#honestly i LOVE THIS DONGHUA SO MUCH

[always-a-joyful-note]

So just days before the Shiguang Dailiren/Link Click season 2 premier, I caved into pressure and managed to watch and finish all of s1.

First of all. Pain.

Secondly, I have Theories that I must get out before s2 comes out as a measure of coping and possible deluding myself. There will be big spoilers so I'm just gonna put it under a cut.

So far, I have three-ish theories that could possibly be canon-compliant. But note that I have only watched s1 once and in the sub (which, had some odd subtitles, I won't lie, but I don't know any Chinese so that'll have to make do) and might have missed something key.

Anyway, my most hopeful theory among these three that says a happy ending is possible is the theory that these events happened when someone messed with the nodes of time. Specifically when Cheng Xiaoshi caused Emma's death and then tried to save her. By that I mean that Emma was not supposed to die, not at that point in time, anyway, and that perhaps the possessor manifested when he once again tried to change the node of her death. It doesn't have to be that the possessor was created upon that attempt to reverse her death either, just all the events following Emma's death were not meant to be. By inadvertently leading Emma to her doom, Cheng Xiaoshi changed a node of time, so the only thing that could fix it would be if he goes back again to that time period somehow and stops Emma from responding to those texts from her mum. If he manages to fix the initial change that caused all those murders (and Lu Guang's demise *cue me weeping*), then it could be that the possessor either never existed (where were they before these happenings, anyway?) or that at least everything doesn't explode so tragically.

Buuuuut, as much as I want that to happen...we did in a sense see Cheng Xiaoshi take the "let's try and stop Emma's death" route, and I think they just might take the Lu Guang dies permanently path, which is my second theory-ish which ties into the third.

In s1, Cheng Xiaoshi was blind to the death he caused and almost succeeded in saving Emma...and failed. So if s2 follows that pattern, he'll either almost succeed in saving one of his best friends and then fail right at the end (maybe it will be bittersweet where Lu Guang tells him to let go, that it's all right, and at least the narrative will let the boy have a say in his death). OR that, because he's coming in with eyes wide open (to the deaths he caused, to the possessor's existence, to the real consequences of messing with the time stream), he'll almost fail and then succeed saving Lu Guang in the 11th hour.

That said, manifesting a happy ending for our trio because haven't they been through enough??

[add1ctedt0you]

"Can't you see the look on jiejie's face?"

[mramur]

the contrast of neil's behavior towards james in the donghua and manhua lmfaooo.

honestly it was nice they make him more kind towards nick and james relationship, but also i love to see disgusted-neil at nick sucking up to james (nick and his daddy issue 😭). bit tastier for a family drama.

[ryattcos]

WILL I EVER NOT COMPLETELY LOSE MY SHIT THE LAST 5 MINUTES OF EPISODE ONE OF THE DONGHUA?????

cuz at this point, i swear to god i’ve watched it two dozen times and eVERY TIME I FEEL SO NORMAL AND NOT AT ALL LIKE THROWING UP

any chance to see xie lian through hua cheng’s eyes is a blessing for all of us. the god pleasing crown prince is so pretty…. i will actually cry.

[robby-bobby-tommy]

Honestly, I can't stress enough how important the theme of family is in mdzs. IMO it is the main theme of the book. Of course romance and devotion is important, but there's something so special about the way families are portrayed in mdzs and how important they are. (I watched donghua and read some of manhua btw)

Let's start with sibling relationships:

The whole plot started because of love for a brother and rage for how unjust his death was. The whole Cloud Recesses arc is an amazing set up for Wangxian etc, but it also shows the complicated yet sweet relationship between WWX and JC. How they both care so much about each other, how they tease each other. IMO JC did see WWX as a brother and loved him as such. Every time he scolds Wei Ying, it's always about Wei Ying's safety. Usually it's not "How dare you use demonic cultivation, you're gonna get our clan in danger", it's " If you keep it up, I won't be able to protect you". Even during the Wen invasion, the they're still together, they sacrifice themselves to save another. And don't get me started about Jiang Yanli, she loves her brothers very much. Despite Madam Yu creating a competition between the boys or Jiang Fengmian's lack of action and even enablement of WWX' dangerous and irresponsible behavior, they still love each other. I can ramble about yunmeng trio so much, but in short despite everything they went through, they cared for each other deeply. After Jiang Yanli's death everything changes, because imo the boys fully internalized Madam Yu's last words. WWX bring pain and destruction to Yunmeng. I think I need to stop, or we'll be here all day.

Or, another example: Nie bros. Nie Mingjue had to basically raise A-sang. They do deeply care about each other, and despite everything they'll be here for each other. Yet the desire to protect NHS from sad reality of golden core and qi deviation, their relationship soured a little. But it's obvious even for an outsider like WWX, that NMJ loves his brother. He pressures NHS, because he feels that he's starting to lose it. He wants to prepare his little bro to be a decent leader and to live without him. And NHS literally makes it his life mission to avenge his Dage even if it means having a blood on his hands.

Lan brothers show a good brother relationship. Lan Xichen supports LWJ in everything he does. Even his love for WWX. He gets protective, when he thinks WWX is laughing at LWJ's feelings. Lan Zhan is deeply saddened when his brother is missing and helps him discover the truth about his best friend's death. They're almost perfect siblings. (Plus they're super funny when drunk).

MXTX deserves an award for writing so many different sibling dynamics. And that's not all, she also portrays this different parental relationship so interesting.

Like, the nephews you didn't want, but care so much about, that you don't want them to suffer like their father did (Lan Qiren and this family drama); the kid of your husband's unrequited love, whom he seemingly loves more than your own children (Yunmeng Jiang happy house), JGS and the myriad of the kids he has ect. I love this variety so much.

