#he doesn't have all of the trauma that the other spiders have outside of his uncle dying

[green-cinnamon-stick]

Gwen Stacy: A Character Study

Spoilers ahead for Across the Spider-Verse

I started typing this in the tags of that last Gwen Stacy reblog and realized I had way too many thoughts on this to flood the tags with. Okay if you didn't read those tags, all I had said at first was that I had seen a lot of discourse about Gwen. Miles doesn't need to take her back, she's a bad friend, how dare she show up at the cookout knowing all she knew (lol that one made me laugh ngl), nothing too heinous but I didn't see a whole lot of forgiveness. Before I get in to this, I'm not excusing her behavior in the slightest. I just think there's a lot more to it than her being a bad friend to Miles. The whole movie, Miles is trying to make a point that he's not a kid. But...he is. The way the adults try to direct his life is juvenille and definitely make it seem like he's younger, but he is still only 15. He gets away with a lot cause he's still just a kid and he's still learning. Gwen doesn't get the same treatment and yet...she's only 15mos older. She's not years older like Hobie or even Peter B.. She's barely 16 herself. Now here's a girl who still blames herself for her best friend's death and who's dad blames her for her best friend's death (unknowingly). She befriends this kid who's just.like.her. Dad's a cop, he's new to being a spider, he's her age, and he too feels alone. But she can't get too close because she hurts the people she loves. She literally STARTS the movie explaining this.

When she finally reveals herself to her father, he turns his back on her. Now here's this group of other spiders who can travel to different dimensions freely and can provide her a fastrack ticket back to Miles. She asks Jessica to adopt her on sight. And that's before her dad even drops her, that's how alone she feels. She already feels like she doesn't have a home. So imagine her probable horror when she finds out that the new best friend she's trying to get back to, is the number 1 enemy of her new "family". He's the cause of a whole host of problems and she's forbidden to tell him. She can't go back home and she can't stay with Miles because she'll glitch without a watch. And she can't even use the watch because she's not supposed to see Miles at all. So what can she do, go back and have her dad arrest her? Or stay with the only people who understand her? They show us in multiple ways that she hangs out with Hobie the most. Now they want us to think there's something there and she probably has a small crush, but that's mostly just cause Hobie's kind of too cool not to have a slight infatuation with him. (And that's coming from someone who doesn't even like guys). But I like to think Hobie also is the only person who doesn't trust Miguel and doesn't really agree with "the plan". So she hangs with the one other person *besides Peter B, who doesn't hate on Miles. I can only imagine how insufferable Miguel probably is about it. So she finally gets an opportunity to be in Miles' dimension and the FIRST thing she does is go to him. Breaks all protocol, ditches her tracking device, and goes to hang out with her best friend.

Now this is the point in which I do believe she could've told him. Especially since the last time she lied, her best friend died. But we've seen Miguel can get unhinged. To a level even Peter B. didn't know he was capable of. She knows they don't like Miles. If she tells him and he goes to confront Miguel and he kills Miles, she's now caused the death of two best friends. If she tells Miles and Miguel finds out, and takes her watch, she's now lost any chance of EVER getting back to Miles not to mention she gets thrown back with her dad...who hates her. So she does what any 16yr old girl would do when faced with a lot of tough decisions....she lies (again), and she runs. First from the Spiderteam and then from Miles. She tries to do what Miles did and have two cakes, but she's bad at it. She's not designed to "break canon" so rule breaking isn't in her nature. I think there's actually a lot more to how much that drives who they all are as people. Which also explains why Miles simply doesn't get it. Even with Hobie, it's in.his.DESIGN to be an anarchist, ergo he's still following his own canon. But Miles doesn't have a canon. So none of his friend's actions are going to make sense to him.

I don't know. I think a lot of Gwen's decisions can be chalked up to "she's a 16yr old girl with her own baggage". She wants to see her best friend but it comes at a cost. A cost she pays for almost immediately when hanging with Miles is the reason the Spot gets even stronger and then escapes. She was supposed to be watching him but she impulsively went to go hang out with her best friend. Thus dragging Miles into the problem because he follows her. Her lying gets people hurt in so many ways. But if she had told Miles the truth, he still would've followed her. He has a thirst for knowledge and a need to help. He was always going to intervene when given the chance. Gwen's choices were between family or friends. Same as Miles. The only difference being, Miles considers them to be the SAME thing thus making the decision to choose, damn near impossible for him. He's close with his family but he can't tell them the truth, so he just needs friends who understand him. She needs both but she told her dad the truth and he turned his back, so if she tells Miles the truth....... She's been told explicitly that she can either have this new family who gets/wants her, or go back to her dad if she chooses Miles (who also gets her on a level that no one else does) but who she can't be with without risk of death by glitch....so she lies. And when she realizes she still has her dad, guess what her first act is? Going back to Miles. So should she have lied to him? No. But would telling him the truth have yielded different results? Honestly, I don't know. But I like to think no. Everything still would've happened, just differently. The Spot still would've gotten away and Miles would still go against Miguel to save his dad and stop the Spot. Unfortunately the only thing her lying did was put tension on their friendship, but she had no way of knowing if telling him would work in anyone's favor.

Now Peter B......I want to know if Miguel threatened him. Cause when Miles asks why he didn't come to see him he says the same thing as Gwen, "I couldn't". Miles doesn't really hear that. He hears "i had the opportunity to see you and I chose differently" but that's not what either of them said. I'm hoping they show us more of that cause there's a lot of power in the word "couldn't".

[mandowifey]

What kind of father figure behaviours would Miguel have?? I’m thinking protective af

Oh boy oh boy oh boy BUCKLE UP.

Father!Miguel O'Hara Headcannons

Warnings: ANGST, SO MUCH ANGST, Mentions of child loss, death, violence, this is canon Miguel, reader can give birth but is not gendered. Mentions of trauma, depression, bad brain times. He's a broken man, yknow?

× × ×

First and foremost, Miguel is scared.

This is a man who had lost it all twice. He had watched his child die. He had lapsed so terribly into himself that he was able to rationalize stepping into another man's life and pretending to be him. He isn't right minded, he's broken and hurting.

All that self blame and doubt chokes him sometimes.

He hurts, constantly.

When you tell him you're pregnant, everything goes still. Fatherhood is something that had always been just outside of his grasp, and now it was here right in front of him. He doesn't fill with light, or smile and laugh, but he does look at you like he's seeing a ghost. There is fear in his eyes, not of you or the baby, but himself.

Because what if he fucks this up again?

Miguel can not stand the idea of opening himself to that pain. He already shoulders that guilt every day, rewatching videos of himself with his daughter. Can he even find room in his heart for another child? He almost feels like it is a betrayal, that he was never a good man to begin with if he were so willing to move on.

When your face drops and your eyes brim with tears, he pulls out of it.

One of Miguel's best abilities is being strong for others. He can be what you need right now, and he will.

Cue the absolute nightmare of expecting his child.

Aside from you being sick, Miguel worries, constantly.

The man can hardly focus on his work. He always asks one of the doctors to go check on you or have you in contact with him. Just because you're pregnant doesn't mean the multiverse loses its importance. But god is he distracted.

"Have you been eating enough?"

"Taking your vitamins?"

"How much water have you had?"

It'd be cute if you didn't know better.

You know how much he has lost and you know that he is petrified of losing you both too. Not to mention you are certain he feels undeserving of another chance, especially after destroying an innocent alternate universe.

The way he looks at you tells you everything; he thinks you are made of glass. Something fragile that could break any moment. While you try to assure him that isn't the case, he still worries.

Once you start showing, it's over.

He is constantly caressing your stomach, holding you close, breathing you in. He thinks you smell so good pregnant. Miguel loves to feel your belly, cooing to you about how good you look carrying his child. You don't doubt for a second he loves you.

Miguel is protective, most assuredly. When you want to go walking around the base or go grab snacks he is on you like a shadow. Always watching, always protecting. He makes sure the other spider folk don't bump you, and offers to carry you when you mention your feet swelling.

God, he'd love to feed you. Checking on you constantly if you're hungry, offering to run and grab any cravings you ask for.

When you get further along, he likes to talk to the baby. Speaking in Spanish occasionally but mostly asking if they are giving you trouble.

"They are gonna have my attitude, I know it."

Oh boy, when the baby comes?

Ohhhh boy.

First off it is a way bigger deal than it has to be.

That man would be in the middle of a job and get a ring on his watch.

"JESS, I GOTTA GO."

And she looks at him in time to watch him clawing back into a portal.

Him running full speed, throwing himself against walls and scratching down them to get to your room faster.

His mask withdrawing to show messy hair and wide brown eyes, coming to your side and taking your hand.

"I'm here, Im here." As he kisses into your damp hair.

You get to surprise him, twice.

He didn't know the sex, and didn't know you were having two.

