#especially the giving daisy agency point!

[wulfhalls]

other anon is right djats show>>>>>>>>> the book. like riley and sam. that's it. period. cause the entire book is just billy lying and downplaying his relationship with daisy so you spend 90% of it thinking he's full of shit and having to read inbetween the lines of what really went down with him and daisy since most of their relationship is allegedly them barely speaking or interacting except on stage. camila also deified to an annoyingly unrealistic degree so thank god we have the show to be like "nah this is what actually happened. daisybilly kissing. daisybilly falling in love. daisybilly sneaking out for lunch dates. daisybilly crossword puzzle love confessions. daisybilly backstage hookups" as far am i'm concerned the show is what really happened and the book was just the story the band wanted to tell 😂

I feel like one of the big issues with book stans / Camila Stans is they read the book and thought that Billy choosing Camila meant that he loved her more when that was never the case. Billy chose stability because of his past. So when you see that on the show it looks like Camila got the raw end of the deal when that’s always what Camila represented they just finally understand that him picking Camila doesn’t mean he loves her more. I mean they spelt it out in the book.“Passion is...it's fire. And fire is great, man. But we're made of water. Water is how we keep living. Water is what we need to survive. My family was my water. I picked water.” I do think Billy convinced himself over time that he did choose to love Camila more but the fact remains that Camila was a choice. That’s what you get from him in the books and in the last episode with Julia but Daisy was never a choice. Daisy was someone he couldn’t help but be drawn to and feel something so deeply for that he risk ruining his hard fought stability for “How could I be around Daisy Jones and not be mesmerized by her? Not fall in love with her. I couldn't. I just couldn't.”

its absolutely wild how book purists are sooo mad about the daisy and camilla hotel scene being taken out of the book/reworked into a different type of conversation, but when I finally decided to go look it up for myself it didn't give me woman supporting woman feminist vibes like people claim. like its not woman destroying woman either it just feels neutral. cami really tells daisy "he will never leave me" and daisy only gets clean because camila is the one to tell her that she should. IDK MAN i think its more powerful in the show where its daisy being self aware enough to tell cami "he will always choose you!" and for daisy to be the one to realize she needs to get clean because this life is really bad for her. not because, 'camila dunne thinks I'm worth saving' LIKE HELLO?? the book seems like it makes cami out to be this perfect angel woman. WHERE'S HER FEMININE RAGE!! HER MAN IS DEEP IN LOVE WITH SOME OTHER WOMAN AND CANT EVEN ADMIT!! i think she deserved to be mad as hell instead of whatever saintlike behavior she exhibits in the book. sorry I just needed someone to listen to my rant about the scene that so many people keep calling Emotional and Powerful when really cami deserved to be mad as hell and daisy deserved to be an active participant in her own life.

It's kinda crazy to me that Camila is the one in the book that basically tells Daisy to leave and quit the band to go to rehab. They don't even interact that much prior to this, and I always hated that part in the book. On 1 hand we know daisy is leaving a toxic situation, but we don't get the feeling that she'll be OK. If anything we feel that she's alone, and because( and this is how it felt to me ) that the band chose Cami over her. Cami is described like this virgin mary can do no wrong character, and her alienating daisy from the band just felt nasty( especially considering the band never had Camis back ). I love that in the show they gave Daisy that power, along with the fact that both Teddy and Simone are still clearly there for her and supportive of her choice( also showing Warren there for her too later on ) Like I don't understand why people wanted them to be friends so bad 😫 it's weird for the wife and the mistress to be friends, especially given how Daisily were in the show...

The ending didn’t work in the books either imo. In the books Camila tells Daisy I know he loves you but he’s never going to leave me. Like girllll you know your man is in love with another woman snd you just okay with that? She was entirely too accepting at least in the show she’s wasn’t okay with and was rightfully hurt & angry but then again Camila as a character was kinda bleh. Every time Billy talked about her I just rolled my eyes because he was overcompensating so hard.

I think the funniest antis are the ones that are clearly Camila Stans that claim DaisyBilly were “ruined” by the show bc they made out. That them having more physicality in their relationship some how changed the nuance. Like you can have a twin flame relationship and also be very attracted to each other. One does not take away from the other. And it’s frankly unbelievable that anyone believes that Daisy & Billy had a connection like they had and NEVER gave in not for one single second. Like please

When I tell you the show ending is so much better. And it’s not even the ending exactly it’s how they get to that ending that’s soooo much better. In the books they handed all of Billy & Daisy’s agency to Camila. In the show it felt like they all had agency and it was sooo much better.

all of u having the most book thoughts compilation

[alwaysahiccupandastrid]

House of the Dragon Finale/Series thoughts

As someone who finished Fire and Blood a few days ago… oh boy do I have some thoughts.

Obviously spoilers below the cut for all of S1 and for F&B, don’t read if you don’t want spoilers, etc etc.

Oh fucking BOY what a goddamn mess

Let’s get the rant/complaining out of the way first:

Just to be clear, the cast are all amazing, my complaints are NOT directed at them, I love them, they did the best with what they had. The writers, however: 🖕🏻🖕🏻🖕🏻

The writers so wanted to make Team Green as likeable as possible, it’s actually pathetic, and they basically whitewashed every single one of their actions instead of allowing them to do morally bad things - instead, everything was a misunderstanding or an accident.

Like hear me out, the reason Team Green is even interesting to read or watch is BECAUSE of the bad things they do. That’s literally ten times more interesting than “oopsie daisy! Accidentally started a war” and no one actively choosing to do anything

All of the key Team Green players have basically no agency, it’s actually sad: this is especially obvious in regards to Alicent and Aemond

In F&B, Alicent intentionally ignored Viserys’ wishes of putting Rhaenyra on the throne and put her r*pist son on there instead. In HOTD, it’s “Alicent misunderstood the ramblings of a clearly delirious and dying man and is not in the wrong”. Also in F&B, she is much older than Rhaenyra, who is only 10 when Alicent and Viserys marry - which makes it kind of funny because Alicent is literally beefing with a 10 year old. But in HOTD, they aged Rhaenyra up and Alicent down to be the same age, and invented some “they were clearly lesbians” BS for no reason - and no, it’s not me being “homophobic”, the fact is that Rhaenyra and Alicent’s friendship/relationship has constantly reminded me of a toxic friendship that I was in for more than half of my life, so no, I don’t ship that thank you very much

By the way, accusing Daemyra fans of being homophobic because we don’t ship Rhaenicent is so fucking dumb, most of us are gay/lesbian/bisexual/not straight?!? And most of us are mad that they erased Laena/Rhaenyra in favour of some toxic nonsense with Alicent

I don’t even like Alicent but the whole Larys-foot-scene was so unnecessary. What was the point in showing her as a victim even after her husband’s death? What was the point in showing yet another example of abuse? I’m so tired of shows using abuse and violence against women for shock value or plot drama, it’s so gross and it’s never treated seriously or with the sensitivity it deserves. This whole show has basically made the female characters defenceless weak victims and made the men key players

And no, I’m not saying victims of abuse/assault are weak or whatever. I’m saying that the show has gone out of its way to make every single female character a victim instead of showing any of them actively making any decisions/taking any action, and instead of giving them actual character development. And I’m also saying that this show hasn’t dealt with the topic well, it’s been very mishandled.

Basically… Let let women be evil! Let women be fucking unhinged!

Then there’s Aemond: his character defining moment is him becoming a kin-slayer and murdering his teenage nephew in that Storms End moment. He celebrated the fact he did it. But in HOTD, it’s painted as “oops he didn’t mean to! He just couldn’t control his dragon!”… which is so lame for him as a character, like what makes him and Team Green interesting is that they do awful things. It being reduced to accidents is just so lame.

The fact that people out there are actively stanning Aegon II even after seeing the scene of the maid sobbing after being r*ped AND knowing he’s done it before… y’all are sick. Literally sick. And I also blame Sara Hess for basically saying “yeah he’s a r*pist but we can still redeem him”, like no??? Shut the fuck up and stop trying to say we should like a r*pist?!?!

It’s so painfully obvious that the writers for each episode all disagreed with each other and never tried to work together because characterisation is all over the fucking place

In one episode you’ve got writers like “daemon is evil and I don’t know why people like him”, and then another it’s “he loves his family and he’s got light sides too”… it’s a MESS

Can I just say that Rhaenyra has also been diminished and denied any agency as a character either; we saw some of that fire and fierceness in her when she was younger, but then when older she kind of just became really complacent and lost that fire. And that’s not me blaming Emma, they did great with shitty scripts they had, but it’s a problem.

Like you seriously think that book!Rhaenyra would have just accepted being choked?!? She’d have fucking murdered the man who did that

WHICH BRINGS US TO DAEMON

Matt Smith clearly pissed someone off at HBO because how is it that every single scene that shows Daemon in a remotely positive light is deleted?!? Eg. Hugging his daughters, comforting Rhaenyra after Visenya, etc. Matt Smith HAS to have somehow rubbed someone the wrong way because that poor man has been done so dirty

Matt Smith is quite frankly the ONLY one who fucking understands Daemon at this point, judging by his interviews, even GRRM is getting the side eye from me at this point given how he signed off on this travesty of an adaptation, especially given that he said Daemon is his favourite Targaryen

Daemon would NEVER hurt Rhaenyra is the thing (not unless it was in a kinky way), and anyone who respects the source material knows that. Are they the healthiest couple? No, not in the slightest, but this is the world of ASOIAF, pretty much no couple is 100% healthy in this universe, and they were actually one of the healthier examples quite frankly (as opposed to Aegon/Helaena, Sansa with Joffrey and Ramsey, etc)

“Why are you so surprised he choked Rhaenyra? He killed his first wife” — that’s just it, in F&B he was nowhere NEAR the fucking Vale when Rhea fell. Like the book made it painfully clear that he was not there when she fell and died several days after… but the show had to make him evil somehow, because apparently feminism is now “all men should be evil”.

By the way, you think a little OOC choking is gonna stop me shipping them and writing fanfics for them? Bitch, you wish, I’ve shipped pairings with worse problems than a little tension-charged choking

One thing I will say is that at least the show made their relationship less of a probable “groomer” thing. Although, in the context of the world of ASOIAF, a teenage girl would be considered of age and married off - by modern standards, no, that’s wrong, but that world isn’t running by modern standards so 🤷🏻 but yeah, I felt like the show made it less like Daemon was grooming her at the start and more like they had a chemistry simmering under the surface that they were both playing around with? Idk

Also, no, don’t give a fuck that they’re uncle and niece: incest is quite literally a Targ tradition, literally all of them marry their brothers/sisters/uncles/aunts/cousins etc. In real life? Absolutely agree, in real life that’s gross and I don’t condone that, but this is a FANTASY show. Also, if you’re watching a show about a family that is literally built on incestuous relationships, then don’t complain when there’s incest 🤡

This show has given the show-only fans brain rot because they literally saw Rhaenyra go “I’m not a child, I want you” to Daemon and STILL think he forced her into their marriage, like no sis, girlie was gagging for him and I don’t blame her!

I literally don’t care what the show runners and writers say, they’ve proven they don’t know what the ever-loving fuck they’re talking about: I am going to continue firmly believing that the reason Daemon left suddenly at the brothel is because he didn’t want to fuck her in a dirty brothel because he knew she deserved better than that - that, and he realised that she was still very young and inexperienced, and he didn’t want her to jump into it spur of the moment only to regret it later. If Rhaenicent shippers can believe Alicent and Rhaenyra are in love (lmfao) and that Alicent cut her arm open out of love (🤡) I’m allowed to believe this if I want to!

I will admit that leaving her there with her pants down was a shitty thing to do, but hey, it’s Daemon, he’s morally grey and that’s why we like him! I’m going to theorise that he had to get out of there as soon as possible because he knew if he stayed, he’d do something he’d regret (like taking her against a wall)

The fact that Baela and Rhaena had barely any lines, especially in the last episode, is fucking disgusting. Like truly disgusting. The show had time to show us that disgusting feet scene as well as Aegon wanking out a window but NOT to give those two girls any lines??? Especially since they’re black???

Also, Baela in F&B is described as having cropped her hair as short as a boy's, so it would not whip about her face when she was riding, and as being a tomboy - not just as a child but as an adult too. We saw a little of that when she was younger but they seem to have abandoned that since aging the kids up?!?