I just love so much how MDZS has so much themes. Every time I think about MDZS, I find more and more interesting points and moments that change my perception of the characters. Every character is so humain and has their own motivation, that I can't truly hate some of them (apart from Wen Chao, his mistress and JGS, they suck).

TLDR: MXTX is a queen of writing complex human characters.

[rozaceous]

ive read mdzs years ago and stalled on tgcf (mainly bc i got really busy and then forgot everything lmao), but never really tried scum villain. if you don't mind, can you share why you like it? personally, the summary didn't really draw me in and the animation looked unfortunately really .... low budget.

hi anon! you've activated my trap card, which is Talking About Things I Enjoy At Length! congratulations! congratulations! congratulations! important things must be said three times!

(i also stalled w tgcf btw, bc it's so long that i could never summon up sufficient interest. and i will say that the svsss donghua is less than inspiring. i thought it was fun but that's speaking as someone who watched it after already being in love w the source content, so ymmv. i wasn't a particular fan of the animation style either, but considering that scum villain is the black sheep of mxtx's works in terms of the official content that gets produced, i was glad for what i could get.)

reasons to love scum villain!

hilarious use of unreliable narrator. shen qingqiu is one of my top favorite characters ever. he's not stupid or even, despite common fan depiction, all that oblivious--he's just incredibly genre-savvy and hasn't realized that the genre has changed. also he's hysterical.

but then sometimes, too, you look more objectively at things he glosses over and have a 'wait a sec' moment bc it's actually deeply disturbing.

it has a really fun way of of playing with transmigration stories and tropes. this was, in a sense, my intro to chinese web novel conventions as a western reader, and you can learn a lot bc mxtx is busy poking fun at all of them.

phenomenally meta.

luo binghe is a fantastic character. ppl who don't like him--i'll meet you out back. ostensibly the protagonist of the novel sqq has found himself in, supposedly blessed with every talent and the world prepared to fall at his feet, but MAN is it hard being luo binghe.

ppl will make a big deal abt lbh being obsessed w sqq but fail to acknowledge that sqq is just as weird and obsessed abt lbh. epitome of that AITA response of:

liu qingge

mxtx does so much with her villains, always.

as much as some of the miscommunication between sqq and lbh is contrived, it's also literally the only way that things could play out and makes absolute sense.

this classic scene, given utterly without context:

After a pause, Shen Qingqiu changed his angle. "What's your name?" The first one replied. "Six Balls." "What does that mean?" "When I was born, my pa held me and said I was six balls heavy." Shen Qingqiu was speechless. Shot put balls or ping-pong balls?! This kind of name is absolutely meaningless.

i think, honestly, my favorite thing abt scum villain is that you can read it quickly and have a good time, but if you're taking your time and paying attention, there is so much more happening underneath the surface! it's such a clever book, i'm honestly stunned (and humbled) that mxtx produced this as her first novel and at such a young age.

[revel-inbluehues]

I never understood the idea of being attracted to a teacher until this day. WHY IS GUOSHI!XL SO HOT????? Is it because he's a lot more aloof and feels more harsher than current Xie Lian? I don't know, but I love it, I really do love his Guoshi era.

I like that, even in this fairly serious episode, we see funny moments with Xie Lian and Shi Qingxuan talking about Banyue, and Mu Qing and Feng Xin arguing like cats and dogs.

But without a doubt, my favourite part was Hualian.

The way I screeched when HC came and grabbed XL, I did not think that the animation team would've gotten away with the waist touch, but they did.

Xie Lian was never afraid; he felt guilty, yes, but he still cared for Hua Chang, and more importantly, his first instinctive thought had been that HC came to save him. For centuries, he'd been alone, and before then, he suffered his some of his worst moments without help and didn't expect anyone to ease his pains. Yet, for the first time in years, he, even for a moment, believed that someone had come for him to help him because they cared. XL's first thought was that HC came to his rescue because he instinctually knew that HC cared.

And HC felt guilty for hurting him, and he couldn't care less for Paradise Manor. Like he said, PM was never a home. It was a residence, one of many he made FOR XL, so why would he care if it burned down? Making sure XL was safe and happy was his priority but he hurt the very person he dedicated his whole heart to, and that honestly hurt HC more than anything else. I love it so much.

On another note, the donghua was definitely more open with HC's expressions and emotions than the manhwa. The manhwa have the feel of a normally cold, collected person understanding that the love of their life doesn't value themselves, of resignation and sadness, while angry at themselves for not being enough. Meanwhile, the donghua makes HC more expressive, pained, and hurt with an open wound, also angry at himself for not being enough, but also angry at the world for making XL think that he isn't worth it and it actively hurts HC to think about it.

Also, the fact that they made it seem like HC was about to cry and e-ming was about to cry more made me sad and laugh at the same time. Like, look at their faces:

[drawthemoon101]

Hiya! Here I have a pair of drawings of Modern AU of FengQing! Honestly they’re probably my favourite non canon couple, I don’t know, like I love them both separately and together. Honestly I took one look at them in the Donghua as their ‘secret identities’ and Immediately recognised them and knew everyone already would call them a couple before I even joined the Fandom!

This was incredibly self indulgent, I just decided to draw these two as I’d like in a modern AU.

With Mu Qing’s hair, I see a mix of people drawing him with both silver hair and black hair, personally, I think he’d have black hair, and prefer him with black hair, but I also couldn’t help but give him a few highlights of sliver…

Anyways love these two so much! And I’m planning to draw BeefLeaf next!