When he see's his daughters for the first time, his eyes leak. The smile on his face stretches miles, his arms open as he cradles them into him. Oh he'd be melting.

You'd never seen him cry, but that day he does.

He's so proud of you, telling you how well you did and how much he loves you.

"Okay Miguel, gotta let me hold one." You laugh.

He's inseparable from you. Looking at those babies with such love and surprise, unable to believe that he was a father, again.

When you fall asleep with the girls tucked in your arms, he stays up and pets your hair.

And he promises himself that this time it will be different.

Your babies would be HELLA protected.

Good god, he is like a hawk with those girls.

Always watching, always making sure they were safe. He'd have eyes on them constantly.

Miguel is a good man at heart, and now he wants to make things right. He'd dedicate as much time to your family as possible, asking Jessica to stand in for him as often as possible (until she herself has her child).

He'd want to teach them to be like him. One of your daughters can stick to walls, and the other has tiny claws like he does. You enjoy lounging on the couch while he climbs the walls with the girls giggling after him.

Your family is beautiful, blissful. He protects all three of you.

And while sometimes you have to hold him at night and assure him that its okay to move on, he knows he's doing his best. He wraps you in his arms and looks at the baby monitor screen, watching the girls sleep. He begins to doze as you pet his hair, assuring him they were just fine.

Miguel would fall asleep against you, head tucked in your neck and strong arms locked around you.

And he would believe it was okay to forgive himself.

[b33zlebubz]

assorted COD character headcannons

- Laswell is so bad with kids. like remarkably awkward compared to everyone else. Ghost can at least make them laugh if he doesn't scare them first. - Soap has four sisters, he's the youngest. - Gaz and Price are tied when it comes to who has had the most concussions in the group. - Ghost's sense of humor is basically those memes with all the fire, motorcycles, and skulls that say something like "born to shit forced to wipe." He doesn't take himself very seriously while also knowing that he scares most people shitless. - Soap, on the other hand, is very millennial when it comes to humor. and also HATES not being taken seriously. - Ghost is a fucking RECKLESS ASS driver but somehow never manages to wreck. also a huge car guy - Ghost fucking hates spiders. - Gaz can sleep anywhere, anytime. This makes everyone else exceptionally jealous. - Graves can't speak Spanish (obviously) his knowledge of language outside of English is a VERY touchy subject but in every other field? Dawg is lethal. - Soap strikes me as the type of guy to own a Jeep Wrangler with a handful of rubber ducks on the dash (it's very existence physically pains Ghost). There's a grim reaper duck he scribbled on to make it look like Ghost. - Laswell can outdrink every member of 141 except for Ghost. - Graves, however, can't hold his liquor for shit. He drank with the others once before the betrayal and got his shit wrecked. That won't stop him from trying again if given the chance, though. - Gaz and Ghost are both Radiohead fans. this is like the one thing they have in common other than like ,, workplace trauma. They're also both secretly huge softies but Gaz is more open about it than Ghost - Ghost likes to drop lore about himself at random, completely nonchalant. This makes everyone uncomfortable aside from Soap, who doesn't realize Ghost was only half-joking about getting hung by a meat hook, and in turn gets glared at by the others when he snickers at how quiet the room gets. - Price and Ghost both do the dad sneeze. scares everyone else into attention, sometimes - Peppered throughout Soap's journal are some of Gaz's doodles. Gaz fidgets like hell whenever he's anxious so Soap just kinda tosses him his journal and a pen to get him to fucking sit still

[trianglesimpfordpines]

I do wonder sometimes, especially after some similar discourse happened around Across the Spider-Verse, if part of why some characters get such a weird reception is because some people cannot suspend their disbelief about the fantastical elements of a fantasy or sci-fi story.

A lot of Ford's trauma is explicitly fantastical in nature. Abusive relationships are real, but Ford was in an abusive relationship with a literal demon and a lot of the abuse involved him being demonically possessed against his will. People go missing or get stranded away from home in real life, but Ford got stranded in another universe.

And the speculative-fiction parts of Ford's backstory can't really be ignored or interpreted as purely a metaphor for some other more mundane trauma; the franchise canon draws specific attention to them at face value. Ford in J3 talks about dealing with aliens and missing breathable air. He got a metal plate surgically installed in his head to keep his abusive ex from literally reading his mind and taking over his body.

Even outside of the context of trauma alone, a lot of Ford's character has to do with the supernatural elements of the show. His literal job before he disappeared was studying the supernatural. His presence in the show before he comes back is conveyed through a journal that's basically a compilation of notes about wacky cryptids and ghosts and monsters and whatnot.

Stan has a lot of trauma as well, but his trauma is almost entirely mundane in nature. Abusive and neglectful parents, bullying in school, poverty and homelessness, having a family member who went missing. Sure, the family member in question went missing in another universe, but from Stan's perspective, the effect would be about the same if Ford had just gone into the woods and never come back or disappeared at sea.

Every awful thing Stan has been through is something a lot of people in real life can not just relate to on an emotional level, but on a literal level. A lot of people have experienced the exact same traumas as Stan. But nobody in real life has experienced the exact same traumas as Ford, because Ford's story relies on the parts of the setting that don't exist in real life. You can't remove all the supernatural stuff from Ford's backstory.

And I wonder if this ties into why some people are so adamant in refusing to accept that Ford even has any real trauma, or that he's been a victim of abuse. Because the kinds of horrible things he's been through simply do not have a real-world equivalent. People don't get possessed by demons or thrown into another dimension in real life. And some people just...don't seem to be capable of accepting that in-universe, in the context of the setting, these things do happen and can be pretty traumatizing for the characters.

Basically what I'm saying is that if you want to be able to understand and meaningfully engage with a story with fantasy and/or sci-fi elements, you need to be able to accept those elements at face value and treat them as real and important parts of the story. Gravity Falls isn't real, it doesn't take place in the real world, and it doesn't adhere to the laws of reality. You need to be able to engage with the characters in the context of the world they were created to exist in.

[skayafair]

Hell Circles

Alright time for a soul-crashing post!

When I saw Edwin curling down on the floor in that room in Hell, trying to be as quiet as possible and not even trying to run when Charles found him, my mind faltered.

We know Edwin escaped Hell. So why did he look like he gave up? He hasn't been there for as long as the first time, I think even with hell's no-time he should have been able to feel this.

I explained it to myself in 2 ways, they aren't mutually exclusive and are both pretty painful to think about.

It was just this devastating to end up in Hell for the second time, and Edwin clearly didn't expect for anyone to come for his rescue. So his resilience and resolve weren't as strong as the first time or, rather, he felt broken by this sudden developement and didn't manage to bounce back from it yet (again, it wasn't very long this time). The boiling point of "I WILL get out of here again, everything be damned" wasn't reached yet. (As you can clearly see, I have no doubts whatsoever that he WOULD HAVE done this eventually, just after much more trauma and suffering. I'm so glad Charles came before all that.)

This is a psychological cycle. I often go through a similar one so I couldn't help remembering it. When you run as fast as you can and try your best to no avail until you're out of all the resources to go on, and so you give up. Curl up in the corner and hope the outside world won't notice you, give you some respite. The future seems bleak or non-existent. You give. up. It won. And then over time the inner battery charges, or the desperation reaches its breaking point, so you grit your teeth and get up. And run and try again and again and again. "Impossible just means try again". I thought Edwin must have went through similar cycles time after time. The first time he was dragged into hell, then the second. After every couple of "deaths". The worst thing about it is that while real life has at least one escape (not recommended but as a last resort it's at least always there if everything becomes too unbearable), Edwin has none. His only choice is either to tremble in the corner forever (and who said the doll-spider won't notice him even so?) or to run and be torn to pieces. Forever is a very long time. Only with running there's still this very thin, very subtle hope to escape, so in a way this choice is unavoidable. Oh, right, Edwin actually has another possible escape - into madness can you tell I'm fond of loveraftian horror. Locking himself up in his own mind might help, although I'm not sure it would have been effective enough. And honestly I'm glad he wasn't this broken after all.

So yeah that was fun to realize :')

Also Edwin doesn't handle change well, as we know from Charles' words. How jarring (beside the obvious) was it to be tossed from one demon to another? I bet the "punishment" changed, too. It must have felt devastating to figure out the way of handling one and get more used to it, more mentally stable, however horrible it might be, - just to be thrown into a completely new situation.

Let's add insult to the injury, shall we? Look at the corridors Edwin was kept in. The greenish hue, the dim light that makes even the most spacious halls feel claustraphobic. It feels heavy, weights on your mind. There are no windows, no outside, forever. It's suffocating. This place is a pure torture on its own, even without demon doll head spiders.