By the way, Laena was done SO dirty by the writers; changing her death from childbirth to basically offing herself was… definitely a choice. On the one hand, yes, showing her dying in childbirth five episodes after Aemma dying in childbirth may be repetitive, but guess what? That’s life for women in this universe! And it’s like she decided that it’s more honorable to kill herself than die in childbirth, like the way she talks about not wanting to die giving birth is very… off. It’s like the writers are saying it’s not feminist to die giving birth or some shit???

I do genuinely feel like some of the time skips (especially the one after Rhaenyra and Laenor’s wedding) were a mistake. I personally didn’t feel connected to most of the characters who died because we didn’t get to actually spend that much time with them or get to know them. Like Harwin??? Laena??? A lot of what happened between time skips was simply told and not shown, which is lazy storytelling quite frankly.

The way that Visenya’s death was handled was so bad, oh my god?!? They didn’t even mention her name, the fact Rhaenyra in E1 had named the baby in Aemma’s stomach Visenya if it was a girl, also the fact that Dark Sister (Daemon’s sword) was wielded by Visenya in the days of Aegon the Conquerer… none of that is there. It just comes and goes like it’s nothing.

Also the fact that Daemon’s grief over the simultaneous deaths of his brother and his daughter are just… brushed over completely. It just really pisses me off because men’s feelings are often brushed aside when it comes to miscarriages/stillbirths, and also for any kind of loss quite frankly; we got two quick shots of him on the beach and that’s it. And we know Matt Smith shot more because there’s photos of him on the beach shooting it, doing all kinds of shit like on his knees in the water etc. It hits especially hard considering a) he already lost Laena and their third baby under similar circumstances, b) he’s also grieving his brother, and c) according to leaks, he was supposed to comfort Rhaenyra after she gave birth to Visenya. They were supposed to have a moment of grief together… and HBO/this show shat all over that.

I’ll write a fic to explore it, I swear-

And now for the bridge scene in E10 because that BULLSHIT deserves its own fucking section

You’re telling me that Rhaenyra is more emotional over a book page she ripped out of a boring old history book twenty fucking years ago than she is about losing her only daughter?!? Than she is about her father’s death?! You can fuck off with that bullshit right now

To me, that’s just more proof of Alicent’s manipulation - it’s a crap attempt but it’s still toxic and manipulative as fuck. “Look, this page from 20 years ago that you ripped out of a boring history book while we were under the tree - we’re friends, remember! Now let my rapist son sit on the throne and we can be friends again 💚”

If I were Rhaenyra, I’d send that page right the fuck back with the words “an eye for an eye, a son for a son” written across it in bold

Like I don’t know how Rhaenicent shippers think that’s a win, that’s literally Riverdale levels of cringey and crap writing, I would be so embarrassed if I shipped that

It does make me laugh that people are ripping that scene apart like literally most of us know how fucking dumb it is - and people are so busy making fun of it that they’re not even that mad about Daemon, so that’s a win in my book

I also need to say something about Rhaenicent shippers in general: yes, maybe there are some Daemyra shippers out there who have been dicks - there are literally shitty people in every fandom. I’m sorry if any Daemyra shippers out there have harassed or bullied Rhaenicent shippers because that’s not okay, most of us don’t condone that. But it’s not like Rhaenicent victims are all innocent because on the Daemyra discord, for nearly two months straight, we’ve had numerous trolls (including Rhaenicent shippers) come into our chats and harass us, saying we’re disgusting and even a few privately messaging me to tell me to end my life over a fucking tv show pairing. Like if you don’t like it, I understand, I truly do - but harassing us over it isn’t okay. Just stick to your corner and we’ll stick to ours.

Anyway, there are some wins out of this whole trash heap:

DAEMYRA 🖤 I’m gonna write the fix it fanfics for you, don’t you worry, it’s my week off this week and I got you

I’m just gonna come out and say it, that brothel scene was hot and you know I’m right, stop booing me

That beach sex scene was beautiful, especially since there’s a copy floating around that’s removed the music and increased the breathing/kissing noises 👀

We got to see Matt Smith’s bare ass, I’m not complaining even if that scene was awkward and uncomfortable as fuck

The acting was phenomenal throughout, I may hate certain characters and also the writers, but I can’t fault how brilliant the actors are

The soundtrack was really top tier the entire show, Ramin Djawadi NEVER misses, every piece of soundtrack absolutely fucking slaps, THANK GOD IT GOT RELEASED TODAY

The Valyrian wedding ceremony was perfect, I just wish we’d seen more of it and heard the words!

DAEMON CROWNING RHAENYRA AND KNEELING TO HER FUCK YEAH

When I say I will defend Caraxes with my life, I mean it, I love that huge boi with his squeaky deviated septum roar

I love the designs of the different dragons and that no two look the same, especially Vhagar - they did not make her pretty and I respect that wholeheartedly

RIP Luke 😭🖤 knew it was coming, still hurts so bad

Kind of shipping Jace and Baela even though I know what’s coming and also that knowing these writers they’ll make him sleep with Sara Snow

And finally…

“I would rather feed my sons to the dragons than have them carry shields and cups for your drunken, usurper cunt of a king.”

Daemon Targaryen, you will always be a fucking iconic legend 👏🏻 it’s also especially fitting given that both of his sons with Rhaenyra become kings!

[napollya-inspiration]

15 for the spotify wrapped drabble game!

#15 on my 2023 Wrapped: Kill You To Try by Daisy Jones and The Six

(send me a number between 1-100 and I'll write a drabble about the corresponding song on my 2023 Spotify Wrapped)

25 46 69

“Would it kill you to try and be honest for once in your life?” Illya asks, hands trembling. The silence is deafening. How many secrets of Napoleon’s had he uncovered over the years? And they just kept piling up. At this point, Illya wonders if he’ll ever really know Napoleon. He shouldn’t want to. But it’s way too late for that now.

“Neither of us got this far by being honest, Peril,” Napoleon says with a shrug.

“Right.” He’s not sure how they got here. Just moments ago, Napoleon was stretching on the couch like a lazy cat in the afternoon sun. He’d been debating where to spend their first leave (‘What do you think, Peril? Cape Cod? Santa Fe? Oh what about a little houseboat in the Marina del Rey?’)

Then, as things tend to do, everything went to shit. Illya feels trapped in his own skin. He was so damn foolish to trust him, a liar and a thief. He’s been setting himself up for this disappointment.

“I never told them anything about you,” Napoleon says carefully.

Illya wants to grab and shake him. How is he supposed to believe a word he says? “And you think I believe that?” He barks and it’s better than pushing the American up against the wall, better than letting the anger out. Because the anger would show that he cares. And he doesn’t. It doesn’t matter.

Napoleon has the audacity to look hurt. “Yes. You should know better than thinking I would give you up.”

“I don’t know what to believe! I thought your loyalty was to UNCLE! Now you are reporting to French spy agency. Don’t know what to believe anymore!” Illya feels like crying. He’s not sure where the urge comes from.

“I’m sorry,” Napoleon says carefully. “I promise I would never do that to you.”

“Too many broken promises, Cowboy,” Illya says, voice rough from withheld tears. He steps back, turns to go.

“Stop!” Napoleon sounds frantic. “Don’t go. Please. I’ll do it. Whatever it takes. Tell me what I must do so you trust me again.”

Illya frowns, suspicious of the desperation, the emotion. “Too important pawn for you to lose?” He sneers.

“I don’t play chess, Illya. You should know that.”

“You play many games.”

“Not with you,” Napoleon says, holding his gaze. Illya should know better. Especially now. Especially after this revelation.

“If I tell you, promise me you’ll mean it?” Illya asks against every training, every experience he’s ever had. People leave. People betray him. Why would he gift forgiveness to Napoleon of all people?

“What is it? What is it I must do?” Napoleon asks, stepping closer and offering his hands, palms up.

“Tell me a truth. A truth no one else knows,” Illya says quietly. Why does he want so desperately to turn a liar into someone he’s not? Why would he blind himself to see Napoleon be honest about something for the first time in his life?

Napoleon steps closer and lifts Illya’s hand to his throat. His pulse is strong underneath his skin, a steady thrum. Illya understands at once what Napoleon is doing. It’s not a perfect method to detect a lie but a stumble in his heartbeat is harder to hide like this. Napoleon swallows and then speaks the truth. “I would die for you in a heartbeat.”

[triviareads]

ARC Review of Second Duke's the Charm by Kate Bateman

Rating: 3.75/5 Heat Level: 3.5/5 Publication Date: December 26th

Premise:

Tess Townsend, the dowager Duchess of Wansford, was widowed and left a virgin after her decrepit husband dropped dead before their wedding night. Two years later, Tess wants to learn about sex and intimacy, and finds a handsome stranger to do just that with at a house party. As it later turns out, the stranger is none other than Justin Thornton, the new Duke of Wansford.

My review:

There's a lot I enjoyed about this book— the friendship between Tess, Daisy, and Ellie was a delight to read. They are truly Tess's ride-or-dies and can be relied upon for anything from moving a dead body to giving sartorial advice on lingerie. And I loved the detective agency aspect, which made for a fun subplot.

This book is pretty sex-positive as far as historical romances go, which I did appreciate. A lot of it is about Tess's sexual exploration as a widow (all while her friends gleefully egg her on), and there's frank conversations about virginity being a social construct, contraception, and pregnancy.

Regarding the romance of it all, there isn't a lot of the conflict you'd expect between an upper-class aristocrat and a self-made magnate who is the heir to her late-husband's title, especially after their first encounter was anonymous. Justin is a very cool and rational sort, so he skips a the melodrama in the early stages of their relationship and immediately proposes a marriage of convenience (which, as one of Tess's friends points out, has as much to do with his dick as it does for "sensible" purposes, as he ostensibly claims). The drama only comes into play post-marriage as Justin starts to fall in love with Tess (which he swore he'd never do but... of course he does), all while growing increasingly paranoid about his wife's intentions towards him. Tess, on the other hand, is just vibing around truffle hunting and trying to foil blackmail plots lolol. Ultimately, Justin's big grovel (yes, there's a grovel) is about humbling himself by doing something extremely dumb and illogical after he spent the entire book trying to treat their marriage as a purely unemotional endeavor.

My one note regarding the plot is that there are lots of seemingly high-stakes situations initially set up: there's a blackmail plot, a possible attempted murder plot, plus, Tess hasn't told her husband she co-owns a detective agency (similar to the subplots in many a Grace Callaway Lady Charlotte's Society of Angels book). They were set up well, but as the book went on, I feel like they grew increasingly low-stakes and the outcomes were somewhat underwhelming.

The sex:

There are plenty of hot and inadvertently funny moments during sex scenes because Tess is trying *so hard* to seem like a sexually-experienced woman when she's very much.... not, but the greatest thing is, it mostly works. Like, starting from their first encounter at the masquerade, Tess has Justin (allegedly the smooth, unemotional type) WHEEZING after a mid handjob. And that sets the stage for their sexual relationship through the rest of the book. Some of my favorite moments include:

a) Their wedding night for the reasons mentioned above I won't spoil it but Tess's plan was hysterical), plus, I love a good "say my name" moment.

b) There is a great carriage scene, and I will say, I do appreciate the inclusion of dirty print images as a form of (inadvertently hands-on) sex education

c) For those of us who felt *cheated* by that scene in A Wallflower Christmas by Lisa Kleypas where St. Vincent insinuates he's going to use a pearl necklace on Evie, except we never saw the follow-through... this is your book.

Overall:

If you're looking for a fun, light historical romance centered around sexual exploration and plenty of girl-gang shenanigans, then I'd recommend this book!

[spikeinthepunch]

i was recently finding out about some early access bg3 stuff, some i hadnt known before which was about Daisy which i knew was the name for the dream guardian in the files but was unaware how different it was. and it mostly got me thinking even more about the topic of sex, manipulation, and consent in the game's writing. but not from a 'oh this is well written and cool they explore this' but rather its leaned on 'was it necessary? how much of this is?'

obviously, they cut this stuff out. (going forward i will only spoil the dream guardian's dreams along with Daisy's. along with mentioning breifly the cut Baahl ending and Haarlep. and so in turn TW for topics of sexual abuse and dubcon). so if they cut it out they took whatever feedback was going on then, and i know some of that had to do with story flow.

so like. Daisy was a a character who appeared in your dreams and rather than be a voice who was trying to help you with the tadpole and destroy the Brain. They basically were always intending to not be on your side, rather they were a personification of the tadpole trying to make you give in to the transformation.

video for reference. the dream guardian/emperor from the start helps, but does have a slight betrayal, and then also a scene of sexual intimacy (which you can agree to have sex with. but regardless, the sexual suggestion is there regardless). Daisy on the other hand, isnt ever exactly "good" and again, is trying to make you lose yourself. And one method of doing so is lots of physical intimacy.