[pieridae-art]

Special Lan Xichen analysis post

As I’ve previously said, Lan Xichen is a very flawed person and that’s okay! I want to examine him at several parts of the story and pick apart some of the criticism he gets. So let’s talk Lan Xichen!

Siege of the Burial Mounds: I really like this one shot from the donghua where the Sect Leaders of each sect (NMJ, JGS, and JC) are shown at the siege and beside them representing the Lan sect is… Lan Qiren. Not LXC. Setting aside the perfect storm JGS set up for the siege to occur (I don’t care who led it; JGS is the problem post-Sunshot Campaign about 99% of the time), I think this is because LXC stayed back in the Cloud Recesses with LWJ tending to his wounds post-whipping. Not assuming LXC’s absence, however, the siege was led by JC and orchestrated (because separating the twin prides of Yunmeng and artificially creating tension within the jianghu was a deliberate action) by JGS. Not saying LXC’s participation is okay just because he wasn’t the driving force behind it but imagine if the Lan sect stood against the other sect’s wishes. Standing up for WWX would have been the right thing to do but were the Lans in any position to oppose the siege with their sect in the process of rebuilding? Going along with the siege, to me, is an act of cowardice, not malice. Extra note: we see his capability of defending the Wen remnants when JGS is talking shit about them and WWX but he is shut down immediately and does not speak up any further. This is not a matter of hypocrisy; it’s a matter of fearing the consequences.

NMJ’s death: this is rocky territory. It was a bad idea full stop to force proximity between them hoping everything would sort itself out. But you simply cannot blame him for NMJ’s death because he couldn’t have known. One could argue that he endangered JGY by forcing him to be near someone who tried to kill him several times. I think that’s an oversimplification of the situation. To me, this was a gesture of trust. Trust that NMJ will make an attempt to restrain himself/get better and trust that JGY will aid him in doing so. As we know, this trust is misguided. He’s rather naive to think this would work. But he is humored anyway by two people with bad intentions toward each other. LXC is not at fault for this going south when it was at a certain point inevitable. But he did enable it.

That one line about WWX being LWJ’s only mistake: I get so defensive because honestly I’d have said much worse in his position! Think about what he knows about Wangxian’s relationship leading up to it. He saw his brother devastated that the man he loved was being corrupted and harmed by his cultivation, watched as LWJ despaired over him and fought the elders and got whipped for him. He’s only seen his brother suffer due to his love for WWX. Was saying this okay? No. Consider the circumstances surrounding this line, however. Also criticizing him for this is just plain nit-picky to me lol there’s plenty this man has actually done wrong to criticize him for.

And another thing: stop saying he favored JGY over LWJ!! The entire point of his denial surrounding JGY is that there was no solid, tangible proof that was damning enough for him to outright condemn JGY without some level of unfair assumption! He was trying to be fair about the investigation! Might I add: WWX was the only one who saw NMJ’s head in Jinlintai. Had it been LWJ to see it and approach him I think the story would’ve gone differently! But it wasn’t. And he wanted to have faith in his friend from an underprivileged background constantly facing slander and mistreatment despite doing good things for the world against the jianghu’s wishes because isn’t that what LWJ did with WWX? LXC learned his lesson from WWX’s death, he just practiced it on the wrong person.

What have we learned? Lan Xichen was complicit in and enabled a lot of Bad Things if he was not an active participant, most of it willingly and some of it unknowingly. He’s unfair sometimes. He’s weak willed and lacks the strength to actually stand up for anyone in a meaningful way. He’s naive. In my opinion, he was in denial for a large portion of his story about the harmful effects of his actions.

And I adore him! He’s got the capacity for so much good and he fails to live up to it! He wants to be righteous and he doesn’t know how without putting the people he is responsible for at risk! He thinks he can do conflict resolution and he just can’t! By the end of the story, he is painfully aware of all of this and he lives knowing he did the wrong thing over and over and over again. He got the only outcome he could ever have. I don’t think he deserved his ending but I do think he might have earned it.

[fallloverfic]

TGCF donghua Season 2, Episode 11 thoughts

This episode was amazing alkdjlada. Spoilers for the book and donghua below.

Ah Fangxin in the coffin T-T Xie Liannnn... It's interesting they're... setting up for Hua Cheng's birthday? O.o Are they that confident they'll get to that (please be that confident, please!!)? Or just thinking "we get this in while we can in case there isn't enough"? Or just explaining why Xie Lian isn't getting out? It's a pretty (and sad) scene. And another Xiao Mengyou scene!! I'm so grateful for all the time we get alkdjaldj But also sad to think of how Lang Qianqiu thinks of him after saying all friends are false T-T

Xie Lian is so sad T-T Hua Cheng trying to comfort him. They're so cute together T-T Hua Cheng holding back so hard from hugging him.

Xie Lian destroying his statue T-T And then worrying about saving people. Hua Cheng wanting to say Something and being like... no we do what gege wants. Always.

Distracted by Xie Lian's poofy sleeves. I'm a poofy sleeves girl 4ever.

I'm a simple woman. I just like Hualian walking around together. Bein cute. Chattin. Saving people but not being in danger.

