#i mean its not really a spoiler but it is a hell of a scene

[canary3d-obsessed]

Director: we need to convey that our main couple 1. are proper and chaste until marriage and 2. will be absolute sex freaks for each other if the marriage ever happens

Screenwriter: I have an idea or two

[yume-fanfare]

something about how there's like two actual double pages in the entirety of the jshk manga and one of them was for mitsuba's transformation in the hell of mirrors arc

[naiadic]

I have so many emotions about the finale but I also have thoughts

~~~~~~~SPOILERS~~~~~~~

First off, AAAA HES SO BABYGIRL, but more importantly he implies he was with Eve, too

Now admittedly, what he "had to offer" could have just been free will and the fruit of knowledge, but given the sexual vibe here I really want to believe this man got busy with Eve as well

But that also raises the question..

...we know Lilith is Charlie's mother, but was Lilith really the one that raised her? In almost every mention of Lilith we see her horns, but not in those family photos (or her finale scene, come to think of it...)

Plus I mean we have this whole hair thing going on, Lilith is usually shown to have swooped back hair, like a lil pompadour deal, while Eve has straight unstyled hair. Idk about you but it sure looks like Lilith loved and cared about charlie, but somewhere in there Eve came in and started being Bad Mom

i think there's a lot to be uncovered there. Somehow, somewhere the girls must be pulling a twin-switcharoo on us, I Just KNOW IT

Then we have Adam

I feel like its almost guaranteed that fucker is gonna pop up in hell, hiding for awhile or otherwise, just like Sir Pentious popped up in heaven after dying. They're both human souls! He's committed pretty much every sin during his time in heaven (pride, lust, and wrath being the most prevalent) and if sinners can rise by doing well, angels can fall by doing bad

Then..well...Alastor.

Honestly homeboy is still quite a mystery. It's clear to me he's made a soul contract that binds his powers, somehow making him weaker than he could be. Whether this was with Lilith or someone else is up for debate, but most fans think it was Lil herself.

One piece of possible evidence for this is in E1 when Zestial mentions rumors of Alastor "falling to holy arms". He says this BEFORE any mention of Charlie, too.

Personally, I think Alastor might not even be a human soul, or that he's somehow made a deal with himself for better control of his soul, and maybe he fucked it up somehow or had another deal impact it, just because of what he said during the finale about sinner's recognizing their full potential. I look forward to seeing his story play out!

(Also I wonder if he has some sort of power bank deal cuz that cut healed suspiciously quick once he got to all that green light...maybe he's got an item that lets him access bits of his greater power? And repair that staff of his?)

So yeah that concludes my rant, Im so fucking excited for S2

EDIT: Someone pointed out that Sir Pentious wasnt killed by an angelic weapon, but by a power blast if sorts (plus we dont SEE him physically die). That makes me wonder if he might've simply ascended at the last moment rather than specifically dying and then respawning...if that's the case maybe Adam won't return..

[insanely-lovely-and-random]

Ohhh boy wow. Just saw Challengers and my God my bisexual brain was firing all signals. Like within the first five minutes I realised 2 things about this movie. 1 it understands that tennis is a truly boring sport and instead makes it an incredibly sweaty, sexy, compelling game to watch. 2 this movie is bi as all hell and equally in love with all 3 of these people (as was I by the end of the movie).

SPOILERS:

God I was enraptured I think this films pretty subjective and can be seen in a few different ways but I just saw it as 3 people who think their playing the same game but none of them really are. Zendayas playing to win at Tennis, when she can't do it herself she plays through her husband. Art is playing to win the woman he thinks he loves and needs.

And Patrick is the most interesting of all, is he playing because unlike those two he actually needs to out of monetary needs? Maybe but doubt it. Is he playing to win Zendaya? And willing to be her champion unlike Art? Possibly but honestly I think it's the third option. He's playing to get back Art, Art is always a presense in their relationship and he puts him before himself. For sure the unusual sexual history between them is there. The strong friendship turned rivalry. The sheer sexual tension (Goddamn that churro!!) But oddly enough for the guy who may seem like the disloyal asshole type of the three he is both the most honest and oddly loyal. He may sleep with Zendaya but the second she asks him to throw the match? He's furious, he's insulted and refuses. But NOT for himself but for Art. His first words are "How could you do that to Art?" To cheapen his victory, if he were to know would crush Art. Art is always at the tip of his tounge and whats happening.

When they start making out in the dorm Zendaya won't stop talking about tennis but equally whats Patrick talking about? Art. When he finds out Arts not just interested in Zendaya but is acting snakey he's proud.

And god that sauna scene?? (I mean yeah its hot but I mean the dialouge!) He asks Art if he'd miss it and he completely doesn't understand what he's really asking. He once again is talking to somone who thinks their talking about tennis but he's talking about anything but.

I knew that bloody signal was gonna come back and when they had sex in the car I was like "okay this is it, he's gonna tell Art" but the question was.. will it be to hinder him? Make him lose his cool so he loses the game..? OR will he do it to truly spur Art into a game changing rage and unlock his fighting spirit? And as the scene unfolded I belived it was the latter. And it was NOT for Zendaya because he could've easily thrown the match like she said but NO he wanted Art to win fair and square. He wanted to help him do that.

That wordless communication they share? That Zendayas just sat on the outside of not undertanding but worried? Golden. The brutal match and then that gorgeous smile. When I think Art realises what his friend has done and really why he did it. And Patricks, the sheer joy of seeing Art smile at him again. That beautiful, fly through the air and that throw of his own racket down so he can catch Art as he gloriously wins the match. Because tennis was never really what mattered to Patrick, and neither was it really to Art. And despite it being Arts victory they've really both won.

And Zendayas roar of victory from the crowd to me was almost funny. Because she won too. Her husband, her extension of her own career and self won his match with his challenge. His/her past. She also sees it as a victory even though I really won't be suprised if it's lost her both her husband and her back up career/boyfriend. And maybe she won't mind that so much because she got what she wanted. Because she was playing a different game.

Also banging soundtrack, loved it. Also this is just my view of the film and it really can be read multiple ways I'm sure, would love to hear other peoples ideas on it! What can I say I just love some bi emotional drama!

Also Im seeing it again friday so any incorrect quotes, extra thoughts or such I'll probs fix then haha

[azirafuck]

GOS2 Spoilers Masterpost (ONLY EP. 1-2)

alright, you read the title, you know what's under here - gonna tag everyone who helped this if I know them, thanks to everyone for their contribution and for being agents of chaos the way satan intended. love you all

[Last update/edit: 24/07 - 14:10CET]

first of all, we got some amazing posts from @incorrectquoteswwdits mostly about the first scene in heaven with crowley as an angel:

angel!crowley creating stars and aziraphale thinking he's calling him beautiful

more on that

aziraphale's lies make the lesbians have problems, apparently

communist aziraphale be like OUR CAR

isolation and doubts

THEN we have a detailed recount of the first episode by a kind anon! again, thank you @incorrectquoteswwdits for sharing <3

@goodomens-hints posted a lenghty and detailed recount of the first episode as well with some little hits at future episodes (nothing too big on the post itself, but BE CAREFUL, the blog is actually posting some other spoilers from episodes past the second one!)