In the very first dream you have them caressing your cheek, going behind your to touch you and get close... later they slide their hand over your hips, and even later then you kiss them (depending on the outcome of hurting them or not). even if you were to give more closed off options, the character will still refer to you as "darling" and some of this intimacy still carries out anyways. in general its clear the Daisy's method of manipulation is centered around that.

so first and foremost there is the issue of Why it was removed and also Why i think it likely worked poorly for people playing, and also why i think there is an extent where this kind of writing isn't good, not even regarding thse sexual/intimate nature...

Much like with the Haarlep scene, people who didnt like it didnt like it because they felt they did not have control over a thing they were uncomfortable with. they didnt like that suddenly, their tav was having sex and had no way to escape. *yes* it is totally the point of that scene, thats what a succubus would do. and that why i think its a good scene. its a good narrative use of taking away player agency even though it is a very touchy subject... BUT reality is players dont want that to happen. even for ppl like me who liked it... a good majority of players dont want that to happen many times in an RPG. a example of a HUGE violation of players and taking away agency is the cut Baahl ending especially, but its topic were also likely a reason for its cut.

so, the dream guardian vs Daisy.. Daisy forces themself on the player hard. and while you can say things to technically deny them, fact is they still touch you inappropriately without your consent and the narrator has that issue of describing it in a way that assumes your character is enjoying it until you have an option to say something else. (they have this issue with gale's magic scene, for example imo)

on the other hand, the guardian/emperor does try to manipulate you to some extent, but not sexually in order to gain your trust. BUT when he proposes sex, it is because he has revealed himself already, and the proposition is done as a way to find your trust + most importantly it is used as a distraction from investigating further if you do just believe him. regardless of the overall writing of the emperor i do think this is a much better move of including sex with him, than being pushed into a situation with Daisy where the character is physical despite your feelings. (and story wise it was way too obvious they werent trust worthy but ya know)

alongside this topic of player agency though there is "is this necessary?" and also "is it okay that sex and physical intimacy in a negative context or forced way has come up often in this game? especially when the player lacks control?"

because actually, i think its worth thinking about. NOT if the plot or writing is good. but the writers themselves... they really pushed BG3 as being a game very open about "romances" and not shying away from sex. which is great! and i think its great they did so much of this. but the game forces sexual feelings and situations a LOT and what especially i think is the worst offender is the narrator. the narrator has been written to basically imply your character's enjoyment in multiple situations where intimacy is being offered, before you actually accept it. Again, think Gale's magic moment or Minthara's early moments in act 1.

and from a writer's position... does it need to be that way? why does it occur so often? why do so many characters thirst so openly for the player when the player often didnt push for such things? it could get to the point where the game's further relationships past friendships do just feel like they lead to sex. because i cannot think of a time where it isnt a subject to come up for romances. if youre not romancing someone in the start youll still get to hear astarion question about whether or not youll have sex at the party. and when you bundle up all this writing of sex in to the various sexual manipulation i cant help but start to feel like it is... a lot. there is a lot of sex going on here. and there are stories sometimes where having so much of that makes it feel like too much, and is not necessary.

i am a huge sex person. dont take it like im not. i love sex. i love seeing all the sex scenes. i love haarlep and i love the dream guardian and i even like the concept of the Daisy! i think its an interesting idea that just did not fit. but when is it too much? when does it start to feel inappropriate and uncomfortable? because it is almost to that extent for me when i look at the overall game. as someone who Loves Sex the way the game approached me on these things threw me off a few times, where i didnt expect it or was surprised by the narrator's implications of me.

so, thats where my brain goes with Daisy. it would not have only been inappropriate, but additionally is really hits the point of "this is way too much". to force a character onto the player who not only intends to manipulate them, but do so in the form of intimacy? its bad gameplay wise but when i see that and all the other sexual writing it starts to sour my impression of this game's writing in general. a lot of sex in video games is done for the enjoyment of the player. have good looking sex and watch it. but if you start to do that too much with it being the Bad ones-- full on proper "sex scenes" that are very much softcore porn-- i get the feeling that thats all it is about. its just about watching the sex even if its an awful scenario. but then additionally you have the Baahl scene which comes off like a shock kind of thing. a "oh god that is so fucked up and my character has been violated in a horrendous way i could not control or see coming". so now, we also had a situation where the "fucked up"-ness alongside the various uncomfortable sex scenes comes together in feeling like the writers do have more of an intent to just shock without taking all this bad stuff carefully, with additional intents being to just show sex.

we have good writing here about sex, for sure. but not all writers are working in tandem. not all writers communicate the all intentions of every scene. we got some really good writing for sex, thats completely true. but it doesnt mean there could still be issues opened up by the way it all comes together in the end like this. im not even writing this to straight up say "the writers are romanticizing manipulation and dubcon/noncon sex! there is too much sex and it means the writers only did it for the porn!"

its a rather complicated issue. trying to understand the balance and intent behind a game that does show sex as a enjoyable visual, a vessel for complex writing, but also something not always positive. still that can be shifted by the feelings that there is a point of 'too much', that the writing may control your feelings when you dont want to, and that players' feelings of being violated isnt always a good thing especially when done too much or in a way that doesnt seem necessary.

[starcitysirens]

So I kind of accidentally helped trigger a bit of a freak out in the Buckynat fandom for calling out Jackson Lanzing on twitter yesterday. Whoops.

I'm talking about this exchange >> click me

Anyway, this is giving me an excuse to word vomit about my feelings about Man on the Wall so whatever.

I said yesterday that every time Lanzing mentions how important the Kot/Rudy Winter Soldier run is to him (especially re: the upcoming Cap run), I start sweating, and I think that's a common response since most Bucky fans I know hate that run. I wanted to ask him directly what it is about that comic that speaks to him but I didn't wanna come off as confrontational, so I didn't.

So, I'm going to attempt to parse it out.

So far he's said:

"A huge part of our story is about taking Steve out of the superhero game and into something resembling normal life."

And about Bucky he said: "And on the Bucky side, Higgins/Reis looms large as groundwork for the character as he walks into our story. And I've been pretty open about how the Kot/Rudy run completely changed up my view of Bucky as a character, so consider that one required reading."

So the common thread I see here is 'a life beyond duty'. Second Chances was Bucky's attempt at having a somewhat normal life. Moreover, the story revolved about Bucky facilitating other people walking away from bad situations in order to start over as civilians. We also know from Devil's Reign: Winter Soldier that he just gave up this happy ending in order to learn the truth about his past.

So this brings me to Man on the Wall.

On paper, Man on the Wall has a fascinating concept. Consider where Bucky is, emotionally, when he takes the job. He's been chasing personal redemption for a while, and it hasn't quite worked out. His run as Cap ended poorly. He tried to find redemption by reclaiming the Winter Soldier, and that also ended badly; he not only lost Natasha, but he went to such dark places in that run, that while attempting to redeem "the Winter Soldier", he wound up corrupting himself. And then Fury's offer comes along and he's quick to snatch it. And there's nothing redemptive about it, it's resignation. It's him saying, this is what I've done all my life, doing the dirty work is all I’m good for, (he did it for Steve back in the day, after all), what I am is a soldier, and a killer. And yeah, there is some aspect of nobility here, as in doing the wrong thing for the right reasons, but ultimately it's an escalation. And a regression of sorts.

That’s where he is when he arrives at Mer-Z Bow and meets Ventolin. 

Overall, I found that run to be difficult to follow and connect to, for multiple reasons, but the point it was trying to make is summarized in that last panel:

Just because this is what you’ve always done, it doesn’t mean it’s who you have to be for the rest of your life, you can open yourself up to new avenues. And that is beautiful. And I would’ve loved to see Bucky wrestle with that idea while doing Fury’s dirty work.

The problem is, that's not what happens in this book. Mostly because Bucky spends the bulk of this run with very little agency in the plot, because all he does is just stand there and look pretty. Like, literally, I'm not even exaggerating. Daisy Johnson sees more action. Cause, when it comes down to it, the main character of this book is not our Bucky, it's the Old Man Bucky from that future/different universe. This comic is like that Chris Pratt and J. Law movie Passengers, in that it's supposed to be a space romance, but it's really just a psychological thriller. There's this great Youtube video where someone explores how the story changes if we edit the movie so that it starts when J.Law's character wakes up and that we, the audience, find out Chris Pratt woke her up on purpose at the same time she does and we get to feel the real horror of what he did.

That’s how I feel about this comic.

Sure, I know I have my biases because I’m a buckynat fan, but I’m also pretty ship neutral and can be up for anything as long as you sell it to me. The thing is, I never bought Bucky and Ventolin’s love story because Kot never actually showed it to me. I don’t know why they’re in love (I mean, we barely even see them interact, to be honest). Actually, if I’m remembering this correctly, neither does Bucky, he just feels it because he had a dream. A dream that we are not privy to. A dream that may or may not have been psychically sent to him via Old Man Bucky. And this is where things get icky for me, because it brings up issues of consent. 

This comic was a bit confusing but I think it’s fair to interpret it this way. A version of Bucky somewhere in the universe wound up in Mer-Z Bow, fell in love and found peace. And now that Bucky is out there making sure every Bucky gets his happy ending. He directly interferes with our Bucky’s life. And I think Bucky has had enough of people messing about with his agency. But no one ever brings this up in the text. Bucky has feelings he can’t explain and he just goes ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

So Jackson Lanzing says he’s a Ventolin stan and my first reaction is lol, why. But I think it might be more about the idea of what Ventolin represented: the possibility of a life beyond the duty of being a soldier.

And I’m okay with that conceit being explored by a better writer than Ales Kot. I think Kot came up with a great idea, he just didn’t understand Bucky well enough to do anything really meaningful with it.

Devil’s Reign is setting up major retcons for Bucky. We don’t know the extent of it yet. But we at least know Bucky will be wrestling with issues of choice and consent again, cause it looks like he was groomed to be a killer his whole life. And that’s gotta be brutal, especially if it turns out his parents were in on it, thus destroying the memory of his family, too. 

And to circle this back to buckynat, I get the feeling Lanzing (and maybe Kelly) might think that relationship belongs to a specific moment in Bucky’s life, years that are associated with great darkness. And that in a way, as long as they are together, then they’ll never really leave the Red Room (psychologically speaking). If the idea is having Bucky move on from the life that was chosen for him, then I can see them not touching it. That doesn’t mean I agree with that, I’m just speculating at to possible reasonings.

Anyway, I rambled for long enough.

[sunflowerinnit]

I saw @clevercorvidae 's post about how Tubbo asks c!aimsey why they care so much about the daisy and i imidiately ran to my computer to type out my The Disc's post because i'm an insane inniter

and Of Course Tubbo dosen't get why, no one understands the disc's like I do.

Here's the thing about the disks

The thing is that to Tommy and Dream they mean So Much, they symbolise so much.

to the point where they’re practically synonyms with Tommy’s autonomy and free will.

In fact, every time Tommy or Dream says The Discs (especially during arcs like Exile) you could just exchange out the word disk for Tommy’s Freedom, it would not only fit prefectly it'd actually make the conflict twice as clear.

The thing Is However, no one else is aware of this. When everyone else says or hears the word The Discs they mean "those plastic records that play music" but when Tommy says The Discs what he means is "my freedom" and when Dream says The Discs he means "Tommy/Control over Tommy" and NO ONE ELSE KNOWS.

I cannot stress enough that no one but Dream and Tommy are aware of this, and I’m not even sure they themselves are entierly aware of it. So when Tommy talks about The Discs no one else understand what he’s really trying to say

and that's created a lot of problems in his relationships, they don't see a kid fighting over his right to autonomy, they see to people arguing over two objects with objectively little worth. That’s what really gets to me is that the others really just Don’t Get It. They ask themselves "why are Dream and Tommy fighting over discs why are they starting wars over these things?" When that’s not what’s really happening. Tommy and Dream are fighting over which of them gets to be in control over Tommy’s life. And no one else understands that.

Even worse, Tommy seemingly isn’t entierly aware of it himself so he also dosen’t connect that other people don’t know what they mean so like in situations like the community house fallout right before Doomsday where Tubbo almost gives the discs to Dream, that feels like a slap in the face to Tommy because to him Tubbo is handing the key to his agency over his life to his abuser, but Tubbo dosen’t understand that’s what he’s really doing in that moment.