Xie Lian giving the "don't put me on a pedestal" speech T-T Love it so much. Hua Cheng being like, "yeah but idc, I'm right, you deserve to be there, no matter what others say". This man put a ring on it long ago, he ain't goin back. He Knows Things, Gege. He Knows. Things. Even more things you'd rather he didn't :/

Xie Lian's heart going doki doki

Sorry the eye swoosh made me laugh aldkjaldaj WHO ARE YOU SAN LANG TELL HIM alkjdaldkjal

Shi Qingxuan T-T And Xie Lian is so happy to see Wind Master :3 His bestie :333

Feng Xin lookin sexy with his spirit bow. I've loved spirit bows since I was like 6, okay???? I know, Fall coming out with the Hot Takes TM of "spirit bows are cool" aldkjaldaj For more Hot Takes TM, like "I just love Hualian", read more alkdjalj

Hua Cheng yoinking Xie Lian behind him made me laugh so hard alkdjalkdjaldja YOINK A GEGE

Xie Lian's FACE alkdjaldaj "omg" aldkjaldja There's a line from tagteamme's wonderful Mobei-Jun/Shang Qinghua fanfic AN IDIOT'S GUIDE TO A HAPPY MARRIAGE that describes a flabbergasted/upset Shang Qinghua as a "wronged chicken" and that's all I can think of here alkdjaldaj

AND XIE LIAN JUST GOES WITH IT ALKDJALDJA I LOVE THEM ALKDJALJ

Shi Qingxuan and Feng Xin confused at The Gay: ???

Hua Cheng: -satisfied smile- Yes he is Mine

Shi Qingxuan subtitling this book: "Good intentions can easily be misinterpreted when passed around. Better to start with bad intentions, and they'll believe it!"

Feng Xin not compelled by the Gay Married Couple. He protecc Dianxia. He left and failed so many times to do just that, after all. Not like Xie Lian told him to get lost out of fear or anything &lt;;.< Oh no I be havin Feng Xin and Xie Lian feelings, as I do every day T-T

alkdjalj Poor Feng Xin. He's so terrified of women. He's just completely gone. Just nope. Cannot do anything. No function. Goodness I feel bad for every female heavenly official having to interact with him.

Hua Cheng is so handsome this episode, honestly. Every frame of him is gorgeous. And male Wind Master is back!

asldakjdladj the little ding that plays when Feng Xin notes that Qi Rong's tactics are ridiculous. Translating the ding: duhhhhhh

Nothing about Xie Lian phases Shi Qingxuan. A true friend.

I love them so much T-T

adlkajdlkajda Hua Cheng is Xie Lian's "sworn brother" I can't with Shi Qingxuan I can't alkdjaldjaljk (yes I know this is the line in at least the English translation but I just alkjdlajda it kills me alkdjaljda). Hua Cheng is so unimpressed alkdalj "You disrespect my relationship with gege???" (I don't think he cares, but I do love that he's slightly more chill with Shi Qingxuan because Shi Qingxuan is one of the the only other people who supports Xie Lian)

I love Shi Qingxuan so much alkdjlaj He's your friend Xie Lian T-T You have a frienddddd

Hua Cheng like, "I'm better besties with gege than you are, Feng Xin >:3 Oh right you're not friendssss anymore are you >:3 Cause you abandoned himmmmm >:3" He's not mad about it. Nope.

Feng Xin covered in blood is pretty >.>

The soft Xie Lian thank you. The happy Hua Cheng acceptance. I love them so much T-T

Hua Cheng: "Overthinking. Just focus on doing what you need to do." He always reassures his gege. He wants his gege to do whatever makes him happy.

Ahhh what a good episode T-T So much Hualian. Feng Xin angst. So pretty. So good. And hey, the subs were decent! There's already been a preview for episode 12, so we know there's at least one episode left! I feel like they'll probably end the season either right before the switch to the past or right at the beginning, which is sad, but it makes sense. I just want more T-T

Other episode thoughts for season 2 (didn’t start till episode 3):

S02E03

S02E04

S02E05

S02E06

S02E07

S02E08

S02E09

S02E10

S02E11 (you are here)

S02E12

[enbyleighlines]

1, 5, and 7

Oooh, thank you for the ask!

#1: the character everyone gets wrong

I wouldn’t say EVERYBODY gets this character wrong, but…

Apologies in advance, but I’m going to revert to my Jiggy apologist roots and say Jin Guangyao from MDZS.

And okay. I get a large part of his character is intentionally left up to reader interpretation. At the same time, however, I think cql (and to a lesser extent, the donghua) have really skewed the fandom’s views on him. Both shows tend to place him into a more “cartoonishly evil” role, and often show him outright gloating when one of his plans comes to fruition.

In the novel, we never really get a peek behind Jin Guangyao’s mask. We don’t know to what extent he regrets his actions, or truly believes that he had no other choice.

Also, cql-only watchers tend to see his decision to hide Lan Xichen from the Wen as a decision either based on his feelings for the other man, or as an attempt to put himself back into Nie Mingjue’s good graces after betraying the Nie Sect. After all, in the show, he has already met both of his future sworn brothers. But in the original novel, Jin Guangyao was a complete stranger to both of them. He had no formal training in cultivation. He was little more than an ordinary civilian, albeit one that was more educated than most about the politics of the cultivation world. Hell, he was working at a bookshop at the time!

There’s a reason that Lan Xichen regards Jin Guangyao so highly, and why he is so resistant to believing anything bad about him.

Jin Guangyao risked everything, making himself an enemy of the strongest and most influential cultivation clan at the time, for a complete stranger. Perhaps he hoped his heroism would finally grant him some esteem in the cultivation world— but that was far from guaranteed. And if that was his only motivation, why not try to join the Wen Sect instead, especially when it seemed like they were the most likely to win the war?

Plus there was his whole thing about the watchtowers. He was building them for the good of the common people.

Don’t get me wrong, though. I’m not one of those people who is trying to say that Jin Guangyao did nothing wrong (as much as I like to joke about him being my poor little meow meow.)

He committed many awful, inexcusable atrocities towards the end of his life. I’m not going to say he didn’t.