All in all, I didn't like Edwin much when I first started watching, but after completing the series and rewatching on top of that, I admire him. To go through all these horrors and get out of them is worth that on its own. But Edwin retained his kindness, compassion, moral compass and a will to help others in need. He didn't grow callous, didn't lock himself away emotionally from the world fearing to be hurt again - at least not completely, not even close. I really didn't expect to come to respect and admire a teenage series character like that.

This show has a heart in it, it's living and beating and big and kind, and its characters reflect that in full.

[dirtytransmasc]

random avatar hc's cause I'm bored. (these fall closer to canon, and not for one of my au's, so like... vaguely 'normal' spider, not so nice neytiri, etc. unless specified otherwise)

spider and tuk are besties. the way she sorta hides behind spider when she blows a raspberry at lo'ak? she knows he'd take her side in a fight. spider will never tell her she's "too big" for anything, he literally works out partly because he wants to be able to carry her for as long as possible. he goes out of his way to play with her when her siblings ditch her. take whole days to just follow tuk around and do what she wants to do. she made him a songchord and goes to sit with eywa with him so he won't be alone. doesn't get why people don't like him, cause she thinks he's the best. so she tries to make him happy when they're together. pisses neytiri off, cause she always wants to spend time with spider, even when she tells tuk not to (it makes spider sweat bullets, cause tuk refuses to let go of his hand and neytiris just glaring at him, and he almost wants to beg her to let go)

ao'nung is also tuks best friend. they bully each other, but get offended if anyone insinuates they don't like each other. she's still mad at him for being mean when they first met, won't let him live it down, even years after the fact. braids his hair all. the. time, he can't get her to stop touching it.

even outside of my blessed spider au, spider has connected with eywa, cause she accepted him no matter what, he just doesn't tell anyone. she knows how to connect to humans now, via her roots, so she connects with the boy. he feels like if he points it out he'll get in trouble or he'll be 'using eywa' to get what he wants (which isn't true, but the boy has some irrational fears cause ✨trauma✨)

ao'nung and rotxo 'dated' as kids, like schoolyard crush type dating, cause they were really young. it lasted a few years (on and off) from like 6ish to 10/11, but to this day, they're still very close. like, its odd to find them not touching each other or cuddling or holding hands. they're inseparable and have no clue what personal space is, at all. they still say "I love you", kiss eachother's cheeks/foreheads, ao'nung is possessive, roxto is always talking about him. they're platonic they swear (not a soul believes them).

neteyam doesn't want to be chief, sometimes he hates being jakes son because of the weight on his shoulders, but he doesn't complain cause he doesn't want to be a disappointment, and he doesn't want to watch his siblings struggle to carry the weight themselves.

spider self soothes by brushing a thumb over his own cheek or running his fingers through his hair or holding his own hand. he's so insanely touch-starved its not even funny.

he's also a maladaptive daydreamer. I got no solid reason, it just feels right. gotta deal with his loneliness and metric ton of big feelings in one way or another.

he also feels the urge to talk to himself, a lot, especially when he's out alone in the woods. he just happens to think the ato'kirina are a coincidence (eywa listens to him attentively like a mother should).

spider tends to 'ignore' signs of eywa when it comes to himself, because he can't accept that eywa would ever wish to connect to or guide him. (its a running theme in my hc's)

after sorting out their drama, ao'nung is really close to lo'ak. after neteyam's death he sorta becomes his big brother. their dynamic is a mess, but they make it work. ao'nung is sorta like a punching bag for lo'ak a lot of the time (like hopper and mike in that one scene in season 2 of stranger things). ao'nung hates watching him mourn (he wishes he had died instead. for more then one reason, but that's a big one). other times they're super sweet on each other, play roughhousing, just hanging out, lightly teasing one another. they're my messy boys.

kiri refuses to pick between spider and rotxo. they don't mind. polycule for the win.

spider isn't immediately accepted by the metkayina, but he tries really really hard to prove himself, and does make some sort of name for himself. they may not all like him, but they respect him.

spider learned to treat bullet wounds after having to sit behind neteyam, staring at the bullet hole, and not knowing what to do. he blames himself for neteyams death, but he thinks that if he knew what to do, if hadn't frozen, if he'd known what to do, maybe he would have lived.

ao'nung has a disproportionate level of big brother instinct, relative to his general asshole personality. he's insanely protective of anything smaller them then him, even if he himself hates it. aka, even before he accepted spider into his friend group, or the village as a whole, he was instinctively protective, embarrassingly so. still kicks himself for getting lo'ak hurt (he meant to scare the piss out of him sure, but he never wanted him to get hurt) and he genuinely cringes, one of those full body shakes type cringes, when he thinks about it. he hates its.

spider doesn't know how to properly show affection after always being denied it, having to suppress it (not being able to affectionate with the other sully kids in front of the elders), etc. so now he sorta just struggles. the sully kids don't really notice how he hides his affections, how he's timid about it, what he considers to be affection. the metkayina kids are not used to it, they are genuinely concerned. spider is genuinely afraid to be nice to people when not in private. he's deathly afraid of receiving affection in front of others.

tsireya and ao'nung (sorta rotxo too, but he's dating him, so its kinda different) forcibly adopt him after a while, they can't help it. he's like a kicked puppy, its hard not to love him.

roxto's grandma (who raised him, canon, cause i said so) and all his brothers and sisters (he has a big family, mostly adopted siblings,) love spider, so he has a little makeshift family.

spider would, whether he was accepted as one or not, become a warrior after what happened that night in the forest (getting kidnapped) and what happened on the ship/to neteyam. he won't let himself be taken off guard again, he won't let the people he loves, even if they don't love him back, get hurt again. he vows his life to the na'vi, to pandora, to Eywa herself; he will die before he loses someone else.

spider and lo'ak orange cat energy, kiri and tuk have tortie energy (sassy queen), roxto is a tuxedo cat, ao'nung and neteyam are black cats, tsireya has tabby vibes (sweet but sassy). (fight with the wall)

[atiny-for-life]

Ateez's Full Storyline Explained - Part 23

Masterlist

Youth (A-World)

I'm a bit reluctant to talk about this one since it's clearly a very personal song for both Yunho and Mingi so I will, once again, stick strictly to the visual parts of the MV and steer clear of the lyrics

We open on Yunho and Mingi running along a dirt path between two open fields toward a small wooden cabin, its windows lit up

Given the protagonists in the other two unit MVs prior to this one, we can already assume that these two are from the Halazia World as well so we won't be able to rely on any diary entries or other past knowledge outside that one MV and its associated promo-material and worldbuilding

They reach the building and Mingi peeks through one of the dusty windows and we get to look at a scene from his past

His past self, scratched up cheek and blood around the corner of his mouth, is sitting across a masked man in the shabby interior of the cabin

Speculating on the identity of the man is not yet needed as we'll get more hints toward his identity in a second; however, it is noteworthy that a gramophone can be seen on the chest of drawers - it seems music was not yet outlawed when this took place

We move on to Yunho who's also looking through another window into his past which consists of a garage-like room filled with instruments, tools, a beat-up looking car and sound-muffling rugs, boxed in by walls covered in graffiti

Since I assume they didn't have timelord-technology when they built this cabin, we can gather that they're not actually looking into these rooms but are rather thinking back to their lives in the other world - the cabin is simply a symbol of their past

It's likely, though, that it's located in the same place as their hideout back in their world since they specifically sought it out

We return to Mingi who's now being confronted by multiple masked men in a rather run-down looking police interrogation room

It could be that these guys are working directly under Henry Jo - elites, maybe, or a human version of the Android Guardians from Z-World

Either way, we can conclude that Mingi, and potentially other Black Pirates, were involved in some kind of scuffle during which Mingi was injured and arrested

They're likely now trying to get him to rat out the rest of the Black Pirates or maybe they're just pissed at his attitude or behavior

Either way, Mingi visibly doesn't back down - instead, he snaps back before putting in his earbuds and looking away (behavior that is reminiscent of Mingi in the A-World, specifically in the Diary Film)

After this, we cut to shots of current-day Yungi performing in an abandoned parking-garage-like building, followed by a more artistic shot

We see a row of full-body mirrors showing Mingi in a suit and glasses - all polished and business, alongside a more translucent version of Yunho in a similar get-up

Is this what they were pressured to look like? Is it what society expected of them, what they were forced to conform to? It's likely.

Much like in IT's You, albeit more violently and blatantly, the screen shatters as he punches one of the mirrors to signify his breaking point as he recalls past trauma

In their business suits and among the shards, they both dance with a row of Black Pirates between them before they break formation and spread out more freely to continue their performance

We get some pretty shots of Yungi on the roof of the cabin and with a nearby parked truck before we return to Yungi in his past

He's standing by the beat-up looking car and it looks... truly wrecked, potentially burnt and with a smashed in driver's side window

Did his older brother die too, like A-World Yunho's? If so, is this some Across the Spider-Verse type thing where certain fixed events cannot be avoided?

