Okay, MAJOR SALT COMING! Also a long post!
So I have the Disney Villains tarot deck but before I go into the salt part of the post, let's go into the positives.
The cards have stunning art and each card is appropriately themed to the villain generally speaking about 98% of the time. (IMO).
Another positive is the roster of villains included. Seeing even a few minor/underrated villains is pretty cool and impressive.
Some examples of these villains include Bowler Hat Guy, Madame Mim, Madame Medusa, and possibly Yzma.
Now onto the salt.
As impressive as the span of villains is, two villains are absent who (IMO) deserved a card.
King Candy
Frollo
First, there are other villains absent, but I'm sticking to these two since I've seen these movies. Now going in order, it is an absolute SHAME (IMO) that King Candy doesn't have a card, but I have an idea of which card suits him best.
The King of Swords. Although this card is given to Scar, and I do love how it looks, I believe that King Candy deserved it.
Plus, Scar appears on like three other cards, so I think it's okay for him to appear three times (sorry Scar, I do love you too).
Anyway, I'm going to go into some detail as to why I believe King Candy/Turbo deserves the card by going into the meaning of it and how it relates to him.
I'll admit, I have a lot of points and can talk about this for days, but I'm going to condense them to 3-ish. I'll do the same for Frollo too in a part 2 post.
Going for a two in one here: The card is about being an authority who uses reason and their intelligence for good. while the reverse of this is being cunning to deceive people.
After Turbo hijacked Sugar Rush, he was very methodical about his approach to make it sound like he's their rightful ruler. He locked up their memories, then he fabricated the lie that she was a danger to their game. Turbo did his best to make sure nothing went unchecked and made sure to make the lie sound convincing to protect them (but mostly him). He's very strategic, and was able to come up with a plan to manipulate Ralph with 16 manipulation tactics in one go. He was even able to feign being concerned to play on Ralph's attachment to Vanellope.
I think the best line that best captures this aspect of the card is "Doing what's right, no matter what." AKA: He recognizes that it may sound harsh, but he makes his lies sound reasonable to protect his subjects and game.
The card also represents enjoying structure when upright. But it's controlling and oppressive in a need for order when reversed.
Turbo needs everything to be to be going his way, as he's a control freak.
Inserting the test animation here, he even says "You are a threat to my game, to the order I have maintained. And if there's one thing I can't abide, it's anything out of order!"
Also, the split-second something isn't in his control, he starts to fumble and break into either rage or nervously laughing. He's capable of coming off as cool and composed, but he's scared of being caught and it can cause him to lash out in anger (another aspect of the card).
Just as mentioned in the previous point, he made sure nothing went unchecked and made an entire world literally revolve around him. He can and WILL happily use all of his resources of excessive force he has like the cops, the Sugar Rush equivalent of S.W.A.T., and the fungeon to detain someone who stands in his way.
As a minor note, there's a line in the tarot guidebook that states the reverse of the card can represent "someone who needs to win at any cost." Which describes Turbo to a T. He not only wants attention but he's also extremely competitive. It's part of his programming, and it ties to his love for racing. To always come out on top and be #1. No matter who or what stands in his way.
That core drive (pun intended) was the cause of his villainy in the first place and earned him his infamous status in the arcade.
Okay, I don't want to sound too salty, but you can imagine my disappointment when King Candy didn't get a card.
Oh well, Its fine, I still love and use this deck.
So I guess we can call this the thrilling conclusion to the 3 part saga of including King Candy in Disney Villain merchandise.
Also as a sidenote: hypothetically if he did get this card, what would the imagery be?
I feel the card has the potential to get creative with the glitch effects. For example make it so that he's glitching between the Turbo appearance and the King Candy appearance. If we want to be a little cheeky, we could have it set in his castle, and out the window, we see a the cybug Ralph initially sent to SR flying outside a castle window. (similar to Hook's card as the crocodile is seen outside)
So basically, my interpretation would be a mix of these images and Captain Hook's card:
But, if anyone else has really cool ideas, I'd love to hear them! If you want, you could also draw it out to illustrate your point (pun intended) Honestly please do, I'd love to see other people's interpretations of this card for him. The possibilities are endless!
Join me in my antics next time when I analyze Frollo and and the card I think he should've gotten.
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Thought experiment: someone sets up a spell that takes power from them as it needs it. They then forget about it entirely - what it does, that they even cast it. Years pass, and the spell keeps gradually draining them.
How would they ever find out about this, and what could they do to undo it?