I’m just saying that he HAD the capacity to do good things. That working undercover during the war, forced to torture and murder his allies for the sake of maintaining his cover, and later, being rewarded for those actions, and other actions he took following his father’s orders… not to mention what working closely with resentful energy for all those years might have done to him…

Well, I just appreciate fics that explore what might have happened, had he made better choices. Because I think that’s the point of his character.

He could have been good.

He just chose not to be.

#5: worst discord server and why

I honestly don’t use discord that often, so I couldn’t tell you.

#7: what character did you begin to hate not because of canon but because how how the fandom acts about them?

None of them. I’m not sure why, but fandom has never been able to make me hate a character I like. Some fanfics have gotten me to like characters I previously hated. But if the fandom tries to make me hate a character, or is wrong about a character, it just makes me love that character that much more, if only out of spite.

Again, thanks for the ask! Sorry for the novel-length dissertation on Jin Guangyao. I just love him, okay?

My precious little meow meow…

[pawznacho]

Here are my personal opinions about the TGCF donghua S2 character designs!! (I don't have anything else to do with my life)

So, I've seen a lot of people hate on the new designs, especially on Qi Rong and Goushi Fang Xin's. I mean, they surprised me too, but I wouldn't necessarily say they are bad.

For Fang Xin (Xie Lian), his design and colors and stunning, it's just the mask that looked pretty weird to me, but I like how it's butterfly shaped. He's not too recognizable, so it'll do it.

For Qi Rong, yes, the colorful stripes, the purple lipstick, the little accesories, the neon green eyeliner are all absolutely needed and in character. Like, let's think about it, Qi Rong is probably one of the most chaotic and weird MXTX characters we could've met. The manhua version is a masterpiece, but the donghua is really...him. He would always comment on anybody and we also know that he is a born royalty, yet nobody said he's fancy or elegant. I'm pretty sure he'd have a terrible taste in outfits. While Xie Lian is elegant, simple and pretty restrained when it comes to outfits, our guy Qi Rong would have messy, greasy hair, unmatched clothes and jewellery, and absolutely zero sense in styling. He's technically an unintentionally funny, weird and stupid witch sitting in his own little cave with his "cheap son".

Now, let's take a look at Hua Cheng and Shi Qingxuan. Wake up, they are majestic!!

I adored Hua Cheng in his San Lang form. Our little guy looked absolutely adorable yet still like a grumpy teenage boy in love. His original form was also shown at the very end of S1, but honestly, his new design looks so much better. His hair got fluffier, and his features prettier. Also, I love how the edge of his eyepatch became more thin, it simply look cooler now!

Shu Qingxuan, my beloved, I literally love the whole design. I'm pretty sad the female version didn't get her pretty blue eyes, but she still looks as adorable as always. And the male version, it's perfect. He looks elegant, yet kind and adorable, like a true king/queen. Such a bestie material!!

Talking about Shi Qingxuan, Ming Yi is also just so so pretty. Altough I love the "dark 'n edgy Earth Master" vibe he gives off in the manhua, the dunghua version is (imo) better, we are talking about a god's apperance, after all. He's colorful, yet not too vibrant, which is pretty nice, most of the gods we can see there tend to dress colorfully in their own ways (it also makes it more visible that these people all come from different places, having their own traditional stuff).

And for Lan Qianqiu, he instantly became a Fengqing's kid in my eyes. For sure, this is not how I imagined him, I've got used to the dark hair and red accesories, but he looks really good, they did a great job with his design. No matter what, he'll always be a grumpy orange cat!

What do you think? 🦋

[thenanamisimp]

Danmei and MXTX novels

Would you look at that, another post that's not about anime? WILD. It is about MXTX novels though so the hyperfixations continue. I'm actually in the process of planning a very lengthy analysis of all three of her series but this is a warning, don't expect too much. I was never good at those in school plus it's been almost 7 years since I've last written something like that but I feel so passionate about her works that I really wanna try to share what I thought about the novels. Nevertheless, this isn't actually those analysis posts since those are gonna be separate and will probably be written after I re-read each series. However, since I'm actually finally fully done reading all her series - including the extra side chapters - I wanted to quickly share some of my opinions and how I feel after finishing all 18 of the books.

This goes without saying but just in case - SPOILER WARNING for Heaven Official's Blessing, The grandmaster of demonic cultivation and The scum villain's self saving system novels.

First off, if you haven't read any of MXTX's work before, prepare for trauma and tragedy. Most of her characters are either deeply traumatised already or in the process of. I will always encourage people to read content warnings before reading her books.

Starting off with my favourite - TGCF or Tian Guan Ci Fu (aka Heaven Official's Blessing). This story means a lot to me. I got introduced to TGCF through the donghua before I even knew it was queer fiction and even with censorship, the closet is made of fucking GLASS so I had to look for the source material. Honestly it took me a while to commit to reading the whole series as I've been struggling to pick up books for years now but TGCF actually got me back into reading (I think in total it took me about 8 days to read all 8 volumes). More than just the story telling being good, I got so incredibly attached to every single character (except Jun Wu, he can eat shit - tho the fact I'm even saying this speaks volumes about how well MXTX can write characters. It takes a lot for me to hate a character this much).

Taking place in a beautiful fantasy world, we follow Xie Lian and Hua Cheng through tragic traumatic past and present and we learn of the horrible truths about the lives of immortal beings. We also see two idiots in love take their sweet ass time to confess. I love me a good slow burn full of longing and pining. I eat that shit UP every time and MXTX gave it to me with every single one of her series.

