inconsistencies are bound to happen.

thank you again for the ask, anon, and thank YOU if you have read all the way through! tell me your thoughts, if you make it down here - whether you agree/disagree or are just nodding along and letting me indulge in my enneagram brainrot! this is an entirely in-good-faith interpretation of mine, and i'd love to see other opinions if you have them!

[bklily]

I held off making this post until the full timeline of episodes was available but man. The parallels of both Felix and Adrien, cousins, sentimonsters, "made" from twin sisters, controlled by rings, acting out in very different ways and having wildly different home life situations, have been framed with the moon.

The celestial body in the sky, the one that reflects the light of the sun and doesn't shine on it's own, the one so integral to life, often linked in fantasy media to illusions and false truths. They both use the moon- one destroys it and makes the consequences destroy the planet, the other paints it red and uses it for his takeover.

I swear I'm so normal about them but GOD.

[wield-the-mighty-pen]

For all the people who say that it doesn’t make sense that Marinette easily started a relationship with Adrien in “Chat Blanc” but is having a lot of trouble now in season 5, I think they need to take into account that Marinette has had two failed attempts at relationships since then. 

I think it’s important to note that while the negative experience and trauma Marinette received from Chloe and Kim, had an impact on her future relationships, and it did have an impact earlier in the show (as we can see from her interactions with Adrien going back to season one), this was also compounded by her experience with Luka and Chat Noir.

In other words, yes her experience with Kim gave her trauma and fears for starting a relationship with Adrien, but this trauma was then reinforced not once, but twice. She was fooled and humiliated with a boy she thought she knew, but then this became a repeated pattern in her love life. 

Marinette opened herself up to Luka and watched as that relationship crumbled almost immediately. Marinette fell in love with Chat Noir and took the initiative both by trying to confess as Ladybug and kissing him as Marinette, and in both instances she was rejected. Although both of these failed attempts were due to circumstances beyond her or Luke/Chat Noir’s control, it doesn’t matter, her brain registers them as a failure, and Marinette expresses this feeling best herself in Kwami’s Choice.

The truth is that the stage that she is at with Adrien, the fact that she is even willing to try with him despite her past failures, is a marker of her personal resilience and optimist.

In short, It does make sense that there is a difference in Marinette’s relationship with Adrien between now and “Chat Blanc”, simply because she and the experiences that she has gone through have changed.

[iwasbored777]

I was gonna say it's character development that Marinette broke up with Adrien in Chat Blanc when Gabriel told her to do so but refused to do it in Pretension but the thing is that in Chat Blanc Gabriel told Marinette he won't let Adrien go to school anymore while in Pretension he told her he won't help her make her dream come true. So it's not that she is no longer afraid of Gabriel, she never was, but she didn't want to ruin Adrien's life and she was willing to say goodbye to her dreams all for him 🥲🥲🥲🥲.

Btw I know someone will be like "this is misogyny. A woman should not abandon her dreams for a guy." Well, feminism is all about choice and if Marinette chose to stay with Adrien rather than pursuing fashion career this is her choice and she's happy with that choice and that's all that matters.

Edit: Yes, I know what everyone's telling me "she didn't really give up on fashion", I know she didn't, I'm just talking about this particular opportunity that she refused because she would rather be with Adrien, but she would sacrifice their relationship only if that would benefit him. She puts him first.

[temporalbystander]

The true poor meow meow.

Okay I don't normally weigh in on this stuff but I haven't really seen it talked about and I think it needs to be.

So everyone knows how messed up it is just being Adrien normally. His life sucks. In Ephemeral Gabriel abused his power over Adrien's Amok to make him hand over his Miraculous and not to fight the Akuma.

In Captain Hardrock Gabriel bans Adrien from meeting his friends because he got a single note wrong.

In Guilt Trip Chat was on the verge of using the cataclysm on himself. That's dark.

However it's not the first time we've seen him attempt to kill himself. Everyone jokes about how Chat Blanc wiped out all of Paris, and most likely the rest of the planet, but nobody talks about why it happened. Torn between the love of his life and his father's orders to attack Chat Blanc does the one thing he hopes will end the suffering he feels. He turns his power on himself.

It's not his fault that doing so sends his power out of control how was he supposed to know that he'd be immune to ultimate destruction? Especially considering how easy it is for Ladybug to break his belt, stick and bell? That should have killed him. It's just his own bad luck that prevented it.

[burningstarfishqueen]

I found another layer to a moment I love.