@goodomensjail gave us a detailed recount of the first scene, with angel!crowley starting to question stuff and eventually shielding aziraphale with his wing

@mikubinders gives us SOME GOOD GOURMET SHIT by telling us that:

"Beelzebub kidnaps and threatens Crowley, tells him that ze could put a price on his head but ze doesn't want to. After that Crowley comes back to the bookshop and Good-old-fashioned lover boy plays while he drives there. "I'm back" happens. Aziraphale makes Crowley do a silly little apology dance so he forgives him and so they work together"

after thinking this last spoiler was fake, an anon came through and confirmed its real! we also have new context! (sent by an anon to yours tuly)

anon came through with some details about the Everyday record, told us Queen is actually tied to CROWLEY and not to the Bentley, and gave us more context to the OUR CAR and OUR BOOKSHOP bit (sent by an anon to yours tuly)

as for what happens during the Job flashback, after which the sitting five feet apart on a rock in front of the sea happens, a bunch of different versions of what actually happens are going around. @thesherrinfordfacility kept up with the madness surrounding it, so im gonna post here the last two versions of events/details.

first one:

In the Job section, Aziraphale is questioning gods decision of punishing Job. Then u see him in heaven w Muriel here and they are looking thru a long scroll that has instructions from god and he's trying to make sense of it. Muriel is telling him that god and satan made a bet about what Job would do and that's why they are testing him. And az is like whatttt why would god do that that's mean!

When Az finds out they're going to kill Jobs kids, he goes down to Earth to save them while using his angel voice until he realizes he's speaking to Crowley. He sees Crowley about to enter the kids room and tells Crowley "I know you, you wouldn't do this" and Crowley tells him he doesn't know him really. (

AND TY TENNANT IS SASSY AND FLIRTS W AZ??!??!? (*) And THATS when crowley goes "well he seems nice" from the clip. He wasn't jealous tho, like he thought it was funny since they are literally there to supposedly kill these kids and one of them is flirting lol.

The moment of 'weird-beard Crowley' was actually more focused on azi and him questioning God. Crowley tempts Azi w food and u see him struggle but then he gobbled it down and he cries bc he thinks crowley is going to bring him to hell (that's the scene where they are sitting on that thing with the pretty horizon) Crowley tells him "you're just an angel who follows gods as will as much as he can" and Az says that sounds lonely, and Crowley agrees, which is a callback to when he asked Crowley if he was lonely being on what Crowley calls "his own side", and Crowley said no. Crowley then tells him "i'm a demon. I lied"

(*): it was told this isn't actually canon canon, it's up for interpretation - some reported Ty's character is just the classic bratty teenager UPDATE: NOPE anon cleared it up and apparently it DOES read as flirty because ty's character is a little bitch, love that for us

and then we have the second one:

"Episode 2 is half present day things [...], and half the Job story/flashback. Crowley is the demon sent by Satan to torment "God's favorite human" Job to see if Job will curse God, in one big bet between God and Satan. Aziraphale comes to try to stop him, discovers they recognize each other but haven't seen each other since "the flood" and that Crowley seems to have changed since the flood, because he is willing to sacrifice the goats, and ruin Job's house. Crowley says he "has a permit" to torment Job FROM GOD. Aziraphale brings this up to the archangels that gleefully explain that yes it's a bet with Satan and that Job will suffer, but he will get everything back 3-fold by the end. And he will get NEW children. This disturbs Aziraphale, he does not want the CURRENT children to die, he understands the familial love that the archangels do not. He goes to stop Crowley not with power since he has the permit but to reason with him. Aziraphale says things to the effect "I KNOW you don't want to harm them I KNOW you and you don't want to kill children" and Crowley is defiant, but then…. It is revealed that he never killed any of the goats either, he transformed them into pigeons to hide them. And he is hiding the children away in the basement but destroying the house to make it look like they died. He transforms the three kids into lizards to hide them, then when the Archangels descend to give Job his rewards and tell him his wife will bear 7 new children, Job and his wife are in despair because they love their children. Crowley comes in pretending to be a human doctor and he and Aziraphale LIE to the angels faces about how babies are made and trick the angels into thinking Jobs three original children are NEWLY BORN children. Which fools Gabriel, who has only ever seen God make Eve fully grown from Adam's ribs. Crowley then meets Aziraphale at the rock. Aziraphale is crying and says "im ready for you to take me to hell" because he has LIED to angels and foiled God's plans. Crowley is gentle and comforts him that he is still an angel and "I won't tell anyone if you won't" and they reminisce that it's lonely being a different kind of demon and a different kind of angel that sort of do what they feel is right. Heavily implying that they are the same and have each other now. The end of episode 2.

that's what's going around for now, but ill add stuff if we find anything new - also feel free to add to this yourself or send me stuff!

[urlocalreadermooni]

Aizetsu x Reader

Female!Reader ( Hashira reader )

A/n: I am having a difficult time figuring out what to write nowadays 

A bit of spoilers but also a bit not since it's mixed with imagination. 

Part 2

                                                              Why do I feel this way…

You were sent to go relax in the swordsmith village, along with getting a new sword for yourself.  You were the Moon Hashira, Muichiros older sister. You had been told to go to the swordsmith village with your brother so you were already excited about it! You both were usually very quiet but when together alone, you guys can talk for hours! And I mean hours. One time you went on for 4 hours straight and Sanemi walked in on you two. He never looked at you both the same way. And to inform you reader, You are 18 turning 19 (IN THE FIC).

 You were in a room with Muichiro talking about how you were excited to see how your new swords would be designed since you both got new swordsmiths. But then a demon opened the door and you both turned. You ended up slicing its head as soon as it entered. It was crying when you slashed its head off too. It split into two more demons? ‘Odd.’ you thought and next thing you know, the green eyed clone had a fan that blew your brother through the wall into the forest. You screamed his name as he flew and you stared at the demon in anger. You had charged after him.

A little while later

Now there were 4 demons. One blue eyed, one green eyed that you despised, one red eyed, and one yellow eyed. They were all looking at you. Tanjiro and Genya had made it to the scene, tanjiro got swept away by the yellow clone and Genya fought the red clone. The green one went after Genya as well. The blue clone kept looking at you in a weird way so you decided to fight him. As you approached the Blue clone he backed away. He seemed to have no intention of fighting but you didn’t care, it was a demon! “Please don’t… It makes me sad that you want me dead…” He said softly. 

You let your guard down for a single second. And you get tackled by the yellow clone. You fell to the ground with the Bird? Man? Demon? On you. You got mad and then you heard, “Don’t hurt her Urogi… It makes me sad…” Urogi was his name huh? You felt the yellow clone ‘Urogi’ shift and he spoke. “Aizetsu you can’t be serious! It's a hashira!” He laughed. You heard him speak again. “Besides, It will be fun to rip her to shreds!” Aizetsu clearly did not like the idea by the sound of his tone. “Urogi. It's too upsetting to see someone die like that..” You could feel his talons dig into your back. "you are really hinting that you don’t want to kill this one!”

 You were laying there, listening to this conversation between the two demons. Generally confused mostly, but also a little curious. Why was this demon trying to convince this BIRD BRAIN to not kill you? Odd.. “Let me handle her… It's upsetting that you're hurting her..” You felt Urogi groan and fly off. You got up faster than ever and raised your sword at Aizetsu, the blue clone. You were about to attack until he raised his hands in the air, dropping his spear. Like he is showing you that he surrenders. You heard from behind you. “Aizetsu. What the hell are you doing you coward!” He glared at the red clone. “All of you stay out of this.” He said to the other clones in a harsh tone, but still a bit sad. He started walking closer to you and you were starting to feel uneasy about the situation. 