TGCF for me was a journey full of kicking my feet at fluff, second hand embarrassment (because xl I stg, what do you MEAN you were taught how to resist the advances of women but not how to resist hot men you gay lil shit the closet is made of glass) and honestly, lots of crying. The hundred stabs incident, ruoye's creation and hcg's last death made me sob and scream (no exaggeration, I was stomping around my room, crying and yelling GIVE HIM BACK RIGHT NOW).

Also, in a not so unpopular opinion (I think?), Pei Ming is my fave because 1) he's the no.1 Hualian shipper - check the whole Mt Tunglu adventure for proof and also 2) he's just a lil slut with a big heart. I could seriously talk about him forever because I went from hating him after he tried to throw the blame for the Banyue Pass incident on Xie Lian, to loving him after I realised that everything he does, he does because he is truly just a kind man who loves a good fight. He's so silly! Just a lil guy! Go Pei Ming go!

Fuck you Jun Wu. Again. (I hate him just as much as I hate Mahito. Maybe a little less. I really hate Mahito).

Moving on to my second favourite (but honestly it's such a close one), MDZS or Mo Dao Zu Shi (The grandmaster of demonic cultivation). Take a wild guess about how I got introduced to it... Fandom of course, because very few people talk about TGCF online without mentioning MDZS so I just had to give it a chance.

The great grandmaster of demonic cultivation has been dead for a while but when he gets gifted a new body through a not so well known demonic ritual, he runs into an old acquaintance. We learn about Wei Wuxian and Lan Wangji's past and current world of cultivation and hear stories about messy betrayals and conspiracies. Aaaand we find out about some more trauma and tragedy because is it really an MXTX novel without it?

And talk about a rollercoaster because (and please don't hate me for this) I found Wei Wuxian annoying initially.... But it's okay now because I kin him so go figure. Tho I actually kin only his adult self, I was a very introverted and rule abiding teenager, a lil more like Lan Wangji. In any case, wwx is the same stupid chaotic bisexual that I am and he is babygurl. Yeah and what if he murdered 3000 people? It was self defense. THEY ATTACKED FIRST. Your honour, he did nothing wrong and he does not deserve to be punished!

On a serious note, MDZS explores so many themes that are personally important to me, my favourite being the power dynamics of the world. It’s truly moving that even with all the pain Wei Wuxian went through, how far in his cultivation and how powerful he got, he still couldn't protect those he loved (until Lan Wangji of course because Wangxian is perfect together and they always protect and defend each other. Wangxian my beloved). While it might be a stretch for some, it really reminded me of how powerless we are in the world. People aim to educate themselves and go on to do whatever they can to better the world in their own way and yet, it really feels like nothing’s improving sometimes. I could talk about this for hours but maybe I’ll leave that for another time and another analysis post since this is supposed to be a shorter one (lmao)

Last but not least, RZFZX or Ren Zha Fanpai Zijiu Xitong (honestly this one I use the english name for because I can’t pronounce the chinese as much as I try - The scum villain's self saving system or Svsss). This one I actually kinda struggled with - first of all because WHY BUGS MXTX. Not much bothers me in fiction but BUGS? Too far. Heads with spider legs? Raw flesh with maggots? Blood mites? I was out (for about half an hour and then I kept reading). Please note that it's not the raw flesh that bothered me, it was the fucking maggots. I can read about graphic murder, creepy hauntings, torture and many more but as soon as there are bugs? Nope! I’m done. People have phobias and that’s mine I guess. Enough ranting about bugs!

The story follows Shen Qingqiu, the scum villain of the hit web novel Proud Immortal Demon's Way (or PIDW for short, as it's referred to in Svsss) who is actually one of the original readers - and haters - of PIDW, who transmigrates into the book in order to fix the plot holes left by the original author. With his guide “the system” he does his best to lead the male lead of PIDW, Luo Binghe, down a better path than in the original story.

Svsss employs a comedic way of storytelling, with our protagonist being omniscient, it allows for the narration to be sarcastic and poke fun at a lot of moments that are cliche or badly written, as interpreted by sqq. Honestly, this is just a personal preference but I favour the more serious storytelling way of MDZS and TGCF (give me hurt until the very end when the main characters get together and then give me comfort).

To me, Svsss is a lot harder to analyse as a lot of its themes are unfamiliar to me, especially considering I’m the furthest from having any sort of humanitarian education (I have 2 engineering degrees). Using a story within a story, MXTX is able to deliver two main overarching themes; one about abuse and its results through Luo Binghe as well as one about the relationship of author and their readers, the feeling of being trapped by the readers' opinions and wanting your story to be liked through Shang Qinghua (to be honest, I hadn’t really picked up on this one until I saw discussion about this in the fandom).

If I'm being completely honest, I don't think I grasped this series as well as the other ones and I'm finding it hard to digest lbg and sqq's relationship. I'm unsure as to what it is that's holding me back from loving them as much as Hualian and Wangxian. I do tend to prefer tropes like theirs more than the whole "had to convince him to date me" thing which is what Bingqiu's relationship seemed like to me up until the end of volume 3. It’s also why I'm glad I actually followed through and finished the extras in volume 4 (I was really tempted to stop reading once I finished volume 3 not gonna lie). I believe those to be integral to understanding sqq's feelings towards lbh and while I understand that sqq did actually love lbh from the beginning (denial is a river in egypt and the gloset is made of glass - what the fuck is with MXTX's bottoms and the damn glass closet), I struggled to see the tipping point of where he actually understood his own feelings and what was going on in his head and that he was actually in love with lbh. Which is why I think to really understand Svsss, I would seriously need to reread it.