In Evolution, Ladybug gives Chat Noir the Miraculous du Lapin. She never meant to stop trusting him. She thought simply knowing he wasn’t at fault for Chat Blanc would keep it from changing things between them. She was wrong. Réplique forced Ladybug to recognize she’d lost all her trust in Chat. She hadn’t let him use an amalgame since Miracle Queen, so giving him such a powerful Miraculous means a lot. But there’s a special significance to the Lapin. The Miraculous du Lapin brought her to Chat Blanc. It’s the key to the worst of her trauma. Ladybug spent season four struggling to control everything. She took responsibility for preventing Chat’s akumatization, pushing him away as it was supposedly their relationship that lead to Chat Blanc.

When she handed him the Lapin, she gave him back responsibility for his own emotions and choices. She doesn’t try to control him again. I love Lapin Noir. So, so much.

This is where Chat comes into his own as a hero.

[ijustliketoreadstuff]

Why would Marinette decide to follow a romance with Cat Noir despite the risk of Cat Blanc?

Why would Marinette decide to follow a romance with Cat Noir despite the risk of Cat Blanc? Same reasons as back in “Ephemeral”:

1. She couldn’t resist. Adrien is her weakness and hence forth so is Cat Noir now more than ever as she realized her love for him all over again.

and 2. she thought she could change things. Even though she doesn’t know about the events of “Ephemeral”, that's not stopping her from trying again.

Marinette hasn’t forgotten about Cat Blanc, but no matter how they go about being together, we know it will still lead to ruin because of one very specific reason....Gabriel is still Monarch! He will always find a way to take advantage of their relationship, one way or another, the moment he finds out about it. And he will not hesitate to bring Adrien to his side by force once he realizes he is close to victory. He did it in “Cat Blanc”, he did it in “Ephemeral”, and he will do it again in season 5, we just don’t know how. 

[gale-gentlepenguin]

So thanks to @xhanisai

I have been thinking about Chat Blanc.

And really thinking about it.

It’s actually the best episode of the show.

Like could this been expanded on more? Yes.

Could it have been a two parter? Absolutely.

But really think about how well it captures characters at their core.

How it shows their flaws, shows the true colors of each character. Showing their brightest and darkest moments.

[bittersweetresilience]

miraculous masterpost 🦚

writing

sentitwin soulmate au (Félix and Adrien are soulmates. Amélie and Emilie used to be just as close. On hiatus.) ghost félix au (Félix just wanted it to stop hurting. On hiatus.) sentitwin omori au (Adrien wakes up. Emilie is home. On hiatus.)

never been in love (Félix comes to terms with being aromantic.) metempsychosis (Félix is in a time loop.) i've drowned and dreamt this (Adrien has a problem.) no one listens to the dead (Félix and Adrien switch places.) oh, no, not again (For Félix, time travel is a dangerous thing.) band-aid (Adrien helps Félix through a panic attack.) for what we've done (During Emotion, Marinette chooses differently.) garden of dreams (Adrien takes care of Félix when he dissociates.) i want to hold the hand inside you (Félix gives Marinette his ring.) loose leaves (Marinette shares a morning with Félix and Kagami.) come alive when the light dies (Ladybug remembers Patte de Velours in the Burrow.) in certain light, i can plainly see (Félix lets Marinette kiss his hand.) handle with care (Félix takes Adrien to meet his horse.) aftertaste (Ladybug brings Adrien to a picnic date.)

better left unsaid (Snake Noir visits Félix after Réplique.) brave, truthful, and unselfish (Five times Félix lied to Adrien.) ephialtes / reverie (Félix survives the night of the Diamonds' Dance.) sleep (Runaway Chat Noir and Félix have a conversation.)

and a couple others i haven't made posts for which you can find here!

analysis

why félix makes me insane why i read félix as aromantic why félix would go by his father's last name random félix defenses in my stash timeline of félix events

félix and flairmidable as pandora's myth félix as a classical or method actor sentitwin sun and moon symbolism

sentitwin soulmate au meta / more / more

every scene where the miraculous theme song plays in minor definitely not every scene where in the rain plays

parallels between marinette, adrien, gabriel, and émilie parallels between exaltation and chat blanc parallels between gabemilie and feligami

french history and gabriel's color palette plikki at the end of the world

adrien agreste and borderline personality disorder

webweaves

félix fathom amélie graham de vanily felinette / more / more philosophy / more the whiteness of the whale hearth and thirteen paris special chat blanc twins / more feligami ladyvelours team is a four letter word

amvs

how far we've come / miraculous ladybug i could fight on a wall / ladynoir end credits / felinette emperor's new clothes / félix fathom i can't decide / félix fathom this side of paradise / ladrien savior / ladyblanc tightrope / djwifi are you bored yet? / kuro neko way down we go / félix fathom

playlists

émilie agreste kitty section

gifs

sentitwins felinette / more / more / more feligami / more félix fathom the wish

fic recs

félix sentitwins feligami ladynoir

other

miraculous frozen au miraculous infinity train au

murder at the graham de vanily dinner party birds of a feather

as time goes by podfic

thirteen poem félix poem

in the rain a capella

[uptoolateart]