Fun experiment. Resulting thoughts:
It seems that it's assumed that the spell lasts forever, but in my experience it's actually pretty difficult to get spells to function perpetually, even if they have a perpetual power source.
It's like a water mill. The river may never cease flowing, but the mill itself will still need regular, ongoing maintenance to continue to function.
However, supposing such a spell could be cast:
The practitioner could rediscover the existence of this spell, or any similar "drainage," though energy readings. This is a relatively simple type of reading to achieve because what you are looking for is directly connected to the person themselves (as opposed to, say, finding traces of something around a person that used to be there, but has already left).
Even engaging in popular energy work exercises, especially those that deal with sending energy to, from, and around the body, can gain a foundation to find and deal with unwanted energy connections.
But, a person doesn't have to be actually aware of any such connection, or remember the spellcasting, in order to fix the problem.
A wide variety of things could interrupt that energy drainage.
Any new wards, personal banishings, cord cuttings, or a variety of cleansing and protective techniques, can stop energy siphoning, even if you were the person who started it in the first place.
People who concern themselves with energy hygiene (that is, care and maintenance of personal energy in the interest of health and wellbeing) may find utility in doing a ritual once or twice a year or so, which addresses exactly this: pruning unwanted energetic attachments, whether or not you can specifically sense them, or know where they come from.
Magical maintenance can be done in the same way, by creating bulk revocations of prior workings. I don't know exactly how effective that would be, nor would I recommend it. But it could be done, technically.
My last thought is that a penny of prevention is worth a pound of cure - any sorcerer who would like to fuck around with permanently connecting themselves to perpetual spellwork, should probably at least have a Google Doc or something outlining a couple key details.
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Hello!
I am new here and is feeling very overwhelmed right now with that is happening in the caryl fandom. I appreciate your insight into these characters. I am someone who has not seen Daryl Dixon season 1 and is seriously considering if I should even watch it with all that is being said about s2.
Reading all the early reviews that has dropped - I get a lot of mixed reactions to Isabelle's character. Some ppl say she was the best part about season 1 while others don't even mention here in their reviews. The caryl fandom is largely, understandably, biased against her.
I do not know anything about Isabelle and was wondering what your thoughts about her are - how she holds up as a character?
Hi Anon!!
Thank you for your question. I'm really glad you asked this question, and thank you for the kind words🥰 I'm going to do my best to properly answer and share my thoughts on all the points you've mentioned.
Firstly, welcome to the fandom!! 💖 I'm sorry you've joined at a time of so much uncertainty, but I promise that at its core, this community is a beautiful place to be. But like all communities, there is always positivity and negativity, and it's important to be careful with what's surrounding you, ensuring it's a healthy balance that works for you.
I've divided my response into several sections, as I find that to be the best way to convey my thoughts. I also wanted to be as clear as possible since this is a sensitive topic for some, and I want to try to alleviate at least some of the worries.
A mild spoiler warning for a mention of something that happens in episode 1 of season 2.
Reviews on Season 2:
I wasn't planning on reading any of the reviews for season 2, but since you asked for my thoughts, I read all the articles that I could find so that I could give you an informed response. And one thing I advise is to always take reviews with a grain of salt (this includes my thoughts as well) because, ultimately, they're all based on the writers' opinions.
What I've found with all previous seasons of TWD, especially season 1 of Daryl Dixon, was that no single review I read aligned perfectly with what I thought of the show once I watched it myself. And I know I'll say the same about season 2.
Regarding what I read in the season 2 reviews, I don't think I've actually read a single concerning line in any of the ones I've come across, and I'm pretty sure I've read every single one that has been released. There are, however, a lot of people who, out of fear or concern, focus on single lines from a review that may sound negative or worrisome when taken out of context, and ignore everything else in the review that's purely positive.
I can see many people have shared their specific thoughts on different segments of several reviews, but I won't go into my thoughts here for the sake of keeping this response reasonable short. If you're interested in a detailed post about my thoughts on the reviews in general or any in particular, let me know, and I'll share it as soon as I get a chance.
My thoughts on Isabelle:
I found Isabelle to be a fascinating character with many layers. She is unquestionably flawed and has a great mix of both positive and negative characteristics, which I think is what gives her character so much potential. She's intelligent, driven, brave, headstrong, and very protective, but she's also undeniably manipulative, which makes sense when you think of it as a self-defence mechanism that she developed during her rocky life before the apocalypse. I'm also a fan of Clémence as an actress, and I think she's a great fit for this character.