I also would love to eventually talk about queerness in MXTX's work because in each book, sexuality and queerness is explored and examined in so many different ways. As a queer person myself, it fascinates me as I can relate to so much of it. To be honest, I think I could write a short thesis on just this.

Honestly, while I'm very passionate about my favourite pieces of media (if you've heard me talk about any of my top 5 anime you'll understand what I mean), there hasn't been a lot of things outside JJK and MXTX's novels that have made me wanna dive deep into analysing every single detail. It genuinely makes me feel like I'm gonna implode sometimes. These 3 series have seriously reignited my love for reading. I was shown that a good book - in my opinion of course - doesn't need to avoid difficult topics. It simply needs to use them well as a means of delivering a message and a story, rather than them being included just to be included. They also reminded me that I love queer fiction and I need to read more.

I actually would really like to read Erha (or 2ha or The husky and his white cat shizun) but I've read the content warnings and I'm ~~apprehensive~~. While not a lot of things bother me, I'm not sure I want to read about that stuff (please look at the content warnings of this book, or any piece of media in that matter, especially if you have topics that easily bother or trigger you). Remember, it's our responsibility as readers/consumers to look out for ourselves first!

Please recommend any good danmei (other than MXTX) and possibly include links where they can be read! I would also highly appreciate recommendations for some good wlw fantasy fiction as I really would love to read some wlw novels - or even anime/movies/webtoons/manga. Just in desperate need of quality wlw content.

Also while I said I'd keep it short, it seems I ended up writing over 2000 words…

PS. I proofread this about 5 times and during one of them my file crashed, so if there's any mistakes or if I’m not making sense somewhere, blame my deep-fried brain, thanks

Thanks for reading my novel ramble! Enjoy reading :)

theNanamiSimp

[higuchisora]

As mentioned before, I'll be sharing my top 10 anime characters that could solo my beloved sweet baby boy Binghe. This is both serious and not at all serious. Disclaimer: I love him, he's my good son, but he also needs some competition to keep his head nice and deflated. I'm sticking with 1 character per show to keep things fresh. Also "anime" is a... loosely used term here lmao. Also also, manga/LN spoilers ahead for some shows.

Without further ado (and in no particular order):

10. Uzumaki Naruto (and friends)

Definitely the most obvious so I'm putting it first. Honestly the Naruto cast could've had its own top 10, but rules are rules. That Talk No Jutsu is fucking lethal. If he couldn't TedTalk Binghe into a reluctant friendship, he'd rock his shit first and THEN befriend him. Without so much as a filler episode.

I'm of the mind that any Kage-level character could wipe the floor with my son, Mano y Mano. But even a solid jonin team would have some serious hands for him.

9. Saitama from One Punch Man

I haven't watched the full thing, but ending careers with 1 punch is literally his job, so I'm taking this one on good faith that he'd also be fast enough to catch Binghe at all.

8. Yoriichi from Demon Slayer

The only thing that could defeat this man was his own sadness. He'd clap TLJ and then come for Binghe without so much as a snack break.

7. Hua Cheng from TGCF (yes I know it's a donghua shut up)

Call me biased, I don't care. Hua Cheng would obliterate this man without even thinking about it. He'd laugh, too, because he's an asshole. And then go home to bang Xie Lian.

6. Rimuru from That Time I Got Reincarnated as a Slime

I don't like this man or this show. But no one can tell me he wouldn't just. Eat Binghe. Like full vore, as is canon of his abilities. He's done it with physically larger targets and succeeded, he could do it for some pretty boy. Binghe wouldn't even be the first demon king he's fought.

5. Aang from The Last Airbender

I SAID WHAT I SAID. Specifically in his Avatar State, I firmly believe he'd clap Binghe if led to believe it was absolutely necessary. Like the literal world ending. He exorcised a man when he was 12, I think Aang at his peak could handle an emo boy in need of an exorcism.

4. Saiki Kusuo from the Disastrous Life of Saiki K.

He'd dust Binghe out of existence before homie even knew what hit him. Argue with the wall.

3. Yumiella Dolkness from Villainess Level 99

I don't even really like her, but considering she's taken on a demon king of her own before, and is capable of making black holes big enough to swallow cities without breaking a sweat, she'll at least be a worthy opponent.

2. Kumoko/D from So I'm a Spider, So What?

Literally a god. The world-ending kind, and that's when she's being chill about it. Hell, I wouldn't be surprised if she ended up being in control of the System tormenting poor SQQ and SQH. She's not as advanced in the anime, but in the light novel ending a world is literally light work. She's done it before and she'll do it again.

1. Mash Burnedead from Mashle

I haven't even caught up 100% with this show but I don't care. It doesn't even matter that Mash can't do magic. Actually, it's precisely BECAUSE he can't do magic that I firmly believe he deserves a place on this list because that just means this human dude is just Built Different. Binghe would throw a bunch of spiritual/demonic energy attacks at him and Mash would just bitch slap it out of the way. And then bitch slap Binghe. Worst part is that he wouldn't even realize they're fighting for real, which would permanently ruin Binghe's self esteem, IMO.

Honorable mentions:

Gabimaru from Hell's Paradise

I don't think he COULDN'T take Binghe on, just that it's unlikely he'd survive, honestly. Cultivation is real in their world kinda, and from what I've watched he's not yet capable of taking one on by himself 100%. But he's tenacious and skilled, so he'd at least get a few good ones in before Binghe smokes him. With a good crew and a battle plan, he'd be able to lock an average Binghe under a mountain.

Sailor Moon

The only reason she isn't on top 10 is because I'm not confident in her ability to take hits. She's great at dishing them out, but in the event Binghe manages to get a good whack in, I feel like it'll be over for her. I don't think she's fast enough to reliably dodge the whole time either. Plus, I barely remember the OG show, so it's kind of odd to be comparing her to stuff like Naruto, which I know well.