I have so much I want to say about Emotion. I want to analyse Marinette/Ladybug and Felix here, because this episode showed so much character progression, especially for her. In my opinion, we had a kind of Cat Blanc 2.0.

So - when Felix makes the red moon, he makes it out of anger. The moon symbolises feelings, the unconscious illuminated, while red represents his rage. He's allowed his negative emotions to take over - he is literally seeing red.

When Ladybug first battles him in the street, she sees red, too - and her costume is conveniently red. That confrontation with Argos is her facing up to her fears - her regrets - her mistakes. She really lets him have it, and I don't think it's just about him taking away the miraculous. I think she was letting out old pain related to Cat Blanc, too - emphasised by the parallel imagery between the two episodes.

Example 1 - same pose as Cat Noir when he got akumatised:

Example 2 - Ladybug on the ground, scrambling away backwards while her attacker comes for her...just like Cat did, to get away from Hawk Moth:

Example 3 - Very similar hand gestures and posturing between Argos and Cat Blanc:

There's also the fact that a moon plays such a part in the story (because the moon is emotions)...and some things I'll touch on later.

With that in mind, this was a crucial scene for Ladybug. What we can see is:

After so long being a quivering mess, in the episode just before, she finally told Adrien she loved him, without caring (too much) how he responded

At the start of 'Emotion', she lost track of Adrien's schedule and stated that she 'doesn't control Adrien' and 'he's free to do what he wants' (which is darkly ironic after we just saw the way Gabriel controlled Adrien in 'Adoration', and sets things up perfectly for Felix to try to free him)

She gatecrashes the Diamonds Dance without caring what anyone thinks (we've seen her do this in disguise before, but never as brazen as this)

Then she lets Felix have it, in the street

After this, she will tell Gabriel where he can shove his pancakes

She's come so far. Go, Marinette!

And then....

Argos threatens to wipe out the whole population if she doesn't hand over her earrings. She's been here before. Cat Blanc parallels, remember? It's her worst nightmare come true, in a form she didn't expect - and she doesn't cave.

What I love is that her Ladybug vision shows us him - not a zoomed in part of him to use, but his whole figure, like he himself is the key to solving the puzzle. She sees that anger isn't going to win this. Fear won't win this. Felix isn't 'evil' - he's hurting. She hears it in his words and his voice. Cat Blanc was hurting, too.

When he sees that she's not going to give in to his ultimatum, Argos looks thrown - panicked, even - and gives her one last chance, letting her know what's coming. 'All of Paris will be gone...are you willing to pay that price?' He screams it and looks tortured, like he really doesn't want to go through with his threat. He thought she'd give in and he could avoid this scenario, but she calls his bluff.

'You're the only one who can answer that question,' she says - then she smiles and closes her eyes. It's such an act of trust, not even looking at him as she puts her fate in his hands - like she has faith that even if he vanishes her, he'll somehow do the right thing, in the end.

Maribug pulled an Adrichat. How many times have we seen him sacrifice himself, trusting that she would bring him back? Not just as Cat Noir but even as vulnerable human Adrien. And now, she's done the same. But she put that trust in Felix, of all people - in her 'enemy'. And she does this even believing he's vanished people she loves. It's a huge act of forgiveness.

The old Ladybug would have never had such faith that things would turn out okay. She would never have trusted in the moment like that. Cat Blanc accused her of not listening to a word he was saying. She saved him by taking advantage of his feelings for her and pretending she would kiss him. In Emotion, facing off with Felix, all of Paris gone...she listens.

What she gives him is a choice, after all those years of feeling controlled. And this was key because earlier in the episode, we saw Amelie telling Nathalie, 'There's always a choice.' Throughout the season, we've also seen Chloe and Gabriel have choices between paths. It's a crucial theme to the story, and the message is clear: whatever happened in your past, it's in your hands to decide what to do about it. You're accountable for your future.