It's definitely a possibility, given the emotional outburst during which Yunho grabs an electric guitar and proceeds to bash it into the car's windshield

The trauma-related anger aligns with Seonghwa and Hongjoong's in Matz - but who can blame them?

And like Hongjoong and Seonghwa, he also has a tendency for expressing his trauma further by committing arson

As we see him perform near the car wreck, the flames are already licking away behind the glass panes in the background

Clearly, Mingi had the same idea as we see him stand in front of the now burning cabin before Yunho steps up beside him

While Mingi seems transfixed by the flames, Yunho looks over to check on him

Mingi meets his eyes a moment later before we cut back to their performance in suits which transitions to the same choreo performed in front of the burning cabin

A few more flashes of their past and them running on the dirt path before we end with the title card as they stand there, side-by-side, while the symbol of their trauma burns to the ground

[moralesmilesanhour]

I'd love to hear what fundamental issues you have with spiderverse... 🎤

Hm I'm just gonna rattle off a few from most to least important before I forget (note: some of my issues with spiderverse are less about the concepts or characters themselves but more about how the writers or producers chose to handle them, or even just exploring the possibilities of what could've been. I still think it's a really excellent movie and complex story.)

If you're someone that skims through longer paragraphs a lot, I've also put my most important points in italics so that you get the gist of what I'm saying :)

Making Miles' story about everyone else but Miles. I understand that Miles' whole thing in Spiderverse is that by defying the odds, he inspires the people around him. But there's a certain point where the story become *about that* and the other characters more than him and his interiority. In its efforts to focus on his growing into the mantle of Spider-Man, the films only kind of allude to the fact that he has a life outside of the mask. His mental health and relationship to his community are pushed to the wayside so much that even Ganke is only on-screen for a few minutes at most.

(This is a long one sorry) Spiderverse as a movie doesn't seem to know for sure whether it likes cops or not. It presents the literal police and policing as a concept as something that is inherently neutral, likening it to the mantle of Spider-Man where they simply have power that they have to use responsibly, and that there are just "bad apples". But the way that Spider-Society operates quite closely parallels how policing and criminality work: you have a bunch of spiders go out and detain people and send them where they're "supposed to be" under the guise that a) the order of things will essentially fall apart if you don't, and b) there is a specific way that your story is supposed to go, and you should be willing to sacrifice lives to maintain that status quo. There's also the categorization of those who break those rules as an Other (anomalies), and the fact that Spider Society reacts to the presence of the anomalies instead of addressing the thing that created them (the collider. HELLOOOO). With all that being said, Miguel and the rest of Spider Society are clearly framed as anatgonistic forces by the film and even has a punk anarchist character calling them out and being right about it. The movies simultaneously critique policing metaphorically through Spider Society while trying to justify it in the real world.

Girl where is Pavitr. His character is literally perfect for Miles to interact with, but we don't see him again until the very last scene. Same thing with...literally everyone we just met. The movie is over two hours long, where did all that time go--OH WAIT

Gwen and the scene with her dad take up wayyyy too much of the movie's runtime, I'm sorry. We spent the entirety of the beginning of the film learning information about Gwen and her dad that could've been quickly conveyed in much less time. Not to mention that, apparently, Mr. Stacy literally gets fired in the comics for letting Gwen go, so that whole plotline didn't even need to happen. Why change that? To say he's a 'good cop' that does his job? The trauma of losing Peter would've been present in her story either way.

The art style. No, this doesn't mean what you think it does. I do not have an issue with the 3D and 2D hybrid style of animation obviously. Spiderverse has literally revolutionized the field, but there are some limitations to it that were made especially clear once TMNT:MM came out. You may or may not have noticed, but isn't almost everyone in Spiderverse...kinda gorgeous? Hear me out here. Someone has pointed this out before me, and it really changed the way that I look at aesthetics in animation. In Spiderverse, everything from the environments to the way that things are shaded and colored is extremely stylized and pushed quite far...until you get to the main characters. Yes, there is diversity in features the likes of which we haven't seen 'till recently, but I'm purely talking about the style in which they're drawn. Compared to everything else, they look closer to something Disney or Pixar might produce. This is not inherently problematic or "bad", but I do wonder how much cooler and cutting-edge and comic-y we could get if it wasn't so pre-occupied with beauty. You can disregard this one, it's just a thought. Apparently the idea that not every cartoon character you see on the big screen has to be hot makes people very angry.

I think those are all the big ones. I'll reblog with new additions if for some reason I come up with new things to complain about lmao

[pics-pizza-peace]

My Saw MLP AU Ship Headcanons

This post includes chainshipping, xrayshipping, and rustynailshipping headcanons/drabbles from my MLP AU(so far). I will be posting about the orhers soon as well.

@j1gsawz

Lawrence Gordon & Adam Stanheight(chainshipping):

Neither of them prefer to call each other by their first/full names after the bathroom trap(go figure), so they call each other by Stan(or Stanley) & Law.

Law idly wondering what Stan's wings smell like, before quickly shaking his head and thinking "who said that?? wtf--" while he's trying to focus on something else.

Stan thinking about the rumor he had heard when he was younger; that unicorn's horns are extra sensitive. He wouldn't know for sure, never having any real friends who happened to be unicorns.

Law recognizing & eventually accepting that he really does like Stan in a lot of ways, but also that the other might not necessarily like him Back in the same ways. They end up mostly just good friends/coworkers as Jigsaw Protégés.

Law can tell(one of his special/magic-sourced talents) when somepony else's feelings are true/false, but he would never use said 'trick' on his loved ones(Only occasionally w/patients, & only if it's a supply/demand/emergency situation. For personal reasons he doesn't feel it's right to use such a power on his family/friends, believes it's inherently selfish/wrong). He also has trouble finding out(and expressing) what his own true feelings often are, which makes this talent ironic for him in this AU.

Logan Nelson & Zep Hindle(xrayshipping):

Logan likes to study unconventional pets(not exotic, just strange choices), especially arachnids. He doesn't have the time to actually work with said animals(already has a time-consuming job), instead treats the study like a hobby/special interest. He doesn't like when other ponies freak out over a spider/snake/bug, and he's almost always the one to offer to take it outside.

Zep wants to do better(this shows in how far he's come from his personal experiences anyway, but for arc reasons he's still working through some other stuff), and be better to others. Especially fillies & foals! He never had a problem(or ultimately harmful intentions) w/young'ns, just an unhealthy infatuation w/fear which he experimented with in the past(never make it personal((unless necessary or untraceable)), one of John's basic rules when working w/him, as Logan already knows). This is apparent when they've both grown close enough for Logan to suggest Zep join him & his daughter for a tea party(or something similar) sometime. Needless to say he's overjoyed at the idea of proving(to himself, mostly) that he's changed for the better. The playdate goes swimmingly, and later they wonder what they were so worried about.

Logan enjoys meditating(or napping, especially near water) when he has the time to unwind. Zep doesn't get it at first, but it grows on him.

Zep at some point wonders aloud if the other might need his help w/anything trap-related, and Logan immediately assures him that he'd never let him get mixed up in such a job again. Even if Zep happened to feel up to the task, or really didn't mind. Logan knows that he'd help if push came to shove & there really were no other options, but he doesn't feel right putting his new friend in any potential danger.

Logan notices that Zep's wings are almost always unkempt/shedding frequently. The other eventually explains that he spends so much time locking his house up at night, that he's too tired to preen them before going to sleep. This routine doesn't help much with his sleep anyway, as he has frequent nightmares. When they've grown closer both problems are fixed rather quickly, needless to say. (Logan's not a pegasus but he knows the basics on their hygiene/care, being in the medical field and all. Zep hasn't had any pegasus friends in years. That mixed with his trauma had caused him to ignore his wings, and largely not use them at all over time)

Zep is fine with being closer friends w/Logan, until he realizes just how much he enjoys hearing his voice. He figures it's just a 'Him' thing, so he doesn't address it for a while. Logan finally notices how flustered he gets after a lengthy talk with him at some point. Zep tries to distract himself with work/study while he speaks sometimes, but eventually Logan insists on addressing it.

Scott Tibbs & Adam Stanheight(rustynailshipping):

Adam(while recovering & training under John & Amanda) hears about Scott's documentary from others, and it takes him a while to find a watchable copy. When he finally views the film, he's not too upset by it. He wonders how Scott's doing, that is, if he survived his little display of course.

Scott's still alive, he just has a big scar/dip on his right shoulder & isn't as strong a flyer aymore. He's also not as cocky/loud-mouthed as he was before the incident. Doesn't mind not being in a band anymore, and still enjoys music enough to consider trying something in a different direction. He knows that he messed up, and eventually wants to do better, he's just not so sure where to start with making real friends yet.