Hina from Hinamatsuri

Just offer a lifetime supply of red caviar and Binghe's a dead man. That being said, I don't think she'd walk away unscathed. This battle would mostly be dictated by how it starts. If she has the element of surprise, he's dead. If Binghe is suitably enraged (say, Xin Mo possession style), Hina's a goner. Hence she isn't strong enough to be able to beat him soundly in all scenarios.

Kaneki from Tokyo Ghoul

He's pretty cool. Also likes to eat flesh. I don't think he's as fast at it as Rimuru is, but then again I also gave up watching after the first season. Gets an honorable mention because he might actually be stronger than I think.

Goku

He's fucking Goku. I just have never watched this show so I didn't feel comfortable ranking him.

Kibutsuji Muzan + Upper moons from Demon Slayer

Any of them would be a solid threat. However, considering they get their asses handed to them by a bunch of human high schoolers and fold at the tiniest ray of sunlight, I figure the moons would be somewhat of a miniboss vs final boss in terms of power scaling.

Muzan probably would've gotten a place on the list if not for Yoriichi. Also, as said, anyone that gets clapped by a bunch of high schoolers in their own home gets a permanent L. Shine a lamp on him and it's over for bro.

Hashiras from Demon Slayer

Not a single one of them can 1v1 any upper moons. That being said, they still managed to body all of them. They go down with them though, so I'd say it would take all of the hashiras (maybe including pre-canon ones) to take down the average Binghe. And they'd all die doing it.

Hero of Time/Hero of the Wilds Link from Legend of Zelda

Is this an anime? No. Do I care? Not really. Fighting opponents wildly out of his league but ultimately winning anyway is literally his canon lore. All Link needs is a slingshot and an ocarina and he'll fight the fucking moon. He's no slouch in recent games either; a beef bowl and a stick is all it takes for him to take on the immortal demon king possessing the castle in nothing but his goddamn boxers.

This was my list!!! Very long, but a lot of fun. Let me know what your own lists are, I'm curious lol.

If I've not mentioned a show, it's probably because I've never watched it lol.

[yeyayeya]

My reaction to TGCF Season 2 Ep 2 (Part 2)

*novel spoilers under the cut*

HIS EXPRESSIONS I CANT. I absolutely love his voice and enjoy how he’s portrayed in the donghua already. I just get slapped in the face each time I remember he shares his VA with Wei Wuxian

I love how Xie Lian actually took the time to check on Qingxuan’s face and honestly tell him how it seemed better and smoother. QINGXUAN IS SO CUTE AND ADORABLE I CANNOT HANDLE IT. My heart goes thru a rollercoaster of emotions whenever I see SQX, and while I am incredibly happy to see them, I also get fucking depressed once I realize what happens to them since they’re one of my favs

I cannot with the small smile when LQQ gets mentioned. “Yeah I know what he did to me, and we might have gotten off on the wrong foot, but I still have fond memories of the young prince I raised.”

MY SON HAS ARRIVED

he angy >:(

I love them so much

Angy again >:(

[gekidasa]

Jiang Cheng for the character meme 🫡

send me a character and i’ll list:

favorite thing about them

Honestly, I love his anger. No, it isn't pretty. Yeah, he's probably not pleasant to be around for most people. But I find that so... human. And relatable too. His flaws and pettiness, his anger, they're all so understandable and relatable to me.

least favorite thing about them

That he has so many antis.

favorite line

Just... the way he says "Wei Wuxian" filled with so much sheer rage.

brOTP

I could say WWX, because I do love to write WWX as JC's gremlin BFF in my sangcheng fics, but if we're being honest, I also think canonically they are way too intense about each other to be "brotp" (honestly I'm a closet chengxian enjoyer).

So I'm going to say I think JC and NMJ would get along really well and would really enjoy going for a beer together in modern aus.

OTP

As far as headcanons and fanfic, sangcheng. I love them together. I'm obsessed with them. Still going over 3 years later, I've written more fic for them than for any other ship. At heart, it's the teenage friends to lovers aspect, but also that they each, on their own have gone through so much loss and pain and anger... including JC's anger at NHS for putting Jin Ling in danger, no, I never forget THAT. But I think after all that, they can understand each other better than most. They can understand the anger and pain and what you are willing to do for that.

And then if speaking strictly canon-based, there's chengxian, which is... everything that it is. Which is SO much. I don't write fic for it or seek it out, but I did very much go through the book reading JC as in love with WWX.

nOTP

LXC, for fandom wank reasons. Wen Qing because I'm a book snob that dislikes CQL.

random headcanon

JC was LQR's favorite guest student that year, and JC greatly respects LQR and values his opinion. Over the years, the mutual respect grew, and they both enjoy getting together for tea and conversation whenever they have a chance.

unpopular opinion

I do not enjoy bottom Jiang Cheng.

Nor do I vibe with the "fandom bicycle" allcheng mindset that enjoys putting him together with any and all, largely because I do see him as very ace/demi. I don't think he gets around very much at all.

song i associate with them

Other than the obvious Hen Bie and the fanmade Swan Goose's Journey (which is BEAUTIFUL), it is absolutely Prince's When Doves Cry, because a now gone JC video to that song is what got me to decide to check out MDZS, and after about 10 seconds I knew I would love Jiang Cheng. Also, it REALLY fits Jiang Cheng.

favorite picture of them

Canonically, probably his first appearance in the donghua.

Fanart-wise, probably one particular one where he was leaning back on something shirtless, scars on his chest in full view.