This next bit might sound a bit contrevoursial but bare with me. I've seen Isabelle get a lot of hate for being manipulative towards Daryl, even I personally hated seeing Daryl be treated that way, but it's important to remember that we've also seen Carol behave manipulatively when she's had to in the past in order to protect the people that she loves. This is something you'll see Carol do once again in episode 1 of TBOC, and when I watched it, it made me uncomfortable, but ultimetly, I could see that it made Carol uncomfortable as well; she doesn't feel any satisfaction out of what she does and is willing to carry the weight of that lie and guilt to achieve her ultimate goal of saving Daryl, the person she loves.
Even though, on the surface, it's not an admirable thing to do, we appreciate Carol so much more because of the lengths she's willing to go to for the ones she loves, and we've also seen her journey to this point, which naturally makes us love her and empathise with her.
So my point here is that I can't judge Isabelle for the same behaviour I admire in my favourite character. Just like Carol may act that way to protect Daryl (her loved one), Isabelle was doing it because she believed (to the best of her knowledge) that it was what was best for Laurent (her loved one).
However, what doesn't sit right with me about Isabelle's character is that what the showrunners and writers have been saying about her doesn't align with what I've seen on screen (this is a great example of why I try to avoid looking at unnecessary publicity). I want to love her character for who she is, flaws and all, but the inconsistency in her publicity makes me feel like there's some discrepancy behind the scenes, and that has stopped me from investing in her character and gives me slight concern for the trajectory of her arc, which has so much potential that would be incredibly tragic if wasted.
The only other thing that I would disagree with (IF the show ends up going down that path) is the negative messaging that would be given out about nuns if every surviving nun on the show is portrayed as willing to forget her vows the minute there's a man in front of them that they find interesting. I'm not catholic, but I think that it would be incredibly disrespectful towards actual nuns and the sacrifices that they make for their faith. But please don't take this as fact because I don't think this will actually ever happen. I honestly don't believe that AMC or anyone involved with the show would knowingly do something like that. I'd be happy to explain this a little further, but I don't think it's relevant if you haven't seen the first seasons.
Watching TWD: Daryl Dixon S1 & 2
My question to you would be, what draws you to TWD/TBOC? Is it Caryl itself and potential canon? And if so, do you feel that you'd be left disappointed and/or unsatisfied with the potential lack of romance between the characters in season 2? Or, do you enjoy the show for a combination of things, like the character development, world-building, cinematography, etc.?
I want to emphasise that there is no wrong answer to the above. Everyone is unique, and it's 1000% understandable and fair for each person to have unique reasons for being drawn to and loving, hating, or even being indifferent about a show.
I personally fall in the latter category; I love TWD for its rich story, action sequences, cinematography, multitude of interesting characters, and the mind-blowing ways in which they have developed over the years (the whole package of the show is exactly my cup of tea), and of course, it's no secret if anyone looks at my blog that my favourite character (BY FAR) are Carol and Daryl. I absolutely adore them for everything they are, both as individuals and what they bring out in each other and mean to each other. And if Caryl is ever canon (which I expect would happen in season 3), then that would be the cherry on top of a show I already love.
My very short review of season 1 would be that I really enjoyed it and would rank it at the top between all the other spinoff seasons we've gotten so far. However, in all honesty, I still felt and noticed the hole that was left behind in the story with the absence of Carol, but knowing that she will be returning in season 2 kind of made up for that lack in season 1. All up, I really enjoyed season 1 and have watched it several times in the last year. I'm actually currently in the middle of watching it again in preparation for season 2.
My recommendations:
If you personally fall into the former category and, as mentioned above, feel that you'd be left disappointed and/or unsatisfied with the potential lack of romance between the characters in season 2, then perhaps it's better to wait till all the episodes are released to then decide if it's something that you'd like to watch.
If you're willing to accept and are okay with the potential lack of romance between Caryl in season 2 but are concerned about and would rather not watch any potential romantic relationship develop between Daryl and Isabelle, then I'd say that you should watch the season as it releases because I honestly don't believe that something like that is a real possibility. At most, there may be hints towards one-sided feelings from Isabelle's side and maybe some confusion from Daryl's side, but untimely, it would not mean or go anywhere. I'm personally not even bothered with this worst-case scenario because it doesn't matter how many people have feelings for Daryl or how confused Daryl is because I know that once he's reunited with Carol, there won't be any more uncertainty about where his heart and loyalties truly lie. There's honestly not a single ounce of me that's concerned about this.
If you're more like me and enjoy the show as a whole, even though you may be slightly disappointed with a few accepts, then I'd highly recommend that you watch season 1 before the release of season 2 (if you have the time), because it genuinely was a good season and will give you a lot of backstory and context that would make season 2 feel so much more enjoyable and immersive.