Adam soon decides(when he has time between errands/training) that he should pay Scott a little visit. He runs the idea by Amanda first, of course. The Protégés do value their privacy, after all...

It's autumn(first week of October) when Adam finds Scott working at a Halloween store, which makes for a great excuse to spook him a little at first.

He stays in the entrance near the counter, pretending to check the prices of silly-string & bags of synthetic webbing for a beat or two before raising his voice slightly. "Who's the 'Wuss-Puss' Now, buddy?" He laughs in his direction, checking to see if he had heard him, and notices the look on Scott's face. Like he'd seen a ghost. "Hey, uh sorry-- I'm just kidding, man... You okay?" The question makes his stomach turn. He tries a half-smile, but he already looks like he's gonna puke or scream. He's not entirely sure he should be glad to see Adam.

"I'm on break soon, we can talk then if you want... Anyway you need something?" He gestures to the masks & prop weapons on the wall behind him as he hands somepony else their change & thanks them. "Not really..." Adam mumbles before deciding to check out the costume makeup section of the store to kill some time.

A foal had just come in w/his mother, stumped on exactly which outfit he wanted this year. He hadn't thrown a fit, and he was very focused on choosing correctly for a good while. Finally the small colt had decided on a well-made dragon costume, but didn't know exactly which props would go best with the outfit.

Scott had made sure to dig around in the back for some yellow & orange streamers(for fire-breathing), and a princess pony doll(damsel in distress). His mother was very grateful, "Now you'll be ready if a Brave Knight shows up to the costume party!" she added cheerfully on their way out.

Adam watched carefully while Scott locked the register & counter, pocketing his keys and cigs. He brushed past the other dismissively. "Wanna smoke? I got a minute..." He pauses at the door for his old friend before stepping outside himself.

[namusthetic]

Marauders' Era

The Slytherin Skittles

From the Marauders' Era fandom. Decided to lounge about in the Slytherin common room? Join the Skittles for a late night Slytherin chat.

Regulus A. Black

"From far away I wish I'd stayed with you, but here face to face, a stranger that I once knew.

I thought if I wandered I'd fall back in love. You said distance brings fondness, but guess not with us."

- Astronomy, Conan Gray

Doesn't ask for help

Overachiever

Covers his deep insecurities with a god-complex

Abandonment and trust issues

Suffers panic and anxiety attacks, the others know exactly what to do when it happens and huddle around him, holding hands and grounding him, until he starts breathing normally again and stops shaking

Protective of his chosen family

Instead of fighting to keep people in his life, he lets them go because in the end he thinks he's never enough to stay for

Hates loud noises and making noise when moving or walking

Deeply misunderstood

Tries to remain detached and cold as much as possible because knows he'd end up caring too deeply

Self-isolates when he doesn't know how to deal with his feelings, luckily, whenever that happens, the others storm his usual hiding spots and force him to go outside and enjoy himself

Escapes from his own thoughts by reading or listening to music compulsively

Barty Crouch Jr.

"I used to like liquor to get me inspired but you look so beautiful, my new supplier. I used to like smoking to stop all the thinking, but I found a different buzz.

The world is a curse, it'll kill if you let it I know they got pills that can help you forget it, they bottle it, call it medicine, but I don't need drugs. 'Cause I'm already high enough, you got me, you got me good."

- High Enough by K. Flay

covers his need for attention and approval with loudness and chaos

Fear of missing out

Afraid that people will forget about him and leave him behind

Avoids talking and thinking about his own feelings

Cannot control his emotions when overwhelmed

Hides it when deeply hurt

Clingy drunk, cries if left by himself

Has a soft spot for pets, especially dogs (once he even accidentally cuddled Padfoot without knowing it was actually Sirius)

Hopeless romantic when in a serious relationship

Incredibly intelligent, he just doesn't want to please his father in any way so he acts out

Jokes about his trauma in public, but ends up sleeping in Evan's bed whenever he has nightmares

ADHD kid

Makes dirty jokes all the time but is afraid of having a stable relationship and not being enough for his partner

Evan Rosier

"And hey, you, don't you think it's kinda cute that I (I) died (died) right inside your arms tonight? That I'm fine even after I have died? Because it was in your arms I died.

I cry in the afterlife, I cry hard because I have died, and you're alive. I try to escape afterlife, I try hard to get back inside your arms alive."

- Arms Tonite by Mother Mother

Calm and collected most of the time

Silent anger

Insomniac, spends the nights reading and listening to chill music

Deadly afraid of spiders, always asks Pandora to take them outside

Energy drinks and caffeine

If looks could kill

Tries to keep everyone from getting in trouble together with Dorcas

Doesn't pay attention in class but gets good grades anyway

Grew up too quickly

Joins Barty and Dorcas whenever they are tipsy and start a singing contest

Likes nights out with friends, randomly walking with no precise destination, a few drinks in hand and the warmth of chosen family around him

The observant, silent one

Always carries small perfume vials since he can't stand smells (sweat, cigarette smoke, etc.)

Pandora Rosier

"You don't have to be like everybody else, you don't have to fit into the norm, you are not here to conform. I am here to take a look inside myself, recognize that I could be the eye, the eye of the storm.

I am not my body, not my mind or my brain (ha), not my thoughts or feelings, I am not my DNA. I am the observer, I'm a witness of life, I live in the space between the stars and the sky."

- Ancient Dreams in a Modern Land by MARINA

Already figured who was going to end up in a relationship with whom years before it happened

Has a private gardening spot where she grows their own plants (especially herbs)

Follows the lunar calendar instead of the solar one, they all celebrate both new years with big parties

Wears long airy dresses with flower patterns and a dozen crystal necklaces and rings

Talks enthusiastically about everything she's passionate about with no restraints (and everyone loves listening to her talk)

Knows weird knowledge nobody knows from where

Walks Hogwarts' halls singing and with a spring in her step

Spends afternoons in the forest sketching fantastic beasts and feeding them treats

Loves making flower crowns, Regulus wears them whenever she makes one for him and hexes anyone who dares say something about it

Always has paint on her hands or face

Dorcas Meadowes

"Say my name, as every colour illuminates. We are shining, and we will never be afraid again.

And when we come for you, we'll be dressed up all in blue, with the ocean in our arms, kiss your eyes and kiss your palms.

And when it's time to pray, we'll be dressed up all in grey, with metal on our tongues, and silver in our lungs."

- Spectrum (Say My Name) by Florence and The Machine

Hates small talk and superficial friendships

Direct, immediately cuts straight to the point

Politically active against all kinds of discrimination and violence

Strong and determined to achieve what she wants

Ready to argue with anyone, anytime, anywhere

Knows exactly what she wants

Stays up late to read and listen to music in the common room

Has everything planned out

Neon lights and cocktails, loud music and cherry flavored lip balm

Travels a lot but is ready to return home immediately if one of her close friends needs her help

Elegant style, always impeccably dressed

Storms out of the dorm and takes a long walk whenever she feels she can't control her anger

Loves to listen to true crime podcasts

------------------------💚🐍

So I love the Marauders' gang, but (I don't know if you guessed it) I really have a soft spot for the Skittles. To me they feel like the ones who never really even had a chance to be saved, who were left to fend for themselves and to die just because of their families and house. They were damaged as much as the others but found no one to help them but each other.

[y2kbugs-moved]

I'm going to debunk some Miguel misconceptions from movie-only fans, ok. I'm going to try my best to not sound like a dick, which is hard because it's early morning here and I really do want to clear things up.

Spoilers, obviously.

This is going to be very long (because I love to over-explain things), and I do want people to read all of this. I even highlighted important points in bold.

(Fanon portrayal is a whole other can of worms and I could make a post about that too, but I'm just going to stick with the biggest issues right now.)

Miguel is the villain!

The confusion of villain vs antagonist is a common one.

I'm going to use this site for definitions, but basically:

"In literature and film, an antagonist is a character or force that actively works against the protagonist or main character. Think of them as a roadblock with a clear purpose and well-defined reasons for their choices and actions."

"A villain is an amoral or evil character with little to no regard for the general welfare of others. They are driven by ambition, greed, lust, or a desire for power or revenge"

Indeed, a story can have both! A villain could also be the (major) antagonist, but not all antagonists are villainous. The site I linked actually lists some great examples from movies and I recommend looking through them! They're very clear.

A story can also have multiple antagonists and villains but it does take a bit to really pull it off. I'll make this brief and just speak my interpretation: The movie has two antagonists, but only one villain.

The Spot is both a villain (has evil motives, no regard for the welfare of others, driven by revenge) and an antagonist (a force directly opposing our protagonist, Miles Morales). He is actively trying to destroy the multiverse, and targets Miles specifically out of disproportionate revenge including wanting to kill his father, Jeff. Yes, he's goofy and incompetent at the start and has a inferiority complex, but he's still villainous. All of his actions are motivated by revenge, destruction, and perhaps pride.