When Felix realises he screwed up and lost Marinette, all of it becomes too much for him and he makes his choice - to snap away the red moon, against his ideology, and bring everyone else back. He's conflicted but acknowledges that his mistake was letting his anger control him. We've never seen Felix akumatised. He's already in that state, even without the magic.

When we move onto Pretension, he hasn't given up his goals, but he's decided to try a different tactic, which forces our heroes to reconsider his role in the story - who's the real villain here?

What we're seeing in both Marinette and Felix is evolution as people...and it's interesting that the first episode of the season was called Evolution, like it was setting the theme.

I was so excited to see all this because we watched Marinette grow loads in the first few seasons, while Adrien was stuck. Then she got stuck after Cat Blanc, pushing him out, which forced him to find himself without leaning on her. We saw his growth, then in season 5 he's been helping her meet him on a similar page. They're now perfectly positioned to find out their secret identities. And because we have this more mature Ladybug, I think if she faced off with Cat Blanc again, she'd know the fastest solution is to listen - and to trust that he can break the akumatisation though sheer will, knowing how much she loves him.

Please no post-Revelation spoilers in the comments :)

[trainsinanime]

Representation and Recreation

Usual disclaimers: I like the show, I liked season 5, I had a lot of fun with the finale and I think it had a lot of great elements, like Bug Noir and Kung Fu Jagged Stone. I don't intend to be salty (though whether it is salt is, of course, up to you), I'm generally watching the show and in the fandom to have fun, not to complain, and season 5 as a whole delivered on fun.

With that out of the way:

Goddammit, this fucking season 5 finale! I want to write analysis posts, but I can't make heads or tails of it. I've seen analysis posts by others, and I've reblogged some, but I think all of them are lacking, both the ones that like the finale and the ones that don't.

For example, part of me wants to make a post explaining how the finale really only makes sense if you see it as three parts, taking Representation into account, and what it tells us about Adrien, Marinette, Felix, Kagami and Sentimonsters. I would really like that to be true. But then I start thinking about this, and it turns out I don't actually have a thesis here, it's just that Representation is a way better episode that sets up a completely different finale.

Think about it. Representation's "A" plot is that Marinette learns about the history of Felix and Adrien through an avant-garde theatre show. I think this is the best visual storytelling the show has ever had, and it's the prettiest too. Here, we learn about the Sentichildren, about Gabriel's role in creating them, and how Gabriel is a threat to them. And the Sentichildren need help, from Ladybug. As the presentation ends and morning dawns, it seems like Marinette has understood all that, and resolved to help the sentis.

This has no bearing on the finale whatsoever. Marinette learns that Gabriel is evil, again, and is surprised, again. In retrospect it almost seems like she thought there was a third Adrien-Felix cousin or something. The sentibeings don't appear, it's all about the wish.

Meanwhile, Adrien's plot is all about him beating the crap out of his father, and finally telling him off. This toxic relationship is finally severed. Adrien is still under his father's control, but he's managed to see him for who he really is, and articulate that, and finally symbolically defeat him, with the help of his friend. That's really great thematically, and it's arguably the culmination of the character growth we've seen all season.

This has no bearing on the finale whatsoever. Adrien just doesn't appear in the final battle whatsoever, and when he does appear (actually, who unlocked his cell?), he's just happy and seems to have made peace with the memory of his father again.

That's weird, right? If it weren't for Adrien and Kagami being imprisoned, Representation would have no impact on the finale at all, even though it's written as if it were the big lead in to the final big fight, where all the big thematic questions are brought out in the open.

Representation clearly sets up something, I think, but not the big season and arc finale that comes after it. Does it set up season 6? Does it set up anything at all? I certainly hope so!

Several people in the fandom have said that they trust the writers to pay this off. I'll be honest, I do not. This isn't meant as an insult to the writers, I enjoy the episodes they write, but the show just has a long history of doing things that look like setup that don't pay off. Marinette doesn't have trauma from Chat Blanc, she's got it from Kim. The Ladynoir conflict in season 4 ended up not that big a deal. Su-Han never mattered, and neither did the sisterly relationship between Zoé and Chloé.

(Aside: I have read all the posts explaining why it makes sense that Adrien isn't at the final battle, and none of them were convincing to me. Yes, it's Marinette's show, and I like that. They're not equals, no matter what the subtitle pretends. But to not have him around at all? His relationship with Marinette is the crucial engine of the show, and the whole thing with Gabriel also concerns him.