Why would an UPPERRANK not want to kill a HASHIRA. You were looking at him and he kept stepping closer to you. You wanted to step back but there were other clones watching you, like the red one. You had your sword pointed to his neck and he stood there, close to you. But not attacking you, hands still in the air with his spear behind him. He slowly lowered his hands and offered his hand to you. “I promise I won't hurt you.. That would just be sad..” You didn’t take his hand but you nodded, letting him know that you understood. He had a very small smile on his face after you nodded. You found it a bit cute but quickly shook off that feeling for a freaking DEMON. 

“My name is Aizetsu… What is yours? Please tell me..” Was a demon REALLY asking you for your.. Name? “Why do you want to know my name? Aizetsu.” You heard giggling from behind you, clearly from the one they called ‘Urogi’. Aizetsu looked somewhat annoyed at him laughing. “Because you're different from the others..” Different? How could you be different? Yeah you're a hashira, but in what way were you different? You looked at him confused now and slowly lowered your blade, even though you're not really supposed to. “Different? In what way?” You asked him. He started to get a little more… Excited? It was hard to read him since he looked a bit sad and down all the time. 

“You are more… Cute…?” He sounded a bit confused when he said cute. But you immediately let all your guard down and went bright red. ‘A demon.. Calling me CUTE?!’ you internally panicked. Urogi was laughing so hard in the background. “Aizetsu has feelings… FOR A HASHIRA!” Aizetsu ignored him. Aizetsu, noticing you blushing, felt happy, “So will you tell me your name?” You nodded and spoke, “I-its (Name)...” He smiled a bit more this time. “Cute name for a cute girl.. It almost makes me cry on how cute it is..” You were blushing. HARD. He. Kept. Calling. You. CUTE. “D-Do you even know what cute means..” You said covering your face while dropping your sword. 

Tanjiro slowly made his way back to where you were and yelled your name. Snapping you out of your freak out. You picked up your sword again and Aizetsu grabbed your hand. “Hey hey hey! It's okay! Don’t leave.. That would make me sad..” Tanjiro was confused and fought one of the other clones. You looked at Aizetsu again, he looked cute… And then you started blushing again. He kept holding your hand and you were freaking out internally about it. He pulled you closer to him and knocked the sword out of your hand while you were stunned. “(Name)... Can I keep you?” He asked in a very happy yet sad tone. What. Did. He. Just. Say. “W-what?-” You asked confused, and also very flustered. “You heard me. Can I keep you? If you say no I'll have to kill you..” He said the last part sadly. “If you take him you’re gonna have to take all of us.” Urogi said. 

You sighed and gave in.

“Fine. You can keep me.”

[d3pressed-caffiene-addict]

Hazbin Hotel Ep 5&6 Oh My God (Major Spoilers)

I am having so many thoughts, this is just a brain dump

-LUCIFER. He’s so pathetic I love him

-Jeremy Jordan you fucking legend. I’m a big fan of a lot of his work and was excited to see him in this but I was slightly unsure if he was the right casting since I expected Lucifer to be more of a high and mighty/snobby figure, but with the way they characterised him HE IS PERFECT.

-“TAKE THAT DEPRESSION”

-The Lucifer vs Alastor rivalry is beautiful

-“Ha ha, fuck you.”

-Father figure Alastor

-HIS EARS GO BACK LIKE A CAT WHEN HES ANGRY I CANT

-MIMZY’S ARRIVAL. I know most of us know the lore about her and Alastor being developed as a couple before it was scrapped but I really like how they are in the show

-Even if it’s just crumbs I’m so excited to be getting snippets of Alastor’s lore. It’s wild to keep going back and forth between “aw he actually cares for and protects his friends” and “oh my god he’s a fucking psycho”

-Speaking of that the scene with Husk holy shit. Poor man looked terrified

-The confirmation that Alastor’s also stuck working for someone, it has to be Lilith surely. I know some people will call it predictable because a lot of theories are coming true but personally I think it’s from good worldbuilding/foreshadowing

-ALASTOR IN FULL DEMON FORM JUST ANNIHILATING EVERYONE and then he just goes “Ah that was fun, now back to it”

-I kinda like the parallel between Al and Mimzy & Angel and Cherri where they invite their friends to join them if they want to, even if neither of them take it up initially maybe we’ll see them join the hotel in the future?

-BABY CHARLIE

-I really expected Lucifer to be a dickhead and a shitty dad, but he seems to be an overall better guy than most people in hell

-CHERRI BOMB ARRIVAL! And she’s Aussie now fuck yeah represent

-I still love her and Angel’s friendship even if she is a terrible influence. Everyone’s got that friend who’s solution to a bad day is just self-destruction but they mean well at least

-DARREN CHRIS TOO, THE MUSICAL THEATRE/BROADWAY ACTOR CASTING IS STACKED

-Emily is so sweet I love her

-The Molly cameo is so sweet, I was waiting for her to appear somewhere but lowkey forgot she was in heaven. Honestly though how did she get there when the rest of her and Angel’s family got condemned for what they did together? Maybe she left the mob or something idk I just hope we get to meet her properly at some point

-Heaven’s real fucked up? Yeah not shocked

-VAGGIE?? FALLEN ANGEL REVEAL?? AND SHE WAS AN EXTERMINATOR???? I know most of us called it but holy shit I didn’t expect it to be confirmed this soon

-Adam is such a dick but he’s so much fun

-I love that Charlie was gonna start her court presentation with definitions like a high school essay

-“Consent is a good name for a sex club” the gentleman Husk truthers gonna have fun with this one

-Pentious hitting on Cherri is hilarious and totally not the same level of subtlety I flirt with when I’m drunk

-Hearing more and more about how Val treats Angel is so sad especially with how casually he talks about it since it’s just another day for him

-Him parenting drunk Nifty is beautiful

-“You wanna play with the kitty?”