Miguel/Spider-Man 2099 is an antagonist (Opposing force/obstacle to the protagonist), but, while having a few traits, ultimately not a villain (has ultimately good reasons and is driven by what he believes is right, even if his actions betray these).

Miguel is driven by trauma and an unflinching sense of order, and indeed he brings these beliefs to their extreme, resulting in his violent behavior in the latter part of the movie. He's trying to stop the Spot just as much as Miles is. He does not want to destroy the multiverse, he wants to keep it in check even if his theories about canon are ultimately wrong. The only non-supervillain person we see him be really violent to is Miles. He is described, both by Gwen and Peter B, as "a good leader/listener" and "just looks scary", and going by PB's reaction to how violent Miguel becomes, this isn't a normal occurence for him. He doesn't usually act like this. That's what pushes him to be like a villain, even if his motivations are good.

This isn't any defense of Miguel's actions in the movie, but to explain that what we are seeing here is a person who is ultimately a hero/"good guy" changed by trauma and refusing to compromise, therefore resulting in behavior that feels villainous to outsiders.

The third movie is yet to be released, but I have belief that Miguel will get some form of redemption but remain mostly an anti-hero and foil to Miles, while The Spot will always be the central villain.

And check out this Twitter thread on what Miguel is really like as a person. Images here:

2. Miguel is a vampire!

I'm not sure why people are so adamant about this one. I guess it's because vampires are hot, and he has fangs, but this is the most easily debunked one of all of these. Especially when you keep in mind that the only person describing him as being like a vampire is a teenager who just met him. I don't mind if you want to make Miguel a vampire in an alternate universe of your choosing, but to act like he is one in the main canon (ironic) is ignorant.

While the movie takes liberties and changes a few things from a Spider-person's origins, the core is generally the same. I see no reason at all for the writers to completely change Miguel's origin to make him a vampire. Not only is this just lazy, but it is also in my opinion disrespectful to the original writers who came up with his origin story.

I implore people to read the 1992 Spider-Man 2099 comic, it is really very good (but does have a few racial stereotypes early on unfortuunately), but for a brief rundown, Marvel Future Fight has a good summary of his story:

(Text: Miguel O'Hara is an engineer who worked for Alchemax in the year 2099. He was a genius in the field of genetics, but was reluctant when pressured by his higher-ups to imprint foreign genetic codes onto human physiology. After a test resulting in the hideous transformation and then death of the test subject, O'Hara attempted to resign from his position. However, he had a drink laced with a drug that bonds to the victim's DNA. To counteract the drug, he used a procedure to save himself, splicing his DNA with that of a spider, granting him enhanced senses and abilities.)

It does leave out what exactly the spider DNA gave him (and the fact that the genetic experiment was sabotaged by his boss) but it's a good summary that does not mention anything about vampires.

He has fangs which he can use to envenomate a person to paralyze them temporarily, and sharp talons under his fingernails (not part of or on top of) that can rend through metal and he uses to climb the walls instead of having sticky fingers.

All of the above points to being half-Spider DNA, nothing like a vampire.

3. Miguel is the Prowler/an Inheritor/Morlun!

I'm shocked some movie fans recognize these characters given their general ignorance of the comics, but...no.

I'm seeing something about Miguel and Prowler's musical cues having a similarity, while I can't check for myself, this is just something that occurs in media and narratives, and I would not be surprised that the music artists might reuse motifs just as animators reuse models, simply for convenience and time reasons.

Also, their masks look nothing alike.

If you've read through the whole post as I hoped, congratulations! Please go read the comics, there's a good reading guide here and a video overview of Miguel's origins here. You can easily read the comics online by just googling "Spider-Man 2099 1992 comic online" as a start.

[drifting-pieces-blog-blog]

Besides Werewolf by Night and the characters presented in the show, who else would you be interested in seeing MK system meet up with? Any other MCU characters?

Boy Howdy.

So…. Of course I want him to meet up with Jack Russel. They could be BFF.

Who do I want the MK system to meet up with otherwise?

If we're talking already established MCU characters:

Dare Devil - They have such a complicated relationship. And there's so much room for shenanigans and silly situations. Angsty Catholic Boy meets Angsty Jewish boy is always an A+++ in my book.

Not to mention Highly Observant Steven catching on right away that the blind man has more going on than it seems.

FRANK CASTLE - Oh man. Jon Bernthal and Oscar Isaac on the same screen? I don't think I'd survive. Marc and Frank talking war crimes shop? Family trauma? Vengeance???

Not to mention the whole issue with Khonshu in the comics being jealous of Frank and trying to get Marc to be more like Frank.

Circling around to bigger MCU lines….

See, I want Mk to interact with Spider-Man, but not Tom Holland Spider-Man.

MK and Spider-Man have always had a nice relationship, but it's an older Spider-Man, not a little wide eyed naive kid Spider-Man. He needs to be snappy and witty and on his game Spider-Man. Like almost Andrew Garfield Spider-Man but not quite. He has to fill in the silence from the non-communicative Moon Knight side of things.

DeadPool. Almost. That's a rough one because Moon Knight at full angry vengeance mode plays so well with Deadpool. But that's more comics MK and not quiet MCU MK if that makes sense? (Though Steven might hold up with his snark).

The Hulk has potential. But I also don't see any of them getting along with Bruce well enough.

Bro-Thor might be a wholesome interaction. I could see emotional kind Thor making friends with Steven easily. Not to mention Steven could geek out about mythology to him.

I don't think Ironman would work well. Honestly, Moon Knight and Ironman have never gone well together in my books.

Captain America in THEORY has always been a nice one for quick interactions. (Steven Grant may or maynot be a fictive of Steven Grant Rogers, but that's a differnet story from the comics), but Captain America and Marc have never gotten along at all.

It's hard to imagine Marc (marc in particular) mingling with the other MCU characters because they have all been done as quick witted chatty guys with egos and Marc in MCU is so socially awkward.

Put him and Bucky in a room and you just got two silent broody men standing on opposite sides of the room with Bucky staring intently and Marc not picking up social cues and doing his best to maintain eye contact till one of them breaks. You would need Steven or another outside force to bridge the gap and try to connect, but then you have Marc being overly protective of Steven and fighting his overall impulse to not let anyone know about his mental health issues and forcing front to keep Steven out of it.

But this takes me back around to characters that are already soft, quiet, friendly, and who also suffer from misunderstandings and issues: Jack Russel. The ultimate friend and buddy to MK system. With his sweet smile and desire to please and make people happy. He'd be soft with Steven, chatty for Marc (to cover so Marc doesn't have to talk), and a great Spanish drinking pal with Jake.

And Ted. I think Ted would love Steven.

Elsa Bloodstone? She's already met one man with a dual side and complicated story. She'd take one look at Marc and heavily sigh and accept that she seems to just attract problems.

NOW: Who do I want to see them interact with that are NOT already in the MCU?

Task Master. Hear me out - He's a villain that can make the rounds in ALL MCU shows/movies. He has a photographic memory and can instantly learn and mimic any fighting style. And in the comics, he loathes the day that he learned Moon Knight's style and wishes he could forget it.

The Sentry. If they could introduce the Sentry and get him RIGHT I'd be so happy. He is the direct opposite of Moon Knight on so many levels.

I'm trying not to ramble here because I could go on and on about why I think some characters would and would not team up well with MCU MK....

But let me pose this to you, which was not part of your original question:

WHAT ABOUT LAYLA?

Can you imagine protective Layla with MK meeting up with the MCU cast? I want to see her character evolve and I imagine she's latched onto Steven and taken up Marc's position of "This delightful piece of marshmallow fluff must be protected at all cost".

I think if anyone tried to give them trouble or pointed out the issue of Marc and Steven switching in front of them she'd be in their face so fast.

"What's that? You can't trust him because he's too unpredictable? How about I unpredictable your face?" That girl is a spit fire.

But I think she and Elsa would get along well.

Anyways, I have a wish list but I also have anxieties depending on the writer. Historically Moon Knight has not done well in groups and tends to get labeled "that schitzo lunatic" that just stands in the background a lot. Which would be a shame to do to Oscar Isaac and doubtful that they would be able to do to him. But so many MCU characters have been written With intense egos...

Who do you want to see them interact with? Anyone I forgot? Anyone that you think would actually be able to make friends with them?

[danwhobrowses]

Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse - Quickfire Review

So I am out of the cinema, and I have thoughts

We've finally reached the sequel to the epic Spider-verse movie, which in itself rewrote the rules on animation while being able to juggle a large cast outside of the Marvel machine.