~~~~
Thanks again for your questions!! I hope this all makes sense and that it answers your questions. As I mentioned earlier, if you'd like me to expand on my thoughts on anything in particular, please let me know, and I'd be happy to do so.
My last bit of advice is this: I know it's easier said than done, but I urge you, especially as someone who's new to the fandom, to not allow a lot of different voices and opinions to shape how you naturally feel or invalidate what you take away from watching the show (not that I think that's what you're doing but this is the general advice I wanted to give just in case🩵). It's really easy for anyone to be influenced by negativity and positivity when they find that that's all they can see from the people around them.
I personally try to focus on what I see on screen and what I hear directly from Norman and Melissa because, at the end of the day, showrunners and writers come and go, but Norman and Melissa have embodied these characters from day one and understand them more than anyone else ever could.
♡♡♡
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Hello! I found this small but really interesting ask about some comments Alya made in Origins about Adrien that Imthepunchlord answered a long while ago, and I’d love to also hear your thoughts on the points that they and the asker brought up! Please feel free to put your thoughts directly in a reblog if you like the post enough to add to it instead of answering this ask since that would probably be convoluted.
https://imthepunchlord.tumblr.com/post/651542468774526976/i-just-rewatched-origins-and-i-cant-stop
(link to the post in question)
I don't have much to add. @imthepunchlord summed the issue up really well at the end of their post, "what is 'in character' is up for debate most of the time."
These kinds of character analysis questions just aren't possible in Miraculous. The characters are wildly inconsistent, so you're not taking a well crafted story and pointing out how it all flows together. You're taking a slapdash story and twisting yourself into a pretzel to try to make it all make sense. Hard pass. That's why I just focus on the character's core and ignore a lot of the nonsense that canon pulls. It's not that I want to deny canon. It's that you cannot embrace all of canon and write a good story.
However, you all know that I love to play fix it, so let's give Alya some sugar and talk about how you can write her character to make her reactions to Adrien make a little more sense. I don't think that canon has thought her through this much, but this approach really fits her character and I love it! For those who don't want to follow the link to the original ask, we're looking at this bit of dialogue:
Marinette: Okay. I get it. Good job, you three. Very funny.
Adrien: No, no, I was just trying to take this off!
Marinette: Oh, really? You're friends with Chloé, right?
Adrien: Why do people keep saying that? (Marinette huffs; he goes to his seat)
Chloé: Now do you see what I mean about respect?
Marinette: I know I've seen him somewhere before. (sees images of Gabriel and Adrien Agreste on Alya's cellphone) Of course! He's the son of my fave fashion designer, Gabriel Agreste!
Alya: Daddy's boy, teen supermodel, AND Chloé's buddy? Ha! Forget it.
And trying to make sense of how Alya goes from this to being the head of team Adrienette. The obvious answer is that something happens off screen between Origins and the main part of canon, but let's go a little deeper than that.
A lot of people approach Alya as a reporter. A truth seeker. A fact finder. That approach isn't wrong, it may even be how canon wants you to read her, but it's not the approach that I like to take. Whenever I have time to really flesh Alya out, I go a slightly different route.
To me, Alya is a story teller. She wants the stories she tells to be accurate, but she can easily get caught up in a narrative and forget to take a moment to check her facts. A good reporter watching the above exchange would go, "If Adrien is a bully, then why did he protest his innocence? What's the real story? Who can I talk to in order to get the facts?"
A story teller may still do that, but they may also take Chloé's earlier bullying along with Adrien being Chloé's friend and come up with a very believable story about Adrien being "Daddy's boy, teen supermodel, AND Chloé's buddy." It fits the facts that the story teller knows and they don't have a reporter's instinct question everything. They'll only start to question their version of the story once a hard fact pops up that goes against the story.
The reason I like this approach is that Alya is the chosen of Illusions. That's not a great fit for a truth seeker. Illusions is a much better fit for someone who is drawn to stories. A person who values the truth, but who isn't driven by it. A good reporter is driven by truth. A good story teller is driven by the call of a good story.
If we take that approach and look at Alya's actions in Origins, then we see that she had a story in her head and was happy to fit the pieces into that story until Adrien did something that no longer fit the story. That's when the "ask questions, get the real story" instinct kicked in, leading her to discover that she'd misjudged Adrien. It would have been nice to see that happening on screen, but Origins didn't have time for that so we're just left wondering what changed Alya's mind and making up various stories to explain it.