-Valentino is my #1 enemy

-Seeing Angel stand up to him to protect his friends is making me feel feelings. Like he knows that he’s gonna be treated even worse for it but I think he’s reaching his tipping point and shits gonna go down soon

-Also I know there’s a popular theory that he’s gonna die soon and a lot of the theories are coming true so I am scared. I kind of don’t think this one’ll happen though since he’s the fan favourite and its just too soon to take that much of a risk. Plus Vivsie’s admitted he’s the best written character and it’d be such a waste of all that development

-More sweet moments between him and Husk, they’ve gotten me so invested in this ship so fast

-The fact that most of heaven didn’t know about the extermination?? Wild

-Idk how I feel about the timeskip between Ep 4&5, they’re only a month away from the extermination now. Yes it’s making the stakes feel higher but I do wish we’d been able to see more of that time for the relationship development, all the characters seem much closer than before and we’ve only seen bits of how they got there

-I really wish they’d greenlit more than 8 episodes to pace things a little better but I’m glad we have season 2 confirmed

-That last minute ‘reveal Vaggie’s past to Charlie, boot them out of heaven and then cut to credits before she can react’ is gonna torture me until next week

-I don’t disagree with past criticism that Vivzie’s female characters can feel a bit underwritten but I think it’s getting better

-“We’re coming to the hotel first” plus all the theories that someone’s gonna die are fucking stressing me out man

Anyway hope you enjoy the brain dump, this show has once again consumed my thoughts

[liquidstar]

SEASON 3 TRAILER DROPPED HERES MY THOUGHTS (LN spoilers)

BROTHER AND SISTER OF ALL TIME THEYRE SO CUTE <3 love seeing how their relationship has progressed from beako literally throwing him out a window for stuff like this to her happily playing along its so so so so so cute. genuinely just one of the cutest and sweetest dynamics in the series

hi ram roswaal and fred :) this is probably all we're going to really see of you guys this arc lol

JOSHUA REAL!!!!! but not for long (also otto in the bg foreshadowing all the drinking hes about to do this arc. hes so stressed. poor emilia is trying her best)

julius looks so babyfaced here? they really emphasized his long eyelashes just like subaru has been on about every time he mentions him. they better include the scene where he checks him out, like, if they dont animate subaru looking dead at this mans ass im going to riot

i LOVE this shot of ana. you can really tell shes up to some corrupt capitalist bullshit as we speak. love her for that. wish i had this pic when i made that one money game anastasia video

the red dress actually does look really good on crusch like it compliments the green hair really well but also the crusch we know would not walk around in such a thing so its like. damn looks like the "memories are an important part of identity" story thinks memories are an important part of identity. who knew.

ALSO LOVE FELTS NEW LOOK SO MUCH! the only complaint is i felt (felt lol) like the red brought out her eyes more but the blue also looks cool. three primary colors all being used looks nice too

whatever who cares about all that THE CUNT!!!!!!! THE CUNT IS HERE!!! I CANNOT WAIT FOR ALL THE DRAMA SHE CAUSES TO BE ANIMATED FOR REAL

no fucking way... did they actually...

THEY DID! THEY CENSORED THAT HORRIBLE FUCKING DESIGN OH MY GOD. SHES WEARING SHORTS AND JUST A CROPPED SHIRT. AND CHAPS I GUESS? BUT ALSO A LITTLE SKIRT CAPE SO NO ASS SHOTS... THIS WILL MAKE WATCHING THE SEASON SO MUCH MORE TOLERABLE. i mean not perfect but STILL.

photos taken seconds before disaster lmfao. i still love how chin thinks subaru is a freak and weirdo for being so buddy buddy with him after he and his buddies mugged him. twice. (even more times from subarus perspective. hell he stabbed subaru once) genuinely cant wait to see more of this dynamic its so stupid.

THE FUCKING CUNT!!!!!! also the apples lol

oh you poor thing. you have no idea what next level family drama bullshit awaits. good luck. get ready to kill grandma AGIAN lol

:'( emilia still misses her terrible cat dad and its kinda sad when you know were not getting a resolution on that here either. they both look so sad :(

i cannot wait for garf mommy issues round fucking 2.

THIS CRAZY BITCH!!! I CANNOT WAIT TO SEE THIS CRAZY BITCH ANIMATED. I CANT WAIT TO SEE HOW THEYRE PORTRAY HER MANNERISMS. ESP W HOW WILD PETELGEUSE WAS ANIMATED IN S1. REAL LOONY TOONS BULLSHIT. AND HER POWERS ARE ALSO SOOOOOO MUCH COOLER I CANT WAIT

NO MORE DRESSES FOR CRUSCH YAY

he fucking bit it. yeah i guess thats what dogs do tho.

YOU. DIVORCE MAN. KILL YOURSELF. SLASH SERIOUS.

the empathy powers will have a glowing eye effect. very cool but i hope they dont show it too much in the first scene bc like in the LN i think its cooler if you dont know why everything is so... Wrong.

i dont rly have anything to say i just think ferris looks cool covered in blood. imagine being healed here like doctor catgirl will see you now

emilia be nice. that crazy bitch might be your mom. just like how the previous crazy bitch was in fact your dad.

THEY CHANGED UP CAPELLA'S DESIGN TOO honestly tho her being sexualized makes sense w a lot of the themes (the way its intentionally meant to be perverse and gross in a way explicitly stated) so i didnt mind as much and she still IS here but. this is still an improvement imo just a better outfit looks cooler. bug.

NAUR I DONT WANNA WAIT... OCTOBER.... AUGH

[tree1138]

Astarion Contradictions and Breakups

Major spoilers for Astarion’s personal quest, The Dark Urge questline, and game endings. 

When I was trying out different paths for how Astarion reacts to the Dark Urge questline something that stood out to me was the wide difference in responses Astarion has, as well as the way he contradicts himself. This essay started as a way of trying to explain “why does Ascendant Astarion tell you to take over the world when he immediately becomes a thrall” from a Watsonian (in-universe explanation) vs a Doylist (out-of-universe explanation) and wound up being a focused on; why does Ascendant!Astarion react so differently to when you break up? 

There are 4 opportunities to break up with Ascendant!Astarion; 1) refuse to become his thrall immediately after the ritual you breakup and have a follow up conversation the next morning, 2) become his thrall and break up with him whenever before killing the Eldar brain, 3) break up with him on the dockside convo at the beginning of the ending, 4) in the last scene with him say you want to break up at which point he doesn’t let you: “You're mine remember? The tadpole is gone, which means your future is mine to decide. How lucky you are that I chose you as my consort. Chose you to help me take Baldur’s gate, then sit by my side as I rule it. There’s no backing out now - we’ll be together forever. I can promise you that…”.  

Comparing breakup conversations with Spawn!Astarion after killing Cazador, Ascendant!Astarion responds with so much more spitefulness and defensive anger across the board, even at Spawn!Astarions most angry (breaking up with him in the literal last conversation) it doesn't match the anger and cruelty in senario 1. To me it reads as him wanting to make the player character just as hurt and upset as he is after a very emotional day and the lines get really nasty:

He then won’t say anything but “why the hells are you bothering me now” until you do 3 long rests which stands out considering if you break up in any other non ending scenario he’ll talk to you pleasantly afterwards. 

That conversation days afterwards is really interesting where his “goal” is to get you to agree to be partners in crime together, and in doing so is the most honest he gets about how a romantic relationship would have been unhealthy:

In regards to love It's really interesting what Astarion will say about love during the conversation where he asks you to become his spawn:

If the pc expresses insecurity about being a spawn he’ll reassure them and say he loves them, in a way that deliberately parallels his Act 1 seduction conversation down to the way that he starts with a degrading pet-name “what can I do for my dearest pet” vs “here’s my little treat with their cheeks all flushed”.

Just like the seduction scene he wants the pc on his side and attached to him, but if you push back on him during this conversation its clear he no longer believes in love just power exchanges:

If the player stays together with Ascendant!Astarion a dialogue option is that he’s seem distant since the ritual, and he’ll imply it's due to his new powers but he does that looking to the up and right that others have mentioned he does when he lies. What makes more sense and is better character writings is the Watsonian answer of: killing all your siblings and 7,000 others (including people Astarion regretted victimizing and then had to look in the eye and condemn to death) will fuck a person up. He knows his hands are bloody so he has to believe he got everything he wanted, and he did really want this because if you leave it up to him he will chose to do the ritual vs just killing Cazador.  