So let me tell you my experience with the movie

Spoilers for the movie, you've been warned

Okay, this was a lot

It was really good, but it was a lot

I really don't want to speak badly about this movie because it is not at all bad, it's a visual spectacle with many twists and great characters. But I think the plot lost me. The main reason I think it lost me was the crux of 'Canon Events', which I will get more into, but given that last movie was about anyone being a Spider it was irksome that the story is also 'yes but you also have to have the exact same experiences which strips your story of agency'. I also think that the retcon that Peter A would've survived is wrong, and if all Spiders are meant to have the same chain of happening then why is Miles, the anomaly, subject to that rule in a universe where that chain has already happened? Also if he's an anomaly why didn't the universe disappear after a year of him and the Spider from Earth-42 being in this world? In a way it does threaten to lose the heart of what made the first movie so good too.

I also feel like it was two or three movies stitched together, Gwen's story was great, albeit with so much angst, Miles' story in his universe barely got going and Miles vs Spider Society was the main part of the narrative, and while it was woven together well I think the magnitude of it all took me out of it a bit, a lot of the times I felt like it was gonna end and then it went on for another 10-30 minutes, and it is a bad sign when you can feel the length of a movie. Honestly we could've easily gotten away with a Spider-Gwen movie of her own, let it cliffhanger with the cold open we got then have the final interaction with her dad and the infinite amount of colour palettes in this movie with just the Miles stuff going on.

My main character critique is probably the sourness that they did EXACTLY what I feared they would do to Miguel O'Hara. Spider-Man 2099 is my favourite Spider-Man but they really did decuple down on the edginess over the basis of his suit and powers. I mean sure, he has trauma that has killed off the last of his lighthearted value we saw in last-movie's post-credits scene, but most Spiders have trauma, and he did essentially steal another man's life for his own. I think the fact that he puts a ton of pressure on himself to uphold other timelines didn't quite come across so well, because they needed him to take over as the primary antagonist and 'the guy who tells Miles the stuff his mother warns him people may say to him'. Also, Miguel is different from most spiders because he doesn't have his Uncle Ben moment, he was a dick who caught conscience and Alchemax tried to silence him and accidentally gave him spider powers, so that also hinders the 'Canon Events' plot of Uncle Ben and Captain Stacy moments happening. Jessica Drew I struggled to get around to, loved her at the start but then she just started being cold, same can be said for Miles' parents towards Gwen, they picked one thing she couldn't have known they'd dislike and that was their tone towards her for most of their interactions after.

B U T !

Do I intend to watch Beyond the Spider-Verse? Yes! Absolutely.

Because even with the narrative flaws and the irksome nature that some characters are just being cold for little reason and that one of your favourite comics Spider-Man is not represented the same way, there is an extremely good movie in here. The art was amazing, in between all universes, the music was AMAZING, like Gwen vs Vulture just had an amazing soundtrack on its own. And gods all the Easter eggs; game and live action continuity weaved in, Ben Reilly, Unlimited Spidey, Julia Carpenter, adult MayDay Spider, Venom movie shop, even Prowler Donald Glover! There is so much to enjoy and the more you know about the several iterations and media of Spider-Man the more you find to enjoy.

But Hobie (Spider-Punk) stole the fucking show, everything he did was gold, Pavitr was fun but we needed more of him same with Spiderbyte and really Peter B and Miguel, Spot was hilarious too and then terrifying-looking when he reached his full potential, also Penny has an EVA now. The Spiders chase was well done with its clever quips and dynamic use of other spiders, the cold open was also inventive with Renaissance-verse Vulture. And then of course we got a very gripping cliffhanger, I like the squad we have for Gwen to rescue Miles and I can only beg that Lord and Miller manage to tone down and bring Miguel around in a satisfying manner without having to compromise the integrity and heart of the plot as Miles seeks a way to save his father without erasing his universe.

If anything this movie will keep you on your toes, it is stylistic beyond anything you might have seen before, but it can easily get overwhelming. I personally enjoyed as much as Guardians 3, maybe more by a slight margin (the highs are higher but the qualms are greater so hard to tell), but I also feel like it's not better than the first plot-wise just because of that feeling of being overwhelmed. It is worth a watch though for sure.

[crossroadsghost]

fargo s5 details i have noticed on rewatch:

-munch's differences in body language/behavior/violence around men vs around women is so pronounced and tangible when you pay attention. even when he's supposed to be helping abduct dot, he hands the hammer off to donald instead of wielding it himself, and the only time in the rest of those scenes he ever touches her is when she's at the bottom of the stairs and he goes to pick her up. he kills the guard outside roy's house, but doesn't lay a finger on karen or the twins when he goes into their room. i can't actually think of any time he's violent towards women.

-munch's blood type is mentioned to be O negative, which is universal donor. fitting for a sin eater to have blood that can be exchanged to save anyone.

-sam spruell has such long eyelashes

-at the scene where ole munch is waiting at the gas station to kill gator's partner, the final lyrics of "this is halloween" to play are "i am the one hiding under your bed, teeth ground sharp and eyes glowing red/i am the one hiding under your stairs, fingers like snakes and spiders in my hair." given the visual emphasis on ole's teeth and hands, i assume it's meant to be a comparison to him

-one of the street signs dot rearranges is named nylund circle. rose nylund from the golden girls is supposed to be from minnesota. whether it was intentional or not, it made me giggle.

-subtitles say ole munch's original name was bryn.

-the symbol on ole munch's chest during his ritual looks like the Peorð/ᛈ symbol from the elder futhark, a rune that has unknown meaning. the rest of the symbols shown are invented, so this could be a coincidence.

-"ring the door bell pretending to be trick or treaters and grab whoever answers" is literally how they catch santa in the nightmare before christmas movie. i'm still not sure what they were driving at with so many TNBC references in this season.

-there's gotta be a reason danish has one eye and lorraine's husband is named wink, but i don't know what that reason is.

-crack theory time: danish is wayne's real father. wink is so busy drinking and playing with models he would never notice. danish refers to wayne as slugger, and wayne refers to scotty as slugger, which implies something. it would also explain some of danish's emotional investment in the family and willingness to try to save dot with or without permission from lorraine--it's not only lorraine's feelings he cares about. and it's only after lorraine finds out that danish disappeared on the ranch that she decides to go full tilt against roy--she wasn't willing to go that far for dot, but she is for danish? maybe this isn't a crack theory at all actually.

-donald trump in the chat on roy's livestream lmao

-it feels like the dugout is meant to be a metaphor for . . . violence? trauma? manhood, patriarchy? okay i'm not exactly sure, but it's where munch performs the ritual, where witt dies, where gator has to pass through to get home and injures himself as he goes, it's where roy escapes to and says, "my destiny is at the other end of that tunnel." there's some significance to it.

-i don't adhere to the theory that the ending is a dream/delusion/afterlife/whatever, but if it is, i think it starts in the moment when the fbi rolls up on dot as she's about to kill roy, not in the backseat of the fbi vehicle. IF i supported this theory i would say they shot dot and killed her because she was holding the gun, and everything after is unreal. but i don't really support that theory to begin with, so eh.

-lorraine occupies the same metaphorical-and-literal narrative space as munch, of being a device of debts paid and owed, of use and abuse through the concept of debt, but she exists at the other end of the scale. she represents the eternal "ruling class" in both a literal and metaphorical sense, just as munch represents an eternal "oppressed class" in both a literal and metaphorical sense; he is forced to take on the debts of others because he's powerless, lorraine claims the debts of others to be empowered by them. i don't think we're meant to see her as a redeemed girlboss; she's supposed to be an implacable force of nature, and sometimes awful people like roy get swept up in that tide too, but that doesn't mean she's on anyone's side but her own. it's just that now she sees dot as "belonging" to her, and she protects what belongs to her.

-when they're praying at the dinner table and the prayer ends munch does not let go of dot's hand; she has to pull her hand away from his. thisisfine.jpg

-a charting of ole munch's life: we know he was born in wales, but uses a scandinavian name and mentions crossing the sea in longboats. vikings did know how to travel by water from scandinavia to greenland to canada, but they had basically stopped doing this completely by the 1500s; idk if we're meant to believe ole hitched a ride on an ill fated expedition or what, but technically they did know how to get there, they just had given up on attempting to colonize it, so the timeline is a little wonky there. regardless of that, the indigenous groups he mentions are the cree, arapaho and tonkawa, which were primarily in canada, colorado, and oklahoma, respectively. judging by this, he left wales and traveled north to adopt a new identity in scandinavia (sin eaters were treated as pariahs in their communities, so that's presumably why he left), then at some point sailed across to canada, then traveled west across canada, then south through colorado, then on to oklahoma. the tonkawa were forced south into texas in the 1700s, but then were relocated back to oklahoma later; during the civil war they were heavily massacred, so it could be that is what he's referring to when he talks about "the cannons and the muskets," but the timeline on when he actually lived with them is wobbly too. it's all kinda vague and the timeline is a little weird but not unfeasible.