And I feel like Dream also plays into this a lot, like he knows what the Discs really mean, but he also knows no one else gets that. So when he says "I want the discs", and he means "I want control of Tommy" he knows no one else hears that so they’re more likely to unknowingly help hand Tommy over to his abuser because they don’t understand that that’s what they’re really doing

and people like Tubbo and Wilbur do understand that they're important to Tommy and so they do appreciate the sacrifice he made for L'manburgs freedom, and like in the disc finale Tubbo understands that in Exile the discs started representing even more victory over Dream, getting to go home, and end to the game of cat and mouse finally etc but they still don't have the full picture.

When Dream asks Tommy to hand over the discs he’s asking for the key to Tommy’s cage the leash to his collar the chain to his shakles, when Tommy gives up the discs that’s what he’s handing Dream BUT NO ONE ELSE SEES THAT THEY JUST SEE A PAIR OF DISCS WHEN TUBBO HANDED DREAM THE DISC DURING THE COMMUNITY HOUSE CONFRONTATION THAT’S WHAT HE WAS REALLY DOING CAN YOU IMAGINE HOW PAINFUL IT MUST BE TO SEE YOUR BEST FRIEND HAND YOUR FREEDOM OVER TO YOUR ABUSER BUT TUBBO DIDN’T KNOW

is this what Cassandra felt like?

[in-fair-verona-we-set-our-scene]

I feel like the lack of more benign Avatars/manifestations of the Entities results in somewhat conflicting messages regarding Daisy, Trevor, and Julia, as well as Section 31 and the commentary on police violence and vigilantism. I’m not saying the message as it relates to the real world is wrong nor is it bad as an allegory for real life problems, I think it’s really well done most of the time especially with how it often the violence crosses from tragic necessity to cruelty with no regard for collateral (in comparison to more restrained non-Hunt vigilantes such as Dekker) as well being leveraged as a tool for more structurally powerful monsters such as Elias, but the fictional context of supernatural monsters that the majority of people are unequipped to deal with on top of the always Chaotic Evil nature of pretty much every supernatural person and thing except for Jon, Agnes and Oliver (all of whom essentially “give in” at some point or another, hurting or even killing random people regardless of how they feel about it) muddies the waters a bit when basically you have a sect of people that are pretty much guaranteed to always be supernatural serial killers that cannot be stopped short of death by other inherently evil supernatural methods or a bath in concrete.

Like this is a world where Kill It With Fire is the right choice 9/10 when confronted with the supernatural, and that one time it’s not is because fire doesn’t work. The listener is always pretty comfortable in their assumption that any supernatural thing or Avatar has committed tons of murder unless told otherwise and probably won’t stop. If something or someone is supernatural enough, it is morally okay or at least reasonably practical to just kill it. So shake up that assumption! Make the inherent evil of any individual Avatar more ambiguous so it can’t be assumed. Maybe they’re a serial assaulter instead of killer because their powers are non-lethal. Maybe they found a substitute like written statements. Maybe they can survive on animal fear. Maybe ambient fear is a certain location is enough to sustain them. Maybe they can survive on their own fear of themselves or their situation. Every Avatar is different after all, with different methods and degrees of agency, so make the default kill’em on sight attitude unreasonable because there’s a very real chance the obviously supernatural person could actually not be eating people. Make it so assuming guilt before innocence is the wrong choice. Otherwise I find it’s just not as effective.

[hyper-cryptic]

Nick and Hancock headcanons?

YES...YEEEEES. I am so eager to talk about these two! Especially Nick since I have been talking all day about Hancock, not that I mind of course. 😳

Starting with Nick!

He really likes animals. I have no actual explanation for this, he just looks like the guy that would take in a lot of cats and then have his house infested by stray cats. Ellie loves the cats, but they GOT TO GO.

He literally forgets he has his hat on sometimes.

I feel like he would like going on strolls around DC, for no reason, just to stretch the legs or to take a smoke. It’s calming for him to go around, seeing the city working and people interact with each other. He prefers going out at night, he likes the lights. :)!

He is actually very disorganized with stuff, forgets where he leaves his files, puts files in the wrong places, sometimes doesn't even file a report...I mean, look at his agency, it's a disaster and I adore it. If it wasn't for Ellie, who at least tries to organize when Nick is out, or busy, he would be so lost.

Okay but, he likes rain right? Imagine him just going out to his roof when it's raining and just be there. Maybe he likes it because of how it feels, the bits of pressure on his skin as the raindrops fall, and maybe the calming sound.

He totally meets up with Hancock every once in a while. Just to catch up with stuff. How is the town going? How are the cases going? Mostly casual things.

He is absolutely terrified of Piper, but in the best way. He admires her determination and how brave she is, but god, he wished she slowed down sometimes.

He likes coffee a little bit too much...Tastes good!

I honestly wonder how his vision is. A part of me wants it to be something similar to the V.A.T.S or even the power armor screen, has little colors and a lot of analysis shit. Or normal, full color vision with the analysis shit on, so he can be happier. :)

He really sweet food. He doesn’t eat much, but he likes to get some treats once in a while.

He likes children. This doesn’t mean he would like to be a father though, he thinks he wouldn’t be able to give the kid the attention he needs, and bla bla, you know him. But he sure enjoys spending time with Shaun and chatting with him, or just doing whatever activity. He is just interested in the dumb things the children do, thinks it’s funny. Imagine the feeling you have when you see a cat playing with whatever? Yeah, same feeling.

Likes to play chess...and he is real good at it. Thinks it’s a really fun pastime and enjoys watching your face as he totally beats your ass at chess, that is if you're bad at it. If not, he enjoys a challenge...if you win he’d be really impressed and give you praise, if you lose he keeps his smug face and suggests to try again if you want to.

Continuing that, he is really competitive. He's good sportsmanship, don’t get me wrong but he likes to be able to keep his ego as high as he can.

Would totally accompany Daisy to the library now that is safer, they both have a love for books. He is totally into dumb, noir novellas...You literally can’t tell me I’m wrong.

Now for my self-indulgent part of the headcanons...He has ADD! Yeah, if little habits like smoking would pass down to Nick, why not this? After all, it was a brain scan, it is totally neurological and ADD being a neurological disorder, it would make sense that it passes down to him! This would also explain how unorganized he is, and I got to say it is very interesting how a synth, a literal bot made for work has traits like “forgetting his appointments very often”, plus his impulsivity and fixation with Eddie. Besides, it makes me happy that I can find a character to relate to at that level.

He really enjoys the Silver Shroud plays. Not a super fan, but definitely enjoys the show! It’s something he would be into. (I actually don’t know if this is canon I’ve never heard him say anything about Silver Shroud, but he has some voice lines about it, PLEASE TELL ME, I WANT TO HEAR ‘EM SO BADLY.) Plus, Kent refers to him as “Synth shaped Silver Shroud”, he takes the compliment!

He is a good hugger. You know it, I know it, everyone knows it. He might be a good hugger, but he isn’t too sure about them anymore ‘cuz of how his body is built.

His synthetic skin is actually quite soft! Not really soft, but more than expected.

How to break him: literally place your hand on his cheek plus some eye contact and watch him melt onto it. He is pretty much touch starved at this point so any touch will make his heart skip a beat, but do that and he will be at your mercy.

He sends letters to DiMA (obviously once he meets him, accepts him as a brother and isn’t killed) every once in a while to catch up with him! Chase is the messenger. :)!

I just realized that I’ve written lots about Nick already, so! Now Hancock. :D

If he isn’t doing drugs, he’s chewing gum, well...not at that rate, but when he can get his hands on some gum he’ll have some! He really likes it! Mint is his faV. as a funny extra, he didn’t know that swallowing it is...bad, until Sosu or Nick tells him, LMAO.

He would have a pet snake if he could have one. Like really imagine it, he would love reptiles, and know all kinds of stuff about them. He probably really likes Deathclaws.

He knows how to play the guitar. No, I do not have an explanation for this, no I do not accept no for an answer.

He likes very sour or citrus foods, his taste buds are a bit fucked up thanks to radiation, so he likes the fact that the sour taste can make his buds go off the rails. And that’s why he could eat a lemon with a straight face and even enjoy it.

He also really likes coffee, not as much as Valentine but he really likes the strong taste of it! He would drink black coffee and nothing else.

Okay, okay! Last one about food! He is a texture over taste kind of guy, that’s a big reason why he doesn’t like Mirelurk, it’s slimy and weird, no matter how cooked or uncooked it is, he absolutely hates ‘lurk meat. His only exception is boba, he loves boba.

He probably goes around the house only in boxers...because. Doesn’t he give the vibes? Like he would be either shirtless or without pants on relax days or in the mornings.

Autumn is his favorite season. He just likes the orange view of it all, even tho there isn’t much of a change, he does like the chilly breezes that are very common around this season, not cold enough to be annoying but enough to be enjoyable!

He is probably warmer than a normal human because of radiation, so his hands and overall body are warm all the time! (another reason why he likes autumn and cold weather). But yeah! Cuddling and stuff like that are so much more enjoyable with him. :)

His favorite flower might be the carrot flowers there’s around in the ‘whealth. They remind him of the sun *looks at Sole*.

And! That’s all I have for now!! :D

[thelovelyghostwriter]

Some of my favourite female characters in fiction

This list is not exhaustive and while I do have other characters that I find charming and that I love, I have noted these characters because in my opinion, they have struggled and/or there is a certain analysis to their personalities. 

Please take note that some of the characters are not morally good or have done questionable actions. This is not to discuss or say they are role models, but rather to write up what they represented, their role in the story or simply their personalities. I’m not here to justify the character’s actions.

Remember that a well-written characters do not have to be morally good. 

Also, a lot of them are from memory and the analysis aren’t well-structured. 

Let’s dive in:

1. Daisy Buchanan from The Great Gatsby

Daisy, in my opinion, is incredibly misunderstood and unjustifiably hated among the readers. Her betrayal to Gatsby is indeed vile and it did upset me, I definitely think that she is materialistic, shallow and hurtful.  

“I hope she’ll be a fool—that’s the best thing a girl can be in this world, a beautiful little fool.”

Daisy did shit on Gatsby [trying to avoid spoilers here].  

However, I do like to note that I think part of her materialism and shallowness is because of how women were in the 1920s. They did not have any freedom or agency. To Tom, she seems to be a trophy wife for him to keep; and to Gatsby, he only liked the idea of her, he wasn’t in love with her. To everyone around her, she was an item, a beautiful doll to be possessed, rather than a person. I think that’s why she turned out like that. 

She's materialistic because men around her sees her as an object. Nonetheless, Daisy is still “careless” and hurtful; and I think this stemmed from the life she had led that were a compilation of choices that were made for her. Her betrayal towards Gatsby is what makes her character rather disappointing to most readers. The whiteness in her dress as described in her first appearance? It’s not innocence, but rather a void and jadedness. 

2. Neon Nostrade from Hunter x Hunter

Yet, another girl in our list that loves to be hated by the fandom. Though honestly, most of her haters are Chrollo and Kurapika stans who gets jealous because Chrollo got to hang out with her and Kurapika works under her. Also her repulsive hobby - although this is actually what makes me like her. 

I have addressed this in my other posts before, but let me just copy and paste them (and modify a bit):  Her upbringing and exploitation by her dad makes her materialistic and emotionally detached. This materialism and detachment is manifested in the form of her hobby as a dead body parts collector. But other than that, she’s really a normal girl, just sheltered and spoilt. The money she spends are even from her talent Lovely Ghostwriter, her father will be nothing without her. So I don’t see an issue with her spending them on shopping etc. 

In fact, I would argue that she bathes in materialism to fill the emptiness that she has. Her father is more concerned with her ability and power, she has no friends and is guarded 24/7 by employees.

All the times she threw tantrums and the way she talks… it’s a different speech pattern altogether when she interacts with Chrollo - which may suggest that the whole spoilt attitude is exaggerated to gain attention from a father who is indulgent in terms of material gifts, but not in terms of affection and time for her.

When Eliza cried, she was willing to forgo bidding the auction physically. Yes she did not care about the bodyguards because she is more focused on the living and the present (Eliza) than the dead.

The reason why she didn’t seem fazed when Dalzollene and the others died is because a) they were her bodyguards, it’s their job to put their life on the line to protect her, b) she mentioned to Chrollo that her fortune-telling is for the living, she likes to live in the present and doesn’t believe in the afterlife.