I think Astarion has to believe he is better (which in his view means more powerful) than his past self as part of believing the sacrifice was worth it. In scenario 2 he’ll say this if you bring up his past self:

What’s a lot more interesting is if you bring up his past self in the morning after conversation of scenario 1 he’s genuinely shocked and caught off guard:

What I found interesting was Astarion talks in the same way about how the ritual was worth it and the cool new powers he’ll totally get as he does advocating for endings that are bad for him. If you become the Absolute leader Astarion becomes a thrall just like all the other companions whether you do it on your own or in Bhaal’s name. For all his talk about Bhaal’s army being “an unsurpassable dowry” and how he’ll command it, he can’t do jack shit if the player defies Bhaal and then either kills themselves or becomes fully possessed by Bhaal.The Doylist answer is Larian games just have a very limited amount of endings and the characters are forever stuck at lvl 12 , the more interesting Watsonian answer is Astarian is lying/exaggerating out of ignorance or because he really doesn’t have a clue of what to do next and is trying to cover for that.

The whole ritual plotline is very obviously Astarion continuing the cycle of abuse vs helping others, the abuse Cazador inflicted was akin to the abuse he suffered from Vellioth, down to Astarion commenting that Cazador’s rules came from Vellioth. It's also clear that Ascendant!Astarion has processed none of his trauma re: Cazador, after the ritual he says “I will not think about him. I don’t want to even say his name” and he shouts at you to be silent if you mention Cazador when you break up in scenario 2. I personally think Astarion sees you staying with him as a spawn degrading because he was degraded and abused when he was a spawn based on a line he has if the pc is cursed to go mad with The Dark Urge, where he relates too much to the character.

I think the DnD rules of absolute morality that vampires are extremely evil is a boring answer to why Ascendant!Astarion becomes possessive and controlling, especially since Larian has pushed against that theme throughout the game. Yes Astarion has an Act 1 line about how vampires don't turn spawn into full vampires because they don't share power, in my opinion that line falls flat when considering will have kind and supportive dialogue to the player in a number of other Act 3 quests. Whether the its the Watsonian answer that Larian wasn’t going to rewrite large chunks of dialogue when there are Act 3 quests with no companion reactions or the Doylist answer that he is just extremely possessive and has attachment issues about the threat of you leaving him is an interesting dilemma.

In regards to scenario 4 it's a fucking huge contrast to Astarion's whole character arc about learning to trust and being around someone who respects his boundaries and consent, where here doesn't respect the player's boundaries or consent. It's such a contrast to scenario 3 that happens right before it where Astarion says "We have served our respective purposes, we're free to go wherever we wish" and doesn't mind you breaking up with him as if your relationship was a strategic alliance. It's also the clearest contrast from his pre-ritual dialogue of "we're a team. If I become all powerful, then we become all powerful" because he's taken away all power from the player. The Ascendant romance is not subtle with most of the romance specific dialogue being themed around an extremely toxic D/s relationship where the Narrator explicitly says he’ll see you as degrading himself by being with him as a spawn which feels like it was added to remove any ambiguity about what Astarion feels.  From the way he says “on your knees” before he turns the player character, the way he calls you “bad boy/girl” if you fail the check to see his thoughts, and that infamous line about sitting naked on his lap.

Between the heavy message of power corrupts and how the rest of his ending dialogue is about how his evil future plans will be so fun, it's a clear callback to an act 1 conversation:

tldr: I don't think that corruption is as fun or as freeing as you thought Astarion, but he doesn't have to confront that fact if you're "lovers forever, until the world falls down"

[goodomensjail]

“Chekhov’s Gun” and Good Omens Episode 1 SPOILERS and speculation

yes i was at the Brooklyn July 18 premiere so these are real spoilers

The “Chekhov’s gun” is a story telling principle that says any detail in a story should serve a purpose in the overall narrative, i.e. if you SHOW a gun to the audience, it SHOULD be fired later in the story. 

Applying this to Heaven’s threat of erasing a name from the “Book of Life” as punishment for anyone hiding or kidnapping or assisting in the missing Gabriel issue: we have never heard the term “Book of Life” in season 1, and why mention it as a threat if it is not to be used in the plot? Why not just say “torture” or “toss into the deepest pit” or anything else that we as the audience would clearly understand as “bad thing”? 

No, it is purposefully stated “erased from the Book of Life” and then we are explicitly told this will mean “they will have never existed”. 

I propose this prediction for the climax of the story, based on my seeing episodes 1 & 2 AND the EVERY SPOILER!!! so STOP HERE if you have avoided and want to continue to avoid “EVERY”. I guess basically here is my current fanfic for the season. 

Fact: we have yet to find out Angel Crowley’s name. He suspiciously doesn't give it to Aziraphale who prompts him for an introduction in the opening pre-fall scene. He changes his name at least once, from Crawley to Crowley, and maybe more times since Hastur and Ligur bemoan “whats he going by these days” in season 1

Fact: The ONLY reason Crowley gets involved in helping hide Gabriel is after hearing that the Book of Life erasure punishment is in play and RUSHES to Aziraphale to protect him while “Good old fashioned lover boy” plays 

THEORY: Crowley will take the blame for hiding Gabriel by handing him into Hell in order to protect Aziraphale. Gabriel will regain his memory and will come to recognize Crowley as either Raphael or Lucifer (more on that theory later)  and Crowley will get Gabriel to swear to secrecy that Aziraphale was involved because hey wouldnt an Archangel want to take out a powerful demon who was once an Archangel or Gods Favorite Light Bringer? So Gabriel allows Crolwey to take the blame and heaven to erase him. 

Crowley will rush back to the bookshop to say goodbye to Aziraphale and EVERY happens. Something like “Well i guess if its my last chance to say it” a la doctor who happens, and smoooooch. and THEN. 

Nothing happens. Crowley cannot be erased because no one in heaven knows his name. They demand Muriel (a scribe angel) look up “the Demon Crowley” and she realizes rather happily there is no such name in the book. They try “the Demon Crawley” and still no luck. 

Gabriel returns to heaven, and he keeps mum on the subject, having gone on an emotional journey with the husbands, he looks at Muriel knowingly and says something like “o well, Muriel keep looking, however long it takes” and he turns on his heel and is off. Muriel smiles and we cut back to our husbands that are really confused, Aziraphale cuz he just got smooched by the love of his life and Crowley cuz apparently he now has to live with his actions....

As for the “Lucifer” theory instead of the Raphale theory: in the HEBREW BIBLE Satan and Lucifer appear to be different angels, Satan a title meaning “the opposer” or “the acuser” and Lucifer “Morning Star” or “Light Bringer” an angel “that fell”. 

Crowley was an angel creating stars including falling stars. 

Crowley appears to be the more powerful miracle maker in season 1, and appears to outrank Aziraphale in the pre fall scene. 

The angels say the miracle to hide Gabriel (which Crowley and Azirpahale performed together) was EXTREMELY powerful, too powerful for Azirpahale.

Crowley was an angel and a demon that did his own thing and didnt listen to authority, either God or Satan. 

Satan, the red horny guy, is clearly called “Satan” in season 1 EXCEPT for the bar scene where Crowley states “i was bored... and then hey its lucifer and the guys!” - what if he is referring to HIMSELF and the guys? it would still work. 

Neil has been pretty against the Raphael theory for some time....