-all throughout the final scenes, ole refuses to eat or drink anything the lyons give him- he doesn't actually drink either the orange soda or the beer wayne gives him, and when he's describing the "sins of the rich," he pushes his untouched plate of chili away without tasting it. like maybe he's convinced this is all a big trick; that the last time people brought him into their home and gave him a plate of food, it condemned him. ergo, the biscuit is more than just a gesture of forgiveness from dot; for him, taking a bite was also a gesture of trust in her. ow oof my heart.

[thefirstknife]

I've noticed some comments in regards to Eido calling Drifter "Germaine" this week during their lovely conversation (seriously check it out, it's incredibly good, but also spoilers if you haven't done this week's story yet).

"Germaine" isn't a big reveal of Drifter's real name. Drifter never had a "real" name, or at least never picked one that lasted. Germaine was one of the first he picked (first one we have documented at least) while he was living in the village called Eaton during the Dark Age.

Home, pt. I Home, pt. II Home, pt. III Home, pt. IV

Highly recommended reading to get to know more about Drifter and where most of his trauma that shaped him came from. This entire lore book is about him and his early life and it reveals a lot about who he is and why. It's from year 2 (Forsaken year).

Drifter went by many other names after Germaine. Immediatelly following the Home lore pages, is Loose Ends where he owns bar beneath Felwinter's Peak and goes by the name Wu Ming. Even later, he goes by Eli when he meets Orin (who later discovers that he lied about his name). While he was with Dredgens, he was Dredgen Hope.

This also wasn't the first time "Germaine" was mentioned outside of the lore tab. Back in Arrivals, during Contact event, Drifter tried getting information from Eris about her Ahamkara bone and she replied by invoking the name Germaine; something she would never be able to know outside of having a paracausal source of information because Drifter doesn't share this with people.

Eris calls him Germaine again in Haunted, while they're doing research in the Pyramid in the throne world and Drifter is being evasive. It's Eris' way of getting his attention.

I think the implication here is that Eido learned the name from Eris. No one else would really know this. There's a minor chance that Spider might be aware of his old name, but that's not been confirmed. Eris is the only one who ever called him that outside of villagers in Eaton.

It's not truly a "real" name for Drifter because he openly changes names often, but it's the name that is least known. He stopped being Germaine when all of Eaton died, and with them, so did Germaine. That name only lived in their memory. By calling him that, Eris just demonstrated that she can find out deeply hidden information as well as possibly be aware of the events that happened in the village which are the major source of trauma for him.

And now that she realised that using that name makes him act more sincerely, she continued using it when needed. Probably why she very likely told Eido. A sort of a failsafe for if he's being evasive. And it worked!

I know not everyone was around when this first came out back in year 2 and not everyone was around for Arrivals either, so I just wanted to share some really cool lore about Drifter and his past. Drifter is my ultimate blorbo I can talk about him all day so it's always a great time to mention some of the stuff that came out long ago and that people might not be aware of.

[fiepige]

Venom!Hobie Cat-Symbiote AU!

Okay so I might have made an AU of my AU...

It's based on my Venom!Hobie au but with a slightly (?) lighter tone in the sense that Hobie actually gets along well with his symbiote. Though they initially mostly get along due to shared mutural trauma... (But more about that later)

This version of the symbiote is more animalistic and usually communicates with Hobie through emotions- sorta projecting its own emotions and feelings towards him to let him know how it feels about something, though it might also communicate via single words or short sentences but that's pretty rare.

So, I'll do like I did in my original Venom!Hobie post and focus on the Design first:

Since they get along the symbiote feels safe around Hobie and thus it'll often "extend" itself outside of him and take the shape of a (freaky looking) cat - Kinda like how VENOM is able to partially seperate itself from Eddie while still being tethered to him:

Like this but they actually get along and the symbiote looks kinda like this:

(Once again- I CANNOT draw but the brainrot is stronger so I need to share this)

(I didn't draw the symbiote goo that would extend from it to tether it to Hobie but it's there I swear!)

Since this is Spider-Punk's symbiote I wanted some of the spikes to carry over in this design

I haven't quite decided if it should have the "running-mascara" look (buttom drawing) for its eyes like Spider-Punk's mask has or not so lemme know what you guys think?

The spikes are used as a way for it to communicate to others as a way to make its body language more expressive (though it only shows itself around people it really trusts so it rarely uses them as it still just communicates its emotions directly to Hobie when it needs to)

And like with Venom!Hobie the spikes are reminiscent of symbiote teeth

When it's relaxed/happy the spikes will be pressed down towards its body - making it easy to pet- if somebody would dare approach it that is

Hobie pets it a lot as it usually sits on his shoulder when he walks around (when there's nobody around that is)

The symbiote is still made of the same goo as regular symbiotes so it does not feel like petting a cat at all- Hobie doesn't mind but most other people find it rather unpleasant to touch

The "fuzzy" look is just the symbiote goo trying to imitate cat fur

The reason the symbiote takes this form is partially because it's more animalistic and likes physical affection (from people it trusts, it will bite your hand off if it doesn't like/trust you and you try to pet it) and partially because Hobie is a cat person and it used it as a method to make Hobie like it more when they first "met" + petting it helped Hobie calm down and still does

It's gotten pretty good at mimicking cat noises including purring

It'll usually stay on Hobie's shoulder or sit in his lap like this, it's still tethered to him so it can't go that far without him - not that it really wants to anyways

If it likes someone it'll rub itself against their legs and mimic purring noises

Okay now we move on to the

Origin:

This is my current headcanon for this AU but as always feel free to share your thoughts/ideas/inputs if you have any <3

Hobie and the symbiote "met" at one of Oscorp's labs

Hobie was living as a homeless teen (13-14 years old having escaped an abusive household a few months prior) and was captured by Oscorp to be used for their symbiote experimentations

Hobie was an easy target as he had just been bitten by the radioactive spider a few hours prior and thus he was starting to suffer from the fever the bite gave him

Hobie was to be fused with a new kind of symbiote

The symbiote had been made to make people more susceptible to orders- making them less inclined to think for themselves

But in order to make that possible the symbiote had been put through some rather painful and extreme experiments- making it more "dead" than alive at this point

When it's fused with Hobie, who's still very sick at this point, the spider bite is still working its magic on Hobie's body and thus it also partially heals the symbiote

Both Hobie and the symbiote are terrified of their situation as they're put in holding cells made specifically for symbiotes.- Their only comfort is each other.

The symbiote takes on the cat like appearance to soothe Hobie after being subjects to a particularly bad experiment

Since Hobie's gotten powers from both the spider bite and the symbiote they quickly become the subjects for many inhumane and painful experiments as the scientists futilely try to figure out how to replicate the symbiote (as they're unaware of the spider bite, thinking the symbiote alone is behind Hobie's new powers)

Due to the symbiote Hobie develops a taste for human flesh

And he gets his first taste of it as he manages to escape the lab during one of their many tests- killing as many guards and scientists on their way out as possible. (This is also the first time they fully transform into Venom!Hobie)

He would later return and burn the lab down completely.

As a result of their treatment at the lab + Hobie's past with his abusive family, both him and the symbiote have developed a deep distrust to other people.

Which is also why Hobie isn't trying to get rid of the symbiote, he considers it his only friend for a long time.

Hobie still loves playing music (which is also how he eventually makes new friends) but has had to make some adjustments due to the symbiote, thus he usually uses both earplugs and noise cancelling earmuffs when he's playing and even then he still gets migraines if he plays for too long or too loud

He still craves human flesh and will usually target cops or anyone associated with Oscorp to sate his hunger.

He doesn't feel bad about killing but will still try not to harm civilians (emphasis on try- sometimes the hunger gets the best of him)

He still operates as Spider-Punk but for a long time he's mostly fueled by his hatred for Oscorp and how they treated him and the symbiote

But as he slowly learns to open up to people he starts to shift his focus onto figting to help people and make the city safer (which means he'll still target cops and Oscorp employees but that's not his only focus anymore) (he also makes an effort to actually save civilians at this point)

Though due to the symbiote and their past this version of Spider-Punk is more prone to just straight up killing his villains (+ he still gotta eat right?)

But I'd like to imagine that this version of Hobie also finds his own community who help him out and accept both him and the symbiote

Giving them kind of a "happy" ending despite this version of Hobie being more messed up and unhinged...

Once again this turned out way longer than I intended lol (I just can't shut up about Venom!Hobie, the brainrot is real!)

Thank you so much for reading!!! <3 <3 <3

(And please let me know if you have any thoughts/inputs/questions about anything I wrote! The brainrot is real and I'll never get tired of talking about this guy)

Also click here if you wanna read more about my Venom!Hobie concept <3