Neon is more focused on who is alive, rather than the dead (which also represented by her hobby of dead body parts collecting). She focuses on the present, unlike her clients who likes to know their future or people who dwell in the past. Kurapika on the other hand, is the complete opposite. He dwells on the past and likes to focus on his dead clan rather than the present times with his friends (which is completely understandable).

Another significance is that her fortune-telling ability is very useful and helpful, she says that she wanted to make people happy with it; but however, it is commercialized and used as a means of power (knowledge of the future = power) by her father and pretty much everyone around her. Just like how she objectifies dead people by collecting their parts, the people around her sees her as a tool due to her fortune-telling abilities, rather than see her as a person. Even Kurapika chose to get employed under her, for his own agenda (he is bound to meet dead body parts collectors at some point). 

She treats people like objects because people see her as one.

Of course, collecting dead body parts is a pretty fucked hobby; but what she represents and her role as a minor character is what makes her an outstanding minor female character in the show. 

Yes. She has traits that are not your typical role model, but neither are other hxh characters. She’s not independent, naive, can’t fight, in need of saving, uncaring at times and spoilt. She is far from so-called “strong female character” that we often look up to. She is a character with bad traits which is a result of being a victim. But that’s what makes me love her as a character in hxh. It reminds us that there are girls out there who has lack of freedom and control over their own fate; and their only way out is through materialism and detaching themselves from people. 

In fact, she might be even relateable to some people more than other female characters because there is vulnerability in her character.

3. Hua Mulan (Mostly the Chinese 2009 film, though the most well-known is the Disney 1998 animated film)

There has been various adaptations for this character, with the Disney Animated version being the most prominent.

However, my favourite one is definitely the Chinese film Hua Mulan: Rise of A Warrior (2009). It portrays the horrors of war and the suffering it brings, nationalism, camaraderie among the army - all while giving us the admirable Mulan climbing up to the ranks of being a war general.

I highly recommend this adaptation. I know the Disney Live Action 2020 version did not receive good reception, and we honestly did not need one because this 2009 Chinese film does the job well (I like their soundtrack though). It's not really well-known because it's a Chinese film (which is hella ironic because Hua Mulan is a Chinese character? Lmao).

"Today we will stain the battlefield with our blood. Behind us is our homeland. If we have to bleed out our last drop of blood, if we have to become bleached bones in this desert, we must defend it to the death! We must let the Rourans know we Wei warriors will never surrender and will never compromise! Soldiers may rebel against me, generals may leave me for dead, but I, Hua Mulan, will never betray my country!"

Generally, I either have an issue with strong female characters because they are just shallow (meaning they are only physically strong, often viewing rudeness, misandry and independence as strength). I like female characters who are so much more to that.

Mulan, in this film, not only showed her badassery in fighting the war for more than a decade, but we also see how much she struggled. Everytime her comrades die, her heart gets broken. Yet she has to learn how to pick herself up and become the leader that they need. She dislikes war, she dislikes the bloodshed; yet she fights for her country.

To me, a strong female character is not just a feminist icon or someone who can fight. In fact, a female character doesn't need to be someone capable of fighting, what makes her strong is to be able to overcome turbulence with determination.

I think this is something that is lacking in recent "strong female characters" - showing us their strength through perseverance.

As for the Disney's counterpart (talking about the 1998 film here), it is less morbid but we also see her trying her best to make her family proud and protect her country. Like the song Reflection and Loyal, Brave and True, she struggles with finding her purpose and her role in her family.

"The greatest gift of honour, is having you for a daughter."

4. Blanche Dubois from A Streetcar Named Desire

It's been years since I had analysed Blanche, but among all the 6 books that I had to study for English Literature, A Streetcar Named Desire has been my absolute favourite.

I think what struck me in this book is not just the style, but Blanche's vulnerability. Her actions are definitely not morally good: she misrepresents things, she lies, she even had sex with an underage student. She's paranoid, mentally unstable and prissy. Which was why, her polar opposite character, Stanley, is so annoyed with her.

After her husband's suicide, we see Blanche relying on the company of men to fill the void of her loneliness and misery. She is also concerned about her beauty fading with age - I find that highly reliable. It sounds incredibly "vain", but beauty does play a part.

Based on Evolutionary and Mating Theories among humans, appearance in women are especially important (also for men but not as much as women). Of course, there are other factors and traits that people find attractive, but Blanche's concern is valid here. She needs to find a husband to escape from her financial troubles; and her age, beauty and chastity plays a huge factor in her search for getting a man in the setting she was in (which was Mitch in this case). Ironically, these are the very traits that she has "lost" and so desperately tries to hide it.

Her ending is truly a devastating and upsetting one. [Will not talk about it due to spoilers]

"I've always depended on the kindness of strangers."

5. Haibara Ai/Shiho Miyano from Detective Conan

Perhaps one of the girls that is a wasted potential. In a series where the characters are mostly flat, she's arguably the most multi-faceted (but somehow I had heard that she no longer has the same complexity as she used to have - it's been a while since I followed this series).

But I remember absolutely loving this character.

Her background story is really unique in the show and one that is embedded within the Black Organisation plotline (why her character was dropped... Forever frustrating for me).

From the moment she was first introduced, we see Conan taking an immediate distrust towards her. A guy who is a detective who had been catching criminals - yet one ex-syndicate member stands before him. The one that actually helped to develop the APTX4869 that changed his life.

Yet, we see that it wasn't entirely within her control. Both her parents were syndicate members and when her sister tries to get both of them to leave, her sister dies.

Ai starts off as seemingly cold, pessimistic and avoidant. But as her arc goes on, the iceberg around her melts. We see her quirky sarcastic replies, her taste for fashion and she genuinely desires to be happy. Her relationship with Conan developed into a beautiful one - to the point where Conan trusts her with anything and they would risk their lives for one another.

Yet, we also empathies with her impending jealousy and heartache. The boy she has fallen for already has someone else. What's more, the girl is genuinely kind and is a splitting image of her sister. After Ran saved her from Vermouth, she quickly warms up to Ran as well.

She's also the key to developing the antidote for Shinichi to be back with Ran - an almost painful metaphor for her to give him away (he never belonged to her in the first place). Yet, she doesn't really stop them from being together (even though in some cases she appears jealous or phrase ShinRan's reunion as a word of caution).

I definitely think she is the most compelling character in Detective Conan because of her character development and the struggles she faces. It's definitely upsetting that her character has been neglected.

“Don’t judge people from the outside. Like any rose has thorns, the more the person appears nice on the outside, the more you should doubt the inside.”

6. Misato Katsuragi from Neon Genesis Evangelion

Who is the best female character in Eva? Asuka or Rei? My answer will always be Misato, Risato is a close second (I wanted to analyse Risato, but I’m trying to keep it to one person per series). Misato is one of the 90s anime babes. She definitely captivated many people’s heart. 

I must say though, I have a soft spot towards female characters who has some sort of daddy issues (why I like Neon Nostrade). It’s been a while since I had watched Eva, but I’m going to try to remember why I like her. 

I think the concept of Hedgehog’s Dilemma has been echoed throughout the series, and all the characters seem to struggle with emotional attachment towards people. I actually like to phrase the Hedgehog Dilemma as “Avoidant-Fearful Attachment Style” - wanting connection with people, yet not being able to do so out of fear of being hurt. 

For Misato, when I initially first watched Eva, I compared her a little to Blanche Dubois in how they cope with loneliness - their sexuality. I remember being confused with her interactions with Shinji, who was half her age. At times, she serves as his guardian/mother figure; but at some moments (I think it was sometimes after Kaji’s death), she tried to seek comfort with Shinji by attempting to initiate sex (which Shinji rejects). I remember coming across a comment somewhere that Shinji and Misato’s relationship is somewhat like Humbert and Dolores (from Lolita) - can’t comment on this as I only read the first chapter of the book. 

It makes me think that she uses sex as a way to cope and the only way she can connect with people (and it’s superficial), which doesn’t work for Shinji because she needs to be her guardian (and ultimately fails to be purely his guardian once she crossed that no-no boundary). 

Another thing to note was her backstory about her dad. There seems to be a dissonance, given that she resented her dad for not spending time with her due to his work, but he ended up sacrificing her life for her. I do think it’s a bit of guilt (because resenting her dad but he saves her - these two contradicts one another). It’s clear that her issues to connect stems from her backstory regarding her father. 

It’s interesting how she compares Kaji to her father. I do think she loves Kaji, but “reminds him too much of her father” (as to put it simply). There is this... stereotype that we find someone similar to our opposite-gender parents, no matter how shitty they were towards us. I believe that it is because we tend to stick to something that is familiar to us, even if those type of people aren’t good for us (I think to break this cycle is to practise self-awareness and know what is good for us). 

Anyway, Misato is a character that I really liked (as all the characters in Eva) because they highlight Hedgehog’s Dilemma that stemmed from their parental issues. Maybe I have not watched a lot of anime, but female characters with issues with their fathers are not as explored deeply as male characters and their parental issues. A lot of times, female characters (especially in shounen) serves as a romantic interest and yes they can have really sad backstory, but not issues towards their father and how it affects their relationship with other people. So far, the only ones I had seen is Mukuro (Yu Yu Hakusho), Misato and Neon Nostrade. 

7. Disney's Cinderella

First of all, she has been a victim of abuse since she was a child. It's not easy for her to escape her predicament. Where can she go? It's not that easy.

Boy. I hate how much people remember Cinderella wrongly and attack her for being "backwards", which is actually factually wrong.

Cinderella always get flack for using the Prince to "escape" her predicament when "she can do it herself".

I say that's bullshit. I actually came across a youtube video: Cinderella Stop Blaming the Victim [please check it out for more in-depth analysis]

Despite all that, she's doesn't internalize it. She knows she doesn't deserve to be treated this way, and she does to a certain degree stand up to them (whenever the cat makes her tasks harder). She knows when to fight back and restrain herself because it might endanger her life.

After years of suffering in this domestic household, she remains kind, compassionate and hopeful. Which is not an easy feat. The problem is, these traits are often seen as feminine and synonymous with being weak. But it is actually, in fact, signs of strength. The mental fortitude she has to remain kind after all she went through is a sign of strength.

The Fairy Godmother only appeared when she was losing hope - take note that she ends up crying because her stepsisters tore her mother’s dress (which is the most disturbing scene in the film). 

Even I had remembered this wrongly - one crucial fact is that... She did not want to go the ball to nab the Prince. That was her stepsisters. Homegirl just wanted to chill. She did not even know she was dancing with the Prince!

When Lady Tremaine locked her up to prevent her from reaching the Prince, it wasn’t the Prince that saved her. She and her animal friends got her out of the room, and proceeded to prove that she was indeed the maiden that had danced with the Prince. Her marrying the Prince was only a fitting end to her because it provides her a home and an escape from an abusive household; however, it was her resilience for holding onto fate and being mentally strong, and her initiatives partially contributed to her happy end. The Prince is more like a passive character. 

I highly think that people tend to brush her traits - e.g. compassion, having fate, being kind is listed as feminine. However, it is far from being weak, which most people would deem it as. But that is definitely not true. 

“No matter how your heart is grieving, if you keep on believing, the dream that you wish can come true.”

8. Mikasa Ackerman from Attack on Titan

Mikasa is either a hit or miss among AOT fans. Some people like Mikasa because she is physically strong and her loyalty to Eren is admirable. On the other hand, some people think she’s clingy and her being physically strong makes her a Mary Sue. 

Whether or not you like Mikasa, there is a fact that she is not a Mary Sue. The definition of a Mary Sue is a female character lacking in weakness and seems perfect. 

She is physically strong, yes - I believe that Isayama wanted to distribute traits to the trio. Even Hannes has said it in S1. Armin represents intellect, Eren represents grit and Mikasa represents strength. So her being physically strong makes sense, and Isayama also provided an explanation for it (being an Ackerman). 

However, this does not mean she lacks any weakness. Arguably, her loyalty to Eren is both a liability and her strength. This “weakness” has been highlighted by her dilemma between her loyalty towards Eren and her belief that mass genocide is wrong.

[I won’t go into details about the manga parts that have not been animated as of 2021, can’t spoil it too much]. 

[agentjx7]

SO I wrote this massive post in the BCB discord explaining why I still like Paulo/Lucy, and at some urging I’ve edited it for tumblr!

Now, I could start off with a lot of talking about Paulo and Lucy’s personalities and why I think they’d mesh well together, but you’ve probably read the comic. You know the characters. I don’t think the argument “they don’t have chemistry” is even on the table. Instead, I feel like most people’s arguments about the ship are either “there are healthier/better ships for both of them” or “the Ferris Wheel scene and chapter 100 sink it.” So let’s talk about these arguments.

