#i remember reading about it somewhere

[what-did-i-get-myself-into-blog]

I just randomly remembered the rumored existence of the giant Seattle polycule

[kaiserouo]

"Huh."

[lazylittledragon]

hi i'm unw el l

[inkly-heart]

please don’t be sad little sprout, you are loved 🌱 🖤

🌱

[puppyeared]

i like him

[melrosing]

a while back you mentioned bran being a fisher king type of figure if he becomes king. i am so intrigued by that concept. can you tell us more?

so full disclosure, I don't have a great deal of familiarity with Arthurian legend or British/Welsh mythology, which is what the Fisher King really draws upon, so I don't think I can say anything of real substance on this subject! i keep meaning to just sit down and swot up on this stuff but it's. not really something you can do in one sitting lol

HOWEVER i think even to a wiki peruser it's patently clear that GRRM is drawing on the Fisher King concept with Bran (as in, once you know he's doing that, you realise he isn't even trying to hide it). and I do tend to think that GRRM is more likely to stick with the top line of a myth or historical event he means to parallel rather than get lost in the minutiae - e.g. Matilda v Stephen succession crisis inspiring Rhaenyra v Aegon, the Black Dinner of 1440 inspiring the Red Wedding, this is GRRM taking the substance of an event but not the details of how it came to pass.

I'm going to guess that rather than getting into the finer details of the Fisher King mythos, GRRM is going to utilise it much like he's used Shakespeare's Richard III for Tyrion, which is another inspiration that seems painfully obvious from the moment you spot it, but is hardly lifted beat for beat, and I seriously doubt that Tyrion's story ends up anywhere like the end of RIII. but you can see GRRM taking the bits and pieces of RIII he finds interesting and twisting them for Tyrion in ASOIAF.

so with that in mind, I'm just going to quickly list the key points I can personally gather from the Fisher King myth that seem to gesture to Bran, and why I think these are probs interesting to GRRM as a writer (but as I say there are people who know lots about arthurian legend and british/welsh mythology who would probs have a lot more to say here):

the Fisher King is usually depicted as being wounded in the groin/legs/thigh - this is considered synonymous with his inability to have children and so propagate his line. immediately obvious parallel to Bran, and I think through both ASOIAF and F&B, GRRM is trying to show that ruling through dynasties where everything hinges on how the next guy's son turns out, is not a viable way to run a country. Bran will not be succeeded by children of his own blood, but I think much in the way that he himself has succeeded Bloodraven

the Fisher King is one with his land as such: his welfare is the welfare of the land, and when he takes a wound (and becomes infertile), the land too becomes barren. the Fisher King awaits a hero who will heal and restore him and so the land (but I can only imagine GRRM would subvert this - it's clear through GRRM's writing of disability that he doesn't see value in just 'curing' his characters. he wants to actually write them as disabled people). and I think there's a lot in Bran's story about man learning to respect the land he lives upon - the children and the first men's peace pact was agreed upon the grounds that the first men would essentially preserve Westeros and its weirwoods etc, and so I think it's generally agreed ASOIAF could end with a similar kind of pact to end the Long Night (or after the end of TLN)? so again, think this point is about Bran representing a renewed relationship between the lands of Westeros and its peoples - the welfare of all is tied together through him

the Fisher King is guarding the Holy Grail. im way out of my depth on this point, someone with more knowledge re. the Holy Grail needs to weigh in here lol, but I would guessssss that maybe this has something to do with Bran ending the story on the Isle of Faces, protecting the peace from there or SOMETHING idk

then the most obvious point: the Fisher King as he appears in Arthurian legend is thought to draw on the figure of Brân the Blessed, a character of Welsh mythology - which immediately recalls Bran the Broken (something Bran literally calls himself several times). the name 'Bran' also translates to crow or raven in Welsh, so, duh. and Brân the Blessed's story ends with his requesting that his head be buried on the White Hill of London - and as long as it remained there, Britain would be safe from invasion. more about Bran being tied directly to the welfare of the land and its peoples

(again there's doubtless a lot more that could be added here by someone who understands the Fisher King myth better than I do, but these seemed like the most obvious points that anyone could draw on)

anyway I absolutely take it as a given that Bran will be King at this point, and whilst it's really hard to imagine what that looks like, I do think it resonates. GRRM likes writing about dynasties but I don't think he believes in them. I'm sure he feels much the same way about feudalism, but I doubt that will be gone by the end of ASOIAF, too, so this is how I picture it??