ANYWAY. This is AAALLLL probably way off BUT if i even have a small portion of something right i need it written down to point to after July 28 :)

In ANY case there MUST be some kind of USE of the Book of Life i CANNOT imagine a world where that “gun” doesnt “fire”

EDIT: another story telling principle is called a “Red Herring” and that could also well be in play here, what with all the “Clue” references earlier this month. Lastly, the Archangels all SEE Crowley in the Job story, but he is in his glasses and in his time appropriate clothing....maybe the fact that he is always blending into the fashions of the time is that he is sorta HIDING his status as Raphale or Lucifer and blending in?

[that-ari-blogger]

Persephone Is Stray Gods' Thesis Statement

I mentioned this when I wrote my post on Pan (check it out, I'm rather proud of that), but Persephone is also a weird choice to include. When you think of the Olympians, Persephone is there, but its "Hades and Persephone" or "That time Hades kidnapped Persephone" or "Persephone, wife of Hades." There is a duality to her pop culture appearance, but here, Hades is absent, and Persephone takes a central role. Why?

Let me explain.

SPOILERS AHEAD

Let's start simple. Who is Persephone? The answer to that is complicated, and thats the point. In the modern understanding, Persephone is the wife of Hades, and that's pretty much it. She's the goddess of spring (although not really). She exists in relationship to her husband and nothing else.

But mythologically, Persephone is terrifying. Her name predates Hades' in terms of archaeological evidence, and she has been equated with the name Kore, meaning "maiden" which, yes, is why that name gets referenced in stray gods. Essentially, Persephone is old, but she had a nickname that people used instead of her actual name.

My theory of this is because you don't want to say the name of a death goddess or she'll notice you, but that is mostly because OSP proposed that idea in their video, and I liked it. Check it out for more detail on Persephone.

The point that I'm going for here is that Persephone is multi faceted in nature but has been whittled down to a 2D archetype in general knowledge. And that's how she is introduced in Stray Gods, she's mean and unpleasant and fits into the "so obviously the killer that she's probably a red herring" archetype. But she gets more complex as a character the closer you look.

Anyway, let's examine this song.

The visuals are phenomenal. Take this shot, for example. Persephone stands raised above everyone else, with her symbol glowing behind her, symbolising how her influence is enormous and that this challenge will be tough. It's also colouring the rest of the room, all of the nameless NPCs are entirely lit in purple, a colour associated very clearly with Persephone. She is in control of this scene. It's also worth noting how small and indistinguishable grace is here, she fades in where Persephone stands out. Grace is weaker here. Thats some cool visual storytelling right there.

Also, The Underworld is a dope as all hell name for a club. (She's queen of the club called the underworld. So, she's queen of the underworld).

Similarly, this is cool. Its a bridge, symbolising connection, or a crossing. As Grace argues and fights with Persephone, she crosses into Persephone's world and starts to understand her more.

This shot is just cool, not much else to it. It's confronting Persephone with herself and her emotions about Calliope, cast in the colours of a sunrise as she forces Persephone to mage a choice about what to do in the future.

"If she had something to say, would you turn her away?" "Please don't do this."

This neatly shows that at this point in the song, Grace has "won". She has succeeded in the challenge, but neither combatant looks particularly happy. The reason for the victory dominates the camera, the connection has been formed because of Calliope.

"You hear that? Silence"

I am a sucker for the simple things. A blank stage with a single image on it is all you need to win my heart. This shot is my favourite in the song. It's the moment when you finally get through to Persephone, if you do that. (I'm not telling you how to get here, work that out yourself). What do you see when you finally get through all of Persephone's walls and defences? What do you hear?

Silence.

Persephone stands before you in an enormous ribcage, where the heart should be. It's overgrown, and empty, and the rest of the body has disappeared. There is just enough there to know that there is a hole, a void.

Phantom Pains sets up a metaphor of anatomy. Specifically, anatomy that has been removed or lost. And here that metaphor is again, showing the wounds at the heart of Persephone. This is a character who knows loss and trauma and betrayal, who is trapped by the memory (I wonder who else is like that).

In one ending, this area is where you get the explanation of Hades' absence. Persephone killed him.

Stray Gods is a story about family, about how, when it goes well, it can be amazing, but when it goes badly, things get dark. Of course, Persephone would be included in that story, she is part of the archetypal dysfunctional family in Greek mythology. But like the myth, this character is more complex than that. Stray Gods is also about moving past trauma, overcoming it, being more than it, and Persephone's characterisation in the entire musical embodies that philosophy.

Previous - Next

[professoruber]

Hazbin Hotel Season 1 Finale Thoughts (and a few hopes for Season 2)

Spoilers for Hazbin Hotel Season 1 Episodes 7 & 8

That finale was amazing. The season as a whole was amazing, even if it felt kinda rushed/fast-pace, which is admittedly most likely a symptom of the episode count they were given so I don't mind it too much. But still.

Anyway. the finale was great, and it does seem like its setting up quite a bit of stuff of future season(s). Between the exterminations getting cancelled, the successful fighting off of the exorcist army, and death of Adam, the deal between Charlie and Alastor, Lilith's role in all this and most of all....

MY BOY SIR PENT GOOD HIMSELF A REDEMPTION! GOOD FOR HIM!

Emily is (naturally) completely ecstatic at a sinner getting redeemed and ending up in Heaven. Sera meanwhile seems... crossed between confused, concerned and maybe a tad horrified (hard to say).

Honestly was kinda hoping for Emily to have been more involved in the finale or even go behind Sera's back to intervene in the extermination and/or help the hotel in some manner, but I suppose sneaking out to help is easier said than done.

Nonetheless; Emily is so adorable in this short scene that I don't mind her lack of presence in the finale too much.

I suppose part of my mild disappointment is a symptom of getting slightly invested in some of the theories and fanart which has been made over the past week. There's been a lot of discussion and fanart of her becoming fallen; based on her condemnation of Sera and Heaven during "You didn't know", her insistence that she'd figure something out to help Charlie and that Sera warns her of the possibility of becoming fallen.

(I've even seen it pointed out that Emily looks like she has horns here; which seems like foreshadowing so hm.)

So It does arguably feel a tad anticlimactic that Emily apparently wasn't able to do anything even after promising she'd figure something out.

So... I don't know; it did seem like they were setting up for Emily to do something but in the end she didn't really do anything. She was quite willing to very strongly call out Sera and Heaven via song, but didn't seem able to do much more considering that the Hazbin crew had to rely solely on themselves and other denizens of Hell.

But still, there's a lot of room her character in season 2 especially now that its been proven sinners can become winners.

As I noted above; Sera looks much less happy than Emily at Sir Pentious' arrival. Is this just guilt/horror that her 'necessary evil' wasn't so necessary after all? Will she change her mind or will she continue to be an antaongist?

Hard to say at this point; but considering how they spent time showing the cracks forming between the two seraphim; it feels like that probably has to build up to something?

Anyway, the hotel is definitely getting some credibility/notoriety now. Not only due to ending the exterminations and killing Adam, but also because one of their patrons did indeed get redeeemed.

On that note; if a sinner can become a winner, does that mean a winner can become a sinner? Because Adam's been committing a lot of sins in his every appearance, so much so that now that he's double dead he might go through divine judgement again and end up in hell as a sinner. In which case he could still be quite the problem (although if other demons work out who he is, he'd have a pretty massive target on his back considering all the exterminations). If Adam does become a demon, I wonder if the same would happen to the other dead exorcists? Hm.