I particularly disagree with arguments that say Chat Blanc and Ephemeral proved it was a good idea to keep him out. He could have totally overcome whatever Gabriel put on him if the writers had chosen to write it that way.

The whole argument is flawed. It's a fictional tactical argument to explain away a real story issue. You can do that when discussing why the crew of the USS Enterprise didn't turn the Tricorder into a Transporter again or whatever, but this is a fun explanation, not an actual argument for why the story had to go this way.)

Anyway. This finale. I have no idea what it's about. I'm not even entirely certain I know what happened. I'm not sure the writers knew, and even if they do, they're certainly not saying. That is so, so weird. I love Bug Noir, though.

[kisilinramblings]

Do you think Marinette has trauma in s4/has trauma from Chat Blanc? I've seen people say that she doesn't because she doesn't have multiple breakdowns or wake up from nightmares in multiple eps or constantly think about Chat Blanc. Or that the show needs to show it more explicitly and frequently for it to count

First, thank you for your patience, Anon!

Second, I’m no psychologist nor therapist, but as far as I know, nightmares and flashbacks are only a few of the many symptoms and manifestations of Post-Traumatic Syndrome Disorder (and according to the US Department of Veteran Affairs and common reactions after trauma, they are even regrouped has one and single item). 

Meaning that if you only focus on those because this is all that you know how PTSD is visually represented in fiction, then you are missing on other key symptoms that hint someone may have PTSD. I say “may” because you need to check a certain number of symptoms to have a diagnostic.

 Anyway, I recommend @gentil-minou 's ml psychology analysis on Marinette during S4 (although, it was written right after Kuro Neko and is missing a few episodes, but nonetheless a very good starting point).

Some will agree Marinette has indeed PTSD, but disagree that Chat Blanc is the cause. For this, I will refer to what Jonathan Decker - licensed therapist and co-creator and co-host of the YT channel Cinema Therapy - says when he summarizes PTSD and the trauma that cause it :

“PTSD occurs when you think your world is safe and then realized that it isn’t”.

Marinette as Ladybug, as a superhero, deals with danger everytime she is facing an Akumatized. But she always finds a solution at the end. She always figures out her Lucky Charm, always find a way to grab the akumatized object, break it and free the victim from Hawkmoth. Plus, her supepower allows her to restore any damage done by the Akumatized and the consecutive battle. So, it always work out and if she ever fails, she can raises again and try something else (though she may or may not need a little pep talk). And the reason why she accepts to be a superhero in the first place is in order to help her friends and loved ones (Alya in Origins).

But despite being a superhero, Marinette also realizes she herself is not immune to akumatization. She has negative emotions too therefore it is a possibility and there were close calls too. The first instance is during Zombizou. Marinette knows her negative emotions originally attracted an Akuma. During Heroes Day, she saw an illusion showing an akumatized Ladybug fighting Chat Noir. In Chameleon, she almost got akumatized but manages to avoid it. And during the episode Ladybug, she got a really close call of being akumatized as well to the point she did not resist and could have given her Miraculous to Scarlet Moth.

But the thing is she knows and accepts her own vulnerability. She is human like everyone else around her and can fall victim of her negative emotions. During S2-S3, she has a network. She has Chat Noir. Master Fu could also help then since he can distribute the Miraculous like he did during Party Crasher when she is incapacitated. There are rules like maintaining the secret identity between Chat Noir and her, so if one is ever akumatized, the other still has a chance. 

But while she knows her own vulnerability and can deal with it with rules (control) and back-up plans, there is one person she never thought would actually be akumatized. And that is Chat Noir. 

Brainwashed or incapacited by akumatized villain power? Sure, happened plenty of time. 

Arriving late for whatever reason? Harder, but it’s manageable.

But an akumatized Chat Noir? What it the world happened to him?! 

All she hears is that their love lead to this post-apocalypse. Chat Blanc was clear that they were both in love and dated each other and that their secret was discovered by Hawkmoth and he used it against them. Chat Blanc even call her by her real name revealing her the secret identity rule fell apart and was breached.

Marinette is not only confronted to a future where her partner is indeed akumatized, she also witnesses her future self died unable to save her partner and everyone else.

Usually, when Marinette fails, she can try again and something else. But here, that failure was fatal. Game Over. The shock is even greater when she never thought Chat could be able to do such a thing. Akumatized normally spares their loved one. But in this scenario, no one was spared. Everything and everyone was destroyed. 