KL: destroyed. red keep: fucked. some level of politics may continue here post-series, but I think it will no longer be the heart of westeros. the fact that it is in AGOT is I think GRRM trying to show the corruption at the heart of this country - KL is constantly described as a cesspit where the rich play their games and live and eat luxuriously directly atop the shoulders of the poor and downtrodden, divorced from what's happening in the rest of the 7K.

the new heart of Westeros will be the Isle of Faces. this is where I think Bran will end up. we don't know much about it, bc noone is able to sail there, but this was where the pact between the COF and the First Men was created, and it's one of the last places in the south where weirwoods still grow (here, in abundance). and apparently there was once a Green King of the Gods Eye?? if the Green King, of the Rivermen, is in any way the role Bran will soon be occupying, maybe this is where his Tully heritage is somehow relevant. and also like 'god's eye', Bran's whole thing is about learning to see all, so. likely place for him to be. ultimately, I don't think Bran will remain in Winterfell; the story is supposed to be about unity I think, and not northern exceptionalism, so a remaining Stark sibling will take up that seat and as I said before, I tend to think that will be Sansa.

and I guess the most I can imagine beyond this point is Bran living alongside the COF (perhaps in the company of Meera idk?), functioning less as a political entity and more as a figurehead, perhaps an oracle, who lives for the welfare of his people. there will still be politicians to run the country, but they will be guided by Bran in some way, and like Bloodraven, Bran will choose his own successor. what the intricacies of any of this look like i have no idea, but this really does sound to me like the start of GRRM's answer to all his concerns re. dynasties and corruption etc etc

sorry this was all garbled as hell but this is basically what the Fisher King endgame means to me for now. in short, not a whole lot that I can make sense of but I like the feel of it, I think it's consistent with the themes of the text and suggests the start of real change at the end of the story, rather than the start of yet another dynasty.

[baylardian-1]

i think about kathryn in a prison escape situation with chakotay while shes in heat for the first time like a normal amount

[irregularbillcipher]

the "paul is richie's uncle" headcanon is really cute but i really love it in tandem with the idea that ted is surprisingly involved in his little brother's life while paul is more just vaguely fond of his nephew, but doesn't really know all that much about his friends or his day-to-day life

like, the idea of ted knowing all his geeky little brother's friends really well, like letting them chill in his apartment every now and then to watch movies or driving them home when they have their stupid library study sessions or whatever is already pretty fun, just the idea that the Local Bastard has accidentally and begrudgingly been saddled with these two loser highschoolers because they're his little brother's dweebus friends that he doesn't want to admit he has a soft spot for, but it's made doubly funny if paul just has no idea that his nephew's best friend is the little brother of the Worst Guy In His Office. ted comes over to paul's desk one day with a stack of dog-eared manga like "pete forgot to take these this morning, so you give 'em back to richie for me, okay? also, ruth's right, stein and spirit are definitely fucking and i want him to stop fighting with her about it when i pick 'em up from the library" and paul is just like. okay. i have several questions about this.

[sarafangirlart]

I actually think we’ve grown past the need for child friendly Greek mythology adaptations, I’m sick of ppl adapting Heracles and then brushing off the fact that Zeus raped and impregnated Alcmene then boasted about it in front of Hera, only to then proceed to make Zeus a more sympathetic character than her, even tho Hera’s anger is completely justified, only heavily misdirected.

[silkjade-archived]

i haven’t been here much recently, and i’m sorry i’ve only been negative on the off chance i’ve been online, but let me just say one last piece before the end of this month, so that maybe the next might be better….

[seleneprince]

(Inspired by @chaoticdelinqueerwithglitter drabble about Bonten and Senju's possible impact in it. Check her blog if you want to see more about the Akashi siblings)

In the Bonten timeline, Senju was shot dead with three bullets, during the Three Deities Fight. In one she was attacked by desesperate Rokuhara members who couldn't handle their defeat, in another the bullets were aimed at Takemichi and so she shielded him with her own body, sacrificing her life.

Either way, the fact remains that, in any universe where Bonten exists, Senju Kawaragi is dead in it.

In the first version, it was her long-lost brother Haruchiyo who rushes to her side as soon as she falls, ignoring the fight and Mikey and everything else around him. He's the one that holds her on her final moments, who cries as she apologies to him and says that she never stopped loving him. He screams, rages, sobs, but he doesn't let go of Senju's body one second. When Takeomi cries in front of him, murmuring how it's his fault and how it should've been him, Haruchiyo feels a murderous rage boil in his heart and replies "You're right".