Also there's her. Lilith.

...

Honestly right now I'm still not sure if I know enough to really make much of a judgement. She's been a mysterious and enigmatic figure from the start and the fact she's apparently been in Heaven and made a deal with Adam is... uh... I'm not sure.

Did she sell out her family/people for a life in paradise? Does she have some kind of grand plan? Are there more unseen forces/plots we don't know yet? Is she the one who owns Alastor's soul?

Who knows!

Alastor shows again he's not the all-powerful enigmatic badass he initially presented himself as. He narrowly escaped double-death at the hands of Adam and still has soul owned by another. Still, he definitely does appear to have some serious ambitions to rise in his station.

He managed to make a deal with Charlie for a favour (presumably freeing his soul?) and also talks with Rosie about how powerful Charlie is and how he'd like to be the one to guide her. So hm... I do think Alastor is aiming high, not only intending to free himself but also use Charlie as a vehicle to achieve even greater heights.

To finish off with some final few thoughts (this post ended up getting a tad bigger than I intended, but eh)...

Lucifer was great, seeing him go full King of Hell on Adam was amazing.

I mentioned it before, but Emily was adorable as always - Can't wait to see more of her, including her interactions with Sir Pent

I wonder if Sera will face any consequences now that its been shown the exterminations are not as necessary as she thought

Emily becoming fallen (either getting casted out or choosing to leave) was a really fascinating idea and I do still feel there was a bit much build up for it.

Lucifer apparently got together with Eve at some point. I'd like some more details on that.

Going to be interesting to see what kinda upheaval the finale has in Heaven and Hell; with redemption being proven and new threats likely emerging.

Even if redemption's possible, not everyone wants to be redeemed... and now that its been proven angels can be killed, that might lead to some ambitious figures (such as the Vees) making ambitious plots. Especially since Lucifer is an angel and that's why he's king (of course, Lucifer's probably not as easy to kill as exorcists).

There's other stuff I haven't really discussed, but these are my main fresh thoughts for now.

Can't wait for next season!

[ccspostagebox]

Okay I'm just going to dump my thoughts here on Spooky Month 6 and it's ending.

SPOILERS BELOW.

Alrighty. So. From what I can tell and what others have already said, it was implied that Father Gregor had become a sacrifice for The Eyes after the cult practically threw him to the wolves.

However, I feel like there might be one of possibly two ways this goes.

1. He's actually been killed off. (And why I think that might not be likely. I am a death denier at heart </3)

* Since Father Gregor is starting to uncover aspects of the town that may begin to unnerve some of the residents there, it would be wise of them to get rid of him to prevent backstabbing and to prevent suspicions of what's really going on behind the scenes.

* Nobody seems to really trust Father Gregor except Skid and Pump (even though they do seem rather hesitant to trust him as well, said trust likely majorly broken when Moloch was turned to stone/dust.). And, well, nobody is going to bat an eye about a guy they barely know, right? However, this can create issues as the residents may be suspicious of where the "random guy" has gone.

*I suspect The Eyes may have a bigger part for Father Gregor to play in the cult or in the town, yet I cannot begin to speculate what that role may be yet.

2. He has been...changed.

*I personally feel like some people focus on the more physical aspects of being "sacrificed" when it comes to this scene near the end. While being a sacrifice can mean being physically slaughtered or killed, it can also mean giving up something of extreme value to you or surrendering, which is more on the mental or emotional side of things. I feel like Father Gregor may have been harmed partially physically, yet had the most damage done with "sacrificing" his own faith to surrender to The Eyes. This would be evident in his expression and body language. He is looking into the face of what is practically a god himself. If you were in his position and saw a being in much higher power and control than you, tell me you would not be scared shitless. I guarantee most of us cannot claim as such.

* In his body language, he doesn't really appear to me as if he is offering himself up to be killed. It seems more like an act of peace. He knows he cannot win with any use of protest or violence like he did with the demonic possessions of Moloch using the residents. He is getting on his knees and opening his arms as a sign of peace, a sign of surrender. This man has seen the face of God, and is not going to risk anything by a simple wrong move or action. It looks to me more like a plea for mercy, a plea for The Eyes to have a speck of pity for him. Dude is fucking terrified, and he knows that his plea may go fully unanswered as he is left to be lamb to the slaughter.

*In this absolutely beautiful credits art in the ending, it depicts Father Gregor clearly reaching towards The Eyes, as if seeking for help or assistance before he is possibly brought to Moloch's underworld. The contrast of the cult being a "heaven" vs Moloch's underworld being clearly "hell" makes me wonder if The Eyes may actually decide to have mercy on Father Gregor. He has clearly been shown to have mercy on the misguided and naive (E.g. Skid and Pump.), yet also displays traits of being poor on judgement of whom to "save" (e.g. Bob Velseb), making them practically insane by the end of their run or course. The way Father Gregor has wings and reaches for The Eyes makes me think that perhaps The Eyes plans to make him a secondary leader or main spokesperson for the cult. After all, even though nobody knows him that much, would you not take a highly respected man of a God's word as the truth? Many people, especially the residents of the town, may be much more likely to give into the cult's demands after its been "approved" by a man of faith.

Of course, these are just my thoughts, nothing is concrete. We can only go off of the tidbits we are given so far.

[officialgleamstar]

okay, here's a long post talking about my thoughts on dungeons and daddies, s2ep45, hell or high father. obvious spoiler warning, im gonna be talking about the events of the episode, but this is going to be more outside the fourth wall focused/thinking about what the pacing says about the narrative, rather than actually talking about what happened in this episode!! also ive only listened to the episode once so if i missed anything, feel free to say so

to start immediately: i loved this episode, but i was also disappointed that ron, terry, and scary didn't get a full episode. but i was thinking about why that would be the case, and that lead me to the two reasons im speculating:

Beth felt that Scary's arc didn't necessitate a big ending and that it came to a clean closing with that scene

This episode shows the narrative divide between the Stampler family and the Close family

the first reason is mostly a timing thing. they included taylor in this episode as well because scary's conclusion didn't need the full run time, or maybe even lincoln's episode was longer than they wanted it to be and scary was supposed to be in that arc as well. the pacing was just a result of the past few episodes: scary has already confronted that she regrets how she treated terry, we've seen that a million times. ever since his death, she's confronted that fact again and again, and i think it makes sense that this episode would resolve that in a much quieter way than it could've. the stamplers have always been the family to resolve things 'the right way' - they show up for each other, they love each other unconditionally, they finish their arcs by holding one another in forgiveness. even if i wouldve loved a longer memory (though holy shit, WE SAW THE BETRAYAL ON SCREEN-- sorry not the point of this post), and i really hope we get some more with them in upcoming episodes, i did like how it was so sweetly resolved!!

and that sweetness leads into the bulk of my thoughts here: scary and taylor shared an episode because of how differently their memories went.