I am not going to be able to convince anyone who thinks that their ship is “better” than paulucy to switch sides, so let’s talk about healthier for a second. Paulo’s relationship with Daisy as it stands at the moment would doubtless get mired down by Daisy’s jealousy of Lucy. I’m not saying it couldn’t be good in the future, and both of them are developing in the directions that would make that easier, but at the moment I don’t think it’d be good. And as for Lucy? The number of healthy ships for Lucy is vanishingly small. I think it’s possible that her relationship with Paulo, if it started in the next chapter, would be healthy, but I also think they both need a little more work— and I think that they’re more likely to develop in positive ways together than apart!

Now, as for their recent arguments. I do not think Lucy is telling the truth during After You on the Ferris Wheel— at least, not the whole truth. She doesn’t feel like she can do a relationship at the moment, and she’s tired of watching Paulo (who she cares about deeply) hurt himself by waiting for her. This is compounded by the things she’s internalized from December and after: she feels like all she CAN do is hurt Paulo more, and that even if she starts dating him he’s only going to be doing it because he likes her appearance. Paulo might have proved MULTIPLE times that this isn’t the case, but she’s dealing with quite a bit right now and it’s very hard for her to see the positives in any of her relationships— Augustus excluded.

During the Ferris wheel ride she never actually can bring herself to tell Paulo outright that she doesn’t love him and that she’s incapable of loving him in the future. She does say that she’s sorry they couldn’t have been more in the past, but that’s because of her crush on Mike, a crush she’s slowly getting over. When he flat out asks her if there’s no way for her to love him she gives a non-answer and then changes the subject to the time they slept together, which she argues she only did because she thought she’d never see him again. I think this is true (and it was kind of a shitty thing to do), but Lucy isn’t giving herself enough credit OR Paulo enough agency here. Her goal during this whole conversation is to convince Paulo to move on from her, so she says a LOT of stuff that’s fairly hurtful. From her own admission, though, the reason she’s saying it all is because she thinks Paulo should move on, and that she’s not worth waiting for. That’s not her call to make. Unfortunately, as we see from their next conversation, all she really accomplished was ruining Paulo’s evening.

So now the big one, High Expectations. Paulo absolutely BLOWS UP at Lucy here, and a lot of people signaled it as the death knell for the ship. It definitely wasn’t our finest hour, but I maintain that there’s a couple little things in the scene that show that it’s still got stuff going for it. FIRST of all, Paulo flat-out says he loves Lucy. This one should’ve put the nail in the coffin of “ah Paulo doesn’t care about her because of the fair” argument, but on the NEXT page we get to the big one. Lucy says she didn’t come back for any of them, and Paulo asks the armor-piercing question: “Then why the fuck did you come back?”

This scene, this panel, is the FIRST time since Love Again that we see Lucy taken off guard by one of the members of the gang. It’s the only time her “I’m a cold hearted bitch now and I hate all of you” act really drops before she has her conversation with Sue a couple chapters later (It’s All in the Mind).

Paulo is the first person to REALLY get under her skin after she returns, and it’s pretty clear the things he says in this chapter stick with her. I could talk more about that, but for now let’s talk about Paulo and why he doesn’t mean the shit he says right here about how he’s Done With Lucy for real this time™️. First of all, Paulo is right up there with Mike and Lucy in terms of emotional outbursts— the main difference is that when he attacks people he just straight-up physically attacks them instead of tearing them down emotionally, and that it’s a coin flip whether he’s going to get angry with someone else or burst into emotional tears and start hating himself (because he’s one of the most empathetic emotional characters in the comic but I digress). He’s just seen Lucy, who’s keeping up the “I actually hate ALL of you now” act, with AUGUSTUS, who to his knowledge is the guy who tried to molest Daisy and nothing else. Robbed of the context of the situation, he feels like Lucy really hates them all so much that she’d rather hang out with the creep than them— than HIM— and that shit hurts. Why? Because he absolutely still loves her.

Paulo has also had an EXTREMELY rough day. One of his best friends just slammed his face into a lunch table. He’s still on rough terms with Abbey, even if Daisy’s party has assuaged some of these fears. He’s ALREADY ready to fall apart, and then THIS hits him like a train. It HURTS, so he lashes out and storms off.

Lucy realizes that she’s hurt him, bad, and that hurts her— but we don’t get to see that because Paulo and Mike are the focus of the chapter so we’re MOVING ON now, I’ll explain in a minute.

SO! During All in the Mind Lucy has another confrontation with her friends, leading to her blow-up with Daisy. BUT CRUCIALLY she’s on good terms with Sue again, and she starts to realize that she can’t keep hurting her old friends like this. This leads directly into her behavior in Witch Hunt, which is the next time we see the two of them interact. All she does is apologize to Paulo for potentially hurting him again with the dress— but this is a bigger moment than it might seem. In the earlier chapters after her return, Lucy would’ve pretended not to care that her actions could have hurt Paulo, but this time things are different! This is her reaching the olive branch out to him, as well as her genuine fear that she’s just hurt him again. Paulo assures her it’s no big deal, and then resumes casually flirting with her (in a friendly way!), something that she laughs with and clearly enjoys. When Daisy interrupts them they BOTH start blushing.

SINCE THAT POINT, the only chapter to feature the two of them significantly interacting is Unwanted Gift. Paulo happily takes part in the celebrations of Lucy’s birthday, which he DEFINITELY would not have done if he was still in the same mindset from High Expectations. Now, I can’t claim to know what’s going to happen after the most recent emotional missile salvo of a chapter, but I truly do believe the two of them are in a much better place than when Lucy first returned.

NOW, what evidence do I have that they really do still love each other? Admittedly, some of it is just my own gut feeling about the characters. Lucy leaving for the better part of a year didn’t put a damper on Paulo’s feelings. Being told “stop caring about me before you get hurt,” ESPECIALLY since Lucy can’t (or won’t) say “I don’t love you,” is not going to stop him.

As for Lucy? Well, there’s the inherent fact that Lucy didn’t just come out and say she didn’t like him and he had no chance. Lucy is often brutally honest, and she still chose to dodge the question when he asked. But Lucy still can’t bring herself to say she does love him, so if she’s so brutally honest, she must not, right? Well, no! One of Lucy’s major character flaws is that she can’t be fully honest with people, even when it would benefit them both. Admitting her true feelings is a specific area where that’s a problem— Lucy confessed she loves someone once before, and look how THAT went. Also on the BCB ship chart she’s still listed as having a crush on him and the chart came out in *checks notes* after Lucy came back so I’m hanging onto that for dear life

So, there you have it! My overdrawn explanation of why paulucy good, actually. Thank you so much for reading if you got this far! God I really love this comic waaay too much.

[callmearcturus]

random stuff i like about tma

that time when daisy is pointing a gun at jon and jon just loses all coherence. there’s a gun in his face and he trips incessantly over his words and can’t keep it together and freaks out. as someone who’s been held at gunpoint, i really appreciate that accuracy. like, for real, Our Hero is threatened with a gun and he’s just a mess.

our show starts with two main characters as cops and by the end they aren’t cops anymore. [austin walker voice] are you a cop? well don’t be. stop being a cop.

martin blackwood at the start of the show is fairly timid but is prone to outbursts dragging people, and i loved him back then, but his arc to the main plot driver of the show and the character with the most agency was /chef’s kiss

basira’s tactic of dealing with being a hostage is reading a bunch of esoteric and occult books and i think that’s very sexy of her

in late S3 and into S4 the sheer amount of anger Melanie was displaying did legitimately come across as strange, like especially her final pre-Unknowing statement to Jon was just weirdly aggressive to the wrong people.............................. and it turns out that was literally the point, it should have wigged me out, and she was possessed by an evil ghost bullet fueling her rage. wow? wow! okay!

in MAG151 “Big Picture” Martin tells a murderous avatar of the Vast to “sit down” and said Avatar’s reaction is to flirt even harder with Martin, I just admire Simon a lot in that moment.

Melanie does sync claps when doing statements and its the most adorable thing in the show, she does sync claps!!!!

“just because something hurts doesn’t mean its helpful” is fucking all time and so is georgie barker

in S3 i thought there was no path to me liking daisy as a character, just none, but then daisy and jon in the coffin and daisy wanting to just be around people and my heart melted. excellent writing, excellent acting.

no one in this show is straight and i like it. give the gays what they want (queer genre fiction).

“how do you feel about rollercoasters.” “eh, neutral.” “oh you’re no fun.” oh my goddddddddddddd

eta: lol someone in the tags asked “op r u okay” about the gun thing. i was involved in an armed robbery at my job. it sucked. jonny sims’ portrayal of someone looking at a gun pointed at them is very good. that’s all. (context: i’m american, guns are a Thing here XD)

[scarletteflamerald]

Okay so I finished wandavision and I have so many feelings included but not limited to: (obviously lots of spoilers for Wandavision ahead, and I mention a few things from Agents of SHIELD so if you haven't watched that yet, go do that now and then you can read this post)

darkhold, Darkhold, DARKHOLD!!! Because that was a major plot point in Agents of SHIELD and there's been rumors for a while of some of the AoS characters coming back as part of a show about SWORD and now I'm just so hyped about all the cool things they could do with that like... can you imagine a show where Monica teams up with Daisy and Kora and we get to see not one but three women of color kicking ass across space and back??!? And that's just one on a long list of exciting possibilities

vague disappointment because probably none of that will ever happen

Sharp disappointment because literally nothing on this show was as good as it could've been. Like even with the premise of the show, "in extreme grief wanda turns a town into a sitcom," just off the top of my head a way more interesting concept would've been if vision had already been brought back as a living weapon and his powers were being used to trap wanda in a mental prison that plays out as a sitcom for the evil government agency to watch so they can, like, study wanda and her powers. And as wanda slowly realizes what's going on and fights to get out, vision's personality, suppressed so he can be a weapon, also starts to emerge and then it's this badass power couple fighting to wake up and idk man I just feel like they could have done so much better. Or, for example, with Agnes, "wants power because evil" is such a bland motivation and her character overall was just super flat, why can't Marvel make interesting female villains?!

wtf guys where's my origin story for Monica? Was this her just discovering her powers? Has she known for a while? What the hell even are her powers? So many questions!!!

And once again disappointment because what was the point of Monica throwing herself in front of bullets to save the twins if Wanda was just going to unmagic them a day later anyway??!? I'm actually low-key angry about this one because besides the fact that it was totally out of character for Wanda, Mrs. Mess-with-my-family-and-I'll-shoot-you-with-your-own-soldiers, to suddenly do a complete 180 and let them die, it was totally unnecessary and feels uncomfortably murder-y imo. Like yes obviously Wanda needed to free the town and I can even support her letting fake-Vision dissolve away, since Vision was a real person who had specifically asked not to be resurrected and this was just a living memory of him or whatever, but the twins were their own people, not a copy or a character superimposed onto a preexisting person, and if I'm not okay with them dying, it makes no sense for Wanda, their mother, to be fine with it, especially since she literally could have just stopped taking down the spell when it had shrunk to the point that only their house was inside. And sure, that's probably not a great permanent solution, but her children could have lived while she studied the Darkhold and presumably figured out a way to disentangle them from the anomaly.

Also excited because not only did Agnes mention the Sorcerer Supreme (and I'm very excited for Wanda to be in Multiverse of Madness), she mentioned him in the same breath as the Darkhold, which maybe possibly hopefully means there could be an AoS/Dr. Strange crossover???!?!!! Ooh like at the very least since Ghost Rider is already in some kind of alternate dimension it would make perfect sense for him to show up in MoM and I just. askdkdlfjfjsjsllsalskdjhdssl

"what is grief but love persevering" and then Wanda tells Vision "you are my love" and that means he's also her grief and oh my heart

Where tf is white!Vision and why tf didn't memory!Vision tell Wanda that he had original!Vision's memories and why didn't she look for him and arrrrggh

Oh and afaik Agnes couldn't give people powers just control them so that means Ralph is the new Quicksilver, right? And he looks like alternate-dimension Pietro because of multiversal shenanigans, right? And he's going to be in more mcu stuff in the future, RIGHT?

Said this one already but I feel it bears repeating: wtf are Monica's powers??!!!

[babywonderlandwerewolf]

DuckTales 2017: The End?

Well, we’ve officially reached THAT day. The day Ducktales would come to end (the main series anyway, podcast’s still coming up).

I’ve seen many people debating on the finale’s quality with consensus being it was good but flawed in many ways.