You can also take Origins and use it as the start of an arc where Alya learns to be a better reporter by not jumping to conclusions since she does a lot of jumping to conclusions in season one (and even does it on occasion in later seasons). But you don't need to give every character a strong character arc like that and I enjoy letting Alya be solid as-is. I tend to tone down her jumping to conclusions issues and make her more open to giving things a second look.
This is extra true because Marinette has a pretty clear problem with snap judgments, so I don't want her and Alya to have the same flaw. I want Alya to be more unique in her flaws. It's not that she jumps to conclusions, it's that she's a little too quick to stop asking questions once she has a believable narrative. It's in the same vein as Marinette, but still it's own thing. It's also still a flaw that Alya needs to work on, but in a more nuanced way where it also acts as a strength under the right circumstances such as when she's in the field and needs to come up with illusions on the fly.
I cannot say if this is what canon is trying to do with Alya. The bones of this read are there, but the bones of the reporter read are also there. I just like this read more. It doesn't drastically change Alya, it's just a minor nuance that makes her fit into her place in the story with a little more grace.
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Rocket Plushie Review
My thoughts on Rocket plushies! I only own some of these so for those I'll go into a little more detail, but most of this is just based on vibes lol
This isn't in any sort of ranking or order
I love this one! His fur feels so soft and he sits on my desk and keeps me company. Reminds me of Pokemon's "Sitting Cuties" line of plushes. Sometimes he'll fall over a little but that's really only if he's sitting on a more uneven surface like a bed or sofa, on my desk he sits fine
This one looks like one of those Littlest Pet Shop toys. So many of the other Rocket plushies look good I don't know what happened here.
Sweet, sleepy boy I love to cuddle him ❤️ Both huggable and snuggable. My sleep has improved 120% since getting him 10/10 would recommend
This is my son my precious little child I love him I want the world for him he is the greatest thing in all of existence. He is so very soft and the perfect size to hug and to hold. ❤️
This is the first Rocket plush I ever got he is very special to me 🥹 I like the chibified design, very adorable! He does have a hard time sitting up on his own because of his disproportionately sized head, I usually have to lean him against something. His ears are velvety soft!
Tiny gremlin, an actual creature. He is full of bad ideas. I like that he comes with a tiny gun
This one looks kind of like a dog more so than a raccoon. Maybe it's just this picture. Idk he still cute tho
This one is good but something about his eyes feels a little off. I don't know if I trust him
Absolutely adorable! He has Animal Crossing vibes. I would buy him but he's over forty dollars 🙃
This one is cute but uh... this is legally distinct off-brand Rocket Wolf not Rocket Raccoon
He is 100% friend shaped I love him I want to give him a hug
"I can't believe I'm taking orders from a hamster." -Some Nova Corps Guy. I like this little dude, he's smol and squishy like a marshmallow!
This one is cute, but I do kinda wish his face wasn't so flat, otherwise no notes
This is so adorable wth you can carry Rocket around on your back like he's a sleepy little child I love it
Bro's lookin' like a finger puppet. He's very small and cute!
This Rocket looks like he needs some love. Well, that's all Rockets but especially this one. Looks like he'd be standing alone a street corner somewhere. Someone needs to bring him home and make him soup
I feel like this one should be the reference image next to the word Blorbo in a dictionary. This is the embodiment of blorbo and all other blorbos should bow to him
Shadow the Hedgehog wannabe. Gritty 90s reboot edgelord
This Rocket is smiling but I feel like he's screaming on the inside while this rando pulls on his ears
Football Head here stares into my soul. He can and will beat me up
Cute but not the best. I'd probably put him in a B-Tier (Shrub, you said you weren't going to do rankings!)
Adorable little guy! He has tiny magnets in his hands with which to hold batteries and other stolen items. You can also buy little outfits for these types of plushies so 20/10! During the colder months I let him ride around in my hoodie ^-^
This one is up to no good I love the mischief in his expression lol
I love Disney Tsum Tsum so this little peanut is an absolute winner in my book
"Until a second ago I thought you were a build-a-bear."
"MAYBE I AM"
He's so sweet and adorable would absolutely bring him home and love him forever (would be even better if he came with sound like some build-a-bears do)
WHO PUT HIM IN THE DRYER???
The way they did his eyes reminds me of Spiderman
He's a sweet boy he just needs someone looking out for him and to be his conscience and stop him from stealing batteries 💛
FERAL
Bro's got them sparkly anime eyes. Also sideburns
Alright I've reached the photo limit so that's all for now. If you read all the way down here thanks for checking out my silly ramblings!
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