as soon as nicky went "i have a memory you weren't around for", i knew we were in for a fucking ROLLERCOASTER, and holy shit. the entire played out montage of glenn failing to be there for nicky, failing to be there for taylor, and in turn, taylor finally tells nicky to his face that he wasn't there for taylor either. taylor's fixation on the idea of redoing it all with time travel, because there is no other way, in his mind, to solve the rift in their relationship. "there's no fixing this." there's too much baggage, there's too much thats already been fucked up, and theres no way for them to come back from that. nicky is a grown adult. taylor is already in his teen years. they can form a relationship with their dad now, but no matter how well that goes, its never going to fix the childhood behind them that was already ruined. they do love each other, they're friends, but being friends doesnt equal a true good relationship. being friends doesnt mean you succeeded in parenting.

and now we contrast that with the stamplers. both terry junior and scary go into their relationship with their stepdads seeing him as an inferior replacement, as someone who could never truly be their dad. terry junior loved his biological dad, is literally named after him. scary's dad was so absent in her life that she doesnt know how to handle someone actually being there. they both refuse to take the replacement, until eventually, they learn that their stepdad's strength is that hes a new man. not a replacement, but his own full person, a person who loves them. ron put his life on the line for terry, time and time again, because he didnt want to be his own dad. terry showed up to all of scarys soccer matches, even when she refused to even acknowledge him, because he didnt want to be her bio dad. "you showed up." even though terry's memory is literally him using ron, it ends with ron forgiving him without a second thought. when scary apologizes to terry, terry takes her into his arms with a moment's hesitation.

the stamplers have a happy ending because even with how badly they've fucked up, they always showed up for their kids. the closes don't have a happy ending because they weren't in their kids' lives and they think being friends now fixes that. and that's why scary and taylor shared their episode, really. because it drives home the crucial difference between the two families

[ekanatsume]

I just dislike how the orv fandom is always making the ending of orv (the last scene where they open the door) and making it always like yjh gets the spotlight in being so much happy over kdj returning. And if you think about it, the only reason why hsy is the one whos mentioned the most in the last chapters of orv is bc yjh wrote it (other than the fact that she was the one whos in the last few chaps bc she was trying to tell the story of kimcom trying to cope with kdj's 'death'). Hsy is the type who never talks about her feelings, and she is the one who always felt like she wasnt that important of a person to kdj than yjh. But the thing is, to kdj, both of them were important. One was the protagonist who made him not give up and the other was the writer who kept him alive with the story (even if he didnt know that, she still was the only one person who could understand kdj and give him the feeling of reassurance bc she was the plagiarist who read wos, the same story as kdj, and could easily communicate with kdj, a bookworm who never had friends). To hsy, she probably doesn't think kdj might think of her as important (recall the "will you read my story?" question? She didn't even think kdj would think about reading it) and thats why most of orv has the relationship of kdj and yjh (bc its the story he loves with his life, and yjh is the protagonist) we never see hsy expressing that much of her feelings unless they are in important plot points and even if she does, it's always for the plot points or "kimcom loves kdj more than anything, hsy is also a part of kimcom so she loves him too".

Ive always felt like the last scene of orv where hsy runs in crying and smiling to the door felt a bit out of character, like she isnt the type to cry easily according to her scenes in orv (and i understand that shes only a human that struggled for so long to get kdj back, crying is only natural). But like the last few scenes were extremely hsy focused and that makes sense bc yjh was the one who wrote those scenes. And the fact that yjh wrote those scenes of hsy expressing her feelings and being desperate so much tells you how hsy didnt include her actual feelings in orv. And the fact that yjh wrote the "this story is only for that one reader" from hsy's viewpoint says a lot (yes i understand that its from kimcom's perspective but then again the writer was hsy). So its only natural that hsy rushed in to get that door bc (if youve read sidestories, SPOILER you just know how desperate hsy is to get back kdj) hsy has always been the one who get back kdj, whether it be destroying worlds or dooming everyone. So to see that the focus is always on yjh and kdj (as the ship) i mean i get it, its the popular ship but then again, how can you really just toss away hsy? She literally went through hell and back in every lifetime to save kdj. Not even yjh was this meticulous about kdj at first. It should be both of them being happy at getting kdj back in those fanart scenes. I just dont like it that everyone just thinks of hsy as the "bestie". Like literally both of them are besties to kdj (if i had to term it like that) it doesnt even make sense that only yjh is on it. They both went through hell and back in the last half of orv (and SPOILER in the sidestories too) along with kimcom to get back kdj. I really dont like how hsy is just thrown away bc shes the "bestie" and she shouldnt "interrupt" on the "lovers reunion" fanarts. Damn it. Yes im rambling. I could just pretend to not see it but the reason im rambling is bc there isnt enough "hsy finally getting her reader back that she desperately wanted to save for her whole life" fanarts.

[serval1863]

(clutches head and writhes around on the floor) charlotte wh is so fucking. guh. like. (chronic yapping alert + full spoilers under the cut)

you're brought up and raised under a false assumption that you're a genius, the kind who appears only once in 100 years. you're, essentially , coerced into a shady surgery leaving you in (implied) constant pain and permanently stuck with a body that's inaccurate to your mind. and you do it out of devotion because you were a child who'd been thrown away once and by fucking god you need someone, something to latch onto. so of course you'll do anything for the source of that feeling of having your life mean something. having your efforts acknowledged, and being needed. but of course, it's a lie. always was. it falls apart in front of you. should you not be useful, you'll be thrown away. and of course, that breaks you. because well, you kind of always knew that. and you're left to die, in extreme pain, alone. and then you're dead, you've lost everything, and you're forced to simmer on it in a quiet, silent hell where your sole company is unfeeling demons. and you stay in the loop, eternally, re-experiencing your death over, and over, and over.

and like, the quiet, passive hatred charlotte is written with when in the context of all of it is sooo... augh, especially with her parallel to the loud, aggressive lime. charlotte's hatred for humans is distant and nihilistic- people use each other as tools, they deceive each other, attachment is pointless because it's going to be fake anyway. everyone takes the shortest route to benefiting, regardless of who has to be used. her lines about how "kindness and forgiveness allows for evil". her repeated insistence on just killing the other three to noel. you cant trust others. you should just hate everyone, its easier. its why she, at the end, doesn't understand "love" either. because to her, it's always been deception, and something others will take advantage of, so whats the point?

and it's why she bets on ashe - he affirms everything for her. both are people who's extreme devotion to their family caused them to do anything for them, by any means necessary - to harm, to use, anything. i think, to an extent, she can see herself in him. and i think she sees herself in noel too - her hint of sympathy in the hourglass scene, urging him to just give up because it'll end poorly, like it did for her (even if in a different way).

and like, throughout the game, charlotte has this sort of snide detachment from basically everyone. constantly talks about how other people annoy her and how she wants to see as much suffering as possible. but whats always been apparent to me about her is this back and forth she has of very, very slight affection for others before immediately burying it and deciding she "doesnt care". we see it with fiona in the 4th side story in the base game, we see it with noel in the hourglass scene, we see it with claire in the bonus stage, we see it with lime constantly, especially with how she broke down after losing her (if im remembering right anyway, still gotta finish my replay of the sirius conclusion). like, she always immediately covers it up - when in presence of the other demons she claims its part of her scheme, and when not she simply acts like she doesnt actually care. but it's so constant with her that to me it has to be on purpose, and im really, really curious where it goes in future conclusions

anyway i might be wrong about everything and reading her totally wrong, but shes a character i love a lot and ive been thinking about for too long for my own good. i'll come back to this when i finish my replay of sirius's conclusion and can suffer for hours over That One Scene, lol