For me, it was certainly a good series finale. Not a great one and gonna say why in a bit but good enough as a send off for the series especially since it’s gonna be a long time before we see Della, Beakley, Webby, and Lena again.

I’d arguably say this did a better job handling character use than Moonvasion. Don’t get me wrong, that was great but an issue I kinda had was that Scrooge, Della, and Louie felt like the only ones playing a big role here while Huey, Dewey, Webby, and Donald are only supporting players, Beakley and Launchpad barely did anything, and basically any supporting player that isn’t Glomgold and Penumbra gets thrown to the side in the second half. I get they did it to show how much a threat Lunaris is but still could’ve been better.

This episode on the other hand not only gives a lot of focus to the main nine but even the supporting players like Darkwing, Gizmoduck, BOYD, Lena, Gosalyn, Violet, Manny, and Gyro get to play decent roles and shine.

The score in this episode is incredible. Dominic Lewis really went all out on the music for that finale.

There are even some of the show’s most powerful moments in this series from Beakley revealing the real truth about Webby’s origins to Della and Donald’s scene in the houseboat to those Scrooge/Donald moments in the climax to the end credits of everyone falling to the ground as the credits music plays (awesome throwback to that season 3 poster).

Also really enjoyed the callbacks to the first episode that can be found on the tropes page for the episode cause there’s too many to list now.

And before that other twist which I’ll get to in a minute, Webby being a clone with May and June also being clones was a decent idea in theory. Ditto with Bentley and Buford being Bradford clones.

Bradford being Finch’s grandson was a neat touch and helped explain his agency in the Missing Mysteries.

Also gotta love Manny and his Disney Afternoon shout out (complete with the wonderfully talented Keith David aka King Andrias aka Doctor Faciliar aka Elroy Patashnik).

As for the negatives, oh boy.

While not a terrible idea in theory, the whole Scrooge being Webby’s dad thing certainly does feel like an undercooked idea that should’ve used more buildup cause it just feels way too last minute to fully work for me plus I always preferred Webby not really having a biological connection to Scrooge since that kinda goes against the many times the show goes on to point out that not all family has to be by blood and Webby’s still family no matter if she’s biologically related and that twist not gonna lie, kinda dilutes it a bit. The fact said reveal is within the final ten minutes of the show certainly isn’t helping either. If you liked the twist, good on you. Won’t stop you from liking it and respect you but just know this is my opinion.

While I did what we did get from Della and Donald was awesome and think the show did them well, it’s a bit shocking how neither of them get that many interactions with the kids in the series finale. I mean with how this is probably gonna be the last we see of Della for a while and Donald going on his own adventure with Daisy (not opposed to that, I’m fine with that though I do wonder how it would’ve worked if the show had gotten a season 4 renewal), would’ve been nice getting some heartfelt moments of the triplets and their parents (come on, Della and Donald are practically their parents).

Overall as for how this ranks as a series finale compared to other recent Disney TVA finales, it’s sure not as awesome as Gravity Falls’ finale and maybe even a tier below Wander Over Yonder’s (primarily for having worse issues despite Ducktales being better put together as a finale than Wander) but it’s still more engaging and fun to watch than Big Hero 6 The Series’ decent but kinda anticlimatic finale or Star vs the Forces of Evil’s horrid finale. And at least this does work as a stopping point for the series (though I’d still love to see more even aside from the podcast like maybe a season 4 to kinda smooth out and let the twists from here soak in or even a movie).

It may not be a great finale with the flaws it has but I still very much enjoyed it and was good (though could’ve been better).

7.5/10 for me for now.

Gonna miss these ducks. Least I got some frogs, farmers, and witches to keep me company and even a ghost coming soon.

Farewell Ducktales. You were such an awesome show and one of the best Disney cartoons of all time. Sure it wasn’t flawless especially with some of season 3′s writing decisions (has no bad episodes but just writing decisions I’m not to easy on) but it was still in incredible journey and one of the greatest adventures I have had a part in and I got to meet to many new people on here and real life through this series so kudos for that too.

One more time, woo-oo!

[poison-prayer]

camp-max replied to your post “camp-max replied to your post “a-little-oopsie-daisy: camp-max...”

i wanna hear about punishments

Remember: you asked for this.

He never reprimands children of parishioners. That’s left to their parents, though Daniel will often talk to the parents about their child’s behavior and actions he personally can take to curb their misbehaving. With kids it works a bit like the way they might get punished in school. Detention or lunch detention, study hall (bible study), that sort of thing. Kids are kids and bound to get into a little trouble, and while Daniel’s strict he’s not ruthless. 

With adults it’s a little different. If you’re brought up into the church, once you hit 18 you’re an adult, and that means being treated like an adult. You have more agency over your time in the church, excluding mandatory things like sermon and confession, but you also face stricter punishments if you step out of line. 

If you break the 21-day January fast, you’re subjected to the steam room. This is steam-only, since drugs and sedatives aren’t needed for the punishment side of things. You’re stipped to your undergarments and left in the steam room until you’re weak and dehydrated, supposedly to purge your body of the impurities from breaking fast. New members within their first or second fast, and people with medical conditions that make fasting dangerous are exempt from this punishment. 

There are all levels of transgressions. He’s not going to give the worst discipline to someone for a minor infraction, especially if they’re new. A lot of the time problems are handled peacefully.l Many transgressions are admitted in group confession, which basically amounts to public humiliation. But sometimes... sometimes, there are incidents that Daniel can’t just let slip.

One of the worst is discontent. Daniel keeps a very close eye on everyone, and has his disciples do as well, because it only takes one paranoid person to see through his facade to make the whole empire come crumbling down. One person feels something isn’t right, gossips to another, then the discontent spreads like a wildfire. He instills a sense of Us vs. Them into his church, and believes that if someone were to try and sew the seeds of fear and revolt, another in the community would let him know - but he also knows that’s not a foolproof plan. 

When one is discovered, though, he takes immediate measures to get them back in line. One of his biggest tactics is isolation; in the back of the hospital is an unused psychiatric ward, and in that ward is a single hallway of solitary confinement chambers. They’re concrete cells fitted with nothing but a drain. If someone doubts the prophet, they’re brought to the psych ward. This is terrifying for most people, but Daniel always starts off reassuring, telling them that it’s not dangerous, it’s just like grown-up time out. He gives them his word that he’ll bring them meals and come sit with them for bible study, private sessions or sermons every single day without fail, and is pretty clockwork about it. For an unspecified amount of time, Daniel is the only person they have contact with. 

This is a totally transparent practice, so someone doesn’t just go missing one day and people start pointing fingers - it also discourages others from misbehaving, because who wants to be put in confinement? 

The method of breaking someone down through solitary confinement runs on the idea that if Daniel is their ONLY human contact, they will begin to associate him with comfort again. He takes care of them, he keeps his promises, he doesn’t let anything happen to them. It’s a different time period for everyone, of course. He’s seen people break in a month, but very rarely is it less than that. When they come out, they’re often given reprieves on social situations until they’re more acclimated to the atmosphere again, and most of them positively say that their time in solitary was fine, that Daniel was there and that it gave them a lot of time to reflect on their faith and their behavior. 

In very rare cases - mostly if they act aggressively out of line while in solitary or are violent in the church at all - Daniel performs baptisms. Baptisms are a daily ordeal that can happen at any time of day, in which Daniel brings in a large basin of water, gets a good grip on the parishioner, and repeatedly forces their head underwater for significant amounts of time with very little time to breathe in between. 

He never pushes anyone past their limit, has never truly tried to drown someone and always makes sure they’re functioning and breathing evenly again before he leaves to get them dry clothes and a towel. This works on the same mechanic as solitary does, but far more intense because of the primal fear of drowning. Daniel causes this thing to happen, true, but the fact that he cares for them after replaces the fear and adrenaline and associates him with comfort. It’s just a far more intense method, but rarely used. 

There are exceptions to these punishments, and Daniel plays favorites. He set up the hierarchy to waive the punishments for his inner circle. Amy can not face punishment (not that she would need it) because she is a figurehead of the church - the same will apply to Ruby once she’s an adult; his disciples can face punishment, but rarely get more than a slap on the wrist. 

And then there are the worst cases. Domestic violence, adultery, and sexual violence are quite possibly - to Daniel - worse than discontent. With domestic and sexual violence, it’s straight to baptism, do not pass go, do not collect 200 dollars. Some cases of sexual violence end with Daniel dumping a body in his cremation oven. In any case of sexual violence that doesn’t end in murder, and prolonged or repeat cases of domestic violence, the individual is marked as too dangerous to be in the church and is expelled or handed to authorities if the right evidence is there. 

Daniel, as a pastor, is a mandatory reporter and must have the authorities intervene when he finds out that someone is committing violence against others. (Except himself, obviously.) 

Adultery is a little more personal for Daniel; growing up with his father having affair after affair, he saw what it did to his mother and their family as a whole, and while will often counsel the couple in question, will take more serious actions if it continues. 

In these three cases, solitary confinement and baptism are not meant to instill a sense of comfort in them, but rather a sense of raw fear, and to associate the punishment with their actions, to drill the consequences into their heads before they return to the church. 

Thanks to Daniel’s guidance, Lamb’s Pointe very rarely has any problems within the church - and if they ever do, he’s quick to fix it. 

[paperficwriter]

Cakes and Bouquets

This is a companion piece to “They remind me of you” by @itsairybro. However! This one is from the perspective of one giant dummy who thinks the way to a man’s heart is either through his nose, eyes or stomach (and he’s not taking any chances).

Cut is for length, not content. Make sure to read the original by Airy to get the full experience!!

Todoroki was drunk. It was something that Inasa never thought possible, like a unicorn getting drunk, and it made him a little guilty to say that even just to himself. Todoroki wasn't some prince or older man to be set on a pedestal, untouched by vice.

Especially as he watched him fall off the curb and nearly faceplant into a hood ornament.

“Shouto! Are ya okay?!”

And yet, he could still maintain that same, stoic expression, even as he raised a thumbs up. “Yes. I just. Seem to be a bit inebriated.”

“Do tell.” Inasa stepped off the curb, guiding one of Todoroki's arms around his shoulder and bending low so he wouldn't pull him off his feet. He smelled like rubbing alcohol. Of course only Todoroki could make being drunk seem sterile. “Here. Let's just get ya in my car, and I'll take ya home.”

“No. No.” Todoroki didn't actually push him away. “You've been drinking too.”

“I stopped an hour ago, ‘cept water and wings.” Not even tipsy. “I promise you're safe with me.”

Todoroki narrowed his eyes with an almost comical suspicion. “Last I checked, I was supposed to be the responsible one. I don’t appreciate this swap in personalities.”

That made him laugh. “Maybe a quirk did it, yeah?” That was a joke among agencies whenever anyone did anything out of the ordinary: ‘a quirk did it.’ He opened the door and easily maneuvered him onto the seat, glad that he had cleaned out the car just in the past week. He would have been mortified if Todoroki Shouto had to sit in his car with his feet propped up on empty natto containers, boxes from takoyaki and wrappers from burgers picked up while driving around. “Seatbelt.”

Todoroki hummed in acknowledgement and, after two attempts, got the thing across his chest into the buckle. He blinked and stared ahead as Inasa got into the car, started it up and began driving toward Todoroki’s neighborhood. Inasa was thankful that he had managed to get at least the name of the area out of him before they left the bar.

“Say, what did Kats wanna talk t’ ya about?” he asked, not taking his eyes off the road. It was too quiet in the car after their night out.

When Todoroki didn’t answer, Inasa thought maybe he had fallen asleep. But then, he said quietly, “He wanted to invite me to join his agency.”

“That right?!” Inasa boomed, unaware of his volume. “Congrats! That’s awesome!”

There was another period of silence. Then, he said, “How is it that even though I’m moving forward, I feel left behind?”

“What?”

If Todoroki sniffed, Inasa wouldn’t point it out, and he wouldn’t take his eyes off the road no matter how much he might have wanted to. “I feel...I feel like there’s a part of me that’s just one sock in the dryer. Or...a mitten without a partner. As dramatic as it sounds, I feel…” He looked away, out the window, and even though Inasa hadn’t had his eye on him, it was as though Todoroki was trying to refuse meeting his gaze as he finished, “Abandoned.”