In the second version, it's Takemichi who holds Senju when she dies. She speaks of the promise she made to protect him and how she fulfilled it to the end. She bleeds out in his arms and Takemichi feels how the world becomes darker after she leaves. She's already dead when Haruchiyo reaches her, shoving the other boy away to hold her. Her skin is growing cold and her eyes are closed and Haruchiyo knows that he's going to be stuck in this moment for the rest of his life. He calls for her, shakes her, desesperately wanting to see some reaction, something that indicates there's still hope. Nothing happens. Everything else happens the same, except now Haruchiyo's eternal resentment its focused on two people and not just one.

South is killed, beaten to death by Mikey, who refuses to look at Senju's body. Haruchiyo hunts all Rokuhara members one by one, ensuring the ones that killed Senju have a very slow and painful demise. Brahman is disbanded and those who aren't too traumatized by their former leader's death join Kanto Manji's lines, and eventually Bonten. Benkei and Wakasa leave the world of gangs for good, unable to look past Senju's memory now.

In Bonten, Sanzu doesn't hide his hatred for Takeomi. He never forgave him for how he treated him in his youth, but now he has a much bigger reason to resent him. They don't talk, and when they do, it's all insults and threats. Takeomi avoids Sanzu like the plague, not because he's scared, but because looking at him feels like looking at a ghost. The same pink hair, the same long eyelashes, even the same eye color. It's all too much for Takeomi.

With Sanzu it depends. Sometimes he can't even look at his reflection, the too familiar features always sending him into a spiral of grief and mad pain. Sometimes he can stare into a mirror for hours, because painful as it is, at least he can pretend the one looking back at him it's someone else. How twisted that all that remains of her it's in his own face.

Takeomi can't bring himself to sell their childhood house, even if no one lives there anymore. Being there became too painful after Senju's death so of course he moved, but losing this house will also mean losing all the memories that remain in there. Senju's former room it's the only one untouched since she left. Everything else has been fixed for other uses, like stocking supplies for Bonten, but everyone knows that particular room with sakura flowers painted in the door must be ignored. Sanzu once caught one of their newest additions trying to get a look inside and ripped his eyes off, before shooting him dead. All of it after he dragged the poor fool out of the house first, of course.

Sanzu can't stand the sounds of gunshots anymore, unless it's him who's shooting the bullets. He also hates the rain and can't even set a foot in the streets when it happens. He visits Senju's grave when he can, preferably on a sunny day, and talks to her about his day. He makes sure his visits don't overlap with Takeomi, but if they accidentally do, it's the only time the two brothers coexist in silence.

Senju's ghost never leaves them. Sanzu can only hope that, whatever awaits for him in death, he at least gets to see her once again.

[randomnameless]

Re about Cat :

In Nopes she complains because her dad asks her to lend CoS troops, instead of asking Dimitri or Rhea herself...

But unless Count Charon is as dumb as Leopold, he knows pretty well Cat isn't the one who can lend him Church soldiers.

Of course Fodlan dgaf about non students characters, especially if they are affiliated to the Church, but I wondered, maybe Count Charon didn't want to ask Rhea herself to lend him some troops because he has a strange relationship with her -

Rhea is, after all, the one who welcomed his daughter when she was hunted by the Kingdom and the reason she's alive, Dad!Charon, whatever was his position during the "Cassandra hunt" wasn't the one who protected his daughter, Rhea was.

Maybe he feels already to indebted to her to even ask her, in person, for more soldiers?

As for Dimitri...

I always found it disappointing how both game never explored more Cat's backstory, ffs if Faerghus was "feudal uwu", the Crown (even if it was during Rufus' regency) ordered Cat's death, she was branded a traitor and someone who commited regicide ffs.

What was happening with House Charon at that time, were they happily going to give their daughter to the crown, when Catherine was the presumptive major crested heir, to have her executed? When the entire Kingdom branded her a traitor and had her name besmirched, was House Charon totes okay with, you know, the accusations that their precious heir participated in the plot to kill Lambert?

Lonato throws a fit because Christophe was executed by the Church, but Lonato is only Rowe's bannerman - Charon is one of the major Houses in the Kingdom, wouldn't they have thrown a "larger" fit if the crown wanted to execute their heir??

Or maybe that could fell in the larger "the Kingdom was in chaos" thing - House Charon might have been "this" close to rebel against the Crown ?

In a way, it might explain why Garreg Mach wasn't visited by the Kingdom's forces asking Rhea to hand Cassandra over if the crown's forces had to cross Charon territory to reach Garreg Mach...