Of course, Ladybug was greatly upset and questionned Chat Blanc about it. All he says was that it was an accident. Not only that, she even see that Chat Blanc has the potential to put an end to the world. 

That is the main difference with everything else. I bolded the elements that play into triggers to Marinette during S4. 

Truth, Lies, Gang of Secrets, Crocoduel, Mega Leech, Sentibubbler, Glaciator 2, Ephemeral, Kuro Neko, and of course Strike Back all have parts of the answer. 

Truth : Marinette is witholding her secret identity from Luka who she is dating. And it caused him to be akumatized who is out to find her secret which would get known by now Shadow Moth. Not only Marinette breaks with Luka at the end because her secret identity is an obstacle into establishing a mutual relationship with him and it will only hurt him, she also decides she cannot allow herself to date anyone.

Lies : LB’s reaction as Chat Noir tell his plan to sacrifice himself in order to drive Lies’ attention is more panicked than usual. Like, compare it to Gamer 2.0. She doubts herself about being able to save him and protect him. 

Gang of Secrets : She distances herself of not just Chat Noir, but her friends as well. The latters get akumatized because of that rejection. At the end, Marinette breaks because she cannot support all that pression all alone anymore and tells her secret to Alya. 

From that point on, Marinette relies more and more on Alya over Chat who is her partner. That is a survival mechanism. And also, subconscious. 

Crocoduel : I’m putting it here because it feels like Marinette has projected a lot of her Chat Blanc trauma into Luka after breaking-up with him (or at least, it is starting to be build that way). Thus why she is avoiding Luka altogether at this point because she doesn’t want to have the Talk™ even though she need to talk to him one day. To be fair, she always has that tendency to avoid hard discussion. But her thinking Luka would be akumatized because of her again feels that there is more to it than what happened during Truth. Marinette has a wild imagination, but even Alya is thinking that Marinette is exaggerating and fails to understand Marinette’s perspective there.

Mega Leech : There is a little scene in which Chat Noir is brainwashed by Malediktator without her knowing and grab her -- which she obviously didn’t find it funny -- but this episode is the start of Ladybug building a bigger team to assist her out as part of her solution to her problem. The writers even make a foreshadowing through Chat Noir when he says “Hey! Wait for me, guys! Group pose!”. Which later plays out for both Ephemeral and Kuro Neko.

Sentibubbler : The obvious one because of the Chat Blanc cameo during Marinette’s nightmare. I let you read @geekgirles​ ‘s excellent analysis about Marinette’s subconscious.

Glaciator 2 : I stand by this, but the gossip news about Ladybug and Chat Noir dating triggered Ladybug. Thus why she becomes so upset. And since she never told Chat Noir about the Chat Blanc timeline (that he was akumatized because they were dating in said timeline), he is not understanding what she is currently living and worst, he was putting oil in the fire with his jokes there even if his intentions were just to relax the situation. 

Ephemeral : I think this one goes without any further explaination, no? Whole episode is about the secret identity. Sass having to use his Second Chance power without a Holder to this very moment is a huge indicator that she was about to make an horrible mistake that would have disastrous consequences. And it reinforces Ladybug’s belief it is better off to not have any identity reveal in the first place. 

Kuro Neko : Similar beginning as Ephemeral. Except this time, Chat Noir is demotivated (read depressed) due to Ladybug keeping him in the dark and putting him at a distance throughout the season. And Ladybug is not noticing how much her actions and solutions to avoid her trauma are affecting him. Ladybug also doesn’t think clearly once she sees a huge Black Cat with a bell. Not only is she convinced that is an Akumatized Chat Noir, she wrongly believes the bell is the akumatized object. Her trauma is leading her to those assumptions even when evidences are pointing out elsewhere.

Strike Back : The dialog between LB and CN who are both affected by Risk. How Ladybug has taken all those risks in order to protect him (when she took that decision by herself, without consulting with Chat first). And of course, because she never told him about the Chat Blanc timeline, he cannot understand her pov. 

To me, when you pay attention (and watching the episodes in order helps too) there is a build up. Of course, this post is a quick sum up of an entire season. If you want a more profound analysis of Marinette’s actions through season 4, I invite to watch Youtuber Toon Ruins video essay on S4 Marinette.

And please note that, as season 5 is about to start, the Chat Blanc trauma is still lingering. And you cannot properly fix something unless the core gets adressed. Adrien and Marinette fixed a lot of what they thought were the problems, when they haven’t adressed the cause of said problems. So, yeah, Chat Blanc trauma arc isn’t over yet.