Inasa worried at his lip. What had brought that on? Was it just feelings from the alcohol, or…? “Is there somethin’ I can do, Shouto? Ya know I wanna help --”

“I’ve never even been wooed!” Inasa blinked. That was...what? He didn’t even know how to respond to it, and he didn’t have a chance, because Todoroki continued, “I don’t even remember what it’s like to be wanted, or sought out, or special.” This time, he knew he heard a choke in his throat. “I don’t think I ever will…”

When he came up to a red light and pressed the brake to the floor, he reached over to stroke Todoroki’s arm. It remained rigid, refusing to soften, and he was staring at his opposite shoulder, trying to will the other man away. “Hey, that ain’t true. Shouto, I…” He swallowed. “I know it might feel bad now, but it ain’t always goin’ to be like this.”

Todoroki didn’t respond. He nodded a little, but that just made Inasa think he wanted him to stop talking. They fell into a silence until they got into his neighborhood, and Inasa tried to ask where his place was. “This is fine,” he said, shortly, neither unkind nor warm. Cool frost.

Inasa had to stop short because he was already opening the door while the car was moving, and by the time he had it in park, the young man was walking at a clip past two buildings and into one at the corner. “...’Night,” Inasa called.

If he heard, he didn’t turn to acknowledge him.

That wouldn’t do. None of this was acceptable. And the minute Inasa got home, he started searching online and hatching a plan. A simple one that started with finding a website that sold a variety of flowers that he could get delivered to him with a blank card, and ending with a text to Kirishima, one that he sent hoping that Bakugou wouldn’t be nearby to see.

Hey. I got a favor to ask u. :)

---

The hardest thing was letting go.

When Inasa had the first bouquet sent, it was just supposed to be a sweet gesture of congratulations. They were roses, yes, but not red ones, so it wouldn’t specifically indicate anything romantic. Just something nice to spruce up Todoroki’s new desk.

He wrote the note and stuck it among the pink, white and yellow blossoms before handing them over to Kirishima. “I’m countin’ on ya.”

“Right!” The sharp-toothed hero gave him a wide grin. “Don’t worry, I got you covered! And I double-checked to make sure he wasn’t going to be in until noon, so trust me, it’ll be easy.”

Inasa watched him go, and for a second, he gripped the arms of his chair, following him as with his eyes as he disappeared down the street. He wanted to stop him. He wanted to grab the flowers, wait by the door of Bakugou’s agency, and the moment Todoroki arrived, he would grab him up in a hug and tell him to never be sad again, not while he was around.

No. Todoroki wouldn’t react well to that. He would just flinch, or give him his best, most polite smile, and…

How would Inasa feel then?

--

The first time Bakugou and Todoroki fought side-by-side under the same agency, they all went out to the bar again. Todoroki wasn’t nearly as interested in drinking as he had been the last time they were together, but he also seemed happier.

They talked, and once again Inasa shoved food at him, and he would smile and eat straight from his plate. And every time he caught his eye under those white and red bangs, Inasa’s heart would skip a beat.

He didn’t say anything about the flowers, though.

When Todoroki left - sober and ready to take the train home - Inasa lingered by Kirishima’s side, holding his beer in both hands even though the small bottle was dwarfed by his thick digits. “Do ya think he liked them?”

“Dude! Definitely!” Kirishima spun around on his bar stool, and when he almost fell onto the floor, Bakugou grabbed his arm, straightening him. He giggled. “Did you put your name on ‘em?”

“No,” he admitted. “That wasn’t...I mean...it would have been weird, right? Just sending a guy flowers out of nowhere, just because?”

Kirishima shrugged, eyes crossing slightly. He had had more to drink than Inasa, and it was showing as he slurred and tipped his torso onto Bakugou’s. “I think Inasa is sweet!” He said it to his boyfriend like he was the one who asked and not Inasa.

Bakugou just glowered at both of them.

---

“I can’t believe I fucked up this bad!”

“Dude, it’s going to be okay!”

Inasa and Kirishima were running down the remaining blocks to the agency. That week, when he was going to send Todoroki a bouquet of daisies, he had been out on patrol until late. Half-asleep, he placed the order, but put the delivery address to Todoroki directly rather than to Inasa’s office. He never got the receipt - Inasa was notoriously bad at maintaining his e-mail - and he was questioning what else he sent. Did he say who it was from? Did he sign it this time?

When they got to the window, they both smashed their noses against the glass. From this vantage point, they got a clear view right into Todoroki’s office, through the large glass door, where the bouquet was already in a vase.

Inasa practically fell on top of Kirishima when he jumped out of the way just as Todoroki walked to the front desk. He exchanged words with the receptionist, who he could see shaking his head.

Then, Todoroki went back to his office.

“Do you think he saw? Or he knows?” Kirishima was whispering even though they were outside, with walls between them and everyone inside.

Inasa didn’t blink and held his breath as Todoroki stroked the petals softly with his fingers, a wistful smile touching his lips. His chest ached, stomach burning.

“Inasa?”

“Nah. I don’t think so.”

---

Sharing drinks became such a regular event that Inasa didn’t even have to ask Todoroki to come along anymore. And when things got out of control, and they would talk about dates and one-night stands, he would still stay, blushing, even sometimes hiding his head against Inasa’s arm if he was close enough.

One night, Inasa had gotten maybe a bit tipsier than he intended, and after giving everybody hugs and sloppy kisses on the cheeks, he had left his car and called an Uber for both him and Todoroki, who had not been in a state to drive either.

“I’ll get it,” Todoroki slurred, squinting at his wallet and trying to dig out several bills.

“Shouto! Have you never gotten an Uber before?! That’s not how any of this works!” Inasa laughed and collapsed into the back seat, and his last words were muffled. “Ya use the app! I got it!”

“You always get it,” Todoroki pouted. “Drinks, wings, meals…” Flowers, Inasa almost said out loud. “Do you know who I am?”

That sent them both into a fit of giggles, and even though he couldn’t exactly offer support as it were, Inasa put his arm around Todoroki’s shoulder...and nearly gasped when he cuddled up to his side.

“You’re so nice, Inasa.”

His cheeks, already red from the booze, were burning up to his ears. And even though it ended up costing extra, he had the driver keep circling around until he kicked them out at their respective stops.

---

A stalker.

Inasa was sitting on the couch in Kirishima’s office, arms crossed over his stomach. He didn’t feel hung over, but after the drinks the night before, he felt sick. What did he expect, after several weeks of flowers and notes?

He didn’t know what he thought would happen, but...he didn’t think Todoroki would assume it was a stalker. Something to worry about. Oh god. The whole evening was haunting him: the concern and worry on Todoroki’s face, the way Bakugou had laid into him afterward, how they had all gotten so riled up...

“I...I thought it was sweet…”

“It is!” Kirishima got up from where he had been double-fisting two large bottles of water and came over to his side. “Hey. It’s okay.”

“I don’t want him to be scared…”

Kirishima laughed. “Did he seem scared?” he asked, rubbing Inasa’s wrist. It was nice that Kirishima was as affectionate as Inasa. It made him feel taken care of in the middle of all this. “Do you really think Todoroki Shouto is afraid of some flowers?”

He nodded, uncertain, then remembered something that Bakugou had said. Well, snapped. Practically yelled. “Do ya think I should just suck it up and ask him out?”

“I mean, I did think that was the end game,” Kirishima replied with a reassuring smile.

Inasa picked up his phone from the table in front of him and scrolled down to Todoroki’s name. A serious picture of him stared up at him. “I’ll start with somethin’ easy,” he said, more to himself, and he typed the message asking Todoroki if he would like to go spar.

Todoroki agreed.

---

After sparring, Inasa had offered him something to eat. He waited for him to want something savory, or substantial, but instead…

Who would have thought Todoroki Shouto would have a sweet tooth?

And not for anything weird like sweet cold soba or iced tea, he learned over the following weeks as this too became a tradition. For cakes. For clotted cream and fruit adorned with slices of white and milk chocolate. For fluffy pastries and cookies, for donuts. Classy stuff, too: finger foods with designs, meticulously crafted crepes, tarts piled high with custard.

And watching Todoroki eat, slow and indulgent, lips curling around forkfuls of decadent sweets? Smearing sauce on his fingertip when some of the parfait got on the side of the glass?

Inasa was afraid he was going to start sweating.

Once, they were sitting in the car after picking up soft serve on the way back to Todoroki’s apartment, and he stayed and started talking. They started talking, and it wasn’t until long after the ice cream was gone and the car had cooled down that Todoroki finally got up to go.

He kept staying, time after time, trip after trip.

And then, they were sitting there, talking about the flowers and their mysterious sender, and Inasa could feel something shift between them. Todoroki seemed closer to him, so close he could see where the tight pink scar smoothed out into pale skin, could make out the tiniest stain of jam on his cheek.

He could have kissed him, but…

What if he loved the person sending the flowers more than he even liked him?

It gave him just enough pause that before he knew it, they were exchanging goodbyes, and Todoroki was gone.

---

“I’m sorry, oh god, I’m so sorry, Inasa, please don’t hate me!” Kirishima was all but in tears, burying his face in Inasa’s chest. “I’ve ruined everything!”

“Hey, hey, don’t say that…” He hoped it wasn’t obvious how hard his heart was beating, like if it burst out it would punch Kirishima in the cheek. Kirishima had been caught. Caught by Todoroki. Caught and put on the spot and of course Todoroki had been mad. “It’s okay. Everything is going to be fine.”

Kirishima looked up at him. His catlike eyes were huge and wet. “But...I told him that he would find out soon…”

“Yeah…” Inasa sighed. “No, it’s better like this, yeah? I gotta tell him. Can’t keep hidin’ behind flowers, yeah?”

He picked up his phone and texted Todoroki immediately. He said he was under the weather. Inasa thought he was going to throw up.

But then…a few days later, when Inasa picked him up for their trip to a teahouse, he was all smiles, happy and obviously pleased to see him.

That was a good sign, right?

---

“I love you.”

He crossed it out. Before he could start fresh, Bakugou grabbed the note, tearing it from his pad. He took the messy bouquet from him, wrapping it in the front page of the newspaper, all glares. Kirishima had been too beside himself to help out the week after he had been discovered, and Bakugou certainly didn’t care about the presentation. “You’re all fucking annoying, you know that?”

One week. Just one week.

And then, on Friday, after the normal rounds of drinks, when both of them were sober but somehow Todoroki had still let him drive him home, Inasa asked him to meet him for lunch on Monday. He agreed.

Three days.

When he got there, it was with lillies in one hand and strawberry shortcake in the other, his two favorite things. Inasa saw his door was opened, the inside - the whole building - quiet. He took a deep breath, prepared his nerves and didn’t even look up as he walked in. He was ready to accept everything Todoroki had to say the minute he saw the flowers. But when he walked in, there was...nothing. Not a word.

Because no one was there.

Inasa’s heart sank, and then dread filled him up like boiling water. Oh god, he found out. Oh god, he’s mad. Every worst case scenario was fighting for a first place in line now.

He waited for a few minutes. Maybe he went to the bathroom.

Nothing.

Maybe he went to Bakugou’s office. No, that one was empty too.

Inasa finally got up and left.

It was over. All of it. The flowers, the cakes, the drinks. How could he even look him in the eye now?

His phone buzzed, and Inasa ignored it. Another buzz. He took it out just as he was about to deposit the box and flowers in a large trash can. Just wandering had taken him half a mile from the office, and several message stared up at him.

HOW DID IT GO???

INASA INASA LOOK AT THE NEWS

IF YOU DON’T GET YOUR JACK ASS OVER HERE I’M GOING TO BURN DOWN YOUR OFFICE

That last one was from Bakugou of all people.

Inasa flew the rest of the way back.

---

“Thank you for trusting me.”

How could he have been such a fool to think that Todoroki would say no?

---

When Inasa came to pick him up for their second date - dinner, because he had gotten a “passing grade” with lunch - Todoroki let him inside and kissed him just inside the door. Even though he was taller, towering over his (maybe, hopefully, god, please let him call him) boyfriend, the feeling of Todoroki’s lips made him feel like he was going to take off and float away like a balloon.

“Hey.”

“Hey.” Todoroki smiled and kissed his nose. “Where are my flowers?”

Inasa brought the small succulent out from behind his back, green waxy leaves open like petals on an arrangement of stones. “This one will last longer,” he whispered.

“Good.” He brought it in and put it next to the vase of lillies that were still holding on, to the right of the tiny painted pot of perennials, and when Inasa turned to leave, Todoroki took his hand and dragged him deeper into the apartment.

“What about dinner?” he asked even as he followed him along.

“It can wait.” His fingers were cool on his wrist, and his expression was playful. “I want dessert first.”