So in with this BG, it would make perfect sense why Count Charon wouldn't ask Dimitri for more soldiers (granted we're talking about Church soldiers?) - Charon is still a loyal bannerman who fights for Faerghus, but his trust in the crown would have been severed, and it's up to Dimitri to rebuild that bond.

[basket-of-radiants]

Ok hi!!!! I love all your takes on the characters and it's rlly interesting! I also think moash is a very nuanced and fascinating character. I'm kinda mad at him after he tried to convince Kal to k!ll himself but I think he's a great charcter with lots of depth and your pinned post was so interesting because it said so much about moash! Anyway sorry bye!!!

Hello!!! Thank you!! I apologize for inflicting that post on you, but I'm glad you read/enjoyed it! ty for letting me know <3<3<3

[reflectismo]

INT: How much singing and composing did you witness [in India]?

PS: I didn't see much, because they did that kind of thing mostly at night. So I only ever saw or was part of that one session that I photographed. I was walking back to my tent late one afternoon before dinner, and I just heard John and Paul singing from behind the trees. And I walked over and saw what they were doing, and I went and got my camera, which is the only time I took my camera out on purpose. So I took a few shots through the fence, then I walked through and just sat down, with Paul and John side by side, and just hung out. Paul had a piece of paper with the words, "Ob-la-di, Ob-la-da, oh, how the life goes on," and it was on the step beneath him. The first picture in the book is the shot of him looking down and his hand is off the guitar, and he's reading the words, which he didn't have memorized yet. And they just played with it for about five minutes, having a wonderful time fooling around. It was such fun, I mean them having so much fun. When I first sat down, they were actually just playing bits and fragments of their older songs.

INT: Previously recorded material?

PS: Yeah, like Michelle and Eleanor Rigby. Just musically meandering. Then Paul started looking down at the piece of paper and I took a picture.

INT: Was George around?

PS: No. But Ringo was siting there with his leg crossed, a cigarette in his hand. So after they had played Ob-La-Di, Ob-la-Da over and over again, they stopped for a breather, and that's when Paul looked up at me, smiled, and with this really wonderful twinkle in his eye, said, "That's all there is so far, we haven't got the words yet." So that was the only time I experienced it.

INT: That's interesting because Lennon had stated in many interviews that he and McCartney had really stopped composing together in late '64 or early '65, but Paul said in his recent book that they actually composed together right to the end. So what you witnessed reinforces Paul's version.

PS: That is interesting. And they were having so much fun together. There's no question about it.

— Interview with Paul Saltzman (Beatlology Magazine, January/February 2001 Edition)

[terrainofheartfelt]

"DAUGHTER" is such a SONG and I have not gotten over how Beyonce just wove in a 17th century Italian aria?

so like the thing about "Caro mio ben," is that practically every novice vocalist learns to sing it. it's from these anthologies that a 2X Italian Songs and Arias and every voice student learns at least 2 or 3 of these because they are certified good pedagogical tools for learning vocal technique. which means every single person who studied voice (classical or musical theater or just took some voice lessons in high school) has heard this aria.

and it is a pretty little song. it's nice to sing. I learned it when i was a college freshman and learning how to use my instrument. and i am just obsessed that Beyonce Knowles Carter has absolutely taken the same kind of training (because she wouldn't still be wailing if she didn't) learned this little Italian aria from some long forgotten opera by some long forgotten composer, and decided that she liked it so much she would throw it in her country album, and in her country album's MURDER track.

like, she took two of the best women country Genre Songs: Goodbye Earl & Jolene, and merged them to create GOODBYE JOLENE, and she just peppered in this Italian. which may be a reference to "choir boys and altars" but "Caro mio ben" is entirely secular and not sacred at all, which makes it a curious choice, especially since she's used Schubert's Ave Maria in one of her songs before! ("Ave Maria" on I Am Sasha Fierce). actually the text of Caro mio ben roughly translates to

Believe me, my love, when we're apart from each other, my heart languishes. I am faithful to you but I'm always sighing, cease being cruel! it's too much pain!

so it's less about evoking holiness and more about the emotional depth behind the story this and the couple songs preceding it are telling. like!!! crimes of passion! yeehaw! italian!!! she did that!

Queen B is nuts and a classical music girlie and I love her for this. ARTISTE!!!!!

[itsme-inbooks]

I'm here to remember you guys about the existence of Carrie, the forgotten Robin.